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Italian cities such as Venice and Naples (where The Rover takes place) were famed for their Carnivals, huge, city-wide festivals during which many of the rules of ordinary life were temporarily suspended. Within the play, Carnival symbolizes a world of inverted values and freedom in which noblewomen can roam the streets and impoverished cavaliers can court them and win their hands. Yet the world of the Carnival—a world without consequences—is not without its dark side. Predators such as Willmore and Blunt take advantage of the free-for-all atmosphere in order to accost and even assault women, while belligerent men often end up dueling each other on the streets. In depicting both the positive and dark sides of Carnival, Behn is displaying both the comic and the troubling aspects of the topsy-turvy, consequence-free genre of Restoration Comedy.
Carnival Quotes in The Rover
The The Rover quotes below all refer to the symbol of Carnival. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Act 1, Scene 1
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I am resolv’d to provide myself this Carnival, if there be e’er a handsom Fellow of my Humour above Ground, tho I ask first.
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Act 1, Scene 2
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Love and Mirth are my Business in Naples; and if I mistake not the Place, here’s an excellent Market for Chapmen of my Humour.
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Act 2, Scene 1
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Willmore: But why thus disguis’d and muzzl’d?
Belvile: Because whatever Extravagances we commit in these Faces, our own may not be oblig’d to answer ‘em.
Willmore: I should have changed my Eternal Buff too: but no matter, my little Gypsy wou’d not have found me out then: for if she should change hers, it is impossible I should know her, unless I should hear her prattle—A Pox on’t, I cannot get her out of my Head: Pray Heaven, if ever I do see her again, she prove damnably ugly, that I may fortify my self against her Tongue.
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Get the entire The Rover LitChart as a printable PDF.
Carnival Symbol Timeline in The Rover
The timeline below shows where the symbol Carnival appears in The Rover. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Act 1, Scene 1
...Florinda and Hellena, bicker in their chamber. They are living in Naples, where it is Carnival time, under the care of their brother Don Pedro, as their noble father is currently...
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Don Pedro enters holding a mask for Carnival, along with his servant Stephano. He brings along with him Callis, the sisters’ governess. He...
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Enraged, Don Pedro tells Callis to lock Hellena up, keeping her from the Carnival until it comes time for her to become a nun. Hellena retorts that she would...
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...act “as shall become your Sister,” and Don Pedro exits with Stephano to attend the Carnival.
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...continues pleading, saying that she will become a nun if only she can first experience Carnival.
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When Callis asks what she intends to do at the Carnival, Hellena replies that she will act “mad” but remain “innocent.” She asks Florinda to accompany...
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Florinda and Hellena decide to attend Carnival, accompanied by their cousin Valeria; they persuade Callis to go with them. Stephano enters, telling...
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Act 1, Scene 2
...Frederick. Frederick teases Belvile for his melancholy, saying that it is uncalled for, especially during Carnival time, unless he is in love. Belvile says that he made no new conquests in...
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...that he is traveling on business, but has come ashore to enjoy himself at the Carnival.
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...another series of puns. As the revelers dance, the group marvels at the madness of Carnival time.
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Act 3, Scene 4
...their quarrel, a group of soldiers enter, having heard that there were swords drawn during Carnival (a terrible crime). Recognizing Don Antonio, and seeing that he is hurt, they believe that...
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