The Recruiting Officer (Regents Restoration Drama Series) - Softcover

Farquhar, George

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0803253575 ISBN 13: 9780803253575

Publisher: University of Nebraska Press, 1992

Synopsis

Since its first appearance in 1706, The Recruiting Officer has remained a scathing satire of military recruitment. George Farquhar knew the subject well, since he had been involved himself in the tricks and intimidation that enlisted recruits for Queen Anne's army in the War of Spanish Succession from 1703-1705. In Farquhar's play, two recruiting officers compete for recruits in the same locale. Recruiting in those years required more than patriotism and the lure of glory: it relied on bribery, alcohol, and the whole armory of deceit. Farquhar's play makes connections explicit, further setting off their dramatic power by linking recruiting tactics to the rites of courtship. His satire is intensified by his much-admired portrayals of the characters and situations of rural life; Farquhar brought the men and women of field and village truly to the stage.

About this title

Review

A canvas filled with scarlet-coated rogues, devious gentlewomen, knowing wenches and rough and ready commoners...When they are all assembled, as in the final courtroom scene, it makes a magnificent 18th century portrait. --The Stage

About the Author

The editor, Tiffany Stern, is Professor of Early Modern Drama at Oxford University. She is a General Editor of the New Mermaid Series, and is author of Rehearsal from Shakespeare to Sheridan (2000), Making Shakespeare (2004), Shakespeare in Parts (co-written with Simon Palfrey, 2007), and Documents of Performance in Early Modern England (2009).

Edition details

• Publisher: University of Nebraska Press
• Publication date: 1992
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0803253575
• ISBN 13: 9780803253575
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 138
• Editor: Shugrue Michael