Alexander Pope
Alexander Pope (May 21, 1688 - May 21, 1744) was a well known, but controversial, English poet and writer.
Born to a Catholic family in 1688 he was educated mostly outside "normal" schools and colleges as a result of the intense anti-Catholic prejudice that was propagated by the protestant dominated government. He suffered numerous health problems, some associated with childhood tuberculosis which stunted his growth, he never grew beyond 1.37m (4ft 6in).
Although he had been writing poetry since the age of 12, his first major contribution to the literary world is considered to be An Essay on Criticism which was published in 1711 when he was 23. Other famous works include The Rape of the Lock (1712, revised 1714) as well as a six-volume translation of Homer's Iliad (1715-1726).
Pope's poetic work mirrored the cultural history of his country. Alexander Pope wrote pastoral poetry under Queen Anne; under George I, he translated the Iliad and the Odyssey (the latter with less critical success); in the third part of his writing, Pope directly addressed the major religious and intellectual problems of his time. Pope was the last major poet to write in traditional rhyming couplets; he developed the heroic couplet beyond that of any previous poet, and essentially exhausted its usefulness for later poets.
Pope had a friend and ally in Jonathan Swift.
Concerning Pope as editor of Shakespeare, see Twelfth Night - a textual problem.
Works
- Pastorals
- Eloisa to Abelard
- The Rape of the Lock
- Windsore Forest
- The Prologue to the Satires (nee Epistle to Dr Arbuthnot
- Essay on Criticism
- Essay on Man
- The Dunciad
External Links
- Various biographies [1] (http://www.kirjasto.sci.fi/apope.htm), [2] (http://www-unix.oit.umass.edu/~sconstan/popebio.html), [3] (http://www.island-of-freedom.com/POPE.HTM)
- A copy of "An Essay on Criticism", [4] (http://eserver.org/poetry/essay-on-criticism.html)
- e-text of An Essay On Man (http://www.abacci.com/books/book.asp?bookID=609)
But, alas! he awakes in the morning only to resume
is to be alone. Women won't come to see.html">see him, for fear they might be
of scandal. He and the world, like two people.html">people travelling in opposite
He loses his interest in what is going on around him, and people lose
occasion a listless remark, "I wonder how he spends his time?" or,
don't understand, and there are precious few who appreciate the
who has lived in one, amid a large family, of which he is the solitary
sepulchre, with this difference only, one holds a living and the other
you have lost it, then and not till then do you feel its value.
CHAPTER X.
A DAY ON THE LAKE.--PART I.
the house in search.html">search of her sister. Jackson and Peter were sitting on
in his hand, as he was relating some story of his exploits in Spain.
manner.
"Where is the doctor," said I, "and the rest of the party?"
"Gone to see a tame moose of his, Sir," he said, "in the pasture; but
alongside of him, "go on Jackson; don't let me interrupt you."
"I was just telling Mr McDonald, Sir," said he, "of a night I once
wolves among the dead and the dying a owling like so many devils. I
so I put my carbine across my knees, and sat up as well as I could,
from the loss of blood, that I kept dozing and starting all the time
the dawn of day, when search should be made among us for the wounded!
yards or so from me, busy tearing a body to pieces; and taking a good
belly-full of fighting yet, that you must be after murthering.
On
wordlookup.net
All is still licensed under the GNU FDL.
It uses material from the wikipedia.
|
|