A Glossary of John Dryden’s Critical Terms
A Glossary of John Dryden’s Critical Terms
H. James Jensen
Copyright Date: 1969
Edition: NED - New edition
Published by: University of Minnesota Press
Pages: 144
https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.5749/j.ctttt9nj
Search for reviews of this book
Book Info
A Glossary of John Dryden’s Critical Terms
Book Description:

Although John Dryden is, as Samuel Johnson described him, the father of modern criticism, his critical writings are difficult for twentieth-century readers to understand and appreciate. Part of the problem lies in the fact that many of the critical terms which Dryden used have changed or expanded in meaning since his time. By providing a series of glosses of seventeenth-century critical terms, this volume clarifies and illuminates Dryden’s work for modern readers and scholars. Professor Jensen has catalogued every important word that Dryden used in discussing critical matters, whether about art, literature, or music. In addition to covering all of Dryden’s works, the glossary encompasses works of other important seventeenth-century critics, among them, John Milton, Ben Johnson, and Thomas Rymer. The structure of the glossary is simple: under each word there is a general definition and, if needed, an essay on the word’s origin, history, and general usage. Then the various particular meanings of the word are given, and under each definition are listed the critics, the works, the editions, and the page numbers where the word is used with that particular meaning. Selected quotations abound, substantiating the text. The book will be useful for students and teachers in seventeenth and eighteenth-century literature courses and for scholars doing advanced research. Students will gain an understanding of the development of critical though by reading the essays in the Glossary. Modern scholars of Restoration literature will find new ideas here as well as confirmation of some older conjectures about Dryden.

eISBN: 978-0-8166-6315-6
Subjects: Language & Literature
You do not have access to this book on JSTOR. Try logging in through your institution for access.
Log in to your personal account or through your institution.
Table of Contents
Export Selected Citations Export to NoodleTools Export to RefWorks Export to EasyBib Export a RIS file (For EndNote, ProCite, Reference Manager, Zotero, Mendeley...) Export a Text file (For BibTex)
Select / Unselect all
  1. Front Matter
    Front Matter (pp. [i]-[ii])
  2. Table of Contents
    Table of Contents (pp. [iii]-[iv])
  3. INTRODUCTION
    INTRODUCTION (pp. 3-14)

    Not only is John Dryden the spokesman and greatest critic of his age, he is also what Dr. Johnson calls him, “The father of English criticism . . . the writer who first taught us to determine upon principles the merit of composition.”¹ No critic before him can pretend to rival his accomplishment, and all who come after are his descendants. He established the basis for English criticism, complete with vocabulary, models of great works, and theories and principles of what is proper and great art. Dryden produced a constant stream of literary works and critical thoughts, over a period...

  4. KEY TO ABBREVIATIONS
    KEY TO ABBREVIATIONS (pp. 15-17)
  5. THE GLOSSARY
    THE GLOSSARY (pp. 18-130)
  6. BIBLIOGRAPHY
    BIBLIOGRAPHY (pp. 133-135)
University of Minnesota Press logo