The Dunciad
by Alexander Pope
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Fans of literary lampoonery will delight in the no-holds-barred, scorched-earth satire that British poet Alexander Pope unleashes in his witty masterpiece, The Dunciad. Disgusted by the teeming waves of self-proclaimed "writers" who emerged in search of a quick buck when the growing availability of cheaply printed books made sentimental stories popular with the public, Pope took it upon himself to put these hacks in their place in an epic poem lambasting their dullness and lack of refinement.Tags
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On the whole, I did enjoy reading this poem, although I found it very difficult to read. I've heard before that it's very hard to comprehend the first time around, and I would have to agree. Although I did find it humorous, I'm not sure that I pciked up on all of the jokes and satire, even with the footnotes. I think a better knowledge and understanding of British cultural history would have helped me. I think I only really managed to read the surface of the poem, but anythign which I didn't pick up on was not because of Pope but because of my understanding of it.
games celebrate choice of new chief dunce
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Recommended Reading : 600 Classics Reviewed, Editors of Salem Press, 2015
634 works; 6 members
Author Information
340+ Works 6,151 Members
Satirical poet Alexander Pope was born in London on May 21, 1688. He was educated by private tutors. Many consider Pope to be the greatest poet of his time, and he also wrote commentaries and translations, he is best known for such poems as The Rape of the Lock and The Duncaid. Pope was the first English poet to make a substantial amount of money show more from his writing. Pope died on May 30, 1744. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
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Common Knowledge
- First words
- Books and the Man I sing, the first who brings
The Smithfield Muses to the Ear of Kings. - Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)Light dies before thy uncreating word:
Thy hand, great Anarch! lets the curtain fall;
And Universal Darkness buries All.
Classifications
- Genres
- Poetry, Fiction and Literature, Literature Studies and Criticism
- DDC/MDS
- 821.5 — Literature & rhetoric English & Old English literatures British Poetry 1702-1745 Queen Anne period, 18th. century
- LCC
- PR3625 .P674 — Language and Literature English English Literature 17th and 18th centuries (1640-1770)
- BISAC
Statistics
- Members
- 43
- Popularity
- 687,308
- Reviews
- 2
- Rating
- (4.11)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 5
- ASINs
- 2
