Close Reading Assignmnet: Love and Sex in The Rover

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Love and Sex in The Rover
The plot of the play The Rover revolves around love and sex; the majority of the characters in this book spend much of their time either pursuing an individual love interest or planning love arrangements for others. This can be seen in characters such as Hellena who wanted to be with Willmore, the mutual efforts demonstrated by both Belvile and Florinda to be together and Don Pedro's unrelenting efforts to see Florinda and Don Antonio are together. Throughout the play, all the characters pursue their ideal of love and sex, and it is through these adventures that we will be able to understand how the whole issue between a man and woman both in informal and formal relationships happened in the 17th century. Behn's The Rover explains the issue of love and sex in the society in what can be termed as carnival where promiscuity is employed as a device to test the virtues of the characters. In this paper, I attempt to illustrate how promiscuity differs in men and women by focusing on two major characters, Hellena and Willmore.
In the first scene of the play, Hellena is supposed to be a nun, but she is an outspoken and headstrong lady who is ready to ignore her father's wishes. Her sister Florinda is designed for a husband by both her father and brother. While the two sisters discuss Florinda's admiration for Belvile, Hellena says:
"And dost though think that ever I'll be a nun? Or at least till I'm so old I'm fit for nothing else? Faith no, sister; and that which makes me long to know whether you love Belvile, is because I hope he has some mad companion or other that will spoil my devotion. Nay, I'm resolved to provide myself this Carnival, if there be e'er a handsome proper fellow of my humor above ground, though I ask first" (Act I Scene I).
From this conversation, it is clear that Hellena is ready to go against her father and brother's wishes of leading a nunnery life. Florinda even warns her of thinking about love when she is expected to lead a different course of life. It is not long before she finds her "mad companion" who she had wished for in Willmore. Throughout the play, the two engage in a teasing love and sexual relationship in the 17th century. Hellena accepts to sleep with Willmore on condition that he stays loyal to her. Willmore does not keep this promise as he is seen engaging in sexual relationships with other ladies such as Angelica Bianca. However, he keeps going back to Hellena who does not seem to care about his behavior of shifting between women. Hellena's intention is to enjoy the pleasure of life by experiencing the sexual affairs. This is demonstrated when she states, "… to love, and to be loved, and I w...