The Witlings and The Woman-HaterBroadview Press, 19.09.2002 - 329 Seiten This Broadview edition pairs two of Frances Burney’s linked comedies. They both present the character of Lady Smatter, a “femme savante” whose lineage may be traced back to Molière; they both centre on the misfortunes of the “elle” figure, the dispossessed heiress and wife who appears frequently in Burney’s fiction; and they both criticize a culture of misogyny that breeds suspicion and resentment. The Witlings, lighter and more comic, derives from late seventeenth-century conventions; The Woman-Hater, more melodramatic, both expresses and warns against the excessive sensibility of romanticism. Together, these two plays constitute a miniature history of English drama from the Restoration to the French Revolution and beyond. This edition contains a valuable selection of appendices, including: Burney’s “Epilogue to Gerilda”; letters and diary entries; contemporary writings on comedy; and Burney’s cast-list for The Woman-Hater. |
Inhalt
7 | |
8 | |
9 | |
A Brief Chronology | 36 |
A Note on the Text | 40 |
The Witlings 177880 | 43 |
The WomanHater 180002 | 173 |
Burneys Earliest Theatrical Writing Epilogue to Gerilda | 291 |
Contemporary Letters and Diary Entries on The Witlings | 294 |
Burney and Molière | 309 |
Contemporary Critical Essays on Laughing and Sentimental Comedy | 316 |
Literary Allusions in The Witlings and The WomanHater | 319 |
Burneys CastList for The WomanHater | 322 |
Similarities between The Witlings The WomanHater and Burneys Novels | 324 |
327 | |