The School for Scandal recap

Lady Sneerwell and the outwardly virtuous Joseph Surface spread a false story to separate Charles Surface from Maria: Sneerwell wants Charles, while Joseph wants Maria and her fortune. At the same time, newly married Sir Peter and Lady Teazle quarrel over money and society, and Lady Teazle flirts with the idea of an affair with Joseph. Sir Oliver Surface returns from abroad and tests his nephews in disguise. Charles, though indebted and reckless, refuses to sell his uncle's portrait and proves generous; Joseph refuses help to a supposed poor relation. In Joseph's library, Lady Teazle hides behind a screen while Sir Peter hides in a closet, and Charles's arrival leads to the screen's fall. Joseph's hypocrisy is exposed, and Lady Teazle repents after hearing Sir Peter's love for her. Sir Oliver reveals himself, Snake confesses that Lady Sneerwell's evidence against Charles was fabricated, Charles is reconciled with Maria and his uncle, and the Teazles restore their marriage.

Lady Sneerwell and her agent Snake discuss their campaign of manufactured gossip. Sneerwell wants Charles Surface and therefore intends to break his attachment to Maria; Charles's brother Joseph cooperates because he wants to marry Maria and obtain her fortune. Joseph enjoys a public reputation for morality that conceals his part in the scheme. Maria, Sir Peter Teazle's ward, remains loyal to Charles despite reports of his extravagance. Sir Peter complains to Rowley about his own recent marriage: his young wife has embraced costly London fashion and now argues with him constantly. Rowley brings news that Sir Oliver Surface, the brothers' wealthy uncle, has returned after years abroad. Because reports describe Joseph as virtuous and Charles as ruined, Sir Oliver will have an opportunity to judge them for himself.

Sir Peter and Lady Teazle quarrel over her spending and social life, each turning the dispute into a contest of wit. Lady Teazle has joined Lady Sneerwell's circle, where Mrs. Candour, Crabtree, and Sir Benjamin Backbite circulate attacks on absent people while pretending reluctance or concern. Maria is disgusted by the group's cruelty. Joseph cultivates Sir Peter's confidence and presents himself as a prudent friend, even while pursuing Maria and encouraging Lady Teazle's interest in him. Sir Oliver hears sharply conflicting accounts of his nephews. Rowley proposes that he visit Charles disguised as a moneylender named Premium and later approach Joseph as their poor relation Stanley, allowing each man to respond without knowing that his inheritance is being decided.

With the moneylender Moses as guide, Sir Oliver visits Charles under the name Premium. Charles is drinking with companions and proposes raising money by auctioning the family portraits, treating the disguised uncle as a buyer of his expected inheritance. The scene confirms Charles's recklessness, but he refuses to sell Sir Oliver's portrait at any price because he retains affection for the uncle he has not seen for years. After receiving money from Premium, Charles directs part of it to the supposed impoverished Stanley. Sir Oliver is angered by the sale of the ancestors but moved by Charles's loyalty and generosity. Meanwhile Joseph continues to appear respectable to Sir Peter while privately maneuvering toward both Maria and Lady Teazle.

Lady Teazle visits Joseph's library for a private meeting, uncertain how far she intends their flirtation to go. Sir Peter arrives unexpectedly, so she hides behind a screen. He confides to Joseph that he plans to provide generously for his wife and worries that Joseph may be her lover, unaware that she can hear him. Charles then arrives. To keep the brothers apart, Joseph hides Sir Peter in a closet, but Charles discovers him and begins joking about Joseph's supposed relationship with Lady Teazle. During the confusion the screen falls, revealing her. Sir Peter sees Joseph's hypocrisy and leaves devastated. Lady Teazle, moved by what she overheard of her husband's love, rejects Joseph's excuses and declares that she has learned the difference between fashionable intrigue and genuine feeling.

Sir Oliver next appears to Joseph as the poor relation Stanley. Joseph refuses meaningful help despite his reputation for charity and then becomes entangled in lies when the supposed Premium and Stanley are discussed together. Sir Oliver reveals his identity after the disguises have exposed both nephews: Charles is financially irresponsible but loyal and generous, while Joseph's principles are a performance. Sir Peter and Lady Teazle reconcile after she renounces Joseph and the scandalous circle. Lady Sneerwell tries one final time to prevent Maria from marrying Charles, calling on Snake to verify the false claim that Charles is pledged to her. Snake instead admits that the story was fabricated. Sneerwell and Joseph leave exposed, Sir Oliver accepts Charles as his heir, and Maria is free to marry Charles. The Teazles' marriage survives with affection made clearer by the crisis.

The screen incident destroys Joseph Surface's reputation for virtue: Sir Peter has heard Joseph pursue Lady Teazle, and Lady Teazle has heard her husband speak with genuine affection and generosity. She rejects Joseph and reconciles with Sir Peter. Sir Oliver's disguises then complete the comparison of his nephews. Joseph had refused aid to the supposed poor relation Stanley and tried to manage away the consequences, whereas debt-ridden Charles treated the supposed lender Premium recklessly but preserved Sir Oliver's portrait and sent money to help Stanley. Sir Oliver reveals himself and accepts Charles as his heir. Lady Sneerwell makes a final attempt to stop Charles's marriage to Maria by producing Snake to support a false story, but Snake admits the fabrication. Joseph and Lady Sneerwell are exposed, Charles and Maria are free to marry, and Sir Peter and Lady Teazle resume their marriage with greater mutual understanding. The scandal circle loses this contest even though gossip itself is unlikely to disappear.