LECTURE 3 PREFACE TO FABLES By John Dryden

LECTURE - 3 PREFACE TO FABLES By: John Dryden 1

Short Biography � John Dryden was an English poet, literary critic, translator and playwright who was made England’s first poet laureate in 1668 � Born on August 9, 1631 to a family of rising puritan gentry � Graduated at Trinity College, Cambridge � Married Lady Elizabeth Howard in 1663 and had three sons � Died on 12 May in 1700 2

Philosophy of Dryden � Dryden was the dominant literary figure and influence of his age � In his poems, translations and criticism, he established a poetic diction appropriate to the heroic couplet � Criticizes then society through his writings � His writing style was unique, mostly employing daily patterns and rhythms used in everyday speech 3

Age Of Dryden � The period from 1660 -1700 is designated as the age of Restoration or the age of Dryden � In that time, his poetry set the tone of the new age in achieving a new clarity and in establishing a self-limiting, somewhat impersonal canon of moderation and good taste 4

Age Of Dryden � Dryden defined the stylistic restraint, compression, clarity, and common sense that he exemplified in his own poetry and that he showed to be lacking in much of the poetry of the preceding age. 5

Analysis Of Fables FABLE � A fable is a brief tale conveying a moral. Usually in fables beasts and birds are made to act and speak as human beings � But Dryden’s Fables are in no sense fables, but rather tales in verse � They are verse paraphrases of tales by Chaucer, Boccaccio and Ovid 6

The Backround � In the Preface to the Fables, Dryden explains the background and project of the Fables, he explains how the project was taken up on a very modest scale which however expanded to the full size of a book � Metaphorically, Dryden says that he had only planned to build a lodge, but ended up with a house 7

The Backround � Dryden began with a translation of the first book of Homer’s Iliad. This was done as an experiment. However it was a great success � The success gave him confidence and he soon turned to another writer Ovid. He translated into simple English Ovid’s ‘Metamorphosis’ 8

The Backround � These experiments and the success he got, encouraged him to choose five tales from Chaucer’s famous work “Canterbury Tales” � Later, he translated three of Boccaccio's Tales � At the end of the preface, Dryden says that he makes no claims as to the merits of his translation. He leaves it to the readers to decide 9

Preface To The Fables � The preface is considered a pioneering masterpiece in comparative criticism � As he endeavours to translate works from Ovid, Homer, Boccaccio, Chaucer, he proceeds to compare these writers bringing out their comparative merits, similarities and differences � However, the work is most admired for his observations on Chaucer 10

Preface In Detail � A skeleton of the preface: ◦ In the opening part he compares Ovid and Virgil with Chaucer as a father of English poetry ◦ Defect in Chaucer’s versification ◦ Chaucer’s religion ◦ Chaucer’s politics ◦ Here’s God’s Plenty: praises his realistic portrayal of the English society ◦ Chaucer’s licentiousness (which he avoids in his translation) ◦ The need to translate Chaucer 11

Preface In Detail Ovid And Chaucer � Ovid wrote when Roman poetry had attained its zenith. Naturally, he had little to improve the language. Chaucer, on the other hand, wrote when the English language was “drowned” � Therefore, they are not on the equal footing to compare. Still they resembled each other in many ways. Dryden points out that both were well-mannered, well-bred, and taught in science and astronomy 12

Preface In Detail Ovid And Chaucer � Similarly, both of them, according to Dryden, lacked originality as they borrowed their tales from previous authors � Nevertheless, Dryden observes that Chaucer was more original as at least a couple of tales were his own inventions 13

Preface In Detail Chaucer As The Father Of English Poetry � Dryden was the first to call Chaucer as the father of English poetry � Chaucer wrote when the English language was “drowned” and had little to boast of � In this respect, Chaucer’s rank is with Homer and Virgil � Homer and Virgil, through their works, perfected Greek and Roman languages respectively and so did Chaucer to English 14

Preface In Detail Chaucer’s Verse Is Defective � Dryden did not quite understand Chaucer’s English (pronunciation) as we do today. Still he defends Chaucer for the perceived defect in his versification saying that he wrote when the English poetry was in its infancy, he had no English masters to emulate � As we often say, we all must be children before we grow up 15

Preface In Detail Chaucer’s Politics � Chaucer, during his career, saw three kings on the throne. Thanks to his noble parenthood, he was in good terms with these three successive kings and he even received favours from them � He was politically sound enough to gain favours, a fact which, not Dryden, but later critics thought was, partly the reason why he gained popularity while his rival, Gower, lived and died in obscurity 16

Preface In Detail Chaucer’s Religion � Dryden mentions that Chaucer, in his opinions, had often disagreed with those of John Wycliffe, a well-respected Catholic priest � Though Dryden does not directly mention, his tone seem to suggest that he did not quite approve of Chaucer’s disagreement. Many find that this shows Dryden’s sympathy for Roman Catholic faith � However, Dryden praises Chaucer for pointing at the degeneration and corruption in the church of his period. (Remember Chaucer’s Summoner, Friar, Pardoner, Monk and Prioress? Weren’t they all so corrupt? ) 17

Preface In Detail Here is God’s Plenty � Knight, Friar, Monk, Prioress, Summoner, Pardoner, Wife of Bath, Yeoman, Squire, Host, the Shipman, Franklin, Sailor…. Chaucer left out none, with characters drawn from all corners of the society; he presented a microcosm of English society itself � “‘Tis sufficient to say according to the Proverb, that here is God’s Plenty. We have our Fore-fathers and Great Granddames all before us, as they were in Chaucer’s Days; their general Characters are still remaining in Mankind, and even in England, though they are call’d by other Names than those of Moncks, and Fryars, and Chanons, and Lady Abbesses, and Nuns: For Mankind is ever the same, and nothing lost out of Nature, though everything is alter’d. " 18

Preface In Detail Chaucer’s Bawdy (Licentiousness) � Dryden observes that since his enemies would seek to discredit him in any way possible, he has taken care (in his translation) to avoid licentious content from his choice of translations � He states that he has intentionally avoided translating some of Chaucer’s characters known for their vice as his sense of moral righteousness does not allow him to do the same 19

Preface In Detail The Need To Translate Chaucer � According to Dryden, all works along with pleasing, should also instruct and that, he claims, was precisely the reason he endeavoured to translate fables that hold moral instructions. � He also demonstrates, with examples, how Chaucer’s English differed from the contemporary (contemporary then, not now) English and that’s the reason why Chaucer needs a translation � In the last part of the preface he makes a short comparison between Chaucer and Boccaccio 20