Early Modern Drama · Character Archetypes

ALUM

in Northward Ho — Dekker, Thomas; Webster, John

Metadata

PlayNorthward Ho
AuthorDekker, Thomas; Webster, John
Year (catalogued)1607
First performance1605
Decade1600s
GenreComedy
Play typeBoys Professional
CompanyChildren of Paul's (second)
Speech prefix(es)Allo. | Allom. | Al | Al.
Words224
Characters1130
Typicality0.19 (cosine to cluster centroid)
TCP idA20098
BritDrama no.1483
ClusterCluster 15 — Devils, vices & grotesques

Important excerpts

No keyword-matching excerpt could be extracted (the cluster label doesn't share vocabulary with this character's speech).

Full speech

Sweet mistress Dorothy, what should you do with a knife, it ill meddling with edge tools, what's the matter Masters! knife God bless us. How much is the bound? If that be all, you shall upon your word take up so much with me: another time isle un as far in your books. Is it possible that mistress Worser ll should be so bade? What is the debt? Pree thee sweet Mistress Dorothy vex not, how much is it? Let one of your men go along, and I'll send your fifty pound! Content i'faith, your man shall bring all under one, isle borrow a kiss of you at parting. She gelded my purse of fifty pounds in ready money. Do so and weel draw all our arrows of revenge up to the head but weel hit her for her villainy. But now she knows she's discovered, sheele take her Bells' and fly out of our reach. I'll amble or trot with you Captain: you told me, she threatened her champions should cut for her, if so, we may have the peace of her. Is not a Gentleman here one Master Bellamont sir of your company. I must borrow fifty pound of you Mistress Bride. You shall have a whole I to of Sugar if you please. I but to connicatch us all so grossly.

Plot summary

Plot — Northward Ho
Luke Greenshield has failed to seduce Moll Mayberry in her husband’s absence; now he dines with Mayberry at Ware and describes how he slept with an unnamed wife, showing him her wedding ring. Mayberry grows jealous and hurries back to London to confront Moll, but is satisfied by her explanation that the ring was stolen. Seeking revenge, he has her play up to Greenshield’s advances on his next visit to the house. Greenshield arranges lodgings at one of Mayberry’s houses for himself and Kate, a young woman whom he introduces as his sister, but who is actually his wife. The servants are soon aware that they are sleeping together, and also that Kate has a habit of sleep- walking around the house and ending up in Featherstone’s bedroom; actually she is shamming with a view to visiting Featherstone, her lover. ===== PAGE 241 ===== 1605 Meanwhile, Philip is arrested for debt after spending lavishly on the prostitute Doll. His father Bellamont grudgingly pays up and he is released; the price of Philip’s freedom is to have to listen to some moralistic exhortation. In response, he conspires with Doll (who has a tendency to swindle her clients out of money and valuables by way of love-gifts). She poses as a wealthy lady who wants to hire Bellamont to write some verses; Philip then introduces her as the girlfriend whom Bellamont criticized. Doll is smitten with the old man and visits him at home; but when she arrives, he is engaged with Captain Jenkins, Doll’s client, who also wants to buy his poetical talents to write a love poem for her. Jenkins hides during Bellamont’s meeting with Doll, and hears her ease her conscience by confessing that she is a common whore; he proceeds to blacken her name among her other lovers. Doll blames Bellamont and swears vengeance. The characters now gravitate back northward to Ware. Featherstone plans an assignation there with Kate, using a ruse to get Greenshield out of London. Mayberry encourages Greenshield to think that Moll is also going there for sexual purposes, and they follow together, accompanied by Bellamont, Philip, and others. Bellamont proposes that they enliven the journey by playing practical jokes on one another, and he is the first victim when they stop off at Bedlam and the young men try to have him committed as a lunatic. On arrival at Ware, the old men trick Greenshield into offering Mayberry the disguised Kate for a night’s pleasure. Greenshield also learns that Featherstone has been sleeping with Kate;…