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The Recruiting Officer
Since its first appearance in 1706, The Recruiting Officer has remained a scathing satire of military recruitment. George Farquhar knew the subject well, since he had been involved himself in the tricks and intimidation that enlisted recruits for Queen Anne's army in the War of Spanish Succession from 1703-1705. In Farquhar's play, two recruiting officers compete for recruits in the same locale. Recruiting in those years required more than patriotism and the lure of it relied on bribery, alcohol, and the whole armory of deceit. Farquhar's play makes connections explicit, further setting off their dramatic power by linking recruiting tactics to the rites of courtship. His satire is intensified by his much-admired portrayals of the characters and situations of rural life; Farquhar brought the men and women of field and village truly to the stage.
138 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1706
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About the author
George Farquhar
225 books12 followersGeorge Farquhar (1677 – 29 April 1707) was an Irish dramatist. He is noted for his contributions to late Restoration comedy, particularly for his plays The Recruiting Officer (1706) and The Beaux' Stratagem (1707).
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
June 22, 2014
According to the introduction in this edition of the play, The Recruiting Officer is something of a transitional play between Restoration comedy proper and 18th century drama (which was much more limited, less interesting, and less entertaining). I haven't read widely enough in either Restoration or 18th century drama--though I've read more Restoration comedy--to really be able to identify a clear dividing line in themes or styles. However, I think Farquhar's play is an interesting divergence from the typical Restoration comedy of manners style, because it focuses a lot of attention on common people and it is set entirely in the country, whereas most Restoration comedies centered around the court and the amorous dalliances of the aristocracy--the dramatic equivalent of rococco painting. In addition to Fraquhar's experiences as a recruiting officer in western England, which directly inform the play, I wonder if these thematic/stylistic divergences come from his own position as an Anglo-Irishman living outside Ireland. I wonder if the displacement he felt translated into a unique approach to the dramatic material that was then prevalent on the stage.
April 16, 2014
From BBC Radio 3 - Drama on 3:
George Farquhar's popular Restoration Comedy. During a lull in the War of the Spanish Succession, Captain Plume comes to Shrewsbury, to seduce soldiers into the army, and - if possible - recruit Silvia into marriage.
The Recruiting Officer enjoyed enormous success and popular acclaim during the eighteenth century, when it was produced more often than any other play, outstripping its nearest rival, Hamlet, by a wide margin. Part of BBC Radio 3's 18th Century Season.
First broadcast in December 2011
The play holds the honour of being the first piece of theatre ever to be produced in Australia, with a cast of convicts and officers, an event described by Thomas Keneally in his book The Playmaker, and then dramatised by Timberlake Wertenbaker in her play, Our Country's Good. A double bill of the two plays was staged in repertory to great acclaim at The Royalz Court in 1988, with a common cast.
George Farquhar's popular Restoration Comedy. During a lull in the War of the Spanish Succession, Captain Plume comes to Shrewsbury, to seduce soldiers into the army, and - if possible - recruit Silvia into marriage.
The Recruiting Officer enjoyed enormous success and popular acclaim during the eighteenth century, when it was produced more often than any other play, outstripping its nearest rival, Hamlet, by a wide margin. Part of BBC Radio 3's 18th Century Season.
First broadcast in December 2011
The play holds the honour of being the first piece of theatre ever to be produced in Australia, with a cast of convicts and officers, an event described by Thomas Keneally in his book The Playmaker, and then dramatised by Timberlake Wertenbaker in her play, Our Country's Good. A double bill of the two plays was staged in repertory to great acclaim at The Royalz Court in 1988, with a common cast.
August 17, 2012
Originally published on my blog here in August 2000.
Today we probably think of compulsory enlistment as a feature of the eighteenth century British navy rather than the army, mainly because it features strongly in such well known fiction as the Hornblower series. However, during the wars of the early part of the century, the Press Act allowed the involuntary recruitment of those with no visible means of support, and so army officers toured the country, to encourage voluntary enlistment with all kinds of specious promises and to press others with the co-operation of local magistrates. The activities of such a group of enlisters forms the basis for The Recruiting Officer, a comedy satirising the abuses for which they were notorious.
The abuses shown in the play include corruption (any bribe greater than the bounty paid for a new recruit secured his release), enlistment of infants so that other soldiers could draw their pay, debauchery (it was said at the time that they made enough women pregnant to replace the men enlisted).
Against this background, Farquhar sets a fairly traditional romantic comedy, with two courting couples delaying the inevitable happy ending, though even here there are digs at the society of the time. The obstacle in the way of Plume and Silvia is conventional (the objections of her father), but that which mars the courtship of Worthy and Melinda is more unusual. Worthy is of higher social standing, and had attempted to make Melinda his kept mistress for the (large) sum of 500 pounds a year. Then she suddenly inherited 20,000 pounds and became his social equal, and naturally resents his attempts to marry her now that it is acceptable to do so. Class plays an important part in The Recruiting Officer - another example is that the original audience would have understood that the lure of promotion held out to get yokels to volunteer was false, as it was not until the Crimean War that non-gentlemen could become commissioned officers.
The emphasis of The Recruiting Officer is not really on satire; it is meant to be a fun comedy. Thus, none of the characters are really unpleasant; they may be weak, tempted into abuses by the absurdity of early eighteenth century society or the system created by the Press Act. The characters are a great strength of this play, the male parts in particular avoiding melodramatic heroes and villains. (The female parts are rather blander.)
The Recruiting Officer remains a classic comedy which has retained its charm and sparkle. Since its satirical targets are long gone, the way that Farquhar made them secondary to the fun has ensured the survival of the play.
Today we probably think of compulsory enlistment as a feature of the eighteenth century British navy rather than the army, mainly because it features strongly in such well known fiction as the Hornblower series. However, during the wars of the early part of the century, the Press Act allowed the involuntary recruitment of those with no visible means of support, and so army officers toured the country, to encourage voluntary enlistment with all kinds of specious promises and to press others with the co-operation of local magistrates. The activities of such a group of enlisters forms the basis for The Recruiting Officer, a comedy satirising the abuses for which they were notorious.
The abuses shown in the play include corruption (any bribe greater than the bounty paid for a new recruit secured his release), enlistment of infants so that other soldiers could draw their pay, debauchery (it was said at the time that they made enough women pregnant to replace the men enlisted).
Against this background, Farquhar sets a fairly traditional romantic comedy, with two courting couples delaying the inevitable happy ending, though even here there are digs at the society of the time. The obstacle in the way of Plume and Silvia is conventional (the objections of her father), but that which mars the courtship of Worthy and Melinda is more unusual. Worthy is of higher social standing, and had attempted to make Melinda his kept mistress for the (large) sum of 500 pounds a year. Then she suddenly inherited 20,000 pounds and became his social equal, and naturally resents his attempts to marry her now that it is acceptable to do so. Class plays an important part in The Recruiting Officer - another example is that the original audience would have understood that the lure of promotion held out to get yokels to volunteer was false, as it was not until the Crimean War that non-gentlemen could become commissioned officers.
The emphasis of The Recruiting Officer is not really on satire; it is meant to be a fun comedy. Thus, none of the characters are really unpleasant; they may be weak, tempted into abuses by the absurdity of early eighteenth century society or the system created by the Press Act. The characters are a great strength of this play, the male parts in particular avoiding melodramatic heroes and villains. (The female parts are rather blander.)
The Recruiting Officer remains a classic comedy which has retained its charm and sparkle. Since its satirical targets are long gone, the way that Farquhar made them secondary to the fun has ensured the survival of the play.
April 12, 2014
I've recently read a lot of restoration comedies, and the later works of Goldsmith and Sheridan, plus one Elizabethan "city comedy", The Roaring Girl.
There is a progression with the earliest plays the most explicit, and the latter more refined. But I've enjoyed them all. The characters have different sensibilities, but most are sympathetic.
However, I found the The Recruiting Officer differs from the others. It has all the elements of the restoration comedy, the bawdiness, the scheming, etc., but the characters don't ring true to me. It's as if Farquhar learned to write restoration comedies from some 18th century MFA program. It has all the parts, but none of the originality.
I would recommend looking at The Country Wife or The Way of the World instead.
There is a progression with the earliest plays the most explicit, and the latter more refined. But I've enjoyed them all. The characters have different sensibilities, but most are sympathetic.
However, I found the The Recruiting Officer differs from the others. It has all the elements of the restoration comedy, the bawdiness, the scheming, etc., but the characters don't ring true to me. It's as if Farquhar learned to write restoration comedies from some 18th century MFA program. It has all the parts, but none of the originality.
I would recommend looking at The Country Wife or The Way of the World instead.
September 14, 2014
The play lightly critiques military service in the early eighteenth century in England. It is cheerfully bawdy. The plot was too predictable and the humour too silly for me to like it, though I liked a scene where a recruiting officer pretends to be a fortune teller as a way to get recruits and help his friends with their romances.
June 16, 2023
A great edition of a great play.
May 29, 2012
Light bit of fun. Clever repartee between the concepts of love and war. Often quite funny, but I feel that restoration drama is something I probably won't return to, unless it's Wycherley.
October 28, 2012
It was boring, and confusing.
February 25, 2015
Every third year I feel the need to read this just to remind myself where the best of modern humour came from. A treat!
April 21, 2015
another winner from the restoration period. ugh
August 13, 2016
Dated and bawdy, but still quite funny and entertaining.
June 9, 2021
Wanted to read for context on a play I’m doing, but was dull dull dull and incredibly outdated (not surprising for 325 years old)
February 15, 2022
Overall, I am very captivated by the way Farquhar phrases his sentences and constructs his characters. This play was very well written and explored the 18th century in a very intriguing way.
May 1, 2023
Shout out to my boy George for a hell of a semester.
Everyone, if you have to read this listen to the bbc radio performance
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b018...
Everyone, if you have to read this listen to the bbc radio performance
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b018...
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews