In 1642 the English theatre was closed by an Act of Parliament. The Puritans since the time of Roger Aschams had looked askance at the drama and when they came into power, naturally their first action was to close the theatre. Nor was it merely the Puritan zeal which accounted for this. The drama in the Caroline age had suffered from a lowered vitality; it ceased to voice the spirit of the nation (as in the case of the Elizabethan drama). It became only a means of entertainment for the idle and dissolute few and the theatre was generally shunned by people of decent taste. Thus the eclipse of the English drama was perfectly merited. This was the state of the drama for eighteen years. With the restoration of King Charles II and the consequent opening of the theatre, the drama had a quick revival and produced a group of dramatists whose works, particulary comedies stand unique in English literature. The King who lived in exile in France and now returned to the throne, brought new manners and fashions from the French court. These new French ideals dominated not only the society but also its literature. And as is usual with all reactions, the reaction from Puritan ideals went to the other extreme. The society and court became swamped in vice and corruption. The theatre became the pleasure house of the rich and gay, the fops and dandies, and or the fashionable ladies of sophisticated tastes. It lost touch with the people.
The Restoration drama seems at first sight to break new grounds in both matter and manner but in realty it is a continuation of the native traditions of the earlier drama which held the stage before 1642. The influence of France is no doubt discernible in the dominance of comedy as a form of drama, which owes much to Moliere, Racine and Corneille, the pre-eminent French Comedians. The age did not produce any tragedy worth the name. It was the age of comedy par excellence. The Restoration comedy drew its main inspiration from the native tradition (of Ben Jonson, Beaumont and Fletcher). But influence of the French comedy was superimposed on it. The result is visible in certain new features that the new comedy developed. Thus "Moliere provided English dramatists with ideas for plots and with an example of the comic characterisation; Spanish drama served to strengthen that love of intrigue and incident already firmly established in English comedy. But here it is important to stress that foreign influences while important, were not the predominant factor in the evolution of the Restoration comedy. They blended with a tradition already strongly established and assisted the natural process of change demanded by the changing temper of the age, but they were transformed into something essentially English and contemporary (Albert). Thus Ben Jonson was still a living influence in this age of degeneration. His 'comedy of humour' had inspired the comedies of Thomas Shadwell who was castigated by Dryden for calling himself the 'son of Ben' (in his famous satire Mac Flecktoe). Dryden in his comedy of intrigue carried on the tradition of Beaumont and Fletcher. It is 'comedy of manners' which is however the greatest glory of the Restoration drama. It was pre-eminently a revival of the methods of the earlier comedies of Shakespeare and Jonson in its most important aspects. After several tentative efforts Etherege and Wycherly created the new type of comedy.
As to its general characteristics, Restoration comedy holds the mirror to contemporary life and gives a faithful and realistic presentation of the frivolities and cynical elegance of the dissolute society. But its realism is tree from any moralising or philosophical intention, as the plays of the romantic comedians and becomes only a mocking image of the carefree lite of the upper strata of the society. Thus to the modern readers these comedies appear grossly vulgar and offensively immoral. Yet they are full of astonishing vitality and zest for lite as lite was then understood. The poetic romance of the early dramas gives place here to an intellectual control which replaces emotion by wit, and poetry by a clear and concise prose which adds much point and gives a fine precision to the dialogue. The pervading tone is one of the cynicism and the plays show a close and often satirical observation of life that recalls the works of Ben Jonson. Plots and subplots are often intricate and numerous and centre mainiy on amorous intrigues which reflect an open contempt for the ordinary standards of morality, that in Wycherley and others, the form of gross sensuality. The lack of passion and emotion in these plays gives them a polished and crystal hardness (Albert). The characters are largely types, and remind us of the 'humour' characters of Jonson. A critic has thus summed up the characteristics of this comedy : "Very diverse elements, for the most part borrowed and associated indifterently in a loose action; feebly conceived characters. Who almost always can be reduced to types so often repeated as to be convenient; verve, movement, wit, a force of comedy, exterior but undeniable; realism, scurrility, licentiousness; all of it significant, artistically poor, but rich in documentary value : such as, generally speaking, the comedy of Restoration, as soon as two or three main personalities (Etherege, Wycherley and Congreve) are left out of the account".
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| Restoration comedy |
The Restoration drama seems at first sight to break new grounds in both matter and manner but in realty it is a continuation of the native traditions of the earlier drama which held the stage before 1642. The influence of France is no doubt discernible in the dominance of comedy as a form of drama, which owes much to Moliere, Racine and Corneille, the pre-eminent French Comedians. The age did not produce any tragedy worth the name. It was the age of comedy par excellence. The Restoration comedy drew its main inspiration from the native tradition (of Ben Jonson, Beaumont and Fletcher). But influence of the French comedy was superimposed on it. The result is visible in certain new features that the new comedy developed. Thus "Moliere provided English dramatists with ideas for plots and with an example of the comic characterisation; Spanish drama served to strengthen that love of intrigue and incident already firmly established in English comedy. But here it is important to stress that foreign influences while important, were not the predominant factor in the evolution of the Restoration comedy. They blended with a tradition already strongly established and assisted the natural process of change demanded by the changing temper of the age, but they were transformed into something essentially English and contemporary (Albert). Thus Ben Jonson was still a living influence in this age of degeneration. His 'comedy of humour' had inspired the comedies of Thomas Shadwell who was castigated by Dryden for calling himself the 'son of Ben' (in his famous satire Mac Flecktoe). Dryden in his comedy of intrigue carried on the tradition of Beaumont and Fletcher. It is 'comedy of manners' which is however the greatest glory of the Restoration drama. It was pre-eminently a revival of the methods of the earlier comedies of Shakespeare and Jonson in its most important aspects. After several tentative efforts Etherege and Wycherly created the new type of comedy.
As to its general characteristics, Restoration comedy holds the mirror to contemporary life and gives a faithful and realistic presentation of the frivolities and cynical elegance of the dissolute society. But its realism is tree from any moralising or philosophical intention, as the plays of the romantic comedians and becomes only a mocking image of the carefree lite of the upper strata of the society. Thus to the modern readers these comedies appear grossly vulgar and offensively immoral. Yet they are full of astonishing vitality and zest for lite as lite was then understood. The poetic romance of the early dramas gives place here to an intellectual control which replaces emotion by wit, and poetry by a clear and concise prose which adds much point and gives a fine precision to the dialogue. The pervading tone is one of the cynicism and the plays show a close and often satirical observation of life that recalls the works of Ben Jonson. Plots and subplots are often intricate and numerous and centre mainiy on amorous intrigues which reflect an open contempt for the ordinary standards of morality, that in Wycherley and others, the form of gross sensuality. The lack of passion and emotion in these plays gives them a polished and crystal hardness (Albert). The characters are largely types, and remind us of the 'humour' characters of Jonson. A critic has thus summed up the characteristics of this comedy : "Very diverse elements, for the most part borrowed and associated indifterently in a loose action; feebly conceived characters. Who almost always can be reduced to types so often repeated as to be convenient; verve, movement, wit, a force of comedy, exterior but undeniable; realism, scurrility, licentiousness; all of it significant, artistically poor, but rich in documentary value : such as, generally speaking, the comedy of Restoration, as soon as two or three main personalities (Etherege, Wycherley and Congreve) are left out of the account".
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