Performing Identities on the Restoration Stage

284 Pages·2002·1.6 MB·English

by  Cynthia Lowenthal

Performing Identities
on the
Restoration Stage

CYNTHIA
LOWENTHAL
Performing
Identities
on the
Restoration
Stage
SOUTHERN ILLINOIS
UNIVERSITY
PRESS
carbondale and
edwardsville
Copyright © 2003 by the Board of Trustees,
Southern Illinois University
All rights reserved
Printed in the United States of America
06 05 04 03 4 3 2 1
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Lowenthal, Cynthia.
Performing identities on the Restoration stage / Cynthia
Lowenthal.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. English drama—Restoration, 1660–1700—History and
criticism. 2. Theater—England—History—17th century. 3. Identity
(Psychology) in literature. 4. Body, Human, in literature. 5. Sex
role in literature. 6. Sex in literature. I. Title.
PR698.I33 L69 2002
822′.409353—dc21
ISBN 0-8093-2462-8 (alk. paper) 2002021677
Printed on recycled paper.
The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of
American National Standard for Information Sciences—
Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials,
ANSI Z39.48-1992. >
For the Hevrons
Lynn, Ken, Parker, and
Elizabeth
and
For the Lowenthals
Richard, Kim, Katie, and
Meagan

Contents
Acknowledgments ix
1. Introduction
New Identities on and off the
Restoration Stage 1
2. Imperial Identities
Encounter, Conquest, and Settlement 35
3. National Identities
Merchants on and off the
Restoration Stage 76
4. Discursive Identities
Actresses on and off the
Restoration Stage 111
5. Monstrous Identities
Excess, Sexual Assault, and Subjectivity 144
6. Epilogue
Nation, Status, and Gender on the
Restoration Stage 179
Notes 213
Works Cited 243
Index 261

Acknowledgments
It is a pleasure for me to acknowledge the many debts I have
incurred along the path of writing this book. My gratitude to Pro-
fessor Susan Staves remains steadfast: she introduced me to new
ways of thinking about Restoration and eighteenth-century lit-
erature, and because of her training I remain an eager student. I
also offer my thanks to scholars of Restoration and eighteenth-
century literature whose work and conversations along the way
have helped to shape my thinking about early modern literature
and culture: Michael McKeon, Bob Markley, Susan Owen, Jean
Marsden, Doug Can¤eld, Laura Rosenthal, Jessica Munns, Katherine
Quinsey, James Thompson, and Lennard Davis.
Friends and colleagues at Tulane University have been stalwart
supporters and excellent readers. My ¤rst and most heartfelt thanks
go to Teresa Toulouse, whose always insightful readings and pro-
ductive suggestions made rewriting a pleasure. I also owe a debt of
gratitude to the Of¤ce of the Dean of the Faculty of the Liberal
Arts and Sciences, especially to Teresa Soufas whose friendship and
generosity in sharing her knowledge of Golden Age Spanish litera-
ture with me and with our students enriched our understanding of
early modern literature. I thank Linda Pollock for an always ready
seventeenth-century citation, even an entire bibliography, when-
ever I asked for one. And where would any of us be without Gary
McPherson’s “numbers”? I am particularly happy to extend my
special thanks to all who work in the of¤ce of the Dean of New-
comb College at Tulane University, especially Fran Hollingsworth
and Cindy Taffaro. Knowing that the college was in such good
hands allowed me to leave it for a few days in order to complete
this project.
ix