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    Restoration Comedy: Three Plays: Full Text and Introduction (NHB Drama Classics)
    Unavailable
    Restoration Comedy: Three Plays: Full Text and Introduction (NHB Drama Classics)
    Unavailable
    Restoration Comedy: Three Plays: Full Text and Introduction (NHB Drama Classics)
    Ebook549 pages6 hours

    Restoration Comedy: Three Plays: Full Text and Introduction (NHB Drama Classics)

    By Aphra Behn, William Wycherley and William Congreve

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    Currently unavailable

    About this ebook

    ‘One no more owes one’s beauty to a lover, than one’s wit to an echo.’

    With the Restoration of the monarchy in 1660, the republican ban on organised theatre was lifted – and plays exploded back onto the public stage with newfound relish. The arrival of actresses for the first time encouraged a great sense of release, which expressed itself in the form of sophisticated comedies exploring the sexual behaviour and moralities of society.

    This volume features three of the most popular Restoration Comedies:

    The Country Wife by William Wycherley - a supremely bawdy comedy in which the aptly named Horner pretends to be a eunuch in order to seduce women under the noses of their husbands.

    The Way of the World by William Congreve - a brilliant comedy of manners, complete with dashing suitor, rich heiress and vengeful aunt.

    The Rover by Aphra Behn - the classic Restoration comedy by one of the earliest and most celebrated female playwrights.

    There is also a full introduction about the plays, playwrights and the period, and a glossary of unfamiliar words.

    The Drama Classic Collections bring together the most popular plays from a single author or a particular period. They offer students, actors and theatregoers a series of uncluttered, accessible editions, accompanied by comprehensive introductions.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherNick Hern Books
    Release dateMar 28, 2020
    ISBN9781788502245
    Unavailable
    Restoration Comedy: Three Plays: Full Text and Introduction (NHB Drama Classics)
    Author

    Aphra Behn

    Born in the first few decades of the seventeenth century, Aphra Behn is one of early literature’s best-known female writers. Behn had the lucky distinction of being able to support herself strictly by her “pen,” something unheard of for women of her time. Throughout her long career, she wrote in various forms—poetry, plays, prose—and is known as a member of the ‘fair triumvirate of wit’ alongside fellow scribes Eliza Haywood and Delarivier Manley. Although little is known about her early life, Behn’s father held a post as lieutenant governor of Surinam, and Behn’s experiences during her stay most likely formed the basis for her most famous work, Oroonoko. Behn was also a popular dramatist in her time, penning critical successes like The Rover and The Feigned Courtesans. Her literary exploits aside, Behn is also known to have acted as a political spy for King Charles II of England during the Second Anglo-Dutch War. Behn died in 1689, and is buried in Westminster Abbey.

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