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The Recruiting Officer

The Recruiting Officer

The Recruiting Officer is a 1706 play by the Irish writer George Farquhar, which follows the social and sexual exploits of two officers, the womanising Plume and the cowardly Brazen, in the town of Shrewsbury to recruit soldiers. The characters of the play are generally stock, in keeping with the genre of Restoration comedy.


George Farquhar photo
George Farquhar photo

“Hanging and marriage, you know, go by destiny.”

The Recruiting Officer (1706), Braz, Act iii, Sc. 2.

George Farquhar photo

“[T]hose who know the least, obey the best.”

The Recruiting Officer (1706), Act iv. Sc. 1.

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