An Enlightened Stage: Morals, Manners, and the Middle-Class

--- tags: DramaSix, class --- # An Enlightened Stage: Morals, Manners, and the Middle-Class ### Arc of the class ### Questions to Consider _Question_ How did the emergence of a new audience in 18th-century England affect the kinds of plays that were presented and the ways these plays were written and performed? _Question_ How were the “tearful comedies” and “affecting tragedies” of the early 18th century different from the plays of the previous century? _Question_ In what ways does the new repertory suggest a new function for theater as a moral agent and moral institution? _Question_ How did Shaftesbury’s notion of a “moral instinct” affect attitudes about watching theater?