In this charming essay, Mr. Whitfield has pointed out the similarity of literary conditions in our own time and in the days of John Wilmot, Earl of Rochester. In this light he has treated as particularly significant Rochester’s peculiar type of satire, that boomerang which returns on its sender and finds him as defenceless as his enemies. In Rochester’s lyrics and occasional speeches as well, it is his freely accepted dissonance that holds most meaning for the modern reader. After two centuries and a half of misunderstanding, this truly significant Restoration poet finds his meed of appreciation from a representative of the younger generation.