Episode 178:

Ben Jonson's humours play 'Every Man in His Humour' was a big success and Jonson chose to name his next comedy in a very similar way, just substituting ‘in’ for ‘out’, no doubt to capitalise on the success of the earlier play by letting the public know that this was going to be a play in a very similar vein, and although there are no points where the plots or characters cross over during the plays the humour and satire are similar. However, there are also some significant differences between the two plays with the latter offering being more complex structurally and even less reliant on a plot that it’s predecessor.

The early performance history of the play and it’s reception

The dating of the play

The early print history of the play

The amendments in the first folio version

A Synopsis of the plot

The framing device

Macalente the malcontent

Carlo Buffone and the drinking game

Sogliardo the stooge

Delerio and Falace

Fastidious Brisk, his wardrobe and Fungoso

The strange inclusion of Sordidio, the miserly farmer

Puntovolo, his wife, his dog and his cat

The fate of Puntovolo’s dog

The language style of the play

The Italian setting of the play

The war of the theatres

Why was the play less successful than it’s predecessor?

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