Alexander Pope, Epistle to a Young Lady, on her Leaving the Town after the Coronation

Pat Rogers (University of South Florida)

Ed. by Nicholas Seager, University of Keele
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.2.1.05: English Writing and Culture from the Glorious Revolution to the French Revolution, 1689-1789.
Vol. editors: Paul Baines (University of Liverpool), Daniel Cook (University of Dundee), Pat Rogers (University of South Florida), Nicholas Seager (University of Keele)

Dates

First circulation or publication 1717 - 1717

Places

England (Country of Origin; Publication/ performance)

Genres and Modes

Poem

Resources

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A minor masterpiece among Pope’s shorter works, this poem consists of fifty lines in heroic couplets, divided into five paragraphs. There is also a fragment of sixteen lines, previously regarded as a suppressed conclusion, but now generally seen as the draft for a separate composition. The poem, known more fully as

Epistle to a Young Lady, on her Leaving the Town after the Coronation

, made its original appearance in the authoritative edition of his

Works

that Pope issued

in 1717. When he reprinted it in 1735, the author altered the first words of the title to

Epistle to Miss Blount.

This change has raised an unforeseen problem in interpreting the verses. They relate to the coronation of George I in October 1714, as it affected the lives of the Blount sisters, Teresa (1688–1759) and

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1341 words

Citation: Rogers, Pat. "Epistle to a Young Lady, on her Leaving the Town after the Coronation". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 27 May 2022 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=40840, accessed 25 April 2024.]

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