In this series, a contemporary poet selects and introduces a poet of the past. By their choice of poems and by the personal and critical reactions they express in their prefaces, the editors offer insights into their own work as well as providing an accessible and passionate introduction to some of the greatest poets of our literature.

Alexander Pope (1688-1744) was an essayist, critic, satirist, poet and translator. He published An Essay on Criticism in 1711 and a republished version of The Rape of the Lock in 1714. His Collected Works were published in 1717 and he translated the Iliad and the Odyssey into English. The Dunciad (1728), one of his most famous works, was a vicious satire on Dullness featuring many of his contemporaries.