Description:
When Cowley died, he was the most famous poet in England. His popularity continued throughout the eighteenth century. Yet Cowley has virtually disappeared from the canon today, even from metaphysical poetry collections, although it was Cowley who occasioned Samuel Johnson's famous definition of metaphysical poetry. This book considers the circumstances behind Cowley's falling out of the canon and what he might offer future generations of readers discovering his poetry anew.
Brief description: Michael Edson is Associate Professor of English at the University of Wyoming and associate editor of Eighteenth-Century Life. His articles have appeared in Journal for Eighteenth-Century Studies, The Eighteenth Century, and Studies in Eighteenth-Century Culture. His edited book, Annotation in Eighteenth-Century Poetry (Lehigh University Press), appeared in 2017. He is currently working on a book about error and ignorance in the reading of topical satire.