The Contrast- Marriage

            In The Contrast by Royall Tyler, there are numerous differing, or even contradicting, thoughts and ideas that are presented through the characters. I will be talking about the different views on marriage as seen throughout the play by Maria and Maria’s father.

As the play begins, we clearly see the differences in the definition of marriage as believed by the two characters. Maria is about to take part in an arranged marriage set up by her father. However, she does not want to get married to whom her father arranges her to marry. Her father wants her to marry Mr. Dimple. But her father insists on the marriage despite of his daughter’s feelings. Mr. Dimple is quite different from Maria and she wants out of the relationship as he becomes quite snobbish.     

In the beginning, we hear Letitia and Charlotte talking about the marriage. Letitia says that if Maria gets married to Mr. Dimple, it will be without her heart. Maria insists that she should marry someone who she believes she can cherish for her lifetime. On the other hand, Maria’s father says the marriage is more than a commitment to finding someone of mere profit. His daughter’s feelings are boloney to him and think money is the most important thing she should look out for.

Throughout the play, we read on as Maria falls in love with another man, Charlotte’s brother named Manly. He is supposed to be a contrasting character to Mr. Dimple. Surprisingly at the same time, Mr. Dimple is courting two other women, both Letitia and Charlotte. But in the end, after finding out more about Mr. Dimple, Maria’s father allows the wedding to be canceled and agrees to let his daughter marry the man she truly loves, Manly.

Tonino's Monologue: Social Constructs in Comedy

At the end of the second scene in Act II of The Venetian Twins, Tonino explains the benefits and joys of marriage to Pancrazio, who is trying to dissuade him from marrying Rosaura. This monologue is very interesting because it provides Carlo Goldoni's green world with an anchor to the red and white world of history, as well as providing a modern audience with an accurate look at how marriage was defined in the 18th century. 

Since the social institution of marriage was an incredibly significant aspect of the world in 1747, it makes sense for Goldoni to use it as a way to link his fictional world to the realm of reality; it also clearly defines gender roles and societal expectations: “Then you say marriage weighs down your body? Not true. A wife frees her husband from stress. She runs the house, orders the meals, supervises the servants. [She uses her natural instinct for thrift and organization to keep the household economy in order, which saves money.]” This particular section of Tonino's monologue clearly identifies the responsibilities associated with the gender roles of men and women in Italy (and most of Europe) during the middle of the 18th century. 

The expectations outlined in this speech are so important that a green world would not be considered feasible without some kind of explicit reference to these social standards. As an audience member/reader, this monologue makes me ponder about the other social constructs that were vital to the successful construction of a green world in the 18th century, and how they were translated successfully and unsuccessfully into fiction. 

         In “The Argument of Comedy,” Northrop Frye argues how the core pillars of the current society (red and white world) influenced the romanticism of the green world, by constructing an unwavering barrier between uncivilized chaos and socially acceptable green realms. Even with Frye’s explication, I am still left wondering about the evolution of social constructs within literature, theater, and comedy.