The Dramatic Works With A New Account Of Her Life PDF Download

Excerpt from The Dramatic Works of the Celebrated Mrs. Centlivre, Vol. 3 of 3: With a New Account of Her Life Prologue Spoken by Mr. Mills. OUR Author fears the Criticks of the Stage, Who, like Barbarians, spare nor Sex, nor Age; She trembles at those Cenfors in the Pit, Who think good Nature shews a Want of Wit: Such Malice, O! what Muse can undergo it? To save themselves, they always damn the Poet. Our Author flies from such a partial Jury, As wary Lovers from the Nymphs of Drury: To the few candid Judges for a Smile, She humbly sues to recompense her Toil. To the bright Circle of the Fair, she next Commits her Cause, with anxious Doubts perplext. Where can she with fitch Hopes of Favour kneel, As to those Judges, who her Frailties feel? A few Mistakes, her Sex may well excuse, And such a Plea, No Woman shou'd refuse: If she succeeds, a Woman gains Applause, What Female but must favour such a Cause? Her Faults, - whate'er they are - e'en pass 'em by And only on her Beauties fix your Eye. In Plays, like Vessels floating on the Sea, There's none so wife to know their Destiny. In this, howe'er, the Pilot's Skill appears, While by the Stars his constant Course he fleers: Rightly our Author does her Judgment shew, That for her Safety she relies on You. Your Approbation, Fair ones, can't but move, Those stubborn Hearts, which first you taught to love: The Men must all applaud this Play of Ours, For who dares fee with other Eyes, than Yours. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.