Thomas Love Peacock
Thomas Love Peacock (1785-1866) was an English writer born in Weymouth, Dorsetshire, known for his sharp wit and satirical approach to the literary trends of his time. Although he was associated with prominent Romantic poets like Shelley and Byron, he did not align himself with the Romantic movement, often critiquing its ideals as overly irrational. Peacock's poetic works, while produced early in his career, are often considered less memorable than his later satirical novels. He gained recognition for his "conversation novels," such as *Headlong Hall*, where he humorously illustrated the absurdities of romantic ideals through the dialogues of eccentric characters. His other notable works include *Maid Marian*, a playful take on Robin Hood, and *The Misfortunes of Elphin*, which burlesques Welsh legends. Ultimately, Peacock aimed to expose the follies of his contemporaries through irony, famously stating that his objective was "to blow bubbles and then burst them." His legacy lies in his unique blend of humor and critique, making him a distinctive voice of his era.
On this Page
Subject Terms
Thomas Love Peacock
English novelist and poet
- Born: October 18, 1785
- Birthplace: Weymouth, England
- Died: January 23, 1866
- Place of death: Halliford, England
Biography
Thomas Love Peacock was born at Weymouth, Dorsetshire, England, on October 18, 1785. Although he associated with important early Romantic poets, he was not truly a part of the Romantic movement. Until his early thirties he wrote poetry that was intended to inspire readers as that of the Romantics did. His poetry, however, is unmemorable. Indeed, it is as a satirist of his age that Peacock is best remembered. An intimate of the Shelleys and of Lord Byron, but nevertheless a respected officer in the East India Company, Peacock in his novels pokes lighthearted fun at the foibles of his age.
He was unsympathetic to the new ideas of the time primarily because he felt they went beyond reason—which is to say they were to him unreasonably romantic. Using the method of irony, he satirized radicalism, medievalism, and transcendentalism as well as individual romanticists such as William Wordsworth, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Lord Byron, and Percy Bysshe Shelley.
Headlong Hall began a series of successful “conversation novels” which follow the same plan: A group of eccentric guests at a house party reveal the folly of their romantic persuasions in witty talk and inane action. Peacock’s novels Maid Marian and The Misfortunes of Elphin are burlesques of legends, the first of Robin Hood and the second of the Welsh. The critic Saintsbury believed that the latter novel was the best, although Crotchet Castle has remained the most popular. The main purpose of all the works was, Peacock said, “to blow bubbles and then burst them.” Peacock died at Halliford, Chertsey, in 1866.
Bibliography
Butler, Marilyn. Peacock Displayed: A Satirist in His Context. Boston: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1979. A first-rate study of Peacock which focuses not only on him as an individual but also on the society in which he lived and worked and his satiric abilities.
Prance, Claude A. The Characters in the Novels of Thomas Love Peacock (1785-1866): With Bibliographical Lists. Lewiston, N.Y.: E. Mellen Press, 1992. An excellent dictionary of characters in Peacock’s works. Indispensable for the student of Peacock.
Kiernan, Robert F. Frivolity Unbound: Six Masters of the Camp Novel. New York: Continuum, 1990. Examines Peacock in the company of Max Beerbohm, Ronald Firbank, E. F. Benson, P. G. Wodehouse, and Ivy Compton-Burnett.
McKay, Margaret. Peacock’s Progress: Aspects of Artistic Development in the Novels of Thomas Love Peacock. Stockholm: Almqvist and Wiksell, 1992. Chapters on Peacock’s poems and plays as well as on his novels. Provides good background information on the literary figures and movements Peacock satirized.
Mulvihill, James. Thomas Love Peacock. Boston: Twayne, 1987. An excellent short sourcebook on Peacock, providing biographical background and sound context for each of his major works, as well as his essays and reviews.
Sage, Lorna, ed. Peacock—The Satirical Novels: A Casebook. London: Macmillan, 1976. A collection of essays focusing on Peacock as a humorous writer.
Schmid, Thomas H. Humor and Transgression in Peacock, Shelley, and Byron: A Cold Carnival. Lewiston, N.Y.: E. Mellen Press, 1992. A study that focuses on the shared themes in Peacock and his Romantic friends, rather than their more usually emphasized differences.
Tomkinson, Neil. The Christian Faith and Practice of Samuel Johnson, Thomas De Quincey, and Thomas Love Peacock. Lewiston, N.Y.: E. Mellen Press, 1992. Examines the religious literature of Peacock, Johnson, and De Quincey. Includes bibliographical references and an index.