She-tragedy

The she-tragedy is a tragic form that developed in the 1680's. The term is believed to be coined by the Restoration playwright Nicholas Rowe. The she-tragedy focused on the suffering of pure women, with such topics as rape, suicide, and female distress. [1]

Development

The growing popularity of the she-tragedy came after a shift from heroic to pathetic tragedy. Several reasons for the decline of the heroic drama, and the emergence of the pathetic drama have been assumed. Firstly, the „loss of faith in old masculine ideals of behaviour may have been accompanied by a new desire to use women as social models“. Secondly, the emergence of the she-tragedy „coincided with other female developments“. These developments included the rule of Queen Mary, the publishing of several pamphlets on extolling the rights of women, and the production of the first English periodical that was designed solely for women. [2]

Works

• Thomas Otway: The Orphan (1860)
• John Banks: Virtue Betrayed, or, Anna Bullen (1682)
• Thomas Southerne: The Fatal Marriage (1694)
• Nicholas Rowe: The Fair Penitent (1703)
• Nicholas Rowe: Lady Jane Grey (1715)

References

[1] Stewart: The Ravishin Restoration, p. 50

[2] Howe: The First English Actresses, pp. 108-109

Sources

Howe, Elizabeth (1992). The First English Actresses: Women and Drama 1660–1700. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Stewart, Ann Marie (2010). The Ravishin Restoration: Aphra Behn, Violence, and Comedy. Susquehanna University Press.