The Fair Maid of the Inn
Encyclopedia
The Fair Maid of the Inn is an early 17th-century stage play, a comedy
in the canon of John Fletcher
and his collaborators. It was originally published in the first Beaumont and Fletcher folio
of 1647
. Uncertainties of the play's date, authorship, and sources make it one of the most widely-disputed works in English Renaissance drama
.
, on 22 January 1626
(new style
). In his records, Herbert specifically attributes the play to Fletcher, who had died in August 1625. The play is thought to have been acted by the King's Men
, the company Fletcher served as house playwright — though firm data on its performance history is lacking.
(ye for you, em for them, etc.) through much of the play, made early scholars realize that the play was, like the majority of the works in Fletcher's canon, a collaboration. Individual critics argued in favor of a range of potential collaborators, including Philip Massinger
, John Ford
, John Webster
, and William Rowley
. These arguments depend upon literary parallels and the distinctive textual preferences of the different authors; for example, Ford's pattern of unusual contractional forms (like t'ee for to ye,) is present in some scenes but absent from others.
The play appears to have been a late work by Fletcher, perhaps left unfinished at his death, that was later completed by others and perhaps revised during the two decades between 1625 and 1647. Cyrus Hoy
, in his sweeping evaluation of authorship questions in Fletcher's canon, argued that the hands of Massinger, Fletcher, Ford, and Webster are all detectable in the extant text. He assigned shares this way:
Other scholars prefer their own divisions and analyses.
The possibility of revision has effected the question of the play's genre; some critics would define it as a tragicomedy
. One scholar, Bertha Hensman, argued that an original comedy by Fletcher and Rowley was shifted into a tragicomic form by Massinger as reviser.
. The white (Bianchi) and black (Neri) Guelph
factions were in part family-based — respectively, the Cerchi
and the Donati. The disputed origins of the factions were by some accounts rooted in the rivalry of two lovers of Bianca Cancellieri; her name suggested the Biancha in this play. The factions are most famous for their role in the life of Dante Alighieri
; when the Neri took power in Florence in 1301, Bianchi like Dante were exiled.
Some critics believed that the source for the play was The Illustrious Handmaid (La ilustre fregona) by Miguel de Cervantes
; others, however, have argued that the playwright(s) could have accessed the same historical material in other sources. Other possible sources include the Florentine History (Istorie fiorentine) by Niccolò Machiavelli
and the Excerpta Controversarium of Seneca the Elder
.
. After a short three months of contentment, the Genoese duke discovered the marriage, exiled Baptista, and sequestered Juliana. He has not seen her since.
This situation is delineated in the play's long opening scene. At the scene's opening, Cesario warns Clarissa to safeguard her virginity and her reputation; but Clarissa responds by reproving her brother about his rumored affair with Biancha, the thirteen-year-old daughter of a local tavernkeeper (she's the "fair maid" of the title). Cesario protests that his connection with the girl is above reproach: Biancha, he says, is beautiful but chaste. By the scene's close, Mentivole expresses his love for Clarissa; she responds positively, and gives him a diamond ring as a token of her affection and commitment.
Friends though they are, Cesario and Mentivole have a falling-out over a horse race; they quarrel, lose their tempers, and draw their swords to fight. They are separated by other friends, but only after Cesario is wounded. The affair escalates into a major feud between the two families. Alberto is called away by his naval duties, and is soon reported dead. Mariana fears that her son will be killed in the feud; to prevent this, she announces (falsely) to the Duke and his court that Cesario is not really Alberto's son. Early in their marriage, she maintains, Alberto had wanted an heir, but the couple did not conceive. Mariana exploited her husband's absences at sea to pass off a servant's child as her own. Thus he is no longer Alberto's son, and safe from Baptista's enmity. But the Duke sees the injustice done against Cesario, and decrees that the now-widowed Mariana should marry the young man, and endow him with three-quarters of Alberto's estate; the remaining share will serve as Clarissa's dowry.
Cesario is amenable to this arrangement—but Mariana assures him that any marriage between them will never be consummated. Cesario proposes a marriage between himself and Clarissa, though both women reject the idea out of hand. And even Biancha turns against Cesario, when she comes to understand that he is not serious about marrying her. Eventually matters are set right when Alberto returns to Florence. Not dead, he was instead captured by the Turks
, but rescued by Prospero, a captain in the service of Malta
. Prospero is an old friend of both Alberto and Baptista; he is able to inform the world of the fate of Juliana, and the daughter that Alberto didn't know he had. She is Biancha, the supposed daughter of the tavernkeeper. This good news allows the compounding of all the previous difficulties; the quarrel between Alberto and Baptista is resolved, Cesario is restored to his rightful place as Alberto's son, and he and Biancha can marry, as can Mentivole and Clarissa.
The play has a comic subplot centered on Biancha, her supposed parents the Host and Hostess of the tavern, and their quests. The comedy features a mountebank
and his clownish assistant, and their victims.
The play's storytelling is rough and rather inconsistent, most likely due to the multiple hands involved in its authorship.
(A poem by Jonathan Swift
titled Molly Mog in subtitled "The Fair Maid of the Inn.")
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
in the canon of John Fletcher
John Fletcher (playwright)
John Fletcher was a Jacobean playwright. Following William Shakespeare as house playwright for the King's Men, he was among the most prolific and influential dramatists of his day; both during his lifetime and in the early Restoration, his fame rivalled Shakespeare's...
and his collaborators. It was originally published in the first Beaumont and Fletcher folio
Beaumont and Fletcher folios
The Beaumont and Fletcher folios were two large folio collections of the stage plays of John Fletcher and his collaborators. The first was issued in 1647, and the second in 1679. The two collections were important in preserving many works of English Renaissance drama.-The first folio, 1647:The 1647...
of 1647
1647 in literature
The year 1647 in literature involved some significant events.-Events:* Thomas Hobbes becomes tutor to the future Charles II of England.* Plagiarist Robert Baron publishes his Deorum Dona, a masque, and Gripus and Hegio, a pastoral, which draw heavily on the poems of Edmund Waller and John Webster's...
. Uncertainties of the play's date, authorship, and sources make it one of the most widely-disputed works in English Renaissance drama
English Renaissance theatre
English Renaissance theatre, also known as early modern English theatre, refers to the theatre of England, largely based in London, which occurred between the Reformation and the closure of the theatres in 1642...
.
Date
The Fair Maid of the Inn was licensed for performance by Sir Henry Herbert, the Master of the RevelsMaster of the Revels
The Master of the Revels was a position within the English, and later the British, royal household heading the "Revels Office" or "Office of the Revels" that originally had responsibilities for overseeing royal festivities, known as revels, and later also became responsible for stage censorship,...
, on 22 January 1626
1626 in literature
The year 1626 in literature involved some significant events.-Events:*Izaak Walton marries Rachel Floud.*John Beaumont is made a baronet.-New books:*Francis Bacon - The New Atlantis*Robert Fludd - Philosophia Sacra...
(new style
Old Style and New Style dates
Old Style and New Style are used in English language historical studies either to indicate that the start of the Julian year has been adjusted to start on 1 January even though documents written at the time use a different start of year ; or to indicate that a date conforms to the Julian...
). In his records, Herbert specifically attributes the play to Fletcher, who had died in August 1625. The play is thought to have been acted by the King's Men
King's Men (playing company)
The King's Men was the company of actors to which William Shakespeare belonged through most of his career. Formerly known as The Lord Chamberlain's Men during the reign of Queen Elizabeth, it became The King's Men in 1603 when King James ascended the throne and became the company's patron.The...
, the company Fletcher served as house playwright — though firm data on its performance history is lacking.
Authorship
Inconsistencies in the play's internal evidence, notably the lack of Fletcher's highly distinctive pattern of textual preferencesStylometry
Stylometry is the application of the study of linguistic style, usually to written language, but it has successfully been applied to music and to fine-art paintings as well.Stylometry is often used to attribute authorship to anonymous or disputed documents...
(ye for you, em for them, etc.) through much of the play, made early scholars realize that the play was, like the majority of the works in Fletcher's canon, a collaboration. Individual critics argued in favor of a range of potential collaborators, including Philip Massinger
Philip Massinger
Philip Massinger was an English dramatist. His finely plotted plays, including A New Way to Pay Old Debts, The City Madam and The Roman Actor, are noted for their satire and realism, and their political and social themes.-Early life:The son of Arthur Massinger or Messenger, he was baptized at St....
, John Ford
John Ford (dramatist)
John Ford was an English Jacobean and Caroline playwright and poet born in Ilsington in Devon in 1586.-Life and work:...
, John Webster
John Webster
John Webster was an English Jacobean dramatist best known for his tragedies The White Devil and The Duchess of Malfi, which are often regarded as masterpieces of the early 17th-century English stage. He was a contemporary of William Shakespeare.- Biography :Webster's life is obscure, and the dates...
, and William Rowley
William Rowley
William Rowley was an English Jacobean dramatist, best known for works written in collaboration with more successful writers. His date of birth is estimated to have been c. 1585; he was buried on 11 February 1626...
. These arguments depend upon literary parallels and the distinctive textual preferences of the different authors; for example, Ford's pattern of unusual contractional forms (like t'ee for to ye,) is present in some scenes but absent from others.
The play appears to have been a late work by Fletcher, perhaps left unfinished at his death, that was later completed by others and perhaps revised during the two decades between 1625 and 1647. Cyrus Hoy
Cyrus Hoy
Cyrus Hoy was a literary scholar of the English Renaissance stage who taught at the University of Virginia and Vanderbilt University, and was the John B. Trevor Professor of English at the University of Rochester...
, in his sweeping evaluation of authorship questions in Fletcher's canon, argued that the hands of Massinger, Fletcher, Ford, and Webster are all detectable in the extant text. He assigned shares this way:
- Massinger — Act I; Act V, scene 3a (to Host's entrance);
- Webster — Act II; Act IV, 2; Act V, 1, 2, and 3b (from Host's entrance);
- Ford — Act III;
- Fletcher and Ford — Act IV, 1.
Other scholars prefer their own divisions and analyses.
The possibility of revision has effected the question of the play's genre; some critics would define it as a tragicomedy
Tragicomedy
Tragicomedy is fictional work that blends aspects of the genres of tragedy and comedy. In English literature, from Shakespeare's time to the nineteenth century, tragicomedy referred to a serious play with either a happy ending or enough jokes throughout the play to lighten the mood.-Classical...
. One scholar, Bertha Hensman, argued that an original comedy by Fletcher and Rowley was shifted into a tragicomic form by Massinger as reviser.
Sources
The play's plot derives from the historical feud of the Bianchi and Neri factions in late medieval FlorenceFlorence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
. The white (Bianchi) and black (Neri) Guelph
Guelphs and Ghibellines
The Guelphs and Ghibellines were factions supporting the Pope and the Holy Roman Emperor, respectively, in central and northern Italy. During the 12th and 13th centuries, the split between these two parties was a particularly important aspect of the internal policy of the Italian city-states...
factions were in part family-based — respectively, the Cerchi
Cerchi
The Florentine banking family of the Cerchi, minor nobles of the Valdarno, with a seat especially at Acone near Pontassieve, settled in Florence in the early thirteenth century and increased their fortunes. The family became the heads of a consortium of the prominent Guelfs that securely...
and the Donati. The disputed origins of the factions were by some accounts rooted in the rivalry of two lovers of Bianca Cancellieri; her name suggested the Biancha in this play. The factions are most famous for their role in the life of Dante Alighieri
Dante Alighieri
Durante degli Alighieri, mononymously referred to as Dante , was an Italian poet, prose writer, literary theorist, moral philosopher, and political thinker. He is best known for the monumental epic poem La commedia, later named La divina commedia ...
; when the Neri took power in Florence in 1301, Bianchi like Dante were exiled.
Some critics believed that the source for the play was The Illustrious Handmaid (La ilustre fregona) by Miguel de Cervantes
Miguel de Cervantes
Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra was a Spanish novelist, poet, and playwright. His magnum opus, Don Quixote, considered the first modern novel, is a classic of Western literature, and is regarded amongst the best works of fiction ever written...
; others, however, have argued that the playwright(s) could have accessed the same historical material in other sources. Other possible sources include the Florentine History (Istorie fiorentine) by Niccolò Machiavelli
Niccolò Machiavelli
Niccolò di Bernardo dei Machiavelli was an Italian historian, philosopher, humanist, and writer based in Florence during the Renaissance. He is one of the main founders of modern political science. He was a diplomat, political philosopher, playwright, and a civil servant of the Florentine Republic...
and the Excerpta Controversarium of Seneca the Elder
Seneca the Elder
Lucius or Marcus Annaeus Seneca, known as Seneca the Elder and Seneca the Rhetorician , was a Roman rhetorician and writer, born of a wealthy equestrian family of Cordoba, Hispania...
.
Synopsis
The plot of the play concerns the intertwined fortunes of two prominent Florentine families. Alberto is the Admiral of Florence; he is married to Mariana; their children are Cesario and Clarissa. Baptista, another old sailor, is a friend of Alberto, and father of Mentivole; like their fathers, Cesario and Mentivole are friends. Alberto's is a stable nuclear family; Mariana is a doting mother, especially in regard to Cesario. Baptista's situation is less happy: fourteen years earlier, he, a widower in his prime, contracted a secret marriage with Juliana, a niece of the Duke of GenoaGenoa
Genoa |Ligurian]] Zena ; Latin and, archaically, English Genua) is a city and an important seaport in northern Italy, the capital of the Province of Genoa and of the region of Liguria....
. After a short three months of contentment, the Genoese duke discovered the marriage, exiled Baptista, and sequestered Juliana. He has not seen her since.
This situation is delineated in the play's long opening scene. At the scene's opening, Cesario warns Clarissa to safeguard her virginity and her reputation; but Clarissa responds by reproving her brother about his rumored affair with Biancha, the thirteen-year-old daughter of a local tavernkeeper (she's the "fair maid" of the title). Cesario protests that his connection with the girl is above reproach: Biancha, he says, is beautiful but chaste. By the scene's close, Mentivole expresses his love for Clarissa; she responds positively, and gives him a diamond ring as a token of her affection and commitment.
Friends though they are, Cesario and Mentivole have a falling-out over a horse race; they quarrel, lose their tempers, and draw their swords to fight. They are separated by other friends, but only after Cesario is wounded. The affair escalates into a major feud between the two families. Alberto is called away by his naval duties, and is soon reported dead. Mariana fears that her son will be killed in the feud; to prevent this, she announces (falsely) to the Duke and his court that Cesario is not really Alberto's son. Early in their marriage, she maintains, Alberto had wanted an heir, but the couple did not conceive. Mariana exploited her husband's absences at sea to pass off a servant's child as her own. Thus he is no longer Alberto's son, and safe from Baptista's enmity. But the Duke sees the injustice done against Cesario, and decrees that the now-widowed Mariana should marry the young man, and endow him with three-quarters of Alberto's estate; the remaining share will serve as Clarissa's dowry.
Cesario is amenable to this arrangement—but Mariana assures him that any marriage between them will never be consummated. Cesario proposes a marriage between himself and Clarissa, though both women reject the idea out of hand. And even Biancha turns against Cesario, when she comes to understand that he is not serious about marrying her. Eventually matters are set right when Alberto returns to Florence. Not dead, he was instead captured by the Turks
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
, but rescued by Prospero, a captain in the service of Malta
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
. Prospero is an old friend of both Alberto and Baptista; he is able to inform the world of the fate of Juliana, and the daughter that Alberto didn't know he had. She is Biancha, the supposed daughter of the tavernkeeper. This good news allows the compounding of all the previous difficulties; the quarrel between Alberto and Baptista is resolved, Cesario is restored to his rightful place as Alberto's son, and he and Biancha can marry, as can Mentivole and Clarissa.
The play has a comic subplot centered on Biancha, her supposed parents the Host and Hostess of the tavern, and their quests. The comedy features a mountebank
Charlatan
A charlatan is a person practicing quackery or some similar confidence trick in order to obtain money, fame or other advantages via some form of pretense or deception....
and his clownish assistant, and their victims.
The play's storytelling is rough and rather inconsistent, most likely due to the multiple hands involved in its authorship.
(A poem by Jonathan Swift
Jonathan Swift
Jonathan Swift was an Irish satirist, essayist, political pamphleteer , poet and cleric who became Dean of St...
titled Molly Mog in subtitled "The Fair Maid of the Inn.")