LITERATURE QUESTIONS
RESTORATION EIGHTEENTH CENTURY DRAMA
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Question
[CLICK ON ANY CHOICE TO KNOW THE RIGHT ANSWER]
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was written by a woman during a time when all of the playwrights were men.
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presents women as capable of being rakes, just like men.
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shows the hypocrisy of the conventions of 18th-century marriages.
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presents female characters who have more wit and money than their male counterparts.
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was the first play in the history of English theatre to feature women who disguised themselves as men.
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Detailed explanation-1: -The Rover is a dark comedy that mixes themes of prostitution and rape with comic buffoonery. The play expresses its author’s objections to the vulnerability of women in Restoration society. Perhaps ironically, it also appeals to the prurient interests of the audience by putting women in morally compromising situations.
Detailed explanation-2: -The title The Rover refers to the character of Willmore, who sets the tone for the play and provides much of the humorous content.
Detailed explanation-3: -Historical Context of The Rover Restoration Comedy came into being in England after the overthrow of Oliver Cromwell’s republican government (which itself came after the execution of Charles I in 1649) and the reestablishment of the monarchy in 1660.
Detailed explanation-4: -The Rover overview The Rover’s central character is the rakish libertine Willmore, who falls in love with every woman he sees – one character describes him as a ‘rogue … stark mad for a wench’ – including Helena, a young noblewoman supposed to be about to enter a nunnery, and Angellica, a courtesan.