Hudibras critical essays

Sir Hudibras, a Presbyterian knight, is among those who rode out against the monarchy during England’s civil war. He is a proud man, one who bends his knee to nothing but chivalry and suffers no blow but that which was given when he was dubbed a knight. Although he has some wit, he is shy about displaying it.

He knows Latin, Greek, and Hebrew; indeed, his talk is a piebald dialect, so heavily is it larded with Greek and Latin words and tags. He is learned in rhetoric, logic, and mathematics, and he frequently speaks in a manner demonstrating his learning.

Sir Hudibras and Ralpho sally out of their quarters to the attack. A blow on Ralpho’s horse causes the animal to unhorse his rider. Sir Hudibras, at first frightened, summons his courage and charges. The crowd disperses once again, and Sir Hudibras goes to the aid of his squire.

Talgol, a butcher, is also in the van, as is a woman named Trulla, an amazon of a damsel. When Sir Hudibras calls upon the people to disperse and return quietly to their homes, leaving Crowdero a prisoner, a fight begins. Ralpho is soon bucked off his horse when someone puts a burr under the animal’s tail.