ETHEREGE & WYCHERLEY

ETHEREGE & WYCHERLEY

ENGLISH DRAMATISTS Series Editor: Bruce King Published titles Susan Bassnett, Shakespeare: The Elizabethan Plays John Bull, Vanbrugh and Farquhar Richard Allen Cave, Ben Jonson B. A. Kachur, Etherege and Wycherley Philip C. McGuire, Shakespeare: The Jacobean Plays Kate McLuskie, Dekker and Heywood Christine Richardson and Jackie Johnston, Medieval Drama Margarete Rubik, Early Women Dramatists 1550 1800 Roger Sales, Christopher Marlowe David Thomas, William Congreve Martin White, Middleton and Tourneur Katharine Worth, Sheridan and Goldsmith Rowland Wymer, Webster and Ford

ENGLISH DRAMATISTS ETHEREGE & WYCHERLEY B. A. Kachur Department of English University of Missouri St. Louis

B.A. Kachur 2004 All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this publication may be made without written permission. No paragraph of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted save with written permission or in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, or under the terms of any licence permitting limited copying issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency, 90 Tottenham Court Road, London W1T 4LP. Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages. The author has asserted her right to be identified as the author of this work in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. First published 2004 by PALGRAVE MACMILLAN Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS and 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010 Companies and representatives throughout the world PALGRAVE MACMILLAN is the global academic imprint of the Palgrave Macmillan division of St. Martin s Press, LLC and of Palgrave Macmillan Ltd. Macmillan is a registered trademark in the United States, United Kingdom and other countries. Palgrave is a registered trademark in the European Union and other countries. ISBN 978-0-333-57540-6 hardback ISBN 978-0-333-57541-3 ISBN 978-1-137-04779-3 (ebook) DOI 10.1007/978-1-137-04779-3 This book is printed on paper suitable for recycling and made from fully managed and sustained forest sources. A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Kachur, B. A. (Barbara A.), 1950 Etherege & Wycherley/B. A. Kachur. p. cm. (English dramatists) Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and index. ISBN 978-0-333-57540-6 (cloth) ISBN 978-0-333-57541-3 (pbk.) 1. Etherege, George, Sir, 1635? 1691 Criticism and interpretation. 2. Wycherley, William, 1640 1716 Criticism and interpretation. 3. English drama Restoration, 1660 1700 History and criticism. 4. Comedy. I. Title: Etherege and Wycherley. II. Title. III. English dramatists (Palgrave Macmillan (Firm)) PR3432.K33 2004 822.05230904 dc22 2003067561 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 13 12 11 10 09 08 07 06 05 04

Contents Editor s Preface Acknowledgements and Textual Notes vi vii 1 Carolean Context 1 2 Carolean Theatre and Drama 21 3 Etherege and the Carolean Theatre 47 4 She Would If She Could: Comedy of Manners 64 5 The Man of Mode: Comedy and the Masquerade 95 6 Wycherley and the Carolean Theatre 127 7 The Country Wife: Love, Marriage and Sovereignty 144 8 The Plain Dealer: Honour, Courage and Heroism 201 Notes 224 Select Bibliography 239 Index 242 v

Editor s Preface Each generation needs to be introduced to the culture and great works of the past and to reinterpret them in its own ways. This series re-examines the important English dramatists of earlier centuries in the light of new information, new interests and new attitudes. The books are written for students, theatre-goers and general readers who want an up-to-date view of the plays and dramatists, with emphasis on drama as theatre and on stage, social and political history. Attention is given to what is known about performance, acting styles, changing interpretations, the stages and theatres of the time and theatre economics. The books will be relevant to those interested in studying literature, theatre and cultural history. BRUCE KING vi

Acknowledgements and Textual Notes First, thanks to Bruce King for his invitation to write this book, which I hope makes a modest contribution to the study of Etherege s and Wycherley s comedies. To all of those who aided me in my research abroad Christopher Robinson for his assistance in guiding me through the wealth of primary documents in the Old Vic Archives at the University of Bristol, the helpful and attentive staff at the British Library s Manuscript and Reading Room, and the patient and friendly assistants at London s Theatre Museum who retrieved the myriad documents I requested faster than I could pore over them a special thanks not only for their help in giving me access to materials crucial to this study but also for their genuine kindness that made my research trek all the more enjoyable and memorable. To those at the University of Missouri St. Louis who helped lighten my burden during the preparation of this manuscript in particular the library staff for their quick responses to my many interlibrary-loan requests, the research board that generously funded my trip to England, my colleague James Tierney for his helpful suggestions regarding non-dramatic Carolean literature, the English department s inimitable administrative team, Jessie Bridges and Gloria Henderson, for their loyalty in all things related to department chairpersons, vii

viii Acknowledgements and Textual Notes and Dean Mark A. Burkholder for his unflagging support and encouragement my sincerest thanks. My gratitude to a group of very special colleagues Ruth Bohan, Kathy Justice Gentile, Stephanie Ross and Jeanne Morgan Zarucchi whose graciousness in allowing Etherege and Wycherley to dominate many hours of conversations about research projects deserves far more than an appreciatory remark; their sound suggestions during the manuscript s various incarnations helped me to proceed with enhanced clarity of purpose. And finally, to Joann Lindsey, whose friendship and sense of humour enable me always to put everything meaningful in its proper perspective. Space restrictions preclude a study of all seven plays by Etherege and Wycherley, and thus three comedies The Comical Revenge, Love in a Wood and The Gentleman Dancing-Master have been omitted to allow more in-depth coverage of the remaining four plays which are the most frequently studied and performed, particularly The Country Wife. All quotes and lineation from the plays are taken from Michael Cordner (ed.), The Plays of George Etherege (Cambridge University Press, 1982), and Peter Holland (ed.), The Plays of William Wycherley (Cambridge University Press, 1981). To J. T. Thanks, and thanks, and ever thanks. (Shakespeare)