Achitophel and the Nightingale

Paper Summary:

This paper compares Dryden's Achitophel, from his much celebrated political allegory "Absalom and Achitophel," with Keats' nightingale, from the first of his famous May odes, "Ode to a Nightingale." Several common characteristics, such as their profound psychological influence over others are outlined.

From the Paper:

"In Dryden's work, Achitophel, the symbolic representation of the Earl of Shaftesbury, gains the ear of David's ambitious son Absalom (i.e., Charles II's illegitimate progeny, the Duke of Monmouth). Achitophel encourages Absalom to believe that he could be and should be David's rightful successor to the throne. Of course, for many in Dryden's time, including Dryden himself, there remained the idea of the "Divine Right of Kings," and it would therefore be the sole choice of a leader to choose his successor, no questions asked. Any attempt to manipulate or influence that process would be nothing short of high treason, hence the poem and its allegorical re-telling of the scandal that rocked the English government in 1680."

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