Thomas Southerne

Thomas Southerne

Thomas Southerne (1660 - May 22, 1746), Irish dramatist, was born at Oxmantown, near Dublin, in 1660, and entered Trinity College, Dublin in 1676. Two years later he was entered at the Middle Temple, London.

His first play, "The Persian Prince, or the Loyal Brother" (1682), was based on a contemporary novel. The real interest of the play lay not in the plot, but in the political significance of the personages. Tachmas, the loyal brother, is obviously a flattering portrait of James II, and the villain Ismael is generally taken to represent Shaftesbury. The poet received an ensigns commission in Princess Annes regiment, and rapidly rose to the rank of captain, but his military career came to an end at the Revolution.

He then gave himself up entirely to dramatic writing. In 1692 he revised and completed "Cleomenes" for John Dryden; and two years later he scored a great success in the sentimental drama of "The Fatal Marriage, or the Innocent Adultery" (1694). The piece is based on Mrs Aphra Behn's "The History of the Nun", with the addition of a comic underplot. It was frequently revived, and in 1757 was altered by David Garrick and produced at Drury Lane. It was known later as "Isabella, or The Fatal Marriage". The general spirit of his comedies is well exemplified by a line from Sir Anthony Love (1691) every day a new mistress and a new quarrel. This comedy, in which the part of the heroine, disguised as Sir Anthony Love, was excellently played by Mrs Mountfort, was his best. He scored another conspicuous success in "Oroonoko, or The Royal Slave" (1696). For the plot of this he was again indebted to the novel by Aphra Behn.

In his later pieces he did not secure any great successes, but he contrived to gain better returns from his plays than Dryden did, and he remained a favorite with his contemporaries and with the next literary generation. He died on the 22nd of May 1746.

His other plays are: "The Disappointment, or the Mother in Fashion" (1684), founded in part on the Curioso Imperlinente in Don Quixote; "The Wives Excuse, or Cuckolds make themselves" (1692); "The Maids Last Prayer; or Any rather than fail" (1692); "The Fate of Capua" (1700); "The Spartan Dame" (1719), taken from Plutarch's "Life of Aegis"; and "Money the Mistress" (1729).

His work is collected as "Plays written by Thomas Southerne, with an Account of the Life and Writings of the Author" (1774).

----
*1911


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужна курсовая?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Thomas Southerne — (1660 22 mai 1746) est un dramaturge irlandais né à Oxmanton, près de Dublin. Il entra au Trinity College en 1676. Sa première pièce, Le Prince Perse, ou le Frère Loyal (1682), se fondait sur l intrigue d un roman de l époque. Son véritable… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Thomas Southerne — (1660 22 de mayo de 1746) fue un dramaturgo irlandés nacido cerca de Dublín. Su primera obra, The Persian Prince, or the Loyal Brother (1682) se basaba en la intriga de una novela de la época. Su verdadero interés no estaba en la historia que… …   Wikipedia Español

  • Thomas Southerne — Constancia No hay valor sino en la inocencia, ni constancia sino en una buena causa …   Diccionario de citas

  • Southerne, Thomas — ▪ Irish writer born 1660, Oxmantown, Dublin, Ire. died May 26, 1746, London, Eng.  Irish dramatist, long famous for two sentimental tragedies that were acted until well into the 19th century The Fatal Marriage (performed 1694; adapted 1757 by the …   Universalium

  • Southerne, Thomas — (1660 1746)    Dramatist, b. in Dublin, and ed. at Trinity Coll. there, came to London and studied law at the Middle Temple. Afterwards he entered the army and saw service. He wrote ten plays, of which two were long acted and are still remembered …   Short biographical dictionary of English literature

  • Oronoko — Couverture de la première édition Auteur Aphra Behn Genre Roman …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Oroonoko — Oronoko Oronoko Couverture de la première édition Auteur Aphra Behn Genre Roman Version originale …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Oroonoko — Not to be confused with Orinoco. Oroonoko: or, the Royal Slave. A True History.   …   Wikipedia

  • Comédie de la Restauration anglaise — Charles II appréciait les comédies de la Restauration. La comédie de la Restauration anglaise désigne les comédies écrites et jouées depuis la Restauration anglaise (1660) jusqu au début du XVIIIe siècle. Après l interdiction des… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Restoration comedy — is the name given to English comedies written and performed in the Restoration period from 1660 to 1710. After public stage performances had been banned for 18 years by the Puritan regime, the re opening of the theatres in 1660 signalled a… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”