Most readers, if they are acquainted with the name ‘Colley Cibber’ at all, have encountered him in the opening chapter of Henry Fielding’s novel,
Joseph Andrews, which is entitled, “
Of writing Lives in general…with a Word by the bye ofColley Cibber
and others” (15). In this lampoon, Fielding satirizes Cibber’s recently published memoir,
An Apology for the Life of Colley Cibber(1740) with the remark, “[this book] deals in Male-Virtue, [and] was written by the great Person himself, who lived the Life he hath recorded, and is by many thought to have lived such a Life only in order to write it … How artfully doth [the author], by insinuating that he
escapedbeing promoted to the highest Stations in Church and State, teach us a Contempt of worldly Grandeur!” (16). As the…
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Citation: Grasso, Joshua. "Colley Cibber". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 12 March 2019 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=883, accessed 21 November 2024.]
