richard brinsley sheridan (2 results)

Softcover. Condition: Good. During a brief but brilliant literary career, Irish-born dramatist and statesman Richard Brinsley Sheridan (1751-1816) wrote cleverly plotted plays that revealed his nimble wit and keen eye for comic situations. Two of them - The School for Scandal and The Rivals - are among the funniest in the English language.The Rivals, brimming with false identities and with romantic entanglements carried on amid a cloud of parental disapproval, satirizes the pretentiousness and sentimentality of the age. It features a cast of memorable characters, among them the lovely Lydia Languish, whose pretty head has been filled with nonsense from romantic novels; Capt. Jack Absolute, a young officer in love with Lydia; Sir Anthony Absolute, Jack's autocratic father; Sir Lucius O'Trigger, a fiery Irishman; and Jack's provincial neighbor, Bob Acres, a bumptious but lovable country squire in love with Lydia.Hoping to win Lydia's affection, Captain Jack woos the pretty miss by pretending to be a penniless ensign named Beverley, an act that nearly incites a duel with Acres. His actions also provoke serious objections from Lydia's aunt, Mrs. Malaprop, a misspeaking matron whose ludicrous misuse of words gave the English language a new term: malapropism. Ultimately, the hilarious complications are resolved in a radiant comic masterpiece that will entertain and delight theater devotees and students of English drama alike.

Hardcover. Condition: Fine. 1st Edition. The Critic or a Tragedy Rehearsed. A Dramatic Piece in three Acts as it is performed at the Theatre Royal in Drury Lane, London. Printed for T. Becket. Publisher: Richard Brinsley Sheridan, London, 1781. First edition in full leather binding. Binding is in fine condition. Marbled endpapers. Contents clean, occasional spot of foxing. 98 pages. 5 ¼ x 8 ¼ inches. Inventory #24-138. Price: $500.