1761 in poetry
Encyclopedia
Nationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature (for instance, Irish
or France
).
, had escaped censure, and in the Apology Garrick was clearly threatened. The actor deflected criticism by showing every possible civility to Churchill, who became a terror to the stage. Actor Thomas Davies
, in a letter to Garrick, wrote that he blundered in the part of Cymbeline
owing "to my accidentally seeing Mr. Churchill in the pit, it rendering me confused and unmindful of my business".
Churchill's satire made him many enemies, and brought reprisals. In Night, an Epistle to Robert Lloyd
(also published this year), be answered the attacks made on him, offering by way of defence the argument that any faults were better than hypocrisy. Churchill received a considerable sum from sales of the poem, paid off all of his old creditors, and gave an allowance to his wife.
This year James Macpherson
announced the discovery of an epic on the subject of Fingal
which Macpherson claimed was written by Ossian
. In December he published Fingal, an Ancient Epic Poem in Six Books, together with Several Other Poems composed by Ossian, the Son of Fingal, translated from the Gaelic Language, written in the musical measured prose of which Macpherson had made use in his earlier volume. The authenticity of these so-called translations from the works of a 3rd century bard
was immediately challenged in England
, and Samuel Johnson
, after some local investigation, would assert (in A Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland
, 1775
) that Macpherson had found fragments of ancient poems and stories, then wove into a romance of his own composition. Macpherson is said to have challenged Johnson, who replied that he was not to be deterred from detecting what he thought a cheat by the menaces of a ruffian. Macpherson never produced his originals, which he refused to publish on the grounds of expense. Modern scholars tend to agree with Johnson's assessment.
Irish poetry
The history of Irish poetry includes the poetries of two languages, one in Irish and the other in English. The complex interplay between these two traditions, and between both of them and other poetries in English, has produced a body of work that is both rich in variety and difficult to...
or France
French poetry
French poetry is a category of French literature. It may include Francophone poetry composed outside France and poetry written in other languages of France.-French prosody and poetics:...
).
Charles Churchill terrorises the London stage
In March, poet Charles Churchill's Rosciad was published at his own expense, after several publishers refused it. The reckless and amusing satire described with disconcerting accuracy the faults of various actors on the London stage, and the poem immediately became popular, both for its personal character, vigour and raciness. No leading London actor, with the exception of David GarrickDavid Garrick
David Garrick was an English actor, playwright, theatre manager and producer who influenced nearly all aspects of theatrical practice throughout the 18th century and was a pupil and friend of Dr Samuel Johnson...
, had escaped censure, and in the Apology Garrick was clearly threatened. The actor deflected criticism by showing every possible civility to Churchill, who became a terror to the stage. Actor Thomas Davies
Thomas Davies (bookseller)
Thomas Davies was a Scottish bookseller and author. He studied at the University of Edinburgh and was for several years on the Stage; but having been ridiculed by Churchill in The Rosciad he gave up acting and opened a bookshop in Covent Garden. It was here that in 1763 he introduced Boswell to Dr...
, in a letter to Garrick, wrote that he blundered in the part of Cymbeline
Cymbeline
Cymbeline , also known as Cymbeline, King of Britain or The Tragedy of Cymbeline, is a play by William Shakespeare, based on legends concerning the early Celtic British King Cunobelinus. Although listed as a tragedy in the First Folio, modern critics often classify Cymbeline as a romance...
owing "to my accidentally seeing Mr. Churchill in the pit, it rendering me confused and unmindful of my business".
Churchill's satire made him many enemies, and brought reprisals. In Night, an Epistle to Robert Lloyd
Robert Lloyd (poet)
Robert Lloyd was an English poet and satirist.-Life:Robert Lloyd was educated at Westminster School and Trinity College, Cambridge, graduating B.A. in 1755 and M.A. in 1758. He was author of the popular poem The Actor and the comic opera The Capricious Lovers , first performed at Drury Lane just...
(also published this year), be answered the attacks made on him, offering by way of defence the argument that any faults were better than hypocrisy. Churchill received a considerable sum from sales of the poem, paid off all of his old creditors, and gave an allowance to his wife.
James Macpherson "finds" the work of "Ossian"
James Macpherson
James Macpherson was a Scottish writer, poet, literary collector and politician, known as the "translator" of the Ossian cycle of poems.-Early life:...
announced the discovery of an epic on the subject of Fingal
Fingal
Fingal is a county in Ireland. It is one of three smaller counties into which County Dublin was divided in 1994. With its county seat located in Swords, it has a population of 239,992 according to the 2006 census...
which Macpherson claimed was written by Ossian
Ossian
Ossian is the narrator and supposed author of a cycle of poems which the Scottish poet James Macpherson claimed to have translated from ancient sources in the Scots Gaelic. He is based on Oisín, son of Finn or Fionn mac Cumhaill, anglicised to Finn McCool, a character from Irish mythology...
. In December he published Fingal, an Ancient Epic Poem in Six Books, together with Several Other Poems composed by Ossian, the Son of Fingal, translated from the Gaelic Language, written in the musical measured prose of which Macpherson had made use in his earlier volume. The authenticity of these so-called translations from the works of a 3rd century bard
Bard
In medieval Gaelic and British culture a bard was a professional poet, employed by a patron, such as a monarch or nobleman, to commemorate the patron's ancestors and to praise the patron's own activities.Originally a specific class of poet, contrasting with another class known as fili in Ireland...
was immediately challenged in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, and Samuel Johnson
Samuel Johnson
Samuel Johnson , often referred to as Dr. Johnson, was an English author who made lasting contributions to English literature as a poet, essayist, moralist, literary critic, biographer, editor and lexicographer...
, after some local investigation, would assert (in A Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland
A Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland
A Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland is a travel narrative by Samuel Johnson about an eighty-three day journey through Scotland, in particular the islands of the Hebrides, in the late summer and autumn of 1773...
, 1775
1775 in poetry
Nationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Works published:-Colonial America:...
) that Macpherson had found fragments of ancient poems and stories, then wove into a romance of his own composition. Macpherson is said to have challenged Johnson, who replied that he was not to be deterred from detecting what he thought a cheat by the menaces of a ruffian. Macpherson never produced his originals, which he refused to publish on the grounds of expense. Modern scholars tend to agree with Johnson's assessment.
Works published
- John ArmstrongJohn Armstrong (poet)Dr. John Armstrong was a poet. He was the son of the minister of Castleton, Roxburghshire, Scotland and studied medicine, which he practised in London....
, A Day: An epistle to John Wilkes, published anonymously, wrongly dated "1661" - Charles Churchill:
- The Apology (see Events, above)
- Night: An epistle to Robert Lloyd, published anonymously
- The Rosciad
- John ClelandJohn ClelandJohn Cleland was an English novelist most famous and infamous as the author of Fanny Hill: or, the Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure....
, The Times!, Volume 2, a verse satire - Samuel DaviesSamuel Davies (Presbyterian educator)Samuel Davies was President of Princeton University, then known as the College of New Jersey.Born to Baptist parents in New Castle County, Delaware, Davies received his early education under the tutelage of Rev. Samuel Blair at the academy he conducted in Faggs Manor, Londonderry Township, Chester...
, "An Ode on the Prospect of Peace", EnglishEnglish poetryThe history of English poetry stretches from the middle of the 7th century to the present day. Over this period, English poets have written some of the most enduring poems in Western culture, and the language and its poetry have spread around the globe. Consequently, the term English poetry is...
, Colonial America - Francis FawkesFrancis FawkesFrancis Fawkes was an English poet and translator. Fawkes translated Anacreon, Sappho, and other classics, modernised parts of the poems of Gavin Douglas, and was the author of the well-known song, The Brown Jug, and of two poems, Bramham Park and Partridge Shooting...
, Original Poems and Translations - Edward Jerningham, Andromache to Pyrrhus: An heroick epistle
- Robert LloydRobert Lloyd (poet)Robert Lloyd was an English poet and satirist.-Life:Robert Lloyd was educated at Westminster School and Trinity College, Cambridge, graduating B.A. in 1755 and M.A. in 1758. He was author of the popular poem The Actor and the comic opera The Capricious Lovers , first performed at Drury Lane just...
, An Epistle to Charles Churchill - James LyonJames Lyon (composer)- Life :James Lyon was born in Newark, New Jersey on July 1, 1735. It is known that his father was Zopher Lyon, but that he was orphaned at an early age. In 1750, Isaac Lyon and John Crane became James' guardians, until the age of twenty-one. Lyon then attended college at Nassau Hall, and...
, Urania, or A Choice Collection of Psalm-tunes, Anthems, and Hymns, EnglishEnglish poetryThe history of English poetry stretches from the middle of the 7th century to the present day. Over this period, English poets have written some of the most enduring poems in Western culture, and the language and its poetry have spread around the globe. Consequently, the term English poetry is...
, Colonial America - James Scott, Odes on Several Subjects
- Edward ThompsonEdward Thompson (Royal Navy officer)Edward Thompson was an English Royal Navy officer who rose to the rank of commodore, known also as as a literary figure with the nickname "Poet Thompson".-Life:...
, The Meretriciad, a satire about Kitty FisherKitty FisherKitty Fisher was a prominent British courtesan. Her celebrity was boosted by the attention that Sir Joshua Reynolds and other artists paid her...
, a London courtesan - John WilmotJohn Wilmot, 2nd Earl of RochesterJohn Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester , styled Viscount Wilmot between 1652 and 1658, was an English Libertine poet, a friend of King Charles II, and the writer of much satirical and bawdy poetry. He was the toast of the Restoration court and a patron of the arts...
, Earl of Rochester, The Poetical Works Of that Witty Lord John Earl of Rochester: Left in Ranger's Lodge in Woodstock Park, where his Lordship died, and never before Printed; with Some Account of the Life of that ingenious Nobleman. Extracted from Bishop Burnet, and other Eminent Writers, London, posthumous
Births
Death years link to the corresponding "[year] in poetry" article:- Santō KyōdenSanto Kyodenwas a Japanese poet, writer and artist in the Edo period. His real name was , and he was also known popularly as . He is the brother of Santō Kyōzan.- Life :...
山東京伝, pen namePen nameA pen name, nom de plume, or literary double, is a pseudonym adopted by an author. A pen name may be used to make the author's name more distinctive, to disguise his or her gender, to distance an author from some or all of his or her works, to protect the author from retribution for his or her...
of Samuru Iwase 岩瀬醒, also known popularly as "Kyōya Denzō" 京屋伝蔵 (died 18161816 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* This year was known as the "Year Without a Summer" after Mount Tambora had erupted in the Dutch East Indies the previous year and cast enough ash in to the atmosphere to block out the sun and cause...
), JapaneseJapanese poetryJapanese poets first encountered Chinese poetry during the Tang Dynasty. It took them several hundred years to digest the foreign impact, make it a part of their culture and merge it with their literary tradition in their mother tongue, and begin to develop the diversity of their native poetry. For...
, Edo periodEdo periodThe , or , is a division of Japanese history which was ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family, running from 1603 to 1868. The political entity of this period was the Tokugawa shogunate....
poet, writer and artist; brother of Santō Kyōzan - John Williams, who published under the pen namePen nameA pen name, nom de plume, or literary double, is a pseudonym adopted by an author. A pen name may be used to make the author's name more distinctive, to disguise his or her gender, to distance an author from some or all of his or her works, to protect the author from retribution for his or her...
"Anthony Pasquin" (died 18181818 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-John Keats:* In December, Keats is invited by his friend, Charles Armitage Brown, to move into Brown's home at Wentworth Place, in Hampstead, then a pastoral suburb north of London...
), English poet, writer and artist
Deaths
Birth years link to the corresponding "[year] in poetry" article:- James Cawthorn
- Samuel DaviesSamuel Davies (Presbyterian educator)Samuel Davies was President of Princeton University, then known as the College of New Jersey.Born to Baptist parents in New Castle County, Delaware, Davies received his early education under the tutelage of Rev. Samuel Blair at the academy he conducted in Faggs Manor, Londonderry Township, Chester...
(born 17231723 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-English colonies in America:* Samuel Keimer, Elegy on the Much Lamented Death of [....
), EnglishEnglish poetryThe history of English poetry stretches from the middle of the 7th century to the present day. Over this period, English poets have written some of the most enduring poems in Western culture, and the language and its poetry have spread around the globe. Consequently, the term English poetry is...
Colonial American clergyman, author, poet and president of Princeton College - William OldysWilliam OldysWilliam Oldys was an English antiquarian and bibliographer.The illegitimate son of Dr William Oldys, chancellor of Lincoln, London was probably his place of birth. His father had held the office of advocate of the admiralty, but lost it in 1693 because he would not prosecute as traitors and...
, English poet (born 16961696 in poetryNationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Works:* Aphra Behn - The Unfortunate Happy Lady...
)