The London Merchant

by George Lillo

Written by playwright George Lillo in 1731, the story was based on a

popular ballad set in the merchant district of London circa 1588. Telling
the story of an apprentice led astray by a courtesan, the tale illustrated
the dangers of the city and youthful excess to young men learning their
trades. It has been argued that Lillos works were inspired by a morality
borne of the transition to a society based on the success of trade. Yet this
capitalist society is shown to have spawned such monsters as Millwood,
and the production investigates this conundrum.
The London Merchant marked an exceptional departure for Lillo and
created a new genre of theatre which concentrated on the struggles of the
working classes. Prior to this the theatre of the period had predominantly
focused on stories relating to the upper classes, biblical or classical
themes. The new bourgeois drama became popular across Europe, and
gave Lillo a notable place in dramatic history.

Summary
Sarah Millwood, a London prostitute, plans to find some innocent
young man to seduce and exploit for money. She seduces young George
Barnwell, apprentice to the merchant Thorowgood.
George feels guilty and tormented. Soon,
Millwood visits George at his place of work. When she discovers he no
longer wants anything to do with her, she begins to sense her plan has
come to an end. She quickly thinks of a lie to tell George to keep her plan
going. She tells George she will be evicted because of him. This evokes
new feelings of guilt from George, and he is forced to steal a large sum of
money from his employer's funds to give to her to amend the situation.
After giving her the money, George feels
unworthy of his kind master, Thorowgood, so he runs away and leaves a
note for Trueman confessing his crime. He turns to Millwood for help. She
convinces him to murder and rob his wealthy uncle, Barnwell. Overcome
with sorrow, George reveals himself to his uncle, and before he dies, Uncle
Barnwell forgives his murderous nephew.
Because he did
not take any money or property, Millwood sends for the police and has
George arrested for murder. Two of Millwood's servants, Lucy and Blunt,
who were aware of the plan from the beginning, have her arrested as well.
Both George and Millwood are sentenced to death.
Despite his crimes, George is visited by Thorowgood and
Trueman in his prison cell. They console and forgive him. Thorowgood
provides for his spiritual needs by arranging a visit from a clergyman. In

the end, George is truly repentant for his sins and is at peace with himself,
his friends, and God.
The London Merchant marked the introduction of the bourgeois
tragedy. Where tragedies had previously been reserved for the nobility,
Lillo brought the concept to the everyman character and further
complicated his idea by including the situation of acquisition through
exchange, rather than through conquest. The idea of exchange ties heavily
to the pro-merchant/ master theme of the play, as Thorowgood is a
merchant and a good master. The play also provides a portrait of the
model apprentice in the character of Trueman, who is juxtaposed with
George Barnwell in an effort to demonstrate proper apprentice behavior as
well as warn the many apprentices who were expected to be in attendance
of the dangers of disobeying their masters.