Thinking Activity : The Rover

  ⚫ What did Virginia Woolf say about Afra Behn ? Do you agree with her ? Why ?

⚫ Introduction ⚫

⚫Afra Behn⚫

Aphra Behn (/ˈæfrə bɛn/;[a] bapt. 14 December 1640[1] – 16 April 1689) was an English playwright, poet, translator and fiction writer from the Restoration era. As one of the first English women to earn her living by her writing, she broke cultural barriers and served as a literary role model for later generations of women authors. Rising from obscurity, she came to the notice of Charles II, who employed her as a spy in Antwerp. Upon her return to London and a probable brief stay in debtors' prison, she began writing for the stage. She belonged to a coterie of poets and famous libertines such as John Wilmot, Lord Rochester. She wrote under the pastoral pseudonym Astrea. During the turbulent political times of the Exclusion Crisis, she wrote an epilogue and prologue that brought her into legal trouble; she thereafter devoted most of her writing to prose genres and translations. A staunch supporter of the Stuart line, she declined an invitation from Bishop Burnet to write a welcoming poem to the new king William III. She died shortly after.[2]

⚫ Virginia Woolf ⚫

Adeline Virginia Woolf (/wʊlf/;[2] née Stephen; 25 January 1882 – 28 March 1941) was an English writer, considered one of the most important modernist 20th century authors and also a pioneer in the use of stream of consciousness as a narrative device.

Woolf was born into an affluent household in South Kensington, London, the seventh child in a blended family of eight which included the modernist painter Vanessa Bell. Her mother was Julia Prinsep Jackson and her father Leslie Stephen. While the boys in the family received college educations, the girls were home-schooled in English classics and Victorian literature. An important influence in Virginia Woolf's early life was the summer home the family used in St Ives, Cornwall, where, in the late 1890s, she first saw the Godrevy Lighthouse, which was to become central to her novel To the Lighthouse.

⚫ What did Virginia Woolf say about Afra Behn?

Woolf declares that 'All women together ought to let flowers fall upon the tomb of Aphra Behn, for it was she who earned them the right to speak their minds. ' Again, Behn is primarily significant for the fact that she wrote as a professional, not for what she wrote.

As a woman, she was excluded from the sorts of institutions from which historians usually glean their records, such as Oxford and Cambridge, the Inns of Court, or the Middle Temple. If she'd been an aristocrat, there might have been records surviving at her country seat. If she'd been a religious non-conformist, she might have recorded her thoughts and ideas about her inner life in a spiritual journal, or diary, as so many women did. But as neither a man, nor an aristocrat, nor a nonconformist, she proves peculiarly resistant to biographical recovery.

Whenever Aphra Behn is written about, Virginia Woolf's entreaty is usually pulled out to act as the opening line: "All women together ought to let flowers fall upon the tomb of Aphra Behn, for it was she who earned them the right to speak their minds."

Behn had a few female contemporaries but, unlike her, they were aristocratic and certainly not doing anything as vulgar as writing for money. These hobbyist writers would also usually warn potential readers with a notice that the following work was written by a member of the "fair sex", as though apologising in advance. Aphra Behn made no such apologies. She did not ask for permission or acceptance - and it was because she did neither that she proved to be so popular among the ordinary playgoers whose opinion so often goes unrecorded. Operating with striking success outside gender conventions, it was she who paved the way for other women to do the same. What's more, she included as much wit and bawdiness as she could muster, along with a sharp insight into both sex and politics. She was the Restoration's very own combination of Dorothy Parker and Mae West.

👉click here to get more details. 

Behn was not just determined to stick two fingers up at convention, she was very clever at managing to turn the tables entirely. Oroonoko didn't simply suggest that slavery was vile and immoral but that, far from being savages, slaves were the ones with the grace, tradition and morals. It was, she makes clear, the colonists who were the barbarous savages steeped in hypocrisy, and it was they who should be learning a thing or two from the people they held captive. At the same time she also managed to include a powerful statement on the political powerlessness of women.

Here she was, the incomparable Aphra. She had worked as a spy for King and country, served time in debtors' prison, and been called a slut as a writer, not just in her own time but by a whole series of (male) critics since. Here was a woman who did not just appease and beg to be allowed to write to earn a living.

⚫ Why is Afra Behn important?

It is notable for its exploration of slavery, race, and gender. Behn was immensely prolific, adapting plays, writing fiction and poetry, and translating works from French and Latin. She caused scandal in some of her chosen subject matter, often alluding to sexual desire.

⚫ Virginia Woolf " A room of one's own "

⚫

Incandescence, the narrator reiterates, is a state of mind that simply would have been impossible for a woman in the sixteenth century. She continues her history by tracing the gradual emergence of women writers out of that blank past. The first would have been aristocrats, women of "comparative freedom and comfort" who had the resources not only to spend their time writing, but also to brave public disapproval. This is how the narrator accounts for the poetry of Lady Winchilsea around the turn of the eighteenth century. Her work, however, is far from incandescent: "one has only to open her poetry to find her bursting out in indignation against the position of women." She then turns to the writings of Margaret of Newcastle, who might have been a poet or a scientist but instead "frittered her time away scribbling nonsense." Like Lady Winchilsea, she was an aristocrat, had no children, and was married to the right kind of man. The letters of Dorothy Osborne, next off the shelf, indicate a disdain for women who write, and at the same time betray a remarkable verbal gift in their own right. With Aphra Behn, the narrator identifies a turning point: a middle class woman making a living by her writing, in defiance of conventions of chastity. The later eighteenth century saw droves of women following her example, and these paved the way for the likes of Jane Austen and George Eliot. "All women together ought to let flowers fall upon the tomb of Aphra Behn ...for it was she who earned them the right to speak their minds.

Yes I'm agree with her because Whenever Aphra Behn is written about, Virginia Woolf's entreaty is usually pulled out to act as the opening line: "All women together ought to let flowers fall upon the tomb of Aphra Behn, for it was she who earned them the right to speak their minds."

She is remembered in Virginia Woolf's A Room of One's Own: "All women together ought to let flowers fall upon the tomb of Aphra Behn….

Chapter four of Virgina Woolf's critical text 'A Room of One's Own' discusses the influence and importance of Aphra Behn in shaping the work of later female authors such as George Eliot and Charlotte Brontë.

⚫👉click here for listen the full audiobook of the play " The Rover " by Afra Behn

👇 Here is the video of the summary of the play " The Rover "

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Thinking activity: importance of being earnest

 ⚫ which of the female characters is the most attractive to you among lady Augusta Bracknell,  Gwendolen Fairfax, cecily cardew and miss prism ? Give your reasons for she being the most attractive among all .

⚫ Introduction ⚫

Oscar Wilde

Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 1854 – 30 November 1900) was an Irish poet and playwright. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, the early 1890s saw him become one of the most popular playwrights in London. He is best remembered for his epigrams and plays, his novel The Picture of Dorian Gray, and the circumstances of his criminal conviction for gross indecency for consensual homosexual acts, imprisonment, and early death from meningitis at age 46.

Wilde's parents were Anglo-Irish intellectuals in Dublin. A young Wilde learned to speak fluent French and German. At university, Wilde read Greats; he demonstrated himself to be an exceptional classicist, first at Trinity College Dublin, then at Oxford. He became associated with the emerging philosophy of aestheticism, led by two of his tutors, Walter Pater and John Ruskin. After university, Wilde moved to London into fashionable cultural and social circles.

⚫ Importance of being earnest ⚫

The Importance of Being Earnest, A Trivial Comedy for Serious People is a play by Oscar Wilde. First performed on 14 February 1895 at the St James's Theatre in London, it is a farcical comedy in which the protagonists maintain fictitious personae to escape burdensome social obligations. Working within the social conventions of late Victorian London, the play's major themes are the triviality with which it treats institutions as serious as marriage, and the resulting satire of Victorian ways. Some contemporary reviews praised the play's humour and the culmination of Wilde's artistic career, while others were cautious about its lack of social messages. Its high farce and witty dialogue have helped make The Importance of Being Earnest Wilde's most enduringly popular play.

The successful opening night marked the climax of Wilde's career but also heralded his downfall. The Marquess of Queensberry, whose son Lord Alfred Douglas was Wilde's lover, planned to present the writer with a bouquet of rotten vegetables and disrupt the show. Wilde was tipped off and Queensberry was refused admission. Their feud came to a climax in court, where Wilde's homosexuality was revealed to the Victorian public and he was sentenced to imprisonment. Despite the play's early success, Wilde's notoriety caused the play to be closed after 86 performances. After his release from prison, he published the play from exile in Paris, but he wrote no further comic or dramatic work.

⚫ women's Characters in "importance of being earnest" 

"The importance of being earnest" was written by the famous Irish author Oscar Wilde. The Play represents Wilde's late Victorian view of the aristocracy, merriage,wit and social life during the early 1900's.  His Characters are typical Victorian snobs who are arrogant, overly proper, formal, and concerned with money . The women are portrayed as sheltered , uneducated, and some of dominating figures over the men in their lives . There is no sense of identity for Cecily and Gwendolen , the only women within the Play that clearly stands out is the Governess , Lady Bracknell .

⚫The Wit of Cecily and Miss Prism⚫

Cecily makes a witty remark when she says that human memory records things that have never happened and that could not possibly have happened. Another witty remark that she makes is as follows : “When one is going to lead an entirely new life, one requires regular and wholesome meals.” Cecily’s wit is quite biting in the course of her dialogue with Gwendolen. For instance, when Gwendolen says that she hates crowds, Cecily makes the following sarcastic remark to her : “I suppose that is why you live in town. Miss Prism is witty too, and her wit is often caustic as in her remarks about Jack’s supposed younger brother. She also amuses us when she says that she can understand a misanthrope but not a womanthrope*. Another witty remark that she makes is that no married man is ever attractive except to his wife.

⚫Both Gwendolen and Cecily in Love With the Name “Ernest”

In certain respects, as has been already pointed out, these two, girls are alike. Both readily accept the proposals of marriage from their respective lovers. Both are fascinated by the name Ernest. Gwendolen says that it was always her cherished ideal to love someone of the name of Ernest. It is a divine name with a music of its own, and it produces vibrations, she says. Cecily likewise says that it had always been a girlish dream of hers to love someone whose name was Ernest. Both the girls think that there is something in the name Ernest which inspires absolute confidence. Of course, the reaction of each of these girls to the name Ernest is absurd, but absurdity is the very keynote of this play. Cecily’s account of how she had fallen in love with Ernest (who is actually Algernon) is even more absurd than her enthusiastic reaction to the nare. She fell in love with her guardian’s younger brother without even having seen or met him ; she got engaged to, him in her imagination ; and she even bought herself an engagement ring in his name.

click here for full movie  "importance of being earnest" by Oscar Wilde

⚫Each Woman Distinguishable From the Others

It is not for his portrayal of human character that Wilde is famous as a playwright. His strength as a dramatist lies neither in character-portrayal nor in his plots which are deficient in action. His strength lies in his dialogues which amuse us greatly by their humour and wit. However, that does not mean that Wilde fails altogether in the portrayal of his men and women. The four women in The Importance of Being Earnest, for instance, have been drawn with a fair degree of success.

The four women are Gwendolen, Cecily, Miss Prism, and above all Lady Bracknell. Each of these women has clearly been differentiated from the others. Of course, the talent for making witty remarks and observations is common to all these women. In respect of wit they are almost all alike, though Lady Bracknell can be singled out as the wittiest of all and as the most pungent in her wit. Between Gwendolen and Cecily too there are certain similarities, and in some respect one echoes the other. But there are also certain distinguishing features of each of them. On the whole, then, we can safely affirm that each of the four women has been individualized and been made to live before us, though Lady Bracknell occupies a commanding position.

⚫ Lady Bracknell ⚫

Wilde creates Lady Bracknell to represent society during the 1900's . Her tone

Is Always earnest: She is arrogant and she speaks in commands , judgements and pronouncements . She is always serious and authoritative , being the adult figure in the Play ; she imposes the rules and authority . However much of  what she says is ridiculous , hypocritical, self -contradictory. Lady Bracknell contradicts herself when she wonders about the possibility of Algernon and Cecily get merried and she does not agree with mercenary marriage , but she herself married into the same situation .

" But I do not approve my mercenary marriages. When I merried lord Bracknell I had no fortune to any kind ." Lady Bracknell is always thinking of money when it comes down to these circumstances .

If Algernon and Cecily get married , they will share her considerable amount of wealth . "A hundred and thirty thousand pounds! And in Funds! Miss cardew seems to more attractive to me a most attractive lady , Now that I look at her."she also finds long engagements not acceptable as, " they give the people opportunity of finding out each others Character before marriage,". Lady Bracknell has this idea of making someone look something that they are really not . As long as you look good ,  that is what is important. This causes the women in the Play such as cecily and Gwendolen to live sheltered and uneducated lives.

Simply put Cecily as a country girl, while Gwendolen is a city girl; with that in mind that similarly portrayed by Wilde. Both women lead a very sheltered life , which in turn takes away from their educations. The women are far from stupid, but they are not well informed with the ways of the world, foremost the ways of the society they live in. Gwendolen is sheltered by her mother, Lady Bracknell, who does not approve of education in England, as she puts it, "fortunately in England,at any rate, education produces no effects whatsoever." Most likely did not sent her daughter to any educational institute other than a manner's school for a women.

Gwendolen herself understands what her mother tries to do to her , " mamma , whose views on education are remarkably strict, has brought me up to be extremely short-sighted". Cecily is sheltered aswell, but her locating is the reason for it. She resides the country and even though an education is offered, she is not interested,"but I don't like German. It isn't at all a booming language. I know perfectly well that I look quite plain after my German lesson." Both women lead sheltered lives which creates boredom and imagination within their minds.

Cecily and Gwendolen have both fallen in love with a name, which is part of their fantasy that they have imagined because of their utter boredom. Wilde makes a point to show that these "important" women in society talk more than they actually do. Nothing is truer when it is revealed what is written in Cecily's diary," you can see the entry of you like."today I broke off my engagement with earnest. I feel it is better to do so . The weather still continues charming." Everything in her diary has been imagined with the exception of the weather. There is no difference with Gwendolen as she too keeps a fictional diary on hand to keep her occupied.

👉 Here is the video of  "importance of being earnest"

   

Both women keep their diary's also as records to their lives, although most of the information in them is imagined; they still believe in what is written and both use it to figure out who is actually engaged to earnest. Both women do not work, do not host social gatherings, or do not go to school, so they find themselves with much time on their hands and both have a active imagination. They have both imagined an earnest in their minds and no other man will do, both have said the name inspires confidence. Wilde is making a statement to society that women should not be treated in this manner and they should be treated as equals to men, which during the 1900's a movement towards equality started.

Wilde portrays women in his Play " The importance of being earnest" in many lights; a strong authority figure in Lady Bracknell , who dominates the men and women in her life Gwendolen who is the helpless sort-sighted city girl, who has imagined a life outside her own and the same can be said for Cecily from the country. Wilde showed that Cecily and Gwendolen lacked an identity and that is because they have lived no life to contribute to giving them one. The irony to their lack of identity is they both imagined and loved a man who only had a name and no identity as well earnest.

 It’s is beautifully eloquent and extremely witty. The films and theatre performances are always good to watch to see how the characters are portrayed.

The 1952 Antony Asquith film production is the best portrayal in my opinion. Asquith films are always good but this was compounded by brilliant acting from Joan Greenwood, Michael Denison and Redgrave and the wonderful Margaret Rutherford. It makes me smile just thinking of it.

Wilde was a brilliant social critic and commentator with a command of the English language which is seldom equalled. In fact I’m going to get my old dvd out !

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Rape of the lock: Alexander pope

 ⚫ Brief analysis of Belinda's character⚫

 👉 ⚫ "Rape of the lock" by Alexander pope ⚫

⚫ Introduction ⚫

Alexander pope

    

  

    Alexander Pope (21 May 1688 – 30 May 1744) is seen as one of the greatest English poets and the foremost poet of the early 18th century. He is best known for satirical and discursive poetry, including The Rape of the Lock, The Dunciad, and An Essay on Criticism, and for his translation of Homer. After Shakespeare, Pope is the second-most quoted writer in English, according to The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations,[1] some of his verses having become popular in common parlance (e. g., damning with faint praise). He is considered a master of the heroic couplet.

    

Alexander Pope was born in London on 21 May 1688, the year of the Glorious Revolution. His father (also Alexander, 1646–1717) was a successful linen merchant in the Strand. The poet's mother, Edith (1643–1733), was the daughter of William Turner, Esquire, of York. Both parents were Catholics.[3] Edith's sister, Christiana, was the wife of famous miniature painter Samuel Cooper. Pope's education was affected by the recently enacted Test Acts, which upheld the status of the established Church of England and banned Catholics from teaching, attending a university, voting, and holding public office on penalty of perpetual imprisonment. Pope was taught to read by his aunt and went to Twyford School in about 1698/99.[3] He then went on to two Roman Catholic schools in London.[3] Such schools, while illegal, were tolerated in some areas.[4]

In 1700, his family moved to a small estate at Popeswood in Binfield, Berkshire, close to the royal Windsor Forest.[3] This was due to strong anti-Catholic sentiment and a statute preventing "Papists" from living within 10 miles (16 km) of London or Westminster.[6] Pope would later describe the countryside around the house in his poem Windsor Forest.[7] Pope's formal education ended at this time, and from then on, he mostly educated himself by reading the works of classical writers such as the satirists Horace and Juvenal, the epic poets Homer and Virgil, as well as English authors such as Geoffrey Chaucer, William Shakespeare and John Dryden.[3] He studied many languages and read works by English, French, Italian, Latin, and Greek poets. After five years of study, Pope came into contact with figures from London literary society such as William Congreve, Samuel Garth and William Trumbull.[3][4]

⚫ Rape of the lock ⚫

The Rape of the Lock is a mock-heroic narrative poem written by Alexander Pope.[1] One of the most commonly cited examples of high burlesque, it was first published anonymously in Lintot's Miscellaneous Poems and Translations (May 1712) in two cantos (334 lines); a revised edition "Written by Mr. Pope" followed in March 1714 as a five-canto version (794 lines) accompanied by six engravings. Pope boasted that this sold more than three thousand copies in its first four days.[2] The final form of the poem appeared in 1717 with the addition of Clarissa's speech on good humour. The poem was much translated and contributed to the growing popularity of mock-heroic in Europe.

The poem satirises a small incident by comparing it to the epic world of the gods. It was based on an actual event recounted to the poet by Pope's friend, John Caryll. Arabella Fermor and her suitor, Lord Petre, were both from aristocratic recusant Catholic families, at a time in England when, under such laws as the Test Act, all denominations except Anglicanism suffered legal restrictions and penalties. (For example, Petre, being a Catholic, could not take the place in the House of Lords that would otherwise have been rightfully his.) Petre had cut off a lock of Arabella's hair without permission, and the consequent argument had created a breach between the two families. The poem's title does not refer to the extreme of sexual rape, but to an earlier definition of the word derived from the Latin rapere (supine stem raptum), "to snatch, to grab, to carry off"[3][4]—in this case, the theft and carrying away of a lock of hair. In terms of the sensibilities of the age, however, even this non-consensual personal invasion might be interpreted as bringing dishonour.

👉click here for brief analysis of the poem.

⚫Character analysis of " Belinda " ⚫

The protagonist of the poem, Belinda is a wealthy and beautiful young woman who travels to Hampton Court for a day of socializing and leisure. Her remarkable beauty attracts the attention of the Baron, who snips off a lock of her hair in his infatuation. At the beginning of the narrative, Ariel explains to Belinda through the medium of a dream that as she is a both beautiful and a virgin, it is his task to watch over her and protect her virtue—though as the poem unfolds, it’s unclear if Belinda is really as virtuous as she seems. Despite the fact that Belinda is Pope’s protagonist, she’s actually a bit of a slippery character to come to terms with, as the reader is provided with relatively little access to her inner thoughts, and her actions are often governed by supernatural forces. For instance, it is unclear how much influence Ariel, a sylph, is able to exert over her, and there is some suggestion that he actively toys with her morality. He claims it is her virginity which makes her worthy of guarding but sends her a dream of a handsome young man, “A youth more glitt'ring than a birthnight beau,” tempting her sexuality. Similarly, at the end of the poem, Umbriel, throws over her and Thalestris a bag of “Sighs, sobs and passions” and also empties a vial of “sorrows” over her too, meaning the rage she flies into is not entirely of her own volition. Fundamentally, as her name suggests with its literal meaning of “beautiful”, all readers can really know about Belinda is that she is attractive. The poem states that “If to her share some female errors fall, / Look on her face, and you'll forget 'em all”—in other words, she is so beautiful that those around her consider her basically exempt from any moral judgement, allowing Pope to satirize the idea Ariel suggests at the opening of the poem: that beauty and virtue always go hand in hand. Belinda is based on the real-life figure of Arabella Fermor, who also had a lock of her hair cut off by a suitor.

 

⚫Belinda Quotes in The Rape of the Lock⚫

The The Rape of the Lock quotes below are all either spoken by Belinda or refer to Belinda. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one: The Triviality of Court Life Theme Icon). Note: all page numbers and citation info for the quotes below refer to the Signet Classics edition of The Rape of the Lock published in 2012.

👉click here for the quotes.

⚫PopeCharacter Sketch of Belinda in Alexander Pope's The Rape of the Lock or Belinda as a Representative Lady of the 18th Century England

Pope has presented Belinda as a complex character. He has presented her in different roles and under different shades, some are satirical other ironical but all entertaining. The character of Belinda has created much controversy since the publication of the poem. Some critics consider her treatment fair while others as unfair. There are several aspects of the personality of Belinda as portrayed by Pope in The Rape of the Lock. It will be wrong to regard her purely as a goddess, or as a pretty spoiled child, or as a flirt. She is a combination of all three and yet much more than such a combination. We see her in many different lights. We see her as a vamp, an injured innocent, a sweet charmer, a society belle, a rival of the sun, and a murderer of millions. She has a Cleopatra- like variety. However, the reality lies in between these two extremes we can discuss her character as blow.

Firstly, Belinda is the heroine of the story. It is her character around whom the story of the whole poem is woven. We see her sleeping till noon and her awakening by her lap dog “Shock”. We are present at her toilet and watch the progress of the sacred rites of pride. Then we see her proceeding from the Thames River to the Hampton Court. Then her smiting looks upon the well dressed youths that crowds her. Pope compares Belinda to the sun and suggests that it recognizes in Belinda a rival. Belinda is like the sun not only because of her bright eyes and not only because she dominates her special world. She was as beautiful as every eye was fixed on her alone. She is like the sun in another regard:

Bright as the sun, her eyes the gazers strike.

And, like the sun, the shines on all alike.

Belinda’s exquisite beauty is enhanced by two curling side locks of hair that charmingly set off her ivory white neck and which she has kept “to the destruction of mankind:”

Law In these labyrinths his slaves detains,And mighty hearts ate held in slender chj Juneains.

Belinda’s charms can work miracles and can make even non-believers kiss the cross.

Secondly, Belinda is a model arid more specifically represents the fashionable, aristocratic ladies of Popes age. Such social butterflies in eighteenth century were regarded as petty triflers, having no serious concern with life, and engrossed in dance and gaiety. Belinda’s fall indicates the decadence of her class. Through her, Pope describes the flippancy and depravity of the English society of his day.

 

Thirdly, Popes attitude to Belinda is very mixed and complicated; mocking and yet tender, admiring and yet critical. The paradoxical nature of Pope’s attitude is intimately related to the paradox of Belinda’s situation. If Belinda is to find her role of woman, she must lose the role of a virgin, and the more graceful her acceptance of loss the greater the victory she achieves through it. Because Pope is dealing with this paradox, his altitude must be mixed and complicated. It is necessary for Pope to stress Belinda’s divinity. At the same time he does not let us forget Belinda’s mortality. He qualifies her goddess-ship by emphasizing human qualities. The scene at Belinda’s dressing table, where she is both mortal priestess and the goddess worshipped in the mirror, is an example of this device. The very frailty and transience of blushes and chastity emphasize this goddess’s humanity.

Thus, we get the picture of her shallow outlook about religious faiths and beliefs. She is a worshiper of beauty who prays to the goddess of beauty and offers all the items of cosmetics before her. She is a typical presentation of women’s excessive attention to self decoration and embellishment. She gathers all the fashionable items from all over the world - Indian glowing gems, Arabian perfumes, files of pins, puffs, powders, patches etc. In a satirical passage, Pope describes Belinda in a Confucius mood before her dressing table:

Here files of pains extend their shining rows,

Puffs, powders, patches, bibles, blllet-doux,

Thus, assigned by her maid Betty, Belinda seeks to improve her bod1y charms. However, he does not show any respect for the holly book, Bible. Therefore, the moral bankruptcy of these ladies is further ridiculed when Thalestris points out the need for sacrificing everything, even chastity, for reputation. They consider that virtue might be lost, but not a good name.

To wind up we can say that Belinda’s portrayal is one of the awesome literary creations ever produced in the History of English literature. Pope seeks to throw light upon the fickle minded fashionable ladies of the 18th century England depicting Belinda as the representative character. She is the embodiment of the coquetry, the art, the artifice and the false pride.

 

👉 Here is the video of the summary of "Rape of the lock" by Alexander pope

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Thinking Activity : Absolam and Achitophel

⚫ Explore the poem "Absolam and achitophel" by John Dryden as a political allegory ⚫

⚫ Introduction of the poet ⚫

  John Dryden was an English poet, literary critic, translator, and playwright who was appointed England's first Poet Laureate in 1668. He is seen as dominating the literary life of Restoration England to such a point that the period came to be known in literary circles as the Age of Dryden.

 ⚫ What is political allegory ?

   A political allegory is a story or painting that, on the surface, tells one tale, but has a hidden political meaning underneath. It is an extended metaphor that often uses a simple substitution of one element or symbol for another. Political allegories can be extended to fiction, drama, paintings, music and films.

    Political allegory can cover any time and space and does not have to be limited to the native politics and time of the creator. An allegory becomes political if it covers a political event or situation by producing a subtle commentary on it using other symbols. The term political allegory can also be applied to the use of fictional characters as direct substitutions for real politicians.

     Allegory comes from the Latin and Greek word ‘allegoria,’ meaning ‘veiled language’ or ‘figurative.’ This means that the meaning is not literal, but is implied. Examples of allegory include Virgil’s “Eclogues” and Jan Vermeer’s “The Allegory of Painting.” Marcus Fabius Quintillian divided allegory into two broad types: the personal/historical and the wit/sarcastic. He also believed that if an allegory was too enigmatic, it was a blemish on art.

 

⚫ Absolam and achitophel as a political Allegory ⚫

 

     Dryden was a famous English poet, best known for his satirical poetry. His Absalom and Achitophel characters is considered as one of his best political satire. The poem is allegoric in nature. Dryden uses the device of allegory in order to criticize the political situation of his time.

      The restoration of England Monarchy began in 1660. Before Restoration, Oliver Cromwell was ruling over England and subsequently his son Richard Cromwell. During these several years, there was no monarchy in England. In 1610, English, Scottish, and Irish monarchies were all restored under Charles II.

      In 1681 in England, Charles II was in his advanced years and had no legitimate heirs. His brother, James II was not liked by people because of his intense incline towards Roman Catholics. On the other hand, James Scott, the illegitimate son of King Charles and the Duke of Monmouth, was very popular for both his personal charisma and his favor for the Protestants. Moreover, there was also a prevailing tussle among the Wighs and Tories.

      When Charles’ health suffers, there was a panic in the House of Common over the chances of the nation being ruled by a Roman Catholic King. People were eager to see Duke of Monmouth as their future king, but according to the law of succession, he could not rule the nation. Wighs ignited the fire of rebellion against King Charles. The James Scott was manipulated by Earl of Shaftesbury to rebel against his father. The James Scott was caught preparing to rebel and this lead to his execution by the orders of James II in 1685.

Dryden wrote this poem on King’s demand. Through this poem, Dryden lampooned the Wighs and Earl of Shaftesbury. However, he did not use harsh criticism for James Scott. Absalom and Achitophel veils its political satire under the transparent disguise of a Biblical Story. This poem perfectly depicts the existing crisis and political issues of the contemporary society.

Absalom was persuaded by Achitophel to rebel against King David. Absalom symbolizes James Scott and Achitophel symbolizes Earl of Shaftesbury. Dryden, using the Biblical Allegory, satirizes Achitophel and those who were following him. The satire proceeds from leader to the followers: the Whigs. Through his poem, Dryden wants to tell King Charles that James Scott was not guilty because the person who inflamed the will of rebellion in James Scott was Earl of Shaftesbury. The poem also satirized King Charles but not in harsh words. He criticized the King by mentioning his “many wives and slaves”.

Absalom and Achitophel remains the greatest political satire in English Literature, partly because of its judicious and moderate satire and partly because of its true depiction of the follies and vices that prevails in a particular section of the nation.

   

⚫click here for the full Hindi summary of the poem.

 

   On the surface, John Dryden’s poem “Absalom and Achitophel” is a rehashing of the story of David, the third king of Israel, and his illegitimate son Absalom, who rebels against his father and tries to usurp his throne. However, this biblical story is merely an allegory, a form of extended metaphor, for the political events that unfolded in Dryden’s time. In 1678, an alleged Catholic conspiracy to assassinate King Charles II, known as the Popish Plot, swept across England, creating mass anti-Catholic hysteria and prompting the Exclusion Crisis of 1679. The Exclusion Crisis lasted until 1681 and consisted of three Parliamentary bills which attempted to exclude James, King Charles’s brother, from royal succession because he was a Roman Catholic rather than a Protestant. Dryden’s poem is a thinly veiled satirical roast of the political drama that pervaded English society in the late 1670s and early 1680s, and no one is spared his wit. According to Dryden, “the true end of satire is the amendment of vices by correction,” and “Absalom and Achitophel” is an attempt to that end. Through the use of satire and allegory in “Absalom and Achitophel,” Dryden ultimately argues that the Popish Plot and the Exclusion Crisis were devious ploys to divert the rightful order of succession and prevent James II from ascending the throne.

⚫👉here is the full audiobook of the poem.

     Through the deceit of Achitophel, a politician who sows dissention among the Jews, Dryden allegorizes the Popish Plot and implies the fabricated plot is merely an attempt to breed strife between David and the government, or, figuratively, between Parliament and Charles II of England. In Israel, metaphorically England, the “Good Old Cause revive[s] a plot” to “raise up commonwealths and ruin kings.” The “Good Old Cause” is a reference to the Puritan Rebellions of the English Civil War (1642–1651), which pitted King Charles I, who was supported by the Catholics, against Parliament, which was supported by the Puritans, a form of Protestantism. The war was a victory for Parliament; Charles I was executed and the Commonwealth of England was created. The monarchy was restored in 1660, and Charles II ascended the throne. With this reference, Dryden implies that the Popish Plot is little more than a revival of the Good Old Cause and an attempt to dethrone a king. In the poem, rumor begins to spread that King David’s life is “Endangered by a brother and wife. / Thus in a pageant show, a plot is made, / And peace itself is war in masquerade.” Titus Oates, a priest of the Church of England and the mastermind of the Popish Plot, accused Charles’s brother James and Charles’s wife, Queen Catherine, of involvement in the plot against Charles. Dryden suggests that Oates’s claims are nonsense—the plot is a “pageant show,” a charade—and such claims amount to a “war in masquerade,” as the desired outcome, to remove a man who is destined to be king out of royal succession, is similar to that of the English Civil War. Ultimately, the plot fails “for want of common sense,” but it has a “deep and dangerous consequence.” The Popish Plot, Dryden implies, was destined to fail because it completely lacked wisdom. However, the paranoia and anti-Catholic sentiments the plot churned up led directly to the Exclusion Crisis, which again pitted Parliament against the king. Members of Parliament pushed for James to be removed from royal succession, and Charles adamantly supported his brother.

   

⚫👇 Here is a video for introducing the poem more deeply.

   In the poem, Dryden discusses many of the men who support Achitophel and his plan to strip David of his power. In this way, Dryden also satirizes the politicians who supported the Exclusion Bill, portraying them as despicable men “who think too little and who talk too much.” Thus, Dryden implies that their proposed law—to keep Roman Catholics from the throne—is likewise foolish and dangerous. Achitophel, who encourages Absalom to rebel against his father, is a contemptable man who resolves “to ruin or to rule the state.” Achitophel is a representation of Anthony Ashley Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury, a Member of Parliament and founder of the Whig party, who opposed absolute monarchy in favor of a more democratic approach. Cooper was a major proponent of the Exclusion Bill, and Dryden implies Cooper intended to use the bill to either take the government over, or completely take it down. Achitophel has several supporters, “whom kings no titles gave, and God no grace,” including the “well-hung Balaam and cold Caleb free.” Balaam and Caleb represent Theophilus Hastings and Arthur Capel respectively, both politicians and members of the Whig party who supported the Exclusion Bill. Dryden therefore implies these men are low-level politicians who have little sense and no influence. While Balaam and Caleb may have little sense, “not bull-faced Jonas,” Dryden says, “who could statutes draw / To mean rebellion and make treason law.” Jonas represents Sir William Jones, a Member of Parliament who supported the Exclusion Bill. As Attorney General, Jones prosecuted several Catholics who were falsely accused and executed during the Popish Plot. In this way, Dryden implies that Jones, especially teamed with Cooper, can do real and lasting damage to the country and to the monarchy.

 ⚫👇here is one lecture on the poem Absolam and achitophel.

 

Achitophel and his supporters begin to stoke “the malcontents of all the Israelites” and sway public opinion, and the Sanhedrins, the Jewish high council, becomes “infected with this public lunacy” as well. The Sanhedrins, of course, are a metaphor for the English Parliament, and the “public lunacy” is the Exclusion Crisis. Through his satirical poem, Dryden had hoped the people of England and Parliament would see the Popish Plot and Exclusion Crisis for what they really were—plots devised to keep James II, a Roman Catholic, out of royal succession.

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