36 pages 1 hour read

William Inge

Picnic

Fiction | Play | Adult | Published in 1953

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Act IIIChapter Summaries & Analyses

Act III, Scene 1 Summary

After midnight, Howard escorts Rosemary to the porch. Rosemary seems distracted, and Howard implies that they had sex, possibly for the first time. Howard kisses her goodnight, but Rosemary pleads with him not to leave her. He worries about gossip, but she doesn’t care. Howard tells her that they can talk on Saturday, but Rosemary doesn’t believe she’ll see him again. She reminds him that he promised to marry her and hasn’t followed through. Howard seems as if he’ll give in but then says that he needs to think about it. He promises to call in the morning. Rosemary stares at the sky for a moment as if praying and then goes inside.

Hal and Madge drive up in Alan’s car, and he walks her quietly to her door. Hal plans to park somewhere and sleep in the car since he can’t go back to Alan’s house after running off with Madge. He starts his new job in the morning and asks if he will see Madge tomorrow, but she says that she doesn’t know. She also has no answer as to what she will say to her mother. Hal worries that she might not want to be with someone who does manual labor, but Madge tells him not to be silly.

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By William Inge