As we go through life many choices are presented to us. How we response to those situations, and how we allow those circumstances to affect us defines our lives. In George Bernard Shaw's play "Mrs. Warren's Profession," we look inside the lives of two characters and the choices they make to survive. As we unfold this story and expose certain lines, one can see into the souls of Mrs. Warren and her daughter Vivie. Shaw describes their upbringing very differently but in all light we can truly see how they are more alike than one would think. They are the same person struggling to fit in a world that has dissimilar opinions about their lifestyles and actions. As the first act begins we are introduced to Vivie, a modern day woman with a highly respectable education. From the first few lines Shaw expose's Vivie's views on tradition women's roles by making her very masculine and straight forward. He writes in the side note, "She proffers her hand and takes his with a resolute and hearty grip. She is an attractive specimen of the sensible, able, highly-educated young middle-class Englishwoman."" From this first glance we see that Vivie has more of an unconventional look at life, work, and money than most tradition women. She wants to live her life by her rules and support herself the best way she can, but in doing so she has lost the need for love and romance. .
With Vivie's modern day thinking she has no need for romance or love. Her unconventional ways keep her thriving for more adventure. She is happy supporting herself by working hard and earning money, "Oh yes I do. I like working and getting paid for it. When I'm tired of working, I like a comfortable chair, a cigar, a little whisky, and a novel with a good detective story in it" (Act I). She is speaking to Praed in this line as he disapproves of her lack of feelings for art and passion. Vivie supports this line even further when she talks about a trip she took and how the nights were spent, "In the evenings we smoked and talked, and never dreamt of going out except for exercise.
