What are Sidney’s views on contemporary English drama?
An Apology for Poetry is a notable literary work by Philip Sidney. A complete discussion of this literary work is given, which will help you enhance your literary skills and prepare for the exam. Read the Main texts, Key info, Summary, Themes, Characters, Literary devices, Quotations, Notes, and various study materials of An Apology for Poetry.
Answer
What are Sidney’s views on contemporary English drama?
Sir Philip Sidney (1554-1586) was a famous poet and critic in the 16th century. In his book “An Apology for Poetry” (1595), he shares his thoughts about poetry and drama. He respected poetry very much. But he was not happy with the English drama of his time. Sidney thought that many English plays were poorly written. He believed that drama should follow some classical rules. He wanted drama to teach good values and be well-organised. He felt many modern English plays failed to do this.
Breaking of Rules: Sidney was upset because many English dramas broke classical rules. Good plays should follow the “Three Unities”: unity of time, place, and action. But English plays ignored this. A single play might show events across years and countries. Sidney thought this was unrealistic and messy. For example, a character might be a child in one scene and old in the next. This made the story hard to follow. Sidney wanted drama to be more disciplined, like ancient Greek plays.
Mixing of Characters: Sidney dislikes how English plays mix kings with clowns. In classical drama, tragedies were serious, and comedies were funny. They were kept separate. But English plays often combined both. According to the author, a play should be pure comedy or tragedy. He says,
“The ideal tragedy is an imitation of the noble action in the representation of which it stirs, admiration and commiseration.”
Sidney says mixing characters is confusing. For example, a play might show a noble king in one scene and a silly jester in the next. This weakened the play’s moral lesson. Sidney believed drama should either teach seriously or entertain lightly, not both at once.
Lack of Moral Purpose: Sidney believed drama should teach goodness. But many English plays failed here. Some showed evil characters succeeding without punishment. Others made foolish behavior seem funny without teaching a lesson. About this, the author says,
“Delight hath a joy in it, either permanent or
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