Also Read
Lines. 98-103. No Persian carpets.....choked the way. In these lines from Mac Flecknoe, Dryden continues with his description of the site where Shadwell is to be crowned as king of the realm of Nonsense. There were no Persian capets laid on the way as is 'customary' but the path was covered by loose, torn and tattered pages of some worthless poets and dramatists. Dull poetic and dramatic compositions which had gathered dust in the shops, could be found scattered everywhere. The books of Heywood, Shirley and Ogleby were in plentiful display. But the most distinctly perceptible stuff was of Shadwell's own creation and it simply choked the way.
Critical Analysis. The whole description is in the manner of mock-heroic. Dryden shows his disapproval of the play-wrights such as Heywood, Shirley and Ogleby. Shadwell's literary merits are all the more ridiculed when we learn that he derived inspiration from such playwrights. The particular, personal satire is generalized to include other bad writers. Thus, Dryden here attacks all bad literature through a particularly bad writer.