Physical description

The Works of Richard Brinsley Sheridan
Author: Richard Brinsley Sheridan
Publisher: Chatto and Windus
Date: 1874
Editor: Francis Edward Stainforth

Publication type

fiction

Inscriptions & markings

The label on the spine cover with typed text PAT 822 SHE
Paste down front end paper has a sticker from Warrnambool Public Library.
Front loose end paper has a sticker from Corangamite Regional Library Service.
Front loose end paper has a stamp from Corangamite Regional Library Service.

Summary

Richard Brinsley Sheridan (1751–1816) was an Irish-born playwright, impresario, wit, and prominent Whig politician. He was a dazzling figure in late 18th-century London high society. The book, The Works of Richard Brinsley Sheridan, edited by Francis Stainforth, is an omnibus collection showcasing the full breadth of his career.
The volume opens with a substantial biographical introduction (the "memoir"). It traces Sheridan's meteoric rise from an impoverished Irish theater family to the heights of Parliament and Westminster Abbey, balanced against his chaotic personal finances and battles with alcoholism. Rather than just printing his famous plays, this single-volume edition compiles his complete theatrical catalog (The Rivals, The School for Scandal, The Duenna, The Critic, Pizarro, etc.). Also included are his lesser-known verse, prologues written for the theater, classical translations, a selection of his most famous parliamentary orations, and fragments of plays and essays he never completed.
The addition of a collection on “ANA,” noted on the book's flyleaf, refers to a 19th-century publishing term for a collection of anecdotes, memorable sayings, table-talk, and biographical trivia regarding a famous person. The "Sheridaniana" section in this book compiles the sharp-witted jokes, pranks, and clever remarks Sheridan made throughout his life.