Mock-Epic
One name stands out above all others in English Restoration literature. It's not John Dryden. (Sorry, we know that was probably misleading.) The writer we were thinking of is John Milton, best known for his towering masterpiece Paradise Lost. Milton pretty much invented the modern epic as we know it. But can you guess who invented the modern mock-epic?
That's right, you nailed it. Dryden made waves with his patented mock-epic, or mock-heroic poetic style, taking the dramatic power of Milton and turning it totally sideways for comedic effect. Later English writers like Alexander Pope and Jonathan Swift drew directly from Dryden's sharp wit and sense of comedic irony, as they perfected the art of satire. Those guys took his idea to the next level, but Dryden, with "Mac Flecknoe," did it first.