This blog task is assigned by Dr. and Pro. Dilip Barad Sir, (Department of English MKBU). For further details click here
Introduction :-
John Dryden (9 August 1631 – 1 May 1700) was a prominent English poet, critic, translator, and playwright who dominated the literary life of the Restoration Age; therefore, the age is known as the Age of Dryden.
His critical observation of contemporary reality is reflected in Mac Flecknoe(1682). Dryden’s mature thoughts of literary criticism on ancient, modern and English Literature. Drama, are presented in dialogue forms in An Essay on Dramatic Poesy.
Dryden as a Critic :-
This lecture highlights John Dryden’s pivotal role as a neoclassical poet and critical thinker in the post-Elizabethan Restoration era.
It focuses particularly on his celebrated work An Essay of Dramatic Poesy, discussing:
How he sought a balance between adherence to classical principles and the evolving needs of English drama.
His use of a dialogue among four characters to explore topics such as:
- Ancients vs. Moderns
- French versus English drama
- The value of the classical “unities” (time, place, action).
This video explores John Dryden’s definition of a play, emphasizing that it should serve as a natural and lively image of human life.
According to Dryden, a successful play should:
- Represent human nature truthfully, including its passions, humors, and the fluctuations of fortune.
-Be crafted without artificiality, ensuring authenticity in characterization and plot.
-Aim to both delight and instruct the audience—combining entertainment with moral or intellectual value.
The video presents an analysis of John Dryden’s comparative approach to literary criticism, weighing the merits of Ancient texts against those of his Modern contemporaries, with a special focus on French playwrights.
Dryden explores how:
Classical works (the Ancients) embody enduring qualities such as elevated language, noble themes, and structural harmony.
Contemporary writers (the Moderns) bring fresh perspectives, emotional immediacy, and cultural relevance.
The video delves into the debate between using rhyme versus blank verse in dramatic poetry—an age-old question that John Dryden explores in his essay.
-Crites’ Argument (the voice of the Ancients)
-Opposes rhyme in serious plays, arguing it's unnatural.
-Believes dialogue should mirror how people speak—without rhyme.
The video examines the clash between rhyme and blank verse within the context of dramatic poetry, drawing from Dryden’s critical debate in An Essay of Dramatic Poesy .
Characters and Their Stances
Crites (championing the Ancients) asserts that rhyme is unnatural in drama, especially serious plays. Dialogue should mimic spontaneous speech—and since people don’t speak in rhyme, it feels forced.
Neander, representing Dryden’s own views, counters that rhyme can seem natural when shaped skillfully—through varied meter, enjambment, run-on lines, and thoughtful pacing.
Responses of the task are given below :-
1) In my view, Aristotle and Dryden look at drama from two very different angles. Aristotle, in his Poetics, defines tragedy in very strict and classical terms. For him, tragedy is “an imitation of an action” that is serious, complete, and of a certain magnitude.
2) If I were to give my personal predilection, I would side with the Ancients rather than the Moderns. The Ancients, especially writers like Homer, Sophocles, and Virgil, created works that are timeless in their artistic beauty, moral depth, and universal appeal. Their works laid the foundation of literature by establishing principles of unity, harmony, and decorum, which still influence writers today.
3) I don’t think all the arguments presented in favour of French plays and against English plays are entirely appropriate. The French dramatists valued rules—they insisted on strict observance of the unities, avoidance of showing death on stage, and keeping decorum intact. Their plays were polished, elegant, and logically arranged. However, this very strictness often made their drama less lively and less natural.
For example, the objection that death should not be shown on stage because it is “neither just nor lively” seems artificial. In real life, death is a central reality, and when it is represented with seriousness on stage.
4) My preference would be for poetic dialogue rather than purely prosaic dialogue in a play. Poetry gives the drama an elevated charm, musicality, and intensity of expression which prose often cannot achieve. The rhythmic structure, imagery, and figurative language in verse heighten emotions and make the speech memorable, as we see in Shakespeare’s tragedies and romances.
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