Percy: A Tragedy

"Percy: A Tragedy" by Hannah More is a dramatic work composed in the late 18th century, notably around the time of the Romantic era. This tragedy unfolds the emotional and moral complexities surrounding the feuding families of Percy and Douglas, offering a poignant exploration of themes such as love, jealousy, and the consequences of parental control. The play is characterized by its focus on personal conflict and societal expectations, encapsulating a deep narrative steeped in the era's dramatic traditions. The storyline centers on Elwina, who is caught in a tumultuous conflict of love and loyalty between her husband, Earl Douglas, and her true love, Earl Percy. Throughout the play, Elwina struggles against her father's command to marry Douglas despite her enduring love for Percy. As the plot unfolds, misunderstandings and jealousy lead to fiery confrontations and tragic outcomes, culminating in the deaths of key characters. The unfolding tragedy not only highlights the destructiveness of unchecked emotions but also serves as a critique of parental tyranny and societal pressures, ultimately portraying the devastating cost of love intertwined with conflict and betrayal. (This is an automatically generated summary.)

Hannah More was an English religious writer, philanthropist, poet, and playwright in the circle of Johnson, Reynolds and Garrick, who wrote on moral and religious subjects. Born in Bristol, she taught at a school her father founded there and began writing plays. She became involved in the London literary elite and a leading Bluestocking member. Her later plays and poetry became more evangelical. She joined a group opposing the slave trade. In the 1790s she wrote Cheap Repository Tracts on moral, religious and political topics, to distribute to the literate poor. Meanwhile, she broadened her links with schools she and her sister Martha had founded in rural Somerset. These curbed their teaching of the poor, allowing limited reading but no writing. More was noted for her political conservatism, being described as an anti-feminist, a "counter-revolutionary", or a conservative feminist.