Mrs. Warren's Profession (Annotated‪)‬

Mrs. Warren's Profession is a drama written by George Bernard Shaw in 1893, and first performed in London in 1902. The title refers to prostitution.


The play focuses on the relationship between Mrs Kitty Warren and her daughter, Vivie. Mrs. Warren, a former prostitute and current brothel owner, is described as "on the whole, a genial and fairly presentable old blackguard of a woman." Vivie, an intelligent and pragmatic young woman who just graduated from college, has come home to get acquainted with her mother for the first time in her life.  The play focuses on how their relationship changes when Vivie learns what her mother does for a living. It explains why Mrs. Warren became a prostitute, condemns the hypocrisies relating to prostitution, and criticizes the limited employment opportunities available for women in Victorian Britain.


This edition has been formatted for your reader, with an active table of contents.  It has also been annotated, with extensive additional information about the play and its author, including an overview, plot information, characters, origin, performance history, adaptations, biographical and bibliographical information.