A Blot in the 'Scutcheon

Robert Browning wrote a total of nine plays, most of which were not intended for performance. His interest was primarily in character rather than plot and action and the works were not met with much success. "A Blot on the 'Scutcheon" is the tragic tale of the infraction of social rules and expectations of the aristocracy. The sister of an aristocrat becomes engaged to her lover, a nobleman. When her brother learns that the two are already lovers, he challenges the nobleman to duel and kills him, his sister eventually dies of grief, and he then commits suicide.