Students who appreciate reading Shakespeare might want to explore two of his plays that share themes with Goldsmith's work, particularly regarding love and the challenges young lovers face when their marriage is forbidden by their parents. Critics often draw parallels between Goldsmith's character Kate and Rosalind, the heroine of Shakespeare's 1599 comedy As You Like It. Both plays feature intelligent and lively women, and both create humor through forbidden romances, disguises, and mistaken identities.

For those who prefer tragedy, Shakespeare's 1595 play Romeo and Juliet might be of interest. This play portrays how parental interference in the lovers' plans for marriage leads to tragic outcomes, including suicide and death. Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim successfully adapted Romeo and Juliet into the musical theatre production West Side Story.

Similar to Goldsmith's play, Frances Burney's 1778 epistolary novel Evelina, or a Young Lady's Entrance into the World also delves into the eighteenth-century British marriage market. It narrates the heroine's introduction to London society and examines how love and marriage shape female identity.

Mary Wollstonecraft's Maria, or, The Wrongs of Woman presents a grim view of the late eighteenth-century English marriage market, showcasing the downfall of a naive and sincere young woman. Until the Married Women's Property Act of 1867, married women lost control over their property due to the legal principle of "coverture." In this brief, fragmented, gothic novel, Maria's cruel husband imprisons her in a madhouse for refusing to hand over her savings meant for her daughter. Written just 15 years after Goldsmith's play, Wollstonecraft's novel offers a stark contrast to She Stoops to Conquer for students interested in feminism and human rights.

Any of Jane Austen's novels would serve as excellent counterparts to Goldsmith's play, but two stand out: Emma (1815) and Sense and Sensibility (1811). Both novels address the issues of love and marriage faced by young women in the eighteenth century. Structurally similar to She Stoops to Conquer, Austen's works also develop themes by juxtaposing pairs of characters. Austen's irony offers a contrast to Goldsmith's comedic tone.

Wilkie Collins's 1868 novel The Moonstone echoes the romantic struggles of Constance and Hastings, featuring a young woman whose marriage is impeded by an Indian jewel. While different in style from Goldsmith's play, The Moonstone is often regarded as one of the first detective novels, with a surprising ending.

Oscar Wilde's humorous and accessible 1895 comedy The Importance of Being Earnest, A Trivial Comedy for Serious People closely resembles She Stoops to Conquer in terms of situation, theme, and tone. Both plays feature two city-dwelling male friends who court two country-dwelling female friends and rely on disguise and dual identities. Both plays conclude with love triumphing and multiple marriages.