Tragedy, Masque and Opera

Abstract

The actions of Congreve’s tragedy, The Mourning Bride, his masque, The Judgement of Paris, and his opera, Semele, all take place in an idealised world, either the world of romantic fiction or that of classical myth. However, the author’s underlying concern with the destructive power of appetite remains the same as in the comedies: what differs is the treatment. In these three works, Congreve is able to explore certain key values informing human behaviour in an abstract and highly stylised manner. Values such as loyalty, steadfastness, love, commitment, betrayal, tyranny, greed, appetite had already underpinned the responses of the characters in his comedies: here they are shown in their pristine state, effectively unencumbered by any detailed character-drawing.