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Anti-Sentimental Comedy Yugeshwar Sah Assistant Professor & Head Department of English R.N.A.R. College, Samastipurz L.N.M.U. Darbhanga Topic for z Lecture/Presentation She Stoops to Conquer as an Anti-Sentimental Comedy. (B.A.English Honours, Degree 2) z Content . Introduction . Types of Comedy . Major Characters of the play . Sentimental Comedy . Anti-Sentimental comedy . Features of Anti-sentimental comedy . Anti-sentimental Comedy elements in the play . Conclusion z Introduction She Stoops to Conquer (1773) is one of the most ground breaking Anti-sentimental Comedies by Oliver Goldsmith, a renowned poet, playwright, novelist, editor and essayist of the 18th Century. z Cont... Goldsmith (1710-1724) has been the most prominent Anglo-Irish literary figure of his time and he occupies a very significant place in English literature. z Major works of Goldsmith . The History of Little Goody Two Shoes(1765)- Classic children’s tale. The Vicar of Wakefield (1766)- a very popular novel. z Continue... The Deserted Village(1770) –best known pastoral poem which made Goldsmith a Prominent poet. The Good-Nature’d Man(1768)- anti- sentimental comedy. z Conti... She Stoops to Conquer( written in 1771 but preformed and published in 1773) – a land mark anti-sentimental comedy. Sub title- Mistakes of a Night. z Types of Comedy . Romantic Comedy: Twelfth Night . Comedy of Humour: Every Man in His Humour . Comedy of Manners or Restoration Comedy : The Man of the Mode . Pastoral Comedy: As You Like it . Sentimental Comedy: The Conscious Lover . Anti-Sentimental Comedy: The Rival . Tragi-Comedy: All’s Well that Ends Well z Major Characters . Mr. Hardcastle- patriarch of the Hardcastle Family and owner of the Estate. Mrs. Hardcastle- Second wife of Mr Hard castle,matriarch of the Hardcastle family. Miss Hardcastle/ Kate - Daughter of Mr Hardcastle with his first wife z Cont... Mr. Marlow- modest male protagonist . Tony Lumpkin: A pampered and spoilt son of Mrs. Hardcastle. z Cont... Mr. Hastings- Friend of Mr.Marlow who accompanies him . Miss Neville/Constance Neville: niece of Mrs.Hardcastle, beloved of Mr. Hastings z Sentimental Comdey . Sentimental Comedy, a dramatic genre of the 18th century, emerged as a reaction against “Comedy of Manners” or “Restoration Comdy” of the Restoration period(1660- 1700) in England. z Cont... Sentimental Comdey centres around our emotions and sentiments, and evokes the feelings of sorrow, pity and sympathy. z Cont... Protagonist of Middle class. Overcome a number of trials and tribulations. Depicts 18th century philosophy- Goodness is inherent in man but he/she can be misled by bad company or situations . Emerged from early 18th century tragedy. Reflect on the “virtues of character” and " morality of situations”. z . Jeremy Collier’ s “Short View of the Profaness and Immortality of the English Stage”(1698) attacked the relevance of Comedy of Manners by stating “The business of the plays is to recommend virtue and discountenance vice”. He laid the theoretical reaction against Restoration Comedy. z Major Sentimental Comedy . Love’s Last Shift or “The Fool in Fashion”(1696) by Colley Cibber, a poet laureate, is considered to be the first sentimental comedy. The Conscious Lover(1722) by Richard Steele, a great pioneer, is the most popular sentimental comedy which laid the solid foundation for it. z Anti- Sentimental Comedy . Anti-sentimental comedy was emerged as a dramatic form in a reaction against ‘Sentimental Comedy’ of the 18th century. Goldsmith laid its foundation and pioneered this movement in England along with R.B.Sheridan. Cont... z . Goldsmith criticised and severely attacked sentim- mental comedy in this essay and emphatically . paved the way for Anti-sentimental comedy. Cont... z Goldsmith criticised sentimental comedy on the basis of Classical principles.He stated “ The true functions of comedy is to give a humorous exhibition of the follies and vices of men and women and rectifying them by exciting laughter”. z Cont... He also says “If comedy is to tresspass upon tragedy where humour will have the right to express itself”.(Goldsmith) z Cont... Goldsmith denounced it since sentimental comedy became more a like tragedy than a comedy in the hands of these practioners. We as audience/readers should get laughter and humour instead of tearful heroines, sorrowful situations and depressing lovers. z Cont.. Anti- Sentimental Comedy is also regarded as Comedy of Manners, Laughing Comedy, Comedy of humour, Comedy of Intrigues and Pure Comedy. z Major Anti-Sentimental Comedy The Good Natured Man” by Goldsmith is the first comedy of this genre but it couldn’t make much success. “She Stoops to Conquer” by Goldsmith, “The Rival”(1775) and “The School for Scandals” (1777) by Sheridan are the excellent examples of this form of comedy. z Characteristics of Anti-sentimental Comedy . Love, Marriage and Money . Use of a series of intrigues . Humour and Laughter . Satire . Witty dialogues z Cont... Farcical situations . Disguise . Irony- Verbal, situational and dramatic. z Prologue . Goldsmith in The Prologue to “She Stoops to Conquer” satirises sentimental comedy and theorises his conception of anti- sentimental comedy. Like a doctor, he states that comic art is on the verge of death and he will cure it with the pill called “She Stoops to Conquer”. z Conclusion . “She Stoops to Conquer” is an excellent specimen of Anti-sentimental comedy since it not only contains the characteristics and all the elements of anti-sentimental comedy but also it possess the spirit of anti- sentimentalism. z Cont... Goldsmith’s contribution lies in blending intellect with emotions to reflect his anti- sentimental attitude and make it the perfect form of anti-sentimental comedy which is the pure form of comedy. z.
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