Angellica Bianca's Exclusion from the Comic Resolution of "The Rover" Anonymous College

Aphra Behn’s The Rover (1640-1689) set in Naples, Italy during the Restoration Period, loosely based on Thomas Killigrew’s Thomaso centres primarily on two couples – Wilmore, Hellena and Florinda, Belvile, similar to Shakespeare’s Much Ado about Nothing; wherein Benedick and Beatrice were more exuberant than the predictable and devoted Hero and Claudio. However, another character emerges to be an intrinsic part of the narrative despite her social status which is that of a courtesan, Angellica Bianca. She heedlessly falls in love with Wilmore and later is rejected by him and no trace of her is found after her unsuccessful devise to kill Wilmore. She is evidently absent in the end and this essay will go on to explore why Angelica is not included in the comic resolution of the play.

In order to examine Angellica’s absence in the ending of the play it is essential to explore the backdrop. The carnivalesque spirit which celebrates the abandonment of identity and the freedom to act upon ones desires without social constrains. Hellena, for example makes clear her intentions to masquerade in the festivities in spite of the knowledge that her brother will disapprove (Act 1, Scene i); even though he partakes in the revelry himself....