The Rake and the Coquet in Restoration Literature Essay Example for Free

The Rake and the Coquet in Restoration Literature Essay Going by definitions alone, a rake is merely a disreputable character, and ought to serve nothing other than a villain in literary endeavor. But when we come to consider the ‘Restoration rake’ we encounter complexity and richness, which needs further analyze. The same must be said of the Restoration coquet. To call such figures anti-heroes would be too simplistic. A more complete account would be to depict the Restoration rake, as well as the coquet, as instruments of reaction against the excesses of Puritanism. In this sense it is not pure evil that is projected, rather we should see such depictions as reflecting the quest for individual liberty and control. At the time the evolution of European society was in the direction of increasing individualism, a trend which was reflected in literature. In many respects literature itself was agent in the evolution. The literary rake and coquet figures were, from this point of view, instrumental in defining and furthering individualism. According to Johnson, a rake is â€Å"loose disorderedly vicious, wild, gay, thoughtless fellow; a man addicted to pleasure†. This description seems hardly strong enough to describe the sort of rake that trod the planks of Restoration theatre. Generally the entire cast was rakish to an extent, in a play like The Country Wife by William Wycherley. But the prize rake in this play is Harry Horner, whose one aim in life is to make cuckolds of as many upper class husbands as possible. He first spreads a rumor that he is impotent, which makes his task much easier, and he is then shown womanizing with abandon. But this is my no means a one dimensional figure of evil and lustful designs, as we would expect from a villain character. As Harold Weber points out, â€Å"the rake is too complex and enigmatic a figure to be reduced to a sexual machine: his love of disguise, need for freedom, and fondness for play all establish the complexity of the rakish personality† (3). To understand rationale behind such a depiction we must consider the backdrop to the Restoration age. Restoration meant the overcoming of Puritanism, which may be described as overzealous Protestantism. It may also be described as individualism in its religious guise, for the Puritan’s one goal is personal communion with God. Puritans zeal proscribed all display of sensuality, and under Cromwell’s Protectorate all forms of theatre were banned, and the general tenor of life was suffocatingly austere. The Restoration meant that all these trends would be reversed, and the task was made all the easier because the new king Charles II was a consummate rake in his own right. He was a womanizer and a hedonist, and he gathered in his court like-minded wits, who practiced the letters with his libertine philosophy in mind. An avid theatre goer, he patronized and shaped the new theatre much to his own taste, encouraging the likes of Wycherley. From this perspective the theatrical rake is far more than just a villain, and we recognize in him a violent reaction against Puritanism. He is projecting the ideal of worldly individualism as against the religious type. Indeed we should be able to detect a fervor akin to religion in the vigor and enthusiasm of Horner’s sensual ways. In this regard Weber says, â€Å"[T]he rake represents the initial attempts of English culture to transfer control of sexuality from the divine to the secular world† (Weber 10). Alexander Pope gives us the typical coquette in his mock epic poem The Rape of the Lock. The poem depicts the decadence of the Georgian upper classes, where vanity and affectation have become rampant. Johnson describes a coquette as one whose â€Å"appearance is fundamental†, and who is playfully adventurous in her sexual exploits. Belinda has four guardian angels protecting her chastity, which is in truth her vanity, for her one goal is to marry into fortune. When an admirer snips a lock of her hair, it is taken as violation of the highest order, because it is her appearance that has been violated. She tells the offender: â€Å"Oh, hadst thou, cruel! been content to seize / Hairs less in sight, or any hairs but these!† (Pope 49). The ‘hairs less in sight’ are suggesting pubic hairs. The gist is therefore that sexual violation, and therefore loss of virginity, is of less consequence then spoiling her appearance. Even though Pope is critical of Belinda’s vanity, it is conveyed in a lighthearted and playful manner, and so retains echoes of Restoration drama. In this mood, both the rake and the coquet are representative of individualism and freedom, rather than of vice. In conclusion, the rake and the coquette, as depicted in Restoration drama and Augustan literature, are not true villains, but have a sympathetic aspect. The must be seen as reactions against Puritan zeal, and therefore as projecting worldly individualism. Works Cited Johnson, Samuel. Johnsons Dictionary: A Modern Selection. London: Gollancz, 1963. Pope, Alexander. Selected Poetry. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press, 1998. Weber, Harold. The Restoration Rake-Hero: Transformations in Sexual Understanding in Seventeeth-Century England. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1986. Wycherley, William. The Country Wife and Other Plays. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press, 1998.