Alice Hackett
COLT 360
Professor Howard
November 1 2017
The Rover written by Aphra Behn in the late sixteen-hundreds was a revolutionary play for its time, it was written at a time when there were few female playwrights and women were just given the right to perform on stage. Aphra Behn was one of the first women who was able to earn a living from playwriting. Behn was known for her strong female characters who broke free of social constraints placed upon them. One of her most famous plays, The Rover is all about liberalism and feminism where characters follow their desires not custom. She sets her play The Rover in Naples during a carnival were masquerade was accepted and common a perfect place for people to break free from social constraints …show more content…
Hellena who has never experienced what she describes as real love is dismissed by her family members when it comes to matters of love because as they describe she is a nun with no real experience in the matter. Hellena is using this carnival as an opportunity to forge her own path and find true love, what she truly desires. “And dost thou think that ever I’ll be a nun? Or at least till I’m so old, I’m fit for nothing else-faith no, sister; and become I hope he has some mad companion or other that will spoil my devotion, nay I’m resolved to provide myself this carnival, if there’s be e’er a handsome proper fellow of my humor above ground, though I ask first” (1,1 29-35). The carnival offers the perfect opportunity for Hellena to become disused and experience real love. Throughout the play the reader sees that Hellena is determined to not return home and become what is expected of her, a nun. Once at the carnival Hellena meets Wilmore, who is a rover a man who travels everywhere, both Hellena and Wilmore are in search of company and their relationship begins almost immediately but Wilmore is not looking to settle down with one women and instead wants to enjoy the carnival and all that it has to offer. Wilmore is also interested in Angellica, a local prostitute, who sells herself at a very high price which Wilmore is unable to afford. The play …show more content…
She lost power by falling in love and it left her feeling vulnerable and lowered her social value as well as her self worth. All three of the characters represent real struggles that women during the 1600s were likely going through, Aphra Behn shines a light on these issues in a creative and playful way. It is through Behn’s work that people are able to see what it meant to be a woman at that time—having no agency over which direction your life was
COLT 360
Professor Howard
November 1 2017
The Rover written by Aphra Behn in the late sixteen-hundreds was a revolutionary play for its time, it was written at a time when there were few female playwrights and women were just given the right to perform on stage. Aphra Behn was one of the first women who was able to earn a living from playwriting. Behn was known for her strong female characters who broke free of social constraints placed upon them. One of her most famous plays, The Rover is all about liberalism and feminism where characters follow their desires not custom. She sets her play The Rover in Naples during a carnival were masquerade was accepted and common a perfect place for people to break free from social constraints …show more content…
Hellena who has never experienced what she describes as real love is dismissed by her family members when it comes to matters of love because as they describe she is a nun with no real experience in the matter. Hellena is using this carnival as an opportunity to forge her own path and find true love, what she truly desires. “And dost thou think that ever I’ll be a nun? Or at least till I’m so old, I’m fit for nothing else-faith no, sister; and become I hope he has some mad companion or other that will spoil my devotion, nay I’m resolved to provide myself this carnival, if there’s be e’er a handsome proper fellow of my humor above ground, though I ask first” (1,1 29-35). The carnival offers the perfect opportunity for Hellena to become disused and experience real love. Throughout the play the reader sees that Hellena is determined to not return home and become what is expected of her, a nun. Once at the carnival Hellena meets Wilmore, who is a rover a man who travels everywhere, both Hellena and Wilmore are in search of company and their relationship begins almost immediately but Wilmore is not looking to settle down with one women and instead wants to enjoy the carnival and all that it has to offer. Wilmore is also interested in Angellica, a local prostitute, who sells herself at a very high price which Wilmore is unable to afford. The play …show more content…
She lost power by falling in love and it left her feeling vulnerable and lowered her social value as well as her self worth. All three of the characters represent real struggles that women during the 1600s were likely going through, Aphra Behn shines a light on these issues in a creative and playful way. It is through Behn’s work that people are able to see what it meant to be a woman at that time—having no agency over which direction your life was