The Village (poem)

The Village is a narrative poem by George Crabbe, published in 1783.

The poem contrasts the traditional representation of the rural idyll in Augustan poetry with the realities of village life.

In early 1781 Crabbe wrote a letter to statesman and author Edmund Burke asking for help, in which he included samples of his poetry.

"[3] Johnson's friend and biographer James Boswell also praised The Village.

It was said at the time of publication that Johnson had made extensive changes to the poem, but Boswell responded by saying that "the aid given by Johnson to the poem, as to The Traveller and Deserted Village of Goldsmith, were so small as by no means to impair the distinguished merit of the author.