Trivia: or, the Art of Walking the Streets of London

by John Gay

O! may thy Virtue guard thee through the Roads
Of Drury's mazy Courts, and dark Abodes,
The Harlots guileful Paths, who nightly stand,
Where Katherine-street descends into the Strand.

Genres: Poetry, Classics, British Literature, 18th Century, Nonfiction, London, English Literature

64 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1714

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.

John Gay was an English poet and dramatist. He is best remembered for The Beggar's Opera (1728), set to music by Johann Christoph Pepusch. The characters, including Captain Macheath and Polly Peachum, became household names.

Reviews

[Luís · Rating 4 out of 5]

John Gay's Trivia, or the Art of Walking the Streets of London (1716), is the most vital from a large clutch of early eighteenth-century art of poems that worked in that instructional space forever opened up by Virgil's Georgics. It is a work that stands well beside the other Scriblerian poems, which are more often readable and remarked upon, such as the lyrics of Swift and Pope. It complements their achievements in many ways: Gay's multi-layered ironies had too much blanked out as less substantial than their satires. Trivia (the three courses, the crossroads, where the poet scratches out a song) is a London poem of resolutely public matter, a series of street portraits, a mock classical overlay, and an ironic song praising emerging structures of order.

[JK · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was a very long poem.
Years of experience
With very long poems
Have taught me
That very long poems are,
In fact,
My arch nemesis.

[Peter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad. Think this will need a second teading to fully understand and appreciate

[Danielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

What is not to like about an eighteenth-century flâneur who satirically plays on the literal walks of life through London? I loved this!

[Marjolein (UrlPhantomhive) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read all my reviews on http://urlphantomhive.booklikes.com

Two stars only, despite the fact that the subject is London and I would really like to go there this summer but with Corona, it is unsure whether this will be possible!

To me, this felt like John Gay wanted to write an epic tale about, walking through London. There is loads of references to Greek Mythology and a lot of places in London are mentioned, but it is all rather random. Besides, the rhyming scheme felt forced, and although I am sure it is not easy to do, it did not feel right.

Not my style.

~Little Black Classics #107~

[chloe · Rating 3 out of 5]

they ought to give out complimentary copies of this on the southbound LNER

[Samuel · Rating 3 out of 5]

A mock-heroic poem that amusingly advises readers on the art of walking around successfully in London - who to avoid, what to wear, when to 'give the wall', etc. - written ironically with the lofty register of the classical myths. Something here for fans of Alexander Pope, Jonathan Swift and other Scriblerians.

[Mei Hoe · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great, banterous poem filled with prostitutes, shoe shiners, and really weird side stories about sewers. It's odd, it's funny, and weirdly modern for something written so long ago. Truly, the only guide to London you should be following.

[Ayesyah Abdullah · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is beautifully written, really made me feel as if i was walking down the street of London the 18th century. A tad challenging tho as it was classical english.

[Kim Schouwenaar · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like this a lot more than I though I would. John Gay skilfully interweaves classical references with specific places in London and events that he observes as a pedestrian. Trivia, which comes from the latin triviis (crossroads) and is another name for the goddess Diana (goddess of crossroads), is essentially one of the first travel narratives and guidebooks for walking through London.

Gay really said 'I am going to walk through London and look at what's happening and write a long poem in heroic couplets about it', and I really respect that. The satirical elements made it very fun to read, regardless the many, many, many classical and biblical references that I had to look up.

[Felicity · Rating 5 out of 5]

A witty eighteenth-century guide to avoiding pitfalls and pratfalls while traversing London on foot. Rain, dirt and slush are predictable and unavoidable; waste water voided from windows and items carelessly ejected are best anticipated and artfully dodged. Thus we are forewarned that 'here, thick as hailstones pour / Turnips, and half-hatch'd eggs (a mingled show'r) / Among the rabble rain: some random throw / May with the trickling yolk thy cheek o'erflow.' However much egging may offend the victim's dignity, the unwary pedestrian risks mortal injury through coronation 'from on high / Where masons mount the ladder, fragments fly; / Mortar, and crumbled lime in show'rs descend / And o'er thy head destructive tiles impend.' And then, of course, 'In harden'd orbs the school-boy moulds the snow / To mark the coachman with a dextrous throw,' resulting in collateral damage to the matron and distress to the passing damsel. A guide to navigating city streets while circumventing the twin hazards of Scylla and Charybdis, the street traders and tricksters, is no trivial pursuit; it demands updating as often as my venerable MacBook. The fast food may differ in kind, but the unlovely recreational habit of discarding leftovers, both uneaten and undigested, remains a blight on the urban environment. On a recent trip to the great wen, I found myself glued to a seat by a goblet of chewing gum, an unconsidered trifle of our times. If Milton shouldst be living at Wordsworth's hour, how much greater need hath the metropolis of another Gay, a poet of postmillennial detritus!

[Shaun · Rating 5 out of 5]

I did not think that I was going to like this book as much as I did. The poem is about the practice of Walking the Streets of London (or the Art), and John Gay uses such wonderfully intricate language to describe the dangers and distress that may come in the 18th Century city. It offers a lovely glimpse into the history of London, and is extremely animated by different anecdotes, bits of local history, and poetic allusion. I highly recommend it to anyone interested in city life, poetics, and a bit of off beat poetry.

[Simone · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short three-part poem, fitting to the subtitle, in which John Gay gives a lively descriptions of the London of his time (early 18th century). Seemingly set during winter, he gives advice on how to navigate the different peoples and situations one may encounter on the street. Fairly old-fashioned, but a fun little book.

[Gabor Hernadi · Rating 3 out of 5]

A long long poem about the art of walking in London. Must have been very entertaining for the readers of the era but less enjoyable today because of the old fashioned language and the lots of antique references.

[Mairead · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read this for uni and discovered that long poems are not my thing.

[Alexandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read for uni

[Junipers Corner · Rating 1 out of 5]

If I could give this 0 stars I would.

[tychemis · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Ted · Rating 2 out of 5]

Keep out of the sewers and watch out for chamber pot dumpings.

[Maxine McEwan · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.5 stars. Don't ask me about this book, I probably won't remember I read it.

[Rezky Ramadhani · Rating 4 out of 5]

a mind-blowing poem, and (i know) how much I don't enjoy a poem.
this one (maybe because I am forced to read it) turned to something that slightly rises my interest in poem field.
moreover, I love all mythological characters and stories that John Gay put in here. it makes it magical and beautiful but do not degrade the criticism inside it.

[Samantha · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

To be honest I was expecting this to be a little more humorous than it was. All the same, it was an interesting, poetic take on what it was like to walk around the streets of London in the 18th Century.

[Nicki Markus · Rating 4 out of 5]

Delightful poetic reflections and advice about visiting London from John Gay.