1688–1744
The great Augustan poet; his Homer is a masterpiece of English verse in its own right.
One of the glories of English verse, if not quite Homer. Pope recasts the Odyssey in polished heroic couplets of astonishing craft; every line gleams. It is also unmistakably 18th-century, formal and ornate, and it smooths Homer’s plainness into elegance. Read Pope for the music of English poetry and the taste of an age, not for a transparent window onto the Greek. Free and public domain.
A landmark of English poetry that made Pope’s fortune, and unmistakably an eighteenth-century one. He recasts Homer’s battle-fury in polished heroic couplets of dazzling craft, every line balanced and burnished. It is formal, elevated, and freer with the sense than a scholar would like, so read Pope for the music of English verse and the taste of his age, not as a clear window onto the Greek. Free and public domain.