Wit as Hero in Dryden’s Poem Mac Flecknoe Leanne Raymer College

In Dryden’s satirical poem Mac Flecknoe mock heroism is used to convey a scathing view of dullness specifically as it pertains to writers, authority figures such as monarchs, and the unintelligent masses. This technique allows Dryden to convey an inverted meaning to the poem cloaking “wit”, which is the true hero, behind a veil of satire. According to this poem “wit” (12) should be manifest in “monarchs” (2), “[g]reat” (79) writers, and intelligent audiences.

Dryden introduces “wit” (12) as a specific quality great monarchs should possess. In Mac Flecknoe, “Flecknoe” (3) the monarch is portrayed in derogatory terms and presented as man lacking wit and intentionally “wage[s] immortal war” (10) against “wit” (12). The “monarch[s]” (2) neither conveys great intelligence nor an ability to govern well as evidenced in the kingdom he rules: the “Realms of Nonsense” (6). Dryden uses these hostile terms to create tension between wit and dullness indicating their inability to coexist, conveying tension, and revealing the ridiculous posture of a monarch who lacks sound judgment by opposing wit. The monarch intentionally seeks to regenerate his dullness in future generations through selecting a son “who most resembles me” (14): dull and...