In ‘The Rover’, Aphra Benn presents the character of Blunt as a foil to
Willmore, setting up a rivalry between the pair. This rivalry lies in the
desire of Blunt to transcend his stock characterisation as the country
bumpkin and become a Rakish figure like Willmore. His ultimate failure to
do so serves as both a comedic device and political allusion for Behn to
present her royalist agenda to the Restoration audience. Blunt is
immediately presented as slow and dim-witted in Act 1.2 in his inability to
keep up with cavalier innuendos, evident in his confusion regarding "roses
for every month". Behn establishes this in direct contrast to Willmore, who
is able to continue the bawdry dialogue in his pursuit of the Spanish
courtesans, saying, "I would fain to plant some of [the roses] in a bed of
mine", much to Blunt's frustration. Behn utilises dramatic irony here,
given the audience would have understood the sexual euphemism of
Willmore’s botanical imagery, allowing them to be shaped by Behn's
political views and feel a greater affinity with the cavaliers in being drawn
in opposition to Blunt and the parliamentarian conservatism he
symbolises. This rivalry is further shown in Blunt’s attempts to rival
Willmore as the Rake. Lucetta sets Blunt up to be the Rake through her
fictive "old jealous husband", who Blunt seeks to cuckold in vowing to
show him "a Spanish trick". In reality, however, it is Blunt is made to be
cuckolded through Lucetta's deception and stealing of wealth, as he fails
in his opportunity to be this Rake, instead surrendering his property to "an
unmerciful rogue". The political landscape of this foil is developed through
Behn’s use of commerce, highlighting the impact of wealth and politics on
character. While Blunt- initially the wealthiest character in the play due to
his loyalties to the Cromwellian regime- is cheated out of his money by
prostitutes, Willmore is seen by the audience to successfully negotiate the
margin price of "1000 crowns", as well as Angellica's heart in succeeding
as the Rake. The conflation of sex and money is thus used to parallel the
differences in fortune between Willmore and Blunt as indicative of their
political stance. Therefore, Behn utilises the rivalry between Blunt and
Willmore, and the contrasting degrees of success afforded to them, to
explicitly and successfully present her royalist agenda through Willmore’s
triumphing and Blunt’s constant failure to rival him.
Behn utilises and furthers the aforementioned emasculation of Blunt in the
hands of Lucetta as a means to comment on the Spanish dominance of
the English cavaliers following the Spanish Armada, given the political
constancy of Anglo-Spanish rivalry throughout the 16th and 17th
centuries. Behn presents the weak position the English Cavaliers held in
this national rivalry through the inversion of gender dynamics between
Blunt and Lucetta. The fact that ‘[Blunt undresses himself]’ is particularly
significant in his feminisation as it inverts the stereotypical trope of a
Willmore, setting up a rivalry between the pair. This rivalry lies in the
desire of Blunt to transcend his stock characterisation as the country
bumpkin and become a Rakish figure like Willmore. His ultimate failure to
do so serves as both a comedic device and political allusion for Behn to
present her royalist agenda to the Restoration audience. Blunt is
immediately presented as slow and dim-witted in Act 1.2 in his inability to
keep up with cavalier innuendos, evident in his confusion regarding "roses
for every month". Behn establishes this in direct contrast to Willmore, who
is able to continue the bawdry dialogue in his pursuit of the Spanish
courtesans, saying, "I would fain to plant some of [the roses] in a bed of
mine", much to Blunt's frustration. Behn utilises dramatic irony here,
given the audience would have understood the sexual euphemism of
Willmore’s botanical imagery, allowing them to be shaped by Behn's
political views and feel a greater affinity with the cavaliers in being drawn
in opposition to Blunt and the parliamentarian conservatism he
symbolises. This rivalry is further shown in Blunt’s attempts to rival
Willmore as the Rake. Lucetta sets Blunt up to be the Rake through her
fictive "old jealous husband", who Blunt seeks to cuckold in vowing to
show him "a Spanish trick". In reality, however, it is Blunt is made to be
cuckolded through Lucetta's deception and stealing of wealth, as he fails
in his opportunity to be this Rake, instead surrendering his property to "an
unmerciful rogue". The political landscape of this foil is developed through
Behn’s use of commerce, highlighting the impact of wealth and politics on
character. While Blunt- initially the wealthiest character in the play due to
his loyalties to the Cromwellian regime- is cheated out of his money by
prostitutes, Willmore is seen by the audience to successfully negotiate the
margin price of "1000 crowns", as well as Angellica's heart in succeeding
as the Rake. The conflation of sex and money is thus used to parallel the
differences in fortune between Willmore and Blunt as indicative of their
political stance. Therefore, Behn utilises the rivalry between Blunt and
Willmore, and the contrasting degrees of success afforded to them, to
explicitly and successfully present her royalist agenda through Willmore’s
triumphing and Blunt’s constant failure to rival him.
Behn utilises and furthers the aforementioned emasculation of Blunt in the
hands of Lucetta as a means to comment on the Spanish dominance of
the English cavaliers following the Spanish Armada, given the political
constancy of Anglo-Spanish rivalry throughout the 16th and 17th
centuries. Behn presents the weak position the English Cavaliers held in
this national rivalry through the inversion of gender dynamics between
Blunt and Lucetta. The fact that ‘[Blunt undresses himself]’ is particularly
significant in his feminisation as it inverts the stereotypical trope of a
