Summary Of Lillian Hellman's Play The Little Foxes

The title for Lillian Hellman’s play The Little Foxes came from the Song of Solomon 2.15. The quote says, “Take us the foxes, the little foxes that spoil the vines, for our vines have tender grapes.” This quote applies very well to the play. One possible reading is the foxes are the Hubbard siblings, and the grapes are wealth; the vines could be considered to be anyone that the Hubbards intend to use in order to get the wealth they desire. One way the Hubbard siblings spoil the vine is marrying for money. For instance, Oscar did not marry Birdie for love. Instead, Oscar married Birdie for her family’s cotton. Afterwards, Oscar ignored Birdie. She drank to handle her depression. In this case, Birdie would be the vine. The tender grapes would