Introduction to “She Stoops to Conquer” by Oliver Goldsmith - SS2 Literature Lesson Note

Who Is Oliver Goldsmith?

Oliver Goldsmith is a great Irish poet , novelist , playwright , and man of letters. He was born in 1728 in Ballymahon, County Longford,Kingdom of Ireland, or Elphin, County Roscommon, Kingdom of Ireland. He belonged to the circle of Johnson , Burke and Reynolds –“The Club”. The Traveller (1764) and The Vicar of Wakefield (1766) earned him literary distinction and reputation. She Stoops to conquer (1773) is his dramatic prominent piece of work whose complicated plot is based upon practical jokes , miscommunication and mistaken identities.

“She Stoops to Conquer” is a comedy of manners by Oliver Goldsmith, first performed in London in 1773.

The play is set in 18th-century England and follows the romantic misadventures of two young couples, Charles Marlow and Kate Hardcastle, and Tony Lumpkin and Constance Neville.

The play is a satire of the social conventions of the time, particularly the obsession with class and status.

It is also a celebration of love and the power of overcoming obstacle