a creature in the whole country but ourselves that does not take a trip to town now and then to rub off the rust a little This shows her boredom with country life and her attraction to London fashions Through Mr and Mrs Hardcastle Goldsmith shows how th-century England was divided between old rural values and new urban fashion Class Consciousness and Snobbery th-century English society was deeply class-conscious People were very careful about rank and social position This is clearly shown when Marlow and Hastings mistake Hardcastle s house for an inn Because of this mistake Marlow treats Mr Hardcastle like a servant He speaks rudely to him Hastings even mocks Hardcastle by saying His uncle a colonel We shall soon hear of his mother being a justice of the peace This line shows social snobbery and the habit of looking down on people of lower status Love Marriage and Money Marriage in th-century England was closely connected with money and property not only love This is clearly shown in the case of Constance Neville Mrs Hardcastle wants Constance to marry Tony so that her jewels remain in the family Love is less important to her than wealth However Goldsmith also shows a changing idea of marriage through Kate and Marlow Kate believes love should be sincere and says A reserved lover always makes a suspicious husband In the end Kate and Marlow marry because of love and understanding It shows that society was slowly moving toward marriage based on mutual respect Mistakes Deception and Comedy Another important feature of th-century society was the love of comedy and amusement The play is full of mistakes and tricks Tony Lumpkin enjoys playing jokes He misleads Marlow and Hastings and later tricks his mother into thinking they are lost in a dangerous place These comic mistakes present a society that enjoyed laughter At the same time Goldsmith uses humor to correct social faults like pride and arrogance Position of Women The play also shows the position of women in th-century England Women were expected to marry well and behave properly Mrs Hardcastle is obsessed with fashion and marriage Constance s future is controlled by her guardian However Kate Hardcastle represents a new type of woman She is intelligent confident and practical She uses disguise to understand Marlow s true nature Marlow praises modesty and ays A modest man can never counterfeit impudence Kate proves this true by revealing Marlow s real goodness Through Kate Goldsmith shows that women could be clever and independent even within social limits In fine She Stoops to Conquer clearly reflects th-century English society Through its story characters and gentle humor the play shows country and city life class differences marriage customs love of money and the position of women Thus the play gives us a lively picture of the world of th-century England