18th-Century Literature

Jonathan Swift wrote Gulliver's Travels in 1726. The novel is a satirical allegory that criticizes human nature and society.

Samuel Richardson's Pamela, or Virtue Rewarded was published in 1740 and is considered to be the first epistolary novel. The novel is written in the form of letters between Pamela and her parents.

Henry Fielding wrote Tom Jones in 1749. The novel is a picaresque novel that follows the adventures of Tom Jones, a young man who is expelled from his home and sets out to make his fortune.

Tristram Shandy is a novel by Laurence Sterne, not Tobias Smollett.

Laurence Sterne wrote The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman in 1759. The novel is a satirical and experimental work that follows the life of Tristram Shandy, a young man who is born into a dysfunctional family.

Jane Austen's Emma is set in the fictional village of Highbury. The novel follows the story of Emma Woodhouse, a young woman who is convinced that she is a talented matchmaker.

Horace Walpole wrote The Castle of Otranto in 1764. The novel is considered to be the first Gothic novel.

The Monk is a novel by Matthew Lewis, not Ann Radcliffe.

Ode to a Nightingale is a poem by John Keats, not Alexander Pope.

Oliver Goldsmith wrote The Deserted Village in 1770. The poem is a pastoral elegy that laments the decline of rural life.

Lycidas is a poem by John Milton, not William Cowper.

Robert Burns wrote Tam o' Shanter in 1790. The poem is a narrative poem that tells the story of Tam o' Shanter, a farmer who encounters a group of witches on Halloween night.