Oroonoko, the Rover and Other Works

Aphra Behn's short novel Oroonokotells the story of a noble African prince who is betrayed and sold into slavery. Using the author's own experiences in Surinam, it depicts the tragedy of a man born to command brought to a position of abject powerlessness. Behn's bawdy Restoration drama The Rovercentres on the dissolute Cavalier Willmore, a follower of the exiled Charles II, and the attempts of two spirited women - Angellica Bianca, a courtesan, and Hellena, the cross-dressing virgin - to woo him. The other works collected here include poems, letter, prose and the play the The Widow Ranter,the first drama to be set in the American colonies. Together they demonstrate the versatility and sophistication of one of the most innovative and wide-ranging authors of the seventeenth century. In her introduction, Janet Todd explores the social changes that have influenced Aphra Behn's reputation over the centuries. This edition also contains notes on all the texts.