“A corpse can be revived,” says Frank Hunter to Andrew Crocker-Harris in Terence Rattigan’s one-act play, The Browning Version . Andrew is a martyr because he refuses to assert himself where required. He knows that his wife, Millie, is unfaithful to him. In fact she enjoys taunting him by telling him about her affairs with his colleagues. Andrew continues to tolerate her because he thinks divorcing her would be “another grave wrong” he would do to her. What’s the other wrong he had done her? Frank asks. “To marry her,” answers Andrew. Andrew and Millie are total mismatches. Millie is sensuous and earthy. Andrew is intellectual and ethereal. “Two kinds of love,” Andrew explains. “Worlds apart as I know now, though when I married her I didn’t think they were incompatible.” Andrew wanted affection and companionship, the emotional delights of love. Millie wanted the physical delights. Andrew thought th...
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