William Congreve: Difference between revisions

Latest revision as of 15:29, 5 January 2023

Born 24 January 1670, Bardsey, Yorkshire, England. Died 19 January 1729, London. Restoration playwright.

Life

In 1674 Congreve's father joined the garrison at Youghal, in Ireland and so the family moved to Carrickfergus, where Congreve, was sent to school at Kilkenny (the Eton of Ireland) in 1681. Five years later, he entered Trinity College, Dublin. In 1690 Congreve's father became estate agent to the earl of Cork and in the following year, Congreve became a law student at the Middle Temple (London) and started writing and publishing. He rose to some fame instantly and thus the great John Dryden made him his protégé. They even published a translation of the satires of Juvenal and Persius together. In early 1693 Congreve’s production The Old Bachelour at the Theatre Royal in Drury Lane earned him some respect. Congreve claimed to have composed this play to amuse himself during convalescence. In 1695 he became a manager of the new theatre in Lincoln's Inn Fields.

When Congreve's masterpiece The Way of the World failed to be successful in 1700, he refrained from writing plays. But he did not desert the stage entirely, writing librettos for operas and collaborating on a translation of Molière's Monsieur de Pourceaugnac in 1704.

Due to his substantial income, Congreve was able to pass the rest of his life quietly. When Voltaire paid him a visit and several compliments, Congreve supposedly replied that he only wanted to be known as English gentleman, not as writer (Bartlett).

Works

Drama

Congreve's comedies are similar to George Etherege's comedies of manner, but lack the Hobbesian nastiness. Congreve's first play The Old Bachelour (1693) was an enormous success, running for the then unprecedented length of a fortnight and commended even by John Dryden. Congreve's following play, The Double-Dealer, played in the same year at the Drury Lane Theatre but unfortunately it was not very successful. As opposed to this, Love for Love, which was first performed in 1695, was almost as successful as his first play. It was also the first production being staged in the new theatre in Lincoln's Inn Fields, opening after several crises in the old Theatre Royal. Congreve had promised to write one play a year for the Lincoln's Inn Fields theatre but failed to do so and thus his next play The Mourning Bride was only performed in 1697. Nowadays his tragedies are his least regarded drama, however, during the Restoration they were his most famous plays. In March 1700, Congreve's The Way of the World was staged and failed to be successful. Its failure is often attributed to the complexity of the plot, which ropes around the lovers Mirabell and Millamant who have to overcome several difficulties in order to marry and secure Millamant's substantial inheritance.

Poetry

In 1695 Congreve turned to writing poetry, such as his pastoral on the death of Queen Mary II, his Pindarique Ode, Humbly Offer'd to the King on his taking Namure and several poems. The volume containing these odes also contained Discourse on the Pindarique Ode (1706) and brought some order to a form that had become very unrestrained since the days of the poet Abraham Cowley.

Narrative Prose

Rumor has it that Congreve also wrote Romances. Or Novels.

Sources

Barlett's Book of Anecdotes. Eds. Clifton Fadiman & André Bernard. New York: Little, Brown and Company, 2002.
Corman, Brian. “Comedy” in The Cambridge Companion to English Restoration Theatre. Ed. D. Payne Fisk. Cambridge: CUP, 2003.
Korninger, Siegfried. The Restoration Period and the Eighteenth Century. 1660 – 1780. München: Österreichischer Bundesverlag Wien, 1964.
"Congreve, William." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2009. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 22 May 2009 <http://www.search.eb.com/eb/article-1477>.

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-= '''William Congreve'''=
+Born 24 January 1670, Bardsey, Yorkshire, England. Died 19 January 1729, London. Restoration playwright.
-born 24.01.1670, Bardsey, Yorkshire, England; died 19.01.1729, London
+== Life ==
+In 1674 Congreve's father joined the garrison at Youghal, in Ireland and so the family moved to Carrickfergus, where Congreve, was sent to school at Kilkenny (the Eton of Ireland) in 1681. Five years later, he entered Trinity College, Dublin. In 1690 Congreve's father became estate agent to the earl of Cork and in the following year, Congreve became a law student at the Middle Temple (London) and started writing and publishing. He rose to some fame instantly and thus the great [[John Dryden]] made him his protégé. They even published a translation of the satires of Juvenal and Persius together. In early 1693 Congreve’s production ''The Old Bachelour'' at the Theatre Royal in Drury Lane earned him some respect. Congreve claimed to have composed this play to amuse himself during convalescence. In 1695 he became a manager of the new theatre in Lincoln's Inn Fields.
-----
+When Congreve's masterpiece ''[[Way of The World|The Way of the World]]'' failed to be successful in 1700, he refrained from writing plays. But he did not desert the stage entirely, writing librettos for operas and collaborating on a translation of [[Molière]]'s ''Monsieur de Pourceaugnac'' in 1704.
+Due to his substantial income, Congreve was able to pass the rest of his life quietly. When [[Voltaire]] paid him a visit and several compliments, Congreve supposedly replied that he only wanted to be known as English gentleman, not as writer (Bartlett).
-== '''Life''' ==
+== Works ==
+=== Drama ===
+Congreve's comedies are similar to [[George Etherege]]'s comedies of manner, but lack the Hobbesian nastiness. Congreve's first play ''[[The Old Bachelour]]'' (1693) was an enormous success, running for the then unprecedented length of a fortnight and commended even by [[John Dryden]]. Congreve's following play, ''[[The Double-Dealer]]'', played in the same year at the Drury Lane Theatre  but unfortunately it was not very successful. As opposed to this, ''[[Love for Love]]'', which was first performed in 1695, was almost as successful as his first play. It was also the first production being staged in the new theatre in Lincoln's Inn Fields, opening after several crises in the old Theatre Royal. Congreve had promised to write one play a year for the Lincoln's Inn Fields theatre but failed to do so and thus his next play ''The Mourning Bride'' was only performed in 1697. Nowadays his tragedies are his least regarded drama, however, during the Restoration they were his most famous plays. In March 1700, Congreve's ''[[Way of The World|The Way of the World]]'' was staged and failed to be successful. Its failure is often attributed to the complexity of the plot, which ropes around the lovers Mirabell and Millamant who have to overcome several difficulties in order to marry and secure Millamant's substantial inheritance.
-In 1674 Congreve's father was granted a commission in the army to join the garrison at Youghal, in Ireland and so after a transfer to Carrickfergus, Congreve, was sent to school at Kilkenny, the Eton of Ireland, in 1681. Five years later, he entered Trinity College, Dublin. During the [[Glorious Revolution]] (1688–89) the family moved to Stretton in Staffordshire, and Congreve's father was made estate agent to the earl of Cork in 1690. In 1691 he was entered as a law student at the Middle Temple and started writing and publishing. He quickly became known and became a protégé of [[John Dryden]]. In that year Dryden and Congreve collaborated on a translation of the satires of Juvenal and Persius. In March 1693 he achieved sudden fame with the production at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, of ''The Old Bachelour'', which was written, in 1690. Congreve claimed to have composed this play to amuse himself during convalescence.
+=== Poetry ===
-In 1695 Congreve became one of the managers of the new theatre in Lincoln's Inn Fields and he was made one of the five commissioners for licensing hackney coaches, though at a reduced salary of £100 per annum.
+In 1695 Congreve turned to writing poetry, such as his pastoral on the death of Queen [[Mary II]], ''his Pindarique Ode, Humbly Offer'd to the King on his taking Namure'' and several poems. The volume containing these odes also contained ''Discourse on the Pindarique Ode'' (1706) and brought some order to a form that had become very unrestrained since the days of the poet [[Abraham Cowley]].
-When Congreve's  masterpiece ''The Way of the World'' failed to be successful in 1700, he refrained from writing plays. He did not, however, desert the stage entirely and thus wrote librettos for two operas, and collaborated on translating Molière's ''Monsieur de Pourceaugnac'' for Lincoln's Inn Fields in 1704. It is likely that Congreve's retreat from the stage was partly the result of his play failing and partly of the Collier attack, which was launched against the supposed immorality of contemporary comedies and specifically against Congreve and Dryden.
-The rest of his life he passed rather quietly, being in easy circumstances thanks to his private income, the royalties on his plays, and his multiple other jobs. He is notorious for his affection for Mrs Anne Bracegirdle — who acted most of his female leads; they were always close friends, but whether the intimacy was of a deeper nature is undetermined. In his later years he was devoted to the second duchess of Marlborough, and he probably fathered her second daughter, Lady Mary Godolphin, later duchess of Leeds. This would account for the large legacy, which he left to the duchess of Marlborough. He died after a carriage accident in 1729.
-== '''Works''' ==
+=== Narrative Prose ===
+Rumor has it that Congreve also wrote Romances. Or Novels.
-=== '''Drama''' ===
+== Sources ==
+*''Barlett's Book of Anecdotes''. Eds. Clifton Fadiman & André Bernard. New York: Little, Brown and Company, 2002.
+*Corman, Brian. “Comedy” in ''The Cambridge Companion to English Restoration Theatre''. Ed. D. Payne Fisk. Cambridge: CUP, 2003. <br />
+*Korninger, Siegfried. ''The Restoration Period and the Eighteenth Century. 1660 – 1780.'' München: Österreichischer Bundesverlag Wien, 1964. <br />
+*"Congreve, William." ''Encyclopædia Britannica''. 2009. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 22  May  2009  <http://www.search.eb.com/eb/article-1477>.
-Congreve's comedies are similar to [[George Etherege]]'s comedies of manner. But being born after the Restoration William Congreve belongs to the second generation of writers, together with Richard Steele, and not like Etherege to the Carolean dramatists.
+__NOTOC__
-He is an important writer of the English comedy of manners, differing in many respects from others of this period. His main themes are the manners and behaviour of the class to which it was addressed, i.e. the antipuritanical theatre audience. It dealt with imitators of French customs, conceited wits, and fantastics of all kind. Its major theme, jowever, was the liberal and experimental sexual life of many courtiers.
-Congreve's first play ''The Old Bachelour''(1693) was an enormous success, running for the then unprecedented length of a fortnight and commeneded even by the great writer John Dryden. Congreve's next play, ''The Double-Dealer'', played in November or December of the same year at Drury Lane did not meet with the same applause. ''Love for Love'', which was first perfromed in 1695, almost repeated the success of his first play. It was the first production staged for the new theatre in Lincoln's Inn Fields, which was opened after protracted crises in the old Theatre Royal.
-Congreve failed to carry out his promise of writing one play a year for the Lincoln's Inn theatre, so the theatre staged his next play''The Mourning Bride'' in 1697. Although it is now his least regarded drama, this tragedy increased his reputation enormously and became his most popular play. No further dramatic work appeared until March 1700, when Congreve's masterpiece, ''The Way of the World'', was produced and failed to be successful. Its failure is often attributed to the complexity of the plot. ''The Way of the World'' ropes around the lovers Mirabell and Millamant who have to overcome several difficulties in order to marry and secure Millamant's substantial inheritance. This was Congreve's last attempt to write a play, though he did not entirely desert the theatre.
-=== '''Poetry''' ===
-In 1695 Congreve began to write his more public occasional verse, such as his pastoral on the death of Queen Mary II and his ''Pindarique Ode, Humbly Offer'd to the King on his taking Namure''. He also wrote a considerable number of poems, some of the light social variety, some scholarly translations from Homer, Juvenal, Ovid, and Horace, and some Pindaric odes. The volume containing these odes also comprised his ''Discourse on the Pindarique Ode'' (1706), which brought some order to a form that had become wildly unrestrained since the days of the poet Abraham Cowley.
-== '''Sources''' ==
-Corman, Brian: ''“Comedy” in The Cambridge Companion to English Restoration Theatre''. Ed. P. Payne Fisk. Cambridge: CUP, 2003
-Korninger, Siegfried: ''The Restoration Period and the eighteenth century. 1660 – 1780.'' München: Österreichischer Bundesverlag Wien, 1964.
-Congreve, William." ''Encyclopædia Britannica''. 2009. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 22  May  2009  <http://www.search.eb.com/eb/article-1477>.