A TO Z Literary Principles from History of English Literature: Note 10

A Set of 26 Objective Questions & Answers

(a) An Essay on Criticism by Alexander Pope appeared in 1711. Written in heroic couplet the poem professes to the gospel of wit and nature as it applies to the literature of the age.

 (b) Phillis Wheatley’s poetry (Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral) begins a powerful African American tradition in American poetry.

 (c) Dunciad (a satire) is the longest of pope’s work.

(d) The age of pope is called classical age, because the poets of that age aimed at clerical perfection of form. They wanted to achieve the formal beauty which the poet of Rome attained under Emperor Augustus. That is why the age is treated a part of the Augustus age is English literature.

(e) In 1713 Joseph Addison produced the tragedy, Cato written in blank-verse. He also attempted an opera Rosamond in 1707. The name of his prose-comedy is The Drummer (1715).

(f) Steele’s best prose comedies – The Funeral, The Lying Lover, The Tender Husband and The Conscious Lover.

(g) The chief works of Swift-

A Tale of Tube – religious satire

Gulliver’s Travels – political satire

The Battle of Books – satirical humour

 (h) Roger de Coverly is an imaginary eccentric country Knight who frequented the spectator club in London. Around the Knight were grouped a number of contrasted characters, also members of the mythical club. Such were Will Honeycomb, a middle aged bean; sir Andrew Freeport, a city merchants captain Sentery, a soldier, and mr. Spectator, a shy reticent person, who bears the resemblance to Addison himself.

(i) The Tattler – 1709   The Rambler (1750)

The Spectator – 1711  (These are the periodicals)

(j)  Edward Gibbon (1737-94) wrote The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire (1776).

(k) James Boswell (1740-95) wrote The life Samuel Johnson in 1791.

(l) The first daily news paper that began from premises in Fleet Street in 1702 was The Daily Courant.

(m) Fielding’s novel Joseph Andrews (1742) is a parody of the novel Pamela by Richardson.

(n) John Gay‘s (1685-1732) last play The Beggar’s Opera appeared in 1728. It is a social satire.

(o) In The Spectator total 555 essays were published.

(p) Dr. Johnson’s last literary work is The lives of the poets.

(q) Voltaire regarded Alexander Pope as “the best poet of England and at present of all the world” .

(r) Pope:  yes I am proud ; I must be proud to see men not afraid of God , afraid of me.

(s) Tom Jones, Sophie Western, Squire Western ,Miss Western, Lady Bellaston Molly Seagrim Squire Allworthy, Lord Fellamar ,Mrs. Waters, Jenny Jones, Fitzpatrick ,Mrs. Miller,  Mrs. Wilkins,  Thwackum,  Mr. Seagrim , Bridget Allworthy , Black George , Mrs. Fitzpatrick,
 Partridge , Square,  Honour,  Blifil,  Lawyer Dowling,  Lieutenant, Landlady at George Inn , Susan , MacLachlan,  The jailor at Newgate ,Mrs. Seagrim ,Parson Supple ,Northerton are the characters from Tom Jones.

(t) At the age of 26 Addison was the secretary for war in the Tory Government.

(u) The hero of the poem the Campaign is Marlborough.

(v)  Account of the Greatest English poetry was written by Addison.

(w) Henry Fielding’s last work was a diary the name of which is Voyage to Lisbon. His last novel is Amelia.

(x) Swift: I heartily hate and detest that animal called man.

(y) Pigmies: Lilliputians; Giants – Brobdingnagian; moonstruck Philosophers – Laputans; Race of horses-Houyhnhnm (Gulliver’s Travels ).

(z) The Dunciad was modeled on Mac Flecknoe.

Ardhendu De

References: 1.OUTLINES OF ENGLISH AND AMERICAN LITERATURE ---WILLIAM J. LONG

                   2.ESSAYS ON SOME OF THE FORMS OF LITERATURE--THOMAS  LYNCH