Mask, Mirror, and Weapon

Pope’s Versatile Satire

Abstract

Alexander Pope is infamous for using satire and spite to ridicule many targets. Through clever implementation of mockery and wordplay, Pope aims these critiques at famous writers such as Cibber and at wider institutions such as the church. Pope was the victim of a variety of forms of marginalization and in an attempt to preserve his status, Pope reverses the prejudices he has experienced by aiming his mockery towards those he deems threats and sources of exclusion.