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Unit 1 · British Literature English · 2021 cycle (Shift 2)

Which of the following statements about Ben Jonson's dramatic legacy are true?

  1. A. Jonson's physiological view of character had no precedent.
  2. B. Following the moralities and interludes, Jonson gave his characters descriptive (aptronymic) names.
  3. C. Chapman's All Fools and Middleton's A Trick to Catch the Old One belong to the comedy of humours.
  4. D. Marston and Dekker collaborated with Jonson in writing for a children's company.

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Correct answer: C. C and D only

Explanation

Humours theory goes back to Hippocrates and Galen, so A is false. Jonson's comedy of humours was imitated by Chapman and Middleton. Eastward Ho! (1605), written by Jonson with Marston and Chapman, was played by the Children of the Queen's Revels.

Note: Key doubtful: B is also true (Volpone, Mosca, Sir Epicure Mammon are moral 'speaking names'), and Jonson's collaborator on Eastward Ho! was Chapman, not Dekker.

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