Samuel Butler (1612-1680)

Samuel Butler (1612-1680), English poet, born near Pershore, Worcestershire. He wrote the mock-heroic poem Hudibras, a satire on Puritanism, in octosyllabic couplets, inspired by the 17th-century Spanish novel Don Quixote. The first part of Hudibras was published in 1663, the second part in 1664, and the third part in 1678. Although the poem was a popular success and met with the favor of king Charles II of England, Butler died in poverty. Nearly a century after his death, two volumes of his satirical works were published as Genuine Remains in Verse and Prose of Mr. Samuel Butler (1759).