Question

William Congreve's The Way of the World and Richard Sheridan's A School for Scandal are:

• A. Comedy of Manners
• B. Farce
• C. Romantic Comedy
• D. Satirical Comedy

Hint:

Comedy of manners exposes fashionable society through wit, satire, and clever dialogue.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is A

Step 1 : Understanding the Question:
This question asks us to identify the specific dramatic genre to which William Congreve's The Way of the World and Richard Brinsley Sheridan's A School for Scandal belong.

Step 2 : Key Formulas and Approach:
The approach involves defining the core characteristics of the "Comedy of Manners" (witty dialogue, satire of fashionable upper-class behavior, focus on love intrigues, and social hypocrisy). We then evaluate how both plays fit this genre profile.

Step 3 : Detailed Explanation:

• William Congreve's The Way of the World (1700) is one of the finest masterpieces of the Restoration Comedy of Manners, reflecting the sophisticated, witty, and often cynical social world of late seventeenth-century London.

• Richard Brinsley Sheridan's A School for Scandal (1777) is a late eighteenth-century comedy of manners that revived the genre's typical focus on high-society gossip, reputation, and romantic intrigue, though with a slightly more sentimental tone.

• The Comedy of Manners genre is distinguished by its emphasis on witty banter, sophisticated verbal play, and a satirical focus on the artificial manners, affectations, and hidden hypocrisies of the wealthy elite.

• Both plays rely heavily on misunderstandings, disguised characters, complex inheritance plots, and sharp social commentary on contemporary aristocratic relationships.

Step 4 : Final Answer:
Both plays are classified as comedies of manners, making option (A) the correct choice.
The correct option is (A) Comedy of Manners.