Marriage A-La-Mode

by John Dryden

Book Overview

Dryden's audiences in 1671, both aristocratic and middle-class, would
have been quick to respond to the themes of disputed royal succession,
Francophilia and loyalty among subjects in his most successful
tragicomedy. In the tragic plot, written in verse, young Leonidas has
to struggle to assert his place as the rightful heir to the throne of
Sicily and to the hand of the usurper's daughter. In the comic plot,
written in prose,...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0713666668
• ISBN13: 9780713666663
• Release Date: March 2003
• Publisher: Methuen Drama
• Length: 144 Pages
• Weight: 0.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 5.0" x 7.7"

Customer Reviews

Developing the Comedic Genre in Restoration England

Dryden's "Marriage A-La-Mode" can be thought of as a Comedy of Manners play of the Restoration era but was actually written before the genre took true form and had a part in developing its eventual popularity. "Marriage A-La-Mode" satirizes the English Aristocracy and has the distinction of creating what became comedic typologies, especially in the character of Melantha. The separate storylines are only superficially interwoven though both are explicitly critical of aristocratic lifestyles and attitudes. If you like the genre of Restoration Comedy, Dryden's "Marriage" is a good bet and without the over-complicated plots of Sheridan.

WOW

THIS BOOK WAS AMAZING, PACKED WITH DRAMA, AND SUSPENSE, AND COMEDY. EVERYTHING THE 1999 ACADEMY AWARDS DIDN'T HAVE