English Literature

(Amelia) #1

CHAPTER VIII. PERIOD OF THE RESTORATION (1660-1700)


prose with that of Milton, or Browne, or Jeremy Taylor, we
note that Dryden cares less for style than any of the others,
but takes more pains to state his thought clearly and con-
cisely, as men speak when they wish to be understood. The
classical school, which followed the Restoration, looked to
Dryden as a leader, and to him we owe largely that tendency
to exactness of expression which marks our subsequent prose
writing. With his prose, Dryden rapidly developed his criti-


cal ability, and became the foremost critic^147 of his age. His
criticisms, instead of being published as independent works,
were generally used as prefaces or introductions to his poetry.
The best known of these criticisms are the preface to theFa-
bles, "Of Heroic Plays," "Discourse on Satire," and especially
the "Essay of Dramatic Poesy" (1668), which attempts to lay a
foundation for all literary criticism.


DRYDEN’S INFLUENCE ON LITERATURE.Dryden’s place
among authors is due partly to his great influence on the
succeeding age of classicism. Briefly, this influence may be
summed up by noting the three new elements which he
brought into our literature. These are (1) the establishment
of the heroic couplet as the fashion for satiric, didactic, and
descriptive poetry; (2) his development of a direct, service-
able prose style such as we still cultivate; and (3) his develop-
ment of the art of literary criticism in his essays and in the nu-
merous prefaces to his poems. This is certainly a large work
for one man to accomplish, and Dryden is worthy of honor,
though comparatively little of what he wrote is now found
on our bookshelves.


SAMUEL BUTLER (1612-1680). In marked contrast with
Dryden, who devoted his life to literature and won his suc-
cess by hard work, is Samuel Butler, who jumped into fame
by a single, careless work, which represents not any serious


(^147) By a critic we mean simply one who examines the literaryworks of vari-
ous ages, separates the good from the bad, and gives thereasons for his classi-
fication It is noticeable that critical writingsincrease in an age, like that of the
Restoration, when great creative worksare wanting.

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