Afra Benn

This essay will compare and contrast the way in which one male and one female writer of Restoration comedy represents the theme of 'marriage for love' within their plays. The essay will be structured as follows: - the plays and their writers will be introduced with some extra background information; the theme will be discussed and analysed and finally there will be a conclusion provided. At the very end of the essay will be a reference and bibliography provided.
The Restoration period began around 1660 with the Restoration of the monarchy under Charles II. During this period, the first actresses started to appear on the English stage and the theatres themselves had developed and were different to those which Shakespeare and Jonson would have been familiar with. There was a greater use also of modern theatre techniques, which involved the movement, and use of scenery.
The two plays and playwrights, which are going to be examined in this essay, are Aphra Benn's "The Rover" and Sir Geor...