Bartholomew Fair Literary Elements

Drama; comedy; city comedy

English

London, England; Bartholomew Fair; 17th century

There is no narrator in the play. However, the Induction includes commentary from a stage-keeper, scrivener, and bookkeeper who comment on the performance to come.

Satirical, indulgent, chaotic

There is no singular protagonist or antagonist in the play. However, hypocritical characters like Zeal-of-the-Land Busy and Justice Overdo are perceived as antagonistic to the other characters who freely enjoy the fair.

There are a number of small conflicts at work in Bartholomew Fair. However, the central conflict of the play is the social, political, and religious hierarchy of London that leads to hypocrisy, dissembling, and scheming among those at the fair.

The climax of the play occurs during the puppet show, when all the characters come together and the truth about each character's scheme is revealed.

When Grace Welborn remarks in an aside that she would rather marry anyone but Bartholomew Cokes, the play foreshadows how she will eventually abandon her fiance in favor of Winwife.

Mooncalf's remark to Overdo that Edgworth has a "quick hand" is an example of understatement, as what he really means is that Edgworth is a notable pickpocket.

The play itself is an allusion to the Bartholomew Fair that took place in London every year until the nineteenth century. The play also alludes to the Puritanical constraints of London in Jacobean England through the character of Busy, as well as the hypocrisy of London's law enforcement through the character of Overdo.

Important imagery in the play includes indulgences, commodities, prostitutes, and the stocks.

An important paradox of the play is the inverted social hierarchy that develops over the course of the fair. The presumed authority figures – Overdo, Busy, etc. – are effectively "overthrown" by commoners, day laborers, and petty criminals.

Zeal-of-the-Land Busy and Overdo are parallels of one another, as they are both self-important and judgmental of the fair while hypocritically participating in its chaos.

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The play makes frequent use of asides, or remarks made out of earshot of other characters. These asides are used to communicate to the audience a particular character's secret thoughts or scheme.