Tis Pity She's a Whore | Critical Overview

As might be expected of a play that deals with incest, critical response to Ford's drama was often intense. Contemporary critical views that paint 'Tis Pity She's a Whore as decadent or psychological follow the opinions of two important nineteenth century critics, William Hazlitt and Charles Lamb, according to Mark Stavig in John Ford and the Traditional Moral Order. For Hazlitt, Ford was "a decadent romantic who delighted in melodramatic plots, licentious scenes, and revolt against the established moral order." Lamb focused less on Ford's ethics, believing that "at...

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