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106-538: The School for Scandal is a comedy of manners written by Richard Brinsley Sheridan . It was first performed in London at Drury Lane Theatre on 8 May 1777. Scene I : Lady Sneerwell, a wealthy young widow, and her hireling Snake discuss her various scandal-spreading plots. Snake asks why she is so involved in the affairs of Sir Peter Teazle, his ward Maria, and Charles and Joseph Surface, two young men under Sir Peter's informal guardianship, and why she has not yielded to

212-685: A state coach in Europe or a horse used in Northern Ghana. The chiefs of the Ga ( mantsemei ) in the Greater Accra Region ( Ghana ) use also figurative palanquins which are built after a chief's family symbol or totem. But these day the figurative palanquins are very seldom used. They are related with the figurative coffins which have become very popular among the Ga in the last 50 years. Since these figurative coffins were shown 1989 in

318-434: A yoke to transfer the load from the carrying poles to the shoulders. A simple litter consists of a sling attached along its length to poles or stretched inside a frame. The poles or frame are carried by porters in front and behind. Such simple litters are common on battlefields and emergency situations, where terrain prohibits wheeled vehicles from carrying away the dead and wounded. Litters can also be created quickly by

424-578: A "virtuous path". The concluding line assures the audience that "even Scandal dies, if you approve." The humorous epilogue, written by George Colman the Elder , is to be "Spoken by Lady Teazle." It portrays her as somewhat regretful of leaving country domesticity for London society, and includes an elaborate parody of a famous speech in Shakespeare's Othello . Various editions of the play exhibit several relatively minor textual differences. One reason

530-403: A 1995 production starring Tony Randall as Sir Peter Teazle that Sheridan's play was "such a superbly crafted laugh machine, and so timeless in delivering delectable comeuppance to a viper's nest of idle-rich gossipmongers, that you'd practically have to club it to death to stifle its amazing pleasures" – before claiming that this is precisely what the production being reviewed had done. But in

636-415: A bamboo pole and borne by two bearers, is called a doli . Larger palanquins are rectangular wooden boxes eight feet long, four feet wide, and four feet high, with openings on either side screened by curtains or shutters. Interiors are furnished with bedding and pillows. Ornamentation reflects the social status of the traveller. The most ornate palanquins have lacquer paintwork and cast bronze finials at

742-577: A fare system was established for Scottish sedans, and the regulations covering chairmen in Bath are reminiscent of the modern Taxi Commission's rules. A trip within a city cost six pence and a day's rental was four shillings. A sedan was even used as an ambulance in Scotland's Royal Infirmary. Chairmen moved at a good clip. In Bath they had the right-of-way: pedestrians hearing "By your leave" behind them knew to flatten themselves against walls or railings as

848-784: A feigned Hand there can be no suspicion whence they came. LADY SNEERWELL. Did you circulate the Report of Lady Brittle's Intrigue with Captain Boastall? VERJUICE. Madam by this Time Lady Brittle is the Talk of half the Town—and I doubt not in a week the Men will toast her as a Demirep. LADY SNEERWELL. What have you done as to the insinuation as to a certain Baronet's Lady and a certain Cook. VERJUICE. That

954-461: A feigned hand, there can be no suspicion whence they came. Lady Sneer. Did you circulate the report of Lady Brittle's intrigue with Captain Boastall? Snake. That's in as fine a train as your ladyship could wish. In the common course of things, I think it must reach Mrs. Clackitt's ears within four and twenty hours; and then, you know, the business is as good as done. This is a significant difference, and some editors and performers have preferred

1060-422: A fixed elaborately carved roof and doors. While the cáng has become obsolete, the kiệu is retained in certain traditional rituals a part of a temple devotional procession. In Thailand, the royalty were also carried in wooden litters called wo ("พระวอ" Phra Wo, literally, "Royal Sedan") for large ceremonies. Wos were elaborately decorated litters that were delicately carved and colored by gold leaf. Stained glass

1166-474: A generous separate maintenance during his life and the bulk of his fortune on his demise. He also urges Joseph to pursue his suit with Maria (much to Joseph's annoyance, as Lady Teazle is listening behind the screen). Charles's arrival is announced. Sir Peter decides to hide, and have Joseph sound Charles out about his relationship with Lady Teazle. He starts behind the screen, but sees the corner of Lady Teazle's petticoat there already. Joseph "confesses" that he

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1272-411: A hundred pounds of the proceeds for the relief of "Mr. Stanley", despite Rowley's objection. Scene II : Sir Oliver, reflecting on Charles's character with Moses, is met by Rowley, who has brought him the hundred pounds sent to "Stanley." Declaring "I’ll pay his debts, and his benevolence too", Sir Oliver plans to go meet his other nephew in the person of Stanley. Scene III : Joseph, anxiously awaiting

1378-611: A joke. When Lady Sneerwell is announced, Joseph rushes out to stop her from coming up. Meanwhile, Sir Peter tells Charles about the "French milliner". Charles insists on having a look at her and flings down the screen as Joseph returns, discovering Lady Teazle. Charles, very amused, leaves the other three dumbstruck individuals. Joseph concocts an explanation for Sir Peter of why he and Lady Teazle are together. But she refuses to endorse it and admits that she came to pursue an affair with Joseph; however, having learned of Sir Peter's generosity, she has repented. She denounces Joseph and exits, and

1484-555: A large military procession, with a yellow (the Javanese colour for royalty) square canopy. The ceremonial parasol ( payung ) was held above the palanquin, which was carried by a bearer behind and flanked by the most loyal bodyguards, usually about 12 men, with pikes , sabres , lances , muskets , keris and a variety of disguised blades. In contrast, the canopy of the Sumatran palanquin was oval-shaped and draped in white cloth; this

1590-469: A letter for Joseph announcing that Sir Oliver has arrived in town. Scene II : At Sir Peter's house, Lady Sneerwell, Mrs. Candour, Sir Benjamin, and Crabtree exchange confused rumours about the Teazle affair. Sir Benjamin says Sir Peter was wounded in a swordfight with Joseph Surface, while Crabtree insists it was a pistol duel with Charles. When Sir Oliver enters, they take him for a doctor and demand news of

1696-468: A litter. In Ancient Rome , a litter called lectica or sella often carried members of the imperial family, as well as other dignitaries and other members of the rich elite, when not mounted on horseback. The habit must have proven quite persistent, for the Third Council of Braga in 675 AD saw the need to order that bishops, when carrying the relics of martyrs in procession, must walk to

1802-453: A part of the year in Edo (Tokyo) with their families, resulting in yearly migrations of the rich and powerful ( Sankin-kōtai ) to and from the capital along the central backbone road of Japan. Somewhat similar in appearance to kago are the portable shrines that are used to carry the "god-body" ( goshintai ), the central totemic core normally found in the most sacred area of Shinto Shrines , on

1908-597: A production by the Guthrie Theater Company adapted by Michael Bawtree. Comedy of manners The comedy-of-manners genre originated in the New Comedy period (325–260 BC) of Classical Greece (510–323 BC), and is known from fragments of works by the playwright Menander , whose style of writing, elaborate plots, and stock characters were imitated by Roman playwrights , such as Plautus and Terence , whose comedies were known to and staged during

2014-487: A relatively minor role. It is notable that at least one 21st-century production (Los Angeles, 2004) has "sanitized most of what could be deemed as anti-Semitic content" by changing references to "Jews" and "Jewry" to "moneylenders"—a practice that a reviewer termed "PC-ification" of the play. Another production, by the Seattle Shakespeare Company in 2007, reportedly did not tamper with this aspect of

2120-467: A sexual relationship between two women, one of whom has her eye on yet another young woman (who never appears, but who is the target of a seduction scheme). Periodically, the two women make their serving woman the butt of haughty jokes, serving to point up the satire on class. Though displaying the verbal dexterity one associates with both the playwright and the genre, the patina of wit occasionally erupts into shocking crudity. Comedies of manners have been

2226-446: A simple wooden chair with an attached tumpline . The occupant sat in the chair, which was then affixed to the back of a single porter, with the tumpline supported by his head. The occupant thus faced backwards during travel. This style of palanquin was probably due to the steep terrain and rough or narrow roads unsuitable to European-style sedan chairs. Travellers by silla usually employed a number of porters, who would alternate carrying

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2332-538: A somewhat Judeo-English accent). Harold Pinter's play The Homecoming has been described as a mid-twentieth-century "comedy of manners". Other more recent examples include Kazuo Ishiguro 's The Remains of the Day , Barbara Pym 's Excellent Women , Douglas Carter Beane 's As Bees in Honey Drown , The Country Club , and The Little Dog Laughed . In Boston Marriage (1999), David Mamet chronicles

2438-624: A staple of British film and television. The Carry On films are a direct descendant of the comedy of manners style, and elements of the style can be found in The Beatles ' films A Hard Day's Night and Help! . Television series by David Croft in collaboration with Jimmy Perry ( Dad's Army ) and with Jeremy Lloyd ( Are You Being Served? ) might also be considered examples of the genre. Television series such as George and Mildred , Absolutely Fabulous , The Young Ones , and The League of Gentlemen also contain many elements of

2544-522: A status symbol. During the 17–18th centuries, palanquins (see above) were very popular among European traders in Bengal , so much so that in 1758 an order was issued prohibiting their purchase by certain lower-ranking employees. A similar but simpler palanquin was used by the elite in parts of 18th- and 19th-century Latin America . Often simply called a silla (Spanish for seat or chair), it consisted of

2650-587: A text based on the 1821 edition of The Works of the Late Right Honourable Richard Brinsley Sheridan published by Murray, Ridgeway, and Wilkie, but states that it has "been emended from earlier manuscripts" and gives a detailed listing of these emendations. The prefatory material to the Project Gutenberg text of the play acknowledges that "Current texts may usually be traced, directly or indirectly", to

2756-424: A tour to and from a shrine during some religious festivals . Traditional Vietnam employed two distinct types of litters, the cáng and the kiệu . The cáng is a basic bamboo pole with the rider reclining in a hammock . More elaborate cáng had an adjustable woven bamboo shade to shelter the occupant. Dignitaries would have an entourage to carry parasols. The kiệu resemble more of the sedan chair, enclosed with

2862-458: A visit from Lady Teazle, is told by a servant that she has just left "her chair at the milliner's next door" and so has the servant draw a screen across the window (his reason: "my opposite neighbour is a maiden lady of so curious a temper"). On her entrance, Joseph forswears any interest in Maria, and flirts in earnest with Lady Teazle, perversely suggesting that she should make a " faux pas " for

2968-643: Is also used to decorate the litters. Presently, Royal Wos and carriages are only used for royal ceremonies in Thailand. They are exhibited in the Bangkok National Museum. In traditional Javanese society, the generic palanquin or joli was a wicker chair with a canopy, attached to two poles, and borne on men's shoulders, and was available for hire to any paying customer. As a status marker, gilded throne-like palanquins, or jempana , were originally reserved solely for royalty, and later co-opted by

3074-458: Is arguing with him. Scene II : At Lady Sneerwell's, the scandal-mongers have great fun at the expense of friends not present. Lady Teazle and Maria arrive; Lady Teazle joins in, but Maria is disgusted. So is Sir Peter, when he arrives, and rather breaks up the party with his comments. He departs, the others retire to the next room, and Joseph seizes the opportunity to court Maria, who rejects him again. Lady Teazle returns and dismisses Maria, and it

3180-511: Is baffled, and Rowley then summons Snake. Snake, however, has been bribed to turn against Sneerwell, so her lie is exposed. After Lady Teazle tells her that she (Lady Teazle) is withdrawing from the School for Scandal, Lady Sneerwell leaves in a rage, and Joseph follows, supposedly to keep her from further malicious attacks. Charles and Maria are reconciled. Charles makes no promises about reforming, but indicates that Maria's influence will keep him on

3286-571: Is derived from the Sanskrit palyanka , meaning bed or couch. The Malay and Javanese form is palangki , in Hindi and Bengali, palki , in Telugu pallaki . The Portuguese apparently added a nasal termination to these to make palanquim . English adopted it from Portuguese as "palanquin". Palanquins vary in size and grandeur. The smallest and simplest, a cot or frame suspended by the four corners from

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3392-474: Is described (as a "friendly Jew" and an "honest Israelite" by Rowley in III.1) suggest that he is in some way to be considered an exception to Jews in general; also, his own usurious business practices as stated to Sir Peter are clearly less than exemplary (e.g., his statement "If he appears not very anxious for the supply, you should require only forty or fifty per cent; but if you find him in great distress, and want

3498-629: Is illustrated by licensing records which show twenty-seven sedan chairs in 1800, eighteen in 1817, and ten in 1828. During that same period the number of registered hackney carriages in Glasgow rose to one hundred and fifty. The wealthy are recorded to have used sedan chairs in the cities of colonial America and the early period of the United States. In 1787, Benjamin Franklin , at the time 81 years old, gouty , and in generally declining health,

3604-457: Is in India) will soon leave him a fortune. "Premium" discounts this possibility, noting that Sir Oliver could live many years, or disinherit his nephew. He asks if Charles has any valuables of his own to sell for immediate cash. Charles admits that he has sold the family silver and his late father's library, and offers to sell "Premium" the family portrait collection. "Premium" accepts, but Sir Oliver

3710-496: Is in as fine a Train as your Ladyship could wish. I told the story yesterday to my own maid with directions to communicate it directly to my Hairdresser. He I am informed has a Brother who courts a Milliners' Prentice in Pallmall whose mistress has a first cousin whose sister is Feme [Femme] de Chambre to Mrs. Clackit—so that in the common course of Things it must reach Mrs. Clackit's Ears within four-and-twenty hours and then you know

3816-485: Is left alone and when Maria enters, he tries to convince her to marry Joseph expressing him as a worthier match than Charles, whom she favours. When she is not persuaded, he threatens her with "the authority of a guardian". She goes, and Lady Teazle enters asking her husband for two hundred pounds. Sir Peter and Lady Teazle argue again, and conclude that they should separate. Scene II : Sir Oliver (as Mr. Premium) arrives with Moses at Charles' house. While they are waiting in

3922-567: Is not as virtuous as he seems: "a little French milliner, a silly rogue that plagues me" is hiding there to preserve her own reputation. Sir Peter then hides in the closet. Charles now enters and Joseph questions him about Lady Teazle. Charles disclaims any designs on her, noting that Joseph and the lady seem to be intimate. To stop Charles, Joseph whispers to him that Sir Peter is hiding in the closet, and Charles hauls him forth. Sir Peter tells Charles he now regrets his suspicions about him. Charles passes off his comments about Joseph and Lady Teazle as

4028-521: Is noted to have travelled to meetings of the United States Constitutional Convention in a sedan chair carried by four prisoners. In various colonies, litters of various types were maintained under native traditions, but often adopted by the colonials as a new ruling and/or socio-economic elite, either for practical reasons (often comfortable modern transport was unavailable, e.g. for lack of decent roads) and/or as

4134-497: Is revealed that Lady Teazle is seriously flirting with Joseph – who doesn't want her, but cannot afford to alienate her. Scene III : Sir Oliver calls on his old friend Sir Peter. He is amused by Sir Peter's marriage to a young wife. Their talk turns to the Surface brothers. Sir Peter praises Joseph's high morals but Sir Oliver suspects that he might be a hypocrite. Scene I: Rowley describes his plan for Sir Oliver to visit each of

4240-464: Is silently outraged. Scene I : Charles goes on to sell all of the family portraits to "Premium", using the rolled-up family tree as a gavel. However, he refuses to sell the last portrait, which is of Sir Oliver, out of respect for his benefactor; Charles will not sell it even when "Premium" offers as much for it as for all the rest. Moved, Sir Oliver inwardly forgives Charles. Sir Oliver and Moses leave with Rowley entering shortly after, and Charles sends

4346-524: Is that Sheridan revised his text repeatedly, not only prior to its first production, but afterwards. In its earliest stages, as detailed by Thomas Moore , Sheridan developed two separate play sketches, one initially entitled "The Slanderers" that began with Lady Sneerwell and Spatter (equivalent to Snake in the final version), and the other involving the Teazles. He eventually combined these and with repeated revisions and restructuring arrived at substantially

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4452-431: Is the unvarying wit of the characters. And not only are the characters all witty, but they all talk alike. Their wit is Sheridan's wit, which is very good wit indeed; but it is Sheridan's own, and not Sir Peter Teazle's, or Backbite's, or Careless's, or Lady Sneerwell's. The style of the play has also made it at times a problematic work to make effective in today's theatre. In appraising a 1999 staging of Sheridan's comedy at

4558-750: The Ramayana ( c.  250   BC ). Indian women of rank always travelled by palanquin. The conveyance proved popular with European residents in India, and was used extensively by them. Pietro Della Valle , a 17th-century Italian traveller, wrote: Going in Palanchino in the Territories of the Portugals in India is prohibited to men, because indeed 'tis a thing too effeminate, nevertheless, as

4664-676: The Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis , Minnesota, one critic found the "staunchly orthodox production" to be lacking, commenting that Sheridan's satirical bite, which is as venomous as Molière 's and as quick as Wilde 's, comes not from epigrammatic flourishes, but from the subtle undermining of Georgian social mores... In this realm, gossip is a form of social control, wielded by the essentially impotent elite to force conformity among their peers Another reviewer in Variety noted of

4770-522: The Portugals are very little observers of their own Laws, they began at first to be tolerated upon occasion of the Rain, and for favours, or presents, and afterwards became so common that they are us'd almost by everybody throughout the whole year. Some translations of the Hebrew Bible refer to a wooden palanquin which King Solomon is said to have made for himself. Being transported by palanquin

4876-479: The Renaissance . In the 17th century, the comedy of manners is best realised in the plays of Molière , such as The School for Wives (1662), The Imposter (1664), and The Misanthrope (1666), which satirise the hypocrisies and pretensions of the ancien régime that ruled France from the late 15th century to the 18th century. The comedy of manners has been employed by Roman satirists since as early as

4982-403: The seggioli of Naples and Genoa , which were chairs for public hire slung from poles and carried on the shoulders of two porters. From the mid-17th century, visitors taking the waters at Bath would be conveyed in a chair enclosed in baize curtains, especially if they had taken a heated bath and were going straight to bed to sweat. The curtains kept off a possibly fatal draft. These were not

5088-775: The 1821 edition, but presents a far different text based on a manuscript in the author's hand. In the Project Gutenberg text's version of I.1, Lady Sneerwell's accomplice is her cousin Miss Verjuice, not the socially inferior Snake (who appears only in V.3). Here is the opening of the play as given in that text (in which the editor has retained the original spelling and punctuation of Sheridan's manuscript found at Frampton Court): LADY SNEERWELL at her dressing table with LAPPET; MISS VERJUICE drinking chocolate LADY SNEERWELL. The Paragraphs you say were all inserted: VERJUICE. They were Madam—and as I copied them myself in

5194-482: The 1821 text, leaving him to fill in "My widow, I suppose?" and her to add "Hem! hem!"). Also, in Crabtree's recitation of the imaginary duel between Sir Peter and Charles Surface (V.2), the shot of Sir Peter bounces off a "little bronze Pliny " in the older version, but the bust is changed to one of " Shakspeare (sic)" in the 1821 text. Many other slight differences of a few words here and there can be found throughout

5300-496: The Business is as good as done. Sheridan later deleted Verjuice and gave Snake most of her lines, as reflected in the 1821 edition and those editions that follow it. Here is the opening in that text: Lady SNEERWELL'S House. Discovered Lady SNEERWELL at the dressing-table; SNAKE drinking chocolate. Lady Sneer. The paragraphs, you say, Mr. Snake, were all inserted? Snake. They were, madam; and as I copied them myself in

5406-465: The Dutch, as a status marker: the more elaborate the palanquin, the higher the status of the owner. The joli was transported either by hired help, by nobles' peasants, or by slaves. Historically, the palanquin of a Javanese king ( raja ), prince ( pangeran ), lord ( raden mas ) or other noble ( bangsawan ) was known as a jempana ; a more throne-like version was called a pangkem . It was always part of

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5512-940: The Surfaces' late father, arrives, and Sir Peter gives him an earful on the subject. He also complains that Maria has refused Joseph, whom he calls "a model for the young men of the age," and seems attached to Charles, whom he denounces as a profligate. Rowley defends Charles, and then announces that Sir Oliver has just arrived from the East Indies. Oliver has instructed them not to tell his nephews of his arrival so that he may "make some trial of their dispositions". Scene I : Sir Peter argues with his wife, Lady Teazle, refusing to be "ruined by [her] extravagance." He reminds her of her recent and far humbler country origins. Lady Teazle excuses herself by appealing to "the fashion", and departs to visit Lady Sneerwell. Despite their quarrel, Sir Peter still finds himself charmed by his wife even when she

5618-596: The attentions of Joseph, who is highly respectable. Lady Sneerwell confides that Joseph desires Maria, who is an heiress, and that Maria desires Charles. Thus she and Joseph are plotting to alienate Maria from Charles by putting out rumours of an affair between Charles and Sir Peter's new young wife, Lady Teazle. Joseph arrives to confer with Lady Sneerwell. Maria herself then enters, fleeing the attentions of Sir Benjamin Backbite and his uncle, Crabtree. Mrs. Candour enters and ironically talks about how "tale-bearers are as bad as

5724-460: The benefit of her reputation. The servant returns to announce Sir Peter, and Lady Teazle hides in panic behind the screen. Sir Peter enters and tells Joseph that he suspects an affair between Charles and Lady Teazle (due to the rumours spread by Joseph and Lady Sneerwell). Joseph hypocritically professes confidence in Charles' and Lady Teazle's honour. Sir Peter confides his intention to give his wife

5830-563: The brothers incognito to test their characters. Sir Oliver will disguise himself as their needy relative Mr. Stanley, and ask each for his help. Rowley also brings in the "friendly Jew" Moses, a moneylender who has tried to help Charles, to explain Charles' position. Moses mentions that he is to introduce Charles to yet another moneylender ("Mr. Premium") that very evening. Sir Oliver decides (at Sir Peter's suggestion) that with Moses' assistance, he will pose as Premium when visiting Charles while still intending to visit Joseph as Stanley. Sir Peter

5936-403: The chairmen hustled through. There were often disastrous accidents, upset chairs, and broken glass-paned windows. In Great Britain, in the early 19th century, the public sedan chair began to fall out of use, perhaps because streets were better paved or perhaps because of the rise of the more comfortable, companionable and affordable hackney carriage . In Glasgow , the decline of the sedan chair

6042-507: The church, and not be carried in a chair, or litter, by deacons clothed in white. In the Catholic Church, Popes were carried the same way in sedia gestatoria , which was replaced later by the popemobile . A palanquin is a covered litter, usually for one passenger. It is carried by an even number of bearers (between two and eight, but most commonly four) on their shoulders, by means of a pole projecting fore and aft. The word

6148-534: The closet and screen. When he leaves, Rowley tells Sir Peter that Lady Teazle is in tears in the next room, and Sir Peter goes to reconcile with her. Scene III : Lady Sneerwell complains to Joseph that Sir Peter, now that he knows the truth about Joseph, will allow Charles to marry Maria. They plot to use Snake as a witness to a supposed relationship between Charles and Lady Sneerwell, and she withdraws. Sir Oliver arrives. Joseph takes him for "Stanley" and orders him out. Charles arrives and recognises "Premium". Despite

6254-399: The departed. In pre-colonial Philippines, litters were a way of transportation for the elite ( maginoo , ginu , tumao ); Rajahs , Lakans , Datus , sovereign princes ( Rajamuda ) and their wives use a Sankayan or Sakayan , a wooden or bamboo throne with elaborate and intricate carvings carried by their servants. Also among their retinue were payong (umbrella)-bearers, to shade

6360-528: The difficulties posed by the mountainous terrain of the Korean peninsula and the lack of paved roads, gama s were preferred over wheeled vehicles. In traditional weddings, the bride and groom are carried to the ceremony in separate gama s, this custom goes back to the times of Joseon Dynasty , when the gamas were also used for celebrations of passing government exams and funerals. As the population of Japan increased and less and less land remained available for

6466-606: The elite travelled in light bamboo seats supported on a carrier's back like a backpack. In the Northern Wei dynasty and the Northern and Southern Song dynasty , wooden carriages on poles appear in painted landscape scrolls. A commoner used a wooden or bamboo civil litter ( Chinese : 民轎 ; pinyin : min2 jiao4 ), while the mandarin class used an official litter (Chinese: 官轎 ; pinyin: guan1 jiao4 ) enclosed in silk curtains. The chair with perhaps

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6572-443: The ends of the poles. Designs include foliage, animals, and geometric patterns. Ibn Batutta describes them as being "carried by eight men in two lots of four, who rest and carry in turn. In the town there are always a number of these men standing in the bazaars and at the sultan's gate and at the gates of other persons for hire." Those for "women are covered with silk curtains." Palanquins are mentioned in literature as early as

6678-427: The enraged Sir Peter follows as Joseph continues trying to pretend innocence. Scene I : Sir Oliver (as Mr. Stanley) now visits Joseph. Joseph, like Charles, does not recognise his long-lost uncle. He greets "Stanley" with effusive professions of goodwill, but refuses to give "Stanley" any financial assistance, saying he has donated all his money to support Charles. "Stanley" suggests that Sir Oliver would help him if he

6784-636: The exhibition "Les magicians de la terre" in the Centre Pompidou in Paris they were shown in many art museums around the world. From at least the 15th century until the 19th century, litters of varying types known as tipoye were used in the Kingdom of Kongo as a mode of transportation for the elites. Seat-style litters with a single pole along the back of the chair carried by two men (usually slaves) were topped with an umbrella. Lounge-style litters in

6890-458: The first century BC. Horace 's Satire 1.9 is a prominent example, in which the persona is unable to express his wish for his companion to leave, but instead subtly implies so through wit. William Shakespeare 's Much Ado about Nothing might be considered the first comedy of manners In England , but the genre really flourished during the Restoration period. Restoration comedy , which

6996-566: The form of a miniature hut. In Spanish-colonial Philippines, litters remained one of the options of transportation for the Spanish inhabitants and members of the native principalia class. In Southern Ghana the Akan and the Ga-Dangme carry their chiefs and kings in palanquins when they appear in their state durbars . When used in such occasions these palanquins may be seen as a substitutes of

7102-684: The form. The tradition of elaborate, artificial plotting, and epigrammatic dialogue was carried on by the Irish playwright Oscar Wilde in Lady Windermere's Fan (1892) and The Importance of Being Earnest (1895). In the 20th century, the comedy of manners reappeared in the plays of the British dramatists Noël Coward ( Hay Fever , 1925) and Somerset Maugham . Other early twentieth-century examples of comedies of manners include George Bernard Shaw 's 1913 play Pygmalion (later adapted into

7208-520: The gallop'. Portuguese and Spanish navigators and colonisers encountered litters of various sorts in India , Mexico , and Peru . Such novelties, imported into Spain , spread into France and then to Britain . All the European names for these devices ultimately derive from the root sed- , as in Latin sedere , "to sit", which gave rise to seda ("seat") and its diminutive sedula ("little seat"),

7314-506: The genre. Though less common as a genre in American television, series such as Frasier , King of the Hill , Ugly Betty , Soap , and The Nanny are also comedies of manners. Larry David 's Curb Your Enthusiasm has also been described as a comedy of manners. Litter (vehicle) The litter is a class of wheelless vehicles , a type of human-powered transport , for

7420-560: The grazing of animals, restrictions were placed upon the use of horses for non-military purposes, with the result that human-powered transport grew increasingly important and eventually came to prevail. Kago ( Kanji : 駕籠, Hiragana : かご) were often used in Japan to transport the non-samurai citizen. Norimono were used by the warrior class and nobility, most famously during the Tokugawa period when regional samurai were required to spend

7526-428: The greatest importance was the bridal chair ( Chinese : 喜轎 ; pinyin : xi3 jiao4 ). A traditional bride is carried to her wedding ceremony by a "shoulder carriage" (Chinese: 肩輿 ; pinyin: jiān yú ), usually hired. These were lacquered in an auspicious shade of red, richly ornamented and gilded , and were equipped with red silk curtains to screen the bride from onlookers. Sedan chairs were once

7632-511: The hall, Trip, the servant, tries to negotiate a loan on his own account from Moses. Sir Oliver concludes that "this is the temple of dissipation indeed!" Scene III : Charles and his raucous guests drink heavily and sing merry songs, as they prepare for a night of gambling. Charles raises a toast to Maria. Moses and "Premium" enter, and Sir Oliver is dismayed at the scene. Charles does not recognise his long-lost uncle. Charles frankly asks "Premium" for credit, noting that Sir Oliver (whom he believes

7738-500: The hands of a talented director and cast, the play still offers considerable pleasure. A New York production of 2001 prompted praise in The New York Times for being "just the classy antidote one needs in a celebrity-crazed world where the invasion of privacy is out of control, but the art of gossip is nonexistent." The play has been adapted to film numerous times. In 1923, the silent British film The School for Scandal

7844-563: The identity confusion, both brothers want the man out before Sir Oliver comes. As Charles and Joseph try to eject their incognito uncle, Sir Peter and Lady Teazle arrive with Maria and Rowley, ending Sir Oliver's pretence. Sir Oliver, Sir Peter, and Lady Teazle together condemn Joseph, but Sir Oliver forgives Charles because of his refusal to sell Sir Oliver's picture and his generous aid to his uncle "Stanley". Maria, however, declines to give Charles her hand, citing his supposed involvement with Lady Sneerwell. Joseph now reveals Lady Sneerwell. Charles

7950-561: The lashing of poles to a chair . Such litters, consisting of a simple cane chair with maybe an umbrella to ward off the elements and two stout bamboo poles, may still be found in Chinese mountain resorts such as the Huangshan Mountains to carry tourists along scenic paths and to viewing positions inaccessible by other means of transport. A more luxurious version consists of a bed or couch, sometimes enclosed by curtains , for

8056-534: The latter of which was contracted to sella , the traditional Classical Latin name for a chair, including a carried chair. In Europe this mode of transportation met with instant success. Henry VIII of England (reigned 1509–1547) was carried around in a sedan chair—it took four strong chairmen to carry him towards the end of his life—but the expression "sedan chair" did not appear in print until 1615. Trevor Fawcett notes (see link) that British travellers Fynes Moryson (in 1594) and John Evelyn (in 1644–45) remarked on

8162-533: The link boys escorted the fares to the chairmen, the passengers then being delivered to the door of their lodgings. Several houses in Bath, Somerset , England still have the link extinguishers on the exteriors, shaped like outsized candle snuffers. In the 1970s, entrepreneur and Bathwick resident, John Cuningham, revived the sedan chair service business for a brief amount of time. In traditional Catholic processions , holy statues and relics are still carried through

8268-547: The manuscript version that includes Miss Verjuice. However, the cast list of the first production of the play in 1777 has no "Miss Verjuice" listed, showing that the change Sheridan made to combine her part with Snake's predates the premiere. Another example of strictly verbal differences between the two texts can be found in II.1, where the Project Gutenberg text has Lady Teazle rather more pointed in suggesting that Sir Peter can oblige her by making her his "widow" (only implied by her in

8374-527: The mid-17th century, sedans for hire had become a common mode of transportation. London had "chairs" available for hire in 1634, each assigned a number and the chairmen licensed because the operation was a monopoly of a courtier of King Charles I . Sedan chairs could pass in streets too narrow for a carriage, helping to alleviate the crush of coaches in London streets, an early instance of traffic congestion . A similar system later operated in Scotland . In 1738

8480-406: The mid-19th century, palanquins remained popular for those who could afford them, but they fell out of favor for long journeys as steamers, railways, and roads suitable for wheeled transport were developed. By the beginning of the 20th century they were nearly "obsolete among the better class of Europeans". Rickshaws , introduced in the 1930s, supplanted them for trips around town. Modern use of

8586-473: The moneys very bad, you may ask double" [III.1]). It may be significant that in Johann Zoffany 's portrait of Robert Baddeley as Moses, we find that "Under his arm Moses holds a rolled parchment of the Surface family tree that is used as an auction hammer, and he seems to be ticking off pictures in the catalogue", although in the play Careless is the auctioneer in the relevant scene (IV.1) and Moses has

8692-457: The most finished and faultless comedy which we have. When it is acted, you hear people all around you exclaiming, "Surely it is impossible for anything to be cleverer." The scene in which Charles sells all the old family pictures but his uncle's, who is the purchaser in disguise, and that of the discovery of Lady Teazle when the screen falls, are among the happiest and most highly wrought that comedy, in its wide and brilliant range, can boast. Besides

8798-457: The musical My Fair Lady ), E. M. Forster 's A Room with a View , and the Jeeves and Wooster stories of P. G. Wodehouse . The term comedy of menace , which British drama critic Irving Wardle based on the subtitle of The Lunatic View: A Comedy of Menace (1958), by David Campton , is a jocular play-on-words derived from the "comedy of manners" ( menace being manners pronounced with

8904-570: The only public conveyance in Hong Kong, filling the role of cabs. Chair stands were found at all hotels, wharves, and major crossroads. Public chairs were licensed, and charged according to tariffs which would be displayed inside. Private chairs were an important marker of a person's status. Civil officers' status was denoted by the number of bearers attached to his chair. Before Hong Kong 's Peak Tram went into service in 1888, wealthy residents of The Peak were carried on sedan chairs by porters up

9010-624: The palanquin is limited to ceremonial occasions. A doli carries the bride in a traditional wedding , and they may be used to carry religious images in Hindu processions. Many parts in Uttar Pradesh, India like Gorakhpur and around places Vishwakarma communities has been involved in making the dolis for wedding processions. The last known doli making dates back around 2000 by Sharmas(Vishwakarmas) in Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh. In Han China

9116-500: The passenger or passengers to lie on. These are carried by at least two porters in equal numbers in front and behind, using wooden rails that pass through brackets on the sides of the couch. The largest and heaviest types would be carried by draught animals. Another form, commonly called a sedan chair , consists of a chair or windowed cabin suitable for a single occupant, also carried by at least two porters, one in front and one behind, using wooden rails that pass through brackets on

9222-414: The play (though these do not impact the plot the way that the deletion of Miss Verjuice does). The School for Scandal has been widely admired. The English critic William Hazlitt was particularly effusive in his praise of Sheridan's comedies in general ("everything in them tells ; there is no labour in vain") and of this play in particular: The School for Scandal is, if not the most original, perhaps

9328-542: The play that we have today. The play did not appear in an authorised edition during Sheridan's lifetime, though it was printed in Dublin in 1788 from a copy that the author had sent to his sister. Because, as one recent editor has put it, " The School for Scandal is the most intractable problem Sheridan set his editors", editions of this play can vary considerably. For example, the Penguin Classics edition gives

9434-445: The proper sedan chairs "to carry the better sort of people in visits, or if sick or infirmed" ( Celia Fiennes ). In the 17th and 18th centuries, the chairs stood in the main hall of a well-appointed city residence, where a lady could enter and be carried to her destination without setting foot in a filthy street. The neoclassical sedan chair made for Queen Charlotte (Queen Consort from 1761 to 1818) remains at Buckingham Palace . By

9540-558: The royalty and nobility from the intense heat. Princesses ( binibini , dayang dayang ) who were sequestered from the world were called Binukot or Binocot (“set apart”). A special type of royal, these individuals were forbidden to walk on the ground or be exposed to the general populace. When they needed to go anywhere, they were veiled and carried in a hammock or a basket-like litter similar to bird's nests carried by their slaves. Longer journeys required that they be borne inside larger, covered palanquins with silk covers, with some taking

9646-469: The shape of a bed were used to move one to two people with a porter at each corner. Due to the tropical climate, horses were not native to the area nor could they survive very long once introduced by the Portuguese. Human portage was the only mode of transportation in the region and became highly adept with missionary accounts claiming the litter transporters could move at speeds 'as fast as post horses at

9752-456: The sides of the chair. These porters were known in London as "chairmen". These have been very rare since the 19th century, but such enclosed portable litters have been used as an elite form of transport for centuries, especially in cultures where women are kept secluded. Sedan chairs, in use until the 19th century, were accompanied at night by link-boys who carried torches. Where possible,

9858-679: The steep paths to their residence including Sir Richard MacDonnell's (former Governor of Hong Kong ) summer home , where they could take advantage of the cooler climate. Since 1975 an annual sedan chair race has been held to benefit the Matilda International Hospital and commemorate the practice of earlier days. In Korea, royalty and aristocrats were carried in wooden litters called gama ( Korean :  가마 ). Gama s were primarily used by royalty and government officials. There were six types of gama , each assigned to different government official rankings. Because of

9964-559: The streets using litters. In pharaonic Egypt and many other places such as India , Rome , and China , the ruler and divinities (in the form of an idol like lord Krishna ) were often transported in a litter in public, frequently in procession, as during state ceremonial or religious festivals. The instructions for how to construct the Ark of the Covenant in the Book of Exodus resembles

10070-458: The tale-makers." Soon after that, Sir Benjamin and Crabtree also enter, bringing a good deal of gossip with them. One item is the imminent return of the Surface brothers' rich uncle Sir Oliver from the East Indies , where he has been for sixteen years; another is Charles' dire financial situation. Scene II : Sir Peter complains of Lady Teazle's spendthrift ways. Rowley, the former steward of

10176-431: The text and was commended by a reviewer for "the courage to face the script's unsavory side." Another criticism that has been made of the play involves the characterisation. A writer in the 19th century periodical Appletons' Journal states that The great defect of The School for Scandal – the one thing which shows the difference between a comic writer of the type of Sheridan and a great dramatist like Shakespeare –

10282-491: The transport of people. Smaller litters may take the form of open chairs or beds carried by two or more carriers, some being enclosed for protection from the elements. Larger litters, for example those of the Chinese emperors , may resemble small rooms upon a platform borne upon the shoulders of a dozen or more people. To most efficiently carry a litter, porters either place the carrying poles directly upon their shoulders or use

10388-402: The whole is buoyant." Samuel Barber composed his first full orchestral work as an overture programmed for the play. On the other hand, the play has also been criticised for some hints of anti-Semitism , specifically "the disparaging remarks made about moneylenders, who were often Jewish." It is true that the moneylender Moses is portrayed in a comparatively positive light, but the way he

10494-507: The wit and ingenuity of this play, there is a genial spirit of frankness and generosity about it, that relieves the heart as well as clears the lungs. It professes a faith in the natural goodness as well as habitual depravity of human nature. Edmund Gosse called the play "perhaps the best existing English comedy of intrigue", while Charles Lamb wrote that "This comedy grew out of Congreve and Wycherley ", but criticised "sentimental incompatibilities" even while admitting that "the gaiety upon

10600-760: The wounded from the battlefield. In the early 19th century, the most prevalent mode of long-distance transport for the affluent was by palanquin. The post office could arrange, with a few days notice, relays of bearers to convey a traveller's palanquin between stages or stations. The distance between these in the government's dak ( Hindi : "mail") system averaged about 10 miles (16 km), and could be covered in three hours. A relay's usual complement consisted of two torch-bearers, two luggage-porters, and eight palanquin-bearers who worked in gangs of four, although all eight might pitch in at steep sections. A passenger could travel straight through or break their journey at dak bungalows located at certain stations. Until

10706-411: The wounded man. At that moment Sir Peter arrives to prove the report wrong, and orders the scandalmongers out of his house, with Rowley entering shortly after at hearing Sir Peter's raised voice. Sir Oliver says he has met both of his nephews and agrees with Sir Peter's (former) estimate of Joseph's high character, but then acknowledges with laughter that he knows the story of what happened at Joseph's with

10812-524: Was here, and that Joseph might pass on some of what Sir Oliver has given him. But Joseph tells "Stanley" that Sir Oliver is in fact very stingy, and has given him nothing except trinkets such as tea, shawls, birds and "Indian crackers". Furthermore, Joseph has lent a great deal to his brother, so that he has nothing left for "Stanley". Sir Oliver is enraged, as he knows both statements are flat lies – he sent Joseph 12,000 pounds from India. He stifles his anger, and departs amid further effusions. Rowley arrives with

10918-494: Was influenced by Ben Jonson 's comedy of humours , made fun of affected wit and acquired follies of the time. The masterpieces of the genre were the plays of William Wycherley ( The Country Wife , 1675) and William Congreve ( The Way of the World , 1700). In the late 18th century Oliver Goldsmith ( She Stoops to Conquer , 1773) and Richard Brinsley Sheridan ( The Rivals , 1775; The School for Scandal , 1777) revived

11024-554: Was pleasant. Owning one and keeping the staff to power it was a luxury affordable even to low-paid clerks of the East India Company . Concerned that this indulgence led to neglect of business in favor of "rambling", in 1758 the Court of Directors of the company prohibited its junior clerks from purchasing and maintaining palanquins. Also in the time of the British in India, dolis served as military ambulances, used to carry

11130-503: Was produced and directed by Bertram Phillips . It starred Basil Rathbone , Frank Stanmore and Queenie Thomas . The 1930 film The School for Scandal was the first sound adaptation of the play. The film is presumed to be lost . The first television adaptation aired over the BBC 19 May 1937. Greer Garson starred. BBC-TV again produced the play in 1959. In 1975, WNET/13 New York, in association with KTCA St. Paul-Minneapolis, broadcast

11236-464: Was reflective of greater cultural permeation by Islam. Occasionally, a weapon or heirloom, such as an important keris or tombak, was given its own palanquin. In Hindu culture in Bali today, the tradition of using palanquins for auspicious statues, weapons or heirlooms continues, for funerals especially; in more elaborate rituals, a palanquin is used to bear the body, and is subsequently cremated along with

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