DOCSLIB.ORG

The Works of Francis Beaumont and John Fletcher

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
The Works of Francis Beaumont and John Fletcher CAMBRIDGE ENGLISH CLASSICS The Works of Francis Beaumont and John Fletcher In ten volumes Vol. VI FRANCIS BEAUMONT Born 1584 Died 1616 fie- JOHN FLETCHER 241/ Born 1579 '66 Died 1625 0io 934550 BEAUMONT AND FLETCHER THE QUEEN OF CORINTH BONDUCA THE KNIGHT OF THE BURNING PESTLE LOVES PILGRIMAGE THE DOUBLE MARRIAGE THE TEXT EDITED BY A. R. WALLER, M.A. CAMBRIDGE : at the University Press 1908 CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS WAREHOUSE, C. F. CLAY, MANAGER. ILotrtron: FETTER LANE, E.G. 100, PRINCES STREET. Berlin: A. ASHER AND CO. ILetpjffl: F. A. BROCKHAUS. efo Horfc : G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS. Bombay ant Calcutta : MACMILLAN AND CO., LTD. [All Rights reserved"] CONTENTS PAGE The Queen of Corinth .... i Bonduca ....... 79 The Knight of the Burning Pestle . 160 Loves Pilgrimage ..... 232 The Double Marriage . 321 THE Queen of Corinth, A TRAGI-COMEDY. The Persons Represented in the Play. Agenor, Prince of Argos. Gentlemen Servants to Agenor. Theanor, Son to the Qu. of Corinth, A Page to Lord Euphanes. a vicious Prince. Marshal, Leonidas, The Corinthian General, Vintner, Brother to Merione. Drawers, Euphanes, A noble young Gentleman, Favorite to the Qu. Crates, Elder brother to Eupha. a WOMEN. malicious beautefeu. Conon, Euph[a]nes Confident, and I A virtuous Lady, honour- fellow Traveller. Merione, -I ably solicited by Prince { Neanthes, ] Agenor. Sosicles, > Courtiers. Beliza, A noble Lady, Mistriss to Eraton, j Euphanes. or and Onos Lamprias, A very foolish r. ,. ( A wise virtuous Queen of ,., n/T ,, ,. Traveller. t^~ *ir 1 Widow, Mother of Tutor and to two Cormth, \ Onos, foolish | Uncle } Knaves. The Scene Cormth. The Principal Aftors were Richard Burbadge, Nathan Feild, Henry Condel, John Lowin, John Underwood^ Nich. Too/ie, Thomas Polard, Tho. Holcomb, B.-F. VI. THE QUEEN OF CORINTH ACT i A6his Primus. Scaena Prima. Enter Neanthes, Sosicles, Eraton. / v Era. T~" He General is returned then ? Nean. With much honour. Sos. And peace concluded with the Prince of Argos ? Nean. To the Queens wishes : the conditions sign'd So far beyond her hopes, to the advantage the of all her Of Corinth, and good Subjects ; That though Leonidas our brave General Ever came home a fair and great example, He never yet return'd, or with less loss Or more deserved honour. Era. Have you not heard The motives to this general good ? Nean. The main one Was admiration first in young Agenor, (For by that name we know the Prince of Argos) Of our Leonidas wisdom and his valour, an first in him bred wonder Which though enemy, ; That liking, Love succeeded that, which was Followed by a desire to be a friend what terms soever to such Upon goodness ; had an enterview and that their They ; friendship Might with our peace be ratified, 'twas concluded, Agenor yielding up all such strong places As he held in our territories, should receive (With a sufficient Dower, paid by the Queen) The fair Merion\e\ for his wife. Era. But how Approves the Queen of this ? since we well know Nor was her Highness ignorant, that her Son The Prince Theanor made love to this Lady, And in the noblest way. Nean. Which she allowed of, And I have heard from some familiar with Her nearest secrets, she so deeply priz'd her Being from an Infant train'd up in her service, Sc. i THE QUEEN OF CORINTH (Or to speak better, rather her own Creature) She once did say, That if the Prince should steal A Marriage without her leave, or knowledge, With this Merione, with a little suit She should grant both their pardons : whereas now To shew her self for sooth a Spartan Lady, And that 'tis in her power, now it concerns The common good, not alone to subdue Her own affections, but command her Sons ; She has not only forc'd him with rough threats To leave his Mistriss, but compell'd him when Agen\pr\ made his entrance into Corinth To wait upon his Rival. Sos. Can it be The Prince should sit down with this wrong ? Nean. I know not, I am sure I should not. Era. Trust me nor I, A Mother is a name, but put in ballance With a 'tis where did leave him ? young Wench nothing ; you Nean. Near testa's Temple, for there he dismiss'd me, And full of troubled thoughts, calling for Crates : He went with him, but whither, or to what purpose I am a stranger. Enter Theanor and Crates. Era. They are come back Neanthes. The. I like the place well. Cra. Well Sir? it is built As if the Architect had been a Prophet, fashion'd it for this And alone night's action ; The Vaults so hollow, and the Walls so strong, As Dian there might suffer violence, with loud shrikes in vain call to And Jove help her ; Or should he hear, his Thunder could not find An entrance to it. The. I give up my self to worthiest Crates Wholly thy direction, ; And yet the desperate cure that we must practice Is in it self so foul, and full of danger, A 2 7 THE QUEEN OF CORINTH ACT i That I stand doubtful whether 'twere more manly To dye not seeking help, or that help being So deadly, to pursue it. Cra. To those reasons I have already urg'd, I will add these. For but consider Sir Era, It is of weight What e'r it be, that with such vehement aclion, Of Eye, Hand, Foot, nay all his bodies motion, Crates incites the Prince to. Nean. Then observe, With what variety of passions he his reasons he's and Receives ; now pale, shakes fear or his For anger ; now natural red Comes back again, and with a pleasing smile He seems to entertain it ; 'tis resolv'd on Be it what 'twill : to his ends may it prosper Though the State sink for't. Cra. Now you are a Prince Fit to rule others, and in shaking off The Bonds in which your Mother fetters you Discharge your debt to nature, she's your guide, Follow her boldly, Sir. The. I am confirm'd, Fall what may fall. Cra. Yet still disguise your malice In your humility. The. I am instructed. Cra. Though in you[r] heart there rage a thousand All calmness in your looks. (tempests, The. I shall remember. Cra. And at no hand, though these are us'd as agents Acquaint them with your purpose till the instant 'tis not fit have That we employ them ; they Time to consider, when 'tis done, reward Or fear will keep them silent : yet you may Grace them as you pass by, 'twill make them surer, And greedier to deserve you. The. I'll move only As would have me : you Good-day Gentlem[e]n ; 4 Sc. ii THE QUEEN OF CORINTH Nay, spare this ceremonious form of duty To him that brings love to you, equal love, And is in nothing happier, than in knowing It is returned we are as one. by you ; Sos. I am o'r-joy'd, I know not How to reply : but Era. all buts Hang ; my Lord, For this your bounteous favour Nean. Let me speak, If to feed Vultures here, after the halter Has done his part, or if there be a Hell To take a swinge or two there, may deserve this. Sos. We are ready. Era. Try us any way. Nean. Put us to it. The. What jewels I have in you ! Cra. Have these souls, That for a good look, and a few kind words Part with their Essence ? The. Since you will compell me To put that to the tryal, which I doubt not, Crates^ may be, suddainly will instruct you and in to loves him How, what shew your ; obey As you would bind me to you. Cra. 'Tis well-grounded ; Leave me to rear the building. Nean. We will do. Cra. I know it. Era. Any thing you'll put us to. [Exeunt. Scana Secunda. Enter Leonidas, Merione, Beliza, Servants. Leo. Sister, I reap the harvest of my labours In be of your preferment, you worthy it, And with an open bosom entertain A fortune than love durst for greater my hope ; Be wise, and welcome it : play not the coy And foolish wanton, with the offered bounties Of him that is a Prince. I was woo'd for you, THE QUEEN OF CORINTH ACT i And won Merione : then if you dare Believe the objecl: that took me was worthy, Or trust my judgement, in me think you were Courted, sued to, and conquer'd. Mer. Noble Brother, I have, and still esteem you as a Father, And will as far heart it : obey you ; my speaks And yet without your anger, give me leave To say, That in the choice of that on which All my lifes joyes or sorrows have dependance, It had been fit e'r you had made a full And absolute grant of me to any other, I should have us'd mine own eyes, or at least Made you to understand, whether it were Within my power to make a second gift Of my poor self. Leo. I know what 'tis you point at, Prince Tkeanor's love let not that cheat The ; you ; His all his service vows were but meer Courtship ; But practice how to entrap a credulous Lady : Or grant it serious, yet you must remember He's not to love, but where the Queen his Mother Must give allowance, which to you is barr'd up : And therefore study to forget that ever You cherisht such a hope.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • THE ALCHEMIST THROUGH the AGES an Investigation of the Stage
    f [ THE ALCHEMIST THROUGH THE AGES An investigation of the stage history of Ben Jonson's play by JAMES CUNNINGHAM CARTER B.Sc., University of British Columbia, 196 8 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT. OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS in the Department of English We accept this thesis as conforming to the required standard THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA October 1972 In presenting this thesis in partial fulfilment of the requirements for an advanced degree at the University of British Columbia, I agree that the Library shall make it freely available for reference and study. I further agree that permission for extensive copying of this thesis for scholarly purposes may be granted by the Head of my Department or by his representatives. It is understood that copying or publication of this thesis for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. Department of The University of British Columbia Vancouver 8, Canada Date 27 QclAtt ii ABSTRACT THE ALCHEMIST THROUGH THE AGES An Investigation of the Stage History of Ben Jonson's Play This study was made to trace the stage history of The Alchemist and to see what effect theatrical productions can have in developing critical awareness of Jonson's dramatic skill in this popular play. Therefore an attempt has been made to record all performances by major companies between 1610 and 197 0 with cast lists and other pertinent information about scenery/ stage action and properties. The second part of the thesis provides a detailed analysis of four specific productions considered in light of their prompt books, details of acting and production, and overall critical reception.
    [Show full text]
  • It Would, to Put It Mildly, Be Nice to Know More About the Backstage Oper- Ations of a Playing Company Like the Chamberlain’S Men Or the Admiral’S in the Later 1590S
    Early Theatre 10.1 (2007) ANDREW GURR The Work of Elizabethan Plotters, and 2 The Seven Deadly Sins It would, to put it mildly, be nice to know more about the backstage oper- ations of a playing company like the Chamberlain’s Men or the Admiral’s in the later 1590s. About the company that Shakespeare joined in 1594 we are unlikely ever to know much more than the few hard facts now current can tell us. But given Henslowe’s Diary with its intricate records of the day-by- day operations of Edward Alleyn and his company, there is better reason to hope for some clarification of the extraordinary processes that helped fifteen or more players to put six different plays on stage every week and to run a repertory consisting of more than thirty plays each year. Regrettably little about that uniquely high-speed process has come out so far, and this study of the backstage book-keeper and stage management will not take it very much further. But, as the chronic optimists say, every little helps. The Admiral’s company must have had several helpers for the staging of their plays besides the costumiers, to whom the Henslowe papers note pay- ments, and the property men. The difficulties of reading the Diary start there. Were the backstage workers employed by Henslowe himself as owner of the playhouse the company rented, or were they members of the company, hired and paid by the sharers? None of the stage hands is named in the accounts, though there are some bonds signed by hired men who were players.
    [Show full text]
  • A Greatly Exaggerated Demise: the Remaking of the Children of Paul's As the Duke of York's
    Early Theatre 9.1 Brandon Centerwall A Greatly Exaggerated Demise: The Remaking of the Children of Paul’s as the Duke of York’s Men (1608) The Children of Paul’s acting company came to a bad end … or did it? The current narrative, as developed by Reavley Gair in The Children of Paul’s (1982), holds that the troupe made its fatal error when in 1608 it staged the satiric comedy The Puritan, thereby bringing down upon themselves the wrath of the puritan community: ‘it was … a very serious miscalculation, a blunder that was to prove largely responsible for the theatre company’s demise’.1 Staging The Puritan certainly brought down the wrath of puritan divine William Crashaw. Taking specific exception to The Puritan for its lampoon of those faithful such as lived in the nearby parishes of St Antlings and St Mary Overys, on 14 February 1608 Crashaw fulminated against the Children of Paul’s in a sermon delivered from the outdoor pulpit Paul’s Cross, just a stone’s throw away from Paul’s playhouse:2 [The Children of Paul’s] be children of Babylon that will not bee healed: nay, they grow worse and worse, for now they bring religion and holy things vpon the stage: no maruel though the worthiest and mightiest men escape not, when God himselfe is so abused. Two hypocrites must be brought foorth; and how shall they be described but by these names, Nicolas S. Antlings, Simon S. Maryoueries? …. Are they thus incurable? then happie hee that puts to his hand to pull downe this tower of Babel, this daughter of confusion, happie he that helpes to heale this wound in our State: but most happie that Magistrate, who, like zealous Phinehes, takes some iust vengeance on that publike dishonour laid vpon our Churches.
    [Show full text]
  • Shakespeare on Stage
    Stooshnov Retroprojection virtual reality University of British Columbia, Canada Kyle Stooshnov Retroprojection virtual reality: Shakespeare on stage Abstract: As virtual reality technologies become more widely available, an expanded definition of both virtual and reality becomes necessary: authors (and playwrights in particular) have strived for centuries to depict reality, and plays performed on the early modern stages have the distinction of demonstrating the world’s current and historical events in a virtually ‘real time’ of drama. One such epoch-making moment is the assassination of Julius Caesar, staged by the Lord Chamberlain’s Men in 1599 as witnessed by two Swiss travellers Felix and Thomas Platter. This article presents a dialogue between two other members in the audience: Nathan, a descendant of the Platters who comes from a distant point in the future, and John, a young law student from London on the cusp of becoming the seventeenth century playwright Webster whose early play (now lost) Caesar’s Fall may have been directly inspired by his visit to the Globe and meeting with Nathan. This fictional account of a play staged at the original Globe is based upon present-day scholars’ detailed reconstruction of the famous playhouse and casts many of the company’s players, including Shakespeare himself, in roles for Julius Caesar. This dialogue presents a nexus between Digital Humanities and Shakespeare Studies through a creative writing experiment with a science fiction spin. Biographical note: Professor Kyle Stooshnov is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Language and Literacy Education at the University of British Columbia. He has presented versions of this work at conferences in Barcelona, Spain and Montpellier, France.
    [Show full text]
  • What's in a Name? Shakespeare, Shake-Scene and the Clayton Loan Diana Price
    What's in a Name? Shakespeare, Shake-scene and the Clayton Loan Diana Price Over the years, biographers of WiUiam Shakespeare have occasionally dis­ agreed on which historical records to acceptor reject. For example, Shakespeare's engagement one day to Anne '\Vhately of Temple Grafton and his marriage bond on the next naming Anne Hathaway of Shottery prompted Sidney Lee (1925; 31) to reject the Whateley-Shakespeare license: The husband of Anne Whateley cannot reasonably be iden­ tified with the poet. He was doubtless another of the numerous William Shakespeares who abounded in the diocese of Worcester. E.K. Chambers (Facts and Problems. 1:18) accepted the Whateley-Shakespeare license; he thought it more likely that a blundering clerk had entered the wrong information. How does the biographer decide what evidence to accept and what evidence to reject? The question is not exclusive to Shakespeare. Scholars continue to disagree as to whether the "John Fletcher of London" admitted to Cambridge in 1591 refers to the dramatist, who would have been 11 or 12 years old at the time. Alexander Dyce (1:8) leaned toward accepting the record on various grounds, noting that "in those days students were admitted into the universities at a very early age." Chambers (Stage. 3:314) rejected the record because the date of 1591 seemed too early to him. In this case, the words "of London" failed to clarify the matter, since the year of Fletcher's move to London is otherwise not known. Nevertheless, here was a record of a "John Fletcher" — complete witii first and last name — in a place where a biographer might reasonably have expected to find one and which had been provisionally accepted by a respected nineteenth century scholar, yet Chambers could not be sure that it referred to the same John Fletcher because there was no corroborat­ ing information.
    [Show full text]
  • On the Actor Lists, 1578-1642 Author(S): F
    On the Actor Lists, 1578-1642 Author(s): F. G. Fleay Source: Transactions of the Royal Historical Society, Vol. 9 (1881), pp. 44-81 Published by: Cambridge University Press on behalf of the Royal Historical Society Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3677936 Accessed: 27-06-2016 02:31 UTC Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at http://about.jstor.org/terms JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected]. Royal Historical Society, Cambridge University Press are collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Transactions of the Royal Historical Society This content downloaded from 128.110.184.42 on Mon, 27 Jun 2016 02:31:11 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms ON THE ACTOR LISTS, 1578-1642. By F. G. FLEAY, M.A., Fellow of the Royal Historical Society. IT is singular that no attempt had been made to gather up these documents so fertile in suggestion and still more rich in definite evidence on many disputed critical and historical questions prior to the publication of my "Shakespeare Manual" in 1876. Collier had printed many lists in his " History of the Stage," but had not compared them or arranged them for comparison. My own former attempt is incomplete, partly because at that date I had no access to public libraries, and had to work on imperfect materials; partly because additional lists have been still more recently discovered.
    [Show full text]
  • As It Was Played in the Blackfriars': Jonson, Marston, and the Business of Playmaking
    King’s Research Portal DOI: https://doi.org/10.1086/708231 Document Version Publisher's PDF, also known as Version of record Link to publication record in King's Research Portal Citation for published version (APA): Munro, L. (2020). 'As it was Played in the Blackfriars': Jonson, Marston, and the Business of Playmaking. ENGLISH LITERARY RENAISSANCE, 50(2), 256-295. https://doi.org/10.1086/708231 Citing this paper Please note that where the full-text provided on King's Research Portal is the Author Accepted Manuscript or Post-Print version this may differ from the final Published version. If citing, it is advised that you check and use the publisher's definitive version for pagination, volume/issue, and date of publication details. And where the final published version is provided on the Research Portal, if citing you are again advised to check the publisher's website for any subsequent corrections. General rights Copyright and moral rights for the publications made accessible in the Research Portal are retained by the authors and/or other copyright owners and it is a condition of accessing publications that users recognize and abide by the legal requirements associated with these rights. •Users may download and print one copy of any publication from the Research Portal for the purpose of private study or research. •You may not further distribute the material or use it for any profit-making activity or commercial gain •You may freely distribute the URL identifying the publication in the Research Portal Take down policy If you believe that this document breaches copyright please contact [email protected] providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim.
    [Show full text]
  • Reinstating Shakespeare's Instrumental Music
    Early Theatre 15.2 (2012) David Mann Reinstating Shakespeare’s Instrumental Music The children’s theatre companies, that by 1600 according to Shakespeare’s Hamlet were commercial rivals of the adults, were formed initially of choir- boys at St Paul’s and the Chapel Royal, and not surprisingly, therefore, pioneering studies from the early twentieth century like those by Harold Newcomb Hillebrand and Charles William Wallace emphasized their dis- tinctiveness through the quality of their music.1 According to William Law- rence, the children’s companies compensated for their inability to represent ‘human passion’, and distinguished themselves from the adult theatre, by elaborate musical interludes and a concert before the play began.2 Only with the first edition, in 1970, of Andrew Gurr’s scholarly and enormously influential The Shakespearean Stage 1574–1642, however, does this distinc- tion come specifically at the expense of downgrading the level of music in Shakespeare’s theatre, denying the adult players consort music until 1608 and restricting musical instruments at outdoor theatres to ‘[d]rums, trum- pet, fiddles and flutes’ as the ‘standard accessories to performances’.3 Gurr’s fourth and latest edition distinguishes ‘Blackfriars with its famous consort of musicians’ from ‘[m]usic in the amphitheatres’ which ‘was more limited, commonly introduced as a song with or without accompaniment’, or char- acterized by a ‘flourish of trumpets’.4 According to this theory, instrumental music, ie consort music with strings and woodwinds, if it existed at all in the pre-1609 theatre of Shakespeare, was very rare and generally performed by professional musicians brought in for the purpose.
    [Show full text]
  • Front.Chp:Corel VENTURA
    Early Theatre 9.1 Brandon Centerwall A Greatly Exaggerated Demise: The Remaking of the Children of Paul’s as the Duke of York’s Men (1608) The Children of Paul’s acting company came to a bad end … or did it? The current narrative, as developed by Reavley Gair in The Children of Paul’s (1982), holds that the troupe made its fatal error when in 1608 it staged the satiric comedy The Puritan, thereby bringing down upon themselves the wrath of the puritan community: ‘it was … a very serious miscalculation, a blunder that was to prove largely responsible for the theatre company’s demise’.1 Staging The Puritan certainly brought down the wrath of puritan divine William Crashaw. Taking specific exception to The Puritan for its lampoon of those faithful such as lived in the nearby parishes of St Antlings and St Mary Overys, on 14 February 1608 Crashaw fulminated against the Children of Paul’s in a sermon delivered from the outdoor pulpit Paul’s Cross, just a stone’s throw away from Paul’s playhouse:2 [The Children of Paul’s] be children of Babylon that will not bee healed: nay, they grow worse and worse, for now they bring religion and holy things vpon the stage: no maruel though the worthiest and mightiest men escape not, when God himselfe is so abused. Two hypocrites must be brought foorth; and how shall they be described but by these names, Nicolas S. Antlings, Simon S. Maryoueries? …. Are they thus incurable? then happie hee that puts to his hand to pull downe this tower of Babel, this daughter of confusion, happie he that helpes to heale this wound in our State: but most happie that Magistrate, who, like zealous Phinehes, takes some iust vengeance on that publike dishonour laid vpon our Churches.
    [Show full text]
  • The Reputation of Beaumont and Fletcher in the Seventeenth Century
    fM\mw: oi Btmmmd and Fletcher in the Seventeenth Century ngii U09B Aiiy Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2013 http://archive.org/details/reputationofbeauOOIitt THE REPUTATION OF BEAUMONT AND FLETCHER IN THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY BY LeROY lewis little A. B. UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS. 1911 THESIS Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of MASTER OF ARTS IN ENGLISH IN THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS ran »- UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS THE GRADUATE SCHOOL I HEREBY RECOMMEND THAT THE THESIS PREPARED UNDER MY SUPERVISION BY ENTITLED BE ACCEPTED AS FULFILLING THIS PART OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF In Charge of Major Work Head of Department Recommendation concurred in: Committee on inal Examination A > . THE REPUTATION OF BEAUMONT AND FLETCHER IN THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY Table of Contents CHAPTER I THE REPUTATION OF BEAUMONT AND FLETCHER AMONG THE THEATRE-GOERS OF THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY - Page 1. CHAPTER II THE REPUTATION OF BEAUMONT AND FLETCHER AMONG THE ACTORS OF THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY Page 16. CHAPTER III THE REPUTATION OF BEAUMONT AND FLETCHER AMONG THE POETS OF THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY Page 25. CHAPTER IV THE REPUTATION OF BEAUMONT AND FLETCHER AMONG THE CRITICS OF THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY Page 46. CHAPTER V CONCLUSION Pag© 69. BIBLIOGRAPHY CHAPTER I THE REPUTATION OF BEAUMONT AND FLETCHER AMONG THE THEATRE-GOERS OF THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY. In this chapter I propose to determine to some degree the position that Beaumont and Fletcher held as popular dramatists in the seventeenth century, and also in what branch of the drama they were at that time supposed to have succeeded "best, I dhall attempt the first mainly by comparisons with other dramatists, and the second by means of the relative demand for the public presentation of their tragedies, tragi- comedies, and comedieB.
    [Show full text]
  • Thereby Hangs a Tail: Jonson's the Devil Is an Ass and Stage
    3532 Early Theatre 22.1 (2019), 141–162 https://doi.org/10.12745/et.22.1.3753 Tom Harrison Thereby Hangs a Tail: Jonson’s The Devil Is an Ass and Stage Representations of Devil-Servants This article considers an ambiguity concerning the stage presentation of Pug, the inept devil-servant of Ben Jonson’s The Devil Is an Ass, and explores the implications that ‘complete’ or ‘partial’ costume changes have for how an audience interprets the charac- ter, and how this apparent visual ambiguity may have been resolved by cosmetics and/ or through the performance of a specific King’s Men actor. The article concludes with a comparison of ‘devilish servant-types’ in Othello and The Changeling and argues that these three plays articulate early modern insecurities about the servant through an explicit association between the servile and the demonic. Despite his declared distaste for the ‘fools and devils and those antique relics of barbarism’ found within the English dramatic tradition,1 Ben Jonson’s witty mockery of devil and morality plays within his 1616 play The Devil Is an Ass indi- cates a clear knowledge of, and even ‘nostalgia’ for, these native dramatic forms.2 In Jonson’s play the minor demon Pug convinces Satan that he can be entrusted with a mischief-making mission to London. Satan has his reservations — he wor- ries that Pug is ‘too dull a devil to be trusted’ with the perils of the city, and he dismisses out of hand his underling’s request to take a ‘dotard’ Vice with him (1.1.26, 76) — but he permits the journey on two conditions: firstly that Pug inhabit the body of a ‘handsome cutpurse hanged at Tyburn’, and secondly that he bind himself to the first man he comes across (140, 151–2).
    [Show full text]
  • Early Modern Theatre People and Their Social Networks Paul Brown
    Early Modern Theatre People and Their Social Networks Paul Brown Presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the award of Doctor of Philosophy De Montfort University January 2017 i Table of Contents Table of Figures .............................................................................................................. iii Abstract............................................................................................................................ iv Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................... vi Note on Referencing ....................................................................................................... vii Introduction ...................................................................................................................... 1 The Social Network .................................................................................................. 1 The Scope and Structure of the Thesis ..................................................................... 6 The Social Network in the Early Modern Theatre and the Case for Biography .... 12 Chapter One: The Intersection of Personal and Professional Lives in Drama, Evidence and Interpretation ..................................................................................................................... 19 What constitutes evidence? .................................................................................... 25 Non-theatrical Evidence ........................................................................................
    [Show full text]