Dryden's Theory of Comedy

Abstract

IN LONDON, WHERE HE HAD ARRIVED some years before the Restoration, Dryden began his literary career by turning out occasionally poems on affairs of state. But by the early 1660s, to achieve the fame and fortune he desired, he had also begun to compose for that favored resort of Court and Town, the public stage. When he wrote his first plays, he decided to do the safe and wise thing, and to imitate the works of established authors: in The Wild Gallant (1663; 1669), a low comedy, he followed the example of Jonson; in The Rival Ladies (1664), a tragi-comedy, he followed the example of Fletcher; and in 7he Indian Queen (1665), a heroic play, he again followed the example of Fletcher, or so he thought at the time.1 Although only The Wild Gallant failed in performance, none of the three plays especially pleased him. Each lacks the variety of incident, the depth of characterization, and the magic of language that he associated with the Soul of English drama and, in particular, with Shakespeare. Dryden's response to his disappointment was a program of experimentation. Having initially failed to meet his own expectations in heroic play, tragi-comedy, and comedy, he tried his hand at each again, and this time employed somewhat different methods. In his second heroic play, The Indian Emperour (1667), a continuation of the first, he added complications to the plot, heightened the imagery, and, according to Derek Hughes, realized much of the promise [intermittently] shown in . . . 7he Indian Queen.2 In his second