A Parody on Patience

Dalziel’s parody mirrors the plot of Patience which centers around the character of Patience a young woman caught between the affections of two rival suitors: a group of dandified aesthetic poets and her true love a simple earnest man named Reginald. In the original Patience is confused by the romantic attention of the poets who are preoccupied with their own self-image and the concept of beauty leading to comedic misunderstandings. In Dalziel’s parody the characters are even more exaggerated and their ridiculous obsessions with beauty and art are played for maximum comedic effect. The pretensions of the poets and their ludicrous ideals are taken to absurd extremes as Dalziel pokes fun at the very essence of the Aesthetic Movement mocking the characters’ shallow pursuits of beauty and love. The parody highlights the absurdity of the art-for-art's-sake philosophy showing the characters as self-absorbed and clueless caught up in superficial pursuits while missing the simple truths of genuine affection and sincerity.