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The Way of the World
"The Way Of The World" is a comedy play written and performed by William Congreve during the end of the Restoration period, probably between 1699-1700. Congreve wrote five plays in his life and this mock comedy is considered to be his masterpiece because it mocks on the social issues of love and marriage at that time.
Prologue Analysis
The way of the world can be interpreted as the expression of people's behaviour. However, because it was the Restoration period, where people flirt and adultery was common, it reflects the social norms of that period. The play is a comedy, a satire about the lives of the wealthy and powerful people of the Restoration time.
The prologue anticipates the narratives in the play as a whole as it predicts the themes and presence of fools in the play which can be subjected to the real people of London,for example fools mentioned in the prologue.
The prologue is prior to the dramatis persona, introducing the audience about the play. It was spoken by Mr. Betterton as told from the first line, "Spoken by Mr. Betterton" in the prologue. The Prologue also acts as both a tongue-in-cheek apology (in advance) and a taunt or challenge to the audience to find fault. Mr.Betterton's role was played by the same actor who performed the role of Fainall, the antagonist of the play. Congreve didn't assign Fainall as the introducer but rather Mr. Betterton And Fainall, the antagonist represent two different personalities though played by the same actor.
The challenges facing the author are reflected in prologue which express the difficulties of pleasing the audience. Betterton received these lines to speak on Congreve's behalf.
"To please, this time, has been his sole Pretense".
Betterton opens the prologue with a comparison of two different types of fools. Poets are one kind of fool, because they depend on the tastes and whims of a variety of audience in entertaining them to earn their livings. These tastes are determined by fortune, and are completely random, meaning writers are in a sense gambling that the audience will like what they write. "Natural" fools (stupid people) on the other hand are blessed, favoured and protected fools.
The prologue goes on to state that poets are often fooled by the success of one play or work into believing the next one will be successful. Fame and fortune are said to be fleeting, and one bad play can cost a poet degradation of success.
Like surrogate mothers are to the offsprings of the cuckoo birds, fortune is quite similar to born fools.
Fortune favours the fools like any other bird in her own nest broods to hatch the cuckoo eggs.
His statement about what is in his play has more value: "some plot," "some new thought," "some humor too," but "no farce," the absence of which, he adds, ironically, would presumably be a fault.
The statements that there is no satire because the town is so reformed and that there are surely no knaves or fools in his audience are, of course, ironic as he used it to defend himself though the entire play is a satire.
Prologue as direct satire on theatres
Satire seeks to improve us by having us recognize our faults and laugh at ourselves. So laugh at the artifice of this world, its extravagance, the blindness of its characters to their own hypocrisies. However, the prologue is a direct satire on theatre itself. At the end of the Restoration period, the theatre was under the court because of the monarchy. It was believed that the theatre can corrupt the minds of the people so every writing was done in the favour of the court.
Moreover, at that time the middle class were involved too in participating the theatre as the audience so different mindsets of people, that is, both rich and middle class people were there whom the actors had to impress. Congreve with his writing had already told in his prologue that there are many difficulties in impressing or pleasing the audience. In 1696, under the artistic expression a bill was passed which censored on stage production. In 1692, society for reformation of manners was founded.
From 1688-1689, the period is known as bloodless revolution or Glorious revolution, that resulted in the deposition of James II and the accession of his daughter Mary II and her husband, William III, prince of Orange and stadtholder of the United Provinces of the Netherlands.This situation was the result of the events of the previous century, when King Charles I was executed.
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