The Preface to Aristotle's Art of Poetry

The work opens by situating André Dacier’s 1692 French translation of Aristotle’s Poetics within the bustling world of Augustan literary debate. It shows how Dacier’s careful notes quickly became a touchstone for playwrights and critics—from Dryden’s essays to the sharp repartee in Congreve’s The Double Dealer—and how his reputation secured a swift English rendition just a year later. The introduction paints a vivid picture of a scholarly network that treated his commentary as both a source of authority and a playful reference in the salons of England and France.

Beyond its historical charm, the text reveals why Dacier’s preface mattered to early‑modern theory. It highlights his neo‑classical insistence on formal rules, especially the importance of the chorus in tragedy, a stance that inspired Thomas Rymer’s bold proposal to revive the ancient device on the English stage. By tracing these early reactions, the book offers listeners a clear view of how a seventeenth‑century scholar helped shape the contours of poetic criticism that would echo for decades.