Author Description
This is a study of mock-epic poetry in English, French, and German from the 1720s to the 1840s. While mock-heroic poetry is a parodistic counterpart to serious epic, mock-epic poetry starts by parodying epic but moves on to much wider and richer literary explorations; it relies heavily on intertextual allusion to other works, on narratorial irony, on the sympathetic and sometimes libertine presentation of sexual relatons, and on a range of satirical devices. It includes well-known texts (Pope's Dunciad, Byron's Don Juan, Heine's Atta Troll) and others which are little known (Ratschky's Melchior Striregel, Parny's La Guerre des Dieux). It owes a marked debt to Italian romance epic (especially Ariosto). The study places these texts in the literary context of the decline of serious epic, which helped mock epic to flourish, and of the 'Querelle des Anciens et des Modernes' which questioned the authority of Homer's and Virgil's epics; and it relates their substance to contemporary debates about questions of religion and gender.
Menrva's Summary
THE THESIS
This study investigates the evolution and function of mock-epic poetry across English, French, and German traditions between the 1720s and the 1840s. Ritchie Robertson, a scholar of European literature, examines how these works transcend simple parody to engage in complex intertextual and cultural critique. By situating these texts within the decline of the traditional epic and the 'Querelle des Anciens et des Modernes,' the author argues that mock-epic served as a vital vehicle for exploring contemporary debates on religion, gender, and literary authority.
THE SCOPE MAP
What You Will Find
- Comparative analysis of English, French, and German mock-epic traditions.
- Examination of the influence of Italian romance epic, particularly Ariosto, on the genre.
- Analysis of canonical works such as Pope's Dunciad, Byron's Don Juan, and Heine's Atta Troll alongside lesser-known texts like Ratschky's Melchior Striregel.
- Discussion of narratorial irony, satire, and the representation of sexual relations within the genre.
Scope Limits
- The study is chronologically restricted to the period between the 1720s and the 1840s.
- The analysis focuses primarily on the development of mock-epic as a distinct literary form rather than a comprehensive history of all satirical poetry.
THE AUTHORITY PERSPECTIVE
Scholars recognize this work as a rigorous comparative study that successfully bridges national literary traditions to define the mechanics of the mock-epic form. Readers frequently note the academic density of the prose and the author's extensive command of primary source materials across three languages.
Page Count:
464
Publication Date:
2009-01-01
ISBN-10:
0191610143
ISBN-13:
9780191610141
Poetry
Satire
Literary Criticism
European
English
English & College Success
FRENCH POETRY
Literary History