ralph roister doister
RALPH ROISTER DOISTER
This play is one of the first of comedies showing directly the influence of classical (Latin and Greek) models; it is certainly the first we ave that has come down to us intact (in the English language). In it we see the "miles gloriosus" (the braggart warrior), the trickster-parasite, and several other stock classical comedic characters. It also maintains the classical unities of time, place and action, the division into acts and scenes, and the simple setting.
These are all united with native English comedy to form something unique up to that point in English literature.
The play begins with Matthew Merrygreek, a hanger-on and trouble maker and flatterer of Ralph Roister Doister. He introduces the play and the themes in it. Ralph has fallen "in love" with a widow, Dame Christian
Custance, and is determined to marry her. She is engaged to a sailor,
Gawin Goodluck, a thoroughly nice man. Ralph insists on courting her, despite her determination to have nothing to do with him, shown by her open insults and rejections. (She says she'd rather die than marry him.) She goes along with Merrygreek in teasing him, however, and this causes some trouble with her fiance when he returns home to her.
Ralph is an extremely boastful, and somewhat cowardly, bully. When she refuses him, he threatens to kill her whole household and destroy her home. Merrygreek eggs him on, and they wind up attacking her and her three (3) maids [Merrygreek pretends to be on Ralph's side, but hits him while creating laughter at his expense, as he (a trickster) pretends to be aiming at Dame Custance.] Ralph's men are all driven off, and after a suitable round of blustering, and Gawin's discovery of
Dame Custance's loyalty and trueness after all, all become friends again, and all ends well.
It is a really funny play, and although it is a full five acts long, it seems short in the reading because it is so amusing and full of
This play is one of the first of comedies showing directly the influence of classical (Latin and Greek) models; it is certainly the first we ave that has come down to us intact (in the English language). In it we see the "miles gloriosus" (the braggart warrior), the trickster-parasite, and several other stock classical comedic characters. It also maintains the classical unities of time, place and action, the division into acts and scenes, and the simple setting.
These are all united with native English comedy to form something unique up to that point in English literature.
The play begins with Matthew Merrygreek, a hanger-on and trouble maker and flatterer of Ralph Roister Doister. He introduces the play and the themes in it. Ralph has fallen "in love" with a widow, Dame Christian
Custance, and is determined to marry her. She is engaged to a sailor,
Gawin Goodluck, a thoroughly nice man. Ralph insists on courting her, despite her determination to have nothing to do with him, shown by her open insults and rejections. (She says she'd rather die than marry him.) She goes along with Merrygreek in teasing him, however, and this causes some trouble with her fiance when he returns home to her.
Ralph is an extremely boastful, and somewhat cowardly, bully. When she refuses him, he threatens to kill her whole household and destroy her home. Merrygreek eggs him on, and they wind up attacking her and her three (3) maids [Merrygreek pretends to be on Ralph's side, but hits him while creating laughter at his expense, as he (a trickster) pretends to be aiming at Dame Custance.] Ralph's men are all driven off, and after a suitable round of blustering, and Gawin's discovery of
Dame Custance's loyalty and trueness after all, all become friends again, and all ends well.
It is a really funny play, and although it is a full five acts long, it seems short in the reading because it is so amusing and full of