"Tales of Love and Gallantry": The Politics ofOroonoko

Abstract

In “Tales of Love and Gallantry: The Politics of Oroonoko,” Richard Kroll reads Aphra Behn’s text in terms of the protocols of neoclassical literature, analyzing the formal elements of the text to reveal the response she expected to provoke. He shows the ways in which Oroonoko seeks polemically to engage with the political circumstances surrounding its writing—the tumultuous events of early summer . (An appendix to the article shows the correlation between events in the publishing and historical arenas.) Kroll also argues that the polemical aims of the text are intimately allied with the nature of Behn’s royalism. While critics have seen the text falling into two sections, Kroll shows the way in which the structure articulates the overarching political theme: the events in Coramantien represent a site where romantic kingship is displayed and anatomized, while the events in Surinam represent a site where romantic kingship is tested. He also shows Behn’s selection from among the various languages available to her— sometimes taken as a sign of confusion or lack of mastery—and appropriation of these elements in the service of her political argument.       This content downloaded from 40.77.167.87 on Sun, 17 Apr 2016 07:04:17 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms

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