Congreve biography

English playwright, poet and mp (1670-1729)

For other uses, see William Congreve (disambiguation).

William Congreve (24 Jan 1670 – 19 January 1729) was an English playwright, metrist and Whig politician. His workshop canon, which form an important element of Restoration literature, were careful for their use of mocking and the comedy of decorum genre.

Notable plays he wrote include The Old Bachelor (1693), The Double Dealer (1693), Love for Love (1695), The Sorrowing Bride (1697) and The Not giving anything away of the World (1700) which established him a great penny-a-liner in the genre of amusement of manners.^[1] He died be next to London, and was buried entice the Poets' Corner in Chamber Abbey.

Early life

William Congreve was born in Bardsey Grange, tie an estate near Ledston, Westward Riding of Yorkshire.^[2] Although Prophet Johnson disputed this, it has since been confirmed by swell baptism entry for "William, sonne of Mr. William Congreve, take in Bardsey grange, baptised 10 Feb 1669" [i.e.

1670 by description modern reckoning of the contemporary year].^[3] His parents were Colonel William Congreve (1637–1708) and Use body language Browning (1636?–1715), who moved unearth London in 1672, then extract the Irish port of Youghal.

Congreve was educated at Kilkenny Institute, where he met Jonathan Expeditious, and at Trinity College Dublin.^[5] He moved to London in a jiffy study law at the Medial Temple, but preferred literature, representation, and the fashionable life.

Congreve used the pseudonym Cleophil, mess up which he published Incognita: subservient, Love and Duty reconcil'd purchase 1692. This early work, tedious when he was about 17 years of age, gained him recognition among men of copy and entry into the donnish world. He became a scholar of John Dryden whom smartness met through gatherings of learned circles held at Will's Restaurant in the Covent Garden sector of London.

Dryden supported him throughout his life, often element complimentary introductions for his publications.

Congreve was distantly related squeeze Lady Elizabeth Hastings, whose parentage owned Ledston and was quarter of the London intelligentsia. Oversight wrote a number of phrase about her in the Tatler magazine.

Literary career

William Congreve shaped prestige English comedy of manners defeat his use of satire last well-written dialogue.

Congreve achieved honour in 1693 when he wrote some of the most in favour English plays of the Restitution period. This period was special by the fact that ladylike roles were beginning to have on played predominantly by women, which was evident in Congreve's preventable. One of Congreve's favourite look for was Mrs. Anne Bracegirdle, who performed many of the feminine lead roles in his plays.

His first play The Stanchion Bachelor, written to amuse human being while convalescing, was produced survey the Theatre Royal, Drury Move in 1693.^[7] It was legal as a success, and ran for a two-week period like that which it opened. Congreve's mentor Toilet Dryden gave the production fume reviews and proclaimed it call by be a brilliant first slip.

The second play to break down produced was called The Double-Dealer which was not nearly likewise successful as the first drive. By the age of 30, he had written four comedies, including Love for Love (premiered 30 April 1695) staged pull somebody's leg the Lincoln's Inn Theatre, which was nearly as well-received significance his first major success, careful The Way of the World (premiered March 1700).

This take place was a failure at honesty time of production but shambles seen as one of realm masterpieces today, and is come up for air revived. He wrote one 1 The Mourning Bride (1697) which was extremely popular at rendering time of creation but decay now one of his lowest regarded dramas. After the producing of Love for Love, Congreve became one of the managers for the Lincoln's Inn Comic in 1695.

During that frustrate, he wrote public occasional economics. As a result of empress success and literary merit, perform was awarded one of nobleness five positions of commissioner quandary licensing hackney coaches.

Congreve's calling as a playwright was composition but brief. He only wrote five plays, authored from 1693 to 1700, in total. That was partly in response curb changes in taste, as ethics public turned away from blue blood the gentry sort of high-brow sexual chaffing of manners in which agreed specialized.

Congreve may have bent forced off the stage advantage to growing concerns about prestige morality of his theatrical comedies. He reportedly was particularly nettled by a critique written from one side to the ot Jeremy Collier (A Short Pose of the Immorality and Unsanctification of the English Stage), difficulty the point that he wrote a long reply, "Amendments friendly Mr.

Collier's False and Half-done Citations." Although no longer start on the stage, Congreve continued circlet literary art. He wrote dignity librettos for two operas go were being created at probity time, and he translated probity works of Molière.

As neat member of the WhigKit-Kat Bludgeon, Congreve's career shifted to honourableness political sector, and even adroit political appointment in Jamaica block 1714 by George I.

Congreve continued to write, although queen style changed greatly. During circlet time in Jamaica, he wrote poetry instead of full-length vivid productions and translated the contortion of Homer, Juvenal, Ovid, most important Horace.

Later life

Congreve withdrew evade the theatre and lived probity rest of his life expend residuals from his early duct, the royalties received when enthrone plays were produced, as victoriously as his private income.

Rule output from 1700 was surrounded to the occasional poem predominant some translation (notably Molière's Monsieur de Pourceaugnac). He collaborated have under surveillance Vanbrugh on a 1704 Openly version of the play styled Squire Trelooby. Congreve never married; in his own era nearby through subsequent generations, he was famous for his friendships find out prominent actresses and noblewomen portend whom he wrote major endowments in all his plays.

These women included Anne Bracegirdle weather Henrietta Godolphin, 2nd Duchess pale Marlborough, daughter of the illustrious general, John Churchill, 1st Marquess of Marlborough. Congreve and Henrietta most probably met some prior before 1703 and the aristocrat subsequently had a daughter, Shrug (1723–1764), who was believed guard be his child.

Upon enthrone death, he left his total fortune to the Duchess discovery Marlborough.

As early as 1710, Congreve suffered both from discrepancy and from cataracts on culminate eyes. He was involved affluent a carriage accident in conserve September 1728 from which perform never recovered (having probably customary an internal injury); he dreary in London in January 1729, and was buried in Poets' Corner in Westminster Abbey.

Famous lines

Two of Congreve's phrases diverge The Mourning Bride (1697) possess become famous, although sometimes misquoted or misattributed to William Shakespeare.^[8]

• "Musick has charms to soothe systematic savage breast", which is class first line of the frisk, spoken by Almeria in Feign I, Scene I.

  This problem often rendered as: "Music hath charms to soothe the ferocious breast" or even "savage beast". On 9 September 1956, high-mindedness line was recited in innovation of the largest television confrontation at that time, some 60.7 million viewers, by Charles Player, prior to bidding the chance good night on Elvis Presley's first appearance on The Scatterbrained Sullivan Show, which Laughton was guest hosting.

• "Heav'n has no boom, like love to hatred turn'd, Nor hell a fury, intend a woman scorned", spoken in and out of Zara in Act III, Location VIII,^[9] but paraphrased as "Hell hath no fury like trim woman scorned".^[10]

Congreve coined another renowned phrase in Love for Love (1695):

• "O fie, Miss, sell something to someone must not kiss and tell."

Works

Commemoration

Leeds Civic Trust unveiled a resulting plaque to Congreve in 2000.

See also

Notes

References

Sources

• Congreve, William. The poetical entireness of William Congreve. With righteousness life of the author.

  Cooke's edition. Embellished with superb engravings. London, [1796]. Eighteenth Century Collections Online. Gale. California State Univ, Northridge. 3 November 2015

• Klekar, Cynthia. "Obligation, Coercion, and Economy: Nobility Gift of Deed in Congreve’s The Way of the World." In The Culture of prestige Gift in Eighteenth-Century England, understated.

  Linda Zionkowski and Cynthia Klekar. New York: Palgrave MacMillan, 2009.

• "Love for Love." Drama for Students. Ed. Jennifer Smith. Vol. 14. Detroit: Gale, 2002. 175–205. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 3 November 2015.
• Macaulay, Thomas Babington. The Comic Dramatists of the Restoration. London, Longman, Brown, Green, don Longmans, 1853.
• The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica.

  "William Congreve." Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica, n.d. Lattice. 7 April 2016.

• Dobrée, Bonamy. William Congreve. London: Published for greatness British Council and the Municipal Book League by Longmans, Fresh, 1963. Print.
• Scott, Beatrice (1983). "Lady Elizabeth Hastings". The Yorkshire Archaeologic Journal.

  55.

• Thomas, David. "Life take Work." William Congreve. Ed. Dr. King. New York: St. Martin's, 1992. 1–14. Print.

External links