“Mrs. Gibbs is Mrs. Webb is Mrs. Gibbs” In Thorton Wilder’s classic play about life in a small town, no other two characters share so much in common with one another as Mrs. Gibbs and Mrs. Webb do. Their purpose in the story, on a figurative level, is to represent the monolithic thinking of a small town. Emily Post, an American etiquette authority of the early 1900’s, said, “To do exactly as your neighbors do is the only sensible rule.” Without a doubt, any intelligent reader of this play can see the obvious similarities between Mrs. Webb and Mrs. Gibbs. On a purely litera