The Mulberry-Garden
Encyclopedia
The Mulberry-Garden is a comedy by Restoration poet and playwright Sir Charles Sedley
(1639-1701) and was published in 1668
mentions Sedley's long awaited play: "It being the first day of Sir Charles Sidly's new play, so long expected, The Mulbery guarden" Pepys, however, who frequented the theatre was disappointed after the première in the Theatre in Bridges Street on 18 May 1668. Apart from this short critique, no other comment on the performance is known. Pepys was not only disappointed with the language and design of the play; a lover of music like himself also disapproved of the musical setting.
The play was performed again on 20 May 1668, following on another probable performance the previous day. The Mulberry-Garden was still performed on 29 June 1668. While the play was not a smash hit, it had the average reception of so many other comedies at the time. The new edition of The Mulberry-Garden (1675) suggests that the play was revived for the theatre season of 1674/75.
As far as is known, The Mulberry-Garden was not revived after Sedley's death (1701). Unlike the well-known comedies The Country Wife, The Man of Mode and Ravenscroft
's London Cuckolds, Sedley's play never belonged to a canon of plays which were regularly performed in the eighteenth century.
between 1660 and 1671. The multi-plot structure generally comprises a heroic couple (e.g. Althea and Eugenio, Diana and Philander in Sedley's play) in a high plot with a chivalric or aristocratic code of impeccable moral integrity, whose discourse is usually presented in (rhyming) couplets. Therefore heroic high plots in tragecomedies share with heroic drama in general the basic conception to instruct the spectator and to raise in him an admiration for the heroic characters (see Lisideus's definition of drama in John Dryden
's Essay of Dramatick Poesie).
A satiric middle plot introduces a witty "gay couple" (Olivia and Wildish, a polite rake) that manages to live the free spirit of self-determination, although their love is frequently threatened by blocking characters (Olivia's uncle, the Puritan Sir Samuel Forecast). On the third level, the gulling plot, certain stereotypical characters, such as the sanctimonious Puritan (Sir Samuel), the modish gallant (Estridge and Modish), or the lecherous old ogler, are satirized. Examples of this type of play are James Howard
's The English Mounsieur (1663/1674), George Etherege
's Comical Revenge: or, Love in a Tub (1664), John Dryden
's An Evening's Love: or, The Mock Astrologer (1667), and William Wycherley
's Love in a Wood (1671). Although tragicomedies generally do not feature heroic characters in epic-like situations, they uphold class distinctions, social hierarchies, and aristocratic values in the high plots.
In The Mulberry-Garden, Sedley created a heroic high plot in which the two couples are facing a sea of troubles hindering their love, and the marriages of Althea and Eugenio and Diana and Philander are finally brought about only by the device of deus ex machina. The lovers are characterized by distinctive sets of values that determine their behaviour within a frame of idealized romance. The male heroic characters follow a code of honour in the traditional vein of chivalry, and the female equivalents stand for virtue and moral integrity. As in the code of romances, the attitude towards love remains both idealistic and asexual throughout the play; the heroic lovers are never in danger of sexual promiscuity or of other forces that imperil their virtue.
It is through the female heroine of the middle plot, Olivia, that the rhyming confessions of her sister Victoria are presented as pompous. The gay couple of the middle plot offers an ideal of marriage which is based upon independence and the pursuit of one's personal happiness. Whatever standards the heroic couples (re)present, it is the marriage of Olivia and Wildish that is central to the play. Therefore, the middle plot presents a golden mean between two extremes. Although The Mulberry-Garden is not anti-heroic, the validity of older, stricter conventions of patriarchal authority and unreflecting obedience are called into question.
The original Mulberry garden was a tree-planted pleasure ground and occupied the site of the present Buckingham Palace
and gardens. Its name derives from a garden of mulberry trees planted in the reign of James I. in 1609. For Bellamira: or, The Mistress, Sedley's racy comedy of 1687, see Bellamira (play)
.
Charles Sedley
Sir Charles Sedley, 5th Baronet was an English wit, dramatist and politician, ending his career as Speaker of the House of Commons.-Life:...
(1639-1701) and was published in 1668
Stage History and Reception
In his diary, Samuel PepysSamuel Pepys
Samuel Pepys FRS, MP, JP, was an English naval administrator and Member of Parliament who is now most famous for the diary he kept for a decade while still a relatively young man...
mentions Sedley's long awaited play: "It being the first day of Sir Charles Sidly's new play, so long expected, The Mulbery guarden" Pepys, however, who frequented the theatre was disappointed after the première in the Theatre in Bridges Street on 18 May 1668. Apart from this short critique, no other comment on the performance is known. Pepys was not only disappointed with the language and design of the play; a lover of music like himself also disapproved of the musical setting.
The play was performed again on 20 May 1668, following on another probable performance the previous day. The Mulberry-Garden was still performed on 29 June 1668. While the play was not a smash hit, it had the average reception of so many other comedies at the time. The new edition of The Mulberry-Garden (1675) suggests that the play was revived for the theatre season of 1674/75.
As far as is known, The Mulberry-Garden was not revived after Sedley's death (1701). Unlike the well-known comedies The Country Wife, The Man of Mode and Ravenscroft
Ravenscroft
-People:* John Ravenscroft , several people* Christopher Ravenscroft, an English actor* Edward Ravenscroft, an English dramatist* Edward James Ravenscroft , author of Pinetum Britannicum...
's London Cuckolds, Sedley's play never belonged to a canon of plays which were regularly performed in the eighteenth century.
The Structure of The Mulberry-Garden
The Mulberry-Garden is a typical split-plot tragicomedy, which was a popular and thriving genre of Restoration comedyRestoration comedy
Restoration comedy refers to English comedies written and performed in the Restoration period from 1660 to 1710. After public stage performances had been banned for 18 years by the Puritan regime, the re-opening of the theatres in 1660 signalled a renaissance of English drama...
between 1660 and 1671. The multi-plot structure generally comprises a heroic couple (e.g. Althea and Eugenio, Diana and Philander in Sedley's play) in a high plot with a chivalric or aristocratic code of impeccable moral integrity, whose discourse is usually presented in (rhyming) couplets. Therefore heroic high plots in tragecomedies share with heroic drama in general the basic conception to instruct the spectator and to raise in him an admiration for the heroic characters (see Lisideus's definition of drama in John Dryden
John Dryden
John Dryden was an influential English poet, literary critic, translator, and playwright who dominated the literary life of Restoration England to such a point that the period came to be known in literary circles as the Age of Dryden.Walter Scott called him "Glorious John." He was made Poet...
's Essay of Dramatick Poesie).
A satiric middle plot introduces a witty "gay couple" (Olivia and Wildish, a polite rake) that manages to live the free spirit of self-determination, although their love is frequently threatened by blocking characters (Olivia's uncle, the Puritan Sir Samuel Forecast). On the third level, the gulling plot, certain stereotypical characters, such as the sanctimonious Puritan (Sir Samuel), the modish gallant (Estridge and Modish), or the lecherous old ogler, are satirized. Examples of this type of play are James Howard
James Howard
James or Jim Howard may refer to:* James Howard, 3rd Earl of Suffolk * James Howard , English dramatist* James Howard MP , British Liberal politician, manufacturer and agriculturalist...
's The English Mounsieur (1663/1674), George Etherege
George Etherege
Sir George Etherege was an English dramatist. He wrote the plays The Comical Revenge or, Love in a Tub in 1664, She Would if She Could in 1668, and The Man of Mode or, Sir Fopling Flutter in 1676.-Early life:George Etherege was born in Maidenhead, Berkshire, around 1635, to George Etherege and...
's Comical Revenge: or, Love in a Tub (1664), John Dryden
John Dryden
John Dryden was an influential English poet, literary critic, translator, and playwright who dominated the literary life of Restoration England to such a point that the period came to be known in literary circles as the Age of Dryden.Walter Scott called him "Glorious John." He was made Poet...
's An Evening's Love: or, The Mock Astrologer (1667), and William Wycherley
William Wycherley
William Wycherley was an English dramatist of the Restoration period, best known for the plays The Country Wife and The Plain Dealer.-Biography:...
's Love in a Wood (1671). Although tragicomedies generally do not feature heroic characters in epic-like situations, they uphold class distinctions, social hierarchies, and aristocratic values in the high plots.
In The Mulberry-Garden, Sedley created a heroic high plot in which the two couples are facing a sea of troubles hindering their love, and the marriages of Althea and Eugenio and Diana and Philander are finally brought about only by the device of deus ex machina. The lovers are characterized by distinctive sets of values that determine their behaviour within a frame of idealized romance. The male heroic characters follow a code of honour in the traditional vein of chivalry, and the female equivalents stand for virtue and moral integrity. As in the code of romances, the attitude towards love remains both idealistic and asexual throughout the play; the heroic lovers are never in danger of sexual promiscuity or of other forces that imperil their virtue.
It is through the female heroine of the middle plot, Olivia, that the rhyming confessions of her sister Victoria are presented as pompous. The gay couple of the middle plot offers an ideal of marriage which is based upon independence and the pursuit of one's personal happiness. Whatever standards the heroic couples (re)present, it is the marriage of Olivia and Wildish that is central to the play. Therefore, the middle plot presents a golden mean between two extremes. Although The Mulberry-Garden is not anti-heroic, the validity of older, stricter conventions of patriarchal authority and unreflecting obedience are called into question.
The original Mulberry garden was a tree-planted pleasure ground and occupied the site of the present Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace, in London, is the principal residence and office of the British monarch. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is a setting for state occasions and royal hospitality...
and gardens. Its name derives from a garden of mulberry trees planted in the reign of James I. in 1609. For Bellamira: or, The Mistress, Sedley's racy comedy of 1687, see Bellamira (play)
Bellamira (play)
Bellamira: or, The Mistress is a comedy by Sir Charles Sedley, published in 1687, partly modelled on Terence's Eunuchus-Stage History and Reception:...
.
Editions
- Quarto editions of 1668 and 1675, printed for Henry Herringman.
- The Works of the Honourable Sir Charles Sedley, published by Samuel Briscoe (London, 1722).
Modern Edition
- Holger Hanowell, Sir Charles Sedley's "The Mulberry-Garden" (1668) and "Bellamira: or, The Mistress" (1687). An Old-Spelling Critical Edition with an Introduction and a Commentary (Frankfurt a. M., 2001).
Further reading
- Vivian de Sola Pinto, Sir Charles Sedley 1639-1701: A Study in the Life and Literature of the Restoration (London, 1927).
- Robert D. Hume, The Development of English Drama in the Late Seventeenth Century (Oxford, 1976).
- Michael Benjamin Hudnall Jr., Moral Design in the Plays of Sir Charles Sedley (University of Tennessee, Knoxville, 1984).
- Derek Hughes, English Drama 1660-1700 (Oxford, 1996).