The GATE Grind

GATE 2022 XH2 (English) – Question 30

History of English Literature and Literary Studies · English Literary Traditions across Time: Chaucer to contemporary English literature · 1 mark · Multiple choice

Which of the following critics preferred Shakespeare’s comedies to his tragedies?

  1. Samuel Johnson
  2. Alexander Pope
  3. John Dryden
  4. Thomas De Quincey

Practise this question in The GATE Grind →

Show answer and explanation

Correct answer: (A) Samuel Johnson

Explanation

In his Preface to Shakespeare, Johnson says that Shakespeare's tragedy is the product of skill but his comedy of instinct, and that his comic scenes often surpass expectation while his tragic scenes always lack something.