THE LEGACY OF CLASSICAL ENGLISH LITERARY CRITICISM: INSIGHTS FROM SIDNEY, DRYDEN, AND JOHNSON

Abstract

This study examines the evolution of English literary criticism through the works of Sir Philip Sidney, John Dryden, and Samuel Johnson, situating their ideas within a neoclassical framework. Using a qualitative approach, the research engages primary texts—Sidney’s An Apology for Poetry, Dryden’s an Essay of Dramatic Poesy, and Johnson’s Preface to Shakespeare and Lives of the Poets—alongside secondary scholarship. The analysis is structured in three parts: first, an exploration of each critic’s views on the poet, poetry, mimesis, and imagination; second, a comparative assessment of classical and neoclassical criticism; and third, an evaluation of how these critics collectively shaped the foundations of modern English literary criticism. The findings reveal that while rooted in classical traditions, Sidney, Dryden, and Johnson reinterpreted and challenged classical ideals, demonstrating the adaptive and enduring nature of literary criticism across eras.