Poetry Codex

Restoration & Augustan

John Gay

1685–1732

John Gay (1685–1732) was an English poet and dramatist, born in Barnstaple, Devon. A friend of Pope, Swift and Arbuthnot, he wrote Trivia, a mock-georgic on walking the streets of London, and The Beggar’s Opera (1728), a ballad opera that was a great popular success.

His Fables, published in two series in 1727 and 1738, are short verse stories in which animals speak and act as foils to human folly. They were widely read for generations and are the part of his verse that still has readers.

Major Works (2)

  1. The Shepherd's Week — Pastoral poem, 1714
  2. Trivia — Mock-georgic poem, 1716

Poems (125)

  1. The Shepherd and the Philosopher
  2. The Lion, the Tiger, and the Traveller
  3. The Spaniel and the Cameleon
  4. The Mother, the Nurse, and the Fairy
  5. The Wild Boar and the Ram
  6. The Miser and Plutus
  7. The Lion, the Fox, and the Geese
  8. The Lady and the Wasp
  9. The Elephant and the Bookseller
  10. The Peacock, the Turkey, and the Goose
  11. Cupid, Hymen, and Plutus
  12. The Tame Stag
  13. The Monkey Who Had Seen the World
  14. The Pin and the Needle
  15. The Shepherd's Dog and the Wolf
  16. The Painter Who Pleased Nobody and Everybody
  17. The Old Hen and the Cock
  18. The Old Woman and Her Cats
  19. The Sick Man and the Angel
  20. The Poet and the Rose
  21. The Court of Death
  22. The Hare and Many Friends
  23. The Dog and the Fox (To a Lawyer)
  24. The Baboon and the Poultry (To a Levee-Hunter)
  25. The Ant in Office (To a Friend)
  26. The Squire and His Cur (To a Country Gentleman)
  27. The Degenerate Bees (To the Reverend Dr Swift, Dean of St Patrick's)
  28. Pan and Fortune (To a Young Heir)
  29. The Ravens, the Sexton, and the Earth-Worm (To Laura)
  30. Black-Eyed Susan
  31. Fable IV. The Eagle, and the Assembly of Animals
  32. Fable IX. The Bull and the Mastiff
  33. Fable XV. The Philosopher and the Pheasants
  34. Fable XIX. The Lion and the Cub
  35. Fable XXI. The Rat-Catcher and Cats
  36. Fable XXII. The Goat Without a Beard
  37. Fable XXIV. The Butterfly and the Snail
  38. Fable XXV. The Scold and the Parrot
  39. Fable XXVI. The Cur and the Mastiff
  40. Fable XXVIII. The Persian, the Sun, and the Cloud
  41. Fable XXIX. The Fox at the Point of Death
  42. Fable XXX. The Setting-Dog and the Partridge
  43. Fable XXXI. The Universal Apparition
  44. Fable XXXII. The Two Owls and the Sparrow
  45. Fable XXXIII. The Courtier and Proteus
  46. Fable XXXIV. The Mastiffs
  47. Fable XXXV. The Barley-Mow and the Dunghill
  48. Fable XXXVI. Pythagoras and the Countryman
  49. Fable XXXVII. The Farmer's Wife and the Raven
  50. Fable XXXVIII. The Turkey and the Ant
  51. Fable XXXIX. The Father and Jupiter
  52. Fable XL. The Two Monkeys
  53. Fable XLI. The Owl and the Farmer
  54. Fable XLII. The Jugglers
  55. Fable XLIII. The Council of Horses
  56. Fable XLIV. The Hound and the Huntsman
  57. Fable XLVI. The Cur, the Horse, and the Shepherd's Dog
  58. Fable XLVIII. The Gardener and the Hog
  59. Fable XLIX. The Man and the Flea
  60. Fable II. The Vulture, the Sparrow, and Other Birds
  61. Fable V. The Bear in a Boat
  62. Fable VII. The Countryman and Jupiter
  63. Fable VIII. The Man, the Cat, the Dog, and the Fly
  64. Fable IX. The Jackall, Leopard, and Other Beasts
  65. Fable XI. The Pack-Horse and the Carrier
  66. Fable XIII. Plutus, Cupid, and Time
  67. Fable XIV. The Owl, the Swan, the Cock, the Spider, the Ass, and the Farmer
  68. Fable XV. The Cook-Maid, the Turnspit, and the Ox
  69. A Ballad (from The What-d'ye-Call-It)
  70. On a Lapdog
  71. Wine
  72. A New Song of New Similes
  73. Damon and Cupid
  74. Phyllida, that loved to dream
  75. Rural Sports
  76. The Fan, Book I
  77. The Fan, Book II
  78. The Fan, Book III
  79. On a Miscellany of Poems, to Bernard Lintott
  80. Epigrammatical Petition
  81. A Letter to a Lady
  82. An Epistle to the Right Honourable the Earl of Burlington (A Journey to Exeter)
  83. An Epistle to the Right Honourable William Pulteney, Esq.
  84. An Epistle to the Right Honourable Paul Methuen, Esq.
  85. To My Ingenious and Worthy Friend W—— L——, Esq.
  86. Mr Pope's Welcome from Greece
  87. A Panegyrical Epistle to Mr Thomas Snow, Goldsmith, near Temple Bar
  88. An Epistle to Her Grace Henrietta, Duchess of Marlborough
  89. To a Young Lady, with Some Lampreys
  90. To a Lady on Her Passion for Old China
  91. The Birth of the Squire
  92. The Toilette
  93. The Tea-Table
  94. The Funeral
  95. The Espousal
  96. The Ladies' Petition to the Honorable the House of Commons
  97. To Miss Jane Scott
  98. Prediction
  99. Comparisons
  100. Absence
  101. Fable (The Swan and the Geese)
  102. Congratulation to a Newly-Married Pair
  103. A Devonshire Hill
  104. Letter to a Young Lady
  105. To My Chair
  106. Panthea: an Elegy
  107. Araminta: an Elegy
  108. A Contemplation on Night
  109. A Thought on Eternity
  110. A Receipt for Stewing Veal
  111. Ay and No: a Fable
  112. The Quidnuncki's: a Tale Occasioned by the Death of the Duke Regent of France
  113. Verses to be Placed under the Picture of England's Arch-Poet (Sir Richard Blackmore)
  114. Epitaph of Bye-Words
  115. My Own Epitaph
  116. Daphnis and Chloe
  117. The Coquet Mother and Her Daughter
  118. Newgate's Garland
  119. Molly Mog; or, The Fair Maid of the Inn
  120. A Ballad on Ale
  121. An Answer to the Sompner's Prologue of Chaucer: a Tale
  122. Work for a Cooper: a Tale
  123. The Equivocation: a Tale
  124. A True Story of an Apparition: a Tale
  125. The Mad-Dog: a Tale

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