The country wife by author William Wycherley is a satirical comedy that reflects the restoration period in England. The restoration refers to the re-establishment of the English Monarchy in 1660 and at the beginning of the 18th century. The book was written in the year 1675.

The book represents the upper-class drama and the anti- Puritan ideology. It deals with concupiscence, extramarital affairs, and duplicity. The book is considered one of the most significant restoration comedies in English literature.

The story starts with Horner, a male protagonist, who pretends to be impotent after treatment, to woo the married ladies of the upper class. Horner believed that fear of reputation or any scandal keeps the women away from debauchery. [Act I, Scene 1, lines 151-43; p. 197 ]

The story shows how from a stained reputation, Horner soon becomes popular among the company of married women of the upper class. It describes the first plot of the story.

The second plot of the story presents Margery, also known as the country wife. Margery has visited London with his man Mr. Pinchwife to enjoy London and marry her sister-in-law Alithea.

Margery is a young woman married to the older man Mr. Pinchwife. However, Margery was restricted from going out and meeting any men and women of rank. This is because Mr. Pinchwife is a man of debauchery, and he did not want to be cuckolded by his wife, Margery. He married Margery because she was innocent and she couldn't cuckold him. [Act I, Scene 1, lines 388-90; p. 203]

However, in the end, Mr. Pinchwife's debauchery is revealed by Horner, and Margery gives upon him. Mr. Pinchwife was nicely aware of Horner's character and reputation. He tried to keep Margery away from him, but in the end, Horner cuckolds Pinchwife and successfully woos the country's wife, Margery. This is the third plot of the story.

The author William Wycherley presented the society where there is no one love, and now deception and debauchery have become the new trends in society. Wycherley also tried to show the dynamics and reality of marriage in the modern era of restoration. Weddings are no longer meant for love and trust anymore. Marriages are now all about status, money, and class. Mr. Pinchwife's sister Alithea has to marry Sparkish due to the condition - her status in society. Status and reputation have made her conditioned to tie knots with Sparkish and left her with no other choice. This shows marriage being a commodity and a business proposition.

Wycherley also brought out the subject of women treated as a commodity in a marriage. Women in a marriage are treated as property and assets, and men are dominant over a woman in a marriage.

Mr. Pinchwife locking Margery in her room and restricting her to go out and talk to men gives us the evidence of how Mr. Pinchwife dominated Margery in the marriage and how Margery is treated as a property that has no freedom to obstruct his dominance. Not only this, the marriage condition of Jasper and Fidget is also a clear example of a man's dominance and strives for women to live on their terms. This also showed how women in marriage are expected to be loyal to their partners, but on the other side, men can do whatever they want. This idea of marriage in society degrades the morals and character of a man and makes women victims of the ideology.

The story also talks about female hypocrisy through the character of Lady Fidget. Lady Fidget, the wife of Jasper Fidget, pretends to be a highly promiscuous woman in front of society, but in private, her acts make her equal to Horner.

She detested the word 'naked' in front of her husband, but in reality, she is a reprobate. The China scene context and her words like toiling and moiling define her as a waggish and an unscrupulous woman in reality. She slurs Horner for his character in public, but in private, she is infatuated by Horner and ends up sleeping with him. Lady Fidget and her virtuous gang call themselves the woman of honor, but in reality, this is just another extreme irony in the story[Act II, Scene 1, p. 217]. However, Lady Fidget is shown as a sympathetic character at the end of the story who indulged in sex with other men for taking revenge on his partner.

The author depicts the structure and ideology of the restoration society here. Debauchery, exuberance, and eroticism are encouraged in men, while chastity and morality are demanded from women. However, the author also brings out the subject of female hypocrisy in the upper class of society and how they use reputation and honor as their play cards to hide their insanity in the community.

The book also talks about Men's libertinism through Horner's character. Horner faking about his sexual impotence after treatment to persuade women to have affairs with him, so that he can fulfill his sexual gratification is a clear example of Horner being a libertine who sees a woman as a sexual conquest. He is a kind person who can quickly put his reputation at stake to fulfill his sexual desires and does not care about society's norms. This describes hedonism and perversion of men's ideology in society.

Nevertheless, Horner also abhorred women and professed to be a eunuch. His abhorrence towards women may be partially true, but in reality, his real intent was to unmask women and reveal they are scandalous in nature. His language and hostility clearly show his intentions here.