Fabian's Reviews > Candida

Here: three distinct attitudes towards marriage. Alas, this is not as good as the outstanding "Arms and the Man," nor, for that matter, the tepid "Mrs. Warren's Profession." It's regarded as "brilliantly plotted"; with one, or perhaps THE, most masterfully-plotted play. Ever. Also, it was what Shaw considered to be his favorite. But I was not moved by Candida. Perhaps it is the title that is to blame--being so closely related to that favorite of mine, Voltaire's "Candide" my expectations were... different. Still, I might write a paper correlating the two--as dissimilar as they are from each other. The love triangle takes too much precedence; the peripheral characters are not too funny nor interesting. Really, "the mystery" (which is the play's very odd and strange subtitle) is why this is regarded as one of his best.