Richard Shepherd - Author of Odes Descriptive and Allegorical and The Nuptials

Biography

Versifier and theologican. A fellow of Corpus Christi College since 1757, where he received his M.A. (1757), B.D. (1765) and D.D. (1788). Author of Odes Descriptive and Allegorical (1761), The Nuptials; a didactick poem ( 1761), a translation from Greek of Polyænus's Stratagems of War (1793), and many other, mostly theologian works now totally forgotten. He was arch deacon of Bedford from 1783 until his death.

He was of the opinion that "[the ode] is built intirely upon Fancy, and Ease and Simplicity of Diction are its
peculiar Characteristicks."¹ The Nuptials was a poem in three books on principles governing happy marriage, described by Dwight L. Durning in 1964 as "a monumental bore".²

Gentleman's Magazine printed a fairly detailed biography and bibliography of Shepherd upon his death in 1809. It is on p. 91-92 of the complete "Gentlemen's Magazine and Historical Chronicle for the year 1809".³

Life with James Boswell

Boswell had read extracts from Odes Descriptive and Allegorical in The Scots Magazine in 1762 or 1761, and almost coincidentally recalled that the author was a fellow at Oxford. So, on April 25, 1763 he requested a meeting with Mr. Shepherd, who showed up, according to Boswells wishes, at the Blue Boar Inn (where Boswell was staying) at 11 at night. They got on well, and Shepherd intended to "cultivate an acquaintance with [Boswell]", but I am not sure if they ever met or corresponded again.

Notes

Note 1: Quoted from Havens, R. (1922)The Influence of Milton on English Poetry.

Note 2: In Durling, Dwight L. (1964) Georgic Tradition in English Poetry, p. 114

Note 3: http://books.google.dk/books?id=toPXggtAD34C&source=gbs_navlinks_s

Recommended literature

When Boswell had first read an extract of Shepherd's Odes Descriptive and Allegorical he had found that nobody were acquainted with the man. Boswell took this as a good sign. He is almost equally unknown today. Some extracts of his Odes can be found in Chapin's 1955 book Personification in Eighteenth-Century English Poetry, and other extracts from both The Nuptials and Odes are in Havens, R. (1922) The Influence of Milton on English Poetry. Both volumes are available online at Questia Online Library. Also, the AbeBooks used books search engine is always worth a try, but I haven't been able to find anything by or about Shepherd.

Be aware that Wilkie Collins might also have published a work called Odes Descriptive and Allegorical.

Mentioned in

Richard Shepherd is mentioned in:

• London Journal 1762-1763