The City Bride

Harris, Joseph, 1650？-1715？Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.8

Word count: 128K words
Chapters: 13

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.The City Bride (1696) by Joseph HarrisAuthor: Harris, Joseph, 1650?-1715?,Language: English, Class: PR: Language and Literatures: English literature, Release Date: Oct 12, 2007

Editor's review

The City Bride is an English play by Joseph Harris, first published in 1696 and made available as a free electronic text by Project Gutenberg. A product of the late-seventeenth-century London stage, its appeal lies not in plot complexity but in its lively language and theatricality: the dialogue moves at a brisk pace, the characters' relationships revolve around marriage, property, and city life, and it carries the wit and street-level flavor typical of the comedy of its era. For readers of literary history, it is a sample of English drama after the Restoration; for English learners, it is suitable material for encountering colloquial expressions of early modern English. A caveat: the play's humor and allusions depend heavily on their contemporary context, and without notes some of the jokes are hard to grasp; its character setup and gender attitudes also bear clear marks of their time, so readers should keep a historicized perspective and treat it as an entry point into the social mentality of late-seventeenth-century London rather than a checklist against contemporary values.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Scholars and students of seventeenth-century English drama and literary history
Readers interested in the history of London city life and Restoration-era social manners
Learners who want to train their reading of early modern English through dramatic dialogue
Literature enthusiasts with experience reading plays who enjoy dialogue-driven texts

Not a good fit for

Beginners expecting full modern annotations and a detailed background introduction
Readers who prefer coherent novel-style narrative and are unused to play format
Readers unfamiliar with the seventeenth-century context who are unwilling to look up allusions

Reading tips

Skim the dramatis personae and scene descriptions first and sort out the relationships before entering the dialogue; this greatly reduces confusion.
Try reading aloud by role or combining reading with listening; the play's rhythm and humor often emerge only when spoken.
Mark allusions and period slang as you go, then look them up together after finishing an act, to avoid constant interruptions.
After reading, map the characters' motivations around the theme of marriage and property and write a short viewing note.

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

What kind of play is this?

It is a late-seventeenth-century English play centered on city life and marriage relations, with dialogue that carries the wit and social observation common to the comedy of its time. For specific plot and character setup, refer to the original text; readers should understand it within the theatrical tradition of its day.

Can I understand it without notes?

Readers with a good command of English can follow the general sense, but without notes some slang, allusions, and period background are easy to misread. Reading alongside sources on English drama history or comparing with an annotated edition will give a fuller understanding.

Is the play suitable for learning English?

Yes, but selectively. The dialogue is vivid and helps familiarize learners with colloquial expression and conversational rhythm; however, early modern English spelling, contractions, and slang differ markedly from modern English, so it suits intermediate and advanced learners and requires reference tools for verification.

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About the author

Harris, Joseph, 1650？-1715？ Author · English

Joseph Harris (Harris, Joseph, 1650?-1715?), an Englishman whose exact dates are difficult to establish and about whom public information is limited, was both a mathematician and an official of the British Mint. This dual career gave him an interest in abstract mathematical questions as well as a familiarity with practical technical and craft matters. The technical dictionary he compiled brought together the craft and scientific knowledge of his time, showing a tendency to combine mathematics with practical technology. In literature he left the work The City Bride. Overall, Harris's writings span mathematics, technical lexicography and literature, reflecting the value placed on practical knowledge in English intellectual circles from the late seventeenth to the early eighteenth century; his dictionary work offers a reference for later understanding of the technical terms and crafts of the period.