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 John Dryden,
an English poet and dramatist who would dominate literary efforts
of The
Restoration, was born on August 19, 1631, in Aldwinkle, Northamptonshire,
England. He received a classical education at Westminster School
and Trinity College, Cambridge, then moved to London in 1657
to commence his career as a professional writer. His first play,
The Wild Gallant (1663), was a failure when first presented,
but Dryden soon found more success with The Indian Queen
(1664) which he co-authored with Sir Robert Howard and which
served as his initial attempt to found a new theatrical genre,
the heroic tragedy. Although George Villiers' The Rehearsal,
a vicious satire of heroic tragedy, brought a quick end to the
form, Dryden still managed to produce a number of successful
works in this genre including The Indian Emperor (1665)
and Secret Love (1667) which mixed heroic tragedy with
contemporary comedy.
The young playwright's reputation grew quickly, and in 1668,
only ten years after his move to London, Dryden was appointed
Poet Laureate of England. (He was later stripped of the title
because of religious differences when William and Mary came into
power.) That same year, he agreed to write exclusively for Thomas
Killigrew's theatrical company and became a shareholder. Both
his first offering, Tyrannick Love (1669), and his successful
follow-up, The Conquest of Granada by the Spaniards (1670),
are examples of heroic tragedy. In 1672, however, perhaps sensing
the demise of his short-lived genre, Dryden turned his hand to
comedy and produced Marriage A-la-Mode, a brilliant battle
of the sexes. Dryden's relationship with Killigrew's company
continued until 1678 at which point he broke with the theatre
(which was floundering in debt) and offered his latest play,
Oedipus, a drama he had co-authored with Nathaniel Lee,
to another company.
In his later years, Dryden turned to poetry and solidified
his reputation as the leading writer of the day with such masterpieces
as Absalom and Achitophel. However, he continued to write
for the theatre, producing such plays as Don Sebastian
(1689), the story of a king who abdicates his throne after discovering
that he has committed incest, and Amphitryon (1690), a
brilliant retelling of the classic myth. He also adapted a number
of Shakespeare's plays icluding The
Tempest and All for Love (1677), a retelling of Antony
and Cleopatra. In addition, he wrote the libretto for several
operas including The State of Innocence (1677) (an adaptation
of Milton's Paradise Lost) and King Arthur (1691)
with music by Purcell.
John Dryden died in London on May 12, 1700, and was buried
in Westminster Abbey next to Chaucer. He left behind almost 30
works for the stage as well as a major critical study (An
Essay on Dramatic Poesy) and a number of translations including
the works of Virgil.
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