The Maids Tragedy

Fletcher, John, 1579-1625Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

4.0

Word count: 159K words
Chapters: 16

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 Maids Tragedy by Francis Beaumont and John FletcherAuthor: Fletcher, John, 1579-1625,Language: English, Class: PR: Language and Literatures: English literature, Release Date: Jan 1, 2004

Editor's review

The Maids Tragedy is a tragic work in English Renaissance drama from the period of Beaumont and Fletcher's collaboration, and an important text in early modern English literature. Set against a background of court and aristocratic family life, the play unfolds around honour, desire and violence, and its portrayal of character motivation and dramatic conflict reflects the collaborative style habitual to the two playwrights. For specialist readers studying seventeenth-century English drama, especially the work of Shakespeare's contemporary dramatists, this electronic text has documentary value. The Project Gutenberg edition is easy to search and cite and is suitable as course reading material or as a base text for scholarly research. It should be noted that this edition is an electronic book in the original English, without modern annotation or introduction, so readers need some grounding in early modern English and are advised to use it alongside relevant literary histories and criticism.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Researchers and graduate students in English Renaissance drama
English literature students who need the original English text for course reading
Seasoned theatre readers interested in Shakespeare's contemporary dramatists
Collectors of public-domain English drama e-texts

Not a good fit for

General literary readers hoping for a Chinese translation
Beginners without experience of reading early modern English
Classroom users who need detailed annotation and introductions

Reading tips

Begin with some background on the plays Beaumont and Fletcher wrote together before turning to the text.
Use a plot summary to keep track of the characters' relationships as you read, so that linguistic differences do not make you lose the thread.
Read alongside a history of English drama or relevant critical essays.
Take notes on the characters and key scenes so that you can return to analyse the play's structure.

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 Chinese translation?

No. This edition is an electronic book in the original English published by Project Gutenberg; it contains no Chinese translation and no modern annotation.

What level of English is needed to read this book?

The text is in seventeenth-century early modern English, whose spelling and usage differ from modern English. A good command of English reading is advisable, together with reference works or introductory materials to aid comprehension.

Does this edition have notes or an introduction?

According to the available information, this edition is a public-domain electronic text and is not stated to include modern annotation, an introduction or research materials; readers using it for academic purposes will need to supply their own reference materials.

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About the author

Fletcher, John, 1579-1625 Author

John Fletcher (1579–1625) was a playwright of the English Renaissance, and he is the author addressed here. Public information about his life is limited: details of his education, official positions and specific experiences are largely unknown, and his literary standing rests chiefly on plays written in collaboration with Francis Beaumont and others. The collection holds twenty-three related works, mostly in collection form, including several volumes of the ten-volume Beaumont and Fletcher's Works, as well as plays such as The Maids Tragedy, A King, and No King and The Loyal Subject. These works are notable for tragedy and tragicomedy, with tightly constructed plots, witty dialogue and intense personal conflict, making effective use of dramatic tension and stagecraft. His plays hold a place in the seventeenth-century English dramatic tradition and are often named alongside Beaumont, exercising a certain influence on later English drama.