by Earl Becker II
Published 3 years ago
Updated 2 years ago
In addition to satires, Dryden wrote elegies, prologues, epilogues, odes, and panegyrics. His most famous poem is Absalom and Achitophel (1681). Dryden was so influential in Restoration England
Restoration
The Restoration of the English monarchy took place in 1660 when King Charles II returned to England after the Interregnum, which started after the end of the Second English Civil War, with the execution of King Charles I of England on 30 January 1649.
that the period was known to many as the Age of Dryden.
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.
After the Restoration, as Dryden quickly established himself as the leading poet and literary critic of his day, he transferred his allegiances to the new government. Along with Astraea Redux, Dryden welcomed the new regime with two more panegyrics: To His Sacred Majesty: A Panegyric on his Coronation (1662) and To My Lord Chancellor (1662). These poems suggest that Dryden …
Early life
Reputation and influence
Poetic style
What Dryden achieved in his poetry was neither the emotional excitement of the early nineteenth-century romantics nor the intellectual complexities of the metaphysicals. His subject matter was often factual, and he aimed at expressing his thoughts in the most precise and concentrated manner. Although he uses formal structures such as heroic couplets, he tried to recreate the natural rhythm of speech, and he knew that different subjects need different kinds of verse. In hi…
Personal life
On 1 December 1663 Dryden married Lady Elizabeth Howard (died 1714). The marriage was at St. Swithin's, London, and the consent of the parents is noted on the licence, though Lady Elizabeth was then about twenty-five. She was the object of some scandals, well or ill founded; it was said that Dryden had been bullied into the marriage by her playwright brothers. A small estate in Wiltshire was settled upon them by her father. The lady's intellect and temper were apparently n…
Selected works
Dates given are (acted/published) and unless otherwise noted are taken from Scott's edition. • The Wild Gallant, a Comedy (1663/1669) • The Rival Ladies, a Tragi-Comedy (1663/1664)
Further reading
• The Works of John Dryden, 20 vols., ed. H.T. Swedenberg Jr. et al. (Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1956–2002) • John Dryden The Major Works, ed. by Keith Walker, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987) • The Works of John Dryden, ed. by David Marriott (Hertfordshire: Wordsworth Editions, 1995)
1 hours ago
For the coronation in 1661, he wrote To His Sacred Majesty. These two poems were designed to dignify and strengthen the monarchy and to invest the young monarch with an aura of majesty, …
8 hours ago
After Shakespeare, he wrote the greatest heroic play of the century, The Conquest of Granada (1670, 1671), and the greatest tragicomedy, Marriage A-la-Mode (1671). He wrote the greatest …
3 hours ago
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 …
4.John Dryden Biography | List of Works, Study Guides
Url:https://www.gradesaver.com/author/john-dryden
33 hours ago
As a poet, Dryden is best known as a satirist and was England's first poet laureate in 1668. In addition to satires, Dryden wrote elegies, prologues, epilogues, odes, and panegyrics. His most …
33 hours ago
It is believed that after Shakespeare, Dryden “wrote the greatest heroic play of the century,” The Conquest of Granada , but also wrote arguably the best tragicomedy, Marriage A-la Mode, and …
29 hours ago
Dryden, on the other hand, was regarded as one of the greatest poets of his time and would go on to greater achievements such as the revision of the King's Bible. He managed to make himself …
26 hours ago
· In addition to poetry, Dryden wrote many essays, prefaces, satires, translations, biographies (introducing the word to the English language), and plays. “An Essay of Dramatic …
