in The Puritan, or The Widow of Watling Street (The Puritan Widow) — Middleton, Thomas
Metadata
Play
The Puritan, or The Widow of Watling Street (The Puritan Widow)
Author
Middleton, Thomas
Year (catalogued)
1607
First performance
1606
Decade
1600s
Genre
Comedy
Play type
Boys Professional
Company
Children of Paul's (second)
Speech prefix(es)
Rauen. | Ra • . | Rau. | Rauinsh. | Rauenshaw. | Raue. | Ra. | Ra | Ra • e • .
Words
413
Characters
2099
Typicality
0.32 (cosine to cluster centroid)
TCP id
A11264
BritDrama no.
1509
Cluster
Cluster 15 — Devils, vices & grotesques
Important excerpts
Passages from this character's speech that contain the most distinguishing words for Cluster 15 (ang, hunc, fleire, shillings, chil, sblood…). Matches are highlighted.
desperate debt, and full of hazard, what will you say if I bring it to pass that the Hostisse shall be contented with one half for all; and we to share tother; fifth-shillings bullies. We must have fees Sirrah. I, well said seriant, 'tis good to cast about for money. I well said still seriant v ge that. Why now thou art a good Scholar.
Full speech
Troth I'll take partly with thee then, Sariant, not for the sake of the money so much, as for the hate I bear to a Schol ler: why Seriant 'tis Natural in us you know to hate Scholars: natural , they will publish our imperfections, Knaveries, and Convey upon Scaffolds and Stages. I and so close without yielding; o their perilous fell lows, they will search more with their wits then a Cunstable with all his officers. The best is Sariant if he be a true Scholar he wears no weapon I think. Mass, I am right glad of that: 'tas put me in better heart; nay if I clutch him once, let me alone to dram e him if he be stiffnecked; I have been one of the six my self, that has dragged as tall men of their hands, when their weapons have been gone as ever bastinadoed a Sariant—I have done I can tell you. I and caught many a fool Seriant. A rabblement, nay you shall have a bloody rabblement; upon you I warrant you. Troth prisoner, and exceeding fine house. Mass it seems the Gentleman makes great account of him. I warrant thee that stands for the Counter, for you know theres a company of bore fellows there. I marry sir, Idem buy one then my self. But this talk is by the way, where shall's sup to night, Five pound received, talk of that, I have a trick worth all, you two shall bear him to 'th Tavern, while I go close with his Hostisse, and work out of her, I know she would be glad of the sum to finger money; be cause she knows 'tis but a desperate debt, and full of hazard, what will you say if I bring it to pass that the Hostisse shall be contented with one half for all; and we to share tother; fifth-shillings bullies. We must have fees Sirrah. I, well said seriant, 'tis good to cast about for money. I well said still seriant v ge that. Why now thou art a good Scholar. Hark, he swears he never herd a better, Sergeant. I think so: how could you find it? for you know it stands behind the houses. Well put it to me, weel make a Night on't faith. O here comes the Gentleman; by your leave sir. How? sir? Vengeance dog him with't. That would be rare, weel search him. The hold shall rot him.
Plot summary
Plot — The Puritan, or The Widow of Watling Street (The Puritan Widow)
Lady Plus has just been widowed, but her son Edmond. does not grieve appropriately at the funeral. She mourns a good, liberal husband, who strove to make his family rich by fair means and foul; she swears not to remarry, and her elder daughter Frances renounces marriage too. Not so her younger daughter, Moll, who entertains a suitor. The other two Plus women are also being pestered by unwanted suitors, one of whom has bribed Lady Plus’s brother-in-law, Sir Godfrey, to recommend him. Captain Idle is taken to prison for highway robbery; there he is visited by his puritan kinsman Nicholas, one of. the Plus household’s servants, and also by Skirmish and Pieboard, two tricksters who plan to get him out. To that end, they persuade Nicholas to steal Sir Godfrey’s chain. Pieboard visits Lady Plus posing as a fortune teller, and tells her that her husband is in purgatory, from which he can be released only if both she and her daughters reverse their marital intentions (which he has overheard): she and Frances must marry, and Moll must not. As a puritan, Lady Plus doubts the theology of this, so he establishes his authenticity by predicting that, before the day is out, there will be bloodshed outside her door and Sir Godfrey will suffer a loss, with worse to follow for the women of the household. The first two events are prearranged: Nicholas steals Sir Godfrey’s chain, and Skirmish and Corporal Oath feign a street-fight which results in a wound for Oath and arrest for Skirmish. Pieboard gives Oath a medicine which is actually a sleeping potion, so that he appears to have been killed. Nicholas tells Sir Godfrey that Idle is a conjurer who can get his chain back for him; so Sir Godfrey arranges for Idle to be released and the charges dropped. On his way to brief Idle, Pieboard is arrested for failing to pay his rent, but he escapes by pretending that he must deliver a masque device to a gentleman, who will pay him enough to settle the debt. On arrival at the gentleman’s house (chosen at random), he escapes through the back door while the officers wait for him in the front room. The next day, Idle undertakes his fake conjuring at Lady Plus’s house, and claims that the devil has delivered the lost chain in the garden (where in reality it has been hidden all the time). He also pretends to render Edmond invisible, which gets the young man into trouble when he takes the opportunity to buffet his uncle. Two processions pass the house, taking Oath to his funeral and…