John Wilmot, by Jacob Huysmans (1675) I’m have just finished teaching Lord Rochester and, as always, it has been an adventure. I sometimes think I get more embarrassed than the students by his explicit sexual language. My women students (they’re all women in this class) are more tolerant of his diatribes against their gender than I […]
Tag Archives: John Wilmot
Empty Sex in an Empty World
Posted in Uncategorized Also tagged Against Constancy, Andrew Marvell, Fragment of Seneca Translated, materialism, To His Coy Mistress Comments closed
Bawdy Poetry and Male Insecurity
John Wilmot, Earl of Rochester Once again the poetry of John Wilmot, Earl of Rochester, is proving to be a jolt to my students. I always start my course “Couples Comedy in the Restoration and 18th Century” with this 17th century libertine, and the poetry does not hold back. Rochester freely uses the “f” word, […]
