She Stoops to Conquer as an Anti-Sentimental Comedy.

Answer

Discuss “She Stoops to Conquer” as an anti-sentimental comedy.

Comedy means entertainment consisting of jokes. Anti-sentimental comes into existence in the reaction against the sentimental comedy. It is also known as the “comedy of manners.” The pioneer of Anti-sentimental comedy is Oliver Goldsmith (1728-1774). “She Stoops to Conquer” is an anti-sentimental comedy. It is also famous for the title “The Mistake of Night,” first performed in London in 1773. 

Amusing Intrigue and Situation: The first characteristic of anti-sentimental comedy is amusing intrigue and situation. This we can see in this play. The play consists of Tony’s intrigues. His tricks against Marlow and Hastings are the principal source of the situation of wit and humor. We found Tony’s intrigues give motion to drama. He introduces his house as an inn and Mr. Hardcastle as an innkeeper.  Hastings says:

I see this fellow wants to give us his company, and forgets that he’s an innkeeper, before he has learned to be a gentleman.

These tricks contribute a lot to the comic impression of the play. Marlow mistakes his future father-in-law as an innkeeper and orders him. 

Marriage for Love and Money: One of the essential characteristics is marriage for love and marriage for money.  The drama’s plot is constructed based on marriage for love and money. Tony’s mother, Mrs. Hardcastle, wants Tony to be married to Constance because she has a jewelry box. But Constance loves Hastings, and Tony helps them get married. Mrs. Hardcastle’s intention of marriage is the token of marriage for money. Constance marries Hastings because of their love for each other. Marlow and Kate’s marriage also happens because of love. 

Satirical Comedy and Irony: The second characteristic of Anti-sentimental comedy is satirical comedy. We can also find this in play. We find satire on class conflict in the play. Marlow is satirized since he is not comfortable with the polite class, but he is comfortable with the barmaid. He cannot talk to Kate when he meets her for marriage, but he can easily talk to her when she comes as a barmaid or servant. Irony can also be found in the play. 

The wit of Language and Verbal Dialogue: In Act 3, we find that Tony and Hastings talk about Jewell.  Tony steals Jewell and passes on them. And then speak, 

Ask me no question and I’ll tell you no fibs

The line means that if one asks a strange or nonsensical question, the listener will probably respond with a similar odd or nonsensical answer. Thus, we can see the wit of language and verbal dialogue. 

Farce and Disguise: Many critics have described “She Stopped to Conquer” as a comedy of broad humor and outlandish incidents, a classical farce. Some characters, such as Mrs. Hardcastle and others, create the crystal structure of the farce. Disguise is also a vital characteristic of anti-sentimental comedy. Here, we find when Kate learns that Marlow feels uncomfortable when she dresses as an upper-class lady. The following day, she dressed herself as a simple person. Then Marlow notices her and talks freely with her. In this way, we find farce and disguise both in the play “She Stoops to Conquer.”

In conclusion, we can say that “She Stoops to Conquer” is the best example of anti-sentimental comedy because it rejects its contemporaries’ emotional excess and moral didacticism. Instead, it embraces humor, wit, and farce, focusing on entertaining the audience through realistic and flawed characters and absurd situations.