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Notes
Unit 13: Steele- On the Death of Friend-Detailed Study and
Critical Appreciation

CONTENTS
Objectives
Introduction
13.1 Critical Appreciation
13.2 Summary
13.3 Key-Words
13.4 Review Questions
13.5 Further Readings

Objectives

After reading this Unit students will be able to:
• Discuss Steele as an Essayist
• Critically examine Steele’s On the Death of Friend

Introduction

Steele, Richard (1672–1729), English essayist and dramatist. Steele’s name is associated with that
of Joseph Addison, with whom he collaborated. Born in poor circumstances in Dublin, Steele was
brought up by his aunt and uncle, Lady Katherine Mildmay and Henry Gascoigne. His extended
family were influential Protestant gentry, but little is known of his parents. At fourteen, Steele
went to the Charterhouse School, where he met Addison.
In 1689 Steele went to Oxford University, where he did not take a degree but joined the second
troop of Life Guards in 1692. His first publication was a poem on the death of Queen Mary II in
1694; it was dedicated to Lord Cutts, colonel of the Coldstream Guards, who rewarded him with
the rank of captain and made him his secretary. Steele had a daughter with Elizabeth Tonson. He
did not acknowledge the fact at first, but later brought the child up in his home. While stationed
in Suffolk as commander of a garrison, he composed The Christian Hero (1701). In this reforming
tract and moral manual, Steele contrasted the passion and universal heroism of Christianity with
his perception of the false reasoning of Stoicism of the Roman emperors. Steele wrote his first play,
The Funeral, or Grief à la Mode, the same year. A didactic satire on hypocritical undertakers and
dishonest lawyers, it was praised by William III. Unfortunately, the king died before conferring
any favors on Steele. Finding promotion in the army increasingly difficult to achieve without
powerful connections, Steele left in 1705 to pursue success as a writer. In his second play, The
Lying Lover (1702), he continued his didactic dramatic vision, portraying virtuous characters as
models for audiences to emulate, as opposed to the predominantly “immoral” characters on the
Restoration stage.
In 1705, Steele married Margaret Ford Stretch. Because of his theatrical success, he was well
acquainted with London society and became involved in Whig politics. He was appointed gentleman
waiter to Prince George of Denmark, Queen Anne’s husband, in 1706. Engaging in the pamphlet
war with satirical essayist Jonathan Swift, his public opponent, Steele wrote The Crisis, attacking
the Tory ministry for its unenthusiastic support for a Protestant successor to the throne. In 1707,

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