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Summary
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Two Noble Kinsmen, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Love and Irrationality
Fate, Fortune, and Divine Providence
Chivalry, Honor, and Pride
Friendship
Gender and Power
Summary
Analysis
The Prologue enters and addresses the audience. He compares new plays to virginity, stating that both are highly desirable if they remain healthy and robust. Furthermore, a good play is like an anxious new bride: nervous to lose its “honor,” yet still appearing outwardly modest after the “holy tie and first night’s stir.” The Prologue hopes his theatrical troupe’s play will be like this, for there has never been a more “learned” or “famous” poet than Chaucer, on whose work this play is based.
According to the Prologue, one knows a play is good if it seems new or fresh despite being performed or seen many times. A good play doesn’t seem stale or monotonous just because one has seen it before: the Prologue’s implication is that such a play is like a new bride who still appears fresh, youthful, and enticing, despite no longer being a virgin. The Prologue's comparison is sexist and insinuates that women are less appealing and valuable once they lose their "honor" or virginity. However, Shakespeare and Fletcher's contemporary audience wouldn't have taken issue with this, even if it's somewhat troubling to a contemporary audience. This passage is also important because it explains that the play is based on a work by Chaucer ("The Knight's Tale" from The Canterbury Tales). That the playwrights turned to Chaucer for inspiration implicitly emphasizes the theme of honor: the play is the playwrights' way of honoring the great Chaucer, whom they regard as one of the most "learned" and "famous" poets of all time.
Themes
The Prologue declares that if his troupe disgraces Chaucer’s memory with a subpar play, Chaucer will turn in his grave and curse the writers who make a mockery of his works. While the Prologue knows that it is ambitious to aspire to Chaucer, he asks the audience to applaud anyway, and the troupe will do their best. Although the play may not live up to Chaucer, the Prologue hopes it will at least entertain the audience—and if it doesn’t, the troupe will have to leave.
The Prologue introduces the play's central theme of honor and chivalry, noting how the actors have an obligation to honor Chaucer's memory with their play. If they give a bad performance, they disrespect Chaucer's memory. That Chaucer would turn in his grave if the play were unsuccessful underscores what a serious offense it is to dishonor someone. The Prologue further establishes the importance of honor by insinuating that actors will need to leave if they put on a lousy performance, implying that dishonoring Chaucer is unpardonable enough to warrant their quitting acting altogether.
Themes
Literary Devices
