Chap- Six + -&arm :

"In poets as true genius is but rare,

True t a s t e as seldom is the critic's share;

Both must alike from heaven dcrlve their light,

Those. born to judge, as well as those to write.1.

The aim qf t h i s sixth and concluding chapter is

to justify the present research. 1 find the necessity to do

so mainly because the choice of an author, critic or book

belonging m the past has of ten been questioned-

John Dryden is not only the 'Father of English

Literary Criticism', but is also the living force in English

literary criticism in the present day, I f he tried to lay down

methods of evaluating literature, the simple and obvious

reason is that there were no accepted theories in English

literary criticism during his time.

He was against any fixed method of evaluating

l i t e ra ture for he realized the variety and vastness of l i terature.

David Daichcs' view aptly supports Dryden. "There is no

single right- method of handling l i terary problems, no single

approach to works oZ l i terary art t ha t will yield all significant

t ru ths about them="2.

John Dryden discussed his views, which were based

not on any formal rules, but on his own reactions submitted

to the t e s t of nature, reason and time- - - - posterity,

perhaps, may be more favourable to me; for interest and

passion will l i e buried in another age and partiality and

prejudice be forgotten."3.

English criticism, infact , European cri t icism of

t h e best and most fruitful kind, would have had to seek

a totally new source i f Dryden had been absent- As said

by Sainstobury, "Dryden established the English fashion of

1, 2 Essays in cri t icis and comparative poetics, K. Viswanathan, 1977,

3. Dryden, All for Love, ed. C.K. Narayan, 1978

crlticising, as Shakespeare did the English fashion of

dramatising .- the fashion of aiming at delight, at truth,

at justice, at nature, at poetry and letting t rules take

care of them~elvcs, '~4.

A good play or poem i s one which has suitable words,

rhythms and emotions which art capable of causing vibrations

in the hearts of the readers or viewers. In an artistic creation,

i~nagination and emotion are more important than reason

and regulation. Dryden's critical glory lies in his realization

of the freedom of a creative a r t i s t and his unique way of

shaping different examples of literature together-

Dryden's criticism concerns i tself with natural thinking-

I t was not a simple matter to convince people against an

accepted critical tradition, Ryden believed in progress and

modernity and stated his views with complete confidence.

3ohn Dryden, Absalarn and Achitophel, R-K. Jalali,

1 9 85.

One of his m b y trirnphant sentences is s 'Now what, I beseech

you. is more easy. than to write a regular French Play, or

more difficult than write an irregular English one, like those

of Fletcher, or of Shakespeare?', The high excellence of

Dryden's critical writing is the result of his capacity to

go to the heart of a problem and find a solution,

On the whole Dryden's criticism is broad based

and sound. The cause of his experimental and flexible approach

was the transitional period during which he lived and Johnson

had rightly said that if Drydcn changed, 'he changed with

the generation.'

Dryden treated the Engl ish critical tradition as

a part of the European critical tradition and was sensitive

to the merits of divergent literary traditions. Later Eliot

and Arnold too tried to encompass this idea of common

European traditlm in their writings.

Dryden was a humanist and his opinions were based

on psycholo@cal, moral and ethical realities. He was the first

to demand an examination of the character, function and

meaning of literature or drama.

To which century an author or book belongs i s not

as important as the vlaue of the given work and it's re levance

to the present time, m i s view o f mine is similar to that

of the 'Nw Criticsm, who believe that a work of art should

be judged sole ly on its own merits and rejected the traditional

division of literature into periods and groups for the purpose

of criticism.

John Dryden's views on literature or the fruits

of his labours as a critic are as valuable today, as they were

when he first pronounced them. lhe actual theories and

judgements of a critic and their bearing on literature are

moot important because these theories and judgements are

the ones that have enabled English literary criticism to develop

into what i t i s today. Though new theories and judgements

from the modern critics are welcome, there already are

certain critical theories which, though old, are so valuable

that we cannot afford to overlook, Quite a number of these

theories are the result o f John Dryden's prolonged efforts

to derive sound standards and methods of evaluating l iterature.

John Oryden has already been recognized as a qreat

critic. But the value of his critical pronouncements which

lie scattered in his numerous prefaces along with his critical

essays needs better recognition.

Dryden's criticism is controlled by good manners.

Here and there he uses pol i te expressions such as ' 1 fear

1 have been ttdious', which show his constant awareness

of the polite reader who must not be bored and his own

desire to be easily readable.

How ever learned an author might be, what he writes

should be able to reach the common man and hold his interest.

''However esoteric literary studies m a y become, they must

fa i l o f their object unless their results ultimately fiS ter

through to the intelligent common reader and unless they

are expressible in something like the language of common

li f e.'*5,

The views of Dryden are meaningful and expressible

in something called the language o f common l i f e , at present-

H e himself stated that time is the final test of d l great

literature. If Dryden's views are valuable after the passage

of more than three centuries, his work in the field of English

Essays in Criticism and Comparative ketics,

ed, K. Viswanathan, A-U. Press, 1977.

Dryden gave a warning against the restriction of

poetry being confined to reality. "Poets may be allowed

the liberty for describing things which really exist not, if

t h y art founded on popular beliefs. Of this nature are fairies,

pigmies and the extraordinary effects of magic; for 'tis

stil l an imitation, though of other men's fancies; and thus

arc Shakespeare's ' TempestB and his 'Midsummer Night 's

- Dreamm to be defendedP8.

Prof- K, Viswanathan wrote, "Critics swear by realism

and decimate large aras of literature forgetting that a poem

i s a linguistic structure, A man with ten heads is as real

as one with a single head and a thousand handed Briarcus

i s an imaginative possibility as much as a two handed human-

Critics should not be blind to adbhutarasa - - -."9.

similarity between the views of John Dryden

3ohn Dryden, Selected Criticism, ed. James Kins ley

and George Parfitt, 1970,

Essays in Criticism and Comparative Poetics,

K. Viswanathan, A.U. Press, 1977.

and a scholar of the twentieth century, is obvious.

The validity of the statements is also obvious by our practical

experience of watching plays or films which do not strictly

adhere to reality, but at the same time provide entertainment.

No person with common sense i s fooled to imagine that

what he watches on the stage or screen can happen in reality;

but at the same time he is provided with entertainment

which is the main purpose of a play.

Dryden realized and frankly s t a t e d that the aim

of a dramatist should be to please his audience, " - - - not

the cook's taste but the guests-'la He had asserted that

in the dramatic business, 'we are bound to please those whom

we pretend to entertain, and that at any price, religion and

good manners excepted.' 1 1.

Next to entertainment, the aim of a dramatist

English Literary Criticism, 17th dc 18th C.,

JmWIHI Atkins, 1951,

John Dryden, Selected Criticis, ed. Jarncs Kinsley

and George Parfitt, 197CL

must be to convey a moral. His concern must be, "to decide

on the moral to be conveyed. Thiis would direct the whole

action to one centre; after which a suitable theme would

suggest itself, together with character, thoughts and style

in keeping with the theme." 12,

Wouldn't it be boring for the audience if the unities

of time and place continued to be observed? How right Dryden

had been whtn he stated that the audience would not be

content with the dramatists', llservilt adherence to the

mechanic rules."l3. H e rightly stated that 'better a mechanic

rule were stretched or broken than a great beauty were

omitted." 14.

Let US note the twentieth century critic% view

in this respect, "In an era where air travel from Paris to

London in a time much shorter than *onew period of the sun

12, 13, English Literary Criticism, 17th & 1 8th C.,

3.W.H. Atkins, 1951.

is an every day matter, requirements for the unity of space

on the stage may well be expected to undergo some change,"l5.

However, Dryden didn't need the support of the

scientific advancements to clarify himself. The unities of

time and place would limit the scope of the story and as

a result come in the way of providing entertainment, This

was sufficient reason, and rightly so, for him to question

their validity,

An author needn't try to be too correct, because,

in his anxiousness to do so, might kill the spirit of a

play. byden warns us against a dull correctness, 'A work

may be over wrought as well as under wroughtg too much

labour often takes away the spirit by adding to the polishing,

so that there remains nothing but a dull correctness, a piece

without any considerable faults but with f e w beauties; for

4 5 . Essays in Criticism and Comparative Poetics,

K, Viswanathan, A.U. Press, 1977.

when the spirits are drawn off there is nothing l e f t but

a csput mortum,"l6.

Even a good theme may remain ineffective if the

characters are not represented in the right way. The characters

should "emerge clearly from action and discourse, from what

the individuals do and say! they should be true to Nature,

in accordance with the age, sex, rank and the like; - - -."17.

.More over, the characters must be consistently

drawn and must be natural. "How easy i t is," wrote Dryden,

''to call rogue and villain and that wittily. But how hard

to make a man appear a fool, a block head, or a knave withbut

using any of those approbrious terms!" 1 8.

Dryden realized that poets should not beco.me the

but ts of critical ignornce, prejudice and jealousy. "Ihis made

hirn think about the principles which should govern the most

16 to 21. English Literary Criticism, 17th & 18th C.,

J.slV.H. Atkins, 195 1.

fruitful exercise of literary criticism, " - - - i f Dryden was

not the first to complain of critical abuses, he was at any

rate the f i rst to comment constructively and to point to

a better waymW19.

Dryden stressed that the job of criticism is not

to find faults. If a piece of literature has no mistakes, but

i s at the same time dull and fails to entertain the readers

or hold their interest, how can it be said to be good? " - - - that flawless mediocrity or mere correctness was not

enough, the sublime genius that soars to great heights but

sometimes errs was to be preferred to tho middling or

indifferent one that makes few mistakes but seldom or never

rises to any excellencem1'2 CL

Another important statement made by Dryden was

that t irnrnediate success of a poem or play cannot be

be said to be find. - - - poems, which arc produced by

the vigour of imagination only, have a gloss upon them at

first which time wears off, the works of judgement are like

the diamond, the more they a polished the more lustre

they r e ~ e i v e . ~ ' 2 1.

New criticism has emerged from the writings of

the 'New Criticsm. It's chief exponents in America are Kenneth

Burke, Allen Tate, Cleanth Brooks etc- In England its Leading

representatives are LA, Richards, T.S. Eliot, F.R. Leavis,

William Empson etc.

Progress is necessary in any given field, if i t has

to be alive, Some of the theories put forward by the 'New

- Critics' are important, how ever, nothing can displace

John tkyden1s views on literary criticism or make them

seem irrelavent to the present.

The new critics stressed that a work of art should

be judged solely on i t s own merits, a view which was held

by Dryden too, However, when the new critics laid emphasis

on the text and its word by word analysis and interpretation,

they are not at one with John Dryden1s view. Dryden

condemned petty fault finding by critics because it i s wrong

to lay stress on one particular word or syllable. He made

an interesting comment in this context when he said that

true judgelnent in poetry as in painting "takes a view of the

w b l c together, whether it be good o r notmV22.

However, T.S. Eliot, one of the outstanding new

critics, also holds a similar view- "While Eliot has his affinity

with the critics of the new school, he is against too close

a scrunity of a work of art. The poem is the thing, and i t

must be studied in itself, but he is against the ' I c m ~ n squeezer'

22 to New Criticism and New Critics, Dr. Ragh~kul IXak, 27.

1986.

critics who press the words too dosely1*.23.

There are various approaches to literary criticism-

me earliest approach was lLtgislative', when the critics

Sought to teach writers how to write and laid down rules

and formulae of literary composition. "Their writings, for

the most part depressingly uninspired, are the critical

equivalent of the recipe book, and they are based on the

master chief ls assumption that any pupil of good intelligence

can learn the Sdsiness, i f only he is shown how-"24- This

obviously wasn't a good approach, "In England, indeed in

Western Europe, i t dominated the sixteenth century and

died in the course of seventeenth with Dryden representing

the point of ~hange,~'25,

Among the various approaches to English literary

criticism, the most popular one is the 'Descriptive Criticism,'

As George Waston points out, "Descriptive criticism begins

in self justification with poets discussing their own works,

and defending them against hostile attacks as Dryden has

done in his innumerable pre fa~es .~26 .

Wowever. a crit ic needn't necessarily comment

only on his own work. otmscriptivc Criticism is always about

same particular text, whether of the critic's own or of another,

and the critic, instead of laying down general rules or

theorizing in general terms, analyses the work in hand, traces

the influences that have given rise to it , and then discusses

i t criticaily i tem by itern."27.

john byden's, "Essay of Dramatic Poesyvw, provides

- "the earliest extent example of descriptive criticism- While

the legislative critic says, 'This is how a play should be

written,' and a theoretical crit ic like Aristotle says, 'This

i s the nature of tragedy in general,' a descriptive critic,

l ike Dryden, simply says, 'This is how the play has been

wri t ten and why."2&

Dryden's criticism of Chaucer, Shakespeare and

Ben Jonson proves him to be an outstanding descriptive critic.

George Watson rightly pointed out that, "Dryden was the

f irst English man to attempt any extended descriptive criticism.'

Regarding his estimation of these authors, David Daiches

has pointed that "the judicial balancing of virtues and faults,

the sense that each of these writers has his own special

gifts and is not necessarily to be censured for lacking qualities

which another may have, the ability to summarise the total

achievement of a writer, are all marks of a great critic."29.

Dryden's openness , flexibility, common nnse and

the emphasis on descriptive criticism made him the founder

New Criticism and New Critics, Dr. Raghukul Tilak,

1986.

john Dryden, Absalom and Achitophel, R.K. Jalali,

New Dtlhi, 1985.

of modern criticism. "Dryden - established a habit of urbane

and unpedantic writing about books and authors which, with

certain notorious exceptions, has continued to be in the

main English traditianDVm3d

Lt As said by Johnson, Dryden is none other than, 'The

Father of English Criticism, the writer who first taught

us to determine on principles the merit of cornposition.''31.

&Many of Dryden's critical pronouccments are so

sharp and significant that they leave indelible impressions

on the minds of the readers. They have not the limitations

of time and place, indeed the legacy of the 'Father erf English

- Literary Criticism'.

Therefore the present work makes a plea for greater

recognition to be accorded to Dryden and acknowledge him

to be a standing embodiment of certain qualities which are

English Literary Criticism, 17th & 18th C.,

J.W;H- Atkins, 1951.

Lives of the English Poets, Johnson, ed. 8erbic Hill,

1 9 05.

of abiding significance in the field of literary criticism,

thus placing him in the context of the present age. Despite the

inconsistencies and contradictions in his cr i t ica l views, Sohn

- Dryden can still be eonsidered as a great critic.