Mock-Heroic from Butler to Cowper An English Genre and Discourse |
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Author:
| Terry, Richard |
Series title: | Studies in Early Modern English Literature Ser. |
ISBN: | 978-0-7546-0623-9 |
Publication Date: | Mar 2005 |
Publisher: | Routledge
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Book Format: | Hardback |
List Price: | USD $175.00 |
Book Description:
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Mock-Heroic from Butler to Cowper explores the protean nature of mock-epic in the English Augustan era. It recounts the rise of mock-heroic, and explores its relation both to classical epic and to contemporary genres such as the poetic travesty and the novel. Terry goes beyond previous commentators in arguing that mock-heroic was not merely a conventional genre, but also provided a supple discourse through which writers could represent a range of personal and social issues. He...
More DescriptionMock-Heroic from Butler to Cowper explores the protean nature of mock-epic in the English Augustan era. It recounts the rise of mock-heroic, and explores its relation both to classical epic and to contemporary genres such as the poetic travesty and the novel. Terry goes beyond previous commentators in arguing that mock-heroic was not merely a conventional genre, but also provided a supple discourse through which writers could represent a range of personal and social issues. He discovers mock-heroic properties, for example, in the Mandevillian discourse of economics and in the rhetoric of male gallantry towards women. Mixing a historical approach with incisive close readings, Terry provides a powerful re-evaluation of the form.