Miss. Neville and Miss. Hardcastle in She Stoops To Conquer
Constance Neville and Kate Hardcastle are two contrasted pictures of young womanhood of the middle class society of the 18Th century. According to Collins, "the personality of Kate Hardeastle is emphasised by contrast with Constance Neville." As compared with Kate, Neville is a pale, colourless creation. Kate dominates the action from beginning to end. She leads the man of her heart as she wills. Neville plays an insignificant and passive role except towards the close of the play. She is led by the man of her heart. To speak the truth, Neville is a foil to Kate.
Kate Hardcastle and Constance Neville are cousins. They live under the same roof. Miss Neville is an orphan and lives with her aunt Mrs. Hardcastle. Kate has both her parents alive and is the apple of her father's eye. Neville is at the mercy of her aunt, and she must marry Tony, otherwise she would lose her fortune which is largely in the form of jewellery. Both are young and charming. But Neville is less beautiful than her cousin. Her beauty cannot captivate even a village Youngman like Tony who is rather attracted by Bet Bouncer.
Kate as well as Constance stoops to win the man of her heart. Kate stoops to conquer by lowering her social position while Constance stoops to conquer Hastings by lowering her moral sense. Kate pretends first to be barmaid and then a poor relation of the Hardcastles to catch Marlow. Miss Neville pretends to be in love with Tony to delude her aunt into giving her the jewels.
Kate is woman of intellect.- "like an invisible champion of romances she examines the giant's force before she offers to combat." Unlike Constance she is not subject to emotional fluxes. She does not respond to Marlow's call for a kiss, as her cousin does to Hastings call for elopement. She is not hesitating girl as Constance is. She does not change her decision under circumstances. In the face of her father's insistence she does not agree to revise her first impression of Marlow. On the other hand, Constance now agrees to elope without her jewels and then refuses to do so unless she gets her jewels.
Both are romantic and are in love, but Kate is much more active than Constance in their respective love affairs. Kate, intelligent and shrewd, takes the initiative, chases, woos and wins the object of her heart's desire. She thus plays, shrewdly and effectively, a very difficult role as a bar-maid. She has a determination, "I'll still preserve the character in which I stooped to conquer." The role of Neville is not active. She is courted and won by her lover who also works out the plan of their elopement.
Miss Hardcastle is romantic, lively and inventive, but Miss Neville is practical and materialistic. Kate can tackle her own situation by her resourcefulness but Miss Neville depends first on Tonny and then on Mr. Hardcastle for winning her husband. Kate has wit and womanliness- intellect and emotion combined. She reminds of Rosalind and Viola. Kate holds the front of the stage while Constance remains a background figure and serves as a foil to her more active cousin.