The play is a comedy in the genre of literary realism and tells the story of a chance encounter between a young woman, Constance, and a man whom she mistakes for her ex lover, Bartlett.

Howells uses comedy to reveal the deeper issue of the plight of unmarried middle and upper-class women in the 19th century.

As Bartlett is cursing all women and voicing his anger toward the entire female race, Cummings tries to cheer his friend up.

He tells him the story of a girl who is still miserable about a break up that happened two years ago in hopes to prove to Bartlett that women do, indeed, have hearts.

As a result of this unfortunate discovery, General Wyatt forced this man to end all relations with Constance, leaving her absolutely miserable and harboring a great deal of resentment towards her father, which has lasted for the past two years.

Constance is an extremely dramatic young woman—she loves to cause a scene and is constantly seeking the undivided attention of all those around her.

Before her relationship fell apart, Constance believed that the man she met in Paris was to be her husband and she had finished the race to matrimony.

She enjoys to pity herself in front of others and frequently tells her mother that she feels as though she is an evil vampire that repulses all men.

[2] She explains to her that General Wyatt did what was necessary to protect Constance and she should have a little more self-respect to not be so miserable, as well as more respect for her father, her ultimate protector.

Bartlett, witnessing this absolute hysteria, is very puzzled by such dramatic and preposterous actions by a seemingly proper young woman and questions his decision to stay at the hotel.

Reading this note and realizing that her former lover never truly loved her somehow immediately relieves Constance of all the woes that have been plaguing her for the past two years.

Although this unfortunate event happened over a decade after the publication of this play, it could be speculated that Winnie was already showing symptoms, since anorexia was becoming increasingly prevalent amongst young women her age.

Before being diagnosed as an actual disorder, doctors simply assumed that a lack of appetite in a female patient was a symptom of a different ailment.

[6] The first diagnosis of anorexia came from Sir William Gull, Queen Victoria's physician, in 1865, which labeled the disease as an actual disorder that most often targeted females between the ages of 16 and 23.

Until these girls became the responsibility of their husbands, they were the light of their parents lives – especially Constance, who is left an only child after all of her siblings died during the Civil War.

Moreover, this necessity to fulfill their ultimate destiny of marriage and motherhood created a considerable amount of stress in the lives of these young women.

This caused many middle and upper-class women to find themselves stuck in an intellectual predicament since they expressed so much potential, but were perceived to be too delicate and fragile to take any part in the outside world.

Some researchers argue that the loss of such a large proportion of the male population undermined the country's “established pattern of family formation and threatened the identity of white women as wives and mothers”.

However, being the emotional, neurotic, attention craving young woman she is, Constance refused to listen to her father for the past two years, believing that he has severely wronged her.

Although Constance knows that her former lover was unfaithful towards her, she still blames General Wyatt for ruining her life because she feels as though he has destroyed all possibility for her to fulfill her destiny of marriage and motherhood.

Although most considered it a very likeable story, A Counterfeit Presentment was also found to be a bit boring, as it is lacking in much action.

In addition to writing for the Atlantic Monthly and Harper's Magazine, Howells was the author of a significant number of realist plays and novels.

Howells became a prominent writer of dramatic realism in the United States between 1856 and 1916 because he created an intimate drama that was relatable and easy for the general public to understand.