What
picture of the contemporary English literary scene do you get from John Dryden’s
Macflecknoe ?
Mac Flecknoe is the finest short satirical poem in which Dryden has treated Thomas Sahdwell with humorous contempt. Mac Flecknoe is both a personal and literary satire. In Mac Flecknoe, not a single reference of prevailing political crisis can be found only but the political and dramatic activities of Shadwell are also mentioned. Dryden presents Shadwell as a dull poetaster, a corpulent man and a plagiarist. Dryden’s uses the heroic couplet for satirical purposes. Dryden’s Absalom and Achitophel was followed by his another piece The Medal, which was answered by Thomas Shadwell in Medal of John Bayes, a coarse satire on Dryden. He decided to avenge himself on Shadwell and Dryden fully revenged himself by the publication of Mac Flecknoe in 1682.
Dryden presents Shadwell as a dull
poetaster, as an idiot. He is the dullest son of Flecknoe. He “never deviates
into sense” Even fog prevails throughout the day in Shadwell has been presented
as a prince of a bond of a musician, he produces shrill unpleasant sound. He
was born as an enemy of wit and common sense and at the time of coronation he
swore that he will maintain dullness until death. Dryden exposes the dramatic
skill of Shadwell by saying that his comedies make people shed tears and his
tragedies create laughter.
Dryden also accuses Shadwell for
copying from others work without paying the attribute to them. And further
Dryden ridicules Shadwell physical built up; Shadwell is a fat and bulky fellow
but without a brain and common sense. He suggests Shadwell not to base his
characters upon the experience and knowledge of mankind. His men of wit should
also be like him. Shadwell’s borrowings are as distinct as oil in the water. He
should not claim likeness with Ben Jonson, because Jonson was a learned man but
Shadwell was a perfect stupid. Johnson’s satires are great pieces in
literature, his comic pieces were effective but Shadwell is so poor in using
satire that they do not offend the person satirized there in.
