Publisher's Synopsis
This book is a collection of two plays written by popular English playwright Thomas Heywood, who lived in the 16th and 17 centuries. A Woman Killed with Kindness was first acted in 1603 and published in 1607, and The Fair Maid of the West was first acted and published in 1631. These works offer readers the opportunity to absorb some of Heywood's most prominent writings.
A Woman Killed with Kindness is Thomas Heywood's signature drama. It is the story of John and Anne Frankford, a married couple, and a man by the name of Wendoll, a houseguest of the Frankford's. While living with the Frankford's Wendoll begins to pursue Anne, which causes great distress in the household. This play is considered a masterwork of the domestic tragedy subgenre, and demonstrates Early Elizabethan and Jacobean views of the world and the gender roles of men and women.
While lesser known, The Fair Maid of the West is another seminal work by Thomas Heywood. Once again this play explores gender roles, this time in a play set in Plymouth, England the late 16th century. The principal character is Bess Bridges, a young woman who works at a bar in Plymouth. The two-part comedy explores the life and hardships of Bess, as she is pursued by men and seeks to carve her own path in the world. More humorous than A Woman Killed with Kindness, The Fair Maid of the West still contains a good deal of drama and is an excellent representation of early modern English theatre.
Fans of English Renaissance theatre will surely enjoy this collection of two of Thomas Heywood's greatest works. While written and first published decades apart, the two plays share a style and thematic interest in gender roles that are characteristic of Heywood's plays. This collection is highly recommended to both fans of Thomas Heywood and those who are unfamiliar with the playwright but curious about the history of English theatrical productions.
About the Publisher
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This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.
