Discovering poetry: Marvell the politician

For two centuries after his death, Andrew Marvell was remembered chiefly as a politician (primarily as a defender of religious toleration). It was only in the 20th century that his reputation as poet grew to such an extent that his political career became a contextual foot-note for his literary creations. Now, however, Marvell the politician is being rediscovered. Nigel Smith’s new biography, Andrew Marvell: The Chameleon, is the latest in a number of attempts to find a new way of balancing the different ideas of Marvell that his complex life (and the various interpretations of it), has left us.

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Matthew Lynn

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Given this history, we should not be surprised that Marvell remains one of the best political poets in English. More than enough poet laureates have shown us how hard it is to write readable good poetry about public events.