Why Marry?

Jesse Lynch WilliamsProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.5

Word count: 174K words
Chapters: 18

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Why Marry? by Jesse Lynch WilliamsAuthor: Williams, Jesse Lynch, 1871-1929,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Feb 24, 2011

Editor's review

Why Marry? is a play by the American writer Jesse Lynch Williams, presented here as an ebook by Project Gutenberg. The work revolves around marriage as a social institution; through the characters' dialogue and conflict, it presents differing early twentieth-century American attitudes toward marriage, love, and individual freedom. As a dramatic text, its value lies not only in plot but in the clash of viewpoints among characters, which reflects the ideas of its time. Readers can see multiple understandings of marriage—as social contract, emotional haven, or personal constraint. The Gutenberg edition is convenient for searching and reading through on electronic devices and is suitable for readers interested in the history of British and American drama, the evolution of ideas about marriage, or early twentieth-century American society and culture. It is best read as a mirror of its era, noting the social assumptions behind the lines rather than rushing to judge the characters' choices. Because it is a public-domain ebook without modern annotations, reading it alongside relevant background materials is recommended.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers interested in Anglo-American dramatic texts and stage dialogue
Social and cultural researchers concerned with the evolution of marriage ideas and social institutions
Literature lovers who want to understand early twentieth-century American intellectual trends
Ordinary readers who want to approach public-domain plays through light electronic texts

Not a good fit for

Drama specialists expecting full performance annotations and stage directions
Readers who prefer strongly plotted novels to dialogue-based plays
Beginners who need a modern Chinese translation or introductory guidance

Reading tips

Read the whole play first to grasp the characters' relationships, then return to the key dialogues where arguments about marriage clash.
As you read, note each character's attitude toward marriage and compare the social positions behind them.
Read alongside historical materials on early twentieth-century American society to understand the period context of the play's discussion.
If using it for a discussion class, select passages on the conflict between marriage and freedom for role-reading.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this book a novel or a play?

According to the information, it is Jesse Lynch Williams's play Why Marry?, a dramatic text driven mainly by dialogue and scenes rather than a narrative novel. When reading, pay attention to the clash of viewpoints in the lines.

Does this edition have a Chinese translation or annotations?

The information shows that the eBook is in English, released by Project Gutenberg, with no mention of a Chinese translation or modern annotations. Readers need English reading ability and may need to prepare background materials for assistance.

Is it suitable as an introductory reading on the topic of marriage?

It presents an early twentieth-century discussion of ideas, not a contemporary guide to marriage. It is more suitable as a sample of ideas in historical context; if you are seeking practical advice, you should pair it with contemporary materials and should not directly apply the play's views.

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About the author

Jesse Lynch Williams Author · American · 1871–1929

Jesse Lynch Williams (1871–1929) was an American writer and playwright. A graduate of Princeton University, he worked as a journalist and helped found the Princeton Alumni Weekly and the Triangle Club. His play Why Marry? won the first Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1917, and he also wrote such novels as Princeton Stories and New York Sketches. Four of his works are held in the collection, including Why Marry?, New York Sketches, The Adventures of a Freshman and Princeton Stories, commonly classified under inspirational growth. Public information is limited; judging from the available works, his writing often draws on campus life and urban observations, with a light and concrete style and a gift for portraying personal growth through everyday scenes, combining humor with social observation. His plays address marriage and relations between the sexes and attracted attention at the time, and the drama award also widened the reach of his work.