Plot Summary
Careless Lovers is a play that was authored by Edward Ravenscroft. The play was acted and published in sixteen seventy-three. The play is a classic model capturing through irony the pervasive habits in the society. Characters used in the play such as the wealthy citizen, the prostitute, the fop, and the tricky servant clearly display a mockery completing the play as a comedy of restoration. The stylistic devices used in the plot create laughter through disguise. The young lovers in the third act led by Dorimant appear witty as much as their cross dressing is ridiculous. What influenced the author to write this play was the urge to denounce the allegations on a character that he had grossly mentioned in his earlier work.
The events of the scene
In the play the idea of assignation by Dryden is exposed as an opportunity to escape from danger but in a comically charitable way. The get-together meeting had been a venture by Dryden. Ravenscroft further presents the Careless lovers as people whose level of intelligence cannot be matched by other characters in the play. At the center of the Act is Dorimant. His behavior can be summed up as ambivalent. He fails to capture the role set out for him throughout his appearance (Eggleston 02). He is designed to serve as an indicator against ambivalent behavior, a role he performs dismally. Dorimant’s glamour and success exude much confidence in him. Other players such as Robert Hume have squarely made such observations. Examining his personality perspectives would be acceptable as he fascinates and disappoints in equal measure. This makes it very difficult for one to distinguish him by synchronizing his behavior. Some of his behaviors cut across as other characters show them. These characteristics include among others having an amorous temper, being witty, possessing desirable self-esteem, and being too much into women. The play runs through Rake and his times. Here Ravenscroft concentrates on Rakes times before embarking on the Careless Lovers. This is where questions arise on whether what surrounds the characters could be summed up as careless behavior. Dorimant as a model is assessed in the Act that follows. Evaluating whether characters had love or were loveless stems out in act IV. Analysis of the same act exposes issues of debate like whether there is actually a shift in love.
The relevance of the scene to the play
The relevance of Act III is best viewed as having an effect on gender and politics. The play addresses the conventional limits that surround politics based on gender and class. Plays authored and acted at that time gave little attention to the above sensitive theme. This Act comes out exposing these issues with little fear. Ravenscroft creates comedy out of restoration by addressing the social issues that were in the society then. He reverses the traditional roles of men and women in the society throughout this Act (Payne 24). He brings to the fore characters’ personalities as tricky servants, gay lovers, prostitutes, irrational parents, and serious lovers among many more. Children use knowledge to outsmart their parents who appear embarrassed and foolish. Careless and Hillaria form one of the sets of the young lovers albeit having been antagonistic in their earlier encounter. Lovell and Jacinta complete the other set though as opposed to the first pair, they are seriously in love. Tobby and Beatrice who were supposed to make up the third pair failed to turn up due to the irony of disguise that persisted throughout the Act. It is worth noting that Tobby and Beatrice were workers and as such occupied a lower status than the other two sets.
This Act has been used to introduce the new role of women in the family especially the role they play in marriages. This role comes out sarcastically because in some incidences men such as De Baostado are made to act foolishly. Analyzing the Act to gauge if it fulfilled the role is amazing. The Act played two roles, having been written for entertainment and to teach morals lessons the author wanted to pass to the society. The author captured the anxiety of the audience and the readers by creating a comedy. Irony and sarcasm keep both the reader and the audience glued while at the same time digesting the message. By reversing the role of women in the society, Ravenscroft underlines the value of women. Boredom among the readers and in the audience is an issue that the author eliminated. Comparing him to other renowned writers of his time such as William Shakespeare, his work was exemplary.
Edward Ravenscroft in a justified way criticizes the community. Some characters have personalities that do not match with what the society appreciates. Prostitutes pursue some of them while others are interested in stabbing others to the death. The author though through laughter succeeds in pointing out vices within the society. He tells the truth on matters that were perceived to be sensitive when the play was written. It is appropriate to end that the role that Act III was assigned to play was done perfectly well.
Works Cited
Eggleston, Robert. Convention as Commentary in the Careless Lovers. London: British University of Columbia, 1998. Print.
Payne, Deborah. The Cambridge Companion to English Restoration Theatre. London. Cambridge University Press, 2000. Print.