Hannah Cowley
Encyclopedia
Hannah Cowley was an English
dramatist
and poet
. Although Cowley’s plays and poetry did not enjoy wide popularity after the nineteenth century, critic Melinda Finberg rates Cowley as “one of the foremost playwright
s of the late eighteenth century” whose “skill in writing fluid, sparkling dialogue and creating sprightly, memorable comic characters compares favourably with her better-known contemporaries, Goldsmith
and Sheridan
.” Cowley’s plays were produced frequently during her lifetime. The major themes of her plays; including her first, The Runaway (1776), and her major hit which is being revived, The Belle's Stratagem
(1780); revolve around marriage and how women strive to overcome the injustices imposed by family life and social custom.
in Tiverton, Devon
. Sources disagree about some details of her married life, citing her marriage date as either 1768 or 1772 and claiming she had either three or four children. Shortly after her marriage to Thomas Cowley, the couple moved to London
, where Thomas worked as an official in the Stamp Office
and as a part-time journalist
.
The introduction to her 1813 collected works gives an account of how Cowley was struck by a sudden desire to write while attending a play with her husband. “So delighted with this?” she boasted to him. “Why I could write as well myself!” Thomas teased her, but by the middle of the next day Cowley showed him the first act of her comedy The Runaway. If the substance of the story is true, then this visit to the theatre could have occurred no later than 1775 because the rest of The Runaway was written, sent to well-known actor-manager David Garrick
, and produced at Drury Lane
theatre by 15 February 1776.
The Runaway enjoyed 17 performances during its first season at Drury Lane and 39 in London by 1800, a success that encouraged Cowley to write more, even though her mentor Garrick retired after the 1776 season. She wrote her next two plays, the farce Who’s the Dupe? and the tragedy Albina, before the year was out.
, but it met with no better reception there, and the script alternated between the theatres for the next two years. Meanwhile, Sheridan agreed to produce Who’s the Dupe? but delayed its 1779 première until late spring, an unprofitable time for a new play to open.
The production of Albina generated public controversy for Cowley. At the same time this play was bouncing between Drury Lane and Covent Garden, writer Hannah More
’s plays Percy (1777) and ‘’Fatal Falsehood’’ (1779) opened at Covent Garden. While watching Percy aroused Cowley’s suspicions, Fatal Falsehood confirmed Cowley’s belief that More plagiarized
from Albina.
As Cowley later wrote in her preface to the printed edition of Albina, hers and More’s plays do indeed have “wonderful resemblances.” Fatal Falsehood’s opening on 6 May 1779, was followed by charges (perhaps written by Thomas Cowley) in the press that More stole her ideas from Cowley. On 10 August, More wrote to the St. James Chronicle to protest that she “never saw, heard, or read, a single line of Mrs. Cowley’s Tragedy.” In her preface to Albina, Cowley allows that the theatre managers, who in those days also acted as script editors, may have inadvertently given More her ideas: “Amidst the croud of Plots, and Stage Contrivances, in which a Manager is involv’d, recollection is too frequently mistaken for the suggestions of imagination” [emphasis in original].
Although she continued to enjoy a brilliant literary career, More did not write for the stage after her paper war with Cowley. Albina finally opened on 31 July 1779, at the Haymarket
, a summer theatre more practiced in staging comedies. It was neither a financial nor a critical success.
Her next play, The World as It Goes; or, a Party at Montpelier (later titled Second Thoughts Are Best) was a flop, but she continued to write until 1794, seeing seven more plays; Which is the Man?; A Bold Stroke for a Husband; More Ways Than One; A School for Greybeards, or, The Mourning Bride; The Fate of Sparta, or, The Rival Kings; A Day in Turkey, or, The Russian Slaves and The Town Before You; into production. None of these would match the success of her earlier plays.
In 1783, Thomas Cowley accepted a job with the British East India Company
. He moved to India
and left Hannah in London to raise their children; Thomas died there in 1797, never having returned to England.
” in 1786, and “The Siege of Acre: an Epic Poem” in 1801. In the summer of 1787, under the nom de plume "Anna Matilda," she and poet Robert Merry (writing under the name “Della Crusca”) began a poetic correspondence in the pages of the journal The World. Their poems were sentimental and flirtatious. At first the two did not even know the others’ identity; later they met and became part of a poetic movement called the Della Cruscans
. Literary history has not been kind to Della Cruscan poetry, which was criticized as sloppy and emotional. Merry was the subject of a satirical poem, “The Baviad”, written by a contemporary, William Gifford
. Cowley's poetry was published as The Poetry of Anna Matilda [pseud.] Containing A Tale for Jealousy, The Funeral, Her Correspondence with Della Crusca [pseud.] and Several Other Poetical Pieces. To Which Are Added Recollections, Printed from an Original Manuscript, Written by General Sir William Waller (London : J. Bell, 1788).
Cowley’s last play, The Town Before You, was produced in 1795. In 1801, Cowley retired to Tiverton, where she spent her remaining years staying away from the public spotlight and quietly revising her plays. She died of liver failure
in 1809.
. Meanwhile, George’s spirited cousin, Bella, helps George’s sister, Harriet, and George’s friend Sir Charles fall in love. George’s designs are threatened when he learns that his father wants George to marry Lady Dinah, a pretentious older lady who is also very rich. When Emily’s father arrives to take Emily back to London, George gives chase and snatches Emily back. Mr. Drummond saves the day by offering the young lovers some of his land so that they can have a fortune of their own.
named Gradus. Elizabeth’s friend Charlotte, who fancies Gradus for herself, persuades Gradus to act more fashionable and less bookish so that he can win Elizabeth’s heart. Doiley is not impressed by the new Gradus; meanwhile, Granger presents himself to Doiley as a scholar so that he can win Elizabeth’s hand. Granger and Gradus square off against each other to see who is the more educated, and Granger wins by using phony Greek
that nonetheless impresses Doiley. Gradus is consoled by winning Charlotte.
learns that the gallant young soldier Edward is in love with his daughter, Albina, who is a young widow to Count Raimond. Despite her love for Edward, Albina’s virtue impedes her from agreeing to marry him. Westmorland and Edward persuade her to re-marry because Edward is soon destined to go off to war; she agrees. Editha, who is jealous of Albina, seeks help from Lord Gondibert, Raimond’s brother, who secretly loves Albina. On the eve of the wedding, Gondibert tells Edward that Albina has been unfaithful, and to prove it he disguises himself and allows Edward to spy on him sneaking into Albina’s chamber at night. Edward then calls off the wedding, and the furious Westmorland challenges him to a duel
to protect Albina’s honour. Before the duel begins, Gondibert’s elderly servant, Egbert, exposes his master’s lie, and the king banishes Gondibert. Before he leaves, Gondibert vows to kill Albina and then commit suicide. He sneaks into Albina’s chamber and stabs a woman he thinks is Albina, and then he stabs himself. But the woman turns out to be a disguised Editha, who had also stolen into the room. Edward is relieved when the real Albina rushes into the room, and the dying Gondibert asks for and receives her pardon.
, the handsome Doricourt meets his betrothed, Letitia. He finds her acceptable but by no means as elegant as European women. Determined that she will not marry without love, Letitia enlists the help of her father, Mr. Hardy, and Mrs. Racket, a widow, to turn Doricourt off the wedding by pretending that she, Letitia, is an unmannerly hoyden. Meanwhile, Doricourt’s friend Sir George is being overprotective of his new wife, Lady Frances, who rebels and agrees to accompany Mrs. Racket for a day in the town and a masquerade ball that night. While out at an auction, Lady Frances meets the rake, Courtall, who brags to his friend Saville that he will seduce her. Meanwhile, Letitia’s brazen acting succeeds in dissuading Doricourt from wanting to marry her. All characters converge at that night’s masquerade. The disguised Letitia shows off her charms, bewitches Doricourt and then leaves before he can find out who she is. Courtall, disguised the same way as Sir George, lures the lady he thinks is Lady Frances back to his house. However, Saville has replaced the real Lady Frances with a prostitute
who is disguised as Lady Frances is. Shamed, Courtall leaves town. The next day, Doricourt, who has been told that Mr. Hardy is on his deathbed, visits him and reluctantly agrees to marry Letitia after all. Then the disguised Letitia enters and reveals her true identity to the overjoyed Doricourt, who also learns that Hardy was not ill after all.
, the play tells of Don Carlo, who has fled his wife, Victoria, for the courtesan
Laura. Laura breaks off with Don Carlo, but she holds on to the documents that entitle her to his land, a gift he foolishly gave her. We learn that Laura is in love with Florio, who is really Victoria disguised as a young man. Meanwhile, Victoria’s friend Olivia is resisting efforts by her father, Don Caesar, to marry her off to a series of suitors
. In desperation, Don Caesar pretends that he will marry and young girl and then send Olivia off to a convent unless she marries right away. Victoria persuades Olivia’s servant to disguise himself as her rich uncle, the original owner of the land that Laura now holds. He convinces Laura that the titles are worthless, so in a rage she rips them up. Victoria reveals herself to Don Carlos, who repents and pledges himself to her again. Meanwhile, Olivia gets married to Julio, the man she wanted all along.
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
dramatist
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
and poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
. Although Cowley’s plays and poetry did not enjoy wide popularity after the nineteenth century, critic Melinda Finberg rates Cowley as “one of the foremost playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
s of the late eighteenth century” whose “skill in writing fluid, sparkling dialogue and creating sprightly, memorable comic characters compares favourably with her better-known contemporaries, Goldsmith
Oliver Goldsmith
Oliver Goldsmith was an Irish writer, poet and physician known for his novel The Vicar of Wakefield , his pastoral poem The Deserted Village , and his plays The Good-Natur'd Man and She Stoops to Conquer...
and Sheridan
Richard Brinsley Sheridan
Richard Brinsley Butler Sheridan was an Irish-born playwright and poet and long-term owner of the London Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. For thirty-two years he was also a Whig Member of the British House of Commons for Stafford , Westminster and Ilchester...
.” Cowley’s plays were produced frequently during her lifetime. The major themes of her plays; including her first, The Runaway (1776), and her major hit which is being revived, The Belle's Stratagem
The Belle's Stratagem
The Belle's Stratagem is a romantic comedy of manners that premiered on February 22, 1780; it was the most successful work by Hannah Cowley. It drew its title from George Farquhar's play The Beaux' Stratagem. The show was presented by David Garrick, filling the 2,000-seat Drury Lane theatre. to...
(1780); revolve around marriage and how women strive to overcome the injustices imposed by family life and social custom.
Early success
Born Hannah Parkhouse, she was the daughter of Hannah (née Richards) and Philip Parkhouse, a booksellerBookselling
Bookselling is the commercial trading of books, the retail and distribution end of the publishing process. People who engage in bookselling are called booksellers or bookmen.-Bookstores today:...
in Tiverton, Devon
Devon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
. Sources disagree about some details of her married life, citing her marriage date as either 1768 or 1772 and claiming she had either three or four children. Shortly after her marriage to Thomas Cowley, the couple moved to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, where Thomas worked as an official in the Stamp Office
Stamp Act
A stamp act is any legislation that requires a tax to be paid on the transfer of certain documents. Those that pay the tax receive an official stamp on their documents, making them legal documents. The taxes raised under a stamp act are called stamp duty. This system of taxation was first devised...
and as a part-time journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
.
The introduction to her 1813 collected works gives an account of how Cowley was struck by a sudden desire to write while attending a play with her husband. “So delighted with this?” she boasted to him. “Why I could write as well myself!” Thomas teased her, but by the middle of the next day Cowley showed him the first act of her comedy The Runaway. If the substance of the story is true, then this visit to the theatre could have occurred no later than 1775 because the rest of The Runaway was written, sent to well-known actor-manager David Garrick
David Garrick
David Garrick was an English actor, playwright, theatre manager and producer who influenced nearly all aspects of theatrical practice throughout the 18th century and was a pupil and friend of Dr Samuel Johnson...
, and produced at Drury Lane
Theatre Royal, Drury Lane
The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane is a West End theatre in Covent Garden, in the City of Westminster, a borough of London. The building faces Catherine Street and backs onto Drury Lane. The building standing today is the most recent in a line of four theatres at the same location dating back to 1663,...
theatre by 15 February 1776.
The Runaway enjoyed 17 performances during its first season at Drury Lane and 39 in London by 1800, a success that encouraged Cowley to write more, even though her mentor Garrick retired after the 1776 season. She wrote her next two plays, the farce Who’s the Dupe? and the tragedy Albina, before the year was out.
Controversy with Hannah More
Who’s the Dupe? and Albina encountered difficulties in production. The new manager of Drury Lane, Richard Brinsley Sheridan, shelved The Runaway for most of the 1777 season. Miffed, Cowley sent Albina to Drury Lane’s rival theatre in London, Covent GardenRoyal Opera House
The Royal Opera House is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply "Covent Garden", after a previous use of the site of the opera house's original construction in 1732. It is the home of The Royal Opera, The...
, but it met with no better reception there, and the script alternated between the theatres for the next two years. Meanwhile, Sheridan agreed to produce Who’s the Dupe? but delayed its 1779 première until late spring, an unprofitable time for a new play to open.
The production of Albina generated public controversy for Cowley. At the same time this play was bouncing between Drury Lane and Covent Garden, writer Hannah More
Hannah More
Hannah More was an English religious writer, and philanthropist. She can be said to have made three reputations in the course of her long life: as a poet and playwright in the circle of Johnson, Reynolds and Garrick, as a writer on moral and religious subjects, and as a practical...
’s plays Percy (1777) and ‘’Fatal Falsehood’’ (1779) opened at Covent Garden. While watching Percy aroused Cowley’s suspicions, Fatal Falsehood confirmed Cowley’s belief that More plagiarized
Plagiarism
Plagiarism is defined in dictionaries as the "wrongful appropriation," "close imitation," or "purloining and publication" of another author's "language, thoughts, ideas, or expressions," and the representation of them as one's own original work, but the notion remains problematic with nebulous...
from Albina.
As Cowley later wrote in her preface to the printed edition of Albina, hers and More’s plays do indeed have “wonderful resemblances.” Fatal Falsehood’s opening on 6 May 1779, was followed by charges (perhaps written by Thomas Cowley) in the press that More stole her ideas from Cowley. On 10 August, More wrote to the St. James Chronicle to protest that she “never saw, heard, or read, a single line of Mrs. Cowley’s Tragedy.” In her preface to Albina, Cowley allows that the theatre managers, who in those days also acted as script editors, may have inadvertently given More her ideas: “Amidst the croud of Plots, and Stage Contrivances, in which a Manager is involv’d, recollection is too frequently mistaken for the suggestions of imagination” [emphasis in original].
Although she continued to enjoy a brilliant literary career, More did not write for the stage after her paper war with Cowley. Albina finally opened on 31 July 1779, at the Haymarket
Haymarket Theatre
The Theatre Royal Haymarket is a West End theatre in the Haymarket in the City of Westminster which dates back to 1720, making it the third-oldest London playhouse still in use...
, a summer theatre more practiced in staging comedies. It was neither a financial nor a critical success.
Later career
With the Hannah More controversy behind her, Cowley wrote her most popular and enduring comedy, The Belle’s Stratagem, which was produced at Covent Garden in 1780. It was performed 28 nights in its first season and 118 times in London before 1800, a respectable success that solidified her family’s financial position.Her next play, The World as It Goes; or, a Party at Montpelier (later titled Second Thoughts Are Best) was a flop, but she continued to write until 1794, seeing seven more plays; Which is the Man?; A Bold Stroke for a Husband; More Ways Than One; A School for Greybeards, or, The Mourning Bride; The Fate of Sparta, or, The Rival Kings; A Day in Turkey, or, The Russian Slaves and The Town Before You; into production. None of these would match the success of her earlier plays.
In 1783, Thomas Cowley accepted a job with the British East India Company
British East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
. He moved to India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and left Hannah in London to raise their children; Thomas died there in 1797, never having returned to England.
Cowley’s poetry
Hannah Cowley had a less-distinguished career as a poet, writing “The Scottish Village, or Pitcairne GreenPitcairngreen
Pitcairngreen is a small village in Perth and Kinross situated to the north of Almondbank which some people consider it to be part of. It lies around 4 miles northwest of Perth....
” in 1786, and “The Siege of Acre: an Epic Poem” in 1801. In the summer of 1787, under the nom de plume "Anna Matilda," she and poet Robert Merry (writing under the name “Della Crusca”) began a poetic correspondence in the pages of the journal The World. Their poems were sentimental and flirtatious. At first the two did not even know the others’ identity; later they met and became part of a poetic movement called the Della Cruscans
Della Cruscans
The Della Cruscans were a circle of European late-18th-century sentimental poets founded by Robert Merry .- History and influence :...
. Literary history has not been kind to Della Cruscan poetry, which was criticized as sloppy and emotional. Merry was the subject of a satirical poem, “The Baviad”, written by a contemporary, William Gifford
William Gifford
William Gifford was an English critic, editor and poet, famous as a satirist and controversialist.-Life:Gifford was born in Ashburton, Devonshire to Edward Gifford and Elizabeth Cain. His father, a glazier and house painter, had run away as a youth with vagabond Bampfylde Moore Carew, and he...
. Cowley's poetry was published as The Poetry of Anna Matilda [pseud.] Containing A Tale for Jealousy, The Funeral, Her Correspondence with Della Crusca [pseud.] and Several Other Poetical Pieces. To Which Are Added Recollections, Printed from an Original Manuscript, Written by General Sir William Waller (London : J. Bell, 1788).
Cowley’s last play, The Town Before You, was produced in 1795. In 1801, Cowley retired to Tiverton, where she spent her remaining years staying away from the public spotlight and quietly revising her plays. She died of liver failure
Liver failure
Acute liver failure is the appearance of severe complications rapidly after the first signs of liver disease , and indicates that the liver has sustained severe damage . The complications are hepatic encephalopathy and impaired protein synthesis...
in 1809.
The Runaway (1776)
George Hargrave, who is home from college, is overjoyed to learn that Emily, the mysterious runaway whom his godfather, Mr. Drummond, has taken in, is the same young lady he fell in love with at a recent masqueradeMasquerade ball
A masquerade ball is an event which the participants attend in costume wearing a mask. - History :...
. Meanwhile, George’s spirited cousin, Bella, helps George’s sister, Harriet, and George’s friend Sir Charles fall in love. George’s designs are threatened when he learns that his father wants George to marry Lady Dinah, a pretentious older lady who is also very rich. When Emily’s father arrives to take Emily back to London, George gives chase and snatches Emily back. Mr. Drummond saves the day by offering the young lovers some of his land so that they can have a fortune of their own.
Who’s the Dupe? (1779)
Granger, a captain, arrives in town to see his lover, Elizabeth. Her uneducated father, Abraham Doiley, has promised her hand to the most educated man he can find, an unappealing but intelligent scholarAcademia
Academia is the community of students and scholars engaged in higher education and research.-Etymology:The word comes from the akademeia in ancient Greece. Outside the city walls of Athens, the gymnasium was made famous by Plato as a center of learning...
named Gradus. Elizabeth’s friend Charlotte, who fancies Gradus for herself, persuades Gradus to act more fashionable and less bookish so that he can win Elizabeth’s heart. Doiley is not impressed by the new Gradus; meanwhile, Granger presents himself to Doiley as a scholar so that he can win Elizabeth’s hand. Granger and Gradus square off against each other to see who is the more educated, and Granger wins by using phony Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
that nonetheless impresses Doiley. Gradus is consoled by winning Charlotte.
Albina (1779)
The powerful Duke of WestmorlandWestmorland
Westmorland is an area of North West England and one of the 39 historic counties of England. It formed an administrative county from 1889 to 1974, after which the entirety of the county was absorbed into the new county of Cumbria.-Early history:...
learns that the gallant young soldier Edward is in love with his daughter, Albina, who is a young widow to Count Raimond. Despite her love for Edward, Albina’s virtue impedes her from agreeing to marry him. Westmorland and Edward persuade her to re-marry because Edward is soon destined to go off to war; she agrees. Editha, who is jealous of Albina, seeks help from Lord Gondibert, Raimond’s brother, who secretly loves Albina. On the eve of the wedding, Gondibert tells Edward that Albina has been unfaithful, and to prove it he disguises himself and allows Edward to spy on him sneaking into Albina’s chamber at night. Edward then calls off the wedding, and the furious Westmorland challenges him to a duel
Duel
A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two individuals, with matched weapons in accordance with agreed-upon rules.Duels in this form were chiefly practised in Early Modern Europe, with precedents in the medieval code of chivalry, and continued into the modern period especially among...
to protect Albina’s honour. Before the duel begins, Gondibert’s elderly servant, Egbert, exposes his master’s lie, and the king banishes Gondibert. Before he leaves, Gondibert vows to kill Albina and then commit suicide. He sneaks into Albina’s chamber and stabs a woman he thinks is Albina, and then he stabs himself. But the woman turns out to be a disguised Editha, who had also stolen into the room. Edward is relieved when the real Albina rushes into the room, and the dying Gondibert asks for and receives her pardon.
The Belle’s Stratagem (1780)
Having returned from his trip to EuropeEurope
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, the handsome Doricourt meets his betrothed, Letitia. He finds her acceptable but by no means as elegant as European women. Determined that she will not marry without love, Letitia enlists the help of her father, Mr. Hardy, and Mrs. Racket, a widow, to turn Doricourt off the wedding by pretending that she, Letitia, is an unmannerly hoyden. Meanwhile, Doricourt’s friend Sir George is being overprotective of his new wife, Lady Frances, who rebels and agrees to accompany Mrs. Racket for a day in the town and a masquerade ball that night. While out at an auction, Lady Frances meets the rake, Courtall, who brags to his friend Saville that he will seduce her. Meanwhile, Letitia’s brazen acting succeeds in dissuading Doricourt from wanting to marry her. All characters converge at that night’s masquerade. The disguised Letitia shows off her charms, bewitches Doricourt and then leaves before he can find out who she is. Courtall, disguised the same way as Sir George, lures the lady he thinks is Lady Frances back to his house. However, Saville has replaced the real Lady Frances with a prostitute
Prostitution
Prostitution is the act or practice of providing sexual services to another person in return for payment. The person who receives payment for sexual services is called a prostitute and the person who receives such services is known by a multitude of terms, including a "john". Prostitution is one of...
who is disguised as Lady Frances is. Shamed, Courtall leaves town. The next day, Doricourt, who has been told that Mr. Hardy is on his deathbed, visits him and reluctantly agrees to marry Letitia after all. Then the disguised Letitia enters and reveals her true identity to the overjoyed Doricourt, who also learns that Hardy was not ill after all.
A Bold Stroke for a Husband (1783)
Set in MadridMadrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
, the play tells of Don Carlo, who has fled his wife, Victoria, for the courtesan
Prostitution
Prostitution is the act or practice of providing sexual services to another person in return for payment. The person who receives payment for sexual services is called a prostitute and the person who receives such services is known by a multitude of terms, including a "john". Prostitution is one of...
Laura. Laura breaks off with Don Carlo, but she holds on to the documents that entitle her to his land, a gift he foolishly gave her. We learn that Laura is in love with Florio, who is really Victoria disguised as a young man. Meanwhile, Victoria’s friend Olivia is resisting efforts by her father, Don Caesar, to marry her off to a series of suitors
Courtship
Courtship is the period in a couple's relationship which precedes their engagement and marriage, or establishment of an agreed relationship of a more enduring kind. In courtship, a couple get to know each other and decide if there will be an engagement or other such agreement...
. In desperation, Don Caesar pretends that he will marry and young girl and then send Olivia off to a convent unless she marries right away. Victoria persuades Olivia’s servant to disguise himself as her rich uncle, the original owner of the land that Laura now holds. He convinces Laura that the titles are worthless, so in a rage she rips them up. Victoria reveals herself to Don Carlos, who repents and pledges himself to her again. Meanwhile, Olivia gets married to Julio, the man she wanted all along.
Electronic resources
- Hannah Cowley (1743-1809) (English Poetry 1579-1830: Spenser and the Tradition)