The works of John Dryden, now first collected in eighteen volumes. Volume 17

The seventeenth volume in the definitive collected edition of England's first Poet Laureate. Dryden, the commanding intelligence of the Restoration, moves here between polemic and translation with characteristic ferocity and elegance. This volume gathers his Life of Plutarch, presented with a magnificent dedication to the Duke of Ormond, alongside a substantial specimen from his translation of the History of the League, the French historical narrative that consumed his final years. The theological exchange with Edward Stillingfleet reveals Dryden at his most combative, defending Catholic doctrine with the same rhetorical brilliance he brought to satire. Also included is his English version of Du Fresnoy's work, demonstrating his lifelong commitment to bringing Continental literature to English readers. For scholars of Restoration literature, this volume captures a transitional moment in English intellectual history, when a writer of immense authority shaped a nation's language while navigating the treacherous religious and political currents of the late seventeenth century.