Theaters of Feeling: Performing Sensibility on the 18th-Century Stage

FAIN: FA-56031-11

Jean I. Marsden
University of Connecticut (Storrs, CT 06269-9000)

England experienced significant social changes and evolved into a dominant imperial power. Thousands attended the theater each day to see plays known and valued for their frank sentimentality. The [proposed] book argues that this drama provides an important register of social and political change because of its unique position as a distinctly public and yet overtly emotional literary form. The project employs an interdisciplinary approach that draws upon drama, aesthetic theory, art and popular culture. It contributes to the Humanities by illuminating the concerns and ideals of the eighteenth-century audience and thus enhances our understanding of a pivotal moment in English history.