An Epistle to Dr. Arbuthnot

poem by Pope

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Article History

An Epistle to Dr. Arbuthnot, poem by Alexander Pope, completed in 1734 and published in January 1735. Addressed to Pope’s friend John Arbuthnot, the epistle is an apology in which Pope defends his works against the attacks of his detractors, particularly the writers Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, Joseph Addison, and John, Lord Hervey.

Pope wrote this poem in imitation of the Roman poet Horace, skillfully modulating the natural tempo of the rhymed couplets with enjambment, caesuras, and other forms of varied rhythm. The poem satirizes cowardly critics, hypocritical pedants, insipid patrons of the arts, and corrupt sycophants, and it caricatures Pope’s contemporaries.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Kathleen Kuiper.