ABSTRACT
A.H.Nethercot of Northwestern University made a sustained scholarly attempt to map the reputation of the Metaphysical poets, which included the writing of books on Abraham Cowley and The Attitude toward Metaphysical Poetry in Neo-classical England. In an essay published in Modern Language Notes, he traced the lineage of the designation itself (‘The Term “Metaphysical Poets” before Johnson’, Modern Language Notes, 37 (1922), 11-17).
