A H I ST O RY O F

E N G LI SH LI T E R A T U RE

W ILLIAM V A U GH N M O O D Y
A SSIS TA N T P R O F ESS OR O F E NGLIS H L I T ER AT URE I N T HE

U N I VE RSI T Y O F C H I C A GO

A ND

R O B E RT M O R SS LO VE TT
AS SIS T A N T P RO F E SS O R OF E N GLIS H E RSI TY
I N T H E UN I V

O F C HI C A G O

NE W YO RK

C H A R L E S S C R I B N E R S SO N S
’

1 906
34 .

COPYRIGHT. 1 902 , BY

I
SCR B NER S SONS
’
 P REF A CE

SE V E RAL dangers lie writer of an elementary

b efore the
h ist o ry of lite ratur e He may conc e iv e his task too am bi
.

t i ou sly and in his z eal for thorough ne ss m ay los e th at

,

cl e a rn es s and si m plicity of pl an which is i n di sp ensabl e i n

t he first pre sent ation of a l arge subj e ct He m ay on the .

,

o th e r h an d b e t e m pt e d to si m pli f y his matte r artifici ally

, ,

a nd in so doi ng may fail to giv e the stud e nt any saf e su b

str u cture upon which to build in l ater study Again in .

,

strivi ng to b e sci en ti fi c he m ay b e only dry ; or in a

,

wh o l esom e d esire to b e entertai ning he may b e only gos ,

sipy or n ebulous T he presen t volu me wh e th e r or not it

.
,

a v o ids th e se dange rs has b e en pr ep ared with f ull co nscious

,

n e s s of th em . An atte mpt has h e re b ee n mad e to pre sen t

the histo ry of E nglish lite rature f ro m the earli est ti m e s to
our own day in a historical sch e m e si mple enough to b e
,

appre h end e d by you ng stud ents ye t a ccur a t

, e an d sub
s ta n tial e n ough to s e rve as a p e rmanen t b asis f or study ,

ho we v e r f ar the subj e ct is pursu e d But within the li m its

.

o f this fo r mal sch e me the fact has b e en h eld const antly in

,

m i n d th at lite rature b e ing th e vi tal and fl u id thi ng it is

, ,

m u s t b e taught if at all m ore by suggestion an d by sti m

, , ,

u l a ti on of the stud e nt s own i nsti n ctive m ental li fe th an by

’
,

do gm a tic assertion More th an any oth e r bran ch of stu dy

.
,

li te ra ture d emands on the part of the t each er an attitud e

o f res p e ct toward th e i nt ellige n c e of the stud ent n d if
; a

a t an y poi nt the authors of this book ma see m to h v

y a e

V
 PRE F A C E

tak en too much al e rtness of m in d for grante d th e ir de ,

fe nce m ust b e th at only by ch all enge and i nvita tio n can

an y p e rm anen t r e sult in the way of i n tell e ct u al growth

b e accomplish ed T he h istori an of E nglish lite rature d e al s

.

with the m ost fasci nating of stori es the story of the i magi
,

nativ e care e r of a gi fte d rac e ; he is in duty bou n d not to

ch eap en or t o dull his th eme but so far as in him lie s to

, , ,

giv e those whom he addresses a realizing sense of the mag

n i tu de of our co mm on h e rit age in l e tte rs T o do this he . ,

m ust w ork in the lite rary spirit and with f reedo m of ap

,

p eal to all the l atent cap abiliti e s of his read e r s m i nd ’

.

T he proportion s of this book h av e b een carefu lly con

side re d. A full h al f of the sp ac e has b e en given to the
last two c en turie s and m uch m ore to the n i ne teenth cen
,

t u ry th an to the e ighteenth T he se and oth e r app o rti on

.

m e n ts of sp ace hav e b e en mad e not on absolute grou nds

, ,

but with the de sign of throwi ng in to prom i ne nce what i s

m ost i mportant for a st u d ent to l earn upo n h is first ap
proach to the subj e ct The ch ief figures in each e ra hav e
.

be en se t in reli ef and the m i nor figure s hav e be en groupe d

,

ab out th e m in an e nd eavor thus to sugge st th e ir re l ativ e

,

significance A full w orki ng bibliography i ncludi ng te xts

. , ,

biography and criticis m has been a dded in the hop e th a t

, , ,

it m ay b e of assistan c e no t o nly in the current work of the

classroom but also as a guid e for later study
, .

The th anks of the authors are du e to P ro f ess or F N . .

Robi ns on of H arvard Univ e rsity f or his kindness in criti

, ,

cising the contents of the early ch apte rs .

 C O N TE N T S

T H E AN GLO S AXON PE R I O D
-

II . T H E N OR MAN F RE N CH P E R I O D
-

III . T H E A G E O F C HA UCE R

IV . T H E R E NAISSAN CE : N O N DR A MAT I C LIT E R AT UR E

-

To T H E D E A TH O F SP E NSE R

T H E RE NAISSAN CE : T H E DR A M A BE FOR E S H AK E
SP E AR E
T H E RE NAISSANCE : S H AK E SP E AR E

S E V E NT E E N T H C E NTUR Y S H AK E SP E AR E
’
VI I . THE : S

C ONTE MP OR AR I E S AN D S UCC E SSOR S IN TH E

D R AM A

V I II . T HE S E V E NT E E NT H C E N TUR Y : N O N D R A MA T I C
LIT E R AT UR E BE FOR E T HE R E STO R A TI O N

IX . T HE S E V E N T E E NT H C E N TUR Y : T HE R E STO R A

T ION

T HE E I G H T E E NT H C E N T UR Y : T HE R E IGN OF

C LASSIC ISM

XI . T H E E IG H TE E NT H C E N TUR Y : T H E N OV E L

X II . T H E E IG H T E E NT H C E N T UR Y : T H E R E V I VA L O F

RO M ANT IC ISM
 CO N TE N TS
C HA PT ER E
P AG

X II I . T H E N IN E T E E NT H C E NT UR Y : T H E T R I UM P H O F
ROM ANT I CI SM
X IV . T HE N IN E T E E NTH C E N T UR Y : THE VI CT OR I AN
E RA

XV . T H E N I N E T E E N T H C E N TUR Y : T HE N OVE L

R E A D I NG G UI D E

IN D E X
 A H I ST O RY O F
E N G LI SH LI T E R A T U R E

CHA PTER I

TH E A N G LO S AXO N
-
PERI OD

T o fi nd the b egi nni ngs of English literature we must go

b ack to a time wh en the anc estors of the English p eopl e
liv e d on the conti nent of Europ e and spoke a tongu e which
, ,

though rel ated in its roots to m odern English is u nintelli ,

i b le to us without sp e ci al study A nglo Saxo n or O ld

g
-
.
,

E nglish b elongs to the low Ge rm an family of langu age s of

,
-
,

which Dutch is the b est mod e rn repre sen tative ; and the
m en who sp ok e it lived wh en history first discove rs th em
, ,

a lon g the Ger man oc ean fro m the m outh of the The
a “
R hi ne to the p eni nsul a of J utland T hey w e re
.

divide d i nto thre e princip al branch es : the Saxons dwelli ng ,

n ea r th e m outh of the E lb e ; the Angl e s i nhabiting the

,

so uth west part of Denmark and the J utes e xtending ,

n orth of the Angl e s i n to m od e rn J utl an d .

H o w e xtensive th e se trib e s w ere and how far i nto the

,

i n te rior th eir territori es reach e d we do not know Th at

, .

p ortion of them which co ncern s us dwelt along The“ Home

,

the sea ; th eir early po e try giv e s gli m ps e s of W ar a nd Sea ?

littl e tribal or fam ily settl ements bou nd e d on

,

o ne sid e by wild m o ors and d ens e f or e sts wh e re dw elt ,

mons tro u s creatures of m ist and d arkne ss and on the oth er

,
 TH E A N GLo SA o -
P ER IO D 3

Christi anity, and remem b e r th at we h av e to do with me n

wh o se gods w ere only magn i fi e d i mages of th e ir own wild
na tu r e s : m e n who d e lighte d i n bloodsh e d and in plu nd e r ,

an d w e re m uch given to d e e p dri n ki ng in th e m ead h all

;
-

bu t who n e ve rth el ess w e re sensitive to bl ame and praise ,

w e re f ull of rude chiv alry and dign ity and w ere al ert to ,

th e poe try of li fe to its m yst e ry an d its p ath os

, .

O u r Anglo S axon an cestors h ad in an e m i nent d eg ree

-

also that p assion which giv e s the first i m pulse to lit e ra tur e

am on g a pri m itiv e p e opl e — lov e of glory Wh en the firs t .

r e corde d h ero of the rac e Be ow u lf has me t his d eath and

, , ,

his f ollow e rs are re calling his nobl e nature they say as ,

“
th e ir l as t word th at he was of all world ki ngs the m ost -

”
d e sirous of praise . It was n ot e nough for such m en as he
th at th e y should sp en d th e ir liv e s in gl orious adv enture s
t h ey desire d to see th e ir name s and th e ir d eeds spre ad
am o n g distan t p e opl e s and h and e d down to u nborn ge n e r

a t ion s . H enc e the po e t who alone could i nsure this fam e

, ,

was held in high e ste e m T wo classe s of si ng

.
The“
8 mm “
e rs we re r e co gn iz e d first the gleema n ( gleéma n)
, ,

w h o did not create his own songs but m e rely (lik e the ,

G ree k rhapsodist ) ch ant e d wh at he had l e arne d f ro m oth

e rs ; an d s e co n d the the poe t prop e r who t ook the ,

c rud e mate ri al of hist ory and l eg en d which lay ab o ut hi m ,

a n d sh ap e d it i nto song . S ome tim e s the 8 061) was p erm a

u e n tly attach e d to t he court of an ae th e li ng o r lo rd was , ,

g ra n te d l an d an d tr e a sur e an d was rai se d by virtu e of his

,

oe t craf t to the s am e positio n of h on or which the oth e r

p
-

f ollow e rs of the ae th eli ng h e ld by virtu e of th eir prow e ss in

b attl e . Some tim e s he w and e re d f ro m c ourt to court de ,

e n di n g f or a hospit abl e r ec e ptio n upon the curiosity of

p
his host concerning the stori e s he had to ch ant .

T wo ve ry an ci e nt bits of po e try one of th e m prob ably

,

the old e st i n our lit e ratur e t e ll of the fortu ne s of th e

,

scOp . O ne of th e m d eals with the wand e ri ng and the

oth er with the stationary si nger .
4 A HI STO RY OF E N G L ISH LI TERATURE

The firs t is the fragment known as Widsith or Th e ,

”

Far wand ere r

-
”
The po e m opens
. Widsi th spak e u n , ,

loc ked his word hoard ; he who many a tribe had

Wldd tll
me t on ea rth who had trav ell ed through many a
.

,
”
f ol k
. Th en f ollows a list of famous pri nc es of the past an ,

e nu m eratio n of the v a rious pe opl e s and cou ntri es the hard

has vi site d and praises of th ose princes who have entertaine d

,

hi m ge ne rously He d ecl ares th at he has b een with Owsar

.
,
”
who had sway ov e r the j oyous citi es and ev en wit h th e ,

Israe lites the Egyp ti ans and the Ind ians The poe m end s
, , .

with a general d escriptio n of the wand e ring si nge r s l ife ’

,

tou ch ed at the cl ose with the stoic mel ancholy whi ch o ccu rs
so of te n in Anglo Saxon p oe try -
T hus rovi ng wit h ,

so ng d evi ces wand er the gl ee men through many lands

- .

E ve r north or south th ey fi nd one kn o wi ng i n

so ngs and libe ral of gif ts who before his court will e xal t
,

his grand eur and show his earl shi p ; u nti l all d e parts light -
,
”
and lif e toge th e r This f ragmen t has been h eld by so me
.

scholars to date in part at l east fro m the fourth ce ntury

, , .

If so it is the old est bit of v e rse in any mod e rn langu age ,

”
and wi th it E nglish lite rat ure u nlocks its word hoard -
.

T he se co nd of th es e poe ms d ealing with the fortu nes of

°

the 8061) is prob ably not nearly so old I t is called Deor s .

’

mom L ament
”
and aga in the soap hi mself sp eak s
, H i s .

“M ‘ skill has been e clipsed by ano the r singe r Heor ,

re a ds and his lord has tak en aw ay f ro m him his land righ t

,
-

and his pl ace at court in ord e r to b estow th e m upo n the su c

,

cessfu l rival T he poe t co mforts hi mself by rec alling oth e r

.

mi sfort u nes which men and wo men in pas t ti me h av e live d

to ov erco me and ends each rud e stroph e wi th the refrai n
, ,
”
T ha t he en dured th is also may I , T he p e rso nal natu re .

of the th em e the pl ai ntive sadne ss of the to ne and a bov e

, ,

all the re frai n give the poe m e xtraordi nary inte re st

, It .

has been call ed the fi rst E nglish lyric —with j usti ce if we , ,

take both the word English and the wo rd lyric in the b road
es t 3 61186.
 TH E AN G LO SAXON
-
PERI OD

Bu t by far the most importan t work which remai ns to

us f ro m the p agan p e riod of Anglo S axo n po e try is the -

long poe m e ntitle d fro m its h ero B eowu lf It

, , .

is so m e thi ng ove r thr ee th o usan d li ne s in l ength ,

and though the man uscript is brok en h e re and th ere th es e

, ,

breaks are not su ffi ci en t to mar the e ff e ct of artistic com

p le te ne ss It .p e rh aps e xist e d at first i n th e f orm of sh o rt
songs which we re su ng am ong the Angl e s and J ute s
, ,

inhabiting what is now Denm ark and amo ng the Goths , ,

in south e rn Swe d en Prob ably as early as the sixth ce n

.
( C4 4

tu ry th e s e l ays had begu n to coal esce but j ust wh en the ,

o m too k its pr n t f o rm we do n ot k now " T h story r

p e ese e .

of the po e m is as follows

Hrothgar king of the We st Dane s has built for hi msel f

,
-
,

near the se a a g reat h all nam e d He orot wh e re h e m ay sit

( 1 0 ? 1
, ,

with his th ane s at the m ead dri nki ng and list e n to the -
,

chan ti n g of the gl e em e n For a whil e he liv e s in h appi

.

ness and is k now n far an d wid e as a sple ndid and libe ral
,

prin ce But one night th ere com es fro m the moth“

.
,

wild m arch land the hau nt of all u nearthly and

-
,
and G ° nd ° l f °

mali gn creature s a te rrible m onste r nam e d Grend e l

, En .

teri ng the mead h all he slays thirty of the sl eepi ng Dane s

-
,

and carri e s th eir corpse s away to his l air The ne xt night .

the sam e thi ng is r ep e ate d N o mortal powe r s ee m s

.

able to cop e with the gigantic f o e In the wi nte r nights .

Grendel couch e s in the spl e ndid h all de fi ling all its b right ,

orname n ts For tw e lve wi nt e rs this scourge afiiicts the

.

West Danes u n til Hrothgar s spirit is brok en

-
,
’
.

At l ast the story of Gre nd el s d ee ds crosse s the sea to

’

Gothland whe re you ng B eowul f dwells at the c ourt of his

,

uncl e K i ng Hygelac He de term i ne s to go to Hrothgar s ’

.
,

assistanc e With fifteen companions he em barks

. De .

p a r ted t he n ov er th e w a v y se a th e f o a m y n e ck e d fl oa t e r -
,

In all pro b ab ility the d e v e lopme nt o f B eowulf into a co mpl e te poe m

took place la rge ly on Enghsh s oil, and was comple te d by the e nd of the
eighth ce ntu rV .
6 A HISTO RY ? E
or N G LI SH LI T E RA T URE

mos t li k e to a bird At dawn of the second da y the voy

.

ag ers ca tch si ght of the pro m o ntori e s of Hro thga r s l an d

’

m om a n d soo n f ro m t he top o f t,
he cli ff s th e y b e h o ld ,

W
in the val e be neath th e m the f am ous h all
'
rich ,

and gold vari ega te d m ost glori ous of dw e llin gs u nd e r the

-
,

fi rma me nt ”
T he you ng h e ro e s in th e ir shi n i ng war byr
.

“
and wi th th e ir spe ars l ik e a gre y ashwood ab o ve
” “
th e ir h eads are u sh e re d into the h all wh e re Hr o thgar
,
”
si ts old and h airl ess am i d his b and of ea rls
, , B eowu lf .

craves pe rmiss ion to cl e anse Heorot o f its p e st and H ro th ,

co s ts h t oths sh ll bid m
’
g ar n e n t a th e G a a e G re n d e l s c o i n g i n ,

the hall th at night M eanwhil e u n ti l da rk ne ss d raws on

.
, ,

the thanes of Hrothg ar and the f oll owe rs of Be ow u l f s it

“ ”
dri nki ng mead the bright swee t li q uor an d listeni ng to
, ,

the songs of the gl ee ma n T he fea st draws to a close wh e n

.

Weal theo w Hrothgar s qu ee n af te r sole m nly h andi ng the

,
’
,

mead cup to he r lord and to B eowul f and biddi ng th e m

-
,
”
be blith e a t the be e r dri nki ng go es through the h al l -
,

d is tributi ng gi fts amo ng the th ane s T he k i ng q u een . , ,

and th e ir foll ow e rs th e n withdra w to anoth e r buildi ng f o r

the night whil e B eow u lf and his m en lie down each wit h
, ,

his armor hu ng o n the nail above his h ead to w ait f or the ,

co ming of Gre nd el Al l fall as l ee p e xce pt B e owulf who

.
,
“ ”
awaits in angry mood the b attl e m ee ti ng - .

The co mi ng of the mo ns te r is d es cribe d with gr e wso me

force . T h e n ca me fro m the moors u nde r t he m i s ty ,

T h. g hills G r e n d e l st a lki,ng Str a ightw a y h e .

“ u“ rush ed on the doo r fas t with fire h ard e ne d -

,

bands . O n the v ari e ga te d floor the fi end trod ; he

w ent wrath of m ood fro m h is eyes stood a horrid light lik e
,

fla me . H e saw in the hall many warriors sl ee pi ng a ,

”
kindred band T h en his heart l augh e d
. IIe se iz e s .

“
o ne of the w arriors bite s hi s bo ne casi ngs dri nks the
,
-
,

blood fro m his v ei ns and gree d ily d e vou rs him e ve n to ,

the hands and fee t Ne xt he mak es for B eowulf but th e

.
,

Corse l e ts of ma il .
 TH E A N GLo- SA o PE RI OD 7

hero, who has in

his h ands the strength of thirty m en ,

seiz es the f i end with such a m ighty h and grip th at he is -

terror stricken and turns to fl ee Be owulf ke e ps his grip

-
.
,

and a f e ar f ul struggl e b e gi n s The warrio rs awak ene d .

,

by th e co m ba t and the h orrid lay sung by God s d e ni e r ’

,

try to bri ng h elp with th e ir swords but no mortal w eap on ,

can wou nd Gr e nd el At last the m o nste r wre nch e s his

.

own a rm f ro m its s o ck e t and fl ee s to his lair to die l eavi ng ,

Be owulf to nail the ghastly trophy in triu mph abo ve

the door of He orot .

In the m o rni ng th e re is great r ej oici ng T he ki ng .

,

with the qu een and he r co m p any of maid ens com e through ,

the m e adows to gaz e in wo nd e r on the huge arm and claw

nail e d b e nea th the gold ro of of the h all Wh en the e ven .

i ng fe as t begi ns B e owulf sits b e t we e n the two so ns of the

,

—
ki n g and re ceive s the pre cious gi f ts j e wels ri ngs and a
, , , ,

gold e n n e cklac e — which the q u ee n pre sents to him But

, .

a t n ight fall wh en the w arriors hav e agai n l ai n dow n to

-
,

sl e e p in the hall Grendel s m oth e r c om es to tak e vengeance

,
’

f or he r son She se iz e s one of Hrothgar s nobl e s Aes

’
.
,

ch e re and bears him aw ay to her wate ry den

, .

B e o wulf vows to see k the new foe at the bottom of he r

fe n pool and the re grapple with he r
-
, With Hrothgar and .

a b an d of f ollow e rs he goe s alo ng the cli ff s

T he “ ht _

an d wi n dy p ro m o ntori e s which bou nd the m o o r b enea t he

o n th e seaw ard sid e u n til he co m e s to Grendel s

’
,

l a ir It is a sea pool shut in by precipito us rocks and

.
-
, ,

o v e rhu ng by the sh aggy tru n ks and age d writh e n boughs

”
of a j oyle ss woo d T re mbli ng passe rs by h av e s ee n fi re
.
-

fl e e ting on the wa v e s at night and the h art w eari ed by the ,

h o u n ds will lie down and die on th ese banks rath e r th an

pl u nge i nto the u nholy w ate rs T he pool is so d eep that it .

’
is a day s space before Be owulf reache s the b otto m Snak e s .

a n d b e asts of the shi ni ng d e e p mak e war on hi m as h e de

s ce nds A t last he finds hi m sel f in a sub m ari ne cave wh e re

.

t he me re wife is lurki ng and a gh astly struggl e b egi ns

-
, .
8 A H I SToRY o r E N G L ISH LITERATU RE

O n ce the gi ant ess throws Beowul f to the grou nd and ,

sitti ng astrid e his body draws out her broad sh ort k ni fe to

d esp atch him but with a sup erhu man eff ort hc stru ggl es
up agai n throws away his brok en sword and se iz e s f rom a
,

h eap of arm s a magic bl ad e f o rged by giants of old ti me ,

with it he h e ws off the head of Grendel s mo the r and th e n ’

,

th at of Grend el wh o se d ead body he fi nds lyi ng in the

,

cave So p oison ous is the blood of Grend el th at it m elts

.

the me tal of the bl ad e l eaving o nly the cur ve d hilt in

,

Be owul f s h and Wh e n he reapp ears with his trophi e s at

’
.

t he surfac e of the wate r a ll h av e given hi m up for d ead , .

Great is the jubil atio n wh en the h e ro app ears with his

th ane s and throws up on the floor of the m ead h all the two
,
-

gigantic h eads which four m en api e ce can h ardly carry

, .

T he se con d grea t e piso d e o f the po e m is B e owul f s fight

’

with the D ragon of the Gold ho ard B e o wul f has b een -

.

re igni ng as ki ng for fif ty years and is now an

old m an wh e n cal am ity comes upo n him and
,

his pe opl e in the sh ape of a mo nste r of the

se r pe nt ki nd which fli e s by nigh t envelop ed in fi re ; and
-
,

which in rev enge for the th e ft of a gold cup fro m its p re

,

cio u s hoard burns the ki ng s h all O ld as he is B eowul f

’
.
, ,

fi ghts the dragon si ngl e h and ed He sl ays the m o nst e r i n

-
.

its lair but hi mself re ce ives his mortal hurt

, .

T he d eath of the old ki ng is picture squ e an d touchi ng .

“
He bids his th ane b ri ng out fro m the dragon s de n
’
the
mat], of B oo gold tr easur
. e the j e w e ls
-
th e curious , g e m s i n , ,

ord er that d eath may b e softe r to him seei ng ,

t he wealth he has g ai ned for his p e opl e Wiglaf enteri ng .

,

“
the cave of the old twilight fl ier sees dish e s stan d -
,

ing vessels of m en of y o re f ootle ss th e ir ornam e nts fall en

, , ,

aw ay ; th er e was m a ny a h el m old and rusty and m an y ,

”
ar m l e ts cu nni ngly faste ne d and ov e r the ho ard droops a ,

“ ”
m agic banne r al l gold e n l o ck e d by arts of so n g
, , f ro m ,

which a light is sh ed ove r the treasure B e o wul f gaz es .

with dyi ng ey e s upon the pre cious thi ngs ; th en he asks

10 A HIS TO RY or E N G LISH LI T E RATU RE

WHI LE the h ave just d escribed was be gi nn ing

lite ra ture we
to tak e form in the m oth e rl and of the Anglo Saxo n pe opl e -
,

mm M . th e ir f u t u re isl an d ho m e w as be
-
ing m ad e i n to a

fi hfim m m rl i
’
provi n c e o f t he R o an E pi re T he v e ry ea .

m ‘ m n" es t inha bitants o f B ritai n th at myste ri ous race

,

which may ha ve raised the huge circle of mo noliths a t

n , a —
S toneh e ge had give n w y how ea rly we do not kno w
- to a Celtic sp eaki ng pe opl e Be fore the Ro man co n
-
.

qu es t this p eopl e spread ov e r F rance Spai n and all the , ,

British isl ands T he Ce lts we re of an i m pe tuous ch aracte r

.
,

i m agi nati ve curious and quick to l ea rn T he Ro man

, , .

hi sto rians te ll us of th e ir eage r ne ss for ne ws of th e ir de ,

light in cle ver spee ch and quick re tort Th e ir ea rly lite r .

ature sh o ws a d e lica te fa ncy a ki nd o f wild grac e and a

,

l o ve o f be auty f or its o wn sak e stri k i ngly in co ntrast wi th

,

the s ter n po e try of the Angl o Saxon s e ep -

But this ve ry .

q uickness of sy mp athy and of i ntelligence p roved fatal to

th eir na tional e xi stence Wh en the Ro man l egi ons crosse d
.

f ro m Gaul th e re was a short s pac e of fi erce resistanc e an d ,

th e n the Cel ts acce pted from curiosity as much as f ro m

,

co mpulsi on the i m p osing Ro man civi l iz ation So me o f

, .

t he more s tubbo rn fl e d to t he fastn esse s of Wale s an d

Sco tl and and th e re co nti nu e d e ve n to our o wn da y th e ir
,

C e l ti c trad i tions ; b u t the grea te r pa rt see m to ha ve su b

m itted to the Ro man as if by a k i nd of fasci natio n e ve n
, ,

givi ng up th e ir l angu age to l ea rn tha t of their co nqu e ro rs .

The Ro mans lik e the E nglish of our own d ay ca rri e d

, ,

w he rev e r th ey we nt the ir spl e ndid but so me wh at ri gid ci v

ilizati on and by the e nd of the f ourth c e ntury E ngl an d
,

was d otted with town s and villas wh e re am id pillare d po r ,

ti coca m osaic pave me nts ma rbl e ba ths foru ms and hi p

, , ,

odro mes a Ro man e m p e ror could find hi m se l f a t ho me

p , .

Th i s was the s ta te o f E ngland wh e n th e re be gan th a t

remar kable se ri es o f move me nts on the pa r t of the wil d
 T H E A N GLo-SA x O N PE RI OD 11

G e rm an i c tribes which we k now as the

,
migration .

A bo ut the end of the f ourth c e ntury urge d by a comm o n ,

i m pul se tribe af te r tribe sw ept southward some by sea to

, ,

h arry t he coasts of Gaul and Britai n some ove r the Alps ,

a nd t he Pyr ene e s to b atte r at the gat e s of Rome to plu n d e r

, ,

t he rich islands of the Medit erranean and to fou nd a ki ng ,

d o m i n Af rica . T he Ro man l e gions w ere r ec alled f ro m

B ritai n to gu ard the i mp e ri al city and the Celtic
,
T he u gh»
i nh abi tants weakened by three centuri es Of civil
$3
,
In a 11 v

i zed li f e w e re l ef t to struggl e u naid e d agai nst

,

t he pirate bands of J ut e s Saxo ns and Angle s which ap

, , ,

p e are d e v e ry spri ng in i n cr e as i ng n u m b e rs upo n th e ir co as t .

T he Ce l ts did not yi e ld to th e se savage invad e rs so re adily

a s th e y had do ne to the poli sh e d Ro m an s Fro m the ti m e
.

w h e n the first b and of J ute s l and e d on the isl e of T h ane t

t o t he ti me wh en the i nv ad e rs had subj ugat ed the isl an d
a n d se t up the Anglo S axon ki ngdo m s a c entury and a
-
,

h al f e l aps ed during which all the m o nu me nts which Ro m e

,

h ad l e f t w e re rui ned if not oblite rated During th e se .

y e a rs o f struggl e th e r e b e ga n to grow up about th e, p e rso n

o f a n obscur e Celtic l ead e r th at cycl e of stori e s which was

,

t o prov e so f ruitful of poe try both i n F rance and England ,

— the legends of Arthur f ou nde r of the Rou nd Tabl e

, ,

a n d d e fe n d e r of the w e st e rn Brito n s against the w eak en i ng

o w e r of Rome and the growi ng f ury of the b arbari an s

p .

M an y Celts fl ed as in the ti me s of the Ro man in vasion

, ,

i n to Wal e s and Scotl and ; many w e re kill ed ; but a gre at

n u m b e r w er e u ndoubt e dly ab sorb e d by the i nvadi ng rac e .

T h e y comm u nicate d to that race its fi rst l eave n th ey

m ad e it m ore sensitive and re cepti ve and gav e it a touch ,

o f e xtra vagan ce and gaye ty which af te r b e i ng re i nf orce d

, ,

b y si m il ar e leme nts in the tem pe ram en t of the N orm an

F re n ch i nvad e rs was to blossom in the swee t hu m or of
,

C h a uc e r i n the ri ch fancy of Sp en se r and in the broad hu

, ,

m an ity of Shake sp eare . B u t this e ff e ct was not to b e m an

ifes t for a long ti me to com e .T he literature which arose
12 A HISTO RY or E NGLISH LI TERA T URE

in E ngl and t r the S axon co nqu e st shows littl e trace of

af e ,

it T he i mm edi a te i nflu ence was a religi ous one and the

.
,

poetry we sh all now co nsid e r is nearly all d ee ply colo re d

with re ligious th ou ght and feeli ng .

T he Christian teachi ng came in to E ngland in two d iff e r

e nt stre am s ,one f r om Ro me o ne f ro m Ir e l and which
, ,

cou n try had beenwon from h eath enism se ve ral

T he cum
c enturi es before T he first st ream b egan late
.

in the s ixth cen tury with the c om i ng of A u ,

gu s ti ne . Littl e by littl e afte r the adv e nt of this grea t

,

m issionary am ong the S axo ns in the south of E ngland the ,

n e w cre e d drov e o u t the old wi nn i ng its way by virtu e ,

of its gre at e r id eality and the auth o rity with which it

,

spoke of m an s e xiste nc e b e yond the grave T his str eam

’
.

of re li gious i nflu e nc e which c ame f rom Ro m e c entre d ,

chi efly in so u th and central Engl and i n the ki ngdo m of ,

We sse x It produc ed som e schools of learni ng but al most

.
,

n o lit e ratur e .It is to the north and east to the ki ng ,

d om of N orthu mb ria which f e lt the i nflu en c e of the Irish

,

m onks th at we m ust l oo k f or the first blossom i ngs of

,

Ch risti an po etry in E ngland .

O f all the m o nast eri e s which sprang u p in N orthu m bri a ,

i n the trai n of the Ce ltic m issi onari e s f ro m Ire l and two ,

are m ost fam ous b e caus e of th e ir co nne cti on with lite ra

ture— J arrow and Whitby At J arrow liv e d and d i e d

.

”
Baed a k nown as the V ene rabl e B ed e a ge n
, ,
B ed e
tle l aborious schol ar in whom all the l earn i ng
.

of N orth u m b ria was su mm e d up He wrote m any books .

,

ne arly a ll in Lati n the m ost notabl e b e i ng the E ccles za s

,

ti ca l H i s tory of the E ngli sh P eop le ( Histori a E ccl e si astica

Ge ntis Angloru m) It is from a p assage in this book th a t
.

we know the story of Cae d mo n a cowh e rd of ,

Caed mon
Whitby the first po e t of Christi an E ngl and
.

.
,

B ed e t ells u s th at wh en the i nm ate s of the m o naste ry w e re

gath e red t oge the r at the e veni ng feast and the h a rp was ,

p assed round for each to si ng in turn Caed m on would rise ,

 TH E AN G LO S AXON -
P ERI OD 15

and d e part , for he wasu nl ette red m an and k ne w noth

an

ing of the gl eeman s art So it was for many ye ars u ntil

’
.
,

he was no lo nge r you ng O ne n ight whe n he had thus l e ft

.
,

the ch ee rf ul co m pany and gone to the stabl e s to te nd the

cattl e he f e ll asl ee p and had a wo nd e rf ul dream
, T he .

shi n i ng figure of the Lord app eare d b e fore him sayi ng , ,

”
Cae d m o n si ng to me
, Caed m on answ e r ed
. B eh old I , ,

kno w n ot how to si ng and th e re for e I le f t the feast to

,

night
”
.
,
”
Still si ng now to m e the Lord said What
, .

” “
th e n sh al l I si ng ? aske d Cae d m o n Si ng the begi n .

”
ni ng of c rea te d thi ngs was the ans we r Th e n i n his dream
, .

Cae d m on f ramed so me v e rs e s of the Creation which in the ,

morn i ng he wrote dow n addi ng oth e rs to the m , N e ws of .

the wo nd e r f ul gi ft which had b e e n vouchsaf e d to the nu

school e d m an was c arri e d to Hild the abbe ss of the fo u nd a ,

tion and she co m mand e d porti ons of the Scripture to be

,

read to hi m th at he m ight p ara phrase th em i nto ve rs e

, .

So it was do ne ; and f ro m this ti m e on Caed mon s li fe

’

was give n to his h eav en appoi nte d tas k of turni ng the O ld

-

Te stame nt narrative i nto song .

The poe ms which h av e co m e dow n to us u nd e r Cae d

mon s nam e co nsist of paraphras e s of Gene sis of E xodus
’
, ,

and a p art of Dani e l A n i n te re sti ng f rag me nt c alle d

.

Ju d i th is some ti m e s i ncl u d e d in the work of the school

'

”
of Cae dmo n In plac e s esp eci ally i n d eali ng with a war
.
,

like e pisode the poet e xp ands his m atter freely stam pi ng

, ,

it with the i mpress of his own mi nd In E xodu s for .

,

instan ce all the i ntere st is c e ntre d on the ove rwh el m i ng

,

of P h a ra oh s host in the Re d Se a
’
T he Egypti an and the .

Israelitish arm i es are d escribed with a h eath en scOp s de ’

light i n the pomp and circu m stance of war and the disas ,

te r which ove rtak e s the Egypti an hosts is su ng with savage

force and z est In J u di th the p agan d e light in b attle an d
.

in blood r e venge is e ven m o re m arke d

-
F irst ki ng Hol o .
,

The pie ce s trad iti onal ly ascrib e d to Cae dmon are for the most part
not acce pted by mode rn scholarshi p as his work .
14 A HI STO RY or E N G LI S H LI T E RA T U RE

fe r nes is shown li ke a rud e viki ng bois te rous and wassail ~

, ,

i ng in his m ead ha ll Wh en J udi th co mes to him in his

-
.

dru nk en sl ee p and h ews ofi his h ea d with a swo rd the ,

poe t canno t res trai n his e xultatio n an d the flight of the

a rmy of Holo fe rne s b e fore the me n of Israe l is d e scribe d

with gre wso m e vivid ne ss .

If we k now littl e of Caed m o n s lif e we know still l ess o f

’
,

Cyn e wu lf the p oe t who succee d ed him and who was p ro b

, ,

ably the grea te st of th e Angl o Saxon p oe t s i f -

,

we ex ce pt the u nk now n b ard who g av e B e owul f

its pre se nt form O u t of v e ry i nsubstanti al mate ri als a
.

picturesq ue s tory has bee n mad e for him He is said to .

h ave b ee n in his youth a w and eri ng si nge r l ea di ng a wild ,

li fe by sea and shore as he pli ed his gl ee man s craft now in

,
’
,

the h alls of ae the lings now in the huts o f sh e ph e rds an d,

o n the vil l age gr e e n now on the d e ck of N o rthu m b ri an

,

coas ting ships In the m idst of this fre e e x iste nce he sud
~
.

de nly u nd erw en t so m e d ee p religious e xpe ri en c e which , ,

toge the r with the public disas te rs th en ove rtak i ng N or

thu mbri a co mpl e tely ch ange d the te mp er of his m i nd
, .

He ga ve up the h al f p agan nature poe try which up to this

- -

tim e he had writte n and turned to write religious poe ms

, .

We ha ve signed with his name in r unes t wo live s o f

, ,

saints and an e pic d eali ng with Christ s incarnati o n and

,
’

asce ns io n and with the Day of J udg me n t

, O th e r poe ms .

have b ee n as cribed to him with varyi ng d egrees of probab i l

ity : A ndreas a v ery live ly and nai ve story of a sai n t s
,
’

ma rtyrdom and fi nal triu mph ove r his e ne mi es the P IM

u iz a ric hly color ed d e sc ripti o n of the myt hic b ird and i ts
,

dwe ll ing pl ace wi th a religious inte rpre tation and finally

-
,

a n u m be r of R iddles ve ry curious co m positi ons so me of

, ,

which are full of fine im aginati o n and fresh obse rvatio n of

na ture .

T h ese last are no thing m ore nor l ess than co nu ndru m s ,

in which so me obj e ct or ph e no me no n is d e scri be d sugge st

ively and the read e r is lef t to gu ess the meani ng
, I n the .
 TH I AN GLO -
SA x O N PERI OD 15

hands me re ve rsi fie r this would b e the dreari es t

of a

o f f or m s , but Cy ne wul f (o r whoe v e r is i nd eed the autho r

)
n o t s e ldo m e nte rs with so m uch sy m p athy and T h,
drama tic i m agi nation i nto the life of the thi ng m m “

d e scribed th at he li f ts the subj e ct i nto po e try T he ne w

, .

m o o n is a you ng viki ng saili ng th rough the skie s i n his

,

pira te ship lad en with spoils of battl e to build a burg for

, ,

hi m s elf i n high est Heav en but the su n a greater warrio r , ,

d riv e s him away and se iz e s his land u ntil the night con ,

qu e rs the su n in turn The iceb e rg shouts and laughs as

.

it pl u n ge s through the wi ntry sea e age r to crush the fl ee t ,

o f hostil e ships The sword in its scabb ard is a m aile d

.

fighte r who go es e xulti ngly i n to the battl e pl ay and th en

,
-
,

is sad be cause wo men upbraid him for the Sl aughter he has

d one T he swan and the beave r are d e scribed with an in
.

sight and sy mp athy which rem i nds us in a far off way of ,

-
,

Wordsw o rth and the m od e rn natu re poe ts Altoge the r -

.

the s e riddl es are remarkabl e compositions and it is pleas ,

ant e v e n i f not quit e sci e ntific to thi nk of th e m as the

, ,

you th f ul work Of Cyne wu lf si nce his is the only p oe t s,

’

nam e th at has survive d f ro m thos e obscure and troubl e d

ti m e s .

T he P hoeni x d e riv e s a sp e ci al i nte re st f rom the fact

th a t it is the o nly Anglo Saxon poem of any length which
-

shows a d e light in the sof t and radi an t m oods of T h,

“ a m"
Natu re as oppos ed t o he r fi e rc e and gri m as
,
“
p ec ts I
. n t h e l an d wh e re th e P h oen ix dw e lls t h e gr o v e s

are all b e hu ng with blosso m s the bou ghs up o n

the tre e s are e v e r l ad e n the f ruit is aye r ene we d th ro u g h
,
”
all e t e rn ity ? T h e m u sic o f th e wo n d e rf ul bird as it ,
” ’
g oe s a lo f t to m e e t th a t gl ads o m e g e m G od s c andl e is, ,
”
swe e te r and m ore b eau teou s than any craft of song .

T he Phaanix and many of the Riddle s are b ased u pon Latin orig

innls .

{ T h e q u ota tio ns f rom the P h oenix a re f ro m Goll a ncz s tra nsl ati on,
’

Exete r B ook, E arly E ngli sh T e x t Socie ty s pu b licati ons, 1 895

’
.
‘
16 A H I STO RY OF E N G LISH LI T ERATU RE '

When the thousand years its li fe are do ne it fli e s far

of ,

aw ay to a lo nely Syri an wood builds i ts own hol oca ust o f ,

f ragran t h erbs which the Su n ki ndl es

, O u t of the b all of .

ashe s a ne w Pho enix is born richly dight with plu m age

, ,
”
as it was at first radi antly ad o rned and fli e s back to
, ,

its h ome in the e nch an ted land of s u mme r A t the e nd .

,

t he whol e po em is made i nto a Christi an all egory of the

de ath and re surrectio n of Christ and of his ascent to h eav e n ,

a m id the m i niste ri ng c o m p any of sai nts The po e m has a .

fe rvor and e nthusi as m l acki ng to the Lati n origi nal and ,

wh e the r we may or m ay n ot ascribe it to Cy ne wul f it is the ,

wo rk of a good poe t Sc holars h ave poi nted out th at the

.

d e scriptio n of the bird s dwelli ng pl a c e is i nfl u e nce d by the

’
-

old Ce ltic fancy of the Land of E te rnal Youth and ce r

tai nly it is no t di ffi cult to see in the brigh t colors an d ,

h appy fancy of the p oem the worki ng of the Celtic i magi

,

na tio n as w ell as the transfor m i ng touch of hop e which

,

had b ee n bro u ght i nto m e n s live s by Christi anity

’
.

Be sid e s the poe try attrib u te d to Cae d m o n and his sch oo l ,

and to Cy ne wul f an d his school th e re e xist a fe w short ,

Sho t p oem,
r po e m s lyrics , or dr a m atic lyrics
,
”
of the g re a t ,

e st i nte re st O ne of th e se c all ed T he Wi fe s
.
,
’

La m en t give s us a gli m pse of one of the h arsh custo m s of

,

o u r anc e stors . A wife accused of faithle ssne ss has be en

, ,

banished f ro m her native village and co mpell ed to live ,

al o ne i n the f ore st f ro m he r pla ce of e xil e she pours ou t

a m o an to the husband who has b ee n e strange d f ro m he r

by false sland erers The Love r s Message is a ki nd of

’

co m panio n pi e c e to this T he sp eak e r in the little po e m

.

is the tablet of wood u po n which an absent l ov e r has

carved a mess age to se nd to his b eloved It te lls he r th at .

he has now a ho me for he r in the south and bids he r as , ,

soon as she h ears the cuckoo chanti ng of his sorro w in the

c o pse wood to take sail ov er the ocean pathway to he r lord
, ,

who waits and lo ngs for he r With th ese two littl e po em s .

be gi ns the lov e poe try of England

-
.
18 A HISTO RY or E N GLI SH LITE RAT U RE

f orce th e ir attacks The ve ry monaste ry of J arrow i n

of .
,

which B ae d a had writte n hi s Eccl esi asti cal His tory was ,

plu nd ered and i ts i nhabita n ts put to the swo rd T he mo n

, .

as te ry o f Whitby wh e re Cae d m o n had had his visio n was

, ,

o nly te mporaril y sa v ed by t he fi e rc e resistanc e o f the m onks .

By the m iddl e of the nin t h ce ntury the Danes had m ad e

th em se lves maste rs of N orth u mb ria T h ey we re su ch m e n .

as the Angl es J u te s and S a x ons had be e n thre e hu nd re d

, ,

—
y ea rs be fore worshippe rs of the old gods ruthl ess u proo t ,

e rs of a re ligio n lite ra ture and soci e ty which th ey did no t

, ,

un d e rstand In Wesse x the h e rois m of K i ng A lfre d

.
,

tur ned back the tid e of barba ria n i nvas io n ; and f rom this
ti me u ntil the N orman co nqu est t wo ce nturi e s l ate r t he , ,

o nly lite rature which remai ns to us was prod uced in Wes

se x . It is almost en tire ly a lite r ature of pro se ; the bes t
of it was the work o f K i ng Al fre d hi m se l f or prod u ce d
'

u nd er hi s i mmedi a te e ncourag em e nt .

A s a child Ki ng Al f re d h ad see n Ro me and had liv ed ,

for a ti me at the great court of Ch arl es the Bald in Franc e

and the sp ectacl e of th e se o ld e r and ri ch e r civil
Ki ng Alfred .

iza tions had fi ll ed him with a d es ire to give to

his rud e subj ects so m e thin g o f the h e ri tage of the pas t .

Whe n af te r a despe ra te struggl e he had won p eace f ro m

, ,

the Danes he call e d about him l ea rn e d m o nks f ro m the

,

Sh e lte re d m onas te ri e s of Ir e lan d and Wal es and mad e we l ,

com e at his court all strange rs who could br ing him a

manuscript or si ng to him a n old s ong It was proba bly .

duri ng his re ign th at the poe ms of Caed mon and Cy ne wu l f ,

as w ell as the old e r p ag an po e ms w e r e brough t so uthw a rd ,

out of N orthu m bri a and put in the West Sa xon form in -

which we now h ave th em He spurred on his pri ests and .

bishops to write He him se l f l earned a littl e La ti n i n

.
,

o rd e r th at he might transl ate ce rtai n books which b e

d ee me d would be m ost usef u l and in t e re sting to E nglish
men i nto the We st Saxo n to ngu e ; putti ng down the se nse
,
-
,

he says sometim es word for word so me times meaning for

, ,
 T H E A N GLo - SAXON PE RI O D 19

m e an i ng, I had learned it fro m Plegm u nd my archbishop

as , ,

a n d A sse r m y bishop and Gri m b ald m y m ass pri e st

, , an d ,
-
,

J o h n m y m ass pri e st
,
”
He sel e ct e d for transl atio n a phil o
-
.

s o phi cal work the Cons ola ti ou s o

, f P h i los o h
p y of B o e t hi u s a

m anu al of history and ge ography by O rosi u s an d a re ligi ous

’
tr eatise the P a s tora l Ca re or Sh ep herd s B ook of Greg
,

o ry copi e s of which he se n t to all his bi shop s in ord e r th a t

,

t h ey m ight l ear n to b e b e tte r sh eph e rd s of th e ir flocks M o re .

i m p o rt ant still b e transl at e d B aeda s E ccl e si astical His

,
’

t o ry th u s giving a native E ngli sh dress to the first great pi e c e

,

o f historic al writi ng which had bee n d one i n E ngl an d Last .

l y h e cau sed the dry e n tri e s of th e d eath s of ki ngs an d the

,

i n stallations of bi shops which the monk s we re i n the h abit

,

o f m aki ng on the E ast e r roll s to b e e xp an d e d i n t o a cl ear ,

a n d pictur e sq u e narra t iv e the gre at e st sp ac e of c ou rs e

, , ,

b e i n g take n up wit h th e e v ents of his own re ign Thi s .

,

k now n as the Angl o S axo n Chron icl e is the old est m o nu

-
,

m e n t o f E nglish prose an d is with one e xc e pti on t he m ost

*
, , ,

v e n e rabl e pi e c e of e xte nd e d pr os e writi ng in E u rop e .

D e spite all his e ff orts h ow e v e r K i ng A l fr e d did n o t

, ,

s u cc e e d i n cre ati ng anythi ng lik e a vital n a tiv e lit e ra tur e

i n We sse x The l angu age was ch an gi ng and

.
,

t he lite rary spirit of the p e opl e was al m o st 2 332233

3

L t e tm i ra
d ead The serm on s or H omi li es of the great
'

a nd d e vote d Ael fric how e v e r h e r e an d th e r e ris e to the

, ,

ran k of lite r at u re by r easo n of the nai v e pictu re sq u en e ss

,

o f so m e r e ligio u s l egen d which th ey tr eat or by the fe rv or ,

o f th e ir pi e ty The Angl o S ax on Chronicl e als o whi ch

.
-

, ,

con ti n u e d to grow in the m o nast e ri e s of Pe t e rb orou g h ,

Wi n ch e ster and Ely h ere and th e re breaks ou t i nto sti r

, ,

ri ng ve rse O ne of the se poe tic e pisode s is know n as the

.

B a ttle of B ru na nbu rh and is e n te re d u n de r the ye ar 93 7

, .

H e re , a nd earlie r i n thi s chapte r, the w o rd E ngli sh i s u se d loo se ly ,

t o co v e r th e p rod u cti ons o f the A ngl o Sax on p eri od -
Stri ctly spe a king,
.

E ngli sh lite ratu re did not b e gi n u ntil a ce ntu ry and a hal f a f te r the

N orman co nq u e st.
20 A HI STO R Y OF E N GLI SH L IT E RA T U RE
A no th e r, the Dea th f
o B y rhtnoth, lso calle d the B a ttle of
a

M a ldou , bears date 991 ; it is the swan so ng of A nglo

-

S ax on p oe try .

T he tr u th is that Engl and at the e nd of the te nt h ce n

tury was in ne e d of ne w bl ood T he A nglo S axo n ge nius
.
-
,

wi th all its rugge d g rand e ur and fi ne p e rsiste nce was ,

lacki ng in m any e le m e nts ne c essary to m ake a g reat

n ati onal li f e ; an d A ngl o S axo n p oe try look e d at in the
-
,

large be trays a narrowne ss of th em e and m onoto ny of

,

to ne out of which a great lite rature could h ave e vo lv e d if

, ,

a t al l o nly sl o wly and with di fficulty

, So me ne w graft was
.

ne e d e d to giv e e lasticity gaye ty and range and thi s

, , ,

nee d was m e t wh e n i n 1 066 Willi am the Co n qu e ror l and e d

, ,

a t H asti ngs with his ar m y of N o r man F re n ch k n ights and

-
,

m arch e d to give battl e to the f orce s of Harold the l as t of ,

the S axo n ki ngs .

 CHA PT ER II
TH E N O RM AN F RE N C H
-
PE RI OD

T HE N orm ans , or N o rth m e n y we re an e xtraordinary

-

p e opl e .A c e n tury an d a h al f b e f o re th e ir i n v asio n o f

E ngl an d, th e y had app ear e d O ff the c oast of
F ranc e ; a nd u nd e r th e i r l ead e r H rolf the ,

Gange r ( the Walke r th e y had p u sh ed up the S ei ne in

th e ir bl ack bo ats w as ti ng and bur ni ng to t he v ery gat e s of
,

Paris . T he F re nch won p e ac e by givi ng o v e r to th e m

b road and rich l ands in the n orthw e st k n ow n h e nc efo rth ,

as N o r mandy Unlik e the o th e r north e rn p e opl e s the y

.
,

s h ow e d a m arv e llo u s pow e r of a ssi m il ati ng the south e rn

c iviliz a tio n T he y m a rri e d with the F rench w om e n

.
,

a dopte d F r e nch m anne rs and the F re nch tong u e In a .

littl e ov e r a c e ntu ry th e y had grow n f ro m a barbaro u s

h ord e of sea robbe rs i nto the m ost p olish e d and brilli ant
-

p eo pl e o f E urop e whos e pow, e r was f e lt i n t h e M e d i te rra

n e an and the fa r E as t T h e y u n ite d in a si ng u l a r m an n e r

.

i m p e tu o us dari ng and co ol practical s ense Without l osi ng .

an ythi ng O f th e ir n orth e r n br av e ry i n war th e y manag ed ,

to ga th e r up al l the s o uth e rn su ppl ene ss and wit all the ,

so u th e rn l ove of spl e ndor and art When Willi am advanc e d

.

to m e e t K i ng H arold at H asti ngs a co u rt m i nstre l T aille

, ,

fe r rod e b ef ore the i n vadi ng ar m y t os si ng up his sw ord

, ,

an d c a tchi ng it lik e a j u ggl e r whil e he ch an t e d the S ong of

,

Rol an d He is a sy m bol of the N o r m an spi rit of its d ash

.
, ,

its buoyancy i ts i m agi native brilli ancy T he N ormans

,
.

bro u ght with th e m to E ngland not only the t e rror of the

sw o rd and the st rong h and of con qu e st b u t al so the Vi taliz ,

i ng bre ath of song t he fre sh an d y outh f ul spirit of r o m ance

, .

21
22 I
A H STO R Y OF E N GLI SH LIT E RA T U RE

No one c on qu e re d p e opl e h owe ve r coul d

am on g the , ,

th en have fore se e n th at the i nvasi on was to pro v e the great

e st of na ti onal b le ssi ngs for the ste rnness an d
e ne rgy with which the N orm an ki ng and h i s

n obl e se t about pl an ti ng th e ir o wn civiliz a ti o n

s
in the isl an d brought with it m u ch oppre ssi on and h ard
,

shi p O ve r the l e ngth and bre adth of England ro se th ose

.

strong castle s w hose gray and m assive wall s still frow n o ve r

the pl easan t E nglis h l andsc ap e Le ss fo rbiddi ng th an .

the s e but no l e ss sugge stive of the fore igne r spl end id

, ,

m i nste rs gradu ally took the pl ac e of the gl oo m y littl e Sax

on church e s Fore st l aws of te rribl e h ars hne ss pres e rved
.

“ “
the tall d e er whic h the ki ng loved as his li fe bu t
wh e n a man was fou nd m urd e re d if it c ould be p rov e d th a t ,

he was a S axo n n o f urth e r notic e was tak e n of the cri m e

, .

”
T he S axo n lang u age or Englisc as it had be gu n to b e
, ,

call e d in K i ng Alfred s ti me was the badge o f se rfdo m ;

’
,

and not o nly in the court and c am p and c astl e b u t als o in ,

Parli am e n t and on the justic e b e nch Fren ch al one was -

,

sp oke n With the one e xceptio n of the A ngl o S axon Chron

.
-

i cl e which was still c on ti nu e d E ngli sh

, d ive s u nd e r
,

gro u nd in 1 066 and d oe s not reapp ear for a centu ry and a

,

h al f If a p roph e t had aris en to te ll the Nor man nobility

.

o f the ele v e n th an d tw e l fth c e n tu ri e s th a t no t Fr e nch b u t , ,

E nglish was d e sti ne d to b e the sp ee ch of th e ir d e sc e nd an ts

, ,

he would h av e b e e n l augh e d at But this i ncre dib le thi ng

.

was to b e b e cau se of the dogge d p ersiste n cy of the A nglo

,

S axo n nature i n cli ngi ng to its own T hough no lo nge r .

writ te n the old to ngu e liv ed on the lips of the subj u gate d
,

rac e fro m fath e r to son A bout 1 200 it began to b e us e d

, .

agai n as a l an gu age O f books disp u ti ng wit h rud e and u n

,

ce rtai n acce nts a plac e by the sid e of the polish e d l angu age
of the co nqu e ro rs Wh e n it reapp eare d how e v e r it was a
.
, ,

ch ange d to ngu e It was no longe r Anglo S axo n but E ng

.
-
,

li sh In spite of m any words now obsol e te many stran ge

.
,

f orm s and sp elli ngs the E ngl ish of the early thirtee n th
,
 TH E N O RMAN FRE NC H
-
PERI OD 23

ce n tury is i ndubi tably the sam e l angu age which we sp eak

t o d ay
-
.It had slough e d off its i nfl e ctio ns si mp lifi ed its ,

g r a m m a r a n d, r e quir e d o n ly to b e e n rich e d by F r e nch

e l e m e n ts a nd m a d e fl e xibl e by u se
, to b e ready for the
,

h an d of C h auc e r .

B ut to say tha t E nglish was e nrich ed by F rench e le

m e n ts is h ardly to c onvey an id ea of the ex ten t to which
t he fore ig n to ngu e e nte re d i nto the co m posi T he Me m e

t io n of the l angu age What real ly happ ene d

.

was th at E nglish absorb e d ne arly the wh ole body of the

F re nc h sp e e ch or rath e r t hat the two langu age s gradu ally
,

m e lte d toge the r and be cam e one T he S axo n howe v e r

.
, ,

con ti nu e d as the m arrow and bo ny structure o f the whol e .

T he words of F rench origi n in our vocabulary out nu m be r

t he S a xo n words three to on e ; but in o rdi nary sp e e ch ,

w h e re o nly the co m m o n words of d aily li fe and actio n are

u se d the Saxon words are greatly in prepond e rance The
, .

r e su lt of this f usio n was to i ncrease e no rmo us ly the powe r

o f the l angu age to e xp re ss th ought and fee li ng It has .

m a d e E nglis h the m ost spl e ndid po e tic langu age of the

w o rld with the possible e xc e ptio n of the Gree k alo ne T he
, .

f usio n was acco m plish e d in a pe riod of about a c entury and

a h al f . Wh e n English first app eared i n 1 200 af te r i ts , ,

lon g sle e p it con t ai ne d al most no French i ngre di e nts by

,

t he m iddle of the fourte e nth c e ntury the proc e ss of bl e nd

ing the two to ngu e s was b egi nni ng to draw to a close .

C hauc e r the po e t who was to co m ple te it and fix the

,

langu age in m uch the sh ape th at it wears to day was th en -

,

a b oy i n the str e e ts of Lo ndo n .

T he lite rature O f this c e ntury and a h al f of pre paratio n

is of d e e p i nte re st fro m t he historic al poi nt of Vi e w and ,

has n ot a little i ntri nsic ch arm A l arge pro T he Meme“

.

R°m °es
p o rtio n o f it co n sists o f e ff orts i n a n e w a n d °

f as ci na ti ng poe tic form i n troduc e d i nto Engl and by the

N orm an F re nch the m e trical r om anc e
-
, T he ty pic al ro
.

m ance was a ram bli ng tal e of adve nture in which e vi l ,

 24 A HI STO RY OF E N GLISH L I T E RA T U RE
k nights robbers gi an ts S arac ens and oth e r in i m ical
, , , ,

p ers onages w e re ove rth rown by a wand ering ch e valie r in

, ,

t he i nte re st of s om e distr e sse d d am se l or o f holy church .

It d ealt in a rath e r d e su ltory and u nreal but highly e n te r ,

tai ni ng way with the three great i nte re sts of the M iddl e
,

Age s , knightly prowe ss chivalric l ove and rel igi on I t

-
, , .

gave scop e i n the d e scripti on of feast s and tou rnam e nts of

, ,

ar m o r dr e ss an d hu n ti ng e q u ip ag e f or the m e di aeva l l o v e
, , ,

of p agean try and gay c olor it m i n i s tere d to the m e di aev a l

cravi ng af te r the sup e rn atural the e xtrav agan t and the , ,

thrilli ng ; ab ove all it afford e d an o utl e t to the se nti m e n t

,

o f wo m an worship which t aki ng its ris e i n the cult of the

-
, ,

Virgi n Mary had th e n b e e n s e cul ariz e d by the p oe ts o f

,

P rov e n c e and b e co m e a vital part of the great cree d o f

,

fe ud al chiv alry .

T he trou v eres as the po e ts who co mpose d and re cited

,

th e se ro man ce s w e re c all ed borrowe d the m ate ri al of th e ir ,

T he"
richly v ari e ga te d t al e s wh e re v e r th ey c o uld fi n d

it A part of it cam e fro m Italy and the E ast

.
,

and o u t O f t h i s th e y mad e the T roy cycl e a n d the cycl e o f

A le x and e r the Great A p art of it th e y f o u nd n ea r a t

.

h and in the adv en ture s of Ch arl e magne and his tw e lv e

,

p e e rs But the rich e st store ho u se of romance which th ey

.
-

had to draw upon was i n the Celtic p arts of E ngl an d and

,

Brittany wh ere for gene rati on s pro bably for ce ntu ri e s

, , ,

th e re had bee n growi ng u p a m ass of l e ge nd c onn e cte d with

K i ng A rth u r A nu m be r of th e se Arth u ri an l ege nds w e re
.

gath e re d u p b efore the m i ddl e of the tw e l f th c entury i n a

, ,

great Lati n w ork call ed the H i stori a B retou u m by Ge of ,

fr e y of M on m outh a Welsh write r who also add e d s to , ,

ri e s of his o wn i n v e n ti on T his rath e r b ar e chro nicl e of .

Geoff rey s was s e iz e d U p o n by the trou v eres and out of i t

’
,

b egan to branch all m anne r of ro man tic e pisod e T he bo ok .

was transl at ed i nto F re nch v e rse by Wac e of J e rs ey and ,

th rough this ch an ne l c am e ab ou t the year 1 200 i nto the , ,

h ands of Layam on the first write r of rom ance in the crude

,
26 A HISTO RY or E NGLI SH LI TE RA T U RE

has just begu n But l e isurely as Layamon is he is s eldom

.
,

te di ou s the story lure s one on from p age to p age u ntil o ne ,

f orge ts or p ardo ns the e nor m ous l ength In treati ng the .

A rthur l ege nds Layam on is not co nte nt m e re ly to t ran

,

scribe his pre d e ce ssors His ho m e was near t he borde rs of

.

Wal es wh ere the se l ege nds w e re native and he ei the r

,

gat he re d up or f reely i nve nted s e veral addition s of the

u tm ost i m or ta nc e
p Th e m ost n o t a
.bl e o f th e s e a re his
st ory of the fou ndi ng of the Rou nd T abl e and his accou n t ,

of the fays who a re pre s e n t at A rthur s birth and who c a rry

’

him af ter his last b attle to the m ystic isl e of A valo n .

Af te r Layamon had show n t he way to ro manc e writi ng i n

th e na tive to ngu e oth e r po e ts in rapidly i ncr easi ng n u m
,

bers follow e d in his f ootsteps Rud e at first .

,

t h e ir e fforts gradu ally approach e d i n eas e an d ,

grace those of the ir N or man Fre nch teach e rs

,
-
,

though ne v e r qu ite riv alli ng the li mpid trou v er e

verse Al m ost all the E ngli sh ro manc e s of the thirtee nt h
.

and f ourte en th c e n turi e s are f r ee r e nd e ri n gs f rom F re n c h

o rigi nals T his is tru e not only of those whic h d eal with con
.

tine n tal h e ro e s lik e Ch arl e m ag ne and Al e xand e r or whic h

, ,

tell a tal e of co nti ne n tal origi n like A mi s a nd A mi lou n ,

and F lori s a nd B la nche fl ou r b u t also o f t h e A rthu r

stori e s whose sourc e was Briti sh and e ve n of the storie s
, ,

of pure ly E nglish h e r oe s B evi s of H a mp ton and Gu y of

, ,

Wa rwi ck T he raw m a te ri al had to b e refi ne d by the cu n

.

ni ng N or man F re n ch arti san s b e fo r e the l e ss Ski ll e d w ork

-

e rs i n the E nglis h t ongu e co u ld h andl e it B u t of all th e .

A rthuri an ro manc es i n E nglish of this p eriod su ch as Si r ,

Tri strem, A rthou r a nd M erli n M orte d A rthu re

,
’
, and T he
A wentgres ( dv e n tur e s) o
a f A r thu r a t the Ta r n Wa the li ng
( T arn Wad li ng i n C u m b e rl a nd ) the one which is of m ost ,

genui ne native E nglis h workm anshi p is the b e st of all an d ,

is one of the m ost ch arm i ng ro manc e s of the w orld T hi s .

is Si r Gawagne a nd the Green K night Its date is abo u t .

1 320 1 3 3 0
-
.
 TH E N O RM A N F RE N C H -
P ER I OD 27

Wh en po e m O p e n s K i ng Arth u r and his c ou rt are

the ,

g a th e r e d i n t he h al l a t C a m e l o t t o c e l e br a t e t h e f e a st o f th e

N e w Ye ar T he ki ng
. so b u si e d hi m his
, ,

8 G
y o u n g bl o od a n d his wild br a i n
”
will n o t e a t, a iht ig dig i:
Kn ght i
u n til s om e adv e ntu re has b e fall e n A s the first .

course co m e s in with c racki ng of t ru m p e ts and the ,

n oi se of nak e rs ( dru m s) with n o bl e pip e s

”
, th e re sudd enly ,

ru sh e s in at the h all d oor a giganti c k n ight cl othe d e ntirely ,

i n gr e e n m o u n te d on a g ree n foal and b e ari ng in one h an d

, ,

a h o lly b ough i n the o th e r a gre at a x e

, H e rid es to the .

d ais and c hall e nge s any k nig ht to give h im a bl ow with his

,

ax e an d to abi d e on e in t u rn Gawayn e the ki ng s ne ph e w

’
.
, , ,

s m ite s off the h e ad of the Gre e n K night who qu i e tly picks ,

it u p by the hair and h olds it ou t toward Gawayne u n til

, ,

t he lip s sp eak givi ng him re nd e zv o us at th e Gre en Ch ap e l

,

o n the n e xt N e w Year s d ay
’
.

O n Al l h all ow s day Ga way ne s e ts ou t upo n h is hor se

’
-
,

Gri ngol e t an d j o u rne ys thro u g h N o rth Wal e s p ast H o ly

, ,

h ead i n to the wil de r ne ss of Wi rral s om e ti m es with

”
w orm s ( s e rp e nts ) he wars with w olve s and b ears with , ,

gi an ts and w ood s atyrs u n til at l ast on Christm as e v e he

-
,
-

co me s to a great f orest of h oar oaks H e calls u p on M ary .

,

m ild e st m oth e r so d ear to h e lp him , I m me di ately he .

se e s a f air castl e standi ng on a hill ; and aski ng sh elte r he ,

is cou rte ously r e c e ive d by the lord of the c astl e and his fair
you ng wi fe an d is assured t hat t he Green Ch ape l is near
,

a t h a nd .

Af t e r the Chri s t m as fe s tiviti e s are ov er his host p re pa re s ,

f o r a gr ea t h u nt to l ast th ree d ay s ; an d a j e sti ng com p act

,

is mad e b e tw ee n th e m th at at the e nd of e ach day th ey sh all

g i v e eac h o the r w h a t e v
'

er g oo d thi n g th e y h a v e w o n W hil e .

he r lord is ab se n t on the h u n t the l ady of t he c astl e t ri e s in ,

Va i n t o i n duc e Gawayn e to m ak e l ov e to he r and b e stows ,

u p on h im a kiss A n xi ou s to f u lfil his co m p act he i n

.
,

tu rn give s the ki ss to he r l ord e ac h night wh en t he hu nt

i s ove r and rec e iv es as a c ou n te r gi f t the spoils of the
,
-
28 A H ISTO RY OF E N GLISH LI T E RA T URE

ch ase A t th eir l ast m eeting the l ady p e rsu ad e s Gawayn e to

.

take as a gi f t a green l ace b elt which will pro te ct him f rom

m ortal h ar m T hi nki ng it .a j e we l for th e j eop ardy tha t
he is to ru n a t the Gre en Ch ap e l he k e eps the gif t a se cre t , ,

and th u s pr ov e s f als e to his c om p act .

O n Ne w Ye ar s m or n ing he s e ts out through a storm of

’

“
sno w p ast fore sts and cli ff s wh e re each hill had a ha t
, ,
”
and a m i st cl oak to fi nd the Green Ch ap el It prove s to
-
,
.

b e a grass c ov e re d holl o w m o u n d i n a d e se rt vall ey

-
th e , ,

“ ”
m os t cu rse d ki rk says Gawayne that e ve r I c am e in
, , .

T he Gre en K ni ght app e ars and d eal s a bl ow with his a x e ,

u p on Ga wa ne s b e n t n e ck B h o ly pi rc s h ski
’
y u t e n e e
. t e n ,

an d Gaway ne s e e i n g the blo od f all on the s now cl aps on

, ,

his h el m e t draw s h is sword and declare s the co m pact

, ,

f ulfill e d .T he Gre en K n ight th en dis clo se s the fact th a t

he is the l ord of the c astl e wh e re Gaway ne has just b e en
e n te rt a i n e d th at with h i m dwe lls the fairy wo m an M or
,
-

gai n who b ecau se of her ha tre d of Gui n e ve re has se nt hi m

, , ,

to f righte n he r at Ch ri st m as fe ast with the sight of a s e ve re d

h ead talki ng an d who has be e n tryi ng to l ead Gawayn e
,

i n to b ad faith and u ntru th f ul ness in ord e r th at her hus ,

band s axe m ay h ave p ower upo n h im By his purity an d

’
.

tru th Gawayne has b ee n s av e d e xce pt f or the slight wou nd ,

as p u ni sh m e n t f or co nc eali ng the gi f t of th e girdl e Ga .

”
wayne swears to w ear the l ovel ace in rem e m brance of his
w eak ne ss ; and e ver afte rward e ach k night of the Ro und
T abl e an d e v e ry l ady of Arthur s c o urt w ears a brigh t
’
, ,

gre en b el t for Gawayne s sak e ’

.

T he pictu r e sq u e and ne rv ous l angu age of the po e m ,

its bright hu m or an d fancy and the vivid b eauty of i ts ,

d escripti on s com bi ne with its m oral swe etne ss to m ak e

,

this the m ost d e lightful bl osso m of all pre Ch auc e rian -

rom ance Si r Ga way ne a nd the Green K night con tai ns fair

.

p rom i se not o nly of Chauc e r s K night s Ta le but e ven o f ’ ’

,
’
Spenser s F aeri e Qu eens .

Whil e the s hi mm e ri ng tape stry and clo th of gold of

 TH E NO RM AN -
FR E NCH P E RI O D 29

th e se bright ro m an ce s was b e i ng wove n to b eguil e the

te diu m of castl e h alls a m ore som bre literary fabric gre w
,

u n d e r the p ati ent h ands of m onks and re lig Reh gie he

ious en thusi asts The Cu rsor M u ndi the au l sgg m ’

.
gg , r

th or of which is u nk now n d e serves p articular “ Mi "

,

comm en t T hough re ligi ou s in aim an d in m atte r it

.
,

shows a whol e so m e se cular d esire to b e entertai ni ng The .

author i n b egi n ni ng lam e nts the absorptio n of the r ead e rs

, ,

of his day in f riv ol ous ro m an c e an d p rop os e s to give th e m ,

in pl ac e of th e s e vai n tal e s of e arth ly l o ve a tal e of divi ne ,

lo v e which sh all b e e qu ally thrilli ng H e th en procee ds to .

te ll i n fl o wi ng v e rs e the story of God s d eali ngs with m an

’
,

fro m the Cre atio n to the fi nal r ed e mption foll owi ng in ge n ,

e ral the biblic a l narra tive but ador ni ng it with p opul ar ls

,

g e n d s, both s acr e d and s e cul a r an d wi t h all m a nn e r of qu

, a i n t
digre ssi ons T he ambitio n of the au thor has really b e e n
.

“
a cco m plish e d
”
his book is i ndee d a re ligi ous rom ance ,

an d m ust h a v e b e e n a r esp e ct abl e rival of its m o re w o rldly

broth e rs in catchi ng the ear of such read ers as w ere will

,

i ng to b e ed ifi ed at the sam e ti me th at th ey we re e nte r

ta i ned .

Of an othe r religious write r whose work rises to the dig

n ity of literature th e nam e and story h ave fortu nate ly
,

be e n pre se rv ed T his is Rich ard Roll e the Ri ha d R lls

.
, c r o

h e rm it of Hampol e in south e rn Yorkshire who “ 3 m m“

,

was born about 1 3 00 and di e d in 1 3 4 9 In his youth h e .

w e nt to O x ford th en at the h e ight of its f am e as a cen tre

,

o f schol as tic l ea rn i ng but the mysti ci sm and e rrati c ard o r

of his na ture m ad e hi m soo n re volt agai nst t he dry i n te ll e ct

u ality of th e schol astic te achi ng He l e ft c oll eg e m ad e him .

,

a h e r m it s shroud out of two of his sist e r s g ow n s a nd h is

’ ’

fa th e r s ho od an d b egan the life of a religi ous solitary and

’
,

m ystic .His ce ll at H am p ol e ne ar a Ciste rci an nu nnery , ,

was af te r his d e ath visite d as a m iracl e worki ng shri ne and -

,

c are d for by the n uns He wrote many canticl e s of divine

.

love so me of which are of u nusu al i nt ensity

, His longe s t .
30 A H ISTO RY OF E N GLI SH LI TE RA T URE

work is the P ri che

f which
o d Cons ci ence,
e a ls with t h e li fe

of man an d the t e rrors of the Last J udg m e nt .

B u t of all the re ligi ous writings of this p e riod by f ar the ,

m ost b eau ti ful are two p oem s one lyric t he o th e r na rra , ,

T he Le e
tiv e vwhich a ppr oa
, ch t he s u bj e ct o f divi n e lov e

$3};n f ro m th e p e rso na l sid e a n d tr ea t it with a n i n ti ,

5°
m ate p e rso nal p athos T he fi rst is th e fam ou s .

Love Ru ne of T homas de H al es a m o nk o f the M i no r ,

F ri ars He te ll s us i n the first stanz a th at he was b e sought

.

by a m aid of Ch ri st to mak e he r a love song in ord e r -

,

that she m ight l earn th e re fro m how to choo se a worthy

and faith fu l lov e r T he m on kish poe t c ons e nts but goe s
.
,

on to te ll h e r h ow false and fl ee ti ng is all worldly love how

all e arthly lov e rs v anish and a re f o rgott en .

H we r is P a ri s and H e le y n e
Th a t we re n SO b ry gh t a nd fe y re on b le
Am ad a s , T ristra m , a nd D id e y ne ,
Yse u d e , a n d a l le th e ?
E cto r, w i th h i s ech arp e m e yne ,
An d C esa r ri ch of w o rld es fee ?
He s b eo th i gl y d e n u t of t he re y n e ,

SO th e sch e ft is of th e cl ee .

( Wh e re i s P a ri s H e le n t h a t w e re so b ri gh t a nd fa i r o f
an d ,

co u n te nan ce ? A m a d a s, T ri stram , D i d o I se u l t a n d a l l t h o se ,

H ecto r w i t h h i s sh a rp stre ngth , and C aesa r ri ch w i th t h e

w o rld fee !w l h ] ? T h e y b e gl i d e d ou t of th e rea l m , as th e
’
s ea t
sh af t i s fro m th e cle w !b o w st ri ng] -
.

But th ere is anoth er lov er the po e t con ti nu e s who is , ,

rich e r th an H e nry ou r K i ng and whos e dw elli ng is fair e r ,

th an S olo m on s house of j asp er and sapphire Choose Him

’
.
,

an d m ay God bri n g th ee to His brid e ch a mb e r i n H e ave n

”
-
.

T he p oe m is w ell nigh p e rf ect i n form and f or rich a n l

-
,
t

te n d e r m el ody b ears co m p aris on with the b e st lyric al wo rk

of Sh ak e sp ear e s age It shi ne s out lik e a gem f rom the
’
.

mass of ru de r song about it .

 TH E N O R AN F RE N CH
M -
P ERI OD 31

The othe r religious p oe m which d ese rves to b e cl assed ,

with this by reaso n of i ts b eauty and hu m anity is m uch ,

lo nge r It is c all e d The P ea rl A fathe r falls

.
T he .

"
M L
asl e e p on th e grave of his l ost d aught er wh ose ,

n am e s ee m s to h av e b e e n M a rgare t ( i e the . .
,

I n a visio n he s ee s h er and b e holds the c e l e sti al c ou n ,

try wh e re sh e dw ells H e dream s th at he is transp ort

.

e d to a w ond e rf u l l and th rou gh which a m usical rive r ,

flows ov e r p early sand and s tone s that glitte r like stars ,

o n a wi nt e r n ight A rou n d h im are crystal cli ff s so

.

cl e ar of kind fore sts th at gl e am like silv e r and ri ng

”
,

with the m el ody of bright hu e d birds O n the oth er side -

.

o f the riv e r at the f oot of a gl eam i ng cli ff

,
he s e e s a ,

m aid sitti ng cloth ed in bright rai men t tri m m e d with

,

p e arls and in the m idst of he r breast a great p earl She

,
.

ris e s and co me s toward him T hen the fat he r tri es to cross .

o v e r but b e i ng u n
, abl e cri e s out to k now if sh e is i nd e e d
,

“
his p earl since the loss of which he has be e n a joyl ess je w
,
”
e ll e r .T he m aiden te lls hi m th at his p e arl is no t really
l o st ge ntly reprove s th e i m pati ence of his gri ef and ex
, ,

— —
p ou n ds a little too i geniously some of the mysteri es of
n

H ea v en wh e re she re igns as a qu een with M ary

, The .

f a th e r b egs to b e tak en to h er abidi ng pl ac e ; she t e lls -

h i m th at he m ay se e but canno t e nt e r th a t clean clois

, ,
”
te r. She bids hi m go alo ng the riv e r b an k u n til h e co me s -

t o a hill Arrive d at the top he see s afar off the c ele sti al
.
,
”
c ity , pitch e d upo n ge ms with its walls of j asp e r and ,

s tr ee ts of g old A t the wo nd e r of the sight he stands

.
,
” “
still as a daz e d qu ail a n d gazi ng s e e s right as , ,

t he m ighty m oo n gan rise the Virgi ns walki ng i n pro ,

ce ssio n with the La mb of God His d aught e r is one of .

t hem .

T he n sa w I th e re m y li ttl e q u e en
Lo rd i m u ch Of m i rth was th at sh e m ad e
Am o n g h e r ma te s .
32 A HISTO RY OF E N GLISH LI TE RATURE

He strive s in tran sport to cross ove r and b e with her ; but

it is not pleasing to God that he should com e and the ,

d ream e r awak es .

The P ea rl e xists in the s am e manuscript with two oth e r

re m ark abl e re ligious poe m s e n titl ed re spe ctive ly Glea nnes s
,

an d P a ti ence The fi rst p re ach es the doctr ine

.

ge o f pu rity of li f e an d e nf orc e s it with vivid

Panaa
,

t ransc ription s f ro m the Bible sto ri es of the d e

structio n of S odo m the s m iting of Belshazzar for pollu t
,

ing the sacre d vesse ls an d othe r lik e i ns tan c e s

, T he .

se cond ill u strate s the virt u e of pati en ce by the story of

o
J a n b —
, a littl e hu m o ro u sly to a m ode rn m i nd , T he .

d escriptio ns are som e of the m e xtraordi narily Vivid and ,

the language has the same n e rvous vigor and graphic pic t
u re sq u e ne ss which disti nguish e s tha t of Si r Ga wa y ne a n d the

Green K night T his i n de e d has co m e dow n to us i n the

.
, ,

same m anuscript wit h the P ea rl and Clea nness and P a

ti ence and m any scholars b e lie ve th at th e y are all four the
,

work of one man If so he was the m ost con sid e rabl e

.
,

poe t be twee n Cyn e wulf and Ch auce r .

T he flowi ng toge th e r of S axon and N orman F ren ch -

brought abo u t i mportan t re sults in the m e tre as well as i n

“ mm of the v oc abul ary of the n e w l angu age Saxon .

$ 333 2“ poe try d epende d for its rhyth m ical effe ct upon
w sy m m"
two d e vice s allite ratio n and accent Each
, .

Ve rs e l i n e n o m att e r how l ong co n tai ne d f O

-
, u r acc en ts
, an d

thre e (some ti m es four) of th e se accen ts had to fall on syl

lable s b egi n ni ng wi th the sam e conso nan t or with a vow e l .

T he n u m b e r of syllable s in any giv e n li ne c ou ld vary ln

d e finite ly and the accents co u ld fall anywh ere in the li ne ,

provide d two occu rred in the first h alf and one (or two) i n
the se co n d h al f The re s u lt was tha t the rhyth m of S axo n
.

ve rs e was ex cee dingly loose and pliabl e N orman F re nc h .

-

ve rse d epend ed upon two d e vic e s quit e d iffe re nt from

,
—
th e se rhyme an d regu l ar li ne l e ngth the m e trical sys
,
-

te m was th erefore v e ry d e fin ite and e xact .

 A HISTO RY OF E NGLISH LI TERA T URE

The Engl an d which fin ds utterance in these songs is a

v e ry diffe re n t E ngl an d f rom th at which had sp ok e n i n

T he Wand e re r
” ”
and
, The B attl e of B ru nan b u rh It .

is n o lo nge r the fi e rce and gloo my asp ects of N ature bu t ,

her bright and l aug hi ng m oods th at are su ng , T he i mag

.

i nations of m en wor k now not in te r m s of war but o f

p eace ; m on o tonous and me lan ch oly grand e urs h a v e
given way to a bright and various hu manity .

T he N orm an i nvasi on has d one its work T he .

conq u e rors h ave ce as e d to be such f or fore ign

,

w ars and centu ri e s of d om e stic i nte rcourse h ave broke n

down the disti n cti on b e twe en m e n of N orman and men o f
S axon blo od T he ne w l angu age is formed a ne w an d
.
,

vigorous nati onal li fe is e verywh e re m ani fe st A ne w po e t

.

is ne ed ed great en ough to gath er up and m ak e i n te lligibl e

,

to itse lf this shi f ti ng m any colore d li fe ; and Ch auc e r is

,
-

at h and.
 CHA PT E R III
TH E A GE O F C HA UC ER
I

GE OFF RE Y CH A U C E R was bo rn about 1 3 40 of a fam ily ,

of Lon d on m e rch ants His f ath e r a m e m be r of the Cor

.
,

p o ra t i o n o f V i n t ne rs h ad b ee n p u rv,e yor to Che h eem

K i ng E dw ard III It was probably this fam ily
.
E a" ? W e “

c o nne cti on with the c ou rt whic h m ad e it p ossibl e for

C h auc e r wh e n ab out s e v e nte en to b e co m e a p age i n the
, ,

h o u sehold of the K i ng s dau ghte r ln law the Duch ess of

’
- -
,

C l are n c e T wo ye ars l ate r he w e nt with the ki ng s ar m y

’
.

to F ran c e H ere he saw u nroll e d the brilli ant p ageant

.

of m e di a e val war as the F r en ch chr on icl e r F roissart has

,

picture d it at a ti me wh en chivalry an d k nighth ood

, ,

th ou gh th ey had l ost som ething of th e ir i nner m eani ng ,

w e re at th eir high est poi nt of o u tward spl end or He .

be h e ld the u nsucce ssful si e ge of the city of Rh e i m s ; was

ca ptur e d by the F r e nch and h e ld as a priso ne r of war u n til
, ,

ra n so m e d by his roy al m ast e r .

O n his r e turn to E ngl and he was mad e a S q uire o f the

K i ng s B edch am b e r and prob ably sp en t the n e xt te n
’
,

y ea rs at Edward s court th en the most brilli ant i n Eu rop e

’
, .

T he cou rt of E dward was still pr actic ally a Fr e nch cou rt

a n d Ch auce r altho u gh he se e m s to h ave d e cid e d v e ry early
,

t o u se his n ativ e to ngu e n ec e ssarily t u rn e d to F ran c e f or

,

h is lite rary m od els The first p e ri od of his poe tic life was
.

sp e n t in as si m il ati ng all th at the F rench trou v eres and

b allad write rs had to teach hi m c onc e rn i ng his ch ose n art
-
.

T he m ost fam o u s work which the sch ool of Fr ench trou v eres
had produc e d was the Roma n de la Rose an el aborate alle
, ,

35
36 A HIST O RY OF E N GLISH LI T ERA T U RE
gory of Love the rose growi ng in a mystic gard e n w arde d
, , ,

by sym bolic powe rs f ro m the lover s approach and p ro vok ’

,

ing e ndl e ss disquisitions s e rious or satirical such as th e , ,

late r Middle Age s l oved to sp end u pon the subtl e ti e s o f

sen ti m en t T he Roman de la Ros e was Ch auce r s first
.
’

trai ni ng school an d he t ook his trai ni ng with ch aracte r

,

i stic th o rough ne ss by transl ati ng the po e m i nto E nglish

Th meh eh
e
v e rs e T he F r e n ch poe t
. D es C h am ps con
P°fi °d°
gratulate s Ch auc e r ab ove all thi ngs on h avi n g , ,
”
pl ante d the rose tree in the isle of gi ants -
Le ss th a n .

two th ou san d li ne s of this tran sl atio n h av e survive d ;

ind e ed the whol e m ay ne v e r h av e b ee n co m pl e ted
,
Bu t .

the Roma n de la Rose l e f t a pr ofou nd i m pre ssio n upo n

C h auc e r s work and f or y ears he tho u ght and wrote in the
’
,

a tm osph e re which it created f or hi m Du ri ng th e se y ea rs .

of Fr en ch i n flu en c e he wrote for the k nights and l adi e s o f ,

”
K i ng E dw ard s court th ose ballad es rou nd e ls Vire lays
’
, , , ,

“
by which his fell ow poe t Gow er says th e l and fulfill e d -

”
was ov e r all T he m ost i m portan t work which re mai n s
.

to u s f rom his pure F re nch p e riod h ow eve r is the B ook of , ,

the D u chesse als o k now n as , The D ea th of B la u nche the

”
Du chess e writte n i n 1 3 69 to s ol ac e the b ereav em ent o f
, ,

he r husband J oh n of Gau n t the ki ng s third son

’
.
,

In 1 3 70 Chauce r was se n t to the Con ti n en t on roy al

,

busi ness T his was the first of many ofiicial m issio ns which
.

he e xe cute d for the ki ng duri ng the ne xt ten years i n ,

vari ous p arts of E urope T he opp o rtu nity afi orded by .

th es e jo u rne ys f or c onv erse with many typ es of m en an d ,

obs e rv ati on of wid e ly v aryi ng m anne rs was of the utm os t ,

i m portance in his p oe tic e d u cati on .

’
O n Ch auc e r s re tu r n to E ngl and aft e r his first Itali a n
m issio n his se rvic e s w e re r eward e d by the gi f t of the i m
,

p ortant p ost of con trolle r of the custo m s on wool ski ns , ,

a n d t anne d hid e s at th e p ort of Londo n ; to which was

,

add e d the c ompli m en tary gran t of a d aily pitch e r of wi n e

f ro m the ki ng s c el lars His o ffi ce as controller was an

’
.
 TH E A GE O P C H AUC ER 37

a rduou s requiri ng his c onstant p ersonal att end ance

one, .

H e was by this ti m e m arri e d t o his wife Philipp a l ady in ,

-

w aiti ng to the c onsort of J oh n of Gau nt and lived in a ,

house o ve r one of the city gates near the T owe r We ge t .

f ro m his p oe m s v ari ous gli mp se s of his d aily

li fe e sp e ci ally of the eage rne ss for study which
, , ,
Pe i od r
af te r the d ay s wo rk was d one w ould s end hi m
.
’
,

“ ” “
ho me regardless of rest and ne we thinges to sit as
, ,
”
do m b as any st one o ve r his b ook u ntil his ey e s w ere daz ed , .

The u nq u en chabl e curiosity of the men of the Renaissanc e

was his m ore th an a c e n tury b e fo re the Renaissan ce r e ally
,

be gan in E ngl and His too was th eir thirst f or e xpr es

.
, ,

sio n The great b ook s he had c om e to k now in Italy gave

.

h i m no p eac e u ntil h e Sh ould e q u al or s u rp ass th e m

, In .

1 3 82 on the b e tr oth al o f the b oy ki ng Rich ard II to the

, ,
.
,

you ng p ri ncess Anne of B oh em i a Ch auc e r wrot e a we d ,

di n g p oe m f or the roy al pair the P a rlem ent of F ou les ,

( Birds ) T r oil
.u s a n d Gres ei de a n d t he H o u s e of F a m e
”
b e long also to thi s central or Itali an p e ri od of Ch au
’
c e r s lit e rary li fe In 1 385 he was all owed to di sch arge
.

his d u ti e s as custom s office r by d e puty T he fi rst resu lt .

o f his n e w f ou n d l e isur e was the Le end o Goode W m

f
-
g o

m e n d e dicate d to the you ng q u een

, In 1 386 he was .

e l e ct e d to Pa rli am e n t as m e m b e r f ro m K e n t T his P ar .

l i a m e n t was in O pp o sition to the ki ng and succ ee d e d i n ,

f orci ng up on hi m a c ou ncil one of the acti on s of which was ,

to dis m i ss Ch auc e r f ro m hi s o ffi ce as co n tr oll e r T hr e e .

y e ars l at e r Rich ard II agai n t ook aff airs i n t o his own h ands
.
,

a n d as a re ne we d Sign of the r oy al favor Ch au c e r was m ad e

c l e rk of the K i ng s w orks ( su p e rvisi ng archite ct ) at We st

’

m i n st er the T ow e r Wi nds or Castl e an d oth er pl ac es

, , ,
.

D uri ng th es e y ears his m ast e rpi e ce the Ca n ter

La te m
,

b u rg Ta les was gro wi ng u nde r his h and T o w

, Englis h Is ’

mm
.

a rd the e n d of Rich ard I I s re ign Ch auc e r fe ll

’
.

i n to p ov e rty from cau ses not we ll k nown b u t in 1 3 99 on

, ,

t he acc ession of H enry IV a b allad entitl e d The Com

.
38 A HISTO RY or E N G LI SH L I T ERATU RE

p l e in t Ch aucer to his E m pty Pu rs e brought him su b

of

s tan tia l ai d H e di e d i n 1 4 00, afte r signi ng a ni nety n i n e

.
-

y ear l ease of a house in St Pau l s Churchyard

’
. .

T he m ost i m portan t e v e n t i n Ch auc e r s li fe was his fir s t

’

’
visit to Italy, on the ki ng s busi ne ss, i n 1 3 72 Ita ly was .

th en at the z e nith of he r artistic e ne rgy, i n t h e

1 m m“ .

°on Cha n sple nd or of th at illu m i nation which h ad

f ull
225
f ollow e d the i n t e ll e ctu al twilight of the M i d
“
d le Age s and whic h we k now a s the Re naissanc e or N e w
, ,
”
Bi rth Each of her li ttl e city stat es was a c en tre of m a r
.
-

vel lou s a ctivity an d e v e rywh e re w e r e b ei ng prod u c e d th o s e

,

m ast e rpie c e s o f p ai nti ng sculpture and archite cture which

, , ,

s t ill m ak e Italy a plac e of pilgri m age f or all l ov ers of art .

T he lite rary activity was e q u ally great at l east i n T u sca n y , .

Dan te had b een d e ad f or h al f a c e ntury bu t his p oetry was ,

j ust begi nning to asse rt its el f as one of the w orld f orce s i n -

the real m of i m agi na ti on P e trarch the grave ae c o m.

, ,

l i shed schol ar and el egan t p oe t was passi ng his cl osi n g

p ,

years at his v illa of A rqu a ne ar Padu a ; Boccacci o p oe t , , ,

tale writer p ed ant and worldli ng was sp endi ng the a u

-
, , ,

tu m u of his li fe am ong the cypr ess and l aure l sl op e s O f

Fi e sol e abov e F lore nc e
,
T he world which lay op e n to
.

Chau ce r s ga z e wh en he cros sed the Alps was th e re fore o n e

’
,

calc u late d to fasci nate and sti m u l ate him in the high e st
d egre e Wh e th e r he saw Pe trarch or Boccacci o i n p e rson is
.

n ot k no w n but fr om thi s ti m e on his work was l arg e ly i n

, , ,

fl u e n ce d by th em as w ell as by Dante , T hrough all thr ee .

he c am e i n to close r c ontact with the gre at lit e ratu re of t h e

p ast and ac q uired a ne w re ve re nce f or the anci e nt m as te rs
, .

B o th the P a rlemen t of F ou les and t he Hou se of F a m e

are c olor e d wit h Itali an r e m i ni sc e nc e ; but the c hi ef f r u it

of Ch a uce r s Itali an j o urneys wa s the lo ng p oe m ad ap te d

’

r om Boccac ci o s P hi lostra to ( T he Love s tric ke n

’

T oi l u and
r s
f -

“m m“ O ne) e nti tl e d by Ch auce r Troi lu s a nd Cr es

,

ei de . T he story of the l ove of the you ng Troj an h e ro f o r

C re ssida and of he r d e se rti on of him f or the Gre e k
,
 TH E A G E O F C HA UCER 39

Di o m e d e s, had grow n gradu ally th ro u gh the Middle Ages

u n til it reach e d B occ ac ci o s h and who gave it an ani m ate d ’
,

but o rnate treat m e n t in facil e ve rse Ch aucer th ough p re .

,

te ndi n g only to tran slate ch ange d the th e m e radically , .

In his h ands the love rs go be tw e e n Pand a r u s is trans

’
-
, , ,

f o rm e d f r om a gild e d y ou th of T roil u s s o wn age an d

’

tem p e ram e nt to a m id dl e aged m an pl au si ble go od

,
-
, ,

na tu re d f u ll of easy w o rldly wisd om and vulga r m at e ri al

,

isti c id e als a ch aract e r as tr u e to typ e an d as vitally aliv e

,
-

as if Sh ak esp e are had d raw n h im T he growth of the .

lov e p assio n in C re ssida s h eart is trace d throu gh its grad

-
’

u al stage s wi t h a psychol ogic al su btl e ty e n ti re ly ne w in

E nglish po e try The actio n di al ogue and

. stage setti ng , ,
-

of the p oe m are all giv e n with th e sa tisfyi ng touch of a

m as te r dram atist and with the m o st surprisi ng r ealis m

-
, .

T hough the sc ene is an ci e nt T r oy an d the c ostu m e s a re ,

th o se of m edi aeval k nights an d ladi e s we s eem i n m any , ,

p assage s of the poem to b e l ooki ng at a m od ern pl ay or

,

re adi n g fro m a m ode rn n ove l so h om ely and actu al d oe s it ,

a p pea r T o b e sure Ch auc e r has not ye t d eliv e re d hi m s e l f

.
,

f ro m the m e di aeval vic e of t e di ousn ess T roilus thi nks .

n othi ng of e xp ati ati ng to Pand arus u po n the l e ast of lov e s

’

wo es through a score of s e ve n li n e stanzas T he bre vity

,
-
.
,

dir ectn e ss and pregnancy of Ch auce r s l atest styl e we re

,
’

sti ll b ey ond his grasp .

The Legend of Goode Wommen is chi efly i n t e re sti ng

b e cause of its prologu e In the body of the p oe m Cl eo .
,

p a tra D ido Thisbe and oth e r type s of fem i ni ne d e v oti on

, , ,

i n love are giv en c el ebratio n in covert trib u te

, ,

to the wi fe ly vi rt u es of the y o u n g qu e e n wh ose 6 635;t

1

men 5 , 0

f a vor had pro ba bly s e c u r e d f or the p oe t r el ease

'

f ro m the dru dg e ry of the custo m s ofli ce T h e se sto ri e s are

‘
.

ad apte d f ro m a Lati n w o rk of Bo cc acci o D e Cla r i s M u li ,

e ri bu s T he lo ng prologu e origi nal with Ch auc er is the

.
, ,

m ost wi nn i ng of his m any p assage s of p erso nal co nfession

a n d self re ve al me nt
-
.
40 A H IST O RY OF E N GLISH LITERA T URE
He repre sents hi m sel f as w and e ring in the fi elds on the
M y day the only season which can te m pt him f ro m
a
-
,

his books T he birds are si ngi ng to th e ir mate s th eir so ng

.

“ ”
of bl e sse d b e Sey nt Val entyn l and Ze phyrus and Flora , ,

“ ”
as
g o d a n d go d d e sse of th e fl o wr y m e d e h a v e spr e a d ,

the earth wi th f ragran t bloss om s But the poe t has ey e s .

only for one fl owe r the d ai sy the em perice ( e m pre ss)

, ,
”
and fl ou r of fl ou re s all e A ll d ay lo ng he l e an s an d pore s
.

upon the fl o we r ; and wh e n at last it has f old ed its l e a v e s

at the c om i ng of night he g oe s h om e to re st with t he
, ,

th ou ght of risi ng early to gaz e upon it o nce m ore H e .

m ak e s his c ouch ou t o f d oors in a littl e arbor ,

for d e yn te e ,

and h e re he has a wo n d e rf ul
”
o f the ne ws som e re s sa ke ,

drea m He dream s th at he is agai n in the fi elds kn e e li ng

.
,

by the d ai sy and s ee s approachi ng a proce ssi on of bright

,

f o rm s . First c om e s the y o u ng god of l o v e cl ad i n silk ,

e m br oid e re d with re d rose l eav e s and spr ays of gr ee n his

-
,

gilt h ai r cr ow ned with light i n his h and two fie ry d arts , ,

an d his wi ngs spr ea d ange l lik e H e l eads by the h an d a

-
.

qu ee n cl ad i n gre en an d crowned with a fill e t of d aisi e s

,

u nd e r a ban d of gold She is A lce stis typ e of nobl e st wif e ly

.
,

d e v oti on Behi nd he r c om e s an endl e ss trai n of wom e n

.

“ ”
who h av e b ee n tre we of l o ve Th e y k nee l in a circl e
.

ab ou t the p oe t and si ng with on e v oic e h onor to wo m a n s

’
,

truth and to the d aisy fl o we r the e m ble m of Al ce s tis T he

, , .

love god th e n gl owe rs angrily u p on Ch au ce r and upbra ids

-
,

hi m f or h aving d one d e spite to wo men in translati ng the ,

Roma n de la R ose with its satire upo n th e ir foibl e s a n d

,

i n writi ng the story of Cre ssid a so disho norabl e to t he ,

s teadfastne ss of the se x Al ce stis c om e s to his re scu e an d

.
,

agre e s to p a rdo n his m isd ee ds i f he will sp en d the re st o f

his li fe in m aki ng a glorio u s Leg end of Goode Wo m me n ”

,

and will s e n d it on he r be h al f
,
to the E nglish q u e e n , .

Ch au ce r prom is es sol e m nly and as soon as he w ake s be tak es

, ,

hi m self to his t ask .

It is probable that Chauce r did i n deed e nte r upo n t his

42 A HIST O RY OF E N GLISH LI TERA T U RE

a bout the se p arate stori e s of a c oll ectio n In his D ecamerone .

a c om p any of aristocra tic y o u ng p eopl e are r e pr e s e nt e d as

h avi ng take n refu ge f rom the plagu e ragi ng in F lo re nce ,

i n a vill a on the sl op e s of F i e s ol e T h e y w and e r through .

the vall eys of o l ean d e rs an d m yrtl e s o r sit be sid e th e fou n ,

tai ns of the Vill a gard ens and b eg u ile the ti me with tales
,

of sen ti m e n t an d i ntrig u e Ch auc e r whil e adopti ng a

.
,

si m il ar fram ew ork m ade his s e t ti ng m uch m ore na ti ona l

,

and r acy ; i ndividu aliz e d his ch ara cte rs so as to m ak e o f

th e m a gallery of livi ng portrai ts of his ti m e ; and vari e d

his T al e s so as to i nclude al m ost all the typ es of narra tiv e
k no wn to lite rature at the cl ose of the M iddle Age s .

H e re pre sen ts hi m s el f as alighti ng one spri ng e v e ni ng , ,

a t the T abard Inn i n S outhw ark a s u bu rb a t the so u th e r n

, ,

The p il gri m
e n d o f L o n d o n Bridg e wh e re af te rw a rd th e ,

a t t h °TaW d
fam ous Eliz ab e th an pl ayho u s e s Sh ake sp e are s
~ ’
,

a m ong th e m w e re to arise Sou thwark was the pl ace o f

,
.

d e parture and arrival for all S outh O f Engl and trave l an d - -

,

e sp e ci al ly fo r pilgri m ag e s to the world r e now n e d sh ri n e o f -

T h om as a B e ck e t at Cant e rb u ry
- -
,
A c o m p an y b e nt o n .

s u ch a pilgri mage Ch au ce r fi nds gath e red in the i nn ; h e

m ak es th eir acq u ai ntance and j o i ns hi m s el f wi th th e m f o r
,

the j ourn ey Cou n ti ng the p oe t th ey are thirty in al l

.
, .

T h e re is a K night l ately c om e f ro m the f oreign wa rs a ,

m an who has f ought in P r u ssi a and i n T u rk ey jouste d i n ,

T rasi m e ne and b een pr es e nt at the stor m i ng of Al e x a n

,

dri a — a high m i nd ed gentl e m anne red k n ightly adven t

,
-
,
-
,

u re r typ e of the chiv alry which was p assi ng rapidly a wa y

,
.

With him is his son a yo u ng Squ ire curly h aire d an d

, ,

his sh rt whit e sl e e v e d g ow n e m broid e re d lik e a m e a d

g y
a o -
, ,

wi th re d and white fl owe rs ; he is an epitom e of the gi f ts

a nd g rac e s o f brilli an t y outh T h e ir s e rvant is a Y e o
.

m an in c oat and h ood of gree n a sh eaf of p eacock

, ,

arrows u nd e r his b elt a m ighty b o w i n his h an d an d a

, ,

silv e r i m age of St Ch ristoph e r u p on his breast he is th e

.

typ e of that sturdy E nglish ye omanry which with its gra y ,

 TH E A GE O F C H A U C ER 43

goose sh afts hu mbl e d the prid e of France at Crecy and

A gi n cou rt T h e re is a wh ol e group o f e ccl esi astic al fi g
.

u re s r epre s e n ti ng i n th e ir nu mb e rs and vari e ty the

,

i m m e n se gro wth of the m e di eaval Ch u rch Most of th e m .

a re sa tiric al portraits i n th e ir w o rldli ne ss a nd gross m at e

,

ri al ism o n ly too faith f u l re pre se n tative s of the c orr u pt

Ca tholicis m agai nst which Wy clif struggl ed F irst of all .

the re is a m onk who c ar e s on ly f or hu nti ng and g ood

,

ch e e r ; his b ald h ead shi ne s lik e gl ass his steep eye s ,

ro ll i n his h ead he rid e s a sl e ek brown p alfrey and has ,

“
m an y a d ai nty h orse i n his stabl e s ; his sl e e v es are
tri m m e d with fi ne fu r at the wrists his ho od is fastene d ,

u n d e r his chi n with a gold l ov e k not A s a co m p ani on -

.

“
fig u re to the hu nti ng mon k Ch au cer give s us Mad ame ,

E glan ty ne the pri or ess ; she is a teach e r of you ng l adi e s

, ,
”
sp e aks F rench afte r the sch ool of Stratford atte b owe - -
,

is e xquisite i n he r tabl e m anne rs c o u n te rfe iti ng as w e ll as

-
,

sh e ca n the state ly b e h avior of the court O th er e ccl esi as .

ti e s a re th e re h angers ou an d c at e rpill ars of the Church

,
-

t h e S u m m o ne r a r e pulsiv e p e r son wit h

,
fi re re d Ch e ru bi m -

”
fa c e the Pardo ner with his b ag fu ll of p ardo ns, c om e
”
f ro m Ro m e all hot and of bits of cl oth an d pig s b one s
’
-
,

wh ich he se lls as relics of the h oly sai nts Chaucer s .

’

tre atm e n t of th ese e vil ch u rchm e n is highly good na tured -

a n d t ol e ran t ; he ne v e r t ak e s the tone of m or al i n digna

tio n again st th e m B u t he d oe s b e tte r ; he sets b esid e

.

th e m as type of the tru e sh e ph e rd of the Church a p oor

, ,

p a rso n such
,
”
as u n d e r Wycli f
, s t e a chi n g h ad spr ead o v e r
’
,

E n gl and begi nni ng th at great m ov e m en t for the p u rifi

,

c a tio n of the Church which was to r e sult , m ore th an a ,

c e n tury l ate r i n the Reform ati on Ch auc er p ai n ts the

, .

c h a ra cte r of the Parson p oor in this w orld s goods but ’

.
,
“ ”
ric h of h oly thought and w o rk with lovi ng and re ve r ,

e n t t ouch T he Pars on s b roth e r travels with hi m— a

’
.

“ ”
P low m an a tru e swi nk e r and a good who h e lps his
, ,

o o r ne ighbors without hire and lov e s th em as hi ms elf h e

p
44 A H ISTO RY OF E NGLIS H L I T E RA T UR E

r e m i nds us of th at Pi e rs Pl owm an o f wh om Langl an d ,

Chau ce r s gr eat c o nte m p orary and anti type wr o t e i n

’
-
,

his Vi si on A cro wd of o th e r figu re s fill the c an v a s

. .

T h e re is a Ship m an f rom the w e st c ou n try a r epre se n ta -

,

tive of th ose adv e ntu ro u s seam e n h al f m erch an t sailo rs ,

-
,

h al f sm u ggl e rs and pi rat es who had already m ade E n g ,

land s nam e a t e rror on the se as and p ave d the way f o r

’
,

he r f u tur e na val su p re m acy T h e r e is a p oor Cl erk o f

.

O x f ord ridi ng a h orse a s l ean as a rak e and dre s se d i n

, ,

th readbare cl oak who sp end s all th at he can b eg or b o r

,

ro w u p on b ook s ; h e r e p re se n t s th at p assi on f or l e ar n i n g

which was al re ady astir e v e rywh e re i n E u rope and whi ch ,

was w ai ti ng only the m agic t o u ch of the ne w fou n d -

classical li te rat u re to bl oss om ou t i nto ge nu i ne t hought

a n d i m agi n a ti on T h e re i s a M e rch ant in a F l e m i s h
.
,

b eave r on a hig h h orse conc eali ng wi th the grave i m p o r

, , ,

tance of his ai r the f act t hat he is in d e bt T h e re i s a

, .

group of g u ild m e n in the liv e ry of th ei r guild all worthy

-
, ,

to b e ald e rm e n t oge th e r with the m e rch an t th ey re p ,

rese nt the m e rcantil e and m anu facturi ng activity wh ich

was li f ti ng E ngl an d rapidly to the ra nk of a grea t co m
m e rcial p ow e r T h e re is the Wi fe o f B ath a figure co n
.
,

ce i v e d with m aste rly h u m or an d re ali sm a p e rm ane n t ,

“
h u m an typ e ; she has had h u sbands fi ve at church
” ”
d oor and th ou gh som d el d e af e xpe c ts to live to we d
, , ,

s e v e ral oth ers ; s he rid e s on an am bl e r with sp u rs an d ,

sc arl e t h ose on he r f ee t an d on he r h ead a hat as broad as

,

a b u ckl e r T h e se an d a d o z en oth e rs are al l p ai nte d i n

.
, ,

V ivid c ol ors an d with a psych ol ogical tru th which r e m i n d

,

u s o f the p ort raits of the F l e m is h p ai n te r Va n Ey ck ,

Ch a u c e r s c onte m p ora ry T ak e n as a whol e th e y rep re

’
. ,

s e nt the e n tire range of English soci e ty in the fo urte e n t h

c en tu ry with the e xce pti on of the high est aristocracy a n d
,

t he l o we st o rd e r of vill e i ns o r s e rfs .

A t su pp e r thi s g oodly com pany h e ars f rom the host of

the T ab ard a prop ositio n th at on th e ir j our ney to Can t e r
 TH E A GE O F C H A U CE R 45

b u ry , to b e guil e the tediu m of the rid e each of th em ,

s h a ll t e ll two tal e s and on th e h om e w ard j ourne y two

,

m ore .
*
H e agre e s to trave l with th em to act as m aster of ,
-

c e re m on i es and on th e ir re t u rn to re nd e r judgm en t as to
,

wh o has t old the b e st story the wi nn e r to b e giv en a su pp e r

,

a t t h e ge n e ral e xp e ns e So it is agree d . T he ne xt m orn i ng .

th e y se t ou t bright and early on th e ir j ou rney T he p il grim

°n t he Rm "
s o u t hw ard to the c ath ed ral city T h ey draw .

l o ts to d e te rm i ne who sh all t ell the fi rst tal e The l o t falls .

to t he K n ight who tells th e ch arm i ng chivalric st ory o f

,

Pa la m on and A rcit e Wh e n it is fi ni sh ed the Ho st calls

.

u p o n th e M onk to f ollow B u t the M ill er who is al re ady

.
,

d ru nk and q u arrelsom e insists on b e i ng h eard and l au nch e s

, ,

fo rthwith i n to a v e ry u nedi fyi ng tal e T h e Host ris e s in .

his stirrup s and calls on the Parson for a story by Goddes ,

d ignitee T he Parso n r e prov e s hi m f or sw eari ng ; wh e re

“
up o n the H ost cri e s th at he sm ells a Lollard f in the
wi n d and bids the co m p any p rep are for a s e rm o n T his
, .

is too m uch for the Ship m an who br eaks in i m p ati e ntly , .

Wh e n the Host calls up on the P ri ore ss he changes his ,

bl u ff m anne r to corresp ond with her rank and e xcessiv e

re fi ne m e n t sp eaki ng with p olite circu ml ocuti on
, as ,
”
co u rte ously as it had been a m aid T he Priore ss r e sp on ds.

gra ci o usly and tells the sto ry of H u gh of Li ncol n the lit

, ,

tl e m artyr who af te r his th roat had b e e n cut by the wick e d

,

J e ws an d his body thr ow n i nt o a pit still Si ngs with cl ear

, ,

y o u ng voice his A lma Redemp tori s to the gl ory of the V irgi n .

So the stori e s co nti nu e i n te rr u pt e d co nstantly by vivid

,

d i a l o g u e and action on the p art of the pilgri m s T wo of .

t h e m ost ch armi ng tale s are t old by t he Cl e rk an d the

C ou nting the Host and C a no n Ye om an (who j oin s the m

’
th e s

on th e ro ad ) the comp any co n s i ste d o f t hi rty

-
tw o pe rs ons , m aki ng a

t o ta l o f a hu nd re d a d
n t we nty
-
e i ght t a l e s t o b e told . Le ss than a fif th
of thi s n u m b e r we re actu ally writte n, a nd se v eral of the se were le ft
f ragm e nta ry .

t T he f ol l owe rs of Wy cli f we re calle d L ollards . See p 5 0 . .

46 A HISTO RY OF E N GLISH L I T ERA T URE
young S q uire The Cl erk af ter he has b een ralli ed by th e
. ,

Host u p on his still and th oughtful manner of riding agre e s ,

“
r l
to e a e a t st o ry which h e l e ar n e d a t P a du a o f F r a n cis
t
Pe ra c r h h
t e
,
l a ur ea t e p o e t wh o s e rh
,
e toric sw e e t e n l u

i
m ne d all It a ly o f p o e try It .is ”
t h e s tory o f P ati e n t
L
’
ri
G s e s l which
,
C h a uc e r b o r ro w e d f ro m P e tr a rch s a ti n v e r

sion T he Squ ire s tal e as b e fits his y ears and dispositi o n

.
’
, ,

is a bright tal e of l ov e adv ent u re an d m agic in which

, , ,

fi gur e a flyi ng h o rse of bras s and o th e r wo nde rs Ch a u .

ce r i n tr od u c es hi m se l f i n t o the s u cc e ssion of s tory t e ll

-

e rs wi t h ch ara ct e ristic m od e sty an d sly hu m or Sobe re d .

by the m iracu l o u s tal e of Hugh of Li ncol n the com p a n y ,

is ridi ng sil ently alo ng wh en the H ost to break the awe

, ,

str u ck m ood tu rns to Ch auce r an d begi ns to jok e h im

, ,

up on his shy abstracted air and his c orpul ency

wh a t man a rto w q u od he
T h o u l o o k e st as th o u w o u ld e s t fi n d an h are ,
F o re v e r u p o n th e gro u n d I se e th e e stare .

Ap p roa ch s n e a r, an d l o o k u p m e rri l y .

N o w w a re y o u sirs, a n d le t th i s m a n hav e p la ce ;
,

H e i n th e w a is t is sh a p e a s w e ll a s I
He s ee m e th e l v i sh b y h is cou n te n a n ce

For t
u n o no W i gh t d o e th h e d al li a n ce .

Ch aucer, thus ralli ed , b e gi n s one th os e dogge rel rhy m e s of

O f k n ightly adv e n t u re , to which th e r omanc e s of chiva lry

had in his day d egene rat e d T he Rhy me of Si r Thap as i s a
.

capit al burl e sq u e of a styl e of po e t ry which Ch a uc e r h i m

se lf had co me to suppl ant H e has n o t got f ar b efore t he

.

Host cri e s out up on the drasty rhym i ng and Ch au c e r ,

m eekly agr ees to contrib u t e i nst e ad a littl e thi ng i n

prose a m oral tal e

,
and he pro c e e ds with the story o f

Mel ib eu s and his wi f e Prud enc e a v ery dreary tal e i nd e e d , ,

mat ch ed f or t e di ous ness o n ly by the pr ose s e rm on put i n to

the m outh of the Pars on with which the Cante rbu ry ,

Tal e s i n the f ragmentary form in which th ey w ere le f t

'

, ,
 TH E A GE O F C H AU C ER 47

c o n c l ud e .
It is curious to t no e h ow Ch auce r s styl
’
e be
co m e s awkw ard i nv olve d an d w earisom e as s oon as he de
, , ,

se rts his na tur l

a me di u m of v e rs e a n d ,
a tt e m pts t o writ e

i n p ros e .

In the sixt ee n th c en tury a n d l a t e r wh e n owi ,

n g t o th e ,

chan e g i n th e pr o n u n ci a ti o n o f w o rds ( e sp e ci a lly t h e l o ss

i fi
’

o f th e fi n al e) t he s e cre t o
,
f C h c rs
a u e v e rs c a Ch ee eh , e
.

m m” At r
ti on was l ost he was regard e d as a b arb arou s
,

wr e it r,
ig n o r a n t o f p r o sody an ,
d w it h n o e a r f o r t h e m e l
O dy of v e r se . T h e c o n tr ary o f this w a s t h e c a s e H e w as .

an a rtist in v e r s e e f
-
f e cts w
,
h o p a id c o n st a n t a n d d e lic a t e

h ee d to t h e n ic e ti e s o f rhyth m a n d t o n e col o r I n -
a h a l f .

humo r o us a ddr e ss to his scriv e n e r A d a m h e c a l ls d o w

, n

c u rs e s u p o n th a t u n w o rthy s e r v a n t f o r sp o ili,n g g oo d
v e rs e s by b ad c opyi ng , an d i n T roil u s h e b e se e ch e s his
“ ”
re ad e rs n ot to m is m e tre his b ook F rom his ve ry .

e a rl i e st po e m s , his work is in all f orm al d e tails fault

l e s s a n d as he p rog re sse d in skill his m u sic b e c am e con ,

s ta n tly m or e v ari e d an d fl e xibl e His e arly m anne r

.

rea ch e s its h e ight in the e xq u i sit e r on d e l i ntric ate i n ,

f o rm b u t h an dl e d with great Si m plicity of e ffe ct which ,

b ri ngs the P a rlement of F ou les to a m e l odi ous cl os e A .

od e x a m pl e of his l ate r m usic m ay b e f o u n d in the de

g o

s cripti on of the T e m pl e of Ve n u s in the K n ight s T al e ;

’

or as a study i n a grav er ke y i n the ball ad F lee fro the

, ,
”
P re ss , which m arks so i m pre ssiv ely the d ee pe ni ng se ri
o nene ss of Ch au cer s m i nd in his l ast years
’
.

Ch au c e r e m ploye d thr ee pri n cip al m e tre s : the e ight

syllabl e li ne rhym i ng in c ou pl e ts as in the B ook of the
, ,

D u chesse the te n syll abl e li n e al so rhym i ng in coupl e ts

-
, ,

as in th e P rol ogu e to th e Ca n te rb u ry T al e s and the sam e

li n e arrange d in se v en l ine stanz as ( k nown late r as

-

rhym e r oy al as in T r oil u s I n his short e r po em s he

.

m ad e how e ve r en dl ess m e trical e xp e ri men ts and show e d

, , ,

a maste ry of i n tric at e v e rse f orm s r e mark abl e e v en in an

-
,

Rhyming a, b, a. b, b, c, c,
48 I O Y
A H ST R OF E N GLI SH LI T ERA T URE

age wh e n the F r en ch had m ade ve rs e writi ng a m att e r of -

gy mnastic ski ll .

A s f or his m ate ri al Ch a uce r did not h e sitate to tak e

,

wh at suite d him wh e re ve r he fou nd it ; some ti m e s borrow

,

i ng wh ol e sal e wi th out ch ange of tene r ad apti ng

So rce s oi
u s ,

an d r e w orki ng his m atte r f re e ly Any suc h .

”
thing as origi n ality in the mod e rn sen se was u n dre am e d
, ,

of i n the M iddl e A ges the m ate rial of li te rature was com

m on prop e rty and the sam e stori e s w e re en dl essl y r ep eate d
, .

Wh oev e r wo u ld le arn the sou rces from which Ch auce r

“

d re w m u st ransack t he store h o u se of m e di aev al fiction

, ,

a nd e x am i n e no littl e of m e di aev al sci en ce an d phil o sophy .

Ch au c e r s was the on ly origi nality th en possibl e

’
— he i m ,

prov e d wh ate ve r he b orr ow e d and stamp e d it with his ,

i ndividu ality of th ought an d styl e T h at p art of his work .

which we valu e m os t how ev e r su ch as the prologu es to

, ,

the Le ge n d o f Goo d Wom en an d to the Cante rbury T ale s ,

was origi nal in e v e ry sen se .

C h auce r lived an d wrote in a world wh ere the lurid

lights an d grote sq u e Sh ad ows of the M iddl e Age s w e re
o n ly b egi nn i ng to b e p e n e trat e d by the cl ear d aw n light -

of m od e rn cultu re H e first of all m en in E n gl an d fe lt

.
, ,

the i nflu e nc e of th at n ew ill u m i na ti on as it sh on e f ro m ,

F ran ce and f ro m b e y on d the Alps ; an d he f ollow e d it

,

u n til it brou ght h i m ou t f rom am ong the abstr acti on s an d

the m on ot on ou s dre am s of the M iddl e Age s i nto a world

of livi ng r eality v ari e ty an d h u m o r
, In this he was f ar
, .
,

be yon d his age The f u ll forc e of his origi

Chaucew w
.

? wi th nal i ty is fe lt wh en he is c om p are d with J oh n

33323 —
Gow e r the m oral Go we r to who m he d edi
,

cate d his T roilus Ch auc e r i n his m atu r e work looks

.
, ,

f orw ard to the E ngl an d of the T ud ors Go wer is still hop e

l e ssly entangl e d in the abstractions and form le ss dre am s
of me di aevalis m .
50 A H IST O R Y OF E N GLISH LI TE RAT U RE

m idst which it was d e clare d a d e vil app eared and

of , ,
”
spoke . T he e x acti ons of the Ch u rch the e xtra vagan c e s ,

o f E dward III and the h e a vy c ost of his fo reign w ars

.
, ,

a dd e d to the bu rd e n b orn e by th e distra cte d p e asan try .

T he fearl e ssn e ss with which the O x ford r e for m e r J oh n ,

Wycli f attacke d the c orru p tions of the Chu rch and

, ,

qu e sti one d the f u nd am ental rights of prop erty was lik e ,

flam e to the f u el of discon ten t In 1 381 an i mm e nse .

u prisin g of the p eas an ts o cc u rre d u n d e r th e l e ad e rship of ,

Wat T yl e r J ack Straw and a soci alist prie st of K e n t

, , ,

n a m e d J oh n B all e T h e y m arch e d on Lon do n sa ck ed

.
,

the T ow e r an d the S a voy p al ac e and m urde re d an a rch ,

bi sh op ; it se e m e d as if the thro ne and the whol e s o cial

o rd e r w e re ab ou t to b e ov e rtu rne d It was this sta te of .

thi ngs w hich pr om pte d Gowe r to write his Vox Gla ma n ti s .

AS a lan d o wn e r i n K e n t he f elt the f ull bru n t of t he

-
,

distu rb anc e H e write s from the ari stocratic p oin t of

.

vi e w rep resen ting the c om m on peopl e as tu rne d i n to

,

b eas ts ox e n d ogs fli es and f rogs by the e vil m agic of the

, , , , ,

ti m e T he d u ll old p oe m k ee ps an i nte rest by virtu e of

.

the i n te n se fe e lin g which p e rvad e s it of h orror and dis m ay ,

at the soci al v olc an o which had op e ne d for a m o m e n t ,

threat en i ng to e ng u l f the n ati on .

J oh n Wycli f ( 1 3 2 0 ? the man who by his te a ch

i ng had h elp e d u n i ntenti onally to f o m ent the p e as a n t
, ,

rebe lli on was pri m arily a religi ous re fo r m er

,
Wy cl if
.

and th eol ogi an His c onn e cti on with En glish

.

literature is in a sen se accidental b u t it is neve rth e l e ss

, , ,

v e ry i m p ortan t H e attacke d the t e m poral p ower of the

.

ch u rch advocati ng p artly i n the i nte rests of the ove rb u r

, ,

de n e d p oor the appr opri ati on by the state of all church

,

p rop erty Whil e wagi ng a war of th e ory on this

.

an d oth e r e ccl e si as tic al q u e sti ons he pl ann e d ,

and c arri ed ou t a g reat pra ctic al m ov e m e nt ,

k nown as the Loll a rd m ov e m en t for arousing the co m m on ,

p eopl e to a more vital religious li fe He sent out si mple, .

 TH E A GE O F C HAUC ER
de vote d men, to preach the gosp el in the native tongu e ,

a n d to bri ng ho m e to th e ir h e are rs the livi n g truths of re

ligio n whic h t he form alis m of the m e di aeval Church had

ob sc u re d T h e s e
. poor p ri e sts dre ss e d in coarse ru sse t
,

robe s and carryi ng st ave s t rav elle d throu gh the length

,

a n d br ea dth of the l and as We sl ey s pr ea ch e rs trav e ll e d

’
,

f ou r ce nturi e s l a te r c alli ng m e n back to the si mpl e fa it h

,

o f e arly apostolic ti m e s Wycli f and his Lollard pri e sts

.

b e ga n the great Prot estant app eal f ro m the d ogmas of

t h e C h u rch to the Bibl e which c u l m i nate d in the sixte e n th
, ,

ce n tu ry i n Luth e r and the Reform ati on

, I n ord e r t o .

m ak e this appe al e ffe ctiv e with the masse s Wycli f u nd er ,

t o ok to transl ate the whol e of the Bible i nt o w clif s ’

E nglish . With the as sistanc e of N ich olas of

H eref ord he c om pl e te d his g re at task b efore his d eath in
,

1 3 84 Wycli f s Bible was r e vi se d and some what si m pli

’

m
.

i n styl e a f e w y e ars l ate r by J ohn Pu rve y and r e c e ive d ,

i ts fi nal f orm som e ti me be fore the end of the ce ntury It .

i s the first gr e at m onu m e nt of p ros e styl e in E nglish By .

V irtu e of it and of the s e r m ons a nd tr acts which he w rot e

,

i n h om ely vigorou s s p ee ch f or the u nd erstan di n g of si m pl e

p e o pl e, W ycli f e a r ne d his titl e o f “
f a th e r of E nglish p ros e .
”

T he p e asan t re b e llion an d the Loll ard agitatio n giv e u s

gli m p ses of an E ngland which Chauce r in spite of the ,

m an ysi de dne ss of his work did n ot r ev eal , T he Can t e r .

bury T al e s con tai n only one refe rence to the pl agu e and ,

o nly o ne to Loll ard ry bo th of th ese refere n ce s are casu al

and h al f j e sti ng
-
Ch auce r w ro te for the c ou rt and the cu l ti
.

v a te d cl ass e s to wh om the su ff e ri ng s of the po or w er e e ith e r

,

u nk n own or acce pt e d as a p art of the n atu ral ord e r of

,

things H e is ofte n se rious som e ti m es n obly so but i nten se

.
,

moral i n dig nati on an d e xalte d spiritu al rapt u r e

m
Ch ce con au r
were foreIgn to M s artI stIc gay tol e ran t dIs
0

é
l vi th
, ,
finz
p o sitio n . I n his g rac e f u l w orldli ne ss his d e ,

light in the bright p ageantry of li fe he sh ows the N orman ,

French strai n ; the o th e r h al f o f the E nglish nature its ,

52 A HIST O RY OF E N GLI SH LI TERATURE
mystical , so mbre spi ritu ally stre nuous side f ou n d e x
, ,

pressio n in Willi am Lan glan d author of the B ook concern ,

i ng P i ers the P lowma n H e pr ocee ds f ro m th e Ge r m an ic

.

strain in the nation and is the re pre se ntativ e of th ose m o ral

,

an d spiritu al traits which af t e rwa rd c am e to b e k no wn a s

P uritan .

All th at we k no w of Langl and he has told us hi m se l f in ,

the bri e f autobiographic hi nts c on tai ne d i n P i ers the P lo w

ma n H e was b o rn p rob ably at Cole sb u ry M o r
Lan land
.

his !IQ nd a ti m e r near Malvern in Worce stershire n ot f ar

cm cte
, ,

f ro m the Wel sh b orde r

a r'
H e was of lo w bi rth .
,

though a f ree man He t ell s us t hat his fath er and f ri e n d s

.

put him to school and m ad e a cl e rk of him For a ti m e he

, .

“ ”
rom e d about rob e d i n russ e t in the manne r of a m e n di
,

cant driven by vagu e th ou ghts and d e sire s Goi ng up to

,
.

”
Londo n he got hi m a ch an t ry for souls on e of the m i n or
, ,

offic es of the m edimval Ch u rch ; his d u ty b ei ng to ch an t

at s tat e d i nt e rvals for the re l ease f rom purg atory of th e soul

of s om e d ead m a n who had l e f t a b e qu e st for th a t pu rpos e

, .

His p la cebo and his di rige and his se v en psal m s w e re the

”
t ool s he says with a sh ad e of s el f co ntempt by which he
,
-
,

gai ne d his bread His pove rty was e xtrem e With his wi fe
. .

K itt e and his d aughte r Cal ote he live d in Co rnhill wh e re , ,

his tal l gau n t figure cl o th e d in a so m bre pri e stly cloa k

, , ,

got h im the nicknam e of Long Will “ ”

A s he stalk e d .

thro u gh the cro wd e d Stran d he would refuse to b ow to ,

fi ne l ords and l adi e s cl ad in f u rs and silv e r and to cry ,

“ ”
God sav e you sir ! to se rge ant s of the law
, His con .

duct t o ward the rich and g reat so u nu su al in th at day got , ,

h im th e nam e of an e c ce n tric p e rs on so m ewh at touch e d i n ,

the b ra i n Hi nts of m e ntal st ruggl e s v ergi ng up on i n san ity

.

occu r in his co nfe ssi ons M y wit waxed and w ane d h e

.
”
,

says , u n til I was a fool A h al f fe rocious si nce rity a

.
-
,

fl am i ng i ndignation agai nst the pre te nce s and base co m

p l ac e n ci e s of th e w o rld c o m bi n e d with t h e
, abstr actio n an d
inward air of th e visio nary m ust h av e mad e hi m a pu zzli n ,
g
 TH E A GE OF C HA U C E R 53

and discon c e rti ng p e rsonality to th ose who thought of him ,

as o nly o ne a m ong the lollare s idle rs ) an d le wd her

myte s of Lon do n T he l ast t rac e we ge t of hi m is i n
.

Bri stol wh e re in 1 3 99 he was writing R i cha rd the R ede

, , ,

less a p oe m of pro te st and w arn i ng addre sse d to K i ng Rich

,

ard II A pp ar e n tly n e ws reach e d him of the a ssassi natio n

.
,

of th e ki ng an d of the u s u rp a ti o n of the thro ne by H e nry

IV and he thre w the po e m by u n fi nish e d The d ate of his

. .

death is u nk n own .

His life work was his great p oem The Vi si on of Wi lli am

-
,

concer ni ng P i ers the P lowm a n I n to this he put all that .

he had to say upo n the qu e sti ons of the day and ,

upo n the g rea t qu e stio n s of h u m a n li fe He .

work e d u p on it f or at l east thi rty years con ,

stan tly re writi ng and e xp an di n g i t It e xis ts in th ree v er .

sio ns t he fi rst d a ti ng f ro m a b ou t 1 3 62 wh e n Langl an d was

, ,

thirty ye a rs old the seco nd f ro m a bout 1 3 7 7 the l as t com

, ,

l t d f t r 1 3 9 0 p rh ps l t 1 3 9 8— 99 I n th s
p e e a e e a as ,a e a s e e re .

writi n gs and re c asti ngs it gre w f r om e ight c an tos to tw e nty

thre e an d the co nc e p ti on of the chi ef ch aract e r P i e rs the ,

Pl o w m an gr e w constan tly m ore e x alt ed

, A t fi rst h e is .

mere ly an ho ne st si mpl e h e arte d f arme r full of Christi an

,
-
,

help f u l n e s s and practic al j u stic e But i n the later v e rsio ns .

he is r ai se d and glorifie d and is conc e iv ed of m ystic ally as

Je sus Christ i nc ar nate in the f orm of a lowly till e r of the
,

fields .

Although c all e d c oll e ctiv ely a Vision the p oe m re ally ,

co nsist s of a se ri e s o f vi si ons T he first the V i si on of the

.
,

Fi el d f u ll of Folk gives a vi e w of the corrupti on s of th e state

,

and o f th e soci al body O n a M ay m orni ng o n

v si on of t he
.
,
i
Malv e rn Hill s the p oe t ”
w e ary forw and ere d 1 4 1 fu ll of
12312
, , ,

lies d ow n to re st and dream s B e ne ath him in

, .
,

the gre a t pl ai n h e s e e s g ath e re d toge th e r a v ast cro wd of

,

p e o pl e r e p r
,e s e n ti n g th e m a n i f old li f e o f th e world A ll .

are busy but th e ir work is wit h fe w e xce ptio ns e vil or

, , ,

futile Som e are so wi ng or pl oughi ng but o nly th at idl ers

.
,
54 I O Y
A H ST R O F E N GL SH L I I TE RA T URE
m ay waste the fruit of the ir toil P ilgri m s are j ou rneyi n g .

“
to h oly sh ri nes th at th e y m ay l ie all th eir live s aft e r ;
,

mi nstre ls a nd rib ald st ory te ll e rs are plyi ng th e ir t ra d e ;

-

f ri a rs and p ard one rs are ab u si ng th e ir p ri e stly station f o r

th e i r own low e n d s Law se rg ea nts trad esm e n an d ta v
.
-
, ,

e rne rs m i x wi th t he ch an gi ng crowd an d c on t ribut e e ac h ,

his ch aracte ri stic ab u se T he ge nius of the cro wd t he

.
,

i n carnati on of the worldly spi rit i s Lady Meed ( B ribe ry ) , ,

a w on d e rf u l all e g o ri cal fig u re sy m b ol of th at s e lf s ee ki n g
,
-

a nd di shon e sty which Lan gl and e ve rywh e re sa w pois on i n g

the sp rings of s oci al an d p olitic al li fe .

I n the n e x t V isi o n th at of the S e ve n Deadly Sin s a nd o f

,

P i e rs the P l ow m an we are give n a gr ou p of th e s e al lego r

,

ical ab straction s p ai nte d h owe v e r with so m u c h

Vision of the , , ,

Seve n Deadl y reali sm and graphic d e tail th at lik e the a h , ,

stract fi gu res of P ilgri m s Progre ss th ey se e m ’

,

as ta ngibl e an d real as livi ng b e in gs with wh om i nd e e d , , ,

they m i ngle on e qu al t e r m s A m on g the m is P i e rs and to

.
,

h im th e y app e al to Sh ow th e m the way to Tru t h i e to , . .

,

God the Fath e r . Pi e rs k nows T ru th w e ll b u t re fu se s to go ,

u ntil h e has pl ou gh e d h is h al f acre All who co m e as ki ng -

.

f or guid anc e he se ts to w ork Many Shi rk th e ir tasks b u t

.
,

are d riv e n b ack by Hu ng e r A s the first V isi o n give s a

.

Vi e w of the corrupti on s of the stat e an d hi n ts a t th e ir ,

cau se and re m edy in the p e rson of Lady M ee d so the seco n d ,

sh o ws the i n divid u al si ns of m e n and preache s as p re , ,

p aratory to p ersonal salvati o n th e G o p e l o Work th e

s f ,
— ,

s am e gosp el whi ch Carlyl e who has m an y poi n ts of ,

re se m bl an c e to Lan gl an d was to pre ach fi ve c e n tu ri e s

,

af t e r wa r d
.

The l ate r V isi ons atte m pt to se t forth the tru e th e ory

of m oral actio n an d of the s pi ritu al li f e
,
T he p o e m .

reach e s its high es t p oi n t o f i m agi native i ntensity in th e

acc ou n t o f P i e r s e tri u m ph ov e r D e a th an d H ell H e co m e s
’
.

ridi ng b arefoot on an ass with ou t sp u rs o r sp e ar to his

, ,

j oust in J erusal e m ”
With the ne ws of his tri u mp h and
.
 TH E A GE O F C H AU CER . 55

re su rr e cti on the dream e r awak es in e cstasy, the j oyous

,

Eas te r b ells p eali ng i n his ears .

T he nam e of Pie rs Pl ow m an was us e d as a rallyi ng cry

i n t he p eas ant uprisi ng ; and the p oe m prob ably had m uch
t o do with form i ng Wyclif s e v ange listic id e als i n his i n
’
,
”
p oor pri e sts Langl and s s en se of the
’
s ti t u ti on of the .

e q u a lity of all m e n b e fore Go d his h atr e d of h m e t

e m g, l .

la nd P°°m ’
s o ci a l falsiti e s an d hyp ocri si e s his b eli ef in s
,

t he dignity of l ab or g i ve a m od ern tone to his po e m

, ,

i n s pite of its arch aic m e tric al f orm and its m e di aeval ,

m ac hi ne ry of abstract fig u r e s His d ee p religi ous s ense and

.

the grand e ur of his m y stic al i m agi n ings are ne ith e r anci ent
n o r m od e rn but of all ti me
, .

T he m e trical form which Langl and ch ose agai n co ntrasts ,

hi m sh arply with C h auc e r Ch au c e r thre w in his lot f rom

.

th e fi rs t with the n e w v e rsi fi cation i m p orte d It, Metri c,“

Fm “
f ro m Fr an c e d e p e ndi ng up on r e gul ar acc ent
,

an d rhy m e ; and he d e ve lop e d this i n s u ch a way as to

bri n g ou t of it a rich and fi nish e d m u sic By his ch oice .

o f th e F r e nch syst e m h e put hi m s el f in li ne with the

f u tu re e volution of E ngli sh v e rs e Langl and e ith e r b e .

,

ca u se he k new th at his p opular au di enc e w ou ld b e m ore

d e e ply touch e d by the anci e n t and traditi onal rhyth m s
of t he rac e or b e c aus e th es e w e r e m o re natu ral to hi m sel f
, ,

a d o pt e d the old sy st e m of nativ e v e rsifi cation which d e ,

p e n d e d upo n allit e ratio n f o r or nam e n t an d a ll o w e d g re a t ,

irre g u larity both in the p osition of stre sse d syll abl e s and in
th e n u mb e r of syll abl e s i n the li ne The op e ni ng v e rs e s .

o f t h e poe m will se rv e as a sp eci m e n

In a s 6m e r sé so n . wh an soft was t h e s6nn e ,

I { ho p e m e i n sh ro u d e s . as I a sh e pe we re
In h a b i t as a n h e rm i t . u nh o ly o f w 6rk e s
We n t w id e i n th i s w o rld e . w 6n d re s t o h e re .

T he caesura, or he a v y p au s e in the m idd le o f e a ch li ne , i s m a rke d

by a d ot
. T he allite rati v e sy llab le s , of whi ch the re are u su ally two i n
56 A H IS TO RY OF E NGLISH LI TE RATU RE

T h is metre is to a m od er n ear so m e wh at m onotono u s

, ,

an d u nc ou th .It adapts itse lf mu ch be tter to re ci tatio n

th an to private re adi ng ; and it is highly probabl e tha t
Lan glan d w rote with the e xp ectati on th at his poe try
wo u ld be ch ante d by m i nstre ls in re citativ e Si nce the ,

lit erature of the audi e n ce he add resse d was chi efl y dis

se m inate d in th at way How e v e r we accoun t f or it th e
.
,

fact th at the Vi si on is w ritten in an an tiqu e an d r a pidly

dying v e rse form has t old se v e re ly agai nst i t F ro m
, .

Ch auc e r fl ows the wh ole stream of la te r v erse as f ro m a ,

”
“
Langl and s po em had n o
’
w ell of E nglish u n de fi le d .

lite rary off spri ng u nl e ss its e ff e ct may b e trace d in the

,

m iracl e and m orality pl ays of the early dram a Its nu .

cou thness m ore ov e r is n ot li m ite d to its me tre

, , As a .

w hol e it is c onf u se d in pl an b e wild e re d with d e tail f ull, ,

of br e aks an d rud e tran siti on s Its total efi ect is ma j e sty}.

b e cause of the force of im agi nation b ehi nd it bu t ap t ,

rt is t ie It l a cks the cl e a r fi rm o u tli ne and th e h armo

g r , ,

n iou s pr op ortio n which Ch au c e r s supr eme artistic s e nse

’
,

e nabl e d him to attai n in his l at e r ye ars .

T h at Ch a uc e r was far in advan c e of his ti me b e co me s ,

cl ear whe n we n ote how p e rsiste ntly his fifteenth ce n tury

s u cc e ssors t u rn e d b ack to him for in spir a tio n
m ““m of ,

Ch uce and
a r
as to then
Gower .

F a d e r d e re a nd m a i ste r re v ere n t ,

an d fou ndth e m selve s u nabl e to do more th an a wkw ardly

or p allidly i mit at e him The chi ef am on g th e s e i m ita
.

t ors was J o hn Lydgate a m onk of Bury St Ed m u nd s , .

,

wh o b egan m aki ng v e rse s b e fore C ha uce r s

’

Ly d gat e
d eath and di e d b efore the outbreak of the
,

Wars of the Roses His Story of Thebes based on B oc

.
,

caccio and Statius is told as one of the Can terbury T ale s ;

,

the po et in his prologu e fe ign s to have j oi ne d the p il

and one ( so me time s two) i n the se cond half , are stre sse d.

lly fou r stre sse s i n the line .

58 A HISTORY or ENGLI S H L ITERATU RE

in or iginal pow er, b u t fro m which neith er Gow er nor the

Chauc e ri an i mitators d eliv e re d th em s elve s It is sign i fi .

cant of the failure of th ese i m itators to p e rce ive the i m

mense origi n ality of Ch auce r s l ate r work, that th ey f re
’

qu ently put Gow e r on a l e v el wi th him In the E n v o y .

“
of the K i ng s Qu a i r, J am es
’
reco mmends his litel bok e ,
”
u akit of e l o qu e nc e,

U n t o th e y m p nes (h ym ns) O f m y m a is ters d ere,

Go were a nd C h a u ce re , th a t o n ste p p i s sa tt
O f rh e to ri ke wh i l th e y we re l y v and h ere ,
Su p e rl a t iv e as t
p e s
o l a u rea te ,

and he bri ngs the po em to a cl ose with a prayer th at th e i r

souls may t ogeth e r enj oy the bliss of h eav en Wh en i n .
,

1 4 24 th e pri n c e on the ev e of re l eas e f r om his lo ng cap

, ,

tiv i ty was ma rri e d to th e l ady who m he had c e le brate d i n

,

the K i ng s Qu a i r his re ve r ence f or Gowe r prom pt ed h i m

’
,

to h ave the w e ddi ng h eld in the church of St Savior s .

’
,

wh e re the old po e t lay b u ri e d .

This e xc e ssive re v ere n c e f or the po ets of a pre ce di ng age

is one Si gn amo ng many that the natural springs of p oe try
Decay of w e r e dry T he fi f te e n th. c e n t u ry is i n f a ct , ,
m a p e culi arly barr en one
afifi g Its m ost f a m ous po e.t ,

Gem"? Lydgate s eld o m or n e v e r ros e abov e me diocri ty ;

,

and the thi n stream of artifici al lov e po e try which flow e d -

down i n to the troubl e d ti me s of the Wars of the Ros es ,

gre w af ter Jame s I l ess and l ess u ntil it lost itself in the
, .
,

sands .

In prose how e ver the fi f teenth c e n tury produc ed one

, ,

work which has m uch of th e el evatio n and i magi na tive

spl dor f gr t p e try the M orte D A rthu r
’
Fi ft eenth e n o e a o ,
Cent y Prose
ur
8 “T hem e
of Sir :
T ho m as M alory M a lory w a s a k n ight.
,
W “? a g e ntl e man of an an ci en t hous e with its s ea t ,

at Ne wbold Re v ell Warwickshir e ,

*
As a you ng man he .

Who W as Sir T homas Malory by G L Kittre dge Re printed . . .

f rom V ol V . . of Studi e s and Note s i n Phil ology a nd Lite ra tu re .

B oston, 1 897 .
 TH E A GE or C H AUC ER . 59

se rv e d in F rance in the m ilitary re ti nu e of Richard B eau

,

ch a m p E arl of Warwick a warri or in wh om lived agai n

, ,

t h e k n ightly ideal of a for me r age and who was kn ow n by ,

”
th e rom an tic titl e of Fath e r of Courte sy Such a li ne .

age an d tr a i n i ng fitte d Malory p e culi arly f or his task of

c o m bi ni ng in a great pros e poe m the legends of K i ng

-

A rth u r an d the Rou n d Tabl e which he gath e re d f ro m ,

Ge o ff r ey of Mon m ou th and the F re nch trou veres By .

go o d fortu ne he was m aster of a si mpl e flowi ng English ,

styl e pri m itive in struct u re but c apabl e of consid erable

, ,

fl e xibility and falli ng i n to pleasan t natural rhyth ms The .

o n ly e xa mpl e whic h he had for s u ch a u se as he m ad e of

th e ne w E nglish prose was in the f am ous Tra v e ls of Si r

,

J oh n M a ndev i lle com pil e d in F r en c h by J ean d e Bourgogne

, ,

a n d tran sl ate d i nto E nglis h la te in the f ourte en th c e n tury .

T h e tran sl ator of th e se fictitious T rav e ls is u nk no wn but ,

w h oe ve r he was he thre w his m arvellous tale s of giant

,

s h ee p hum an b e i ngs with d ogs fac e s

’
, an thropap hagi and , ,
”
m e n whose h eads do gro w b eneath th e ir sh ould ers i n to a ,

s i m pl e lucid pros e which whil e lacking the te rs e ne ss and

, , ,

e n e rgy of Wycli f s popular s e r m o ns was the b e st i nstru

’
,

m e nt ye t fou nd f or the j ourne y work of lit e rature - T his .

i n s tru me nt Malory took up but in re spons e to the s u p e rior

d i gnity and b eauty of his subj ect he rais ed it to a highe r ,

p o w e r T
. h e M ort e D arthu r is the one grea t o asis in t he

l i te ra ry de s e rt of the fi f te e nth It was fi nishe d

b y 1 4 70 but was not pri nt e d u n til
, wh en Caxto n ,

t h e first E nglish ri nte r publish e d i

,
an i n te r e sti ng

r e ace ro m his own h an d

p .
 CHAPTER IV

TH E RE NA I SS ANC E : N O N D RA M ATI C LI TE RATURE

- TO T H E

D E AT H O F S PE N S ER

TH E lite rary de cli ne followi ng the d eath of Ch aucer was

d u e large ly to politic al caus es T he dispute in rega rd
.

to the throne which cul mi nated in the Wars of the Rose s

, ,

dis tracted the cou n try w asted its energy and fin ally
, ,

d e str oye d in l arge m easur e the n obl e fam ili es

Pe iod of
r
on whose p atro nage e arly l i t e ratur e and art
gfi ggga
fte r
r
we re d e p end ent T he acc essio n of H enry VII
. .

i n 1 4 85 brought about a p e riod of qui e t and re cove ry As .

its powe r i n crease d the cou ntry re su m ed its positio n in the

,

f a m ily of E urop e an nati ons and be gan through th em to

,

f e e l the sti m ulus of the m ov e m ent c all e d the Renaissan ce .

T he Re naissanc e was i n e sse nc e an i nte lle ctu al re birth .

It show e d itself in the e ff ort of the i ndividual to free him

s el f fro m the rigid i nstituti ons of the M iddle Ages feu ,

dalism and the Church and to a sse rt his right to live to ,

T he Renni e ,
thi nk ,a n d to e xpr e ss hi m s e l f as he pl ease d .

mm '
A s men gai ne d this f ree do m th ey felt less in
cli ne d to a ss en t to the me di ae val vi e w that this life sh o ul d

b e sa crific ed to the f u ture th ey tur ned m ore and m ore t o

t he pre se nt world to the probl e ms of gain i ng maste ry i n i t
,

through w ealth or state craf t of discove ri ng its se cre ts

,

through e xploratio n and sci e ntific e xp e ri ment of he igh t ,

e n ing its e nj oy me nts through art and lite ra ture .

O ne force of i mmense i m por tanc e in the Renai ssance was

the ne w k nowle dge of the world of antiquity which was ,

obtai ne d through the re cov e ry of the writi ngs and work s

of art of the classic al p er od The ide al p resented i n

i0 .
 TH E RE NA ISS AN CE 61

th e lite rature s of Ath ens and Ro me of life which should ,

b e liv e d f or its pr ese nt opportu niti e s of hu m an d e v elop

m e n t c am e to h av e a strong i nfl u enc e on me n ,

—e u i nflu e nce denote d by the term H u mani sm of the cm

,
The Infl uence
,
ms '

w hich was appli e d to the study of the classics .

M ore ove r the e xampl e s of p e rf e ction of form given by

,

c l a ssi cal po e ts orators

,
sculptors and architects b e came
, , ,

m od els on which the new taste f or the b e autif u l form ed

i tse lf N aturally Italy as a seat of Roman civilizati on
.
, , ,

p o ss e ss e d withi n h e rs e l f a gr e at stor e o f the r e lics of th e

c l assic al age and was i n the b e st positio n to re c e ive m ore

,

f rom the East Wh en the T urks co nqu e re d the Easte rn

.

E m pire and c aptur ed i n 1153 m any Gr e ek ,

sc holars b e took th e m s elv e s to Italy with th e ir m anuscripts

a n d in this way Itali an citi e s b e cam e c e ntre s of Gr ee k

s t udy an d of the cl assic al cultur e or hu m anis m in which

,

t h e ne w i n tell ectu al i mpuls e was nourish ed .

With all th ese advantage s Italy be came the teach e r of

,

E u rope in philosophy in art and in cl assical scholarship

, , .

O th e r nations howe ve r suppli e d e l e me nts of the ne w w orld

, ,

w hich was b e i ng create d Spai n and P ortugal gav e the

.

r a ctic al ene rgy th at s e nt Colu m bus to A m e rica and Va sc o

p ,

d a Gama arou n d Af rica Ge rmany co n tribute d the inv e n

.
V -

t i on of pri n ti ng by which the ne w civiliz atio n was di ff us e d

,

a m o ng the p e opl e and Ge rm any also took the

El ement i n s
l e ad in the mov e ment which had f or its ob j e ct t h Renai e s
m ce
t h e em ancip atio n of the consci e nc e f ro m the
'

C hurch . A begi nni ng had b e e n m ad e i n this directi on by

W yclif ; but the great f orw ard ste p was t a k e n wh e n in , ,

m Luth e r nail ed to the church d oor in Witte nb erg ,

h is attack upo n the pow e r of the Pop e It is tru e this

.
,

Re f ormation as ti me w e n t on took the f orm of a m oral

, ,

r eactio n agai nst the worldly spiri t of the Renaiss an c e ;

b u t in its l arge st asp e ct it m ade not o nly f or the religi o u s

l ibe rty of the i ndividual , b u t als o f or general freed om of
th ou ght .
62 A H I STO RY or E N G LI SH LI T ERAT URE

I n the rly Renaissance we mus t thi nk of Engl and as

ea ,

l aggi ng som ewh at be hi nd the m ore precocious nations ,

Italy and F rance T he English Renaissance can scarcely be

.

said to begin u ntil the re ign of Henry VII and it did not .
,

com e to i ts f ull spl endor u ntil the l at te r days of Eli zab e th .

E ven bef ore the acc ession of He nry VIL ho we v e r we ca n , ,

discern signs of its co m i ng I n 1 4 76 Caxton set up his

.

printi ng pre ss in Lo ndon B efore this date one of the col

-
.

l eges at O xf ord had engage d a n Italian teach e r of Gree k ;

and i n the ne xt fe w y ears Willi am Grocyn and T ho m as

ILinacre w e nt to I taly to st u dy with the Itali an hu m an is ts .

T h ey r e turne d to give O xf ord an i nte rnational reputatio n as

the ho me of Gr eek studi e s so th at the greatest scholar of
,

the ti m e the D utch Eras mus c ame th e re to st u dy thi nk

, , ,

i ng it no lo nge r nec e ssary for young men to re sor t to

Italy .

T h es e m e n of the ne w l earni ng e sp e ci ally the you n ge r ,

generati on E ras mus and his fri ends J oh n Col e t and Tho m as
,

More ex e m pli fy in me morabl e fashio n the hop eful ness and

,

T he 0m m id e alis m th at a tt e n d e d the early pr ogre ss of th e

Re naissanc e All three w ere ref orm e rs

. Col e t .
,

who was afte r ward Dean of St Paul s se t a m od e l for the .

’
,

public scho ol system of Engl and in his fam ous St Paul s , .

’

School E ras m us sk e tche d the ch aracte r of the p erfect

.

rul er i n his I ns ti tu tes of a Chri sti an P ri nce ; and M ore

th at of a p e rfect soci ety in his Utop i a All three w ere in
, .

te reste d in th e re for m of the Church and though th e y did ,

not f oll ow He n ry VIII in his r evolt agai nst the P ope

.
,

th ey pre p ared the way f or the l ater allian ce be tw een the

u niversiti e s and the E nglish Refor mation .

Still more i mportant than the u niversiti es as a c entre of

Renaissance i nflu e nc e was the court
, Both He nry VII . .

a nd H enry VIII rul e d in the spirit of m od e r n sta tecraf t

. .

Both en courage d trade and m anu factures and i ncrease d the ,

w ealth of the cou ntry Both se t aside the relics of fe ud al

.

ism b y allowing men of low b irth to rise to distinction,

 TH E RE NA ISS ANC E 63

throu gh p e rsonal service rend e re d to the sove reIgn Thu s

“

the c o u rt b ecame the field f or the displ ay of i nd ividu al

ambitio n He nry V III i nd e e d in his o wn ch aract er re
. .
, ,

sem ble d str ongly s om e of the Ital ian pri nc e s of

T h Ge m e , e
vm
the Re naiss an ce who m i ngl e d th e e nlighte n
,
'

me n t of the state sm an with the suspicious cru e lty of th e

de sp ot .The m e n who pl ay e d f or p owe r in his se rvic e had
ne e d of the ut m ost addre ss in a g am e wh e re the stak es
,

we re the high e st and d efe at was fa tal

, In his f ond ne ss f o r
.

art l ea r ni n g and m agnific e nc e H e nry e xhibit e d the tas te

, , ,
-

of the Re na issa nc e Duri ng his r e ig n Itali an ar chite cts

.

built Ham pton Court Pal ac e one of the b e s t e xampl es of ,

Engli sh Re naissanc e or T udo r archite cture ; the Ge rm an

pai n te r H ans Holb e i n came to E ngl and ; the court took
, ,

on a n asp e ct of spl e ndor i n its dre ss its en te r tai nm ents , ,

its m anne rs .

T he m ost attractiv e figu re b oth among the O xford re ,

form e rs and l at e r at t he court of H e n ry is Sir T h om as ,

Mo re ( 1 4 78 Although More Se p arate d f ro m his

early com p anio n s and thr e w hi m se l f i nt o practical aff airs ,

he ne ve r lost i nte re st in the i n t e ll e ct u al m ov e m e nt of t he

ti m e His fam ous Utop ia ( 1 5 1 5 1 5 1 6) is an accou nt of an
.
-

imagi n ary com m o nw eal th in which the soci al wrongs of

Engl an d u nd e r the T ud ors w e re righte d It is Th m .
e e

the h an dbo ok of a state s man and as such it is ,

corice rne d with probl e m s of th e pre s e n t b u t still m ore it

is a d ream of the fu tur e f u ll of h op e f u l ne ss and e nthu si
,

asm f or the i mprov e m e n t of a wh ol e na ti on an d of hu man

nature its el f .

Mo re s Utop i a repre sents the Re nai ss an c e i nt er e st i n th e

’

stat e as a work of art A s e co nd i n te re st no t l e ss ch ar

.
,

acte ris tic of th e ti m e was th at i n the i m pro v em e nt of

,

the i n dividu al by culture and e d u c a tio n which f or m s the ,

subj e ct of two e s says by Ro e r Asch a m ( 1 5 1 5 o n c

g e

the tutor of Q u ee n E liz ab e th T he first c all e d Tox op hi lu s

.
,

was oste nsibly wri tten in prais e of arch ery but it

64 A HISTO RY O P EN G LISH LI TE RATU RE

is really a defence of a generally sou nd hea l thy , ,

s nood lif e
. T he se co nd The Schoolmas ter
,

m
the id ea of educa tio n as a hu manizin
in which the pupil m us t work with th
Ascham was a scholar and in his styl e as in hi s
,

he mar ks the re ve r en c e for

lowed the r evival of lear ni ng His purpose .

choose E nglis h and to wri te si mply but he ,

wou ld h ave bee n easi er for hi m to wri te

vi e w of li fe however is thoro ughly Rugli
, ,

l earni ng not for its own sak e but ,

disciplin e for characte r and e xampl

hi m the aim of l if e is social
and the se rvi c e of the i ndi
”
hand . In ve ry d eed he says
, ,

up of children doth as m u ch se rv
vic e of God our Pr ince and our
, ,
”
one thing b e sid e .

Both More and Ascham are

the aristocracy . Popular li te rat u r e
chi e f mo ve m e nt of the ti me amon g
orma tion . The struggle fo r the emau c
fro m pri es tly co ntrol had be gu n in
ce nturi e s b efore with Wycli f
,

the spirit of the Loll ards had

H enry VIII This spirit str e
.
,

the German and Swi ss r e form e rs suppli e d

_ ,

which mad e H en ry s political separati on

’

1 5 3 4 on accou n t of hi s fi rst
The Engli sh ,

m m tu nity for a rea l ref ormati on

out thro u gh the cou ntry i n the se rm ons
the bold est among H enry s
’

powe rfu l p reach e r of the

and his wri ti ngs r eprese nt a d e vel op m e n t

lish pro se straightforward racy s imple as

, , ,

style shows the efl ect of the s trongest and

66 A HISTO RY or E N G LISH LITERATURE

tions and i mitations of forms ch aracteristic of Italian

po etry e sp eci ally the love sonnet of which Pe trarch in his
, ,

sonne ts to Laura had giv en the chi ef exampl es With .

Pe trarch s i m itators the so nne t had b eco me a me rely lit e r

’

ary e xe rcise d e vote d to the e xpr e ssion of a lov e which

,

m ight be entirely i magi nary or dire cte d toward an im ag ,

inary p e rso n Wyatt s sonne ts th erefore lik e thos e of

.
’
, ,

his Itali an masters need not b e regard ed as h avi ng strict

,

biographic al truth though attempts h ave b een m ade to

,

fi nd in th e m the history of a p e rso nal r el atio n an d so m e ,

hav e gu e ssed th at th ey were i nspired by H enry s s e c on d ’

’
qu e en Anne Bol eyn At all e vents Wyatt s poetry su g
, .

gests that e ven a conventional form was f or him the m e ans

for a sin ce re e xpre ssion of feeling ; e ven his transl atio n s
s eem ch arge d with his own t em pe rament and his rend e r ,

ing of the Penite nti al Psal ms is touch e d with p e rso n al

religious emotion Wyatt s eff ort to achie ve the regul arity
.
’

and fi nish of his It ali an m od e ls was not alw ays succ e ssf ul

he m ak e s bad rhym es he fails to h arm o niz e word a nd ,

ve rse acce n t he stu mbl es in scansio n Ye t such po e ms

, .

“ “ ”
as A w ak e my Lute an d F orge t not y et are e m i n e n t ,

e xam pl es of lyric al powe r .

Wyatt s comp anion poe t Surrey born i n 1 5 1 7 and

’
, , ,

be h ead e d in 1 5 4 7 was you nge r th an his m as te r both in

,

T he m m y ea rs an d i n spirit I n co n tr ast to W y a tt s .
’

Sm ” :

g r avity h e h as all th e e xub e ranc e of the a e a

g ,

p erp etu al ch arm of youth and promise as his brillian t fi g ,

u re p ass e s through the su nlight and sh adow of H en ry s

’

court movi ng gracefully and carel essly to the sc aff old

,

which awaite d him Lik e Wyatt he i mi tated the Itali an

.

am orous po e ts ; but m or e signific ant th an his lov e po e m s

are th os e of f ri e ndship the so nne ts to Cl e re and to Wy a tt

, ,

and the e l egy on the Duk e of Rich mo nd which are f ull ,

of feeli ng i nti mate p e rsonal si nce re O f ten as f or

, , , .
, ,
“
e xampl e in the youth f ul p oe m which b egi ns
, T he soo te
”
seaso n he shows an in te rest i n nature and a realism
, ,
 TH E R E NAI SS ANC E 67

in picturin g it which are for the ti me quite extraordi

, , ,

nary.

Surre y howe ve r lik e Wyatt rendere d his chi ef service

, , ,

to E n glish lite ratur e by e nrichi ng its r esourc e s with for

,

eign f orm s a nd e sp e ci ally by his i ntroductio n of bl an k

,

ve rse in his tran sl ati on of two b ooks of the PE nei d

, Bl an k .

ve rs e had b e e n us e d i n Italy a f e w y ears b efore i n a tran s

lati o n of the sam e work so th at S u rrey did not origi nate,

the f or m ; but the h appy skill with which he ad apte d it ,

a n d thus discov e re d to E nglish p oe try its m ost po we rf ul

a nd ch aract e ristic ve rs e for m is worthy of all prais e , In .

d e e d Surrey s gre atne ss is th at of artistic com m on se nse

’
-
.
,

H e ha d wit to se e the valu e of fore ign f orm s which w ere

a pplicabl e to th e E nglish to ngu e In those which he chose .

h e m ad e such ch ange s as w e re ne ce ssary to ad apt th e m still

f u rth e r to E nglish r e quirem ents T he E nglish so nne t .

w hich S hak esp e ar e us e d co nsi sti ng of f our qu atr ai ns and a

,

c o upl e t was Surr e y s ad ap tatio n

,
H e did his w ork rapidly
’
.

a n d i nsti nctiv e ly ; he had n o ti m e for l ong l abors of e x

rim e nt f or wav e ri ng u nc e rta i n ty b e tw een th e m e rits of

p e ,

riv a l f or m s He was pri m arily n ot a man of l e tte rs but a

.
,

m a n of action a soldi e r , With si ngul a r free do m from hes

.

i tation or m isgivi ng with the h appy gu e ss of a m an accus

,

to med to succ ee d he pick e d ou t his we ap on f ro m the sc ore

,

which o ff e re d fitte d it to his hand and i n a fe w rapid

, ,

passe s sh owe d his followers its u se .

Po e try in the age of H e n ry V III was usu ally i n t end e d .

for priv ate circul ati on in m anuscript f orm By the m iddl e .

of th e c e n t u ry how e v e r th e r e had gro w n up a d e mand on

, ,

the p art of the readi ng pu blic which publi sh e rs atte mpt e d

to supply by volu m es of m iscel laneous v e rs e T ther .
e ,

The first of th e s e c oll e cti ons Tottel s M i s

“ im m y ” ’
,

cella ny , which contai ned the po e ms of Wyatt Surrey , ,

and s e v e ral of th e ir f oll o w e rs app e ar ed in 1 5 5 7 a d ate, ,

which marks the public b eginn i ng of mod e rn English

verse.
68

T hei nfl u enc e of the n ew poe try is

publish ed a f ew years af et r Tottel
’
s

W m The M i rror
f or Magi s trates .

gene ral ch aracte r l ooks back to an

be i ng a co ntinu ati on of Lydgate 8 F a ll of P ’

con tain s so me e xcell en t m od e rn poe try In the

“
a nd T he Co m pl ai nt o f
T he se we r e writt e n
af te rward Lord Buckhurst ,

ti o n with Tho m as N orto n th ,

Gorbodu c ( see p B o th .

Mirro r which are in Ch au

”
,

Gorbodu c whi ch is i n bl an
,

pris ing m as te ry of his form He has a su re ness .

and a f re ed o m f ro m te chn ical e rro rs which ,

beyond Surrey and Wyatt ; and his i magi native

sugge stive of the great poe ts who w e re to f ollow .

giv e s littl e prom ise of the outburst which was to

closi ng years of the c en tury Th at o utburst was
.

of a sudd e n ove rwh el m i ng e nthusi as m in which

,

na ti on shar ed T he acc essi on of Eliz ab e th in 1 5 5 8 dis

.
, ,

p e rse d th e thr e a te n i ng clouds of ci v il and re ligi o us war

T he m e: th a t h ad b e e n ga th e ri ng duri ng th e r e ign s of
m “ E dward and M ary The force of the Re nai s
.

sance which had be en ch e cked for a ti me by nati onal h esi

,

ta tion m anif este d itse lf ane w and more widel y

, Ma ny .

thi ngs co m bi ned to give individu al disti nctio n to ch aracter ,

and vari e ty and c olor to li fe The e nl arge d possibilitie s ed

.

th e world the ne w l an ds be yond the sea o ffe re d u nl i mi ted

, ,

o p po rtu n ity for actio n T he d iffusi on of knowl ed ge of the

.

pas t toge th e r with the freed om of th ought which the

,

Ref o rmatio n had brought about afford e d O ppo rtu ni ti es as

,

te mpti ng for s pe culativ e ente rprise and imagina ti ve fl o

 TH E REN A I SSA N CE 69

ven ture Altogeth er the re app eared to men a new wid er

.
, ,

rich e r w o rld ; and with it came a cl eare r consciousne ss of

the i n dividu al pe rso nality which th at world se em e d m ad e to
satisf y .This disc o v ery of the new world and of m an as it ,

has be e n c all e d com i ng to the n atio n in the ti m e of j oyf ul

,

rea ctio n f ro m the u n c ert a i n ty an d p e ril of Mary s r e ign se t

’
,

the whole m ass i nto vibratio n ; but th e tend e n ci e s whi ch

mad e f or p u re ly p e rs onal aggrandiz e m e nt w e re b oth dir e cted
and k e pt i n ch e ck by the growth of na tio nal co nsci ousn e ss .

Eliz ab e th s re ign u n it e d the na ti on an d he r p e rs onal pre s

’
,

en c e g av e i t a visibl e sig n of u n ity U nd e r he r r u l e Engl and

.

p as s e d through an e xp e ri e n c e as dr am atic a s th a t o f A th e n s
a t M ara tho n ; af te r a long p e ri o d of susp e n s e the str ai n

was reli e ve d by the wo n d e r ful re pulse of the Sp ani sh

A r m a d a i n 1 5 88 T he n ati on al fe e li ng m ad e so i n te ns e
.
,

b y d ange r and victory shi ne s thr ough the literatur e of the

,

t im e . The e age r i nsti n ctiv e p atri oti sm of the p e opl e

,

f ou n d utte ranc e in the ch oru se s of Sh ak e sp e ar e s H enry

’

V T he m ore c onsci ou s p olitic al virtu e which touch e d

.
,

w ith som e thi ng of high purp ose the liv e s of Sid ne y o f ,

S a ck v ill e e v e n of E ss e x and Ra l e igh is r efl ect ed in Sp e u

, ,

s e r s F a eri e Q u eene
’
.

F or re ason s give n in the ne xt ch apte r the dram a was ,

t he m ost bro adl y popul ar and spon tane ous e xpre ssi on of
t h e m any sid e d li fe of the ti me
-
Co m p are d with this th e
.
,

n a tural l angu age of the E ngli sh p e opl e the oth e r f or m s ,

of lite rature s e e m u n vital Ye t it m ust b e Eli ab ethan

.
z

re m e m b ered th at m any of the i n t e re sts of the

Renaissanc e w e re not matters of dire ct popul ar fe e li ng but of ,

consciou s cultivatio n And again the drama was the only

.
,

form in which the E liz ab e than was at all sur e of his art .

In oth e r ki nds of writi ng h e was an e xp e ri men te r a ,

learne r . T o this fact we m ust attribute m uch of tha t

arti fi ci al ity which mak e s E liz ab e th an n on dr a m a tic lit e r -

atu re di ffi cult to r ead e sp e c ially th e pros e of Lyly Sid ney

, , ,

and th e ir followe rs .
70 A HISTORY or E N GLI SH LITE RATURE

J oh n Lyly ( 1 553ducated at Magdal e n COL

1 606
-
) was e

l ege O xford whe re he s ee m s to h ave gai ne d the reputation

, ,

o f b e i ng a t ifle
r r — “
the fiddlestick of O xf ord
”
,
J hn Ly ly
o
an en em y call e d hi m
.

His sup e rfici al cle ve rness

.
,

h owe ve r e nabl e d him to write a successful account of the

,

culture of the p e riod i n E up hu es or the A na tomy of Wi t

,

and its se q u el E up hu es a nd hi s E ngla nd

,

E up hu es is a work of fi ctio n i n which an e xc e e di n gly

slight plot se rve s to c onnect a succe ssion of con versati on s ,

l e tters and e ssays treati ng such subj e c ts as l ov e e duca

, , ,

tion religi on and m anne rs It ill u strate s the inte re st

, , .

of the ti m e in i n t e ll ectu al d e v e lop m e n t re strai ne d how , ,

e v e r by the fee li ng th a t
, v ain is all learni ng with o ut the
”
t aste of divi ne k nowl edge Still m ore i m por tant th an
.

its rel ation to private morals was its i nfl u e n ce ,

Euphues
as a m an u al of public a nd s oci al co nd uct It .

se t both a fashion of sp ee ch and a cod e of mann e rs ; a ,

dial e ct an d an e ti q u e t te for court usage Howe v er i n .

dire ct w astef ul and artifici al this fashi on now app ea rs

, , ,

it was i n its ti m e an evide nc e and a c aus e of re fi ne me n t .

O ne of the disti nguishi ng acco m plish me n t s of the Re na is

sance was the e l e vation of soci al life i nto a fi ne art ; and of
this result in E ngl and E up hu es was the chi ef sign .

T he artifici al langu age which E uphu e s and his f ri e nd s

u se d and which b ecame a lite rary fashi on is the ch arac
, ,

te ristic of th e b ook f or which it is r em e m b e re d to d ay -

.

A m ong Lyly s m anne ris m s the m ost r e markabl e is the

’

arr ang e m e nt of words in a n tith e sis the con ,

Euphui m s
“
.

trast b e ing mark e d by allite ration thus Al ,

tho u gh I h av e shri ned th ee i n my h eart for a tru s ty

f r i end I ,will s h u nne th e e h e reaf t e r as a tro thless f oe .

A noth e r p eculi arity is his l avish u se of si m il es drawn from

w hat p ass e d f or n atural history as The m ilk of the ,

T ygresse th at the more salt th e re is throw n i nto it the

,
”
f re sh e r it is E uph u is m was bu t on e f or m of a wid e ly
.

di ff u se d t end ency in Renais san ce lite rature an at te mpt to ,

 THE RENA I SSA N C E 71

rov th r tistic v alu e of prose by givi ng it so me of the

p e e a

u aliti e s of po e try E arli e r write rs th an Lyly A sch am

q .
,

and C ran m e r had shown trac e s of it ; and E nglish pros e

,

did n o t e sc ap e fro m its influ enc e u ntil w ell on i n the ne xt

cen tury In Lyly s own g ene r atio n which was disti n
’
.
,

g u i sh e d f or its i n t e r e st i n a l l sorts of a rtistic e xp e ri m e n ts ,

oth e r f or m s of this t end e ncy app ear e d n otably that i ntro ,

du ce d by the m ost char m i ng and the m ost f orcefu l of the

lite rary dil ettant e s of the age Sir Philip Sid ney , .

P hilip Sid ney was bor n in 1 5 64 of one of the m ost dis

‘

tingu i shed f am ili e s in E ngl and He was se nt to Shre ws

.

bury school an d to O xf ord ; and th en sp e nt so me ti m e

abr o ad , in Paris Vi enna and Italy wh en c e he ret u r ne d
, , ,

to E lizabe th s court ’
T he re he repre sente d the m ore
.

Spl e n did and e le v ate d politic al co nc e ptio ns of the ti m e .

H is u n cl e the Earl of Le ice st e r was the political chi e f

, ,

o f t h e P u ritan p arty which favor e d co m m itti ng E ngl an d

,

t o a d e fi nite all ian ce with the Prot e stant state s of Europ e

.

a n d in f urth e ranc e of this policy Sid n ey was s e n t on a

m i s s io n to Ge rmany in 1 5 77 He was also eagerly in~ .

te re s te d i n the d ev e lop m e n t of E nglish pow e r on the sea .

I n 1 5 83 he got a gran t of l an d in A m e rica and two years ,

la t e r he mad e an u nsucce ssful atte m pt to e scape Si p ump ,

Sl am ”
fr o m court and j oi n Sir F ran cis Drak e in one
of his h al f pira tical e xp editio n s agai n st the Sp ani ards
-
.

This sa me year he acco m p ani e d the E nglish arm y which

was se n t to h elp the Dutch P rot e s tants agai nst Spai n and
in 1 5 8 6 he fe ll in a Skir m ish at Z utph e n .

Sid n ey s n ame m ore th an any oth e r stands for the

’
, ,

g re a t n ess o f n a tio n a l a n d p e rso n al id e als which w e tr a di

ti on ally as soci ate with th e age of Eliz ab e th It is th e re .
,

fore so me wh at disappoi n ti ng to fi nd his writi ng l ess

,

em i ne n t th an his lif e It m ust b e re m emb e red howe v e r

.
, ,

th at Sid ney lik e m ost m en of positi on of his age wrote

, ,

not f or the public but for hi m s e l f and f or a few f ri e nds .

His works we re publish ed first in pirated editions the ,

72 A H I STO RY or E N GLI SH LITE RATURE
A rcadi a in 1 5 90, and A strop hel a nd Stella in 1 5 91 . T he
l atte r is a coll e ction of s ongs and sonnets e vid ently ad ,

dresse d to one p e rson Lady Pe nelope De v e re ux af te r

, ,

w ard Lady Rich Sid n y nd L d y P lop

Aw o he, e a a e n
. e e
and Ste
had b ee n b e troth ed wh e n the l at te r was a child .

F or so me re ason the match was b rok e n off and Lad y ,

Pe ne lop e m arri e d Lord Rich with who m she li ve d f or a ,

whil e most u nh appily Wh e the r Sid ney actu ally lo v e d

.

he r wh e n it was too lat e or wh e th er he wrote lov e sonn e ts

, ,

as a lite rary e x e rcis e ad d re ssi ng th e m to his old f ri e nd

,

out of co mpli ment and sy mp athy it is i mpossi ble to say , .

O n the one h and th e re is i n his so nne ts m uch of the con

ve nti onal m a t e ri al of the Itali an so nne tee rs but n the
; o

oth er th e re are touch es so apt to the situ atio n of a m an

who l o ve s too late th at o ne h e sitates to ascri be th em to
,

m e re dram atic Skil l In n o ne of the many so n ne t cycle s

.

of the age e xc ept Sh ak e sp e are s and Sp e ns e r s do we fi n d

’ ’
, ,

so much th at has the stam p of pe rsonal ity upon it ; su rely

i n n one e xc ept th es e so m uch th at has the acc en t of gre a t
,

po e try .

Sid ney s chi ef l iterary adventure was the A rca di a

’
,

which he b e gan in 1 5 80 wh en in consequ ence of a qu arre l

, ,

with the Earl of O xford he was in te mporary disgrace and

,

b anish m en t from court T he writi ng of the A rca di a was

.

m e rely a su m me r p as ti me u nd e rtak e n to pl e as e the C ou nt

,

e ss of Pe m br ok e Sid ne y s sist e r The fo rm of the work

’
.
,

was s u gge ste d by ro m anc e s popul ar i n Italy and in Sp ai n

, ,

“ i n which th e sc e ne s are l aid in a p astoral cou ntry

T he MW
am "
.
lik e the an ci e nt A rcadi a The prose tal e i s .

i nt errupted at i nte rvals by p assages of v erse or e clogu es , ,

in which the Sh eph erds si ng of lov e and the d e lights o f

ru ral life T his form of lit e rature had an i mmen se ch arm
.

f or cou n tri e s which we r e b e co m i ng a littl e w eary of th e

activity of the early Re naissanc e ; and Sid ney hi m se l f i n ,

his banish m ent from c ourt doubtl e ss fe lt the i nfl ue nce ,

of this m ood It was how e ve r a p assing one, for Sid

.
, ,
 74 A HISTOR Y or E N G LISH LI TE RATURE
p amp hlet call ed The School of A bu se in which as a Puritan , , ,

he attack e d the art of the age esp e ci ally the dr ama, .

Sid ney re pli e d with his D ef ence of P oes i e i n 1 5 81 In .

this one of the e arli e st pi e ce s of E nglish criticism Sid ney

, ,

T he p m “, show e d his cl assicis m by his approval of pl ays

°f
built on the Lati n m odel ; b u t he de fe nd ed
E nglish po e try e v en of the nativ e ballad sort e xcl ai m
, ,
“
i ng ,
I ne ver h e ard the old song of Pe rcy and Douglas ’

th at I fo u nd not my h eart m ov e d more th an with a tru m

p e t .

T he style of The Def ence of P oesi e is m uch m ore work

m anlik e th an th at of the A rca di a, but it was the l atter
which be cam e an i nflu ence upon English prose Sid ney s.
’

A rca di a and Lyly s E up hu es we re the two popul ar books of

’

the ti m e and th e y w e re naturally the m od e ls for authors

,

who d e p e nd e d upo n the re adi ng public Apart f ro m the

.

writers who gath e red about t e court h — am ate urs lik e Sid
,

ney or thos e who lik e Sp ens e r look e d f or support to the

, , ,

T he p opular p a tro n ag e o f th e rich an d pr e f e r m e n t f ro m t h e

“ i tem u — th r pp r d i r i
'
liz
Q een e e,a e a e n t h e e gn o f E a

b e th a group of m en who liv ed directly on th eir lit e rary

e arni ngs T h ese l atte r w e re o f te n m e n of u niv e rsity ed u
.

c atio n who had lost caste A S a class th ey showe d the

, .

i n te nse d esire for sensu al enj oymen t the violence of pas ,

si on the i m p ati enc e of re strai nt soci al or m oral th at

, , ,

acc om p an i e d the as se rtion of i ndividu ality i n the Re nais

sanc e T he irregul arity of th eir lives which end e d o f ten

.
,

in m isery or disgrac e has mad e th em the h e ro e s of stories

,

f am ous am o ng the tragedi es of lite rature Marlowe was

.

stabb e d to d eath in a tav e rn b rawl Pee l e di ed of dissipa

tion ; Gre e ne as the story goes fro m surfeiti ng ; and N ash,
, ,

we are t old of sta rv ati o n

, .

Such me n turne d chi e fly to the th eatre as the most profi t ,

abl e m ark e t f or lite r ature but th ey have lef t also a l arge

b ody of m iscellaneous writi ngs fiction bi ography p am , , ,

p h l e ts T h e
. y w e re n o t e xp e ri m en t ers a n d i nn ov a to rs li k e
 THE REN A I SS AN C E 75

Sidne y and his circl e, but the y w ere quick to te st any liter
ary th e ory or f orm by its ad aptability to popular taste .

Rob e rt Greene ( 1 5 60 1 5 92) b eg an his caree r by im ita ti ng

-

Lyly i n a n u mb e r of E uphuistic ro manc e s G eene Nash

, .
r
n““a“
, ,

Af t e r the A rcad i a had be gu n to circul ate in “

man uscript he wrote M enap hon

, a p astoral tal e in

which he cle arly i m i ta te d Sid ney s style

’
His m ost i ndi .

vid u a l work is i n the p artly autobiographic tal e s Greene s

’
,

Rep en ta nce and A Groa t s Worth of Wi t in which he

’
,

dre w f ro m his own life l essons of m orality possibly with ,

a vi e w to the i ncr easi ng i mportanc e of the Puritan p art of

h
t e r e adi n g public T. ho m a s N a sh ( 1 5 67— 1 600) wa s the

jou rnalist of the group His pam phl e ts repres ent the i nte r
.

e st of the pu blic i n qu e stio ns such as the authority of the

b i s hop s and in priv ate scand al such as gath e re d about the

,

l if e of his f ri en d Robe rt Gre ene His work was in the

.
,

m a i n e ph eme ral
, He is chi efly rem em be re d for his story
.

J a clc Wi lton in which the tricks and adventure s of an

,

E n glish boy on the conti ne nt are de scribe d with fictitiou s ,

r e f e r e nc e s to historic al e ve n ts and p e rson s Anoth er write r .

wh o f or som e years b elo nge d to the cre w of lit e rary adv en t

u re sr
, was T homas Lodg e ( 1 55 8 1 625 ) — his ro man ce ,

w h ich f ur ish d h story of A s You

Rosa lynde ( n e t e

Li ke I t) is the m ost p erf e ct bit of fictio n of the ti me .

In his sub titl e E up hu es Golden L egacy Lodge recogniz e d

’
-
,

his obligations to Lyly ; but his styl e is far less artifici al

th an th at of his prototype and the e xquisite p as toral se t
,

ting ( prese rve d by Sh ak esp eare in his F orest of Ard e n)

is to b e se t dow n rath e r to Sid ney s in flu e nce Lodge in ’
.
,

a gre ate r d egr ee th an Greene and N a sh had the lyric al gi f t ,

which fe w writers of the ti me w ere wholly without His .

high e st fame is as the write r of the e xquisite songs with

which he i nte rspersed his ro manc es Such lyrics as Love .

in my boso m lik e a b ee and Lik e to the cl ear i n high e st

”
sph e re , f ro m Rosa lynde Show both the native power of
,

the singer and the re fi nem en t of the artist .

76

loose ly cons tru

was to be ca rri
and to be co m e the

Be si d e the m ho w ,

sta nds for a saner m or ,

ary styl e Du ri ng the l a te

.

c o untry was d istrac ted by

the bis hops on the one ha n
p arty which de ni ed th eir authority T his d .

p a s s e d the bo u n ds o f lite rary co ntrov e rsy a nd

o f the Puri tans to a tte n d the se rvic e s of the

Engl and and the effo rts of the gove rnme nt

,

th e m mad e the
,

was irre p ara bl e ,

ity of the

B ooke r .

lished in 1 5 94 ,
a
’
uthor s d ea th .

grave and regu

cl assic styl e as oppose d to the wil ful ness
,

tionality of Sid ney s ro man tic m anner I

’
.

was at the e nd of the six tee nth ce ntury

, ,

a t the e nd of the se v e ntee n th a write r w ,

v e ry c ompe te nt form of E nglish prose to

i nte ll ec tual purpose U nlike Dryd en .
,

no t mak e his e xam pl e of d e cisive f orce i

practice of his successors .

T he de v elop ment o f a great prose

was re se rved f or a la te r ce ntury ;
E nglish Re naissan ce was its poe try The e xpe ri me nts and
.

studi es in foreig n form s mad e by Wyatt and Su rre y we re

, ,

t he pre parati on fo r a pe riod of won de rf ul poet ic achi e v e

me nt in which two nam es stand C l early fi rst
,
As in the .

drama th e r e ri se s abov e earli e r and l a te r pl ay wrights the

 TH E RENA ISSA NC E 77

si ngle s u rp assing fi gure of Sh ak esp eare so in non dram atic ,

-

po e try stands p re emi nent E dm u nd Sp enser the poe t of

-
,

The F aeri e Qu eene .

Spen s e r was born in London in 1 5 5 2 He was sent to .

the M e rch an t Tailors School and th e n to Pembrok e Col

’
,

lege Cam bridge wh ere he took his master s de

, , Edm nd
’
u
s pen°° r°
g r e e in 1 5 76 H e th
. e n sp e n t so m e ti m e i n the

north of E ngl and In 1 5 78 how e ve r he was in Lo ndon

.
, , ,

in atte nd anc e on the E rl of Le ic e ste r seeki ng to e stab

a ,

lish hi m s el f through the i nflu e nc e of his f ri e nds at court .

Af te r the publ icatio n o f his Shep herd s Ca lenda r in 1 5 79

’
, ,

p re fe rmen t came to him in the shape of an appoint men t in

Ire lan d as secre tary to the d eputy Lord Grey de Wilton
, , .

In Ire land Sp e ns e r was given o ffice and was grant ed am ong , ,

oth e r e state s the Manor of K ilc ol man whith er Sir Walte r

, ,

Ral e igh came in 1 5 89 to visit him Ral eigh saw the first .

three books of The F a eri e Qu eens and u nder his advice

Spe n se r went to London in the f ollowi ng y ear to read ,

th e m to the Q u een and to publish th em T he success of .

the po e m was i mmedi at e but the re w ard f ro m the Q u e e n

, ,

in whos e honor it was writte n was disappoi nti ngly sm all , .

Soon af ter its publicatio n Sp ense r put f orth a volu m e of

poe ms style d Comp la i nts The circu mstances of his jour
.

ney to Lo ndon he rel ate d af te r his r e turn to Irel and in

, ,

Coli n Clou t s Come Home Aga i n in which he resu m e d the

’
,

pastoral styl e of 77m Shep herd s Ca lenda r In the ne xt ’

.

few years Spense r was busy with his courtship and mar
riage which are b eauti fully com m e m orated i n the s onne t
,
”
se rie s the Am ore tti and in his w eddi ng song or Ep i
, , ,

thalam ion . He w ent to Londo n agai n in 1 5 96 to publish

the se co nd thr ee boo k s of The F a eri e Q u eene Du rin g this .

visit he wrote the Hymn of H eav enly Lov e and ”

,

Hym n of Heavenly Bea uty to accom pany two earlie r ,

Hymn s in Honor of Love and Beauty ”

He also wrot e .

i n London the most e xquisite of his Shorter poe m s the ,

”
Prothalam ion Soon af te r his return to K ilcol m an
.
,
78 A HISTORY OE E N G LISH LITERATURE

th ere broke out one Of those fre qu en t i nsurrections which

marke d British rule in Ireland Sp ense r s castle which.
’
,

stood in the p ath of the storm was sacked and burned , .

H e fl ed with his family to Londo n whe re i n 1 5 99 he di ed , , ,

in pov e rty .

Sp ense r s life was sp en t chi e fly in three place s ea ch of

’
,

which left strong marks upon his ch aracte r and work ,

Cam bridge Lo ndo n and Irel and

, A t Cam bridge h e f ou nd
, .

the l ear ni ng O f the Re nais sanc e e sp e ci ally the philosophy ,

O f P lato which app ears cl ea rly i n The F aeri e Qu eene and

,
”
in the Hy m ns H ere also he came to k now the li te ra
.

ture of F rance and Italy ; his first publish e d work con

siste d O f transl ations fro m Pe trarch and the F rench po e t
spam , at
d u B e ll ay A t C a m bridg e.also h e c am e i n t o , ,
cm m m‘ '
co ntact with the lite rary th eori e s Of the ti me ;
one of which was the id e a put f orw ard by Sid ne y and his

f ri e nds th at English ve rs e should b e writte n accordi ng to

,

Lati n rul e s Of prosody T his subj e ct is discussed at l e n gth

.

i n the l e tte rs which p asse d b e tw ee n Sp enser af te r he ,

re mov ed to London an d his Cambridge fri end Gab ri e l

, ,

Harvey Sp e nse r was too gen ui ne a poe t to b e i nj ured by

.

su ch th e ori es but the i nflu ence Of the environm e nt wh e re

,

th ey were rife is seen in his scrupulous attentio n to the

tech nical req u irem ents O f his art .

O f this Cambridge p e riod the typical product is The

Shep herd s Ca lenda r a se ri es Of tw e lve p astoral poe m s or
’

e clogu e s T he e clogu e in general was a poe m

.

T he Shep
Calen of p as toral li fe i n which sh e ph e rds w e re the
,

sp eak ers rural nature and love the ir usu al

,

th em e s The poe t might i ntr oduce matter p e rsonal to him

.

sel f O r his f ri ends or might even discuss political afi airs but

, ,

he k ept the c on ventional f ram e work of the p astoral In .

Sp ens e r s fif th e clogu e for e xam ple Archbishop Grind al

’
, ,

figu re s as the good sh eph erd Algri nd T he poems of The .

Shep herd s Ca lenda r Show m uch vari e ty in me tro f or

’
,

Sp ense r was clearly p ractisi ng and e xp eri menting B u t .

 THE R ENA ISSANC E 79

most re mark abl e am n o g th eir literary qu aliti es is the dic

tion which he el aborated for hi ms elf with the design of
,

givi ng a sugge stion of anti quity and rusticity to his writ

ing . This curious predil e ctio n f or obsole te or coi ne d
words is ch aracteristic Of the artifici al styl e affe ct e d by
the age .
It is carri e d so far i n The F a eri e Q u eene th at B e n
”
J o n so n could s a y o f Sp e n s e r th a t h e writ n o l an gu a g e.

In L n o do n Sp en s e r w as a t th e c e n tre O f the thrilli ng na

tional li fe O f Engl and . T hrough Le ic e s te r and Sid ney he
was i n trod u c e d to t h e two l e a di n g politic al co n c eptio n s of
the ti m e E ngl and s l ead ership of the P rotestan t cause i n
’
,

Eu rop e ag a i n st Sp a i n a n d R o m ,e a n d h e r e xp a n sio n b e yo n d
the s e as id eas th at we re the re sult p artly of fantastic chiv
al y
r a
, n d p artly of a bro a d vi e w o f worl d politics . F i nally ,

in Ir el a n d h e s a w th e E n glish r a c e i n passio nate s enee m

p r
conflict with O pp osIng f orce s The chronl cally
$13 :
. 11 and

dis turb e d state O f the cou ntry was agg ravate d by

the i n trigu e s of Philip of Sp ai n and the Pop e with the Irish
Chi e f tai n s provoki ng th os e r e vol ts which Lo rd Gre y stro ng
, ,

i n his b eli e f th at the Irish w e r e the fo e s Of God and O f civ

ili zation put d own with s av age f u ry Naturally Spenser s
’
.
, ,

resid ence in Irel and by bri ngi ng him i nto actu al co nflict
,

with e vil sti mulate d his m oral e n thusi as m O u t O f the

, .

con ce ption of the greatne ss Of Engl and s m issio n which ’

,

Sp en se r f ou nd in Lond on and struggl ed to realiz e in

Irelan d and out O f his chivalric d e v o tion to this id eal
, ,

and to the Q u e en who typifi e d it gr e w The F a eri e Q u eene

,
.

It is the brightest e xpre ssion O f the ideal m orality of the

tim e ; and in a sens e is the e pic of the English race at one
Of the gre at m o me nts of its hi story .

Spense r and his co nte m porari e s regard ed m oral purpose

as e sse n ti al to the great e st art and wi th Sp ens e r this pur

pose took the for m O f dealing with the Old probl em O f the
Re naissan c e — i ndividu al ch aracte r in rel ation to the state .

As he e xpl ai ns in his i ntroductory l e tte r to Ral e igh The ,

Faeri e Qu eens was to Show forth the ch aracte r of an ideal

80 A HISTO RY OF E NGL ISH LI TE RATURE

k night in tw elv e books e ach d evote d to one O f the tw elv e

, ,

qualiti es of p e rfect chivalry T his e xposition of private .

virtu e was to be f ollowe d by a se co nd poem which should ,

“ 9 3 m m ", portr ay th e virtu e s O f the id e al k night a s gov

ernor I n fact Sp ense r wrot e o nl y six books
.
, ,

each of twe lv e c antos and a f rag m e nt of a se v

cu th .The first is giv en to the Red Cross Knight who rep ,

re se n ts Holi ness ; the seco nd to Sir Guyo n or T em p e rance ; ,

the third to B ri tomarte or C h astity ; the fourth to Cam b el

,

and T riam ond or F ri e ndship , the fi f th to Sir A rtegall or ,

J ustic e the sixth to Sir Calid ore or Courtesy T h e se , .

k nights as we l earn from S pens e r s i ntrod u ctory l e tte r are

,
’
,

d e sp atch e d on th eir vario u s qu e sts by Gl ori ana Q u ee n of ,

F airyl and In the course of th e ir adventure s app e ars f ro m

.

ti me to ti me the p e rfe c t k night Arthur who is him s e lf in , ,

search O f the Fae rie Q u ee ne T he thread of the narrative .

is m u ch i nterr u pte d by e pi sod e s s om e O f whic h lik e the , ,

acc ou n t of the M arri age O f th e T h am e s and the M e dw a y ,

in Book IV are p erh aps i ns e rtions po ems whi ch we re

.
, , , ,

written sep arate ly and forced i nt o the sch e m e O f the great

work wh en Sp enser nee ded a canto to fill ou t his nu m be r .

T hus it app ear s th a t t he au thor to ok n o v e ry strict vi e w O f

the structure of his po e m Moreove r theA Hegory which
.
, ,

should gi ve u nity to the whol e is i nco nsiste nt and co mpli ,

cate d It tak es at ti m es a p olitical turn and the ch aracte rs

.
, ,

besid e s representing id eal qu aliti e s refe r dire ctly to actu al ,

“
p e rsons Sp ense r e xplai ne d
. In th at F ae ry Q u ee ns I
m eane glory i n m y gen erall i n te nti on but in m y particular ,

I co nce ive the m ost e xce lle nt and glorious p e rson O f our
”
sove rain e the Q u ee ne B e lphoeb e and B rito m arte al so
.

re pre sen t Elizab e th ; Arthur is Leicester ; the false lady

D u e ssa is Mary Q u ee n of Scots In the fi fth book the .

political state of Europ e is pres ente d at l ength with Lord ,

Grey as Artegall F ranc e as F lou rd elis H enry IV he B u r

, , .

b on H oll and as B elge and Philip II O f Sp ai n as Gran torto

, ,
. .

T his was but natural i n an age in which politics we re l arge ly

82 A HISTO RY OF E NGLISH LITERATURE

throughout its great l ength with v ery littl e effe ct O f

sameness .

F or the rest Sp enser has the great gi f t Of the poet the

, ,

pow er to create the illusio n of a diff erent world a world ,

of magic wh e re the i m agi natio n and the s en s e s are satisfie d .

With all his morality Sp enser sh are d in the rich se nsu ous
,

l if e which the Renaissance had thrown Op en to m e n T his .

s pam “
i m m e di ate r e li anc e upon the se ns e s is on e O f
m the el e m e nts of reality which giv e greatne ss to
his poem The F a eri e Q u eens is a lo ng procession O f fig
.

ures brilliant fantastic or terribl e which si ngly or i n

, , , ,

groups p ass across an e ver varyi ng e v er wond erful land ,

scap e And al m ost as m arke d as his fe eli ng for f orm and

.

color is his u se of sou nd His sen sitiveness Of ear is shown

,
.

by the m elody O f his ve rse so c onstant ye t so vari ed but

,

th ere are also many p ass ages in which he mak e s the m u m

of nature an el em e nt O f pl e asure in his p alac e O f art n ot ,

a bly in t he d e scription of the Bow e r of Bliss in Book II ,

Canto X II And m ore poignant se nsuous app e al is n ot

.

l acking A ltoge th er Sp ens e r has the resources O f the whole

.
,

w orld of sensation at co mmand and he neve r fails to ,

h eight en th em with the ill u si ons Of his art O f the color .

,

the sav or the m usic of life his po e m is f ull — o nly the

, , ,

color is brighte r the taste swee te r the m usic grand er th an

, , ,

any which it is giv e n to m ortal s e nse s to k n ow .

A nd this w orld of i m agi ne d spl e ndor is pre sen te d as the

b ackgrou nd of a steadily growi ng id e a of righteousne ss of ,

h e roic good ness The u ni on of the two elements sen suous

.
,

and m or al se e m s at ti m es to i nvolve a nai v e i ncon siste n cy

, .

But Sp ens e r b elon ged to an age wh en it seeme d not im

possibl e th at th er e should b e s ome co mmon grou nd be twee n
the spirit of the Reform ation and th at of hu m an is m He .

was p e rh aps a Puri tan but m ore f ort u nate

nls Morality
th an Milton he came b efore P u ritanism had
.

narrow ed its vi e w of li fe to the si ngl e issu e of salv atio n .

T h ere is i nde ed in Sp enser as in many O f his contem ,

 TH E RENA ISS ANC E 83

p orari e s, a n ot e Of melancholy which s u ggests th at the

,

e te r nal co n trad iction O f the joy of the pr e se nt li fe by the

threa t of its h e reaf te r was not u nh eard The fl owe rs are

, .

alre ady lightly t o u ch e d by the f rost But this rem ind er

.

th at the ti me O f f ree d elight in the world of sense was so

short its su n shi ne SO threate ne d by the clouds of Puri
,

tanism m ak e s its m ost Sig nal prod u ct the m ore pre cious
, .

Sp e ns er s l aten t Pu ritani sm can b e trace d in the rese rve

’

with which he u su ally treats p as sio n A f ranke r m ore u h .

,

re stra i n e d ab an d on m en t to se ns u o us fe e li ng of e v e ry ki nd

marks such po e m s as Sh ak e sp e are s Venu s a nd A doni s

’
,

and M arlow e s H ero a nd Lea nder

’
in which the tid e of
,

the Re naissance i n E ngl an d reach e s i ts h e ight Marl o we .

di e d b efore he could co mpl e te the p oem which Gem , Chap , ,

w
was fi nish e d by Ge orge Ch ap man ( 1 5 5 9
Ch a p m an was one of the m ost c on sid e r abl e lite ra ry m en
O f the ti me . His app earance as a poe t was som e what late ,

his first i mportant work b ei ng O vid s B a nq u et of Sense ’

,

1 5 95 . T hree y ears l a te r he publ ish e d the l as t f our b ooks

O f H ero a nd Lea nder His fam ous translation of the I li ad
.

he co m pl e te d in 1 61 1 and the Ody ssey two years l ate r

, .

Long b efore this in 1 5 95 he had b eg u n to writ e for the

, ,

stage his grea t work be i ng a se ri e s of tragedi e s on sub

,

j e ct s dr aw n f ro m th e history o f F ran c e duri ng the ti m e of

Cath e ri ne de Medici s i nfl u e nc e
’
T h e se how ev e r in spite
.
, ,

O f th e ir dram atic fo rm are to b e r e g ard e d as po e m s rath e r

,

th an plays .

In his po e try both origi nal and transl at ed Chap m an is

, ,

rath e r a m an of the succeedi ng age th an an Eliz ab e th an In .

him the f u l ness and spl en d or of E lizab e th an p oe try which ,

had reach ed th e ir h e ight in Sp e nse r t e n d to el abor atio n , ,

conce it and obscurity fau lts which u nfortu nately m ar the

, ,

g r e a t e st O f his works th e tr,an sl atio n of Ho m e r F or t he .

Ili ad he chos e the O ld E nglish ball ad m e tre written in coup ,

lets O f which one li ne has Six f ee t and the ne xt se ven The

, .

sustaine d m ov e m e nt of this m easur e giv e s it a c e rtai n li ke

84 A HISTO RY OF E NGLISH LI TE RATURE

ne ss to Ho m er s h e xam ete rs ; b u t on the oth er h and its

’
, ,

facility and i nfor m ality te nd to prod u ce a jog trot fam il -

iarity in pl ace O f Ho mer s rapidity and nobility More

’
.

cmpm u ov e r C h ap m an is d e,lib e rat e ly i ndire ct and

“m " fanci f u l wh e r e Hom e r is dire ct and si mpl e
, .

Ne ve r th el ess it was a circu m s tanc e al m ost as fortu na te in

,

its way for the E nglish p e opl e as the s e ri es of h appy acci

d e nts by virtu e O f which the English Bibl e b e came great
l ite ratu re that the first translation of the noblest poe try
,

O f antiq u ity should h av e b ee n m ad e by one whO m in sp ite ,

o f all his faili ngs was a tru e poe t , .

Spe nce r s F a erie Q u ee ns and Marlowe s and Ch ap m an s

’ ’ ’
,

Hero a nd Lea nde r are p erhaps the o nl y l ong po e ms O f the

,

Elizabe than pe r iod whi ch are s till read F or the poe ts of .

that day kee nly i nte re s te d as the y we re i n artis tic prob

,

le ms failed to so lve the most ess e n tial O f the m they ne ve r

,

se parated the p rope r su bj ect ma tte r of poe try

m .

from that O f p rose T he y ga ve ve rse form n ot .

o nly to histo ry b u t also to poli t ics p hilosop hy ge ography

, , , ,

and scie nce Accord i ngly many of t he m i n sp i te o f ge n

.
,

u ine poe tic gi ft have al l b u t d isappeare d f ro m v ie w hope

, ,

le ssly d ista nce d in the race fo r i mmo rtality b y reason o f

the i r bu l k o f u npoe tical mat eria l O ne of the s e le via thans .

is Michae l Drayt on ( 15 63 He de vote d himself

largely to history , his m ost chara cte ri sti c work b eing his
Ra m a s Wa rs an accou nt of the dep ositi on of Ed ward
‘
.

l l and the su bse q u ent fall of M orti me r

. Drayton was .

ca ab le o f gaining a genu ine inspi ra ti on f rom hi sto ry , as is

p
s how n b y his su erb
p B al lad o f th e rin i n
g g
me tre o f which is preserve d in Tennys on s Charge of the
’

“
Ligh t li rigad o E nfortnnatol v he is kn own n ot by th is
.

s p i ri te d l y ric b u t as the au thor of P oly olhion, a huge

.

p oe m i n Ale xand rinos descrip t i ve g g p y

. e o ra h
con ta ining a

o f England Like Drav ton Sam u el Dani el (1 5 62 1 61 9)

.
— .

s om od t he h is to rical m nso b u t he wrote al s o a m calle d

p oe .

”
N m op hvhss, or A ge neral de fence of a ll l earn ing .
 TH E RE NA ISS ANC E 85

Am ong oth e r curiosi ti es of poe tic treatm ent are Willi am

Warn e r s A lbi on s E ngla nd ; Lord Brook e s P oems of
’ ’ ’

Mona rchy an d Trea ti s e on R eligion ; Sir J ohn Dav ie s s

’

N os cc Teip snm a po e m on the i m m ortality of the sou l and

, ,

Or ches tra a d e scription of the m otio ns of the u n ive rse

,

u n d e r th e figure of d anci ng .

It is not of th e se works howe v er th at we thi nk wh en

, ,

we Sp eak of the glory of E liz ab e th an ve rs e b u t of the ,

l yri c qu ality which i n nearly all the p oe ts of the ti m e flows

s o m e wh e re as a str eam of livi n g w at e r m aki ng gl ad e ve n ,

t he w aste pl ac e s of th eir greate r works Al m ost e v e ry .

po e t of n ote publish ed his cycl e of l ove songs and sonne ts

b e sid e s Sh ak e sp eare s Sp e ns er s and Sid ney s sonne ts th e re
’
,
’
,
’
,

Dani e l s D eli a B rayto n s I dea

’ ’
are C on sta bl e s D i a na
’
, , ,

Lodg e s P hy lli s T h e re w e re als o fr e q u e nt public atio ns

’
.

of coll e cti on s of so ngs by m i sc ell ane o u s write rs Sonnet, and ,

su ch as the P hoeni x N est E ngla nd s Heli con W m " ’

, ,

and t he P oeti ca l Rhap s ody The dramas of the p eri od

.

abou n d in lyrical i n te rlud e s and the stori e s are i nt e r

,

ru p te d by e clogu e s and songs Ind eed it ma y b e s aid th at

.

the writ e r wh e th e r of pr ose or ve rse who was alt og e t h e r

, ,

without the lyric al i m p u lse was an e xc e ption , .

Man y of the f ugitive lyrics of the pe riod are of doubtfu l

attributio n or altog e th e r ano ny m ous but of the s ongs th at ,

can b e as signe d to an y o ne write r a l a rg e sh are b el ongs to

T h om as Cam pio n ( 1 5 4 0 Cam pio n s v e rse is p rac

’

tically and h on estly ad apted to m usical re quire T homas

c an ?“
men ts for the Eliz ab eth an po e t m or e name
, ,

than his successors always conce ive d of a song as a thi ng

,

to b e su ng Lik e m any of his conte m porari es Cam pi on

.
,

was stirre d to rapture alik e by s acr e d and pr ofane lov e .

Inde e d one of the p e culi ariti e s of the Elizabe th an lyric

,

p o e ts is th e ir m i n gl i ng o f s e n su o u sn e ss an d pi e ty — th e ,

latte r n ot i nduce d by fear of d eath but by a trust in the ,

Crea to r as f rank and ho nest as was th e ir d e light in the

world which He had made .
86 A H I STO RY or E N G LISH LI TERA rU RE

How co mmo n was the lyrical gi ft in the las t years of

Eliz abe th s re ign is show n by the nu m be r of men of action
’
,

who w e re also po ets The group of lite ra ry courti e rs of

.
,

whom Sidney was the chi ef i nclud e d a name as fam ous ,

T he Courtly as his th a t of Sir,Wal t e r Ral e igh ( 1 5 5 2

Ral e igh s pl ace in lit e rature be longs to him
’

chi efly through his Hi story of the World one of the m on ,

u m ents of English pr os e in the ne xt c e n tury ; but th e f rag

m ent of a l ong p oem Cy nthi a the sonnet i n troductory

, ,

to The F a eri e Qu eens and various tags of ve rs e lik e the

,

reply to Marlow e s Co me live with me and be my Lov e

’ ”
,
”
and The Lie Show th at he poss ess ed
, in the words of ,

a critic of the ti m e a v e i n of poe try

,
m ost lof ty i n sol e n t , ,
”
and p assio na te The tone of his p oe try is on the whol e
.

si ngularly gl oom y and bitter His verses comm em o rate .

,

for the m ost p art ti m e s of r eaction and troubl e in h is

,

ch e ck ere d li fe wh en he was thrown b ack by failure on the

,

sc epticis m distrust and co ntem pt th at w ere f u nd am e ntal

, , ,

in his nature .

Ral eigh s rival both in gl ory and in m is fortu ne the E arl

’
,

of E ss e x the broth e r of Sid ne y s Stel la was hi msel f a po e t

’
, , .

Anoth e r m e m b e r of the gro u p of courtly po e ts was Sir

E dw ard Dy e r a fri end of Sid ney s who is reme m be r e d as
’
, ,

the write r of the li ne s “

My m i nd to me a K ingdom is
,
”
.

Still anoth er was the Earl of O xford Altoge th e r it m ay .

b e said that in courtly circl e s of the age lyric p oe try wa s ,

the natural lite rary e xp ression m uch as the drama was th e ,

typical form of popular literature .

The lyric and the drama m ust b e cou n te d as the grea t

literary form s of the p eri od for th ese two r epresente d ,

truth to feeling and truth to li fe U pon the re st of .

the lite rature of the Sixteenth century e v en i ncl u di ng ,

Sp ense r s w on d erfu l po em re sted a blight of artificial ity

’
, .

T he age was in the mai n one of co nsci ous l e arn i ng f ro m

masters cl assical and foreign of i m itatio n of u nce rta i n ty
, ,

as to the pri ncipl e s and the uses of lite rature The .

 TH E RENA ISS A N CE 87

writers of the ti me were h amp ered by u ncritical sele ctio n

o f ma te rial , by the re quirem ents of conve n ti on s such as
,

t hat which pre scrib e d the p asto ral e ven by absurd th eori e s
,

s uch as th a t which tri e d to proscrib e rhym e O nly in two

.

d ire ctio ns the lyric and the dram a did th ey wi n comp l e te

, ,

f ree dom and in both th ey use d it grandly

, .
 CHA PTER V

TH E REN A I SSA N CE : TH E D RA M A B EFO RE SH A K E SPE A RE

T HE drama as has just b een p oi n t ed out was the m ost

, ,

p op u l ar lite rary for m of the Re naiss ance as it was also the ,

m ost p ow e rfu l and sp on taneous It e xpresse d as no oth er

.
,
'

lit erary produ ct co u ld h ave done the m an i fold life of the

,

E liz ab e th an age . Its chi ef gl ory is of course Shake sp eare ;

, ,

b u t the scho ol of dramatists fr om whic h Sh ak e sp eare

p roc ee d e d was the r esul t of a steady growt h prolo nge d ,

t hrough nearly four c en turi e s To trace the English dram a

.

fro m the b egi nni ng we m ust go back as far as the N or m an

,

c onqu est .

O ne el em en t in the d e v elop m ent of the dr ama procee de d

fr om the N o rm an l o ve of sh ows and sp e ct acl e s Wh en .

the N or m an ki ngs w e re onc e firm ly se ated on

Sec lar
u
Sour ce of the th e En gli sh t hr one
s th ey gave full re ign to
,

th eir taste for spl e ndid p agean try If a royal .

w eddi ng was to b e c el e brate d or a victorious m o na rch

,

we lc om e d b ack f r om war Lo nd on was turned i n to a

,

plac e of f e stival At the e ntranc e gate of the city or at

.
,

fix e d pl ace s on the rout e to church or palace el aborate ,

st ru ctur e s w e r e buil t re pre sen ti ng s om e m ythical or

,

all e g oric al s ce ne — t he g od s g ro u p e d up on O ly m p u s
, an ,

a rme d St Geo rge givi ng c om b a t to a gold e n drago n

. or ,

ny m phs and s atyrs sporti ng in e n ch ant e d gard e ns So me .

t i m e s m usic was add e d an d the p e rso nators by dialogu e

, ,

and actio n gave w elco m e to the royal party

, T hese .

p ag ea n ts d e v e l op e d at th e R e n a iss an c e i n to a sp e ci a l f orm
of dram atic en te rta i n m en t the M asqu e
, Meanwhile by
.
,

sti mul ati ng in the p e op le a l ove of dram atic spe ctacle, th ey

p av e d the way for regular drama .

88
90 A HI STO RY or EN GLIS H LI TERArURE

the fi rst p ageant app ears a great box m oun te d o n fo u r ,

wh eels and drawn by app ren tic es of the mason s gu ild ’

,

whic h guild is ch arge d with prese n ti ng the Creatio n of

Eve and the Fall of Man T he curtai ns at th e f ro nt and
.

the Sid e of the great b o x are dr aw n r e v ealing an upp e r ,

compartment withi n whic h the m ai n action is to t ak e

,

pl ac e O n a rais e d pl atform sits enthrone d a m aj estic

.

p erson in a red rob e wit h gilt h air and b eard imperson at

, ,

ing the Creato r B efore him li e s A d am d re ssed in a cl ose

.
,

fi tting l ea th e r gar me nt p ai n t e d w h ite or fl esh c olo r T he -

.

Creat or af te r ann ou n ci ng his i nt en ti on of m aki ng f or

,

Ad am a h elp mee t d e sc ends a nd t ouch e s the sl e ep e r s Sid e

’
, .

T h ere u po n Ev e rise s th rough a trap door an d Ad am w ak e s -

,

rej oicing Agai n the Creat or asc ends to his throne a nd

.
,

A d am withdraws to a cor ner O f the p age an t l eavi ng E v e ,

to b e t empted by a gre at s erp e nt c u nn ingly c ontrive d of

green and gold cl oth in which an actor is conceal ed T his
, .

m onste r crawling u pon the st age fr om b elow h arangu e s

, ,

Ev e with l e ngthy eloqu ence T h en f oll ows the e a ti ng of .

the appl e an d the co m i ng O f God s ang el s with gilt h a ir

’
, , ,

scarl e t robe s and swords wav e d an d ri dge d like fi re to

, ,

drive the p air f ro m the garden i n to the wil de rness th at is , ,

into the low e r co mp artm e n t O f the p agean t whi ch is n ow ,

u ncove red to vi e w A tru mp e te r advan c e s b ef ore the car

.
,

and s ou nds a l on g n ote in t ok e n O f the co nclusio n of the

play T he pre ntic es har ne ss th e m s elv e s to the car ; and

.
’

it m ove s O ff to the ne xt statio n to b e repl ace d by oth e rs , .

Th es e repre s e nt in tu rn N oah s Fl ood give n by the guild

’
, ,

O f w a te r m e rchants ; the S acrific e of Isaac give n by the

-
,

b u tch ers g uil d ; the N a tivity the Crucifixi on and SO on

’
, ,

in l ong p roc e ssio n u n til the crown i ng Sp e ctacl e of the

,

Day of J udgm ent T he c h i ef f eature of sp ect acul ar i n

.

t e rest in this l ast is H e ll m o u th a gr eat d ragon s j aw

’
-
, ,

b elchi ng fl am e and sm ok e i nto which lost souls dre ssed , ,

in bl ack and yell ow particol or are toss e d by the De vi l , ,

—a most satisfactory character with a bright red beard ,

 TH E R ENA ISS ANC E 91

a hairy body, a hideou s mask ho rns , , and a long f orked

tail .

Crude and e ven grote s q u e as m uch O f this s ee ms , the

miracle play was, to the me n of the Middl e Ages, a v e ry
impressive thing It not only app eal ed to th eir religious
.

r s and to th eir love O f sp e ctacl e ; it also i ntere ste d

natu e
them pr ofou ndly f ro m the hu m an Sid e F or the authors .

were fre e to e mb e lli sh the biblical story with e pisod e s draw n

from the co m mon lif e O f the ir o wn day E v e n wh en th e se .

added episod es took a bro adly farcical tur n n obody was

,

shocked an m o re th an by the i m ps an d m o nste rs which

y ,

g inned at the m f rom the sol e mn Shad ows O f th e ir cath e

r

drals In the play of N oah s Flood the p atri arch c ause s

.
’
,

first the ani mals to e nte r the A rk th en his s on s and dau h

g ,

ters in law but wh e n he co me s to his wi fe she Ge m a n”

- -
, r ,

Ob ects “ ar mam
j She doe s not reli sh b e i ng coop e d up
.

without her gossips and l eavi ng th ese am i abl e wo m e n to

,

drown Re mo nstran c es at l ast provi ng f ruitl e ss N oah

.
,

resorts to the argu m e nt of blows and driv e s his sc oldi n g

,

helpmee t i nto the A rk to the grea t d elight of the crowd

, .

Inthe pla y o f Abrah am and Isaac the yearn i ng love of the ,

Old man f or his littl e son an d the sw e e t trustful nature

, ,

Of the boy are brou ght ho me to us in such a wa to

, y as
illtensif the pathos of the m om e nt wh en A brah am mak e s
y
read h Lord s c mm d s ’
crific li which is
y at t e, o an to a e th e fe ,

dearest to hi m on e arth T he pl eadi ng of the b oy th e

.
,

gadual ov e r m aste ri ng of his fear of d eath by his pity for

r

his fathe r s anguish and his s olicitud e for his moth e r s

’ ’

gief are ren d e re d with touchi ng truth

r
, .

The rfor d o o o wr Lo rd e s b y d d i ng ,

And wan I am de d , th e n p ey
r fo r m e
B u t , good fad e r te l l y e
, m y m od er no -
th y ng,
Sa y th a t I a m in a no th er cu n thre d we lly n g .

In these e pisod es , and in many othe rs which m ight be

given, lie the ge rm s Of regular drama Such hu morou s
.
92 A H ISTO RY or EN GLI SH LITE RATURE
scenes as qu arrel O f Noah and his wife co nstitu te in
the ,

reality crude little comedi es out of wh ich regular co m e dy

could readily grow In such tragic scenes as the Sac
.

rifi ce O f Isaac the Sla ughte r O f the I nn oc en ts

, and the ,

Crucifixion the elem ents O f nob le tragedy were al re ady

,

present .

The m i racl e pl ays a ttem pte d to set forth only a p a rt o f

th e teaching ne c e ssary to man s s alvation nam ely th a t
’
,

part contai ned in the history of Ad am s Fall the red e m p ’

,

tion through Christ and the fi nal J udgmen t T hi s was

, .

al m os t en tirely th eo logic al it dealt with matters Of be li ef .

T o co m pl e te this teach i ng th ere was nee d e d so me e xpos i tio n

O f the e thic al Sid e of re ligio n which d eals with m att e rs O f
,

co nduct ; and it was this e thic al doctri n e which

T he Mommy
may “ the Morali ty pl ays tri e d to bring ho m e to
me n s m i nds
’
By means of such personifications or ah
.

s tractions as the World the Fl esh Manki nd Me rcy J u s

, , , ,

tice Peac e the Se ven Deadly Si ns Good and B ad Ange l s

, , , ,

Gl u ttony Cov e tousne ss O ld Age and Death the m o rality

, , , ,

pl ays att empted to repre sen t in a graphic way whi ch ,

w ould app eal to popular audi e nce s the co nflict b e twee n ,

sin and right e ousne ss for the posse ssion O f the hu ma n so u l .

The earl y Moraliti es h av e an earnestne ss O f purpose and a ,

l argen ess of th em e which m ak e th em no u nworthy su ppl e

,

m en t to the m ir acl e cycl e s Littl e by littl e how e ve r th e i r

.
, ,

ch aracter ch anged : the treat men t was narrowed so as to

i n clud e o nly a si ngl e asp ect O f m an s li fe ; the characte rs ’

be cam e l e ss and l ess abstract ; and farcical matte r was in tro

d u ce d to lighten the i n tol e r ably sol em n tone In th e se l a te r .

m oraliti e s the ch aracte r O f V ice pl ayed a great p art He .

was usu ally dressed in the costu me O f a cou rt fool and ,

carri ed a sword of l ath His fu ncti on was to attend upo n

.

the De vil and to worry trick and b el abor his master f or

, , ,

the a m use m ent of the crowd The Vic e s u rvived in the.

f ool of Sh ak e sp eare s plays though it is h ard to re cogn i ze

’
,

h im in the philosophic al T ouchstone of A s You Li ke I t ,

94 A H I STO R Y O E E NGL ISH LI TE RATURE
begi nni ng of the Re naissance It be came the fashi on in .

the fi f teenth c e ntury f or school mast ers to prese n t t he -

co me di es of T e renc e and Pl autus on the stages of gr am mar

scho ols wi th the stu d ents as a ctors B e for e 1 5 4 1 N icholas
,
.

U d all h e ad m aste r of E ton wrote f or his b uys

,
-
,

a pl ay m od ell e d af ter Pl au tus call ed Ra lp h

, ,

R oyster B oyster the first r egula r E ngli sh,

com edy T he i m portance of Ra lp h Rog/star B oys ter in

.
,

f u rnishi ng E ngli sh pl aywrights with an e xam pl e of ra pid

di al ogu e and cl ear constructi on of plot can h ardly be ,

ove r esti mate d The play is howe ver an artifici al pro

-
.
, ,

d u cti on wi th v ery little local color or truth to E nglish lif e

, , .

T his ob j e cti on c ann ot b e brought agai nst the ne xt nota bl e

c om e dy Gammer Gu rton s N eedle supposed to have bee n
,
’
,

writte n by J ohn Still an O x ford M aste r of arts ab out

,
- -
,

1 5 66 . H e re the Lati n mode l is still f oll owe d in f or m al

p articulars but the m ai n chara ct ers are mani festly stu d i ed
,

f rom real sixt eenth c e ntury p easants and the b ackg ro u nd ,

of E ngli sh vill age li fe is give n with m u ch vivid r e alis m .

Ga mmer Ga rl an s N eedle is a great land mark in the his

’

t ory of the d rama in Engl and for it Shows th at E nglish ,

co m edy had b een abl e to l earn f rom clas sical mod e ls the
l esson of cl ear co nst ruction and steady d e velop me n t of
,

pl o t without sacrifici ng th at broad and real istic co mi c

,

spi rit which had fou nd e xp re ssio n in the b y play of the -

m i racl e s and m oraliti es and which was shortly to co me to

,

fl ow e r in such m aste rpi e ces of pure E nglish h u m or as

D ekker s Shoema kers H oli day and the tav e r n sc enes in
’ ’
,

S hak e sp eare s H enry I V

’

U p on trage dy the classical i nflu enc e was e ven greate r

, ,

and the struggl e on the p art of the l earned l ay wrights of

p _

the U nive rsiti e s to i m p os e the cl assical f or m

,

up on E ngli sh tragedy was m ore sustai ned T he , .

cl as sic d ramatist s el ected for e m ulatio n was

S ene ca B e tween 1 5 60 and 1 5 8 1 ten trage die s of Se neca
.

w ere f reely translated Co mi ng into the hands of E ngl ish

.
 TH E RE NA ISSAN C E 95

l wrig h t j u st wh en th ey w e re eage rly bu t blindly feel

p y a s ,

i ng th e ir way t o ward a natio nal typ e of drama th e se pl ays ,

c ould n o t fail to i mpre ss th e m m uch p e rh aps all the m ore ,

"

b e c aus e the S ene can trage dy was di re ctly opp os ed to th at

k i nd of drama to which the E nglish p e opl e na turally
i n cli n e d S ene ca s pl ays have v e ry li ttle stage acti on ;
’
.

i m portan t e v en ts i nst ead of b e i ng dir e ctly r epr e sen te d are

, ,

m e re ly re p o r te d on the stage by m e ssen ge rs or oth e rs The

, .

t en d e ncy of English trage dy on the oth e r h and was f ro m

, ,

t he first to pre s en t e ve rythi ng b odily on the stage e v e n ,

t he stor m i ng of citi e s or b attl e s b e tw ee n great arm i e s

, ,

w h ere the m eans at the disposal of the actors w e re laugh

a bly i nad e qu a t e to the d e man d Lati n dra ma agai n is
.
, ,

u s u ally c are fu l to pre s erve u nity of t i m e and plac e th at

”

i s to mak e all the action p ass in a given locality and to

, ,

c ove r no m ore th an the e ve nts of a si n gl e day E nglish .

p l a ywrights o n
, the co n tra ry h ad n o h e sit
, atio n i n shif t
i ng th e sce ne to h alf a doz en di ff e r e n t co u ntri e s in the
c o u rs e of a si ngl e pl ay ; and th e y tho u ght n o thi n g of i n

trod u cin g in the first act a chi ld who gre w to m anho od

in the s e co n d act and in the third di e d and h anded on
,

the s tory to b e acte d out by his so ns and grandso ns in

,

t he f ourth and fif th Cl assic dram a al so dre w a v e ry s harp

.

l ine b e twee n com edy and tragedy ad m itti ng no c om ic ,

el e m e n t i nto a s e ri ous pl ay T he E nglish dram a on the

.
,

contra ry f ro m the m iracl e pl ays dow n se t co m edy sid e

, ,

by Sid e wi th trage dy ; it mi ngl e d the farcical with the

august t he l augh abl e with the p ath e tic as th ey actu ally
, ,

are m i ngl e d in li fe .

“
The y o u ng U niv e rs i ty wits ( as m en of i ntelle ctu al
prete n sio ns w e re th e n call e d ) whil e they sh are d in the
,

natio n al e n thu s i as m f o r s tage pl ay s w e re m a ny of th e m

-
,

rep e ll e d by th e cr u diti es a nd ab su rditi e s of the nativ e

lram a e m ph a siz e d as th e se we re by the m eagre stage

,

etti ng . They wi she d th e re fo re to forc e the el e gan t but

, ,

>ld S e nec an m od e l up on the public T he y f o u nd a .

96 A HIST O RY or E NGLISH LITE RATURE

p o we rful champion in Sir Philip Sid ney who in his , ,

Defence qf P oesi e he ap e d u nsp ari ng ridicul e u po n the

,

na tiv e playwrights of his day In 1 5 61 two you ng gen tl e

.
,

me n of the I nn e r T e m pl e T ho m as N orto n and T hom as

,

Sackvill e pre sente d b e fore Q u e en Eliz abe th a play call ed

,

Gorbodu c or F errex a nd P orrex which was acc epte d as

, ,

a ki nd of man if e sto on the p art of the cl assicists and as an ,

e xam pl e of wh at could b e do n e in h andli ng a sub j e ct fr om

British legend on the lines laid down by S eneca Gorba

, .

da c has a chorus mad e up of f our old m en of Brita i n ;

,

m e ssengers to re port the acti on al m ost all of which ta k e s

,

pl ace 011 the stage ; and lo ng epic and lyric p as sage s

—
wh at the French cal l ti ra des to tak e the pl ac e of stag e
action . It is a stately production and d e serve s vene ra ,

tion as the first regular tragedy written in English T h at ,

it had a great i nflu enc e upon the native drama j ust

o
,

stru ggli ng i nto consciousness of itself is evidenc ed by ,

the c on ti nu al effor ts mad e by the playwrights of th e

n e xt tw en ty or thirty years to forc e th e ir stubborn ov e r
, ,

grown material into som e sem blance of the neat clas sic
f orm.

In the end the nativ e for m won the day

, I t had on its .

side not only long trad ition bu t the ove rwh el mi ng w e ight
,
"

of popul ar tas te It was i nfinitely b e tte r suite d to the

.

rob u st i magi nation of the men of the E nglish Re naissan ce ,

eage r for e xcite ment an d cravi ng stro ng se nsatio ns .

N e ve rth el ess the appr entic eship of E nglish pl aywrights

,

to a fore ign m aster b ri ef and i nco m pl e te

m m of the ,

Classi cal l n though it was was i nvalu abl e

, It tau ght .

n ance
u
th e m to Im pose som e re strai nt upon the n ot of
.

th eir fancy ; i t showe d th em the beauty and artistic

ne c e ssity of good structur e ; in a word it brough t f or m ,

out of ch aos N or d id the i nflu ence wh olly die e ve n wh en

.
,

the b attl e had gon e o nc e for all in favor of the ro m antic

drama Marl owe whos e genius was i ntensely ro man tic
.
, ,

Shows abu nd ant trac es of it and the Cho rus of K i ng

98 A HIST O RY OF E NGLISH LIT ERATURE

any , delighte d to cloth e th e ir thought Lyly s E up hu es .

’

( se e p a ge 7 0 ) h a d a m a rk e d i n flu e nc e upo n the e a rly

E liz ab e th an drama both for g ood and e vi l

, T he tas te .

for artificial l ang u age which it r e fle cte d and foste re d fill e d ,

the early dram a with p assage s which are i n tol e rably m an

ne red ; b u t on the oth e r h and it re fi ne d poe tic dicti on
, , ,

and sa v e d the drama f ro m the r u d e ne ss by which a f or m

of art so popul ar in i ts app eal and SO hu mble in its origi n ,

was naturally thre ate ne d .

AS a dramatist Lyly occupi e s a p e c u liar positio n am ong

Sh ak esp ea re s pred ec e ssors
’
He wr ote not for the re gul ar
.
,

dr ama tic co mp an i e s but for co mp an i e s of ch il d

,
Ly l y nd
a

actors Th e se w e re choIr boys on e co m p any

£332
14 .
-
,

Paul s Cath e dral and k now n

’
attach e d to St .

”
Children of Paul s the othe r attach e d to the
’
as the ,

Q u ee n
’
s ch ap e l a t W hit e h all and k n ow n as the C hildr e n
”
of the Chap e l Royal . T o th e se child co m p ani e s Lyly s ’

t one a nd matter were ad m irably ad apte d His pl ays a re .

for the m os t p ar t grac ef ul ad apta ti on s of cl assic m y ths so ,

tu rne d as to h ave a b eari ng up on so me co ntemporary hap

p e ni ng at co u rt ye t m ovi ng al ways i n an at m osph e re of
,

qu ai nt and dreamlik e u nreality E ndy mi on is an el abora te .

co m pli m en t to Q u ee n E liz ab e th who app ears i n the pla y ,

i n the ch aracte r of Cy nthi a the virgi n hu ntre ss , The .

Woma n i n the M oon is a ve il e d satire upo n wom en in ge n

e ral an d Eliz ab e th i n p articul ar wri t te n aft e r Lyly had
, ,

be e n s oure d by years of fr u itl e ss s ee ki ng af te r cé u rt fa vor .

T hr ough the pl ays are sc a t te re d d elightf ul lyrics which ,

Lyly was p e rh aps e spe ci ally t e mpt ed to i ns er t by the cl e ar ,

v oic e s of the child p l ay e rs .

T he child actors for who m Lyly wrote play ed al m ost

, ,

“ 0 0011 1" e xclusiv e ly i n priv a te — at court or i n th e,

" “
233 m ,
hous e s o f th e n o bili ty But th e r
. e gula r c o m
p a n ie s h a d a lr e ad y b e gu n to e sta blish th e m
s elv e s in the su burbs of Londo n and to e rect pe rmanent ,

theatres . The firs t of th es e play hou ses k now n si m ply as -

,
 TH E R E NA ISSAN C E 99

The T h eatre, was built in Fi n sbu ry F i e lds, to the no rth

of the city by , J am e s Burb age , in 1 5 76 It was at this .

play h ou se th at Shak esp e are first f ou nd e m pl oym ent

-
.

Bu rbage s co m p any on the d e st ructi on of T he T h e atre

’
, ,

buil t the Gl ob e on the sou th bank of the T ham e s ; and

,

he re on the Bank sid e oth e r place s of th e atrical en tertai n

, ,

me n t rapidly sprang up Af te r a ti m e the actors be c a m e

.

bold e no ugh to pu sh i nto the city itsel f Burbage b u ilt .

the Bl ac kfri ars as a wi nt e r th ea tre , A rival co m p any .

built the F ortu ne also in the city li m its By the end of

, .

the ce n tury el e ve n th ea tre s e xi s te d i n the city an d in the

,

“
free lands or lib e r tie s adjoi ni ng .

P e rf o rm ance s took pl ace usu al ly at t hre e in the after

noon an d w e re annou n c e d by the h angi ng out of a fl a
,
g
and t he blowi ng of t ru m p e ts T he th eat re s we re r o u nd or .

oc ta g o nal str u ct u re s u n roofe d e xc e pt fo r a sh e d or c an o py

,

ove r the stag e The wi nte r th e a tres such as the B lackf ri

.
,

ars w e r e e ntir ely roof e d in

,
T he stage e x te n d e d o u t i nto the .

body of the hous e was O p e n o n thre e s id e s and was s u fli

, ,
‘

cien tly e l e va te d so th at the m ai n bulk of the audi e n c e st an d ,

ing on th e b a re grou n d w hi ch fo rm e d the fl oor or pit of the

theatre could h ave a fair vi e w Pe rso ns who c ou ld aff ord to
,
.

”
p y
a a high e r p ric e th an th e gr o u n dli ngs t ook ad va n tage ,

Of the b oxe s built rou n d the pit and y ou ng g all an ts f o r ,

an e xtra fee c ould h av e s e ats u p on the stag e i tsel f w he re

, ,

th ey s m ok e d th eir pip es p ee l e d oranges c rack e d n uts and , , ,

Of te n in tet fe re d wi th t he p e rf orman c e by ch afii ng a p oor

actor or by flirti ng osten t ati ously with th e fair o cc u p a n t

,

Of a n e ig hbori ng box In ac cord an c e with the luxu ri ous

.

taste of the age in dr ess the c ostu m e s o f the actors w e re ,

Ofte n ve ry rich All w om e n s p arts w e re pl aye d by b oys

’
.

actre ss e s w e re n o t s ee n i n E ngl and u n til af te r the Re s tora

tion T he s tage s e tti ng was O f the si m pl e st a ch ange O f

.
-
,

sce ne be i ng i ndic a te d of te n m e rely by a pl aca rd o r at m ost ,

by a roughly p ai nte d pi ece of paste b oard and a fe w stage -

ro rti s A tr e e and a be nch di d d u t f ard e n

p p e e .
y or a
g a
1 00 A HISTO RY OF E NGL ISH LI TE RATURE

wooden cannon and a p ast e b oard towe r i ndicate d a Si ege

-
.

This m eagrene ss of stage se ttin g so far from b e i ng a m is

-
,

fortu ne was in no small m e asu re re sp onsibl e for th e lite r

,

ary gre atness of the E liz ab e than dram a for it thre w the
dramatist back up on v ivid po e tic ex pressio n as the o nly ,

m eans of sti m u l a ti ng the i m agi nation of his audi en ce and

of pr e s e rvi ng the dr amatic illusio n .

While Lyly was at the h eight O f his vogu e duri ng th e ,

late e ighti es of the Sixte en th c entury a gro u p of you n g ,

dram atists w ere com i ng to the front whos e app eal was n ot ,

to the court but to the p e opl e and wh ose pl ays were writ
,

ten f or the p opul ar th eatre s just d escrib e d T he mo st im .

p or tan t of th e se dram atists w e re Chri stoph e r Marlowe ,

Rob e rt Gree ne and Ge orge Pe el e with Marl ow e an u ndis

, ,

u te d l ead e r T h e non dram atic work of th e se m e n has

p
-
.

already b e en menti on e d ( se e p age s 75 and Gree ne was

by natural gif t a prose rom ance r Peel e a lyric po e t an d
, ,

a t l ea st h al f of Marlowe s g en ius was of an e pic k i nd

’
B ut .

the t e nd ency of the age was SO ov e rwh e l m i ngly in f avor of

d ram a th at all three in c om m on with m any of th eir fel
, ,

l ow s were div e rte d i nto the ch annel of dramatic e xpre s

,

si on and Marl o we achie v ed in this not wholly symp ath e ti c

m e di u m all but the high e s t disti nction .

Christoph e r Marlow e on e of the m ost striking figur e s of

,

the E nglish Ren aissanc e is the tru e fou n d e r of the p op u

,

lar E nglish drama though he was hi m se l f an

,

outgrowth of the l ong p eriod O f preparation

which we h av e b e en trave rsi ng He was b orn in 1 5 64 two
.
,

m on ths b ef ore Sh ak esp eare in the old cath edral t o w n of

,

Can terbury His fathe r was a Shoem ak e r ; the boy was

.

sent to Cam bridge by a patron who had notic ed his quick

,

p arts He gradu ate d at ni ne teen and four years l ate r

.

( 1 5 8 7) he a sto nish e d Lo n do n with his first pl ay Ta m bu r ,

.

la i ne which he brought out with the Lord A d m iral s Men

’
, ,

the rival co m p any to the Lord Ch amb e rl ai n s Men who m

’
,

Sh ake sp eare had joine d a Sh or t ti me b efore .

1 02 A HI STORY OE G S
E N LI H LITER T RE A U

high astou n di ng te rm s without which Elizabe th an

,

drama is now i nconceivabl e T his program m e he carri ed

.

out in the m ain with consisten cy .

Tam bu rlai ne is a pu re h e ro pl ay T he Scythi an

-
.

sh eph erd co n qu ers one af ter anoth e r the ki ngdo m s of th e

, ,

E ast f orci ng ki ngs to h arness th em s elv e s to his

,

ch ariot an d carryi ng with hi m a great cage in

,

which a captive e mp e ror is k e pt lik e a wild b east T he .

h u ge barbaric figure of T amburl ai ne is always b ef ore our

eye s ,an d the actio n of th e pl ay is o nl y a s e ri e s of his

triu mphs His ch aracte r h al f b esti al h al f godlik e in its

.
,
-
,
-

re m o rse l ess strength an d c on fid enc e do m i nate s th e i m agi ,

n ati on lik e an e l e me n tal f orc e of natur e and l e nds its e l f ,

ad m irably to thos e high astou ndi ng term s which fill ,

whol e p ages of the pl ay with thu nd erous m onol ogu e .

D octor F a u s tu s Marlowe s s e co n d work is als o a h e ro

’
, ,

pl ay and is cast on e v en larger li nes It is a d ram atiz e d

, .

story of the li fe and d eath of a m edi aeval schol ar who ,

s ells his soul to the de vil in re turn for a li fe of powe r an d

,

pl e asu re . It embodi ed in an oth er f orm the same aspira

, ,

ti o n afte r the u nattai nabl e which Tamburlai ne had typi

,

fi e d and the story i nvolve d l arge q u e stio ns of hu man will

and fat e such as an i m agi nation lik e M arlowe s lov e s to
’
,

g rapple with It can h ardly b e said that the poe t live d u p

.

to the p ossibiliti e s of his subj e ct T he pl ay as it h as

.
,

c om e d ow n to us is disfig u re d by co mic p assage s of a

,
“
coarse and tastel e ss sort th ose v e ry conce its of clown
,

g
a e
”
which M arlow e h ad f or m e rl y d e cl ar e d w ar agai nst .

But ev en wh e re the work m anship is poor th ere is always

so me thi ng i mposi ng i n the d esig n ; and c ertai n p as sag e s

h av e h ardly b een surp asse d for power and b eauty Whe n .

Me phistoph el e s raise s from the d ead the Spirit of He l en

O f T roy Faustus utte rs on e rapturous e xclamation
, ,

W as th i s th e face th a t l a u nch ed th o u san d shi p s

a

And b u rn t th e t o p less to wers o f Il i o n

 THE RENA I SS AN C E 1 03

And on h is d e ath -
b e d he starts up with the cry ,

Lo , wh e re C hrist ’
s b lo o d t
s re a ms i n th e fi rma m e n t l

three li ne s which would al one serv e to stam p M arlowe as

of t he c om p an y of i m pe ri al p oe ts .

Marl ow e s third pl ay The J ew of M a lta is agai n a study

’
, ,

of th e lust of p ow e r — this ti m e the pow e r b e st ow e d by

,

grea t r ich es B arabbas the old J ewish m e rch an t of Malta

.
, ,

is th e first vig oro us Sk e tch of which Sh ak e sp eare was to ,

mak e in Shylock a fi nish e d maste rpi e c e The first two acts .

are co n c e iv e d on a l arge sc al e a nd car ef ully work e d ou t ; ,

bu t a fte r th es e M arlow e se e m s agai n to h ave f all e n from

his o wn id e al and to h av e w orke d h astily and i nsi n c e rely
‘

.
,

Ra w h orrors accu m ul ate on h orror s h ead a nd the pl ay de

’
,

g en e r a t e s i nto m e l odr a m a o f th e go ri e st ki n d N e v e r th e .

less i t sh ows a r e m ark abl e advanc e ov e r Tambu r la i ne an d

Doctor F a u s tu s in the k nitti ng toge th er of c au se and
,
-

effe ct . Marl ow e s gr owt h i n dram atic te ch n iqu e is still

’

more striki ngly appare nt in his l ast pl ay E dwa rd II T his , .

is u n q u e stio nably his m aste rpi e c e so far as pl ay m aki ng ,

-

goes th ough for the ve ry re ason th a t it d iscards rh e torical

,

monol ogu e for the r apid d ram atic i n te rch ange of th ought ,

it c on tai ns fe we r quotabl e p assages of pure p oetry th an

any of the oth e rs .

M arl ow e was kill e d i n 1 5 93 at the age of tw e nty ni ne ,

-
.

Th e re is so m e thi ng in the m e te o r lik e sudd e nne ss of his ap -

p ea ra n c e i n t h e S ki e s o f p o e try a n d i n th e s wi f
, t fl a m i n g O f
his g enius thro u gh its c ou rs e th at see m s to m ak e i ne vi ,

tabl e his vi ol e nt en d He su m s u p fo r u s the Re naissan ce

.

p a ssio n f o r li f e sl ee pl
, e s s i n i ts s e arch a n d d a ri ng i n its gr asp
afte r t he i n fi nit e i n pow e r i n k nowl edge and i n pl e asur e
, , .

Rob e rt Gr eene was pr ob ably e nco u rage d to wri te for the

stage by M a rlow e s succ e ss with T a m b u rl ai ne
’
.

G eene r .

Green e s b e st pl ays are Fri a r B a con a nd F ri a r

’

B u nga y and J a mes I V T he fir st o f th e se has s o m e

.

cou ntry sc e ne s group e d ab o ut the ch ar act e r of Margar e t

, ,
1 04 A HI STO RY O F ENG LI SH LITE RATURE

the fair m aid of F re ssingfi el d, h ealthy which are in a fi ne

E nglish tone J a m es I V h as a cle a r and coh e r ent d e v el op
. .

m e nt u n usu al at this stage of the dram a ; one O f its m oti fs

, ,

th at O f the p ersecute d w om an who fl ees to the fore st in the

disguise of a p age was d e sti ne d to b eco me i mm en sely pop
,

ul ar in the l at er ro man tic dram a an d to b e u se d over ,

an d ov e r agai n with en d l e ss v ari atio ns by Sh ak e sp e a re and

, ,

F l e tch e r .

Ge orge Pee l e lik e Green e b egan his care e r by non d ra

, ,
-

m atic writi ng His m ost charact eristic early work con

.

sists of p oe m s writte n for c e r e m o ni al oc casi ons .

Peel e
“
.

O ne of th e se A F are well to the F am ous an d

,

F ortu nat e Ge ne rals of our E nglish F orc e s written on the ,

d ep a rture of Drak e and N orris on the e xp edition to Portu ,

g a l in 1 5 8 9 i s f ull of,t h e n e w n a ti onal spirit So m e of th e .

li nes h ave a sup erb ri ng of e xul tation and pri de

Yo u fi gh t fo r C h ri st and E n gl a n d
’
s p ee rle ss q u ee n ,
E l i za b e th th e w o n d e r of t h e w o rl d ,
O v e r w h o se th ro ne th e e ne m i e s o f Go d
H a v e th u nd e re d
O te n t im e s tre b l e h a p p y m e n , th a t fi gh t
U nd e r t h e cro ss o f C h ri st a n d E ngl a nd s q u ee n l
’

T his passage well ill u strat es Peele s p e cu li ar gi f t as a poe t ’

,

th at of m aki ng his li n es ki nd le as th ey go His b est pl ay .

,

D av i d a nd B ethsa be is c onsid e r ed m e rely as a pl a y p oor

, , ,

en o u gh b u t it is fu ll of p assage s u su ally only a f e w li nes ,

l ong wh ich s ee m to tak e fi re be fore a r ead e r s ey e s and

’
, ,

to burn wi th the s of test y e t m o st i n tense fl am e of the

i magination Dav id a n d B ethsa be m ay b e regarde d as a
.

l ate typ e of the m iracl e pl ay stripp e d of its sacre d sig

-
,

n ifi can ce an d satur at ed with the s en suous grac e an d ri ch

,

col or of t he Re nai ssan c e Anot her pl ay of Pe el e s The ’

.
,

O ld Wi v es Ta le is fam o u s as h avi ng f urn ish ed M ilton

’
,

with the grou nd w ork of Camu s It is a ve ry c rud e bu t a

-
.

ve ry charm i ng play ; a sort of dramatiz ed nurse ry tal e of

 CHAPTER VI

TH E R E N A I SSA N C E 2 SH A K E SP E A RE

WI LLI A M SH A K E SP E A RE was
b orn on or about the 2 4 th Of
April 1 5 64 in the vill age of Stratford
, , H e was the third .

child of J oh n Sh ak e sp eare and Mary Ard e n His m oth er .

Shakespeare , w a s of g
. e n tl e blo o d an d was poss e ss ed of
, so m e
Ea“ ? me w e alth by i nh e ritan c e
'
His f ath er thou gh a .
,

m an of c onsid e rati o n in the vill age was of lowe r statio n a , ,

tanner and glo ve r by trad e U ntil the age of f ourteen .

the b oy atte nd e d the Stratf ord gramm ar school wh e re ,

”
he pic ke d up the s mall Lati n an d l ess Gree k to ,

whi ch his i m me nsely l earned fri en d B en J o nson rath e r

sc ornf ully r e fe rs T he b e tte r p art of his e ducation a
.
,

wond e rfu lly deep an d sur e i n sight i n to N ature and a ,

wide acqu ai ntanc e wi th the f olk l ore of his nativ e district -

,

he doubtl e ss b e ga n to acquir e i n b oyho od by r am bl e s ,

th ro u gh the m eadows and along the stre am s of Warwick

s hir e stoppi n g to ch at with old cr one s ov e r th e ir cottage
,

fi re s or to liste n to plough me n as th ey took th eir nooni ng

, .

O nl y a fe w m ile s a way was the picture squ e t own of Wa r

wick with its m agnific e nt c astl e to se t hi m dream i ng of
, ,

the p ast Withi n an easy day s w alk lay K enilworth Cas tl e

.
’
,

t he s eat of E liz ab eth s favorite Le ic e ste r ; and the historic

’
,

t ow n of Cove ntry wh e re one m ight still see m iracl e pl ays

,
-

p e rform ed on c e rtai n fe stiv al d ays T rav elli ng com pan i es .

o f a ct ors visited Stra tf ord two or th re e ti m e s a y ear and h ad ,

t o apply to Sh ak e sp e are s fath e r for l e av e to pl ay At th e ir

’
.

p e rf orm anc e s you ng Sh ak e sp eare was doubtl ess so m e ti m es

pre sen t dri nki ng i n his fi rst i m pressio ns of the f asci nati ng
,

w orld of the s tage In th e se and oth e r ways his m i nd

.

1 06
 TH E RE NA ISS ANC E 1 07

found the f oo d it nee d ed and store d u p m any a brav e

i mage which it should afterward e vok e in the thick air
,

of a cr owd e d Londo n th e atre .

Ab o ut 1 5 78 the f ortu nes of his f ath e r b egan to d e cli ne ,

and Sh ak e sp e are was withdraw n f ro m sch ool I n spite of .

the rapidly faili ng prosp e rity O f the fam ily he was m arri e d ,

at e ight ee n to A nn H ath aw ay a you ng w om an e ight y e ars

,

his se n i or the daughte r of a p easant fam ily of Shotte ry

, ,

near Stratf ord T h a t the m arri age was h asty and u n fortu
.

nat e h as b e e n co nj e c tur e d f ro m the gen e ral cours e of S hak e

sp e ar e s li f e as w e ll as f ro m v ario u s p assage s i n the pl ays

’
, ,

which see m to h av e an autobi ographic color Ce rtain it is .

that so m e ti me b e t ween 1 5 85 and 1 5 87 he l ef t Stratford to ,

se e k his fortu ne in th e c apital an d th at u ntil the cl os e O f

,

his li fe he r e turne d to his nativ e town only at rare i nt erv als .

The i m m e d i ate c ause of his l e avi ng is said by doubtful

traditi on to have b een the anger of Sir T ho m as Lucy a ,

local m ag nate ove r a d eer ste ali ng prank i n which Sh ak e

,
-

spea re an d oth e r wild you ng bl ad e s of the vill age had e n

g ag e d .

O utside the w al ls of London to the north not far f ro m ,

wh e re the r oad f ro m Sh ak esp eare s cou n try ent e re d the

’

p urli e us o f th e c apit a l stood , th e O ld e st of t h e Shakespeare

m “mm
Lon d on pl ay house s c al l e d si mply The Th e atre
-
, .

It had at the h ead of its com p any the fam ous actor J am e s
Burb age . Wh eth er from acciden t or se t i nten tion Sh ak e ,

sp ea re soo n fou nd h i m s elf co nn e cte d with B u rb a e s com

’
g
p an y, wh e r e h e m ad e hi m s e l f i n disp e n s abl e a s a ctor an d ,

as r e to u ch e r O f old pl ays H e c on ti nu e d with B u rb age s

.
’

com p an y as ac tor pl aywright an d st ockh old e r wh e n The

, , , ,

Th ea tre was p u ll e d down and r eb u ilt as the Glob e on the

,

south b an k of the T h am e s .

O f th e e xte rnal f acts of Sh ake sp e are s li fe in Lo nd on we ’

know few and those fe w of sm all i m portanc e Early in

, .

his c aree r h e was attacked by Rob e rt Gre ene who in a , ,

deathbe d e xhortatio n to Marlow e Peel e and oth e rs , , ,

1 08 A HISTO RY OE E N G LISH LITE RATURE

c all e d him an u pstart crow beau tified with our feath e rs ,

that supp os es he is as w ell abl e to bo m b ast

”
out a bl ank v e rse as the r est of us The publishe r of
.

Gre ene s p am phl e t af te rward pr inte d a f orm al apol o gy

’
,

te sti fying to y ou ng Sh ak e speare s worth and am i ability’

.

We k now of his f riendship with Willi am H erbert E arl of ,

Pe m brok e and with the E arl of South ampton ; of his

,
”
f ri e n dly rivalry in art and talk w i th
, rare B en J ons o n
, ,

the s e c on d dram atist of the age of his c ar ef ul conduct of

his busi ness aff airs and of his popul arity as a playwrigh t
, .

E xc ept for th e se fe w gl eam s of light his e xte rnal li f e is ,

wrapp ed in mystery ; and the v e ry breadth and dram a tic

greatness of his pl ays pre vent us fro m drawing any b u t
the broad est i nfe renc es conce r ni ng his p e rsonal history .

The f ou nd atio n of Sh ak esp eare s mod est fortu n e is

’

th ought to have b een l aid by a gi f t fro m his fri end and

p atro n the you ng Earl of Southam pton to whom h e
, ,

d edicate d his youth fu l po ems Venu s a nd A doni s and ,

Lu crece but it was m ai nly by his earni ngs at the Gl o be

an d Bl ack f ri ars th e atr e s th a t he was abl e to r e i nstate h i s
’

p aren ts in th e ir old p osition of b u rghe rly co mfort and to ,

gai n for hi m self a p ate nt of gentility and the possessio n of ,

the b est home st ead in his na tive vill age with broad acres ,

of l an d to ad d to its di gn ity Hither at the .

,

age of fi f ty he r e tired to sp e nd the re mai n d e r

, ,

of his li fe in cou n try qui e tud e with his wi fe ,

a n d his u nm arr ie d d aught e r J udith H e di ed in 1 61 6 a t

.
,

the age of fif ty two and was buri ed i n the old church b y

-

the Av on wh e re thousands of pi l gri m s now go ea ch y ear

,

to re ad the words on his tomb beseechi ng men to le t his

dust l ie qui e t in its grav e .

Sh ak e sp eare b egan his dramatic w ork as has been said , ,

by re touching old pl ays of this early work the three p art s

of Henr V I r m i n n i n t e r e sti ng sp e ci me n of his fi rst
y e a . as a

app re n tic e e ff orts He soo n fell u n de r the fas cinatio n of

.

Marlow e s styl e and produc e d Ti tu s A ndroni cus in a ve i n

’
, ,
1 10 A HISTO RY OF E NG LI SH LI TERA TU RE

this firs t pe riod of his work to a Close wi th two m ore

e ffo r ts wh o lly d iff e re nt i n ki nd f ro m the pre ce di ng a nd
,

fro m eac h o the r T h e s e also are e xpe rim s ntal in the s e nse
.
,

that th ey en te r real ms be fore u nk nown to drama ; b u t

bo th in co nc e ption and e xe c u tion th ey are
m m fin ish ed ma ste rpi e ce s A M i ds u mmer N ight s
'

.
’

Drea m and Romeo a nd J u li et Show th a t i n se v e ra l d i rcc

tio ns Sh ak espe are had no w pa ssed beyond his app re n tice
state and had attai ned the rank O f maste r crafts man T he
,
- .

first of the s e pl ays is th ough t to h av e be e n writte n i n

1 5 93 the se co nd th ough it did not r e ce ive i ts fi nal f or m
,

u n til 1 5 96 or 1 5 97 was p ro bably prod u ced be fo re t he

,
’
p oe t s thirti e th y ear .

A M i ds u mmer N ight s Drea m is thought to ha ve be e n

’

writte n fo r so me nobl e man s ma rr iage fes tiv al to tak e the

’
-
,

pl ace o f the m as qu e or a l e go rical pageant trad i

t
ti onal upo n such occamo ns
l T h e se u s d u k e o f
gg gg
s .
" ,

A the ns an d his brid e H ippoly ta in whose l o ft y

, ,

fi gu res the n obl e bridal p air are pe rh aps shad owe d fo rth ,

re pre se nt the se nti me nt O f love in i ts se re ne an d l ofty m ood .

Abo u t this ce ntral p a ir re volve three oth e r gro up s re p re ,

se nti ng love in i ts fancif ul and burl e squ e as p e c ts T he .

fi rst gro up is mad e u p O f the Ath e ni an youths and ma id e n s

astray i n the m oo nlight woods lovi ng at cross p u r p ose s ,
-
,

and pl ayed upo n by P u ck wi th a ma gic li quor whic h add s ,

co n fusio n to c onf us io n in th e i r h earts T he moond grou p .

co ns is ts of the fa iry qu ee n T i tan i a and he r l o rd O be ro n

-

and h e re the trea t me n t of the l o v e th e me be c ome s d e li -

cio u sly sa tiric as it d e picts the p assi o n of the d ai nty qu ee n

,

fo r bully Bo tto m tran sforme d into an ass In the th ird .

group th at of the j ourn e y me n acto rs who prese n t th e

,

wd iou s bri ef sce ne of you ng Pyra mu s and his l o ve T his be

”
ve ry tragi ca l m ir th the l ov e th e me is m od ul a te d in to the
,
-

m ost a bsurd bu rle sq u e T h e n p o u re d ove r all h o lding

.
, ,

these div e rs e el e m en ts in u nity is the at mosp here of mi d

,

s umme r m oo nlight and the ae rial poe try Of the fairy world
, .
 TH E R E NA ISS ANC E 1 11

A Mi ds u mmer N i ght s D rea m, lik e the pl ays which p re

’

ce d e d i t, t rea ts of l ov e i n a light and fanci f ul wa , n e v e r

y
m ore th an h al f in ea r ne s t and u su ally frankly trivial .

I n R omeo lo ve c eases to b e a m ere Romeo and

a nd J u li et
s e n ti m e t
n to b e pl y e d with
, a a n d j e ste d ov e r ; J li e t u ”

i t b e c om e s a pas si o n tragic al with t he issu e s of li fe and

,

d e ath . H e re f or the firs t ti me Sh ak e sp eare was really in

e a rn e st . T he two you ng live s are c aught in a fi e ry whirl
w i nd which sweeps th e m thr oug h the rapturous h ou rs of
,

t h e i r ne w l ove to th e ir d eath toge th er in the to mb of

,

J u lie t s an c e st ors T he acti on i nst ead of b ei ng spre ad

’
.
,

o v e r m onths as i n the p oe m fr om which Sh ak e sp e a re t ook

,

t h e pl ot is cr owd e d i n to fi v e d ays ; an d f rom the first

,

m ee ti ng o f the l ov e rs u ntil the e nd a s e ns e of hurry now , ,

e c s ta ti c now d e sp e rat e k e e ps the p assi on m ou n ti ng in a

, ,

s wi f t c re sc e nd o N ot o nly is the pl ay great as a

. tragedy
”
o f f at e i n the Gree k se n se but i n the d rawi ng of ch ar ,

a cte r the p oe t now f or the fi rst ti m e w orks with u ne r ri ng

d e f t ne s s and p ow e r T he v u lgar ki nd he arted n urs e the

.
,
-
,

w itty h air b ra i ne d Me rcuti o t he v acill a ti ng y e t stubb orn

,
-
,

C apul e t the lov e r s t he m selv e s so Sh a rply di ff e re n ti ate d in

, ,

t h e m anne r of th e ir l ov e all th e s e and a d o z en m i nor ,

fi gure s h av e the v e ry hu e an d ge st u re of lif e .

Sh ak e sp eare now at thirty ye ars of age turne d back to

, ,

th e ki nd of pl ay with which he had be gu n and proc e e d e d ,

to thro w i nto dram atic f orm the rough m ass es En lish a m

g
o f E ngli s h history which he f o u nd i n the chr on
“ n k“ fl u

i ol e s of H oli nsh ed l n Ri cha rd I I I agai n w orki ng u nd e r

. .
,

Marl ow e s i nflu e nc e he p roduc e d a p ortrai t of el e me ntal

’
,

e n e rgy and e vil p rid e whi ch the cre ator of T a m burl a i ne an d

,

Faustus m ight h av e m i s tak e n f o r his o wn h andiwork .

T hi s he foll o we d up wi th R i cha r d I] and K i ng J ohn th e .

,

lat te r fam ous for the te nd e rly draw n a nd tou chi ng figur e
of t he littl e p ri n c e A rthu r ; it has b ee n thought th at in
,

wri ti n g the m ovi ng p as sag e s wh e re A rthur b eg s f o r his li fe ,

Shak esp eare p e rh aps had i n m i nd his own s on, Hamne t .

1 12 A HISTO RY OF E N G LISH LITERATUR E

who had j ust di ed at the age of ele v en As Shak e sp eare .

w ent on he gai ne d steadily i n p o we r to h and le his m a

,

te rial .T he thr ee pl ays just m en ti one d are work manlik e

and vigo rous i n i ncre asi ng d egre e but not gre at T he , .

three plays which close the se ri es on the othe r h an d whil e , ,

n ot am o ng the poe t s supre m e m aste rpi e c e s co n ta i n s om e

’
,

of his m ost rem a rk a bl e work T he se are H enry I V (i n . .

two p arts) and H enry V .

In pl an ni ng H enry I V Sh ak e sp eare hit upon the adm i t

.

abl e n otio n of i n t e rsp e rsi ng the so m e wh a t dry his to ric

m atte r with sce ne s from the London tav e r n li fe

Hen N
of his own day — a li fe f ull of racy hu m ors fitte d
.

my ,

to aff ord the desired com ic reli e f As the geni u s .

loci of the t av e r n worl d he create d F al staff the f at O ld

, ,

k night who h elps Pri nc e Hal ( afte rward K i ng H en ry V ) to .

so w his wild o ats T he i mm ortal figure of Falsta ff h o ld s the

.

pri me place am ong the creations of Sh ak esp eare s hu m or ’

,
“ ”
as royally as H am l e t h olds his i nte lle ctu al throne In .

H enry V we see Shak esp eare in a ne w and v e ry engagi ng

.

light ; it is i nd eed h ardly a figure of Spe ech to say th at

, ,

we see t he —
po e t for in this pl ay as n owh e re else i n his
, ,

dramas d oe s he sp eak with the v oice of p e rs onal e nthu si

,

asm . T he m anly op en ch ara cte r of t he ki ng and his

, ,

Spl e ndid vict o ri e s o v e r the F re n ch m ad e h im a ki n d of ,

symbol of E ngland s greatness both i n ch aracte r an d in

’
,

achi e v em e n t T he p o e t transfe rs to the b attl e O f Agi n

.

c ourt the natio nal prid e which had b e en ki ndl ed by the

de feat of the Ar m ad a ; and m ake s his pl ay a great paaan of
praise for the isl and ki ngdo m In the choru s es i n tro .

d u ci ng the se v e ral acts and e ven in the Sp e e ch e s of the

,

characters th emselv e s he utters in lyric stroph es an ov e r

,

wh el m i ng p a triotic e m oti on .

T he schooli ng through which Shak esp eare put h i m se lf

i n w riti ng the English hist orical pl ays was a rduous He .

h ad to te ach to the populac e of his ti me th e history of

their cou ntry ; it was th e refor e i ncu mbe nt upon him to
1 14 A HISTO RY OE E NG LISH LITE RATURE

c omp any of d elightf u l figu re s B ene dict —

the marri e d “
,

m an tryi ng in v ai n to p arry the t hrusts of B eatric e s n i m

’

b le wit ; the phil osophic al T ouchst o ne sh aki ng his h e ad ,

ov e r the cou n try w ench A u dre y be caus e the gods h a ve not

-
,

m ad e he r po e tic al ; the m e dita tiv e J acqu es (a first f ai nt

sk e tch it has been said of H am l e t) with his m e l ancholy
, , ,
”
c om po u nd e d of many si mpl es Si r T oby B e lch ch am ,

pi on of the anci en t d octri ne of ca k e s a nd ale and gi nger ,

hot in the m ou th ; the u nsp eak able Sir An dre w A gu e

ch e ek ; the sol em n prig and eg otist M alv olio s m irki ng ,

and poi nti ng at his cross garte rs Maria -

you nge st wren ,

o f n i ne a nd the clow n F e st e wit h his ma rv e ll ous h a u n t

,

i ng so ngs Al l th e s e and doz e ns m o re m ov e h e re i n a

.

k al e idosc op e of i nte ns e li fe spiritu aliz e d by an inde scrib

,

abl e p oe tic radi anc e .

T h e s e thr ee c o m e di e s w e re writte n b e t we e n 1 5 98 and

’
1 601 th a t is b e tw e e n the p oe t s thi rty fourth and his thirty
,
-

Chu e mu",
s e v e n th y e ar T h e l a st o f
. th e m T we l
f th ,

N ight has b e en call e d his

, fare w e ll to m ir th .

“m e“ Wh at h appened to him a t this ti m e or wh e t h e r ,

a nythi ng e xt e rnal an d t angibl e h app en e d we sh al l n e v e r ,

k now Certai n it is howe v e r that in eight trage di e s f our

. , , ,

of th e m of tit an ic Siz e and in two SO c all e d co m e di e s al m os t

-
, ,

m ore bitte r and gl oo m y th an the trage di e s he sou nd e d ,

o ne aft e r an oth e r the d e pths of hu m an b a sene ss si n a nd , ,

su ff e ri ng T he o nly hint th at we h ave of the nature of that

.

vall e y and sh adow through which Sh ak e sp eare se e m s to hav e

p asse d is fou nd in his Sonnets These we re not pu blish ed
,
.

u ntil 1 609 af t e r this p e ri od was ov e r ; and we k n ow th at

,

s om e of th e m we re writ ten be fore 1 5 98 whe n the po e t s ,

’

spiritu al h arm ony as refl ect e d i n his pl ays was still u n dis
, ,

tu rb ed T h e r e is nothi ng h owe v e r i n e ith e r of th e s e

. , ,

f acts to disp rov e th e hypoth e sis th at thos e son ne ts i n which

we se e the m ost acut e su ff e ri ng e xpr e ss ed m ay mark the ,

begi nni ng and p rogress of the p eriod in qu estion T h ey .

are addr esse d to a man right fair and a wo man colored

 TH E RE NA ISSANC E 115

ill. Wh at the e xact rel ation s we re b e tw een the three can

o nly b e gu e sse d at It has been pl ausibly conj e ctured th at
.

“ ”
the Dark Lady of the Sonnets was the e vil gen ius of
Shake sp eare s li fe and t hat to he r was chi e fly du e the ch ange
’
,

in his spirit and i n his art O f cours e it m ust b e ad m itte d

.

that no such p e rso nal e xplanati on of this ch ange is need ed .

The po e t s sy m p athy was so all e m braci ng and his outl ook

’
-
,

on li fe so br oad th a t th e d ark e r asp e cts of hu m an ch a rac

,

te r and d e sti ny had soone r or l ate r in th e n atural cou rse ,

Of thi n gs to abs orb his att en tio n

, Wh atev er m ay b e th e ir .

p e rs o n a l b e a ri ng how e v e r ,th e S onn e ts a re of in e xh austibl e

,

inte re s t for the sub tl e ty and d epth of th e ir th ought and for

, ,

the c u ri o us m ixtur e of o ddity an d a rtifi ciali ty with tran ,

sce n de nt b e au ty an d p o w e r i n th e ir e xp re ssi on , If Shak e .

speare had writte n no thin g but th e s e h e w ould stil l b e a ,

com m a n di ng figu re i n the lit e ratur e of the E nglish rac e .

T he pl ays of this p e riod fall i nto thr ee groups the

Rom an pl ays J u li u s Cwsa r A ntony a nd Cleop a tra and
, , ,

Cori ola nu s the SO call e d c om e di e s M ea s u re f or M ea su re

-
,

and Troi lu s a nd Cressi da a nd the trage di e s H am let , ,

Macbeth Othello and K i ng Lea r

, , Ti mon of A thens .

stan ds a s we Shall Se e s om e wh at ap art

, ,
.

I n J u li u s Caes a r the h e r o is in one se nse no t Caesar

, ,

bu t B ru t u s i n who m the p oe t saw a politic al id eali st and

,

g en e r o us d r e a m e r us e d a s a t,oo l by s e lfish m e n T he Rom ,

who bri ng ov erwh el m ing disast e r upon th e m ay ”

state by th e ir m urd e r of the on ly m an strong e nough to

sa ve it . In an oth e r s en se th e h e ro is C aesar s spirit afte r

,
’

death ” “
, rangi ng for re v enge an d l e tting Slip the d ogs ,

Of war to b ri ng the world to rui n In Cori ola n u s the .

,

seco n d Ro m an play Sh ak e sp e are poure d ou t h is co nte m pt

,
“
for the m ob the fickl e m an y h ead e d m ul titud e pl aye d
, ,
-
,

upon by d e m ag og u e s and w o rki n g its o wn d e st ru ctio n i n

,

its h atre d of th os e who refu se to fl atte r and am u se it In .

Antony a nd Cleop a tra he Sh owe d the ch aracte r o f a great

Roman ge ne ral cru mbli ng b efore the breath of E aste rn
,
116 A H IST O RY O F E NGLISH LITERATUR E

l u xury an d sensu ali ty p e rsonifi e d in Cl eop atra the

, ,
”
w or m of old N ile .

I n Mea su re f or M eas u re Shak e sp eare struck at the hy

c risy of a man high pl ace d in o ffice and posi ng as a se v ere
p o -

m or alist wh o ne ve rth e l e ss yi e lds to the ve ry sin

,
T he Dark
he pu ni sh e s m p st ruthl e ssly In oth e rs I n Trov .

lu s a nd Cressi da he dre w a p i cture of fai thle ss

n e ss in lov e a pi ctur e so cy nic al so fi e rc e in its bitt e rn es s
, , ,

th at it is al mos t i mpossibl e to thi nk of it as the wo rk of the

h and which dre w J u lie t Porti a and Rosali n d and at the
'

, ,

same ti me he d eform e d the h e roic figu re s of Ho me ric le

ge n d with s av ag e bu rl e sq u e .

In H aml e t the first of the f our great trag e die s which

,

“
fo rm th e capt ai n j e w els in the c arcane t of the m as t e r s
’

wo rk we h av e the sp ectacl e of a sensitive and highly i n

,

tell ectu al youth e n dowe d with all the gi f ts which m a k e

,

f or greatne ss o f livi ng sudd e nly c onfro n t

,
Haml et.

e d with the k n owl edg e th a t his f ath e r h a s

b een m urde re d and that his m oth e r has m arrie d th e

,

m u rd e re r . E ven b ef o re the re v e la ti on c om e s H am l e t ,

f ee ls hi m s e lf to b e livi ng i n an ali en m oral world ,

an d is h au nte d by d ark m isgivi ngs Wh en his fath e r s .

’

ghost app ears to him with its im pe rative i nju nctio n

,

to re v e nge H aml e t tak e s his re solutio n i nstan tly

, H is .

f e ig ne d m ad ne ss an e l em e n t of the drama re tai ne d by

,

Sh ake sp e are f rom the O ld st ory wh enc e he dre w the plot ,

is the fi rst d e vic e which H am le t hits up on to aid h im i n

his d ange rou s d u ty In spi te of the e ndless d eb ate con
. .

c erni ng the reality of H am l e t s mad ness th ere is no room

’
,

f or q u es tion in the m atte r N o t only is he p e rfe ctly sane

.
,

b u t his h andli ng of th e di ffi cult situ ati on in which he fi n ds

h i m se l f i s in all p oi nts swift and m aste rful H e give s up .

his l ov e for O ph eli a becau s e he cannot tak e her with him

i nto the d ark p ass whic h he is co m p elle d to ente r ; and the
scathi ng satire which he pou rs out up o n he r when he fan
ci es her in l e agu e with Polo ni u s an d the ki ng to play the
 A HI STO RY O F E N GLI SH LITE RATU RE

o nly in the h ero s i maginati on i n ’

,

d e mon like Iago pouri ng drop by drop

-
, ,

i i n O th e llo is n ot by n ature jea lou

p c o .

answe r to E mili a s q u e stio n Is he not j ealous

’
,

Wh o . he 7 I t hi nk t he su n, w he re h e was
”
D re w a l l s u ch h u m ors fro m hi m ,

“
and be v ywh e re shows hi mse l f
e er o f an

u re , i ncap abl e of pe tty suspi cio n . But

i ng
th at
an h

si on . real centre of gravity i n the pl ay is

The
“ ”
hi s h one st manne rs his blu nt spee ch his , ,

m ate ri alistic philosophy his pl ausible z eal i n h ,

se rvi ce ; u nd e rnea th all which his real nature

like a s na ke waiti ng f or a chance to sting
, .

In M acbeth S hak e speare de pic ,

tio n wo rki ng in a nature morally

i ntense poe tic susce ptibility .

of

in attai ni ng the m or of a ruthl ess e nj oyme nt of th e m wh e n

attai ned By the murd e r of the kin g Macbe th is plu nge d
. ,

i nto a se ri e s of cri me s in which he pe rs ists with a ki nd of

,

fal te ri ng despe ratio n u ntil he falls be fore the accu m ul a te d

,

ve ngeance m ate ri al and gh ostly raise d up to pu nish h im

, , .

AS i n Anto ny and Cl eopa t ra we are shown the slo w d e ge n

, ,

cra ti o n of the h ero s c haracte r u nd e r the slave ry o f se nse so

’
,

h e re we behold the b reak u p of a soul u nd e r the tortu re of -

its own Si ck i magi nati on T he ghost of Banqn o shak ing .

,

i ts go ry looks at Macbe th f ro m its seat at the banq u e t ta ble ,

is a symbol O f the spiritu al dis te mper which res ults f rom

the w o rki ng of a tyr annous i ma gi nati on upon a na ture
m orally u np rovid ed The witch b ags who mee t Macbe th
.
-

on the h ea th are co ncre te e m bodi ments of the powers of

 TH E RENA I SSANC E 119

ev l, summ
i oned f ro m the four corners of the air by affi nity
with the e vil h eart O f the sch e m e r Shak e sp e are did n ot
. ,

of course co nsciously striv e af t e r sym bolis m in th ese thi ngs .

,

It does n ot seem impossibl e i n dee d th at he b eli ev e d in

, ,

h
g osts an d witch e s as did the great m ass of m en in his
,

day from K i ng J am es down

, It is certai n th at he was i n
.

terested in his story h e r e and e lsewh e re as a pi ec e of li fe

, ,

rather th an as a m oral sy m b ol his work is f ull f typ s

; o e

and symb ols si mply b e caus e li fe itse lf is f ull of th e m .

Beside Macbe th Shak e speare has place d a wo man who pos

Bosses all th e m asculi ne q u aliti e s which the h e ro l acks but
,

Who is ne ve rth el ess i nt e ns ely fe m i ni ne in he r de voti on to he r

lord s intere st and in her i nability to endure the strai n of a
’
,

crim inal li fe afte r his supp ort has been withdrawn from her .

Her will though maj estic wh en in the prosp erous s e rv ice

,

Of her h u sb an d s ambitio n c oll aps e s in sudd en rui n w h e n

’
,

he fails to rise to the re sp on si biliti e s of th e ir gri m sit u atio n .

Macbeth s feebl e r m oral substanc e cru mbles pi e ce m eal ;

’

but the fi rm struct u re of his wi fe s spirit as so on as its

’
,

natural f ou nd atio n is d estroy e d falls by i nstan t ov e rthro w

, .

King Lea r is O fte n put at the ap e x of Sh ak e sp eare s ’

achieveme nt and by m an y judge s at the h e ad O f the dra

,

matic lite rature of the w orld T he story was

. “ Ki n
“ g
88 Old as Ge ofl re
y o f M o n m o u th ( se e p ag e a ” t

and like so m any of the th e m e s which Sh ak esp e ar e h an dl e d

, ,

had already b ee n made the subj e ct of a pl ay a crud e

,

effor
t by so me namel ess playwright d u ri ng the exp eri m ental
sta e
g of E liz ab e th an dr a m a H e.r e as w as his
, c o nst a n t
cllstom Sh k sp
, a e eare f ollow e d the m ai n li nes of the sto ry

given hi m and i ncorporat e d i nto his grand e dific e e v e ry

,

bit Of usable m ate ri al fr om the b u ildi ng of his pred e c ess or .

Here too as always in Sh ak espe are if we pi e rc e to the core

,

Of his m ean i ng the re al trage dy is a spiritu al one Lear is .

,

an i mpe rious natur e w ayw ard by t e m p e ram ent an d m ad e

, ,

more i n ca p abl e of s el f gov e rnm ent by lo ng i ndulgenc e of

-

its passion ate whi ms At the O p eni ng of the play we see

.
,
1 20 A HISTORY OE ENG LI S H LITERATURE

h im stri ving to fi nd a refu ge fro m h i ms elf by surren d er

i ng all his wealt h and powe r in e xch ange f or absolute love .

T he h eart of the old ki ng de mands lo v e lov e is the ele

m e nt up on which it sub si sts and age i nstead of ab ati ng , ,

this hu nger has m ade the craving m ore i mp erious He

, .

d emands l ove not on ly in the Spi rit bu t i n the l e tte r and ,

thr u sts his you nge st d au ghte r Cord e li a f ro m him with

cr u e l bru squ e ne ss wh e n She r e f us e s to u se the te rm s of
,

e xtr av agan t hyp e rbol e to d e scrib e h er aff e ction Sh ak e .

sp eare has m ad e this sam e brusqu e and hasty spirit of the

ki ng pre cipitate upo n his old head the e nm ity of his t e
m ai n i ng d aughte rs Go neril an d Regan ,
B efore h e has .

re co ve red from the Shock of Co rd el ia s defe cti on this a wf ul ’

,

p air of d au ght e rs lay bare littl e by little th eir m on strous

, ,

souls to th e ir fath e r s gaz e As in Othello the result of

’
.
,

the r e v e l atio n is to u n hi nge for the su ff er e r the v e ry ord e r

A S if in sy m p athy with the ch aos i n Le ar s
’
of n a tu re .

so u l the e l e me n ts b reak lo ose ; and in the p auses of the

,

blast we h ear the nois e of viol e nt cri m e s curse s h eart , ,

b rok e n j esti ng the ch atte r of idi ocy and the wan d e ri ng

, ,

tong ue of m ad ne ss T he se nti m entalist s phrase

. po e tic ’
,
”
j u stic e has no m ean i ng for Sh ak espeare
, T he rui n .

wro u ght in the O ld king s h eart and brai n is irrepar ’

abl e an d th e tor n ad o which whirls h i m to his doo m car

,

ri e s with it the j u st and the u njust The little gold e n .

p au se of p eace wh e n Lear and Cord eli a are u n i te d is

, ,

f oll o w e d by th e i n t ol e rably pi e rci ng sc ene in which he

bears he r d ead b ody out of th e prison m utteri ng th a t th ey ,

“ ”
h ave hange d his po or f ool T he co nse qu e nc es of rash .

acti on h e artl e ssly t ak en adv an tag e of w er e ne v e r f ollow ed

, ,

o u t to a gri m m e r e nd .

Ti mon of A thens the l ast pl ay of the p e riod we h av e

,

b e en tr av e rsi ng h as littl e of th e i n sigh t and

,
8 nd of Sh k e a
S eare s
p
’“
Pe p oe ti c spl en d or wh i ch we associ ate Wi th Sh ak e
ri od of Gl moo .
”

Sp e are s na m e It has no re li e v m g touch e s such

’
.

as sof te n and hu maniz e the trag e di es just discussed I t is a .

1 22 A HIST ORY or

”
pl u mme t sound O ne is te m pte d to i ndulge
.

parall e l still f urth e r and to t hink of A ri el

, ,

an d po te n t spri te who m Prosp e ro se ts f ree as ,

I magi nation no w re lease d fr om its long la bors i

,
’
te r s se rvice .

The co mmo n opi nio n th at Shak espeare was

a te d by his o wn g ene rati on is o nly p artly tru e , .

e vid e nc e we re la cking to prov e the

which he was h eld his mate rial ,

would b e
popu larity with the
wi tn ess th at his geni n

publi sh ed in 1 623 a e ulogy ,

passi ona te ad m ira tio n ; and af te rward

,

p assage of m ovi ng si n ce r ity I did lov ,

”
on this sid e idol a try as m uch as any , .

cant hint we h ave of his pe rsona l ch a rm is

which is co ns tantly appli e d to him by hi s frie
”
tle, a w ord also of te n us e d to d e scribe h is art ,

e vid e n tly to i ts hu man ity and poe tic gra ce .

T he a we in spir ed by the al m ost un earthly pow e r and

rich ne ss of Sh ak e speare s m i nd is ap t to be d ee pe ned by the
’

kn owl edge th at the n obl e plays to which English spe aki ng -

race s po int as th e ir grea te st Si ngl e achi e vem en t we re th ro wn ,

i nto the world carel e ssly and would ha ve pe r ,

m “M ished altoge th e r if the author of th em had had

'

his way . D uri ng his li fe ti me th ey w e re prin te d o n ly in

pira ted edi ti ons tak en do wn by shorth and f rom the li ps
,

O f the pl ay e rs or pa tch ed up f ro m p ro m pt e r s m an usc ripts

’
,

dish one stly acquired He d oes no t m e nti on his pla ys i n

.

his will . N ot u n til se v e n ye a rs aft e r his d ea th did a co l

lective edition app ea r (k nown as the F irst Folio) and th en ,
 TH E RE NA ISSANC E 1 23

onl y b ecause of the pi e ty of two of his act or fri e nds T h ose

-
.

i
ill n spire d p ersons who w ould ascrib e the pl ays of Sh ak e
“

8Pe a l e to F r an ci s B ac o n m ak e this c ar e l e ssness of his fam e

,

01 1 t he po e t s p a rt
a chi e f s u pp ort of th e ir a rg u m e n t
’
. If
we were c om p ell ed to e xpl ai n Shak e sp e are s case on rac
’

p
ti c a l grou n ds it w ou ld b e e asy to do so The pri n ti ng of
, .

8
p l ay whil e it was still actabl e was disadvantage o u s to the
,

co I n an
p y whos e pr o p e rty it was an d Sh ak e sp e ar e ha d
P o bably m ad e ove r his plays to his co m p any as th ey w e re
r

P o du c ed
r . N otwithstan di ng wh en all this is tak e n i n to
,

Co n siderati on we are ye t fill e d with astonish me n t

, . We
se e in the w orki ng of the m as te r s spi rit n ot only the
’

V a s t lib e rality but the startli ng carel e ssness of N atu re

, ,

W h o seem s with i nfinite l ovi ng p ai ns to cre ate her m arv els ,

an d th en to tur n listl e ssly a way whil e th e y are giv e n ov e r

t o destructio n .
 CHAPTE R VII
’
TH E SE V E N TE E N TH C E NTURY : SH A KE S PEARE S C O NTEH
P O RA R I E S A N D S U CC E SSO R S I N TH E D RA M A

I N the pre ce di ng ch apter we regard e d Shak espeare as

,

standi ng al one in orde r th at by is ola ti ng his work we

,

m ight b e tt er se e its abs olute qu aliti e s We m ust now .

t u rn to th ose pl ayw rights who w ork e d at the sam e ti me

a nd in m any cas e s sid e by sid e with him an d try to ge t ,

s om e noti on of the w on d e rf u l vari e ty of th e dram a during

i ts pe ri od o f full bl oom Af te r ward we m ust trace bri e fly
.

th e ste ps by whic h the dra m a d e cli ne d both by i nn e r de ,

cay an d o u tw ard opp osi ti on u ntil i n 1 64 2 at the b e gi n

, , ,

ni ng of th e g rea t Civil Wa r th e d oors O f the th eatre s w e re

,

cl o se d n ot to op e n agai n u ntil the Re stora tion e ighte e n

, ,

years l ate r .

T he m ost c om m an di ng figure in the group of Sh ak e

spe are s dram atic c onte mp orari e s is B en J onson ( 1 5 73
’

A lth oug h of hu m bl e birth the so n of a ,

B en Jon on
brickl ay e r h e was s e nt to We st mi nste r School
s .

an d p o s sibly to C am bridge an d he ulti mat ely b e cam e one

o f the m o st l e arn e d m e n of his ti m e AS a you ng m an

.

he se rv e d a cam p aign with the E ngli sh ar m y i n Flan d e rs ,

wh e re ( as he af te r ward b oasted ) he fought a du e l with a

c hampi on O f the e ne my in the sight of both arm ie s and ,

took fr o m him his ar m s in the cl assic m anner T he inci

, .

d e nt is highly ch aracteri stic of J o nson s rugge d and ’

d om i nee ri ng characte r As he se rve d the F le m ish soldi e r

.
,

he af te rward s e rv e d the l u ckl e ss p oe ts and poe tas te rs who

ch all e nge d hi m to a war of w ords .

A f te r re tu r ni n g to E ngl and he b e gan to work f or the

,

th eatres His first pl ay was E very Ma n in H is H u mou r

.

1 24
126

mer mov es in the pros e light o f e v e ry

e v e ryd ay Lo ndo n cha rac te rs i n a stra i

ical fashi on T he w ork O f the two

.

tragedy off e rs e ve n a stro nge r

,

d eali ng with an e poch of the

h and of the roman ticist ; e ve n wh e re
the ac tu al fac ts of his tory as in J u li ,

chi e fly to create bre athi ng men and

littl e troubl e to give a faithf ul picture
his torical pl ays O f J onso n on the oth ,

m e n ts o f l ea rn ing ; the y attem pt to b e

f u l i n histo rical d e ta ils to the pe riod
, ,

s ea r e and the ro
p
the m ost farcical nons e n se i ,

wi th J o nso n and his school

the d ignity of tragic ac tio n
A no th e r p eculi arity o f J o nso n a
’

ti tl e of his fi rs t pl ay E very M a n
,

“ ”
word hu mor was a
eq uival ent to whi m ’

upon the d e vic e of en

ch aracte rs with so me p articul ar
ludi crou s e xagge ra tio n of m ann
SO thru s ti ng fo rward this

m ight be lo st s ight of
“ ”
be in his hu m o r .

te nd e d afte rward i n his two gre at

The A lchemis t . In Volp one he studi ed no t ,

whi m but a mast er p assio n the pa ssion of

,
-
,

afl ects a whol e so ci al gr o up ; i n The A lchem

an el ab ora te s tu d y O f hu m an gu ll

l ess s ome thi ng m e ch anical in this me thod O f goi ng to w o rk

acc o rdi ng to a se t pr ogr a mm e Sh ak e speare also has
.

d e voted wh ol e pl ays to the study of a maste r passio n -

,

in O thello th at of j eal o usy in Ma cbeth that of am bi ti o n

, .

Note B ard olph ’

s u se o f the word in Henry I V . and Henry V
.
 TH E SEVEN TE EN TH C ENTURY 1 27

B u t he does this in a v ery di ff e re nt way fro m J o nso n ; with

m u c h m ore vari ety, surpris e, and fre e pl ay of li fe J on son .

h a s , as it w e re, a th esis to illustrate , and holds up one

ch a racte r af te r anoth er, as a logici an pre s ents the various

t s f his argu me n t In oth e r w ords , he alw ays , or nearly

p a r o .

a l w a ys , l e ts us see the machi n e ry B u t whil e he thus l ose s

.

i n sp o ntane ity, he gai ns in i nte ll e ctu al u nity and i n m as

s i v e n e ss of purpose .

I n a t l east one re sp e ct the co me di e s O f B en J onson are

th e m ost in t e resti ng plays in the whol e E liz ab e th an rep e r
,
—
t o ry nam ely in the vivid pictu res th ey give
, O m
»
, h
“ l "m
of co n te m po rary London li fe O th er drama .
'

t i s t s to ok u p the noti o n l ate r and did a d m irabl e work of

,

Dekk e r i n his Shoema kers H oli day and M id

’
th e kin d .
, ,

d l e ton in his Roari ng Gi rl an d o th e r pl ays m irrore d f re shly ,

an d f aithf ully the soci e ty i mm e di ate ly about th e m ; b u t

J o n so n se e ms to h av e b ee n the pi onee r in this re sp e ct ,

E v ery M a n i n H i s H u mou r prob ably antedati ng e v en

H en ry I V Sh ak e sp eare s triu m ph an t e ssay in this f o rm
’
.

o f r ea lis m F ro m J onson s co m e di e s alo ne it w ou ld b e

’
.

p o ssibl e to reconstruct whol e ar eas of E lizab eth an soci e ty

a s tudy of th e m is i ndisp en sabl e i f one woul d k now the

b ril lia nt and amusi ng su rface of the m ost soci abl e e ra of

E n glish history At l e ast one of J onson s come di e s too
’
.
, ,

g i v e s this cl os e a nd r ealistic study o f m anne rs with a

g ya

e ty an d gr ac e fairly riv alli n g Sh ak e sp ear e ; the Si lent

Woma n is one of the most sp arkling co medi es e ve r wri t
te n f u ll of spl endid f u n and with a bright q uick m ov e
, , ,

m e nt‘ hich ne ve r flags .

’
J o n son s lyric gi ft for its d elicacy and swee tne ss was
, ,

co nspicu ous even in the E liz abe th an age wh e n al m os t ,

e v e ry write r was c apabl e of turni ng o ff a ch ar m

Hi s Ly i c Gift r
ing song T he b e st k nown of his lyrics are
.

Dri nk to m e only wit h thi ne e ye s a nd Se e the ch ari ot

,
”

”
at h and h e re o f love of b o t h th e se the O ld ti m e m usic -

has for tu natel y reac he d us J ons on was also a critic of

,
1 28 A HIS TO RY OF E N G LISH L ITERATURE

great sanity and f orce writi ng a perfe ctly Si m pl e and

,

u nadorned prose ve ry di ff ere nt f ro m the elaborate and fig

,

u rati ve pros e styl e practi se d by his c on t e m p o rari e s

-
His .

v olu m e of short re fle ctions up on li fe and art entitle d Ti m ,

ber shows in an attractive guise the solidity aggre ssiv e

, ,

ness and dow n right ho ne sty of his m i n d

, .

It was chi e fly th e se qu aliti es of aggre ssive d ecisio n and

rugge d hone sty whi ch e nable d him to hold f or a qu arte r of
a c en tury his po sitio n of lite rary dict ator and ,

lord of the tav e rn wits The tav e rn was f or

-
.

the s e ve n tee nth c e n tury wh at the coff ee ho u se -

was fo r the e ight eenth a rallyi ng pl ac e for lite rary m e n

,

a nd J o nso n is al m ost as typic al a tav e rn figur e as F al staff .

”
His m ou ntai n b elly and his rocky fa ce his ge ni al do m i , ,

nee ri ng p e rso nal ity rule d by royal right the boh e m ian
,

circle which gathere d at The Mermaid or The De vil ”

,

wh ere the you ng fell ows of the tribe O f B en h eard wo rds

80 n im b le a n d so fu l l o f su b t l e fl a me
As if th a t ev e ry o ne fro m whe n ce t he y ca me

H a d m ea n t to p u t hi s wh o le w i t in a jes t ,

And h a d re so l v ed to l i v e a foo l th e re st

O f hi s d u l l l i fe .

He re took pl ace those fam ous wit comb ats be tween J on son -

an d Sh ak e sp ea r e d e scribed by F ull e r u n d e r the si m il e of a

,

“
sea fi ght ; J o n so n sl o w of m o ve m e nt and
-
, high b uilt i n
”
le arn i ng be i ng like ne d to a grea t Spani sh gal le on Sh ak e
, ,

sp eare to an E ngli sh man o f war swi ft to strike and - -

,

da rt aw ay confou ndi ng the ene m y with agilitp and

,

adroit n ess .

T he qu aliti e s for which B e n J onson d e m an ds ad m ira tion

are ra th e r o f the s olid th an th e brilli ant ki nd In an age .

of i magi na ti v e lic en se he pre ac h e d t he n ee d of res tra i n t

i n an age of h ast y ca rel e ss w o rk m anship he preach ed the

,

need of So u nd c on s truc tio n an d go od fi n ish He was a safe .

“
Ve rse s e ntitl ed M aste r Francis B e aumont to B e n J onson.
1 30 A HISTO RY OF E NGLISH LI TERATU RE

i g to steal ov er E ngland presaging the storm

n n ,

of t he Civil War .

T homas H eywood is an oth er dram a tist whose

a l m ost a bl a n k H e was . proba bly bor n a bou t
ti m e as D ek k e r a nd see ms to h
n ow ,

W 1 648
'
His life th ere fore Sp ans
.

of the drama from Marlow e

m ense ly productiv e d e cl ari ng ,

whole h and or a main fin ge r in

pla ys . H e m ust in fairn ess be j
nalist in an age wh en the th ea
,

ne wsp ap e r and th e l ec ture h all

tha n as a dram ati st in the more

s e ns e . In one dire cti on how e ve r , ,

m aste ry namely i n the drama Of Si

, ,

H is most fa m ous pl ay o f thi s nature

wi th K i ndness H er e f o r
.

j e c t with n o bl e Si m plicity ,

wit h a truth and Sweet ness O f moral ton

Ch arl e s Lamb s say ing th at H e ywood is
’

”
sp eare In the dra m a o f d ome stic l if e
.

ve nture H e ywood is also su cc essful th o u

, ,

preme d e gree P erha ps .

p lay to b e fou nd amo ng his works is The F a i r M a i d of the

Wes t in which th e re are so me c api ta l vigne tte s of life in
,

an E ngli sh sea port town as w ell as so m e d el i h tq

, g y
b ree zy me l o dramatic sea fi ghting -
.

T ho m as M iddl e ton ( 1 5 70 1 62 7) was a man o f m uch -

l arge r calibre H e d e ve l op ed Slowly but his wo rk sh o ws

.
,

T hom , to th e v e ry l a st a ste ad y g a i n i n po w e r and

”m m
swee tne ss By his f rank co n tact with l if e as
.

it is and by his co n ti n u al effort to se e l ife in its pl ainn es s

,

and e nti re ty b e attai ne d at l ast to a grasp and i nsight

,

whi ch plac e him among the great names of the En glish

Stage .He had no u nive rsity tra i ni ng but was e n te red at ,

Gray s Inn i n 1 5 93 His l ife ab out the law c ou rts gav e him
’
.
 TH E SE V E N TEE N TH C E NTURY 1 31

an i n ti mate k nowl edge of the shady sid e of the me tropolis ,

w hi c h was of great s e rvic e to hi m wh en he began about ,

1 607 to writ e re alistic come di e s

, O f th e se the b e st is p e r
.

h ap s A Tri o/c to Ca tch the Old One His transition f rom

.

c o m e dy to trage dy is m ark e d b th v ry i n t r sti n g pl y

y e e e e a ,

A F a i r Qu arrel in which the noble se ri ousn ess of c e r tai n

,

s c e n e s and the fi ne dr am atic ri ng of the v e rs e h e rald th e

, ,

a p p ro a ch of his co m p le t e m atu rity It was be tw ee n 1 620

.

a n d his d e a th in 1 62 7 th a t is wh e n ov e r fi f ty, ,
th at he ,

w ro t e the two pl ays The Cha ngeli ng an d TVomen B e wa r e

,

Wom en in which his sturdy powe rs sho w th em selves f ully

,

ri p e n e d .

B oth The Cha ngeli ng and Women B eware Women are

u n p l e a san t in plot and m arre d by the obtrusio n of crud e
,

h o r rors T h e y be long in f act to a p e culi ar typ e The

.
m “?
i
of d r a ma vastly r elish e d by E liz ab e th an e u
,
0 ‘

d i e n ce s but re p ell ent to m od e rn ta ste c all e d by lite rary ,

”
h i s tori ans the trage dy of blood T hom as K yd s Sp a nish ’
.
i /

Tr a gedy b egan the typ e Marlow e in the J ew of M a li a , ,

a n d Sh ak e spe are in Ti tu s A nd roni cu s co n ti nu e d it , In .

“
d ee d H amlet an d Lear are r eally i n plot
, trage di es of
b l oo d ,
though spiritu aliz e d out of all i nner rese m blanc e
As we sh all se e l ater J oh n Webste r s two
’
t o th e sp eci e s . ,

m as te rpi e c es are pure trage di e s of blood m aki ng u se ,

o f th e e l e m en t of physic al t error i n s easo n an d ou t of

s eas on Middl e ton was th e r efore the victi m of his age in

.

t hi s r e sp ec t as he was also in th e m oral viol enc e the s el e c

, ,

t i o n of strain e d an d p ai nf ul situ ation s which m ar the ,

t wo pl ays u nd e r co n sid e ration When th ey we re written

.
,

t h e d e cad enc e of the d ra m a had se t i n ; an d Middl e ton was

n ot gr eat en ough to h ol d his w o rk altoge th e r ab o v e th e
s w i f t d o wn w a rd tren d of the stage at the ti m e But both .

The Cha ngeli ng and Women B eware Women are studd e d ,

w i th fi ne p oe try fi ne i n feeling an d s u p re m ely fi ne in e x

,

p re ss i on M idd l
. e t o n l e ar n e d b e tt e r th an a
, n y o f Sh a k e

s peare s f el l ows the s ecret of the master s d icti on

’
’
, Wi th .
1 32 A HISTORY o r E N GLI SH L ITE RATURE

out i m itating the Sh ak esp eare an m anne r he handl es ,

l angu age at his b est with the same sup e rb confide nc e and
, ,

this is t ru e of his co m ic prose as w ell as of his se rious

bl ank v erse .

F ran cis B eau m on t an d J oh n Fl e tch e r are i n Low e ll s ,

’

ph ras e among the doubl e stars of the h eav ens of poe try
,
”
.

B ea mont and
u
F l e tch e r the e ld e r of the two was the son of a
, ,

Fl etch“ Bish op of Lond on th rough whom the you ng ,

d ram atist gai n e d an u n usu al i nsight i nt o c o u rt life N one .

’
of Fl e tch e r s f e ll ows k ne w so w e ll as b e how to p ai n t the

hollow insid e and the e xquisite o ute r fi n ish of courtly

, ,

m anne rs . A noth e r fact c on tributi ng to f orm his ge n ius ,

was th at the o ffi ci al re sid e nce of his fa th e r the e pisc o p al ,

p al ace at F ulh am lay am id b eautif u l rive r and f ore st sce n

,

e ry
. T o the c ou n t ry m e m ori e s gath e re d h e re in b oyhood
he gav e e xpr e ssion l ate r i n the p asto ral pl ay of The F a i th
f n l S h ep her d ess as w e ll
, as i n th e s o ngs with which his
dramas are richly i nt e rsp ersed .

A t the Me rm aid ta ve rn am ong those “ seale d of the

,
”
trib e of B en he m e t the m an who se na m e is i ns ep a r ably
,

li nk e d with his own F rancis B eau m o n t was .

T hei
r
s even y ears you nge r th an Fl e tch er b el ng abo ut
pggggphfi .
,

tw e nty on e at the tl m e of the l r m eetl ng Af t e r

-
.

th e ir p artne rship b egan traditi on s ays that th ey liv e d to

,

ge th er on th e B anksid e Sh ari ng e ve rythi ng ev en th e ir, ,

cl o thing in com m o n T his at least r epresen ts a m ore

,
.

e sse n ti al truth th at th ey en te re d i nto a si ngul arly e ff e c

,

tiv e i nte ll e ctu al p artnership one m in d supplyi ng wh a t

the oth e r l ack e d to produc e a r e s u lt of full and b al a nc e d
,

b e auty T he clos ene ss with which the w ork of the two

.

is i nte rtwi ned is sh o wn by the fact th at al th ough Fl e tch e r

,

o u tliv e d B eau m ont by ni ne y ears and the latte r had no ,

h and at all in forty of the fif ty odd plays th at go u nd e r -

th ei r c om m on n am e a tte m pts to i sol ate the genius of o ne

,

f ro m the o th e r by c o m p arison of the Fl e tch e r pl ays wit h

the B eau mo nt Fl e tch e r grou p h ave l ed eq u ally w ell
-
,
.
1 34 A HISTORY or E N G LISH T RATURE
LI E

“
ish and artificial As the O bviously strong Situ ations
.

began to b e worke d out dramatists m ad e e xcursion s i nto

,

the strai ne d and the e xc e ptio nal in ord e r to fi nd n ov el

,

m atte r . A se cond and m ore fa tal fl aw in B eau m o n t and

F le tch e r is the l axity O f the m oral atm osph e re p e rva di ng
m uch O f th e ir work T he m oral valu e s are not pre s e rv ed
.

with the absolute h eal th O f so u l which is Shak esp e are s ’

greate st glory but are ap t to b e blurre d or distort e d in

,

the e n d e av or after piqu an cy an d n o v elty .

T h es e d efe cts h ave b ee n dw elt up on b e cause th e y are

sy mpt om atic of the ch ange already beginning ; a ch an ge
d e sti ne d to de st roy the drama f ro m within e ven if it h ad ,

not b e en cr u sh e d by its Puri tan en e mi e s f ro m without .

But it would b e a great m istak e to conce ive O f B ea u m o nt

a nd F l e tch e r i n this m e re ly ne ga tiv e light without hold ,

ing in m i n d th e i r great positiv e qu alitie s T h ey are . ab

s olute lords O f a goodly real m O f romance and the pl ays

th at go u nd er the ir comm o n nam e for spl en dor and ch arm

,

are p e rh aps not to b e p ar all e l e d i n any si ngl e body of

Re naissan c e dram a outsid e O f th at of Sh ak e sp ear e him

,

s elf .

In J oh n Webste r we e ncou nt e r the ph enomeno n O f a

r —
really g eat po e t One who i n sh ee r power O f e xpre ssio n
,

comes neare st to Sh ak e sp ear e O f all the m en O f

John Web st e r.
th at ge ne rati on e xce pt M iddl eton — d e voti ng ,

hi ms elf to m elodrama of the m ost gory and u n restrai ne d d e

sc riptio n His two gre ate st pl ays The Whi te Devi l ( 1 61 2)
.
,

an d The D u chess of M a lfi (act e d push the de vic e s O f

physical h orro r to their farthe st li m it Th ey Show the
.

”
trage dy O f blo od in its most d e velop ed f orm and em ploy ,

all the grisly p ar aph e rnali a O f the m adhous e the grav ey a rd , ,

and the sh ambl es as w ell as the agenci e s of m oral te rror

, ,

to wri ng f ro m the dram a all the cr u d e e xcitem en t it is cs

p a b le O f givi n g T h
.e subj e ct m att e r O f W
-
e bst e r th e re f or e , ,

is as far as possibl e f ro m app eali ng to mod ern taste B u t .

his power of co nce ivi ng character and still m ore the sur
,
 TH E SE V E NTEE NTH C E NTURY 1 35

prisi ng poetry now wild and storm y n ow tend e r and lyri

, ,

cal n o w pu n g e ntly e pigramm a tic which he puts i n to the

, ,

mouths O f his p e opl e h av e k e pt his fam e i n tact in spite O f

, ,

the re p ell en t f orm O f pl ay he ch ose to e xhibit th e se gi fts

upon O f the two pl ays n am e d ab ov e The D u ches s of M a lfi
.
,

is the fi ne r Web ste r no t only Sh o ws in it a m uch firm e r

.

stage craf t than in his earli e r eff ort b u t he al so re v eals pow

,

e rs O f gay e ty an d pl ay f ul ne s s an d an u n d e rstan di ng O f th e
,

h eart h ardly to b e l ook e d f or f rom one who v olu n tarily

,

el e cte d the trag e dy O f bl o od as his m e diu m A t l e ast two

.

O f th e ch a ract e rs th e Duch e ss O f Malfi and he r husb an d An

,

to nio are robust an d h ealthy fig u re s who e ven u nder the

, ,

stre ss O f torture k e ep th e ir broad qui e t h u m anity Th ey .

Show wh at We bste r m ight h av e don e if he had b e en bor n

unde r a l u cki e r st ar .

Ea rly in the history of the dram a a war b egan to b e

wage d b e tw een the actors and the Puritan s In 1 5 76 we .

hear O f strolli ng com pan i e s bei ng k ept ou t of

Wa b etw een r
London by Purit an law m ak e rs and wh e n the A to s nd
-
c r a

first th eatr e s w er e e re c te d th e y w e re pl ac e d in
“ ”
the suburbs to the n orth and in the , lib e rti es or e xem pt ,

lands across the T h ame s in Southwark U nd e r Q u een

, .

Eliz ab e th s pro te ction the actors gre w strong e nough to

’

en te r th e city and as l on g as he r strong h an d was at t he

hel m the Pu ritans did not assert th e m selve s ve ry vigor

,

onely But wh en J ame s I cam e to the throne with his

. .
,

lack O f p e rso nal dignity his bigote d dictu m O f the divi ne

,

right of ki ngs his i m moral court f ull O f greedy n obl e s from

,

Scotl an d an d Sp ain the Pu ritan p arty gain e d rapidly in

,

aggr e ssiv e ne ss . The thi ng which the Puritans h at e d m o st

u nd e r the su n after Cop es and cru cifi xe s was the th eatre
, , ,

“
be cau se it was in the theatre th at the lust O f the eye and
the pride O f li fe fou nd f ull est e xpre ssion N atu rally
.

therefore as the Puritan disapprov al gre w m ore se v e re the

, ,

dramatists dre w away from the Lon d on burgesses and ap ,

p ea l e d i n th e to n e an d m a tt e r O f th e ir pl a ys m or e an d m or e
136 A HISTORY OF E N G LISH LI TERATURE
to the corrupt taste O f the court — a fact to which the rapid
,

d ege ne ration of the drama was i n l arge p art du e .

It has bee n th ought f ro m ce rtain passage s in the pl ays of

Phillip Massi nge r ( 1 5 83 as w e ll as f ro m th e ir ge n

r l to n th t h w t h rt P u ritan n o t i n
p hi mp e a e a e , a s a ea a ,

“i ng”
the narro w politic al se n se but as the te r m ap ,

pli es to m en Of high m o ral id eals to wh o m the thi ngs th at

,

m ak e f or righte o u sness are the first co n ce r n and the sh ows ,

and p assio n s O f li fe by c om p aris on u nr eal

, By so m e iro nic
, .

fate Massi nge r was b orn a dram atic po e t at a ti m e wh e n the

,

stage to live at all had to appe al to the j ad ed taste O f a

, ,

court H e spin s his pl ots O f w orldly p assio n and am bitio n

.
,

th e refore but without real i n te re st i n th e m Wh en wick

, .

e d ness is r e qui re d he f orc e s hi s ch a ract e rs duly i nto wick e d

n e ss and i n the e ff o rt to ov e rco m e the bi as O f his m i n d

, ,

m ak e s th e m ve ry wick e d i nd ee d But it is whe n he has a

.

ch ance to tre at s om e th e me O f self sacrifice O f loyalty of -

, ,

g ratitud e O f u nworldly ren u n ci a ti on in the i nte re st O f an

,

id eal as in The Grea t Du lce of F lorence T he Vi rgi n M a rty r

, , ,

an d T he M a i d o H onou r th at he sh ows hi m s el f to b e a r eal

f ,

p oe t and h andl es his subj e ct wi th placid dignity and pow er

, .

H e al so achi e v e d at l east one g reat succe ss in co me dy i n his ,

N ew Way to P ay Old D ebts T he cha racte r O f the m ise r

.

an d e xtortio ne r in this pl ay Sir Gil e s O v e rr each holds a

, ,

p lac e among the classic fig u re s O f the English stage .

—
In J oh n F ord ( 5 8 6 1 64 0 the s earch af te r ab nor m a l sit
1
n atio n s re ach e d its h e ight o n the m o ral and spiritu al si de as ,

it had do ne in Webst er on the physical Sid e Ford was a m an .

of m e an s not co m p e ll e d to write h astily in ord e r to ga i n

,

an u n c e rt ai n live lih ood f ro m the sta ge His plays are good

.

i n f or m a nd his blank v ers e s e xc e ll e nt But whil e his .

w ork sh o ws no Sign O f d egenerati on in resp ect to f o rm ,

his d e lib e rate turni ng away f rom the h e althy and n or m al

i n hu m an li f e and the st range m orbid m e lancholy which
,

sh adows his work b e tray v ery plai nly tha t he is O f the

,

d ecad enc e .
1 38 A HISTORY OF E NGLISH I TERATURE
L

f ea r th at we should b e down too In S e pte m b e r of 1

a n o rdi nanc e O f both H ous e s O f Parli am en t clos e d the t

t re s throughout the kingdo m T h ey w e re not re op e

.

u ntil e ight een y ears l ate r when the re i ns Of powe r

,

f all en f ro m the d ead h an d O f Cr om w ell and Ch arl e s

,

asc e n d e d the thro ne f ro m which his fath er had b e en l e

the scaff old .

 CHAPT E R VIII

THE SEVE N TE E N TH C E N TU R Y : N O N D RA M ATI C

-
LI TE RA

TU R E B EF O RE TH E RE STO RA TI O N

THE dram a as has b een show n d e cli ne s f rom Sh ak esp eare

, ,

by pla i nly m ark e d stage s ; as in its growth it was highly

organ ic SO in i ts d e c ay the bre ak u p O f the
,
-

"
But fifti ti itt
‘ ‘
organ is m progr e ss e d rapidly an d l ogic ally .

Pen w
with n on dram a tic li te ratur e b e tw ee n the d eath
’

—
Of E liz ab e th an d the Re st o ratio n 1 603 1 660 the c as e is , ,

di ffe re n t H e re we fi nd the greate st c onf usi on t he m ost

.
,

bewild e ri ng vari e ty O f m ood O f m ann e r and O f artistic

, ,

aim . T he r easo ns f or this c onf u s e d ch aract er O f s e v en

teen th c entury lite rature w e r e chi e fly two VI n th e fi rst .

l c th e w as n e O f gr e a t r e ligious e xcite m en t O f vio

p a e, e ag o ,

lent soci al and political ch ange T he cou ntry was t orn by .

warri ng factio ns one supp orti ng the e stablish e d church

, ,

the divi ne right O f ki ngs and all th e institutions O f th e

,

Old soci al ord e r ; the oth e r d e m an di ng a s e v e r an ce of the

church f ro m th e stat e and th e sub m issi on O f the ki ng to

,

parli am ent T he re sult O f this c onflict was the Civil War

.
,

which drench ed the c ou n try in blood u nse ttl e d all the ,

fou nd ation s O f soci e ty an d gav e to l it e r at u re the u n cer

,

tainty the fe ve rish gropi ng ch aracte ristic O f a transition

, ,

ti m e \/In the se c ond pl ac e literary critici sm had h ardly

.
,

begu n to e xi st and th ere was n othi ng to ch e ck the re ign O f

,

i ndividu al wh i m an d romanti c e xagge rati on whi ch the

Renaissan c e had i n stitute d Sidn ey it is tru e had do ne
.
, ,

some v alu abl e w ork in criticism and B e n J on so n c on ti n u e d,

through the first f orty years O f the ce ntury to e xert a

restrain ing i nflu ence u pon the l awl ess i m agi nations of his
1 39
1 40 A HISTORY OF E N G LISH LITE RATURE

ti m e ; b u t e ven J onson could do littl e to ch eck the pre

v aili ng anarchy O f f orm and thought T he typic al prose .

O f th e c en tury is ov e r c ol ore d e l ab orate wayw ard inat te n

-
, , ,

ti v e to f orm The typical p oe try is e xtravagant whi m

.
,

sical with s u dde n b eauti e s breaki ng f orth f r om O bscurity

,

an d m ann e ris m Y e t s u ch is the c ontradict ory ch aract e r of

.

the e ra th at it prod u c e d in H e rrick and the Cavali e r song

, ,

w rite rs so m e O f the m ost e xqu isite m i nor work men and

, ,

i n M ilt on the greate st f ormal m aste r am o ng E nglish

, ,

poe ts and i n Bac on and Bu nyan it gave to English prose

s u pre me e x am pl e s O f te rs e and si m pl e styl e F i nally the .
,

lite rature Of the wh ol e e ra is ch aracteriz e d by a m ood O f

d ee p Se rious ne ss or by s om e attem pt to escap e f ro m this
,

pre vaili ng m ood It is f ull O f bold sp e culation O f lof ty

.
,

an d O f te n m e l ancholy m e di t ati on upo n li f e an d de ath n at ,

u ral to an a e which e xp e ri en c e d prof o u n d r e ligious e m o

g
ti on at the sam e ti m e th at it saw the rise O f m odern sci
e n tifi c th ought .

F ran cis Bacon to who m the b egi nn i ngs O f mod e rn sci

,

e nc e are in gr e at p art du e was born in 1 5 61 , three y ears ,

b efore Sh ak e sp eare His fath e r was Lo rd

.

K e epe r of the Great Seal to Eliz abe th and his ,

u n cl e was Lord Burl e igh E liz abe th s pri me ,

’

m i n iste r . H e was th u s m ark e d out by birth for a public

c aree r and he thre w hi m sel f i nto the strife for pl ace with ,

the k ee n i n tell e ctu al z e st and the m oral ruthl e ssness ch ar

acte risti c O f the Re naissanc e c ou rti e r O wing to the .

O ppositi on O f his j e al ou s u n cl e he got li ttl e prefe r me nt

,

u n d e r th e q u e e n ; but u n d e r J am e s I he rose rapidly .

throu gh v ari ou s O ffi ce s to b e Lord Ch ance llor with the ,

titl e O f Viscou nt St Albans In this positi on he supporte d

. .

his digniti e s by a m agnific ence of livi ng al togeth e r ou t O f

prop orti on to his l egiti mate i nc om e In 1 62 1 he was .

i mpeach ed b efore the H ouse O f Lords for bribe taki ng -

and corr u ptio n i n O ffi c e f ou n d guilty and su bj e cted to

, ,

fi ne and i m prisonm ent He retire d a broken and ru ined

.
,
1 43 A HI STORY or E N GLISH LITE RATURE

it is Bacon s glory tha t he saw and e xpresse d the vital

’

n ee d O f ch ange be fo re the sci en t ifi c sp irit had y e t grow“

,

co nscious O f itse lf .

x l B aco n be li e v e d th a t L ati n w as th e o n ly m e d iu m to b e d e

p e nde d upo n for pre se rvi ng thought he th e refore wro te in

E nglish o nly i ncid e ntally and u nder pro te st: T he E s says , ,

T he by wh i ch h e h o lds hi s chi e f pl ac e i n E n glish

"
m u "
lite ra ture w ere a t first m ere j otti ngs dow n O f
,

d es ul tory id eas bri e f n ote book me m oran da As s uch

,
-
.

th ey w ere first publish ed ( th e n ten in nu m ber) in 1 5 97 in ,

t he a u th o r s thirty sixth y ea r F i f te e n y ea rs l a te r th e y
’
-
.

w e re issu e d agai n with additio ns and in 1 625 a yea r , ,

be fo re Bac on s d e ath th ey we re put fo rth i n fi nal fo rm th e

’
, ,

Essays n o w nu mbe ri ng fi f ty e ight the O ld ones r e vise d and -

,

e xp and ed It is clear th at th e ir ch arm gre w up o n B acon

.
,

and u rged hi m h al f agai nst his wi ll to put m ore and m o re

, ,

se rious e ffort i nto the manipul atio n Of a language for which

he had no grea t respe ct ye t O f which b e is one of the ,

g rea te st maste rs .

E ve n in th e i r fi ni sh ed sta te the E ssays are d esul tory and

sugge stive rathe r th an c oh e rent or e xh austi ve T h e y d eal
, .

with m any subj ec ts of public and pri va te co n

Tm S b u . ,

im m m
'
f
duct O f s tate craf t of the na ture and va lu e of
, ,

h u man p assio ns and h u m an rel ations and with th e se

grav e r th e mes are i nte rm i ngl ed oth e rs O f a ligh te r so rt o n ,

b uildi ng o n the p lanti ng O f gard e ns on the prope r m ou n t

, ,

i ng and acti ng of ma sq u es a nd o th e r sce nic di sp lays TO .

a m od e rn u nd e rs tandi ng th o se w hich d eal with the d ee p e r

ti o n s O f h u man na tu re are a t to seem s om e wha t sh al

q u e s
p
lo w and wo rl dly wis e We ge t f ro m th e m few la rge in
.

sights or g ene r ous poi nts O f vi e w ; e v e rywh e re we fi nd wi t ,

k ee n O bse rva ti on gra ve or cle ver m u nd ane j udgm en ts

, .

N o w an d again to be sure B acon sta rtl es us with an al to

, ,

“
ge th e r unworldly se nten ce such as this : Little d o m e n ,

pe rce ive what s olitud e is and how far it e xten de th ; fo r a ,

crowd is not co mpany and faces are but a gallery O f pi c t ,

 TH E SEV E NTEE NT H C ENTURY 1 43

1 1res, and ti nkling cy m bal wh ere th e re is no

tal k but a ,
”
l ove . Som e O f the e ssays such as that e n titl e d Of Grea t
,

P lace Show an u n w orldly wisd om which if appli e d to

, ,

B acon s own lif e would h ave m ad e it a v ery di ff e ren t

’
,

thi ng Not seldo m too he lif ts the curtai n up on th at

.
, ,

i nne r p assio n O f his e xist en c e the thirs t f or i n t ell e ctu al

,

t ruth which m ad e him nobl e in spite O f the shortc om i ngs

,
”
O f his ch arac t e r : T ruth he says whi ch only doth
, ,
”
udg its l f is he sove re ign g ood O f hu m an n atur e
j e e , t .

B acon shows hi msel f in the E ssays to b e a c onsu mm ate

rh e torici an He m ad e for hi m sel f a styl e which though not
.
,

qu ite fl e xibl e an d m ode rn was u n match abl e for

,
T hei Sty l e r .

pith and pre gnancy i n the c onveyan ce of his

speci al ki nd O f thought T hough a de vote d Latinist and
.
,

u si ng a much Lati niz ed v ocabulary he saw the structural ,

diff e rence s O f the two langu age s so cl early th at wh en the ,

bulk O f E nglish prose was be i ng written in l oose se nt en ce s

Of e n or m ous le ngthv lie struck ou t at onc e a th oroughly

English typ e O f s e nten c e sh ort crisp and fir mly k nit

, , , .

He re j ecte d th e conce i tfu l ness and ov e r crowd e d i mag e ry -

Of th e E uphuists but k ne w ho w to light u p his thought

,

with w ell place d figure and to give to it an i m agi native

-
,

glow and ch ar m up on occasio n c ontrasting strongly with ,

the u nfi gu rati v e styl e O f B e n J ons on who r epre se n ts i n ,

his prose the e xtreme re vulsion f ro m E u ph u ism For the .

stud e n t O f e xpre ss i on Baco n s e ssays are O f e ndl e ss i n t ere st

’

and profit the m ore one r eads th e m the m ore r e m ark abl e
see m th eir co m p actne ss an d th e ir nervous vitality T h e y .

shock a sluggish attention i nto w ak efulness as if by an

el e ctric co ntact an d though th e y m ay so m e ti m e s fail to

nourish th ey can n e ve r a il to sti m u l at e

,
f
Bacon holds a commandi ng place in s e v enteen th century
.

thought but he can h ardly b e c all e d typical O f th e cen

,

tury He did not sh are its ch aracteristic m el an choly ; his

.

i magination is always subordinate d to thought wh ereas ,

the charact e ristic mood of the c entury is one of dreamy O r

1 44 A HISTORY or E NGLISH L I TE RATURE
m ystical con templ ation in which i magi nation al way s takes
,

the l ead of abstract th inki ng ; and fi nally he do e s not

pass as the typical se venteenth c entury write rs SO f req u en tly
,

do f ro m m oods Of ear thly p assi on to moods O f re ligi o us

,

e cst asy In all th e se r e sp e cts the spirit of the ti me is b ette r

.

repre sented by a m an whose youth fell lik e Bacon s in the ,

’
,

high tid e O f the E liz abe than era but who f rom the fir st , , ,

stood ap art proph esyi ng both in his matter and his m an

, ,

ner O f the age O f J ame s and Ch arl e s — J oh n Do nne ( 1 5 73

, ,

1 63 1 )
Do nne sp ent a wild and irregul ar yo uth at O x ford and
Cambridge in the Lo ndo n Inns O f Court and in the south
, ,

Dom , a, a O f E urop e B efor e th e. e nd O f th e si x t e e n th

m" c entury he produce d a body of lyric po etry O f
the utm ost si ngu l arity It is full O f strange i n te rrupte d
.
,

music and O f vivid pass ion which break s i n j e ts and fla sh es

,

through a veil of O bscure thought and torture d i mage ry .

In th es e m o m ents O f illu m i natio n i t b e come s won de rf ully ,

poignan t and dire ct h eart searchi ng i n i ts si m pl e hu man

,
-

acc e nts with an origi nality and f orce f or which we look i n

,

vai n am ong the cl ear and flu ent m elodi es O f E liz ab e than

lyrists U nfortu nately th e se m o m en ts are com p arative ly
.

rare Wh at is m ore i m m edi ately apparent in Do nn e s

.
’

poe try and wh at fasci nate d his discipl es is his u se O f

, ,
”
m, U“ o, c on c e it s i e f ar f e tch e d analogi e s and ov e r
, . .
,
-

i nge nious m e taphors which are so O dd th a t we ,

l ose sight O f th e thing to b e illustrated in the startli ng ,

natur e O f the illustration With him l ove is a spid e r .

, ,

which dropp e d i nto the wi ne O f li fe turns it to p ois on ;

, ,
”
night is an e b on b ox i nto which w eary m ortals are p u t
,

as disord e r ed clocks u ntil the su n give s th em ne w

wo rks T his c on c e itful for m O f writi ng was practise d
.

by Mari ni in It aly and by Gongora in Sp ai n si multane ous

, ,

illu stration is from one o f D onne f ollowers, Ge orge

’
T he s e cond s

Herb ert, b u t it is e nti re ly in the master s manner

’
.
1 46 A HISTO R Y or E NG LISH L I T ERATU RE

War . Hazl i tt says of the H oly Li v i ng a nd Holy Dy i ng,

“
I t is a divi ne p as toral H e wri tes to the fa i thf ul f ol.
‘

l ow ers Of C hrist s hepherd pip es to his fl ock

as the .

He m akes lif e a proce ssi o n to the grave b u t crow ns i t wi th ,

”
l an ds and rains sa crifici al rose s on i ts pa th
g ar ,
.

In Sir T ho mas Brow ne ( 1 605 1 682) the se ventee nth -

“ ”
ce ntury ti me spiri t fo u nd curious but ve ry noble ex
-

ww pr e ssio n His m i n d was

. d ee ply ti ng e d wi th
mm “
m el anch oly and he sha re d the p re val en t te n
,

d ene y toward re ligious mys ticism But th ese q ua liti es .

are O ddly i nf use d with scep tic is m flow ing f ro m his aci s u

t ific s tudi e s a kin d of dream y ha lf c re d u lous sce p ticis m

, ,
-
,

v ery di ffe re nt f ro m B acon s cl ear cut rational vi e w O f ’

-

thi ngs but more ch aracte ristic O f an age in which m ed i

,
.

ze val a nd m od e rn w ays O f th o ught w e r e still close ly

m i ngled togeth e r Af te r studyi ng m e dici ne a t the fam o us
.

schools of Mo ntpe lli e r in Franc e and Pad u a i n Ita ly ,

Bro wne s e ttled as a physici an at N orwich in N orfolk a nd , ,

th e re pas se d his li fe I n 1 642 app ea red his first work

.
,

Rel igi o M ed i ci a co nf e ssio n of his o wn p e rso nal re l igious

,

creed It is in esse nce a mystical acce p tance O f Christi anity

. .

“
Me thi nks ”
he says , the re be not im possi bil i tie s
,

e n ough i n re ligi on fo r an active faith I love to

lose myse lf in a myste ry ; to pu rsu e my reaso n to an O
”
A lti tu do ! T his se ns e O f s ol e mn e x al ta ti o n thi s lo sing ,

o f hi ms el f i n a m yste ry and an O A tti tu de is

a “cm mam ,
b
“m m Bro wn e s m ost ch aracte ristic m ood H e l o v es
’
.

to sta nd be fo re the face O f the E te rnal and the Infi n ite

u ntil th e shows of li fe fad e away and he is fille d wi th a ,

passio nate qui e tud e and hu m ili ty We see i n h im h o w .

far the te m pe r o f m e n had d e pa rte d fro m the El iza be th an

z e st o f li fe fro m the Re naissance d e l ight in the st i r and
,

“
bustl e O f hu ma n a ctivity Me thi nk s ”
he sa ys
.
“
I , ,

begi n to b e weary O f the su n T he world to m e is .

”
William Hazlitt Lecture s on the Lite rature of the Age of W e
,
 TH E SEVEN EE N T T H CE NTURY 147

bu t a dr eam and m ock -show, the re in but p anta

and we all
locu s an d an tics to m
y s e
, v e r er co n t e m pl atio n s ”
.

While the m ighty s truggl e which Lord Clarendon d epicts

In his H i s tor o the R ebelli on wa s sh aki ng the earth with
y f ,

i ts dru m s and tram plings Sir T ho mas Browne was ,

”

q ui e tly writi ng his lo nges t work Vu lga r E rrors , an

inq u iry half scientific an d h al f cre d u lous i nto various pop
,
- -
,

ular b eli efs and sup erstiti ons T we lv e y ears l at er he pub

.

li she d the Urn B u ri a l a short pi ec e sugg ested

, T he m, a

by the fi ndi ng Of som e an ci en t Rom an fu neral 3 m w

urns buri e d in the earth in the ne ighborhood Of N orwich .

The Urn B u ri a l is ostensibly an i nquiry into the various

historic m e thods Of disp osi ng Of the d ead but by i m plica ,

ti on it is a de sce nt upon the v an ity Of earthly am bition ,

e sp e ci ally in its attem pt to h an d on m or tal me m ory to

future age s .It is Brow ne s m ost ch aract eristic work and

’
,

con ta i ns p e rh aps the s u p rem e e xam pl e s O f his styl e .

T he grand eur and s ol em nity O f this styl e at its b e st is , ,

hard ly to b e p arall el e d in E nglish prose Lik e al m ost all .

the write rs O f his age B row ne is e xtre mely d e sultory a nd

,
”
u nev e n ; his purpl e p atch e s come u nex B mm ,
.

Stil l“
p e cte dl y but
, th e s e o cc a si onal p ass ag e s h av e

a p om p an d maj e sty which e v e n M ilton has not surp ass e d .

His E nglish is full O f m agn iloqu ent words and phrase s

coine d f ro m the Latin and the m usic Of his p eriods is
,

de ep stately and long drawn lik e th at Of an h eroic

, ,
-
,

fu ne r al m arch or the f u ll st op O f a cath edr al organ

-
T he .

open i ng O f the l ast section O f the Urn B u ri a l will se rv e

perhaps to m ak e th ese c om p aris ons cl ear : Now si n c e ,

the se d ead bone s h ave al ready outlaste d the livi ng o nes of

Meth u sale h and in a yard u n d e r ground and thin w alls
, ,

Of cl ay , outworn all the strong and sp ecious buildi ngs

abo v e it ; and q ui e tly re st e d u n d e r th e dru m s and tr am p

lings of three c onqu e sts : wh at pri n ce can prom ise such

diutu rn ity u n to his reliqu e s The way in which his i m
agination pl ays through his thought and fl ash e s a sudd e n
1 48 A HI ST ORY OF E NGLI SH LITE RATURE

illu m i nation of beau ty o ve r his p ages may b e suggested ,

by th ese wo rd s w ritten one night wh en he had sa t late at

,

his d e sk T O k e e p ou r e ye s O p e n l onge r w e re but to act

o u r An tip od e s T he hu ntsm e n are up in A meric a 1
.

A wid e sp rea d national m o od u su ally fin ds i ts analyst

-
.

The m e l an ch oly of the s e v e n teen th c en tury its cause s , ,

its m ani fe stati on s and its cu re w e re e xh austiv e ly tre ate d

, ,

by Rich ard B u rton ( 1 5 7 7 i n his A na tomy

B urton nd the
a
M a n choly
1
a bo o k In t o Wt h h g a th e r e d
£3 53 :n
1 o
f of,
e l , e

the ou t O f the way l earni ng and the dre amy

- - -

sp e c u l ati on of fi fty y ears O f re cluse li fe at Bras eno se Col

l ege O xford SO c u riou s a m ixtu re O f p ed an try i magi
,
.
,

nati on and q u i e t b roodi ng h u m o r

,
cove ri ng in a se nse ,

the wh ol e li fe an d th ought O f m an could ha rdl y h a ve ,

bee n p rod u ce d in any oth er era O f E nglish lite rature ; as ,

”
i nd e e d n o oth e r e ra w o u ld h ave suggeste d melancholy
,

as a th e m e f or e n cycl op aedic treatm e n t .

T he c h aract e r O f an age is b e traye d n o more b y the

dire ct e xp re ssi on O f its p re vai li ng m ood th an by the re ,

acti o n s which occ u r aga i n st th a t m o od and by the a tte m p ts ,

whi ch are m ad e to e scap e f ro m its d om in ation Suc h an .

a tt e m pt to e sc ap e f ro m th e i n t e ns e s e riousne ss O f th e ir a e
g
we m ay p e rh aps trac e i n the am at ory ve rse O f Ca r e w ,

Lov elac e n d Su ck ng who f ro m th e i r co n

T he Ca ali er
P t
oe fl
v
a h ,

n ectl on W l th Ch arl e s S court are k n own as t he

,

,
,

Cavali e r p oe t s O f th e thre e Ca re w ( 1 5 98
.
, was
t he si nc e re st p o e t His w ork is occasio nally ti ng e d with
.

lice n ti o u sne ss ; b u t mu ch O f it on the othe r h an d has , ,

ge nu i ne b eau ty and dignity H e felt the i nflu e nc e O f .

b th B J o so and Donne and such a po e m as “

o e n n n , TO
H is Mi stre ss in Ab se nc e has the sanity and finish O f the
o n e m i ngl e d with th e m agn e tic e l oqu e nc e O f the oth e r
, .

H e is be s t k now n by his lighte r e ff orts such as his Giv e me

“

m ore l ov e or m o re di sd ai n in which p oe m his f elicit and

”
, y
co u rtly add ress di spl ay th e mse lv e s at the ir h e ight He .

w rote also a striki ng co u rt mas qu e e ntitled Cwlu m B ri t

1 50 A HISTO RY OE E NGLISH LI TE RATUR E
’ ’
ethic al and re ligious thought Brown e s B ri tta n ia s .

P as tora ls give u s the ho m el y s ights and so u n ds O f De vo n

shire in a way which m ak es his page s charm in g in spite
,

O f th e ir se ntim e n tality th e ir fals e m ythology and th eir

, ,

stra in ed all egory With e r s M i s tress of P hi la rete is a

.
’

ce le brati on O f Virtu e who m the poe t pe rsonifi e s and

,

p ra ise s e xactly as if she w e r e some l ovely she ph e rd e s s of

the pl ain .A ki ndr ed spirit to th e se si mple h earte d p as -

tora l poe ts is f ou nd in I saac Walto n ( 1 5 93

“m m“ m H e w as a L o n d o n li n e n dr a pe r w h o -

m
Ki ns hi p wi t h ,

& sp e n t his w o rki ng da ys i n m ea suri n g cloth a nd

m gf
°u
s e rvi ng his cust ome rs o v e r the sh op cou n te r ;
°

but who passe d his h olidays in quite ano th e r

fashio n roam i ng with fis hi ng rod and ba sk e t alo ng the ba n ks
,
-

O f stre ams a nd gazi ng with u nsp o il e d e ye s at the u n sp o il e d

,

p eac e and gay e ty O f nature His Comp lete A ngler was .

prin te d in 1 65 3 am id the fi erce p oli tica l and re ligious

,

agi ta ti on s of the C o m m on w ealth ; but a sw ee te r or m or e

u ntrouble d boo k has ne v e r bee n writ te n Two oth e r m em .

be rs O f this group O f na ture p oe ts and c e l e brants O f co u n -

try li fe re ma i n to be me nti oned Robe rt H e rrick and ,

An dre w Marvell The bul k of th e ir work is i n the

.
,

broa d e r se nse p asto ral ; but th ey w e re both to u ch ed

,

d e eply at ti m es by religious e m o ti on and Marv ell re fl ects ,

in his l ate r poe try the stre nuous poli tica l lif e in w hich he
took p art .

Robe rt He r rick ( 1 5 91 —1 674 ) wa s app re n tice d in boyh ood

to his u ncl e a gold sm ith in Cheapsid e Af te r so m e tim e
, .

sp e nt a t Ca m bridg e he re turn ed to Lo n don in ,

Herrick
his thirti e th yea r and lived on his wi ts in the
.

li te rary boh e mi a of the Inns of Court In 1 629 having .

,

tak e n o rd e rs he was prese nte d by Ki ng Charles to the

,

vica rage O f Dea n Pri or in De vonshire Here wi th no , .

,

d u ti e s tO p e rf o rm sav e the re ad i ng of a w ee kly se rmo n to

,

a ha ndf ul of sl ee py p ari shi on e rs he had ample O ppo rtu ni ty , ,

dur ing the ne xt ni ne tee n y ears to dev el op his pecu l iar ,

 TH E SEVE NTEE NT H C ENTURY 1 51

lyric al gif t His genius was Of the kin d which carv e s

.

che rry sto ne s not O f the ki n d which h e ws g reat figu re s

-
,

fro m the livi ng rock Lef t p erfe ctly to hi m se l f am id th e

.
,

flowe rs O f his Vicarage gard e n with the p re tty traditio nal ,

cerem oni e s and m e r ry m aki ngs O f c ou ntry li fe tO l ook at

-
,

he sp e n t his d ays c arvi ng ch e rry stone s i n d e e d b u t giving

-
, ,

to th e m the d elicate fi nish O f cam e os or O f goldsm ith s work ’

.

In p oe m af te r p oem he e n t ers with e xtrao rdi nary z e st and

folk fe e li ng i n to th e sm all j oys and p ag eants of rural li fe
-
,

—a brid al proc e ssio n a c u dg e l pl ay b e tw ee n two clow n s

,
-

on the g re e n a pupp e t show a t th e f a ir the h angi ng O f

,
-
,

holly and b ox at Can dl emas E ve Pe rh aps the m ost e x

.

q u i si te O f all is C o ri nn a goi n g a M ayi ng T his lit tl

-
e .

mast e rpi e c e is dren ch e d with the pu ngen t d e ws Of a spri ng

”
morn ing .AS the po e t c alls his swee t slug a b ed out of - -

doo rs and l e ad s he r through the village streets al ready

, ,

deck e d with white thorn t oward the fi elds and woods

-
,

wh e re the May day f estiviti e s are to b e enacte d we fe e l that

-
,

the po e try O f O l d E ngli sh li fe sp e aks through one who has

e xp e ri en c e d to the f ull its Si m pl e ch ar m E ven the note O f .

sad n e ss at the e nd the looki ng f orward to th at d ark ti m e

,

wh e n Cori nna h e rsel f and all her village mate s sh all lie “
”
drowne d in e ndl ess night has a p easan t like si nce rity Of
,
-

feeli ng .

Whe n the Parliam entary forc e s had gai ned the battl e
which th ey had bee n wagi ng with the K i ng s m en and ’
,

He rrick as a l oy alist was ej ecte d f ro m his livi ng he w en t ,

back to Lo ndo n The y ear O f his re tur n ( 1 64 8) he publish e d

.

his p oe m s u n d e r the titl e O f H esp eri des a nd

Noble N u mbers the l atte r h al f O f th e title re
,

ferri ng to the religiou s poe m s O f the coll e ct io n .

Th e re could b e no m ore striki ng Sign O f the i m m e ns e re

ligi ou s fe r m ent of the ti m e th an th e s e p oem s e m an ati ng ,

as th e y do f ro m an e picure an and p agan na tur e wh ose ,

philosophy O f li fe is su mm e d u p in his m ost fam ous so ng ,

Gath e r ye rose buds whil e y e m ay ”

In the wo nd erf ul .
1 52 A HISTOR Y O F EN G LISH LITERATU RE
poe m call ed The Litany the mast erpi e c e among Her ,

rick s religious p oem s we see how upon e ve n his gay and

’
,

se ns u ous nat u re th e re de scend ed at tim e s th at dark sh ado w

O f r e ligious te r ror which l ate r f ou nd i ts fi n al and app alli ng

e xp re ssi o n i n the Gra ce A bou ndi ng O f J oh n Bu ny an In .

H errick s case how eve r this is only a passing ph ase Of

’
, ,

fe e li ng .He is to be rem e mb ere d as the p oe t Of Cori nna

“
goi ng a Mayi ng the N igh t Pi e ce to J ulia and O f a
-
,
”
-
,

m yri ad oth e r littl e p oem s i n which he chron icl e s his d e

light in nature and in the e xquisite surface Of life as he
,

saw it .

An d re w Marve ll ( 1 62 1 1 678) was am o ng the fi rst O f Eng

-

lish poe ts to fe e l the ch ar m Of nature with ro m antic in

te nsity and at the same ti me with matter O f fact
,
- -

Marvell .

realism The bulk O f his nature po e try was

.
-

w ritte n be twee n his twenty n i nth and his thi rty fi rst years - -
,

whil e he was livi ng i n cou ntry s e clusion at N u napple ton ,

as tutor to th e y o u ng d aught e r of Lord Fa irfa x com ,

m and e r in chi ef O f the Parli am en tary f orc e s

- - T he prin .

e ip e l re c o rd O f th e s e two y ears O f po e tic li f e i s a lo ng po e m

“
e ntitl e d A ppl eton House besid e s this the m ost b eau ,
“ ”
ti ful of his cou ntry poem s are p erh aps The Gard en
T he Mow e r to the Glow wor m s
”
an d In th e se and -
.
,

in his d e lic ate little p ast o ral di alogu e s he li n ks h im ,

s e lf with the p as toral sch ool O f Sp en se r ; in o th e r pl ac e s ,

“
T o a Coy M istre ss
”
e sp e ci ally in the li ne s he sh ows the ,

i nfl u en ce O f Don ne In his la ter life Marv ell s erv e d f or

.

a ti m e as assi stan t to Mi l ton th en acting as Lati n s e cre ta ry ,

to Crom w el l s g ove rnm e n t H e h elp e d M ilton i n his

’
.

bl i nd ness aid e d hi m to escap e f rom his p u rsu ers at the

,

Re storati o n and w atch e d with m i ngl e d ad m iratio n and

,

a we the p rog re ss O f P aradise Lost which b egan about 1 65 8 ,

to t a ke sh ap e afte r tw e n ty y e ars de l ay In the no ble

’
, .

O de to C rom well Marv ell se t an e xam pl e worthy O f

, ,

Milton hi m sel f of si mpl e d ignity and classical re strai nt

,

i n the treat me nt O f a politic al the me .

1 54 A HISTORY OF E N G LISH LI TE RATURE
r tio n for a court care er and so me years O f disappoin ted
a a ,

w aiti ng f or court favors he ente red the Church O nc e ,

.

withi n the p al e O f the religious l ife he fe lt the full f orc e O f ,

th at spiritu al agi tatio n and awe which s o o ne r or

He be t
r r
l ate r ove r took all se rious mi nds i n the first h alf
.

O f the s e v e n t ee n th c e ntury Af te r two years O f d e vote d

.

l abor as a p arish pri est at B e m erton near Salisbury he , ,

was strick e n with a m ortal m al ady O n his d eathb e d b e .

h and e d tO N ichol as Ferrar a bu ndl e O f m anuscript aski ng ,

h im to r ead it and th en tO u se it or d e stroy it as s e e me d to

, ,

h im fi t The v olu m e was publish e d the ne xt year u n der

.

th e titl e O f The Temp le in allusio n tO the scriptural v e rse

, ,

In His t em pl e doth e v e ry m an sp eak in His ho n or

”
It .

is a curio u s picture O f the co nflict which H erbe rt w ent

th rou gh whil e subj ecti ng his will and his worldly am bition
,

to the s ervic e O f God .

He rb ert push e d e ven f urth er than Don ne the u se O f

co nce its Many O f his poe ms are m e re bu n dl es of th e se
.

O dditi e s O f m e taphor qu aint and crabbed to the l ast de

,

gre e But he m anage s by m ean s O f th em to e xpre ss

.
, ,

m any preg nan t and far reachi ng thoughts -

At ti m e s h e .

sho ws an un u su al powe r O f dire ct and fam ili ar phrasi ng .

By m eans O f sudd e n turns e m ph atic pauses lightni ng , ,

“
lik e stabs Of th ought he f orce s ho me hi s words ,

i nto the read er s me mory and mak e s his qu ai nt and dar

’
,

ing conce i tf u ln ess i nterpre t rathe r th an O bscur e his , ,

m e an i ng .

The p e rv ading atm osph er e O f He rbert s poe try is one O f

’

m oral earne stne ss an d si nc e re pi e ty rath er i nt ell e ctu al ,

th an i m p as sio ned H e is th e refore th e tru e .

, ,
C as ha w
r .

p oe t O f the Chu rch O f Engl and Rich ard .

a —
Cr sh a w ( 1 61 3 1 65 0 on the oth e r h and is the po e t O f ,

Catholicism H is attitude to w ard divi ne thi ngs is not

.

th at O f pi ous c on tem pl ation but O f e cstatic and m ystical ,

worship His re ligi ou s s ens e is s outh ern rath e r than

.

no rth e rn The Reform a tion as such did not afi ect him

.
, , .
 TH E SEV E NTEEN TH C E NTURY 1 55

It se rv ed m e rely to ki ndl e i nto i ntense fl am e his d ev otion

to th e O ld e r Church . T his is the m o re c u ri ou s b e c aus e O f
the f a ct th a t C rashaw s y outh and early nu rture w e r e O f
’

an u ltra p ro te stan t s o rt
-
A t the coll ege O f Pe te rhous e i n
.

Cam bridge h ow e v e r he r e ad d e eply in the works O f the

, ,

early church fath e rs an d in th e liv e s of the sai n ts an d he ,

took p art in the fasts and vigils O f a r eligiou s broth e rhood

g a th e re d a b o ut N ich o l a s F e rr a r a t L ittl e Giddi n g j u st,o u t
sid e Ca m b ridge . A s the stru ggl e b e tw ee n the Chu rch O f
Engl and and the P u ritan dissen te rs gre w m ore and m ore
bitte r he fl e d for ref uge tO the arm s O f that vene rable
,

mo th e r church O f which his natu re had f ro m t he first

-

mad e h im a m e m b er .H e was e xil e d by Crom w ell s gov ’

ernm e n t ; a nd af te r a ti m e O f bitte r p o ve rty in Paris he ,

was b e f ri e nd e d by a broth e r p oe t A brah am Cowl e y and in

, ,

trod u ce d to Q u ee n H e n ri e tta Mari a wif e O f Ch arl e s I

, .
,

who had tak e n ref u ge at the court O f F ranc e f rom the

stor m s of civil war i n E n gl and . T hrough he r i nflu e nc e
with a Ro m an Cardi nal C rash aw was give n a pl ac e i n
,

the M onaste ry O f O u r Lady O f Lore tto in Italy ; and he ,

di ed shortly af ter from the e ff ect of a pilgri mage which he

,

mad e o n f oo t in the burn i ng h eat O f the Itali an su mmer ,

a fit e nd f or a po e t in wh om liv e d ag ai n the m ystical

religiou s fe rv or O f the Middl e Age s .

C rash aw s p oetry is e xc e ssively u ne v en It co ntain s

’
.

the m o st e xtravagant e x am pl e s O f f rigid con ce itfu lne ss to

be fou n d am o ng all the f ollow ers O f D onne ; yet sid e by
sid e with th e s e O f t en i n th e sam e poe m o ccu r p assag e s O f
, ,

nobl e disti nctio n .His two most characteristic po em s are

”
p e rh aps T h e F l a m i n g H e art a nd th e Hy m n to S ai n t
Th e re sa . He Si ngs the rapture s O f the soul visit e d by
divi ne love in t er m s as concre te and glowi ng as any hu man
,

lov e r has ever u se d to ce l ebrate an earthly p assion An .

eth e re a l m u sic ,and a ki n d O f lu m i no u s h aze both re

,

mindi n g u s of Sh ell ey s work are the disti nguishi ng

’
,

featu r e s O f his poe try at its be st At the close O f his

.
1 56 A HIST O RY OF E NGLISH LI TE RATURE

poem en titl e d Descriptio n Of a Rel igious House ,

fi nd the li ne s
Th e se l f- re m e m b erin g so u l sw ee tly re co v e rs

H e r k i n d re d w i th th e stars, a n d Ine d i ta te s h e r i mm o rt a l wa y
H o m e t o th e o ri gi na l so u rce O f l i gh t a n d i n te l lect u al d a y .

T his the k e y tO Crasha w s i m agi nativ e world

is H e is
’
.

lik e a m oth fl u tte ri ng i n the r adi anc e which strea m s fr o m

”
the source O f light and i nte ll e ct u al day .

H e nry Va u gh an ( 1 62 1 the third poe t O f this

group sp e nt his youth am ong the rom antic gl en s O f the
,

vall ey Of the U sk in north e rn Wal e s H e re was , .

Vaughan .
'

the l ege nd ary se a t of K i ng A rthu r s c o urt a n d

’

h e re traditi on say s S hak e sp eare h e ard f rom the lips O f t he

, ,

c ou ntry folk th e n am e and d o ings Of Puck before writi ng

-
,

A M i ds u mmer N ight s D ream Vaughan w en t up to O x

’
.

f ord in 1 63 8 just as the qu arre l b e tw e en the K i ng a nd the

,

Parli am e n t was drawi ng to a h e ad H e fought f or the .

K i ng s c aus e an d wh e n th at c a u se was lost re tir e d to his

’
, ,

na tiv e v all e y in Wal es to sp e nd th e re st O f his l o ng li f e as

,

an O bsc u r e c o u nt ry d o ct or T he death O f his wife an d his

.

own se ve re ill ne s s aw ak ene d his religious nature an d u n d e r ,

the i nflu en c e O f H erbe rt s Temp le he wrote and publish e d

’

( 1 65 0) th e fi rst p art O f Si lex Sc i n ti lla ns or Sp a rks f ro m a ,

F li n t stone th at is spa rks struck by divi ne grac e f ro m a

-
, ,

h ard and sinf u l h ea rt .

’
Vau gh an s p oe try lik e Cra shaw s is v e ry u ne ve n
’
, T he , .

re ad e r m u st s e a rch lo ng b e f ore fi ndi ng the thi ngs O f v a l u e ,

b u t wh en f ou nd th ey are w orth the s earch His be s t .

p oe m s su ch as T he World
,
“ ” “ ”
De p arted F ri e n d s a nd
, ,
”
T he Hidd e n Fl ow e r Show an e xtraordi nary i nsight i nto
,

the m y stic al life O f N ature and O f the h eart and a stra nge ,

n e ar ne ss to the u n see n w o rld N O E nglish poe t has touch ed

.

the d e e p e r m yst e ri e s with m ore child lik e si m plicity and -

u nc onscious ness nor wi th a m ore d e licate and e lusive

,

m usic .
1 58 A HISTORY or E NGLISH LIT E RATURE

J oh n Milto n, t r Sh ak e sp eare the greatest O f E nglish

af e

poe ts was b orn De cem be r 9 1 608 in Bread Stree t Lon

, , , ,

mm,“ d o n His f a.th e r was a scriv e n e r ( n ot a ry p u b

m "w e lie) who had e m brac ed the P uritan fa ith bu t
"
, ,

whos e P uri tanism was no t O f the h ard and forbiddi ng

typ e T he b oy gre w u p in a hom e whe re m usic lit e rat u re
. , ,

and the s oci al gra c e s gav e w a r m t h and color to an a t m os

p h e re O f s e re ne pi e ty D uri ng his boy hood Engl and was

.
,

still E liz abe than am ong the g reat body O f Pu ritans g e ni ,

ality and z e st O f li fe had no t ye t give n pl ac e tO t ha t h a rsh

strenuous ness which Pu ri tanis m afterward tO O k on M ilto n .

was taug ht m u sic and was allow ed to r ange a t wil l through

,

the E nglish p oe ts ; am o ng the se Spe nse r the p oe t O f pure ,

b eauty e x e rci se d ov e r him a c harm which was to l ea v e its

,

t races up on all the work O f his early manhood A t Ch rist s .

’

Coll ege Cambridge w hi th e r he proc ee d e d in his sixte e n th

, ,

y e a r h
, e b e g a n to p re p a r e hi m s e l f wit h e a r n e st n e ss a nd

c onsec rati on for the li fe O f p oe try He had alre ady d e

, .

te rm ined to b e a p oe t and th at tO O in no ordi na ry se n s e

, .

His m i nd was fixe d on lof ty th e m es and he beli e ve d th at ,

su ch th e me s co u ld b e fi tly treated o nly by one who had l e d

a l o fty and a u ste re li fe T he m agn ific e nt O de
.
O n th e ,

Mo rni ng o f Ch ris t s N ativity whic h d eals wit h the Sig ns

’
,
”

and p ort en ts filli ng the wo rld a t the Sa viou r s birth wa s

’
,

written at tw en ty one It Showe d cl early or m ight h a v e

-
.
,

Sh ow n to anyone who had e y e s to see th a t anoth e r m ighty ,

p oe t had b e en give n to E ngland .

T wo ye ars l at e r Milton l e ft Cam bridge and we nt to He r

ton a littl e vill age w e st O f Londo n whith e r his fat he r had
, ,

At Ho t on
r
r e tire d to sp e nd his d e cli ni ng d ays H e re i n .
,
.

a b eauti f ul c ou n try O f wo ods m eadows and , ,

b ri mmi ng stream s the you ng p oe t sp ent fi ve q ui e t ye ars

, .

“
T o the outw ard vi e w he was al l but idl e m e rely tu rn ,
”
ing ove r the Gre e k and Lati n cl assic s i n a lo ng holid ay .

Re ally he was h ard a t wo rk prep ari ng hi m sel f by m e dita ,

tio n by c omm u nion w ith nat u re and wi th the lof ty spirits

,
 TH E S EV ENT EENT H C ENTURY 1 59

Of th e p ast for so m e achi ev e me nt in poe try which ( to u se

,

“
his o wn words) E ngl and would not willi ngly le t d ie .
”

Mea n whil e he was writi ng ve ry littl e but tha t litt le pe r ,

fee t thrice distill e d

, A s onne t se nt to h is f ri e nd o n his
.

twe n ty third birt hday s hows t hat he was d eeply d issatisfi ed

-

with wh at he had d o ne in ve rse b efore goi ng to Ho rto n

and i nd e ed if we e xce pt the N a tivity Hy m n he had rea
, ,

son tO b e diss atisfi e d T he oth e r p oe m s .

of his co ll e g e

period are disfig u re d by the vice s O f conce itf u lness e xag ,

ra t ion and tastel e ss i ng e n u ity p e culi a r to the se v e nt ee n t h

g e , ,

century T he Hy m n itsel f is m arre d by the sam e faults

.
,

and e v e n its b ea uti e s are so m e o f th e m pl ai nly i m itativ e .

But at Horton M ilton s taste grad u ally b e cam e su re r his ’

touch u po n the k eys O f his i ns tru me nt sup e rl atively fi rm

and d e lic ate H e w e nt b a ck to pure r m od e ls and l earne d
.
,

how to borrow without i m itati ng T he re s u l t was thre e .

long poe m s and se ve ral sh ort one s absolute ly fla wl e ss in ,

work m anship f ull O f ro m an tic beau ty curb ed and ch ast

,

ene d by a cl as sical s e nse of prop o rtion and fitne ss I t is .

in th e s e po em s th at we first see cl early wh at M ilt on sta nds

for in the po e tic art O f the ce ntury He is a child O f .

the Re naissanc e the l ast O f th at g re at ro m antic li ne O f

,

which Spe nse r Sid ney M arl o w e Sh ak e sp eare Donne and

, , , , ,

Fl e tch e r are scio ns ; but he has d ru nk d ee p e r th an the

oth e rs O f the spri ngs O f a n ti q u e art ; th e re is i n h i m a

more aust e re a rtistic i nsti nct li nk e d s om eh ow with his au ,

ste re r m oral natu r e T he spirit O f his art is r o man tic

.

its e xpr e ssi on is in the wid e st se nse cl as sic

, ,
.

T he fi rst prod u ct of M i lto n s H o rton p eri od the p oe m in

’
,

two parts L Alle gro ( the j oyous m an) and Il Pe ns e

’
,

rose
( t he m e dit a tiv e m a n) is i n it s n a tur e a ut o ,
L All o o ’

biographical T he two p arts O f the p oe m p ai nt and n sn

.
“

“m m ,

the two s id e s O f M il to n s o wn te m p e ram e nt : t he

’

one urgi ng ou tw a rd t ow a rd co m m u ni o n w ,
it h the brightness
NO notice i s he re ta ke n Of M i lto n s L ati n v e rse ,
’
the b u lk of which
date s from his colle ge pe ri od .
1 60 A HISTO RY or E N G LISH LI TERATURE

and vivid activity O f l ife ; the oth r dr wi g i w rd e a n n a , tow .

ard lo n e ly co n t e m pl a ti o n or m usi n,gs upo n t h e dr e am i e r ,

q ui et er as p e cts O f n a tur e a n d O f hu m a n e xis t e n c e T o re p r e .

th s two m o o ds h e i m agi n e s t wo typical you ths liv

s en t e e ,

throug h a d ay of typica l though ts and pursuits

ing each ,

m idst f surro u n di n g s h ar m o n ious wi th h is sp e ci a l

i n the O

taste s T ak e n o
.
t g e th e r t h e t w o li tt le po e m s g iv e a vi e w O f

the fe li which M ilto n l e d duri ng t h e fi v e h a ppy y ea rs O f h is

m
prep arati on for the p oe tic i istry wo d r ul y co pr s d,
n n e f l ,
m e s e

cl arifi e d and fix ed in p ermanen t sy m bols

,
.

T he n e xt two po e m s O f this p e riod w e re i n mas q u e f or m

one a f rag m e nt Arcades the o th e r a co m pl e t e m asqu e tak
, , ,
”
ing its titl e f ro m the chi ef ch aracte r Co m us , ,
Camus ”

god of rev elry (291mmg as wri t ten at the re

.

. .

st M il o s ri nd H e nr y Le w es a musici an who
’
q u e O f t n f e . ,

supplie d the m usic and playe d the p art O f the A tten d an t

,

Spirit wh en the m asqu e was presen ted ( 1 63 4 ) in the castl e O f

Lu dl o w o n the Wel sh b ord e r “ ”
, T he plot O f Cam u s is
.

Si m pl e and v e ry e ffective aff or di n g j u st a touch O f the

,

f an tastic m yth ol ogic al el e m e n t n e e d e d f or sc enic displ ay ,

y e t l e avi n g t h e m ai n i nt e r e st of the pi e c e tO c en tre up o n

the rich se ri ous po e try whi ch M ilt on puts i n to the m ouths

,

of his f e w ch aract e rs TW . I S an d a
M ’
‘
a stra y ,

by n ight in the fore st b e com e separate d the girlf tdfien

,

captiv e by Com u s and is led tO the pl ac e wh ere he dw ell s

,

su rrou n d e d by strange h alf b esti al creatu re s who m he has -

tran sfo r m ed He att em pts to work upon he r the sam e

.

t ransf ormation She r esists him r efu si ng to yi eld to the

.
,

a llur e m en t s O f s e nse and is a t l e ngth r e scu e d by he r br o th

,

e rs an d an att e nd an t s i ri who takg fl l e gmseni thm

p
rd It was ch aracte ri stic O f M ilton th at he
.

t a se ri ou s m oral l e sson i nto a form of sp e c

ts cu lar an d lyric e nt e rtai n m e n t u su ally O f th e m ost frivolous
ki nd F ortu nately his p ow er as an artist was SO d e ve l op ed
.
,

t h at he c ould ch arg e the d elic at e te xtur e of his m as q u e

with e thical d octri ne with out at all m arri ng its airy b eauty
, .
1 62 A H S I T O RY O F EN GLISH LI TE RATURE

boldly id entifie s with the first f or to him the poe t a nd the

,

preach e r were o ne in spi ri tu al aim S till more boldly in .

,
the s trang e proc e ssi o n O f cl assic a nd pse udo c lassic divi i
n
-

ti e s who m h e su m m ons to m our n ov e r L

ycidas he i n ,
cl u d es S a in t Pe te r the be a re r O f th
, e k eys of the C hurch
;
a nd he pu ts in his m ou th words
O f sol e m n wr ath ag ai n st
those bl i nd mouth s thos e worldl church me n who
”
,
y ,

fo r th e i r b e lly ’
s sa k e
C ree p , a nd i ntru d e , a n d clim b i n to th e fo l d

c losi ng with a Sh adowy m e nace of the pu nish ment which

is soo n to ov e rtak e the e ccle si astical corruption of the age .

Ly ci da s gather s up all the irid e sc e nt color and v ari e d m u sic

O f M ilton s youth f u l v e rs e i nd ee d O f the wh ol e Sp e n s e ri a n
’
, ,

sc ho ol and at the sam e ti m e by virtu e of the m oral pas

,

si on which bu rn s in i t it l ooks forw ard to the p e ri o d O f

,

public co mba t i nto which the p oe t was about to pl u nge .

T he twe n ty y ears O f Milto n s li fe as a public dispu ta nt

’

we m u st pass ov e r hurri e dly T h e y w er e pre ce d e d by a

.

p eri od O f trave l abroad ( 1 63 8 chi efly in Italy duri ng ,

which h e m e t Galil e o was e nte rtai ne d by t he I tali an

,

lit e rary acad em ie s and p ond e red m uc h upon a proj e cted

,

e pic p oe m on the subj e ct of K i ng A rthu r s w ars a subj e c t

’
,

sugge sted tO h im by th e epics O f T ass o and A riosto His .

ret u rn was h astened by n ews O f K i ng Ch arl es s e xp e dition ’

ag ai n st the Sc ot s a st e p wh ose s e riou s n ess M ilton w e l l

,

k ne w O nc e back in Lon do n he was draw n i nto a p a m

.
,

phl e t war on the ve x e d qu estion of E piscop acy T h e n .

fo ll owe d his ill starred m arri age and the writi ng O f his
-
,

pamphl e ts o n div orc e th ese w e re rece iv ed with asto n ish

m e nt and e x e cratio n by his c ou n trym en who did not se e that ,

mm ” , M ilt o n w a s o n ly bri ngi n g to b e ar upo n o ne iss ue ,

“
gr iffi n O f d om e s tic li f e th a t f r
,e e spirit O f qu e stio n
wm mg" e v e rywh e re be i ng appli e d to public i nstituti o ns ,

and e ve rywh e r e s re ad i ng ch ange t hr ough the soci al f a bric

p
O f E ngl and A noth er signal illustratio n O f Milto n s r e vo
’
.
 TH E S EVE NTEE NTH C ENTURY 1 63

l u tiona ry qu estion i ng foll ow ed in the sh ap e O f an attack

,

u po n th e c e n sorship O f the pre ss T he tim e h on or e d i nsti

.
-

tu ti e n O f the censorship he saw tO b e an i ntol e rabl e hi nd er

anc e t o f r e e d o m O f thought ; and in a p am phl e t e n titl e d

Areop agi ti ca he lau nch e d agai n st it all the thu nd ers an d

lightn i ngs O f his magnificen t rh e toric O n the e x e cuti on .

of th e K i ng ( 1 64 9) M ilt on was the fi rst to li ft up his voic e ,

am id the hush an d awe O f c onst e rnati o n i n d e fe nc e O f the ,

de e d. His p am p hl e t O n the Tenu re of K ings a nd M agi s

tra tes was O f su ch ti me ly se rvic e to t he Comm onwe alt h
rty th a t he was O ff e re d the p os itio n O f Lati n se cr e tary to
p a

Crom w e ll s gov e rnm en t his duti e s b e i ng to i n dite corre

’
,

spon de nce with for e ig n pow e rs and tO re ply to attacks by

,

fore ig n p am phl e te e rs O f i mp ortan c e In the m id st O f a

.

controv e rsy of this s o rt his e y e s fa il e d and in a short ti m e,

he wa s t otally bli nd . H e co n ti nu e d his duti e s wit h ,

A ndr e w M arve ll as his assistant u ntil he was dism is se d in

,

1 65 8 by Gen e ral M onk who was alre ady pl otti ng to re store

,

Ch arl e s s son to the thro ne as K i ng Ch arl e s II

’
, O n the .

king s re tu rn i n 1 660 Milton was forc ed to go i n to hidi ng

’
, ,

and h e b ar ely e sc ap e d p ayi ng with his li fe f or his f earl e ss sup

rt o f th e id e als and acti on s O f the Com monw e alth p arty

p o .

E v e r si nce his coll ege days M ilto n had b ee n l ooki ng for

ward tO u nd e rt a ki ng som e w ork of po e try l arge e n o ugh to
g iv e scop e t O a l l his p o w e r By 1. 6 4 2 h e h ad virtu ally
decid e d u po n the s u bj e ct O f t he fall O f A d am th o u g h he ,

at fi rst i nte n d ed to treat th e su bj e ct in the f orm O f a

dram a . Du ri ng the sixt ee n ye ars b e tw een 1 642 and

his dis m i ssal from the Latin s e cre taryship in 1 65 8 thi s ,

su bj e c t was s e ld o m l ong a bse n t f r om his m i nd In the .

midst O f the n ois e s and h oarse dispute s

”
i nto which he
had t h row n hi m sel f fo r p a t ri o tic s ervic e the only p oe tic ,

pr o d u cti o n which h e all o w e d hi m s e l f w as a s m a ll gr o up of

sonne ts w ritt e n at rare i n t e rv als an d d e ali ng fo r the m ost

,

p ar t with p assi ng e ve nts E xc ept for th e se he had hidd e n

.
,
“
that one tal e nt which is d eath to hid e but he mor e ,
1 64 A HISTORY OF E NGLISH LI TE RATUR E

than o nce turn ed asid e in his p amphl e ts to throw out a ,

proud hi nt conc e rni ng the work l aid upo n hi m by the

“ ”
great T ask maste r O f addi ng so me thi ng maj e stic a nd
,

mem orabl e tO the treasury o f E nglish ve rs e Me a nwhi le .

his chose n subj ect lay i n his m i nd gradu ally taki ng f o rm , ,

and gath e ri ng to its e l f th e rich e s O f lo ng study a nd re fl e c

tio n Wh en at l ast his d u ty as a p atriot was d o ne he

.
,

tu rned at o nce to his d efe rred task Forced to se e k s h e l .

Pa ad ise
r ter f ro m the st orm of the royalist reacti o n b e ,
“m y
carrie d with hi m i n to his hidi ng pl ac e the O p e n
ing book O f P a ra di se Los t be gu n two years earli e r , T he .

poe m was fi nishe d by 1 665 and was publish ed by an O h ,

scure pri nte r in 1 667 .

T he ce nt ral the me O f P a ra di se Los t namely the fa ll O f , ,

Adam f ro m a s ta te O f i nnoc e nce i n to a sta te of Si n o ccu pi e s ,

The v a n , “ a r el ative ly s mall sp ace i n the whol e sch e m e of

“m m m “ "
the poe m T he ac ti o n be gi ns i n h ea v e n be
.
,

fo re m an is c reated or the ea rth a nd i ts m i n iste ri ng

,

s p he res are hu ng out in spa ce The re be lli o n O f Luci fe r

.

ag ai ns t the o mni po te n t r u le r of H ea ve n the defea t O f t he ,

r be l a r mi es and th e ir ca s ti ng d o wn i nto the d rea ry ca ve r n

e

o f He ll whi ch has bee n ca rved o u t O f Ch aos to b e th e ir

.

r i so n h o u e : t he crea tio n O f t he te rres trial u n ive rse and

p s
-

t he se t t i ng o f man i n t he ga rd e n O f Ed e n tO ta k e t he p lace
o f t he a po s ta tc a ngel s in Go d s affect ion the e x pe d i ti o n O f
'

Lu cifcr fro m He l l to Eart h for t he pu rpose O f b e g u i li ng

t hc innoce nt pair the go i ng a nd co m i ng of Go d s m esse n
’

g e rs a nd sc n t i nc ls — a ll .t h i s co n s ti t u te s a v a s t d ra m a O f
u hic h t he act u al t e m t t i on and fall o f A d am i s o n l y a n
p a

c is o dc
p W . i t h t he e x ce p t i o n o f D a n t e no m o d e rn m i nd
ha m ncciv c d an action s o i m m e nse o r set a world d rama
s
.
-

o n a s ta e of su ch su b li m e di m e nsions
g .

l u t hc appr ov e d cpic ma nne r H ilto n . op ens his poe m in the m iddle

o f t hc a ct i o n. a f t e r t hc r chcl l i o ns a ng e ls hav e b e e n can d own i nto H e ll .

Thc c arl u r c \ cu rs arc ci‘ cu in m u m “ narra ti v e by t b e archange l

Raphacl a nd b} Adam .
 A HI STO RY O F E NGLI SH LI TERA TURE

O r wh e th e r th o u , to ou r m oist vo ws de ni e d ,
Slee p st b y t he ta b le of B e lle ru s o ld ,
’

Wh e re the grea t Vi s i on o f t h e gu ard e d

Lo o ks to wa rd N a m a ncos a n d B a y o na s
’

Th ese li nes ta ke n in the ir prope r c o nn

,

th at sy nth esi s o f the maj estic a nd

we ca ll subli mity T h e y s how th a t
.

to Milton s m i nd But i t is highl y

’
.

th ose years of s te m re pre ssio n whe n hi s im ,

h eld back by his will gai ni ng mome nt um like

,

u p w a te rs of a st re am he would n e v e r h av e
,

pe culiar m ighti nes s of i mage ry and phrase

P a rad is e Los t to d ese rve as does pe ,

o f lite rature the e pi th e t subli me

, .

li mity Mil to n gai ned only at the e xp ense o f

o f his y o uth f u l work which we would fai n

ke e p .Grace lightne ss a iry ch arm

, th e se
, ,
-

h im forev e r wh e n he took up his a rt agai n

“
sile nce T he art of L Allegro and Co m
.
’

a nd si nu ous as the trace ry of d anc

v ase had giv en place to a n art as

,

the f re sc oe s o f Michae l An gelo d e picti ng the ,

of the crea ti o n a nd d e structio n o f the w o rld .

T he ch a nge in the qu ality of thought and

cours e a cc o m p ani ed by a change i n styl e
, .

M ilto n d elib e r ately

E ngli sh measur es ;
ce ed e d to buil d o u t

u n known ad mirably sui te d to the gran

,

T he chi e f pe culi a rity of this Mi lto nic

and i nvoluti o n of p e riod T he s ens e .

through many li nes whil e cla use afte r ,

e nrich t he m eani ng or to magni fy the

t hen the p eri od cl ose s and this s us pen d ,

ing falls upo n the mi nd l ik e the co m bi ng

o n the shore A se cond and scarcely l ess
.
 TH E SE VE N TE E N TH C E NTURY 1 67

t e ri stic( though h ardly so n o v e l ) is th e e xtr e m e v ari e

, ty of
p au s e th e s e n s e c o m e s to a n e nd and the susp e n d e d ,

t h o ught fal ls at con stan t ly v aryi ng pl ac e s in the li n e a

, ,

d e vic e by which bl ank ve rse m on ot onous wh e n oth e rwise

,

t re a t e d b e co m e s the m ost dive rsifi e d of rhyth m s

, In th es e .

a n d o t he r w ays M ilto n m ad e f or hi m se lf a subli m e v e rs e

i n s tr u m en t to m atch his sub li m e i m age ry and th e me T he .

m u sic of the Horton p oe m s co m pared with t hat of P a ra

,

d i se Los t is lik e the me lody of the si ngi ng voic e b e sid e

,

t h e man i fold harm onics of an orc he stra or the rolli ng chant ,

o f a c a th e dral org an .

I n 1 672 f our ye ars af te r the publicatio n of P a radi se

,

L os t app eare d M i lto n s third v olu m e of v e r se

’
, ( T h e col .

l e g e and Horton p oe m s had b ee n publish e d i n It

c o n sist e d o f P a ra d i s e Rega i ned a suppl e m e n t to P a ra di se
,

L os t ; and of
w
Sa mson Agom s i es,
’

M —
a nn ark on an mu mm m w xch M in n had
t
P
h o u ght
a r a di se
of
W
R g d eals wrt Christ s tem pts
e a i ned

t i o n by S atan in th e Wi ld er ness
W
In his first e pic M ilt on
.
’
»

“gamed

h a d sh own how m anki nd i n the p erso n of A d am fal ls b e

, ,

f o re th e wile s of the T e m pte r a nd b eco m e s an outcast fro m

,
“

d i v i n e grace in his s ec ond he shows how m anki nd in the ,

p e r s o n o f J e sus wi n s r e
, ad m issio n to divi n e gr a c e by wit h
s ta n di ng the h e lli sh adve rs ary By ge ne ral con sent P a ra
.

d i s c R ega i ned is giv e n a m u ch l owe r pl ac e th an P a ra di se

L os t in spit e of p assage s th at ris e to an i m pre ssive h e ight
, .

T h e p oe t s w eari ne ss is m anifest ; his epic v e i n see m s e x

’

h a n s te d . Sams on Agoni s tes howe v e r a v e nt , Sams n , o

fi r e i n a n ew fi eld of po e try shows M ilton s

’
,

ius t its subtl s t and m aturest His d sir w t b i g

g e n a e e e a s o . r n

o v e r i n to E nglish the gravity and c al m d ign ity of the Gree k

t r age di es ; and avoidi ng the li f el e ss e ff e ct of pre vious e x

,

p e ri m e n t s o f t he sort to giv e
, to his g ra v e an d c al m tr ea t m e n t
t h e p assion the con victi on the ki n dli ng b re ath with o ut
, ,

w hich poe try cannot e xist Two circu m stances m ade this
.
1 68 A HISTORY or E N G LISH LI TERATURE
not only easy but al m ost i nevitable f or him In the first
, .

place his ch aracte r lof ty and ard ent to b egi n with had
, ,

now u n d e r m isf ort u ne an d s acrific e tak en on just th at

se re ne and m el anch oly gravity p e culiar to the g rea t tragic

poe ts of antiquity In the s e co nd place the sto ry of Sam
.
,

son was i n a se ns e his own story

, , Lik e S am son he h ad
.

f ought agai nst the Philisti n e s with th e strength of th i rty

m e n ; he had t ak e n a wi f e f ro m amo ng his e ne m i e s and
su ffe r e d bit te r loss a t h e r h an ds ; he sat now bli nd and dis ,

h onored am id the triu m ph of t he Cavali e rs as S a m son

, ,

am o ng the holid ay m aki ng P hilisti ne s

-
A S he wrote his
.
,

own p e rs o nal bitt e rn e ss f ou n d v e il e d e xpre ssio n ; an d t he

gra nd chorus es wi th th e ir d ark and s moth e red m usic pul

, ,

sate with p e rsonal feeli ng .

M il ton liv e d for th ree ye ars afte r the publicatio n o f his

l ast p oe m s M uch of his p atri m ony had disapp eare d i n the
.

mm,“ r e a djust m e n ts o f th e R e st o ra ti o n an d i n,the

La““m
g reat London fi re of 1 666 but h e was still abl e
to live in mo de st c o mf o rt The p ai nte r Rich ardson giv es
.

us a gli m pse of the poe t duri ng his l ast y ears as h e was ,

le d ab out the stree ts cl ad in a gray cam bl et co at or as he sa t ,

i n a gray co arse cl oth co at a t the door of his house near ,

B u nhill F i eld s to re c e iv e visitors

,
La t ely
. c ontin u es
,
“
Rich ardson , I had the g oo d f ortu ne to h ave an o th er
picture of him fro m an aged cl ergy m an i n Dorse tshire .

I n a s m all hous e u
p o n e p air o f st a irs which w as ,

hu ng with rusty gree n he fou nd J oh n Mi lto n Sitti ng in

, ,

a n e lb o w ch air black cloth es and ne at enou gh p a l e but

,

n ot c ad av e rous his h ands and fi ng e rs g outy an d with

,

ch alk s tones ”
. Wh en we co m pare the figure t hus sugge sted
with the portrait p ai nted in his twenty fi rst year we real -
,

ize how far and u n d e r wh at public and private stre ss Mil ,

ton h ad trave ll e d f rom the wo rl d of his youth In m ak i ng

.

hi mself ove r f rom Eliz ab e th an to Cro m welli an he had su f

fe red m uch and re nou n c e d m uch ; he had lost many of
those genial h u man q u aliti es which h ave won for less
1 70 A HISTO RY OF E N G LISH LIT E RATURE

on ly the origi nal Hebre w and Greek tex ts and the Latin ,

V ulgate b u t also the various English translatio ns f ro m

,

Wyclif dow n T h ey succee ded in bl endi ng toge th e r the

.

p eculiar e xc ell e ncie s of all the se with the re su l t th a t we ,

posse ss in the K i ng J am e s Bible a m o n u ment of E nglish

prose holdi ng of no particul ar age but gathe ri ng up i nto ,

itse lf the stre ngth and swee tness of all ages .

The i nfl u e nc e of this m ighty book upo n the lite rat u r e of

the s e v e nteen th ce n tury altho u gh great was restricte d by
, ,

o circu m st c s I t h first pl c h
“ r
i
g
an e n
in gay ?“ Ible was early m ono oh zed by the P u ri tan
e a e
.

t e ,

a m “the p
ce nt u y r '
party ; and biblical phraseology and i m agery
b e cam e associ ated with an ideal of li fe which at lea st in ,

the gri m and asc e tic form it assu m e d u nde r J am e s and

Ch arl e s was distastef u l to m ost of the mak e rs of lite ra
,

tu re In the se co nd pl ac e Lati n was still h eld in supe r

.
,

sti ti ou s re ve renc e am o ng cultivate d m en ; and write rs w e nt

to that l angu age for i nstructio n negle cti ng the rud e r but ,

m o re vital e xce ll e nci es abou ndi ng in the prose of the Bibl e .

Bu nyan howe ve r was at o nce a Puritan of the

, ,
Upon B ny an u .

P uritan s an i nsti nctive artist and an nu

, ,

l earne d man to who m Lati n was o nly a nam e H e nce the

,
.

gran de ur Si m plicity and force of biblic al prose ac ting

, , ,

witho u t any i nte rference upon his pas sio nate ly earnest
i magi natio n mad e him all u nknow n to hi m self a great
, , ,

w rite r .

J oh n Bu nyan ( 1 62 8 1 688) was born in the vill age of

-

E l stow B e d fordshi re
, His fath e r was a ti nke r a trad e
.
,

th e n co nsid e red little above vagabondage Af te r a Slight .

schooli ng and a Short e xp e ri en ce of soldi eri ng in the Civi l

,

War ( on which Sid e is u nk nown) b e marri e d a wi fe as poor ,

’
m Ra mon,
s a s hi m s el f a n d took up his
, fa th e r s tr a d e o f p o t
St e“
ag a n d k e ttl e m e n d e r B e for e
-
this how e v.e r th e re , ,
‘ m nd ‘ng
u
h ad begu n in him a spiritu al struggl e so te rrible
a nd SO vivid as we se e it i n the p ag e s of his Grace A bou nd
,

i ng to the Chi ef of Si nners ( pu bli shed t hat by

 TH E S EV ENTEENT H C ENTURY 1 71

contrast the e v ents of his oute r life are pallid and u nreal
’

As he wre stl e d and playe d a t tip cat wit h his village m ate s -

on th e green or stood i n the towe r of the church to watch

,

the b ell ri n gi ng he was h au n te d by thoughts of sudden

-
,

death of the J udgm ent Day and of his soul s dam natio n
, ,
’
.

He sa w an aw ful Fac e looki ng dow n f rom the clouds and ,

heard a voice aski ng wh e th e r he w ould leave his si ns and

go to H eav en or have his si ns and go to He ll T he til es
, .

upo n the house roofs the puddle s i n the road spoke to

-
, ,

hi m with vo ic e s of te m ptatio n and m ock ery F ro m this .

re ligi ou s i nsanity he was rescue d by a Mr Gi ff ord a local .

,

prea ch er who gave him com fort and courage Soo n B u n

, .

y an hi m s e l f b eg an to preach an d a re vulsio n of fe e li ng
now li ft e d hi m to he ights of e cstatic joy in the m erci f ul

neSS of God and the b e auty of holi ne ss He saw Christ .

hi m se l f looki ng do wn at him through the tiles of the

hous e roof sayi ng My grace is su ffi ci ent for thee
-
, and

the se ns e of salvatio n cam e lik e a sudden noise o f wi nd

”
rushi ng in at the wi ndow but v ery pleasant , In all this .

we see i n its most i nte ns e for m the r eligious e xcitem e n t of

the s e ven te enth century and also the q u aliti e s of i magi
,

natio n and feeli ng which m ak e Bu ny an so powe rf ul a

write r .

At the Re storatio n p e rs e cutio n of the no nconf orm ist

,

se cts be gan Bu nyan was arre ste d f or holdi ng illegal re

.

ligiou s meetings and he Sp ent the ne xt tw e lv e

“te m “ :
years in confinem en t earni ng bread for his fam
,
g ggin g i

i ly by p u tti ng tags to Sh oe l ac e s and k ee pi ng -

,

his m ind awak e by writi ng wh at he was no lo nger at lib

erty to sp eak In the m idst of a sob e r c o ntrov e rsi al work
.
,

he h app ene d to e m ploy the trit e m e taphor of a journe y to ,

typi fy the Christi an li fe At o nce the figure began to grow

.

an d blosso m ; a throng of pictur e s and dram atic i ncide nts

starte d up bef ore his m i nd Al m ost before he kne w it the

.

metaphor had grow n i nto a book and The P i lgri m s P rog

’
,

ress one of the thre e gr eat all egori e s of the world s lit e ra
’
,
 A H I ST O RY O F E N GLI SH

ture was w ritten Bu nyan seems to

,
‘ .

ast o nish e d at the ease w i th which the

littl e frightened a t the pl easure it gav e

sol e mn th e

1678 , Si x yea rs t r
af e his re l ea s e from pri so n .

cin a tions ov el the fairy tal e an d

of the n ,
-
,

adv en t u re T he no v el the gre a t li te rary

.
,

n e xt ce ntu ry a ppea rs h e r e i n its ge r m

, .

m Sub ject physica l world through which

m m“ neys fro m the
“
Wi ck e t ga te -

B e ul ah pictured wi th the
,

w ayfarers

p e ople are ,

stam p th e m
im po ssibl e for a rea d e r of P i ly
the j o urne y oth erwis e th a n as
And add e d to the ch ar m which the
its c har m as rom an ce If in one .
,

to ha ve u sh e red in the e ightee nth

o th e r it m ay be sai d to h a v e r e viv e d

i n which the h e ro was m ad e

na tural an d s u p e rna tural on ,

d e sires Gi an t De spair i n his gri m cas tl e t he obsce ne

.
,

d e vils cree pi ng and m utte ri ng i n the V all ey of the Sha dow ,

the d re ad ful e ne my Apollyo n the angels and archa ngels ,

who l ead the way with h arpi ngs and hosannas from the
, ,

“The othe rs all ud e d Spe nce r s Faeri e

’
ue ens and Da nte ’
to are Q s
 CHAPTER IX
TH E SEVENTE EN TH C E N T URY : TH E RESTO RATIO N

TH E date 1 660 is one of the m ost signi fi cant in the history

of E n glish lite rature , as it is i n the history of En glish

politics In that year Ch arle s II was brough t to the

. .

throne f rom which his fath e r had been drive n The e x .

travagant joy with which the ki ng was re c e ive d on his

re tur n f rom e xil e Showe d how clos ely this ch ange of gov
,

e rnme nt f ro m co m m o n wealth to ki ngship corr e spon d e d

to a change in the m ood of the natio n The p ass i o nate .

T h e B em m a bsorptio n i n othe r worldli ness which was the

-
,
“m“ e sse nce of P uritanis m had as we h a ve s e en
, ,

ch eck e d the frank d elight i n this w

,

orld and inte re st i n the

,

probl em of livi ng succe ssfully there which were of the ,

Renaiss an c e . But the Puritan id eal by its ve ry na t u re

, ,

could app eal dire ctly to comp aratively few Indir e ctly .
,

i nd e ed by f orce of e xam ple it i nflu enced many ; b u t the

, ,

multitu d e at l ength gre w w eary of pl ayi ng a p art so e x

hau sting and so difii cnlt . D uri ng the l atte r y ears of the
Co m m on w ealth Signs of a re la x e d te mp e r on the p a r t o f
t he public w e re not l acki ng ; for e xampl e lic ense s w e re ,

given for op eras to b e p erforme d in Lon don Wh en at .

l ength the l eaders of the Com monwealth forsook th eir own

id eal and c onfe sse d its failure the mass of the na tio n
,

t ur ned with reli ef to the pl easure s and i nt ere sts of the

present world ready to regard with compl ac ency e ve n the
,

e xc esse s th at ch aracte riz e d the court of Ch arl e s II .

The Re sto ratio n p eriod must not be thought of how e v er , ,

as a con ti n u atio n of th e i nte rrupt e d Rena issanc e Be tw een .

th em th ere is an i mportant di ff erenc e In the age of E l iz

.

1 74
 TH E SEV EN TEE N TH C EN TURY 1 75

a be th, as in the age of Charl e s

his successors II . and ,

the l ea ding m o tive was ind e e d t he e xhibitio n of physic al

and m e nt al powe r on the Stage of this li fe , but the E liz

ab e th an thought of this li fe n ot as li m ite d an d con

tract ed by circ u mstances and conditions but as h avi ng nu ,

me asure d possibiliti e s Not only the ge o graphical world

.
,

but the i ntellectu al world also was b ei ng enlarged and ,

thrown op en T he bou nds of hu man thought as well as

.
,

th ose of hu m an activity seem e d i nfi nitely re ,

b°
m ote the i magi natio n d eali n g with powe r as fififif fig
'

mm
,

in Marlow e or with k nowl e dge as in B aco n {

, }?, ,

took wi ngs to itself and fle w But in the te m $33.33 n .

p e ra m e n t o f th e Re stora tio n p e riod th e r e w as

d ep end ence on the re sources of actu al life without f aith ,

i n the e xte nsion of those re sourc es T h e re was the dis .

positio n to accept the pre sent in its narrow s ense to

m
,

e xploit li fe on the narrow grou nds tha tance s

afi ord e d .

T his sens e of pre sent fact of realism as disti nguish ed , ,

from the transc end e n talis m of Re naissanc e and P uritan

thought is the chi ef characteristic of the m ood
Characteristi cs
,

of the c en tury which succe e de d the Re storatio n

In sci enc e it sh ow ed itse lf as an absorption in the

n
goi gg om .

m
d e tails of i nvestigation as opposed to the gene raliz atio ns of
,

Bacon In politics it Show ed itsel f in the i nterest in actu al

.

conditions as opposed to dream s of th eocracy In all

, .

dire ctions it app eared as a disposition toward conservatis m

and m od era tion Men had l earned to fe ar i ndividu al e u
.

thu siasm and th e re fore th ey tri e d to discourage it by set

,

ti ng up id eals of conduct i n accord ance with re ason and

co m mon se ns e to which all m e n should ad apt the m selve s
, .

T h e y tri ed to look alik e to b e h av e alik e to w rit e alik e

, , .

Rul es of e tiqu e t te and s oci al co nve ntions w e re e stab

lished and the probl em of li fe b ec am e th at of se l f
,

e xpre ssio n withi n the narrow bou nd s whic

h w ere thu s
prescribe d .
1 76 A HIST O RY OF E NGLISH LIT ERATURE

T he lite rature of the p e ri od re fle cts th ese te nd e n ci e s .

O n its se riou s sid e it is l arge ly conc e rne d with politics ,

th t is w ith th e e ff ort of m e n to organ iz e the

Re storati on
a ,
Li t e t m
fa
state and to give it powe r su fli cie nt to re strai n
°

i ndividu al am bitio n T he lighte r lite rature re fle c ts the

.

i ntere st of m e n i n l earni ng to live with one anoth er .

N atu rally it is m uch c onc e rn ed wi t h lif e in town and

, ,

with d e tails of dre ss and man ne rs which are i m portant

th ere But the m ost n ot e worthy e vi dence of the te m p er
.

o f the ti m e i n lite rature is the t acit agre e m en t of wri te rs ,

bot h in prose and po e try up on ru l e s and pri n cipl e s in ao

,

cordance with whi ch th e y should write T he acc e ptance .

of t hese lite ra ry c o n v e n tio n s dra wn f ro m the prac t ic e of

writers of the past m arks the di ffe re nce be tween the cla ssi c
,

age of D ryd e n and P op e an d the roma nti c i ndi vid u alistic

, ,

e po ch of Sp e n s er and Sh ak e sp e are .

I n this di ff e re nc e the i nflu e nc e of F ranc e cou nte d for

m u ch Th e re the re actio n agai n st the p oe tic lic e n se of
.

t he Re nai ssan c e had se t i n som e wh at e arli e r

The l m ence u
.

“m m“ Its f or e m ost r epr e sen t ativ e Malh erb e liv e d , ,

a t the t ime w hen H en ry IV and Ri ch eli e u w e re l a yi ng

.

f o u nd atio ns for the re c on str u ctio n o f the F rench m on

ar chy ; and h e re pr ese n ts a sort of corre spo ndi ng e sta blish

m e nt of ord e r and discipli ne i n lit e ratu re Malh e rb e .

re gul ate d v ersifi cation con d e m ne d lice nse in rhy me and

, ,

waged war agai nst a ll h arsh ne ss and obsc u rity of e xp re s

s i on .In Sh ort he an ticip a te d the w ork of D ryd e n and
,

Pop e in E ngl an d The i n flu e nc e of M alh e rb e was su ppl e

.

m e n te d by that of Cor ne ill e and Raci ne who d e v e l o p e d a ,

d ram a on the li ne s of Lati n tragedy succ eedi ng w he re the ,

E nglish cl assici sts of the Sixt e e nth c entu ry had Signally

f ail e d A t the sam e ti me M oli er e d e v el op ed realistic co m
.

e dy , in pro se an d v e rs e It m ust b e re m e mb e re d th at
.

m any E nglish m e n of the cl ass which c are d for lite ra

ture and the stage sp e nt ye ars of e xil e i n F rance an d
, ,

n aturally cam e to acc ept the pri ncipl e s of F rench taste .

1 78 A HISTORY or E N G LISH LI TE RATURE

with these f rom The H i nd a nd the P a nther of Dry

den
A m i lk -whi te h i nd , i mm o rta l and u nch a nge d ,
F e d o n th e la wn s, a n d i n th e fo res t rang d
’

W i th o u t u n sp o tte d , innoce nt wi thi n,

She fear d
’
no d an ge r fo r She kn ew no si n.

In the first it is cl ear the coupl et e xerts li ttle control over

, ,

the tho ught ; i n the se co nd th e thought is li m ite d and reg

u late d by the acc ept an c e of a pre cise an d narrow f orm ;

and this li m itatio n and re gul ation w ere of the e sse nce of

Re storatio n po etry .

T he first wri te r to u se con sistently the closed couplet

was E d m u nd Wall e r ( 1 605 AS early as 1 623 in ,
“
li nes on His Maj e sty s Escap e at Sai n t An ’

Wall e r.
dre w he se t the steady measured ste p which
”
, ,

succee di ng poe ts we re to foll ow with m ili tary pre cision

for m ore than a ce ntury His i nflu ence howe ve r be came
.
, ,

pred om i nant only through the e xtraordi nary energy and

succe ss of his pu pil the greate st lite rary figure of the age
,

of C h arl e s II J oh n Dryd e n
.
, .

Dryden was bor n i n 1 63 1 at Aldwi nkl e in N orthampton ,

shire his p arents bei ng of the upp e r m iddle class and of

, ,

P uritan sy m pathi e s He was sent to Westm i nste r School

.
,

and th ence i n 1 65 0 to T ri n ity Coll ege Cambridge w he re he

“

, , , ,

re m ai ned s e v e n years D u ri n g this ti me his fa the r di ed

.
,

l eavi ng him a s mall prop erty His fi rst i mportan t v e rse was
.

an e l e gy o n the d eath O f Cro m w ell writte n in 1 65 8 T wo , .

yea rs late r however Dryd en with the mass of English men

, , , ,

had b eco me an ard e n t royalist ; and he wel come d the re

turn o f Charle s in a poe m in couple ts calle d A s tra a Ro
,

da r . In 1 663 he marri ed Lad y Eli za be th H oward a ,

wo man O f high e r rank th an his own It may have been .

my“, the de si rability of i n creasi ng his income that

“y ”fie
,

ju st be fore this marriage drove Dryden to write ,

his first co medy The Wi ld Ga lla nt It certainly was his

, .

accu mu lati ng finan cial necessi ti es that kept him writing for
 TH E SEV E N TEE NTH C E NTURY 1 79

t he stage constantly down to 1 681 Duri ng this p eriod .

h is o nly poem of i mportanc e was A nnns M i ra bi li s

a c hr o nicl e of e v e nts of the pre c edi ng ye ar which had b een ,

d i s ti nguish e d by s e ve ral victori e s at sea ove r the Dutch ,

a n d by the gr eat Lon do n fi re .

I n 1 681 Dryd en b egan the succe ssion of politi cal po em s

w h ich h ave ge ne rally b een ac cou nt ed his b e st works The .

t i m e s we re troubl e d T he court and the cou ntry we re

.

d i v ide d b e twee n the p a rtisans of the ki ng s broth e r who

’
, ,

t h o ugh a Papist was re cogniz e d as the h e ir to the thro ne

, ,

a n d thos e of the ki ng s ill egi ti mate son the Duk e

’
,
Hi s Sa ti res
o f M o nm outh who m c e rt a i n p e rs ons z eal ous f or
.

t h e P rote stan t faith w e re dispos ed to set up as a riv al can

d id ate . T he l ead e r of the l atte r p arty was the Earl of
Sh aftsbury In the story of the r evolt of Absalo m agai nst
.

K i n g David D ryd en fou nd an apt p arallel to e x isti ng

,

c i rcu m stanc e s in E ngl an d ; and his sa tire A bsa lom a nd

A chi top hel e xpose d the rel ations of Mo nm outh the pri nce , ,

a n d Sh af tsbury the e vil cou nsellor with m e rcil e ss hu m or

, , .

T h e poem be c ame i m me ns ely popul ar The ne xt year .

D ryd e n followed it with a se co nd blow at Shaftsbury i n

The M ed a l T h en he t u rne d asid e in M acF leclcnoe to
.

a ttack a riv al po e t Shadwe ll who had b e en e m ploye d by

, ,

th e Whigs to r eply to The Meda l In this year also Dry .

, ,

d e n e xte nd e d his r ange i nto the fi eld of religious contro

v e rsy with Religi o La i ci a v ery t e m p e rat e state m e nt of a
, ,

lay m an s faith in the Church of E ngl and T hree years

’
.

af te r this co nfe ssio n of faith Dryd e n b e came a Ro man

,

C a tholic and in 1 687 he publish e d a politic al d efe nc e o f

,

th e C hurch of Ro me call ed The H i nd a nd the P a nther .

All this politic al and religiou s writi ng b rought hi m dis

ti nction and a mode st i n com e In 1 670 he was mad e
, .

Histori ograph e r Royal and Poe t Laureate with a sal ary of ,

two hu n dre d pou n ds a ye ar Lat e r he re c e iv ed a p en si on

.

of a hu ndr e d pou nds a y ear an d i n 1 683 he was mad e

,

Colle cto r of the Port of London Al l th e se ho nors and .

1 80 A HISTORY OF E NGLISH LIT ERATURE

e mo lu ments lost in conse qu ence of the Revoluti on of

he
1 688 and the acc e ssi on of Willi am III H e was oblige d to .

m Late
, b e
, t ak e hi m s e l f agai n to the stage as the m ost
lucrative de p artment of literature ; to acce pt
ai d f rom private p atro n s in pl ac e of the roy al bou n ty ; to

contract with T o nso n the booksell e r to produce and

, ,

d e liv e r te n thou san d li nes of ve rs e for three hu n dred

gui neas an d to u nd e rtak e v arious j obs of translatio n f or
,

the s am e em ploy er In short in his old age D ryd e n was

.
,

co mp ell ed to illustrate al m ost all the me thods by which a lit

cr ary m an could liv e N e v e rth el ess his producti on in th e se
.
,

years add e d m uch to his fam e Wh ate ve r may b e thought .

of his po e tical qu aliti e s at l eas t his li te rary en e rgy l ast ed

,
J
w ell . His work of this ti m e i n clud e s his transl ati on of
Virgil ; m any of his tran sl ations fro m Horac e O v i d J u , ,

ve nal Pe rsius and Hom e r and his rend eri ngs i n to m od

, ,

e rn E nglish v e rs e of sto ri es f rom Ch a uc er am on g which‘ ,

the P a la mon a nd A rci te is b e st know n T h ese twice told‘ .

-

t al e s w e re publish e d in 1 699 i a volu e m f F a bles whicl‘ l

‘

n o i
, ,

—
contai ne d also his b est lyrical poe m Al e xand e r s ,
’

Duri ng th e s e l ast years Dryd en liv e d constan tly in Lon

,

don . T he co ff e e hous e of th at day was the chi e f p lace

- a e

of re so rt for lite r ary m e n m uch as the Paris caf e h as

,
E‘ s -

A t Will s or B u tto n a
’
b ee n in the ni n e teenth ce ntury .
8 ’

the wits gath e re d f or e xch ange of court esi e s or for co m

b at th e re th e ir ad m ir e rs or p atr on s m e t th e m 5
Hi Last
s
a nd th e n c e w e n t forth the criticism th a t m ad e ;

o r marr e d the fortu ne s of risi ng men as sur ely as do ma

an o ny m ous r e vi e ws in a m o d e rn lite rary jour nal D ry d e rs —j .

f re qu e n t e d Will s wh e re he was as m uch a m onarch afl

’
,

B e n J on son had b een at the Me rm aid or as a cen tury , ,

late r S amu el J ohnso n was at the Lite rary Cl u b

,
It wa -S .

to Will s th at you ng Pop e was brought to gaze on gr e at :

’

ne s s an d b e i n spire d ; and it was th e re also th a t Dryd e n

dism isse d his youth ful re l ative with the pityi ng C ous i n
Swi ft you will ne ver b e a po e t
, In an age wh en th e .
1 82 A H I STO RY OF EN G LI SH LITERATURE

and a pprop ri ate the id eals o f Lati n civilization and in this ,

diff usio n the work O f Dryd e n cou n ted for m uch In the .

se cond place the subj e ct m atte r of his original poe try the
, ,

aff airs o f church and state is re m ot e f ro m wh at we regard ,

as po e tic But h e re agai n D ryde n was respondi ng to the

.

d e mands of his age In the days of Charle s II men were

. .

weary of revolutio n T o them the ki ngship and the .

church Anglican or Catholic we re i nte resting and bea uti

, ,

f u l b e cause th e y re pre sente d for the mass of the natio n

, , ,

an id ea l of i n dividu al re strai nt j ust as to an earlie r ti me

the bou ndl e ss sel f assertion of Faustus and Tam burl ai ne
-

had b ee n i n te re sti ng and be auti ful f or the opposite

reaso n .

No t o nly the substance b u t the f orm of Dryd en s v e rse

’
,

has b een a grou n d for d e traction from his fam e Fe w .

poe ts of the m od e rn world h ave mai n taine d such strict

u ni for mity With the e xception of the lyrics in his
.

dramas of seve ral od es and of two early po ems in the

, ,

h eroic st anz a Dryde n cultivate d steadily the h eroic c ou p

,

T he Quality le t . H IStO I lcally t he

’
accou nt O f thi s fo rm has
°f m“” an"
b een given (p age The he roi c coupl e t ap
p eal ed with irre sis tibl e fo rce to an age weary of the con
cei ts of f ee bl e ro m an ticists an d d e siri ng ab ov e al l u ni , ,

form ity p re cisi on and r egul arity

, It was m ore ove r a
, .
, ,

v ehicl e st riki ngly adapted to the conv eyance of the li te rary '

baggage of the ti m e Whe n at the close of Religi o La w;

.

Dryde n says ,

An d th i s u np o li she d ru gge d v erse I ch o se

As fi tte st fo r d i sco u rse , a n d neares t p ro se ,

his second li ne may be tak en as referring to his po ems in

general In th e m we look for the virtu es of prose rather
.

th an for those of poetry for the utilitarian qu aliti e s neat , ,

n e ss cl e arn e ss e ne rgy
, rath e r than for imaginati ve sug
, ,

gestion ; we look for epigram in plac e of m etaphor for ,

boldly marke d rhyth m i nstead of e lusive h armony .

 THE SEVENTEE NTH C ENTURY 1 83

Although in the gre at body of his work Dryd en k e pt

to the co u ple t form , his ode s and the songs with which
,

his dramas are stre w n Show th at he p osse ss ed p ower ov e r

,

a vari e ty of m e tre s T he two od e s for S ai nt Ce cili a s Day

’
.
,
”
e sp e ci ally the se con d c all e d Al e xande r s Feast illus ’
, ,

trate his skill in m aki ng his li ne s m arch to the m eas u re of

his thought It is tru e even in his lyrics Dryd en s charm
.
,
’

is ra th e r one of li ne and gene ral m ove ment th an of phrase

or w ord He has littl e of the m agic and gl amour that
.

belong to po e ts of deep e r though p erh aps less ampl e in

, ,

spiration His b est qu ality is artistic and lite rary not

.
,

i magi native .

Dryd e n was not o nly the fore most poe t but also the m ost ,

cO p i ou S d ram atist an d the chi ef critic of his ti m e

,
T he age ,
.

of th e Re storation was as we h av e alre ady note d a p e riod

, ,

of assi mil ati on ra th e r th an of cre ation a ti m e wh en m en ,

we re i nte reste d in te sti ng the prod u ct of earli er age s and in ,

wi nnowing the good from the b ad T his i nterest accou nts .

f or the fact th at to m any of his works Dryd en

pre fixed one or m ore critical e ssays in the f orm
of d e dic atio n s or pr efac e s i n which he discusse d the l e ad
,

i ng artistic qu e stio n s of the d ay A m ong th e se e ssays the

.

m ost i mportan t are An E ss ay of D ramatic Po esy

A De fe n c e of an E ssay of Dram atic Poe sy Of
” “
He roic Plays the Essay on S atire an d

the Pr efac e to the F a bles It is to be n ote d that

th e se writi ngs w ere all occasional each put forth to an ,

swe r a p articu l ar purpose ; and in the success with which

th e y fulfill ed th e ir purpose th ey are one i m portan t Sign of
lite rary progress T he virtu e of effi ci ency in prose styl e
.

’
was stre ngth e ne d e norm ously by D ryd en s practic e .

Dryd en s pros e l acks the p e rso nal e cc e ntri city which we

’

fi nd i n Burto n Brow ne and th e ir c onte mporari e s ; an d it

, ,

is usu ally without the artifici al de coratio n which marks th e

styl e O f Lyly and Sidne y Dryd e n did not look upo n prose
.

as i m port an t e nough to b eauti fy He occupi e d hi mself .

1 84 A HIST O RY or E NGLISH LI TE RATURE

with the f orm as littl e m ight be ,

xcept to se cure its fit
as e

n e ss for a w e ll d e fi ne d end -
M ore ov e r by his adoption of
.
,

th e m od e rn se nte nc e in pl ac e of the u n it of
g re at and u ne qu al l ength use d by Ral e igh and
M ilton Dryd e n carri ed out in prose a ch ange e x actly anal
,

ogou e to th at acc om pli sh e d in v e rs e by his a doptio n of the

coupl e t i n pl ace of th e stanz a In oth e r words he did for .

p rose wh at he did for poe try he re duced the u n it of treat

m e n t to m an age abl e siz e ; se t an e x am pl e o f c orre ct ne ss ;
and fi nally by his authority did m uch to e stablish such
, ,

a stan d ard o f taste as r end e re d i m possibl e the e cc e n tric

iti e s to which the prece di ng ce nt u ry had been ind u l

ge n t .

In both his poe try an d his pros e Dryden repre se n ts the

spirit of his age as it showe d itself in deali ng with i ts m ost
i m port an t probl em s of life an d art He is at botto m a se ri .

ou s a nd i nte ll e ctu al m ast e r For the m o re nai ve and u n

.

c on sci ous e xpressi on of the ti me we m ust turn to othe rs .

Like E liz ab e th and C h arl e s I Ch arl e s II k e pt i n som e .

, .

sort a lite rary cou rt of which lyric po etry and satire w e re

,

the l angu age The co u rtly po e ts of the ti m e the succ e s

.
,

sors of the c avali ers caught f rom the ki ng an attitud e of

,

moral i ndi ff e renc e and s oci al fiippancy In th e ir circl e s the .

m o st pop u l ar w ork was a fi e rc e and scurrilous satire up on

the P u rit an S am u el B u tl e r s H u di bm s
’
, Butle r ( 1 61 2 .

1 680) was do u btl e ss m e ditati ng his attack duri ng the y e ars

B t l er ,
u
o f t he P ro t e ct ora t e wh e n h e was acti n g as pri ,
"
"
H d bm
u l
v at e se cre tary to a Puritan n oblem an T hree
8 '

y ears afte r the acc essi on of Ch arl e s II he pu blish e d three .

,

c antos of a po e m in which the vice s of the Puri tan p e riod ,

hyp ocrisy s an cti m oni o u sness and i n tol erance are pre
, , ,

s en te d with savage e x agge ration i n the p erso n of Sir Hudi

bras T his k night with his squire Ralpho p asses through
.
, ,

a s e ri e s of quix otic adv en tur e s which are conti n u ed in ,

f u rth e r i n stal men ts of the poe m publish e d in 1 664 and ,

1 678 .
 A H I STO RY O F EN GLI SH LITE RA TURE

delight in m e r e comf ort,

w ell be i ng and success it shows
-
, ,

the bou rg e ois i d e al of li fe In its sugge stions of trifli ng

.

mpral l axity it p e rhap s te stifi es to the c om plac en c e with

,

which e ve n safe and h one st burgh ers saw the natu ral li fe
f re e itse l f f ro m Puritan scrupl e s A nd fi nally the pl eas .
,

u re i n his own li fe which sustai ne d the a uth or i n the

,

m e ch anical toil of re cordi ng its ph en o me na is to b e con ,

n e cte d with the i nt e r e st in hu man lif e i n ge ne ral which ,

co n stitute d the f orc e b e hi n d the d e vel op m en t of r ealistic

fi cti on in the followi ng c entury .

TH E RE ST O RAT IO N DRA MA

Wh en the th eatre s w e re close d in 1 64 2 the succ e ssion ,

of g re at J acob ean dram atists had ne arly co m e to an e nd .

Shirl ey alo ne be i ng alive How e ver the drama r e tai n ed

.
,

T he Her i c
o
its hold on t h e m ass e s ; e v e n u n d e r C ro m w e ll ,
PM)
the pl aywright Dave nan t obtaine d p e r m ission
“

t o giv e a play with a m usic al acc om pani m ent The Si ege ,

of R hodes . T o this op e ra Dryd e n a ttribute d the b e gi n

n i ng of the do m i nant fashi on of the ti m e in tr age dy the ,

h eroic pl ay to which typ e m any of Dryden s own dram as

,
’

b elo ng The h eroic pl ay th ou gh by no m eans an i m itati on

.
,

of F re n ch trage dy ow e d som e thi ng t o the e xa m pl e of Cor

,

n e ill e e sp e ci ally its h e ighten i ng of ch aract e rs to h e roic

,

p roportio ns and prob ably also its u se of rhy me Dryd en

, .

d e fend e d the u se of rhy me in the d e dication to one of his

,
“
e arly pl ays on the grou n d th a t
, it bou nds and circu m
scrib e s the fancy For i m agination in a poet is a facu lty so
.

wild and l awl e ss th at like an high rangi ng sp an i e l it m ust

,
”
h av e clogs ti ed to it l est it outru n the j u dgment T his .

philosophy so typical of the tim e did not pre v ent

, ,

D ryd e n f rom pushi ng his ch aract e rs i n to u nnatural e x

travagance of p as si on ; a f ault which as it appe ars in ,

The I ndi a n Q u een The I ndi a n E mp eror

an d The Conq u est f
o Gra nada was caricature d in
 TH E SEV E NTEE NTH CEN TURY 1 87

The Rehea rsa l, a famous mock o

drama by the Duk e of

Bucki ngh am and oth ers .

I n the l ast of his h e roic pl ays A nrengzebe Dryd en

,

confe sse s in the prologu e th at he gr ows weary of his

lo ng l o v ed m i stre ss Rhy m e
-
,
A ccordi ngly his Dryden “Late,
.

D ama“
ne xt pl ay A ll f or Love a r e h an dli ng of
r
,

th e s t ory of A n tony and Cl e op at ra he wro te in bl ank ,

v e rse T his pl ay is co mm o nly regarde d as his dram atic

.

m ast e rpi ec e In additi on to his t ragedi es Dr

. yde n wrote a ,

n u m b e r of co m e di e s in pro se and tragi c o me di e s in a m ixt

,
-

u re of p ros e an d v e rse m ost of which are too bro a d f or

,

m od e rn readi ng .

A write r who on two occ asio n s e q u all e d or surpass e d

Dryd en Tho mas O tway ( 1 65 1
, was an u nsucc e ssf u l
actor , wh o tur n ed to w riti ng plays His Don Ca rlos .

writte n in rhy m e d c oupl e ts won f or him his first ,

succ ess Wh en Dryd en aband one d rhy m e the w orld of pl ay

.
,

wrights ch anged with him ; and O tway s s e cond T hom a ’

i m portant play The Orp ha n was in Otw y a '

bl an k v e rse T he situ ati on turn i ng upon the l o v e of two

.
,

broth e rs f or M oni m i a the orphan w ard of th e ir fath er is

, ,

on e which F ord m ight h av e cre a te d In work i ng it o u t .

,

O tway is re l en tle ss he has e volv e d fro m it one of the cru el e st

of E nglish t ragedi e s In his pow e r of d e ep e ni ng the hor
.

ror by a lighte r si mpl e r touch pitiful as a strai n of m usic

, , ,

he rem i nds us agai n of the l at e r Eliz ab eth ans e sp e ci ally ,

of Webste r E ven more succ e ssful th an The Orp ha n was

.

Veni ce P reserv ed in which as in The Orp ha n , ,

O tw ay caught so m e thi ng of the gr eatne ss of h andli ng

ch aracte ristic of an e arli e r ti m e His plays h ave the gen .

n i n e p assion which Dryd en l ack e d and th e y are not marr e d ,

by the distortions of hu m an li fe and character th at abound

b o th in Dryd en and in the Jacobean dramatists .

The tragedy of the Re storation has in the mai n only a , ,

li terary i nte rest as a survival of the great dramatic p erio d

, ,

and as an illustration of for e ign i nfl u e n c es The Re sto .

1 88 A HISTO RY or E NGLISH L ITERATURE

ratio n com e dy how ev e r is a genui ne refl e ction of the tem

, ,

r i f n ot of th e a ctu al li f e of the upp e r cl a ss e s of the

p e , ,

natio n ; and as such it has a s ociologic al as w e ll as a lit e ra ry

i n te re st As p ractise d by Sh ak esp eare E nglish com edy had

.
,

be e n ro m an tic in spirit How e v er seriously it had b e en .

con cer ned with the e ss en ti als of hu m an natu re it had had ,

com p arative ly littl e to do with the circu m stances of a ctu al

Restorati on hu m a n li f e I n B e n J o n s
. on an d M iddl e to n ,

and e sp e ci ally i n the lat e st of the J acob e a n s ,

Shirl ey we fi nd m ore realistic treatm ent of the s e tti ng

, ,

th e soci al sur rou n di ngs of the pl ay F oll owi n g th e i r

, .

l ead and sti m ulated by the e x am pl e of Moli ere th e c o m e

, ,

di ans of the Restoration d e v ote d th e m selves sp e cific ally "

to picturi ng th e e xt e rnal d e tails of li fe the fas h io n s O E ,

the ti m e i ts manne rs its sp ee ch its in te re sts

, , F or s ce ne , .

th ey turne d to the m o st i n teresting place s th ey k ne w the ,

drawi ng room s the co ffe e house s the stree ts and gard e n s of

-
,
-
,

Lond o n T h e ir ch aracters w e r e chi e fly p eopl e of f a shio n

.
,

and th e ir pl ots f or the m ost p art w e r e lov e i n trigu e s

, both ,

of te n e n ough i m prob abl e an d u n i n t e re sti ng F or th e se .

d e fici e n ci es h owe ve r the d ram atists m ad e up by th e brill

, ,

iancy of th e ir di al ogu e I n t e nd e ncy th e s e plays are

.
,

al m ost without e xc e ptio n i mm oral T h ey r epr e sen t the , .

reactio n of the play goi ng public against Puritanis m Th ey

-
.

are anti soci al in th a t th e y re pr e se n t soci al in stituti ons

-
, ,

p articu l arly m arri age in an ob noxious or ridiculous ligh t ;

,

but th ey are not ro m an tic or revoluti onary T h ere is in .

th e m never an ho ne st p rotest agai nst i ns titutio ns n e ve r a ,

ge nui ne no te of re v olt Conve n ti ons are accept ed to be

.

pl ay e d with and a ttack ed m e rely by way of givi ng oppor ,

tu ni ty f or cl ev e r cor rupt talk or of givi ng poi n t to an

, ,

i ntrigu e .

The first of t his sch ool of c om e di an s was Sir Ge org e E th

e rege an E ngli sh m an who had b ee n e duca t e d at Paris
, ,

an d who th e re had se e n th e c o m edi e s of M oli er e E th e rege .

was follow e d b y Willi am Wy ch e rl ey ( 1 64 0 whose

 CHAPTE R X

TH E E IGH TEE NTH C E NTURY : TH E R EI GN or CLA SSI C I SM

TH E history of the early part of the eightee nth cent u ryflc

shows a con ti nu ation of the social and lite rary force s wh iclg f
had b egu n with the Re st o rati on It was a p eriod in whicc.

i magi natio n sl ept and in which the sense of the te m p oraI -f

,

realitie s of li fe was strong It was a pe riod 03 : .

criticism rath e r th an of creatio n a p e ri od i11 3 ,

which regul arity and p erfe ctio n of lit erary for

w e re of m ore i m portance th an o riginality of tho u ght It! .
’

was an age of i nte re st in the d e ve lop m en t of soci e ty an d 03 :

i nstituti ons rath er th an in the assertion of the
,
I
In this p articul ar i nd e ed i t w en t b e yon d the Re stora t iom cj

_
, ,

p e rio d We h av e seen th a t the literature esp e ci a lly the;

.
,

dram a of this l atte r e p och was mark e d by some thi n g o

, ,

the lic e n se of t he Re n ai ssance T he prot est of J e re m y'

.

Colli e r agai nst th e stage i n 1 698 was typic al of the atti tu d e?

, ,

of the ne w c e n tu ry which re aliz e d and feare d the a n ti

,

soci al e ff e ct of vice T h e se te nd en ci e s toward realis m of

.

subj e ct m atte r tow ard t e chnical p e rf ecti on of f or m and

, ,

tow ard soci al use fulness of pu rp ose are no tably illustra te d ,

by the three chi ef figures of the lit erature of th e age of

Q u e e n A n n e,
— Swi f t Pop e an d Addison
, , .

T he fir st of th e m and the greate st J onath an Sw if t was , ,

b orn in Irel and of English p arents in 1 667 H e was a , .

ou tm posthu mous son an d he grew up to sh are his

,
" if“
m othe r s pove rty
’
He was sen t to the U ni
.

“
ve rsity of Du bli n wh e re as he says he was stopp e d of
, , ,

his d egree for dul ness and u nsu fii ciency ; and at las t hardly
ad mitted in a m anne r littl e to his cr edi t
”
In 1 689 be .

1 90
 TH E E I G H TEENT H C E NTURY 1 91

lef t Ir l d to t k
e an positi on as u nd e r s e cre tary to a dis
a e a -

tan t rel ative Sir Willi am Te m pl e with who m he re m ai ned

, ,

in te rm itt ently f or som e years readi ng al oud to his p atro n

, ,

writi ng at dicta tio n k eepi ng accou n ts and cu rsi ng his

, ,

fa te . While in this se rvice he wrote The B a ttle of the

B ooks a c on trib u tio n to the c ontrove rsy which Te m pl e
,

was ca rryi ng on with B e ntl ey the gr ea t sch ol ar as to the

, ,

co m p arativ e m e rit of anci ent and mod e rn write rs Abo ut .

thi s ti m e also he wrote a satire on the division s of Chris

, ,

tian i ty c all e d A Ta le of a Tnb

, N eith e r work was p u b
.

l ish e d u n til 1 704 With T e m pl e s help he entered the

.
’

’
chu rch ; and af ter his p atron s d eath he re turned to Ire
l a n d as ch apl ai n to Lo rd B erk el e y by whom he was given ,

the livi ng of Laracor .

T he n b eg an the great p e riod of Swi ft s li fe the ti m e

’
,

of his p olitic al powe r Duri ng the reign of Willi am III

. .
,

p arty stri fe was bitte r be tween the Whigs who we p oli ti cal ,
cam “
supp orte d the K i ng in his foreign policy of
re sistance to Louis X IV of France and the Tori es who
.
, ,

oppose d him ; and this struggl e was conti nu e d in the .

rei gn of Q u een Anne A lm ost all the prom i ne nt lit erary

.

me n of the ti m e w e re engage d on one sid e or the oth e r .

S wi f t who was f re qu ently in London pro m oti ng his can

,

di da cy for offi c e s in the church as th ey fe ll vacan t at fi rst ,

wrot e on the Whig sid e but in 1 710 he j oi ne d the T ori e s ,

who w e re just co m ing i nto pow e r T he T ory m i n istry .

,

of which Lord B oli ngb rok e was a m e mb e r was re solv ed to ,

sto p th e war with F ranc e ; an d in d e fe n c e of this p oli cy

Swi f t p u t out one of his stron gest politic al writi ngs The ,

Condu ct of the A lli es His li fe duri ng th e se y ears is re

.

flected i n his J ou rna l to Stella a d aily acc ou n t of his ,

doi ngs which he wrote for his fri end E sth e r J oh nson ,
.

He re we fi nd S wi ft pl ayi ng the p art i n which he m ost

de lighte d th at of a m an O f aff airs activ e s u cc e ssf ul and
, , , ,

p o w e rf u l H e.re co rds with gust o h is ho u rs sp e n t with th e

rul e rs of the cou n tr y ; th e i r p olite ne ss and his own h alf ,

 1 92 A HISTORY OF E NGLISH LI TE RATUR E

contemptuous famili arity ; his ability to s erv e his f ri e nds

an d to pu nish his ene m i e s In 1 71 3 as the pric e of his
.
,

s u pp ort of the T ory gove rnm ent he was named Dean 0& ,

St Patrick s in Dubli n a p rom otion little to his tas te

.
’
, .

T he ne xt year the T ori e s w en t out of powe r discredite db ,

by Boli ngbrok e s i ntrigu es with the Pre tend er ; and Swiftt a :

’

re turned to Ireland .

H e re his u nco nq u erabl e activity fou nd vent in de — e

f endi ng the Irish or rath e r the E nglish men who live d in
,

Ir eland from the c arel e ss tyranny of the government In

, .

this end eavor he publish ed The D rap i er s Letters m ost ’

,

m, Late ,th e m i n 1 72 4 a s a pr o t e st aga i,

n st d eb a si n g the
Irish coi nage In 1 72 6 he took the man uscrip t?
.

of his m ost fam ous work Gu lli ver s Travels to Lo n do n-

’
, ri ,

f or publica ti on and the ne xt year he re turne d thithe r

,

taste the pl easure of a great lit erary succe ss T h is as al l : .

,

else i n hi s li fe s ee med to turn o nly to

,

“
In 1 72 8 M i ss J oh nso n the
”
Stella of the J ournal di e d
, , . ’

Wh eth e r or not it is tru e as so me thi nk th at Swif t wag , ,

“
s ec re tly m arri ed to her she was his close st f ri end and her
, ,

d eath l e ft him d e sol at e A s the years p asse d his h a tre d

.
, .

f o r th e w o rld grew m or e i nt e n s e and his satire m or e bi tte r , .

A d ise ase f ro m which he had suff e re d at i nte rval s ga i n ed .

rapidly u p on him re sulti ng in deafness and giddi n e ss

,

a nd h e s u ff e r e d also fr om a ttacks of e pil epsy and i n sa nity .

A fte r y e ars of gloo m and agony d eath came slowly up on ,

hi m . H e di e d in 1 74 5 .

It is e vid ent fro m this narrative th at to a grea t e xtent , ,

’
S wi f t s writi ngs w ere occasi onal and gre w out of the cir ,

cu m s tance s of his li fe H e was not a professio nal write r ;

.

with one or two e xception s his works w e re p ublish ed ,

Swi ft “k w
, an o ny m ously H e was a man of aff ai rs who
.
,
“a ll N t m a
b e came a man of l e tte rs b ecause lite ra ture was
a m e an s by whic h afi airs c o uld b e dir e cte d His writings .

mu st b e r egard e d the n as on e e xpression am ong oth e rs

, , ,

of e ne rgy tur ne d to practic al en ds ; as one e vid ence am o ng

1 94 A HIST O RY OF E N G LISH LI T ERATUR E
“
was d ead ; but Swif t pro mptly c am e back with A
n ot

Vi ndic atio n of Isaac Bick e rstaff in whi ch af t er r e buki ng

, ,

Partridge for his i m pud e nc e he pro ve d by various logic al

,

d e m onstrations th at Partridge c ertai nly di ed withi n h alf

”
an h our of the ti me f o re told .

T his skit is broadly ch aracte ristic O f the whol e sp i rit

and m e thod of S wi f t s work i n th at it e xp os e s a sh a m or
’
,

an e vil by s e tti ng up a m o re m o n s trous i mp o sit i o n ag a i nst

it and d efends the latte r with ironical se rious ne ss ; the

,

wh ol e be i ng p e r meate d so th oro u g hly by malicious and

c on te m ptu ou s fo oli ng th at one h esitate s to say wh e th e r it
m ay or may no t h av e b ee n written wit h a c e rt ai n am ou n t
of r efo rm i ng z eal n S wi f t s w orks g e ne ra lly
’

“ i f“ I .

M eth°d °
th ere is this doubl e asp e ct of earne stn e ss and
pl ay In A Mod e st Proposal f or pre venti ng the C hil
.
“
,
”
d re n of the poor in Ireland f rom b e i ng a bu rd en the ,

te rribl e su fl e ring in Ir eland is r e veal ed in the m ocking

s u gge sti on th at the poor should d e v ote them selves to rear
ing childr en to b e kill e d and eaten A Ta le of a Tu b
.
,

with its bit te r re fle cti ons up on the spiritual history of

m an si nce the adve n t of Christi anity is on its face the ,

story of three stupid broth e rs q u arrelli ng ove r the in h e ri

tance of th e ir fath er Gu lli v er s Tra vels is in f orm a sort
.
’
, ,

of R obi ns on Cr u s oe ye t it is f u ll of s atiri c i n t e n tion

, .

Gu llive r is ship wreck e d first at Lillipu t wh er e the i n ,

—
h abitan ts are six i n ch es high e x cept th e i r em p e ror , ,

“ t ll r by al m ost the br e adth of m il th his

a e y n a a n a n y o f
court which alo ne is e nough to strik e an awe i nto the
,
”
b ehold ers .H ere the sati re obvio u sly co nsi sts in sh owi ng
hu m an m otiv e s at w o rk on a s m all sc al e a n d i n
G lli er “
u v ,

“ ew”
fl
sugge sti ng by the lik ene ss of the Lilliputi ans to
,

ours elv e s the littl e n e ss of hu m an aff airs

, T he arts by .

which the offi cers of the gove rnm en t k e e p th eir pl ac es such ,

as cutti ng cap e rs on a tight rop e for the en t e rt ai n m e n t O f

-

the em p e ror r e m i nd us of the qu ality of sta te s m an ship

,

b oth in Swi ft s day and ou r own ; the disput e ov er the

’
 TH E E I G HT EENT H C E NTUR Y 1 95

qu estion at which end an e gg sh ould prop e rly b e brok en ,

that plu nged Lilliput int o civil war is a com m en t on the ,

se rious ne ss of p arty d ivisi ons in the greate r world Gulli .

’
ve r s n ext voyage to B robdi ngnag b ri ngs hi m to a p eo
, ,

l a s l arg e i n c o mp ari son with m an as the Lilliputi an s

p e

are s m all O n c e m ore his adv ent u re s are a t al e of won

.

de r b ehi nd which lu rks S wi f t s c on te m pt for hu m anity

’
, .

Gu lliv e r te ll s the gi ant b e i ngs by wh om he is surr ou nd ed ,

a nd i n c om p a ris on with wh om h e is a m e r e m aniki n of ,

th e w orld fro m whic h he has co m e A m ong o th e r thi ngs

.
,

he t ells of the i nv e n tio n of gu npowd e r and the u se of in ,

s tru m e n ts of w arf are T he ki ng was st ruck with h o rro r

.

a t the d e scripti on I had giv e n of th ose t e rribl e e ngi ne s .

He was amaz e d how so i m p o tent and grov elli ng an i ns e ct

as I ( th e s e w e re his e xp re ssi on s ) c o u ld e nte rtai n s u ch i nh u
”
m an id eas F i nally aft e r a third v oyage to Laputa and
.
,

ot he r curi o u s plac e s Gu lliv e r m ak e s his fourth j ourney

, ,

to the l an d of the H ou yh n h nm s wh e re h ors e s are the s e l f ,

con sci ous r u l ers a nd m aste rs and wh e re the hu man an i mal

,

i s i n a stat e of se rvitud e an d d e gr ad ati on H ere agai n Gu l .

live r rel at es to his i ncredul ous h osts the folli es and c ru elti e s
of m e n But the fie rce st satire is in the picture of the
.

Yahoo the hu m an be as t in which the worst of man is

, ,

once f or all t old .

T hi s doubl e poi n t of vi e w this w av e ri ng b e tw e en j est

,

and ea rne st is n o t only su p erfi ci ally ch aracte ristic of

,

Swi f t s w riti ng ; it s ee m s also to h ave b ee n d eeply rooted

’

i n h is m e n tal c onstituti o n It is al m ost as if he c ou ld

.

ne v e r b e qu it e sur e th at the world was w orth his z eal ; as if

he n e v e r wishe d to co m prom is e hi m sel f as a r e fo rm e r or ,

to cu t hi m s el f off f ro m the p ossibility of falli n g b ack u p on

j est This attitud e on his p art m us t b e u nd e rstood in
.

ord e r to app reh end his rel ati on to the ti m e s in which h e

'

liv e d As has b een said one task of the e ighteenth ce n

.
,

tury was to re vise and e nforc e stand ards of taste and livi ng .

To rd t is as S
w a h t k wi f t t ook tw o o
pp osit e
p ositio n s I n .
1 96 A HISTO RY OF E NGLISH L I TERATUR E

his c onte mpt for man he could wh en conv eni ent d efend , ,

soci al an d i nt ell e ctu al c on v en ti on s in the b e li e f th a t Sh a m s

,
3

and d e lusio n s w e re re st ra i n ts n e c e ssary to the ord e rly

gov e rn men t of the w orld ; th at th e y w e re so to sp eak , ,

wil e s by which the i nt elligent H o uyh nh n m s

Swi f t s M m

m
’

“ c on t roll ed the u nsp e ak abl e Yaho os ab out th e m

32 ?
.

But th en it is quite op en to him to turn a b out

and cry What busi ne ss has the world of Yahoos with
,

stand ards at all ? Man b e i ng wh at he is d ece n cy an d ,

”
c om eli ne ss are but c onve n ti ons A n d he p ro c e e d s to
.

attack th e m He tak e s a m alicious j oy in shocki ng p er

.

so ns wh ose ch aract e rs are fo u nd e d upo n m ere re sp ectab il

ity T o this i nsti nct f or re volt must b e ascribe d the
. !

obsc en ity with whic h e sp e ci ally i n his po e m s

, Swi f t in ,

su l ted the growi n g m od e sty an d propri e ty of his cou n try

m en .

It is the th orough ne ss of Swi f t s p e ssi m ism his co m pl e te

’
,

distru st of the world th at giv e s to him his singul arity and

, .

p eculi ar i m pre s siv e n e ss am ong E nglish write rs

m Di ti ne
s e
.

“03 °
It w ould b e fruitl e ss to d eny th at in this p e ssi
m ism th ere is s o m e thi ng sti m ul ati ng so m e thi ng aw a k e n ,

i ng p erh aps b e cau se it is a ch ange f ro m the con v e ntio n al

m od e in which we are taught to look at the worl d T he .

re al di sti n cti on i n hi s vi ew his disre gard of th e a cc e p t e d

, ,

th e trite the c o mm onpl ace all s e rv e to startl e us i n t o

, ,

e ag e r atte n ti on His k e enness c alls for answ eri ng al e rt

.

ne ss in ours e lve s ; his sugge stiv e ne ss is to nic ; e v e n h is

coarse n e ss c on tai n s so m e thi ng of vigorous criti cis m th at

will n o t le t u s re st in c onv entional opi nio ns but bid s u s ,

ro v e all thi ngs an d c all e v e rythi ng by its t ru e nam e

p .

The practical spi rit which Swi f t brought to his writi n g ,

his i n te ntio n to m ak e it s e rv e a turn and acco m pl ish a .

purp os e is r efl e cte d in his styl e Firs t am o ng

, .

3 18 Sty l e .

hi s m e rits as a writ er is his cl earness F u rth e r .

,

hi s c on t e mpt for all ki nds of sh am l ed hi m to d e spi se lit e r

ary afl ectation directne ss and si mplicity are the v irtu es by
1 98 A HIST O RY O E EN G LISH LI TE RATURE
p age 23 2)c on tai ne d a sep arate d ep artm ent call e d Advice
f rom the S can d al ous Cl u b b e i ng a w e e kly hist ory of N on
,
”
s en s e I m p erti ne nc e Vice and Deb auch e ry
, , , T h a t pr ov .

i nce of jo u rnali sm which li e s b e tw ee n ne ws and politics was ,

n o t ad e qu ate ly p osse s se d h owe v e r u ntil in 1 709 th e re

, , , ,

app ea re d a p eriodic al O f which th e O b j e ct was to o b se rve

u p on the pl e asu rabl e as w e ll as the bu sy p art of man ki n d

”
.

T his was The Ta tler f ou nd ed by Rich ard St eel e ( 1 672

,

who was so on j oi ne d in the e nte rprise by his frie nd ,

J o seph A ddiso n ( 1 672

The Ta tler app eare d th re e ti m e s a w eek E ach n u m b e r .

c onsisted of se ve ral l e tters d ate d f ro m the di ff e re nt cof

f ee ho u se s of Lond on ; those fro m the S ai n t J am e s b e i ng
-

d evote d to f ore ign and d om e stic affairs those f ro m Will s ,

’

to po e try and th e d rama thos e f ro m White s

’
,
T he Tatl e r.
”
to gall an try pl easure and ente rtai n m e n t
, , .

T h e re w er e al so p ap e rs d ated F ro m my own ap art

”
me n t , which d ealt wi th m i sc ella ne ous topics p e rs o nal ,

o r s oci al It was i n th e se l ast th at the auth ors carri e d

.

out m ost f ully the obj e ct which th ey set b e fore th e m

“
s elv e s , to e xp ose the fal se arts of li fe to p u ll O ff the ,

d i sg u i ses of c u nn i ng van ity an d aff e cta tio n and to re co m

, , ,

m e nd a ge ne r al si m plicity in o u r dress our di scourse and , ,

A lth o u gh The Ta tler app eal e d to the

”
o u r b e h avi or .

p u blic wi th ou t di stin cti on of p arty it was colore d by ,

Ste el e s Whig vi e ws
’
A cc ordi n gly wh en the a uth ors
.
,

wi sh e d to avoid politic s altoge th e r th ey aban do n e d The

Ta tler re pl aci ng it by The Sp ecta tor
, in which Ad
dison took the chi ef p art .

Alth ou gh Addi son and Steel e are thus r e me mb e re d for

th e ir eff ort to l ead literatu re away from politics both w e re ,

p arty m en A ddison first attracte d n otic e while

.

a t O x fo rd by a Lati n po e m on the T reaty of

,

Ry swick ; in re c ogn iti on of this e ff o rt he re ce ive d a pe n

si on of th ree hu nd re d pou nds a ye ar e nabli ng hi m to travel ,

abro ad A f te r his r e turn the Whigs n e ed e d a poe t to

.
,
 TH E E I G H TEE NTH C ENTURY 1 99

cel ebrate the D uk e of Marlborough s victory of Bl enh e im

’

and t he com m issio n fell to A ddison His poem T he .

,
”
Cam p aign which c ontai ne d one very eff ective p anegyric
,

p assa ge gai ne d for its author v arious honors and p re

,

fe r m e n t s ; and u ntil hi s d eath in 1 71 9 he was al m os t

con stan tly in offi c e I nd eed Addis on s career affords the
.
,
’

be s t e x am pl e of the high re wards which the se rvice of

p arty o ff e re d in the e arly e ighteenth c entury to lite rary
me n . E ve n his trag e d y Ca to which was pre se nt ed i n
, ,

1 71 3 owe d its gre at popul arity to a suppose d p arall el b e

,

tw ee n the struggl e s of p arti es at Rom e and the cont em

ra ry p olitic al situ atio n in E ngl an d n d as n e ith e r p arty
p o a

coul d allow the oth e r to tak e to itsel f the platitude s about

lib e rty with which the pl ay is stre w n Whigs and T orie s ,

alik e a tt e n d e d the p e rf or m an c es vyi n g with e ach oth e r In

,

th e viol e n ce of th e ir appl a use .

N O ch aracte r in E n glish l e tt e rs is b e tte r k nown or more

gene rally ad m ire d th an Addis on T his powe r O f attracti ng .

ad m ir a ti on is l arge ly d u e to a c e rtai n cl assic qu ality which

sh o w e d itsel f in his lite rary id eals in his pure Ad di son s

, ,
’

0m m "
regul ar styl e in the just appre ci ation of his
,

criticism and in his si ngu l arly corre ct sen se of conduct

, .

His taste was nearly faultl e ss and taste did for hi m wh at ,

it should do for anyon e it sav e d him f rom blu nde rs and

folli e s . In his li fe as in his writi ng wh at he did was w e ll ,

do ne E ve ry strok e th at w en t to the pres entatio n of his

.

ch aracte r in bodily form s eem s to h ave b een l aid on with

consci ous care and conscious prid e T he l ast touch of all .
,

as he lay on his d e ath b e d an d tur n i ng to his st e p son

-
,
-

bad e him See in wh at p e ace a Christian can die ex ”

,

p re ss es the m ood ln which his whol e life was lived .

T his m ood color e d m ost O f A ddison s writi ng T he pa

’
.

pers which b e contribute d to The Ta tler The Sp ectator , ,

and oth e r p e riodic als are f or the m ost p art e ss ays in the
,

art O f livi ng T h e y illustrate the practic al nature of his

.

own c u lture his ea sy skill ed m astery of li fe To the

, , .
200 A HI STO RY or EN G LI SH LITERAT RE U
world of the e ighteenth c entury wi th its crud ene ss it , ,

c oarseness its grotesq u eness as re veal e d in the drawings o

, , .

H ogarth Addison cam e m uch as Matth ew A rnold cam e b a r

,

the l a te r n ine teen th cen tury with i ts mate ri alism an d i t d

,

trust in m achi ne ry Both w ere missionariese .

His Mi ssi on
A ddiso n the m o re succe ssf u l be cause t he m on x :
.
-

tact f u l His task too was si m ple r, to enf orce id eas 00

.

civiliz ati on and in p articul ar to ove rco me the an ti so d as : I

,
-

tend en ci es of both Pu ritan and Cav ali er prese rv i ng th d ,

z eal f or c onduct of the forme r without his gloom an d in

tol eranc e and the light ne ss and gayety of the latte r wi thout :
,

his lic ense T hus we find m any of Addiso n s pap ers dire cte s
.
’

agai n st the co ars e r vic e s of the ti m e agai nst m b li

g a a ,

dri nki ng sweari ng i nd ecen cy of conversation cru e ltz d t

, , ,

practical j oki ng du ellin g O th e rs attac k the trivial i ty C)

, .

lif e sp e ci al folli es and foibl es of dress of mann e rs or C)

, , ,
"
th ou ght oth ers the l ack of ord er and co mfort in the l it i i
,

of th e c om m u nity Addison c ared also for the lit e rary cu m

.

ti va tion of his r ead e rs as is sho wn by such pap e rs as tli Tc h

,

fam o u s se ri e s of criticisms on M ilto n F i nally he m ad - a d .

,

a n o ve l con tributio n to lite rature in a s eri e s of sk e tch e s of

ch aracte r and contem p orary typ es —of hi m self as the Spa s -ec ,

tator of Sir A ndrew F re eport the m erchant of Sir Rog

,
er ,

de Cov e rl e y the cou ntry gen tl e man of Will H o ne ycom ,b

the m an of fashion T h e se figure s typi fied conv e n ien - t ly
‘

the i nte re sts of the public to which Th e Sp ecta tor appe al s d

but m ore th an this th ey de fine th em selves as p e rson s fi tti ,
_

m e m be rs of the great co m p any of ch aracte rs who live In

E ngli sh fiction fro m Cha uc e r to Ge orge Me redi th O ne Of .

th e m at least Sir Roge r de Cov e rl ey to whose pre se n 1 58

, ,
“

tion both Addison and Steel e con tributed is drawn wi — th ,

ge nu i ne aff ectio n as an em bodi m en t of h ealthy k i nd fl y

—
,
, ,

n atural virtu e touch e d with j ust e nough hu mor to m a

,
n h
the pictur e co n vi nci ng and wh olly wi nn i ng .

In his treat m en t of th e se v arious sub j e cts Addison 6 1 19

pl ays the graces of style which are the exp ression of 1 113
202 A HISTORY OF E N G LISH LI TE RATURE

s ook the a rm y to become an active p amphl eteer and j our

nalist in the inte re st of the Whigs by who m he was giv e n ,

various gov e rnm ent positi ons H e was ele cted to Parlia
.

m e nt but was e xpell ed from the Hous e f or writ

,

m g a political p am phl e t He wrote sev e ra l plays

.
,

a nd was for a ti me dire ctor of D rury Lane T h ea tre A l to .

ge th e r his li fe was a thi ng of f ragments His ch aracte r .

,

too sho we d c e rtai n fl aws an d l apse s faults of a ge ne rous

, ,

sp on ta ne ous nature ; and to th e se his writi ngs in a m e asure

s e rv ed to call atte ntion Whil e a soldi e r he wrote The

.

Chri sti a n H ero a man u al of pe rso nal and do me stic virtu e s

,

his plays w ere a bi t su p e rfl u ou sly m oral in The Ta tler he

app e ar e d as a preach e r T his discrep ancy be tw ee n his
.

p e rsonal li fe and the tenor of m uch of his writin gs laid ,

Stee l e op en to gib e and sne er ; but th ere is an ho ne st

hu m an q u ality abo u t his i nconsistencies that giv e s him , ,

af t e r al l a ch arm which his gre ate r con te mpo rari e s l ack

, .

Wh eth er as Christian or as m an of the world Steel e was ,

al ways hi msel f and if he did no t e r e ct a p al ati al ch aracte r

,
’
lik e Addison s he built a genial dw elli ng place wh e re all
,
-

the world was w elco me .

T he i nconsistency in Stee l e s li fe is r efl e cted in his style

’
.

H e has two manne rs one e m i ne nt gracious di gn ifi e d

, , , ,

the styl e which corre sp onds to his m oods of el e va tio n and

did acticis m the oth e r c arel ess fl e xibl e f re e , , ,
Hi s Sty le
lik e his ordi nary li fe T his second m ann e r is
.

be st s ee n i n his le tters to his wi fe which in th e ir del i gh t

, ,

f u l f rank ne ss and th eir ab ando n m ent to the f eeli ng of the

m o m e nt show him in his m ost attractive as pe ct
, T h ey .

prov e th a t the lightne ss and case which mark Th e Ta tler

a n d The S p ec ta tor qu aliti e,s which i n A ddiso n w e re t h e

f r u it of c u ltivation w e r e e ntire ly nativ e to Steel e

, .

A ddison and Ste el e we re m orali sts and th eir doc tri ne is ,

i n a high d e gree ch aracte ristic of th eir ti me It d eals with .

the ma terial and s u p erfi ci al a sp e cts of livi ng ; it re pr e s en ts

the e ff ort of lite rature to s u pport the co nventions in accord
 TH E E IG HTE ENTH C E NTURY 2 03

an c e with which life was ord e ri ng its el f T his attitud e .

,

howe ver whole so me and ne c essary i nvo lve d a te nde ncy to ,

se t an e xc e ssiv e valu e on o u tward b e h avior as disti n ct f ro m

c h a ra cte r a t e nd ency which b e co m e s m or e mark e d in a

,

w rite r of so m e wh a t l ate r d ate Lord Che sterfi eld ( 1 694 ,

The pri ncipl e s of g oo d f or m f or which Ch e ste r ,

fi e ld s na m e is a by word he e xpou nds f u lly in his Letters

’
-
,

t o H i s Son which se t f orth a syste m of cond u ct base d

,

f r a n kly up o n sc epticism as to the reality of m orals H is .

t o ri cally Ch e ste rfi eld re pre s en ts the e xtr m e

e Lfi oelrdd Cheste r
s wi ng of the p e nd u lu m th a t was se t in m o tIon

b y S tee l e and Addison Wi th hi m the d e coru m and u r

.

b a n i ty i nculcat e d by Th e Sp ecta tor h av e b e co me the m aj or

e n ds of li fe the chi ef busi n e ss of a g en tl em an
, .

C h e s te rfi eld typifi e s one ph as e of the rath e r sh allow

p o s itivis m o f th e c e n tury its r e f u s,al to go b e hi n d wh a t
a p p e al e d i m m e di a t ely to the s ens e s to b e li e v e i n wh at it ,

c o u ld not see Polit ene ss can b e s een felt val u ed h e nc e it

.
, ,

i s r e al Good ness of h eart virtu e m ay e xist or not ; we

.
, ,

c an not b e sure : th e y are so e a sy to si m ul a te so h a rd to ,

t e st th at the wise m an prefe rs to put no trust in th e m

, ,

a n d confi ne s his i n t e re st to de portm ent S u ch is Ch este r .

fi e l d s vi e w
’
.

T h e r e is no sh arp dividi ng li ne b etwee n the prose

w rite rs and the poe ts of the early e ighteen th c e nt u ry .

T h e practical spirit of the age which li m ite d , m m

men”
t he r eal m of art to the i nte re sts of actu al li fe ,

m a d e the m ateri al of prose and po e try m uch the same ;

a nd o wi n g to the ch aract e r of coupl e t v erse the typical ,

virtu e s of poe try w e re n ot ve ry di ff eren t fro m those of

p r o s e .O f th e writ e rs a lr e a dy disc u ss e d S w i f t an d A d ,

diso n w ere p oets as w ell as pros e m en The greate st .

p o e t of t he p e riod h o w e v
, e r t h e dir e ct ,co n ti n u a tor of th e

t raditio n of D ryd en and the m ost brilli ant man of let

,

t e rs of the early p art of the c entury was Al e xande r ,

P op e .
204 A HISTO RY or E NGLISH LITE RATURE

Pop e was born in 1 688 of Catholic p aren ts By reason of

, .

the swee pi ng l aws agai nst the en tranc e of Catholics i nto

p u blic se rv ice he was shut o u t f ro m the ordinary career of
,

E nglish m e n in Parli am en t the church or the ar m y

, ,In .

c onseq u e nce he was am o ng his con te mpo rari e s al m ost the

sol e e xam ple of an au thor who was en tirely a m an of l e tte rs
the e v e n ts of hi s li fe are alt oge th e r lit e rary e ve n ts He b e .

g an h is c ar e e r ea rly His. P a s tora l s writt e n

, wh e n h e w as

n ew “ , se v e n tee n w e re p u blish e d i n 1 709 T he E ssay

, .

P°p°
on Cri ti ci sm t wo y ear s l at er attracte d A ddiso n s
' ’
,

n otic e
’
a nd Pop e s o t h e r e arly p oe m s
“
Wi ndsor F ore st
,
”
,
”
E l ois a to A b el ard and abov e all Th e R ap e o the Lock
, f ,

of which the first draf t app ear e d in 1 7 1 2 co nfirm e d hi m in ,

his position at the h ead of English po e try A bout 1 71 3 .

he u nd e rtook the gr e at e st v en ture of his life the transla ,

tion of Ho m e r which he did not co m pl ete u n til 1 72 5

, .

O ne i m p ort an t e ff ect of the tran slation on Pop e s o wn

’
,

care e r and on the lit erat u re of the ti me is to b e n ote d , .

F r om the p u blish e rs and f ro m his sal e s to s u bscrib e rs P op e ,

obtained m ore th an fi v e thousan d pou nds for the I li a d ,

and two thirds of this su m f or the O dy ss ey ( on which m os t

-

of the work was do ne by oth e rs ) — m u ch the gr e a te st

,

p ecu n i ary rew ard which up to th at ti m e had b een re ce ived

by any E nglish au thor It mad e Pop e i nd epend e n t of
.

p atro nage and politics ; and it m arks the op en ing of a new

e ra in the soci al statu s of au th ors one in which th e y look ed
,

to the p u blic al one for supp ort .

T he profits of his tran sl ati on en abl e d Pop e to buy a

sm all e state at T wick e nh am on the T h ames near Lo ndon
, .

T hi s he fitte d up in the mock cl assic al styl e which the

age aff e ct e d in oth e r thi ngs b e s id e s lit e ra tur e H e subdu ed .

n at u r e to tas te by l andsc ap e gard en i ng u n til his f e w acr es

-
,

m8 Late ,
m ust h av e s ee m e d a m i n i at u re Ve rsa ill e s H e .

W“ scattere d s tatu ary and te m pl es about in artistic

co ntrast to the woods and l awn s ; and as his crow ni ng
achi e vement he built his f amous grotto or nam ente d with
206 A HISTORY or E NGLISH L IT ERATURE

cep tion which th en pre vail e d of the nature and f u nc tion

of po e try .

But though certain q u aliti es which we e xp e ct to fi nd in

po e try are nec e ssarily absen t in Pop e th e se w e re repl ac ed , ,

at l ea st for his co n te m p orari e s by oth e rs F irst of all

, .
,

he ow ed his succ e ss to his m arve llo u s skill i n dire cti ng

the sol e re cogniz e d v e hicl e of poe t ry the h e roic coupl e t , .

m, Poeti c H e d e cl ar e s th at as a child h e lisp e d i n n u m

QW m " b ers for the n u m b e rs cam e
, But he was n ot .
”

satisfie d with pre coci ous am at e u rism O ne of his ea rli e st .

f ri e nds and critics Willi am Wa l sh poi n ted out to hi m th at

, ,

“
tho u gh we had had se v e ral great po e ts we ne v e r had any
”
one grea t po e t that was corr ect Cor re ctne ss accordi n gly
. , ,

P op e made his aim f ro m the first C orre ctne ss re qui res .

p ati ence and genius for taking p ai ns Pop e had i n abu n

,

d anc e N or did he sacrific e to me re e xactness of m e tre

.

and rhy m e the oth e r virtu e s of co u pl e t v e rse co m pre s ,

sion epigram matic fo rce and b rilli ancy of diction Still

, , .
,

it is not to be wo nde re d at th at in the lo ng proce ss of ,

polishi ng and re visi ng to suit a stand ard of e xtre m e

n ic e ty he lost so m e thi ng o f the spo nt ane ity of his first
,

attem pts .

T he i mportanc e of te ch nic al q u aliti e s in the e ye s of

Pop e s public is a tte ste d by the succ ess of the E ssa y on
’

Cri ti cism in which he se t forth the artistic pri n cipl e s of

,

the ti m e with sp e ci al re fe re n c e to p oe try I n this discus .

si on he e xpre sse s the chie f can o n of the age in the dire ction
to follow N a tu r e but N atur e m e thodiz e d by rul e s for
, ,
”
to c opy N at u re is to c opy th e m T he s u bs ta nc e of t he
.

po em is m ad e up of co mm onpl aces for Pope and his ,

read ers beli e v ed th at th ere was n othi ng ne w

u nd e r the su n ; b u t th e se co m m onpl ac e s are
given the m ost apt the m ost chise ll ed for m a
, ,

form in which th ey are fitte d to surviv e as p art of the com

m on wi sd om of the rac e .

Pope s co mpre h ension of the artistic d emands of his t ime,

’
 TH E E I G H TEE NTH C E NTURY 207

an d his rh e torical sk ill fitte d him ad m irably for the work

,

which took up most of the m iddle ye ars of his li fe th at of ,

transl ation As has been note d the age was one which
.
,

de p en d e d for materi al l argely on m ore creative “W e

epochs in the p ast b u t wh ich co n fid e nt in its
H m “
, ,

own civiliz a tion i nsiste d on h a vi ng th at m ate ri al treate d

,

in a ccordanc e with its o wn t aste O f this ad aptati on Pop e .

d id m u ch He transl ate d f ro m O vid Horace an d Statius

.
, ,

a n d he m od e rn iz ed Ch a uc e r an d Do nne But the m ost .

n o t a bl e of all his a tte m pts in this dire c tio n is his transla

t i o n of Hom e r The attitud e of the eighteenth c entury
.

t o w ard the greate st of the cl assics is show n by a l i n e in the

E s s a y on Cri ti ci sm which d e cl are s th at Ho m e r and N at
,

u re a re the sam e the high e st obj ect of study and i m ita

,

t ion Pop e s own kn owl edge of Ho m er was second h an d

’
-
.

a n d i naccurat e he was an i ndi ff e ren t Gre ek sch ol ar and

.

w as f orc e d to d ep end on Lati n and English transl ations .

B u t the i mpossibility of his m aki ng a lite rally f aith f u l

t ra n sl ation l ef t him the f re e r to turn the mate ri al of the
G r e e k po em s i nto the f orm in which it was m ost fitt e d to
b e c o m e a part of the c u ltur e of his own ti me N ot only .

d o e s H o mer in P ope s h ands b e co m e an eighte enth ce n tury

’
, ,

t by virtu e of his sub m issi on to the lite rary fa shi on s of

p o e ,

t h e d a y —,the h e roic c o upl e t a nd co nv entio nal p oe tic dic

,

i
t on ,
— but e ven the ch aract e rs the manners the e thical , ,

i de a ls of pri m i tiv e Gree c e are ru n ove r i nt o e ight e e nth

c e n tury m oulds J ust as to the clo u dy me diwval i m agi na
.

t i o n the h e ro e s of T roy b e c ame k nights so to Pop e s more

’
,

e n lightene d u nd e rstan di n g th e y a re statesm en an d p a rty

l e a d e rs treati ng each other with p arli am ent ary cou rte sy

, ,

a n d t alki ng of virtu e p at ri o ti sm an d fam e a s glibly a nd

, , ,

e l o q u e n tly as Boli ngb rok e hi m s e l f In the lo f ti e r p arts o f .

H o m e r s poe try Pop e s style has a ce rtai n appropri ateness

’ ’
.
,

I t i s i n the l ev el p assages of narra tiv e and d e scripti on wh e re ,

t h e si m pl e mate ri al will not tak e the polish of bri lli an t dic

t i on and e pigram th at P op e falls l amentably sh ort of his
,
208 A HISTORY or E NGLISH LITERATURE

or i gi nal Ye t with all d educti ons his Homer is an amaz

. ,

ing p e rfor m ance p erh aps the most compl e te translatIon or

0

, ,

ra ther ad aptatio n in existe nc e a tou r de f orce mad e poss1

,

b l e by th e d e fi n i te ness a n d pr e cisi o n of e ight e e n th c entury

art and by the co n fid e nc e of the age i n its o wn id e als
. .

T he w orks of Pop e thus far m entio ne d are chi e fly re

ma rkabl e for th e ir lite rary q u aliti e s th ey show him as the
maste r of his form B u t e ve n m or e i mportant is the group
.

o f poe m s in which with no l oss of artistic fi nish he d e alt

, ,

di re c tly with the li fe of his ti m e O f th ese The R ap e

.

Qf th e L o ch st an ds fi rs t T h e .p o e m w as s u gg e ste d by a

trivi al occ u rr e nc e the r u d e b eh avior of Lord Petr e i n cut

,

ti ng a look f ro m the head of M iss Fe rmor O nly th e e x .

cessi ve i n t e re st of the age in soc1al m atte rs com

The m , of ,

‘h"M “ y
b ined with the sym p ath e tic genius o f a poe t ,

co u ld h av e mad e such gossip as this outlast the cen turi e s .

Pop e wrote first a rapid acco u n t of the c ard p arty at H am p -

ton at whi ch the th e ft took pl ac e Later he e xp an d e d the

.

po em by i ntrod u ci ng the sylphs who gu ard the l ad y s b e d

,
’
,

m ak e her toil e t and attend he r in public — ad m irabl e

, ,

sugge sti ons of the artific e which dire cted each act how ,

e v e r t rivi al of a b e ll e of Q u ee n A nn e s da
’
,
y T h e R ap e.
f
o
the Lock is not only a satire on soci e ty ; it is a witty
p arody of the h e roic style in poetry E v en the verse for m .

is treate d hu m orously e sp e ci ally through its ten d en cy

,

toward anti cli max as in the li ne s

-
, ,

H e re thou , grea t Ann a ! w h o m t hree re alm s o b e

y,
D o st so m e ti m e s co u n se l ta k e — a nd som e tim es t e a .

I n Th e Rap e o f the Lock the

s atire is general and on , ,

the whol e good natur e d

,
-
Man y of Pop e s po em s h ow
.
’
,

e ve r are i n ten s e ly p e rsonal a n d gr e w ou t of th

, , e circu m
stan ce s of h is life A s has b een said already his ch ar
.
,

acte r was not a gre at one We li sten i n vain in his poe try
.

f or the d e ep e r note s of i n divid u al hu m an e xp eri enc e But .

h is l ack of absorptio n in his i nne r life mad e him m orbidly

21 0 A HISTORY or E NGLISH LI TE RATUR E

p ersonal grudge s Pop e

p aid off by the sev e ral publi ca tions
of Th e D u nci a d an e l aborat e s atire in which af te r the
, ,

fashio n of Dryd en in M a cF leclcnoe the dullards p e d an ts , , ,

and b ad poe ts are pr esent e d in ridi culous surrou n din gs and

“
a ttitud e s A ll this m o rbid followi ng of
. m ise rabl e ai ms
that end in se lf se e m s rem ote e nough f ro m the digni ty of
a gr e at p oe t Y e t it m ust no t b e f orgotten tha t the age
.

itself was l argely preoccupi e d with s m all thi ngs P op e s .

’

satiric genius cam e to him as of right at a time wh e n the ,

ey e s of m e n w e r e tur ned a way f ro m the wond e rs o f n a ture

and of the hu m an h e art and w e re fix e d on th e m se lv es and

,

th e ir w orldly con ce rns .

’
O ne of Pop e s last f ri e ndships th at with Boli ngb rok e , ,

prov e d the inspiratio n of the be st re me mbe re d of his poe m s ,

the E ss ay on M a n Boli ngbroke was the re pre s e n tat ive

.

of a ki nd of sc e pticis m th o rou ghly ch ara cte ristic of e igh

,

te en th c en tu ry thought to which the nam e Dei sm has be en ,

give n De is m was an e ffort to s u bstitute natural re ligio n

.

”
The m y f o r C hri s ti a n ity I n d ee d P.o p e s E ss a y
’
is i n
m " ,

th at it fin ds satisf a ctory
so far an ti Christi an -
,

grou n ds for b eli ef in God by the e xe rci se of reaso n u naid ,

ed by r v l
e e a o ti n Th
. e p o e m is i n r e ali ty a n a pplic a ti o n o f
c om mon se nse to the proble m s of the u n ive rse and to the
-

li fe of m an and wh e re c om m on se nse ref use s to carry us -

,
”
“ b y nd the fl a m i ng ra m p arts of the wo rld
e o th e r e , P op e

li m its his i nq u i ry T he first e pi stle is con ce rne d with

.

m an s
’
pl a ce i n n a t u r e th e s e c o n d with i n divid u a l e t h ics
the thi r d with t h e o r igi n o f s o ci e ty a n d p o litics th e f ourth
with the q u e sti on of m an s h appine ss In all fo ur a ppe ar ’
.

p
the o s itivi sm of the c en t u ry i t s sh a llow , sa tis f a ctio n wi t h
thi ngs as th e y are i ts di slik e of th ose sp e cul ative d ifi er
,

e n ce s w i
h c h l ea d to fa n a ti ci s m i ts trust i
,
n dow n r igh t

ut ili ty .In s h o rt t h e ,
E s s a y o n M a n is a m a rv e l lous col
l e cti on o f a ph ori s m s p oi nti ng n eatlv and e xactly the
,

pe cu li ariti e s an d p rej u dic e s of the age of wh ich Po pe was

so e m inently the v oice .
 TH E E I G H TEENTH C ENTURY 21 1

P op e was by p ersonal i ncli nati on co nne cted chi e fly with

’
the write rs who gath e re d abo u t Swi ft and in Swi f t s ah ,

sen c e i n Irel and he was the centre of the group His sat .

e ll i te of Chi e f m ag n it u d e was J oh n Gay ( 1 685 Gay ,

u nlik e his gre ate r f ri e nds was a th o roughly good natured

,
-
,

lik abl e m an whose ben t was t o ward broad gen ial hu m o r

, ,

rat h e r th an bitte r satir e His earli e st i m portant p oem Th e

.
,

Sh ep herd s Week was a burl e squ e tre at m en t of the

’

con v e n ti ons of p astoral p oe try In Tri v i a ( 1 7 1 5 ) he tran s

.

ferr e d his tal e n t fo r h u m orous ob se rv ati on to the Londo n

stree ts and this and the F a bles ( 1 72 7) Show his
,
John Gay
happy fac u lty for easy c om m e nt a nd criticism
.

of li fe . His f am e in his o wn day re ste d p e rh aps chi e fly

’
upo n The B egga r s Op era an oth e r burl e sq u e of the

p a stor a l f o rm but he is r e m e m b e r e d n o w fo r a lyric al gi f t ,

“
whi ch produce d the two fam o u s so ngs T w as wh en the ,
’

”
seas w e r e roari ng ,a nd Black eye d Su san -
.

P o p e bro u ght the h e roic coupl e t to p e rfe cti o n and pe r ,

hap s f o r th at reaso n the y ou nge r po e ts who gre w up in the ,

Se c o n d qu arte r of the c e ntury turned th e ir a tt enti on to oth e r

f o rm s . A gai n Pope s negl e ct of nature and h u man p assi on

,
’

m a y h a ve b een a cause why m e n of origi nality sh ould h ave

e n t e re d upon th e se fi e l ds of p oe tic m at e ri al But it m ust b e .

S a i d f u rth e r th at b e fo re the d eath of Po p e the m ood of t he

n a t i o n was u nd e rgoi ng a ch ange T he civilizi ng criti cal

.
,

S
p i r i t h ad do ne its work a n d the age was re ady f or a f re e r ,

m o r e e m oti onal e xpressi on Its i n tere sts w e re br oad ened

. .

T i r e d o f con tem pl ati ng man i n the narrow Sph e re m ark ed

ou t by artifici al s oci e ty an d i n v e ste d with the conv e n
,

t i o n a l a ttribute s of to wn li fe p oe ts l ook e d b e y ond an d sa w

, ,

h u m an ity as it app eare d in the c o u n try or i n T he New ,

P 00“
r e m o te p arts of the world T h e y l e ar ned to
.
?

l o o k t oward the p ast with re v e r e nce and with a d e sire to ,

k n o w it m ore th o r o u ghly N at u re was no te d as the

.

e n v i ro nme nt of the l a rge r p art of hu m anity and was then ,

d e scrib e d for i ts own sak e In de ed the ne w attitud e

.
,
212 A HISTO RY OF E NGLISH LIT E RATURE

t o ward nature and the new feeli ng for the past b e c am e

, ,

the l e adi ng signs of the ro man tic m ov em e n t of which th e ,

pi one e rs w e re Tho m so n Yo u ng Collins and Gra y ( se e

, , ,

p age It m ust n ot be thought h ow e v e r th at th e ne w

, ,

scho ol gained at o nce and u nopp ose d a positi on of a u thor

i tv
. O n the c ontrary it m ad e its way sl owly aga i n st a
, ,

vigorou s reacti on le d by S amu el J oh nson In the third .

rt e r of th e c en t u ry J oh n s on s u cc ee d ed to th at p ri m acy
q u a ,

in E nglish lite ratu re which had earli e r b e longed to D ryd e n

and to Pop e b u t it is sign ific an t of the i nroads whi ch the
r om an tic re viv al was m aki ng i nto the rec e ive d traditions of
e ight e e nth c e n t u ry cri ticis m th at th ou gh J oh n so n was of
, ,

a m ore abs ol u te t e m p e r th an e i th e r of his pr e d e c e ssors ,

his Sway was ne v e r so c om pl ete as th e irs .

J oh nso n s li f e i s typic al of the soci al co n ditio n s u nder

’

which lite rat u re was practi se d in the se c on d p e riod of the

ce n tury By his ti m e lit erat u re had lost its political sup
.

p ort and was oblige d to rely e ntirely upon the public

, .

A n d the r e adi ng p u blic was of sl ow growth The wri ters .

who d ep e nd e d up on it w e re c om p elle d to liv e in a sq ualid

—
b oh e m i a not u nlik e that i nh abited by the popular group
,

of auth ors i n the age of E liz ab e th — an d to put forth a ,

m ass of bad po e try critici sm and journalis m m e rely for

, ,

b re ad T he nam e of the stre e t wh e re m any of

T he Social
.

of th e m liv e d Gr u b Stre e t becam e a synonym for

, ,

h ack writi ng and p ov e rty T he aristo cratic tra .

d i tions of the pro fe ssio n w e re su pported by m e n o f the high

e s t re p u tati on lik e Po p e wh o c o u ld appr oach th e p ublic
, ,

di rectly th ro u gh the subs cripti on li st ; b u t f or the ordinary

w rite r th e re was no r esource e x cept servitud e to the li terary
brok e r or bo ok sell e r U nd e r th e se h ard conditi ons J ohnson
.

an d his fri e nds Slowly m ad e th e i r way to disti nction ; from

th at Gr u b Stree t which Pop e and Swi f t had scornfully

l am p oo ne d came th e ir succ e ssors in p o we r and repute
,

tion .

Sam u el J oh nson was born in 1 709 the son of a Utah ,

21 4 A HISTORY OF E NGLISH LI TE RA TU RE

his life he was forced to l abor to support hi mself and the

vari o u s p e rs ons who fell d e p endent upon him Wh e n his .

moth e r die d in 1 75 9 he w ro te his ori en tal apologu e Rus se

, , ,

las in a we ek to pay fo r the f u ne ral

, , He wrote oth e r .

serie s of e ssays The A dv entu rer and Th e I dler He e dite d

, , .

Sh ak esp eare He u nde rtook the preparation of a s e ri e s of

.

live s of the E nglish poe ts which app eared be tw ee n 1 779

,

and 1 781 He die d in 1 784

. .

Both in his original writing and in his criticism u pon

the writi ngs of oth e rs J ohn so n em ph as iz e s the cl ass ical
,

d ep e nd e nc e upon acc epted m odels and atta ined results as ,

O pp ose d to ro m antic e xp e ri m en t an d as p ira tio n In his .

’
po e try he f ollow e d Pop e s u se of the he roic
“ se “
u
m i ci m
s s
coupl e t Lik e Pop e also he m od e lle d his poems
.
, ,

o n th e w o rks of Lati n w rite rs ; his Lon don fo r e x ,

a mpl e b e i n g a ge ne ral a ttack upo n the e vils of soci e ty in

, ,

clo se i m itatio n of J u v enal His sym pathy with cl assical . .

id eals le d him to conform his play I rene to the u n ities , , .

In his p ros e he co n ti n u e d the work of Dryd en and Addi

,

son. H is two m ost i mp ortant prose works his I ntroduction ,

to Sh ak esp eare and his Li ves of the P oets illustra te the ,

point of vie w in matte rs of art which Dryde n had confi rmed

and est abli sh e d ; and his e ssays publish e d u n d e r the titles ,

of Th e R a mbler and Th e I dler are mod ell e d upo n th e f orm ,

se t by The Ta tler th ough J oh n so n s e ssays are lo nge r

’
, ,

h eavi e r and d u lle r th an Addison s His m oral tone too

,
’
.
, ,

is m o re se rious ; for he looke d at m orality fro m the

poi nt of vi e w of character rath e r th an from tha t of civili
,

zation . His e ssays on th e N e cessity of Pu nctu ality on ,

Idl ene ss o n T he Luxu ry of a Vai n I m agi natio n are

, ,

serio u s th ough so me wh at c om m o nplace studie s in the con

,

d u ct of li fe I nd e ed the se riousne ss of J ohn son s moral

.
,
’

tone is e very wh ere pronou nc e d ; and in this re spect too , ,

he is a gen ui ne re pre se nta tive of the classic era in its ,

“
worthie r aspe cts His Vanity of H u man Wish e s is
.
”

wr itt e n i n a lofty strai n of moral elevati on He accepted .

 TH E E I G HT EENT H C ENTURY 2 15

without qu e stio n the classical fiction th at wo rks of art

sho u ld so m e how d o g oo d to p e ople e ven his Li ves o
f th e

P oets he hop es are w rit te n in such a manne r as may tend

”
to the p rom otion of pi e ty .

But al though in the se p artic u lars J ohnso n illustrates

, ,

t he fo r m ally acc e p te d poi nt of vie w of the classica l age ,

the r e are m any sig ns in him of an i ndividu al re m Reaction s

8 gai ns t Cla s
actI o n agaI nst I t . It Is tru e he was a classICIst “m m l “
,
.

fl
in h is f o nd ne ss f or the a d m it te d the re gular ,
”
,

and i n his di slik e of the u n usu al ; in his i ns istenc e upon

the u nive rsal in tas te as oppose d to the i ndividu al

, But .

at the s am e ti m e his se n sibl e r eality lov ing h abi t of m i n d

,
-

led h im to hi t a sh am w he n he sa w i t e ven such a ve nerabl e ,

and re v e re nc e d sh am as the u niti e s of dram atic actio n .

In spite of his own confo rm ity to cl assical re quire m e nt in

I rene he boldly poi nts ou t in his c ri ticism of Sh ak e spe ar e
, , ,

tha t the acc eptance of any th eatrical p roductio n as real ,

i nvolve s such co ncessions f ro m the i m agi nation of the a u

die n ce t hat it is n ot i n co mm on sens e to ref us e lic e ns e i n
-

mi n or m at te rs . His attitud e on th i s and o th e r poi nts

serve s to illustrate the reason of the e ighte enth c entury at
wa r with the pri ncipl e s of art which had b e e n lo ng as
su m e d to be the high es t expre ssion of th at reaso n His .

p o s itio n in th e w o rld o f l e tt e rs st riki ngly illustr a t e s t h e

appro a chi ng end o f the e ra whic h had b e gu n with the Re s

'

tora tio n . His real se nse of the v alu es of thi ngs and his ,

free d o m fro m c an t te nd e d to s hak e his faith in pse udo

,

class ica l f or m ul as ; and hi s p e rso nal f o rc e his i nd e p e nd e n c e

,

of c h a r acte r his v e ry p rejudic e s m ad e bro adly i n the d i

, ,

rec tio n of i ndividu alis m a s agai nst au th ority in cri ti cis m ,

and thus pre pare d the way f or the ro m an tic re actio n .

T h e Ram bl e r e ssays show p erh aps m ore sali en tly

,

tha n any o th e r of J oh nson s wri ti ngs th ose

’
,
Hi Sty l e s
li riti s which h v m d h i styl b
.

p e c u a e a e a e s e a y
wo rd f or h eav i ness The dictio n i nvolves a l arge propor
.

t i o n of Latin words d u e as has b ee n hu morously sug

, ,
 A H I ST O RY O F EN GLI SH LI TE R AT UR E

ge st ed to the fact that J oh nson was th en at work on

,

his le xicon and use d his Rambler as a track wh e re he

,

cou ld e x e r ci se the w ord s th at had g row n stiff fro m l ong

disuse M oreove r J oh nson d oubl es epith e ts adds illustra

.
,

ti ons d e v el op s e xp and s mod ifi e s balance s r e p e a ts and

, , , , , ,

e xh au sts the id e a b e for e he will h av e d o ne with it His .

se nte nce s are thu s com plicated and w eighty f ull of i nver ,

si ons d e p e ndi ng m u ch on rh e to rical artifi ces such as an

,

ti th e si s and cli m ax But this el aborate manne r is not

.

al ways o u t of pl a ce It occasionally give s to J oh n son s ’

.

writi ng a s ombre and sple ndid eloqu e nce as in the op en ,

ing p assage of R a ssela s M oreov e r he could be si m pl e and

.
,

coll oq u i al wh e n he ch ose ; and his l at e r works p ossibly ,

b e cau se th e y w e r e wri tten m or e hurri edly are m uch m ore ,

’
te rs e and rapid In gene ral J ohnson s i nflu e nce on E nglish
.
,

styl e was a good on e Whil e he con firm e d the trad ition

.

o f ord e r c o r re ct n e ss an d lucidity which had begu n with

, , ,

Dryd e n he i n tr od u ce d a gr eat e r vari e ty of e ff e ct a m ore

, ,

c om pl e x se nte n ce stru cture and a more c opious dic ti on

, .

H e sh ow e d ho w e v e n withi n the rul e s of com position

,

d e fi n e d in p racti ce by D ryd e n and Addison the rich ness ,

and v ari e ty of E liz ab e th a n prose m ight b e attem p te d .

J oh nson had i n hi m a f orc e of ch aracte r far grea ter

th an he su ccee d e d i n b ri ngi ng to b ear on any of h is lit
crary u nd e r taki ngs T his f orc e of ch a ra cte r
.

st rongly i m p re s sed his c onte m porari e s a nd has ,

b e e n trans m it te d to l ate r ti m e s by the e x trao r

d i nary z eal an d ability of the gr eate st of all biograph e rs ,

J a m e s B osw e ll wh ose Lif e of J ohnson is one of the cl assics

,

o f the ce n t u ry It b egi ns prop erly with the ye ar 1 763

.
,

whe n i ts au th or fi rst m e t J oh n son F ro m th at m ee ti ng .

B oswell f oll ow e d the great m an s d oi ngs and sayi n gs with ’

1

u nw e a ri ed a tt e n ti on In his e ff ort to draw J oh nso n out

.

and to m ak e hi m e xpre ssiv e h e was d e te rre d by no re bu ffs

, ,

an d he wa s n ot a sh am e d to o ff e r hi m s elf as the butt of his 5

master s wit ’
For tw en ty years he work ed with his 0379
.
21 8 A HISTOR Y OF E NGLISH LITERATURE

courage In spite of e ve rythi ng in spite ev en of w eakness

.
,

i n his o wn ch aracte r he b e li e ve d in hi m s el f , In his stren .

u ou sness his m orality

, his ref u sal to yi eld grou nd any
,

wh e re to the e vils with o ut or the foe s within i n his re solve ,

to draw i nspiration f rom his own shortcom i ngs in all this ,

J oh nso n is a great man an d f or this he d es e rv e s his fame , .

J oh nson s so call e d d icta torship of English l e tte rs was

’
-

l argely the result of his co nv ersati onal supre macy in the

Lit e r ary Cl u b w hich i nclud e d ne arly all the fam o us writ
,

e rs o f the ti m e N e xt to J oh nson hi msel f its most no tabl e

.

fi gure was O live r Goldsm ith Goldsmith was born .

“mm “ i n 1 728 in Ir el an d wh e re his fa th e r had a s mall ,

livi ng H e was a dull b oy at school and had an nu distin

.
,

g u is h e d c a re e r at the U n ive rsity o f D ubli n H e th e n w e n t .

to Edi n burgh to study m e di ci ne and af te rward to Le yd e n ; ,

wh e nc e he b egge d his way ov e r a l arge p art of E uro pe re ,

tur ni ng to Londo n in 1 75 6 Af ter an u nsuccessf ul atte mpt .

as a s cho ol m ast er he t ook to lite ra tur e as it was pra ctise d

-
,

i n Gr u b Stre e t and b e c am e a h ack write r for v arious m ag

,

a zi n e s His p ape rs call e d The Ci ti zen of the World ( 1 7 60

.

1 7 61 ) ( which he wrote f or the P ublic Le dger co nsis ted

of o bs e rvation s upo n E ngli sh li fe writt en from th e p o i n t

of vi e w of a Chi nam an In 1 764 J oh nson fou nd h i m o ne

.

d ay in his l odgi ngs the p ri so ne r of his u npa id lan dla dy

, ,

wit h the m anuscrip t of T he Vi ca r of Wakefield by him .

J ohn s on sold the bo ok whic h app e are d s ome fif tee n m o n ths

,

l ate r af ter Golds mith had published his firs t succe ssf u l
,

p oe m T he Tra veller His se c ond venture i nto p oe try The

, .
,

D es er ted Vi llage app eare d in 1 770 Meanwhil e Gold s m ith

, .

had tu rne d to the stage prod u ci ng T he Good na tu red M a n ,

-

i n 1 7 68 and She Stoop s to Conq u er i n 1 773 the y ea r be f ore

, ,

his dea th .

Golds m ith is al most as well k n own to us as J oh n son and ,

l arge ly through the same age n cy the indus try of B oswe ll , .

H e is p ortraye d in the Lif e of J ohnson as the se co nd lu mi

nary of the cl u b the o nly me m ber who dare d pe rsis tently
,
 TH E E I G HTEE NT H C ENTURY 21 9

to pr ovok e the w rath of the dict ator Agai n and agai n .

B o s well sh o ws u s J oh nson and Gold sm it h the h eavily ,

a r m e d s oldi e r and t he d ef t sli ng e r O c casio nally J oh n son

.

bo re d ow n his opp one n t by sh ee r we ight b u t m ore Of ten ,

Go ld s m ith se n t h is s tone to its m ark and m ad e good his

re tre at S om e ti m e s his success tu rne d on a m e re tri ck ;
.

b u t o f t en his repli e s w e re com p act of se nse and s al t as ,

’
w h e n h e doubte d J oh nson s abili ty to w rit e a fabl e b e cau se
h e w o u ld i ne vitably m ak e the litt le fi sh es talk like wh al es .

Go ld s m ith s w ari ne ss i n c onve r sati on did n ot acc om p any

’

h i m i n t o the m ore practical w alks of li fe H e was in va ri .

a bly i n di ffi cu l ti es p e cu ni ary or s oci al

, p artly th rough his
g e n e r osity in whi ch he rese m bled his o wn Good natu red
,
-

M a n p artly th ro u gh his bli nd tru st i n the Gol dsmi th “

,

“m am ”
wo rld . F or Golds m ith was in one sen se at ,

l e as t the an ti th e sis of Swi f t H e gav e hi m se lf fre e ly he

, .

th re w hi m sel f up on li fe with the name i m pr u d en ce o f a

c h il d . Whe the r t ra ve rsi ng E urop e as a p e nni le ss stu de n t ,

o r s e lli ng his m aste r pi e ce s Gold sm ith t ook n o th o ught

-
,

f o r th e m orrow A nd wit h thi s c onfid e nc e in his fe llo ws

.

w e n t a gr eat l ov e for th e m a l ov e app ar e n t in al l the

,

w riti ngs in to whi ch he put his r e al s el f His p ap e rs in .

The Ci ti zen of the World th o u gh lik e Addiso n s O f t e n

’
, , ,

d i re ct e d agai n st the fa u lts and absurditi e s of m e n h av e ,

a te n d e rne ss which goe s beyond Addi son s m ildne ss a ’

,

n o t e o f ki nship th a t is v e ry di ff e re n t f rom the Sp e cta to r s

’

a l o o f n e ss Gold sm ith s p oe m s are wri t te n in the m e tr e of

’
.

P o p e b u t i n spi rit th ey are far re m ov e d fr om Pop e s satir

’
,

i ca l h ard ne ss In pl ace of the s av age sk e tch e s of A tticu s

.

a nd Bu fo in T he Ep i s tle to A rbu thnot we h av e the ,

v ill ag e p ars on in The D es e rted Vi llage And it is to b e .

n o te d th at th o ugh Golds m ith had no p e rson al sy m p at hy

,

w ith the risi ng romanti c sch ool his i n t e re st in re m o te , ,

O bs cu re an d u nfortu n at e ph ase s of hu m an li fe whi ch ap

, ,

rs i n Th e Tra veller hi s ch am pi onship of the i ndi

p e a ,

v i du al agai nst the i n sti tu tio n which would crush him in ,

220 A HISTORY or E NGLISH LITERATU RE

T he Deserted Vi llage, mark hi m as a p re cu rsor of the

rom antic m ov em ent .

A criticis m th at has often b e en mad e on Golds m ith s

’

Deserted Vi llage, is th at the picture of Auburn i n its

prosp e rity c ould ne ve r apply to an Irish h am le t The .

sam e criticis m m ight b e appli e d m or e bro adl y to all his

work T o him reali sm was i m possibl e be cause in his
.
,

w hole e xp e ri enc e of li fe he i nvari ably read the world in

t e rm s of his own idealis m Thi s ide alis m give s i ts color .

S e Stoops
h i ng to his n ov e l an
. d also to his co m e di e s
, Sh e .

t°
Stoop s to Conq u er the b est k nown of them , ,

pre se n ts us soon after the O p e ni ng of the play with a

, ,
”
ri oto us sc e ne at the T hre e Pige ons led by the louti sh ,

sq u ir e T ony Lu m pki n
, T wo tra vell e rs app ear whom
.
,

T o n y dire cts to the house of his ste p fath e r Mr Hard -

, .

cas tl e as to an i nn The travell e rs are you ng Marlo w

, .
,

w ho m H ardc astl e is e xp e cti ng as the suitor f or his

d au ghter and his f rie nd Hastings H ardcastle recogn izes
, .

th e m ; b u t Marlo w and H as ti ngs also for a ti m e belie ve

, ,

t he m se lve s to b e in a hostelry think Hardcastl e is the host ,

an d his d au ghte r the s e rv an t and b e h av e accordi ngly , .

T he sit u ati o n ho we v e r fa vors the love affair b e t we en

, ,

M i ss H ardc as tl e an d M arl ow ; f or the latt e r who has ,

n e v e r b e e n abl e to c on q u e r his b ashf ul ne ss with ladi es

of c ondi tio n fi nds his p ath e asy wi th th e suppose d bar

,

m aid .

The pl ay is a ch arm i ng idyl iIi which the rough edge s of ,

the world are g rou nd s m ooth in which faults turn out to be ,

virtu e s an d m i stak e s to b e bl e ssi ngs A t ti me s the stage

, .

land copi e s the actu al world wi th fidelity as in the scene at ,

2 1
“ ”
the T h re e Pige on s and in the si m pl e cou n try li fe in
,

Hard castle s h om e T ony Lu m pki n is a genui ne C h ild of

’
.

the s oil B u t the m agic of co m e dy is ove r all a magic ih

.
,

d ee d m u ch subdu e d fro m the brilliant romanticism of

’
Sh ak e sp ea re s day but still pote nt , F or the sob e r th eatre a .

of the l at e e ig hte en th c e ntury She Stoop s to Con u er is ca

q ,
2 22 A HIS T O RY or E NG LISH LI TE RA T URE

v
e en his fam il y portrai ts e xce pt th at of Sir O live r hi mself
, .

T hi s mod e st bit of l oyalty se rve s to r e i nsta te th e prodigal

i n hi s u n cl e s good op inio n whi l e J os eph discover e d on all
’
,

si d es fad es out of the pl ay in d isgrace

, .

It is e vid e nt th at h e re we h ave an am usi ng mock world ,

wh e re the pri ncipl es m oral and soci al on whi ch hu man

, ,

li fe is actu ally conducted are subord i nate d to the necess i

,

ties of an intrigu e T he ch arac te rs hea r an ama zi ng s im ili

.

tud e to real p e ople ; in d eed m any of th e m h av e l ong be e n ,

acc e pte d as e xa ct d e li ne atio ns of ce rtai n q u aliti es and typ es

but we ne ve r forge t whil e we are with th e m th at we are

i n sta ge l and A t fi rst sight Th e School f or Sca nda l with
-
.
, ,

its op e ning sc e nes in which gossip ru ns wild see ms to t e ,

vive the world of the Re storation d rama but th ere is a ,

d i fi e re nce .Light tri fli ng f riv ol ous as is Sh e ri dan s

, ,
’

soci e ty it is no t fu nd ame ntally and flagrantly i m m oral

, .

H is p e opl e pl ay with fi re but th e y are no t bu rne d , So .

m uch had the m oral and soci al fo rce of the ce n tu ry ac

co mpl ish ed in the y ears si nc e Colli e r s attac k on the s tage
,
’
.

It may h ave bee n owi ng to the d e velop me nt of the

magazi ne th at the work of the men of J oh nso n s pe riod ’

was in ge ne ral of so mi scell aneous a ch a racte r F ro m thi s .

ch a rg e howe v e r m ust b e e xc e pte d E dw ard Gibbo n

, , ( 1 73 7
who is kn own for a si ngl e w ork p e rha ps the m os t ,

spl e ndid literary achi evem ent of the ce ntu ry Fro m his .

y outh Gibbo n be li e ved in his d esti ny as a histo ri an ; and

lik e Mi lto n he sought long for a subj ect wo rthy of his
,

pow e rs A t l as t whi l e on a visit to Ro me in

m m ", . ,

Gi b m 1 764 the id ea o f writi ng a his to ry of the de

,

cli ne and fall of the e mpire ca me to hi s mind Fo u r ye ars .

l a te r he be gan to work a t this s u bj ect In 1 776 his firs t .

volu me app e ared but it was not u n til af te r e l e ve n years

,

m ore of ste ady toil th a t the f ul l six v olu mes we re co mpl e ted .

Gibb on is pe rso nally w ell k nown to us throu gh his fxank ‘

’
acco u nt of hi ms el f in his m e moi rs—
1

a man wi th !RM

dignity or pres ence or passion, or heroism Yet in W

, , .
 TH E E I G HTEE NT H C E NTUR Y 22 3

light of his achi e vem ent his life stands out in al m ost ,

h eroic proportio ns To his great task e ve rythi ng i n his

.

caree r was s u bsidi ary H e s e rv ed for a ti m e in me W e and

.

th e m iliti a a nd he r e m arks th at the captai n of W o k r o

th e H am pshir e Gre nadi e r s was n ot use l e ss to the histori an

of th e Rom an E m pire In lik e m anne r he m ad e his s e at
.
,

“
i n P arli am e n t m e rely a pre p arati on for his w ork a ,

school of civil pr u d enc e the first and m ost e sse ntial vi rtu e
,
”
of a n hi st ori an It is this su re nes s of i nspiration thi s
.
,

u n ity of acco m plishm en t in Gibb on s li fe th at cons titute ’

,

his clai m to s om e thi ng m ore th an the glory th at b elongs

to lit e rary succ e ss In the light of hi s task his negativ e
.

q u aliti e s be co me p ositive ; his vice s vir tu e s A s an ad , .

a p tat ion of m ean s to e nd Gibbo n s li fe was a spl e ndid

’
,

p e rf o rm anc e .

T he D ecline a nd F a ll of the R oma n E mp i re tre ats the

history of Rome from the s e cond ce n tury to the e nd of the
fif th and th en with a m ore rapid m e thod f ollows the
, , ,

E a ste rn or Byz an ti ne E m pire u nt il the fall of Con

O f Gibb on s sch ol arship th e re can b e n o
’
s ta n ti nopl e .

c om plai nt He was c om pl e te ly m aster of his au th oriti es

.

an d hi s tre at m e n t o f th e m is so di scri m i nati ng so fair so , ,

thorough th at he cannot b e s u p e rse d ed T wo m M ri ts nd

, .
3 e a

se rious faults in his w ork m u st b e l aid at the Def ea t

d oo r o f n —
his ce tury his l ack of phil os ophic i nsight and ,

his l ack of sy m p athy with spiritu al m ov e m e n ts Lik e his .

co n te mp orarie s he distru sted phil os ophy and dislike d

, ,

e nth u si as m B ehi n d the facts he did not care to p ene

.
,

trat e ; in the real m of e m oti on he was u ncom preh e ndi ng .

Hen ce his dry h ard i nad e q u ate tr eatm ent of Ch ri stianity

, ,

a tr eat m e n t r e fl ecti ng his own a ttit u d e and li m it a ti on s .

He h ad n o spi ritu al i nte re sts ; his p oi nt of vi e w was con

siste n tl y worldly .

Gibb on s styl e is of the e l ab orate typ e i ntrod u c e d by J ohn

’

son . I t is m assiv e solid an d e xh au stive

, It s u bstitute s
, .

cour tli ness for e as e e l e ganc e f or ch ar m

, Its e xcessive .
2 24 A HISTORY or E NGLISH LITE RATURE

polish gives an eff e ct of i nsi ncerity at ti me s al m ost of ,

m ock e ry But in the large the e ffe ct of Gibbon s style is

.
, ,
’

co m mensu rate with the greatness of his th eme

ms Sty le
.

T he rhyth m ic u nw eari ed marc h of th e sen ,

ten ce s the flashi ng of an tith e si s and the st eady roll of the

, ,

dicti on are but po m p and circu m stance b efitting the sta tely
,

p ro c essi on of e m p e rors and natio ns Chi ef am ong Gibbon s .

’

li te rary qu ali ti e s is his s ense of str u cture which shows ,

i tself i n his fac u l ty f or h and li ng large m asse s of material .

He consci ously c o m pos ed by p aragraphs each one a u nit , ,

“
an d each of j us t the right w e ight It has always b een .

“ ”
m y practic e he wrote to cast a lo ng paragraph in a
, ,

si ngl e m ould to try it by my ear to d eposit it in my

, ,

m e m ory b u t to suspe nd the ac ti o n of my pe n till I had

,
”
giv en the last polish to my work T his s en se of e xact .

structure of outline of organic de velop m ent shows its elf

, , ,

still m ore in the ast onishi ng archite ctural me rit of the

wh ole work T he rui n of the Roman Empire is i n polit
.

ical hist ory wh at the fall of m an is in th e ology and Gib ,

b on lik e M ilt on has r e aliz ed the epic possibiliti e s of his g

, ,

th e me .

If Gibb on is a m onu m e n tal e x am pl e of a s mall pe rso nal

ity b e c om i ng by trai ni ng and eco n om y fit for the grea test z i t
achi e ve m e n t a co rre sp on d i ng cas e of a gre at m an e xp end
,

i ng his p o we rs wi th app are n t fruitle ss ne ss be c au se err ,

p endi ng th e m on p assi ng aff airs is fou nd in the ca ree r oi ,

f
'

Golds m ith s e pigram

’
E d m u nd B u rk e ( 1 72 9

Wh o , b o rn fo r t h e u n i v e rse , n arro wed hi s m in d ,

A n d to p arty ga v e up wh a t was m e an t fo r m an k in d ,
‘

expresse d the O pi ni on of conte mporari e s as to Burke s ; ’ 3

caree r Yet so p e ne trati ng was Burk e s thought and 80 ’

°
.
,

nobl e its p re s e n tati on th at his r e sults are of valu e to day‘

,
-
,

irre sp ective of the occasi ons which c alle d the m forth .

B u rk e was a nativ e of Irel and and a Ba ch elor of Arts of : ‘ f

,

T ri nity Colleg e He w e nt to Lo ndo n as a stu dent of

.
226 A H I STO RY O F E N GLI SH LITERATU RE

before the Hou se of Lords and he con tin u e d to manage it

,

u n til the acquittal of H asti n g s in 1 795 .

F i nally wh en the d ange rs which Bu rk e h ad appre

,

h e nd ed f rom the i n te rnal state of E ngl an d w e re realiz ed

in Fran c e he th re w hi m sel f t ow ard the o nly safe ty which
,

he c ould se e an d l e d the opp ositio n to the F ren c h Rev olu

,

ti on T hi s attit u d e i n v olve d a se p arat ion f rom his p arty

.
,

but B u rk e took the ste p withou t fl inching .

Hi V ew s on
s i
h F e lch H is Re fl e cti ons on the Fre nch Re voluti on
{t i t
e r x
,
l
publi sh e d in 1 790 did m u ch to ch e ck the
,

ri si ng sy m p athy with the m ove m ent in En gl an d an d on ,

the c on ti ne nt H e foll owe d this u p with

. T ho u ghts on
”
F re n ch A ff ai rs App e al from the N e w to the
O ld Whigs “
” ”
a nd Le tt ers on a Regicid e P eace
— I n thi s o pp ositi on Bu rk e t oo k a l arge r poi nt
( 1 7 96 1 7
of vi e w th an th at of m e re i n su l ar pr e j u dic e He b e li e ved .

th at E ngl and had a w orld m issio n in stem mi ng the tide of

,

r e voluti o n and in m arsh alli ng the f orce s of re action in

,

E u rop e .Right or wro ng the stru ggl e of E ngl an d agai nst

,

F ran c e b e tw e en 1 794 and 1 81 5 is a spl endid act in the

d ra ma of nati ons It is sc arcely too m u ch to say that the
.

l eadi ng rOle which E ngl an d playe d in those years was cas t

f or he r by B u rke H e w rote the li ne s which the c ann on
.

d e cl ai m e d at T rafalgar and Wate rloo .

T h e re are th u s th re e p eriods i n Bu rk e s c aree r i n wh i ch

’
,

h i s writi ngs c on ce rne d succ e ssiv ely A m e ric a I ndi a and , ,

F ranc e a fi rst p e ri od of Cassandra proph e cy of u nh e e ded

-
,

w arni ngs and de spi se d advice ; a se c ond of vigoro u s p u r

,

su it o f e vil and vi ndi cati o n of j u stic e ; a th ird of d e s p e rate

,

d e fe nce of the thi ngs he be li e ve d in agai nst the re v olution

, .

In his fi rst task he was al m o st u tte rly u nsucc e ssf u l in the

se con d he won a q u alifie d s uc ce ss am id app aren t failure ; in
th e t hi rd he was i mm en sely vi ctoriou s In the first two.
,

B u rk e was di sti n ctly ah e ad of his age ; in the l ast he was

b ehi n d it N e ve rth el e ss B u rk e s reactionary tend enci es
.
’

w ere the res u l t of his ch aracte r and reste d on the same

,
 TH E E IGH T EE NT H C E NTURY 22 7

practical philosophy th at guide d his thought in oth e r

m att e rs .

F o r B u rk e was in ch aracter e ssen ti ally m od erate con ,

ser va ti v e and practic al

,
His di sp osition was always to
.

w ork with the mate ri als which e xi sted H e was opp ose d .

to d o ctri naire th e ori e s and to s ch e m e s of doubtf ul appli ca

,

b ili ty . The Fr e n ch Re volutio n was in one way a m an i , ,

festa tion of the r atio nalis m of the e ighteenth ce ntury ; of the

ten d e n cy to try all thi ngs in soci e ty by reason alone and to ,

w o rk ou t by e xp eri m e nts in gov ernm e nt the th eori e s which

had be e n e xpou nd e d by sp e cul ativ e philosoph ers T he .

Re v oluti on was co nc eive d i n the spirit of Voltaire s b e li ef

’

that they are the m ost p e stile n t of all enem i e s of m an

ki n d who discrown sov e re ign reason to b e the se rvi ng
”
d ru dge of sup e rstition and soci al u sage To m p hh h hh l .
e

B u rk e on the contrary reas on was by no means “ m a n“

, ,

a n a d e q u at e m easur e of h u m a nity He took accou n t of .

o th e r e l e m e n ts e ven of , prej udice the foe of reaso n , .

“ “
T hr ou gh just pr ej udic e he says a man s duty b e
’
, ,

c o m e s p art of his nature H e h eld th at soci al usage

.
,

th at su p e rstitio n e ven m ight b e a p art of the wisdo m of

,

the age s And for th a t wisd o m e xpress ed in c oncrete

.
,

form as i n stitutions the e m b odi e d re sult of l ong e xpe ri

,

e nce Burk e had i m m e n s e r e v e re n ce

, He h e ld th at if in .

s ti tu tio ns w er e to ch ang e it m ust not b e by the m e re

,

a rbitrary pr om u lgati on of la w O n the c ontrary he says

.

“
If a great ch ange is to b e m ad e in hu m an affairs the
m i n d s of m en will be fitte d to i t the ge ne ral O pi nio ns and ,

fee li ngs will dr aw th at way e ve ry fe ar e v ery hop e will

, ,
”
forw ard it .

T hi s r eli anc e on the u l ti m at e facts of hu man ch aract e r

,

e v e n i ts pre judic e s and w eak n e ss e s this trust i n li fe rath e r

,

th an in re as on m arks a c e rtai n co nne ction b e tw e en Burk e

,

an d the rom an tic sch ool in lite ratur e Still mo re is this .

conn e cti o n e m ph asiz e d by the i m agin ative p ow e r of Burk

e s
’

sym p athy a symp athy which p ene trated to the u ttermo st

2 28 A HISTORY OF E NGLISH LITERATURE

p arts of the earth mak ing the wrongs of the American

,

colo nists and the sufferi ngs of the Hi ndus as real to him as
the conditio ns u nde r which he hi m sel f liv e d Another .

poi nt of con tact be t ween Burke and the ro manticists is his

po we r of i nve sti ng with i nt ere st and color the
ma Connec
p ast e xp eri ence of the rac e and of maki ng It
3333 30133 a ea ,

pp l to the Im agination In short Burk e .

, ,

like Scott and Words w orth was a ro manticist in feeli ng , ,

th ough of te n reacti onary in faith .

It is the feeli ng b ehi nd his th ought that give s to Burk e s ’

styl e its curi ou s far reachi ng el oqu enc e His substanc e is

,
-
.

solid massive f ull of fact appare ntly mos t ref ractory and
, , ,

i nert ; yet it is constan tly brought to a white h ea t by the

flam e of his p assion N o such styl e as his had be e n seen
.

in England He form e d it i nde e d on the m od el

.

of B oli ngbrok e b u t h e has a ran ge of e ff e c ts to

,

which his m ast er was a strange r — spl endi d i m age ry iro ny , , ,

fe rvor co n victi on whil e in such te ch nical matte rs as the

,

articul ati on of his s en tence s and the dir e ctio n of his p ara
,

graphs B u rk e measure d for the fi rst tim e the rh e torical

,

possibilitie s of E nglish writi ng .

With B u rk e the eighteen th ce ntury properly ends He‘ .

is the last of the group of great writers whose Chi ef in te r

est was in p olitics and wh ose trust was in i ns titutions
,
He‘ .

di e d whil e d ef e ndi ng wi th app arent succe ss the work 05

, ,

the c en tu ry agai n st wh at s ee m e d to him the f orce s of de

structi on But although he uttered the form al doctri ne 05 :
.

the e ighte e nth c e n tury i n his d ee p e r thought he rep re

,

se n ts that spiritu al gain with which hu manity advance !

i nto the nine teenth .
2 30 A HISTORY O F EN GLISH LITE RATUR E
To giv e a co mpl ete accou nt of the m od ern no v el we must
go back to the st ori e s of t he M iddle Ages T h ese were in .

gen e ral of two ki nd s ad apt e d to two au di en ce s the nobles

, ,

an d the p e opl e O f the fi rst class w e re the rom ances

.

cl u ste ri ng abou t such h eroe s as Ch arlemagn e an d K i ng

A rth u r an d d e ali ng wi t h k n igh tly adv e n tu re
Medi e al v , ,
F i °fi °n °
m ysti cal re ligi ou s e xp eri e n ce and c ourtly love , .

T h ese we re t old first in v e rs e l ate r i n p rose ,

T he M orte .

d A rthu r of Sir T h omas Mal ory ( 1 4 70) is the m ost c om p re

’

hen siv e e x am pl e of t he k n ightly e pic in E ngl and B e i ng .

writt e n f or p e opl e of l e i su re and cu lture the roman ce s of ,

chivalry p resente d a highly i m agi native id ealiz e d vi e w of ,

li fe in which st rength vi rtu e and p assi on w e re all of a

, , ,

t ransce n d en t an d u nn atu ral ch aracte r The fi ctio n of the .

co m m on p e opl e was d e cid e dly m or e realistic F o r th e m .

,

the stori e s of the k n ightly e pics w e re i n p art re t old of ten ,

with the p u rp ose of e xhibiti ng in a cynical spi rit the co arse

h u m an m otives u nde rlyi ng chival ric a chi e ve m en t S ome .

ti m e s the vi ce s and folli e s of m e n were rep resente d in sh ort

tal e s in p ro se or v e rse ; the hypocri sy of the cl e rgy for
, ,

e x am pl e was a fav orit e subj e ct

, An id e a of the range of.

m e d iae val p op u l ar ficti on can b e gai ne d fr om Ch auc e r s ’

Ca nterbu ry Ta les or fro m the c oll e cti on of stori e s m ad e

,

by B occacci o in the D eca meron T h ese prose st ori e s w e re .

c all e d in It aly n ovelle from which te r m is d e riv e d our

,

w ord novel T he spi rit of bu rl esqu e ar ou sed by the con

.

t rast b e tw e en the ide als of chival ry an d the affai rs of actu al

li fe le d in Sp ai n to the p rod u cti on of a f orm of story k no wn
,

as the pic are sq u e r o m an ce H ere the h e ro is a rascal

.

i rogu e) who wand e rs f rom pl ace to pl ac e fi nd i n

(p ca r o z
g ,

all m an n e r of adv e ntu re s am u si n g an d sc and al ous ; h e is n ot

, ,

lik e the k night e rran t b e nt u p on fi ndi ng the Holy Grail or

-
,

u p on re sc u i n g i nj u re d p ri n c esse s b u t is i n te nt m e r e ly u pon
,

sati sf yi n g his b odily w ant s T h e typic al Itali an novella and

.

the Sp an i sh rogu e sto ry re se m bl e d e ach oth e r i n th e ir r eal

i sm i n the faithf ul ne ss with whi ch th e y r e produc e d the
,
 TH E E I G H T EE NTH C E NTURY 23 1

mann ers of a
ctu al li fe T h ey are the s ource of the realis
.

tic n ove l of to day whil e what we call the roma nce l ooks
-
,

back rath e r to the epic of chivalry for its b eginni ng .

E n gli sh ficti on of the Renais san c e was l arge ly d e riv e d

f ro m th e sou rc e s j u st m en ti on ed T h e re we re great n u m .

be rs of transl ati ons of the Itali an novelle and

B gus h Fi c u
so m e translatIon s of the Sp anIsh rog u e sto rIe s
iigiiaiisiiif e .

c
T h e r e w e re p ros e r om anc e s f ou n d e d on the
caree rs of pop u l ar he roe s and t old som eti m e s in the id eal
,

istic of te n in the p op u l ar spirit

, The fi rst great l an d .

m arks in E ngli sh fi cti on of the Re naissance w ere Lyly s ’

E up hu es an e x ampl e of a fictiti o u s n arrative with a p u r

,

p ose and Sir Philip Sid ney s A rca di a in which a rom ance
,
’
,

of chival ry i s giv e n a p ast oral se tti ng In the light of .

Lyly s and Sid n e y s succ e ss m any st ori e s O fte n f rom Ital

’ ’
, ,

ian s o u rc e s w e re r e told i n the E u ph u i stic m ann e r or with

, ,

the additi on of Arc adian e l e m e n ts of th ese Rob e rt Gre e ne s

’

M enap hon and T hom as Lodge s Rosa ly nde h av e already

,
’

be e n m en ti on ed An e x cell en t e x am ple of an origi nal

.

rogu e st ory is T ho m as N ash s Unf ortu na te Tra v eller ’

.

I n the s e v e nteen th ce ntu ry the En gli sh read e rs of ficti on

we re chi efly suppli e d f rom F ranc e wh e re th ere had ari sen ,

a scho ol of writ e rs who t old at g rea t l en gth an d

Engli h m y ,
s

with m u ch sen ti m e ntal and i magi nativ e em b roi gg gg

n
tg ggth e
dery the st ori e s of the Gran d Cyru s and othe r C ntu y
,
e r .

hal f hist ori cal h e roes O f these tal e s the b e s t k nown are
-
.

thos e by Mll e Sc u d ery In th e ir e x agge rati on of h e ro i sm

. .

and in th e i r artifi ciality th ey r e s e m bl e d th e rom an c es of

chival ry which th ey su c ceed e d and lik e th em th ey app eale d ,

e sp e ci ally to th e ari st o c ra cy both i n F ran ce an d in E ng

,

land Am ong the p e opl e the chi ef i n tere st in the se ven

.
,

tee n th c en tury was the r eligi ou s on e naturally the refor e , ,

we fi nd p op u l ar ficti on of the p e ri od r e pre sen t e d by the

ad a pta ti on of th e c omm o n typ e of story to the r e ligi ou s

lif e Bu nyan s Pilgri m wan d e rs th rou gh the w orld lik e

.
’

the k night errant or the Sp anish rogu e m eeti ng adv ent

-
,
23 2 A HI STO RY or EN G LISH LI TERATURE
ures Like the k night he has a high purpose ; lik e the
.

rogu e he m i ngl es with p eopl e of e v ery sort and re fl e cts in ,

his jour ne y the co mmon sights and i nte res ts of E nglish

cou ntry li fe Alm ost as n otable a co ntribution to the de
.

v el o m e n t of m od e r n ficti on as T he P ilgri m s P rogress

’
p is ,

B u nyan s autobiography Grace A bou ndi ng O ne of the

’
,
.

chi ef e l em en ts of the nove l is the study of ch aracte r and ,

in this study the nove li st has of te n f ou nd his m ost ge nu

i ne m at e ri al in the lite ra t u r e of confe ssio ns ; am on g suc h .

e xam pl e s of p e rso nal analy s is a nd r e cord e d spiritu al e xpe

ricu ce Bu nyan s acco u n t is one of the most nai ve ly con

,
’

v incing and powerfully re nd e re d

_
.

The r eal b e gi nni ng of the E nglish nov e l took plac e ir n

the e ightee nth c e n tury with the work of Da n i e l De foe

,

( 1 66 1 D e f o e lik e Bu ,ny an w as a D iss e n t e

, r ‘ 3
,

th orough m an of the peopl e a strange r to the id eals antfi

,

re fine m e n ts of aristocratic li f e More ove r in an age wh e n s :

.
,

the ai m of the succ es sful write r was to ris e in the w o rl d andE a -

,

mm , to g ai n ari st ocr atic co nne ctio ns D ef oe s ee i ng ,

Def °° to h av e b een e nti rely willi ng to rema i n i n hie ! -

f

class to se rv e it and to w rite f o r it He b egan life as a;

, , .

trad e s man but soo n i nt e re ste d hi m se l f in politics and h e la

, ,

v arious o ffices u nd e r William III In the early yea rs 0 1 .

’
Q u e e n A n n e s r e ig n h e tu rn e d th e a r m s o f th e T o ri e s w h o ,

we re in f avor of a m ild pe rse cutio n of Dissen te rs agai ns t ,

th e m selves by publishi ng a p am phl e t Th e Shortes t Way

,

wi th D i ssenters in which he ir onically advise d the s e ve r

,

es t pu nish m e nts for re ligi ous n o nco nf or mity With an .

a rt which he show e d l at e r i n his no v els he co nc eal e d hi s ,

re al p e rs onality and his w ork p asse d as that of a ge n ui n e

,

T ory T he t rick was discov e r e d h owe v e r and De fo e was

.
, ,

pun i sh e d by b e i ng pl ace d in the pillory and i m prisoned

for s om e y ears While in p rison b e e dite d Th e Review
. ,

o ne of the firs t E ngli sh n e wsp ap e rs He was re le ased to

.

e nt e r th e s e rvic e of the g o v e rnm e nt as a s e cre t age nt per ,

h aps as a spy which ofli ce he h eld u nd e r di fferent m i nistries

,
23 4 A HISTORY or E NGLISH LIT ERATUR E

story su gge ste d The Su rp ri si ng Adventu res of R obi nson

Cr u s oe which was p u blish e d in 1 7 1 9
, H e re agai n Defoe
.

shows wh a t a co n t e m p orary d e scrib e d as the

t m on
s

littl e art he is so truly ma ste r of of f o rgi ng a ,

story and i mp osi ng it on the world for tru th ; and h e re al so

the re aso n for his succ e ss is app are nt De fo e is alw ays m i
.

n ut e i n his a cc ou n t of e v en ts an d circu m stanc e s an d th e se

,

circu m stan ce s although not always the m ost i m portant

,
,

a re p re cis ely th ose which the ch a ract e r who is t elli ng the

st ory would b e lik e ly to re m em b e r In oth e r words De fo e!

.
,

is a m aste r of the art of taki ng and k eepin g the poi n t 05 2

vi e w of his h e ro Ind e ed he se em s to abdicate his right‘
.
,

as an auth or to allow his h ero to p osse ss him H e th rown E B

.

hi m self c om pl etely i nto the situ atio n of Crusoe wre cked“ ,

on the isl a n d H e fore see s the d ange rs i ncid en t to such fl

.

sit u ati on tak e s measures of precaution against th em in

, ,

d u lges the natural hop e of e sc ap e and m ak e s the wo nd er,

f u lly hu man m istak e of buildi ng a boat too h eavy f or hinz zz fl

to l au nch H e is absorb e d in the trivi al e v en ts of a soli
.

tary e xist ence he is filled with satisfactio n at his m i ni a tu ré

con q u e st of nature and with horror at the f rightf ul dis
,

co ve ry of the hu m an f ootpri n t in the san d I n fact s o u t

.
,

r l d
te y o e s e h m e rg e hi m s e l f in C r u so e th at wh e n his w
, o r l‘ !

was finish ed he c am e to see in the s truggl es of the Y orl‘ f

,

m ari n er an all egory of his own toilso me and d ange rou é

e xp e ri e n c e of li fe .

Cru s oe p rov e d so succ essfu l th at De fo e f ollow e d i t the ;

ne xt y ear wi th the F u rther A d ven tu res an d th e n with the ,

R R b i C I t h xt f -
S io
er u s eflec t i on s f
o o n s on r u s oe n e. n e e r V
y ears he also publish e d a seri es of stori e s of adv e n ture 3
Cap ta i n Si ngleton a t al e of piracy ; M oll F la nder s

th e li fe of a thi e f and ad v en ture ss ; Colone l

T he M m ,
“w els J a cq u e ( 1 72 2) and R oxa na T h es e sto
ri es are all picare sq u e in m att e r and in f orm T he he ro who .
,

is the na rra tor c onstit u tes the ch i ef e l e m en t of u n ity the

,

othe r ch aract e rs app ear and p ass away no attem pt being ,

 TH E EI GH TEE N TH C E NTURY 23 5

m ad e to work th em i nto a plot Defo e conceals his per .

son ality b e hi n d th at of his h e ro as he h ad d on e in the ,

case of Cru soe ; ye t his p e rsonal attit u d e toward li fe ap

p e ars in the p u rp os e which each tale cl early has Def oe .

was a Di sse nt e r he wr ot e for the d e s ce nd an ts of P uritans ,

m e n i n wh om the i n te r e st in con duct and m orality was

s t ro ng .It is t ru e Purit anis m in its d escent to the eigh
, ,

te e n th c e n tu ry ha d lost its id e al ch aracte r Defo e s m o

’
, .

ral i ty i s th at of the b o u rge ois H e i n cu lcates the u tilitari an

.

vi rtu e s ; his aim is soci al u sefulne ss R obi nson Cru s oe is .

a m an u a l of the q u aliti e s th at h av e won the wo rld f rom

barba i sr m — c ou rage p ati e nc e i ngenuity

, In the m i n or .
, ,

no v e l s th e s e s a m e practi cal vi rtu e s are e xhibit e d e v en in ,

the p u rs u i t of e vil e nds But beyond this Defoe has a

.

m o ral id e a to which he m ak e s m ost of his ch ar newe r;

“m m”
acte rs c on for m by the r e p e n tan c e in whi ch th e y
,

e nd th e i r s t ori e s T his si de of Defoe s e thics is l e ss si nce r e

’
.

th a n the oth er and its appe aran ce is rath er an arti stic

,

ble m i sh In the cas e of M oll F land e rs who has b een a

.
,

g re a t si nne r rep entance see m s i nade qu at e in th at of poor

,

Cru s oe who h as do ne n othi ng wors e th an ru n aw ay f r om

,

h om e it s ee m s force d
, Y e t in both cas e s De foe b ears
.

wit ne ss to a pr e v aili ng d e m an d f or the m oraliz ati on of lit

e ra tu re a d e m an d m ad e by the E ngli sh m iddl e cl ass f or

which he wrote an d of which he so e m i n ently was

, .

O ne e l e m en t of the m od e rn novel De f oe s st ori e s are

’

with o ut th ey lack pl ot Like the Sp ani sh rogu e st ori e s

,
-
.
,

th e y are m e re ly s u cc e ssions of adv entu res which b efall the

sam e h e ro The first great succ ess in c on structing a story
.

which should b e g u id ed through ou t its course by a singl e

m otiv e the l ov e of one p e rs on f or an oth e r was
Richa d
, ,
r .

u mela
f writt en by a Lond on pri n te r S am u el
’
, on s s
Pam “
,

Rich ards on ( 1 689 Rich ards on was a sk e d

by a publish er to write a seri es of l e tters which should
se rv e as m od els f or the co rrespond ence of p eopl e in the
low e r w alks of li fe H e did so ; and to add i nterest to
.
,
23 6 A H I STO RY or E NGLISH LIT ERATURE

the l e tte rs he wrote th em as the conne ct ed l ette rs of a

,

y ou ng se rvi ng gi rl to he r p aren ts telli ng the story of her

-
,

te m ptati on by her m aste r of her re sistanc e and of her , ,

fi nal tr iu m ph in marryi ng hi m The book app eare d in .

1 74 0 and was so p op u l ar th at Rich ardso n wrote a se qu el

, .

T he suc ce ss of P a mela encourage d the author to produce

a se co n d w o rk of fic tio n Clari ssa H arlowe which ap , ,

cmfi s p
s a
e ar e d i n e ight volu m e s i n 1 74 8 T his is th e .

3 3m m ”
s tory of a you ng l ady Clarissa H arlowe who is , ,

at the outs e t the u n willi ng obj e ct of the atte n tio n s of a

ce rtai n Lov elace A qu arrel has occurre d b e twe en h im

.

and Cl aris sa s broth e r and to k ee p Lov e l ac e f ro m re

’
,

n e wi ng th e di ffi culty she co nti nu e s to co m m u nica te with

hi m . He r rel ativ e s howe ve r p e rsist in distrus ti n g her

, , ,

an d to s e c u re h e r fi nal s e pa ra tio n f rom Lo ve l a c e th e y in

trod u ce a s eco n d suitor an i m p ossibl e crea tur e nam ed ,

Solm es ; and th e y re s ort to such m easure s of p e rs e cuti on

to forc e he r to acce pt him th at she fi nally d e cid e s to fl ee
to the prote cti on of a f ri e nd Unf ortu nately she acc e pts .

the assi stanc e of Lov el ac e who virtu ally kidnaps he r , .

Af te r m any ch apte rs of s u ffe ri ng She di e s leavi n g a vas t ,

'

h e ritage of re m orse to b e divide d am ong her re lativ e s and .

Lo ve l ace .
I

Lik e P a m ela Cla r is sa is t old by m eans of l e tte rs which

, .

p ass b e tw ee n the di ff e ren t ch aracte rs O bviously thi s .

,

m e th od is in its natu re d ram atic ; th at is to say the re a d e r ,

h old s com m u n icati on di re ctly with the ch aracte rs In . .

o th e r w ays it is cl ear th a t Ri ch ardso n though t of t he n ove l

“
as an e l ab orat e d dr am a H e c alls Cla ri ssa H a rlowe a d ra
.

m atic narrativ e ; an d h e do es so v e ry propeIly fo r as in , ,

.

a pl ay th e re is in Clari ssa a d efi nite catastroph e e v e ry

, ,

ste p to ward which is carefu lly pre pare d for by som e thi ng
Richardson s i n ’ th e e n viro n m en t or th e ch a r act e rs o f t he
n ew“
actors Rich ardson cou ld not how e ve r f orego
.
, ,

en tir ely the n ov eli st s right to p e rs onal co m m u n ic a tio n

’

wi th his audi enc e He i ntroduced f ootnotes in whi ch he

.
2 38 A HIST O RY or E NGLISH L I TE RATURE

s oci al i nte re st of gr eat i m portan ce in the early e ighteenth

c e n tury wh e n E ngland was l earn i ng the l e sson of civiliza
,

ti on Rich ardson began his work with the hu mbl e d e sign of

.

t eachi ng his read e rs to write b u t his plan bro ad en e d u ntil

,

it cove re d the essenti als of the art of livi ng Pame la lives .

a m od e l li f e fo r s e rv an ts Cl arissa is p e rfe cti on in a higher

sphe re Sir C h arl e s Grandison is an illustration of the
ad apt a ti on of ari st ocratic m ann e rs to m iddl e cl ass i n sti ncts .

But in additi on Ri ch ard son s ch aracte rs are all i nvolved

,
’

in i ntricat e q u e sti ons of consci e n c e Cl arissa s course is

’
.

d e te r m i ne d only afte r el ab orat e di scussio n of the right and

w rong of each st ep In Gra ndi son it is only af te r the
.
,

h e ro has d e alt with a succe ssi on of di ffi cu lt circu m s tances

a ri si ng f ro m the cl a i m s upo n him of his f ri e nd his f ri e nd s
’
,

child re n his Si st e r his w ard and his fath er s m istre ss

, , ,
’
,

th at he yi elds to his p assi on for M iss Byron Rich ardson .

s u re ly did not e xagge rat e wh e n he d eclare d t he i nculcati on

of virtu e to b e his fi rst obj e ct .

It was s omethi ng lik e disgu st for Rich ardso n s m oral ’

pr e t e nsi ons th at led his c ont e m p orary H enry F i e ldi ng , ,

Hem , t o e n t e r u p on his c ar e e r as a n ov e list F i e ld .

meld i ng ’

i ng was of high e r birth th an Rich ar d s on his ,

fa th e r b e i ng a soldi e r of s om e r e now n and his g rand fa th er ,

the son of a p ee r ; he had too a far wid e r an d m ore v ari ed

, ,

e xp e ri e n ce of l i fe H e was born i n 1 707 was e d u c ate d at

.
,

E t on and aft e rward we n t to Le yd en to study law

, In .

1 72 7 h e re t u rn e d to Lon d on whe re he su pp orte d hi m se l f for

,

a whil e by w ri ti ng pl ays De p riv e d of his profe ssio n of

.

pl aywright by the re stricti on s of the li cen sing act of 1 73 7 ,

he b e t ook hi m se l f ag ai n to the st u dy of law m e an whil e ,

supp orti ng his fam ily by m i sce ll aneous writi ng His wi fe .

di e d in 1 74 3 l eaving him with two childr en He struggled

, .

on u n ti l li fe was m ad e s om e wh at easi e r f or him b his

y a p
p oi ntm ent as p olice m agistrate in Lon do n in which offi ce ,

h e was h ighly e ffici e nt In 1 75 4 b rok e n in h ealth he left

.
, ,

England f or Portu gal ; he has l ef t a p ath e tic accou nt of

 TH E E IGH TEENT H C E NTURY 23 9

this j ourney in his Voyage to Li s bon He di ed the same .

year .

It was while F i elding was earn i ng his bread by various

lite rary v e nture s that Rich ardson s P amela app eared ’
.

Struck by the senti mentality of the book its narrow ,

vie w of li fe and the shallow ne ss of its ethi cs he b egan to

, ,

write a burl e squ e upo n it in which he subj e cted Pamela s

,
’

broth er J oseph Andrews to the same temp ta

, , Joseph
And rew °
tion f rom his m istress that Pam el a su ffe re d °

f ro m he r maste r Lik e Pam e l a J oseph re sists but u nlik e

.
,

he r he is tu rne d out of doors and is l ef t to m ak e his way b ack

,

to his home in the cou ntry F i e ldi ng soon lost sight of his
.

narrowly sa tirical purpos e in th e bro ad er attem pt to picture

the rough E nglish li fe of p ost roads i nns an d cou ntry ~

, ,

house s He is not caref u l of the structure of his story

. .

T he adv e n ture s of J oseph with his com p anion Parson ,

Ad am s d o not all advanc e the pl ot m i nor cha ra cte rs i ntro

,

duc e digressi on s ; and the endi ng is m e rely a h appy a cci

d e n t Ye t on the oth er h an d Fi elding write s of real m en
.
, ,

and wo m en with a pr e cisio n th at co m e s fro m dire ct ob se r

vatio n . n —
His picture s are of te caricatures as f or e x am pl e , ,

Mrs Towwou se the i nnk ee p e r and T ru llib er the hog

.
, ,

raisi ng p arson but th ey are caricatures th at tell the truth .

F i el di ng s ne xt n ov el J ona tha n Wi ld was a l oose nar ra

’
, ,

tiv e sugge st ed by the l ife of the fam ous rascal wh om De fo e

,

had c e le brate d and writte n to b u rl esqu e the con ce ptio n of

,

gre atne s s held by ordi nary writ e rs of biography In his .

last two stori e s how e ve r Tom J ones

, , an d A meli a

Fi eldi ng d e ve lop e d ge nui ne plots T he forme r op ens .

with the discov ery of the h ero as a ne w born babe in the -

house of a virtu ous gentleman M r Allworthy , . .

T om Jones
H e re he grows up with A llw orthy s neph e w ’ .

B lifil who out of j e alousy rui n s T om s r eputation with his

,
’

b ene facto r and gets him turne d out i nto the world Mean
, .

whil e T om has falle n in love with the daughter of a neigh

bor Miss Sophi a Western who re turns his love in Spite of
, ,
240 A HISTO RY OE E NGLISH L IT ERATUR E

th e ppositi on O f he r fath e r T om travels to London with

o .
,

m any waysi de adv e n ture s he p asse s not u nscath e d through , ,

v ari ous te mptatio ns and fi nally by the discov e ry O f the ,

’
se c re t of his birth and the re v e l atio n O f B li fil s vill ai ny he is ,

advanc e d to his h appy fort u n e the favor O f Al lworthy and ,

m arri age with Sophi a .

In all this the chi e f sourc e of u nity is the p ersis tenc e Of

the h e r o thro u gh a l o ng trai n O f i n cid en ts It is tru e .
,

m any O f th e s e i ncid e n ts c ontribute to u nr ave l the com p li

cati on and O f the m any ch aract e rs wh om the h ero gathe rs
ab out hi m i n his pr ogre ss he h olds a goodly n u m b e r to the
,

e nd . S ti ll the b ook is c onstructe d in the loose e pic man

ne r with lit tl e O f the d ram atic pre cision O f f or m which
,

a pp ears i n Cla ri s sa M o re ov e r F i eldi ng in co n trast to

.
, ,

Rich ard so n b e li e v e d th at the nov elist Should hold the

,

f re e st m ost u ni nt e rrupt e d c o mm u nication with his read

,

e rs ; an d a cc ordi ngly he break s his na rrativ e by wh a t are ,

in e ff e ct bri e f essay s givi ng his opi ni on s on the conduct

, ,

b o th of ficti on and of li fe With this vi ew O f the n ovel as

.

a lit e rary f o rm F i eldi ng s succ e ss ors i n E ngl an d h av e in

’
,

the m ai n agr ee d and th u s it may b e s aid th at in structure

Tom J ones r ath er th an Cla r issa is the typical E nglish

, ,

n o v el .

A m eli a is the story O f a good wi f e who in spite of , ,

te m ptati on rem ai n s faith ful to a good nature d but rather

,
-

light h u sband Cap tai n Booth T he te mptati on is r ep eated

, .

se v e ra l ti m e s i n al m ost the s am e f or m in the cours e of

, ,

the b o ok T he h appy e ndi ng by which it a pp ea rs that

.
,

Am eli a was rea lly the pr efe rre d d au ghte r O f her m othe r ,

an d th a t she has b e e n k ept o u t o f he r i nh e ri ta n ce by

t he tre ach e ry O f he r si ste r is al m ost a r e p e titio n O f the

,

B lifil epi sod e i n Tom J ones The fam ous sc enes .

Ameli a ”

in whi ch Am e li a and he r childr en w ait in vai n

.

for B ooth to c om e not only re p eat each oth e r but also

, ,

hear clo se r e se m bl an c e to si m il ar sc e ne s i n the H ea rtfree

fam ily in J ona tha n Wi ld F inally Booth is Tom J o nes
.
,
242 A HISTO RY OF E NGLI SH LIT ERATURE

it is always ready to give pl ace to tend e rness an d pity For .

h i m the t rage dy o f li fe lay in the app e aran c e of virtu e and

i nnocence in a w orld O f e vi l cru elty and d ecepti on In , , .

his presentati on of this t rage dy F i e ldi ng is always dire ct ,

si nce re an d Si m ple T he sce ne in which A m eli a prep ares

, .

s u pp e r for Bo oth an d wh en he d oe s not co m e put s asid e

,

the wi ne u n tast e d to sav e a Sixp e nc e whil e he r husb an d is ,

l osi ng gu i ne as at the gam i ng table is far m ore m o vi ng -

,

th an are the c om plicate d woe s O f Clarissa It is thi s .

h u m an ity the m ost e s se nti al q u ality O f the novelist that

, ,

m ak e s F i eldi ng s w ork p e rm anen tly e ngagi ng and powe rful

’
.

It was in hu m an sym p athy th at F i e ldi ng s su cce ss or was ’

m ost notably d efici e n t T obi as S m oll e tt ( 1 72 1 —1 7 7 1 ) was

.

a Scotch m an a physi ci an who fa il e d i n his pr of e s s i on on

,

acc ou nt of his i rascibl e t e m p e r and who a cc o rdi n gly t ook ,

u
p t he p racti ce O f lit e rat u re His fi rst n ov e l was R od eri ck
.

Ra ndom a t al e O f adv e n t u re i n wh ich ,

Smoll ett ’
s
“
R d en k
o c he m ad e u se O f m u ch o f hIS o wn e xp e r i e nce .

Ra ndom " ,

H e had b e e n surge o n s m ate on a m an O f wa r ;

’
- -

acco rdi ngly af te r d esc ribi ng Rod e rick s yo uth i n Sc otl and
’
, ,

he se n d s h im to sea t aki ng the O pportu n ity to i n se rt some

,

vivid d e scripti on s O f n aval li fe T he h e ro p articip at es in .

th e conti ne n t al war s of Ge orge II visits Paris goe s to .

, ,

S ou th A m eri ca wh e re he di scov e rs a con veni e n tly rich

,

f ath e r and r e tu rn s to En gl and to marry the w aiti ng h e ro

,

ine N arci ssa

,
.

R oderi c/c Ra n dom is m e rely a succ e ssi on of adv e n tures ,

re late d by the h e ro O f p re ci sely the same typ e is

.

Sm oll e tt s ne xt nove l P eregri ne P i ckle

’
, e xc e p t th at

th e au tho r t ell s the st o ry H is thi rd F erdi na nd Cou nt

.
, ,

F a thom is m ore e l abo rat e in plot for th e r e are two ,

h e roe s Fe rdin a nd a typ e O f cru elty an d m ischi ef and

, , ,

Re nal do a typ e O f c olo rl e ss re sp ectability

, Sm olle tt s last .
’

n ov el, H u mp hrey Oli n/cer p u bli sh ed in 1 77 1 af te r his

, ,

d e ath is in m any re sp e cts his b est T he e le m e nt O f plot

, .

is slight the st ory b e i ng sus tai ne d chi efly b y the course of

,
 TH E E I G HT E E NTH C E NTURY 24 3

m ild advent ures atte ndi ng the jou rneys of a We lsh fam ily
through E ngl an d and Sc otl an d T h ese jo u rn ey s how e v e r , , ,

give S m oll e tt an O pp ort u nity to de sc ribe m en and thi ngs

a nd as a co n t e m p or ary re cord an d co mm e n t on li f e an d ,

m anne rs the b ook is of d ecid e d i n te re st

, M o reov e r the .
,

t e m p e r in which life is p resent ed in H u mp hrey Cli n/cer

is l e ss h arsh th an in the e arlie r bo ok s In “ mew .
s
” t “ “w e“
ge n e ral how e ve r S m oll e tt l ack e d h u m or and
, ,
a

ge ni ality F u n O f a fe ro ci ou s sort cru el practical j ok e s

. , ,

ab o u n d am o ng his i n cid e n ts m aki ng u s fe e l th a t th e spirit

,

which co u ld fi nd pl easure in th e m m u st h av e b e en a savage

on e . F u rth e r m ore Si nc e su ch i nci d e n t s f re q u e n tly h av e
,

n o co nn e cti on with the pl ot and are i nt roduce d f or th e ir ,

o wn s ak e th ey m u st b e se t d o wn as gratuit o usly u npl e as

,

Sm olle tt s early h e r oe s are cru e l and p assi on ate but

’
an t.
,

oth e rwise col orle s s an d al ways u n sym p ath e tic His h e ro

, .

in e s are m e re d olls His b e st ch aract ers are his hu m ors

.
,

m e n an d wo m e n who stan d e ach for a si ngl e qu ality or

m ann e ris m and who r esp o nd to e ve ry sti m u lus in pre cis ely
,

th e sam e way lik e figur e s in a c om ic op era

, Am ong the .

b e st of th ese hu mors are the ch aracters in H u mp hrey

Cli n ker — Matth e w Bram bl e the i ras cibl e Welsh m i san
, ,

th rop ist his Sist e r T abith a Wi n J enki ns the m aid who

, , , ,

e xh a usts the possibiliti e s O f f u n i n Engli sh m i ssp e lli ng ;

an d th e s ail or ch ara ct e r s A d m iral T ru nn io n i n P eregr i n e

,

P i c/ole B o wli ng and Pip e s in R oderi ck Ra ndom

, S mol .

l ett s chi ef con tributi on to the n ov el was his e nlargem e n t

’

O f its are a and the i ntroductio n O f at l e ast on e sp e ci al i n

,

te rest the sea as furnishi ng Sp e ci al typ es O f ch aract e r and

, ,

i ncid e n t .

It is possibl e to cl assi fy the n ovels thus f ar m en ti one d

acc o rdi n g as th e y adv an c e b eyo n d or re ve rt to the si m pl e , ,

biographic st ory in whi ch the e l e men t O f u nity is the

,

p e rsiste n c e of the h e ro We ne xt co m e to a b ook in whi ch

.

e v e n thi s e l e m e nt O f stru ctu r e is l acki ng which only by ,

an e xt en sion of the te r m can b e c all e d a n ov e l at al l The .

24 4 A HISTORY OF E NGLISH LI T ERATUR E

first two volu me s of Tri stram Sha ndy appeared in 1 760 .

T he au thor a cl e rgy m an Laurenc e Ste rne ( 1 7 1 3

, ,

Laurence b e ga n it as he sa ys , with n o cle ar id ea of

,
Stem “
wh at it was to tur n o u t only a d esign of sh ock ,
”
i ng p e opl e and am usi ng m y sel f This ill regul a te d book
.
-

His
’
was a pro duct of Ster ne s ill regu late d e xiste nc e -
.

f ath e r was a p etty O fi ce r in the ar m y and h e hi m s e lf , ,

bo rn in b ar racks sp ent his sickly youth i n m ovi ng f rom

,

o ne m ilitary st ati on to anoth e r He was sen t to Cam .

bridge and th en ce dri fte d i n to the Church O b tai n i ng a

, ,
“
s m all livi ng in Y orkshire whe re he says books fid
, , , ,

dling p ai nti ng and shooti ng w ere m y chi ef amus e m e nts

”
, , .

Tri s tram Sha ndy mad e him fam ous He was courte d and .

fl attere d in Lond on prom oted in the Church and well

, ,

re c e ive d at Paris f or Sha ndy was an i nte rnatio nal succ ess
, .

Me anwhil e he co n ti n u e d his bo ok putting in to it ma terial ,

O f an y sort which h e h app e ne d to h a v e O n h an d His .

h ealth faili ng he sp e n t a year in s o uth ern France Part

, .

of the e xp e ri enc e s of his j ou rn ey he turne d i n to the

s ev e n th vol u m e Of Sha ndy p art he save d for a b o ok of ,

trav els call e d The Senti menta l J ou rney O f which two ,

vol u m es app eare d in 1 768 j ust be fore his d eath , .

Tri s tr a m Sha ndy is not a nov e l in the prop e r sense of

the w ord E l e m ents of the n ov el it has ch ar acte rs and
.
,

i ncid ents b u t th e se are not bou n d toge th e r i nto a cohe rent

,

story T he b ook is without plan without beginn i ng prog

.
,

re ss or end In the fourth volu m e the h ero l ame n ts that

,
.

th ough he is a y ear O ld e r than wh e n he b egan to

wri te he has n ot got b eyo nd his first d ay s life
,
’
.

T he author shi fts arbitrarily fro m one ch a racte r to an oth er ,

b e gi ns con v e rsations in the m iddl e i nte rrupts th e m with ,

littl e e ssays f u ll O f O dd l earni ng prep ares for stori es which

,

are ne v e r told and sc ene s b e tw een his charact e rs wh i ch are

n e v er act e d H e i n tr oduc e s a ne w characte r the Widow

.
,

Wad m an with wh om T ristram s Un cl e T oby falls i n l ove

,
’
,

by a blank p age on which the reade r can write h is own

,
24 6 A HIST O RY OE E NGLISH LIT E RA TUR E
Of the ordi nary mate ri al of the nov elist — O f men s d e sires ,
’
,

p assi ons political or religious b e li efs soci al re lati on s suc

, , ,

c ess or f ailure His ch ara cte rs liv e i n a world of th eir

.

own T ristram s f ath e r is abs orb e d in c u rious l e a r n i ng

’
.

an d sp e c u l atio n his Uncl e T oby is oc cupi ed in acti ng o u t ,

in his gard en with the aid O f his se rvan t Cor

, ,
Hi s H mani ty
u .

poral T ri m the b attl e s an d si ege s th at h e has

,

see n An d ye t th e se ch aracte rs live live by virtu e of the

.
,

m ost adr oit suggesti on O f hu m an ity in th e ir sp ee ch th e ir , ,

faci al e xpressio n th e ir ge sture s and attitud e s

, With his .

usu al s el f co nsci ou s ne ss Ste rne calls atten ti on to his m e thod

-
,

a m e th od ne w i n e ighte e nth c e n tury lite rature Y ou p er .

”
ceive he says
, th at the drawing O f m y Uncl e T oby s
,
’

character w ent on ge ntly all the ti me— not the g rea t con
tours o f i t — th at was i mpossibl e— but so m e fam ili ar strokes
,

and fai n t d e sign atio ns O f it w e re h e r e and th e r e tou ch e d

on as we w ent al ong so th at you are m uch b ett e r ac

,
”
u ain te d with m U n cl T oby n w th n you w r b f or
q y e o a e e e e .

By this method Ster ne give s to his ch aracte rs an a bidi ng

reality and ch arm T h ey h av e wi th the ch aract e rs O f
.
,

Ce rvante s and Sh ak e sp eare with Q u ix o te and Fal sta ff t he

, ,

n ote O f high e st artistic disti n ctio n T h ey are am o n g the

.

v e ry fe w creati on s O f lite rature .

Ste rne s h abit O f pl aying di re c tly upon the s ensibility Of

’

his reade rs was f ree ly i mitate d The m ost n otabl e i n stance

.

O f s u ch i m itatio n is f ou n d i n The M a n o f F e el
i ng by H enry Mack en zi e T his book .

’
sh ows al so the i nfl u enc e of St ern e s loos e s truct
u re th o u gh Mack e nzi e e xpl ai n s the breaks in his story by
,
’
the th e ory Of a m utilate d m anuscript T he h e ro s f a culty .

for fi ndi ng trage dy in the lot Of man and his m orbid ,

“
e m oti on ov e r it c onnect the book with the gra v e y ard
,

po e try of You ng an d Of oth e r pre cursors O f the Rom antic

”

Mov em ent .

Signs of a possibly conscious reaction toward a m ore

’
whol eso me vie w O f life th an Ste rne s are to be f ou n d in ,
 TH E E I G HTEE NTH C ENT URY 24 7

a book as fam ous as Tri s tram Sha ndy O liver Gold ,

s m ith s Vi ca r of Wa kefi eld

’
The Vi ca r of Wa kefield
is a p erfe ct e xpre ssi on O f h om ely E ng lish se nti
G ld m t h s o s i
’

m en t T h at s en ti m e nt natu rally gath e rs ab o u t

.

32112255
t he fam ily li fe T he Vic ar and his wi f e a nd
.

child ren are throw n i n to pov erty Worse m i sfortu ne

.

c om e s in the flight Of the eld er d au ghte r O livi a who is , ,

lu re d away by an u nworthy love r in the bu rni ng of th e ir

p o or hou se ; i n t h e i m p ris on m e n t O f t h e f a th e r f o r d e bt .

B u t throu gh all th e se tro u bl e s Shi n e s the Vicar s lo v e for

’

h is fam ily and his c on fid e n c e in life ; and at the end his

,

f aith in the be st of all p ossible worlds e m erge s tri u m ph an t .

T he V icar is it is tru e the o n ly ch aracter in the b ook

, , .

T he Vic ar s wife and child re n y o u ng Sq u i re T h o rnhill and

’
,

h is u ncl e Sir William Thornhill who w an d e rs thr ou gh the

,

b ook in an i m possibl e i nc ognito the co n v e ni e n t J en kin son ,

who has craf tily m ad e O f O livi a s m ock m arri age a r eal one
’

a ll th e se are sh adowy f orm s of whi ch we ge t but gli m p se s as

th e y cross the light of the Vicar s ste ady p ersonality T he

’
.

Vic ar ani m at e s not only the ch aracters but the spi rit and ,

p u rpos e of the b ook G o.lds m ith is n o t a r e alist T o hi m .

,

a s to Ste rn e th e p ositivi sm O f the e arly ce ntury with its de

, ,

m an d for the pre sent atio n O f li fe as it is m ad e no app e al , .

H is world is an id e al one T ro u ble s and disasters accu m u

.

l at e like th re ate ni ng clouds but only to re solve the m se lves

,

i n to b eneficent showe rs Su ff e ri ng is not a probl e m it is

.

m e r e ly an artistic d e vic e to m ak e the w orld s eem m ore

b e a uti ful .E vil lose s its essen ti al qu ality ; O livi a is m ar
ri e d to a rake who does not love he r but e ven this we ao ,

c e pt co n fid e n tly as a p art O f the h appy outc om e so con ,

tagi ou s is Golds m ith s opti m is m

’
.

Golds m ith us ed one el e m en t O f the A rc adi an rom anc e and ,

m ad e O f it a disti n ct con t ributi on to the m o d e rn ms U , at s

scen“
n ov e l. T he el e me nt O f ou td oor s ce ne had
b e e n l argely negl e cte d by his pre d e ce ssors Rich ardson had .

s ho wn c ar e an d Skill in the arrang e m e nt O f his i nt e riors ;

24 8 A HIST O RY O F EN GLISH LI TE RATURE

F i e ldi ng had give n a few set pi e c es of de scription sho w ,

ing the pre fe re nc e O f e ighte enth c e n tury tast e for artifici al

ove r natu ral b eauty ; b u t Golds m ith pi cture d nature with
real fee li ng f or it H e m ad e it e sp e ci ally in the e arly
.
,

idyllic s cen es of his novel a h appy re i n forc e m e nt O f his ,

th em e of d omestic bliss and tran qu illity and it is through ,

out the book a sy m b ol of the ete rnal goodne ss O f the world

, ,

anoth e r r e as on f or putti ng tru st i n li fe .

With the p ossibl e e x cepti on O f lyric po e try th e novel is ,

the for m O f lit e ra tu re whi ch has b ee n m os t succ e ssf u lly

practise d by wo men I n the p eriod b efore D ef oe the .
,

m ost pop u lar writ e rs O f ro m an ce w e re wo m en M rs B ehn , .

and Mrs Manl ey . Miss S arah F i eldi ng siste r of the nov

.
,

clist wr ot e a story D a vi d Si mp le which both Rich ard son

, , ,

and F i eldi ng prais e d Late r in the ce nt u ry the line Of

.

realists brok e n by Sterne and Goldsm ith was

, ,
Mi ss B ney ar
con ti nu e d by Miss Fanny Burne y ( 1 75 2
.

whose first story E veli na app eare d in 1 778

, D r J O hn
, . .

’
son who was he r f ath e r s f ri e n d lik e d the bo ok
,
and his , ,

s u pp ort had m u ch to do with its i mm e di ate succ ess thou gh ,

his i n flu enc e on the styl e of her l ate r b ooks canno t b e called

h appy With an achi e ve d literary re putation Miss Burney
.
, ,

who had bee n glad to ge t tw en ty p o u nds for E veli na sold ,

he r s e c on d bo o k Ceci li a f or two thousand

, S oon af ter
, .

this she be cam e a m aid of ho n or to Q u een Ch arlotte ; and

aft e r e sc api ng from th e i n tol e rabl e co n stra i nts O f this Situ a o

tion she m arri e d Gen e ral D A rblay by wh os e nam e she is ’

,

u su al ly k nown At long i n te rvals she follow e d he r early

.

w orks with two oth e rs which are now forgotte n , .

E veli na is the story O f a y ou ng girl s i ntroduct ion to the

’

g reat w orld told chi e fly by h e rsel f i n l e tters to her gu ar

,

di an H er path is b es e t by rival s u itors and m ad e doubt

.
,

f u l by a myste ry ab o u t he r own birth but her

Her No el s v
cou rse is guid e d steadily by co nsci ence and pro
ri e ty I nd e e d both E v e li na and Ce cili a are O f the f amily
p .
,

O f Clarissa : both are a bit prudish ov e r scrupulous over ,

-
,
25 0 A H ISTO R Y OF E NGLISH LITERATURE

which d ealt with soci al life and m ann e rs th ere app eared ,

the ro m anc e which re pr e sen te d the p u rely e m oti onal in

,

tere st in natur e an d i n the p ast and the hu m an ita ri an ,

novel which s e ri ou sly u n d e rt ook to r ight the wro ngs su s

,

taine d by the i ndivid u al at th e h ands O f s oci e ty T h e se .

three school s the realist s O f wh om M i ss Auste n is the be st

, ,

e x am pl e the r om an c e rs of wh om Scot t b e cam e th e chi ef

, , ,

an d the m issio nari e s O f who m Go dwi n was the m ost p o w

,

e rf u l h a v e co nti n u ed with i nnu me rabl e div e rg e nc e s u n til

, , ,

the pre sen t ti m e .

T he l ong li st O f ro m an c e s O f the p eriod b egi n s with The

Ca s tle of Otra nto p u bli sh e d as e arly as 1 764
, It was the .

work of H orace Walp ol e ( 1 71 7 on e of the

“m om s
’

l ead e rs O f th a t fash i o n whl ch In I ts pr e fe r e nce

Otp xg
e t
g ,

f or the grote squ e and b arb arous i nstea d O f the

“ ”

{
cl as sically si m pl e and civiliz e d was calle d gothic , In .

The Ca s tle of Otra nto he tri e d to p ai nt the d o m e stic ife

“
an d m a nn e rs O f the f e ud al p e riod as agitate d by the ,

acti on O f sup e r n a tural m achi ne ry such as the sup e rstition

O f the ti m e m ight h av e ac cepte d

”
With this e xcuse for .

the i n t roducti on O f s u p e rn atural el e m e nts no e xpl ana ti on ,

O f th e m by rati onal c au se s is ne ed e d and n o ne is at te m pt ed , .

A p ortrait ste ps f ro m its p anel an d walks abroad a s ta tu e ,

sh eds blo od a h el m e t O f gigan tic siz e crashe s dow n i nto

,

the c o u rtyard and giv e s sy m b oli cal acco m p an i m e n t to t he

,

acti on of the st ory by d re ad f u lly w avi ng its plu m e s all ,

with o ut the l east ap ol ogy f ro m the author His on ly e ff ort .

is to giv e an air Of r eality to such i m p ossibiliti es by m aki ng

his ch aract e rs natural and by p ai nti ng the m anne rs O f the
,

ti m e fait hf ully In ne ith e r attem pt was b e highly su c

.

cessfu l T h at he did give his read e rs a g en ui ne a ttack of

.

the h orrors how e v e r is prov e d by e xc e ll en t te sti m o ny for

, , ,

e x a m pl e th at of his f ri en d T h o m as Gray
, F or the rest .
,

Wal pol e gav e to the gothic rom an c e the el em en ts on which

i t was to thriv e f or a gene ratio n to c om e — a h e ro sulli ed by ,

u nm e nt ionabl e cri m es se ve ral p e rse cute d h eroi ne s a castle

, ,
 TH E E I G HT E ENTH C ENTURY 25 1

wi th cre t p assage s and h aun te d ro om s and a pl entif ul

se ,

s pri n kli n g O f sup e r natu ral t e rrors .

T his tal e add e d to the a ttracti ons O f r e m ote ti m e th ose

O f a dist an t and m a rve ll o us l an d ; it s u bstit u te d f or the cre a

ti on s O f m e di aev al s u p e rstitio n the m yste ri e s O f Other Gothic

o ri e n tal ne cr om an cy an d it spic e d the wh ol e

w i th a d ash O f E aste rn v oluptu ousn e s s A noth e r book O f

.

i m p ortan ce in the d e v el op m en t O f the gothic rom anc e is ,

T he H i story of the Ca lip h Va thek written by

Willi am Be ck f o rd Go thic ro m anc e s we re also produc ed
.

by Matth e w Gregory Lewis wh ose M onk ( 1 795) was

,

t he m om: p op u l ar b ook O f its ti m e an d whos e B ra vo

,

of Ven i ce has f or i ts h e ro a disti n ct pre curs or O f

t he B yr on ic typ e an i n divid u al d e v elop e d i n to a quit e
,

tran s ce nd e nt p e rso nality by fee di ng on his wrongs and

cri m e s .

T he m ost succe ssf u l prod u c e r of gothic stori e s was Mrs .

A nn e Radcli ff e ( 1 764 who in the l ast d e cad e O f the

c e n tu ry wrote fi ve elaborate romance s the m ost fam ou s ,

b e i ng The M y steri es of Udolp ho an d The I ta li a n

T h e se h ave the f aults and vi rt u e s O f th e ir typ e .

T h e y ab o u n d in m yste ri ous i ncid e nt skilf ully u se d ; b u t

,

th e y Show an i ncreasi ng ten de n cy t oward fi ndi ng a ra ti o nal

e xpl n a ti on for app are n tly s u p e rnat u ral occu rr en c es
a I
. n

pl ot t h ey are carefully c onstructe d to k ee p the M s Radcliffe r . .

rea d e r gu e ssi n g as to which O f se v e ral p ossibl e

e xpl a na tio ns is the tru e on e . T h e y are d ec orate d with e l ab

ora t e se t pi e ce s of d e scription i nvolvi ng the romantic ele
,

m e n ts O f Itali an land sc ap e as treat e d by the p ain ters

,

Cl a u d e or S alv at or Rosa ; but th e re is no accu racy in the

l ocal color which is lavishly use d and no hist orical truth
, ,

in the re pre se nt ati on O f m anne rs an d i n stitutio n s O f the

past T he ch aracters are e ith e r e xt ra vagan tly false or
.

m ildly conv e nti on al . O f E l ena in The I ta li a n we are

, ,
“
told th at her fe at u res w e re O f the Gre ek outli ne and ,

though th ey e xpre ss e d the tranq u illity O f an el e gant m i nd ,

252 A H I STO RY O F E N GLI SH LI T ERATUR E

he r d ark blu e eye s sp arkled with in telligence B eyond .

this the ste reotyp ed form ula can hardly go .

A lth ou gh Walp ol e in his pr e fac e to the Ca s tle of O tra nto

p oi nts a m oral for his read e rs the gothic rom a nce is ,

f rankly with ou t any purp o s e sa ve th a t O f am usi ng A fa r .

m o re stre nu ous d e v el op m e n t O f the n ove l was goi ng on at

T he Re ol u
v
th e h an ds O f the g ro u p O f r e voluti on a ry ro m an
ticists O f who m Willi am Go dwi n ( 1 75 6—1 83 6)
,

was the chi ef With the m the nov el be cam e a tract ; it

.

was put ou t Si m ply as p art O f a pro p agand a T he pl ot was .

arrange d and the ch a racte rs w e re d rawn to e xpose a soci al

, ,

e vil o r to Sh ow its re m e dy N aturally such b ooks sub

.
,

ordinate d art to p u rpose an d for th at reas on f e w O f th e m

,

are r e m e m b e re d ; but on e O f the m ild e st O f th e m Day s

’
,

Sa ndford a nd M erton which d ealt with e duc ation is still

, ,

a cl assic f or children .

The stronge st b o ok of this cl ass was Willi am Godwi n s ’

Ca leb Wi lli a ms Godwi n was one of the m ost earn

e s t su pp ort e rs i n E ng lan d O f the F re n ch Re v
God wi n 8 ,

wnI O l u tion He w ro te Ca leb Wi lli a ms as a t ract

.

agai nst the B riti sh Con stituti on and th e ideals

O f arist ocratic s oci e ty which Burk e fou ght SO h ard to

,

m ai n tai n The re al he ro F alklan d u nd e r great provo

.
, ,

cati on has c omm itt e d a m u rd e r and in O b e di e nc e to the ,

fa lse god of his cl ass Re p u tati on he has allow e d a poor

, ,

p easant to su ff er the penalty for it By accid ent his s ecre .

tary Cal e b William s be c om es p osse sse d of the se cre t and

, , ,

in se lf pr e se rvati on F alkl and f e els b ou n d to crush him

-
.

T h e au th or give s a f orcibl e ac cou nt O f the way in which an

a ri st ocrat lik e F alkl an d can u se the f o r ce s O f s oci e ty and

law agai n st an i n dividu al O f a l ow e r cl ass and h e pres ents

m o vi ngly the su ff e ri ngs O f such an i ndividu al u nd e r this
p e rse c u tio n B u t m ore m ovi ng still i s the picture O f the
.

rui n O f a b e ne v olent an d e le v ated ch aracter by the posses

si on O f ari stocrati c p ow e r and by subj e cti on to aristocratic
,

prej u dic es T he vill ai n in the b ook is chival ry and Falk

.
,

l and e ven more th an Willi am s is its victi m

, , .
2 54 A HIST O RY OF E NGLISH LI TE R A TU RE

te r, p oem wh ich he af terward co ntinu ed u nde r the

Of a
“ ”
title s Su mm er , Spri ng and A utu mn and which
, ,

T homa, “ w a s publish e d i n 1 7 30 as Th e S ea s on s T O a .

read e r O f to day accu sto me d to a far d eep e r and

-
,

s u btl e r appre ci ation O f natu re th an T ho m son was ca p abl e

of this p oe m see m s a r ath e r hu m d ru m chronicli ng O f the
,

sights e xp e ri ence s and tho u ghts conne cte d with the

, ,

ch ange s O f the year ; an d the m oral digression s the co m pli ,

m e nts to p at ron s the ps eu do classic person ifi ca tion s a nd

,
-
,

No el ty of
v
t h e f r e q u e n tly stilt e d rh e t o ric t e n d, to O b s cur e

the re al f re sh n ess and truth O f T ho m so n s O b

’

Smdi e s
se rvati on B u t to the reade rs O f hi s own d ay
.

the n ovelty was great F or two ge ne rati ons the fi rst

.

h an d study O f natu re had b een negl ecte d Li te ra t u re

.

had f ou nd its i n t e re sts in urb an lif e ; or if it ve n tur e d ,

i nto the co u ntry at all it was i nto the conven tional nu

, ,

real co u ntry O f the pastoral traditi on T he Au gus tan age .

care d m ore for a form al garden in the D u tch or Italian

style th an f or the subli me st natural lan dscap e in the
,

wo rld ; and wh en by the ne cessity of th e ir subj e ct A u

, ,

gu stan au tho rs had to uch e d u po n o rdi n ary natural p he

n o m e na t he y had striv e n to c on ce al the r u d e n e ss O f th e ir
,

th e m e by vagu e and e l e gan t circ u m lo cu ti o n A ccordi ngly .

,

T ho m so n s p oe m had an asp e ct O f d ari ng i nnov ati on His

’
.

vi e ws of E nglish land sc ape n ow p anora m ic and now de

,

tailed his d escriptio n O f the first spri ng Sh o w e rs of the

, ,

su m m e r thu n d e rsto rm s an d O f the te rrors O f t he wi nt ry

,

n ight Show e d an ho ne st u n d e rst an di ng an d l o v e O f that

,

to whi ch the ey e had lo ng b e en bli n d In the Hym n with

.

which The Seasons concludes a high er m ood app ears ; a ,

m o od O f re ligio u s e cstasy in the pr e se nc e O f N ature pro ,

p he ti c of W o rds worth by ,who m i n d e e d

, T ho m, so n w as

highly v alu ed
“
Ye fo re st s b e n d , y e h a rv e s ts wa v e , to H i m ;
B re a th e y o u r st i l l so n g i n t o th e re a p e r s h eart
’

As h ome h e goe s b e nea th th e jo yo u s moo n

’
.
 TH E E I G H TE E NT H C E NTURY 2 55

The Seasons is in bl ank ve rs e and th eref ore in form also ,

is a d e p art u re fro m the accepte d c ano n s O f the day In The .

Ca s tle of I ndolence publish e d in 1 74 8 T ho m so n m ad e a

, ,

still m ore re voluti onary m ove by adopti ng the Spe nse ri an ,

stanz a *
. His all egianc e to Sp e nse r is m ore th an form al .

H e succ eeds in re captu ri ng m uch of the m as

The Ca stl e
te r s ri ch l ong drawn m u sic ; and he stee p s g
’
,
-

ggggfi c i l
’’

his all egory in the Sp enseri an atm osphe re O f Colo r

m irage lik e spl e ndor

-
T he e m b ow e re d castl e O f the e n
.

“
ch an te r I ndol e nc e and his c aptive s the l and O f d rowsy ,
” “ ”
head , with its listle ss cli m ate wh e re the pl ai n t O f ,

s tockd ove s m i ngl e s with the Sighi ng of the hill sid e pi n e s -

a nd with the m u r m ur O f the di st an t se a a re d e sc rib e d with ,

a n art which m ad e T he Ca s tle o I l f r i t f ul

f n d o e n ce a u

i nflu e nc e in ro m antic v e rse e ve n as late as K e ats, .

AS T ho m so n e x em plifie s the Sp e ns e ri an i n flu e nce at work

i n the e ighte e nth c entury Colli ns You ng and Gray m ark
, , ,

the re cur re nc e to M ilton Yo u ng re ve rte d to

Infl e n ce of
.

u
M ilto n s bl ank v e rs e ; Colli ns an d Gray ab ou nd s n e nd
’
o
e s ra
t n On o
I n e cho e s and Inde e d In l i te r al b orrowm gs f rom
$3 3c
,
11
,

M ilto n s earli e r lyric al w ork

’
T O M il ton s e x .
’

a m pl e in L Allegro and Il Pe ns e roso is p e rh ap s du e

’

the fact th at both th e se poe ts afte r th ey had f re e d th e m ,

se lve s f ro m the oth e r m achi ne ry O f pse ud o cl assic v e rse -

,

p e rsiste d in the u se of th ose li fel e ss p e rsonifi cations — “

wan
“
De sp air
”
b rown E xe rcise
,
” “
M u sic sph e re d esc ende d
, ,
-

M aid — in which the Au gustan age d elighte d .

William Colli ns ( 1 72 1 1 75 9) was a d elicate ne rvously

-
,

i rre solute spi rit who live d his li fe u nd e r the Sh ad ow of a

,

con stituti onal d e sp ond e n cy whi ch d ee p e ne d at l ast i n t o

i nsan ity H e was an ard ent di scipl e O f T ho m s on s an d
.
’
,

wh e n he c am e u p to Lond on he se ttl e d n e ar T h om son s ,

’

house i n K e w Lane wh e re the e ld e r po e t was ill u strati ng

,

his romantic t e nd e nci e s by writi ng ve rse in the m oonlight ,

T hi s sta nza had b e e n u se d e a rli e r i n the ce ntu ry b y parodi sts , a nd

b y She nstone in a short p oe m , The Schoolmis tress .

25 6 A HISTO RY OF E NGLISH LI TE RA TU RE

whil e listen i ng to the n ighti ngal e s in Rich mond Gard e ns

In 1 74 7 Colli n s publish e d a sl e n d e r v olu me O f O des in ,

which we can trac e m ore surely th an i n T hom ,

Collins s Od es
’
.

so n s wo rk the rec ov ery O f the greate r qu alities

’
,

“ ”
of p oe t ry The e xquisit e
. O de to E v en i ng shows a
sym p athy with natu re and an O bse rvation O f he r a sp e cts
, ,

subtl e r and m o re s u gge stiv e th an th at displ a y e d in The

Sea s ons T he O de is u nrhym e d and has a low m e di tative
.
, , ,

“ ”
twilight m u sic The fam o us O de on the Passions is
.
,

on the c on t ra ry v e ry rich and e l aborat e in i ts m e tri cal

,

for m and it illustrat e s the i nflu ence up on Colli n s of M11

,
’
t on s lyrical art T he Passio ns h e re are Shado wy p e rsoni
.

fi cati ons and the e ff e ct O f the wh ol e po e m is r ath e r cold

, ,

b u t it shows cl early th at the t e ch nic al s e cr e ts O f great

lyrical poe try w e re b egi nni ng to b e redisco ve re d .

A noth e r O d e O f Colli ns s
’
O n the Popul ar Supe rstitions
,

O f the Highl an ds is one O f the m ost i n te re sti ng

l and m arks in the history O f the ro m antic
re vival The purpose O f the poe m is to re com
.

m e n d the n ativ e folk lo re O f Sc o tl and as -

p oe tic m at e rial Colli n s l ets his f an cy play ov e r the

.

f olk m yths O f wat e r witch pyg m y and will O the wisp

’
- - - - -
, , ,

an d ov e r all the c reatur e s O f th at f airy world which the

m e di aeval m i n d had c re at e d With ki ndli ng i m agi nati on .

he d e scribe s the wild N o rth e rn i sl ands wh o se i nh a bita nts ,

’
s u b si st on bi rds eggs f ou nd am ong the sea cli ff s wh ere -

the b e e is ne v e r h e ard to m ur m ur ; an d he transp o rts us

to th at m ysterious regi on wh e re b eneath the showe ry
,

We st the buri ed ki ngs stalk forth at m id night

In p a ge a n t ro b e s a n d w re a th ed i n sh ee n y go l d ,
An d o n th e i r tw i li gh t t o m b s a eri a l co u n ci l h o ld .

H e re we see s e v e ral O f the l e adi ng traits O f rom an ticism

i n terest in the myst e ri ous and sup e rn atural in strange and ,

re m ote c on di ti ons of hu m an li fe and in the Middl e Ages as ,

the y app e ared i n v agu e chi aros curo through a ve il O f dream .

258 A H I STO RY O E E N GLI SH LITE RA T URE

t e resting are those p assage s which Show in him the new

s e ns ibility to picturesqu e sce ne ry and to Gothic architect
u re two O f the gr ea t e n thusi as m s O f the ro man tic i nno
,

ms A een v at o rs I n a l e tte r writt e n i n e arly li f e f ro m

g
r . .

Gjtfi? Switz e rl an d d u ri n g a protr a ct,e d tour which

“W W W “ he m ad e with h is f ri e nd Horac e Walpol e he
,

write s of the scene ry ab o ut the Gran d e Ch artreuse : Not

a pr e cipic e not a torre n t n ot a cli ff but is pre g nan t with
, , ,

religi on and poe try O ne n e e d n ot h av e a v ery

.

fantastic i magi natio n to see Spirits th e re at noo n d ay .

Ye ars after in the Sc otch highl ands he write s O f the

, ,
”
m o u n tai n s as those m on strous creatures O f God and ,

d e cl are s th at th ey ought to b e visite d in pilgri m age Once

”
a year A gene ratio n be fo re Gray wrote f ro m the Grande
.

Ch art re u se Addison had c ross e d the Alps and dis m issed

, ,

the e xp e ri enc e thus A ve ry troubl eso m e j ourne y .

You can t i magine how I am pleased with the Sight O f a

’

”
Gray s en thusi a s m ov e r the m arv els Of m e di aeval
’
pl ai n .

archit e cture at Rh e i m s a n d Si e n a co ntrasts also with Ad ,

di son s c om parison of the n obil ity O f the cl assic Pan th eon

’

with the m eanness of m anne r in the Gothic cath e drals .

T oward the e nd of his li fe Gray m ad e one O f his Li llipu

tian j ourneys to the E ngli sh Lak e cou ntry af te rward
m ad e fam ous by Wordswo rth s p oe try The jour nal which
’
.

he k e pt on this occasion is re m ark able f or the i n ti m ate

sy m p athy which it shows with the ch anges Of m ood i n the
l and scape u nd er vari ati ons O f w ea th e r and ti me O f day To
, .

bo th T ho mson and Colli n s the l an dscap e had b ee n chi e fly

a pictu re Gr ay s e e s na tu re with a more mod e rn ey e as a ,

livi ng t hi ng f ull O f se n ti m e n t and meani ng .

Gray s po e try the bulk of which is v e ry s m all fal ls into

’
, ,

three p e riods His early O de s writte n in 1 74 2 O f which

.
, ,
”
ni h m
g
-
th e b e s t k n ow n a r e th o s e O n Sp r i n g a nd
”
O n a Di stan t P rosp e ct O f E ton Coll e ge h ave ,

mu ch of the m oralizi ng t one of Q u e e n Ann e poe try though

in th e ir me tri cal for m in th e ir sympathy with nature and
, ,
 TH E EI GH TE E N TH C E N TU R Y 25 9

in the i r vagu e d ej e ction th e y Show the romantic l eaven at

,

—
wo rk Gray s se co nd p e riod ( 1 75 0 1 75 7) i nclud es the E legy
.
’ “

” *
i n a Cou n try Churchy ard and his two m ost am biti ous
”
Od e s T he Progre ss O f P oe sy and T he
n“ Se cond Pe
,

B a rd The E l egy p e rh ap s the m ost wide ly “

gap
.
,
T he :
gy
k now n and love d O f E nglish po e m s is the fine st ,

fl ow e r O f that lite ratu re O f m elancholy which Milto n s l l

“ ’

P ens eroso acti ng upo n the a w ak e n i ng rom antic s e n se of the

,

se c on d qu arte r O f the e ight ee n th c e n t u ry brought f orth i n ,

re m a rk a bl e prof usio n A l arge p art O f the ch arm of the

.

E l e gy c o m e s f ro m the p oe t s p e r so nal s e nsi tive approach to

’
,

hi s s u bj e ct He li nge rs in the ch u rchyard noti ng the signs

.
,

O f a ppr oachi ng nightfall u n til th e a tm osph e re O f twilight

,

m u s i ng is establishe d af te r which his re fle ctio n s up on li fe

,

a n d d eath h av e a to ne O f sad and i n ti m ate si nc e rity I n i ts .

re cog n iti on O f the dignity O f Si m pl e liv e s live d cl ose to the

s o il an d in its sy m p a thy with th e ir fate t he E l e gy sh ow s

, ,

t h e b reaki ng u p O f the h ard f orm s i nto which soci al f eel

-

i n g h ad sti ff ene d and l oo ks for ward to the hu manita ri an

,

e n th u si a s m which m ark e d the l a t e r ph as e s O f ro m an tic

p o e try T he
. P rogre ss O f P oe sy is a P i nd aric
o d e O f the s am e typ e as Dryd e n s Al e x and e r s
’ ’
,

F e as t b u t (u nd e r Milton s i n flu e n ce) it is m ore

’
,

r i chly rhy m e d f u ll e r O f m e tric al a rtific e and s u rpri se

, It .

h as the too co nscious e l e gan c e O f diction and e mpl oys th e

p s e ud o cl assic m-
ythol o gy O f Q u e e n A n n e po e try b u t i n ,

t h e rich n e ss O f its m usic it sh o ws the ro m antic te mp e r .

T he B ard is m or e disti nctly r o m antic both “ ,

”
The B a d r
i n s u bj ect and treat men t A n anci e n t m i nstre l
.

.
,

t h e l as t of the We lsh Si ng e rs e sc ap e d f ro m E dward s m as

’
,

sa c re s tops the ki ng in a wild m ou ntai n pass and p roph

,
-
,

e s i e s the te rrors which a re to gath e r ov e r his d e sc e n d ants .

T his p oe m wi th its i m agi native r e ki ndli ng O f the p assi on

,

O f an an ci e n t and p e rish e d p e opl e shows lik e C olli n s s O d e

’
, ,

o n th e Sup e r s titio ns O f the Highl a nds th a t r e v e r si on to ,

B e gu n i n 1 742 , bu t lai d asid e a nd not fini shed u nti l 1 75 0 .

2 60
’

A H I STO RY O F E N GLI SH LI TE RA TURE

the Middl e Ages f or in spirati on, which soon b e cam e the

l e ading feature of romantic art T he third p e riod of .

ray s pr oductio n Shows how d e e p a h o ld m e di

’
ms T hird G
w
gna aeval ism had alr eady tak e n on him H e m a ste re d .

W913 “s md i es Ic el andic at th at ti m e a n al m ost u nh ea rd O f

- -
,

langu age and stu di ed Welsh T he f r u it O f th e se research e s

,
.

was two pow e rfu l tra nsl ati ons as gri m and pictur e squ e ,

as the m ost ro m an tic h eart could d e sir e T he F a t a l ,

Siste rs and T he De sce nt of O di n

”

T his ne wly aw ake ned i n te re st in the M i d dl e A g e s le d

Horac e Walp ol e to reb u ild his villa at Strawb e rry Hill i n ,
”
the gothic styl e and to writ e his c el e brate d g o thic
,

ro mance The Cas tle of Otra nto (see p

,
T he wo rd .

”
gothic was use d vagu ely to cov e r e verythi ng m e di aev a l ,

o r supp os e dly m e di aev al A great sti m ulus was gi v e n to

.

the cu ri osity co nce rni ng m e di aev al li te rature by th e ap ,

rance in 1 7 65 O f a b all ad c oll e cti on e n titl e d R eli q u es o

p e a
f
A nci ent E ngli s h P oetry ga th e re d toge th e r by ,

Bi shop Percy an antiqu ari an schol ar wit h lite r

,

a ry taste s T h e se ball ad s had a great e ff e ct i n quick e n i n g

.

the r om an tic i mp u l se by vi rtu e O f th e ir nai ve f e e li n g an d

,

si m pl e p assio nate e xpre s sio n

,
Ab o u t the sa m e ti m e as
.

t he Reli gu es app eared an oth e r bo ok whi ch though n o t s o

, ,

ge nui ne had an e v e n g reate r e ff e ct This was a n e pic

, .

po em in i rregu lar chanti ng p rose en title d Fi nga l p u r , ,

p orti ng to h av e b ee n origi nally writte n in the anci e nt

Gaelic t ongu e O f the Scotch highl ands by ,
Os i n
s a .

O ssi an the son O f F i ngal i n a dim h e ro ic p as t

, , .

T he figu re s of the story are shado wy and l arge the sc e ne ry ,

wild the i m age ry at l east to an u ncritic al read e r to uch ed

, , ,

with a c e rtai n pri mitive subli m ity and grand e ur and the ,

whol e p e rvad e d by an atm osph e re O f m elancholy which is

e m ph asiz e d i n the Sighi ng c ad e n c e s O f the sty le H e re is .

a Sp e ci m e n

B y t h e si d e o f a ro ck o n th e h i l l , b e n ea th th e a nci e n t t rees .

O ld O ss i a n sa t o n th e m o ss ; the l ast of t he race o f Fi ngal

2 62 A H I STO R Y O F E N GLI SH LI TE RATURE

the figure Of William Canynge m ayor O f Brist ol u nder ,

H e nry VI purp orti ng to b e the w ork O f one Rowl ey a

.
, ,

fi fte en th c entury pri e st S om e of the p oe m s e sp e cially

.
,

“ ” “ “
Aella ,
T he B ri stowe T rage dy and the B all ad e of
,

Charitie are O f re m ark able be auty and force an d wh e n we

,

re m e m b e r th at the a u th o r O f th e m was s c arc ely m or e th an

a child th e y b e c om e ast onishi ng

,
Af te r a p rou d str u ggl e
.

to m ak e his livi ng by his p e n Ch atte rto n e nd e d his m or,

bid and amazi ngly p re coci ou s li fe by suicid e in a London

garre t at the age of n i ne teen He was a Signal e xa mple
, .

O f the ro m antic t e m p e r d e sti n e d soo n to Spr ea d th rou gh

the na tion It was fitti ng th at wh en the battl e O f the new

.
,

p oe try was fou ght and won K eats should d e d icate E u ,

dy mi on to his m e m ory and Sh ell ey Sh ould pl ac e h im in

,
”
Ad onais am o ng th e i nh e ritors o f u nfu lfill e d re nown .

It m ust b e h eld in m i nd th at the ne w lite rary m o v e ment

whi ch we h av e b ee n traci ng was the work Of a s m all coterie
,

p e i t nce
rs s e O f m e n f o r th,e m o s t p art co m p ara tiv e ly O bsc u re .

T h e y w e re the re v oluti on is ts who had d e cl ared ,

t i °n°°
th e ir i nd e p end e nc e of the re igni ng m ode Bu t .

the c on se rv ativ e w rit e rs with J oh n son and Golds m ith at

,

t he i r h e ad still had an alm ost u ni mp aired au thority and

, ,

the cl assical t raditio ns co n ti n u e d to b e wid ely acce pte d to

the v e ry e n d O f the c en tury Sy m pto m s O f al arm h o wever
.
, ,

are f re qu e n t a m ong th ose write rs wh o f e lt b ou n d to support

the co nse rvativ e Sid e am o n g which Signs the chi ef is

J oh nson s Li v es of the P oets w ritt e n to uph old the O ld doc

’
,

tri n e s and to c onfou n d the n e w U nd e r this sti m u lus the

.
,

sa tellit e s of the g re at Docto r p reach e d with r e ne w e d fe rvor

the g osp e l O f c onf orm ity ou twardly the classical traditions

r e m ai ne d all but i n tact But i nw a rdly th ey
I nw ard
.

“ w e re b e i ng rapidly i m p aire d Gold sm ith him

31223 23 .

sel f in his D eserted Vi llage and Vi ca r of Wake

,

eld shows t o u ch e s O f the ne w spi rit

fi , Burk e as has been .
,

sh own f o u gh t the b attl e O f p olitical conse rv atis m with

,

rom antic weapons T he nov els O f Richardso n by their

.
,
 TH E E I GHTE E N TH C E N TURY 2 63

i nti m ate st u dy Of the hu m an h eart and thos e O f Ste rne , ,

by th e i r strange and fasci nati ng sen ti m e ntalis m t end e d to ,

o ve rth row r e ason and to se t up e m oti on as the g u idi ng

, ,

p ri ncipl e of lit e ratu re I nd ee d the whol e e ighte e nth cen

.
,

t u ry n ov el th o u gh it li e s o u t sid e the rom antic m ov em en t

,

n a rrowly co nsid e re d work e d in the sam e dir e cti on with

,

it by e nlargi ng m e n s sy mpathy with h u m an life in all

,
’

its f o rm s .

A f te r 1 780 sign s O f ch ange in the lit erary h eav e ns b e c am e

,

m o re f re q u e n t and p ron ou n c e d George Crabb e ( 1 75 4 .

altho u gh h e us e d the coupl e t v e rs e an d

c onsid e re d hi m se lf a faith fu l m e m be r O f the

sch ool O f Pop e m arks the adven t O f a ne w realis m in the
,

p o e tic tr e a t m e n t O f hu m an li fe H e was bor n i n .a p oo r

fishi ng vill age o n the Germ an oc ean and in his b e st early

p oe m The Vi llage
, he p a i nte d the li fe of the p oo r
a s h e k n e w it st e r nly and u nc om p ro m i si n gly — the s team
, ,

in g fla ts and stubbly co m m on s the d am p and ,

Hi s Real i sm .

dirty ho u se s the h ostil e sea f ro m which only a

, ,

wre tch e d livi ng could b e wrung the m en and w o me n ,

d e grad e d by h arsh labor and c oarse dissipation By his .

sin c e rity he drov e the artifi ci al se nti m e nt Of the age from

o n e m o re of its stro ngh olds Crabb e was g e ne ro u sly b e
.

f ri e nd e d by Bu rk e at a ti m e wh e n he was in dire di st re ss
,

an d th rough Bu rk e s in fl u e n c e he was ad m itte d to h oly

’

o rd e rs H e se ttl ed in the c ou n try an d for twe n ty two y ears

.
,
-

af t e r his fi rst succ e ss was c o m pl e te ly sil e n t

, Wh e n he cam e .

f o rw a rd onc e m ore with The B orou gh ( 1 81 0) an d Ta les of

,

the H a l l it was to fi nd hi m sel f in a ch ange d worl d in ,

which Si nge rs an d s ee rs far greate r th an he had transfor m e d ,

the fac e of lite ratur e ; SO th at his cou ntry sk e t ch e s and

tal e s written still in the O ld fashi one d c oupl e t l ook ed
,
-
,

O ddly sti ff an d b el ate d But his work at i ts be st is as

.
, ,

st e rli ng as it is u ngracef ul an d the e arli e r p orti on O f it d id

,

goo d se rvic e in breaking up the artifi cialism O f the eigh

te en th ce ntury .
2 64 A H I STO R Y O F E N GLI SH LI TE RAT U RE

A m ore pote nt but e qu ally i n volu ntary work O f re volu

,

tion was p e rfo rm ed by Willi am Cowpe r ( 1 73 1 H e was

a li fe l ong victi m O f ne rv o us d e sp on d e n cy and
-
,
Cowpe r.
to this weak ness was add e d an ab normal prone
n ess to re ligious te rr or His early li fe was sp e nt at West
.

m i nste r sch ool a nd as a law stu de n t i n Lo nd on

, F i ts Of -
.

gay ety and sta te s O f m ystical e xaltati on w e re s u cce e ded by

, ,

te rrible p e ri ods of d e p re ssi on and at l as t by i n s anity At , .

the age of fi f ty two he was livi ng i n the O bscur e vill age Of

-
,

O l ney wh e re u n de r the care of a wid ow Mrs U n wi n sev

, , ,
.
,

e ral y e ars his s e ni or h e was Sp e ndi ng a p eac e f ul i n t erval

,

b e t wee n two attacks O f re ligious m el ancholia A s an i ntel .

l e ctu al p asti me he b egan to write ve rse i n which he had

, ,

s ome proficie ncy A t first he p rod u c e d m e re e ss ays in the

.
,

dull est abstract styl e O f the precedi ng age At the sugges .

ti on of one Lady A u ste n a b right and s om e wh at worldly ,

w om an who was attracte d by his Shy distraught person ,

a lity he b egan a l o ng po e m i n bl an k v e rse

, T he s u bj ect .

“
pl ay f u lly su ggeste d by Lady Au st e n was T he So fa an ,

“
a rti cl e O f f u rn it u re t he n no v el Cowp e r duti f u lly sang .

”
th e sofa B u t he did n o t c ease th e re ; he proc e ed ed to
.

p ai nt with ani mated reali sm the l andscap es the ch anges ,

O f se ason s the hu m an typ e s and e m pl oy m e n ts O f the

,

ru ral w orld abo u t hi m as well as his own si m ple pl easu res ,

and occup ati on s T he p oe m was publish ed in .

The T a k s
A l arge portion of The Task
.

1 78 5 as The Tas k , .

is c onv en ti onal e n ou gh to b e sure and v e ry dre ary read , ,

i ng but h e re an d th e re one co m e s upon littl e vign e ttes ,

t he fig u re of a team st e r drivi ng h o m e ward in a sn o wstorm ,

a p ost m an h u r ryi ng th rough the vill ag e with his e agerly

a w ait e d b ag O f n e ws f ro m th e g reat world pl ough men at ,

—
w ork in the fl at fields by the O u se which are i nsti nct wi th ,

v ivid na t u ral li fe T he am u si ng b all ad O f

. J oh n Gilpin
.

al so b e l ongs to thi s b right p e ri od of Co wp e r s li fe He ef ’

.

t e rward rel ap se d i n t o m el ancholy brok e at i n te rv l y

n a s b 8
,

ra
y O f p oe tic i n spirati o n s u ch as produc e d his tou c hi ng
266 A H I STO RY O E EN GLI SH LITERAT UR E

Wi th m y fa th e r h o ve ring u pon th e wind,

And m y b ro th e r Ro b e rt j u st b eh i nd,
An d m y b ro th e r J o h n , th e e v i l o ne .
In a b lac k cl o u d m a k i ng h i s m oa n ;
Wi th a t h ou sa n d a n ge ls u p o n th e wi nd
P o u ri ng d isco nso la te fro m b e hi n d
h ff —
T o d ri v e t e m o , a n d b e fo re m y way
A fro wn i ng thi st le i m p l o res m y sta y
W i th m y i n wa rd e y e ti s a n o ld ma n gre y
’

Wi th m y ou t ward , a thi st l e u p o n m y wa y .

This sou nds lik e downright m ad ne ss b u t Bl ake was not ,

m ad in any ordi nary s ens e O f the te rm With a m e taph y s .

i cal gift which mad e it natural for him to m ove in an id eal

w orld he com bi ne d a visu al i magi natio n Of ab normal 3 1
, ,
.

m ost m iraculo u s pow e r which enable d him to gi ve b od il y

,

fo rm to abstractions and t o su mm on at any m o men t b e f o re

,

hi m ar mi e s O f ang els that so ar l egi o ns Of d em o ns that

,

lu rk . O u twardly he le d a re gul ar qui et laborio u s l if e

, , ,

all th e whil e pouri ng ou t po e m s drawi ngs and v ast , p ro,

h ti al b ooks f ull O f sh adowy m ythologi e s an d m s t ical

p e c y
th ou ght syste m s which Sh o w th at his i nward li fe was on e of
-
,

p e rhaps u np arall el ed e xcite me nt and adventure Leav i ng .

asid e the proph e tic al b ooks which are too O b scure to co u n t

,

f or m uch i n the history O f lit eratu re his fam e as a poe t ,

r e sts chi e fly on his P oeti ca l Sketches and on his Songs of ,

I nnocence a nd E xp eri ence A m id m uch th a t is u n fi nish ed

.
,

an d n o littl e th at is b afllin
g to th e i n t e llige n c e th e s e littl e ,

vol u m es co n tai n some O f the si m pl est and s we e te st as well ,

a s so m e of the m ost p o we rf u l Sh o rt po e m s in th e l an u a e
g g .

A t his b e st Bl ak e has a si m plicity as grea t as Wordsworth s

,
’
,

a n d a m a ic which r e m i n ds us of Col e ridg e co mbi ne d wi th

g ,

a d e pth a n d p re gn an cy O f m e an i ng p e culi ar to hi ms elf It .

m u st b e ad m i tt e d th at he is at his b e st ve ry rar e ly and ,

the n as it w ere by accid ent In him the whol e tran

, , .

sce n de nta l Si d e of the Rom an tic m ov em e n t was e xpr ess ed

by hi nt and i mplic ati on th ough not by accom plish m en t

, .
 THE E I GHTE E N TH C EN TURY 2 67

What Blake di d
toward re cl ai m i ng lost real m s of the
Spi rit and the i m agi natio n Burns did in m ore Signal de, ,

gree toward reope ni ng lost channels O f fee li ng

, .

B urn
H e was bor n in a two room e d clay cottage in -
s.

A y rshi re We st Sc otland i n 1 75 9
, His p arents we re God
, .

f e ari ng p e asants O f the be st Sc o tch typ e who work e d h e ro ,

ically to kee p the wolf f ro m the d oor and to giv e th e ir ,

child re n an el em e ntary e ducatio n At fi f teen Rob e rt the .

,

e ld es t did a g row n m an s work in ploughi ng and reapi ng

’
, .

Looki ng b ack up on his youth in af te r ye ars he de scrib e d

it as t he ch e e rl e ss gloom O f a h e rm it with the u nceasi ng ,

to n of a gall e y Sl av e
”
But this is cl early an nig h , W
.

e t
e x agge ra t i o n If not a to tal m isre pre se ntatio n and P06
,
;
fo r we h av e his youth ful po e m s to prov e him wrong T he .

youth who wrote the Epistl e to Davi e with its manly ”

,

p hilosophy and g e n i al t e m p e r th e A d d r e ss to the D e,il ,

with its rich hu m or and fu n the Cotte r s S atu rday ,

’

”
N igh t b athe d in its tende r light of fi re sid e h appi ne ss
, ,

wa s n e ith e r a h e rm it n or a gall e y Sl av e b u t si m ply a -

,

h e al thy i m p etu ou s farm lad with a warm h eart a rich

,
-
, ,

na ture an d a God giv e n g e nius f or so ng

,
-
He had had a fe w .

b ooks O f poe t ry to r ead and had h eard as e ve ry Scotch

, ,

p e asan t h ears the fl oati ng ball ad v e rse O f the cou nt ry

,

sid e T h e n he had b egu n to rhym e al m ost as sp onta

.
,

“
ne ou sly as a bird b e gi n s to Si ng or as he s ays hi m s el f f or
, , ,
”
fu n . Si nce he was a spon tane o u s si nce re and absolute , ,

ly origi nal n ature the v e rse s he stru n g toge th er c ar e l e ssly

, ,

“
a s he f oll o w e d his plough i n glo ry and in j oy along the ,

m ou n tai n sid e
’
w e re contribu tio ns to the wo rld s spir
-
,

itu al e xp e ri e nc e and Si n ce he was also a born m as ter of

w ord s th ey w ere contributions to the world s su m O f
,
’

be auty .

B e twe en his tw enty third and his tw enty sixth year

- -
,

Bu rn s wrote the l arge r portio n of th os e poe m s which h ave

m ade his nam e l o ve d wh e re ve r the Lowl an d di al e ct is u n
de rstood In th e s e h e re v e al e d with wo nd erful co m pl e te
.
268 A H I STO RY or E N GLI SH LI TE RATU RE

nes s the rural Sc otl and of his day illu mi na te d with a ,

ble nd e d light of hu mo r and te nd e rnes s the co mmo n e x

pe ri e nces of his peasan t world no t f orbea ri ng to treat its ,

u nedi fyi ng an d e ve n its scanda l ous ph ase s with racy ze st

, ,

and l aughi ng ab an do n Hi s l arge ge ni al na ture e m brac es.

e v e rythi ng hu ma n i n the w orld ab out him H e c el e brates .

”
S co tch Dri nk holds up to laughte r the prayi ng hypo
,

cri te H oly Willi e and p ai nts the ri o to u s ga mes O f ,

Hallo we e n bu t he can tu rn immedi a tely to m o u rn over

’

”
the wee m od e st cri mso n tipp ed flow e r upr o ote d in the
,
-

f urro w o n the m o u n tai n sid e and to fi nd in a fi el d mou se -

,
-

wh o se s nug ho me has bee n brok e n up by the ploughshare ,

a thi ng to touch th e Spri n gs O f hu man pity .

By the ti me B u rns h ad reache d his twenty sixth year his -

,

wild ways had got hi m in to d espe rate troubl e his fath er

was d ead a nd the h and to h an d fight th at he and his b ro ther
,
- -

Gilb e rt w e re w agin g with pove rty b ad e fair to e nd in ah ,

so lute failure Di s tracte d and d espairi ng B u r ns d e te r

.
,

mi ned to go to the We st I ndi es In o rd er to rai se the .

p as sage mone y so m e o ne su gge sted tha t he Should publish

,

the poe ms which lay in his d e sk in the co ttage at M ossgiel .

T his he di d his fri e nds ge tti ng e nough s ubscri be rs fro m

,

a m o ng the local ge ntry to m ak e the v e ntu re N ith r

p y
a e e .

the a uth or nor any one e lse hoped f or m ore th an a local

p op u la rity T he littl e bo ok was publish ed at Kil marnock
.

i n 1 78 6 with the ti tl e P oems Chi efl y i n the Scotti sh

, , ,

D iale ct .T he fe w p ou nds brought in by the smal l ed itio n

w e re i n his pock e t and hi s t ru nk was se nt forward when
, ,

a l e tte r f rom E di nburgh arriv ed which change d the whol e

f ac e O f his fortu ne s It was from an e m i nent schola r and

.

critic who praise d the book highly an d call e d for ano th e r and
,

a l arg e r e ditio n Burns poste d to Edi nbu rgh h e ralde d and

.
,

f ete d on the way lik e a h e ro Of ro mance A win te r in the .

Scotch capital followe d duri ng which the ploughme n poe t ,

was pe tte d and l i oniz ed and an oth e r wi n te r duri n w hi ch

g
his grea t fri e nds cooled toward hi m as an e xploited att rw
 CH APTE R X III
TH E N I N ETEEN TH C E N TURY : TH E TRI UM PH O P
R O M A N TI CI SM

THE Romantic Movem ent, the b egi nni ngs of which h ave
b ee n trac ed in the p rece ding chapte r, was by no m eans
co nfine d to lite rature In E ngl and the religious revi val
.

u nd e r J oh n We sl ey in Ge rmany the new philosophy pu t

,

f orth by E manu el K an t in F ranc e the imm e n se social u p

,

heaval O f the F r ench Re volution al l w e re sym ptom s early , ,

or late Of the same great in flu e nc e worki ng fo r li be ration

, .

When the m ov ement on its literary sid e had be co me suf

, ,

fi ciently pronou n c e d to b e su bj e ct to d e fi n ition

“ e Rom fi c ,

Hm “
Natu e
r
th e e

nature
ss e n c e O f it w as f e lt to be a
“
re turn to
a w elco m i ng b a ck i nto lif e of all that

was spon tane ous and si nce re ; a reass ertion O f the ri ght Of
m an to i ndulge all his spiritu al i nstin cts e ve n the wilde st ,

and m ost wayward T his reasse rtion natu rally took two
.

directi ons one outward toward wh ate ve r was rem ote and
, ,

u nusual one i nward i nto the h ea rt O f c om m on thi ngs

, , ,

which wh en looked at close ly w ere f ou nd to b e f u ll O f

, ,

ne w m ea n i ngs T h ese two i mpulse s fou nd e xp re ssi on in

.

the work O f the two poe ts in who m the English rom anti c
m ove m en t firs t be cam e co nsciou s O f its real aims Samu el ,

Taylor Col e rid ge and Willi am Wor dsworth .

A h appy ch ance bro u ght these t wo poe ts to ge th e r in the

‘

impress io nabl e pe riod O f thei r you ng m anh ood when ,

Col e ri dge was twe n ty fi ve and Wo rds worth On ly two years

-
,

o ld e r . B oth had fe lt the sto rm and stress O f the re v olu

tionary age E ach bro ugh t to the oth e r j ust tha t kind of
.
-

sti m ulu s need e d to ki ndl e his m i nd to c rea ti ve acti vity

a nd toge th er th e y g th ered the di ff u sed and u nce rtai n

, a

r y s O f t he ne w p oe ti c illu m i na tio n i n to an orb of steady

a
 TH E N I N E TE E N TH C E N T UR Y 2 71

s pl en dor In th em the new p oetry first fou nd an ad e quate

.

a n d u nm istak abl e voic e an d th e littl e v olu m e c alle d L ri ca l

y
B a lla ds which th ey publish e d t oge th e r in Do ble Aspect
, u

1 798 Sh o ws the two im pulse s O f the n e w geh i rhn

le a '

,
w”
poe try in fu ll play Cole ridge s co nt ributio ns gfigag
.
d ’
fl
m m wm h
treat m yste rious sup e rnatural subj e cts in such
,
‘

a way as to giv e to th e m an u n p arall e l e d illusio n of re ality ;

Wordsworth s treat si m pl e e veryday th em es O f natu re and

’
,

hu m an li fe in such a way as to r e veal in th em u nsusp ecte d

e l e m e n ts of m y ste ry and awe .

Col e ridge was bo rn at O tt ery St Mary s De vonshire in

’
.
, ,
“
1 772 . He had a precocious boyho od as a blu e co at at ” -

C hri st s Hospital the fam o u s ch arity school in Lon do n

’
, .

While at Cambridge he plu nge d with his fri end “ 137 m ” , ,

Rob e rt South e y th en a st u d e nt at O xford i n to

,
C o l e i d ge
,
r

the ge ne rous e nthusi asm s arou se d by the F re n ch Re volu

ti on Af te r gradu ation the two you ng ide alis ts i n th ei r ar
.
,

d or f or s oci al reform co n c e i ve d a g ran d sch e m e of

,
p anti
”
socracy which th e y d reame d O f re alizi ng in the Sh ap e Of a
,

utopi an co m m u nity to b e e stabli sh ed across the oc ean on ,

th e bank s O f the S u squ e h a nna Pre li m i nary to e m igra .

ti on Col e ridge p u bli sh e d a v olu me O f j u v enil e ve rse and

, ,

ma rri e d by 1 797 he had a you ng fam ily on his h ands and ,

h ad e xch ange d p an tisocracy f or a ti ny c ottage in the vil

lage O f N eth e r Stowey in the Q u an tock hill s In 1 797 , .
,

Wo rdsw orth t oge th er with his wond erf ul si ste r Dorothy

, ,

m ove d to Alfoxd en i n ord e r to b e near Col e ridge wh om

, ,

he h ad m et the ye ar b efor e T O Word sw orth the co m p au

.

ion sh i p m eant m uch ; to Col eridge it m ean t e ve rythi n g .

U n d e r the b raci ng i n fl u e nc e O f Word sworth s h ardy o rigi

’
,

n al m i n d s u ppl e m ent e d by the q u ick sym p athy an d su g

,

g es ti ve n ess O f D o r o thy C o l e ridg e Shot up s u

,
dd e n ly i n to
f u ll poe tic st ature In littl e m ore th an a year ( 1 797 1 798)
.
-

”
he wrot e all his great est p oe m s Gene vi e v e T he , ,

T he Anci ent Mari ner,

” “ ” ”
Da rk Ladi e K u b la K h an
, ,

and the fi rst p art O f Ch rist ab e l .

2 72 A H I STO RY O F E N GLI SH LI T E RAT U RE

Col e ridge s li fe, though he wrote a go od d eal

’
T he rest Of

of ve rse ,
has littl e i mpo rt an c e in th e history of poe try .

H e m ad e a trip , in the Wordsworths co m p any,

’

to Germ any, th e re becam e abs orbe d in the

an d

philosophy of K ant SO far as his l ater life h ad any defi

.

ni t e purpos e it was sp en t i n i nterpr e ti ng the pri n cipl e s O f

,

thi s phil osophy to his cou ntrym e n His bond age to the .

O piu m h abit add e d to an i nh e r e n t w e ak n ess O f wi ll mad e

, ,

his life a h eart re nding succ ession of h alf atte m pts and
- -

wh ol e failures He pl anne d m any books and p artly exe

.
,

cut ed a f e w ; bu t his chi ef i n flu ence was e x erte d in talk

with his fri ends and with th ose young m en who as his
, ,

reputation f or transce nd ental wisdo m in creas e d resorted ,

to hi m as to an oracl e of h op e and faith in the y ears which ,

foll o wed the f ail u re of the F re n ch Re volution By cons ent .

O f all who h eard h i m Col e ridg e was one O f the m ost won

de rf u l talk e rs th at e v e r liv ed His v e rse f rag me n tary and

.
,

of s mall b u lk tho u gh it is giv e s him r ank as one O f the,

’
wo rld s great p oets .

A S has bee n said abov e Col e ridge repr e sents p e rfe ctly
,

th at sid e O f the ro mantic i m agi nation which seeks to lose

Characte risti cs it s e l f i n d r e am an d m arvel ; to c onjur e up a
0‘ m Poet y
8 r
w o rld of phantasmal scenery and of sup er
'

“
n at u ral h app e n i ng s illu m i nat e d by , a light th a t n e ve r
” ”
was on l an d or sea K u hl a K h an p ai nts an ori e ntal
.

dream pictu r e as spl endid and as i m p alp abl e as the p al ace s

-
,

“ ”
a nd pl u n gi ng rive r s an d cave rns m easurel e ss to m an ,

wh i ch we som e ti m e s se e li fte d for a m o m en t out O f a stor my

which s e em s i n its f rag m en tary
”
su n s e t . Chri stab el ,

for m to hav e b e en pl anne d as the story O f a you n g girl

fall en u nd e r the sp ell of an u ne arthly d em on in wo m a n s
’

s hap e m ov es in a m e di aev al at m osph ere bl end e d O f be a uty

,

and h orror ; a h orror poignantly v agu e f r e e zi ng the h ea rt ,

with i ts s u gg estio n of all th at is m align and cru e l in

“
The Anci en t Mari ner
”
the Spi rit world Col e ridg e s
’
.
,

one fi nish e d m asterpi e c e stan ds al m ost alone i n lite r a ture

,
2 74 A H I STO RY O F E N GLI SH LI TE RATURE

Th e ir re siden ce at Al foxden with Col e ridge 1 797 1 798, ,

-
,

ma rks t h e tru e b e gi n n i ng o f W ordsw o rth s po e tic ca reer ;’

f or up to this ti m e tho u gh he had writte n m uch he had

, ,

not f ou n d his ge n u i n e m atte r an d manne r In “

We are .

” “
S e ve n ”
,
E xpo stul atio n and Reply Li nes in Early
,

“ ”
Spri ng ”
,
T i nt e rn A bb e y an d oth e r pi e c e s writte n at
,

t his ti me the tru e Wordsworth is app aren t

,
D u ri ng the .

wi nter i n Ge rmany which followe d he add e d to th ese ,

pi e ces so me Of his m ost ch aracte ristic poems such as ,

She D w el t A mong the U n trodd e n Ways

”
“ T hree Ye ars ,
” “
S eh G re w i n Su n a n d Sho w e r a n d T h,
e T w o A pril
M or n i n g s
”
O n.
his r e tur n h e s e ttl e,
d with his S ist e r i n a

c ottage at Grasme re and in 1 802 he m arri e d A t Gras

,
.

me e r , a n d af t e rw a rd a t R yd al M ou n t a t th e oth e r e n d O f
the l ak e he liv e d for fifty years among the C u m b e rland
,

d ale s men l eadi ng an e xistenc e as p as t oral and as f rugal as

,

th eirs readi ng littl e and m editati ng m uch lo oki ng with

, ,

d e e p u nw eari e d d elight upon the m ou ntai ns and ski es

an d w at e rs which had fasci nat e d hi m i n boyhood A .

sm all l egacy f ro m a fri end and l ater an appoi nt m ent as ,

distrib u to r of stam p s mad e him i ndep endent and l eft

, ,

vi rtu ally his whol e ti me free for the pu rsuit of poetry ,

which was for him as f or Milton not Only an art bu t a sol

e m u m i n i s try T he h eights O f his po e tic achi e vem e nt are
.

mark e d succ essive ly by such pi e ce s as Mich ael ( 1 800)

”

th e s onn e ts to Milto n to T o ns
”
The Le e ch Gath e re r -
, ,

“ ”
s ai nt L O u ve rtu re It is a B e aut eous E ve n i ng and
’
, ,

“
We st mi n s ter Bridge (1 802) The Solitary Re ap e r and
“

” “
Yarrow Unvi site d ( 1 803 ) the O de to Duty To a ,
“
T he Wo rld Is TO O
”
Skyl ark and The P relu de
,

M u ch With U s and The O de on the I nti mati ons of Im

”
,
“ ”
mortality ( 1 806) Song at the F east Of Brougham Castle
an d T he E xcu rs i on A fte r this l ast da te
Word swo rt h s gen ius g rad u ally sti ff ene d and he produc e d
’
,

little m ore p oe try of the fi rst o rd e r T his de cli ne in poe ti c .

power in his later years was acco m p ani ed by a reaction from

,
 TH E N I N ETE EN TH CE N TURY 2 75

the soci al and political radicalism O f his youth i nto a fi rm ,

c ons e rvatis m which led hi m to uphold e xisti ng institu

,

ti ons O f church and state in the spirit Of B u rk e F or m any

, .

y ears his poe try m et with negle ct and ridicule but he ,

g rad u ally dre w to hi mself the atte n tion and vene ration of
the be st m i nds The c ro wd turne d asid e to f ollow first
.

Scott th en Byron and th e n T ennyson ; b u t thos e wh ose

, ,

s u fl ra ge s w e r e of m ost v al u e r alli e d in i n cre asi ng n u m b e rs

“ ”
a b o u t the good old steel gray figure Of the Cu m berland
-

p oe t ; and b efore his d eath in 1 85 0 he enj oye d a late but ,

su re re now n .

In Wordsworth the growi ng s en sibility to natural phe

n om e na which we h av e tr ac e d f r om Tho m so n and Colli n s
,

d ow n to the e nd O f the e ightee nth c entury re ache d its ,

h e ight He was gif te d by nat u re with an eye

m8 N t re
.

a u _

a n d an e ar m arv e llously s e nsitiv e to thos e Slight

S ign ieiess
i °
s
r r
a nd e lu si ve i mpressio n s which m ost p e rso ns

p as s by without notici ng at all T his s e nsibili ty was i n

.

crease d by a long li fe sp e nt in the cou ntry in a re gi on full ,

o f ch ar m an d e v en of gra nd e ur and i t was m ad e e fi caci ou s

by a rem arkable sereni ty and p ati e nce which e nabl e d him ,

g
to a e a th r l l th e rich e s O f th e i n an i m a t e w o rld with o u
, t
h aste and without disturbi ng e xcite m e nt H ence his poe try .

n
is f ull O f e xquisitely n ot e d sights a d sou d s the sh ad ow n —
O f t he d aisy o n th e sto n e th e
,
m ist which f oll o ws t h e

h are as She ru ns acro ss a rai n drench ed m oor the echo -

,

o f the cuckoo s voic’

e th e ,
v a ryi n g n o is e O f w a t e rs a n d t h
, e
“
m an y voic e s o f th e wi n d . T o r e a d o n e o f his l o n g e r
” “
p ast oral poe ms for the fi rst ti m e it has b e en said is like , ,
”
a day sp e n t i n a n e w c o u n try A
. n d a l l th e s e S ights an d
s ou n ds a re give n with ab sol u te tru th f u l ne ss to
Its T rut h .

t he f a c t T . h e r e is n o e ff e ct O f h e ight e n i n g
na tu re O f ee
,
s i n g h e r cl o th e d i n a light bright e r or str an ge r
th an her own Wordsworth writes with his eye on th e
.
“

o bj e ct ”
,
co n t e n t to portr a y wh a t h e s ee s H e l
. e a r n e d f r om

B ur ns th at vers e can build a pri nc ely throne on hu m ble

2 76 A H I STO RY O F E N GLI SH LI TERATURE

truth an d e v e rywh er e h e giv e s an i mpr e ssion O f u n

qu e s tio ni ng re ve ren t faithf u l n ess to the fact which his

,

se nse s ha ve pe rc e ive d It f ol lows that the greate r p art Of

.

his nat u re stu di es are i n a low key ; in the rareness Of

-

th e i r grande u rs and glori e s th ey breath e the m od e sty Of,

natur e .E sp eci ally not e worthy is the pre do m i nanc e in

Wordsworth O f broad el e m entary i mpre ssions ,
It B eadt h
s r
m e re d arkn e ss an d light the sil ence of the Sky
.

, ,
"
the m oon looki ng rou n d he r wh en the h eaven s are bare ,

the twilight with i ts one star the b reathl e ssne ss of the e v en

,

i ng sea the lo ne so mene ss O f u pl and fi elds the “

, sl eep that ,

is am ong the l onely hills ”

It is the k eenness O f Words
.

worth s sen sibility to nature and his qui e t re ligious ac

’
, ,

cep tance of her as she is an d h i s u n w eari e d d e light in he r

,

broad e st and si mpl est phases which togeth er mak e him the ,

fi rst of her po ets .

Thi s sam e sobri ety and t ruth of tone this s am e re ve r en t ,

regard f or the great co m m o npl ac es O f li fe ch aracte riz e ,

also Wordsworth s treat m en t O f hu m an nature

’
.

H T e tment
IS r a
“ H e d eals Wi th the br oad e l e m e ntary p assIO nS
Nili g?
n
,
a .

the e ve ryd ay aff e ct i on s occu p atl ons and duti es, , ,

in a state O f soci e ty wh e re m an is si mpl e st a nd ne arest

to the s oil In m any of his b e st poe m s i nd e e d the
.
, ,

h u man b e i ngs whom he pictu re s s ee m al m ost a p a rt of the

l an ds cap e an e manation from nat u re h ers elf lik e the trees
, ,

or the r ocks The figure O f the Lee ch gath e re r o n the

.
-

m oo r see m s as m uch a p art of the natural l andsc ap e as the

p ool by which he stands ; the wo m an who sp eaks to the
p o e t i n S t e ppi ng W e stw a rd s ee m s a p art of the su nset ,

s o bl e n d e d is She with the sc e ne in The Highl and

Re ap e r the si ngi ng of the girl c ome s out O f the h eart O f
the day lik e the spirit O f ance stral Scotl and t e lli ng ove r i ts
,

O ld u n h appy far O ff thi ngs and battl e s long ago

-
, She is

h ardly m ore of a hu man p e rsonality th an the cuckoo or

the nighti ngal e to which the po e t co mp ares her voice .

Even wh en he looks closer at his h u man characte rs and ,

2 78 A H ISTO RY o r E N GLI SH LI TERATU RE

in g a walki ng tour which Wordsworth took in 1 798 in ,

co m p any with his Sis te r through a cou ntry famili ar to him

,

“
m um i n ea rli e r y e a rs Th e w e ll r.e m e m b e r e d sc e n ery -

“ my ” O f the riv e r Wye c alls up b ef ore his m usi ng

thought the picture O f his boyhood with its passionate ,

“
absorptio n in na tur e wh en the sou n di ng ca taract h au n ted
,
”
him lik e a p assi on and the rocks the m ou n tai ns and the
, , ,
“
woods w ere to him an app etite He shows how the .

i nfl u ence s O f nature acti ng upo n the pl astic soul O f youth

, ,

“
b ear f ruit in l ate r li fe i n sensatio ns swe e t felt i n the
,
” “
bl ood and f elt al ong the h eart and little name l e ss nu ,

re m e mb e red acts O f ki nd ness and O f lov e and how they

lift the spirit which reme mb ers th em to ,

th a t b lesse d m o od
I n wh i ch th e b u rd e n th e m y ste ry ,
of

In wh i ch th e h ea v y a n d th e w ea ry w e igh t
O f a ll th i s u nin te ll i gi b le w o rld
I s l i gh te ne d
Wh i le w i th a n eye m a d e q u i e t b y th e p o wer
O f h arm o ny , a nd th e d ee p p o w e r Of jo y,
We i nto th e li fe o f thin gs
‘

see .

And he suggests a m e taphysical e xpl anatio n for this

strange p ower which N atu re has to so oth e and ennoble
the h u m an s ou l nam e ly th at throughou t N ature th e re
, ,

is di ff u s ed the active spirit of God livi ng and worki ng ,

in he r
I h a v e fe l t
A p re se n ce th a t d i st u rb s m e w i th th e j oy
O f e l e v a te d th o u gh ts a se n s e s u b li m e
Of so m e t h i n g f a r m o re d ee p l y i n te rfu se d ,
Wh o se d w e l l i n g is th e l igh t o f se tt i n g su n s,

A nd th e ro u nd o ce a n , a n d th e l i v i n g a i r,

And th e b l u e sk y , a n d i n th e m i n d of m an
A m o ti o n a n d a s p i ri t , th a t i m p e l s
Al l th i n k i n g t h i ngs, a l l o b e ct s o f a l l
j th ou gh ts ,

An d ro l l s th ro u gh a ll th i ngs .
 THE N I N ETE E NTH C ENTURY 2 79

“
T i n te rn Abb e y give s us al m ost a compl e te p ro

g r a m m e o f W o
’
rdsw orth s po etic c ar e e r I n it w e s e
. e

m ark e d ou t cl early the m ai n p aths which his m i n d f ol

low e d du ri ng a long life ti m e O f lo nely co nte mplati on In .

m any n obl e poe m s he d e vel op e d the thre e th e me s h e re

give n ou t : the eternal b eauty O f N ature Which wa its ,
“
e v e rywh e r e about us to h au n t to startl e and w ayl ay
, ,

th e pow e r of that b eau ty t o h e al gl add e n an d for ti fy, ,

wh oe ve r give s it w elc ome ; and the my s tic s ourc e O f this

p ow e r the Spirit O f God hidd e n ye t app arent in all the
, ,

“
visible c re ati on buildi ng for itsel f a m e trop olitan te m
,

p l e i n th e h ea rts of si m pl e a nd u n s e lfi sh m e n P e rh a ps .

the m ost e xquisite e xpre s sio n he has giv en to the id ea of

N ature s for mative p ow e r up on the so u l and through the
’
,

s o u l upo n th e b ody of m an is th e p oe m b egi nn i ng

, T hre e
”
Y e ars She Gre w in Su n and Show er .

T he i nsti n ct to p e rc eive natu re an d hu m an li fe in tr an

sce n de n tal t e r m s was v e ry e arly m an i f e st e d i n Wordsworth
, .

I n his sch ool d ays at H awksh e ad the w orld

-
,

would so m e ti m e s he tells us s ee m sudd e nly to

, ,
“m u m " ,

d i ssolv e and he wo uld fall i n to an abyss O f

,

id ealis m f ro m which he had to bri ng hi m self back to re

ality by gr aspi n g at the w all by the r oadsid e or by sto opi n g ,

to pick u p a stone T his habit O f m i nd sob ere d and

.
,

strength ene d by refle ction p e rvad e s all his p oe try and

, ,

gives to it a p e culi arly sti mul ati ng ch aracte r In re adi ng .

h im we ne ve r k now w hen the actu al l an d sc ap e an d the

,

Si m pl e hu m an st ory will wid en out su dd e nly i nt o s om e

v ast e r th em e lo oki ng b eyon d Sp ac e an d ti me SO th a t he

,

a w ak e ns i n u s a ki n d of Spiritu al appr e h e n si on or e x p e c

tan oy which forc es us to look b el ow the su rfac e O f h is

Si m pl e st po e m and to b e on the al e rt for a m e ani n g d e e p e r
,

th an Its pri m ary one H IS greate st po e m th e Intimations ,

:
O de on th e I n ti m at i o n s of I m m o rtal i ty I S al so f m pxo ta l
”

pty
x r
, ’

the on e in which th e sp e c u l ati on i s bold est In .

this wo nd e rf ul O de which E me rso n c all e d

, the high w ate r -
280 A H I STO RY O F E N GLI SH LI TE RATURE

m ark of
po etry in the ni ne te enth cent u ry th e poe t looks ,

b ack with p as sionate regre t to the l ost radi anc e O f his

childho od an d tri e s to conne ct childh ood re ass u ri ngly
,

not o nly with m anhood and O ld age b u t also with a p re ,

vi cus e xiste n ce wh enc e it brings its light of i nnoc ence and

,

joy T he po em is a product O f that maj e stic ki nd of m e t

.

a physical i m agi natio n which transc ends sp ac e an d ti me

, ,

and m ak e s

O ur n o i sy y e a rs see m m ome nts in th e b e i ng

O f th e e t e rn a l Si le n ce.

In the Inti matio ns and oth e r poem s m ystically conc e ived ,

Wordsw orth took the i nh eritance O f the seventeenth cen

t u ry mystic s and of Blak e and gave it a cl eare r d e ve lop
, ,

m e nt just as i n his naturalistic po etry he carri e d to larger

,

issu es the w ork of Cowpe r Crabbe and Burns , , .

The re ad e r who appro ach e s Wordsworth f or the first

ti me m u st b e pre pare d for c ertain di ffi culti e s and e ven
di sappoi n t m e n ts In the fi rst p ace his p oetry
Diffi culti s i n
A proa chm
e l .

I s s o de v oId O f artIfi CIal h ei ght e n i n g th a t I ts In

,

or d sw o t r
te nsI ty I ts p ass i on Its Int i mate tr u th a re apt
, , ,

t o app eal sligh tly to a tas te a ccusto m e d to m ore O bvious

e x cite m e nt In the se c on d pl ac e Wordsworth write s in
.
,

two m an ne rs one i nspi re d the oth e r p e destri an ; and a

, ,

v e ry l arge b ody O f his ve rse was the prod u ct O f his p edes

tri an mood He se eme d u nabl e to di sti nguish in his work
.

b e t we en the supre me an d the comm on place A n other .

s o u rce of difi cu lty is his lack of hu m or which so m e ti mes ,

le d him as in , The Idi ot Boy i nto m ani fe st absurdity , .

In h is s e arch aft er the pa thos O f c o m m on li fe and i n his ,

d e sire f or rigor ously si mpl e l angu age he was not i ntre ,

q u e n tly b e tray e d i nto sh e e r prose His nature was ex .

tre m ely se l f ce ntr ed and dog matic and i n ordi nary m oods
-
,

it worke d some wh at stifll y But just in proportion to the .

am ou n t O f Spirit u al e ne rgy r e quir e d to f u se this r e luctant

me tal of his m i nd i nto a pl astic and glowing state is the ,

282 A H I STO R Y O F E N GLI SH LI TERATURE

f ro m the August an i ndi ff erence to the Middl e Ages l ed , ,

th rough the f orgeri e s of Ch att erton and the epic ch an ts O f

the ps e u do O ssi an to Scott for who m it was re se rve d to
-
, ,

c reate the life O f the p ast on a vast scale and with an ,

u np arall el ed i llusio n of truth .

Walte r Sc ott was b orn in E di nburgh in 1 7 71 his father

was a l awye r but was d esce n d e d f ro m a vigorous and war
,

like Bord e r c lan Scott d e vel op e d early a passion for the b al

.

lad m i nstr el sy of his l and and he sp en t m an y d ays O f his

y outh roam i ng over the cou ntry gathe ri ng ball ads and ,

scraps of b all ad s f ro m the lips of Low lan d p easan ts His .

c oll e cti on was publi she d u nd e r the titl e B order

Sc ot“ Career
as a Poe t M i ns trelsy E xc ept for a fe w b allads in the
.

g re ws om e vein m ad e popular by the Len ore Of

B urger the pione er of Ge rman romanticism Scott wro te

, ,

no o rigi nal p oe try u n til h is thirty f ourth year -

In 1 805 .

a pp e a red T he La
y f o th e L a s t M i ns tr el i n which a thread
,

of gothic su p ernatu rahsm IS wov en i n to a tal e of Scotch

b ord er li fe in the Middl e Ages T his was follow e d in 1 808 .

by M armi on M a rmi on e xhibite d in m uch greate r m eas

.

u re the brilli an t d e scriptiv e color the swi f t and pow e rf ul ,

n arra tive m ov e m en t and the ri ngi n g

, energe tic m u sic
, ,

which h ad m ad e the Lay i nstan tly p opular and it showed

a gre at adv an c e ov e r the e arli e r p oe m in li f e lik e ness and
-

b read th Sc arcely m ore than a year l ater app eared The

.

La dy of the Lake a story sof te r and m or e idyllic than

,

Ma rmi on ye t not l acking i n wild and stirring e pisod e s ;

,

in it Sc o tt c am e f a r n e ar e r th a n h e h ad d o n e i n his ea rli e r
p o e m s to the broad i magi nativ e handli ng O f m e diaeval
,

Scot ch li fe which he afte rward gav e in his prose rom an ces .

T h e se th re e p oe m s pr es e n ti ng many of the ne w ro m an
,

tic m otive s in p op u l arly attractive form took the read ing ,

world by st or m The d i cti on e m ploye d in th e m

.

Q li ti
ua es o f
hi P t y
s oe r was not lik e the l a ng u age of Col e ridge and
.

Wo r d s wo rth SO st a
,
rtli n gly n o v e l as a lit e r a ry m e di u m th at
it rep el led the u nacc u stome d ear The m etre was strong and .
 TH E N I N ETE E N TH C E N TUR Y 2 83

bu oyan t, pp eali ng po we rfu lly to a public w eary of the m o

a

n otonou s cou pl e ts of the p re ce di n g age b u t u nabl e to app re

,

cia te the d eli cate me l odi es of the Songs of I nnocence a nd E x

t n an d the L ri ca l B a lla ds Th e r om an ti c sc e n e ry
p er e ce y .
,

brightly and firm ly p ain te d but always k ept subordinate

,

to the acti on ; the ch aracte r d eli ne ati on pict u re squ e but ,

n ot s u btl e ; and the vigorous s we e p of the st ory — all ap ,

p eal e d to the popular h e art Scott hi m self de sc ribe d the

.

p e c u li ar e xcell e nc e of his p oe try t ruly e nough though with ,

ch arac te ristic m od esty as c onsisti ng in a hurri e d frank

,

n e s s of c om po si ti on which pl e ase s s oldi e rs s ailors and , ,

”
you ng p e opl e of bold and active disp osition .

Scott s m e trical tal es did m uch to p op u l ariz e romanti

’

ci sm in its broad e r ph ase s H e was how e ve r not m uch

.
, ,

i n earn e st as a p oe t ; an d wh en the p u blic tur ne d to the

m o re lu rid and e x t ra vagant v e rs e tale s of Byron Sc ott
-
,

ch e e rf u lly resi gne d his pl ac e to the you nge r m an and be ,

g a n his f ar gr e at e r w ork i n pr ose ( s e e p ag e

T he p opul ar triu m ph of rom an tici sm was also aid e d by

a n o th e r Sc otch p oe t T h om a s Cam pb e ll 1 7 77 H
, ( e

b e gan his caree r as a foll owe r of the Augustans ,

Campb ell
a n d was k n o w n d u ri ng hi s u n iv e rsity career as
.

“
t he Pop e o f Gl asgo w In Ge r m any wh e re he w e nt i n
.
,

1 799 he fell u nd e r the i n flu e n c e of B ii rge r a nd the o th er

,

e arly Ge r m an ro m an tici sts an d in 1 803 h e p u bli sh e d a vol

u m e of p oe m s i n the n e w m anne r am o ng whi ch

, Lochi e l ,
” ”
H oh e nli nd e n and T he E xil e of E ri n at tai ne d and
, ,

h av e h eld a great pop u l ar e ste e m A fte r ward he pub

.

l ishe d his fam o u s war od es “

-
T he B attl e of the Baltic
,
”

a nd Y e Mari n e rs of E ngl an d ”
T h ese spl e n did b attl e
.

ch an ts fu ll of m arti al e ne rgy and ki ndli ng e nthusias m

, ,

ra n k with the b est war po et ry of Engl an d and are worthy

-

o f th e rac e whi ch h ol ds the d om i n io n of the sea .

T he g ro up of po e ts who c am e to m anho od wh e n the

F re nch Re volution was at its h e ight react e d duri ng the ,

N apol e onic w ars i nto s e ttle d co ns ervatis m Scott in .

,
.
284 A H I STO RY OF E N GLI SH LITERATURE

dee d by
, the
ccid en t of his early surrou ndi ngs was con
a ,

se rv a tiv e f ro m the first South ey and Col eridge af te r th eir

.
,

youthf ul e nth u si a sm f or a n e w utopia n sch eme

Con e t m
s rv a i s
of s o c i e ty to ok r e f ug e the one In pol i t i cal
211012121 032
1 8
5
1
1 , ,
8.
T ory i s m the oth e r I n the mysti cal p e dantri es
,

of Ge r m an phil o s ophy Wordswo rth who had fel t the

.
,

storm an d stress of re vol u ti onary ideas m ore th an any of

the oth e rs af t e r a lo ng p e riod of w av e ri n g and disa ppoi nt
,

m ent finally i n tren ch e d hi m s e lf b ehi nd the i n stitutio n s of

ch u rch an d state as he f o un d th em and in th at safe po si ,

tion p roc ee d e d with his r eal task of discove ri ng new sources

of j oy an d p owe r f or the i ndividu al li f e i n lov e of na ture ,

an d in m oral c onduct T he two po e ts whom

Ra d i camm of
.

B o n nda we now appr oach Byron and Sh e lley took up

, ,
8 elley .

the t orch of re v ol u tio n which had b e e n ki ndled

in F ran c e d u ri ng th e ir childho od an d carri ed it fl am ing ,

i nto ne w regi ons of tho u ght and fee li ng .

George Gord on Lord Byron was b orn in 1 788 of a fa

, ,

ily of n obl e m e n n ot ori ou s f or t he ir pride and th e ir pa ssion

m ,

at e t e m p e r H e was of e xtraordi nary physical

.

b eauty and a l am eness of one f oot add e d to

,

this a t ou ch of path os Perso nal fas ci na tion .

was his f ro m the first H e m a st e r e d his littl e world of

.

s ch ool fellows at H arrow with the same enthralli ng power

-

of p e rsonal ity which l at e r t ook c aptiv e the i m agi nation of

E u rop e H is first v ol u m e of p oe m s H ou rs of Idleness

. ,

was fai thf u l to the sch ool of P op e a po et f or who m ,

Byro n th rough out his li fe profe ss e d an u nswe rvi ng a d mi

rati on T he i m m at u re littl e b ook was me rcil e ssly ridi
.

oul e d in the E di nburgh Re vi e w Byron nurse d his t e

.

v enge and in 1 809 he p u bli sh e d a vigorous sa tiric o nsl a ugh t

,

up on h is c ritics entitl ed E ngli sh B ards a nd Scotch Re

,

v i ewers It is significan t th at his first signal p e rf or m

.

an c e sh ould h av e b e e n c on ce iv e d in a satiric v e i n a nd ,

ed u c e d by a blow to his p e rson al p rid e .

T wo ye ars l at er the yo u ng po e t se t off upo n his t ra v els .

286 A H I ST O R Y O F E N GLI SH LI TE R ATU RE

gl oo m y bitte r isol ati on c o m m u n i ng with u nearthly

and ,

pow e rs an d sc or nf ully w o rki n g ou t his d ark f a t e

, Ca i n .
,

T he D u mr th ou gh i m p e r f e ctly c a rri e d out is sup e rb ly con ,

cei v e d T he e arthly re b el and fi rst sh e dd e r of

.

“Wm “! hu m an blo od u n de r the g u idan ce of Lu c ife r , ,

the re b e l ang e l visits H ell an d Ch aos an d th e re fi n ds

, , ,

gr ou n ds for the godl ess h atre d th at is in hi m It was by .

th e s e plays from one point O f vi ew truly te rribl e th at

, ,

Byron earne d his titl e as f ou nd er and chi ef e x em pl ar of the

Satanic scho ol of po e try T h e y are p erh aps the m ost .

u ncom pro m isi ng e xpre ssi on O f individ u alism and the m ost ,

th orough g oi ng n egatio n of the social ideal to b e fo u n d in

-
,

o u r lit e r at u r e T h e ir p opul arity which was i nstan t and

.
,

en o r m o u s was l arg e ly d u e to historic al c au se s

, T he F re n ch .

Revol u ti o n the m ost da ri ng re ach which the h u m an race

,

has e v e r m ad e af ter an id e al social st at e had f ail e d Eu , .

r ope u nd e r the r u l e of Me tternich had swu ng b ack f rom

, ,

i ts eage r d re am s O f f re e do m and f rat er nity i n to a glo o my

m ood in w hich the still p ote nt spirit of rebelli on be came
,

p ersonal se l f centre d an d anti s oci al Byron re prese n ted

,
-
,
-
.

an d j u stifi e d to the E ur op e an m i n d this r e coil and Byro n ,

ism b e c am e a passi on a dis ease , .

Chi ld e H a rold pr e s en ts the Byro nic h e ro in a m ore

e l egi ac m o o d as a p e n s iv e w an d e re r thro u gh E urop e and
,

the E ast It is not u n til the l a t e r c an t os th at

B yr n “
.
o a

gggg n m e the v e rs e ri se s i nt o r eal m agnific e n c e m

.

fl
A ong .

H ld ”
aro the l ak e s an d m ou n tai n solit u d e s of Switz er
l and the d e cayi ng gl ori es O f Ve nice and the i m p e rial
, ,

r u i ns of Ro m e the p oe t s i m agi nati on is ge n uin e ly kin

,
’

d le d an d the p as sages which c el e brat e th ese sc e ne s are

,

am ong the t riu m phs O f d e sc riptive p oetry in our lan

g u ag e By r
. o n p ai n ts his p ict u r e s i n f r e e bold str ok e s , ,

an d with a p om p O f rh e t oric we ll s u it e d to his g ran di ose

su bj e cts He m ak e s u p in b road i m pre ssiv e ne ss wh a t he

'

lack s in s u btl e ty His m u sic too is l oud and so nor ous

.
, ,

Without the h eartfe lt s earchi ng beauty of greate r mel odis ts

, ,
 TH E N I N ETE E N TH CE N TURY 28 7

bu t w ith an orch es tral sw e ep and volu me appropri ate to

the th e m e .

In Don J u a n howe v e r Byro n first f ou n d his ge n

, ,

u i ne voic e and it prove d to b e ne ith e r dramatic nor lyric

, ,

b u t satiric Don J u a n 18 a com pre h ensive B on

.
r
y
s atl re up on m od ern SocI e ty The h ero 1 8 a S “
a ti i t . r s
”
Don Juan .

Ca stl h an y outh a l i ght h e art e d IrresponsIble

,
-
,

p agan creature who wand ers through T urk ey Russi a and

, , ,

E ngl an d m ee ting all s orts O f adventures p articularly such

, ,

as a re calcul at e d to shock the m oral s ens e and to e x hibit ,

t he s oci al corruption hidd en u nd e r the con ventional ve n e er .

The p oe m was in e ff e c t a l ong p eal of scornful l aughte r

, ,

fl u ng at Bri tish cant at that f am ous British c an t which

,
“ ”
Byron d eclared was in his day the pri mu m m obil e O f
his cou ntrym en s life b oth n ati onal and private In his
’
, .

m ore se rious work Byron is fatally subj e ct to an ti cli m ax

,
-
.

His i magi nation and his powe r of phrase are ap t to fail

him just wh en th ey are ne e d e d m os t In Don J u a n he .

t urne d this d efe ct i nto a piqu an t vir tu e by d elib erat e ly ,

cu ltiv ati ng an ti cli m ax f or s a tiric e nds

-
He drop s with .

s ta r tli ng sudd e nne ss f r om the s eri ous to the t rivi al f rom ,

i mpassione d poe try to m ocki ng prose T he d e vic e is .

a sim pl e one but Byron u se s it with a vari e ty and

,

z e st truly wonde rful and se cure s by means O f it an,

e fi e ct O f cy nic al no nchal an c e which is a triu m p h of i ts

ki n d .

Byron s was a p ersonality O f i m m ense f orce T o his age

’
.

h e was a pillar O f cloud by d ay and of fi re by n ight but ,

o n e which l ed o nly i n to d e e p e r d e s e rts O f u nfa ith an d

n e g ati on .Such work as he had to do was a w ork O f

d e stru cti on ; the age cri e d ou t fo r it and he did it th or ,

oughly . O f the high e r p o we rs O f po e try he p osse s se d

f e w an d f or th e m he care d littl e
,
He was a care l e ss and .

h asty w ork er In his o wn w o rd s if he m i sse d his first

.
,

spri ng he w en t growli ng back to his ju ngl e T h a t he .

was a great write r on e of the gre ate st is as c ertai n as

, ,
288 A H I STO RY O F E N GLI SH LIT E RA TURE

th at neith er by the soul nor the body of his art can he take
rank with the sm all comp any of sup rem e p oe ts .

A m ong th at c om p any a pre se n c e SO bright and strange

,

“
as to s e em in truth one O f th ose spirits f ro m beyond the
m oo n O f wh om he sang Pe rcy Byssh e Shell ey
,

holds a pl ac e He was b orn in 1 792 j ust wh en

.
,

the ey e s O f all E u r op e w e re fi x e d in hop e and

f ear u po n F ran c e and the stars f ought in th e ir c ourse s for
,

the triu m ph of a ne w ord e r A t E to n am ong the tyranni e s

.
,

an d con v en ti on s of a gr eat p u blic school his sensitive

,

n atur e was th row n i nto a f ev e r O f r e b e lli on f ro m which he

n e v e r q u it e w o rk e d out i n to spiritu al san ity an d h ealth .

“
Ma d Sh ell e y ,
”
his school mates call ed him and in the ,
“
j u dgm en t of the world he rem ai ned m ad Sh e lley to the
e n d O f his li f e. A t O xford whith e r he proc ee d ed i n 1 81 0
, ,

he re ad the sc eptic al F re nch philosoph e rs and d e e m e d it ,

his d u ty to publish his re ligious vi e ws in a pam phl e t en

”
titl e d The N e ce ssity of A th eis m f or which he was e x
,

ll d A n ill st rr d m arri age with H arri e t Wes tbro ok

p e e a e
-
.

f ollowe d and af te r th at cam e a q u ix otic atte m pt to arouse

,

Irel and to s eek re dress f or he r nati o nal wrongs T he you ng .

couple carri ed on th e ir m issi on by th rowi ng f rom the

wi ndows of th eir lodgi ng in D u bli n c opi es O f Sh elley s,
’

A ddress to the I ri sh P eop le , to e v e ry p ass er by who -

”
s e em e d lik e ly . T h ey c on t i n u e d the c am p aign l at e r in
Wal es by se tti ng tracts ad rift in the sea in seal ed b ottl es
, ,

or se ndi ng th e m d ow n the wi nd in li ttl e fi re b alloons -

.

T he curious m ixture in Sh e ll e y of the real and the un real

is sharply brought out by the fact that the writi ngs
thus fantastically put in circul ation are O f ten of grav e and
si mpl e eloq u e nce wise in c ou nsel and te m pe rate i n tone
, ,

an d th at m ost of the refor m s which th e y advoca t e have

si nce b een e nacted i nto law .

An acqu ai n tanc e with Willi am Godwi n the r e volution ,

ary phil os oph e r an d n ove list , author of P oli ti ca l J u sti co

and Ca leb Wi lli a ms , led Sh ell e y to writ e Qu een M a b a ,

2 90 A H I STO R Y O F E N GLI SH LI TE RATU R E

In the f ul ness ti m e Dem ogorgon ( Ne c essity ) hurls the

of

ty ran t f rom his th rone ; an d Prom e th eu s am id the songs ,

of E a rth an d the M oon i s u n ite d to A si a , the spiri t of ,

l o ve in N atu re H ere as el sewh e re Sh ell ey shows hi mself

.
,

a child o f the F re n ch Re vo l u ti on in b eli e vi ng th a t it is

,

o n ly s om e e xt e rnal ty ranny the m ight of p ri e sts and

,

ki ngs the w e ight of c u stom the d ark d reams of sup e r

, ,

s ti tio n — which k e e ps m an ki nd from risi ng to his id eal

,

stat u re B u t if the phil osophy of P rometheu s 18 i m ma

.

tu re and ti ng e d with the p op u l ar m isconc e ptio ns of the

,

ti m e the nobility of its m ood the h e roic en thusias m

, ,

which it v oic es m ak e it e ternally i nspiri ng An d f or its

, .

spi rit of sac re d p as si on the v e rse of the p oe m is a gloriou s

v e st u re The u ne ar thly b e auty of its i m age ry the k een
.
,

e th e real m usic of i ts songs and ch oruse s m ake this not ,

’
o nly Sh ell ey s high est achi e ve m e nt b u t a fix e d star i n the ,

fi rm am e n t of p o e try .

It is in i ts lyrics th at P rometheu s reach e s its gre ate st

altit u d e s f or Sh e ll ey s ge n ius wa s e ss e n ti ally lyrica l
’
, In .

s
-
Hi Ly n ca l !
a l l h is b e s t s on g s an d od e s th e w o rds s e e m to ,
Ge m s °
b e m ov e d i n t o th e i r pl ac es i n re sp on se to s ome
hidd e n tu n e w ay ward and strange in its m ov e m en t b u t
, ,

a lw ay s r o u ndi n g i n t o a p e rf e ct wh ol e
‘

S u ch a po e m as .

”
that b egi nni ng S wi ftly w alk ov e r the w este rn w ave
m ark s p e rh ap s the extre m e li m it o f the rom an tic div e r
ge nc e from e ightee nth ce nt u ry strictne ss of form ; but it
ob e y s a high e r la w th a n th at of regul arity a nd with al l ,

i ts w ay ward ne ss it is as p e rfe ct in Sh ap e as a fl ow e r T he .

rhyth m ical st ru ct u r e of the

“
We st Wi nd sh o uld b e
st u di e d as a typi cal e xam pl e O f Sh ell ey s powe r to m ak e ’

the m ove m e n t o f v e rse e mb ody i ts m ood In this O d e the .

,

i m pet u ou s swe e p an d ti rel ess o verfl o w of the term r i ma ’

,

e nd i ng aft e r e ach t we l fth li n e in a c o u pl e t s u gg e st s with ,

w o nd e rful t ru th the st ream i ng and voll eyi ng of the wi nd ,

i nter rupte d no w an d the n by a su dd e n l u ll Like wise in .

T e n-
sy llab le li ne s rhy mi ng a b a, c b c, d c d, e tc.
 TH E N I N ETE EN TH CE N T URY 2 91

the Skyl ark, flutte ring lif t of the bird s m ovement

the
’
,

the airy e cstasy and rippli ng g u sh of its so ng are m irrore d ,

i n the rhy th m in a tho u san d su btly vary i ng e ffe cts

, .

A noth e r m ai n p e c u li arity of Sh e ll ey as a poe t is wh at

“
m ay be c all e d his m yth m aki ng pow e r -
His p oetry is .

“
f u ll of p e rson i fi cati on s which a ltho u gh i n
mg m h
,
"
o rigi n n ot di ffe ren t f rom th os e which fill e igh making ’

p om ”
te en th c e n tury p oe try with d e ad abstracti on s
“ ” ”
lik e s m ili ng Hop e and ru ddy Ch ee r are i m agi n e d ,

w ith such pow e r th at th ey b e co m e re al spiritu al pre s ence s ,

“
i n spi ri ng won d e r and awe Such are the Sp irits of the.

H ou rs in P rometheu s such is the spirit of the w est win d

,
-

i n the O d e j u st m en ti on e d the l att e r a subli m e pi e c e of

,
”
y t h-
m a ki n g .It is i n A do n ais how eve r th a t this
, ,

q u a lity i s p e rh ap s b e st e xhibite d T o m o u rn ov e r t he d e ad
.

b o dy of K eats in wh ose m em ory the e l egy was writt en

, ,

t h ere gath e r Spl e ndors an d Gl oom s gri e f cl ad M orni ng ,

-

a n d w aili ng Sp ri ng d esolate H o u rs wi nge d P e rsu asi on s

, ,

a n d v e il e d De sti n i e s an d the l o ve ly d ream s w h ich w e re the

,

e xh al ati on of the p oe t s spi rit i n li fe It wo u ld b e h ard to

’
.
,

“
fi n d a m ore sign al i n stanc e th an th e s e rson i fi cati ons
” ‘

p e

aff o rd of the way i n which a gr eat po e t can re vivi fy an o u t

,

w o rn and discredite d p oe tic t raditi on T he el egy is O f all .

Sh e ll ey s p oem s the one which wou ld m ost h av e sati sfi e d

’

K e ats s own j e al ous artistic s e nse It is to b e gr ou p e d with

’
.

M ilto n s Ly ci da s T ennys on s I n M em ori a m a nd A rnold s

’
,
’
,
’

Thy rsi s as on e of the four s u pre m e th ren odi e s i n E ngli sh

v e rse .

Sh ell ey d eals l ess with actu aliti e s th an doe s any oth e r

E n glish po e t H is i m agery i s th at O f a dre am world p e opl e d
.
,

b y e th e r eal f orm san d bath ed i n pris m atic light ms Um .

”

ali t y
E v e n wh e n he b orro ws i mage ry from nat u re it
.

is f ro m a nat u re h e ighte ne d an d rare fi e d by p assage th rough

h i s own te m p e rame n t H e i s at the oth e r p ol e f rom
.

”
T hre nody , f rom tw o Gre e k word s signify ing te ar and son ,
g
i e , a song of gri e f for the de ad
. . .
 A H I STO RY O F E N GLI SH LITERATURE

Wordsw o rth s hom eli ne ss and l arge acceptanc e O f N atu re as

’

sh e is H ence an air O f u nreality r e sts ove r all Sh ell ey s ’

.

w ork an u nre ality m ad e m ore con spic u ous by his u np rac

,

tical th e ori e s O f con d u ct an d of soci ety Matth e w A rnold .

“
calle d him a beauti fu l an d i ne ff e ct u al angel b eati ng in ,
”
the v oid his lu m i n ou s wi ngs in v ai n B u t b eauty such as .

Sh elley s v e rse e m b odi es c ann ot b e i neff e ctu al ; an d his

’

p assi onate pl ea for free d om f or justice an d f or loving , ,

ki nd ne ss has ne ve r ceased to b e p ote nt in the d e e p ening

,

e arn e st ne ss of this c e ntu ry s se arch af t e r soci al b e tt e rm e n t

’
.

O n e e ff e ct of the re vol u ti onary e xcite m en t O f th e age ,

an d of the p oli tic al agit ati on which it e n ge n d e r e d was to ,

r e viv e the s e nti m e n t of n a tion ality which had

Re i al “M
,
v v k
ti n l S nti
o a e lost d u ri ng the e ighteen th c en tury the lyric
ardo r giv e n to it du ri n g the r e ign of E liz a b e th .

In Wordswo rth s sonne ts on nati onal cris e s duri n g the

’

N ap ol e on ic wars and in Cam pb ell s O d e s this ne w n a ti o nal

’
, ,

se n ti m en t was e xp re sse d f o r E ngl an d In Sc o tt s p oe m s .

’

an d n ov els it was e xp re ss e d — in a bro ade r l e ss politic al ,

way— for Sc o tl an d I rel an d f ou n d a ch am pi on f or h e r i m

.

m e m ori al w rongs an d a r e fl e ctio n of h er n atio nal p e culi ar

,

iti e s of te m p e ram e n t in T ho m as M oor e

M oore (,1 7 7 9
the bi ograph e r an d i nti m a te f ri e n d of
By ron M oore s I ri sh M elodi es of which b egi nn i n g i n
.
’
, ,

1 807 he w ro t e an i m m e n se nu m b e r i n cl u d e a sc or e or so
, ,

re ally b eau ti fu l lyrics wh e re the bright fan cy a n d v a g u e

,

e l u siv e m e l an ch oly of th e Ce ltic n atu re fi n d fit e xp re ssio n .

Lik e the E liz ab e th an ly ri sts M oore w ro te f or m usic m u ch

, ,

o f it of hi s o wn com p osi n g His ori ental t al e s of which

.
,

La lla Rookh ( 1 81 7) is the b e st k now n are as artifici a l i n ,

th e i r candi e d sw e e tne ss an d ti nsel d e cora tion as the Irish ,

Mel odi es are wh en at th eir b e st gen ui ne

, , .

A li nk b e twee n the re voluti onary poe ts d e eply i m b u e d ,

with th e agi tati on of th e ir ti m e and K eats in whos e work , ,

the t im e spi rit c ou nts for al m ost nothi ng is f u r n ish e d

-
,

by Le igh H u n t ( 1 784 H e was i nti mate w i th b o th

294 A H I STO RY OF E N GLI SH LI TERATURE

London f or a ti me he g av e up the me dical profession The

,
.

p assion f or p oe try which was to b e du ri ng the bri ef remain

, ,

de r O f his li fe a con s u m i n g ardor had al re ady

Kem m8 , ,
:
Li f e nd Poeti
a b e en ki ndl e d i n h im Le igh Hu nt i ntro d u ced
c .

De el pment
v o
hi m to a l i terary Ci rcl e wh e re h i s d a wni ng
tal ents f ou nd e nc ourage m e nt In 1 81 7 he publish ed a li ttle .

v ol u m e of v erse m ost of it cru d e and i m m a tu re e n ough

, ,

but sh owi ng in m any plac e s a n ascent m aste ry of style ,

“
an d c on ta i ni n g th e m ag nific e n t s onn e t O n F irst Look
”
in g i nt o Ch ap m an s H om e r
’
p erh ap s K eats s m ost p e rfe ct
,
’

a chi e v e m ent i n th e s o nne t f o rm F rom the fi rst his i m ag .

,

ination had t u rne d to the old Gree k w orld with i n sti n ctive
sym p athy and he now ch ose as the su bj e ct for a lo n g nar
ra ti v e po e m the st ory of E n dy m i on the Latm i an sh e ph e rd ,

b el ov e d by the m oon godd e ss E ndymi on was publish ed

-
.

i n 1 8 1 8 The e x ordi u m of the po e m the Hy mn to P an in

.
,

the op e n i ng e pi sod e and a m yri ad oth e r li ne s an d short

,

p as sage s are worthy of the K eat s th at was to be b u t as a

,

wh ol e E ndymi on is ch aotic and cl oye d with o rn a m en t , .

N ob ody k n e w this b e tte r th an K e ats hi m se l f as i s t e sti ,

fl e d to b oth by his l e tte rs an d by the pr ou dly hu m bl e pre f

“
ace i n which h e d e sc rib e s the p oe m as a fe v e rish a t
te m pt rath e r th an a d e e d accom pli sh e d an d h op e s th a t ,

whil e it is dwin dli ng I m ay b e pl otti ng and fitti n g m y

”
s e l f for v e rs es fit to liv e .

T o wh at pu rp ose b e pl otte d the w ond e rful volu m e p u b ,

lishe d two y ears l ate r in 1 82 0 shows , It was e n titl ed ,

.

La mi a I s a bella The E ve of St Agnes a nd other P oems

, , .
,

b esid e s the pi e ce s nam e d it c on tai ne d the great od e s

, On ,

Me l anch oly ”
” ”
O n a Gre ci an U rn
,
T o Psych e an d , ,

T o a N ighti ngal e
”
and the h eroic f rag m en t
,
H yp e ,
”
ri on . T wo years had d one wo nd e rs in d ee p e ni ng a n d
st rength eni ng his gi ft In tu rni ng f ro m Sp e n se r and
.

Ari ost o to th e gre at m asc u li ne p o e ts of the s e v e n te e n th

ce n t u ry Sh ak esp eare Web ste r M ilton and Dryd e n he
, , , , ,

had f ou n d the iron which was lacki ng i n his earli e r i ntel

 TH E NI N ETEEN TH CE N TU RY 295

l e ctu al f ood and had l earn ed the l e ss ons of artistic cal m

,

n e ss an d s e v e rity witho u t s acrific e O f the m e ll o w sw ee t ne ss

,

native to him to charm he had add e d strength .

B e fore the 1 82 0 v olu m e was publish e d K eats was at ,

tack e d by co ns u mpti on and had w arni ng th at anoth e r win

,

te r i n E ngl and w o u ld prov e f atal In S ept e m b e r of th at

.

y e ar he sail e d for Italy u n d e r the c are of his faith f ul

f ri en d J ose ph S e ve rn E arly in the spri ng of 1 82 1 he di ed
.

i n Ro m e and was buri e d in the P rot e stan t c e m e te ry by

,

t h e A ur eli an w all wh e re Sh ell e y also was soon to b e l aid

, , , .

O n his to m b are carve d acc ordi ng to his own r e q u est the

, ,

“ ”
w ord s He re li e s one wh ose nam e was writ in w ater In
, .

a hop ef u lle r ti m e an d i n a m ood of n obl e Si m plici ty he ,

“
h a d said , I thi nk I sh all b e am ong the E nglish po ets
”
a f te r m y d eath .

T he ess e nti al q u ality of K eats as a p oe t is his s en sitiv e

n e ss to b ea uty and the Si ngl en ess of a im with which he
,

s e eks f or the pri n cipl e of b eau ty in all thi n gs He wor .

s hips be auty f or b e au ty s sak e with non e of th e

’

,
m W rshi p 8 o

s e condary m oral i nten tion s of M ilto n Word s f B

,
e “ ? o a

w orth an d Sh ell e y but with the u nreas oni ng rapt u re of a

, ,

love r or a d e vote e In his fi rst volu m e he te ll s O f the

.

dizzy pai n which the sight of the Elgi n m arbl e s gav e

“ “
h i m of the
, i nd escribabl e f eud which th ey b rou ght
”
rou n d his h eart . H e op en s h is se c on d v ol u m e with the
m e mo rabl e li ne , A thi ng of b eau ty i s a joy fore v e r an d
i n his l as t v ol u m e at th e cl os e of the ode
, O n a Gre ci an
”
U rn he d e cl are s th at b eau ty is on e with t ru th
, In thi s .

l as t instan ce he atte m pts for onc e to r ati onaliz e his in

s ti nctive d e voti on but it is as an o v e rm asteri ng i nsti nct ,

n o t as a philO SO p hic c on c e ptio n th a t we fi nd the w orship

,

o f b eauty e ve rywh e r e O p er ativ e in his wo rk .

I t is this p assi on f or b eauty w o rki ng throu gh an ass

,

t h e tic o rganism of e xtraordinary d eli cacy and p owe r whi ch ,

i v e s to K e ats s p oe try its s e n suou s rich ne ss and whi ch

’

g ,

m a k e s it pl ay m agic ally u p on all the s enses of the r ead e r .

2 96 A HI STORY O F E NGLI SH LI TERATURE

T he p u re glow of his col or rem i nds us O f the Itali an

p ai nter Giorgione ; and the music of his b est ve rs e has a
w o nd e rful m e ll ow ne ss and depth as i f blown ,
Osa li ti fi s of
h s Poet y
i r softly throu gh gold en tru m p e ts In the early .

p oem s the rich n ess is i nd ee d too great the ornam en t e x ecs ,

sive but this is merely the eage r lavish ne ss O f you th re

j o i ci n g in i ts abu nd an c e and not
y e t discipli
, n e d i n to g oo d
taste F rom the first his poe try has e xtraordi nary f re sh
.
,

n e ss ene rgy gusto

, His u se of words is e ven in hi s earli est
, .
,

v ol u m e w ond e rf ully f resh He re viv ed old w ords coi ned

, .
,

ne w on e s an d put curr en t o ne s to a ne w s e rvic e with a

, ,

c on fid enc e and success u ne qu alle d by any o th e r E nglish

po e ts e xc e pt Ch aucer Sh ak esp e are and p erh aps Sp ense r
, , .

T he s en s e o f f or m which is so conspic u o u s in K eats s

’
,

l ater work was a m att er of growth wi th him En dym ion

,
.

is for ml e ss a l abyri n th of flowe ry p aths which l ead no

,
”
wh ere But the great O d e s e sp ecially the N ighti ngale
.
,
”
an d the Greci an U rn and the l ate r narra tive poe m s
, ,
”
me Sense of t he E v e of St Agnes an d L am i a
. h av e a ,

w onde rful p erf ection of f orm a sub ordi nati on ,

o f p art to p art i n the b u ildi ng up of a b e auti ful wh ol e ,

which is the Sign O f the m ast e r w ork m an T his is p arti e n

-
.

”
larly tru e of St A gne s E v e th at l at est and p e rh a ps m ost
’
.
,

p erfe ct floweri ng of the Old Sp ense ri an tree T he story of .

M ad elin e s dream on the h au n te d e v e of its m agica l fu l fi l

’
,

m ent thro u gh yo u ng Porphyro s c om i ng and o f th e ir fligh t

’
,

fr om the c astl e is se t i n a f rame w ork of storm a n d c o ld

, ,

O f d re ary p e n an c e and sp e ctral O ld age of b arb arous re v ,

e l ry and rud e pri me val p assion which by a s e ri e s o f subtl e ,

and thrilli ng c on trasts m arv ellously he ighte n s th e wa rm

an d ten d e r r adi anc e of the c en tral pict u re th e n wh en th e ,

illusion of reality is at the h e ight the whol e th i ng is ,

throw n b ack i n to the dim and doubtful p ast by th e w ords

And the y are go n e ; a y , a ges l o ng a go

Th es e l ov ers fl ed away i n to th e s to rm .
2 98 A H I STO RY O F E N GLI SH LITE RA TU RE

“
he to taste of all earthly delights to burst j oy s grape ,
’

”
agai n st his p al ate fi n e ; a n d to c o n v e y i n to v e rs e t h e

w e alth of his sensations By d e sc ribing life as

.

iii:glmc ti c it cam e to him th rou gh his tem p e ram e n t a

a l 'l
,
M ement
ov
tem p e rame n t m ost r i ch and d e l i cate ye t m ost
.

rob u st b e greatly wide ne d the s ensu ous realm of po e try

, .

In t he s e co n d pl ac e b e gre atly e n rich e d the te xt u re of

— —
v e rse its d iction and m e lody b y i m po rti ng i n to it ne w
e l e m e n ts f ro m Itali an an d E liz ab e th an po e t ry I n r e cl ai m .

i ng the l ost se cre ts of Re naissan c e v e rse he did consu m ,

m ately wh at T ho m son Colli n s Gray and Bl ak e had d one

, , ,

f alte ri ngly .

T he E liz ab e th an re vival of which the p o e tic re sults are

,

se en in K eats was in l arg e p art d u e to a gro u p of prose

,

write rs who carri e d ove r i nto the real m of c rit

i cism the wid er sy m p athi e s b o th lite ra ry and ,

h u m an acc om p anyi ng the romantic m ov e m ent

, .

Col e ridge af te r his pow e r as a po e t was gone c on tri buted

, ,

m u ch in his B i ograp hi a Li tera ri a and in his l e ctur e s on

,

Sh ak e sp eare to bro ad e n the basis O f criticism a n d to

, ,

su bstitu te for the nar row canons of D r J oh nson and .

the e ightee n th c e n tu ry liter ary doctri nai re s a m or e h u ,

m ane and sym p ath e ti c app re ci atio n Leigh H u n t wr o te

.

v olu m inously for m ore th an thi rty years wi th the sam e

e n d in vi e w William H azlitt ( 1 7 78
. in
Ha li tt
z
ill u s
.

a s e ri e s of brilli an t e ss ays an d l e cture s ,

trate d the new i m p u ls e to regard lit e rat u re f ro m th e

ro m antic poi nt O f vi e w to appro ach it with p e rso n al e n
,

th u siasm and with hospit ality to wid ely d i ffe r en t typ e s o f

ge ni u s H azlitt h u m an iz ed liter ary c riticism by i n f usi n g
.

i nto it an au tobiogr aphic e l e m en t by m aki ng it in oth e r ,

wo rds a ki nd O f ro m ance of adv en t u re in the wo rld

,

of bo oks H e al so co nne cte d it with the criticis m o f

.

li f e and m an ne rs and with the l arge r q u e sti ons of p hil os

,

O phy i n a way which has b ee n f r u itf ul o f sugg e stio n to

,

late r critics The ro mantic qu ality of Hazlitt s styl e may

.
’
 TH E N I N ETEE N TH CE N TU RY 2 99

be illustrated by a bit of eulogy which occurs in his Le ct

u re s on the Lit e ra tu re of the A e of E liz ab e th O f Sir
g .

T h om as B row ne s i m agi natio n h e s ays He t u rns the

’

w orld rou nd for his am u sem e n t as if it we re a glob e of ,

p aste board T he orbi t s of the h eav e nly bodi e s or the his

.

tory of e mpire s are to him but a poi n t in ti m e or a sp e ck

i n the u n iv e rse He scoops an an tith e si s ou t o f fabu
.

l o u s antiquity an d rak e s up an e pith e t f rom the sw ee p in gs

,

of ch aos . T he c at egori e s h ang abou t his n e ck lik e

the gold ch ai n of k n ighthood an d he w alks gowne d in the ,

i n tri cate folds an d sw elli ng d rap e ri e s of dark sayings an d

”
i m p e ne trabl e riddl es .

B e sid e s Hazlitt the l eadi ng e xponent s O f the roman tic

,

scho ol of critici sm w e re Ch arl e s Lam b and T ho m as De

Q u i n c e y. L a m b w a s a pio n e e r in th e E liz ab e th an re vival ,

a nd D e Q ui nc e y was one of the e arli est ch am p i on s of the

Lak e school of po e try Both of th ese w rite rs u n ite d the

.

criticism of lite ra t u re with th e c ritici sm of li f e and it i s i n ,

t he l att e r provi nc e th at th e ir m ost i m portan t work was

d o ne .

Ch arl e s Lam b was born in Lond on in 1 7 75 and was ,

b rought up withi n the p re ci n ct s of the an ci en t l aw cou rts -

,

h is fath e r b e i ng a s e rv ant to an advocate of th e

Lamb
F rom the Cl o ist e rs of the T e m
.

I nn e r T e mpl e .

Cl oi st e rs O f Ch ri st s Hospital wh e re
’

p l e h e w as s e n t to th e ,

h e had for a cl assm ate Col eridge his li felo ng f ri e n d ) ; A t ,

s e v e n t ee n he b e ca m e a cl e rk i n the I ndi a Ho u se and h e re ,

h e sp en t the worki ng ho u rs of the n e xt thi rty th re e years -

,

u n til he was r e tir e d on a p e nsion in H is l ifel o ng

d e voti o n to his siste r M ary upon who m re ste d an h e r e d
,

i tary tai nt of i n sanity has do n e al m ost as m uch as the

,

Space , Time , e tc , are

. known in phi lo sophy as the cate gori e s

o f thou ght .

f See Lam b '

s
“ Re colle ctions of Chri st
’
s H ospital and Chri st s
’

H os pital F i v e
”
T hi rty Ye ars Ago , i n the E s say s
a nd of E lia .

1 Se e Elia E ssay , T he Su p e rannu ate d M an .

800 A H ISTORY or EN GLI SH LIT ERAT URE

swee tness gentl e hu mor of hi s wri tings to end ear his

and

na me . H e di ed in 1 83 4 his s iste r outli ving hi m and

,

grad ually si nki ng i nto th a t mental dar kness fro m which

h is p ati e nc e an d tend e r ne ss had uph e ld he r .

La mb s first succe ssf ul lite rary v en tu re was his Ta les

’

f rom S h a ke sp ea r e writt e n i n coll ab oratio n w i t h hi s

m u mm y sist e r and in ten d e d f or childr en

, Th e fi n en ess .

WW of La m b s c ritical gif t whi ch was at least

’
,
’
suggested in th e s e re wordi ngs O f Shakespeare s plo ts ,

was bril liantly ill u stra te d a year late r by hi s Sp eci mens

of E n li s h D ra ma ti c P oets wi th critical co mm e nts
g ,
H is .

read ing i n the Elizabe th an dram a was e xtensi ve his appre ,

ciati on of i ts qu aliti e s subtl e and p e ne trati n n d hi

g a s ,

e n thusi as m f o r it u nbou nd e d The boo k did m uch to re

.

vive the al m os t e xtingui sh e d fam e of the l esser d rama

ti sts groupe d about S hak e spea re It is one O f the ea rli est
.
,

as we ll as one of the m ost signi fi cant p roducts of the ne w

ro man tic criti cis m .

But it was not as a cri tic of lite rature b ut as a com ,

m e nta to r upo n life as a g en tl e egoist without a trace O f

, ,

vanity or sel f as se rtion re cording his moods his me m ori es

-
, , ,

his witty and ten de r obse r va t ions th at Lamb was to fu lfil ,

“
m " y. “ h is p e culi ar lit e rary d esti ny Th e E ss ay s 63 ! .

mm E li a ‘ '
publish ed at i nte rvals in the L ondon
,

M agazi ne we re at l ength ga th e re d to ge th e r and re p u b

,

l ished i n two se ri e s the first in 1 823 the se cond te n yea rs

, ,

l ate r Th ey es tablish ed Lam b in the ti tl e which he sti ll

.

holds th at of the mos t d el ightful of E nglis h essayinta

, .

T h e y cover a great v ari e ty of topics but the a pproach to ,

the subj ect is always a pe rsonal one ; and it is this in tim a te

qual ity co mmu nica ting to us by so m e in tangible angges
,

tion the a u thor s Od d and lovabl e pe rso nal ity whi ch con
’
,

s titu tes th e ir chi ef ch arm Many of th em are co nf e s si ons

.

“The peeu do nym Elia w u bo rro we d by Le mb from un Iu lian cle rk

ln tb e SO u th Sea House , u mne d Ellla . T he e hange of cpelh ng hu le d

to the b roade ning of the initial le tte r in pronunciation .
3 02 A H I STO R Y O F E N GLI SH LITER AT URE

pronounc ed and displ ays itself not only in his writi ngs
, ,

but in the ci rc u m stance s of his li fe He was born i n Man .

ch ester in 1 785 the son of a prosp e r o us m e r

,
De Quincey .

chan t in the fore ign trade At sixt ee n he ran .

away f ro m the M an ch e st e r gramm a r school and sp e nt a -

,

su mme r wan d e ri ng in N or th Wal es O f ten Sleepi ng on the ,

o p en b ills o r i n the t e n ts of gyp si e s Whe n the cold .

w eath e r cam e on he m ade his way to Lo n don wh e re he le d

, ,

a s tarve d and v ag ran t e xi st e n c e u n til he was re cl ai m e d by ,

his f am ily an d sen t to O xf o rd H e was on e O f the e arli e st

.

”
con v erts to the Lak e po e try and afte r leavi ng c ollege ,

he e s tablish e d hi m se lf a t Grasm e re in the n e ighb o rh ood ,

of Wo rdsworth an d So u th ey H e re he liv e d f or m o re
.

th an t wen ty years re adi ng prodigi o u sly and eati n g v ast

, ,

q u a n titi e s o f O pi u m By re aso.n of so m e p e culi a rity

of his co n stitutio n the d rug wa s l e ss f atal in its w o rki ngs

than is com m only the case ; b u t the spl endid an d tu m u ltu

ou s d rea m s whi ch it b rou ght w e r e p aid for by p e ri o ds o f

aw f u l glo o m an d l assit u d e In his thi rty fi rs t y e a r D e

.
-

Q u i n c e y m ar ri e d F orc e.d to ea rn m o n e y by his p e n h e ,

p u blish e d in 1 82 1 —1 822 the fam ou s Conf essi ons of a n E ng

li sh Op i u m E a ter and fro m thi s ti m e forth b e pou r e d o u t
-
,

m agazi ne articl e s o n al m o st e v e ry c onc e iv able topic In .

1 83 0 he re m ove d with his wi fe an d child re n to E di n

, ,

bu rgh wh ere he re side d u ntil his d eath in 1 85 9

,
.

His b e st k now n work is al so his m o st ch aracte ristic th e

-
,

Op i u m E a ter an d its seq u e l Su sp i ri a d e P rof u ndi s O n ly

-
.

a s m all po rti on o f th e Op i u m E a ter d e a ls wi th -

Confe i ns
ss o
i m the s u b j e ct of O p i u m tak i ng It i s an e xte n d e d
Eat go
o f ai u -
.
,
r
a u tobi ography cov e ri n g the l i fe o f the a uth o r
.

f ro m e arly childhood to ab out the y ear 1 8 1 9 wh e n h i s ,

bo n d age to Opi u m b e cam e ab sol u te an d he d e sc end e d i n t o ,

the v all e y O f the sh ad ow wh e re he was to gath e r the do l

orou s m atte r O f h is Su sp i ri a T he m ost pow e rf u l porti o n
.

of the n ar rativ e asid e f ro m the d e scripti on of his opiu m

,

sensatio n s is th at which tells of his li fe of v agran cy and

,
 TH E N I N ETE E N TH C E N TURY 3 03

t rvatio n in London and of hi s nightly wande rings with

s a ,
”
poor Ann through the crowd ed de sol ation of O xford
s tree t . T he Su sp i ri a de P rof u ndi s ( Sighs fro m th e Depth s)
i s m ad e up mai nly of dre am phan tas i e s transcrib e d f ro m
-

the actu a l wan de ri ngs Of his min d un de r the sp ell of

O piu m or sugge ste d by th e m
,
.

In s u ch ph antas m agoric i magi n i n gs as Lev ana and O u r

”
Ladi e s of Sorro w i n the Su sp i ri a and the
, Dream ,

Fugu e app e nd e d to the E ngli s h M a i l Coach ms Chan g ,

te m ” Sm“
De Q u i n c ey ve ntur ed up on a ne w d omai n of
r

i m agi native prose ; a regi on au daciously won from v e rs e to ,

which by virtu e of its i mp assione d and ideal ch aracte r it

, ,

prop e rly be longs His studi e s of E liz ab et han prose write rs

.
-

m ay h av e giv e n him the hi n t but he c a rri e d out as a del i b

e ra te e xp e ri m en t wh at with th e m had b e e n an u n co n scio u s

co nf u si on of the categori e s of pros e and verse In doi ng .

so, h e re v e al e d ne w possibiliti e s i n the E nglish to ng u e .

The fo ll o wi ng p ass age f ro m the Op i u m E a ter will illu s -

trate the poe tical qu ality O f his styl e It d escrib e s a se ri e s.

o f dream s sugge ste d by th e Sigh t of a m yste riou s Mal ay ,

who app eare d one day at De Q u i nc e y s door

’
I bro u ght
t o ge th e r all creature s bi rds b e asts reptile s that are
, , , ,

f ou n d in all tropical region s I was stare d at

.
,

hoote d at grinned at ch atte re d at by m o nk eys by p ar

, , , ,

O q u e ts by cock atoos
, I ran i nt o p agod as and was fix e d
.
,

fo r c en tu ri e s at the su mm it or in se cr e t roo m s I was the

,

idol I was the pri est I was worshipp ed ; I was sacrifice d .

I fl e d f rom the wrath of Bram a th rough all the fo re sts of

A si a Vish nu h ate d m e ; S ce v a lay i n w ait f or m e I c am e .

sudd enly upon Isis and O si ris : I had do ne a dee d th e y ,

sa id which the ibis and the croc odil e trembl e d at T h ou

, .

sa nds O f years I liv e d and was b u ri e d in stone c offi ns with ,

m u mm i e s and sphi nx e s in narro w ch am b e rs at the h e art o f

,

e te rna l pyram ids .I was ki ss e d with canc e rous kisse s by

, ,

crocodil e s and was l aid confou nd e d with all u nutte rabl e

, ,

ab ortio ns amo ngst ree ds and N ilotic mu d

, Upon this .
3 04 A H I STO RY or EN GLI SH LITER ATURE

and si milar p as sages of ri chly wrought fantas ticall y CO L ,

o re d ch an ting prose De Q ui nce y s fam e as a write r res ts

’
, , .

T he qu aliti es of style e xhibited in th e m ha ve had a great

infl uence up on the pro se wri ting of the cen tury an infl u ,

e nc e which ca n b e trac e d i n such widely differe n t wri ters

as Bulw e r and Ruskin .

T wo se rio u s ch arges are to b e brought agai nst D e Q ui ncey

as a write r — difi u se ness and triviality
, He cannot res ist
.

m. De tect. the slightes t te mpta tio n to digres s and e ven in ,

‘u wm
the m os t s ol e mn page s of his Co nfe ssi o n s and
'

in the m idst of the touching story of J oan of Arc s ch ild

’

“
hood he is cap abl e O f falli ng into a qu ee r k in d of rig
,

marole ma de up of p e d an try and m irthless j e stin g In .

readi ng him we are O ften v isite d by an uncomf ortabl e sense

o f d ea li ng with a na ture no t ui t r sp nsibl nd n t qui t
e
q e e o e a o

h u man He ill u stra tes both the de fe cts and the v irtm of
.

the rom antic te m p e r i ts vi rtu es in the e nkindl e d s ple ndor

of his fa ncy a nd the i m p ass i o ne d swee p of hi s styl e ; its

de fe c ts in his e x travagance his u ne venness his fa il ure to

, ,

ex e rcise ad e q u a te se lf c riti cism -

.

Duri ng the pe riod of lull fo llowi ng the d ea th of Byron

and pre c e di ng the outburst O f the ne w Vic torian li tera ture ,

a d e cide d reactio n f ro m the ro mantic to the

classi c id ea l is se e n in Walte r Savage Lander .

In him this reactio n is the m o re no te worthy

beca use he be gan as a ro mantic poe t O f the e xtreme type ,

and wr o te r oma ntic dram as u ntil a y ea r or two before

Byro n s d ea th ; whe n he be gan to c ul ti vate the e len i

’
o

ca l, di gnifi ed re stra i ned prose for whi ch his name is

,

famous .

Landor s lif e was a v e ry lo ng one

’
B orn in 1 775 he
.
,

publish ed an i mportant poe m Gebi r in 1 798 a short , , ,

whi le bef ore the Lyrica l B alla ds cf Wordsworth

Le nd er s Life
'
.

and Col e ridg e h erald ed the tri u m ph O f the ro

manti c mo ve m ent Gebi r is a fantas tic na rra ti ve con

.
,

ce i ved in a m ood of wild ro mantici sm such as onl Shelley

y
3 06 A H I STO RY O F E N GLI SH LI TE RATURE

iro ny of the O p eni ng line of the q u atrain in which he took

l eave of ear th
I strov e w i th n o ne ,fo r n one w a s w orth m y stri fe

N a t u re I l ov e d , a n d ne xt t o N a t u re , Art ;

I warm e d b o th h a nd s b e fo re th e fi re of li f;
e

I t si n k s, and I a m rea d y to d e p art .

In th e Imagi na ry Conversa ti ons, Lan dor b rin gs to

ge th e r significant p e rsonaliti e s, f ro m all l an ds and all
p e rio d s of hist ory s om e ti m e s in c oupl e s some
, ,
“
T he l ma gi
na y C n e sa ti m e s i n l arge r grou ps and r e p re s e n ts th e m i n
r o v r ,
mm
talk with on e anoth e r T he m edi aeval baron
'

Le o fric t alks with his brid e Godiva as th ey ride into ,

C o v en try ; rE sop the Phrygi an fabl e write r tal k s w i th

,
-
,

—y o u n g Gr ee k Sl a v e girl in th-
e hous,e o f t h e i r
E gypti an m ast e r ; H e nry the E ighth t alks wit h Anne
B ol eyn in her p ris on ; Dan te talks with Be atr ice in a
F lore n ti ne gard en in sp ri ng ; the you ng Ma rcell u s ,

wou nd ed to d eath confr ont s for a m om ent the con q u ering

,

H annibal For the m ost p art the ch aracte rs whic h Lan

.
,

d or e v ok e s are l ofty an d m agna ni m ous one s ; a nd the

di al og u e sh ows no attem pt at d ram atic realis m b u t is al ,

w ays stately p u re and e xq u i site ly finish ed N oth ing is

, , .

all ow e d to i n te r fe re with the cl as sic al pr e cisi on an d ch a st e

rhyth m ic beau ty O f the styl e In a se nse all the ch a rac

.
,

te rs O f the Co nv e rsatio ns talk alik e usi ng a dictio n a nd ,

idi o m re m ove d from the realiti e s of daily sp ee ch a n d sug ,

g es t in g th e i r i n divid u ality o n ly by th e m or e subtl e d ifi e r

e n ces of th e ir th o u ght an d acti on T h e re is a c e rta i n

.

al oof ne s s and au st e rity i n La ndor s m ann e r whi ch of t e n

’

re p e l the r ead er on fi rst acqu ai ntance but which wh e n , ,

O nce acce pte d rath e r ad d to th an l e s se n his

, p l e as u r e .

T he p u rp ose w hich lurks b eh i nd the Co nve rsa ti on s too is , ,

u su ally as n obly an d cal mly s e ri ou s as the styl e I t is .

th e se th ree ch ara cteristics lof ti nes s O f ch aracte r dig n i ty

, ,

of styl e ,and nobility of purpose which make the Im,

 THE N I N ETE E N TH CE N TU RY 3 07

agina ry cl assic in the broad e r s ense of the

Con v e rsatio ns ,

word ; and which m ak e th em afte r Milto n s po e try ,

’
,

p e rh ap s the b est su bstit u te aff ord ed by E nglish lite rature

f or a trai ni ng in the Gre ek and Latin w rit e rs .

In P eri cles a nd A sp a s i a Lan dor substit u t e d f or the

,

c onv e rsatio nal m anne r the epis tolary In a se ri e s of fam il

, .

iar l e tt e rs p assi ng b e t wee n the m aj or and the " Peri cl s n

e d a

m i no r ch aracte rs o f t he book w e a e told how

r “ P
,
m ” a

A sp asi a a yo u ng wo m an of A si a M i no r co m e s to A th en s
, , ,

th e n at the h eight of its spl en dor u nd e r the wise rul e of

Pe ricl e s ; how she m ee ts the g rea t l e ad e r and c om e s to ,

k now on te rm s of i nti m ate fri en dship Alcibi ad es Soc

, , ,

rat e s, and m any oth e r f am o u s m e n of the age We are .

g iv en thus in a d elightf u lly n at u ral an d casu al way a

, ,

p i ctur e o f th e i n t e ll e ctu al c apital of the an tiqu e world in

i ts h eyd ay a pict u re which m ak es the A th e n s of Pe ricl e s

,

see m wond e rfully n ear at h an d and c om pre h e nsibl e .

Asp asia as she re ve als h erse lf in he r l e tte rs is a triu m ph

, ,

o f femini ne portraitu re H e r pl ayf u l ne ss he r wit he r gi rl

.
, ,

i sh adventurous ne ss he r u np e d an tic delight in i n te ll e ct u al

,

t h i ngs the wo manly way i n which he r n atu re ri se s an d

,

s ob ers itse l f to m ee t the g rav e na tu re O f Pe ricl e s al l ,

c o m bi ne h ar m on i ou sly to m ak e a w o m an s u ch as Sh ak e

s p e are m ight h av e c re at e d P eri cles a nd A sp a s i a is the

.

w ork through which Lan dor can m ost p ro fit ably b e ap

p roache d Its s tyl e has his ch aract e ri stic e l e v ati on an d
.

se ri ous b e auty u n it e d with m ore th an his o rdi nary sh a re

,

o f vivacity a nd t e n d e r grac e .

F ro m the d e ath of By ron i n 1 82 4 u ntil the d e c isiv e

a pp eara nc e o f T e nnys on in 1 84 2 th e re wa s a p e ri od o f ,

c omp ar ativ e e xh au sti o n in E nglish l i t e rat u r e K eats and .

Sh e lley w e r e d ead Col e ridge was l ost i n m e taphysics an d ,

Wordsworth had al m o st c eas e d to p rod u ce p oe try of val u e

Scott di e d in 1 83 2 and the b e st wo rk O f Lam b was d one
,

b efore th at d ate T he first great w av e of r oman ti cis m

.
,

which had b egu n to ri se a ce nt u ry be fore with T ho m so n and ,

3 08 A H I STO RY or E N GLI SH LI TERAT URE

Gray, and which had reach ed its h eight in the fi rst two
d e cad es of the n i neteenth century had p asse d by D uri ng
, .

this p eriod of lull the n e w forces which w ere to

Transmon to
,

Vi cto i an go to the m ak i ng of l i te r ture dur i ng th e rei gn

3: a
r

of Victori a w e r e g ath e r i ng h e ad
, . T ennyso n ,

Brown ing and Carlyl e had already app eare d ; and alt hough ,

th ey rem ai ned as yet co m p aratively O bscure th e y were ,

doi ng som e of th eir greate st work T ho m as Hood ( 1 798

.

”
in his Bridge of Sighs and So ng of the Shirt ,

had struck the note O f h u m an itari an sym p athy with the

u nfortu nat e and oppre sse d which was to swell in volu me
,

and d e pth through the whol e course of Vict ori an lite ra

ture We m ust now consid e r wh at oth er disti n ctive ele

.

m en ts w ent to the m aki ng of th at lit e rature gigan tic in

,

bulk and al m ost i nfinite in vari e ty which place s the era of

,

Victoria b esid e that Of Eliz abe th in lite rary im portance .

310 A H I ST O R Y O F E N GLI SH LITERAT U RE

h g th e re has gon e als o a restl e ss search after som e new

c an e , ,

f orm of soci e ty o r so m e m odification O f the O ld f orm s by

, ,

which the cl ai m s of all m e n to li fe and opportu n ity should

b e m et . Soci al u nrest is the great distinguishi ng fe ature
of the Victori an e ra ; an d the d e m an d f or soci al j ustice

has colored in one way or an o th er the whol e th o ught of

, ,

the ti me .

It follows f ro m all this th at the m ost striki ng char

,

acteristic of Victori an lit e ra ture is its stre nuous ne ss its ,

co nscious purp ose B oth p oets an d prose writ ers h ave

.
-

work ed u nder the shadow and b u rd en of a conscious social

re sponsibility Al m ost all of them have b een mak e rs of
.

d octri ne preach ers O f som e crusade or physicians O ff e ri ng

, ,

some cur e for m an s p e rpl e xiti es and de spairs Instea d O f

’
.

the light h earte d i n te re st in li fe which the Eliz abe th ans

-

Show i n st ead of the transc end e ntal dream i ng O f the g e ne r

,

ation of Wordsworth Col eridge Sh ell ey and K e a ts we

, , , ,

fi nd as the pre vaili ng m ood an earne st an d oft e n troubl e d

faci ng O f the issu e s O f li fe which are rec ogniz ed to b e m o
,

m entou s .

N e v e rth el ess , the ro man tic i m puls e p ersists . Th e r e are

some m i nor re ve rsi ons to cl as sicism , but tak en l arge ly lit ,

eratu re has c on ti nu e d to b e rom an tic i n the n ov e l ty an d

,

vari e ty O f its form In its search afte r u ndiscov e re d spri ngs

,

of b eauty and truth in its e m otional and i m agi na tiv e l n

,

tensity In fact the whol e literary eff ort Of the Vi ctori an

.

age m a b c n c iv d f n ff t t op to th m s
y e o e e O as a e or o en e ass e
of m en th ose sourc e s O f r om antic f eeli ng which i n th e e a rly

A t the thre shold of the p e riod howe ve r we fi n d a , ,

write r co nce rni ng who m littl e of wh at has j ust be e n sa id

is tru e ; an u nroman tic practical nature who shows
, ,

n o trac e of u nr e st and spiritu al strivi ng but who is e m

,

ine ntly s atis fi e d with thi ngs as they are Tho m as B a bi ng .

ton Macaul ay was born i n 1 800 of Scotch and k

Q, u a er
 TH E N I N ETEE N TH CE N TU RY 311

an e c stry At Cambridge in the m idst O f the political

.
,

e xcit e m en t w hich led up to the Re f orm Bill he t oo k a ,

m iddl e position b etw een T o ry an d Radical in ,

tre nchi ng hi m self in the Whig pri ncipl es of lib

e r al co n s e rv atis m O f which he was all his li fe a pow e r ful an d
,

wa tch f ul ch am pion At coll ege b e disti nguishe d hi m self

.

as a write r and d eb at e r ; an d i n 1 8 2 5 his f amous e ss ay on

M ilto n app eared in the E di nbu rgh Re vie w foll ow e d by

.

oth e r e ssays which fast ene d atte ntion upon him as a new
forc e in lite rature A t thirty he ent ere d Parli am en t in
.
,

ti m e to tak e a conspicuous p art in the p assage O f the

Refor m Bill F our y ears l ate r he w en t to I ndi a as l e gal
.

ad vise r to th e Supr e m e Cou n cil r etur ni ng i n 1 83 8 to play ,

on ce m ore a lead i ng rOle in the Whig party u n til its de ,

f e a t i n 1 84 7 Duri ng th e s e n i ne y e ars app eared se ve ral of

.

his m ost fam ous e ssays notably th ose on the Indi an p ro

,

co nsuls Cliv e and Warr e n H asti ngs

,
In 1 84 7 he publish e d .

his Lays of A nci ent Rome dignifi ed and vigorous c el e bra ,

ti ons in b all ad v erse O f the antiqu e civic virtu es as sh ow n

, , ,

i n Horatius V irgini u s and othe r Rom an worthi e s

, , T he .

n e xt year af t er l on g d el ay he b egan to r ealiz e the d ream

, ,

o f his lif e in the public a ti on O f th e first p art of his H i s

,

tory of E ngla nd H e acc om pli sh e d in the fi ve co m ple te d

.
,

v ol u m e s O f his history o nly a f ragm en t O f the task which

,

h e had se t hi m s el f He di ed i n 1 85 9
. .

Gl adstone b ears t e sti m o ny th at an annou nc em e nt of

M acaul ay s i n tention to sp eak in Parli am ent was lik e a
’ “

”
t ru m pe t c all to fill the b en ch e s His pow er as .

5233 3:
3 3
a n orator f ur nish e s the key to wh at is m ost 1
nd m t t " a a e
c h aracte ristic in his ess ays In a sp e e ch the .
,

m e an i ng m ust b e so cl early stat e d so aptly ill u strate d so , ,

s kil fully re p e at e d and re e m p h as iz e d tha t m is u nd e rsta nd

-
,

i ng sh all b e i m possibl e ; and the fl aggi ng a tte n ti on of the

a u di e n ce m ust b e co nti nu ally sti m u l a te d by strong co n

t ras ts by striki ng an tith e se s and by an illusio n of rapidity

, , ,

e v e n wh e r e the mov e me nt is by the n ec essity of the sub ,

81 2 A HI STO RY or E N GLI SH LITE RA TU RE

jce t slow Suggestiveness d eli ca te sh ad es O f m ean ing of

, .
, ,

a sort to m ak e the b eare r h e sita t e and po n d e r d e f ea t the ,

e nd s of parli am e nt ary di scourse high imagin ati v snem ,

stro ng appeal to the m ore m ystical and spiritu al si d es of

m an s na ture are h e re ou t of pl ace E v e rythi ng m u s t be
’
, .

ope n se nsibl e e m ph atic In all th e se re spec ts Maca ulay s

, , .
’

e ss ays a re tru e to the type of p arli am e n tary sp ea ki ng .

Probably n o write r has e v e r b een more skil f ul tha n Ma

ca nlay i n m aki n g hi s whole m eani ng cl ear ; n o n e more

su cc ess ful i n k e e pi ng the rea d e r s m i nd awak e and his ’

,

se nse of mov emen t agree ably satisfied But on the other .

h and fe w wri te rs of e q u al power h ave bee n so uns u gges ti ve ,

so d e void of spiri tu al el e vati on He is always do wn right .

an d p ositiv e ne v e r in doubt and ne v e r at a loss

, , Mystics .

like PlatO m as te rs of pu re thought lik e B aco n complex

,
-

religi ous natures lik e D r J oh nso n fa re badly at his hands

.
, .

But his de fects se rv e d him p erhaps as much as his vi rtues ,

in his work O f p opula rizi ng k nowl e dge F ro m th e s to res .

of his cap acious me mory one of the m ost marv e llou s on

,

rec o rd he pre se nte d in lucid and en te rtai ni ng fo rm a

,

grea t mass of fact and O pi ni on the educa ti ve po we r Of ,

which was and still co nti nu e s to be v ery great .

In his History he ca rri ed his popul ari si ng zeal i nto a

m o re di ffi cult fi eld and score d e ve n a more nota bl e s uc
,

mm fl , “ c e ss His a i m w a
.s to writ e a history o f E ng
mm ” l and fm m the acc essio n of J am es II to the end .

o f Ge o rge IV s r e ign in a ma nn er so co n cre te p ictu

’
.
, ,

res q u e and dram a ti c th a t his narrativ e of ac tu a l e v ents

, ,

sh o uld h av e the fas c ina ti o n O f r o ma nc e and as he hi mself ,

put the case should h ave the po we r to supe rse de th e last

,
”
fa shio nabl e n ove l up on the d re ssi ng tabl e O f you n g l ad i es -
.

T he porti on of the sto ry which he liv ed to com pl e te is in ,

fact p rese n te d with a we alth and m i nute ne ss o f de ta il eon~

,

c e rni ng pa rticul ar pe rso ns pl ace s and ev ents su ch as a

, , ,

w rite r of fiction use s to e mbod y the crea tions of his fancy .

We do not fi nd in Maca ulay a pro fou nd vi e w of under

3 14 A H I STO RY or E N GLI SH LITE RATU RE

“ ”
b ee n inte nd ed and de te rm i ned to be a writer of boo ks
, .

In th ese early d ays of pri vatio n and lo neli ness wi th dys ,

“
M m p e ps i s gnawi ng li k e a r a t at th e pit o f his
“ d iiirim ”
sto mach he fought the ba ttl e which b e af te r
,

“
w ard describe d i n Sa rtor Res artu s The E ve rla s ting .

NO the v o ice of u nfaith d enyi ng God and the worth o f lif e

”
, ,
”
he put f ro m him the E v erl as ti ng Yes the assurance that ,

li fe could b e mad e divi ne through labor and co u rage he ,

w ro te on his b anne r as he we nt forth to do ba t tl e agai nst

,

the se lfi sh ne ss and spiritu al torpor of the age C arlyle s

’
.

Lif e of Schi ller and hi s tr an sl atio ns f ro m the Ge rman got

him a he a ri ng with the publis h e rs b u t his ea rn i ngs re ,

m ai ne d e xtre m ely small Af te r his ma rriage with J ane

.

Welsh th ey we nt to liv e a t Craigenp u ttoch a farm h ouse

, ,
-

“
am id m il es of high dr eary moor i n a s olitud e al m os t dru
,
”
idice l H e re Carlyl e passed six y ears ( 1 828
. D ur
ing this ti m e he produce d So rter R es artu e the boo k in ,

which he first d e veloped his ch aracte ris tic styl e and

thought and wrote se v eral mas te rly essays notably those
, ,

on Burns and D r J oh nso n .In 1 83 4 he came to Lo ndon

.
, ,

taki ng the house in Ch eyne Ro w Chelsea wh e re he spe nt , ,

the lo ng re mai nd er o f h is li fe In 1 83 7 he publish ed The

.

F rench Rev olu ti on which tu rne d the tid e of public fa vor

,

toward hi m F or m ore than thi rty years af te r this he

.
,

stood as tea ch er and preach er to the p eople of E ngla nd and

Ame rica thu nd e r ing abov e th e m wra th wa rni ng and e x
, , ,

horta ti on The mo st notabl e works of this lo ng period

.

we re Charti sm an an ti d e m ocratic deli v eran ce on

the l abor q ues tions th en agitating England ; H eroes and

H ero wors hip
- a great se rm o n on Ve ne rati o n ex ,

horting the world to lov e honor an d sub mit in c hi ldlike

, ,

obedi ence to its h eroic men wh e th e r th ey appear as wa rrior

, .

poe t or pri est Cromwell

, a study of one O f Ca rlyle s
'

typi cal h e roes as king ; La tter Day P amp hlets ( 1 850) the -

Life of J ohn Sterli ng a m aste rpi ece o f sy mpath e ti c bi og

,

raphy ; and the Hi s tor

y f
o F ri ed r i ch 1 1 ( 1 858 a .
 TH E N I N ET EE N T H CE N T U RY 315

v as t picture of the li fe and tim e s of the fou nde r of the

P ru s si an em pire Fr om 1 8 65 u ntil his d e ath i n 1 881 the
.
,

v e ne r a ti on in which Carlyl e s n ame was h e ld st eadily in

’

crease d th ough oth e r teach e rs were risi ng to tak e his pl ace

, ,

an d so m e of the dogm as f or which he stood w e re b e i n g

u n d e r m i ne d by ti m e and criticis m .

T he actu al doctri ne s which Carlyl e pr each e d with such

H e braic i n tensity — his Gosp e l of Work his p olitic al
,
”
,

dog m a of Gove rnmen t by the B e st (i nstead

U nd e l y m
go ver nm en t by the worst as he h eld 8 it of nfs
r
”
of ,
xr
o k r '

d e m ocracy to b e) an d all the oth e r shibb ol e ths

,

o f his u ne ndi ng w arfar e with his age — are of l ess m om en t

th an the spirit which broadly u nd e rli e s his writing T his .

spirit m ay b e d e fi ne d as an i ntense m oral i ndignati on

agai nst wh ate ve r is w eak or false or m e ch an ic al
, an in,

t e nse m oral enth u si as m f or wh atever is si nce re and heroi

cally force fu l Fro m this poi n t of vi e w his two typical
.

b ooks are Sa rtor Res a rtu s and H eroes a nd H ero wors hip -
.

T he first is an attack upo n all thos e soci al sh am s an d

m e ch an ism s which d efeat the si nc e ri ty of li fe the se con d
is a p aean of praise for th ose ch osen h e roic spirits who j oi n
ea r ne stne ss with pow e r Lik e Byron Carlyl e is in rom antic
.
,

re v olt agai nst c onve nti on ; lik e Wordsworth and Sh ell ey ,

th ough in a ve ry di ff e rent way from e ith er he seeks for ,

s o m e p ositiv e ideal upon which to c on struct a h abitabl e

m o ral w orld in pl ac e of the u n i nh abitabl e one he has
striv en to d e stroy So rter Resartu s which is both de
.
,

structive and c onstructiv e is pre e m i nent in doct rinal

,
-

i n te rest among all his books It is al so e xtremely i ngen .

i o us in plan an d is written with a wond e rful m i ngli ng of

,

wild sardo nic hu m or k een p ath os and an eloqu ence and

, ,

i m agi nativ e el e vati on al m ost biblical .

Sa rtor Re sartu s m eans the tailor re tail ore d and -

,

its th em e is cl oth es It purports to b e the fragm en t of a

.

“ ”
great cloth e s philosophy the li fe work of an e ccen tri c
-
,
-

Ge r man schol ar and recluse H e rr Diogene s Teu felsdrock

, .
31 6 A H I STO RY or E N GLI SH LI TERA TURE

T his philos ophy has be en left in wil d confusion scribbled ,

on scatt e re d l e av e s and stu ff e d h elte r sk elte r i nto tw elv e

,
-

bags signe d with the twelve signs of the Z odiac .

Carlyl e re pre sents hi m se lf me rely as editor and

comm en ta tor of this w elteri ng m ass of words ,

en d eav ori ng d e sp era tely to e xtract ord e r out of ch aos and ,

to lighte n a littl e with m uch h ead sh aki ng and c on st erna

,
-

tio n the d ark and m ystic abysses of the Ge rm an profe ss or s

,
’

th ought T his whi m sical fancy of Carlyl e s e nabl e s him

.
’

to b e both author and co mm en tator ; to sta te as tou nd

i ng p aradox e s and th en shr u g his sh ould e rs in Si gn of his
o wn irre spo nsibility ; to tak e the sid e of his o pp on e nts

agai nst wh at h e as a w ell re gul a te d e ditor

, pre te nds to
-
,

fi nd e xtravagant and crazy doctri ne but wh at is really ,

’
his own p assionate h eart s b eli ef how e ve r p erve rse ly ex ,

presse d .

T he bo ok has a two f ol d m ean i ng In the fi rst pl ac e it .

,

is a ve ile d sardon ic attack up on the sh am s and pre te n ces

of soci e ty u p on hollow rank , hollow offi cial ,
It s Meani ng
i sm h oll ow custom out of which li fe and u se
.

, ,

f u l ne ss h av e d e p arte d T h e s e are Carlyle hi n ts the

.
, ,

cl oth e s which hid e the re al form of soci e ty garm en ts once ,

u se ful b u t grown by l apse of ti m e to b e m e re f an tas tic f rip

,

p ery and sti ff disfigure m en t stifli ng the bre ath and h ealth ,

of the soci al b ody U nd e r the shi eld of this no v el ide a he

.
,

a ttacks the m e ch an ical vi e w of li f e m e ch an ic al e duca ti on , ,

m e ch an ical gov e rnm e nt m e ch an ical reli gion

, and he

preach e s n ow with droll e ry and p aradox n ow with fi e ry

, ,

e a r ne stne ss an d pr op he tic poss e ssio n a r e turn to si n c e ri ty

'

i n all th i ngs In th e s e c ond pl ac e Carlyl e appli es the

.
,

Cl othe s p hilosophy m ystic ally to the u nive rse at l arge ;

-

sh owi ng th at as cl oth e s hid e the real m an and as custo m ,

a nd c onv e n tion hid e r e al s oci e ty so T i m e and Sp ace hide ,

the r e al spiritu al ess e nc e of the u niv e rs e He give s us as .

,

the cli m ax of th e book a transc e n d e n t al v isi on of all

,

cre at e d N atur e as the garm ent of God the sam e idea

31 8 A H I STO RY or E N GLISH LI TE RATU RE

by millio ns of figures on a giganti c stage make this the ,

capital e xa mpl e in E ngli sh of the dramatic portraiture of

an h istorical e ra and e sta blish be yond qu e sti on Carlyl e s
’
,

right to b e consid e red a great constructive arti st .

Carlyl e poure d i n to the li fe of his th e a stream of i n

te nse m oral ardor and i ndig nation which broke up the
co ngeal ed w ate rs and pe r mane n tly rai sed the
stand ard of ethic al fee li ng He u nite d in re .

mark abl e d e gree the art istic and the m o ral im

pulse ; and he is in this re spect typical of the V ictori an
e ra
, duri ng which m ore th an e ver before art has bee n
, ,

i nf u sed with moral purpose But his n ature was too ex .

travagant his to ne too b itte rly protest ing and his m e thod
, ,

too pe rvers e to allow him to be co me the supre me ly re p

,

rese nta tive figure of the age T his position was r e served .

for A lfred Tennyso n .

T e nnyso n was b o rn in 1 809 at So me rsby Re ctory Lin , ,

col nshire His fath e r was a vicar of the E s ta blis h ed

.

Church hold ng hi s lI v mg by g i f t f ro m a la rge

Tm y m ‘ ,
i ,

a w l and ed propr i e tor ; so h at T ennyso n was f ro m

0
t
b irth in cl ose c onn ecti on Wi th the ma i n co n
se rv ati ve i n teres ts of E ngla nd e ccl es i astical and e co no m i c
, .

I n 1 83 0 whil e an u nd e rgradu ate a t Cam b ri dge he p u b

, ,

lished his first volu m e a group of littl e ve rse s tu di es in

,
-

w o rd m elody and w ord picture T wo years l a te r a p peare d

- -
.

a s e co nd volu m e Showing i n such po em s as

, , The Lad y
” ”
O f Shal ott and The Lotu s Ea te rs a rapidly d ev el op
-
,
.

i ng and alre ady e xquisite art ; and i n ce rtai n o th e rs like ,

“ ”
T he Palace of Art giving i ndica tion of his am bi tion
,

to b e no t a si nge r m er ely but also a te ach e r , Al read y .

.

too i n T he M ill er s Daughte r and” “ The May Q u ee n

’ ”
, ,

he b e gan his l ong se ri e s of idylls of E nglish lif e short na r ,

rative s richly pic ture d and melodiously tuned wi th which ,

he was d e sti ne d to wi n the public al l the m ore easi ly pe r ,

h aps becau se of a touch of senti me ntali ty and u nreali ty in

 TH E N I N ETEE N TH CE N TURY 31 9

T h e se rly volu mes produce d in the revi ews an ou t

ea

b urst of ridicul e which k ept T e nnyso n for a long ti me

s il en t
. For ten years he publish e d nothi ng but bro od e d ,

an d work e d away in his Lon do n lodgings ; u n til in 1 84 2 , ,

h e cam e f orth with two volu me s which to ok the critics and

the world by sto rm In th e s e two volu m e s the range an d
.

v ari e ty of work was ph e no menal Al most e v ery provi n c e .

of poe try was touch ed upon f ro m the lyric Si m plicity of ,

Break break break to the l arge ly m o u ld ed e pic nar

, ,

ra ti v e of Morte d Arthu r ’
T he pu re dramatic fo rm .

a lo ne was a bs ent and in spit e of many e ff orts T ennys on

,

n e v er succe e d ed i n drama .

F ive ye ars l ater in 1 84 7 appeare d me P ri ncess

, , It .

’
was Tennyso n s contributi on to the qu estion th en b egi n ,

n i ng to b e wid e ly discusse d of the high e r edu “

,
T he
cation of wo m en .
“
T he sub title is A Medl ey ” m- um s ”
,

and no d e scription could b e m ore just The story is fan .

tas t ically m ix ed of el e m en ts brought f ro m m any age s a nd

,

co u ntri e s and the styl e alw ays or nate and richly j e w e ll e d

, , ,

r u n s through the gam ut of tru e an d fals e e loqu e nce re ,

tu ru n always to the m ock h e ro ic key in which the -

whol e po em is so m e wh at u nc e rtai nly pitch e d In The .

’
P ri ncess we see Te nnyson s e age rne ss to touch the vital
public qu e stions of his time in odd co nfl ict with his p u re ,

poe tic i nte rest in picture an d m e l ody In his ne xt w ork .

,

how ever I n M emori am

, the poe try i nte rp e ne trat e s
th e th e m e and the th e m e itself is one which
, “
In Mm ,»
am
”
was j ust th en engagi ng the m i nds of men m or e i r .

p assionate ly th an ev e r before i n the world s hi sto y the

r — ’

u e stio n O f the i m m ortality of the soul Th e p oe m was

q .

written in mem o ry of Arthur H all am a b el ov ed fri end ,

an d coll e ge m at e of T e nn ys on s who had di e d i n 1 83 3

’
-
It , .

consists of a hu n dred and thirty one lyrics sh ort swal -

,
”
l ow fligh ts of song
-
c o m p ose d at i nte rvals duri ng se ven
,

te en years In the beginni ng the early ph as e s oi gri ef

.
,

are touch e d upon m oods of stu nne d and b ewild e r e d sor

,
3 20 A H I STO RY O F E N GLI SH LI TERAT URE

row gradu ally the p e rsonal p ain m erges its elf i n to anxiou s
sp e culation conc ern i ng the m ystery of d eath an d the hope
of i mm or tality through state s of doubt d esp air and nu , ,

g u i sh e d q u e stio n the po e m slowly ,

m ou n ts i n t o a r e gio n of
fi rm though s add ene d faith and it en ds in a f u ll hym nal
m usic breathin g hop e and fortitud e of h eart Wh en I n .

M emori a m was writte n Darwin s trem endous hyp othe sis

’
,

of the e volutio n of hu m an lif e f ro m low e r f or m s h ad not

e t b een giv en to the world but th e id e a was alre ady in

y
the air and in nu m b erl e ss w ays Sci e n ce had b egu n to sap
,

the old f ou ndations of r eligious faith T enn yson c oura .

l f ac ed the facts of sci e n c e as re v e al e d in ge ology and

g e o u s y ,

bi ology and he succeed e d in wri ngi ng religious con solati on

f ro m the v e ry thi ngs which w ere dread ed as a fa tal m enace
to religion In h elpi ng to break down the false opposition
.

betw een sci ence on the one h an d and po e try and spiritu al ,

faith on the oth er I n M e mori am did a grea t s e rvice to the

,

age .

In 1 85 0, Wordsworth who had

been poe t laurea te af ter
,
-

S o uth e y di e d and T ennys on too k the l aurel A gove rn

, .

m en t p en si on enabl e d h i m to m arry and to

T o m ou a s
u ,

“m m “ settl e in the Isl e of Wight F ro m this ti me .

u ntil his d eath f orty two y ears l at e r i n 1 892 he stood as

,
-
, ,

the sp oke s m an of his p e opl e i n ti m e s of na tional sorrow or

rej oicing In M au d ( 1 85 5 ) he use d the Cri mean war as a
.

b ackgrou nd In such poe m s as T he Charge of the Light

.

” ”
Brigad e T he Re venge
,
and the O de on th e D uk e of
,

We lli ngton he m i nistere d to nati onal pride fire d the na

”
, ,

tional c ourag e and brought po e try n eare r to t he n a tio nal

,

life th an it had b een si nce Sh ak e speare In the I dy lls of the .

K i ng he d e vote d fi fte en ye ars to p ai n ti ng the ch aract e r of

the first E ngli sh na tio nal h e ro K i ng Arthur an d in givi ng , ,

a new m e an i ng to the cycl e O f l egen d which h ad grow n up

in the m iddl e ages about the k nights of the Rou n d T able .

T he Origi n o f Sp ecies appe are d i n 185 9, the D es cent f

o Ma n i n
82 2 A HISTO RY or E N GLISH LITERAT URE

is the com pass and fini sh of his styl e He es say ed eve ry .

k in d of poe try the so ng the idyll the dramatic m on ologu e

, , , ,

the di al ect poe m the d escriptive or , pa geant

poe m the ballad the war od e the th re nod y
, ,
-
, ,

the e pic narrativ e and the drama In all th e se

, .
,

e xc ept the pure drama he atta in e d high an d in s o me the

, ,

h igh es t e xcell ence

,
E v e rywh e re hi s styl e is one of e x
.

q ui s ito finish with a fi awlessness of tech niqu e which it see ms

,

th at no l abor could im prove He did with styl e ev e ry . .

thing th at con scious mastery can do He emul a te d by .

turn s the swee t fe licity of K ea ts the te nde r si mplicity of ,

Wordsworth the straightforward vigor of Burn s the e lu

, ,

sive mel ody and dreamlik e m agic of Col e rid ge the st ormy ,

swee p of Byro n the l arge maj esty of Mil ton ; an d he co uld

,

bl e nd th e m all into a styl e u nm istakably Te nnys o nia n ,

which impre ss ed its elf grandly up on his age His is the .

bes t e xam pl e in E ngli sh of the e cl ectic style m ad e up ,

o f e l e me nts borrow ed f ro m many so u rc es and pe rfectly ,

fu s ed toge th er His qui e t sh elte red succe ssful e xiste nce

.
, ,

gave to his p oe try u nif orm mell owness rich nes s an d se re n , ,

i ty at so me expen se of p as sio n reali ty and tr agic pow e r

, , , .

cm a t ,“ It was the co m p ara tive wea kness in him o f th ese

iii. M aggi l ast q u aliti e s which m ad e i t i m pos sibl e f o r hi m
to succee d i n the drama In the I dy lls of the .

K i ng e sp ecially in the re l ations be twe en Lanc e lot Gui n

, ,

e v e re and A rth u r he had his grea tes t op portu nity to por

, ,

tray m oving hu man situ ati on s and in certa in p as sage s he ,

did i nd ee d reach drama tic i nte nsity but as a wh ol e the

I dy lls furnish us not with hu m an re ality and tragic fo rce
, .

—
but with b eauty a beauty of drea m of cl oudl and of , ,

Ce ltic magic ; th e ir wh ol e e fi e ct m ay be be st d escri be d by

”
K ea ts s phrase huge cloudy symbols of a high ro ma nce
’
.
,

The pre do m i na ti ng ch aracte ri s tic of Te nnyso n s mi nd is

’

his se nse of law The thi ng whi ch most i m pres ses him
.

is the spe ctacl e of orde r in the u niverse T he hi gh est .

“
rai se which he can iv E gl d is th t h i l nd
p g e n an a s e s a a
 TH E N I N ETE E N TH CE N TU RY 3 23

s e ttl e d gov ernment wh ere fre edo m is e v er broad e n “

of ,
”
i ng do wn fro m pr e c e d e n t to pr ec e d e nt H e is i m pre ss e d
.

by s ci e nc e b ecause its ofii ce is to show law Hi , Sense of

r eign i ng e v e rywh ere subdui ng all li fe to a “ W '

v ast h ar m onious sch em e I n I n M emori am a m aj e stic

.

m ov em e nt is giv e n to the po e m by the fact th at it f ollows

the y ear twi ce through its r e volution s so th at the suc ce s ,

sio n of day and night the m oon s ch angi ng ph ase s the

,
’
,

l apsi ng of the stars in th e ir co u rs e s the slow p agean t of ,

the s easo n s s e e m at l ast to enfold with th eir l arge har

,

m o ny and p e ac e the fo rlo rn h eart of the m ourne r T his .

lov e of ord e r also causes Te nnyson to distrust i ndividu al

whi m and p assi on .T he story of The P ri ncess is the story
o f the ov e rthrow of all th a t is w hi m sic al a nd fals e in th e

h e roi ne s plan for the enf ranchise me nt of her sex by a

’
,

b aby s touch ; and the m oral is th at wom an s pl ace in li fe

’ ’

m ust b e d e te rm i n e d by the nat u ral law of her b e i ng In .

t he I dy lls of the K i ng n ot o nly is the p assion of Lanc el ot

a n d Gui n e v e re portraye d as the sourc e of the m o ral ru i n

o f Arthur s ki ngdo m ; but e v e n the se arch f or the H oly

’

G r ail is r e pr e s en t e d as con tributi ng to this rui n b e c aus e ,

i t draws off Arthur s knights from th e ir tru e work of e s

’

t ablishing ord e r and j u sti ce and cause s th e m to l ose th e m

,

s e lv es i n the e xtravag an c es of m ystical p assi o n T e nnyson .

i s in constan t prot e st Op e n or c o ve r t aga i nst the i nd ivid

, ,

u al i sm which the V ictori an e ra i nh e rit e d from th e r om an

tic re vival Y e t he is ne ve rth el e ss the supre me ly rep re

.

s e n tativ e figur e of th at e ra b ecau se he i nclud ed and

,

r e con cil ed a greater nu m b e r of its dive rse i nte re sts th an

a n y o th e r si ngl e write r .

Rob e rt Brow ni ng who disput es with T e n nyso n the first

,

l c m o g i tori po ts is ys ’
p a e a n V c an e T e nn o n s
, o pposit e i n

al m ost e v e ry re sp e ct but fam e an d l e n gth of

’ m
y ears His gen ius was p re e m i nently dram atic gfltfi g
.
-

“m am “
his i nterest lay not in u nive rsal law but in i ndi
, ,

v idu al p assion . And his styl e i nste ad of b e i ng e cl e ctic and

,
3 24 A H I STO RY O E E N GLI SH LI TE RATURE

caref u lly el aborated was i ndividual to the poi nt of lawlesa

,

ne ss and o f te n c arel e ss of f or m in the pursuit of m ean

,

ing . Brow ni ng is stro ng wh e re T ennyson is w eak weak ,

wh ere T ennyso n is strong Both sh are al m ost e qu ally

.

in the Victori an tend e ncy toward re fle ctio n and toward ,

a didactic aim ; but th e ir r e fl e ction was e x e rcis e d upo n

very di ffere nt ph eno mena and th e ir t eaching was wid ely

,

opposed .

Browni ng was born in Lon don in 1 81 2 Mi ngl e d with , .

the E nglish and Scotch blood in his v e i ns was a m ore dis

tan t strai n of Ger man and Creol e a f ac t of ,
B rowning
v alu e In cons derm g he w1de cosm opol i t n
$0;$233 6t
11
i t
symp athy of ms Im agi natl on He passe d hi s
a .

boyhood and youth in the suburb of Camb e rwe ll near ,

e nough to Lo ndo n to m ak e the grea t s m oky city on the

hori zon a constan t re mi nd er of the co m pl e x hu man lif e he

was to i n te rpre t m or e subtly and d ee ply th an an y poe t
had done si nc e the E liz ab e than age His fi rst sti m ulus .

to po e tic creatio n was giv e n by a volu me of Sh ell e y which

h e pi ck ed up by ch anc e on a London book stall in his -

f o urt ee nth y ear . His first lo ng po e m P a u li ne p ublish ed , ,

in 1 833 is a h al f dramatic stu d y of the typ e of Spirit u al

,
-

li f e which Sh ell ey s o wn caree r e mbodi ed ; and Sh el ley s

’ ’

i n flu ence is cl early trac eabl e both in its thought an d i n i ts

s tyl e . Af te r a trip to Russi a and Italy Brow ni ng publish ed ,

P a ra celsu s in his tw en ty f ourth year

,
-
T his lik e P a u li ne .
, ,
“ ”
is th e history of a soul I n it Brow ni ng s wo nd e rf ul
.
,
’

e n dow m e n ts are alr eady m ani fe st His k n owl e dge of the

.

ca u se s of spiritu al growth and de cay his subtle a na lysis ,

of m otiv e and cou n te r m otiv e his e loqu e nc e i n pl ead i ng

-
,

a caus e the en ki n dl e d pow e r and b eauty of his lan gu age

,

wh e n blown upon by n obl e passio n all appe ar in f ull ,

proc ess of de vel op me nt T he hi nd e ranc es fro m which he

.

s u ff e r e d are also o nly too cl ear e sp e ci ally his t en d e ncy to

,

lose hi m s el f in tangl e d thought and to grow h arsh and ,

obscur e i n pursui ng the s eco nd ary su ggestions of his th em e .

326 A HI STO RY o r E N GLI SH LI TE RAT URE

i nstance , the
little pi ec es call ed
are —
Wanti ng is What
“ ”
and N e ve r the T i m e and the Pl ace writte n in his ,

“ ”
se ve nty first y ea r ; and such is
-
Su mm u m Bo nu m ,

writte n j ust be fore the p e n dropp ed fro m his hand in

1 88 9 in the se v e nty se v en th y ea r of his age
,
-
He had had .

to wa it lo ng f or re cogn iti on but d u ri ng the l a tt e r y ea rs ,

of his lif e his fa me o v e rsh adow ed e ve n th at of T e n nyso n ,

and his w o rks w e re studi e d and m ad e a cul t o f wi th an ,

e n thu si as m s e ldo m accord e d to a livin g poe t .

Browni ng s earli est poem P a u li ne was he te lls us ia

'
, , , ,

“ ”
te nd ed as the first O f a se ri e s of m on o d rama ti c epics -
,

“ ”
ea ch o f which was t o pres e nt th e hi s tory of a soul .

B roadly vi ewed th e whole of Browning s wo rk is wh a t his

,
'

youthf ul ambiti on dream ed of maki ng it I n three .

fo rm s pur e d rama dr ama tic narrative a nd d rama tic

, , ,

lyric he gav e the his tory of hu ndred s of souls ; o r if

,

no t th e ir wh ol e history at l eas t so m e cruci al mo m e n t of

,

it wh e n its issu es trem bl ed i n the balance and dippe d

,

toward good or e vil In his earli e r life he mad e m any .

at te m p ts to pre se nt th e se cruci al m ome nts in re gul ar

drama i n te nd e d for the stage but t he fo rm ,

“ w
H
was not pe rfe ctly suite d to hi s pe culi ar task
“
.

Moments er
In P ipp a P as s es h o we ve r wh il e k ee pin g the
$3333
:
, ,

m "
d ram atic f orm he thre w asid e the d e man ds of
stage p rese nta tio n and pres ented four spe ci al
,

m o me n ts of so ul history co nnecte d with eac h o th e r only ,

by a sl ight thre ad T he ger m of the p oe m came to him

.

in y outh whil e liste ni ng to a gypsy girl sin gi ng i n the

,

Cam be rwell woods H e i magi ned so m e o ne walki ng a lo ne

.

through li fe appare ntly too obscure to l eav e any tra ce

,

be hi nd but u nco nsci ousl y e xercisi ng a lasti ng influ ence at

,

e ve ry ste p T his abstract co nceptio n he afte rwa rd co n

.

u s ete d wi th the p e rs onality of a littl e si lk win d e r in the -

si lk m ills of A solo a m ou ntai n to wn which he had vi si te d

-
,

o n his first j ou rney to Ita ly Pi ppa walks through As olo .

on N e w Y ea r s Da m
’
y h er o n e holid ay i n
,
the yea r u n ,
 TH E N I N ETEE N TH CE N TURY 3 27

sciou sl y droppi ng her divi ne songs i nto the lives of four

roups o f p e opl e j ust at the m o m en t wh en th e ir fat e s are
g ,

trem bli ng be tween good and ev il courage and cowardic e ; ,

and by th e touchi ng purity and gl ad ne ss of he r voic e or ,

by th e sign ifican t words she utters she saves each in turn , .

A t ev en i ng she go e s b ack to her b are roo m and si nks to ,

sl ee p with a fi nal song on her lips still i gnorant of the se r

,
”
v ic e she has d one to A solo s h appi est fou r
’
.

P ipp a P a sses illustra te s the e ssent i al qu aliti es of Brown

i ng s dram atic ge nius
’
. He c annot throw as could Sh ak e ,

sp eare and his f e llows l arge and vari e d groups Strength and
,

of p e opl e toge th e r and m ak e th e m a ct and i n Hiwdiafi iii: a

’ '
,

G
teract with the c eas el e ss pl ay and e volutio n of u

li fe N or has he the greater Shak esp earean gift the

.
—
s upr e m e dr a m a tic gi f t — oi f orge tti ng and obscuri ng him

sel f. In all the words which his ch aracte rs utte r we see m ,

to h ear the ri ng of Browni ng s own voic e ; as an ae co m

’

p a n i m e n t to th e ir a ctio n s th e r e always ru ns sil e n t or e x ,

p r e ss ,e d his co m m e n t of bl ame or praise H e is l e ss a.

d ram atist th an a n e xhibitor and i nte rpre te r of si ngle

,

d rama tic situ ations such as the four which are bou n d
,

l o ose ly toge th er by P ipp a s ch an c e h eard songs

’
-
B u t in .

’
p r e s e n ti n g th e s e si n gl e situ atio n s Brow n i ng s pow e r is

a bsolute ; h e re he works with the m ost gr aphic vivi dness ,

a nd with a com pre ssion of m e an i ng which crowds i nto a

f ew li ne s the i m plicati on s of a li fe ti m e .

It follows fro m the p e culiar nature of Browni ng s dra ’

m atic gif t th at his m ost v ital work is in his short po em s

, ,

w h ere he h and le s si ngl e Situ ati on s or s oul st at e s m, Sho t -

, r

i sol ate d f r om wh at has c om e b efore and fro m 53 236053, 3

h ““a n“
w h at is to c om e af te r . In the se he not o nly
s e l e cts by prefe re n c e a highly sp e ci al m o men t in the lif e of

t he man or wom an whose so u l he wish e s to Sho w us in i ts

worki ng but as a rul e he vi ews his th e m e from so m e odd
,

a nd striki ng poi n t of vi e w . Perh aps the very b est e xam

l e of his skill in s el e cti ng a poi n t of vi ew is to b e fou nd
p ,
32 8 A H I STO RY or EN GLI SH LI TERATURE

in the Epistl e ofKarshish .po em is to

The aim of the
pre sent the stat e a p e rson who has b e h e ld the
of m i n d of

m yste ri e s of e xiste n c e b eyo nd th e grave an d who has ,

brought b ack i n to m ortal life a sense of i m m ortality so

s tro ng th at e ve ry act and e v ery j udgmen t is d e te rm i ned
by it T he ti m e is about thirty y ears af t er the d eath of
.

Christ ; an d the sp e ak e r Harshish is an A rabi an doctor

, ,

who in trav elli ng through Pale sti ne has m et La za ru s and ,

who s ends a report of the strange c as e to his old m aste r in

l ee chcraf t Abib T hrough the vai n struggl e of K arshish
, .

to mai ntai n his sci entific sce pticism in the face of La za rus s ’

story an d b eari ng we are m ad e to feel the reality of the

,

m iracl e with ove rwh el m i ng f orc e an d are brought stran gely

,

n ea r to the co n diti ons of li fe i n Pale sti ne in the n e xt ge n

e ra tion af te r Christ An oth e r p e culi arity of Brow n i ng s

'
.

m e th od in his short poe m s is th at he throws the re a d e r i nto

the m idst o f the th e m e with startli n g sudde n ness a nd th en ,

proceeds to flash fac e t af ter face t of the subj e ct on him ,

with a rapidity which is apt to be wild er a re ad e r n o t in the

s e cre t of the meth od T he re are no e xpl anati ons n o g rad
.
,

u al tran siti on s ; we are not al l o w e d to gu e ss at th e w hol e

i nte n ti on u ntil the end is reach e d A capital e x am pl e of .

”
this p eculi arity is the Solil oquy in a Sp anish C loiste r ,

which has to b e re ad to th e end b efore we see it f or wh at

it is the sel f re ve al e d picture of a narrow m i n de d su p e r
,
- -
,

sti ti ou s sensu al m onk s tirre d to hatre d by a broth e r

, ,

m on k whose m ild b enign ant ways and genui ne pi e ty we

, ,

grad u ally disce rn thr ough the sp eaker s j e e rs an d c u rse s ’

.

If we add to th e se p e cu li ariti e s of m e th od the fa ct th a t

Bro wni ng s b e st work is v ery co m pre s se d in styl e we see
’
,

why m any p ersons have fou nd obscure in him wh a t i s in

re ality cl e ar enou gh but i s n ot to b e p erce ive d clea rly wi t h
,

Pe rh a ps
’
ou t atten ti on an d al e rt n e ss on th e r ea d e r s p art .

’
the p oe m which b est il lustrat e s all Browni ng s p e culi a riti e s
of m e th od h a r m on i ou sly c om bi n e d is
, My Last D uch e ss,
”
,

a m arv e llous e x am pl e of his p o we r to giv e a whol e l if e

3 30 A HI STO RY or EN GLISH LITaRATURE

“
p os e . T he world is for him in K eats s phrase the Val
,
’
,

l ey of Soul mak ing -

and ev e ry act thought and fee li ng , ,

of li fe is o f co n ce rn o n ly as it h in d e rs or d e te rm i ne s the

soul on its course But he beli e ves sal vatio n to l ie not as

. , ,

do e s T e n n y s o n in th e suppre ssi on of i ndivi du al

as; ,
M “ w ill and pas sio n but in th e ir s trenuou s exe r
,

ci se It is the m o ments of high ex cite me nt in hu man life

.

which i nte res t hi m b e ca u se in such mo men ts the great

,

sav ing as se rtio ns of wil l and pass io n are mad e Hence his .

i nte rest in art which e mbodi es th ese mo me nts of hi gh

,

e xci te m e nt ; and h e nce his i nd i ff eren ce to sci ence which ,

d e als wi th im pe rso nal la w Lov e as the supreme e xpo

. ,

ri s n es and fu ncti o n of the soul t esting its tem per and ,

re v eal ing i ts prob abl e fa te holds the first pl ace in his

,

E velyn H ope
” “ ”
thought In such poems as C ris ti na
.
, ,

“ ” “ ” “
T he Last Rid e T oge th er My Star
,
By the F ire ,
”
sid e and a multitu d e m ore he has presente d love in
, ,

i ts vari e d phase s ; and ha s cel ebrated its manifold m ean

i ngs not only on earth bu t in the i nfinite range of w orld s
,

th rough which he believ es tha t the so ul is d e st ine d to

g o i n sea rch a f te r its o w n p e r f ec tio n B y t h e i n.te nsi ty
a nd po sitiv enes s of his doctrine h e has in flu en ce d his

age profo u ndly and has mad e his n am e syn ony mous
,

wi th faithf ul ness to the hu man love whi ch l ife b ri ngs ,

and through tha t to the divi ne lov e which it i m p lies and

pro m ise s .

T he robustn ess of Bro wn ing s nat u re its cou rage its ’

, ,

a bo u ndi ng joy and faith i n lif e make his works a p erma ,

ne nt stor e h o use of spiri tu al e ne rgy for the race a store ,

h ouse to which for a l ong ti me to co me it wil l in ce rta in

moods always r e tu rn In an age distrac ted by dou bt and
.

divid e d in will his stro ng u nf alte ri ng v oice has hem li f ted

,

ab ov e the pe rpl e xiti es and h es itatio ns of men lik e s b u gle ,

call to j oyous battl e in which the vi ctory is to the b ra ve .

O ne of Bro wni ng s m ost perfect short poe ms

’ “
O ne ,

Word More is ad d resse d to his wife. Elizabe th B arrett

”
,
 THE N I NETEENTH CENTURY 331

Browni ng ( 1 806 and is a ki n d of cou nt e r tribute -

to he r m ost p e rfe ct work th e Sonnets f rom the P ortu gu ese, ,

which contain the record of he r courtship and M rs .

m arri age He r early life was sh adow e d by

.

illne ss and affl iction ; and her early po etry ( The Serap hi m ,

1 83 8 P oems 1 844 ) shows in m any pl ac es the d efe cts of

, ,

u nre ality and of ove rwrought e moti on natural to work ,

produc ed in the lo ne li ness of a sick ch am be r T he b e st -

.

k nown of th ese early poe ms are p erh aps Lady Ge raldi ne s ’

Courtship wh e r e she works u n d e r the i nfl u e nc e of T enny

,
”
s on s idylls and T he Cry of the Childre n wh e re she
’
, ,

v oic e s the hu m an it ari an prote st agai nst the practic e of

e m ployi ng child l abor in m i ne s and factori e s

-
A f te r he r .

marri age and re m oval to Italy her h ealth im prov e d and ,

he r art grea tly str ength ene d itsel f T h e Sonnets f rom the .

P ortugu ese ( 1 85 0) are am o ng the nobl e st love po e m s in the -

l angu age taking ran k with Sh akesp eare s Sonne ts and

,
’

Ross e tti s H ou se of Life as one of th e three great E nglish

’

sonne t cycle s M rs Brow ni ng was d eeply i n te re ste d in the

-
. .

st ruggl e of Italy to sh ak e off her bondage to Austri a as is ,

show n by he r Oasa Gu i di Wi ndows publish e d in 1 85 1 In ,

.

1 8 5 6 app eare d he r m ost am bitious work A u rora Leigh a , ,

ki nd of v ersifi ed nov el of m od er n E nglish life with a soci al ,

ref orme r and hu man itari an of aristocratic lineage for , ,

h e ro and a yo u ng p oe t e ss in l arg e p art a re fle cti on of M rs

, ,
.

Browni ng s own p ersonality for h e roi ne A u rora Leigh

’
, .

s hows the i nflu enc e of a great n ov e l writi ng age wh e n the -

,

n o v e l was b e co m i n g m or e an d m ore i m bu ed with soci al

p urpos e It a tt e
. m pts to p e r f o r m i n v e rs e t he s am e soci a l
f u n ction which Dick en s Ge orge E li ot K i ngsl ey and , , ,

o th e rs strov e to p e rf or m in pr ose
, T he i nt er e st in publ i c .

q u e stio n s also a pp e ars i n M r s Brow n i n g s P oe m s b f

e o
.re
’

Congress an d i n he r Last P oems

M rs B rowning s b irth i s
.
’
u s u al ly giv e n as 1 809 . We hav e , how
B rowning s o wn p ositi v e state me nt as to the corre ctness of the
’
e v e r,

e arli er date .
33 2 A H I STO RY O F E N GLI SH LITERATURE

Mrs Brow ni ng s te ch niqu e is u nce rtai n, and she ne ver

.
’

f re e d h e rs e l f f ro m her ch aracte ristic faults of v agu e ne ss

a nd u n res trai nt But he r symp athy wi th nobl e ca uses
.
,

the e l e vati on and ardor of her m oods of p e rsonal e m otion ,

and the disti n ction of he r utt e ran c e s at its b e st ou tb al an ce ,

th ese negative co nsid e rations She Sh are s he r husban d s .

’

st re n u ou sne ss and optim is m but she sp eak s alw ays f rom

,

the fe m i n i ne v an tage grou nd H er ch aracte ristic note is

-
.

that of i n ti mate p e rsonal fee ling ; e v en Oasa Gu i di Wi n

,

dows has b een aptly c alle d a wo man s lov e m aki ng with

’
-

”
a n ati on .

Browni ng s robust opti m ism in the face of all the u n

’

s e ttli ng and disturbing force s of the age is thrown out in

sh arp r e li ef wh e n we co n tras t him with a so m e
,
A nold
r
wh at you nge r poe t Matth e w A rnold in whom
.

, ,

the pre vaili ng tone is one of doubt and h al f d e sp airi ng -

stoicis m Arnold was born in 1 822 the son of Dr T ho m as

.
, .

A rn old the fam ous h ead maste r of Rugby

,
-
H e w e nt .

up to O xford j ust at the ti m e wh en the neo Catholic -

religi o us re vival u nd e r J oh n K eble and J oh n H e n ry

,

N e w man was stirri ng the u nive rsity to its d epths

, T he .

u nse ttli n g e ffe ct of this agitatio n com i ng afte r the v e ry ,

di ffe re nt religions teachi ng of Ru gby had m uch to do with ,

d e te rm ini ng A rnold s ch aracteristic attitud e of m i nd to w

’

a rd qu e stio n s of f aith F ro m his thirti e th ye ar u n til

.

sh ortly b e for e his d eath in 1 8 88 he h eld the posi ti on of ,

In sp e ct or of Schools To the d emands and re spon sibili ti e s

.

of this o ffi ci al positio n w er e add e d in 1 85 7 those of a pro , ,

f e ssorshi p of po e try at O xford Th e se oute r circu m s tan ce s .

w ere l arg ely i nstru mental i n turni ng his energie s a w ay

f rom po e try i nto the fi eld of prose criticism wh e r e f o r
, , ,

the l ast tw e nty years of his l ife he h el d the posi ti on of a ,

l eade r al most of a dictator

, .

Arnold m ay b e d e scrib ed as a poet of tran si ti on H is .

b e nt as a po e t was tak e n chi e fly be tween 1 84 0 and 1 85 0 .

T h e se we re the closi ng ye ars of the transition be twee n the

334 A H I STO RY O F E N GLISH LI TE RATURE

“
studie d in the pi e c es call ed Self Dep endence and A -

”
Su m m er N ight .

F or his id eal of form Arnold went re solutely to the liter

,

atur e of Gr e e c e abj uring ro man tic wilf ul ne ss an d v agu e

,

n e ss in favor of cl assic lucidity an d r es tra i nt

ma mm of , .

mrm '
Wh en he works m ore delibe rately i n the
Gr eek spirit and m anne r his styl e is of ten col d and
‘

dry In his long poe ms espe cially he is ap t to sac

.
, ,

ri fi ce too m uch to his r e v e re n ce for cl assi cal t raditi o n .

”
O nly one of th em Soh rab and Rustu m
, co m bi nes ,

cl assic pu rity of style with romantic ardor of f eeli ng The .

truth of its ori ental color the dee p p athos of the situ a
,

tion the fi re and i nte nsity of the action the strong con
, ,

ce ption of ch arac te r and the f ull

, sol emn m usic of the ,

ve rse m ak e Sohrab and Rustu m u nqu e stionably the

,

maste rpi e c e among A rnold s longe r po ems T he same

’
.

u nity of cl assic f orm with ro man tic feel ing characte ri zes
his two shorter mast e rpi e ce s T he Schol ar Gypsy ,and
”
Thyrsis which are crystal cl e ar without coldne ss and
,
-
,

restrai ne d without loss of a f ull v olu m e of power .

A rnold was n ot abl e in his po e try to live through the

, ,

p eriod of dej e ction and doubt and to follow to th eir m a ,

ture issu es such hints of h op e and faith as his poem s Sh o w .

”
N ot e ve n in Thyrsis the b eauti ful threnody in which
,

he c el ebrate d his d ead fri end Clough has he f ou n d it ,

possibl e to e mbrace any but the most sh adowy conso la

tio n In O b ermann O nc e More he do e s i ndee d f o r a
.
”
, , ,

m om ent em e rge i n to so me thi ng lik e opti m ism ; b u t wh e n

th at pi e c e was writt en his work as a poe t was
ma Da emon
m a y for done He had de fi nitely chosen to work ou t his
.

life on the lowe r l e vels of prose and had p u t ,

asid e m ost of the d ee p e r qu e stioni ngs to occupy h im se lf ,

with m atters of taste and discri m i na tion From the fi rs t .

,

the i nt ell e ctu al el e m en t of his v e rse had thre ate ne d to

s moth e r the e motional and no w the criti c finally took
,

the pl ac e of the poe t in hi m .

 TH E N I N ETE E N TH C E N TURY 33 5

’
Arnol d s prose has littl e trace of the wistful m elancholy
of his v e rs e It is al most always urbane vivacious light
.
, ,

h earte d The cl assic al b en t of his m i nd shows its elf h er e

.
,

u nm ixe d with the i nh e ri tan ce of roman tic f eeli ng which

col ors his po e try Not o nly is his prose cl assical in qu ality
.
,

b y virtu e of its re strai n t of its d efi nite aim and of the

, ,

dry white light of i nte ll ect which su fi u ses it but the doc
tri ne which he sp en t his li fe in p reachi ng is b ase d up on a
classical ideal the id eal of sym m e try whol eness or as he
, , , ,

dari ngly calle d it p erf ecti on Carlyle had preach e d the

, .

valu e of conduct the H ebraic el em ent in life ; A rnold

,

se t hi m sel f to preach the v al u e of the co m pl ement ary H el

l e nic el em e nt — op e n mi nd e d ne ss d e light i n
,
-
ms Gog? “ ,

id eas al ertness to entertai n new points of vi e w m m "

,

an d willi ngne ss to ex am i ne lif e con stantly in the light of

n e w postu la te s Wh ereve r in religi on politics educati on

.
, , , ,

or literature he saw his cou n tryme n u n der the do m inati on

,

of narrow id eal s he c ame sp eaki ng the mystic word of

,
“ ”
d e live rance Culture
, Cult u re acqu ai ntanc e with the
.
,

be st which has been thought and done i n the world is his ,

p anacea for all ills It is by culture th at the P uritan dis

.

se n te r sh all b e mad e to see the l ack of e le vation and b eau ty

in his church f orms ; that the radical politici an sh all re ach
‘

a savi ng sen se of the ra wn e ss an d vulgarity O f his pro

ram s of state th at the m an wh os e lite r ary taste is bad

g
sh all b e admitted into the tru e ki ngdom of l e tters In .

a l m ost all of his prose writi n g he attack s so me f or m of

”
P hilisti nis m by whi ch word b e ch aracteriz e d the
,

na rrow m i n d e d ness and s e l f satis faction of the Bri tish

- -

m iddl e cl ass .

A r nol d s to ne is ad m irab ly fi tte d to the p eculi ar task h e

’

had to pe rfor m Carlyl e in P ast a nd P resent and els e

.
,

wh e re had preach e d the gosp el of action with

, 111, p m , ,
”m m “
fi e ry earne stness in the spirit of a Hebre w
,

prophe t A rnold in Cu ltu re a nd Ana rchy and m any

,

su cc essi v e work s m ad e his pl ea f

,
o r th e g osp el of
33 6 A H I STORY O F E N GLI SH LI TE RATU RE

id eas with urbanity and pl ayful gr c a e, as b efi tte d th e H el c

le nic spirit bri n gi ng,

s wee tness and light i nto the
d ark pl ac es of British prej udic e Som e ti m e s as i n Li ter .
,

a tu re a nd D ogma wh e re he pl eads for a m or e lib e ral and

,

lite rary readi ng of the Bibl e his m anne r is qui e t su ave , , ,

’
an d g en tly p e rsu as iv e A t oth er ti m e s as in F ri ends hip s
.
,

Ga rla nd he Shoots the arrows of his sarcas m i nto the

,

ranks of the Philisti nes with a d elicate raille ry and scorn all ,

the m ore e xaspe rati ng to his f o e s b e c ause it is v e il e d by a

m ock hu m ility an d is scru pulously polite
,
.

O f Arnold s literary criticis m the m ost n otabl e Single

’
,
”
pi e ce is the fam o u s e ssay O n T ranslati ng Ho m e r ,

which d ese rve s careful study for the e nlighte n me n t it

In, Li te a y
r r o ff e rs co n c e rn i n g m an y o f th e f u n d a m e nta l
c i ti ci sm
r
qu e sti ons of styl e The e ssays on Wordsworth
.

and on Byro n f r om E ssa y s i n Cr i ti ci sm and th a t on E m

, ,

e rson f ro m D i s cou rses i n A meri ca furnish good e xa m pl es

, ,

of A r nold s ch ar m of m anne r and w e ight of m a tte r in thi s

’

provi nc e .

T he tot al i mpre ssi on which Arnold mak e s in his prose

m ay b e d escrib e d as th at of a spiritu al m an of the world - - -
.

In c omp aris on with Carlyl e Ruski n and N e w m an h e is , , ,

w orldly For the r omantic p assio n an d m ystic vision of

.

th e se m e n he substitute s an id eal of bal ance d cultiv a tion

, ,

the id eal of the trai ne d sym p ath e tic co s m o , ,

politan gentl e man He m arks a re turn t o the .

conv entio ns of lif e afte r the storm and stre ss of

the r om antic age Y e t in his own way h e also was a
.

pr oph e t an d a preach e r strivi ng whol e h eartedly to re

,
-

l ease his c ou n tryme n f rom bond age to m e an thi ngs and ,

poi nti ng th e ir gaz e to th at symm e try an d bal ance of ch ar

acte r which has s ee m e d to m any n obl e m i n ds the tru e o l
g a

o f hu m an end e avor .

T he dicta to rship of tast e which Arnold h eld in m at

t ers of lit e rature was h eld in m at te rs of art by J o h n
, ‘

Ru ski n who a lso broad ene d his criticis m as did A r n old , ,

338 A H ISN B Y o r EN GLI SH LITE RATUR E

illustration and fi e ry de fe nce of it he grad u ally led his ,

read e rs to a ne w u nd e rstan di ng of the sp iritua l m eani ng of

art and aw ak e ne d th e m to a ne w di scri m i na tio n
, .

In 1 860 a t forty y ears of age Ruski n finish e d M odern

, ,

P a i nters and practica lly closed that s e ri es of works w hich

,

a m mo
h a d m ad e hi m t he f o re m ost art cri ti c o f the cen
m m tu ry F ro m this ti me on he use d art mainl y as
.

W " ill u stratio n and te xt by means of which to en ,

fo rce so me e thical e cono m ic or re ligious l es so n

, , He he .

came m ore and more abso rbed in the probl e ms of social ism ,

be i ng led th e re to by the con victi on at whi ch he had arri ved

i n his pr e viou s w ork th at a ll grea t art m ust be na ti o nal and
,

soci al and must spring f ro m h ealthy and bea utifu l condi

,

ti ons of life in the soci ety wh e re it arises M od e rn art he .

h eld to b e with a fe w e xce pti ons d e base d ; an d he grad ua lly

, ,

cam e to be li e v e th at this d e bas ement was du e to ou r com

m e rcial organiz atio n o f so ci e ty In two book s M u ncra .
,

P u lveri s and Unto Thi s La s t he pro tes ted against the ,

rece iv ed th eori es of p olitical econo my The ou tline of .

his tho u ght is i m p e rfectly fill ed in but the su b stan ce of ,

his teaching is th at e co n o mics mu st be look ed a t from

the standpoi nt of wh at doe s and wh at doe s no t con s ti tu te
”
tru e valu e that is of wh at does and wh at doe s no t con
, ,

tribute to the ulti ma te good of m an He i nclud es there .

,
“
f o re in his
, political e co nomy many d epa rtme n ts of
“
hu man eff ort no t i ncluded i n the pre viou s co mm ercial
e co nom y as he i nsists th at th e sc i e nc e o f the old e con
,

o m ists should b e call e d In thus broad e ni ng the b a sis of

.

d is cussi on and givi ng a ne w signific an ce to the te rm

,
”
valu e Ruski n did a real se rvice for the ec onomi c
,

th ought of the future .

His m ost popul ar boo k Sesame a nd Li lies was in part a

, ,

sid e product of his thi nki ng on political e conomy In the

-
.

“
first division O f the bo ok en titl ed K i ng s Treas urie s
,
”
he
’
,

holds up to ce nsure Engl and s absorpti o n in wor ldl y s uc ’

“
cess as oppo wd to spiritu al su ccess
, To the o
g ps e l of .
 TH E N I N ETEE NTH CE N TU RY

tt i n g o u which d ep ends for its app eali ng pow er upon

g e -
,
”
the id ea th at m oney co nstitutes the o nly r eal valu e he ,

o ppos e s the g osp el of spiritu al w ealth e sp e ci ally as d ep os ,

i te d in bo oks those K i ng s T reasuri e s which are the real

’

T he se con d p art Q u een s

’
c en tre of the real m of v alu e .
,
“
Gard e n ,
is Ruski n s contribution to the wo man prob
’

le m of the c entury the th e m e b ei n g the sam e as th at of

”
,

T ennyson s P ri ncess Sesame a nd Li li es is writt en i n a

’
.

style of wond e rf ul strength an d rich ness It aff ords per .

h aps th e b e st si ngl e e xam pl e of its author s mastery over ’

the m an i f old chords of pros e e xpre ssi on .

A s h e w ent on i n years Ruski n s sym p athy w e nt out m or e

’
,

and m ore to th e oppr e sse d and u n justly tre ate d of this w o rld

an d h e sp e n t a l arge p art of his ti m e an d e ne rgy m, m , ,

u m
as w ell as the bulk of his fortu ne in a tte m pti ng
'

t o h e lp th e w orki ng cl asse s by word and d e ed Af te r his .

r em oval in 1 8 72 to Brantw ood in Wordsworth s c oun try ,

’

a m ong the English l ak e s his chi e f co n ne cti on with the ou t

,

sid e w orld was through a se ri e s of l e tte rs to worki ng m e n -

,

e n titl e d F ors Clav igera whi ch con tai n som e of his rip est
,

t eaching as w ell as m u ch hu m oro us and sw ee t m i nde d

,
-

f a m ili ar t alk .In F ore Clav igera first app eare d his nu
t ob iography P rce teri ta wh e r e a d e lightf ully nai ve and
, , ,

ca ndid acc ou n t is give n of his b oyh oo d and youth He .

d i e d in 1 8 99 .

Ruski n combi ne d many gi f ts an d qu aliti es a subtl e in

te llect a n e rvous syst e m whi ch vibrat ed i n ten sely to im
,

r e s si on s of b e auty an d ugli n e ss gr e at m or al ardor m ark e d

p , ,

i m p ati e nce and dogm atis m an d a m arvellous pow er of ,

p ros e e xpr e s s io n His . styl e is b as e d on the

Hi s Sty l e
f h E
.

p r o s e o t e nglish Bibl e m odifi e d by the

,

re li gi ous write rs of the s e ve n t e e n th c e ntury e sp e ci ally ,

b y the fl orid styl e of J e rem y T ayl o r ; and it is enrich e d by

a u niqu e gi f t of d e scripti on lyrical in m ove m ent and
,

s p l e n did i n color His b e st d esc riptive p assage s for e x

.
,

a m ple the fam ous dithyram b on St Mark s c ath e dral in

’
.
34 0 A H I STO RY O F E N GLI SH LI T ERAT UR E

Stones V eni ce, th at on the Falls of Schafi hau se n in

f o ,

M odern P a i nters, or th at on the Rho ne at Ge ne v a in P rae ,

teri ta are am ong the c apital e xam pl e s of o rna t e prose in

,

E nglish . His styl e is as m arke dly ro man tic i n its emo ,

t ional qu ality and its search af te r b e auty as A rn old s is

’
,

classical in i ts sub ord ina ti on of em oti on to i nt e ll e ct and

, ,

in its eff ort to se cure cl ear ne ss at any cost .

In the u se to which he p u t his pow e rs Ruski n shows the ,

strong sociol ogical dri f t of the Vi ctori an e ra T he first .

h alf of his life was tak en up with the eff ort to vivi fy and
spi ritu aliz e the aesth e tic pe rceptions of his cou n try men ,

an effort p arall e l with th at of A rn old to co m b a t the

sl oth of th e ir i n tell e ct with th at of Carlyl e to m ake

,

m ore si nce re an d v ali an t th e ir p e rsonal ch a rac te r and ,

with th a t of N e w m an ( wh om we shall presen tly con sider)

to aro use th e i r r eligi o u s i m agi nati on T he l atte r h al f of
.

his li fe was ta ken up with a p rote st agai n st m od ern

civiliz ati on an d with a search af t e r so m e b e tt e r b asis of
,

s oci e ty th an the pre se nt c om m erci al one In st ead how .

,

e v e r of l ooki n g f orward f or this i d eal h e l ook e d b a ck ward ;

, ,

he b e li e v e d th at the o n ly s alvati on f or the world lay in a

r e v ersio n to m e di aevali sm or at l east to so m e feature s of
,

m e di aev alis m In this re sp e ct he connects hi m s e l f n o t only

.

with the gen e ral stre am of romanti c th ou ght but es p e cially ,

with the great religi ou s m ove m en t of the secon d qu a rte r of

the c e n tury k n own as the
, T ract ari an or O xf ord
M o ve m e n t ”
.

T he O xford Mov e m en t the e ff e ct of which on A rn old

,

ha s b e en already n oted c on stitu te s one of the m os t i n t e r

,

e sti n g ch apte rs i n th e Spirit u al hist ory o f the

T h O f ord
e x
M ° °ment
V °
c entu ry It was a con certe d at te m pt o n the
.

p art of a f e w y o u ng O xfo rd m en rs enfo rce d l a t e r by

,
-

n u m e rou s adh e r e n ts to re clai m the Church of E n gland

,

f ro m the t or por an d d e ad n e ss i n t o which it had fall e n and ,

to gi ve it on c e m o re th e poe try the m y s tic sy m b oli sm a nd

, ,

the spirit u al ch arm which had ch aracte riz e d the C a tholi c

,
34 2 A H I STO RY O F E N GLI SH LI TE RAT U RE

Ne wm an s prose styl e is ch aracte riz ed at its be st by an

’

u n obt rusive disti ncti on and by a ki nd of a eri al tran spar

,
’
Neww »
e e n cy in co m p a ri so n with which e v e n A rn old s
P m“ Sty “
prose app ears slightly d en s e Alth ough A rnold s .
’

m ean i ng is always p e rfectly cl e ar it r e ach e s us so to sp eak, , ,

th ro u gh a re sisti ng m ediu m we are c on scious of his m an

ner . N e w m an it m ay al m ost b e said has n o m ann e r or
, , ,

at l eas t his m ann e r is so com pl e t ely one with his m atter

th at it p asse s u n obs e rve d ; his words conve y h is m e ani ng

as e th e r c on v e ys light If Arnold is as cl ear as crystal
.
,

N e w m an is as cl ear as m ou ntain air T his qu ality o f style -

.
,

by vi rt u e of which it i ncorp orate s itse lf in m e ani n g and ,

be com es as it w e re i nvisibl e is the high est attai nabl e qu al

, , ,

ity an d N e w m an in ce rtai n passage s e sp e ci ally of his

,

Ap ologi a a nd his I dea of a Uni v ersi ty has p e rh a p s co me ,

ne are r th an any p ros e writ e r of this c e nt u ry in E n gl and

-
,

to the typ e of p e rfect prose .

N e wm an was a write r al m ost by ac cid ent H e was e ssen .

tially a le ad e r of m en an e ccl e si asti cal pri n ce wh o used

, ,

lite ratu re as an i n stru m ent of his rul e B u t he was also a .

m ystic and a p oe t gif ted with a lite rary powe r of th e m os t

,

m Infl ence
8 u
wi n n i n g an d m a g n e tic ki n d His i n flu e n ce .

iie R
L
iiiiiii u p on pur e lite ra t u r e has th e ref ore b ee n great
e r
.
I -

“ fi t“ His m e di aeval c ast of m i nd his p assi on a te per ,

ce p ti on of the b e a uty of the sy m b olis m e m bodi ed i n the

m e di aeval ch u rc h u nit e d with Ru ski n s de voti on to m e di

’
,

eev al art to i n fl u enc e a r e m ark abl e g ro u p of you n g p a i n te rs

a n d p oe ts k n own as the
, P re rap hae lites T he Pre .

raph aelite m ovem ent was in its e ss en ce an atte m pt to

re spi ritu aliz e art and po e try ki nd re d with the at te m pt ,
”
of the O x ford m o ve m ent to re spiritu aliz e the E nglish
ch u rc h .

T he Pre raphael ite Broth e rhood was strictly no t a l it

e rary b u t an arti stic organ iz ati on c on sisti n g of a n u m b e r
, ,

of yo u ng p ai n t e r s and sculpt o rs b an d e d t og e th e r f or t he

a vow e d pu rp ose o f re dee m i ng E nglish art f ro m co nv e n tio n

 TH E N I N ETEE N TH C ENT U RY 343

ali ty and of recalling i t to nature Th ey took as th e ir

, .

m od els those e arly Itali an p ain t e rs pre c e di ng Raph ae l who ,

h ad tr eate d the m ost m ystic al of religi ous th e m e s with

si m ple h earted r ealism F or su bj ects th e Pre
-

T he mm h
.

raph aelite s wen t back to the Middle Ag es and ael it e Ma is: ,

v
men”
th e ir w ork took on the m ystical alle gorical and
, ,

re ligi ou s ch aracte r i ns ep arabl e from m e di aeval th ought .

A ki nd of nai ve e arne stn e ss and si m plicity of tre atme n t ,

with a m ystical and i ntangibl e p oe t ry of c on ception w e re ,

the dom i nan t q u aliti e s in the wo rk of th e se y ou ng en thu si

asts who t ook th e ir m issi on v e ry s e riously as a
, holy war
,
”
an d crusad e agai nst the age .S ev e ral m em bers of the
Broth e rhood w ere poets as well as p ainte rs and sculpto rs ;
and th e re gr e w out of the artistic m ov e m ent a lite rary

on e which fou nd its fi rst e xpr e ssion in a littl e m agazi ne

,
”
calle d T he Germ publis he d for a Short tim e duri ng
,

1 850 . In T he Ge r m app eare d the e arly work of two

po e ts who be st represent this p e culi ar renaissance of n ine

te en th c entury p o e try Dan te Gabri e l Rosse tti and Willi am
,

Mo rris .

Dan te Gabri e l Rosse tti was born in Lon don i n 1 828 His .

fa th e r was an Itali an patriot who had tak en r efuge in Eng

land f ro m p olitical p e rs ecuti on his m oth e r
Rom tfi m
wa s of m ixe d Itali an and English bl ood Dante i th
Lliy "7
.

'

Gabri el was the elde st of four child re n of wh om ,

two oth e rs attai ne d disti ncti on in literature Willi am

M ich ae l as a critic Christi na as a lyrical po e t gi fte d b e
, ,

yond any E nglish woman e x cept Mrs Brow ni ng with the .

po e tic i nstin ct and outranki ng ev en her in delicate and

,

spontaneous m elody A t n i ne teen Rossetti ad opte d the

.

c aree r of p ai nter ; and a year l ate r he wrote the po em

whic h p e rh aps b est illustrat e s the Pre raphael ite m ove me nt
”
on its lite rary side , The Bl esse d Dam osel .

The Bl e sse d Dam os el w eari ng the white rose of Mary s

,
’

” “
g i f t
, an d h oldi n g th e m ystic lili e s l ea,n s f rom t h e gold
b ar of Heaven y earning f or her e arthly love r and pict
,
”
,
34 4 A HI STO RY os EN GLI SH LI TE RATURE

u ri ng to h erself the ti me wh en she shall l ead him with

her am ong the c e l e sti al gr ov e s and by the livi ng wa te rs
T he B l e ed of God
ss T he sights and s ou nd s o f H e av e n
.

are i m age d f orth in the po e m with a co n cre te

ne ss which w ould b e st artl i ng if it w e r e n o t so sol e m n iz e d

by spiritu al m ean ing and so fre ighte d with spiritu al awe

, .

F ro m ti m e to ti m e as the po e m progre ss e s ou r m i n ds are

, ,

l e d ou t from am ong the shad owy l andscap es an d th e i n

dw elli ng spirits of Paradise d own thr ou gh illim itab l e star
,

sp aces to wh e re upon e arth the l ov e r sits h ea ri ng in the

, ,

a ut u m nal r u stl e of the l eav e s the f e et of his b elov ed as ,

she tri e s to r each him down th e e choi ng sta irs of th e sky .

Be sides the t ou chi ng em otion of the p oem the wo n d e rful ,

b ea uty and reach of its i m agery it has a m el o dy swee te r ,

and m ore s ensitiv e th an Ro sse tti e ve r atta ine d af te rw ard .

The u n io n of si m plicity and concre tene ss with spiritu

ality which m ak e s this po e m typical of the Pre ra h aelite
, p
ai m s in b oth p oe try an d p ai nti ng app ears e qu ally i n an ,

oth e r early po em of Rosse tti s My Si ste r s Sl ee p

’
,
”
The
’
.

strai ne d still ne ss an d s u sp ense of a d ea th cha m b e r the -

,

angu i sh and h oly fortitud e of a m oth er i n the pr e s e n ce of

her l oss are giv e n with a p assio nate r e serv e an d a te nd e r

,

reali sm w hich m ak e this the s e c on d if not the first of , ,

Rosse tti s p oe m s In c onnection with th e se e arly pi e c e s

’
.
,

“ ”
shou ld b e r e ad T he Portrait a love p oe m o f Ross e tti s
’
,

late r y ears w he re we see the hu m an h eart of th e p o e t

,

on ce m o re a t its st ronge st an d sw e e te st .

A con sid e rabl e p o rti on of Rosse tti s v e rse was writt e n i n

’

his e arl y li fe b u t only a f e w p oe m s we re th e n p u bli sh e d

, .

In h is thi rty s econ d y e ar he m arri ed a M i ss

Li fe
-
Lat e,
nd P°°W
a
Sid dall wh ose rare typ e of b eauty he h as i m
,

m ort aliz e d in the b e st k n own of his pictur e s the B ea ts ,

”
B eat rix .T wo y e ars af ter the m arri age his wi fe d ie d ; ,

an d in d e sp ai r at his l oss Ros se tti pl ac e d in he r cofii n

,

all his u np u bli sh e d w riti ngs T he y re m ai ne d buri e d u nti l

.

1 869 wh en th ey w ere e xhu m e d by his f ri ends an d pub

, ,
34 6 A HI STO RY or EN GLISH LITERATURE

d eali ng with the poe t s lo ve-his to ry and loss The lan ’

.

gua ge and the i mage ry are h e re m ore e laborate than in

R o s tti s rli r work h m u i c m r
’
m m s e e a e and t e s o e con ,
Lm ‘

scio u s and artf ul We m iss in The Hou se of Life.

the spo ntane ity and si mpl e cha rm o f the ea rly lyrics ,

tho ugh in re co m pense we gain the pl eas ure whi ch co mes

f ro m hea ri ng a co m pl e x m usi cal instru ment playe d wi th
ma ture mas te rship .

As a wh ol e Ro s se tti s poe try is mark e d by great p ictu

’
,
“ ” ’
re sq u e ness an d vis u al bea u ty It is pa i nte r s poe try in
.
,

tha t its ap peal is co nstantly to the eye Mu sic it has too .

,

but the te nd e ncy to l oad itse lf wi th elaborate d e tail o ften

d efea ts the music and m ak es of the ve rse a ki nd of poe t
,

ical ta pes try stifi with em bl azo ned i mages Whe re i t is

,
.

no t the poe try of a pai n te r it is the poe try of a priso ner

a nd a reclu se O utd oo r na ture the co mmo n life of men

. , ,

a p pe a r in it se ldom In the main i ts atm osphe r e is c lose

. ,

a nd h eavily pe rfu med i ts e mo tion so m e wha t m orb id and

,

cloyi ng It is the poe try of a nature born for the generous

.

su nlight and color of I taly and co mpe lled to b u ild a ,

dre am world amid the ch ill fog and bitte r smo ke of

-

London .

Will iam Morris di spl ays much more complete ly than ,

Ro sse tti the re ve rsi on to the Middl e Ages whi ch c harac

,

te rize d the P re raphae l ite group of poe ts and

pai nte rs ; though his work is l acki ng in the
mystic is m and spiri tu al gra ce whi ch is th e ir se cond great
p ecul iarity Morris was born in 1 834 , and his you th was
.

spen t at Waltham stow on the borde rs of Epp ing F ormt , ,

the ta ngl e d glad e s and rough hornbeam thickm of which,

in pla ce s th e n al mos t as pri m e val as i n Robin Hood s dt y ’
,

may hav e had so me thi ng to do with d e te rm inin g the

ro mantic b ent of his mi nd He we nt u p to O xford af te r .

the neo ca tholic m o ve men t u nd e r Ke bl e and N e wma n

-

was ove r but whil e the e xcite men t p roduce d by i t was

,

st ill in the air The ten d ency cd this mo vement to throw

.
 THE N I N ETEE N TH C ENTU RY 34 ?

the m i nd back up on m edi aeval m od e s of thou ght and feel

i ng falli ng in with M orris s nativ e sym p ath i es an d re i n
’
a
,

f or ce d by his acq u ai ntan ce ship with Rosse tti d e t er m i ne d ,

the ch arac te r of his fi rst volu me of ve rse The ,

T he Do .

D ef ence of Gu enevere In this v olu m e m any

2
513 032”
. 1 ,

ph ases of m e di aev alis m are touch e d up on with

p ower : the j oyous adventurousness of the k nightly life
fi nd s a bright cel ebrati on in T he Day b efore Cre cy
“
and T he Gillifiower of Gold in T he H aystack i n
t he F loods and Sh am eful Death are pictured the
d ark e r side s of m edi aev al e xiste nce its vi ol e nce and te r ,

ribl e fe rocity in T he S aili ng of the Sword and T he

Inc Cl os e t sti ll oth er asp e cts m ore pur ely picture squ e
,

an d fan ci ful are giv en with a r apid and b rilli an t t ou ch

, .

In his thirty third year

-
M orri s p u blish e d a l ong
n a rra tive p oe m The Life a nd D ea th of J a son
, H ere he .

w ent b ack to anci en t Gree ce for his story b u t his treatm en t

o f his th e m e is tho roughly m e di aev al an d the p oe m is writ ,

te n i a the same ki n d of di ff use s of t c ol or e d g ently fi ow,

-
,

i n g ve rse in whi ch the N orm an F rench trou v éres had su ng-

th e i nte rmi nabl e adv e nt u r e s of th e ir kn ights and p al adi n s .

T hree y ears l at e r in 1 8 70 app eare d Mo rris s m asterpi e ce

’
, , ,

The E a rthly P a ra di se a c oll e cti on of v erse

,
T h0
n a rrat i ve s h e ld t og e th e r by an i ngen i ous sch e m e
3231530
1 ,

an al ogous to th at which C h auc e r use d in bi nd

i n g toge th e r his Can te rbury T al e s A b and of N orth men .

,

sa ili ng w estward in th e ir viking ships are cast ashore u pon ,

t h e island of A tl anti s th e earthly p aradise of which the

,

G ree k poe ts dream e d H e re th e y fi nd dwelli ng a fortu nate

.

race of m e n who in ti m es lo ng p ast h av e co m e hith e r

,

f r o m Gree c e and Asi a M i nor The ne w com ers r e m a i n

.
-

through the ch angi ng s easons of a year telli ng stori es of ,

t h e ir n orth ern land and list en i ng to the tal e s which the

,

island e rs h av e bro u ght from th e ir anci en t hom e What .

e v e r are th e source s of the stori e s wh e th e r cl assical w e st , ,

e rn, north e rn or ori en ta l the styl e in which th ey are

, ,
34 8 A H I STO RY or E N GLI SH LI TE RATURE

written is always th at of the mediaav al romances ; even the

m e tres employe d are thos e fam ili ar to Ch auce r an d the
F r en ch trou v éres The E a rthly P a rad i se is th e wo rk of a
.

born tell e r of stori es for the story s sak e ; and it is to be

’

e n joy e d v e ry si m ply with the s ame child lik ene ss o f i nte r

,
-

e st which w e n t to its m aki ng .

Duri ng his l ater li fe Morris was de eply intere sted in Ice

l au di e m yth an d l egend He transl ate d the saga of V olsu ng
.
,

the gr eat est of n orth e rn stori e s in a pse udo arch ai c diction

,
-

of his own co n triv an c e He also e mployed this curious

.

styl e of spee ch in a long s eri es of prose roman ce s d ealing -

,

with the pri m itive life of our north e rn anc estors the most
p m“ ,
n ot abl e are p e rh aps Zh e H ou se o f the W olfi g
n s ,

The Roots of the M ou ntai ns and The Story of ,

the Gli tteri ng P lai n In th e m he succee d ed in im portn

.

i nto English lite rature the spirit of the north e rn saga not , ,

to b e sur e without som e artifi ciality but ne ve rth e l es s with

, ,

gre at pictu resqu eness and rom antic ch ar m .

Lite r atu re was with Mo rris only one o f man y activities .

His was a li fe of c easel ess l abor in m any fi elds o f i ndus

try . He b egan life as an archite ct aban done d this ca reer
,

f or p ai nti ng dri f t ed at l ength i nto the d e sign

,
M o ie s
rr
’

m g and m anu factur i ng of f urni ture wall paper ,

-
,

an d t e xtil e fabrics and tow ard the clo se of his

,

life turned his e xh austl e ss en ergy i n to artistic pri nti ng

an d book bi n di ng
-
He work ed always in the spiri t of a
.

m e di aev al m ast e r craftsm an to who m b eauty and hone sty

-
,

of work m an ship w e r e a r eligio n Hi s si nc e rity v e rsa tility

.
, ,

an d skill m ad e an epoch in the history of house hold d e co

ration and as the i m pulse giv en by him has broad e ne d and

p opu larize d itself the surroundings of ordinary domes tic
,

life h ave b een b eau tifi ed for m ultitud es .

M orris s i ndustri al e xp e ri enc e s gradu ally led hi m to the

’

co nviction th at the bas e s of m od ern co mmercial is m were

false and he thr ew hi m self with heart and soul i n to the
,

so ci alistic m ovement th en b egi nni ng to gai n h ea d way in

35 0 A H ISTO RY O F E N GLI SH LIT ERA T URE

i te pe rc eption of the beauty path os child life B e

and of -
.

sid es his volu mi nous lyrical work he has e ssaye d e pic na r ,

re tive in Tri s tra m of Ly onesse and he has prod u ced a

n u mb e r of dramas so m e lik e Uhas tela rd and M a ri na
, ,

Fa li ero be i ng studi e s in the Eli za be than mann e r o the rs

, , ,

as A ta la nta i n Ca lydon an d E rechtheu s be i ng written ,

on the Gree k m od el .

Whate ve r may be the i n tellec tu al or m oral valu e of Swin

burne s poe try it is certain th at as a techn ical m a ste r of
’
,

m y” v e rse as a m us ic i
,an in word s he is v e ry gr e a,t .

W ‘

E spe cially in the m ore rap id and i m pe tu ous

rhyth ms he has shown hi mse lf able to push ou t th e bo un
d ari es of his art and to e nte r re gio ns of v e rse m u s ic un
,
-

”
known b e fore For a uni on of spl endor and spe e d his
.

poe tic styl e is u ne qu all ed by any oth e r poe t of th e Victo

ri an age His faults are those of man ne rism and d e vica
.

O f d ifi u se ne ss and o v e r ornam e n ta ti on-

of a te n d e n cy to
,

cloth e trivial thoughts in swee p i ng and resou nding phrase .

H is e xcellences are p re sent in the high est d e gree and ,

his faults almost abse nt in his mas terpi ece A ta lanta i n

, ,

Atalanta Ca ly don which ranks al m ost o n a l e ve l

"
i n Cal y dcn
with the Samson Agoni stcs of Mi l to n as an a t
.

t e m pt to give in English v e rse the essential form and spirit

of Gr e e k drama T he subj ect of Swi nbu rne s poem is
’
.

the hu nti ng of the wild boa r in Caly d o n the lov e of Me ,

l ea ge r fo r the maid en hu ntress Atala nta and his d ea t h a t

-
,

the h ands of his m oth e r T he actio n mo ves wi th s ta te ly

.

swif tn ess in obe di e nce to the strict canons of Gree k form

,

the p a thos is d ee p and ge nui ne and the m usic e specially ,

i n the ch o ru se s is spl e ndid i n rang e and swee p

, .

Swi nburne is the l as t o f the Victori an pos ts the latest ,

su rvivor of the e ra which be gan with the appearan ce of

T e nnyso n and Brown i ng in the third d e cad e o f the cen
tu ry As we l oo k back ove r the poe try of this era and
.
,

indee d ove r the poe try of the whole ni ne teen th cen tu ry .

we observe in i t an overwh el ming pre po nde rance of the

 TH E N I N ETE EN TH C E N T URY 35 1

lyric and the narrative ov er the dram atic f orm A t the .

sam e ti m e we cannot fail to b e i mpre ssed by the fact th at

the po ets of the c en tury h av e m ad e conti nu al e ff o rts to
re clai m the drama for poe tic uses Word swor th and Cole .

ridge both m ad e e ssays in the dram atic form ; Sh elle y s ’

Cenci and By ro n s M a nf red are am ong th e ir m o st s e ri o u s

’

e ff orts K e ats was e ngag e d upo n a dram a at the ti m e of

his d eath ; T ennyso n de voted nearly twe nty y ears of his
li fe to dram atic writi ng Brow n i ng m ad e re peate d e xpe ri
m en ts in the dramati c for m som e of t he m of the gre ate s t
,

n ov elty and sugge stiv ene ss finally Swi nburne has re t u rne d
,

aga i n and ag ai n to the dr am a u n til far the l arg e r bulk of

,

his work is in th at me diu m Y et all th ese a tt em pts wh e n

.
,

co nsid e red fro m an absolute poi nt of vi ew m ust b e d ee m e d ,

failur e s. T he pl ac e which dram a naturally cl ai m s has b e e n

usurp e d by prose ficti on T he f u n d am e n tal t em p e r of the
.

century and its chief intell e ctu al i nte rests h ave m ad e

, ,

a gai n st the eff ort to li f t dram a to its old p o sitio n as the ,

grea t popul ar e xponent of hu m an life .

N e ve rth e l e ss th at positi on is one which it m ust u l ti

,

m at e ly agai n assu me ; f or the dram a is by i ts nat u re the

m ost vital and powe rf ul i n stru m en t at the di sp os al of the
work e r in i m agi nativ e m atte r Du ri ng the l ast twe n ty
.

y ears of the ni neteenth century m oreov er signs h ave not

, ,

b ee n lacki ng th at the e ve r b affl ed and e v e r rene we d s trug

- -

g le o f th e l a st hu n dre d y ears to cr e a t e a n e w p o e tic dr am a ,

has b een f ull of si gnific anc e f or the f ut u re T h e re are .

good grou n ds for b eli e vi ng th at the cou rse of p oe try in the

n e xt h al f c entury will b e in a dram atic dir e ctio n ; and th a t
-

the ten tativ e e xp e ri m en ts of the l ast two g ene ratio ns to ,

ward the presentati on O f m od e rn life and tho u ght in the

n oble st of lite rary form s will b ear f ruit in acco m plish m e n t
, .

Whil e tracing ,
in
this ch apte r and th e pre c eding the ,

lite rary history of the ni ne te enth ce ntury we h ave om itte d ,

all b u t c asu al m en tio n of th at f orm of literature which has

 A H I STO R Y O F EN GLI SH LI TERATURE

bee n most pop ul ar, m os t widely cul ti vated , and

rh aps
p e

most i nfl u ential of all —the nove l . We m u s t now re trace

ou r steps tak e up the n ove l as it was h an de d on fr o m the
,

e ightee n th c entury an d co ns ide r i ts manifold de vel op ment

,

d uring the las t hu ndred years .

3 54 A H I STO RY O E E NGLI SH LITERAT UR E

th e m As the nov el has thus gai ned in gene ral scope the
.
,

th ree d e part men ts of fictio n h ave lost in l arge measure

th e ir exclusive ch aracte r T he ro mance r in usi ng ma te
.
,

rial gathe red in study or tra vel has co me to ha v e so me

,

thi ng of the conscie ntiousn es s of the realist T he reali st .

has f ou nd ro mantic poss ibiliti es in actu al lif e ; t he ad vance

o f sci e nce l eadi n g to sta rtli ng d iscov eri es in the physi cal
,

an d me n tal worl d has given him means of a rou si ng

,

wo nd e r and te rror more e ff ectiv e t han th o se aff ord ed by

,

gothic machi ne ry And fi nally the nove list wi th a p urpose

.

has f ou nd in the realistic pict u re o f thi ngs as th e y are ,

o ne of th e mos t pote nt f orce s of re volutio n .

T he wor k of Miss Edge worth ( 1 767 1 84 9) f orms an in -

te restn li nk be tw ee n the nove l of the ei gh te en th ce ntury

Ha la nd go
r
and th a t of the ni ne te en th S h
.e was a f ollow er
worth .
of M iss Burne y i n the e ff o rt to pai nt co nte m

p ora ry s o ci e ty L ik e
. h er p re d e c e ss or sh e sh
, a re d i n the
ra the r sh allow soc ial purp ose of the e igh te en th cen tu r
y;
he r ge ne ral aim as se t f orth in the in trod u ction to he r
,
“
nove l P atronage the i nculca ti on Of si mplici ty and mo~
,
”
rality in an arti fici al and reckl essly f rivolous age is one ,

which A ddiso n wo u ld ha v e applaud ed But her pu rpose .

is ofte n more d efini te than this ; and in se v e ral pa rtic u lars

he r work suggests the cou rse which the nov el was to tak e
i n the future He r lo ng resi d ence i n Ire land i n te res ted
.

he r i n soci al co nditio ns i n th at island and she wrote e ar

,
»

nes tly to im prove th e m The A bsentee is bo th a sa ti re

.

aga in st t he Iri sh la ndlord who rui ns hi msel f in Lo nd on

socie ty and a mo vi ng picture of the e vils which his folly

,

bri ngs on his native l and In Irel and too Mm Edge

'

.
, ,

w orth had an opp o rtu nity to stu dy lif e in what to her read
e rs w e re re m ote co nd itio ns H er fi rst and best sto ry the
.
,

lit tl e mas te rpi ece call ed Cas tle B a ckres t is the

acco u nt o f the for tu nes o f a deca ying family as see n throu h , g
the shre wd e yes and told by the wi tty Iris h tongu e of an
o ld se rvant It has the dis ti nctio n of ha ving suggested
.
 TH E N I N ETEEN TH CEN TURY 3 55

to Sir Walter Scott tha t tru e local color could b e mad e

as e ff e ctive 9 b ackgrou n d as false and th a t the ro m an tic
.
,

in tere st could be u nited with an eff ort to portray life as it is .

T he wid e rang e of M iss E dge worth s work e m ph asiz e s

’

by co ntrast the narro w field occupi ed by J ane A ust en

( 1 77 5 whos e n ov e ls d e al with li f e i n the cou n try ,

wh e re the traditio ns of the eighte enth cen tury l ingere d

u ndistu rbe d In M iss A usten s case as earli er in F i eld
.
’
,

i ng s an d l ater i n T h ack e ray s the re alistic im p ulse was in

’ ’
,

p art a reaction f rom rom antic or s en time ntal vi ews of l ife ,

a nd first e x pre sse d its el f as burl e s q u e T wo of he r early .

stori e s N ortha ny er A bbey and Sense a nd Sensi bili ty she

, ,

w rote with the obvious purpose of opposing to

Jane Austen .

the i m possibl e situ atio ns and s trai ne d e m otions

of M rs Radcli ff e and h er school a hu m orously sensibl e
.
,

picture of li fe and lov e as th ey are F ro m the outs e t M iss .

A usten li m ite d he r vi e w to the world th at she k new an d ,

the i nflu e nc e s that she saw at wo rk She was the d aughter .

of a cl e rgy m an and e xc ept f or an occ as io nal visit to a

,

wateri ng plac e like Bath or Lym e she sp ent her youth in

-
,

a cou ntry p arish Her acqu ai n tanc e i n clude d cou n try fam
.

il ie s cl e rgym e n and naval offi cers

,
— ,for her broth ers w e re ,

i n the navy T he c hi ef business of th ese p e opl e as M i ss

.
,

A usten saw th e m was a tt en tio n to soci al duti e s and t h e ir

,

chi ef i nte rest was matri m o ny T his world M iss Au ste n .

re prese n ts in her n ov els ; outsid e of it she ne ve r ste ps .

A nd e ven in this p e tty world she tak es accou n t chi efly

O f its p e tti ne ss T he great thi ngs of li fe p assio n and
.
,

m oral purpose t he i n te re sts of the artist the lover the

, , ,

sai nt may as we ll be pre sente d on a s mall stage as on a

,

la rge one as w ell am id the soci e ty of a cath ed ral city as in

,

Lo ndon but th e se thi ngs did not en t er i nto M iss A uste n s

’

e xp e ri e nc e an d she had n o gr e a t i nsight or i magi na tive

,

sy m p athy to c arry he r b eyond her own O bse rvatio n T h ere .

is scarce ly any fe eli ng for e xternal nature in he r stori es ,

exce p t in P ersu as ion the la test of th em , T here is .

356 A H ISTO RY O F EN GLISH LI TERATURE

littl e p assion ; the langu age of emotion is u su ally f orce d

an d co n v entional S ense is the fou nd ation on which
.

”
e ve rythi ng good m ay b e b as e d she say s in ,

Sense a nd Sensi bi li ty Her vi ew of e v il is

.

supe rfi cial for her attitude of satiric O bservation left her

,

i nsensitiv e to the significance of moral eff ort O ne sus .

p e cts th at h e r e sti m a t e O f lif e w as no t v e ry difi e ren t f ro m

th at e xpr essed by Mr B ennet in P ri de a nd P rej u di ce
.

F or wh at do we live but to m ake sport for ou r n e igh

bors and to laugh at th e m in our turn
But if her range was thus li mite d withi n it sh e was ,

suprem e Absolutely s u re of her mate rial u ndistracte d by

.
,

m, e xt e r na l i n te r e sts sh e wrote with a s i ngular

,
E m m
f ree do m fro m u nc e rtai nty and her n ove ls h ave
‘ '

in cons equ en c e an e xactn ess of structu re and a sy mme try

,

of form which are to b e f ou n d m or e of ten in F re n ch lit .

eratu re th an in E nglish O f this pre cision P ri de a nd

.

P rej u di ce is an ad mir abl e e x am pl e Th ere the plot is the.

chi ef interest ; simpl e but p ervadi ng the entire boo k con

,

trolling e very i ncid ent but itself dep endi ng for i ts out
,

co m e upon the d evelopm e nt or re vel ation of the p rincip al

ch aracters Surroun di ng th e se ch aracters is th e world
.

of provinci al folk which M iss Aust en h andl e d wi th such

n —
brillia cy cynical Mr B enne t and his fatuou s wife ;
, .

Mary B enne t the p edant and Lydia the fl irt ; M r C ol

, , , .

li ns the typ e of pre ten tio u s conce it and Sir Willi am

, ,

Luc as of feeble dulne ss

,
Th ese hu mors M iss A uste n
.

d e v elops chi efly in sp eech by her wond erful faculty of say ,

i ng the thi ng th at b e longs to the ch aract er a t the m o

m en t N ot o nly is the prop e r senti ment cau ght but the
.
,

turn of phrase the m anne r al m ost the modul a ti on of

, ,

the voice And not only is this tru e of the li m ite d

.

ch aracte rs who react always in the sam e way ; b u t also

i n the sust ai ne d sc ene s b e tw een the m ore d e ve lop e d p e r
s o ns whe re the dialogu e is m ore highly ch arged M iss
, ,

Austen shows dramatic pow e r of the high est or de r O ne .

358 A H I STO RY O E E N GLI SH LI TE RATU RE

Scott s li fe was a blendi ng of the old and the n ew He

’
.

trie d to b e b oth a feudal l ord and a m od e rn busi ne ss m an ,

and b oth atte mpts are curiously co nne ct e d with his lit e r

ary ca r ee r H e wrote p artly for the pl easure of cr ea ti ng

.

i n ficti on the fe udal id eal th at he sought to realiz e i n his

li fe at Abbotsford p artly f or the m one y with which to
,

s u sta i n th at e xp e ri m e nt Part of his succe ss i n his own day

.

m us t b e accou nt e d f or by the f act that his vita l i n te re sts

w ere those which his fell ow m en co u ld co m preh e nd Scott -
.

w as n ot a ro m an ticis t in the se ns e i n which

Scott “
“m m ‘s“ Col eridge was or Sh ell ey
u
He did n ot d e sire .
,

spiritu al freedo m he was not co nsci ous O f the tramm e ls of

an ord e red c on v e n ti onal li fe
, he had no dislik e of the
p olitical and s oci al wo rld as it e xist ed no l eanin gs tow ard ,

re v oluti on But on the other h and he had in his blo o d an

.
,

ard en t l ov e f or Sc o tland an d an i n ti mate sy m p athy with

,

Sc otch m en he had too a fasci nate d v ie w toward the p ast

, , .

T hus he r epre sen te d the si mpl e p er m anent e l e me nts of ro ,

m an ticis m the e l e m en ts which his public w e re pre p a re d to

,

a cc e pt ; an d th u s to an audi e nc e which n e gl e cte d Wo rds

worth and fi ou ted Sh e ll ey Scott b ecam e the proph e t of a ,

ne w lit e r ary fa ith .

His nativ e l and and its p e ople Scott l earne d to k n ow at

first hand in his frequ ent j ourneys through the B orde r
,

Co u n try an d the Highl an ds H e was the first B ritish .

nov elist to m ak e a b ackgrou nd actu ally st u di e d f ro m nat

3 8 08 3 0,
1
u re a p e rv adi ng an d e ssen ti al e l e m e nt i n his
scen° °
work His d e scription s of scene ry are it is
.
,

tru e O ld fashio ned in m e thod u nreaso nably long and f ull

,
-
,

of d e t ail ; but th e y h av e an e xa ct and vivid r e alis m th a t

goe s far to re ward the read e r s p ati ence M ore ove r the ’
.
,

f re qu ency with which the pl ac e d e term i ne s the event

shows th at in Scott s d rama sc ene was a vital el ement
’
,

n ot a me r e d e cora tiv e drop cur ta i n which i nt e rr u pts the -

actio n .

’
The natu ral b ackgrou nd in Scott s w o rk is howe ve r le ss , ,
 TH E N I N ETEE N TH C E N TURY 35 9

wond erf ul than the hum an It is not eworthy th at eve n as

.
,

early as Wa ver ley his first nov e l Scott re cog niz e d his chi ef
, ,

strength to lie in his k n owl edge of Scotch typ e s Af te r .

so me h esi tation at t he outset of the story he starts his ,

h e ro for Scotl and and plu nges hi m into a s o ci e ty com

,

p o se d Of B aron B radwardin e Laird B al mawh apple an d

, ,

B ailli e Macwh eeb le with David Gellatley and O ld J ane t

,

f or d e p en d en ts
. T h e se loc al typ es which Sc o tt m,,

dre w so abu nd an tly are treate d broadly for the

,

hu m or and the path os of hu m anity warp e d by circu m

stan c es into a hu ndred fantastic form s but c ap able of ,

so m e ti mes throwi ng itself i n to an attitud e O f no bl e disin

tereste dne ss of dign ifi e d en duran c e or of tragic d espair
, , .

Wh en the historic drama of the risi ng of 1 74 5 which draws ,

Wav erl ey i nto its swee p has pl ay ed itself out and the p al e
, ,

love story has b een tamely conclud ed the fig u re th at re ,

mai ns with u s as we close the bo ok is th at of E van Dhu , ,

the hu mbl e fo llow e r of the Highl and chi ef Vich Ian Vohr ,

standi ng at the cond emnation Of his maste r and pl edging ,

hi m sel f and six of the cl an to die in his stead If the .

”
S a xo n gentlemen are l aughi ng he said b ecause a poor
, ,

m an such as me thi nks m y li fe or the li fe of six of my

, ,

d egre e is worth th at of Vich Ian Vohr it s like e nough ,

’

th ey may be v e ry right ; but if th e y lau gh b e cause th ey

thi nk I would n ot k eep my word and co m e b ack to re ,

de e m him th ey k en neith er the h eart of a H ielan dman

, ,
”
nor the ho nour of a gen tl e m an A m ong s u ch type s as
.

’
th e se we look for Scott s greate st ch aracte rs : E di e O chil
tre e i n The A nti q u a ry B ailli e J arvi e in R ob Roy Pe te r
, ,

Pe e ble s in Redya u ntlet and m any m ore who sta n d out

,

fr om the n ov e ls as co m pl e te and substantiv e figure s in

which the race of Scotch men has e xpresse d itself f ore v er .

O n ly onc e ho we v e r did Scott trust e n tirely to th i s ele

, ,

m e nt of nativ e stre ngth In T he H eart of M id lothi a n he

.
,

disp ense s altoge th er with the aristocratic h eroi ne throws ,

as id e the con v e ntio nal plot and giv es us i n stead the stor
, y
3 60 A H I STO RY O E EN GLI SH LI TE RATU RE

of J eanie Deans, one Of the m ost hu manly mo v i ng to be

f ou n d i n all ficti on .

It is m oreove r f rom local typ es which he k ne w that

, , ,

Scott d erive s his m ost i mpressive app eals to th e s e n se of

terror an d mystery already awak ened i n the readi ng public
,

by the go thic ro m anc e rs The fan tastic figure s which start

.

o u t of the b ackgrou nd M adge Wildfire in The H ea rt o, f

M i dlothi a n M eg M e rril ies i n Gu y M a nneri ng and N orna
, ,

of the F itf ul H ead in The P i ra te co nst it u te far m or e pow ,

e rf u l ro m antic e l e m e nts th an are aff ord e d by his ra th er

ti m id u se o f the sup ernatural .

T he m ate rial which Scott gai ned a t fi rst h an d f ro m the

Scotland of his o wn day he suppl em ent ed by a v e ry dili ,

gent and hu man if so m e wh at u nscientific an tiqu ari anis m

, , .

In his childh ood he d elighte d to h e ar of the p as t f ro m sur

v iv ors of it O f his m o th e r s co nve rsatio n he wrot e If I
’
.
,

me Lo e of
v h a v e b e e n a bl e to do a n ythi n g i n th e way of
t he P st
a '

p ai n ti ng the p ast ti me s it is ve ry m uch f ro m the

”
studi e s with which she pres ente d m e La te r he dre w on
.

O ld books and l e tte rs to supply wh at was l acki ng i n p er

sonal traditio n Such i nte rcou rse with the p ast wid e ned
.

his k nowl e dge of m en and gav e him material f or his his

,

torical portraits It also pro vid ed him with m an y of those

.

i ncid en ts by m eans of which he gives to a characte r or to

,

a sc en e i ts fi nal r eality Scott was of ten slipshod in p ut

.

ting his stori e s togeth er as whol e s but he was con su m m ate ,

i n his p ow e r to pl ac e his ch aract e rs in a pictu re sq u ely

signific an t se tting and to draw f ro m the i nterplay b e twee n
,

his p e rsons and his sc ene ac ti on so appropri at e to the d ra

m, U e of
s
m a tic situ atio n th a t it s ee m s i ne vit abl e A re .

ma de“: m ark abl e i nstanc e of this faculty occu rs in O ld

M orta li ty wh ere M orto n visits Burl ey i n the c ave reac h e d
,

by a si ngl e tr ee tru nk bridgi ng the ch as m of a w a te rf all

-
.

A s M orton approach e s he h ears the shou ts and scre am s o f

the O l d C o v enant er i n wh om religi o us fury has be co m e i n
,

s anity ; and at l ength he se es the fearf ul figure of B u rl ey

3 62 A H I STO RY or EN GLI SH LITE RATURE

cen tury B enj am i n Dis raeli ( 1 801—1 881 ) and Ed ward B ul

,
4

we r Lytto n ( 1 803
-
Disraeli be gan his ca ree r with
the publica tion of Vi vi a n Grey i n w hich
Di s ael i and
r
l we Lrt a ne w typ e of h e r o 1 8 pr e se nted the man of the
at
r-
,

—
world a Sign th at the si niste r ro m an ti c rebel
, ,

of Byro n s trag e di e s had had his day Edw ard Bulwer

’
.

began his caree r by a dire ct attack on Byron ism In .

P elham the A dventu res o

, f a G e n tlem a n t h e he ro

is a you ng dandy who l earn s worldl y wisdom from a Ches

,

terfi el dian m oth er and who a rme d with u nlim it e d con, ,

ccit and self posse ssion bri ngs the world to his fee t Ac
-
, . .

’
c ordi ng to Bulwe r s vi ew soci e ty is too easily conq u e re d to ,

m ak e re b e llion worth while ; and the succe ss of h is book

prove d him right .

Bulw er s fi rst nov e ls illustrate the l ater d ev elop ment Of

’

th ose gothic tende nci es whi ch had mani fested th e mselves

in fiction at the e nd of the eighte e nth c entu ry as one
sy m ptom of the ro mantic re vival In many of his novels .
,

no t ably in P elha rn and in Lu creti a he pl ays upon his read ,

h
’
B w em R0
ul e r s s e
,
n s e o f t e te rribl e by his pictur e s o f cri m ,
m m‘s“u
i nal li fe But he i nf u ses th ese picture s as
.
,

D ick e n s did a littl e la te r with a d efi n ite purpose treati ng , ,

his outl aws as victi m s of soci ety P au l Ulifi ord for ex

'

.
,

a m pl e of which the h e ro is a highwa

, yman was written ,

to dra w atte n tion to two e rrors in our p enal i nsti tutions ,

n z — a vicious priso n discipli ne and a sangu inary pe nal

cod e T he oth e r pro m i nent gothic el ement in B ul we r s

.
’

w ork is a pse ud o scientifi c u se of the supe rnatural of which

-
,

Z a noni ( 1 84 5 ) f u rn ish es the most e l aborate e x ample .

N aturally with the succ e ss of Scott b e fore him B ulwer

, ,

e ss ay ed the historical nov el In 1 83 4 af te r e l ab orate p r e p

.
,

Histori cal a r a tio n h e publish e d , Th e L as t D a y s of P o m

p e i i a n d l a te r
, R i en zi Th e L as t f
o t h e B a r,

ons , and H ar old ; in all of th e s e he tri e d m uc h more ,

consci ously th an Scott to make the n ovel se rve the pur ,

os e of the histori an U nd e r the i mp u lse O f Th ack e ray s

’
p .
 THE NI N ETEENTH C ENTURY 3 63

succe ss B ul wer turned to mod e rn life in The Cartons ,

( 1 8 4 9) a n d M y N ov el His re alis m is re li e v ed ,

ho we v er by the i ntroductio n of id eal ch aracte rs which he

, ,

touch e s with whi m sical qu ality in the manner of Ste rne ,

p e rh aps realizi ng th at good ness is rend e red m. “to,

W W“
m ore convi nci ng by b e i ng m ad e a tri fle absurd .

Altoge th e r with du e d e duction f or the s fi ected the se nsa

, ,

t ional the se nti men tal i n Bulwe r s n ovels the fact remai ns
’
, ,

tha t his v e rsatility and his long conti nu e d energy mak e -

h im a usef ul si gn of the shi f ti ng li te rary currents duri ng

the m iddl e y ears of the c e ntury .

C h arle s Dick ens ( 1 81 2— 1 8 70) m ust al ways b e one of the

m ost striki ng figure s in the histo ry of E ngli sh lite rature ,

on accou n t of the dram atic natur e of his succ e ss He .

s tarte d fro m the hu mbl e st positio n in li fe wh en he was

te n y ears old he was at work i n a bl acki ng ware house ,

sl eepi ng be neath a cou nte r and sp en di ng his , cam e .

Su ndays with his family in Marshalsea Prison ,

wh e re his father was confi ned for debt Ye t b efore he .

was thirty he was a great write r and be fore he was f orty ,

a no tabl e public m an No write r in English e ve r gath ere d

.

with a f ull er hand the re wards of the lite rary calli ng It .

is tru e oth e r wri ters hav e mad e more m o ney or have won
, ,

p ee rages ; but none has had in his lifeti me so wid e and

i nte nsely loyal a pe rsonal f ollowi ng none has had in ad
d ition to m oney f ri ends and fam e the p e culi ar trib u te
, , ,

which came to Dick ens f ro m vast audi e nc e s gathe red to

geth er not once or twice but hu ndreds of t i mes in scores
, , ,

o f citi e s
“
to testify by ro ari ng seas of appl ause to his
,

p e rs on al triu m ph I n middl e life Dick e ns began to give

.

se m i drama tic public r eadi ngs fro m his works and th e s e

-
,

g r e w to b e his chi e f i n t e r e st T h e stra

. i n a n d e xcite m e n t
wo re him out It is a circu m stanc e p erhaps as tragic in its
.

way as th at which sh adows the cl os e of Scott s li fe th at ’

,

this p e rso nal triu m ph was the direct c aus e of Dick ens s ’

death . Scott di ed brok en by the e ffort to retrie ve by lite r

,
3 64 A H I STO RY or E N GLISH LIT ERATUR E

t
a ure the ts of failu re in l ife Dick ens died forty
e ffec .

years l ate r w o rn out by the e ff ort to gathe r in li fe the

,

re wa rd s of lite rature .

Dick e ns s peculi ar tri u mph calls att en ti on to the pri me

’

fact i n his authorship h is nearne ss to his publi c

, He .

be gan his ca reer as a reporte r in the professi o n whi ch is

,

m ost i mm edi ate ly of the pe ople H e was later an ed i tor of

.

m agazi ne s and e v en f or a short ti m e of a grea t da ily

, , ,

ne wspap e r But though nece ssity m ad e him a

m,
.

j ournalist he wish ed to b e an actor AS a y ou ng

, .

man he tri e d to get a positi o n at Cove nt Gard en T h ea tre .

F or years he was the l eadi ng spirit in a famou s c o m p any

o f am a te urs wh o p lay e d in vari o us citi es of En gla nd and

as we h av e se en his chi e f i nte re st cam e to be h is r ead i ngs

, .

T he se two p ro fe ssi onal i nsti ncts accou nt fo r m uch in

Dick e ns s w o rk A s a re porte r and as an edito r he stud ied
’
.

his public as an actor he taught hi m se lf to pl ay u po n it

, ,

through his writi ngs and h is dramatic rea dings fr o m them ,

with i nc om p arabl e sk ill .

It was while D ick ens th en abou t tw enty was a re porte r

, , .

th at he began to write sk e tch e s of London l if e fo r vari

o u s ne wsp a p e rs F rom h is su cce ss with th e se came in
.
,

1 83 6 an e ngagem en t to write the l e tte rpress for a se ri es

,

o f ca rtoo n s re p re se n ti ng th e hu m ors o f sporti ng lif e Fo r .

“ ”
this purpo se he i nv e nted the P ick wick Cl u b which ,

a t o nc e mad e a popul ar hit T he d ea th of th e a rti st

.

who was engaged u po n the drawings l ef t Dick e ns free

to wi den the scop e O f the adventures of the club and ,

to ad d oth e r characte rs wi th out sti n t T he

mam a : .

“M y co mpl ete res u lt was a great book f orml ess as to ,

pl o t crowd ed with hu mo rous figu res T hese fi gu res are

, .

give n with broad ly e x agge rate d traits as if D ick ens had ,

alw ays i n m i nd the cartoo n which was to acco m pany the

te xt . Th ey talk f ree ly not to say ine xhau stibl y and all

, ,

d ifi eren tly But the autho r s chief reso urce is his facu l ty
.
’

fo r bringing his caric atures i nto contact wi th th e actual

3 66 A H I STO RY or E N GLI SH LITE RATURE

careful to make e very gesture e very e xpre ssion te ll on his

, ,

au di en ce .

A thi rd typ e of ch aracte r which Dick ens de ve lop ed and ,

which in his tim e mad e immense ly for hi s popul arity was ,

e —
that of the victi m of soci ty usu ally a child The pos
, .

sib ilities of childhood for ro mance or p athos had b ee n sug

ge ste d by Sh ak espeare by F i elding and by B l ake but

, ,

no ne of th e se had brou ght children i n to the v e ry ce n tre of

the action or had m ade th em highly i ndividu al

, In his .

se cond nov e l Dickens m ad e his s tory c e ntr e about a child

, ,

O live r Twis t and f ro m tha t ti me f orth childre n w e re e x

,

p e cte d an d n e cessary ch ar acte rs in his n ov els L ittl e N e

. ll ,

m, HM F,
lor e n c e Do m b ey Davi d Copp e rfi eld s tan d out
, ,
“m m “ in c el estial innocenc e and good ness i n contras t ,

with the e vil creatures who se p ers ecuti on they su ff e r f or a

seas on An d f urth e r th ey repre sent in most te lli n g form
. ,

the co mpl ai n t of the i ndividu al agai nst soci e ty F or with .

D ick ens the private cru elty which his m align ch arac te rs
i nflict is al m ost always c onne cted with social wro ng B u m
,
.

ble s savage blow at O live r T wist aski ng for m o re f ood

’
,

Squ e ers s wick ed e xploitation of his pupils i n N i cholas

’

N i ckleby are carri ed b ack and l aid at the door of soci e ty

, .

T he ch ampio nship of the i ndividu al agai nst i nstitutio ns ,

which had be en a l eadi ng m o t ive i n l at e r eightee n th cen

tury fi ction had been ch eck e d by the reactio n aga i nst the
,

F re n ch Re volution ; but in D icke ns s day the

’
re dre ss of
wrongs had b eco me agai n a great public move men t T he .

worki ngs of l ate r romanticism had b egu n to be refle cte d in

a p opul ar distrust of gov ernm en tal m e thods a ki nd o f ,

se n ti men tal h atre d of organ iz e d authority T o this fee li ng

.

D ick e ns con stan tly app eal e d In nearly al l his books th e re

.

is a de fi nite attac k upo n some l egal or soci al e vil in O li ver

Twi st upon the workh ous e ; in B lea k Hou se up on the
, ,

Ch anc ery courts ; in Li ttle Dorri t upo n the h arsh laws

,

gove rni ng d e bt Undoubte dly th e re was some thin g th eat

.

rical in Dick ens s adoptio n of s oci al wron m

’

g as a o t i v e in
 TH E N I N ETE EN TH C EN TU RY 3 67

fi ctio n, b ut th ere was also m uch th at was si ncere He had .

hi m self k nown the lot of the p e rsecute d at the root of his

ze al fo r r eform was the me m ory O f his own bit te r child

h ood .

The typ es of characte r already discussed we re su ffi cient

to s ustai n the m ovement of Dicke ns s e arli e r books T h e s e
’
.

w e re usu ally si mpl e in stru cture His favorite au thors .

we re S moll ett and Lesage an d h e see ms to h ave b e en dis ,

pose d to buil d his own n ovels like th eirs on ,

the picare squ e pl an In m ost O f th em we b egi n

.

with the h ero in childho od and fo llo w his p ersonal adv en t ,

u re s i nto the thick of a plot i nvolvi ng the popul ar ro m an

tic ma te ri al O f the day kidnappi ng m urd er mob j ustic e

, , ,
-
,

and oth e r i ncid en ts of cri m i n al li fe Wh en the author .

n e e ds the usu al ch aract e rs O f the n ov el a p air of conven ,

ti on al love m ak ers for e xam pl e he give s us figure s as weak

-
,

an d u nna tural as w e r e many of Sc ott s titul ar h e roe s

’
In .

his l ate r books howe ve r he gai ned the pow er of con

, ,

s tru ctin g el aborate plots and of creati ng ch aracte rs of

,

h e roic dignity and tragic i nte nsity such as Sidney Car ,

t on in Th e Tale of Two Ci ti es and Lady De dlock i n

.
,

B leak Hou se T h e se are the m ost e nduri ngly

p ow e rf ul of his n ove ls but th e y are not those up on which

,

his fame re sts Dickens is re m e m bered n ot as a d ramatic

.

a rtist i n the nov el f orm but as a show man O f w on d e rf ul

,

re sourc e s He is maste r of a v ast and fascinati ng stage

.
,

crowd ed with farcical ch aracte rs ; with grot e squ e an d te r

ribl e creatur es m ore d e vils th an m e n and with the touch

,

i ng form s of littl e children T he actio n is s om e ti m e s .

m e rry some ti me s e xciti ng so me ti m es p ath e tic

, We h av e , .

l a ughte r and horror an d te ars but the pre vaili ng at m os

, ,

h re is n e of ch ee rf ul n e ss as b efits a gr eat C hristmas

p e o ,

p a n to m i m e .

Di ckens and B ulwer h ave in com mon th eir f reque n t u se

o f gothic mat eri al th eir tend e ncy to seek lite rary s fi ects
,

of the sentimental k i nd and th e ir disposition to regard the

,
 v seriou sly as a social f orce d es ti n
n o el

A vigorous reactio n agai nst all this

Make p eace Th acke ray ( 1 81 1

in which the w eaknesses

b it off in im i ta tions O f
fi rst lo ng story Catheri n

reali sm and inten ded as

,

trea tm en t of c rim inals as

and Dick e ns s Nan cy B
’
.

picare squ e story, b e ing a

of an e igh tee nth c entury ad v enturer .

T hack e ray gave his realistic th e ori es l arge r sc ope in

Va ni ty F a i r writte n be tw ee n 1 846 and 1 84 8
, T his li ke
.
,

most of his succeedi ng nov els he publish ed in pa rts sel

, ,

d om supplyi ng the m at te r f or the fo rth c o mi ng cha pter

u nti l the l ast possibl e m o men t N aturally th e story is
.
,

n o t a m od el of stru cture in the na rrow te ch nica l sen se ;

but it may b e said th at this rathe r loose me thod of working
sui ted not o nly T h acke ray s te m pe ram en t but also his a rtis~
’

ti c pro bl e m F or T hack e ray s rea lis m is tha t of the O b

’
»
.

s e rve r not tha t of the analys t H e ne ve r isola tes a sin gle

,
.

case and stu di es it wi th lo ng close p atience O n the core

, .

trary he see s l ife wi th the l arge visi on o f a man of th e world

, .

T o h ave co nfin ed his m ul ti tud e of cha racte rs wi thin the

m m m li m its O f wh a t is te c h nic al ly ca ll ed a pl ot ,
“h““m would h ave i nt roduced an el e ment of unreality
'

i nto his book The action O f Va ni ty F ai r re volv e s abo ut

.

the h e roi nes Am e li a Se dl ey and Be cky Sharp Tb e two ‘

.
,

wome n in th e ir oppositio n are ad mi rable foi ls ; Am el ia

m ild and in cap abl e—a paras ite the autho r ca lls he r
,

livi ng on the chi valrous protectio n of Dobbi n B ecky ,

8 70 a m sro s r or m ou se LI TERATURE

stu pid B eck y s hus band Ba wdo n Crawl ey is not an cd

.
’

mi rable figure ye t we are sorry for h im

, Ge orge and .

Am e lia are both in the ir way co nte m pti bl e ye t the scene ,

of thei r pa r ti ng is wringi ng wi th tend e rness An d in the .

great book which f ollowe d Va ni ty F ai r T he N ewcomer , ,

T h acke ray has giv en a picture o f hu man impe rf ecti o n so

i nexpre ssibly touching tha t e ve ry read e r beli e ves the s to ry
,

of the nov elis t s co mi n g f rom his work roo m o ne day

’
-
,

“ ”
sobbi ng I h av e k ill ed Colone l Ne w co me
, T h ackeray .

is merci f ul toward the fee bl e, flawed souls tha t h e por

trays be cause ge ntl enes s was a pa rt of his nature
, Dis .

i llusio ned as to m ost of the p re t entious vi rtu es of the

world he still be l ie ved i n kind ne ss in the ins tin ctiv e
, ,

goo dness of one b eing toward ano the r and he ex e mp li fie d ,

this be li ef in his boo ks as i n his life .

Th e im portance of the historica l ele me nt in fict io n aft e r

Scott is sho wn by the fact th at e ve n the pe tty worl d of
nu tm eg V a n i ty F a i r is dis turb e d by a gr e a t n a ti on a l
crisis bu t Thac k e ray i nstead of usi ng Wa ter
,

loo to i mpose dignity and spl e nd o r upo n his story c ha rac ,

-
»

te ristically gi v es us a b ack stai rs vi e w of war We fol

-
.

low the ba tt l e not in the th o ught of Napol eo n or th e D u k e

, ,

but chi efly as it is re fle cte d in the fears of the wre tch ed

J 08 S e dl ey, in the ho pes of his se rvant Isidore, and in the
calcul atio ns of Be cky Sh arp chi efly but not wh oll y for ,
“
th e re is poor al most abandoned Ameli a praying for
,

Ge orge who was lyi ng on his face d ead wit h a bu l le t

, , ,
”
t hrough his h eart T hack e ray is i nte rested in fa mo us
.

e v e nts and pe rso ns because of the light which th ey throw

u po n the co m mo n affa irs of men E ven in his his to rical .

n ov els he is a realis t see ki ng to r ecall the world of the

,

e ightee n th ce ntury n ot i n distant spl e ndor bu t in t he

, ,

actu al for ms i n which it re ali se d i tse l f to a contem pora r

y .

In Henry E smoad howe ve r as i n Vani ty Fa i r , ,

T hacke ray s own te mp e rame nt is to be recko ned wi th His

’
.

sympa thy with the p rece di ng ce nt u ry gi ves to hi s treat

 TE E N I NETEENTH CENTURY 3 71

m ent of it w armth and brilli ancy which mak es the m ost

a

realistic of historic al nove ls also the m ost po e tic .

In Henry E smond we f oll ow the h e ro s childhood at

’

C as tl ewood in the mysterious atm osph ere of plotting Pa

,

p i sts ; an d his youth i n the L o ndo n of Q u e e n Ann e wh e re ,

the p ersons and names of Addison Steele Prior Swift , , , ,

F i e ldi ng Att erbury mee t us as c as u ally as those of mod ern

, ,

ce l ebriti e s to day We see him tak e part in the wonde rful

-
.

v ictori es of Marlborough and in the d ari ng game which

,

the Pre ten d e r pl ay ed for his crown T he v anish e d world .

live s f or us in ch aracte r and in episod e liv es with a di gnity

an d rich ne ss of co nc eption and styl e th a t shows 33 u .

m a"
T hack e ray to h ave b e e n wh en he chos e the , ,

grea te st artist amo ng the English nove lists In his maste r .

pi ece he is writi ng not as a carele ss rath er l azy master of a

, ,

puppe t show but in the p e rson of the chiv alrous E sm ond

-
, .

E ve ry i ncid ent and d e scriptio n th en m ust re flect his h e ro s

’
, ,

ch arac te r in so me touch of nobility or of ch arm In E s .

m o nd s repulsio n from Marlborough in his d e votio n to

’
,

Castle wood and his son in his pa ssio n for B eatrix and in
, ,

his lov e f or Lady Cas tl e wood th e re is the co ns tant re v el a

,

ti on of an honorable and loyal m an Wh en he is t elli ng .

u s of the q u arr el be tw e en Marlborough and Webb th e re ,

is th at in th eir manne r which rem i nds us th at it is a

gentleman s story ’
Wh en he surrend ers his bi rthright
.
,

prop e rty and name he hears hi m se lf with a si m plicity

, ,

an d a m od e sty which are in k ee pi ng with a gr eat renu nci

atio n. The style its el f m arv ellous i n its tech nic al ap

,

proxi matio n to the manne r of the p e riod d e scrib e d is yet ,

m ore wonde rf ul in its r efl e ctio n of E sm o nd s p e rsonality

’
.

Wh en he l ea v es Castle wo od or stands at his m oth er s grav e ’

,

wh en he be nds b e sid e the body of his d ear lord ru n through ,

b y the v ill ai n M ohu n al ways his utte rance is p e rfe ct in i ts

,

in ti macy its si m plicity its distan t h au nting rhyth m

, , , .

E ven in a d e tail of the picture of Lady Castle wood v anish

ing f ro m Esmond s sight in ange r Thac k e ray s disti nction
’ ’
,
3 72 A H I STO RY or E N G LISH LI T ERAT U RE

is e vid ent He saw her re trea ting the tap e r lighti ng u p

.
,

he r m arbl e face he r scarl e t lip quiv eri ng an d h e r shini ng

, ,

golden h ai r ”
Had he writte n only this sc e ne only this
.
,

sentenc e he m ight h av e b een call e d a mas te r A s it is he

, .

is the greate st writer who has use d English in fiction .

In his re turn to r ealis m T h ack eray fou nd an i n dustrious

f ollow e r in Antho ny T rollop e ( 1 8 1 5 T he l atter
adopt e d his m aste r s fl ip p an t vi e w of the nove l e xpre sse d in
’

Va ni ty F a i r but u nlike T h ack e ray he ne ve r succe e d e d as

,

Anthony Tm] an a rtist i n risi n g abov e it A n o v e l shou ld .

1°P°°
b e writt en he s ays f rankly to am use you ng
, ,

p eopl e of both s exe s and th e re should be nothi n g too nu

,

pleasant in it ; at l east he pr om ise s the read e r on one cc

,

casio n he will nev e r let such a thi ng h app e n in a nov el of

,

his T rollope s fame b egan with a se ri es of n ov e ls d ealing

.
’

with the life am ong the cl e rgy of a cathe dral city The .

Wa rden the fi rst of th e se was foll ow e d by B a rones ,

ter T owers — gene rally considered his m aste rpi ece ,

— by F ra mley P a rsonage and by The Las t Chron

i cle of B arset H e also d e v elop e d a s e ri e s of politi

cal nov e ls and tr eat e d v a rious asp e cts of E n glish com
,

me rcial an d co u n try li fe In his wid e surve y of social

.

conditions in the m id d le and upp e r classes of E ngla n d he ,

co mes n eare r th an any oth e r E nglish novelist to f ul fi lli ng

the v ast p rogr amm e s of the F re nch r ealists B alz ac and ,

Z ol a T roll op e was a m an of great i ndustry in e v ery

.
,

s e nse a profe ssional n ov elist w riti ng a d aily allowan ce , ,

and of t e n k ee pi ng two or thr e e n ov e ls goi n g a t o nce .

M uch of his w ork is p e rf u nctory bu t at his be st h e has a ,

pow er of creati ng fi gures which h av e an asto nishi ng air of

li fe O f th e se Mrs P rou die the bishop s wi fe wh o rages
. .
,
’
,

through s e v e ral books is the m ost n ota bl e

Chm “ Reade , .
.

As T rollop e m ay b e c all e d a sa te llite of

T h ack e ray so Ch arl e s Read e ( 1 81 4—1 884 ) in a se nse shi nes
,

with the r efle cte d l ight of D ickens Like D ick ens Reade .
,

had the temp e rament of a ro man ticist ; b u t b egin ning

3 74 A HISTO RY or E N G LISH LITERATU RE

t
s ran elg y pow erf ul of all novels Wu theri ng Heights ,

i n which the h e ro and h eroine love and torture each other

in a world of th e ir own rem ote fro m the real wo rld both
, ,

social and psychological .

In Ch arlotte Bront e the i magi natio n ne ve r a ttain ed to

such tragic spl endor as in her sister ; he r novel s are how ,

e v e r m or e n early in co ntact with actu al li fe

, T he fi rst of .

them J a ne E y re
, op ens with a trans crip t f ro m Miss
B
’
ronté s own li fe at b oardi ng school b u t the -

1m m
" ,

h eroi ne soo n p as se s beyond the world of the nu

tho r s e xp eri ence i n to the rom antic real m of her lo ngi ng and
’

i magination Undoubtedly th e re is m uch th a t is se cond

.
,

rate in the story The he ro of J ane s adoration Roch ester

.
’
, ,

is an i mpossibl e ch aracter His mad wife is a l ite rary in

.

h eritance from Mrs Radcli ffe The i ncident s re v eal al

. .

m ost p ath e tically Miss Bront e s ignorance of lif e an d her

’

lack of power to m easure probability But the h e roi ne is .

a gen uine wo man . Psychologically She is a st u dy o f the

auth o r s i nne r li fe and her ro m antic e xpe ri en c e i s sym
’
,

bolical of the atte m pt wh ich Ch arlotte and h e r s is te rs

made to e nl arge and color th eir oppre ssive littl e world with
the sp ac e s and Spl endors of the i magi natio n .

It was the ho nesty of Miss Bront e s romanticism th at ’

mad e J a ne Ey re succ e ssf ul both with the critics and with the
blic U nd e r the a dvic e of the critics M iss Bro nt e ab an
p u .
,

dou e d gothic m achi ne ry in her l ate r books Shi rley ( 1 84 9) ,

and Vi llette and fell b ack on her own lif e in Y ork

shire and in Brussels Neve rth ele ss th es e books bea r con

.

stan t witness to the l ack of harmony be tween her artistic

purpose and the means which her e xp eri en ce aff ord e d her
of c arryi ng ou t this pu rpos e with succ e ss For wh il e her .

He Late,
,
e xp e ri e n c e i n l i fe was li m it e d and c o n st an tly ,
W°m °
tend e d to throw her back on romantic i nven
tion she was in purpose a realist b ent on deali ng with
, ,

things as they are and on m aki ng th em b e tte r She d edi

, .

os t e d J a ne E re to Th ack e ray in te rm s whic h show the

y ,
 TH E N I NET EENT H C ENTU RY 375

am ou nt of moral energy which she possesse d Unlu ckily .

he r li fe did not bri ng he r i nto contact with l arg e proj ects

o f r efor m . As a m oralist an d as an artist it was her f ort
u n e to d eal in Spit e of all he r efforts to the co ntrary wi th
, ,

the pe tty or the u nreal .

In one direction M iss Bro nt e s e xp eri enc e was ad e q u at e

’
,

nam e ly in her co ntact with nature

,
F ro m he r books .

o ne co m e s to k n ow how l a rg e ly in he r li fe the clouds the ,

ragg ed hills the wide sp ace s of the Y orkshire no p eeling

, ,
“ W“
m oors u nd e r su nse t or m oo nlight mad e up for ,

t he i nad e qu acy of hu m an so ci e ty and i nte re s ts It is .

tr u e she has the gothic trick of setti ng off he r incidents by

,

a sy m p ath e tic b ackgrou nd ; but in a d ee p e r fashio n th an

this she mak es nature e nt er into the warp and woof of her
s tori e s through the p art which it plays in the m ost esse n

ti al e lem ent in th e m the i nn e r li fe of her h eroi nes

, .

—
Ch arl es K i ngsl ey ( 1 81 9 1 8 75 ) sh are d M iss Bro nte s
’

s e ri ous v i e w of fiction ; and his position in the w orld

was such as to conne ct hi m with l arge issu e s .

H e was a cl e rgy m an Pro fessor of Mod ern

,

Histo ry at Cambridge a lead er in the, Broad Churc h

m ov eme nt the f ri en d of Maurice T e nnyson and Stan
, , ,

l ey and so me wh at late r of Carlyl e of whose str enuous

, ,

p hilosophy of li f e he was a sort of popul a r e xpo ne n t .

His nov els fall i nto two divisions In the earli er ones .
,

Yea st ( 1 84 8) and A lton Locke K i ngsley giv es a

Vi e w of the probl em s which p e rpl e x e d m e n s m i nds i n the
’

m iddl e years of the century the years of the Catholic re

,

v ival and of C h artism ; an d he tri e s to poi n t ou t a m iddl e

course b e tw ee n Ca tholicis m and sce pticis m in r eligio n b e ,

t w ee n Toryis m and re volutio n in p olitics In the se co nd .

d i vi sion he carries his purpose i nto the historical nove l .

H yp ati a ( 1 85 3 ) is a study of the struggl e b e tween Christi

an ity and Pagani s m in Al e x an dri a duri ng the fif th cen
, ,

t u ry His maste rpiece Wes twa rd H o

.
, is a v igorou s
story of the ti m e s of Eliz ab e th d epicti ng the E nglish con
,
 A H I STO RY O F E N GLI SH LI TERATURE

te st with Spain by sea and in Ame rica I n both these .

n ove l s K i ngsl e y sought to d e v e l op his id e al of m an hood

, ,

a co m pou n d of physic al ene rgy and i n te lle ctu al m od e ra ti on

to which h e fe lt in so m e way th at the Cath olic C h u rch was

d ange rous In b oth he displ ays m any of the q u alit ies of
.

the a rti st His sce ne has the vivid ne ss an d sple n d or of

.

p ai nti ng and his i ncident tho u gh at ti mes childishly un

, ,

convi nci ng is often s u perbly dramatic

,
.

The re ligi ous and s oci al p robl em s of E ngl an d fo u nd a

l ess passionate e xpo nen t in M rs Eliz abe th Gask e ll ( 1 81 0 .

the wi fe of a U nitari an cl e rgy man in

Mrs Gas k ell
Mancheste r He r life br ought he r i n to co ntact
. .

with the i nd u stri al and soci al di fficultie s growi ng out of

the stru ggle b e tw e e n maste r and work m an and th e se she
treate d with great s kill in M a ry B arton an d in

N orth a nd Sou th In Cra nf ord he r best

k no wn b ook she entered a di ffe re nt fi e ld th at of re al istic
, ,

obse rv ati on d e v elop e d in a so m e wh at fan tastic s e tti n g .

K i ngsl ey and Mrs Gask ell c onne ct fiction wi th the in

.

te lle ctu al and m oral d e ve l op m en t of E ngl and a co nne ction ,

which is em ph asize d f urth e r by the work of Mary Ann

E van s or Ge orge E liot ( 1 8 1 9
, She wa s b o r n in
1 8 1 9 an d gre w up in th e y ears wh e n u n de r th e i nflu e nce ,

o f sci e n tific sp e cul ation the E nglish m i n d was c as ti ng

,

lo o s e fr om its th e ologic al m o ori ngs Sh e was .

Ge ge Eli ot
or
f or a ti m e assistan t e ditor of the We stm i nster
.

Re vi e w the org an of the f ree thi nk e rs ; and in th i s p osi

,

t io n she m et J oh n Stu art Mill H e rbe rt Sp e nc e r G H , , . .

Lew e s and oth er libe rals

, Afte r her u nion with M r Le w es
. .

She b egan to e xp eri m e nt with fictio n he r first story T he

, ,

Sa d Fortu nes of the Re v Am os B arton ”

app ea ri n g in
.
,

Blackw ood s Maga zi ne in 1 85 6 She add e d to this sto ry

’
.

t wo oth e rs of m o d e rat e l e ngth an d r e publ ish e d all three

,

i n 1 85 8 as Scenes o Cleri ca l L fe
f i T h e n e xt y ea r sh.e

publish ed her first n o vel A dam B ede and it was ev ident

, ,

that a new write r and a gr eat one had appeared .

378 A H I STO RY OF E N G LISH LI TERATU RE

is fixe d b efore us fore ve r In the case of the m ore con .

scious d e vel op ed ch aracte rs her analysis is m ore e laborate

, ,

an d m or e sust ai ne d F or h er h eroi n e s George E liot drew

.

l argely upo n he r own spiritu al e xp e ri en c e an d this p er ,

so n al psy chol ogy she suppl e men te d by wide

“Psy cho“
ml r ead ing esp eci ally of the literature of co nfes
,

sions In this way She gai ne d an e xtraordi nary vividn e ss

.

in portrayi ng the i nne r life He r m ost ch arac te ristic pas .

sage s are those in which she foll ows the eb b an d fl o w of

d e cision i n a ch aracte r s m i nd d well i ng on the t riu m ph or
’
,

d efe at of a p e rsonality in a dram a wh e re th ere is but one

act or . Such a drama is th at which Maggie T u lliv e r plays
out in h er h eart torn b e tw een the i m pulse to ta k e h e r joy
,

as it O ff e rs and the u nc onqu e rabl e c onvictio n th a t she

,

cannot see k her own h appi ness by sacrifici ng oth e rs .

F u rth e r it is to b e note d th at Ge orge E liot ne v e r l e ts her

case drop with the i ndividu al analysis She alw ays stri ves .

to mak e her case typic al to show th a t th e pe r ,

As a Mo al i st
r .

sonal re su lt is in accord ance with a ge ne r al law .

Doro th e a s d e feat an d Lydgate s failure i n M i d d lem a rch

’ ’
,

T ito s d eg eneration i n Rom ola Gw e n dol en s h u m ili a tion

’ ’
,

and re cov e ry in Da ni el Deronda are all r e pr e s e n te d as ,

occ u rri ng i n ob edi e nce to laws of the e thical wo rld as im ,

m utabl e as thos e of the physical T his is Ge orge E liot s ’

.

chi ef f u ncti on as a write r the i nterp re tati on of the world ,

i n t e r m s of m or ality She d oes n ot d eal with p arty qu es

.

ti on s nor pri m arily with i ndustri al or soci al p ro bl e ms

, .

He r e thic al m otiv e is a broad e r one th an the e m an cipa

tio n of thou ght or the form ul ati on of a political pro
,

gramm e It is to Show how in O b ed i ence to law ch aracter

.
, ,

grows or d ecays ; how a si ngl e fa ul t or flaw bri ngs su ff e ri ng

and d eath an d throws a w orld i nto rui n how n t h oth r
, ; o e e ,

h an d th er e 1 8 a m aki ng p erfect through su ff e ri ng a re gen

, ,

eration thro u gh si n its e lf a hop e for the world thr o ugh the
,

r e nu nci at i on and self sacrifi ce of the i ndividu al

-
It is a .

”
bli nd self seeking she t ells us through Dinah M orris
-
, ,
 TH E N I N ET EENTH CE NT U R Y 3 79

which wants to b e f reed f rom the sorrow wh ere with the

”
whol e creati on groane th and travaile th for as she says , ,

ag ai n those who liv e and su ffe r m ay s om eti m e s h ave the

,
”
bl e ss ed ness of b e i ng a s alvation It is this p ossibility of .

bl esse d ness which in George E liot s vi e w is the comp ensa ’

ti on f or e vil th at we m ay
B e to o th er so u l s
Th e cu p o f stre ngth in so m e grea t a go ny

in part m ak e s up for the pre se nce of th at agony in the

w orld Wh at e v e r b e the sci entific valu e of a syste m of
.

e thics which m ak e s the s e rvic e of hu m anity the high e st

re a s o n for doi ng right or wh ate v e r the d isp arity b e tw e e n

,

the nov elist s art and the pre s e n tati on of such a system
’
,

Ge orge E liot s work repre se nts the high est and si n c e r est
’

d e ve lo p m ent of fictio n with a pu rp ose .

It is Significan t of the sl ow growth of George Mere dith s ’

lite rary re puta tio n th at though we thi nk of hi m as the

,

successor of George E liot his first n ov el app e ar ed before ,

h e rs He publish e d The Sha ri ng of Shayp a t in Geo e N ew

.

g r ,

1 85 6 . The Ordea l of Ri cha rd F ev erel app eare d d i th

in 1 8 5 9 an d oth er works at i nte rv als of two or th re e ye ars

,

dow n to 1 895 ; O f th e se B eau champ s Ca reer , T he

’

Egoi s t Di a na of the Crossway s an d O ne of

O u r Conq u erors are the m ost n ote wo rthy .

Mere dith lik e George E liot is a psychologist and in

, , ,

so m e sort a m oralist B u t while Geo rge E li ot tri es to m ak e

‘

h e r ch aract e rs i ndividu al and th en to m ak e th e ir liv es typ i

,

cal by showi ng how the laws of the m oral w orld ge t th e m

se lv e s e nforc ed as it we re auto matically M e re dith tends

, , ,

to m ak e his characte rs typ es embodi m ents of the p articular ,

qu ality which he is i n tere sted in e xpl o i ting Agai n George .

,

E liot works through tragedy Me redith O f te n through co m ,

e d y ; the one sc ourg e s e vil d oe rs the oth e r m ak es th e m

-
,

ridiculous Ge orge Eli ot s ee ks to pre se nt a f ully de ve l

.

o p e d b ackgro u nd and is at p ai ns to mak e he r ch aract e rs

,
3 80 A HI S TO RY or E N GLIsH LI TE RATURE

talk with absolute realism ; Me re dith co ncen tra tes a tten

tion upon his typical cha racte rs and care s littl e wh e th er ,

his me n an d wo men talk nat u rally so l ong as th ey em body

the e sse nti al spiritu al truth of hu m an ity
, His di alogue .

is m o re highly com pressed m ore h eavi ly l oad e d wi th ,

m eani ng th an it cou ld be in actu al lif e

, T he sa m e .

purs u i t of the e ss e nti al m akes hi m abrupt i n s t ru ctu re ;

b e sh i f ts the sc e ne sudd e nly he drops the threa d o f his ,

story and pi cks it up agai n wh e re he wills in su ch a ma n ,

ne r as to re nd e r it difli cu l t f o r any b u t a prac tise d re ad er

to follow him Lik e B row ni ng i nstead of prese n tin g his

.
,

tal e i n pl ai n clear narrat iv e he pre fe rs to gi v e it to u s in

, ,

fl ash e s and h al f lights as i t is see n fro m d ifi eren t po i n ts of

-
,

vi e w H e skirm ish es rou nd his s tory see ming to m i ss a

.
,

hu ndred stro ng sit u ati on s for which the read e r a ct u ally

ha nge rs But this is the strate gy of nov el writi ng Af ter
.
-
.

pages of skirm ishi ng he at l as t bri ngs his charac te rs to

ba ttle in j ust th at rel ation in which e ve ry force is a vail
T hus in vi tal mo m ents Me redi th s n ov e l s f ul fil the
’
abl e .

read e r s d e mand for sign i fican t ac ti on By the fre i gh te d

’
.

meani ng of his acti o n and d i alogu e Me redi th does fo r his

read e rs m o re th an any o th er nov elist wh at th e a rtist
, ,

should do he give s a h e ightened se nse of rea li tie s He

,
.

doe s no t re prod uce l ife ; he does not d eco rate it ; he does

no t id ea liz e it ; but he e x e m pli fies it in type s and situ a tions

o f u nu su al m eani ng and pow e r .

Me redith s artistic f or mu l a is i n sh arp co ntrast to the

’

p ractice of the oth er grea t livi ng E nglish nov elist Thomas .

Hardy s caree r has lik e Mered ith s been a l o ng o ne

’
,
He ’
,
.

publish e d Desp era te Re medi es i n 1 868 and A P a i r of B lue ,

E y es in 1 8 73 The Retu rn of the N ati ve T he Wood land

. ,

ers and F a r f rom the M a ddi ng Crowd his t h ree master

.

, ,

pi ec es foll owed His popular re pu ta tio n be gan

, . ,

“ 7 °
h o we v er with Tess of the D Urberv i lles,
’

In Me redith s vi ew of li fe ma n is all im portant The works

’
.
,

of man his soci e ty hi s conv en tions his e xp ression of him

, , ,
3 82 A H IST O RY OF E N GLISH LI TERA T U RE

an e e me n
l t of first i mportanc e essential in the de vel op ,

m ent of the story Som e ti m e s h e treats it esp e ci ally i n

.
,

his early work in a poe tic and idyllic fashion as an e scape

, ,

f —
f ro m the trag edy o li e the p as toral e scap e
f B u t m ore .

o fte n he uses it with sym bolical meani ng as wh en he m akes ,

the w arp e d m issh ap en stu n te d trees in The Woodla nd ers

, ,
“ ”
su ggest the u nf ulfill ed i ntention in hu m an lif e ; or he
repre sen ts it as t he embodi men t of the powe r not ou rse lves
which works man s hu m ili ation It is noteworthy th a t in
’
.

his hu m an typ es he choose s those which are clo se st to

n atur e thos e i n which the pri m itive i mpulse s are s tro ngest
, ,

in which actio n is the nat u ral m ode of e xpre ssio n Mer .

e dith dr a ws his ch ar acte rs f ro m the w alks of lif e wh ere

m en an d wom e n are m ost co mpl e x wh ere thought i s m ost ,

’
active .I n H ardy s vie w thought is as f utile tow ard trut h
,

as was the T ow e r of B ab e l to scal e the h e avens Me re dith .

,

i n his b e li ef in the Signific ant is conti n u ally h e ighteni ng ,

the i ndividu al pushi ng his ch aract ers b eyo n d h u man

,

li mits . H ardy holds th at n othi ng in m an is sign i fi cant

e xc e pt rac e se x , and the gre at se rvitud e to ti m e and
,

n atur e ; an d h e nc e he choos e s typ e s which will pre se nt

th e se realiti e s m ost cl early .

It m u st not be thought th at Hardy s novels we re written ’

to pres ent a system of fatalistic philosophy n or nee d the ir ,

at m osph e re b e tak en ne c e ssarily as an e xpr e ssi on of p er

, ,

s onal t em p e rament It is tru e howe ve r that the ir increas

.
, ,

ingly gl oo m y tone app eal e d to a mood of the l ate r ni ne te enth

c e ntury a m ood of weari ne ss and reaction f rom m oral
,

strenuou s ne ss O f disintere st in qu estions of consci ence

r
,
.

Such a m o od always fi nds i ndirect e xpressio n in some

form of ro m antic e sc a p e f ro m the realiti es of li fe and of ,

this ne o romanticis m Robert Lo u is Ste venson

-

( 1 8 5 0 1 8 94 ) is-
th e bright e st e xpone nt Ste .

v e nson gai ne d his first fam e with Treasu re

I s la nd a fasci nati ng t al e of pir a cy and s earch for

old with u t th r m ot est su ggestion of a moral meaning

g , o e e .
 TH E N I N ETEEN TH CE N T U RY 3 83

T h e re followe d K i d napp ed The M a ster f

o B a lla n
tra e an d Da vi d B a lfou r
stori e s of adv en t all

u re in the p ast He wrot e als o m any short stori e s s om e

.
,

with an historical se tti ng so me (as The N ewA rabi a n N ights)

,

with a ch ar m i ngly fan tastic arr ange m e nt of m od e rn con

di ti on s f or a b ackgrou n d His last years he sp en t i n
.

S am oa and the South S eas gave him m at e ri al for a n e w

,

se ri e s of Short stori e s an d for T he E bb Ti de

,

Ste venso n has pre se nt ed in se v e ral e ssays his artistic

th eory acc ording to which i n cid ent is to b e regard e d as
,

th e high e st m ood of fiction But his practice in his lat er

.

works shows th at he did n ot satisfy hi m self with m e r e ly .

i n venting surprisi ng adv entures and i m agi ni ng rem ote

conditi on s With him hu man n ature and hu m an iss u es
.

are at the c e n tre of th e d ev el opi ng web of

e v e n t ; and f ro m the m ost ro m an tic b a ckgrou n d

A “
hu m an characte r disengages itsel f in strong cl ear form s .

A l an Bre ck on the Scottish m oors in K i dnapp ed and , ,

Wiltshire in The B each of F a lcsd are both in con trovert

, ,

i bly actu al .

Stev enso n s rom anticism Shows itself m ost i n t ere sti ngly
’

i n a Spirit of artistic e nt erpris e and adv enture H is .

n ov e ls an d tal e s are m ore v ari ou s an d da ri ng in th e ir

m e th od and t e ch niqu e th an thos e of any of his pr e d e c e ss ors ;

an d on the whol e his artistic e xp e ri m e n ts justi fy th e m s elv e s .

I n firm ness and cl earne ss of str u cture i n n ove lty an d v ari ,

e ty of m e th od m e thods of d e scripti on an d narr ativ e

,
and ,

i n surfac e brilli ancy of styl e h e marks the e xtraordi nary ,

t ech ni cal adv ance which the nov el has m ad e sinc e the d ays
of Sc o tt .

F or anoth e r r eason also S te ve nso n s name m ay fi ttingly

’
, ,

stand at the en d of a ch apt e r on the E nglish nove l H e .

r e presents in a se n se the re turn of the cent u ry upon itself .

T he n i ne t e e nth c e n tu ry op e ne d wi th an e xtraordi nary de

v e l op m e n t o f ro m an ti ci sm u nd e r Scott T h at ro manticis m
, .

b e c am e m i ngl e d with realisti c e lements in B ulwer and

3 84 A H I STO RY or E N G LI SH LITERATU RE

Dickens, and tirely before the realism of

fi nal ly gav e way en

Th ack eray and Ge orge Eliot

T his change correspo nded
.

to a de ve lop men t which w ent on all over E urop e a ,

-

change e vident in F rench lite rature in the work of F lau

b ert Z ola and Maup assant ; in Ru ssian lit erature in that
, ,

of Tolstoi and Tu rgeni ef It is to be conside re d h o w ever

. , ,

that the E nglish realists h ave ne v e r b een so

8 i
thorough goi ng as their conte mporari es on the
'

Conti nent .The absolute realistic f ormul a the pictur ing ,

of life for its own sak e was r e li e ve d i n T h ack e ra y b y the

,

pl ay of tem p erament in George E liot by m oral pu rpose

, ,

in Ge orge Me r e dith by an artis tic id eal and in H ardy ,

by a fasci nating though Siniste r philosophy A t le n gth in .

Stevenson the romantic spirit is come agai n and though

this roman ticism is no longe r u nconscious as in Scott or ,

a lite rary trick as in Bulwe r or me re ly te m p era m en tal as

,

in Miss Bront e but is i nf use d with artistic and e thical

,

s eriousne ss still the fact rem ai ns th at in his l arge st as

, ,

p eot Ste ve nson represents the i m pulse of escape f rom the

,

here and now into the world of pl ay .

386 A HIST O RY or E N GLI SH LI TE RA T URE
E nglish Pe ople ( Putnam) B T e n B rink s Hi story of E nglish . .
’

Lite ratu re ( Holt) .

Tra m la ti ons — B e o wu lf : The D e e ds o f B e owu lf , prose tmn s lati ons,

.

by J E arle ( C lare ndon Pre ss ) ; by J L H all, B e owu lf , i n m od e rn

. . .

E ngli s h p rose ( M acmillan) ; The T al e o f B e owu lf , by W M o rri s and .

A J W y att ( Longmans) ; me tri cal translati on by J M Ga rne tt

. . . .

( G i nn ) ; r h y t h m i ca l a nd a llit e rat i v e tr a ns lati o n b y J L Hall . .

( H e a th ) W i d.si th i s p arti a lly t ra n s la te d i n B roo k e s E arly E n lish

g
’

Lite ratu re , and comp le te ly in The E x e te r B ook, Ed I G ollancz . .

K P l D L m d e W and e re r are tra ns la ted i n

’

( e g a n a u ) e or s a . e n t a n Th
B rooke ; the latte r a lso i n Gollancz s E x e te r B o ok T h e W if e s
’ ’
.

C omplai nt a nd T he L ov e r s M e ssage are analy ze d a nd p arti ally

’

translate d i n B ro oke C aedmon s M etri cal Parap hra se , wi th trans

’
.

l atio n and
te xt , i s e dited b y Thorp Cyne w u lf s Chri st i s e dite d,
’
.

w ith t ra nslati o n, by I Goll ancz ( N u tt ) T he Chri st o f C y ne wu lf ,

. .

trans late d i nto E nglis h pro se , by C H W hi tman ( Gi nn) T rans . . .

lations of the P h ce ni x and th e Andre as are gi v e n i n G o llancz s

’

E x e te r B ook J u dith, with t e x t and tra nslati on , i s e d ite d b y A

.
.

S Cook ( H e ath)
. L ongf e l low s Poe ts and Poe try o f E u ro pe con
.
’

ta ins illu strati ons of e arly p oe try A translati on o f T he B attle of .

B ru nanb u rh , by L ord T e nny son, can b e f ou nd i n hi s w orks ; a

tra nslation o f the sam e i s gi v e n i n J M Garne tt s El e ne , J u dith,
’
. .

and othe r Anglo Sax on poe ms ( Gi nn) -

.

C H A PT E R II . : THE NO RM A N -
F R E N CH PE RIO D
Genera l Works — T he Story o f the N ormans, b y S O J e we tt ( Stories
. . .

o f the N a ti ons ) ; J u sse ra nd s L ite rary Hi story o f th e E ngli s h P e o

’

p l e ; T e n B ri nk s H i st ory o f E ngli s
’
h L ite ratu re ( H olt) C o u rthope s
'

H i story o f E ngli sh Po e try F or the maki ng o f th e langu age , se e .

J u sse rand s Lite rary Hi story , B o ok II I , C ha pte r I ; B rad ley s

’ ’
. .

M a ki ng of E ngli sh ( M a cmi llan) ; M ars h s L e ctu re s o n th e E ngli sh

’

La ngu a ge ; E m e rso n s Hi sto ry o f the E nglish Langu age

’
.

Texts a nd Tr a ns la ti ons .
— F or the ro m ance lite ratu re of t he pe riod
E lli e E arly E nglis h M e tri cal R o mance s,
Sp e cim e ns of
’
se e s

M orle y s E arly E nglish Pro se R om ance s ( Cari sb ro oke L i b rary )

’

J oy ce s O ld C e ltic R omance s, Lady C harlotte Gu e st s M a b i nogion,

’ ’

a nd Sidney Lani e r s B oy
’
M ab inogion ( Scri b ne r) Si r Ga w ay ne and
’
s .

the Gre e n Knight , e dite d b y R M orri s , f or the E arly E ngli s h T e xt

.

Soci e ty ( T rii b ne r) , Lay am on s B ru t, te x t and tra nslat i o n, e d ited

’

b y Sir F M adde n . E xtracts f rom the Cu rs or M u ndi , a nd f ro m

.

Richard Rolle o f Hamp o le , m ay b e f ou nd i n Sp e ci m e ns o f E arly

E nglish, V ol I L , e dite d b y R M orris a nd W W Sk e a t ( Cl are nd on
. . . .

Pre ss) T he Pe arl, tex t a nd transla ti o n, e dite d by I Gollancz

. .

( Nu tt ) T he ly ri cs
. Aly sou n ”
and L e nt is com e wi th lov e to
 REA DI N G GUI DE 3 87

gi v e n in M orri s and Ske at s Sp e cime ns o f E arly E ngli sh,

’
tow n are

V ol . II . T he L o v e Ru ne of T ho m a s de H ale s ca n b e f o u nd i n
T e n B ri nk
’
s Hi story of E ngli sh Lite ratu re , V ol I . . A v e ry in
te re sti ng a nd v a lu a b l e colle cti o n o f e arly ly ri c p o e try i s B odd e
ke r Al te ngli sch D i chtu nge n, b u t thi s i s s uitab le o nly f or ad v ance d
’
s

stu d e nts .

0ri ti cis m — B e side s the ge ne ral w orks me ntione d a b ov e , s e e Stu di e s i n

.

t he A rth u rian Le ge nd s, J Rhy s ( C lare nd o n P re ss) A n e s say o n . .

O ld E ngli sh M e tri ca l Rom ance s occu rs i n J W H al e s s F olia ’

. .

Li tte raria .

CHA PT E R I II . TH E A GE or CH A UC E R
Gen era l Works — J u ss e rand s Lite rary Hi story o f the E nglish Pe ople
.
’

and the s am e au thor s E ngli s h W ay f ari ng Li f e i n the F o u rte e nth

’

C e ntu ry ; T e n B rink Hi sto ry of E ngli sh Lite rature ; C ou rth ope s

‘
’
s

Hi story o f E ngli sh P oe try ( e sp e cially v alu ab le f or Langland) ;

Cha u ce r s E ngla nd ; Chro ni cle s o f F roi ssart , Lord B e r
’
B rowne
’
s

ne r s tra nslati on ( l 6th ce ntu ry ) ne w ly e di te d ( M a cmill an,

’

F o r y ou nge r stu de nts , the B oy s F roi s sart, b y S L a ni e r ( Scri b ne r) ;

’
.

Stori e s f rom F roi s sart , by H N e wb olt . .

H
C AU C E RT ex ts.
— T he b e st comp le te si ngle v olu m e e d iti on i s the
.
-

Stu d e nt
’
s Cha u ce r, e di te d by W W . . Sk e at ( C l are nd o n Pre ss) .

Sk e a t ha s al so e d ite d Cha u ce r s Com p le te ’

W ork s, in 7 v ol s

t he Mi nor Poe ms , i n 1 v ol ; and v ari ou s se le ctions f rom the Ca n .

t e rb u ry T ale s ( a ll f ro m t he C la re nd on Pre s s) G L Kitt re d ge . . .

e d i ts Se le cti o ns f rom the Ca nte rb u ry T a le s ( Gi nn) .

B i ograp hy , Cri ti ci s m eta — A Chau ce r P rim e r, by A W P o l . .

lard ( Ma cmi lla n) ; T he La ngu age and M e tre o f Chau ce r, b y B T e n .

B rink , translate d b y M B Sm ith ( Macm i llan) ; C hau ce r s Pro

’
. .

nu nci ati on, b y G He m pl ( He ath) ; Li f e of Chau ce r, b y A W W a rd

. . .

( g
E n li sh M e n o f L e tte rs ) ; Stu di e s i n C ha u ce r, b y T R L ou ns b u ry . .

( 3 J R L o w e l l , C ha u
. ce r, i n. M y S tu d y W i nd ow s ; W H a z .

litt , Chau ce r Spe nse r, i n L e ctu re s on t he E ngli sh Poe ts

and .

GO W E , L G
R A N A N D , E T C T exLts — Gow e r E ngli sh W ork s , e dite d by G
. .
, .

C M acau lay ( e ga n Pau l )

. W y clif , Se le ct E ngli sh W orks,
K .

e d ite d b y T A rno ld ( Cla re nd o n Pre s s)

. L angland , T he V i si on o f .

W i lli am Co nce rni ng Pi e rs the P low m a n , e d ite d by W W . . Ske at

( gi v e s 3 te x ts ) . Ske at h as als o e dite d a sm all e d iti on o f Pie rs
Plo wman, giv ing the fi rst se v e n canto s ( Clare ndon Pre ss) . Pie rs
the Plo wma n, done i nto m od e rn p ro se b y K M W a rre n ( Lo nd on , , . .

T he Ki ng s Q u a ir e dite d b y W W Ske at ( B lackwood)

’
. . .
,

T he T ra v e l s o f Sir J o hn M a nde v ille , i n m odern sp e lli ng ( M a cmi l

l a n s Li b ra ry o f E ngli s h Cla ssics) Le M o rte D arthu r, e dite d by
’
.

I Gollancz (T e mple C lassi cs)

. M alory s Hi story of Ki ng Arthur .
’
3 88 A H ISTO RY or EN GLI SH LITE RATURE

a nd the Q u e st of the Holy Grail, s ele cte d porti ons , ed i te d by E .

Rhy s ( Ca me lot Se ri e s) T he B oy s i ng Arthur, wi th i ntrod u cto ry

.
'
K
e ssay , b y S La nie r ( Scri b ne r) Morris and Skea t s Spe ci me ns of ’
. .

Ea rly E nglis h, V o l IL , co ntai ns ex tracts fro m Langla nd , Go wcr s

’
.

Conf e ss io Ama nti s , Wy cli f s Bi ble , and Ma nde ville s T ra ve ls

’ ’
.

B i ograp hy a nd Cri ticism —J J J u s se ra nd , Pi e rs P lo wman, . . .

a co ntri b u ti o n to the hist o ry o f E ngl is h my sti ci s m C onf essio .

Amau tis, i n J W Ha les s F o li a Litte ra ria C W Le B aa, Life

'
. . . . .

o f J o hn Wy clif ( Ha rpe r) L Se rgeant, Wy clif ( H ero e s o f the . .

Nati o ns Se rie s) J J J usse ra nd , T he Ro mance o f a Ki ng s Life

’

. . .

K ing J a me s I o f Sco tland ) co nta ins a n appreciati v e study of

.

the Ki ng s Q uair and extracts fro m it

’

Ca m u s IV . : TH E REs u ssa ncR

“

General Works — F Se e b ohm , The Era of the Pro te stant Re v ol ution

. .

( Scri b ne r) ; L E Fi e ld A n I ntrod u c
.ti o n to the Stu d y of the
.
,

Re naissance ( Scri b ner) ; T he Itali an Re nais sance in E ngland, by

L E inste i n ( Macmi llan) ; A Pea rso n, A Sho rt Histo ry o f the
. .

Re nai ssa nce i n Italy , tak e n from the wo rk o f J A Sy mo nds . .

( Smi th E ld e r) ; B 0 F lowe r. T he Ce ntu ry of Si r T ho mas . .

M ore ( Are na Pu b lishi ng W m Hazli tt Lectu re s on the .

,

Lite rature of the Age of Eliza b e th (B e ll and B aldy . G E . .

Sai ntsb u ry , E li zabe tha n L ite ratu re ( Macmillan) ; E . P

. W hi pple,
T he Lite rat ure o f the A ge o f Elizab e th ( H ou ghton Mi llli n) ;
W Pate r, The Rena is sa nce : Studies i n Art a nd Poetry (M acmi l
.
o

Ian) ; J B u rckhardt, The Civili zation o f th e Renaiss ance i n Italy ,

.

tra nslate d b y S G C Mid d le mo re (Lo nd o n,

. . .

Sta T H O H AS M O RE — Utopia , wi th o the r id eal comm onw ea lth. ( M orle y a

’

Uni v ersal Li b ra ry ) Uto p ia and His to ry o f Ed wa rd V , with

. .

Ro pe r s
’
Life o f M ore , i n Came lot Se rie s and T e mpl e Cla ss ics .

Uto pia , in Pi tt Pre s s Se rie s F or . liv es o f Co let, Era s m us , and

M o re , The O x f ord Re f o rmers, b y F See bo hm (Long ma ns)
se e . .

R
RO G E AB CH AM — T ox ophfl n8 a nd The Schoolmaste r, in Arb e r s Ra p
.
’

li sh Re prints ( M acmillan) .

H UO H La r Ia —
Ploughers, i n Arb er a E ngli sh
‘t
Sermon on the '

Re prints ; Se l e ctions in Ca ss e ll s N atio nal Lib rary

’
.

' —
Wr a r r AN D Su s a na Poe ms i n T otte l s M is ce l any , Arbe r s Engli sh
l ’
,
’

Re p ri nts ; Poe ms , Aldi ne e d iti on ; The Su rre y and W y a tt Ani b al .

ogy , e d E Arb or ( F ro wde )

. . Sir Th omas W y att and Hi s P oe ms, .

by W E Sim0nds ( Hea th )
. . . E ssay on Wy att and Sur rey , i n J ,

W Hale s s F oli a Litte raria

’
.

—Ind uctio n
.

TB O l AS Sa c xm E Com plaint o f B uckingham , i n

.
, and m s

ror f or Magistrate s , Li b rary of O ld Authors ( Scrib ne r) ; G M

3 90 A H I STO RY OF EN GLI SH LI TE RA TURE

ti o n b y R . N o e l , i n Cante rb u ry P oets Se ri e s ; Spe ns e r A nthol ogy,

ed . E . A rb e r ( F rowd e ) .

B i ogr ap y h a nd C r i ti ci s m — Li f e , by R W Church ( E nglis h M e n . . .

o f Le tt e rs ) ; A n O u tline G uid e to the Stu dy o f Sp e n s e r, b y F I . .

Carpe nte r ( Uni v e rsity of C hi cago , E s say , by J R Lo we ll, . .

i n Am ong my B ook s , and b y E D owd e n, i n T ranscripts a nd Stu d .

i e s ; C hau ce r and Spe ns e r, i n W Ha zlitt s Le ct ure s o n t he E ng

’
.

li sh P oe ts S La ndo r s I m aginary C o nv e rs ati ons,

. Se e als o W . .
’

E s se x and Sp e n s e r a nd E li zab e th and C e ci l .

GA B R I E L HA V E Y — W o rk 8 , e d A B Grose rt ( Hu th L ib rary )
R . . . . .

G O RG C H P T t — P o e m s, Pla s , a nd T ranslati ons e d R H

M
E E A A N ex s y .
, . . .

She phe rd, with stu d y o f Cha p man b y A C Sw i nb u rne ( Lo ndon, . .

P lay s, i n Me rm aid Se ri e s ; T ranslati on o f I liad , i n M o rley s ’

Uni v e rsa l Li b ra ry .

B gr p y nd Cri ici m
i o a h a t s — C hapm an, a Criti cal Stu dy , b y A C . . .

Sw inb u rne ( C hatto a nd W i nd u s ) ; E s say , by J R L o w e ll , i n The . .

O ld E nglish D ram ati sts , and i n C on v e rsations o n So m e of the

O ld P oe ts .

M I CH AE D AY L R TO N .
— I d e a ’s M irror,
i n A rb e r s E nglish Garn e r ; Son
’

ne t s , i n E liza b e tha n Sonne t Cy cle s .

SA M UE L D A NI L E — So nne ts , i n E liz a b e tha n Sonne t- C cle s D e f e nse of

.
y ;
Rhy m e , in Ancie nt Criti cal E s say s , e d Hasle w ood . .

FU LK E GR E V ILL E , LO D B O O E —W ork8 , e d A B G ro sart Se lec

R R K ; . . . .

ti o ns , A B Gro sart, i n the E liz a b e tha n Li b rary ( M cC l u rg) ; Life

ed . . .

O f Si d ne y , i n V o l I V o f Gro sart s e di ti o n o f L ord B rook e s W orks

’ ’
.
; .

So nne ts , in E li z ab e tha n Sonne t Cy cle s -

.

CH R T P R
IS O H E M W — RL
P oe m s o f Gre e ne M arlowe and B e n ons n
A O E .
, , J o ,

ed . R B e ll ( B e ll )
. . F or M arlow e ’
s pl ay s , a nd criti cal w o rk s u pon
hi m , s e e ne xt d i v i sion .

THO MA S CA MP O N I .
— B ook of Ai rs, i n A rb e r s E ngli s h Garne r ; ’
Poems
( D e nt) .

O the r colle cti ons of E lizab e than Ly rics are : L ri cs f rom the
y
D ram ati sts o f the E li zab e than Age , e d A H B u l le n L a wre nce
( . . .

a nd B u l le n) P oe m s , chi e fly ly ri cal , f ro m E li za b e th a n Ro m ance s

,
e tc e d A H B u lle n N i m m o
.
( .
); E n g li s.h M ad ri gals i n th e Ti me

of Sha ke s p e a re , e d F A C ox ( D e nt ; A B o o k o f E li z a b e than
) . . .

Ly ri cs, ed . F . E Sch clli ng ( Athe naeu m

. Pre s s Se ri e s) Eli z ab e than ,

So ngs , ed E H Garre tt, w ith i ntrod u cti on b y A L ang ( O s ood,

. . .

g .

M cI l v ai ne ) .

SIR WA LT E R RA LE GH Texts — W orks ( O xf ord Uni v e rsit Pre ss ;

I .
y )
Se le cti o ns , ed . A B . . Gro sart i n the E liz ab e than Li b rary ( Stock) ;
,

P oe m s ,
i n C o u rtly Po ets , ed Hannah, A ldi ne
. e diti on ; T h e Fight
of the R e v e nge . in Arb e r s ’
E ngli sh Re pri nts .

B mu m —Life , by E . Gosse ( E nglis h Wor

 RE A DI N G GUI DE 3 91

thi e s) ; Li f e , by E E dward s ( Macmill an) ; E ssay , by Charles

. Ki ngs
le y , i n Play s and P u ri tans and O the r E ssay s ( Ma cmi llan,

CH A PT E R V . : T H E DRA MA B EF O RE SHA K E SP E AR E

T es ta — T he p ri ncip al tex ts ne ce s sary f or a stu dy of thi s p e riod o f the

dram a , u p to M arl ow e , will b e f ou nd in Sp e cime ns o f Pre shake
s p e a re a n D rama , 2 v ols , e d J M M a nly ( Gi nn) ; the t hi rd v ol
. . . .

u me of thi s work, s oo n to b e p u b li s he d , wi ll co ntai n a hi story of

th e d ra ma b e f ore Sha ke sp e are . E ngli sh Mi racle Play s M oraliti e s, ,

and I nte rlu d e s , b y A W P o llard , co ntains s o m e pie ce s not gi v e n

. .

i n M anly s Sp e ci m e ns , a nd a n inte re sting e s say on the origin o f the

’

d ram a . F or play s o f Ly ly , Gre e ne , and Pe e le , se e pre ce di ng

s e cti o n . Marlowe s co mp le te wo rk s are e dite d b y A H B u lle n
’
. .

( N i mm o) ; hi s chi e f l
p ya s a re i n the M e rm ai d Se ri e s ( Scri b ne r) ,

ed . H E l li s ; D r F au stu s is e dite d by W W agne r ( Longmans ) ,

. . .

a nd by A W . . W ard ; E d ward the Se cond i s e di te d by A . W .

V e rity ( D e nt) .

H i s tory a nd Cri ti ci s m — A Hi story of E nglish D ramati c Lite ratu re to

the D e ath of Q u ee n Anne , b y A W W ard , ne w e diti o n , 1 899 ; . .

Shake spe are s

’
Pre de ce ss ors , b y J A Sy m ond s ; Shake spe are and . .

His Pre d e ce sso rs , by F S B oas ( Scri b ne r) ; T he I n flu e nce o f

. .

Se ne ca o n E li zab ethan T ra ge dy , b y J W C u nli fi e ( Ma cmi lla n) ; . .

T he E ngli sh Re ligi ou s D ram a , by K . L . B ate s . W Hazlitt s

.
’

Le ctu re s on the D ramatic Lite ratu re of the Age o f E li zab e th gi v e s

a good ge ne ral v i e w o f the cau s e s le ad i ng u p t o the o u tb u rst of
p o e try i n the late r y e ars o f Eliz a b e th s
’
Se e als o chapte rs re i gn .

o n the e arly d ram a i n T e n B ri nk s H i story o f E ngli sh L i te ratu re

’

a nd in J u s sera nd s Lite rary Hi sto ry o f the E ngli sh P e o ple Al s o

’
.

e s say o n the Pre d e ce s sors o f Shake s p e are , i n t he E s say s a nd

Stu d ie s of J C C olli ns . F or M arlowe s e e e ssay s by E D o wde n,

. .
,
.

i n T ra nscri pts a nd Stu die s, a nd b y H i ngsle y , i n F ire sid e . K

Stu die s, and b y J R L ow e ll , i n T he O ld E ngli sh D ram ati s ts
. . .

F o r the hi story of the stage , se e A Chro ni cle Hi story of the Lon

d on Stage , 155 9 1 64 2 , b y F G F le ay
-
. . .

CH APT E R V I . SH A KE SPE A RE
B i ograp hy a nd Cr i ti ci sm . E xtend ed Works .
— Lif e of Willi am Shak e
s p e are , by S Le e .
( M ac mi ll a n) ; Shak e s pe are , a criti ca l stu dy of

hi s mi nd and art, by E D owd e n ( Harpe r) ; W illiam Shake s pe are ,

.

a criti cal stu dy , by G B rande s ( M a cm illan) ; Shak e s p e are , hi s

.

li f e , art , a nd characte rs , with an hi sto ri cal ske tch o f the o ri gin

a nd gro wt h of the d ram a i n E ngl a nd , b y H N Hu d so n ( Ginn) ; . .

As av ailab le and s ufficiently trustworthy e di ti ons of Shake s p e are are very

numerous . no text s are given .
3 92 A HI STO RY O F E N GLI SH LI TE RATURE

Shak e spe are D ramatic Arti st, b y R G M ou lto n ( Cl are ndon

as a . .

Pre ss ) ; A Chroni cle Hi story of the Li f e and W ork o f Sha k e spe are ,
by F G F le ay ( N im mo ) ; W illia m St
. . Sp e re , a s tu d y i n E li za

b e than Lite ratu re , b y B W e nd e ll ( Scri b ne r) ; W il lia m Shake .

s pe are , Poe t, D ram ati st, a nd M an, b y H W M ab i e Macmillan) ;

( . .

Shake sp e are the M an by Goldwin Sm ith ( D ou b le day , P age )

, .

Essa y s a nd S u d i e
t s — I ntrodu cti on to Shak e spe are , b y E D owde n
. .

( B lacki e ) ; Shak e spe are Pri me r, b y E D o wd e n ; Shak e s pe arean .

Pri m e r, by I Gollancz ( M acmill an) ; Se v e n Le ctu re s o n Shake

.

sp e are a nd Mi lto n, b y S T C ole rid ge ; F i v e Le ctu re s o n Shake. .

spe are , b y B T e n B ri nk ( H olt) ; Stu di e s i n Shake s p e are , by

.

R G W hite ( H ou ghton, M ifili n) ; N ote s and E ss ay s o n Shake

. .

s p e are , J W H ale s ; Characte rs of Shake spe are s Play s, by W

. .
’
.

H az li tt ( B ohu s Sta nd ard Li b rary ) ; Shak e spe are s F e m a l e C harac

’ ’

te rs, al so e ntitl ed Ch aracte ri sti cs of W om e n, b y M rs J a m e son ; .

Shak e sp e are and B e n J onson, i n W Hazlitt s L e ctu re s on the .

’

E ngli sh C omi c W ri te rs ; Shak e spe are and M i lt on, i n W H azlitt s .

’

L e ctu re s on the E nglish P oe ts ; O n Shake spe are s trage di e s, and

’

the ir fitne s s f or s ta ge pre se ntati on, i n Charle s L am b s E ssays

’

o f E li a ; Shake sp e are , or t he P o e t, i n R W E m e rso n s Es pre . .

’

s e ntati v e M e n ; Sh ake s p e are O nce M ore , i n J R L ow e l l s A mong

’
. .

my B o oks ; Shak e sp e are s Ki ngs , i n R L Ste v e ns on s F amiliar

’ ’
. .

Stu di e s o f M e n a nd B ooks ; Shake sp e are the M an, i n W B age .

hot Lite rary Stu di e s

’
s .

Mi s cella n eous V e rsi fi cation, by G H B row ne ( Ginn) ;

Shak e s p e are
’
.
-
s . .

Shak e s p e are s L o nd on, by J F O rdi sh ( D e nt) ; Sh a k e spe are s

' ’
. .

E ngland , b y G W T ho rnb u ry ( Longm ans) ; A C hro ni cle Hi story

. .

of the L o nd on Sta ge , 1 55 9 1 64 2 , b y F G F le ay ; Sh ak e s pe are s

’
-
. .

H oli nshe d , a com pari s on of the chro ni cle a nd the histo ry p lay s, by
W G B Stone ( Lo ngmans ) ; T he E ngli sh Chroni cle P lay , by F
. . .
.

E Sche lling ( Ma cm illan) ; T he Girlho od o f Shak e sp e are s Her

’
.

o i ne s, b y M ary C ow d e n C lark ( Arm stro ng, T a le s f rom

Shake spe are , b y C harle s and M a ry Lam b ( Riv e rsid e L ib rary)
Ci tati o n a nd E x am i nation of W illi am Sha k e spe are , by W S Lan . .

d or ; T he I ta ly o f the E li zab e tha n D ramati sts , i n Vi o le t Page t s

’

E u pho ri o n .

F or la ngu age , Ab b ott s Shak e spe are an Grammar, and

’
se e

Schmidt
’
s Shake spe are Le xi con ( L eipsig) .

CHAPT E R V II SHA K E SPE AR E CO NT E M P O RARIE S SU CC E SSO RS

’
. S AN D IN

T HE D RA M A
Texts — All the te xts ne ce s sa ry f or the stu dy o f thi s pe ri od are inclu ded
in the M e rm aid Se rie s of work s of the old d ram ati st s ( Scrib ne r) .

B e n J onso n s Al che mi st,

’
V olpo ne , Sile nt W oman, Sad She phe rd ,
3 94 A H I STO RY O F E N GLI SH LI TERATUR E

JE R E M Y T A Y L O R —Holy Li v ing and Dy i ng . , i n B oh n s St a nd ard L i b rary

’
.

Se le cti o ns, e d E E W e ntw orth ( Gi nn) Lif e of J e re m y T ay lor,

. . . .

with a criti cal e x ami nati on of hi s wri ti ngs, by R H e b e r ; E ssay .

by E D owd e n, in Puri tan a nd A ngli can See a ls o W H azlitt s

’
. . .

Literatu re of the A ge o f E lizab e th .

H M N — H R
SIR T O AS B O W E T ex t s y d ri o ta p hi a (U B u ri al) a nd Garde n
r n-
. .

o f Cy ru s, i n Gold e n T re as u ry Se rie s ; Re li gi o M e d ici a nd Urn

B u ri al , with i ntrodu cti o n by J A Sy monds, i n C am e l o t Se rie s ; . .

R e ligio Me di ci a nd othe r E ssay s , ed . D . L Rob e rts ( Sto tt

. Lib rary ) ;
W orks, 3 v o ls . , in B ohn
’
s Li b rary .

Cr i ti cis m — E s say s, by L Ste phe n, i n Hou rs i n a L ib ra ry ; by E

. .
.

D owde n, i n Pu ritan a nd Angli ca n ; by W Pate r, i n A pp re ciati ons ; .

by J T e xte , i n Etu d e s d e la Litté ratu re E u rop é e nne ( P ari s ,

.

W
Haz litt s Lite ratu re of the A ge of E liz a b e th
'

Se e a ls o . .

THE CA VAL IE R P O E T s Care w, i n M u s e s Library ; L o v e la ce , Su ckling,

’
.

e d W C Haz litt, i n Li b rary o f O ld Au thors

. . . F o r s e l e cti ons, see .

C av alie r and Cou rtie r Ly ri sts , an a nthology of mi nor s e v e nte e nth

ce ntu ry v e rse , in Cante rb u ry P oe ts Se ri e s ( Scott) ; E ngli s h Ly ric

Po e try , 1 500 1 700, Se le cti ons, with e ssay , by F I C arpe nte r

-
. .

( Scri b ne r) . W ard s E ngli sh Poe ts

Se e al so
’
.

W ILL IA M B R O W NE — P oe tical W ork s, with introdu cti on b y A

. . H B u llen,
.

Mu se s Lib rary Se e Go sse s J acob e an Poe ts

i n the ’
.
’
.

GE O R G E W IT H E R —Poe ms , with introd u cti on b y H Morley i n Com pan

. . ,

i o n P o e t Se ri e s ( Rou tle d ge ) E s say o n the poe try o f W ither, i n .

C L a m b s Mi sce llane o u s E ssay s Se e al so Gosse s J aco be an

’ ’
. .

Poe ts .

I SAA K W A LT O N — Com ple te Angl e r, with i ntrodu cti o n b y A Lang

. .

(D e nt) ; C omp le te Angle r, in C a sse ll s National Li b rary ; Wa lton s

'
’

Li v e s ( o f D onne , H e rb e rt, i n M orley s Uni v e rs a l Lib rary

’
.

E s say b y J R Lo we ll , i n L ate st Lite rary E ssay s

. . .

RO B E RT H E R R IcK —He sp e ride s and N ob l e N u mb e rs e d A Pollard,

.
, . .

with i ntrod u ctio n b y A C Sw inb u rn e ( L awre nce a nd B u l le n) ; . .

H e s p eride s , e d E R hy s i n C ante rb u ry Poe ts Se l e cti o ns , i n

. .
,

Gold e n T re a su ry Se ri e s , and A the naeu m Pre ss Se ri e s E s say s by . ,

E Go ss e , i n Se v e nte e nth C e ntu ry Stu die s ,

. and A C Swi nb u rne ,
. .

i n Stu die s i n Pro se a nd P oe try .

GI L ES F LE T C IIE R .
— Comple te Poe m s, ed . A . B . Gro sart, F u ller s
’

W orthie s Lib rary Se e Gosse s J acob e an Poets .

’
.

GE O R G E HE R B E RT — The T e m ple , i n M orle y s Uni v e rs al Li b rary and in

.
’
,

the T e m ple Classics ; P oe m s , w ith s e le cti ons f ro m hi s p ro se and ,

W alto n s Lif e o f H e rb ert, e d E R hy s , i n Ca nte rb u ry Poets

’
. .

Se rie s E ssay , by E D ow d e n, i n P u ritan and Angli ca n

.
. .

H E N RY V GH
A U A N — Poetical W ork s, e d H C B e e chi ng, i n
. . . . M uses ’

Lib rary Sacre d P oe ms, ed . H . F . Lyte , i n Aldi ne e di tion.

 READI NG GUI DE 3 95

Essay s, by E D owde n, in Pu ritan

. and Angli can ; by L . I Gui ney ,
.

i n A Little E ngli sh Galle ry .

RI CHA RD CR A SH Aw .
—W orks, ed . A B Grosart, F u ller s
. .
’
W orthi e s Li
b re ry ; W orks , e d T u rnb u ll, L ib rary o f O ld Au thors
. E s say by .
,

E Gosse , i n Se v e nte e nth Ce ntu ry Stu di e s

. .

AN D E WR M A E LL — Poems, ed G A Aitke n, M u se s Lib rary E ssay s,

RV .
’
. . . .

by H Ro ge rs , in E ssay s B i ographi cal

.
a nd Criti cal ; by A C B e n . .

s o n, i n hi s E s say s .

AB R A HA M Co m ma — Comple te works , with introd u cti on by A B . . Gro

sart, C he rt se y W o rthi e s L ib rary ; C o wle y
’
s E s say s, ed . H u rd
( L ond o n ,
E s s ay i n Go s se s Se v e nte e nth C e nt u ry Stu d i e s ,
’

and i n W Ste b b i ng s Some V e rdi cts o f H i story Re v e rse d

’
. .

J O H N M ILT O N Tarts — Poe tical W orks, e d M asson, Glo be e ditio n ;

. .

Poe ti cal W orks , wit h a translati o n of the Latin poe ms ed M oody , , .

Camb rid ge e diti on ( Hou ghton, M i fili n) ; Prose W ritings , e d M or .

l ey , C ari s b ro oke Lib rary ; P ros e W riti ngs, B ohn s Standard Li

’

b rat y .

i
B g p y
o r a h a nd Cri ti ci sm —Lif e , b y M Pattison (E ngli sh M e n of . .

L e tte rs ) ; Li f e , b y W Rale i gh ( Pu tnam ) ; Lif e , by R Garne tt

. .

( Gre at W ri te rs
Se ri e s) ; Li f e , by D r J ohnson, i n L i v e s o f the .

P oe ts ; the m ost av ailab l e editi on i s Six Chi e f Li v e s f rom J ohnson s

’

Liv e s of the Poe ts , e d M Arnold ( M acmillan) ; Lif e and T im e s , . .

7 v ol s
, M a ss
. o E
by D
n s say s
. b y J R L ow e ll , i n Am ong M y
.
, . .

B o oks and i n Late st Lite rary E ss ay s ; by M Arnold , i n E ssay s i n .

Critici sm ; b y E D owd e n, i n P u ri ta n a nd A ngli can a nd in T ran

.

scri pts and Stu di e s ; by W B age h ot , i n Lite rary Stu di e s Addi . .

son s Criti ci sm o n Paradise L o st, e d A 8 C ook ( Gi nn)

’
. . . .

J O HN B UN Y AN Texts — Grace Ab o u nding in Cas se ll s N ati onal Li

’
.
,

b rat y ; Pilgri m s Progre ss , in Go lde n T rea su ry Se ri e s a nd Ri v e r

’

sid e Li te ratu re Se ri e s .

B i ograp hy a nd Criti ci sm Lif e , b y J A F rou de ( E ngli sh .

-
. .

M e n of Le tte rs) E ssay s, by T B Macau lay ; by G R W ood

. . . . .

b e rry , i n M ak e rs of Lite ratu re ; b y E D ow de n, in Pu ritan and .

A ngli can ; by T u lloch, i n E ngli sh P u rita ni s m and its L e ad e rs .

CHAPT E R IX . : T HE RE S T O RA T IO N
Genera l Works — Macau lay
Hi story o f E ngla nd ; The Age of D ry
’
. s .

de n, by R Garne tt ( B e ll) ; Le Pu b li q u e e t l e s H omm e s de Le ttre s

.

e n Angle te rre , 1 660 1 74 4 , B e lj am e ; F rom Shak e s e are to Po e

p p ,
-

by E Gos se , tre ats of the ri se of the clas si cal s chool ; B e n J onson

.

a nd the Classi cal School , by F E Sche ll ing ( re p ri nte d f rom V ol . . .

1 3 o f M od e rn Langu age Ass o ci atio n P u b lications , B al tim ore ,

J O H N D R YD E N . Texts — P oe ti cal W ork s , ed . W . D . Chri sti e , Glob e

3 96 A HISTO RY or E N GLISH LITERATURE

editio n ;Se lect Poems ed W D Chri sti e ( Cla re ndon Prm ) ; The , . . .

D ry d e n Anthol ogy , ed E Arb e r (Frowde ) ; Es say s, se le c te d and . .

edi te d b y W P Ker ( Clare nd on Pre s s ) ; T ranslati on o f M

. . ,

in M orley s Uni v e rsa l Lib rary

’
.

B i ograp hy a n d Cri ti ci s m —Lif e , b y G E Sa intsbnry (E nglish . . .

M e n o f Le tte rs ) ; Lif e , by D r J oh nso n ( for edi tign se e u nder Mil .

to n) Ess ay s , by J R Lo we ll, in Amo ng My B o oks ; by J C CO I

. . . . .

lins , q ss ay s and Stu di es ; by D Masso n, in T he T hre e D e v ils and .

O the r Es sa y s ; by W Ha z litt in Le ctu re s on t he E nglis h Poe ts

. ,
.

SAM EL U
U B T LE R — H u di bras, in M orle y s Uni ve rsa l Li b ra ry E ssay , by
’
.

E D o wd e n, in P urita n and Angli ca n

. .

SA MU E L Pa n s —Di a ry , with se le cti o ns fro m hi s corre s pond e nce, ed .

L ord B ray broo ke , i n Cha ndos Library ( W arns ) Sa m ue l Pe pys .

and the World he Li ve d I n, by H B W heatle y ( Scrib ne r ) , Romy , . .

b y R L Ste v e ns on, In F a milia r Stu di es of M e n and B ooks ( Seri b

. .

ne r) .

SIR W ILLIA M D AvEN ANT — Se e . E . Gosse

’
s F rom Sha ke s pea re to
Pope .

T H O M A S O T W A Y —Play s, ed R . . . N oe l ( Me rmaid Se ri e s ) . Etude snr

Tho mas O tway , pa r A de Gris y ( Paris , .

—
W IL I A W YC HE LE Y Play s, ed W C W ard
L M R . .
( M e rma id Ser ies ) Se e
. .
,

Wy che rle y , Co ngre v e e tc , i n W Ha zlitt s Le ctu re s o n the Eng

’
.
, .

li sh Comic Write rs .

W IL LIAM Co NG a E —Play s, ed A C Ewald ( M e rma id Se ries ) Life, . . . .

by E Go s se ( Great W ri te rs) ; Co ngre v e and Add is o n, in W

. .

M T hacke ray s E nglis h H umo rists Se e al so u nd e r W y che rley

’
. . .

F o r Wy che rle y , Co ngre v e , and the E ighte enth C en tu ry co medy ,

se e C . La mb ’
s e ss ay O n t he Artifi cial Comedy of the Las t Ce n o

t u ry , and G . Me re dith s ’
E ssay o n Comedy and the C o mic Spiri t
( Scri b ne r) .

CLA SSIcrs x
Genera l Wod en —Hi sto ry o f E ngland in the Eighte e nth C e ntu ry by ,

W E H Le cky ; E ngli sh T ho u ght i n the Eightee nt h Ce ntu ry by

. . .
,

L Ste phe n ; Hi s to ry of E nglish Lite rature in the Ei ghte e nth

.

C e ntu ry , by T 8 Pe rry ; E ighte e nt h Ce ntury Lite ra tu re , by E

. . .

Goss e ; The Age o f Po pe , b y J De nni s ; T he Age of J ohnaon, by .

T Secco mb e ( M acmilla n) ; Le Pu b liq u e e t le s Ho mme s d o Let

.

tre s e n Angle te rre , 1 660- 1 744 . F or the early hist ory of Journal
is m, H R F ox B o urne
s ee . .
’
s E ngli sh N e ws papers , chapters 1-6
( Cha tto and W i nd u s ,

J O N ATH AN Swrr r . Tea m—W o rks , ed . T Scott .

( B ell) ; Se le ctions , ed
3 98 A H I STO RY O F E N GLI SH LI TERA TU R E

De Q ui nce y , in B io graphi cal E ssay s , and also in his E ss ay s on the

P oe ts ; b y W S Lilly , i n E ssay s and Spe e che s Se e als o W M
. . . . .

T hacke ray s E ngli sh H u m orists ; W Hazlitt s Le ctu re s on the

’ ’
.

Poe ts ; and J W arto n s Ge ni u s and W riti ngs O f Pope

.
’

SA M U E L J O H N SO N T cz t s — E ssay s , s e le cte d and edi ted by G B Hill

. . . .

( D e nt ) ; E ss ay s , s e le cte d ,
in C a m e l ot S e ri e s ; Ras se l a s , ed G B .
. .

H ill ( Clare nd on Pre ss) ; Ra sse las ed H M o rle y , in M orley s

’
. .
,

U ni v e rsal Lib rary ; Le tte rs , ed G B Hill ( Clare nd o n Pre ss ) ; . . .

Le tte rs, se le cted , i n E ighte e nth C e ntu ry Le tte rs , ed R B John . . .

s o n ( N e w Y ork , Six Chi e f Li v e s from J ohn s on s Li v e s O f ’

the P oe ts, wi th M aca u lay s Li f e o f J ohnson, ed M Arn o ld ( M ac

’
. .

mi lla n) .

B i ograp hy a nd Cri ti ci s m — Li f e , by . L Ste phe n (E ngli s h M e n of

.

L e tte rs ) ; B o s w e ll
’
s Lif e of J ohns o n, e d M M orri s , i n Li b rary of
. .

E ngli sh Class ics ( Ma cmil lan) D r J o hns on , his F ri e nd s and . .

C ri tics , b y G B Hill ( Smi th E ld e r) ; E ssay , by L Ste p he n, in

. . .

H ou rs i n a Li b ra ry , and by T B M a cau l ay ( not to b e co nf u sed . .

with Macau lay ’

s Lif e Of J ohns o n, ab o v e ) .

O LI VE R GO LD SM I T H .
— P oe m s, P lay s a nd E ssay s , e d J Aikin
Test s , . .

and H T . . T u cke rm an ( C rowe ll) ; Mi s ce llane ous W o rks , ed D . .

M as son, Glob e editi on ; Vi car of W ake fie ld, P oe m s , and Play s, In

M orl ey s Uni v e rsal Li b rary ; T he Gold smi th Anthol ogy , ed E
’
. .

Arb e r ( F rowd e )
B i ogra p hy a nd — Li f e , by W B la ck ( E ngli s h M e n O f
Cri ti cis m .

L ett e rs ) ; Lif e , b y A D ob s on ( Gre at W rite rs ) ; Li f e , b y J F o rste r

. .

E s say s , b y A D o b s o n, i n his M is ce lla ni e s , b y T D e Q u i nce y In

.
,

E s say s o n the P o e ts ; by T B M a cau lay Se e a l s o T ha cke ray s

’
. . .

E ngli sh H u m ori sts .

RIC H A RD B RIN SLE Y SHE R ID AN — Play 8 . R D i rcks , in Cam e l ot Se rie s ;

, ed . .

P la y s , i n M orle y Uni v e rsal Lib rary , a nd in Ma cmill a n s Li b rary

’ ’
s

of E nglIsh C lassi cs Li f e , b y L C Sand e rs ( Gre at W ri te rs) ,

. . . a nd

by M O W . . . O li phant ( E nglish M e n o f Le tte rs) .

ED W A R D GIBE O N . Ter m— D e cli ne and F all O f the R om an E m pire ,

ed .

J B u ry ( M e thu e n) ; Stu d e nt s Gib b on, a b rid ged ( M u rray ) ;

’
. B .

M e m oirs w ith e s say b y W D H owe lls ( O sgood ) ; M e m oirs , ed

, . . .

G B H ill ( M e thu e n)
. . Me m oirs , in C aris b rooke Lib ra ry a nd in
Athe nae u m P re ss Se ri e s .

B i ograp hy a nd Cri tici sm — Lif e , Cby J . . M oriso n ( E nglish

Me n Of Le tte rs ) . E s say s , b y W . B age hot, i n L ite rary Stu d ie s
by F . H arri s on, in R u skin , Mi ll and othe r li te rary e sti m a te s ; by
C A . . Sai te B e u v e ,
n -
in E ngli sh Portraits .

E DM UN D B URKE . T exts — Se le ct W orks , ed E J . . . Pay ne ( Cl are nd on

P re s s Se ri e s ) ; Se le cti on s , e d B P e rry ( H olt) ; Am e ri can Spe eche s .

and L e tters on the Iris h Q u e sti on, in M orley s Uni v e rsa l Lib rary
’
.
 R E A DI N G G UI D E 3 99

E ssay on the Su b lim e and the B e au tif u l, T e mple Clas si cs ( M ac

mi lla n) .

B i ograp hy a nd Cr i ti cis m .
— Li f e , by J . M orle y ( E ngli sh M e n O f
L e tte rs ) . Se e E D owd e n .
’
s F re nch Re v olu ti o n and E ngli sh Li te ra
tu re .

CHA PT E R X I . T H E E IGHT E E NTH CE N T U R Y N O VE L .

( SE E B E LO W )

C HA P TE R XI I . T HE RE VIV AL OF RO MA N TI O ISM

Genera l W o rks . — E ngli s h R o ma nti ci s m in the E i ghte e nth Ce ntu ry , by

H A B e e rs ; T he B e ginni ngs O f the E nglis h Roma nti c M o v e m e nt,
. .

b y W L P he lp s ; E ngli sh Lite ratu re in the E ighte e nth C e ntu ry ,

. .

by T S P e rry ; E i ghte e nth C e ntu ry Lite ratu re , b y E Go s s e ;

. . .

Lite rary H i story O f E ngla nd by M rs O li p hant ( O p e ning chapte rs) ,

. .

J A M E S T H O M SO N T exts T he Se a s ons a nd C a stle O f I nd ole nce e d

. .
-
, .

H E Gre e ne ( Athe n aeu m Pre ss Se ri e s ) ; W ork s Aldine e d iti on

. . , .

B i ograp hy a nd Cr i ti ci s m — Lif e by W B ay ne ( Scrib ne r) ; , .

J a m e s T ho m s on sa V i e e t Se s oeu v re s b y L e on M ore l ( H a che tte

, , ,

Pa ri s) T ho m son and C owp e r i n W Ha zli tt s L e ctu re s o n the

” ’
.
.
,

E ngli sh P o e ts .

W I LLI A M CO LLIN S .
— W o rk s , Aldi ne e diti on . E ssay i n Swinb u rne
’
s

M is ce llani e s F or f u rthe r cri ti ci sm se e ge ne ral w o rks ab o v e

.
,
.

E D W A R D Y O UN G — W ork s Aldine e diti on . Se e B e e rs s E nglish ,

.
’
Ro
m a nticis m in the E i ghte e nth C e ntu ry .

H
T O M A S GR A Y Text s — W orks in V e rs e and P rose , e d E Gosse
. . . .

( M a cm ill a n); P oe m s , i n Ro u tl e d ge s P o ck e t Li b rary ; P oe m s O f

’

Gray , B e atti e , and C olli ns , in Chand os C lassi cs (W arne ) ; Se le c

ti o ns f ro m Gray , e d W L P h e l ps ( Athe naeu m P re s s ) . . . .

B i ogr ap hy Cri ti ci s m — Li f e , b y E Gos se ( E ngli sh M e n O f

a nd . .

Le tte rs) ; Lif e , b y D r J ohns on ( f or e diti on se e u nde r J ohnson) . .

E s say s , b y M A rno ld , i n E ssay s i n Cri ti ci sm

. b y J R L o w e ll , i n . .

Late st Lite rary E ssay s ; by A D ob s on, i n E ighte e nth C e ntu ry .

V i gne tte s ; b y L Ste phe n i n H ou rs i n a Lib rary Se e al s o T he

.
, .

I nfl u e nce O f O ld N o rse Lit e ratu re u p on E ngli sh Lite rat u re b y C ,

.

H N ordb y ( M acmi lla n)

. .

T H O M A S PE R CY Re li q u e s O f A ncie nt E ngli sh P oe try i n C ha nd o s C las

.
-
,

si cs ( W a rns ) a nd i n B o hu s Sta nd ard Li b ra ry M ore re ce nt b al ’

.

l ad co lle cti o ns , tak e n f rom P e rcy and othe r s ou rce s , are : T he

B al lad B ook , ed . W . A lli ngham O ld E ngli sh B a llad s , e dite d , w ith
v al u a b l e p re f ace , by F . B . Gu m m e rs ( Athe nwu m P re s s Se ri e s ) .

Se e , b e sid e s ge n e ral wo rks ab o v e , T he Re v i v a l O f B allad P oe try

i n the E ighte e nth C e ntu ry , i n J W H al e s s F oli a Litte rari a
” ’
. . .

JA M E S M A O P H E R SO N — O ssian, in Cante rb u ry Poe ts See B ee r8 s Engv

.
’
.

li sh Romanti cism , etc .

4 00 A H I STO RY O F E N GLI SH LI TE RAT UR E

T HO MA S C H AT T E RTO N —Poe ti cal W orks, in Cante rb u ry P oe ts Li f e , by

. .

Sir D W ilson ( Ma cmillan)

. E ssay , by D Masso n, i n E ssay s . .

B iographical and Cri ti cal .

G
GE O R E CR AE RE Ta a
ni —Se le cted Poe ms , in Cas se ll s N ati onal Li
.
’

b rary , and in Cante rb u ry P os ts ; The B orou gh, i n M acmill an s

’

T e mpl e Cl assics .

B i ograp hy m d Cri ti ci s m
c — Li f e , by T E He b b e l ( Gre at W rit . .

e rs) .E ssay s, b y G E W oodb e rry , in M akers O f Lite ratu re ; b y L

. . .

Ste phe n, in H ou rs in a Li b rary ; by G E Saints b ury , i n E ssay s . .

in E ngli sh Literature , 1 780—

1 8 60 .

W ILLIA M CO W PE R Toxi n — Se l e cte d P o e m s,

in Cas se ll s N ati onal Li
’
.

b rary , in Athe naeu m Pre ss Se rie s, and in C ante rb u ry P oe ts ;

Po eti cal W orks, i n Glob e e d iti on , in Aldine edi ti o n and i n Chan

d os Clas sics . Le tts rs , sd . W . B e nham ( M acmillan) .

B io grap hy a nd Criti cis m — Lif e , by Gold win Smi th ( E nglis h Me n

Of Le tte rs) ; Lif e , by R Sou the y
. . E ssay s , b y L Ste phe n, in Hours .

i n a Lib rary ; b y W B age hot, in . Literary Stu di e s ; b y C A Saints . .

B e u v e , in E ngli sh P ortraits ; by A D ob s on, i n Ei ghte e nth Ce n .

tu ry Vignette s ; B u ny an, C owpe r, and Charming, in G E W ood . .

b e rry s M ake rs of Lite rature

’
.

WmLIAM B L AK E Team— P o e ms, with me m oir b y W M Ro s se tti,

. . .

Aldi ne e diti on ; P oe m s , w ith spe ci me ns O f p ro se w riti ngs , in Can

te rb u ryP os ts ; Comple te W orks, with elab orate criti ca l apparatus

a nd i llu strati ons f rom B l ake s Prophetical B o oks , e d E J E llis
’
. .

a nd W B Y e ats ( L ond o n
. .
,

B i ograp hy a nd Cri ti cis m — Lif e b y A Gil chri st ( M acmillan) ; .

, .

Lif e b y A T Story ( Lond o n

, . . W illi am B lake , 8 Critical , .

Stu dy , by A C Swi nb urne ( Chatto and W indu s)

. . E s s ay , by A C . . .

B e nson, in hi s E ssay s .

RO B E RT B URNS . Team—Poe ti cal W orks, with i ntrod ucti on by W E . .

He nley ( Hou ghto n, Miflli n) ; also in Aldine edition, i n C lare n

do n P re ss Se rie s, and i n Cante rb u ry Pos ts ; Le tters , s e le ct ed , in
C ame lot Se ri e s .

B i ograp hy a nd Cr i i mi t c s — Li f s , by W E H e nle y ( se e Cam . . .

b rid ge e diti o n, ab o v e ; a ls o p u bli s he d se parate ly ) ; Lif s , by J C . .

Shairp ( E ngli sh M e n o f L e tte rs) ; Li f e , by G Ss tou n ( Scri b ne r) . .

E ssay s, by T Carly le ( a conv e ni e nt ed iti on i s i nclu d e d in L o ng

.

man s E ngli sh Cla ssi cs) ; b y R L Ste v e nso n, i n F amili ar St udi e s O f

’
. .

M e n a nd B ooks ; by W H T horns , in M od e rn Ido ls ; b y Sto p . .

f ord B rooks , in T he ol ogy i n the E ngli sh Po s ts ; b y J F ors te r, in .

Gre at T eachers B u rns a nd the O ld E nglish B allad s , in W

.
.

Hazlitt s Le cture s on the E ngli sh Pos ts

’
.
4 02 A H I STO R Y O F E N GLI SH LI TE RA T URE

tu re , 1 7 80—1 8 60, 2d s e ri e s ; by W . Hazlitt, in The Spirit Of the

A ge .

TH O M A S CA MPB E LL — Po e tical W orks , Aldi ne ed iti on . L if e , by J C . .

H add s n ( Scrib ne r) . E ssay , b y G E Saintsb u ry , i n Stu di e s in . .

E ngli s h Lite ratu re , 1 780—1 860, 2d s e rie s .

GE O R G E GO R D O N, L O RD B YR O N Texts — Se l e ctions , w ith e s say b y M . .

A rnold , i n Gold e n T re a su ry Se ri e s ; Se le cti o ns, ed F I C arpe n . . .

t e r ( H o l t) Le tt ers , i n C am e l ot Se ri e s .

B i ograp hy a nd Cri ti ci sm — Lif e , b y J N i chol s (E ngli s h M e n of .

Le tte rs) ; Lif e , by R N oe l ( Gre at W ri te rs) E ssay s, b y M A rnold, . . .

in E ssay s in Criti cis m ( sam e a s that pre fix ed to Se le cti ons , a b o v e ) ;

b y W H az litt, in T he Spiri t O f the Age ; b y T B Maca u l ay , i n
. . .

h is E ssay s .

PE R CY B Y SSH E SH E LLE Y . Tes ts —P oe ti cal W orks ed E D owde n , . .

,

Glo b e e d iti on
; P oe ti cal W orks , e d G E W ood b e rry , C a m b ridge
. . .

e diti on ; Se l e cti ons , i n Gold e n T re as u ry Se ri e s a nd i n H ea th s

’

E ngli sh C la s si cs ; E ssay s and Le tte rs , i n Ca me l ot Se ri e s .

B i ograp hy Cri ti cis m — Lif e , by W Sha rp ( Gre at W ri te rs) ;

a nd .
.

Lif e , b y J A Sy m onds (E ngli sh M e n O f Le tte rs) ; Li f e , b y E D o w

. .
.

K
d e n ( e ga n P au l ) A She lle y P ri m e r, by H S Sa lt ( L o nd o n,
. . .

E ssay s , b y G E W o od b e rry , i n M ake rs O f Li te ra tu re ; b y . .

W .B a ge hot, i n Lite rary Stu di e s ; by M A rno ld , i n E s say s in .

C riti ci s m ; b y R H Hu tto n, i n L ite rary E ssay s , a nd i n E s say s

. .

T he o l ogica l a nd Lite ra ry ; b y J F orste r, i n Gre a t T e a ch e rs . .

THO M A S MO O R E — P o e ti ca l W o rk s i n C ha nd o s Clas si cs W arn s ) , and i n

, (
C a nte rb u ry P oe ts . Lif e a nd W orks , by A J Sy m i ngt o n ( H arpe r) ;
. .

E s say , b y G E . . Sai ntsb u ry , in E ssay s i n E ngli sh Li te rat u re , 1 780

1 8 60 .

LE I GH HU N T Tezts — E ssay s , w ith i ntrod u cti o n b y A Sy m ons , i n

. . .

C a m e l ot Se ri e s ; D ram ati c E ssay s , s e le cte d a nd e d ite d by W .

Arch e r a nd R . W
Low e ( Scott) ; Se le cti ons f rom p ro se a nd v e rs e ,
.

C a v e nd i sh L ib ra ry ( W arns ) ; Stori e s f rom the I ta li a n P o e ts ,

K ni N u gge ts Se ri e s ( P u tnam )
ck e rb o ck e r .

B i ogr ap hy a n d Cri ti ci s m — Li f e , b y W C M o nk hou s e ( Gre at . .

W rite rs) E s say s , b y T B M acau lay , in his E ssay s , b y G E

. . . . .

Sai nts b u ry , i n E ssay s in E ngli s h Lit e ra tu re , 1 780—1 8 60 ; b y M rs .

F ie ld, i n a She l f o f O ld B o oks ; T hom a s M oore and Le i gh H u nt,

in W . H a zlitt s Spi rit ’
Of the Age .

JO H N K TS EA . T exts — P oe tical W orks , wi th le tt e rs , e d H E Scu dd e r, . . .

C am b ridge ; P o e ti cal W o rk s , wi th li f e b y Lo rd H ou ghto n,

e diti o n

A ldi ne e di ti o n ; P o e m s ( not q u ite com pl e te ) , e d P a lgra v e , i n G o l .

d e n T re a s u ry Se ri e s ; P oe m s , e d A . . B ate s ( A th e naeu m P re ss
Se ri e s ) L e tte rs , e d H B F o rma n . . . .

B i ograp hy a nd Cri ti ci sm .
- Li f e , b y S Colvin (Engli sh Me n
. Of
 R EA D I N G GU I D E 403

Le tte rs) ; L i f e , b y W M Ro sse tti ( Gre at W rite rs) E ssay s , b y J R

. . . . .

L owe ll , i n Am o ng M y B ooks ; by M Arnold , in E ssay s in O riti .

ci s m ; b y A C Swi nb u rne , i n Mi sce llani e s ; by W H H u d s on,

. . . .

i n Stu di e s in I nte rp re tati o n ; b y D M as s on, in W ord s worth, She l .

ley , K e a ts , a nd O the r E s say s .

W ILLI AM HA z LIT T . Team— E ssa y s , s e l e cte d ,

i n Cam e l ot Se ri e s ; D ra
ma ti c E ssay s , s e l e cte d a nd e d ite d by W . Arche r a nd R . W L owe .

( S cott ); L e ctu re s o n t he E ngli s h C o m i c W ri te rs , i n T e m p l e C l a s

si cs ( D e nt ) ; C ha ra cte rs O f Sha ke s p e are s P lay s , i n B o hn s Sta n

’ ’

d ard Lib rary ; Se le cti o n s f rom comp l e te wo rks , wi th introd u cti on

b y A I re la nd , i n C a v e nd ish Lib ra ry ( W arns )
. .

B i ogr ap hy a nd Cri tici s m Lif s , b y A B i rre ll (E ngli sh M e n O f .

-
.

Le tters, i n p re p arati o n) E s s ay s, by L Ste p he n, i n H ou rs i n 9 Li

. . .

b rary ; b y G E Sai ntsb u ry , i n E ssay s i n E ngli s h Lite ratu re ,

. .

—
1 7 80 1 8 60 ; b y L I Gu ine y , i n A Little E ngli sh Ga ll e ry ; b y T
. . .

D e Q u i nce y , i n E s say s o n the P o e ts a nd O the r E nglis h W rite rs .

RL
C HA E S LA M R Ton i a — P oe m s , P lay s , and Mi sce llane ou s E s s ay s, e d
. .

A Ainge r ( M a cm il lan) ; E ssay s O f E li a , in Cam e lot C la ssi cs ; D ra

.

m ati c E ssay s , with i ntrod u cti on b y B ra nd e r M atthe ws ( D odd ,

M e ad ) ; Spe ci m e ns O f E ngli sh D ra m atic P o s ts , i n B ohn s A nti ’

q u a ri a n Li b ra ry ; T a l e s f ro m Shak e s p e are , R i v e rsi d e Lib rary

( H o u ght o n , M i fii i n) .

B i ogr ap hy a nd Cri ti cis m .

, b y A L if e
-
A i n ge r E
( g n li sh M e n O f .

L e tte rs ) E s say s , b y T D e
. .
Q u i nce y, i n B i o g p
ra h i ca l E ssa y s ; b y G .

E W o odb e rry , in M ak e rs O f Lite ratu re ; b y W P a te r i n A pp re

. .
,

La m b a nd W i the r, i n A C Swi nb u rne s M i sce llani e s ;

”
ci ati ons
’
. .

L am b and Ke at s , in F H arris on s R u ski n M ill , a nd othe r Lit

”
.
’
,

cra ry E sti mate s .

T HO MA S D E Q UIN CE Y . Texts — C o m pl e te W o rks , D M a ss o n ( Ed i n ed . .

b u rgh, C on f e s si ons O f an E ngli s h O p i u m E ate r, i n T e m ple

Cla ssics ( D e nt) ; J oa n O f Are a nd E ngli sh M ai l C oa ch, e d J M . . .

H art ( H olt) ; R e v olt O f a T artar T ri b e , e d C E B ald win ( Long . . .

.

m ans) ; Se l e cti on s, e d B li s s P e rry ( D ou b l e d ay Page )

. .

B i ogr ap hy a n d Cr i ti ci sm — Lif e , b y D M a ss on ( E ngli sh M e n o f . .

L e tte rs ) . E s sa y s , b y G E Sai ntsb u ry , i n E ss ay s i n E ngli sh Lite ra

. .

tu re , 1 7 8 0—1860, 1 st s e rie s ; b y D M a ss on , i n W ord sw orth, She l .

le y , K e ats , a nd othe r E s s a s ; b
y y L S te p h e n , i n H ou rs i n a .

Lib rary .

W ALT E R SA VA G E LAN DO R . Texts .

-
C o m p l e te W o rks , C G Cru m p
ed . . .

( L ond o n , I m aginary C onv e rsati o ns , s e l e cte d b y H E lli s , .

in C am e l ot Se ri e s ; P e ri cl e s a nd A s pa si a , e d H E lli s , i n C am e l ot . .

Se ri e s ; Se le ct P oe m s in C a nte rb u ry P oe ts .

B i ogr ap hy a nd Cr i ti ci s m — . Li f e , by S C o l v in ( E nglis h M e n O f
L e tte rs) . E s s ay s , b y E . D owd e n, in Stu die s i n Lite ratu re , 1 789
 A H I STO R Y OF E N GLI SH LI TE RA TU R E

1 8 77 E W oodb e rry , i n M ake rs O f L ite ratu re ; b y L

by G . . .

Ste phe n, in Hou rs i n a Lib rary ; b y G E Saintsb u ry , i n Studie s . .

i n E ng li s h Lit e ratu re 1 780 —1 8 60, 2 d s e ri e s ; b y,

A C Sv i n . .

b u rns , in Mi sce llanie s Se e als o E C Ste d man s V ictorian

’
. . .

Poe ts .

TH O M A S H O O D — Choice W orks , in
. T exte ,
pro s e a nd v e rs e ( Chatto
W i ndu s) ; Se le cted Poe ms , with se lecte d po e m s O f L e igh H u nt, in
C a nte rb u ry Poe ts .

Cri ti cism — E s say , by G E Saintsb u r , in E ssa s i n E nglis h

y y . .

Lite ratu re , —
1 7 80 1 8 60, 2 d se ri e s ; “ H ood and M rs B ro wning, .

in W D aw s on s M ak e rs
. J .
’
of M ode rn E ngli sh . Se e als o E C . .

Ste dman s V icto ri an P oe ts

’
.

CHAP TE R X IV . T HE VICT O RIAN E RA

Genera l o r —
W ks A His tory of O ur O wn Tim e s, b y J M Carthy ; .
’

N i ne te e nth C e ntu ry L ite ratu re , b y G . E Sai nts b u ry ; Vi ct orian

.

P o s ts , b y E C Ste d m an ; An A nthology of Vi cto ri a n P oe try , b y

. .

E C St ed m an ; A Li tera ry Hi story O f E ngland in t he N i ne te e nth

. .

Ce ntu ry , b y M rs O li pha nt ; E ngli sh Roma nti cism in the N ine

.

te e nth C e ntu ry , b y H A B ee rs Vi ctorian Lite ratu re , i n E

.
”
. . .

D owde n s T ranscripts Stu die s , giv e s an inte re sti ng b ird

’ ’
and s ey e
-

Vi e w .

TH O M A S B AR INGT O N , L O RD MA C AULA Y . Terts .

—E ssay s and Lay s of

A nci e nt R om e , 2 7 e s say s in one v o lu m e (Lo ngm ans , 1 8 9 6) E ssay s

on Addi s o n a nd Milton, i n Lo ngma n E ngli sh C las si cs ; E ssay s
’
s

J o hns o n, i n Longm an s E ngli sh C las sics

’
on .

B i gr p hy nd C
o a a r i ti ci sm — Li f e , b y J A C M ori s o n (E nglish . . .

M e n O f Le tte rs) ; Li f e , b y G O T re ve ly an E ssay s, b y L Ste p he n, . . . .

i n H ou rs i n a Lib rary by W
B age hot, i n Lite rary Stu di es ; b y
.

F H arri son, i n Stu di e s

. i n E arly Vi cto ri an Lite ra ture ; b y G E . .

Sa intsb u ry , i n C orre cte d I m pre ssi o ns .

H M
T O A S CA RL Y L E Texts — C ritical a nd Misce llane ou s E ss ay s , 1 v ol
. .

( A p pl e t o n , F re nch Re v olu ti o n, 3 v ol s ( Scri b n e r, .

Li f e O f Ste rli ng ( Scri b ne r, H e roe s i n Athe ne u m Pre s s ,

Se ri e s ; P a st a nd Pre se nt, Charti sm, a nd Sarto r Re sartu s , 1 v ol .

( H arp e r) ; E ssay B u rns, i n Longman s E ngli sh Cla ssics ,

’
on and

v ari o u s oth er s cho ol e diti ons .

B i ograp hy a nd Cri ti ci sm — Lif e , b y R Garne tt ( Great

. W ri te rs)
Lif e , b y J Ni ch ol ( E ngli sh M e n O f L e tte rs) E ssay s , by J R
. . . .

L owe ll, in M y Stu dy W i nd ows ; by R H Hu tton, i n M od e rn . .

Gu id e s Of E nglish T h ou ght ; by F H arri s on, in Stu di e s i n E arly .

Victorian Lite ratu re ; by J M Rob e rts o n, i n M od e rn Hu man . .

i sts ; by W . C B ro wne ll , in V i ctorian Prose Maste rs ; b y W S.

.
.
4 06 A H I STO R Y O F E N GLI SH LI TE RA TURE

Se l e cte d P oe m s , i n Gold e n Tre asu ry Se ri e s ; Se le cti o ns f rom

Prose W ri ti ngs , with introd u ctory e ssay , b y L E Gate s ( H o lt) . . .

B i ogr ap hy a nd Cr i c m
ti i s — Li f e , b y H W P a u l ( E ngli s h M e n . .

O f L e tte rs , i n p re para ti o n) ; Li f e , b y G E Sai nts b u ry ( B lack . .

E ssay s , by R H H u tto n i n Lite rary E s s ay s ( A rnold s

’
wood) . . .
,

p o e try b
); y L E . .Gate s , i n Thre e Stu di e s in Lite rat u re ( a l so pre
fix e d to pro s e se le cti on s , a b ov e ) ; b y L E Gate s, i n Stu d i e s and . .

A pp re ci ati o ns ( T he R e tu rn to C o nv e nti o nal L i f e ) ; b y R H . .

H u tton, in M od e rn Gui de s ,
T hou ght ; by W C B row O f . E ngli s h . .

ne ll , i n V i ctori an Pro s e M as te rs ; b y G E W ood b e rry , i n M ake rs . .

of Lite ratu re b y F Harris o n, i n R u ski n, Mi ll, and ot he r L ite rary

.

E sti m ate s ; b y J M Rob e rts on , in M od e rn H u m a ni s ts

. by J . .

J a cob s , i n Lite rary Stu di e s b y W H H u d s on, i n Stu die s i n In . .

te rpre tati o n ; b y J B urrou ghs , i n I nd oor Stu di e s . .

JO HN RUSH IN Text e — N O good che ap e di ti o n O f Ru ski n

. , e x i s ts ; the
sta nd ard e diti o n i s the B ra ntwo od , ed . C E N orto n
. . . E s s ay s and

L e tte rs, se le cte d by L G Hu fi ord ( Ginn) ; A Ru ski n A nthology . .

,

by W S Ke nnedy ( N e w Y ork
. . A n I ntrod u cti o n to the ,

W riti ngs O f Ru ski n ( se le cti o ns ) , b y V D Scu dd e r ( H e at h ) ; Wild . .

O li v e and M u ne ra P u l v e ri s , 1 V ol ( U S B o ok W ild O live . . .

a nd Se s am e and Li lie s, 1 v ol .
( B u rt) .

B i ograp hy Cr i tici s m —J o hn Ru ski n ; b y M rs

a nd M ey .

ne ll ( D odd , M e ad ) ; Li f e , b y W G C ollingwood ( H ou ghton, . .

M iffl i n) ; T he W ork O f J ohn Ru ski n, b y C W a lds te in ( H arpe r) ; .

J o hn Ru skin, So ci al Re f orm e r, by J . A . H o b so n ( E ste s) .

E ssay s , by W . C . B ro wne ll , in V ictorian P rose M as te rs ;

by J . M . R ob e rtson , in M od e rn H u ma ni sts ;
H ar by F .

ri son , i n R u s ki n , M il l , and oth e r L i te rar E s ti m a te s b G E

y ; y . .

Sa intsb u ry , in Co rre cte d I m pre ss ions ; b y J F o rste r, i n Gre at .

T e a che rs ; by W J Stillm an, i n T he O ld Rom e and t he Ne w,

. .

a nd O the r E ss ay s .

J O H N H E N R Y N E WM A N Ap ologia p ro V ita Su a , and Id e a o f a Uni v e r

.

s ity (Lo ngm a ns ) ; Se le cti o ns , wi th i ntrod u ctorV e ssa

y, y b L E . .

Gate s ( H olt) .

B i ograp hy a nd Cr i ti ci sm — C ardinal N e w m an b y R H Hu tton .

, . .

( H ou ghto n, M i fi lin) ; Ca rd inal N e wm a n, the Story of hi s Lif e ,

‘

b y J H J e nnings ; Ne wma n, se Vie e t s e s ( E u v re s , b y L F

. . . .

F au re ( P a ri s , T he O x f o rd M o v e m e nt , 1 8 33 1 8 4 5 , b y R W -
. .

Ch u rch ( Lo nd o n, E s say s , b y R H H u tt o n , i n M od e rn . .

Gu id e s O f E n gli sh T hou ght ; b y R W C hu rch, i n O ccas ional . .

Pap e rs , V O l I I ( s ix p ap e rs on N e wman) ; by A B D o nald so n

. . . . ,

i n F i v e Gre at O x f o rd Le ad e rs ( Lond o n , b y L E Gate s . .

( N e w m a n a s a p rose w rite r), i n T h re e St u d i e s i n L it e r a t u re ( a lso

p re fi xe d t o s e l e ct i o ns , a b o v e ) ; b y W S L il l y, i n E ss a y s a n d . .

Spe e che s ; b y J J acob s, in Literary Stu di e s. .

 REA DI N G GUI D E 4 07

DANTE GAB R IE L RO SSE TTI — Poetical W orks , 2 v ol s , e d W M Ros . . . . .

s e tti ( Lo nd o n , Li f e , b y J K ni ght ( Gre at W rite rs) E ssa s

y , . .

by A C Swi nb urne , i n Mi s ce l lani e s ; b y H B F orman i n O u r

. .
.
, .

L i v i ng P o s ts b
; y Sarrazi n ,
i n P oé te s M od e rne s d e l A ngle te rrs
’

( Ha che tte ) .

CHR I ST I N A RO SSE T T I — P oe ms , 2 v ols ( Ma cmi lla n) E ssay s , by A

.
. . .

Sy m o ns , i n Stu di e s i n T wo Lite ratu re s ; b A C B e ns o n i n hi s

y ,
. .

E ssay s ; by H B F orma n, i n O u r Li v i n P oe ts
.
g .
,
W ILL IA M M O RR I S Team— T he .
D e f e nse Of Gu e ne v s re E
( llis
W hi te) ; T he E arly Parad is e , 1 v ol . ( Longma ns , Sigu rd
t he V olsu ng ; Sto ry Of the Glitte ring Pl a i n a nd T he H o u s e of the
W O lfi ngs ( Ree v e s T u rner) ; T he Story a nd V olsu ngs ( Cam
O f t he
e l ot Se ri e s ) ; C hi e f s oci al i sti c wri ti n s i n
g W illiam M orri s, P oe t,
Arti st, a nd Socia li st (H u mb oldt Pu b li shin
g
B i ograp hy Cr i ti ci sm — Li f e , b y J W M ackail , 2 v ols
a nd . . .

( Longma ns) ; W m M orri s , his Art, W riti ngs , a nd P u bli c Li f e , b y

.

A V a la nce ( B e ll )
. E ssay s , b y H B F orm a n, i n O u r Li v i ng
. . .

Po s ts ; by W . J D awso n, i n
E nglish ; b y A
. M ake rs Of M od e rn .

Sy m o ns , in Stu di e s i n T w o Lite rature s ; by G E Sai ntsb u ry , in . .

Co rre cte d I m p re s si o ns Se e a ls o T he I nfl u e nce O f O ld N ors e .

Lite ratu re u p o n E nglish Lite rat u re , by C H N ord by ( M a c . .

m illan) .

A L G E RN O N CH A RLE S SW IN B URNE . Tartan— Comple te W orks ( Chatto

a nd W indu s ) ; Poe m s a nd B allad s , wi th Ata lanta i n Ca ly d o n a nd

E re chthe u s, 1 ( L o v e l l ) ; Se l e ct P oe m s ( Riv ington)

v ol . .

B iograp hy a nd C r i ti ci s m — A C Swi nb u rne , A Stu dy , b y T . .

.

W ra ti slaw E s say s , b y H B F orm a n, i n O u r L i v i ng P os ts ; b y

. . .

J R Low e ll ( Swi nb u rne s T ra ge di e s ) , i n M y Stu dy W i nd ows ; b y

’
. .

G E Saintsb u ry , in C orre cte d I mpre s sions ; b y Sarrazi n, Poete s

. .

Mode rne s de l Angle te rre ( Hache tte ) ’

.

CH A PT E R S XI . A ND XV . : T H E NO VE L
Genera l W — T he E nglish N o v e l , to W a v e rl e y ( Scri b ne r) , b y
o rks W .

A . Rale i gh ; T he D e v e lo p m e nt O f the E ngli sh N o v e l , b y W . L .

Cro ss (M a cm i lla n) ; T he E v olu tion o f the E nglish N o v e l , b y F H . .

Stodd ard ( M acmilla n) ; A History O f the N o v e l p re v i ou s to the

Se v e nte e nth C e nt u ry , b y F M W a rre n ( H o lt) ; T he E ngli s h N o v e l, . .

b y S La nie r ( Scrib ne r) ; An I ntrod u cti o n to t he St u dy o f E nglish

.

Ficti o n , b y W E Si m o nd s ( H e ath) ; B riti s h N o v e li sts a nd the i r

. .

Sty le s , b y D M a ss on ( Small , . T he E nglis h N o v e l i n

t he T i m e Shak e sp e are , b y J J J u sse ra nd ( Unwi n) ; H is to ry O f
Of . .

Pro se F i cti o n, re v i se d a nd e dite d b y H W il s on, by J C D u nlop . . .

( B o hn
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s Sta nd ard L ib rary ) .

D ANIE L D E F O E . Texts —N o v e l s , . ed . Aitke n ( D e nt) ; Early W riti ngs

4 08 A HI STOR Y O F ENGLI SH LI TERATU RE

in Cari sb rooke Lib rary ( Rou tledge ) ; Poe ms and P amp hl e ts , in

A rb e r s E nglish Garne r, Vol V III
’
. .

B i ograp hy wad Cri ti ci s m — Lif e , by W Mi nto (E nglis h M e n O f . .

L ette rs ) ; Li f e , by W W hi tte n, W e stminster B iograp hi e s ( Small.

May nard ) E ssay , by L Ste p he n, Hou rs in a Li b rary

. . .

SA M U E L RICH ARDSO N — W orks ( Lippincott) Lif e , by C L T ho mson

. . . .

( M ar s h al l ) E ssay s , b y
. L Ste p he n, H o u rs i n a L i b rary ; b y H .
.

D T rail], T he N e w F i cti o n and O ther E ssay s ; by A D o bs on

. .
,

E i ghte e nth Ce ntu ry Vigne tte s .

H EN R Y F IE LDING —W o rks , e d G E Sai nts b ury ( D e nt) ; V oy age to

. . . .

Lis b o n, in Cass e ll s Nati onal Library

’
Li f e , b y A D ob so n ( E ng . .

lish M e n O f Lette rs) E ssay s , by W M T hacke ray , in E nglish

. . .

Hu m orists ; by L Ste phe n, i n Hou rs i n a Li brary ; by A D o b so n,

. .

i n E i ghte e nth Ce ntu ry Vi gne tte s ( F ie lding s Voy age to Lis b o n and
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F i e ldi ng s Li b rary ) ; b y J R Lo we ll , i n D e mocracy and O the r

’
. .

Addre sse s by G B Smith, i n Poe ts a nd N o v e li sts . . .

T O B IA S GEO R G E SM O LLE TT —W orks , ed He nle y ( Scrib ne r) Li f e , b y D

. . . .

H a nnah ( Gre at Write rs) ; Lif e , b y O Sme aton, F a m ou s Scots .

Se ri e s ( Scri bne r) ; T hacke ray s E ngli sh H u moris ts, H oga rt h,

’

”
Smolle tt and F ie lding .

LA UR E N C E ST E RNE — W orks ed G E Saintsb ury ( D e nt) ; T ristram

.
,
. . .

Sha ndy , i n M orle y s Uni v e rsal Li b rary and i n the T e mp l e C la s s ics

’
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Li f e , by H D T rail] ( E ngli s h M e n of Lette rs) ; Lif e , b y P F itz

. . .

g e ra ld , 2 v o l s ( C ha pm a n a nd H. al l ) E ssay s, by W M T ha cks . . .
.

ray , i n E nglish Hu mori sts ; b y W B age hot, in L ite rary Stu di es .

Ste rne a nd T ha cke ray

H E N R Y MAC K E N z IE —T hs M a n O f F e e ling ( D e nt,
. a l s o i n Cas

s e ll s N ational L ib rary ; Mi s ce lla ne ou s W o rk s ( M a n o f F e e li n

’

g
a nd V ari ou s E s say s) ( H arpe r) See M rs O li p ha nt s L ite rary . .
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H i story O f E ngland , V o l I . .

F RAN C ES BU R NE Y , MA D A M E D ARBLA Y —D iary

’

. and L e tte rs, 8 C ed . . .

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d ia ry , ed . L . B . Se e l e y ( Lo nd on, E s say by T B . .

M a ca u lay .

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O tranto , in Cas se ll s N atio na l Li
. Of
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b ra ry ; Le tters ,
se le cte d and e di te d by C D Yo nge ( N i m mo) . . .

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’
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a nd E Gosse s L i f e O f Gray E ssay , i n L Ste phe n s H o urs in a

’ ’
. . .

Lib rary .

W ILLI A M KF O RD —V athe k i n Casse ll s National Lib rary

B EC .
,
’
.

MA TT H W
E GR E G RY L W
O E I S — T he B ra v o of V e ni ce i n C a s se l l s .
,
’
Na
ti onal Li b rary T ale s O f T e rror a nd W onde r, i n M orley Uni v e rsal
’
s

Lib rary ; Se le ctions i n Saintsb u ry T al e s of My ste ry , V o l

’
s 1 . .

( L ondon,
410 A H I STO RY or E N GLI SH LI TE R A T U RE

Ce ntu ry ; b y A L a ng, e s say pre fix ed t o Ga dshill e diti o n

. of

D i cke ns ( C hap man a nd Ha ll ) .

WM . K P C
MA E EA E T A KE H C R A Y — Li f e , b y A T roll ope ( E ngli sh M en . . of

Le tte rs) ; Li f e , by M e ri v al e and M arzi al s ( Gre a t W ri te rs) ; Lif e ,

by L Me l v i lle 2 v ol s ( Stone )
. E ssay s , by F Ha rri s o n, i n Stud
, . . .

i e s in E arly V ictorian Lite ratu re ; b y W C B ro wn e ll i n Vic . .

,

to ri a n Pro s e M aste rs ; b y W S Lilly , i n F o ur E ngli s h H u m orists . .

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li sts .

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E arly V i cto ri a n L ite ratu re .

C H A RL E S R EA D E — Cha rle s Re ad e
. : a memoir co mpi led chi e fly from
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CHA RLO TT E A N D E M I L Y B R O N T E —W orks o f C harl otte , E mil , and

y .

A nne B ro nte ( D e nt, Haworth e dition, ed . M rs H . . W ard

( Scri bne r) Li f e O f . C harlo tte B rou té , by A B irre l l ( Gre at .

W rite rs) ; Lif e o f C harl otte B rou té , b y M rs Gaske ll ( A pp le ton) ; .

Lif e O f E mi ly B rou té , by A . M . F . R ob i ns on (Rob e rts ) . A N ote

On Charl otte B ro u té , b y A C Swi nb u rne ( Chatto a nd W i ndu s) ; . .

E ssay s : C harlotte B ro u té , b y L E Gate s i n Stu di e s a nd A ppre . .

,

ci ations ; T he B ronte Si ste rs , i n V i e w s o n V e x e d Q u e sti o n s , W .

W . K
i nsle y ; E mily B ro nte, i n Swi nb u rne s M i sce l la ni e s ; Char
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l otte B rou té , i n F H arri s on s E arly V ictorian Lite ra t u re ; T he

’
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B ronté s , in G B Sm ith, P o s ts a nd N o v e li s ts ; C B ro nte , in E

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. . . .

M onté gu s s E cri v ains M od e rn e s de l Angle te rre ( H ach e tt e )

’ ’
.

CH A RL E S K IN G SL E Y — Lif e
.
,
by M . K au f man n ( M e thu e n) ; C ha rles
Ki ng ley s : hi s l e t . e re , a nd m e m ori e s O f hi s li f e , b y hi s w i f e ( M ac

m illa n, E s say s , b y F Harri so n, i n E arly V i ct o ri an L ite r .

atu re ; b y L Ste phe n , i n H ou rs i n a Lib ra ry

.
Se e a l s o p a s s age .

on K
i ngsl e y i n the e ssay Vi ctori an Lite ratu re , in E D o w d e n s .
’

T ranscri pts Stu di e s and .

M R S GA S
.
K E LL — E M o nté gu s s E cri v ai ns M ode rne s d e l A ngl e te rre
. .
’ ’

( H a che tte ) Se e al s o S a i n
.t s b u ry s N i ne te e nt h C e nt u ry L i te ra t u re ,
’

and the D i ctiona ry O f N a ti o na l B i ogra p hy Critical p a p e r o n M rs . .

Ga sk e ll s w ritings b y P rof W Mi nto , i n F ort night ly R e v i e w,

’
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.
—
Vol XX I V , J u ly Se pte m b e r, 1 878
. .

GE O R G L
E E IO T — Li f s , b y L Ste phe n ( E ngli sh M e n o f L e tt e rs, in
. .

p p
re ar ati o n) ; L if e ,
b y O B ro w ni ng ( Gre a t W ri te rs ) ; L if e , 3 v o l s
.
, .

by C ro ss ; Ge orge E liot : A Criti cal Stu d y O f He r L i f e a nd W rit

i ngs , by G W C o ok e ( O sgo od ) . E s s ay s , b y R H H u tt o n, in
. . . .

M od e rn Gu id e s O f E nglis h T hou ght, and in E s say s T he o l o gical

and Lite rary ; b y F H arri son, i n St udi es i n E arly Vi ct o ri a n Li t
.
 REA DI N G GUI D E 41 1

e rature ; by H Ja m e s , i n Partial P ortraits ; by W C B rowne ll,

. . .

inV i ctorian Prose M a ste rs ; by J J a cob s, i n Lite rary Stu di e s ; by

.

W S Lilly , i n F ou r E nglish Hu m orists O f the

. . N ine te e nth C e ntu ry ;
by A V i nce ns P o rtrai ts d e F e mm e s ( Pari s ,
.
, 1 88 7 ) by F B ru ne
.

tiers , Le Ro ma n N atu ra li ste ( P aris,

GE O R G E M R E —
IT H No v e ls ( Scrib ne r) ; Poe m s, se le cte d ( Scrib ne r) ;
ED .

E s s ay on C o me dy Ge o rge M e re d ith ; s o m e characte ri stics, R Ls

. .

Gall ie nne ( La ne ) ; Ge orge M e re d i th ; A stu dy ; H a nnah Ly nch

( M e thu e n) E ssay , b y W
. C B rowne l l, i n V i ctoria n Pro s e
. .

Ma ste rs ; b y A M on khou se , i n B ooks a nd Play s

.

T H O M A S HA R D Y W orks ( Harpe r) T he Art O f T hom as Hardy , b y

.
-

L J o hnson ( L ane ) T hom as H a rdy , b y Anni e M acd onne ll ( H odd e r

.

a nd Stou ghto n, E s say , b y T . G Se l by , i n T he T he olo gy

.

Of M od e rn F i cti o n .

RO B E RT LO U IS ST E V E N SO N W orks ( Scrib ne r) L e tte rs , e d S Col

.
-
. . .

v i n ( Scrib ne r) ; Li f e b y G B a l f o u r ( Scri b ne r)
,
Lif e by M a rga re t
.
,

N B lack ( Scri b ne r) ; R ob e rt L ou i s Ste v e ns on, a Stu dy , by A !li ce ]

.

B !ro w n] ( C o pe land a nd D ay ) E ssay , b y H Ja m e s , i n P a rtia l

. .

Portraits ; b y J J Chap man, i n E me rso n and O the r E ss ay s ; b y

. .

A M onkhou se , i n B oo ks a nd Play s ,
.
“ P lay s O f Ste v e ns on and
”
He nley .
4 14 I N DE X

p e al fro m the Ne w to the O ld A u ror a Leigh , 331

p T
”
hIgs , 226 A U S E N , J AN E , 25 0 3 77i he r li fe,
pp l e to n H o u se ,
”
1 52 355 ; li m i ta ti ons , 356
35 f
6 l
i e r excel
A rb u t hnot , 2 05 , 209 len s e s , 356 ; he r re ali sm , 35 7
A rb u t hn ot , E p i s tle t o , 209 A u s te n , La d , 264
A rca d es, 1 60 A u st in , t he air, 25
A rcadia , 72 A u s tria , 33 1
A rca d i a , Si dne y s , 71 , 72 , 73 , 74 , A u tho rize d Ve rs i on O f the B i ble , 167
’

75
A rche ry , i n Toxop h i lus, 63
A rci te , 4 5
A rd e n , M ary , 1 06
A reop agi ti ca , 163
A re op agu s , T he , 73
A ri e l , 1 2 2
R T
A I O S O , 81 , 1 62 293 , 294
A rm our, J e a n , 269
A rn o , t he 3 05
, ,
”
A u t u m n , 25 4
A v a lon , 26, 23 7
A v ery , Ca p ta in , 233
A von , t he , 1 08
”
A wa ke m y Lu te , 66
A y rs hi re , 267 , 269
, B A C O N , F ANC I S, 1 23 , 1 46, 1 75 , 312
R
hi s l if e an d characte r, 1 4 0; hi s
s y s te m 1 4 1 ; hi s e s sa y s , 1 42 hi s °

R LD
A NO , TT
M A H EW , 200, 291 , 34 0 St 10, 1 4 3
con t ras t e d wi t h B ro wmn g, 3 3 2 ; B a e a , 1 2 ( See B e ds ) , 1 8 , 19
”
a p o s t o f t ra n s i t i o n , 33 3 ; hi s i d e a l B ala u s t i on s A d v e nt u re 329
’
,
”
of f o rm , 33 4 ; hi s p ro s e , 33 4 ; hi s B a llad O f A co u rt , 84
“ os l f i ” ”
g p e o d e as , 33 5 ; hi s ori t i B alla de O f hari tie , 262
ci sm , 3 3 6 ; hi s p o st - ro m a nt i c p oint B al ls , J o hn , 50
O f Vi e w , 3 3 6 ; hi s di cta to rshi p , 33 7
°
B alma wb a ple , Lai rd, 35 9
) a re d wi t h N e wm a n , 342 B a lzac, 37 g
d
A rn ol , D r T ho m as , 3 3 2
. B a nk s i d e ,
A rq u a , 28 B an no , 1 1 8
A rt e gal , 80 B ars has in J e w O f M alta , l tB
.

A r th o u r a n d Mer li n , 26 B a rch ester Towers, 3 72

“
A rt hu r, Ki ng, 27 , 28 In B a rd T he , 259
,
”

r te D A rth u r ) , 5 9, 1 62 , 3 20, 3 B ard e ll , Wi d ow , in P ickwick, 365

’

gg
‘

a B a rd olp h 1 26 ,

A rt hu r , i n K i ng J oh n , 1 1 1 B a r o ns Wa rs 84
’
,

A rt hu r in The F a e r i e Q u ee n s , 80
, B a r ry Ly n d o n 3 68 ,

A rt hu ri a n Le ge nd s , T he , 24 , 25 , 58 , B a r th o lo me w F a i r, 1 25
1 62 3 2 1
, B as ti lle , 3 1 7
A rt I fi cia li ty i n E lizab e tha n li te ra B at h , 355
”
t u re , 20, 75 , 7 9, 86, 98, 1 09, 1 1 5 , B a ttle O f t he B al ti c, 283
134 1 84
, B a ttle of th e B o o ks , 1 91
A rv i ra gus , 1 21 B a ttle of B ru n a n b u rh , 1 9
A s ce n sIo n t he , 1 4
, B a ttle O f Ma ld on , 20, 3 4
M R
A SCH A , R O GE , 63 , 64 , 71 B a y o na , 1 06
A si a , 290, 3 03 B ea ts B ea trix , 3 4 5
A s ia M i no r, 3 07 , 34 7 B ea t ri ce ,
A SO lO , 3 26 B ea ucha m p , Ri chard , Earl O f War
A s s e r ( b i s ho r p 19 wi ck , 5 9
A s tr wa R ed u c, 1 7 8 z B e a u ch a m 8 Ca reer , 3 79
’

A str op h e l a n d Ste l la 7 1 , B e au f o rt , ans , 5 7

A s Yo u Li ke I t 75 92 1 13 , , , B e a u m o nt , F ra nci s , -
1 34
A ta l a n ta i n Ca ly d o n , 3 05 , 350 B E AU O N A N D F E C H E , 1 32 134
M T L T R -

A t he n s , 61 , 69, 1 1 0, 3 07 B E C FO D , WM , 25 1
K R
A t la nt i s , 34 7 B E E ( T H E VEN E RAB L E B ED R) , 12.
A t t e rb u ry , 3 7 1 13 25
A tt Icu s , 2 09, 2 1 9 df ord s l e ,
A u b u rn , 22 0 gegga rs
e ’
g ’era ,
A u d re y , 1 1 4 B E HN , MW 24 8 .

A s ta n a e , The , B e lc h , Si r T o b y , 1 1 4
gg g
B e lge , i n P airie Q u een , 3 )
A u gu s t i ne 1 2 , B e lp haeb e , 80
A u re ngzebe , 1 87 B e lshazzar, 32
 I N DEX 4 15

B em erton 154 , B ri ta nni a s P as tora ls 15 0 ’

”
B en ,1 32 ( See J onson )
B e n e d ict , 1 1 4
B e nn e t , M r , 356
B e n n e t , Ma ry, 35 6
B enne t , Ly d I a 3 56
,
. . B ritish Const itu ti on , 25 2
B ri t om arte , 80
. B roa d Church m ov e m ent , The , 3 75
B ro b dingnag, 1 95
, R T
B O N E CH A O, RL TT
E , 3 73 3 75 , 3 84 -

B e n t le , 1 91 , 209 B O N E E I Y 3 73—
R T , 3 74 ML ,

B e ow , 3 , 5 , 6, 7 , 8 B rooke , Lo rd 85 ,

B eo w u lf , t he p oe m , 5 , 9 B rou gha m Ca s tle Song at th e F e a s t ,

B e o w ul f s M ou nt , 9
’
of ,
”
2 74
B e rk e le y , 1 91 B R O WN E SI R T HO M AS 1 46—1 4 8 1 53
, , , ,

B e u la h , 1 72 1 83 299 3 01
, ,

B e v e rle y , 221 B RO W N W LL A M 1 4 9 1 50 1 61
E, I I , , ,

B e v i s O f H am p ton , 26 B RO W N N G E L II BETH B ARR TT , ZA E ,

Bi
g;
T he , 84 , 1 69, 1 70, 325 3 3 0 3 3 2 3 4 3
,
-
,

B RO WN G R O BE RT 297 333 3 5 0
IN , , , , ,

B i b le Stori e s , 32 , 91 , 277 3 5 1 , 380 ; co nt ras te d wit h T e nny

B l ok e rs ta ff I saac 1 93 1 94
, , , s o n , 3 23 li f e a nd ca re e r, 3 24 ; hi s
B i o r a p h i a Li te ra r i a 298 m arri a ge 3 25 ; hi s inte re s t in s o u l
p
B ck e y e d Su sa n , 21 1
,

“ ’
- h i s tory , 3 26 hi s dra m a tIc f acu lt
B lack f ri ar s T he at re , 3 27 hi s m e t h o d 328 ; hi s W 1 e ,

B la ckw ood s Magazi ne , 3 76 sy m p a thy 3 29 ; hi s t e a chi ng, 330

’
,

L K
B A E WI , I A , 265 , 266,LL M B ru s s e ls , 3 74
B ru tu s , 25
B l ank v e rse , 67 , 1 01 , 166, 255 B u ckingham , D u ke of, 1 87
B lea k H ou s e 366 , B u f o , 21 9
B le nheim , 1 99
”
BU LW R
E LY O N , E W A , 362 TT D RD
B le ss e d D a m o se l , Th e , 343 , 345 3 63 , 383 , 3 84
B lifi l, i n Tom J o n es , 24 0 B ul we r s ’ ”
Go thic, 367
B l ot i n th e Sc utch eo n Th e, 325 , B u m b le i n O li ver Twis t, 3 66
”
B l u e C lo s et , T he , 34 7 B u n hill F i e ld s , 1 68
B lu e Co a t School , 271 B UN YA N J O H N , 1 5 2, 1 69—
, 1 73 , 1 81 .
B o ccaccio , 3 8 , 3 9, 4 1 , 42 , 56 1 85 23 2,

B oe t hi u s , 1 9 B u rb age J a m e s 99 1 07
, ,

B o le yn e , A nne , B u rb on i n F a er i e Q u ee ne , 80
B tf R GE R , 28 2 , 283
'

B o 1 gb ro ke ,
23g
‘
BU RKE, E D U N D , 224 ; v i e ws Mon
B o o k of the D u chesse , Th e 3 6, 47 , A m e ri ca a nd I n di a , 222 , 22 6 ; o n
B o o t h , C a t , i n A m eli a , 2 40, 242
. F re n ch R e v olu ti o n , 226 22 7 po
-

B ord er i m tre lsy , 282 li ti cal t ho u ht 22 7 ; ro m anti ci sm ,

2
,

B O 1 o u gh Th e , 263 228 25 2 26 263 , 275 . ,

BOS E W LL , J A E S, 2 1 6 2 1 7 M -
B urle l gh , Lord 1 4 0 ,

B o t to m , 1 10 B u rle y , in O ld Mo r ta l i ty 3 60, 361 ,

B o u rgo gne , J ean de , 59 R

B U N E Y F A N N Y 22 1 , 2 4 8 , 249
, ,

B < vv e r O f B li s s , i n Fae rie Q u eens , B u rns , Gil b e rt 268

g2
,

R
B U N S, R O E ,
B RT
2 75 28 0 28 1 , 3 1 4 , , ,

B o w ling, i n Ro d e ri ck Ra nd om , 243 3 22 ; hi s s e lf co nfi d e n ce , 225 ; h is -

B t y a ctors , i n E li za b e than thea t re s , p o e try , 2 66 268 ; hi s rom ant i ci s m ,

-

é9
B ra d w ardi ne , B a ro n , 35 9 BU RT
O N , R I CH A D 1 4 8, 1 83 , 3 01 R ,

B ram a 3 03 , B u ry St E d m u nd s , 56
.

B ra m ble , M a tt 24 3 ,
BU TL
E R , SA M U E 1 84 , 1 8 5 L ,

B ram b le T a b i t ha , 24 3 B a tte r s We e kl y N e wes f rom I taly

'
,

B rant wo o d 3 3 9 ,
a nd G erm a n i e 1 97 ,

B u t t on s 1 80
’
B rase n o se Co lle ge , 1 48 ,

B r a v o o f Ve n i ce , Th e , 25 1 B Y R O N , GE O G E GO D O N LO D, R R , R
B re a d S tr e e t , 1 5 8 2 75 283 , ,
”
B re a k b re a k b re ak , 3 1 9
, , 35 7 , 3 97 h i s p e rs onali t y
°
28 ,

B re ck A la n , 3 83
,
t ra v e ls a nd e as t ern t al e s 285 286 ; ,
-

B r i s to l 26] ,
hi s po pu la ri ty , 28 6 ; his s ati re , 287;
”
B ris towe T rage dy , T he , 262 hi s f orce , 287
41 6 I N DE X

B y ron , Miss Harrie t , in Sir Cha rles Ca rto ns, The, 363
Gr a n diso n , Ceci li a ,
B y rom c ty p e , the , 25 1 Ce le s ti al City , 1 73
B onis m , Celti c influ e nce , 1 6, 1 7, 24 , 292 , 322
”
th e Fi r e s i de , 330 Ce lts , t he ,
y
CE DM O N , 1 2— 14 , Cen ci , The,
Caesar, 4 Ce n s orship , the , 1 63
Cms u ra 55 ,
Ce rva ntes , 246
Ca i n , 285 , 286 30
Cha ”9 3 1m g, 1 7u , l 31
.

Calcu tta 3 68 ,

Ca leb Wil li a ms , C hantry f or soul s , 52

Cali b a n u pon Sete b os , 329
"
CH A PM AN , GE O G E , 83 8 4 , R -

Calidore , Si r, in F a er i e u een e , 80 Cha pm an s H omer,

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Cal ote , d au ghter of Lang d , 52 Cha rge of t he Light B ri gade , T he ,
Ca m be l , 80 84 , 3 2 0
Ca m be r we ll , 324 , 3 26 Charle magne , 24 , 26
Ca m b rid ge , 78, 1 00, 1 24, 1 55 , 158, 1 78, Cha rle s Edward , 3 71
1 85 , 2 44 257 , 273 , 3 18, 375
, Cha rles I , 1 33 , 1 4 1 , 1 44 , 1 4 8,
.

Cam e lot , 27 1 84
Cam paign, The , 1 99 ” 1 7 4 , 1 75 , 1 78,
CA M PB L E L , T HO AS, M
CA MP IO N , T HO M As, 85 Charle s t he B ald ,
Candl e m as Ev e , 15 1 Charlotte , Q ueen, 248
Ca non s Yeo me n, in Canterb u ry Charti s m , 3 14 ,
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Cante rb u ry , 44 , 5 7 , 1 00 CH AU C E , GEO FFR E Y, 1 1 , 23 , 28 , 32,

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Cap ta i n Si ngleto n, 234 m i ddle life and I ta li an ri O d 37 , ,

Ca p u l e t , 1 1 1 E ngl is h p e ri o d a nd I a n infl u
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Ca rton Sid u s , 367

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C he ste r eld , Lord,
Cas a G u i d i i n d o ws, 325 , 33 1 , 332 C he m e R ow , 3 1 4
Cas ta w a T he , 265
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C hi a cto rs 98— 99 ,

Ca stle of nd o le nce , Th e, 255 Ch i ld e H a rold 285 ,

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Cas tle ackr e n t, 35 4 C hildre n I n English cti on, 366 fi
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C as tle w oo d La dy , 3 71 Chi ld re n O f the C hape l Ro yal,

Ca ta l i n e , 1 25
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C hiv alry , 24
Ca th e r i n e , 368 Choru se s ,

C at he rine de M e di ci , 83 Cho ru s e s I n H e nry

Cat ho li ci sm , 1 54 Chris t, 53 , 9 1 04 2 ,

Ca t holi c R e v i v al , the , 3 75 “
C hri s tab e l 27 1 272 .

Chris ti a n H ero, The, 2 12

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Ca t ho lics , 204
Ca to , 1 99 Chri s ti a n Yea r , The 34 1 ,

Ca v al i e rs , t he , 1 68 200 , 1 61 , 210,
Ca v a l ie r s on wri ters , 1 29, 1 40
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41 8 I N DE X

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D es erted Vi llage , Th e 2 1 8 , 21 9, 220, ,

Dane s 5 , 1 7 , 18
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D a nI e l , 1 3 D esp era te Rem ed ie s , 380

D a n i e l D ero nd a , 377 , 3 78 Dev e re u x , Lad y P e ne lo 72
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D A rblay , Ge ne ral , 2 48 D hu , E v an , 359

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So n n ets 1 1 5 , 271 , D i a n a of th e C rosswa y s 379 ,

D a rt m o u th , 25 DI CK EN B C HA E S, 33 1 , 369, 3 73 ,
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D A V E N AN , SI R W I T
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D a v i d Simp le 24 8 , D id e yn e ( D ido) , 30
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D a y b e f ore Cre cy , T he , 34 7 D m ed efs ’ 39
De ans J e anie 3 60 , ig I rge In Cy m b e li ne 25 7
D i scou rses i n A meri clz, 336
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Dea th, in m i ra cle p lay s , 94

D I S A E I , B E N J A I N , 362
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D ea th of B la u n ch e the D u chesse, D Is se nte rs 1 55 , 232 , 235 335
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D ea th of B y rhtnoth , 20 D i v i ne Com ed y Th e 1 72 , ,

D e A u gm en tis Scien ti a ru m , 1 4 1 D iv o rce , M ilton s pa m p hl e t o n, 1 62

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, Do bb i n , in Va n i ty F a i r , 368
D eca m er o n e 4 2 , D F a us u s 1
r . t 02 —1 03 ,

D e Cla r is Mu l i eri b u s, 39 D om b ey , Fl ore nce 3 00 ,

D e d lock Lady , 3 67 , D omini c, F a the r 3 4 1 ,

D e f a rge , M m e i n A Ta l e of Two .
, D o n Ca rlos , 1 87
C i t ies 3 65 3 66
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D e f e nce of an E s s a y o f Dram atic D O N N E , J O HN 1 44 —145 1 48 , 1 5 2, 1 53

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D ef e n ce of Gu e n ev e re Th e , 34 7 , D o rs e tshi re, 1 68
D e fe n ce 0 P o es i e T h e 74 , 96 , , D o ro t he a ! B roo ke ] , 37 8
D E FO E ,A N I E L 239 24 8 24 9 ; hi s , , , D ov e r B e a ch 333 ,

ca re e r, 23 2 ; h is m e t ho d 233 ; h i s . D ragon o f the Gold hoard , i n B eo -

no v e ls 23 4 ; m ora lit y 23 5
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DE KK R E , T HO A S, 94 , 1 27 , 1 29—13 0 M D rake , Si r F ran ci s , 7 1 , 1 04
D e i s m , 2 10 D ra ma , t he , 69 , 76, 85 , 86, 87 , 1 35 ,

D e l i a , 85 1 76—177 ; ori gin s 88 , 91 ,

D e m a s i n P ilgrim s P rogre s s , 1 7 2
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D e m ogo rgo n ( i n P rom e t he u s Un E liza b e t han age 1 02 ; ri s e of nu , .

b o u n d 2 90 d e r Eli za be t h 97 98 ; t hea t res

99 ; M arlo we , 1 00—
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D E N N I S J O H N 209
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t e m p te d b y B ro wni ng, 3325 ; Vi c

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Co nfes s i o ns of a n Op i u m E a ter , -
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302 303 ; hi s s ty le 3 03 ; hi s d e f ect s
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D esce n t of Ma n , Th e , 3 20 D ra m a , R e to rat Io
s n 1 86 1 89, 221 ,

Des Cham p s, 3 6 D ra ma tic Ly rics, 325

 IN DE X 419

D ra m a ti cRom a n ces 325 , E lizab e t ha n literature , 84 , 86—87,

D rap i er s Letters , The, 1 92 1 27 , 3 03
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D A Y O N , M I CH A E , 84 , 85
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D re a m Child re n 3 01 , E li za b e tha n poe t ry , 2 98
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D re a m F u gu e , 303
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E liza b e t han p ros e , 2 1 6
D rea m of J o h n B a ll , T h e , 34 9 El Izab e t ha n re v i v al , the , 298, 299
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D i n k to m e o n ly wi th t hi ne e y e s , E loIs a to A b e la rd , 204
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D ru ry Lane T he a tre 202 221 , , Ely , 1 9
Dry d e n , J ohn, 7 6, 1 29, earl E m e I s on , 279, 3 1 7 , 3 26
li f e , 1 78 , 1 85 , 203 , 2 1 0, 2 14 , 2 1 E m i li a , i n O th ello , 1 1 8
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s u b sta nce of hi s 1 8 1 , 182 ; E m m a , 35 7
a s a criti c, 1 83 ; p ros e , 1 84 E ndymi o n ( Ke at s) , 1 77 , 262, 294 ,
D u b li n , 1 92 , 22 1 , 288
D u b lin Uni v ersi ty of , 1 90, 2 18 E nd m i o n ( Ly ly ) , 98
D u ch ess of M a l/i , T he , 134—
,

E ng a n d s H e li co n, 85
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D u e s sa , 80 E ngli sc, 22
D u n ci a d , 205 , 2 1 0 Engli s h , 1 , 2 2, 23
D u t ch , 1 E nglish B a rds a nd Sco tch R eview~
D u t ch , t he , 1 79 254 , ers , 284
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E ngl ish M a i l Coa ch , Th e , 3 03
E a r th ly P a ra d ise, The, 34 7 348, 34 9 -
E nglis h P raye r B oo k , T he , 65
E aste r, 1 89 E os t re , 2
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E as te r D a y , 3 29 E p ilo gu e to t he Sa tire s , 205
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E pitha la m i on , Spe ns er s , 77
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E b b T i d e , T h e 383 , E p i s tle of K a rs hi sh , 328
E ccles i a sti ca l H istory of the E nglish E is tle to A rbu th not, 205 , 21 9
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P eop le , 1 2 , 1 8 , 1 9, 25 p i s t le t o D av i e , 267
E cclesi a sti ca l P o li ty , 7 6 E p p in g F ore st 346 ,

E c cle f echan 3 13 , E rasm u s , 62, 3 73

E clo gu e s , 72 , 78 E rnl e y , 1 25
E d gb as to n , 341 E rs e , 261
E d m b u rgh, 2 1 8, 268 , 282 , 3 02 E ssa y on Cri ti cism , 204 , 2 06
E di n b u rgh R e v i e w , 284 3 1 1 a y on D ra m a ti c P oe tr , An,
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E din b u rgh, Uni v e rs ity O f , 3 1 3

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E D G E W O H , MRTA I A 3 54 —
355 R , E s s ay on M an , 205 2 1 0 ,

E d ward s M as sa cre , 259

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E d ward II 84 E s sa y writi n g 3 01
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E to n , 94 , 238 , 258 , 288
E u p hu e s 1 87
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E l e na ( in th e I tali an) , 25 1 E up h u es a n d h is E ngla n d , 70, 74 ,

E l gi n m arb les , 295 98 , 1 09
E l i a E 83 8 of , 2 99, 3 0 0—3 01 E up h u es Go ld e n Lega cy , 75
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El izab e th , ri nce s s 1 21 , E up h u es , o r th e A n a tom y of Wi t, 70

E li za b e th, Q u e e n of England , 62, 63 , E u p hu i s m , 1 4 3
68 , 69, 71 , 74 , 7 6 7 7 , 79, 80, 96, , E u p hui st ic rom ance s , 7 5
98 , 1 04 1 06, 1 09, 1 1 3 , 1 3 3 , 1 39, 1 4 0,
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Elizabe than dramati sts, 97 293 Ev elyn, 1 77
4 20 I N DE X

E v e ly n H o pe ,
E very Ma n i n his H u m o u r, 1 24 , 1 25 ,
1 26, 1 2 7
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Ev o l u ti on , 3 20 Fra Lip po Li p p i , 329
E xa m i n er , Th e , 1 97 F ra m ley P a rso nage , 3 72
E xcu rs i o n , Th e 274 , France , 1 0, 11 , 25 , 35 4 1 , 4 2 , 59, 65 , ,

E x e te r B o ok T he , 1 5 1 7 , , 73 , 80, 1 46, 1 5 5 , 1 72 , 1 7 6 - 1 77 , 22x ,

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E xi le o f E rin, T he , 283 270, 288, 33 7
F ra ncesca d a B i m i ni , 293
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E xp o s tul a ti o n a nd R e p ly , 2 74
Ey re , Sim on , 1 29
F re d erick , P rince , 1 21
F ab le s ( D ry d e n ) , 1 80, 1 83 F ree po rt , Sir Andre w,
F a b les ( Gay ) , 2 1 1 F re n ch , T he ,
F a e ri e Q u ee n Th e 28 , 69, 77 , 78 ;
, , F re nch f o rm , 356
a naly s i s , 79, 8 1 , 84 86, 1 53 , 1 72 F re nch ( language ) , 22 , Q , 24 , $3, 57
F re n ch hi lO s o p hera, 288
,

F a gi n , i n O l iv er Tans
F ai rf ax , Lo rd , 1 5 2 R
F re nch e v o lu tion , T he , 2% — 227 270,
F a i r Q u a r r el , A , 1 3 1 2 71 , 27 2 , 286 290, 3 14 , 3 1 7
F a i thf u l Shep h erd ess , Th e , 1 32 3 1 8 3 66
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F alklan d In Ca le b Wi lli a ms, 252 F re nch Re v olu tion , re fle cti o ns on

F a ll of P r i nces Th e 68 , , t he , 226
Fa ls t a ff , 1 12 , 1 1 3 , 1 28 Fre ssi n e ld , 1 04 fi
F a r f rom th e Ma d d i ng Crowd , 380 F r ia r co n a n d F ri a r B u nga y , 1 (B
F are we ll to t he F a mou s a nd Fort Friar T u ck , 93
u na te Ge ne rals of o ur Englis h F rid ay , 2
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F a ta l Si s te rs , T he , 260 F ulham , 1 32
Fau s t 3 1 7
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F a u st u s 1 92
, F urther Advent u res of Rob i nson
Fe a s t of P ike s , The 3 1 7 . Cru soe, $ 4
F er d i n a n d , Co u n t F a th om , 24 2
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Galileo 1 62 ,

F erra b o sco , 1 25 Ha mm e r Gu rto n s Need le 94

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FIE LD IN G , H E N Y , 22 1 , %8 3 60 R , Ga rde n T he , M a rv e ll s , 1 5 2
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F i e ldi ng, Sara h 248 ( he r y e Rose bu ds whi l e y e May ”

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Fi es ole , 38 , 42 , 305
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F i nga l, 260 Ga u l , in F i ngal 261 ,

F i ns b u ry F i e ld s , 99 Gaway ne , 27 see Si r Ga wa y ne °
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F i rs t F olio T he , O f Shak e s p e are , 1 22
, the C ree n 26 kn igh t .

F la m i n g H e art , T he , 1 55 GA Y, J O H N , 205 , 209, 2 1 1

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F la n d e rs , 1 24 C e b i r , 304 305 ,

F la u b e rt 383 , Ge lla tle y , Da vi d , 359

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Ge ne vi ev e , 27 1
1 61 Geoff rey of Monm ou th , 24 , 59, 1 19
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F le e fro the P re s s 47 , Ge orge II , 24 2 .

F lore nce , 38 , 4 2 , 305 , 306, 325 George I II , 225 .

F lo ris a nd B la nch efi o u r , 26 Ge orge I V , 3 1 2 .

F lo ri zel , in Wi n ter s Ta le , 1 21
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F lo urde li s , 80 li f e , 3 76 ; as a re ali s t , 3 77
F O RD J O H N , 1 36 1 87
, , Ge rm T he , 343 ,
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F ore s t O f A rde n T he , 75 , Ge rm a n O cean 1 ,

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For e t no t y e t 66 . Ge rm a n p hi lo s op hy , 284
Fora la v igera , 339 Germ an reform ers , 64
4 22 I N DE X

H eroi c co u l e t , the , 1 7 7 , 1 78 , 1 82 Hy m n s in Honor Of Lo v e and

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1 83 , 1 1 , 214 B ea u ty ,
H E RR I CE , R O ER B T 1 40, 1 50 Hy m n on t he N a t i v ity
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1 52 H y m n to St T h e re sa , 1 55 .

H esp er id es a nd N ob le N u mb ers , 15 1 H a ti a , 3 7 5
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H e x am e te rs 84 , yp e ri o n , $ 4 , 2 97
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H E Y O O , J O H N 93 ,

H E Y WO O D , T H O AS 1 30
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Hi d d e n F lower, T he , VAU GHAN B
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po e m , 1 56 I cel andi c, 260, 34 8
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H i ghla nd R e aper, T he , 276 I d ea , 85
H I hlands , 35 8 I d ea of a Un i v ersi ty , Th e , 342
d , e b b ee s of Whitb y , 1 3
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I di ot B oy , T he , 280
H i nd a n d the P a n th er , Th e, 1 78 , 1 79 I d ler , Th e , 21 4
H i p p ol it a 1 1 0
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I d y lls o th e K i ng 320, 3 2 1 , ,

I li ad C a p m a n s , 83
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H i s to ri ca l nov e ls 3 62 , 3 73 ,
I li a d , The , 204
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H istory of E ngla nd , M acau la y , 3 1 1 I] P e n se ro so 1 5 9, 2 55 , 25 9 ,

H is to ry of Fri ed ri ch I L, 3 1 4 I m a gi n a ry Co nv ers a ti o ns , 3 05 , 306

H i sto ry of th e R eb elli o n , C la re nd on s ,
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H O CC E EL V See O CC. L EVE I ndi a , 39

H O a rt h 2 00 , I n d i a n E mp er or , Th e 1 86 ,
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O h e nlin de n , 283 I nd i a n Q u e e n Th e , 1 86, 1 87 ,

H olb e in , H a n s , 63 I ndi v i du a lism 1 20 1 75 , 1 7 6, 208 , 209, , ,

H olla nd , 80, 1 7 2 323 , 324 , 3 66

H o l of e rnes , 1 3 Ind u ctio n , T he ”
68 ,

H oly Grail , t he , 323 Ind u cti v e me thod , 1 41

H oly he a d 27 , I n Mem o r i a m , 291 , 3 1 9, 320, 32 3
H c l Divi ng a nd Holy Dy i ng, 1 45 Inn e r T e m p le , t he , 96
ifl s I nns o f Cou rt , 1 44
H oly Willi e 268 ”
, I ns ta u r a ti o Magn a 1 4 1 ,
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I n s ti tu t e s o f a Chri s t ia n P ri nce 62
H om e r, Cha pm an s 83—
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84
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H om er, P op e s , 207 208 , 209

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, I sa b e lla ”
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H o u rs of I d le ness 284 , I sle of W ight 3 20 ,

H o use of F a m e , The 3 7 , 3 8 Is rae l 1 5 7 3 29

H o u se of Lif e Th e , 33 1 ,
, , ,

, It al ia n li b e ra ti on 325 ,

H o u se of th e Wo lfl ngs Th e, 348 , I ta li an p a in t e rs, 3 43

H o ny hnh nm s , 1 95 , 1 96 I ta li an p o e t ry 298 ,

H o ward , H e nry 65 ( s e e Su rre y ), Italia n p oe t s 293 ,

H o w a rd , Lad y E li zab e t h 1 78 , I talia n sty le 25 4 ,

H rolf the Ga n sr ( W al ke r) , 21 Ita li a n v e rs e f orms , 72 , 73

H ro t hgar, i n ’
o wu lf , 5 , 6 I ta li a n Th e 25 1
,

I ta ly , 24 3 6—
,

H u d ib ras 1 84 , 3 7 , 38 46 61
1 62 1 77
, , , ,

H u gh o f Li n coln 4 5 , 46 , 1 44 , , ,

H u m a ni s m , 61 62 , 64 , 82 , 289 295, ,

H u m o u r, 1 26
”
It I s a b e a u teo u s e v e ni ng, 274 "

H u mp h rey Cli n ke r 24 2 , , I v a n h o e 35 7 ,

T
H U N , LE I GH 292 —293 , 294 ,

H y d e P a r k, 13 7 J a ck Wi lto n , 75
’

H ge lac, 5 J aco b e a n d ra m at i s ts See Rest ora

H
.

y m a o f H eav e n ly B ea u t t i o n 1 86 , 1 87 , 1 88
’y
, ,

H y m n of H e a v e nly Lov e , J acobi te s, 3 61

 I N DE X 423

J acq u e s , 1 14 296 ; hi s hu m ani ty , 297 hi s infl u

J am es I , o f Engla nd 1 19, 121 , 125 ,
.
,
e nce , 2 97 298 -

1 3 3 , 135 , 1 40, 1 4 4 , 1 7 0 K ne w , J O HN , 33 2, 34 1 , 346

J am e s I , o f Scot la n d 5 7—58 K e n ilworth , 35 7, 3 61
J am e s II , o f Engla nd, 1 85 , 31 2
.

. K e nilworth Ca s t le , 1 06
J a mes I V ( Gree ne) . 1 03 , 1 04
. K e nt , 3 7 4 9
J a n e E re, 3 74 K e w Lane , 255
J ane t, i n Wav er ley , 359 K i d n ap p ed , 3 82 ,
J arro w, 1 2 , 18 Kil colm an, m anor o f, 77
J arv i e, B ai lli e 359 , K ilm arnoch, 268
J e nki n s , Wi n, in H u mp hrey K ing Edward , 1 61
Ol i n/cer , 24 3 n J a m e s B i b le , t he , 1 69 1 70
-

J e ki nso n, in Vi ca r of Wa kefi eld , K i ng J oh n, 1 1 1

3 47 K i ng Lea r, 1 1 3 , 1 1 5 , 1 1 9— 1 20
J e ru sale m, 5 4 RL
K l N SLE Y, C HA E S, 381 , 34 1 , 375
J e su s , 1 67 37 g
J ew of Ma lta , Th e, 1 03 , 13 1 Ki n s T raged y , T he , 345
‘ ”

J e ws, the, 45
J oa n of A re , 3 04 ’
g
’

K i ng s Qu a i r, 57 , 58
”
K in s T re asu ri e s, 338

J ohn, King A lfred s mass-p ri e st, 1 9 K i tte , wi f e o f Langland , 52

’

”
J ohn Gil p in, 264 K n igh t s Ta le, 28, 4 7 , 5 7
’

J ohn of Ga u n t , 36, 3 7 K ig t t he , in Ca n terb u ry Ta les,

J ohnson, Es t her, 1 92 gh z ig
M L
J O HN SO N , SA UE , 153 , 157 , 1 80, K u b la K ha n, 271 , 272 , 273
”

201 , 222 , 223 , 248 , 262 , 3 1 2 , 3 14 ; hi s K m , T HO A S, 1 3 1 M

lif e , 212 ; works , 2 13 ; hi s clas si
ci s m , 2 1 4 ; his re acti on agai ns t Lady Ge rald ine s Cou rts hi ’
33 1
clas s i ci sm 21 5 ; hi s persona lity La t y Meed , i n P iers the P owma n ,
m
,

l
asa s
ef t
l - s
”
0 } Lad y Shalott , T he , 3 18
of

:
e gga rs , e
J on a h 32 La d y of the La ke , Th e , 282
J o na tha n Wi ld e, Lake cou ntr t he , 25 8, 273 ,
J ones , Ini 1 25 Lake p oe ts , 1 , 3 02
J o N sO N , E N, 97, 1 06, 1 08, 1 39, 1 40, La l la R oe /ch 292
’,
1 43 , 1 48, 1 77 , 1 80, 1 88 ; hi s 0 in L A lle o , 159, 1 66, 255
’

i o n o f Shak e s ea re , 1 22 ; his
p e, LAM B HAB LE S, hi s lif e , 299 ; hi s
1 24 ; hi s clas sI cism , 1 25 ; his hu cri ti ci s m , 30 —
0 301 ; hi s s ty le , 301 ,
” °
no u rs , 1 2 5 hi s reahsm , 1 27
3 :
li i s
i y ric l- é7 11 cta tors h1 p, 1 2s La m i a , 293 , 294 , 296, 2 97
gg
'

hi s in l he e , 1 29 Lance lot , 3 22 , 323

J osep h A nd rews, 23 9 LAN D O , WA L E SA A GE , hi s lif e
R T R V
J o u r na l of the P lagu e YZcfi S 233 a n d ge ni u s , 3 04 — 3 05 ; I m a na ry
' ' “

J o u r n a l to Stella , 1 91 Conversa tio ns , 3 06 ; P eri c es a nd

J u d e the Obscu re , 38 1 A ap q s a ’ so
J u dgment, Th e Las t, 92 i d
Langm s l Ii y i a , 221
J u d ith , 1 3 In ra , 285
J u lian and M ad dalo , 293 ”
La ra cor, 1 91
J u lie t , 1 1 1 , 1 1 3 1 1 6, 12 1 La st Chro ni cle 0f B a rset The 3 72
J u li us Caes a r, l1 5 , 1 26
, ,

Las t D a y s 0 P omp e ii Th e , 362 ,

J a s ti ce-b e noh , 22 Las t 0 th e a rons , Th e , 362

J u te s , t he , 1 , 5 , 1 1 , 1 8 La st oems ( Mm B ro wning) , 33 1
.

J u t land, 1
”
La st R id e T oge t her, T he , 330
J u v e nal, 1 80 Lat i mer, B i sho H u gh , 64 , 65
La tin , 1 5 1 6, 1 4 9, 64 , 73 , 74 , 78, 93 ,
,

KA N T E A NUE
, M 27 0 272 L , , 1 09, 1 70, 176,
K E A T S, J O HN , 1 77 25 5 , 262 , 289 , La tin d rama , 95
291 , 292 307 , 31 0 3 22 330 35 1
, , , , La tin E n li sh , 65
-

hi s i nsp i rat i on 293 ; li fe and p o

, Lat i n m o e ls , 94
e t i c d e v elop m e nt, 294 ; hi s wo r La ti n Vu lgate , 1 4 1 1 4 2 143 , 1 47, 1 58,
, ,

s hi p o f b ea u ty 295 ; q u aliti e s of
, 1 5 9 1 82 , 198 , 2 1 4 309
, ,

hi s poetry , 296 ; hi s se nse of f o rm , La tter- Day P a mp hlets, 3 1 4

4 24 I N DEX

Lau nce , in Two Gentlemen of Ve 1 88 , 1 91 , 204 , 21 8, 221 , 224 , 2 35, 238,

ro n a , 1 09 M 2 62 , 314,
La u ra 66 3 1 9, 324 34 6 355 , ,
,
,

La w co u rts 1 30 ,
Lo ndon D r J o hns o n) , 21 4
.

Lawe s , H e nry , 1 60 Lo ndon B ri e , 42

Lay am on 24 , Lo ndon F ire, 1 79
La y am o n s B ru t , 25 Lo d o n
'

e vfi g;
’
ggz i
La y of th e La st M i ns trel, Th e , 282 11 l - Lan gla nd , 52
La y s , 5 i
Lo rd dm ira l s M
’
1 00
L ay s of A ncie nt R om e, 37 Lord Cb am be rlai n s
’
e n , 1 00
Laza ru s , 3 28 Lo rds , H ou se o f 226 .
”
Lea d , K i ndl y Ligh t,
Lea r 1 1 9 1 20, 1 3 1
,
-

”
Le ech Gat here r, T he , 274 276
-
, Lou is X L , 361
Lege n d of Good e Wom e n , The , 37 , Lou is X I V , 1 91 , 36 1.

39, 4 0, 48 L ou v e rt u re T ou ssa in t, 274

’
,

Le ghorn, 289 L0 : e f o r Lo ve , 189

Le me s te r, Earl of , 71 , 7 7 , 79, 80, 1 06 Lo v e in m bo so m lik e a b e e 75 ”
,
”
Le nore B hrge r s , 282
’
, LO E A C E ,
V L I C H A R D , 1 48 , 1 4 9
Le nt i s com e wi th lo v e to town , 33 ”
Lov e lace ( in C la rissa H a r lowc) , 23a
Le o XI II , P ope , 34 2 zs7
Leo fri c, 306 Lov e poe t 1 6, 4 0 58 , 66, 85 ,
“ ”
Leo v e na th , 25 Lov er s
’
e ssa ge T he , 1 6 ,

Le Sa ge , 367 Lov e s La b o u r s Lo s t, 1 99
’ ’

Le tte rs Gra y s , 25 7 v e R u ne of T ho ma s do Hale ,

ga
’
,

Le tt e rs on a R egi ci de P eace 220 ”

,

Le tte rs to a Y o ung Lad y ”

201 , Lo well, J R , 1 32
.

Le vana and O u r La di e s o f Sorro w , Lo wland di al ect , %7

Lowlands , 282 , 3 1 3
Le we s G H , 3 76
, . . Lu cas , Sir Willi am , 356
LE I S, M A HE W G E GO Y , 251
W TT R R Lu cif e r, 1 64
Le de n 238 , Lu crece , 1 08
”
i e , T he 86 , Lu creti a u lwer ) , 362
L ife a n d D e a th of J as o n , Th e , 347 Lu c Si r hom as 1 07 ,

Life of J o h ns o n , 2 1 6—21 7 , 21 8 Lu d o w C as tle , 1 60

Lif e of N elson , 28 1 Lu m p ki n , T ony , 220
Life of Sch i ller , 3 1 4 Lu t he r 5 1 , 61
,

Li e of J oh n Ste r l i ng 3 1 4 Lt ry o f a Vain Im a gina ti o n , The.

f ,

gg
é
ke to t he clear i n h ighe s t sp here ,
Ly cid as , 1 61 , 1 62 , 1 65 1 91
I
7 ,

Lill i p u t , 1 94 1 95 , 369 -
D T
LY GA E , J O H N , 56 5 7 , 58 68 378 -
, ,

Li nacre , T homa s 62 , L
LY Y , Gm , 69, 70 7 1 , 74 75 , as -
,

Li ncoln s hi re 3 1 8 , 99 1 00, 1 09, 1 83

,
”
Line s in E a rl S ring, 274 Lym e , 355
’y
Li ta ny , T he , 1 2 Ly r i ca l B a lla ds , 2 71 273 , 277 , 283, ,

Li te ra ry Clu b , the 1 80, 2 1 8

L i ter a tu re a nd D ogma , 336
,
0
3 4 , 305
Ly rI c p oe li sh , 4 , 1 6, 75 149, ,

L i ttle D o rri t, 366 15 1 9 256 , 290, 292 , 3 19 ,

Lit t le Giddi ng, 1 55

E N e ll , in O ld Cu ri osi ty Shop , “3
?
L
g
g
l ics , Elizab e than, 85 , 86, 87 ,
y
’é
,

Li t tle m ore , 3 4 1
Li ves of th e P oets , 21 4 , 215 , 262 MA C AU L AY T , . B
249 ; li f e , 8 10
.
,
”
Lo chi el, 283 3 1 1 ; his e s say s , th e ir s t y le 3 1 1 ;
M
.

LO D GE , T H O AS, 75 , 85 H is tor of E ngla nd 3 12 ; b us nu

Lollare s ( i d le rs ) 53
y ,

i dea l n e w of life , 3 1 3
Lo lla rd s , the 45, 64 , Ma cbe th , 1 1 3 , 1 1 4 , 1 1 8 1 1 9, 1 % -

Lo l lard m o v e me nt, 5 0 M a cbe t h , Lad y 1 1 9 ,

Lon d on , 23 5 0, 5 2 , 53 62, 77 7 8 79,

, , , , M a cF leckn oe , 1 79, 2 10
88 97 1 07 1 09 1 1 2 1 26 1 27 1 29 ,
, , , , , , , K
M A C EN Z I E H E N Y , 246
, R
1 35 , 1 50, 1 5 1 , 1 5 8, 1 68, 1 74 , 1 79, 1 80, Macwhe e b le , B ailli e , 359
4 26 I N DE X

M istress T h e Cowle y , 1 57
, , N e wb old , R e v ell , 58
Mod er n P a i nters 33 7 33 8 , , N e wcom e , Colone l 37 0 ,

Mod es t P rop osa l 1 94 , N e wcomes , Th e , 3 70

M o hu n i n He nry E smo n d 3 71
, , NE WM A N J O HN H E NR Y , 332 , 33 3
, ,

M oli ere 1 76, 1 88 , 1 89

, hi s e ffort , 340 ; his
M oll F l a nd ers 234 235 , , re li gi o u s hi s or , 34 1 ; hi s p rose
t y
Moni mi a in The O rp h a n 1 87
, , st y l e , 342 ; hi s Infl u e nce on li t era
M onk General 1 63
, , t ure , 3 4 2
Mon k T h e 25 1
, , N e ws rom Nowhere 349 ,

M onk t he in Ca nterb u ry Ta les,

, ,
43 , 45
M o nks , 9, 1 8, 1 9, 3 0, 89
Monmou th , D uk e of , 1 79
M ontpe lli e r, 1 46
R
M O O E , T HO A S, 292 293
Mo ral E i stle s , 205 , 209
”
N ew a y to P a y O ld D eb ts , 36
Ni chola s N i ckleb 366
N icho las o f Heref ord , 51
N i e b e lu n e n , 9
N ight o Spurs ,
M -
N i ght P i ece to J uli a , 1 52
N ine t eent h Ce nt u ry 228 et seq , .

Morali ty lay s , 92 , 93 N igh t T hou gh ts , 25 7

M o re , Si r T hom as , 62 , 63 , 64 , 1 8 1 N oa h, i n m i ra cle p la y s, 92
Morgain , 28 N orfolk ,
M 8 , Di nah, i n Midd lem a r ch , 3 77, N man Conq u es t, t he , 1 9, 22 et seq ,
352 gi
.

M O RR I S , WI LLI A M
his m e di aev al is m , , N orm and 21
34 6 347-
The E a rth ly P a ra d ise , N orm an re n ch , 34 7
347 hi s s ocia li s m , 34 8— 3 49 N orm an F rench p e ri od , t he , 1 1 , 21 ,
-

M or te d A rth u r, 26, 5 8 , 5 9, 3 1 9, 32 1
’
26 3 2 , 5 1
,

Morti m e r , 84 N orna o f t he F i tf ul Head , 360

Morton , i n Old M ortal ity , 3 60, 361 N orri s , 1 04
M ossgi el , 268 N orth a nd Sou th , 3 76
M ou n ta in D ai s T he 281 , N ort ham p ton s hi re , 1 78
l d wer to t he low Worms , T he , ”
N orth a nge r A bbey , 355
io
sg N ort hm e n , 347
M u ch A d o A b ou t N o th ing, 1 1 3 N ort hu m b ri a , 1 2 1 7 1 8 ,

M u n era P u lv er is , 338 NO RTO N , T H O A S, 68 , 96, 1 01 M

M u sop hi lus , 84 N o rwi ch , 1 46
My Last Du che ss , 3 28 ”
N osce Teip s u m , 85
M y m ind t o m e a K i ngdom i s , 86 O VE L
”
T H E , in the e ightee nth cen
,

M y N o v e l, 363 t u ry , 22 1 ; rela ti o ns to d ra m a in
My Si s t e r s Slee p , 344
’
ci hte e n t h ce n t u
My Star, 330 ”
v a s o urce s , 2 0
3
h
uri ng the En
g
°
g
M y ste rie s , 89 li sh R e na i s sance , 23 1 , d u ri ng t he °

M y st e ri e s of Udolpho , 25 1 s e v e nte e n t h ce ntury , 2 31 i ts real

M i ci sm , 29, 5 1 , 1 46, 265 , 271 , 277, b e ginnin gs wi t h De foe , a sse ss ;
ésg it s m orali za ti on , 235 , Ri cha rds on, °

235 — 238 ; wri t te n f or the m id dle

clas se s 237 ; F i e ldin , 238—
”
N ab o b o f Arco t s D e b ts , T he , 225 ’
, 24 1 ; as
N a m anco s 1 66 , a pict u re o f lif e , 24 9 ; as a
a p ole on 283 3 70 , , li te rary f orm 24 0 ; i t s h u m ani ,

a p o leo n i c Wa r 3 61 , 24 2 24 6 ; e nlarged area o f ,

,

N A SH , T H O AS 74 , 75 M , b i ogra p hic s chem e of , 243 St e rne . °

a t u re i n E ngli s h l i te rat u re , 1 4 , 1 5 , 24 4 —24 6 reacti on to ward hole W

°
,

34 1 5 2 1 53 , 1 56 206 2 1 1 24 7 , 24 9,
, , , , , s o m e ne s s 24 7 ; rea lis m ,
, 24 7 ;
254 , 2 56, 258, 2 70, 2 75 —276, 2 78, 279, wom e n s no v e ls , 248 ; ro m a ntic
’

"
292, 3 75 m o v e m e nt 24 9 go thi c 250; °
,
”
N e ce ssi ty o f A t he is m 288 , wi th a p u rp o s e , 5 2 33 1 354 ; its e ,
”
N e ce s sity of P u n ct u ali ty , 224 cate gori e s 3 53 , local co lo r, 355 ;
,

N e ls on , Li f e o f , 287 t he ro m a nt i c im p u lse i n Sco tt 35 7 .

°

N e o rom anti ci s m 382 of ( nin al 1i f e w i h B ulwer.

s Sg
ga t
-
,

N e the r St o we 27 1 cI i re n 366 ; W i t l a p u r on .
, p
°

N e v er the m e a nd the P lace , 3 73 ; Ste v e nson, 383

3 26 Nov u m Orga n u m , 141
New Ara bia n N ights, Th e, 3 83 N unapp le to n, 1 52
 I N D EX 4 27

”
O b erm ann, 3 33 O phelia , 11 6
O b e rm ann O nce More , ”
334 Or chestra Dav i e s s, 85 ’

O be ro n , 1 1 0 f
O d a l o R i chard F ev era l , Th e,
O chiltree , E die , 359 g7 3
O CC E VE , T HO A S, 57
L M O ri el Coll e , O xford , 34 1
O d e to C rom well ’
O r igi n of p e ci ce, T h e , 32 )
O de on the D uke O rla nd o F u ri oso, 81
3 20 om u s’ 1
O de to D u ty ( Wordsworth) , 274
”
i 3
331
a n, ae, 1 87
”
O d e to E v e ning, 256 ( -
i s , 303
O de on t he Inti m ati ons of Imm o r O s s ian, 262 , 282
”
t ali ty , 2 74, 2 79 280 -
Othello, 1 1 3, 1 1 5 , 1 1 7 1 1 8, 1 20, 1 26
-

”
O d e o n Na ti v i t y , 1 65 O T rigge r, Sir Lu ci u s , 221
’

O de on t he P assi ons
8
ttav a 7 81
a
'

O d e to t he West Wi nd, 289 ”

tte ry 8
’
ary s ,
O de s 256 O TWAY, T HO A S, 1 87 M
O d e s ( Dry d en s 182
’
O u se , ri ver, 264
O de s O v e rre a ch, Si r Gil e s, 126
O d e s , K eat s s , 296, 297
’
O v i d , 1 80, 207
O r g/“ey , Chapman s , 83 ’
Pope s ,
’
O v i d s B a nq uet o Sens e , 83
’

i O xf ord, 29, 44 , 62 , 63 70, 91 , 94,

,

Of Gre a t P lace, B acon s es say , 1 43

’
1 48 , 1 56, 1 98 , 201 , 271 , 288, 302 ,
O f He ro i c Plays , 1 83 ”
303 , 3 32 340, 346
,

O ld A ( in M
”
ora lI ty Plays) . 92 O xf ord , Earl of , 22 , 86
O ld hina , 301 O x ford mov e m e nt , the , 340, 342
O ld Cu riosi ty Shop , 365 O x f o rd Street , 303
O ld Engli s h , 1 P a dua , 38, 4 6, 1 4 6
O ld F a ther Chri stmas, 93 P ageants , i n mi racle l , 89 90

gg
g
-

O l d F o r tu n a tu s, 1 29 P a i r of B lu e E es,
O ld K ing Cole , 93 P al ace of A rt , 1 8
O ld M or ta li ty , 360 P alam cn , 45 , 5 7 , 1 80
O ld T e stam e nt the , 1 3 P ale rmo , 341
on: Wi e s Ta le , The, 1 04 P a le s ti n e , 328
’

O li v er wist, 365 , 3 66 P a me la 235 , 236, 237, 238, 239

,

O li v i a , in Vi ca r of Wakefield , 247
O lne y , 264
P antheon, 258
P a ntiso cra 271
v ey ( M il ton) , 1 57 P aola an d cocoa,
O n a D i stant Pros ct of Eton P ap i s ts , 1 55 , 1 79
P a ra ce lsu s 324
LI
C o lle ge Gra ,

O n F i rs t o ok ng i nto Chap man s P a r ad ise Lost, 1 52, 1 53 , 1 64- 1 67

’

”
H om er 294, P a ra d is e Re a i ned , 1 53 , 1 67
”
O n a G re cian Urn ( Keats ) , 294, P aris , 3 0, 1
295 , 296 P ari s ( ci ty ) , 2 1 , 71 , u s , 244
O n I dle ne s s ( Dr J ohnson) , 21 4
. P ard one r, the , in Ca nterb u ry Ta les,
O n Me la ncho ly, 294 ”
43
O n the M orm ng of Christ s N a P a r lem e nt of Fo u les , 37 , 38 , 47
’

ti v i t ( Mil ton) , 1 58 15 9 P arlia m e nt , 22 , 37 , 4 1 , 1 37 , 1 3 8 , 1 56,

2 202 , 204 , 223 , 225 , 3 11
°

On ( G ) 58
{1 y
r a ,

On t e o pular Su perst iti ons of Pars on , the , i n Ca n terbu ry Tales,

t h e Scotti s h Hi ghl ands ”
( Collins ) , 43 , 45 , 46
”
256, 259 P artri dge P re di cti ons , T he , 1 93
”
O n the R e cei p t of My Mother s Passi ng of A rthur, 321
’

Pi ctu re ( Co wper) 265 , P as t a n d P resent, 33 5

’
O n the T e nu re o f P s oral Ca re, or Shep herd s B ook,
ag
S
i s tra te s ( M ilton ) , 1
H m ”
( ld Pa s to rals , 72 , 87 1 61 , 207
S
1 T ransl atin e A r no ),
g o r
33 P as tor a ls 204
O ne W o rd More , 33 0 ”
P a tie nce , 3 2
P at ie nt Grissel, the Clerk s T ale , 4 6
’
O n e of O u r Co nq u erers, 379
4 28
P a tro nage, 354
P a tronage ,
P a u l Cl ifl or d 362
‘
P a u l ine ,
P ea ce , i n m i ra cle play s, 92
P ea rl , Th e , 3 1 et seq.
P e ck s ni fi , 365
'
P ee bles , P e te r, 359
P E E E , GE O GE , 74 , 1 , 1 04 1 05 ,
L R
1 07
P Woj i ngta n , 373
P e ha m , the A dv entu res of a Gen
tiema n , 362
P e mb roke , Cou nte ss of , 72
P em b rok e , Earl of , 1 08
P e ni te nti al P salm s ( Wy att a) , 66
P ep y s , Sam u el , 1 85
P e rcy , B i sho , 260
”
P e rcy a nd o u gla s ,
P e rdi ta , 1 2 1
P er egri ne P ickl e, 24 2 ,
P ericles , 97
P er i cles a nd As asi a , 305 , 307
P e riod ical s , 1
P e rs i u s , 1 80
P e rs oni fi cati ons , 255
P ersu asio n , 355
P eterb oro u gh, 1 9
Pe t e r t he Great ,
P ete rh o u s e , 1 55
P e trarch , 38, 4 6, 66
P e t re , Lord ( i n Rap e of the Lo ck) ,
P h ilas ter, 1 33
P hil i p of Spam 80
P hili ppa , C ha u cer ’
P hi li s ti ni s m , 335 ,
P h i lostra to , 38
P h oen i x, The , 1 4 , 1 5
P hce n ix s Nest, Th e, 85
’
P h y ll is , 85
P i ca re s q u e st ori es , 367
”
P i cto r I ot u s , 3 29
P i ckwi ck ap ers, 364
P iers P lo wm a n , 44 , 5 2, 53 , 55 , 55 56
P ilgr im s P rogress,
’
23 2 cl seq .
P In dar, 1 57
P i nda ri c O d e Gra y s
6
’
”
P ind a ri u e de s ,
P ipe s, i n o d er i ck R a nd om 243
P ip p a P asses
P i ra te, Th e, 360
P lagu e , t he , 233
P l agu e s , in En 1and,
P la i nd ea ler , e, 1 89
P la nt age ne t , 22 5
Pla to , 78, 81 , 293 , 3 1 2
P la u t u s ,
P lay s , 2 4 , 89, 93 1 23
b
Plegmund ( arch ishop) , 1 9
I N DE X
wman, the , in Ca nterb u ry Tales,
q3
Poems a nd B a lla ds ( Swi nb u rne ) , 349
P oems b ef o re Co ngress 33 1 ,
P oems of Mo na rch y , 85
P oems, ch i efl y i n the Sco tt
( B urns) , 268
P oetaster, Th e, 1 25
00 — P oetica l R hap sod 85
P oeti cal Ske tch es B lake {
P oe t l au rea t e , 1 25 , 1 79
P ce try 1 , 1 3 , 24 , 26, 37 , 68, as, 1 45,
i7s
P oli ti ca l J u stice , 288
P oliti cal Econo my , R u s k in s, 338
’
P oloni u s, 1 1 6
’
P o ly o lbio n , 84
P
P O E, 1 29. 1 76, 1 80, 1 90, 2 1 4 , 21 9,
74
I ons, 0
Homer 207 , : Ra e
208 ; character, sa ti re , 209;
E ssa y o n Ma n, 21 0; hi s co ntem po
rarie s , 2 1 1 , 212
P o 0 of Glasgow, the ( Ca mpb ell) ,
79
Agnes Ev e , 296
’
Portrait T he , 344
,
”
P ortu gal , 61 , 1 04 ,
P oy s er, Mrs 3 77 .
P r a eterita , 33 9, 340
P relu d e, T he , 274
P re ra phae li te s , t he , 342 , 343 , 344 , 349
P r i cke of Co ns ci en ce , Th e , 30
P r id e a n d P rej u d i ce , 3 56, 35 7
P ri nce H al, 1 1 2
P ri nce Re ge nt , The , 293
P r i ncess , Th e , 3 1 9, 3 23
P rinti ng, 5 9, 61
th e , in Ca nterbu ry Tales,
”
Progre s s ofP oe t ry , T he, 259
-
P rome the us Unb ou nd , 289 290 -
Pro se , Engli sh, 5 1 , 65 , 7 1 , 76, 86, 1 40 ,
1 43 , 1 4 7 , 1 7 0, 1 83 1 84 , 2 B ,-
2 95 , 303 , 3 04 , 339
P rospe ro , 1 21 , 122
5 P rote s tant Ce m e te ry at Ro m e , 289
,
P rot halami on , 7 7 ”
P ro u d ie , M rs , 3 72
.
P rov ence , 24
Pru ssia , 4 2 , 3 1 5
P s e u d o clas si c, 2 15 , 259
P sy cho logy , in m odern no v el , 379
P u b li c Le dger 2 18 .
P u b li s h e rs , Eli za be than, 67 71
P u ck , 1 1 0, 1 56
P a lle ts , t he , 3 77
P urga tori o ( Leigh Hunt) 293
 4 30 I N DE X

Roo ts o f the Mo u n ta i ns The 348

, Scbp 3 , 4 , 1 0, 13
,

R sali nd ( in A s You Li ke I i ) , u s, Sco t ch , 3 24

q1b Scotch D rink , T he ( B urns) , 268
R osa ly n d e , 75 Scotch highlan d s,
”
R o s e A y lm e r, 3 05 Sco tchm en , 3 01
Ro s e ncran tz and G u ild e ns te rn, 1 1 7 Scot land , 1 35 , 243 , 256 ,

R O SSE I , C H I S I N A 343
TT R T , 292 , 3 13 , 35 7, 358 , 359, 360, 383
R O SSE I , DAN E GAB I E , 33 1
TT T R L Scot s , 162
a re nta ge , 343 ; hi s i m age ry , 34 4 ; SC O TT
, S R
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fl
,

t er lif e an d poe t ry , 344 3 4 5 hi s -

2 92 3 07 3 5 5 , 362 , 363 , 36 7 , 3 1 3
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p a i nte r
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e n ce on M orris , 34 7 284 ; hi s career as n o v e lis t , 3 57

R os s e tti Willia m M i chae l 3 43 , hi s rom a n t i ci s m , 358 ; hi s u se o f
R ou nd Tab le , t he , 1 1 , 26, 28, 59, 320 sce ne , 3 5 8 ; hi s charac t e rs , 3 59 ; hi s
R oxa n a , 234 lov e o f t he p ast , 360 ; hi s u s e of
Ro y al Soci e ty , t he, 1 85
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R u gb y , 332 s
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R US I N , J O HN , early lif e a n d art Scri ble ru s Clu b 205 .

cri t i ci sm 33 6 3 3 7
. e t hical an d eco
-
Seas o ns , Th e , 25 4 25 5
no mi c t e a ching, 33 8 Se dley , A m elia , 3 68 in Va ni ty F a i r,
33 9 ; infl u e nce o n Pror J ose p h , 369
3 4 2 ; m e di mv alis m , 34 9 Sce v a , 3 03
R u s s i a, 287 , 3 24 Se a nas , 1 25
‘

”
R u ss ia n Li terature , 384 De pe nde nce , 334
e lf -

Ry da l M ou nt , 274 Selki rk , A lex a nde r 233 ,

Se ne ca, 94 , 95 96 9 7 , 1 25 ,
-

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SA K V I LLE , T HO A S, 68, 69, 96,
Sacri ce o f I s aac, the , 90, 92
M Sens e a nd Sens i bi li t 355 , 356
”
Se ns it i v e P lant , T e , 289
Sen ti me nta l J ou rn ey , 24 1 -

Sa d F ort un e s of the R e v A m os . Ser ap h im , Th e, 33 1

”
B a rto n, T he , 3 76 Ser i ous R eflectio ns of R ob i nso n
”
Sa i ling of the Sword T he , 34 7 , Crus oe 2 34 ,

St A lb a ns , 1 4 0 Se e B A C O N
. . Sesa m e a nd Li l i es 338 339 , ,

St Ce ci li a s D ay ( o d e ) , 1 83 Sev e n La mp s of A rch i te ctu re 2 37

’
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,

St Geo rge , 88 , 93
. Se v e nt e e nt h Ce nt ury Li te ra t u re , 76 ,

St Mark s , 3 39 3 4 0
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St M a ry s , O xf ord , 34 1 Se v e rn J ose h, 295

’
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St P a t ri ck s , D u b li n, 1 92 SH AK E S E ARE , W I LL IA , so, 39 42
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St P hi li p Neri , O ra to ry of , 34 1
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Sa li sb u ry , 1 54 1 76, 1 88 , 209, 2 1 4 , 2 1 5 , a s, 246,
Sal v a tor R osa , 25 1 294, 296, 298 . 3 00, 807 , 3 17 , 320 ,

Sam oa , 3 83 327 , 3 29. 33 1 ; lif e 1 06- 1 08 ; pe riod .

Sa ms o n Agoni stes , 1 67 1 68 , 350 -

of ex p eri ment , 1 09 ; ea rli es t Inas
Sa n df o rd a n d M er to n , 25 2 1 1 0 11 1 hi sto ri ca l p lay s,
'

terpi eces , -

Sa rtor R esa r tu s , 3 1 6— 3 17 1 11 112 com i c re li e f , 11 2 ;

Sat an, 1 67 s t re ngt he ning o f hi s a rt , 1 1 3 ; joy
Sa tIre s , 205 , 2 08 21 0 , ou s com e di e s , 1 1 3 -1
1 4 ; cha nge o f
Sa ti re s D ry den s , 1 79 Sp irit , 1 1 4 ; s onne t s , 1 1 4 - 1 1 5 ; the
’
,

d a rk co m e di e s 1 15 1 1 6 ; H a mlet
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-
.

Sax on s , t he 1 1 1 2 , 1 8 , 3 2, 34 , 41
, , 1 1 6 ; O th e llo , 1 1 7 ; Le a r , 1 1 9 : end
Scha fl ha u s e n , 34 0 of p e ri o d of gloo m , 1 20; las t p lay s
'

Sch i lle r, Lif e of , b Ca rly le , 3 1 4 121 co n te m p orary a p recia ti ou .

Scho la r G p s y , be ”
334 , 1 22 ; ca re le s s ne s s o f e , 1 23 ;
Sch oo l f o r ca n d a l Th e , , hi s s u cce s s o rs , 1 24 ; as a n actor.
Schoo l of A b u se Th e 7 4 , , 1 25 ; hi s rom ant i cis m 1 26 ,
”
Schoo lm as te r Th e 64 , . Sha m e f u l D e a t h 3 4 7 ,

Sch oo lm i stress , T he , 255 Sharp , B e ckv 3 68 369 370 . , ,

Scie nce , 3 07 Sha vi ng of Sh agp a t, The , 3 79

 I N DE X 4 31

She d welt among the u ntrodden Sorrel , Hetty , 3 77

”
wa y s, 27 4 T
SO U H E Y, R O E B RT , 27 1 , 281 , 284 , 302
SH E E Y , P E C Y B YSSHE , 33 262,
LL R ,
So u th Sea H o u se , 3 00
285 293 , 295, 3 05 , 3 06, 3 07 3 1 0,
, , Sou t h Seas , 3 83
3 1 5 , 3 24 3 5 1 358 ; com pared wi t h
, , So u t hwa rk, 1 35
Cra sh aw, 1 55 ; li f e a nd p oe ti c d e Sp ai n , 1 35 , 1 44 , 276
v e IO p m e nt , 288 ; P ro me the us Un Spanis h rogu e st ories, 235 ( See Pic .

bou nd , 289— 290 ; hi s ly ri cal ge n are sq u e )

i u s , 290; hi s m y t h m aki ng po we r,
-
291 ; u n rea li ty of hi s w or
i nfl u e nce d b y Le igh H un t , 2
LT
SH E O N , J O HN , 65
SH E N S O N E , WI
T I A , 255LL M
Sp ecim e ns of E ngli sh D ramat ic P o
292 ; e t t y ( La m b ) , 300
p ecta tor, Th e, 1 98 , 1 99, 200, 203
gp ecu lu m Med i ta ntis , 4 9
S E N C E , H E RB E
P R RT , 3 76

She p he rd s , 1 61 P R M
S E N SE , E D UN D , 1 1 , 28 , 69, 7 2 , 74 ,
Sh ep h er d s Ca le nd a r , 77 79 86, 1 29, 1 49, 1 52 , 1 53 , 1 58, 1 59, 1 61 ,
’
-

Sh ep h erds We ek , 2 1 1 1 76, 1 81 , 293 , 294 , 296 ; lif e and

’

SH izI D AN , R I CHA D B I N S E Y, 221

R R L work s , 77 Camb ri d e eriod ,
zgg i n London and Ire p
She Stoop s to Con q ue r, 2 18 , 220 22 1 sy tle , 79 ; m orali t y , 80— 81
—
-

Sh i rle y 3 74, 82 83 ; p u ri tani s m , 83

SH I RL M
E Y , J A E S, 1 3 7 , 1 86, 1 88 Spe nse rian school , the , 162
Sh e na hers H olid a y , The, 94 , 1 27, Spe nse ri an stanza , t he , 255
’

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Sp ring, 25 4
Sh ortest Wa y wi th D issente rs , Th e, S u e e rs, in N icho las Ni ckleby , 366
tage P la y e r s Com p laint , The,
’

Sh ort Vi e wof the P rof a n i ty a nd Im

'

137
m o ra l ity of th e E ng l ish Stage, 1 89 Stanl e y , 375
Shy lo ck , 1 03 Sta ti us , 56 , 207
Si cily , 34 1 S EE E , R I CHA
T L RD , 1 89, 1 98 , 201 , 202,
Si d da l l, M is s , 344 3 01 , 3 71
SI D N EY , SI R P H I I , 69, 72 , 73 , 74 ,
LP Ste lla 1 91 , 1 92
75 , 76, 86, 96, 1 39 , 1 59, 1 8 1 , 1 83 Ste ppin Wes t ward, 276 ”

Si ege of Rh od es, 186 T R

S E NE , R AU R E N C E , 2 44- 247 , 248,
Si e na , 2 58 263 , 3 63
Si le nt Woma n The , 1 29 , T V
S E EN SO N , R O E B RT LO UI S 882- 384
Sil e sc Sci n ti lla ns , 1 56 Stig ns, t he Re v M r , i n Pi ckwick,
°

. .

Si r Ch a rles Gra n d iso n, 237, 238

Si r Th om a s M or e , 93 Sto nes of Ven i ce , 33 7 , 340
Si s te r He le n, 345 ”
Story of Th eb es Th e , 56
,
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Sky lark, 289, 291 Stor y of the G li tter i ng P la i n , The,

gl
a u ghte r of t he Innocents , T he 348
,
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M LL TT
S O E , T oRI As , 242 243 , 367-
St u arts , t e , 1 33
Socrate s , 307 St ls , 59, 73 , 75 , 79, 1 08 , 223 , 322 ; Sir
”
Sof a , T he , 264 homas B rowne s, 1 4 7 A dd iso n s ,
’ ’

So hra b a nd R u st u m , 344 ”
1 99, 201 Ste e le s, 202 ; Swi ft s ,
’ ’

Soli loq u y i n a Sp a n ish Cloi ster , 3 28 1 96 ; P op e s , 207 ; D r J ohns on s ,

’ ’
.

”
So li tary R e a pe r, 2 74 2 15 21 6 ; B u rke s 228 ; La m b s ,
- ’
,
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Solm e s In Cla r issa Ha rlo we , 236 301 ; De Q u i nce y s 3 03 ; C a rl le s ,

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,

So m e rs b y Re cto ry 3 1 8 , 31 7 R u s ki n s, 334 , 3 40;

’
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So ng at t he F e a st of B rou gham m an s , 3 4 2
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C as tl e , 274 Su b lim e a nd the B ea u tifu l , Inq uir
So ngs of I n n oce nce an d E xp er ie nce i t o O rigin o f our Ide as on t he , y
( B lak e ) , 260, 283 z ég
Son ne t , t he , i nt rod u ce d into En
g SU C KL IN G , SIR J O HN , 148, 1 49
h s h b Wy att , 66 ; Sha ke s pe a rean , Su mm er, 254”

67 ; i dne y s , 72 ; Sp e ns e r s , 77
’ ’
Su mm u m B o nu m , 3 26 ”

Shakes p e a re s 1 14 —1 1 5
’
, Surf ace , C ha rle s , 22 1 , 222
So n n e ts f rom the P or t ugu es e , 33 1 , Surf ace , J ose h , 22 1 222 ,

Su rf a ce , Si r li v e r, 22 1 222 ,

Sorde llo , 325 SURRE Y, EARL or , 65 , 66 67, 81-

4 32 I N DE X

Su sp i ri a d e P rof u nd is , 302, 3 03 Ti nte rn A bb e y , 27 4 , 278 279, $ 1 ” -

Su sq u e hanna , 27 1 Ti tu s A n d ron i cu s , 1 08 1 09, 1 3 1 -

T T
SW I F , J O N A HA N , 1 80, 203 , 205 , 209, T o A lthea f rom P ris o n , 1 4 9
”

2 1 2 , 21 9 24 1 , 3 69 , 3 71 ; l if
, T o Lu cas ta on Go ing to t he Wars , ”

1 90 ; poli t i cal ca ree r, 1 91 p racti c 14g

”
na t u re , 1 92 ; acti v i t y , 1 93 ; m et hod T o a Nighti ngale 294 , ,

1 94 ; G u lli ver , 1 95 ; a tti t u d e , 1 96 T ob y , Un cle , 244 , 246

s ty le , 1 96 1 97 -
T ols toi , 384
Swi f t ly w alk ov e r the we stern Tom J o n es , 239—24 0
To ttel s Misce lla ny , 67 , 68
”
wa v e , 290
’

S I N UR N E , A LGE N O N CH A LE S,
W B R R To u chstone , 92 , 1 14
305 ; his p oe t ry of re v olt , 3 49 his Torop h i l us , 63
v e rse m a s te ry , 350 ; t he las t of t he T rage dy o f B loo d , 13 1 , 1 34 135 —
i ctorian p oe ts , 350 ; hi s dramas , Trav eller, Th e 21 8 , 2 19
gs1
,

Tra v els of Si r J oh n M a nd ev ille ,

Swi tze rland , 258 , 285 , 286, 337 T he, 69
”
Swi tzerlan d , 333 Treasu re I s la nd 382 ,

Sy ke s , i n O li ver Twist, 365 Trick to Ca tch the O ld O n e , A 1 3 1 ,

T rim Co rpo ral , i n Tri str a m Sh a nd y ,

,

Ta le of a Tu b , 191 , 1 93 , 1 94
Ta le of Two Ci ties, A , 3 65 Tris tra m Sha nd y , 24 4 , 245 , 24 6
Ta les f r om Sha ke sp e a re Lamb ) ,
g
Tri v i a , 29
Ta les of Cleri ca l Life 3 7 , Tro i lus a n d Cresei d e , 3 7 , 38 3 9, 48 -

Ta les of the H a ll 263 , Troi lus a nd Cressid a , 1 1 5 , 1 1 6

Ta lism a n Th e, 3 57 3 61
, , R L P
T O LO E , A N H O NY , 3 72 T
Ta mb u r la i n e, 1 00 1 02 , 1 03 , 1 82 -
T rou v ere s, 24 , 26, 35 , 59 , 3 4 7, 34 8
Ta m i ng o the Sh re w Th e, 1 1 3 , T ru nni on, A dm iral , 243
”
Ta m o ’
b ant er, 269 T ul liv e r, M rs , 3 77 .

T a p le y , Ma rk , 365 T u lli v e r, Maggie , 3 78

Task , Th e, 264 T urgé ni e f , 384
T a s s o, 1 62 T u rn e r, Wi llia m , 33 7
Ta tler, Th e, 1 98 , 1 99, 202 , 2 14 Twe l fth N ight 93 1 1 3 , 1 1 4 , 1 25
, ,

L R
T A Y O , J ER E M Y , 1 45 , 1 53 , 1 97 , T wi cke nha m , 204 , 205
T e azle , Sir P e te r, 22 1 Two Ge n tlem e n of Vero n a , 109
Temp est, The , 1 2 1 , 1 25 Two i n a B a lco ny , 325
Tem p le, Th e 154 , 1 5 6, 3 4 1
,
T YN D A E , WI L
LL M IA , 65

T e m p le , Si r WIlli a m , 1 91
L R
T E N N Y SO N , A F E D , 84 , 27 5 , 291 U D ALL N IC H O L AS 94
, ,

297 , 3 07 , 3 26 33 0 333 , 350, 3 75

, , Unit i e s t he , 94
,

hi s b irt h , 3 1 8 ; hi s int e re s t in p u b Uni v e rs iti e s , t he 94 95 , 97 , ,

li c q u es tions , 3 1 9 ; hi s s cie nce , 32 0 Un to th is La s t 338 ,

fi ni sh a nd com p a s s of hi s s ty le , Unwi n Mrs M a ry , %4

, .

3 22 hi s we ak dra ma tic s e ns e , 3 22 Ur n B u ri a l 1 4 7 ,
”
hi s se n s e of l aw , 323 ; contra s te d Use of R iche s , 209
w i t h B rown Ing, 323 Us k 1 56
,

T e rza ri m a , 290 Utop i a 62 63 ,

Tess o th e D Urb ervi lles , 380, 3 81

’

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T e u f e sd rOck H e rr D io e ne s , 3 1 5
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V ANB U GH SI R J O H N , 1 89
Va n i ty F a i r 368—
,

T H A C K E R A Y WI LLI A M, AR EP E A CE , 3 70 ,

3 72 3 74 , 3 83 , 384 ; hi s infl u e nce on

, V ani ty o f H u m a n Wi s h e s T h e ”
2 14 , ,

B u l w er, 3 62 ; st ru ctu re of hi s Va th e k, H is tory o f th e Ca l ip h , 25 1

no v e ls 368 ; hi s v i e w of hi s
, V AU GH AN , H E N Y 1 53 , 1 56 R ,

3 69 his atti t u d e to ward t he w o rld , Ve n i ce P reserv ed 1 87 ,

369 ; hi s u s e o f hi sto ry , 370; hi s Ve n u s a nd A d o n is , 83 , 1 08

gre a tne s s 3 7 1 , Ve rsail le s, 204
T ho m as a B e cke t , 4 2
- -
Vi ca r of Wakefield Th e 24 7 2 62 , ,

T H O M SO N , J A E S, 2 12 , 253 —
,

M 255 , 256, V i ce , the , in mi ra cle pla y s , 92

25 8 275 298 3 07
, , , V ict oria , 3 08, 309
T hy rs i s 2 91 , 292 , 334
, Vi ctori an Era 3 04 309 ; com p ara b le
, ,

Ti m b e r , 1 28 wi t h E lizab etha n 3 08 ; ge ne ra l
cha racte ri stics , 309—
,

T i mon of A the ns , 1 1 5 , 1 20—1 21 3 1 0 ; i ts s tren