The Dunciad

The Martin Scriblerus persona is named in The Dunciad as the author of many of the notes and introductory materials. What do you think the pros and cons would have been if the author had published those sections under his own name?

The notes provide necessary context today (as well as in Pope’s own time), but how do they serve aesthetic and thematic purposes as well as utilitarian ones? How do the notes contribute to the satirical and critical goals of the text?

Although The Dunciad was originally published anonymously, it was clear to many who its author was. Beyond protecting the author from charges of libel, what rhetorical or literary purposes are served by the conceit of anonymity?

The main theme of the poem is The Decline of Literary and Intellectual Standards in the author’s time. How does Pope define those standards, and how does he exemplify them in this work?

There are many allusions to classical literature in the poem. To what degree is familiarity with these sources necessary to understand the poem and its themes? What do these allusions suggest about Pope’s imagined audience?

How does the genre of the mock-epic create opportunities for humor and irony? How does it serve Pope’s rhetorical goals?

There are close to 900 rhyming couplets across the four books of The Dunciad. What role does rhyme play in the experience of reading this poem?

The three-book version of The Dunciad existed for over a decade before the fourth book was published. How does the fourth book change the way you interpret the preceding books?