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Guidelines for writing Poems, Stories and Tales

How does Dryden define satire?

Dryden from the standpoint of the literary artist, says in his Essay on Satire, “The nicest and the most delicate touches of satire consist in fine raillery.” Dryden’s dictum for designing a perfect satire is “that it ought only to treat of one subject; to be confined to one particular theme; or at least to one

Which poem is a satire by John Dryden?

Absalom and Achitophel

Absalom and Achitophel



Dryden penned his greatest satire in the midst of the Exclusion Crisis (1679–81), which was an attempt to exclude Charles II’s Catholic younger brother James from the throne of England.

Which poem of Dryden was one of the greatest political satires in English?

Absalom and Achitophel

Absalom and Achitophel is “generally acknowledged as the finest political satire in the English language”. It is also described as an allegory regarding contemporary political events, and a mock heroic narrative. On the title page, Dryden himself describes it simply as “a poem”.

How Dryden has translated personal satire?

Although MacFlecknoe is a personal satire, Dryden ultimately uses the persona of the bad poet to criticise the decline of literary standards in his time. Dryden, on the other hand, employs the genius of his razor sharp wit to expose Shadwell’s writing as humdrum and uninspired.

Who is the target of satire in Mac Flecknoe by Dryden?

Thomas Shadwell

Thomas Shadwell is the target of Dryden’s satire and derision in Mac Flecknoe. Shadwell was an English dramatist and poet laureate. He was known for his broad comedies of manners and, more significantly, as a frequent target of John Dryden’s satire.

Why satire did become popular in the age of Dryden?

Satire become popular in the age of Dryden and Pope. A developing sense that the reason for writing was to be unequivocally pedantic (that is, to show exercises, particularly moral exercises). Parody is a class that fits express guidance and influence.

What are the features of Dryden’s poetry?

Dryden’s poems have the qualities of his plays―some middling songs and unspontaneous lyrics, careful and melodic versification, and lack of poetic expression of the different emotions. Despite touches of false ornament and operatic banality,6) his odes are splendid.

What is satire in literature?

Satire is the art of making someone or something look ridiculous, raising laughter in order to embarrass, humble, or discredit its targets.

What is satire how Mac Flecknoe is a perfect example of verse satire?

“Mac Flecknoe” by John Dryden is a satire in verse about a fellow poet and contemporary of Dryden’s named Thomas Shadwell. This poem can be considered a personal satire because it highlights and attacks the shortcomings of a specific individual, namely, Thomas Shadwell.

What type of writing is Mac Flecknoe?

Mac Flecknoe, in full Mac Flecknoe; or, A Satyr upon the True-Blew-Protestant Poet, T.S., an extended verse satire by John Dryden, written in the mid-1670s and published anonymously and apparently without Dryden’s authority in 1682.

Who is the father of satire?

“Satire began with the ancient Greeks but came into its own in ancient Rome, where the ‘fathers’ of satire, Horace and Juvenal, had their names given to the two basic types of satire” (Applebee 584).



What is satire and its examples?

Satire utilizes tones of amusement, contempt, scorn, or indignation towards a flawed subject with the hope of creating awareness and subsequent change. For example, one of the most well-known satirical literary works is brave new world by Aldous Huxley.

What are the contribution of Dryden in the development of English literature?

Besides being the greatest English poet of the later 17th century, Dryden wrote almost 30 tragedies, comedies, and dramatic operas. He also made a valuable contribution in his commentaries on poetry and drama, which are sufficiently extensive and original to entitle him to be considered, in the words of Dr.

What was the most popular verse form of age of Dryden?

Dryden’s heroic couplet became the dominant poetic form of the 18th century.

What was Dryden famous for?

Dryden the poet is best known today as a satirist, although he wrote only two great original satires: Mac Flecknoe (1682) and The Medall (1682). His most famous poem, Absalom and Achitophel (1681) contains several brilliant satiric portraits. But unlike satire, it comes to a final, tragic resolution.

Which poem is written by Alexander Pope?

Alexander Pope, (born May 21, 1688, London, England—died May 30, 1744, Twickenham, near London), poet and satirist of the English Augustan period, best known for his poems An Essay on Criticism (1711), The Rape of the Lock (1712–14), The Dunciad (1728), and An Essay on Man (1733–34).



Who is known as the king of heroic couplet?

Use of the heroic couplet was pioneered by Geoffrey Chaucer in the Legend of Good Women and the Canterbury Tales, and generally considered to have been perfected by John Dryden and Alexander Pope in the Restoration Age and early 18th century respectively.

Why are metaphysical poets so called?

The term Metaphysical poets was coined by the critic Samuel Johnson to describe a loose group of 17th-century English poets whose work was characterised by the inventive use of conceits, and by a greater emphasis on the spoken rather than lyrical quality of their verse.