EIGHth Meeting – English poets 1660-1798EIGHth Meeting – English poets 1660-1798

For poem, mostly focused on biting satires (scorn and polished and forceful verse) and translation in

rhymed couplets.

Poet & Playwright: John Dryden

However, his early poem Annus Mirabilis (1667) uses 4 line stanzas, describing the War vs Holland and Great

Fire of London in 1666

Absalom and Achitophel (1681) is his satire which attacks politicians through Bible story.

MacFlecknoe (1682) is another of his satire, this time, it’s attacking his rival, Shadwell.

His two popular song lyrics: Ode for Saint Cecilia’s Day (1687)

and Alexander’s Feast (1697)

Poet & Playwright : John Dryden

His translations: Latin satires of Juvenal,

the whole of Virgil, and parts of Horace and Ovid.

Greek parts of Homer and Theocritus.

For poem, used the couplet as a smooth but steely tool.

Poet: Alexander Pope

His Essay on Criticism (1711), like much of his work, contains memorable sayings like: “A little learning is a

dangerous thing.”

His famous The Rape of the Lock (1712-4), although is treated as important, is actually a light subject about a

quarrel just because of hair.

Poet: Alexander Pope

His translations: The Iliad and the Odyssey of Homer.

His Imitation of Horace (1733-9) is in heroic couplet and in some parts are very bitter.

His Dunciad (1728) is a satire attacking on dullness.

His Essay on Man (1732-4) shows little philosophy, but has the usual polish.

Poet: Alexander Pope

He wrote four Moral Essays (1731-5) about characters of men, characters of women and two proper uses of

riches.

Poet: Oliver Goldsmith

His two popular poems are The Traveller (1764) and The Deserted Village (1770) – about Irish people

who have been driven away by bigger landowners.

18th Century = The Age of Reason , so heroic couplet is well suited to verse based on

reasoning, but there are other sorts of poetry:

Poet: James Thomson

Unlike Pope who believed ‘The proper study of mankind is man’, Thomson chose The Seasons as his

special study.

He wrote four poems in blank verse: Winter (1726), Summer (1727), Spring (1728),

and Autumn (1730)

He also wrote The Castle of Indolence (1748) in Spenserian stanza, about a poet’s

dream in a sleepy language.

Poet: Edward Young

His Night Thoughts in blank verse talked about life, death, the future world, and God.

Poet: Robert Blair

In his poem The Grave (1743), he begs the dead to come back and tell us about the grave.

Poet: Thomas Gray

His Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard (1750) describes his thoughts as he looks at the graves.

Below is the churchyard school poets, those who choose death for their subject:

Poet: Thomas Gray

The Bard(1750) is intended as a sad song by a Welsh poet to King Edward I, who put all the Welsh poets to

death.

In Ode on a Distant Prospect of Eton College (1742), he thinks of the boys still at school and of their present

happiness and their future troubles.

In Ode on a Favourite Cat(1747) talks about his cat which was drowned.

Some poets in this era turned to the past when they tried to escape the orderliness of 18th century

Reliques of Ancient English Poetry (1765, Thomas Percy) brought back old poems from the darkness of

the past.

Fragment of Ancient Poetry (1760, James Macpherson) pretended to be old poems written by

Ossian.

Poet & Artist: William Blake

His poetry has hidden meanings that are hard to understand. He didn’t believe in reality of matter,

power of earthly rulers, and punishment after death. His famous works are Songs of Innocence (1787) and

Songs of Experience (1794)

Poet & Farmer: Robert Burns

His famous works are Mary Morrison, John Anderson, The Banks of Doon, and a love-song “My love’s like a

red, red rose”

Poet: William Cowper

His poetry is simpler and more natural in expression. The example of his works are The Task (1784)

See You next week!