introduction / essay / literary criticism / book part /
Orig. pub.
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The celebrated author of this comedy was descended from a family of such antiquity, as to have their line extended beyond the Norman Conquest.2
It is a subject of dispute, whether Congreve was born in England or Ireland;3 but it is certain, that he received his education in the last named kingdom. His father, having a commission in the army, on the Irish establishment, placed him when young at the great school of Kilkenny; and afterwards in the university of Dublin, under the direction of Dr. Ash.4
Soon after the revolution young Congreve was sent to England, and became a student in the Temple.5 But instead of close application to the study of the law, he wrote a novel. This production was entitled "Incognita, or Love and Duty reconciled;" and some of his biographers speak of it with high encomium.6 But as the work has not received the honours of preservation, the authority for eulogium may be called in question.
The author's first drama was performed in 1692, when he was no more than twenty-one years of age. The stage was the sphere in which his genius was b 2[Page 4]destined to shine, and the most complete success attended his play of "The Old Bachelor."7
The work had been previously shown to Dryden and Southern, who had both given favourable opinions of it, and prophetic of the author's fame. Yet it is said to have been the mere product of some tedious weeks after a severe illness.8
The next year Congreve, elated with praise, brought his "Double Dealer" on the stage; but with less success than his former play.9 Praise is the parent of security, which, too frequently, gives birth to negligence. But the audience was here to blame, and not the author, for they preferred the inferior drama.
In 1695 was produced "Love for Love," at a new theatre, (built in Lincoln's Inn Fields) upon the very first night of its opening.10
This comedy was received with such rapturous applause, and so enriched the managers by its attraction, that they made an overture to the author to give him a share in the annual profits of their house, provided he would furnish them with a play annually.11
These conditions were agreed to, but never fulfilled on the part of Congreve. He valued his reputation above his compact, and risked the forfeiture of the one, rather than the loss of the other. Lord Halifax, the Mæcenas of the day, in order to protect the author of "Love for Love" from the danger, and the misery of writing against his inclination for the sake of pecuniary reward, now progressively bestowed on him the place of commissioner for licensing hackney-coaches; a place in the pipe office; a post in the customs; and made him commissioner of wine licenses.12
[Page 5]All those posts and places made Congreve opulent; and yet the name of that great poet seems to decline into insignificance, united with the sound of such employments!
Were the characters in "Love for Love" as natural, and as edifying as they are witty, it would be a perfect composition: but the conversation of many of the persons of this drama is either so immoral, or so tinctured with their occupations or propensities, that no such people now exist, and it is to be supposed, never, at any period, existed.13
The presiding quality of characters may be too closely adhered to, as well as too much neglected by an author. Men love, in general, to appear that, which they are not—but as their peculiar tempers or callings are no doubt, at times, discoverable either in their language or manners, such peculiarities, to appear natural in imitation, should only be resorted to occasionally.
It were indeed to be wished, that wicked men, like the men in this comedy, would hold discourse according to their evil natures; that the innocent and the unwary might know whom to shun—but to seem virtuous, is the usual design of people devoted to vice.
From the charge of conspicuous faults or singularities, the author has, however, exempted his two sincere lovers. For though Valentine and Angelica are both somewhat too gay to be good, yet compared with the company they keep, they are most respectable personages.
Dr. Johnson has so pointedly censured the impro-b 3[Page 6]bability of a marriage contracted under a mask14 (an incident which occurs in most, if not all, of Congreve's plays), that any additional remark on that subject would be superfluous; and, when all the imperfections of "Love for Love" are summed up, there still remains a balance of entertainment so delectable, that it pleases at the present era as it did at the past, and will continue its attractions as long as wit, or a theatre shall charm.
Idolized as this author was for his dramatic genius, he retired from the pursuit of fame to a country life, instigated by a jealousy of Mrs. Centlivre's superior influence with the town as a dramatist.15
The last action of Congreve's life was more reproachable than this—he bequeathed the fortune he had accumulated, to the Duchess of Marlborough, leaving many of his own ancient family in disappointment and poverty.16
This death-bed vanity and injustice was no impediment to his being buried in Westminster Abbey; nor to his lying in state in the Jerusalem Chamber, previous to his interment:17 it might, possibly, assist the grandeur of his funeral obsequies.
1. "Remarks." Love for Love; A Comedy, In Five Acts; By William Congreve, Esq. As Performed at the Theatres Royal, Covent Garden and Drury Lane. Printed Under the Authority of the Managers From the Prompt Book. With Remarks by Mrs. Inchbald. London: Printed for Longman, Hurst, Rees, and Orme, Paternoster Row, pp. 3-6. The British Theatre; or, A Collection of Plays, Which Are Acted At the Theatres Royal, Drury Lane, Covent Garden, and Haymarket. Printed Under the Authority of the Managers from the Prompt Books. With Biographical and Critical Remarks, by Mrs. Inchbald. In Twenty-Five Volumes. Vol. XIII. Love for Love. Mourning Bride. Mahomet. Tancred and Sigismunda. Suspicious Husband. London: Printed for Longman, Hurst, Rees, and Orme, Paternoster Row. 1808. The first performance of this play was staged at the Lincoln's Inn Fields Theatre on April 30th, 1695. Laura DeWitt and Mary A. Waters edited this essay for The Criticism Archive. Back
2. The Norman Conquest was the 11th century invasion of England by Norman, French, Flemish, and Breton forces led by the Duke of Normandy. Congreve's paternal line was an old, staunchly Royalist family, while his mother's line was connected to the old Lewis family, consisting of wealthy traders with India and Persia. Inchbald draws the notion of the antiquity of Congreve's lineage from Samuel Johnson's The Lives of the Most Eminent English Poets; with Critical Observations on their Works (1781, vol. III, p. 45). Back
3. Although his early biographers disputed his place of birth, a baptism entry for Congreve in Yorkshire, a historical county in Northern England, confirms that he was born in England. Back
4. Congreve's father moved the family to the seaport town of Youghal in southern Ireland in 1674 to fulfill his duties as a lieutenant in the military. In 1681, Congreve was sent to Kilkenny College, a boarding secondary school located in South-East Ireland. In 1686, he entered Trinity College, Dublin, where he was awarded an honorary M.A. in 1696. Back
5. Inchbald refers to the Glorious Revolution of 1688, in which the Catholic King James II was deposed by his daughter, the Protestant Mary II, and her husband, William of Orange. Congreve moved to London to study the law at Middle Temple in 1691. However, Congreve was less interested in the law than having an avenue into fashionable London society and prominent literary circles. Back
6. Congreve published his first novel, Incognita: or, Love and Duty reconcil'd, under the pseudonym Cleophil in 1692, though biographers believe he drafted the work when he was 17 years old. Back
7. Congreve's first play, The Old Bachelor, was first staged at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane on March 9th, 1693. Back
8. Congreve first shared this work with the established dramatist Thomas Southerne, a friend of Congreve's cousins and fellow graduate of Trinity College, who then passed the work along to John Dryden. The two helped Congreve polish the play, with Dryden reordering some scenes and Southerne using his connections to secure its first performance at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. The play was a success and ran for two weeks following its opening night. It is believed that Congreve wrote the play to amuse himself as he recovered from an illness. Back
9. The Double Dealer was first staged at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in October of 1693. The play was not met with the same success of The Old Bachelor, largely due to its controversial content and experimental form. Back
10. Love for Love was the opening production for the newly refurbished Lincoln's Inn Fields Theatre on April 30th, 1695. Back
11. Congreve was made a manager of the Lincoln's Inn Fields Theatre following its production of Love for Love, and he promised to provide a new play for the theatre each year. However, he was unable to fulfill this obligation. Back
12. In the summer of 1695, Congreve was made commissioner for licensing of hackney-coaches, a position which afforded him a hundred pounds a year. In 1697 he became a manager of the Malt Lottery loan program, a post in Pipe Office of the English Exchequer, the country's accounting department. From 1700 to 1703, Congreve served as the Customer at Poole, a seaport town in the south of England, sharing the fees with the deputy who carried out the actual duties of the position. Congreve was made commissioner for wines in 1705, a position he relinquished in 1714 when he joined the customs service. These sinecure offices required little work and did not provide enough income for Congreve to lead a gentleman's lifestyle. However, his station improved as he became increasingly involved in Whig politics, and he was awarded the secretaryship of the island of Jamaica in the latter part of 1714. Back
13. The plot of Love for Love revolves around Valentine, a young man who has fallen into extreme debt and faces enormous pressure from his creditors. His father, Sir Sampson Legend, offers to pay his debts in exchange for Valentine signing a bond to transfer his inheritance rights to his younger brother, Ben. Having no other recourse, Valentine signs the bond; however, this interferes with his ability to woo Angelica, a lady of fortune who has yet to accept his suit. Sir Sampson has been scammed into arranging an engagement between Ben and Miss Prue, the awkward country daughter of Foresight, an illiterate old fool who claims to be an astrologer and Angelica's uncle. Realizing the consequences of the bond should this marriage take place, Valentine pretends to go mad, making him unable to sign the final conveyance to his brother. Angelica intervenes, seducing Sir Sampson to propose to her. She pretends to accept so that she may steal Valentine's bond. Despairing over the news of the engagement, Valentine proclaims that he is ready to sign the conveyance, at which point Angelica reveals her plot, destroys the bond, and declares her love for Valentine. Back
14. See Samuel Johnson's The Lives of the Most Eminent English Poets; with Critical Observations on their Works (1781, vol. III, p. 50). Back
15. From 1704 onward, Congreve's literary output dwindled, limited to the occasional poem or translation. He opted to live off of royalties from his earlier plays and the sinecure offices he held. Inchbald draws the notion of William Congreve's jealousy of Susanna Centlivre from David Erskine Baker's The Companion to the Play-House (1764, volume II, p. unnumbered). Congreve's Way of the World and Centlivre's The Perjur'd Husband: or, The Adventures of Venice both premiered in 1700—both plays were considered failures, with The Perjur'd Husband running only five nights and Way of the World running for seven. Centlivre's 1709 play The Busy Body ran for thirteen nights. Back
16. It is believed that the Duchess of Marlborough's fifth child, Mary, was the result of an affair between her and Congreve. Congreve left his entire fortune to the Duchess with her husband as the appointed executor. Back
17. Congreve was buried in the Poet's Corner of the famous Westminster Abbey graveyard in London. The Jerusalem Chamber is an ornately decorated room that overlooks the main west door of Westminster Abbey. Congreve's coffin laid in this room prior to his burial. Back
Ed. Mary
A. Waters, The Criticism Archive, published by Romantic Circles, 2026. Updated 06/25/2026.
https://cha.artsci.tamu.edu/CriticismArchive/HTML/InchbaldVol13Rem1LoveforLove1808.html