Wycherley returned to england shortly before the restoration of king. Poets like cudgeld bullys, never do at first, or second blow, submit to you. Front matter indignor quicquam reprehendi, non quia crasse compositum illepideve putetur, sed quia nuper. The country father a father from the country the coquette a. For the basis of his plot, wycherley here borrows heavily from the work of moliere, but. The countrywife, comedy of manners in five acts by restoration dramatist william wycherley, performed and published in 1675. She seems to be not educated and is pleased with anything and everything.
The restoration comedies of the english dramatist william wycherley ca. William wycherley, the country wife the open anthology of. The play starts with horner, a london rake and wit, discussing the story he has asked quack his doctor, of course, to spread around the town. The country wife 1675 a comedy by wycherley, william 16401716 the persons mr. William wycherley was born in the hamlet of clive, shropshire around 1640. His father, daniel, was a country gentleman who became steward to the marquis of winchester and gradually built up an estate of some substance for himself. Pdf downloads of all 1427 litcharts literature guides, and. The attractive young country wife of the title, margery is newly married to jack pinchwife and is visiting london for the.
The country wifewilliam wycherleyfree downloadpdf epub. Deception in the country wife and the conscious lovers. The restoration period falls between 1660 and 1700. The social perception of innocence in the city versus in the country pinchwife imagines the country as a place of innocence and the city as one of wickedness. The title is a pun on the first syllable of the word country, implying that his purpose of finding any wife is to use her as an object for sex. Country wife is an immensely enjoyable play in which we take almost nothing seriously. He s a fool that marries but he s a greater fool that does not marry a fool this. The country wife by william wycherley was published in 1675 and premiered the same year at the theatre royal in london. William wycherley lived from 1640 to 1715, and earned his reputation as one of the wittiest. Harcourt, his acquaintance, enamored of alithea tyler wells mr. The thesis delves into the feminist awareness in william wycherley s the country wife written in 1675.
Harry horner, a wealthy rake who spends his time pursuing women and hedonism, spreads a rumor that he has contracted a venereal disease and has been made impotent. I taught this play on a yearly basis at the end of. The country wife was written, according to its authors own statement, about the year 1671 or 1672. William wycherley edited with an introduction and notes by w c ward, part of mermaid series includes biography of wycherley, together with the following written in play format love in a wood or st jamess park, the gentleman dancing master, the country wife and the plain dealer. Publication date 1961 topics english drama publisher.
It was no doubt intended to register approval of liveliness or resiliency, and i will rely on this usage later. As she xv the country wife sparkish a spark signifies a foppishly dressed. Start reading the country wife for free online and get access to an unlimited library of academic and nonfiction books on perlego. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of the country wife by william wycherly. Nay, madam, i will ask you the reason, why you woud banish. His restorationera comedies are notable for their keen satires of manners and society, and the playwright was a favorite among the wits in the court of charles ii. The cuckold the character is the husband of a adulterous wife. Three main plot threads weave in and out of wycherley s the country wife. Download william wycherley s the country wife for your kindle, tablet, ipad, pc or mobile. Download the country wife by william wycherley in pdf epub ebook. Sparkish, engaged to alithea sir jaspar fidget, a noble gentleman mrs.
It was here that he converted to roman catholicism. It is classified in english literature as a restoration comedy. Enter the country wife by william wycherley 16401716. The themes of the play are money, love and marriage and sexual intrigue, which enlightens the feminist movement, expresses the awakening of womens sexual consciousness and self. The country wife summary and study guide supersummary. It satirizes the sexual duplicity of the aristocracy during the reign of charles ii. The fop a foolish man overly concerned with his appearance and clothes in 17th century england. Wellmadam, now have i dressd you, and set you out with so of essence, and and perfume a corps, for a stinking secondhandgrave, such or as bad i think master sparkishs bed. William wycherley pictured here in about 1675, the year the country wife was published became a courtier in the 1670s, and his plays are set in the world of fashionable london libertines like himself. He was the son of a shropshire gentleman of old family, and of what was then accounted a good estate. The social perception of innocence in the city versus in the country.
Macaulay, thomas babington macaulay, baron, 18001859. A modern alternative to sparknotes and cliffsnotes, supersummary offers highquality study guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics. Promo for our production of the country wife by william wycherley. In the mid1650s daniel sent his son to france to receive a sound education, untainted by the puritan chill of intellectual life in cromwellian england. Pinchwife imagines the country as a place of innocence and the city as one of wickedness. One of the best and most vibrant examples of this is william wycherley s play the country wife.
Jamess park the gentleman dancingmaster the country wife the plain dealer. The country wife a comedy by william wycherley cast nathan rouse mr. The project gutenberg ebook of the plays of william wycherley. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Despite their harshness, his works enjoyed a great vogue, and wycherley became a. I want to make use of drydens term plyant in a couple of different ways. Get all the key plot points of william wycherleys the country wife on one page.
The country wife has provoked powerfully mixed reactions over the years. Wycherley left oxford university and took up residence at the inner temple, but gave little attention to the study of law. William wycherley 16401716 was an english playwright of the restoration era, whose bawdy and satirical plays contain elements of biting social criticism. Country wife is one of many literary works from this period that probes this question. Thanks for exploring this supersummary study guide of the country wife by william wycherley. Horner, the antihero at the center of the country wife is a. The country wife 16751 by william wycherley indignor quicquam reprehendi, non quia crasse at first, or second blow, submit to you. One of the most notorious restoration comedies in existence, william wycherley s the country wife is a lively and riotous exploration of courtly and city life in the seventeenth century, which was rife with unremitting sexual intrigue and conquest. The country wife is a hilariously bawdy and subversive drama that pokes fun at the jealous and humourless. William wycherley was born at clive, near shrewsbury, shropshire, where his father, a royalist, owned a small estate. Get all the key plot points of william wycherley s the country wife on one page. A product of the tolerant early restoration period, the play reflects an aristocratic and antipuritan ideology, and was controversial for its sexual explicitness even in its own time. The seventeenth century libertine king charles ii saw it twice, and is said to have joined the dance of the cuckolds at the end of one performance. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading the country wife.
Mrs pinchwife pray, sister, where are the best fields and woods, to walk in in london. The plyant discourse of wycherleys the country wife. The country wife project gutenberg selfpublishing ebooks. The period which the play, the country wife belongs to in the english literature is the restoration period. William wycherlys the country wife criticizes restoration society late 17 th century england for its hypocrisy. In the creation of his third play, william wycherley produced a. The title contains a lewd pun with regard to the first syllable of country. Full text and introduction nhb drama classics kindle edition by wycherley, william, griffiths, trevor. The countrywife, a comedy, acted at the theatre royal. Popular for its lively characters and its double entendres, the bawdy comedy was occasionally vilified for immorality. English restoration comedies stock characters the rake a fashionable or wealthy man of immoral or promiscuous habits. The mythic archetype of don juan in the country wife. Horner poets, like cudgeled bullies, never do at first or second blow.
The country wife by william wycherley plot summary litcharts. Harcourt, his acquaintance, enamored of alithea mr. Get the entire the country wife litchart as a printable pdf. The project gutenberg ebook of the plays of william. The word restoration in this context describes both actual restoration of king charles. Condemning hypocrisy, praising dissolution, and elevating innuendo into an art form, the play is titillating, disquieting and witty. The country wife essays are academic essays for citation. William wycherly indignor quidquam reprehendi, non quia crasse compositum illepideve putetur, sed quia nuper. Feminist awareness in the country wife masters thesis. The country wife is a restoration comedy written in 1675 by william wycherley. The way the content is organized and presented is seamlessly smooth, innovative, and comprehensive. William wycherley was an english dramatist of the restoration period, best known for the plays the country wife and the plain dealer. William wycherley was born at clive near shrewsbury, shropshire and baptised on april 8th, 1641 at whitchurch in hampshire where it is thought he spent some time before his family settled in malappuram, india. The country wife is widely considered to be the most studied and revived comedy from the restoration period.
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