Alexander Pope

Born in London in 1688, Alexander Pope grew up in a Roman Catholic family at a time when Catholics in England faced heavy restrictions, and he was largely educated outside the formal school system. Despite chronic illness and physical disability from an early age, he became one of the most admired poets of the 18th century.

Pope made his name with brilliantly polished verse that combined wit, balance, and sting. His poems range from playful social comedy in The Rape of the Lock to literary criticism in An Essay on Criticism, philosophical reflection in An Essay on Man, and fierce satire in The Dunciad. He was also widely celebrated for his verse translations of Homer, a project that brought him both fame and financial independence.

He spent much of his later life at Twickenham, where he became a central figure in the literary world. His work shaped the sound of English poetry for generations, and many of his lines passed into everyday quotation, helping keep his voice alive long after his death in 1744.