Close Readings

On Satire: The Earl of Rochester


Listen Later

According to one contemporary, the Earl of Rochester was a man who, in life as well is in poetry, ‘could not speak with any warmth, without repeated Oaths, which, upon any sort of provocation, came almost naturally from him.’ It’s certainly hard to miss Rochester's enthusiastic use of obscenities, though their precise meanings can sometimes be obscure. As a courtier to Charles II, his poetic subject was most often the licentiousness and intricate political manoeuvring of the court’s various factions, and he was far from a passive observer. In this episode Clare and Colin consider why Restoration England was such a satirical hotbed, and describe the ways in which Rochester, with a poetry rich in bravado but shot through with anxiety, transformed the persona of the satirist.

This is an extract from the episode. To listen in full, and to all our other Close Readings series, sign up:

Directly in Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3pJoFPq

In other podcast apps: lrb.me/closereadings

Colin Burrow and Clare Bucknell are both fellows of All Souls College, Oxford.

Get in touch: [email protected]

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

Close ReadingsBy London Review of Books

  • 4.5
  • 4.5
  • 4.5
  • 4.5
  • 4.5

4.5

55 ratings


More shows like Close Readings

View all
In Our Time by BBC Radio 4

In Our Time

5,454 Listeners

The Penguin Podcast by Penguin Books UK

The Penguin Podcast

147 Listeners

Arts & Ideas by BBC Radio 4

Arts & Ideas

291 Listeners

The New Yorker: Fiction by WNYC Studios and The New Yorker

The New Yorker: Fiction

3,339 Listeners

In Our Time: Culture by BBC Radio 4

In Our Time: Culture

597 Listeners

The LRB Podcast by The London Review of Books

The LRB Podcast

291 Listeners

Between The Covers : Conversations with Writers in Fiction, Nonfiction & Poetry by David Naimon, Tin House Books

Between The Covers : Conversations with Writers in Fiction, Nonfiction & Poetry

443 Listeners

London Review Bookshop Podcast by London Review Bookshop

London Review Bookshop Podcast

124 Listeners

The New Yorker: Poetry by WNYC Studios and The New Yorker

The New Yorker: Poetry

511 Listeners

The TLS Podcast by The TLS

The TLS Podcast

180 Listeners

The Shakespeare and Company Interview by Shakespeare and Company

The Shakespeare and Company Interview

89 Listeners

The History of Literature by Jacke Wilson / The Podglomerate

The History of Literature

1,099 Listeners

Backlisted by Backlisted

Backlisted

576 Listeners

The New Yorker: The Writer's Voice - New Fiction from The New Yorker by WNYC Studios and The New Yorker

The New Yorker: The Writer's Voice - New Fiction from The New Yorker

2,129 Listeners

Past Present Future by David Runciman

Past Present Future

313 Listeners

The Belgrano Diary by The London Review of Books

The Belgrano Diary

66 Listeners

Medieval Beginnings by London Review of Books

Medieval Beginnings

0 Listeners

Political Poems by London Review of Books

Political Poems

2 Listeners

Among the Ancients by Anthony Wilks

Among the Ancients

2 Listeners

On Satire by London Review of Books

On Satire

6 Listeners

Human Conditions by London Review of Books

Human Conditions

3 Listeners

Among the Ancients II by London Review of Books

Among the Ancients II

0 Listeners

Medieval LOLs by London Review of Books

Medieval LOLs

3 Listeners

Modern-ish Poets: Series 2 by London Review of Books

Modern-ish Poets: Series 2

6 Listeners