The Works of Aphra Behn, Volume III
798 pages
English

The Works of Aphra Behn, Volume III

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798 pages
English
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Project Gutenberg's The Works of Aphra Behn, Vol. III, by Aphra BehnThis eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it,give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online atwww.gutenberg.netTitle: The Works of Aphra Behn, Vol. IIIAuthor: Aphra BehnRelease Date: November 10, 2003 [EBook #10039]Language: English*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE WORKS OF APHRA BEHN, VOL. III ***Produced by Jonathan Ingram, Tapio Riikonen and PG Distributed ProofreadersTHE WORKS OF APHRA BEHN, VOL. IIIEDITED BY MONTAGUE SUMMERSMCMXVCONTENTS:THE TOWN-FOP; OR, SIR TIMOTHY TAWDREY THE FALSE COUNT THE LUCKY CHANCE; OR, AN ALDERMAN'S BARGAIN THE FORC'D MARRIAGE; OR,THE JEALOUS BRIDEGROOM THE EMPEROR OF THE MOON NOTESTHE TOWN-FOP; OR, SIR TIMOTHY TAWDREY.ARGUMENT.Sir Timothy Tawdrey is by the wishes of his mother and the lady's father designed for Celinda, who loves Bellmour,nephew to Lord Plotwell. A coxcomb of the first water, Sir Timothy receives a sharp rebuff when he opens his suit, andaccordingly he challenges Bellmour, but fails to appear at the place of meeting. Celinda's old nurse, at night, admitsBellmour to her mistress' chamber, where they are surprized by Friendlove, her brother, who is, however, favourable tothe union, the more so as he is a friend of Bellmour, and they have but newly returned from travelling together in Italy. ...

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Publié le 08 décembre 2010
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Project Gutenberg's The Works of Aphra Behn,
Vol. III, by Aphra Behn
This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at
no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever.
You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the
terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.net
Title: The Works of Aphra Behn, Vol. III
Author: Aphra Behn
Release Date: November 10, 2003 [EBook #10039]
Language: English
*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG
EBOOK THE WORKS OF APHRA BEHN, VOL. III
***
Produced by Jonathan Ingram, Tapio Riikonen and
PG Distributed ProofreadersTHE WORKS OF APHRA BEHN,
VOL. III
EDITED BY MONTAGUE SUMMERS
MCMXV
CONTENTS:
THE TOWN-FOP; OR, SIR TIMOTHY TAWDREY
THE FALSE COUNT THE LUCKY CHANCE; OR,
AN ALDERMAN'S BARGAIN THE FORC'D
MARRIAGE; OR, THE JEALOUS BRIDEGROOM
THE EMPEROR OF THE MOON NOTES
THE TOWN-FOP; OR,SIR TIMOTHY
TAWDREY.
ARGUMENT.
Sir Timothy Tawdrey is by the wishes of his mother
and the lady's father designed for Celinda, who
loves Bellmour, nephew to Lord Plotwell. A
coxcomb of the first water, Sir Timothy receives a
sharp rebuff when he opens his suit, and
accordingly he challenges Bellmour, but fails to
appear at the place of meeting. Celinda's old
nurse, at night, admits Bellmour to her mistress'
chamber, where they are surprized by Friendlove,
her brother, who is, however, favourable to the
union, the more so as he is a friend of Bellmour,
and they have but newly returned from travelling
together in Italy. Lord Plotwell warmly welcomes
his nephew home, and proceeds to unfold his
design of giving him his niece Diana in marriage.
When he demurs, the old lord threatens to deprive
him of his estate, and he is compelled eventually to
acquiesce in the matrimonial schemes of his
guardian. Bellmour sends word to Celinda, who
replies in a heart-broken letter; and at the wedding
feast Friendlove, who himself is deeply enamoured
of Diana, appears in disguise to observe the traitor.
He is followed by his sister disguised as a boy, and
upon Friendlove's drawing on Bellmour a scuffle
ensues which, however, ends without harm. In thenuptial chamber Bellmour informs Diana that he
cannot love her and she quits him maddened with
rage and disappointment. Sir Timothy serenades
the newly-mated pair and is threatened by
Bellmour, whilst Celinda, who has been watching
the house, attacks the fop and his fiddlers. During
the brawl Diana issuing forth meets Celinda, and
taking her for a boy leads her into the house and
shortly makes advances of love. They are
interrupted by Friendlove, disguised, and he
receives Diana's commands to seek out and
challenge Bellmour. At the same time he reveals
his love as though he told the tale of another, but
he is met with scorn and only bidden to fight the
husband who has repulsed her. Bellmour,
meantime, in despair and rage at his misery
plunges into reckless debauchery, and in company
with Sir Timothy visits a bagnio, where they meet
Betty Flauntit, the knight's kept mistress, and other
cyprians. Hither they are tracked by Charles,
Bellmour's younger brother, and Trusty, Lord
Plotwell's old steward. Sharp words pass, the
brothers fight and Charles is slighted wounded.
Their Uncle hears of this with much indignation,
and at the same time receiving a letter from Diana
begging for a divorce, he announces his intention
to further her purpose, and to abandon wholly
Charles and Phillis, his sister, in consequence of
their elder brother's conduct. Sir Timothy, induced
by old Trusty, begins a warm courtship of Phillis,
and arranges with a parasite named Sham to
deceive her by a mock marriage. Sham, however,
procures a real parson, and Sir Timothy is for the
moment afraid he has got a wife without a dowry orportion. Lord Plotwell eventually promises to
provide for her, and at Diana's request, now she
recognizes her mistake in trying to hold a man who
does not love her, Bellmour is forgiven and allowed
to wed Celinda as soon as the divorce has been
pronounced, whilst Diana herself rewards
Friendlove with her hand.
SOURCE.
The Town-Fop; or, Sir Timothy Tawdrey is
materially founded upon George Wilkins' popular
play, The Miseries of Enforced Marriage (4to,
1607, 1611, 1629, 1637), reprinted in Dodsley. Sir
Timothy himself is moulded to some extent upon
Sir Francis Ilford, but, as Geneste aptly remarks,
he may be considered a new character. In the
older drama, Clare, the original of Celinda, dies
tragically of a broken heart. It cannot be denied
that Mrs. Behn has greatly improved Wilkins'
scenes. The well-drawn character of Betty Flauntit
is her own, and the realistically vivacious bagnio
episodes of Act iv replace a not very interesting or
lively tavern with a considerable accession to wit
and humour, although perhaps not to strict
propriety.
THEATRICAL HISTORY.
The Town-Fop; or, Sir Timothy Tawdrey wasThe Town-Fop; or, Sir Timothy Tawdrey was
produced at the Duke's Theatre, Dorset Garden, in
September, 1676. There is no record of its
performance, and the actors' names are not given.
It was a year of considerable changes in the
company, and any attempt to supply these would
be the merest surmise.
THE TOWN-FOP; or, Sir Timothy Tawdrey.
PROLOGUE.
_As Country Squire, who yet had never known
The long-expected Joy of being in Town;
Whose careful Parents scarce permitted Heir
To ride from home, unless to neighbouring Fair;
At last by happy Chance is hither led,
To purchase Clap with loss of Maidenhead;
Turns wondrous gay, bedizen'd to Excess;
Till he is all Burlesque in Mode and Dress:
Learns to talk loud in Pit, grows wily too,
That is to say, makes mighty Noise and Show.
So a young Poet, who had never been
Dabling beyond the Height of Ballading;
Who, in his brisk Essays, durst ne'er excel
The lucky Flight of rhyming Doggerel,
Sets up with this sufficient Stock on Stage,
And has, perchance, the luck to please the Age.
He draws you in, like cozening Citizen;
Cares not how bad the Ware, so Shop be fine.As tawdry Gown and Petticoat gain more
(Tho on a dull diseas'd ill-favour'd Whore)
Than prettier Frugal, tho on Holy-day, |
When every City-Spark has leave to play_, |
—Damn her, she must be sound, she is so gay; |
So let the Scenes be fine, you'll ne'er enquire
For Sense, but lofty Flights in nimble Wire.
—What we present to Day is none of these,
But we cou'd wish it were, for we wou'd please,
And that you'll swear we hardly meant to do:
Yet here's no Sense; Pox on't, but here's no Show;
But a plain Story, that will give a Taste
Of what your Grandsires lov'd i'th' Age that's past.
DRAMATIS PERSONAE.
MEN.
Lord Plotwell. Bellmour, Nephew to the Lord
Plotwell, contracted to Celinda. Charles, Brother to
Bellmour. Friendlove, Brother to Celinda, in love
with Diana. Sir Timothy Tawdrey, a Fop-Knight,
design'd to marry Celinda. Sham, | Hangers on to
Sir Timothy. Sharp, | Trusty, An old Steward to
Bellmour's Family. Page to Bellmour. Page to Lord
Plotwell. Sir Timothy's Page. Guests, Dancers,
Fiddlers, and Servants.
WOMEN.The Lady Diana, Niece to the Lord Plotwell.
Celinda, Sister to Friendlove, contracted to
Bellmour. Phillis, Sister to Bellmour. Betty Flauntit,
kept by Sir Timothy. Driver, A Bawd. Jenny, | Two
Whores Doll, | Nurse, Ladies and Guests.
SCENE, Covent-Garden.ACT I.
SCENE I. The Street.
Enter Sir Timothy Tawdrey, Sham, and Sharp.
Sir Tim. Hereabouts is the House wherein dwells
the Mistress of my Heart; for she has Money,
Boys, mind me, Money in abundance, or she were
not for me—The Wench her self is good-natur'd,
and inclin'd to be civil: but a Pox on't—she has a
Brother, a conceited Fellow, whom the World
mistakes for a fine Gentleman; for he has travell'd,
talks Languages, bows with a bonne mine, and the
rest; but, by Fortune, he shall entertain you with
nothing but Words—
Sham. Nothing else!—
Sir Tim. No—He's no Country-Squire, Gentlemen,
will not game, whore; nay, in my Conscience, you
will hardly get your selves drunk in his Company—
He treats A-la-mode, half Wine, half Water, and
the rest—But to the Business, this Fellow loves his
Sister dearly, and will not trust her in this leud
Town, as he calls it, without him; and hither he has
brought her to marry me.
Sham. A Pox upon him for his Pains—
Sir Tim. So say I—But my Comfort is, I shall be as
weary of her, as the best Husband of 'em all. But

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