Restoration comedy is the name given to English comedies written and performed in

the Restoration period from 1660 to 1700. After public stage performances had been
banned for 18 years by the Puritan regime, the re-opening of the theatres in 1660
signaled a rebirth of English drama. Restoration comedy is famous (or notorious) for its
sexual explicitness, a quality encouraged by Charles II (1660–1685) personally and by
the rakish aristocratic ethos of his court. The socially diverse audiences included both
aristocrats, their servants and hangers-on, and a substantial middle-class segment.
These playgoers were attracted to the comedies by up-to-the-minute topical writing, by
crowded and bustling plots, by the introduction of the first professional actresses, and
by the rise of the first celebrity actors. This period saw the first professional woman
playwright, Aphra Behn.

Variety and dizzying fashion changes are typical of Restoration comedy. Even though
the "Restoration drama" unit taught to college students is likely to be telescoped in a
way that makes the plays all sound contemporary, scholars now have a strong sense of
the rapid evolution of English drama over these forty years and of its social and political
causes. The influence of theatre company competition and playhouse economics is also
acknowledged.

Restoration comedy peaked twice. The genre came to spectacular maturity in the
mid-1670s with an extravaganza of aristocratic comedies. Twenty lean years followed
this short golden age, although the achievement of Aphra Behn in the 1680s is to be
noted. In the mid-1690s a brief second Restoration comedy renaissance arose, aimed
at a wider audience. The comedies of the golden 1670s and 1690s peak times are
extremely different from each other. An attempt is made below to illustrate the
generational taste shift by describing The Country Wife (1676) and The Provoked Wife
(1697) in some detail. These two plays differ from each other in some typical ways, just
as a Hollywood movie of the 1950s differs from one of the 1970s. The plays are not,
however, offered as being "typical" of their decades. Indeed, there exist no typical
comedies of the 1670s or the 1690s; even within these two short peak-times, comedy
types kept mutating and multiplying.

There are, of course, many similarities between the Comedy of Manners and the
Comedy of Humours. Both are based on reality. Both commonly attack anti-social
elements and both are sarcastic, but the difference between the two is so much more
clear that there is no scope for doubt. The Comedy of Manners makes fun of those
weaknesses which occurs, while the Comedy of Humour characterizes the inherent
nature of human nature.

Comedy is generally defined as a literary work that is written to amuse or entertain a

reader. In a comedy, characters can certainly suffer misfortune, but they are typically
comedic situations with positive outcomes. Not all examples of comedy as a literary
device are funny. However, its light-hearted treatment of plot and tone does allow a
reader and/or audience to release emotion and tension as a satisfying escape from the
mundanity of life or tragic circumstances, with the potential of gaining insight into
humanity and the self.

A Comedy of Manners is a play concerned with satirising society’s manners. A manner

is the method in which everyday duties are performed, conditions of society, or a way of
speaking. It implies a polite and well-bred behaviour.
Comedy of Manners is known as high comedy because it involves a sophisticated wit
and talent in the writing of the script. In this sense it is both intellectual and very much
the opposite of slapstick, which requires little skill with the script and is largely a physical
form of comedy. In a Comedy of Manners however, there is often minimal physical
action and the play may involve heavy use of dialogue.
A Comedy of Manners usually employs an equal amount of both satire and farce
resulting in a hilarious send-up of a particular social group. Most plays of the genre were
carefully constructed to satirise the very people watching them. This was usually the
middle to upper classes in society, who were normally the only people wealthy enough
to afford going to the theatre to see a comedy of manners in the first place. The
playwrights knew this in advance and fully intended to create characters that were
sending up the daily customs of those in the audience watching the play. The satire
tended to focus on their materialistic nature, never-ending desire to gossip and
hypocritical existence.

Comedy of Manners has spread itself over several periods in theatre history. A theatrical
genre can begin in a certain era but span many periods if the works of later playwrights
successfully revive it. The most valuable material of this genre occurred during the
Restoration. English theatres were officially closed between 1642 and 1660 when Oliver
Cromwell and the Puritans ruled England and there was no aristocracy. In 1660 King
Charles II restored the English throne and one of his first actions was to grant several
key theatrical figures licences to produce plays and breathe life into the theatre once
more.
Technically, the Restoration period ended with the death of Charles II in 1685, but
theatre historians usually extend the period to about 1700. Along with this revival was a
type of performance that became known as Comedy of Manners. Major contributors to
the genre in England at the time were William Wycherley with his play The Country Wife
(1675) and William Congreve with The Way of the World (1700). During this period in
France, Moliere was also writing Comedy of Manners plays. Three of his most famous
works include The School for Wives (1662), Tartuffe (1664) and The Misanthrope (1666)
where Moliere satirised aspects of 17th century French society.
A hundred years later, Irish playwright Richard Sheridan and Englishman Oliver
Goldsmith revived the Comedy of Manners genre. The best examples of their work
include Sheridan’s The School for Scandal (1777) and Goldsmith’s She Stoops to
Conquer (1773).
Again, a little over a century from this date, Comedy of Manner plays were being
perfected in England by famous Irish playwright Oscar Wilde, with wonderful works like
Lady Windermere’s Fan (1892) and The Importance of Being Earnest (1895).

Comedy of Humours was introduced by Ben Jonson, in English Drama. The Comedy of
Humours was the natural expression of his genius.

The term ‘humour’ as used by Ben Jonson is based on an ancient physiological theory
of four fluids found in the human body.

According to this theory, there are four fluids in the human body which determine a
man’s temperament and mental state. These four fluids are-

● Blood,
● Phlegm,
● Choler (Yellow Bile); and
● Melancholy (Black Bile)

A normal man has these four fluids in a balanced proportion. But this excess of any one
of these fluids makes him abnormal and develops some kind of an oddity in the
temperament and behaviour and hence such a person becomes an object of fun and
ridicule.
Excess of different fluids have different effects on the human-

● The Humour of Blood makes a man excessively optimistic even without the
slightest chance of hope or success.
● Phlegm makes one excessively calm and docile.
● Choler makes one highly ill-tempered.
● Black Bile makes one excessively melancholy.

Ben Jonson’s comedies are called Comedies of Humour because the principal
characters in all the comedies are victims of one humour or the other. For example, he
uses Comedy of Humours in his play Every Man in his Action.

Difference between Comedy of manners and Comedy of Humours

The Comedy of Manners deals with the superficial characteristics of man, while the
Comedy of Humours analyzes the inner feelings of the human heart. Humour may also
be used in plays written by playwrights worthy of the Comedy of Manners, but they are
not emphasized so much as those in their play that follow the example of Ben Jonson.

Comedy of Manners is found in our humorous characters, while Jonson displays them
in all his supporting characters. The meaning of humour in these two comedies also
varies. In Jonson’s plays, the humour is meant to magnify the characteristics of
characters, while in the Comedy of Manners, it refers to the superficial oddities that
come to humans through the various restrictions and behaviours of social life.

The Comedy of Humour was composed by English scholars who were following a
moralistic gimmick in the back, while the Comedy of Manners was inspired by French
artists, and in particular Moliere. The depth and intensity of Comedy of Humour are not
seen in Comedy of Manners.

While Jonson has taken up the weaknesses of his time and tried to correct them
through his writing, at the same time Comedy of Manners only presents an unusual
form of fashionable life of his time. The intensity of Jonson’s ideas were refined and
corrected by Congreve in the intelligent-controlled way in which he moved the
momentum wisely. The Comedy of Humour is universal in itself, as it expresses a high
level of morality. The Comedy of Manners, on the other hand, displays a hatred for the
simple level of morality. Its significance is hopeful, as it shows only the superficial aspect
of life at a particular time.
Jonson’s comedy is a satire comedy, while the Comedy of Manners is certainly a
comedy of intelligence. The rigour and satire are found more in the Comedy of Humour
rather in the Comedy of Manners. This type of comedy is fragile. It emphasizes the
satirical display of the incompatibility between two thoughts and one idea and action by
the power of intelligence. Both have different writing methods.

Ben Jonson’s writing style is poetic and emotional, while the style of the practitioners of
Comedy of Manners is cultured, intelligent, and littered with literally complex techniques.
In fact, the difference between the two types of comedy is in – according to Bonamy
Dobree – the art of showing on stage, rather in the view of. The characters in Humour’
comedy reveal some more vibrancy. Restoration comedy being the creation of the
younger generation, the freshness is full and powerful but it also has a sense of easy
irresponsibility of the younger generation.

The Comedy of Manners or the Restoration Comedy developed during the

Restoration, a period from the Restoration of the Stuart king Charles II in 1660 to about
1700, or in the age of John Dryden. The Greek Playwright Menander is considered as
the founder of the comedy of manners.

It was considerably influenced by continental writers and especially by the French

dramatist Moliere and the Spanish dramatist Calderon. Moliere provided the English
dramatists with ideas for plot and comic characterization. The Spanish drama
strengthened the love of intrigue and incidents which had been woven in the fabric of
English comedy.
The Restoration Comedy was modelled on the realistic comedy of Ben Jonson and his
followers in England and Moliere in France. The attitude of Restoration age towards the
drama was fundamentally frivolous. Shakespeare was too rich for this new age and he
had too much poetry and complexity.

There were many social and political factors that gave rise to what is known as the
Restoration Comedy. The era of imagination illuminated by William Shakespeare, and
the spell of Ben Jonson and Christopher Marlowe was over.

The era of reason had dawned which guided the actions in every walk of life. The drama
also reflected the thought current in the period. The playwrights of the age concerned
themselves with the polished personality of men and women and their manners. That is
why; it is also called Comedy of Manners or an artificial comedy.
Group of the writers of Comedy of Manners -

George Etherage, John Vanbrugh, William Wycherley, George Farquhar, Colley

Cibber, William Congreve and Aphra Behn are some of the prominent writers who
produced comedy manners.

Themes of Restoration Comedy -

The Restoration Comedy of Manners is realistic in character in the sense that it focuses
our attention on the life, manners, ways, the intrigues and foppery of the upper class
society. The Restoration Comedy concentrated on the activities and amorous
achievements of gay, frivolous, rakish type of young men and women. The scenes of
the comedies were generally led in London, particularly in cafes, chocolate houses,
clubs and gambling centres. Love intrigues were carried on in clandestine manner. A lot
of senseless prattle went on and the fops and ladies spend their time in designing
schemes and plans to ruin their rivals and competitors in love.

The comedies of the Restoration devoted themselves specially to picturing the external
details of life and fashions of time, its manners, its speech and interests. This was the
kind of life led by the Restoration aristocratic classes and it is this life which is presented
in the Comedy of Manners.

Characteristics of Restoration Comedy -

The Restoration comedy has characters coming from fashionable aristocratic society.
Their plot revolved round love intrigues clothed in clever dialogues. The plots were
mostly borrowed from French literature. The comedies also presented the public
reactions against Puritanism. They were anti-social, in that, they represented social
institutions particularly marriage as obnoxious. The comedy of manners has been
criticized for its licentiousness, obscenity and immorality.

But Pro Bonamy Dobrėe defends Restoration drama by saying – “Restoration

Comedy expresses not licentiousness but a deep curiosity and desire to try a
new way of life.” The life presented in the comedy of manners is based on sex
antagonism. The common conventions that the marriage is bore and love is primarily
and exclusively a physical appetite are stressed through these comedies. Why should a
foolish marriage vow which long ago was made, when neither can hinder the other,
such idea of Restoration Comedy is contained in these lines.

In the comedy of manners, the women are audacious and flippant and they are sexually
voracious young women and older women ; any talk of male domination is resounded.
There is full picture of bargaining and matrimony.

Coming to the technical side of the comedy of manners, we find that there are weak
plots and stock in trade characters. In these comedies, there are sub-plots that are
intricate and monotonous.

One of the most conspicuous qualities of the Restoration Comedy is the witty exchange
of words. Repartee is the very soul of their conversation. The style of the dramatists is
marked with sparkling dialogues.

The best period of Restoration Comedy was brief. The plays that followed William
Congreve and George Etherage were imbued with moral intentions and therefore, they
were dull, lifeless and insincere. The strength of the comedy of manners depended
upon a particular social situation. No equally adequate dramatic form was discovered
when sense and sensibility joined and replaced wit as a social idea.

The Restoration comedy opens with the works of George Etherage. George Etherage’s
plays, “The Comical Revenge” and “The Man of Mode” or “Fopling Flutter” are very
interesting comedies. George Etherage’s comedies are works on an artist and that
artistry takes away much of its social tone. He has not the skill of William Congreve but
the prose dialogues in his comedies are natural and brilliant. They can make up for the
deficiency of plot construction.

Sir John Vanbrugh’s “The Provoked Husband” is an unfinished drama (1705) and
Colley Cibber completed it in 1728. In addition to this, William Wycherley’s “The
Country Wife” and “Love in Wood”, George Farquhar’s “The Constant Couple” and
“The Inconstant”, and Colley Cibber’s “The Non-Juror” also added beauty and
novelty to the Restoration comedy. Colley Cibber’s “The Non-Juror” is based on
Moliere’s play “Tartuffe”.

William Congreve is the supreme master of the comedy of manners. His first play is
“Old Bachelor” a perfect piece of comic portraiture of a young man of twenty three. The
next play of Congreve was “The Double Dealer”. Much of his wit and irony is displayed
in this play. Congreve’s best play is “The Way of the World” which is known for its
artistic excellence and flashes of brilliant witty dialogues.
The Restoration Comedy has certain characteristics. The comic figures in the
Restoration Comedy became entertaining because they made pretensions to be as
fashionable, well mannered and gallant as the noble men. Jealousy was a hideous
crime in the comedy of manners. A jealous husband was perhaps the most mocked
person in the Restoration Comedy. A cuckold and cuckoldry became the part and parcel
of the Restoration drama.

In the comedy of manners, there is a new type of courtship where the romance was in
the chase and not in the culmination of marriage. The people never allowed their
pleasures to be spoiled with a dreary business of marriage. The coquettish heroines
loved to be chased by the gallants and they enjoyed scandals. The amorous old women
were another stock character in the Restoration Comedy. Lady Touchwood pursued
her husband’s nephew and Lady Wishfort would have liked to have her niece’s lover.

Conclusion -

Thus, though the comedy of manners is full of immoral themes, it has served as a social
satire on the social follies and weaknesses in a comic way.

Jeremy Collier criticized the Restoration comedy for its frivolity, blasphemy and
immorality, particularly of William Congreve and John Vanbrugh in his “Short View of
the ‘Immorality and Profaneness’ of the English Stage” (1698).