The country wife summary from litcharts the creators of. The unfaithful the main characters the restoration period jack pinchwifes easily swayed country wife. Wycherley synonyms, wycherley pronunciation, wycherley translation, english dictionary definition of wycherley. The plays action begins with harry horner explaining to the quack his brilliant ruse for making a. In the midst of a continual banter of sexual innuendo there lies, cynical commentary and misogonistic attitudes upon.
William wycherley was an english dramatist of the restoration period, best known for the plays the country wife and the plain dealer. Literary critics have agreed on the plays extraordinary dramatic power, but have been puzzled as to its final meaning. Full text and introduction nhb drama classics kindle edition by wycherley, william, griffiths, trevor. Get all the key plot points of william wycherlys the country wife on one page.
The major themes of william wycherley s the country wife, according to prominent scholars of restoration comedy, are marriage, love, and sex. Wycherley s the country wife and the don juan character anthony kaufman wvilliam wycherley s the country wife 1675 has received voluminous, yet curiously mixed, assessment. Wycherley left oxford university and took up residence at the inner temple, but gave little attention to the study of. When alithea suggests that margery wear a mask to go out into the city to appease pinchwifes desperation to keep her unseen, pinchwife exclaims, a mask makes people but the more inquisitive. The title itself contains a lewd pun with regard to the first syllable of. The country wife southwark playhouse theatre and bar. Wycherley s the country wife, like many comedies of manners, focuses on sexual relations as its primary theme.
This play has often been classed by theater historians as a. The country wife by william wycherley, paperback barnes. The country wife themes by william wycherly english summary. William wycherleys the country wife a restoration comedy is like an eighteenthcentury sitcom. It is curious to observe how everything that he touched, however pure and noble, took in an instant the colour of his own mind. Download william wycherley s the country wife for your kindle, tablet, ipad, pc or mobile. To this, we also must add the social order of restoration england, particularly the relationship between authority and language. Wycherley moved in high society, and conducted several liaisons with aristocratic ladies, including the duchess of c.
Well look at the political and literary context of the play as well as the plot. Masks and disguises masks, both literal and metaphorical, are important in the play. A product of the tolerant early restoration period, the play reflects an aristocratic and anti puritan ideology, and was controversial for its sexual explicitness even in its own time. The countrywife, a comedy, acted at the theatre royal. Summary and analysis of the plot william whycherlys the county wife is a hilarious comedy about men and women in love and marriage. Wycherleys the country wife and the don juan character. I have undone you forever with the women, and reported you throughout the whole town as a eunuch, with as much trouble as if i had made you one in earnest. Renowned playboy, harry horner, has made it known in the society pages that he is now impotent. The real defense of wycherley against his foolish impeachment of himself is this, that love in a wood, howsoever inferior in structure and in all the artistic economies to the country wife and the plain dealer, contains scenes which no inexperienced boy could have written scenes which, not for moral hardness merely, but often for real. It was well received initially in 1675 during the english restoration, but shortly thereafter, the country wife was banned from the stage until the 1920s. The country wife is a restoration comedy written in 1675 by william wycherley.
Most of the characters in the story exhibit the vices associated with immoral conduct and debauchery. William wycherleys the country wife essay 1751 words. His restorationera comedies are notable for their keen satires of manners and society, and the playwright was a. His two most famous plays are the country wife and the plain dealer.
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. A mistress should be like a little country retreat near the town, not to dwell in constantly, but only for a night and away. Discussion of themes and motifs in william wycherley s the country wife. He perhaps succeeded best in the country wife 1675, in which satiric comment on excessive jealousy and complacency was blended with a. Procrastination paid off for willy, and now hes considered most of the important playwrights in restoration literature. The title itself contains a lewd pun with regard to the first syllable of country. The country wife themes from litcharts the creators of sparknotes. The country wife by william wycherley margery pinchwife. Need help on themes in william wycherlys the country wife.
Jack pinchwife cultivates his wife s ignorance in order to ensure her fidelity and submissiveness, and sir jasper fidget neglects his young wife and seeks to keep her mind off other men by occupying her with trivial pleasures and safe. William wycherley was a restoration playwright, best known for his comedies the country wife 16723 and the plain dealer 1675. The country wife study questions university of nebraska. William wycherley s the country wife was written and first performed in london, in 1675. Stream and download audiobooks to your computer, tablet or mobile phone. Preliminaries omitted play details the country wife. Listen to country wife audiobook by william wycherley. Read texts from the country wife and join the genius community of scholars to learn the meaning behind the words. It dealt with the complexity of sexual and marital intrigue and also with adultery and cuckoldry. The only thing original about wycherley, the only thing which he could furnish from his own mind in inexhaustible abundance, was profligacy. This lesson will explore william wycherley s the country wife. Sparkish, engaged to alithea sir jaspar fidget, a noble gentleman mrs. The countrywife, comedy of manners in five acts by restoration dramatist william wycherley, performed and published in 1675. Wycherley definition of wycherley by the free dictionary.
With this original adaptation, morphic graffiti thrust william wycherley s the country wife into the excesses and seductions of late 1920s london. The country wife 1675 the country wife is restoration comedy at its most. 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 country wife by william wycherley overdrive rakuten. Studying the comedy of the country wife english literature. The country wife by wycherley, william 16401716 one of the key themes of country wife which come out quite clearly from the script is the failure of the restoration arrangement of the marriages in the society. 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. The country wife is a hilariously bawdy and subversive drama that pokes fun at the jealous and humourless. Wycherley presents two marriages that are sadly typical of the restoration period. Sir fidget is also oblivious to his wifes affair with horner and even brings her wife to him personally. Whether you answer yes or no, is the play about other things as well. William wycherley may have coined the expression nincompoop certainly, the word occurs in the plain dealer. The country wifewilliam wycherleyfree downloadpdf epub. William wycherley, english dramatist who attempted to reconcile in his plays a personal conflict between deepseated puritanism and an ardent physical nature.
Instant downloads of all 1285 litchart pdfs including the country wife. Quacks very name, then, introduces the plays theme of pretence and it is. Its characters were gallants, ladies and gentleman of rank. Inspired by french farce, william wycherley s the country wife had long been considered highly controversial for its excess of sexual innuendo. It satirizes the sexual duplicity of the aristocracy during the reign of charles ii. Featured content includes commentary on major characters, 25 important quotes, essay topics, and key themes like the social perception of innocence in the city versus in the country and illness and disease as consequences of romance. One of the greatest works in restoration comedy is the country wife by william wycherley. The country wife study guide contains a biography of william wycherly, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full. Harcourt, his acquaintance, enamored of alithea mr. Litcharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in the country wife, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work. Discussion of themes and motifs in william wycherleys the country wife.
The country wife 1675 a comedy by wycherley, william 16401716 the persons mr. About the country wife the country wife summary character list glossary themes quotes and analysis act i. English comic playwright and satirist whose plays include the country wife and the plain dealer. William wycherley, painted around the time of the country wife, by peter lely wikimedia commons the country wife is one of the most powerful expressions of late seventeenth century culture, and it remained a popular play for decades in theaters throughout the englishspeaking world. Here we have horner, the trickster hero of the play, who is determined to sleep around with married women and thereby cuckold their husbands. The country wife, a comedy, acted at the theatreroyal. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Related links essay questions quiz 1 quiz 2 quiz 3 quiz 4 citations. Is it fair to say that the country wife is an examination of selfdeception and hypocrisy, and of their consequences.
Click below to download the full study guide for the country wife. 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. Margery does not only fall in love with the london city life but also with horner. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading the country wife. Wycherley died on 1 january 1716, and was buried in the vault of the church in covent garden. However, the similarities between the two genres are more farreaching than their equal entertainment value. William wycherley the country wife lyrics and tracklist. The country wife by wycherley william, coursework download. Man of business leaves his wife in my lodgings, invites me to his house and wife, who before. Popular for its lively characters and its double entendres, the bawdy comedy was. Married women like margery and lady fidget harbor affection for men. Condemning hypocrisy, praising dissolution, and elevating innuendo into an art form, the play is titillating, disquieting and witty. Study questions for william wycherley, the country wife 1.
413 99 1516 149 1175 706 1571 1518 1103 1205 1600 615 219 1415 1359 71 1073 575 402 1106 1525 1360 1244 469 1317 504 461 269 895 420 1435 53 1 547 1228 503 218 58 87 565 496 1285 1461 966 749 184 868