Discuss the heroic couplet of Dryden and Pope. Compare it with blank verse. Write a note on the change of taste for the music of verse. ( MEG 102 ) ( THE AGE OF DRYDEN )

The heroic couplet is a form of poetry that was popularized by John Dryden and later developed by Alexander Pope in the late 17th and early 18th centuries. The form consists of two rhyming lines of iambic pentameter, and was often used to express heroic or elevated themes. The heroic couplet became one of the dominant forms of English poetry during this period, and it remained popular well into the 18th century.

The main advantage of the heroic couplet is its ability to convey a sense of order and balance, as well as a sense of power and authority. The strict meter and rhyme scheme of the form allows for a strong sense of closure at the end of each couplet, which can create a powerful effect in the hands of a skilled poet. Both Dryden and Pope used the heroic couplet to great effect, crafting works of poetry that are still regarded as masterpieces of the form.

Blank verse, on the other hand, is a form of poetry that does not use rhyme, but instead relies on a strict meter to create a sense of rhythm and structure. The most common meter used in blank verse is iambic pentameter, which is the same meter used in the heroic couplet. However, blank verse does not have the same strict rhyme scheme as the heroic couplet, which allows for greater freedom and flexibility in the composition of the poem.

The use of blank verse became more popular in the Romantic period, as poets such as William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge sought to break free from the strictures of the heroic couplet and to experiment with new forms of poetic expression. Blank verse allowed them to create works that were more free-flowing and organic, and which could better capture the rhythms of natural speech.

The change in taste for the music of verse reflects a larger shift in literary sensibility that occurred during the Romantic period. Whereas the heroic couplet was seen as the epitome of poetic elegance and refinement in the 17th and 18th centuries, the Romantics sought to move away from the formalism and artificiality of this form, and to embrace a more naturalistic and emotional approach to poetry. As a result, blank verse and other free-form poetic styles became more popular, and the heroic couplet fell out of favor. However, despite this change in taste, the heroic couplet remains an important and influential form of poetry, and its legacy can still be seen in the works of many great poets.