Arden of Faversham

Cuckold’s horns are a symbol of infidelity both in Arden of Faversham and in early modern English culture more widely. Almost always, the horns are associated with a male character whose wife is unfaithful, which is a source of public humiliation and emasculation.

It is unclear whether Arden is more emotionally upset by his wife’s infidelity or being perceived as a cuckold. In Scene 4, Arden laments Alice’s infidelity to his companion Franklin. He says, “At home or not at home, where’er I be, / Here, here it lies, ah, Franklin, here it lies” (4.31-32). Depending on the actor’s interpretation, Alice’s infidelity lays heavily “here,” on either his heart or on his head, where a cuckold horn would grow. Different physical motions by the actor can style Arden more as a loving husband or as a social climber who is most concerned with the social repercussions of being cuckolded.

When Alice and Mosby prepare to taunt Arden by locking arms, Alice calls Arden “my husband Hornsby” (12.68), indicating that she is aware of Arden’s fear of being cuckolded. Mosby then taunts Arden openly about having cuckold’s horns: “the horns are thine” (13.