# Mrs. Margery Pinchwife — The Country Wife character guide

> Mrs. Margery Pinchwife in The Country Wife by William Wycherley.

**Role:** major

**Also known as:** Pinchwife, Mrs. Pinchwife

**First appearance:** 0005-act-i

## Snapshot

A country bride who has never seen a play or a gallant, and whose hungry curiosity makes her husband's jealous cage the most dangerous place in London.

## Who they are

Margery arrives in London fresh from the country, kept so close by her husband that she asks her sister-in-law a thousand times a day what the town is like. Her innocence is real but restless: she cries at a cross word, then wonders aloud why there are no playermen in the country, and admits she likes them finer than her own bud. Pinchwife's frantic efforts to keep her ignorant only sharpen her appetite for everything he forbids, making her the play's most unpredictable and most watched wife.

## Relationships

### [Sir Jasper Fidget](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_country_wife_se/characters/sir_jasper_fidget)

_social_

Margery and Sir Jasper are acquaintances in the social circle of London, with Sir Jasper acting as a guardian figure over the ladies.

### [Alithea](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_country_wife_se/characters/alithea)

_family_

Alithea is Margery's sister-in-law, married to Margery's brother, and tries to guide the naive country wife in London society.

### [Mr. Harcourt](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_country_wife_se/characters/mr_harcourt)

_social_

Harcourt interacts with Margery as a friend of her brother-in-law and as part of Horner's circle, finding her amusingly naive.

### [Lady Fidget](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_country_wife_se/characters/lady_fidget)

_rivalry_

Lady Fidget is jealous and competitive with Margery over Horner's attention, viewing her as a naive rival.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_country_wife_se/characters/mrs_margery_pinchwife
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_country_wife_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_country_wife_se/characters