'21
coxcombs
.
Alexander Pope
But
even this democratic and individual age may profit by turning back for a
time to consider some of the general truths, as valid to-day as ever, to
which Pope gave such inimitable expression, or to study the outlines of
that noble picture of the true critic which St. Beuve declared every
professed critic should frame and hang up in his study. An age which
seems at times upon the point of throwing classical studies overboard as
useless lumber might do far worse than listen to the eloquent tribute
which the poet pays to the great writers of antiquity. And finally
nothing could be more salutary for an age in which literature itself has
caught something of the taint of the prevailing commercialism than to
bathe itself again in that spirit of sincere and disinterested love of
letters which breathes throughout the 'Essay' and which, in spite of all
his errors, and jealousies, and petty vices, was the master-passion of
Alexander Pope.
'6 censure:'
the word has here its original meaning of "judge," not its modern "judge
severely" or "blame. "
'8'
Because each foolish poem provokes a host of foolish commentators and
critics.
'15-16'
This assertion that only a good writer can be a fair critic is not to be
accepted without reservation.
'17'
The word "wit" has a number of different meanings in this poem, and the
student should be careful to discriminate between them. It means
1) mind, intellect, l. 61;
2) learning, culture, l 727;
3) imagination, genius, l. 82;
4) the power to discover amusing analogies, or the apt expression of
such an analogy, ll. 449, 297;
5) a man possessed of wit in its various significations, l. 45;
this last form usually occurs in the plural, ll. 104, 539.
'26 the maze of schools:'
the labyrinth of conflicting systems of thought, especially of criticism.
'21 coxcombs . . . fools:'
what is the difference in meaning between these words in this passage?
'30-31'
In this couplet Pope hits off the spiteful envy of conceited critics
toward successful writers. If the critic can write himself, he hates the
author as a rival; if he cannot, he entertains against him the deep
grudge an incapable man so often cherishes toward an effective worker.
'34 Maevius:'
a poetaster whose name has been handed down by Virgil and Horace. His
name, like that of his associate, Bavius, has become a by-word for a
wretched scribbler.
'Apollo':
here thought of as the god of poetry. The true poet was inspired by
Apollo; but a poetaster like Maevius wrote without inspiration, as it
were, in spite of the god.
'40-43'
Pope here compares "half-learned" critics to the animals which old
writers reported were bred from the Nile mud. In 'Antony and Cleopatra',
for example, Lepidus says, "Your serpent of Egypt is bred now of your
mud by the operation of your sun; so is your crocodile. " Pope thinks of
these animals as in the unformed stage, part "kindled into life, part a
lump of mud. " So these critics are unfinished things for which no proper
name can be found. "Equivocal generation" is the old term used to denote
spontaneous generation of this sort. Pope applies it here to critics
without proper training who spring spontaneously from the mire of
ignorance.
even this democratic and individual age may profit by turning back for a
time to consider some of the general truths, as valid to-day as ever, to
which Pope gave such inimitable expression, or to study the outlines of
that noble picture of the true critic which St. Beuve declared every
professed critic should frame and hang up in his study. An age which
seems at times upon the point of throwing classical studies overboard as
useless lumber might do far worse than listen to the eloquent tribute
which the poet pays to the great writers of antiquity. And finally
nothing could be more salutary for an age in which literature itself has
caught something of the taint of the prevailing commercialism than to
bathe itself again in that spirit of sincere and disinterested love of
letters which breathes throughout the 'Essay' and which, in spite of all
his errors, and jealousies, and petty vices, was the master-passion of
Alexander Pope.
'6 censure:'
the word has here its original meaning of "judge," not its modern "judge
severely" or "blame. "
'8'
Because each foolish poem provokes a host of foolish commentators and
critics.
'15-16'
This assertion that only a good writer can be a fair critic is not to be
accepted without reservation.
'17'
The word "wit" has a number of different meanings in this poem, and the
student should be careful to discriminate between them. It means
1) mind, intellect, l. 61;
2) learning, culture, l 727;
3) imagination, genius, l. 82;
4) the power to discover amusing analogies, or the apt expression of
such an analogy, ll. 449, 297;
5) a man possessed of wit in its various significations, l. 45;
this last form usually occurs in the plural, ll. 104, 539.
'26 the maze of schools:'
the labyrinth of conflicting systems of thought, especially of criticism.
'21 coxcombs . . . fools:'
what is the difference in meaning between these words in this passage?
'30-31'
In this couplet Pope hits off the spiteful envy of conceited critics
toward successful writers. If the critic can write himself, he hates the
author as a rival; if he cannot, he entertains against him the deep
grudge an incapable man so often cherishes toward an effective worker.
'34 Maevius:'
a poetaster whose name has been handed down by Virgil and Horace. His
name, like that of his associate, Bavius, has become a by-word for a
wretched scribbler.
'Apollo':
here thought of as the god of poetry. The true poet was inspired by
Apollo; but a poetaster like Maevius wrote without inspiration, as it
were, in spite of the god.
'40-43'
Pope here compares "half-learned" critics to the animals which old
writers reported were bred from the Nile mud. In 'Antony and Cleopatra',
for example, Lepidus says, "Your serpent of Egypt is bred now of your
mud by the operation of your sun; so is your crocodile. " Pope thinks of
these animals as in the unformed stage, part "kindled into life, part a
lump of mud. " So these critics are unfinished things for which no proper
name can be found. "Equivocal generation" is the old term used to denote
spontaneous generation of this sort. Pope applies it here to critics
without proper training who spring spontaneously from the mire of
ignorance.
