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.
