Early Modern Drama · Character Archetypes

ZEALOUS

in The Rival Friends — Hausted, Peter

Metadata

PlayThe Rival Friends
AuthorHausted, Peter
Year (catalogued)1632
First performance1632
Decade1630s
GenreComedy
Play typeUniversity
Theaterbefore the Court;at University;
Speech prefix(es)Zealous Kn. | Zeal. | Zea. | Zeal:
Words157
Characters879
Typicality0.39 (cosine to cluster centroid)
TCP idA72254
BritDrama no.2364
ClusterCluster 3 — Citizens, tradesfolk & neighbors

Important excerpts

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

Full speech

Sir I may use the same words unto you I have a promise too, but yesterday My Father did present him with a horse Of Robin-red-breast's getting — They strive who shall go first in to HO. house. by your leave. My sweetest Mistress, This fellow speaks thorough the nose. I will divide this my Oration Just into three and thirty parts, all which With your vouchsafed patience at this time I will run through. No sir, I will not leave, I am not yet arrived at the point. Beside all this — Fairest Lady. Zealous Knowlittle: Of both the Universities. With all my heart, I'll separate. If't please you, no. Only one Sermon sir For approbation to a female Audience. But I have here letters of commendation From seventeen honest men of good report Amongst their neighbours. Patron. Good Patron. Sir, will it please you To take particular notice?— Kings be profane. Truly it's mine, verily.

Plot summary

Plot — The Rival Friends
With Placenta’s help, Constantina disguises herself as a boy and leaves her father’s house in search of her missing love, Cleopes; she leaves a former boy-actor in her place. The friends Neander and Lucius both love Pandora, but she cannot decide between them. Each asks old Lively to help him win her love, not for himself but for his friend. Favouring Lucius, Lively plans to arrange a bogus wedding that will remove Neander from the rivalry, leaving Pandora for Lucius, without being subsequently binding. The ‘boy’ whom Lively selects to pose as Neander’s bride is actually Constantina; but he allows the wedding to go ahead even after discovering her identity. Meanwhile Placenta advises Pandora to make her lovers jealous by pretending interest in someone else, so she woos the page Endymion. When she learns that Neander is married, and when Lucius claims to be a eunuch, she transfers her affections to Endymion in earnest. It emerges that Lucius has jilted Endymion’s sister Isabella, who subsequently disappeared. Constantina is brought in apparently dead, killed by Neander, and her brother Love-All recognizes her. In fact, she is only injured, and revives, calling for Cleopes. Neander admits that he is Cleopes: he had wooed her, but became more interested in Pandora, and feigned a voyage overseas; he then returned with a new identity to pursue Pandora. Love-All wants to know who was pretending to be his sister while Constantina has been out of the house; the ‘boy’ is brought in, and is recognized as the absent Isabella. Lucius agrees to marry her, waiving a dowry, and Pandora is allowed to marry Endymion. In one sub-plot, Lively’s house, a parsonage, will revert to the church upon his death. Pandora’s father, Justice Hook, has the living in his gift, and has promised it to whoever marries his other daughter, the deformed Ursely. Suitors flock to Hook’s house, but Lively intends to outlive them. While Hook is interviewing the candidates, Lively feigns death and names Hook his heir, but comes back to life when Hook rushes off to take possession of the property. Ursely herself wants to marry the misogynistic Anteros, and Anteros overhears Hook acceding to her wishes. To win the compliance of Anteros’ father Terpander, Hook surrenders a mortgage on his lands, which Anteros destroys. Placenta then reveals that the marriage cannot take place: Ursely is Anteros’ sister, given up at birth by her mother to simulate the results of a phantom pregnancy to Hook’s wife.…