,transcriber's ,note3 ,characters preceded by a caret77 are in superscript1 and are enclosed in curly brackets1 i4 e4 th4 ,italicised text delimited by underscores4 ,there are many special characters in this text that require a utf-#h compliant font4 ,if you find characters that appear as a question mark in a black box or a small rectangle with numbers in it1 you should check your reader's default font4 ,if you have a font installed with ,,sil after the font name1 you should use that one4 ,,the ,,works ,,of ,,richard ,,hurd1 ,d4,d4 ,,lord ,,bishop ,,of ,,worcester4 ,,vol4 ,i4 ,printed by ,j4 ,nichols and ,son1 ,red ,lion ,passage1 ,fleet ,street1 ,london4 ,illustration3 ,the ,right ,reverend ,,richard ,,hurd1 ,d4 ,d4 ,lord ,bishop of ,worcester4 ,t4 ,gainsborough pinx4 ,j4 ,hall sculp4 ,from the ,original ,picture in the ,possession of her ,majesty4 ,published ,march #ast4 #ahaa4 by ,t4 ,cadell ,w4 ,davies1 ,strand1 ,london4 ,,the ,,works ,,of ,,richard ,,hurd1 ,d4 ,d4 ,,lord ,,bishop ,,of ,,worcester4 ,,in ,,eight ,,volumes4 ,,vol4 ,i4 ,illustration ,,london3 ,,printed ,,for ,t4 ,,cadell ,,and ,w4 ,,davies1 ,,strand4 #ahaa4 ,,dates ,,of ,,some ,,occurrences ,,in ,,the ,,life ,,of ,,the ,,author4 ,the following ,particulars1 in the ,author's own hand-writing1 and endorsed by him--8,some ,occurrences in my ,life4 ,r4 ,w40--were found amongst his papers after his decease4 ,,dates ,of some ,occurrences in my own ,life4 ,sidenote3 ,a4 ,d4 ,sidenote3 #agai-bj ,richard ,hurd was born at ,congreve1 in the ,parish of ,penkrich1 in the ,county of ,stafford1 ,january #ac1 #agai-bj4 ,he was the second of three children1 all sons1 of ,john and ,hannah ,hurd2 plain1 honest1 and good people2 of whom he can truly say with the poet-- ,si natura juberet1 c4 ,they rented a considerable farm at ,congreve1 when he was born2 but soon after removed to a larger at ,penford1 about half way between ,brewood and ,wolverhampton in the same ,county4 ,there being a good ,grammar ,school at ,brewood1 he was educated there under the ,reverend ,mr4 ,hillman1 and1 upon his death1 under his successor1 the ,reverend ,mr4 ,budworth--both well qualified for their office1 and both very kind to him4 ,mr4 ,budworth had been ,master of the ,school at ,rudgely2 where he continued two years after his election to ,brewood1 while the ,school-house1 which had been much neglected1 was repairing4 ,he was therefore sent to ,rudgely immediately on ,mr4 ,budworth's appointment to ,brewood1 returned with him to this place1 and continued under his care1 till he went to the ,university4 ,he must add one word more of his second ,master4 ,he knew him well1 when he afterwards was of an age to judge of his merits4 ,he had been a scholar of the famous ,mr4 ,blackwell of ,derby1 and afterwards bred at ,christ's ,college in ,cambridge1 where he resided till he had taken his ,m4 ,a4's degree4 ,he understood ,greek and ,latin well1 and had a true taste of the best writers in those languages4 ,he was1 besides1 a polite1 well-bred man1 and singularly attentive to the manners1 in every sense of the word1 of his scholars4 ,he had a warm sense of virtue and religion1 and enforced both with a natural and taking eloquence4 ,how happy1 to have had such a man1 first1 for his school-master1 and then for his friend4 ,sidenote3 #agcc ,under so good direction1 he was thought fit for the ,university1 and was accordingly admitted in ,emanuel ,college1 in ,cambridge1 ,october #c1 #agcc1 but did not go to reside there till a year or two afterwards4 ,in this college1 he was happy in receiving the countenance1 and in being permitted to attend the ,lectures1 of that excellent ,tutor1 ,mr4 ,henry ,hubbard1 although he had been admitted under another person4 ,sidenote3 #agch-i ,he took his ,b4 ,a4's degree in #agch-i4 ,sidenote3 #agdb ,he took his ,m4 ,a4's degree1 and was elected fellow in #agdb4 ,was ordained ,deacon1 #acth of ,june that year in ,st4 ,paul's ,cathedral1 ,london1 by ,dr4 ,jos4 ,butler1 ,bishop of ,bristol and ,dean of ,st4 ,paul's1 on ,letters ,dimissory from ,dr4 ,gooch1 ,bishop of ,norwich4 ,sidenote3 #agdd ,was ordained ,priest1 #bj ,may #agdd in the ,chapel of ,gonville and ,caius ,college1 ,cambridge1 by the ,bishop of ,norwich1 ,dr4 ,gooch4 ,sidenote3 #agdi ,he took his ,b4 ,d4's degree in #agdi4 ,sidenote3 #agej ,he published the same year ,remarks on ,mr4 ,weston's book on the ,rejection of ,heathen ,miracles1 and his ,commentary on ,horace's ,ars ,poetica2 which last book introduced him to the acquaintance of ,mr4 ,warburton1 by whose recommendation to the ,bishop of ,london1 ,dr4 ,sherlock1 he was appointed ,whitehall ,preacher in ,may #agej4 ,sidenote3 #agea ,he published the ,commentary on the ,epistle to ,augustus in #agea4 ,sidenote3 #agec --the new edition of both ,comments1 with ,dedication to ,mr4 ,warburton1 in #agec4 ,sidenote3 #agee --the ,dissertation on the ,delicacy of ,friendship in #agee4 ,his ,father died ,nov4 #bg this year1 t4 #gj4 ,sidenote3 #ageg ,he published the ,remarks on ,hume's ,natural ,history of ,religion in #ageg4 ,was instituted this year1 ,feb4 #af1 to the ,rectory of ,thurcaston1 in the ,county of ,leicester1 on the presentation of ,emanuel ,college4 ,sidenote3 #agei ,he published ,moral and ,political ,dialogues #agei4 ,sidenote3 #agfb ,he had the ,sine-cure ,rectory of ,folkton1 near ,bridlington1 ,yorkshire1 given him by the ,lord ,chancellor 7,earl of ,northington7 on the recommendation of ,mr4 ,allen1 of ,prior ,park1 near ,bath1 ,november #b1 #agfb4 ,he published the ,letters on ,chivalry and ,romance this year4 ,sidenote3 #agfc --,dialogues on ,foreign ,travel in #agfc4 ,sidenote3 #agfd ,and ,letter to ,dr4 ,leland of ,dublin in #agfd4 ,sidenote3 #agfe ,he was made ,preacher of ,lincoln's ,inn1 on the recommendation of ,mr4 ,charles ,yorke1 c4 ,november #f1 #agfe4 ,sidenote3 #agfg ,was collated to the ,archdeaconry of ,gloucester1 on the death of ,dr4 ,geekie1 by the ,bishop1 ,august #bg1 #agfg4 ,sidenote3 #agfh ,was appointed to open the ,lecture of ,bishop ,warburton on ,prophecy in #agfh4 ,he took the degree of ,d4 ,d4 at ,cambridge ,commencement this year4 ,sidenote3 #aggb ,he published the ,sermons on ,prophecy in #aggb4 ,sidenote3 #aggc ,his ,mother died ,feb4 #bg1 #aggc1 t4 #hh4 ,sidenote3 #agge ,he was consecrated ,bishop of ,lichfield and ,coventry1 the #abth of ,february #agge4 ,sidenote3 #aggf ,he published the #ast ,volume of ,sermons preached at ,lincoln's ,inn1 #aggf4 ,and was made ,preceptor to the ,prince of ,wales and his brother ,prince ,frederick1 the #eth of ,june the same year4 ,preached before the ,lords1 ,december #ac1 #aggf1 first ,fast for the war4 ,sidenote3 #aggi ,he lost his old and best friend1 ,bishop ,warburton1 ,june #gth1 #aggi4 ,sidenote3 #aghj ,he published the #b;d and #c;d ,volumes of ,sermons in #aghj4 ,these three ,volumes were published at the desire of the ,bench of ,lincoln's ,inn4 ,sidenote3 #agha ,he was elected ,member of the ,royal ,society of ,gottingen1 ,january #aa1 #agha4 ,the ,bishop of ,winchester ,dr4 ,thomas died ,tuesday1 ,may #a1 #agha4 ,received a gracious letter from his ,majesty the next morning1 by a special messenger from ,windsor1 with the offer of the ,see of ,worcester1 in the room of ,bishop ,north1 to be translated to ,winchester1 and of the ,clerkship of the ,closet1 in the room of the late ,bishop of ,winchester4 ,on his arrival at ,hartlebury ,castle in ,july that year1 resolved to put the ,castle into complete order1 and to build a ,library1 which was much wanted4 ,sidenote3 #aghb ,the ,library was finished in #aghb and furnished with a collection of books1 late ,bishop ,warburton's1 and ordered by his ,will to be sold1 and the value given to the ,infirmary at ,gloucester ,sidenote3 #aghc ,to these1 other considerable additions have been since made4 ,archbishop ,cornwallis died in #aghc4 ,had the offer of the ,archbishoprick from his ,majesty1 with many gracious expressions1 and pressed to accept it2 but humbly begged leave to decline it1 as a charge not suited to his temper and talents1 and much too heavy for him to sustain1 especially in these times4 ,the ,king was pleased not to take offence at this freedom1 and then to enter with him into some confidential conversation on the subject4 ,it was offered to the ,bishop of ,london1 ,dr4 ,lowth1 and refused by him1 as was foreseen1 on account of his ill health4 ,it was then given to ,dr4 ,moore1 ,bishop of ,bangor4 ,sidenote3 #aghd ,added a considerable number of books to the new ,library at ,hartlebury in #aghd4 ,sidenote3 #aghe ,confirmed ,prince ,edward their ,majesties' #dth son in the ,chapel of ,windsor ,castle1 ,may #adth1 #aghe4 ,added more books to the ,library this year4 ,and put the last hand 7at least he thinks so7 to the ,bishop of ,gloucester's ,life1 to be prefixed to the new edition of his works now in the press4 ,confirmed ,princess ,augusta their ,majesties' second daughter in the ,chapel of ,windsor ,castle1 ,dec4 the #bdth this year4 ,preached in the ,chapel the next day 7,christmas day7 and administered the ,sacrament to their ,majesties and the ,princess ,royal and ,princess ,augusta4 ,sidenote3 #aghf ,preached before the ,lords the #cjth of ,january #aghf4 ,his ,majesty was pleased this year to bestow a prebend of ,worcester vacant by the death of ,dr4 ,young on my ,chaplain1 ,mr4 ,kilvert4 ,preached before their ,majesties and ,royal ,family in the ,chapel of ,windsor ,castle1 and administered the ,sacrament to them1 on ,christmas day #aghf4 ,sidenote3 #aghh ,in the end of ,february this year1 #aghh1 was published in seven volumes #dto a complete edition of the works of ,bishop ,warburton4 ,the ,life is omitted for the present4 ,march #ac1 #aghh1 a fine gold ,medal was this day given me by his ,majesty at the ,queen's ,house4 ,the ,king's head on one side4 ,the ,reverse was taken from a ,seal of mine#a1 which his ,majesty chanced to see1 and approved4 ,the ,die was cut by ,mr4 ,burch1 and the ,medal designed for the annual ,prize-,dissertation on ,theological ,subjects in the ,university of ,gottingen4 ,sidenote3 ,july #ab4 ,this summer the ,king came to ,cheltenham to drink the waters1 and was attended by the ,queen1 the ,princess ,royal1 and the ,princesses ,augusta and ,elizabeth4 ,they arrived at ,cheltenham in the evening of ,saturday ,july the #abth1 and resided in a house of ,earl ,falconberg4 ,from ,cheltenham they made excursions to several places in ,gloucestershire and ,worcestershire1 and were every where received with joy by all ranks of people4 ,sidenote3 ,aug4 #b ,on ,saturday1 ,august the second1 ,they were pleased to visit ,hartlebury1 at the distance of thirty-three miles1 or more4 ,the ,duke of ,york came from ,london to ,cheltenham the day before1 and was pleased to come with them4 ,they arrived at ,hartlebury at half an hour past eleven4 ,lord ,courtoun1 ,mr4 ,digby 7the ,queen's ,vice-,chamberlain71 ,col4 ,gwin 7one of the ,king's ,equerries71 the ,countesses of ,harcourt and ,courtoun1 composed the suite4 ,their ,majesties1 after seeing the ,house1 breakfasted in the ,library2 and1 when they had reposed themselves some time1 walked into the ,garden1 and took several turns on the ,terrases1 especially the ,green ,terras in the ,chapel ,garden4 ,here they shewed themselves to an immense croud of people1 who flocked in from the neighbourhood1 and standing on the rising grounds in the ,park1 saw1 and were seen1 to great advantage4 ,the day being extremely bright1 the shew was agreeable and striking4 ,about two o'clock1 their ,majesties1 c4 returned to ,cheltenham4 ,sidenote3 ,aug4 #e4 ,on the ,tuesday following1 ,august the fifth1 their ,majesties1 with the three ,princesses1 arrived at #h o'clock in the evening at the ,bishop's ,palace in ,worcester1 to attend the charitable meeting of the three ,quires of ,worcester1 ,hereford1 and ,gloucester1 for the benefit of the widows and orphans of the poorer ,clergy of those ,dioceses2 which had been fixed1 in consequence of the signification of the ,king's intention to honour that solemnity with his presence1 for the #fth1 #gth1 and #hth of that month4 ,the next morning a little before #aj o'clock1 the ,king was pleased to receive the compliments of the ,clergy4 ,the ,bishop1 in the name of himself1 ,dean and ,chapter and ,clergy of the ,church and ,diocese1 addressed the ,king in the ,great ,hall1 in a short speech#b1 to which his ,majesty was pleased to return a gracious answer4 ,he had then the honour to address the ,queen in a few words1 to which a gracious reply was made2 and they had all the honour to kiss the ,king's and ,queen's hand4 ,soon after #aj1 the ,corporation1 by their ,recorder1 the ,earl of ,coventry1 addressed and went through the same ceremony of kissing the ,king's hand4 ,then the ,king had a ,leve in the ,great ,hall1 which lasted till #aa1 when their ,majesties1 c4 walked through the ,court of the ,palace to the ,cathedral1 to attend divine ,service and a ,sermon4 ,the ,apparitor ,general1 #b ,sextons1 #b ,virgers1 and #h ,beadsmen1 walked before the ,king 7as on great occasions they usually do before the ,bishop72 the ,lord in waiting 7,earl of ,oxford7 on the ,king's right hand1 and the ,bishop in his lawn on the left4 ,after the ,king1 came the ,queen and ,princesses1 attended by the ,countesses of ,pembroke and ,harcourt 7,ladies of the ,bed-chamber71 and the ,countess of ,courtown1 and the rest of their ,suite4 ,at the entrance of the ,cathedral1 their ,majesties were received by the ,dean and ,chapter in their ,surplices and hoods1 and conducted to the foot of the stairs leading to their seat in a ,gallery prepared and richly furnished by the ,stewards#c for their use1 at the bottom of the ,church near the ,west window4 ,the same ceremony was observed the two following days1 on which they heard sacred music1 but without prayers or a sermon4 ,on the last day ,aug4 #hth1 the ,king was pleased to give 4#bjj to the charity3 and in the evening attended a concert in the ,college ,hall for the benefit of the ,stewards4 ,sidenote3 ,aug4 #i ,on ,saturday morning1 ,aug4 #ith1 the ,king and ,queen1 c4 returned to ,cheltenham4 ,during their ,majesties' stay at the ,palace1 they attended prayers in the ,chapel of the ,palace every morning 7except the first1 when the service was performed in the ,church7 which were read by the ,bishop4 ,the ,king at parting was pleased to put into my hands for the poor of the ,city 4#ej1 and the ,queen 4#ej more2 which ,i desired the ,mayor 7,mr4 ,davis7 to see distributed amongst them in a proper manner4 ,the ,king also left 4#cjj in my hands towards releasing the ,debtors in the ,county and ,city ,jails4 ,during the three days at ,worcester1 the concourse of people of all ranks was immense1 and the joy universal4 ,the weather was uncommonly fine4 ,and no accident of any kind interrupted the mutual satisfaction1 which was given1 and received1 on this occasion4 ,sidenote3 ,aug4 #af ,on ,saturday1 ,august #af1 the ,king and ,royal ,family left ,cheltenham1 and returned that evening to ,windsor4 ,sidenote3 ,nov4 #a ,in the beginning of ,november following1 ,sidenote3 #aghi ,sidenote3 ,feb4 #bh the ,king was seized with that illness1 which was so much lamented4 ,it continued till the end of ,february #aghi1 when his ,majesty happily recovered4 ,sidenote3 ,mar4 #ae ,soon after ,i had his ,majesty's command to attend him at ,kew2 and on ,march #ae1 ,i administered the ,sacrament to his ,majesty at ,windsor in the ,chapel of the ,castle1 as also on ,easter ,sunday1 ,april #ab1 ,sidenote3 ,april #ab and preached both days4 ,at the ,sacrament of ,march #ae1 the ,king was attended only by three or four of his ,gentlemen3 ,on ,easter-day1 the ,queen1 ,princess ,royal1 and ,princesses ,augusta and ,elizabeth1 with several ,lords and ,gentlemen and ,ladies of the ,court1 attended the ,king to the ,chapel1 and received the ,sacrament with him4 ,sidenote3 ,april #bc ,on ,april #bc ,st4 ,george's ,day a public thanksgiving for the ,king's recovery was appointed4 ,his ,majesty1 the ,queen1 and ,royal ,family1 with the two ,houses of ,parliament1 c4 went in procession to ,st4 ,paul's4 ,the ,bishop of ,london preached4 ,i was not well enough to be there4 ,sidenote3 #agij ,sidenote3 ,may #bh ,may #bh1 #agij1 the ,duke of ,montagu died4 ,he was a nobleman of singular worth and virtue2 of an exemplary life2 and of the best principles in ,church and ,state4 ,as ,governor to the ,prince of ,wales and ,prince ,frederick1 he was very attentive to his charge1 and executed that trust with great propriety and dignity4 ,the ,preceptor was honoured with his confidence3 and there never was the least misunderstanding between them2 or so much as a difference of opinion as to the manner in which the education of the ,princes should be conducted4 ,in ,october #agij1 ,i had the honour to receive from the ,king the present of two fine full-length pictures of his ,majesty and the ,queen1 copied from those at the ,queen's ,house1 ,st4 ,james's ,park1 painted by the late ,mr4 ,gainsborough4 ,these pictures are put up in the great ,drawing-room at the ,palace in ,worcester1 and betwixt them1 over the fire-place1 is fixed an oval tablet of white marble with the following ,inscription in ,gold ,letters4 8,hospes1 ,imagines1 quas contemplaris1 ,augustorum ,principum1 ,georgii ,,iii1 et ,charlott ,conjugis1 ,rex ipse ,richardo ,episcopo ,vigorniensi ,donavit1 #agij40 ,sidenote3 #agia ,sidenote3 ,sept4 #ag ,my younger ,brother1 ,mr4 ,thomas ,hurd1 of ,birmingham1 died on ,saturday1 ,sept4 #ag1 #agia4 ,sidenote3 #agib ,sidenote3 ,dec4 #f ,my elder ,brother1 ,mr4 ,john ,hurd1 of ,hatton1 near ,shifnal1 died on ,thursday1 ,december #f1 #agib4 ,sidenote3 #agic ,sidenote3 ,march #bj ,my noble and honoured friend1 the ,earl of ,mansfield1 died ,march #bj1 #agic4 ,sidenote3 #agie ,sidenote3 ,jan4 #ai ,my old and much esteemed friend1 ,dr4 ,balguy1 ,prebendary and ,archdeacon of ,winchester1 died ,january #ai1 #agie4 ,sidenote3 ,feb4 #bd ,the ,life of ,bishop ,warburton1 which was sent to the press in ,autumn last1 was not printed off till the end of ,january1 nor published till towards the end of ,february this year4 ,sidenote3 ,dec4 #a ,printed in the course of this year at the ,kidderminster press a ,collection of ,bishop ,warburton's ,letters to me1 to be published after my death for the benefit of the ,worcester ,infirmary4--,the edition consisted of #bej ,copies1 #dto--was finished at the press in the beginning of ,december4 ,sidenote3 #agif ,sidenote3 ,june #ag to #cj ,in the ,summer of #agif visited my ,diocese in person1 ,i have great reason to suppose for the last time2 being in the #ggth year of my age--fiat voluntas ,dei6 ,sidenote3 ,sept4 #a ,mrs4 ,stafford ,smith1 late ,mrs4 ,warburton1 died at ,fladbury1 ,september #a1 #agif4 ,sidenote3 #agig ,sidenote3 ,april #e ,mr4 ,mason died at ,aston1 ,april #e1 #agig4 ,he was one of my oldest and most respected friends4 ,how few of this description now remain6 ,sidenote3 #agii ,sidenote3 ,jan4 #bd ,by ,god's great mercy enter this day #bd ,jan4 #agii into my #hjth year4 ,ps4 xc4 #aj4 ,but see1 #a ,cor4 xv4 #bb4 ,rom4 viii4 #ah4 #a ,pet4 i4 #c-e4 4 #b ,cor4 ix4 #ae4 ,sidenote3 ,may #bg to ,june #ad ,it pleased ,god that ,i was able this ,summer to confirm over all parts of my ,diocese4 ,sidenote3 #ahjj ,sidenote3 ,june #f to #ag ,and to visit my ,diocese in person once more in ,june #ahjj4--,l4 ,d4 ,sidenote3 #ahja ,sidenote3 ,may #af ,lost my old and worthy friend ,dr4 ,heberden1 in the #iast or #ibnd year of his age1 ,may #af1 #ahja4 ,sidenote3 #ahjb ,sidenote3 ,june #ae ,consecrated1 on ,tuesday the #aeth of ,june1 #ahjb1 the new ,church and ,church-yard of ,lower ,eatington1 near ,shipston1 in ,warwickshire4 ,sidenote3 ,aug4 #e ,my most deserving1 unhappy1 friend1 ,dr4 ,william ,arnald1 died at ,leicester1 ,august #e1 #ahjb4 ,sidenote3 #ahjc ,sidenote3 ,may #ca to ,june #c ,visited my ,diocese by ,commission--,commissioners1 ,dr4 ,arnold1 my ,chancellor1 and ,dr4 ,evans1 ,archdeacon4 ,sidenote3 #ahjd ,sidenote3 ,july #be ,st4 ,james' day1 ,july #be1 #ahjd1 held an ,ordination in ,hartlebury ,chapel--#c ,deacons1 #e ,priests--the last ,i can expect to undertake4 ,sidenote3 #ahje ,sidenote3 ,march #bg #bh #bi ,confirmations by the ,bishop of ,chester 7,dr4 ,majendie47 ,march #bg1 ,stratford4 #bh1 ,bromsgrove4 #bi1 ,hales ,owen4 ,sidenote3 ,june #ad #ae #ag --by the ,bishop of ,hereford 7,dr4 ,cornwall47 ,june #ad1 ,worcester #ae1 ,pershore #ag1 ,kidderminster ,sidenote3 #ahjf ,visited my ,diocese this year by ,commission-- ,commissioners1 ,the ,chancellor and ,archdeacon4 ,warwick ,may #bf4 ,worcester #bh4 ,kidderminster #cj4 ,pershore #ca4 ,sidenote3 #ahjg ,sidenote3 ,sept4 #bf #ahjg1 ,sept4 #bf4 ,the ,prince of ,wales visited ,lady ,downshire1 at ,ombersley ,court this month4 ,i was too infirm to wait upon him either at ,ombersley or ,worcester2 but his ,royal ,highness was pleased to call at ,hartlebury1 on ,saturday the #bfth of this month1 attended by his brother the ,duke of ,sussex1 and ,lord ,lake1 and staid with me above an hour4 ,sidenote3 #ahjh #ahjh1 ,april #bc4 ,granted a ,commission to the ,bishop of ,chester1 7,dr4 ,majendie17 to consecrate the new ,chapel and burying-ground at ,red-,ditch1 in the parish of ,tardebig2 which was performed this day1 ,thursday1 ,april #ba1 #ahjh1 the proper officers of the ,court1 and two of my ,chaplains attending4 99 99 99 99 99 ,to this short narrative 7the last paragraph of which was written by the ,author only five weeks before his death7 little more will be added4 ,so late as the first ,sunday in ,february before his death1 though then declining in health and strength1 he was able to attend his ,parish ,church1 and to receive the ,sacrament4 ,free from any painful or acute disorder1 he gradually became weaker1 but his faculties continued perfect4 ,after a few days confinement to his bed1 he expired in his sleep1 on ,saturday morning1 ,may #bh1 #ahjh2 having completed four months beyond his eighty-eighth year4 ,he was buried in ,hartlebury ,church-yard1 according to his own directions4 ,he had been ,bishop of ,worcester for almost twenty-seven years3 a longer period than any ,bishop of that ,see since the ,reformation4 ,,general ,,contents4 ,,vol4 ,i4 and ,,ii4 ,,critical ,,works4 ,,vol4 ,i4 ,q4 ,horatii ,flacci ,epistolae ad ,pisones1 et ,augustum3 ,with an ,english ,commentary and ,notes4 ,,vol4 ,,ii4 ,,critical ,,dissertations4 ,on the ,idea of ,universal ,poetry4 ,on the ,provinces of ,dramatic ,poetry4 ,on ,poetical ,imitation4 ,on the ,marks of ,imitation4 ,,vol4 ,,iii4 and ,,iv4 ,,moral ,,and ,,political ,,dialogues4 ,,vol4 ,,iii4 ,on ,sincerity in the ,commerce of the ,world4 ,on ,retirement4 ,on the ,age of ,queen ,elizabeth4 ,on the ,constitution of the ,english ,government4 ,,vol4 ,,iv4 ,on the ,constitution of the ,english ,government4 ,on the ,uses of ,foreign ,travel4 ,and ,,letters on ,chivalry and ,romance4 ,,vol4 ,v4 ,,vi4 ,,vii4 and ,,viii4 ,,theological ,,works4 ,,vol4 ,v4 ,,sermons introductory to the study of the ,prophecies4 ,with an ,appendix2 ,containing an anonymous ,letter to the ,author of these ,sermons1 and his ,answer to it4 ,,vol4 ,,vi4 ,,sermons preached at ,lincoln's ,inn4 ,,vol4 ,,vii4 ,,sermons preached at ,lincoln's ,inn4 ,,vol4 ,,viii4 ,,sermons on public ,occasions4 ,,charges to the ,clergy4 ,and ,an ,appendix2 ,containing ,controversial ,tracts on different subjects and occasions4 ,,critical ,,works4 ,,vol4 ,i4 ,q4 ,,horatii ,,flacci ,,epistolae ,,ad ,,pisones1 ,,et ,,augustum3 ,,with ,,an ,,english ,,commentary ,,and ,,notes3 ,,to ,,which ,,are ,,added ,,critical ,,dissertations4 ,,contents4 ,,vol4 ,i4 ,,introduction1 ,on ,epistolary ,writing4 ,,epistola ,,ad ,,pisones3 ,with an ,english ,commentary and ,notes4 ,,epistola ,,ad ,,augustum3 ,with an ,english ,commentary and ,notes4 ,,vol4 ,,ii4 ,,dissertation ,i4 ,on the ,idea of ,universal ,poetry4 ,,dissertation ,,ii4 ,on the ,provinces of ,dramatic ,poetry4 ,,dissertation ,,iii4 ,on ,poetical ,imitation4 ,,dissertation ,,iv4 ,on the ,marks of ,imitation4 ,,contents ,,of ,,the ,,first ,,volume4 ,,introduction1 ,on ,epistolary ,writing4 #ac ,,epistola ,,ad ,,pisones3 ,with an ,english ,commentary and ,notes4 #bg ,,epistola ,,ad ,,augustum3 ,with an ,english ,commentary and ,notes4 #bgi ,,to ,,sir ,,edward ,,littleton1 ,,bart4 ,,dear ,,sir1 ,having reviewed these ,sheets with some care1 ,i beg leave to put them into your hands1 as a testimony of the respect ,i bear you2 and1 for the time that such things may have the fortune to live1 as a monument of our friendship4 ,you see1 by the turn of this address1 you have nothing to fear from that offensive adulation1 which has so much dishonoured ,letters4 ,you and ,i have lived together on other terms4 ,and ,i should be ashamed to offer you even such a trifle as this1 in a manner that would give you a right to think meanly of its author4 ,your extreme delicacy allows me to say nothing of my obligations1 which otherwise would demand my warmest acknowledgements4 ,for your constant favour has followed me in all ways1 in which you could contrive to express it4 ,and indeed ,i have never known any man more sensible to the good offices of his friends1 and even to their good intentions1 or more disposed1 by every proper method1 to acknowledge them4 ,but you much over-rate the little services1 which it has been in my power to render to you4 ,i had the honour to be intrusted with a part of your education1 and it was my duty to contribute all ,i could to the success of it4 ,but the task was easy and pleasant4 ,i had only to cultivate that good sense1 and those generous virtues1 which you brought with you to the ,university1 and which had already grown up to some maturity under the care of a man1 to whom we had both of us been extremely obliged2 and who possessed every talent of a perfect institutor of youth in a degree1 which1 ,i believe1 has been rarely found in any of that profession1 since the days of ,quinctilian4 ,i wish this small tribute of respect1 in which ,i know how cordially you join with me1 could be any honour to the memory of an excellent person#d1 who loved us both1 and was less known1 in his life-time1 from that obscure situation to which the caprice of fortune oft condemns the most accomplished characters1 than his highest merit deserved4 ,it was to cherish and improve that taste of polite letters1 which his early care had instilled into you1 that you required me to explain to you the following exquisite piece of the best poet4 ,i recollect with pleasure how welcome this slight essay then was to you2 and am secure of the kind reception you will now give to it2 improved1 as ,i think it is1 in some respects1 and presented to you in this public way4--,i was going to say1 how much you benefited by this poet 7the fittest of all others1 for the study of a gentleman7 in your acquaintance with his moral1 as well as critical writings2 and how successfully you applied yourself to every other part of learning1 which was thought proper for you--,but ,i remember my engagements with you1 and will not hazard your displeasure by saying too much4 ,it is enough for me to add1 that ,i truly respect and honour you2 and that1 for the rest1 ,i indulge in those hopes1 which every one1 who knows you1 entertains from the excellence of your nature1 from the hereditary honour of your family1 and from an education in which you have been trained to the study of the best things4 ,i am1 ,,dear ,,sir1 ,your most faithful and most obedient ,servant1 ,r4 ,,hurd4 ,,eman4 ,,coll4 ,,camb4 ,june #ba1 #ageg4 ,,introduction4 ,it is agreed on all hands1 that the antients are our masters in the art of composition4 ,such of their writings1 therefore1 as deliver instructions for the exercise of this art1 must be of the highest value4 ,and1 if any of them hath acquired a credit1 in this respect1 superior to the rest1 it is1 perhaps1 the following work3 which the learned have long since considered as a kind of summary of the rules of good writing2 to be gotten by heart by every young student2 and to whose decisive authority the greatest masters in taste and composition must finally submit4 ,but the more unquestioned the credit of this poem is1 the more it will concern the public1 that it be justly and accurately understood4 ,the writer of these sheets then believed it might be of use1 if he took some pains to clear the sense1 connect the method1 and ascertain the scope and purpose1 of this admired epistle4 ,others1 he knew indeed1 and some of the first fame for critical learning1 had been before him in this attempt4 ,yet he did not find himself prevented by their labours2 in which1 besides innumerable lesser faults1 he1 more especially1 observed two inveterate errors1 of such a sort1 as must needs perplex the genius1 and distress the learning of any commentator4 ,the one of these respects the ,,subject2 the other1 the ,,method of the ,art of poetry4 ,it will be necessary to say something upon each4 #a4 ,that the ,art of poetry1 at large1 is not the proper subject of this piece1 is so apparent1 that it hath not escaped the dullest and least attentive of its critics4 ,for1 however all the different kinds of poetry might appear to enter into it1 yet every one saw1 that some at least were very slightly considered3 whence the frequent attempts1 the artes et institutiones poetic1 of writers both at home and abroad1 to supply its deficiencies4 ,but1 though this truth was seen and confessed1 it unluckily happened1 that the sagacity of his numerous commentators went no further4 ,they still considered this famous epistle as a collection1 though not a system1 of criticisms on poetry in general2 with this concession however1 that the stage had evidently the largest share in it#e4 ,under the influence of this prejudice1 several writers of name took upon them to comment and explain it3 and with the success1 which was to be expected from so fatal a mistake on setting out1 as the not seeing1 8that the proper and sole purpose of the author1 was1 not to abridge the ,greek critics1 whom he probably never thought of2 nor to amuse himself with composing a short critical system1 for the general use of poets1 which every line of it absolutely confutes2 but1 simply to criticize the ,,roman ,,drama40 ,for to this end1 not the tenor of the work only1 but1 as will appear1 every single precept in it1 ultimately refers4 ,the mischiefs of this original error have been long felt4 ,it hath occasioned a constant perplexity in defining the general method1 and in fixing the import of particular rules4 ,nay its effects have reached still further4 ,for1 conceiving as they did1 that the whole had been composed out of the ,greek critics1 the labour and ingenuity of its interpreters have been misemployed in picking out authorities1 which were not wanted1 and in producing1 or1 more properly1 by their studied refinements in creating1 conformities1 which were never designed4 ,whence it hath come to pass1 that1 instead of investigating the order of the poet's own reflexions1 and scrutinizing the peculiar state of the ,roman stage 7the methods1 which common sense and common criticism would prescribe7 the world hath been nauseated with insipid lectures on ,aristotle and ,phalereus2 whose solid sense hath been so attenuated and subtilized by the delicate operation of ,french criticism1 as hath even gone some way towards bringing the art itself into disrepute4 #b4 ,but the wrong explications of this poem have arisen1 not from the misconception of the subject only1 but from an inattention to the ,,method of it4 ,the latter was1 in part1 the genuin consequence of the former4 ,for1 not suspecting an unity of design in the subject1 its interpreters never looked for1 or could never find a consistency of disposition in the method4 ,and this was indeed the very block upon which ,,heinsius1 and1 before him1 ,julius ,scaliger1 himself1 stumbled4 ,these illustrious critics1 with all the force of genius1 which is required to disembarrass an involved subject1 and all the aids of learning1 that can lend a ray to enlighten a dark one1 have1 notwithstanding1 found themselves utterly unable to unfold the order of this epistle2 insomuch1 that ,,scaliger#f1 hath boldly pronounced the conduct of it to be vicious2 and ,,heinsius1 had no other way to evade the charge1 than by recurring to the forced and uncritical expedient of a licentious transposition4 ,the truth is1 they were both in one common error1 ,that the poet's purpose had been to write a criticism of the art of poetry at large1 and not1 as is here shewn1 of the ,roman drama in particular4 ,but there is something more to be observed1 in the case of ,,heinsius4 ,for1 as will be made appear in the notes on particular places1 this critic did not pervert the order of the piece1 from a simple mistake about the drift of the subject1 but1 also1 from a total inapprehension of the genuin charm and beauty of the epistolary method4 ,and1 because ,i take this to be a principal cause of the wrong interpretations1 that have been given of all the epistles of ,horace2 and it is1 in itself1 a point of curious criticism1 of which little or nothing hath been said by any good writer1 ,i will take the liberty to enlarge upon it4 ,,the ,,epistle1 however various in its appearances1 is1 in fact1 but of two kinds2 one of which may be called the ,,didactic2 the other1 the ,,elegiac epistle4 ,by the ,,first ,i mean all those epistles1 whose end is to instruct2 whether the subject be morals1 politics1 criticism1 or1 in general1 human life3 by the ,,latter1 all those1 whose end is to move2 whether the occasion be love1 friendship1 jealousy1 or other private distresses4 ,if there are some of a lighter kind in ,horace1 and other good writers1 which seem not reducible to either of these two classes1 they are to be regarded only1 as the triflings of their pen1 and deserve not to be considered1 as making a third and distinct species of this poem4 ,now these two kinds of the epistle1 as they differ widely from each other in their subject and end1 so do they likewise in their original3 though both flourished at the same time1 and are both wholly ,roman4 ,i4 ,the former1 or ,,didactic epistle1 was1 in fact1 the true and proper offspring of the ,,satire4 ,it will be worth while to reflect how this happened4 ,satire1 in its origin1 ,i mean in the rude fescennine farce1 from which the idea of this poem was taken was a mere extemporaneous jumble of mirth and ill-nature4 ,,ennius1 who had the honour of introducing it under its new name1 without doubt1 civilized both1 yet left it without form or method2 it being only1 in his hands1 a rhapsody of poems on different subjects1 and in different measures4 ,common sense disclaiming the extravagance of this heterogeneous mixture1 ,,lucilius advanced it1 in its next step1 to an unity of design and metre2 which was so considerable a change1 that it procured him the high appellation of ,,inventor of this poem4 ,though1 when ,i say1 that ,lucilius introduced into satire an unity of metre1 ,i mean only1 in the same piece2 for the measure1 in different satires1 appears to have been different4 ,that the design in him was one1 ,i conclude1 first1 ,because ,horace expresly informs us1 that the form or kind of writing in the satires of ,lucilius was exactly the same with that in his own2 in which no one will pretend1 that there is the least appearance of that rhapsodical1 detached form1 which made the character of the old satire4 ,but1 principally1 because1 on any other supposition1 it does not appear1 what could give ,lucilius a claim to that high appellation of ,,inventor of this poem4 ,that he was the first1 who copied the manner of the old comedy in satire1 could never be sufficient for this purpose4 ,for all1 that he derived into it from thence1 was1 as ,quinctilian speaks1 libertas atque inde acerbitas et abunde salis4 ,it sharpened his invective1 and polished his wit1 that is1 it improved the air1 but did not alter the form of the satire4 ,as little can a right to this title be pleaded from the uniformity of measure1 which he introduced into it4 ,for this1 without an unity of design1 is so far from being an alteration for the better1 that it even heightens the absurdity2 it being surely more reasonable to adapt different measures to different subjects1 than to treat a number of inconnected and quite different subjects in the same measure4 ,when therefore ,horace tells us1 that ,lucilius was the ,inventor of the satire1 it must needs be understood1 that he was the ,,first1 who1 from its former confused state1 reduced it into a regular consistent poem1 respecting one main end1 as well as observing one measure4 ,little now remained for ,,horace but to polish and refine4 ,his only material alteration was1 that he appropriated to the satire ,,one1 that is1 the heroic metre4 ,from this short history of the satire we collect1 #a4 that its design was one3 ,and #b4 we learn1 what was the general form of its composition4 ,for1 arising out of a loose1 disjointed1 miscellany1 its method1 when most regular1 would be free and unconstrained2 nature demanding some chain of connexion1 and a respect to its origin requiring that connexion to be slight and somewhat concealed4 ,but its aim1 as well as origin1 exacted this careless method4 ,for being1 as ,diomedes observes1 arch comdi charactere compositum1 8professedly written after the manner of the old comedy10 it was of course to admit the familiarity of the comic muse2 whose genius is averse from all constraint of order1 save that only which a natural1 successive train of thinking unavoidably draws along with it4 ,and this1 by the way1 accounts for the dialogue air1 so frequent in the ,roman satire1 as likewise for the looser numbers which appeared so essential to the grace of it4 ,it was in learned allusion to this comic genius of the satire1 that ,mr4 ,pope hath justly characterized it in the following manner3 8,horace still charms with graceful negligence1 8,and1 without method1 ,,talks us into sense40 #b4 ,it being now seen1 what was the real form of the satire1 nothing1 it is plain1 was wanting1 but the application of a particular address1 to constitute the didactic epistle3 the structure of this poem1 as prescribed by the laws of nature and good sense1 being in nothing different from that of the other4 ,for here #a4 an unity of subject or design is indispensably necessary1 the freedom of a miscellaneous matter being permitted only to the familiar letter4 ,and #b4 not professing formally to instruct 7which alone justifies the severity of strict method7 but1 when of the gravest kind1 in the way of address only to insinuate instruction1 it naturally takes an air of negligence and inconnexion1 such as we have before seen essential to the satire4 ,all which is greatly confirmed by the testimony of one1 who could not be uninformed in these matters4 ,in addressing his friend on the object of his studies1 he says1 sive ,liventem satiram nigra rubigine turpes1 ,seu tua ,,non ,,alia splendescat epistola ,,cura4 ,stat4 lib4 i4 ,sylv4 ,tiburt4 ,m4 ,v4 plainly intimating1 that the rules and labour of composition were exactly the same in these two poems4 ,though the critics on ,statius1 not apprehending this identity1 or exact correspondence between the satire and epistle1 have unnecessarily1 and without warrant1 altered the text1 in this place1 from ,,alia into ,,alta4 #c4 ,the general form and structure of this epistle being thus clearly understood1 it will now be easy1 in few words1 to deduce the peculiar laws of its composition4 ,and #a4 it cannot wholly divest itself of all method3 ,for1 having only one point in view1 it must of course pursue it by some kind of connexion4 ,the progress of the mind in rational thinking requires1 that the chain be never broken entirely1 even in its freest excursions4 #b4 ,as there must needs be a connexion1 so that connexion will best answer its end and the purpose of the writer1 which1 whilst it leads1 by a sure train of thinking1 to the conclusion in view1 conceals itself all the while1 and leaves to the reader the satisfaction of supplying the intermediate links1 and joining together1 in his own mind1 what is left in a seeming posture of neglect and inconnexion4 ,the art of furnishing this gratification1 so respectful to the sagacity of the reader1 without putting him to the trouble of a painful investigation1 is what constitutes the supreme charm and beauty of ,,epistolary ,,method4 ,,ii4 ,what hath hitherto been advanced respects chiefly the didactic form4 ,it remains to say something of that other species of the epistle1 the ,,elegiac2 which1 as ,i observed1 had quite another original4 ,for this apparently sprung up from what is properly called the ,elegy3 a poem of very antient ,greek extraction3 naturally arising from the plaintive1 querulous humour of mankind2 which1 under the pressure of any grief1 is impatient to break forth into wailings and tender expostulations1 and finds a kind of relief in indulging and giving a loose to that flow of sorrow1 which it hath not strength or resolution wholly#g to restrain4 ,this is the account of the ,elegy in its proper ,greek form2 a negligent1 inconnected1 abrupt species of writing1 perfectly suited to an indolent disposition and passionate heart4 ,such was ,,ovid',s2 who1 taking advantage of this character of the elegy1 contrived#h a new kind of poetry1 without the expence of much invention1 or labour to himself4 ,for1 collecting1 as it were1 those scattered hints1 which composed the elegy1 and directing them to one principal view2 and superadding a personal address1 he became the author of what is here styled the ,elegiac epistle2 beautiful models of which we have in his ,,heroides1 and the ,epistles from ,,pontus4 ,we see then the difference of this from the didactic form4 ,they have both one principal end and point in view4 ,but the ,didactic1 being of a cooler and more sedate turn1 pursues its design uniformly and connects easily4 ,the ,elegiac1 on the contrary1 whose end is emotion1 not instruction1 hath all the abruptness of irregular disordered passion4 ,it catches at remote and distant hints1 and starts at once into a digressive train of thinking1 which it requires some degree of enthusiasm in the reader to follow4 ,further than this it is not material to my present design to pursue this subject4 ,more exact ideas of the form and constitution of this epistle1 must be sought in that best example of it1 the natural ,roman poet4 ,it may only be observed of the different qualities1 necessary to those1 who aspire to excel in these two species3 that1 as the one would make an impression on the heart1 it can only do this by means of an exquisite sensibility of nature and elegance of mind2 and that the other1 attempting in the most inoffensive manner1 to inform the head1 must demand1 to the full accomplishment of its purpose1 superior good sense1 the widest knowledge of life1 and1 above all1 the politeness of a consummate address4 ,that the former was the characteristic of ,,ovid',s genius hath been observed1 and is well known4 ,how far the latter description agrees to ,,horace can be no secret to those of his readers who have any share1 or conception of these talents themselves4 ,but matters of this nicer kind are properly the objects1 not of criticism1 but of sentiment4 ,let it suffice then to examine the poet's practice1 so far only1 as we are enabled to judge of it by the standard of the preceding rules4 ,,iii4 ,these rules are reducible to three4 #a4 that there be an unity in the subject4 #b4 a connexion in the method3 and #c4 that such connexion be easy4 ,all which ,i suppose to have been religiously observed in the poet's conduct of this1 i4 e4 the didactic epistle4 ,for1 #a4 ,the subject of each epistle is one3 that is1 one single point is prosecuted through the whole piece1 notwithstanding that the address of the poet1 and the delicacy of the subject may sometimes lead him through a devious tract to it4 ,had his interpreters attended to this practice1 so consonant to the rule of nature before explained1 they could never have found an art of poetry in the epistle1 we are about to examine4 #b4 ,this one point1 however it hath not been seen#i1 is constantly pursued by an uniform1 consistent method2 which is never more artificial1 than when least apparent to a careless1 inattentive reader4 ,this should have stimulated his learned critics to seek the connexion of the poet's own ideas1 when they magisterially set themselves to transpose or vilify his method4 #c4 ,this method is every where sufficiently clear and obvious2 proceeding if not in the strictest forms of disposition1 yet1 in an easy1 elegant progress1 one hint arising out of another1 and insensibly giving occasion to succeeding ones1 just as the cooler genius of this kind required4 ,this1 lastly1 should have prevented those1 who have taken upon themselves to criticize the art of poetry by the laws of this poem1 from concealing their ignorance of its real views under the cover of such abrupt and violent transitions1 as might better agree to the impassioned elegy1 than to the sedate didactic epistle4 ,to set this three-fold character1 in the fullest light1 before the view of the reader1 ,i have attempted to explain the ,epistle to the ,pisos1 in the way of continued commentary upon it4 ,and that the coherence of the several parts may be the more distinctly seen1 the ,commentary is rendered as concise as possible2 some of the finer and less obvious connexions being more carefully observed and drawn out in the notes4 ,for the kind of interpretation itself1 it must be allowed1 of all others1 the fittest to throw light upon a difficult and obscure subject1 and1 above all1 to convey an exact idea of the scope and order of any work4 ,it hath1 accordingly1 been so considered by several of the foreign1 particularly the ,,italian1 critics2 who have essayed long since to illustrate1 in this way1 the very piece before us4 ,but the success of these foreigners is1 ,i am sensible1 a slender recommendation of their method4 ,i chuse therefore to rest on the single authority of a great author1 who1 in his edition of our ,english ,horace1 the best that ever was given of any classic1 hath now retrieved and established the full credit of it4 ,what was the amusement of his pen1 becomes indeed1 the labour of inferior writers4 ,yet1 on these unequal terms1 it can be no discredit to have aimed at some resemblance of one of the least of those merits1 which shed their united honours on the name of the illustrious friend and commentator of ,mr4 ,,pope4 ,q4 ,,horatii ,,flacci ,,ars ,,poetica ,,epistola ,,ad ,,pisones4 ,humano capiti cervicem pictor equinam ,jungere si velit1 et varias inducere plumas ,undique collatis membris1 ut turpiter atrum ,desinat in piscem mulier formosa superne2 ,spectatum admissi risum teneatis amici8 #e ,credite1 ,pisones1 isti tabulae fore librum ,persimilem1 cujus1 velut aegri somnia1 vanae ,fingentur species2 ut nec pes1 nec caput uni ,reddatur formae4 ,pictoribus atque poetis ,quidlibet audendi semper fuit aequa potestas3 #aj ,scimus1 et hanc veniam petimusque damusque vicissim3 ,sed non ut placidis coant inmitia2 non ut ,serpentes avibus geminentur1 tigribus agni4 ,inceptis gravibus plerumque et magna professis ,purpureus1 late qui splendeat1 unus et alter #ae ,adsuitur pannus3 cum lucus1 et ara ,dianae1 ,et properantis aquae per amoenos ambitus agros1 ,aut flumen ,rhenum1 aut pluvius describitur arcus4 ,sed nunc non erat his locus3 et fortasse cupressum ,scis simulare3 quid hoc1 si fractis enatat exspes #bj ,navibus1 aere dato qui pingitur8 amphora coepit ,institui1 currente rota1 cur urceus exit8 ,denique sit quidvis2 simplex dumtaxat et unum4 ,maxima pars vatum1 pater et juvenes patre digni1 ,decipimur specie recti4 ,brevis esse laboro1 #be ,obscurus fio3 sectantem lenia nervi ,deficiunt animique3 professus grandia turget3 ,serpit humi tutus nimium timidusque procellae3 ,qui variare cupit rem prodigialiter unam1 ,delphinum silvis adpingit1 fluctibus aprum4 #cj ,in vitium ducit culpae fuga1 si caret arte4 ,aemilium circa ludum faber1 unus et unguis ,exprimet1 et mollis imitabitur aere capillos2 ,infelix operis1 summa3 quia ponere totum ,nesciet4 hunc ego me1 si quid componere curem1 #ce ,non magis esse velim2 quam naso vivere pravo1 ,spectandum nigris oculis nigroque capillo4 ,sumite materiam vestris1 qui scribitis1 aequam ,viribus2 et versate diu1 quid ferre recusent1 ,quid valeant humeri4 cui lecta potenter erit res1 #dj ,nec facundia deseret hunc1 nec lucides ordo4 ,ordinis haec virtus erit et venus1 aut ego fallor2 ,ut jam nunc dicat1 jam nunc debentia dici ,pleraque differat et praesens in tempus omittat4 ,hoc amet1 hoc spernat1 promissi carminis auctor4 #de ,in verbis etiam tenuis cautusque serendis2 ,dixeris egregie1 notum si callida verbum ,reddiderit junctura novum2 si forte necesse est ,indiciis monstrare recentibus abdita rerum2 ,fingere cinctutis non exaudita ,cethegis #ej ,continget3 dabiturque licentia sumta pudenter4 ,et nova factaque nuper habebunt verba fidem2 si ,graeco fonte cadent1 parce detorta1 quid autem3 ,caecilio ,plautoque dabit ,romanus1 ademtum ,virgilio ,varioque8 ego cur adquirere pauca1 #ee ,si possum1 invideor8 quum lingua ,catonis et ,enni ,sermonem patrium ditaverit1 et nova rerum ,nomina protulerit4 licuit1 semperque licebit ,signatum praesente nota procudere nummum4 ,ut silvis folia privos mutantur in annos2 #fj ,prima cadunt3 ita verborum vetus interit aetas1 ,et juvenum ritu florent modo nata vigentque4 ,debemur morti nos1 nostraque3 sive receptus ,terra ,neptunus classis ,aquilonibus arcet1 ,regis opus2 sterilisve palus prius aptaque remis #fe ,vicinas urbis alit1 et grave sentit aratrum3 ,seu cursum mutavit iniquum frugibus amnis1 ,doctus iter melius3 mortalia cuncta peribunt3 ,nedum sermonum stet honos1 et gratia vivax4 ,multa renascentur1 quae jam cecidere2 cadentque1 #gj ,quae nunc sunt in honore vocabula3 si volet usus1 ,quem penes arbitrium est1 et jus1 et norma loquendi4 ,res gestae regumque ducumque1 et tristia bella1 ,quo scribi possent numero1 monstravit ,homerus4 ,versibus inpariter junctis querimonia primum1 #ge ,post etiam inclusa est voti sententia compos4 ,quis tamen exiguos elegos emiserit auctor1 ,grammatici certant1 et adhuc sub judice lis est4 ,archilochum proprio rabies armavit iambo4 ,hunc socci cepere pedem grandesque cothurni1 #hj ,alternis aptum sermonibus1 et popularis ,vincentem strepitus1 et natum rebus agendis4 ,musa dedit fidibus ,divos1 puerosque ,deorum1 ,et pugilem victorem1 et equum certamine primum1 ,et juvenum curas1 et libera vina referre4 #he ,descriptas servare vices operumque colores1 ,cur ego1 si nequeo ignoroque1 poeta salutor8 ,cur nescire1 pudens prave1 quam discere malo8 ,versibus exponi tragicis res comica non volt3 ,indignatur item privatis ac prope socco #ij ,dignis carminibus narrari coena ,thyestae4 ,singula quaeque locum teneant sortita decentem4 ,interdum tamen et vocem comoedia tollit1 ,iratusque ,chremes tumido dilitigat ore4 ,et tragicus plerumque dolet sermone pedestri4 #ie ,telephus aut ,peleus1 cum pauper et exul uterque1 ,projicit ampullas et sesquipedalia verba1 ,si curat cor spectantis tetigisse querela4 ,non satis est pulchra esse pomata2 dulcia sunto1 ,et quocunque volent1 animum auditoris agunto4 #ajj ,ut ridentibus adrident1 ita flentibus adflent ,humani voltus4 si vis me flere1 dolendum est ,primum ipsi tibi3 tunc tua me infortunia laedent4 ,telephe1 vel ,peleu1 male si mandata loqueris1 ,aut dormitabo1 aut ridebo4 tristia moestum #aje ,voltum verba decent2 iratum1 plena minarum2 ,ludentem1 lasciva2 severum1 seria dictu4 ,format enim ,natura prius nos intus ad omnem ,fortunarum habitum2 juvat1 aut inpellit ad iram1 ,aut ad humum moerore gravi deducit1 et angit3 #aaj ,post effert animi motus interprete lingua4 ,si dicentis erunt fortunis absona dicta1 ,romani tollent equitesque patresque cachinnum4 ,intererit multum1 ,divusne loquatur1 an heros2 ,maturusne senex1 an adhuc florente juventa #aae ,fervidus2 et matrona potens1 an sedula nutrix2 ,mercatorne vagus1 cultorne virentis agelli2 ,colchus1 an ,assyrius2 ,thebis nutritus1 an ,argis4 ,aut famam sequere1 aut sibi convenientia finge1 ,scriptor4 ,homereum si forte reponis ,achillem2 #abj ,impiger1 iracundus1 inexorabilis1 acer1 ,jura neget sibi nata1 nihil non arroget armis4 ,sit ,medea ferox invictaque1 flebilis ,ino1 ,perfidus ,ixion1 ,io vaga1 tristis ,orestes4 ,si quid inexpertum scenae conmittis1 et audes #abe ,personam formare novam2 servetur ad imum ,qualis ab incepto processerit1 et sibi constet4 ,difficile est proprie communia dicere3 tuque ,rectius ,iliacum carmen deducis in actus1 ,qum si proferres ignota indictaque primus4 #acj ,publica materies privati juris erit1 si ,non circa vilem patulumque moraberis orbem2 ,nec verbum verbo curabis reddere fidus ,interpres2 nec desilies imitator in artum1 ,unde pedem proferre pudor vetet aut operis lex4 #ace ,nec sic incipies1 ut scriptor cyclicus olim3 ,,fortunam ,,priami ,,cantabo1 ,,et ,,nobile ,,bellum4 ,quid dignum tanto feret hic promissor hiatu8 ,parturiunt montes3 nascetur ridiculus mus4 ,quanto rectius hic1 qui nl molitur inepte6 #adj ,,dic ,,mihi1 ,,musa1 ,,virum1 ,,captae ,,post ,,moenia ,,trojae1 ,,qui ,,mores ,,hominum ,,multorum ,,vidit ,,et ,,urbis4 ,non fumum ex fulgore1 sed ex fumo dare lucem ,cogitat1 ut speciosa dehinc miracula promat1 ,antiphaten1 ,scyllamque1 et cum ,cyclope ,charybdin4 #ade ,nec reditum ,diomedis ab interitu ,meleagri1 ,nec gemino bellum ,trojanum orditur ab ovo3 ,semper ad eventum festinat2 et in medias res1 ,non secus ac notas1 auditorem rapit2 et quae ,desperat tractata nitescere posse1 relinquit3 #aej ,atque ita mentitur1 sic veris falsa remiscet1 ,primo ne medium1 medio ne discrepet imum4 ,tu1 quid ego et populus mecum desideret1 audi2 ,si fautoris eges aulaea manentis1 et usque ,sessuri1 donec cantor1 ,vos plaudite1 dicat3 #aee ,aetatis cujusque notandi sunt tibi mores1 ,mobilibusque decor naturis dandus et annis4 ,reddere qui voces jam scit puer1 et pede certo ,signat humum2 gestit paribus colludere1 et iram ,colligit ac ponit temere1 et mutatur in horas4 #afj ,inberbus juvenis1 tandem custode remoto1 ,gaudet equis canibusque et aprici gramine campi2 ,cereus in vitium flecti1 monitoribus asper1 ,utilium tardus provisor1 prodigus aeris1 ,sublimis1 cupidusque1 et amata relinquere pernix4 #afe ,conversis studiis1 aetas animusque virilis ,quaerit opes et amicitias1 inservit honori2 ,conmisisse cavet quod mox mutare laboret4 ,multa senem circumveniunt incommoda2 vel quod ,quaerit1 et inventis miser abstinet1 ac timet uti2 #agj ,vel qud res omnis timide gelideque ministrat1 ,dilator1 spe lentus1 iners1 pavidusque futuri2 ,difficilis1 querulus1 laudator temporis acti ,se puero1 castigator1 censorque minorum4 ,multa ferunt anni venientes commoda secum1 #age ,multa recedentes adimunt3 ne forte seniles ,mandentur juveni partes1 pueroque viriles4 ,semper in adjunctis aevoque morabimur aptis4 ,aut agitur res in scenis1 aut acta refertur3 ,segnius inritant animos demissa per aurem1 #ahj ,quam quae sunt oculis subjecta fidelibus1 et quae ,ipse sibi tradit spectator4 non tamen intus ,digna geri promes in scenam3 multaque tolles ,ex oculis1 quae mox narret facundia praesens3 ,ne pueros coram populo ,medea trucidet2 #ahe ,aut humana palam coquat exta nefarius ,atreus2 ,aut in avem ,procne vertatur1 ,cadmus in anguem4 ,quodcunque ostendis mihi sic1 incredulus odi4 ,neve minor1 neu sit quinto productior actu ,fabula1 quae posci volt1 et spectata reponi4 #aij ,nec ,deus intersit1 nisi dignus vindice nodus ,inciderit3 nec quarta loqui persona laboret4 ,actoris partes chorus1 officiumque virile ,defendat3 neu quid medios intercinat actus1 ,quod non proposito conducat et haereat apte4 #aie ,ille bonis faveatque et consilietur amice1 ,et regat iratos1 et amet pacare tumentis3 ,ille dapes laudet mensae brevis1 ille salubrem ,justitiam1 legesque1 et apertis otia portis3 ,ille tegat conmissa2 ,deosque precetur et oret1 #bjj ,ut redeat miseris1 abeat fortuna superbis4 ,tibia non1 ut nunc1 orichalco juncta1 tubaeque ,aemula2 sed tenuis1 simplexque foramine pauco1 ,aspirare et adesse choris erat utilis1 atque ,nondum spissa nimis conplere sedilia flatu3 #bje ,quo sane populus numerabilis1 utpote parvus ,et frugi castusque verecundusque coibat4 ,postquam coepit agros extendere victor1 et urbem ,laxior amplecti murus1 vinoque diurno ,placari ,genius festis inpune diebus2 #baj ,accessit numerisque modisque licentia major4 ,indoctus quid enim saperet liberque laborum1 ,rusticus urbano confusus1 turpis honesto8 ,sic priscae motumque et luxuriem addidit arti ,tibicen1 traxitque vagus per pulpita vestem3 #bae ,sic etiam fidibus voces crevere severis1 ,et tulit eloquium insolitum facundia praeceps2 ,utiliumque sagax rerum1 et divina futuri1 ,sortilegis non discrepuit sententia ,delphis4 ,carmine qui tragico vilem certavit ob hircum1 #bbj ,mox etiam agrestis ,satyros nudavit1 et asper ,incolumi gravitate jocum tentavit3 eo quod ,inlecebris erat et grata novitate morandus ,spectator functusque sacris1 et potus1 et exlex4 ,verum ita risores1 ita commendare dicacis #bbe ,conveniet ,satyros1 ita vertere seria ludo2 ,ne quicunque ,deus1 quicunque adhibebitur heros ,regali conspectus in auro nuper et ostro1 ,migret in obscuras humili sermone tabernas3 ,aut1 dum vitat humum1 nubes et inania captet4 #bcj ,effutire levis indigna tragoedia versus1 ,ut festis matrona moveri jussa diebus1 ,intererit ,satyris paulum pudibunda protervis4 ,non ego inornata et dominantia nomina solum ,verbaque1 ,pisones1 ,satyrorum scriptor amabo3 #bce ,nec sic enitar tragico differre colori2 ,ut nihil intersit1 ,davusne loquatur et audax ,pythias emuncto lucrata ,simone talentum2 ,an custos famulusque ,dei ,silenus alumni4 ,ex noto fictum carmen sequar3 ut sibi quivis #bdj ,speret idem2 sudet multum1 frustraque laboret ,ausus idem3 tantum series juncturaque pollet3 ,tantum de medio sumtis accedit honoris4 ,silvis deducti caveant1 me judice1 ,fauni1 ,ne velut innati triviis1 ac pene forenses1 #bde ,aut nimium teneris juvenentur versibus umquam1 ,aut inmunda crepent ignominiosaque dicta4 ,offenduntur enim1 quibus est equus1 et pater1 et res2 ,nec1 si quid fricti ciceris probat et nucis emtor1 ,aequis accipiunt animis1 donantve corona4 #bej ,syllaba longa brevi subjecta1 vocatur ,iambus1 ,pes citus3 unde etiam ,trimetris adcrescere jussit ,nomen ,iambeis1 cum senos redderet ictus ,primus ad extremum similis sibi3 non ita pridem1 ,tardior ut paulo graviorque veniret ad auris1 #bee ,spondeos stabilis in jura paterna recepit ,commodus et patiens3 non ut de sede secunda ,cederet1 aut quarta socialiter4 ,hic et in ,acc ,nobilibus ,trimetris apparet rarus1 et ,enn4 ,in scenam missus cum magno pondere versus1 #bfj ,aut operae celeris nimium curaque carentis1 ,aut ignoratae premit artis crimine turpi4 ,non quivis videt immodulata pomata judex3 ,et data ,romanis venia est indigna poetis4 ,idcircone vager1 scribamque licenter8 ut omnis #bfe ,visuros peccata putem mea2 tutas et intra ,spem veniae cautus8 vitavi denique culpam1 ,non laudem merui4 ,vos exemplaria ,graeca ,nocturna versate manu1 versate diurna4 ,at vestri proavi ,plautinos et numeros et #bgj ,laudavere sales2 nimium patienter utrumque 7,ne dicam stulte7 mirati3 si modo ego et vos ,scimus inurbanum lepido seponere dicto1 ,legitimumque sonum digitis callemus et aure4 ,ignotum tragicae genus invenisse ,camenae #bge ,dicitur1 et plaustris vexisse pomata ,thespis ,qui canerent agerentque1 peruncti faecibus ora4 ,post hunc personae pallaeque repertor honestae ,aeschylos et modicis instravit pulpita tignis1 ,et docuit magnumque loqui1 nitique cothurno4 #bhj ,successit vetus his ,comoedia1 non sine multa ,laude3 sed in vitium libertas excidit1 et vim ,dignam lege regi3 lex est accepta2 chorusque ,turpiter obticuit1 sublato jure nocendi4 ,nil intentatum nostri liquere potae3 #bhe ,nec minimum meruere decus1 vestigia ,graeca ,ausi deserere1 et celebrare domestica facta1 ,vel qui ,praetextas1 vel qui docuere ,togatas4 ,nec virtute foret clarisve potentius armis1 ,quam lingua1 ,latium2 si non offenderet unum- #bij ,quemque potarum limae labor et mora4 ,vos1 ,pompilius sanguis1 carmen reprehendite1 quod non ,multa dies et multa litura corcuit1 atque ,praesectum decies non castigavit ad unguem4 ,ingenium misera quia fortunatius arte #bie ,credit1 et excludit sanos ,helicone potas ,democritus2 bona pars non unguis ponere curat1 ,non barbam3 secreta petit loca1 balnea vitat4 ,nanciscetur enim pretium nomenque potae1 ,si tribus ,anticyris caput insanabile numquam #cjj ,tonsori ,licino conmiserit4 ,o ego laevus1 ,qui purgor bilem sub verni temporis horam8 ,non alius faceret meliora pomata3 verum ,nil tanti est4 ergo fungar vice cotis1 acutum ,reddere quae ferrum valet1 exsors ipsa secandi4 #cje ,munus et officium1 nil scribens ipse1 docebo2 ,unde parentur opes3 quid alat formetque potam2 ,quid deceat1 quid non2 quo virtus1 quo ferat error4 ,scribendi recte1 sapere est et principium et fons4 ,rem tibi ,socraticae poterunt ostendere chartae3 #caj ,verbaque provisam rem non invita sequentur4 ,qui didicit patriae quid debeat1 et quid amicis2 ,quo sit amore parens1 quo frater amandus et hospes2 ,quod sit conscripti1 quod judicis officium2 quae ,partes in bellum missi ducis2 ille profecto #cae ,reddere personae scit convenientia cuique4 ,respicere exemplar vitae morumque jubebo ,doctum imitatorem1 et vivas hinc ducere voces4 ,interdum speciosa locis1 morataque recte ,fabula1 nullius veneris1 sine pondere et arte1 #cbj ,valdius oblectat populum1 meliusque moratur1 ,quam versus inopes rerum1 nugaeque canorae4 ,graiis ingenium1 ,graiis dedit ore rotundo ,musa loqui1 praeter laudem1 nullius avaris4 ,romani pueri longis rationibus assem #cbe ,discunt in partis centum diducere4 ,dicas ,filius ,albini1 si de quincunce remota est ,uncia1 quid superet1 poterat dixisse1 triens8 ,eu6 ,rem poteris servare tuam4 ,redit uncia3 quid fit8 ,semis4 ,an haec animos aerugo et cura pecul #ccj ,cum semel inbuerit1 speramus carmina fingi ,posse linenda cedro1 et levi servanda cupresso8 ,aut prodesse volunt1 aut delectare potae2 ,aut simul et jocunda et idonea dicere vitae4 ,quicquid praecipies1 esto brevis3 ut cito dicta #cce ,percipiant animi dociles1 teneantque fideles4 ,omne supervacuum pleno de pectore manat4 ,ficta voluptatis causa sint proxima veris3 ,ne1 quodcumque volet1 poscat sibi fabula credi2 ,neu pransae ,lamiae vivum puerum extrahat alvo4 #cdj ,centuriae seniorum agitant expertia frugis3 ,celsi praetereunt austera pomata ,ramnes4 ,omne tulit punctum1 qui miscuit utile dulci1 ,lectorem delectando1 pariterque monendo4 ,hic meret aera liber ,sosiis1 hic et mare transit1 #cde ,et longum noto scriptori prorogat aevum4 ,sunt delicta tamen1 quibus ignovisse velimus3 ,nam neque chorda sonum reddit1 quem volt manus et mens2 ,poscentique gravem persaepe remittit acutum3 ,nee semper feriet1 quodcumque minabitur1 arcus4 #cej ,verum ubi plura nitent in carmine1 non ego paucis ,offendar maculis1 quas aut incuria fudit1 ,aut humana parum cavit natura4 quid ergo est8 ,ut scriptor si peccat idem librarius usque1 ,quamvis est monitus1 venia caret2 ut citharoedus #cee ,ridetur1 chorda qui semper oberrat eadem3 ,sic mihi qui multum cessat1 fit ,choerilos ille1 ,quem bis terve bonum1 cum risu miror2 et idem ,indignor1 quandoque bonus dormitat ,homerus4 ,verum operi longo fas est obrepere somnum4 #cfj ,ut pictura1 posis3 erit quae1 si propius stes1 ,te capiat magis2 et quaedam1 si longius abstes3 ,haec amat obscurum2 volet haec sub luce videri1 ,judicis argutum quae non formidat acumen3 ,haec placuit semel2 haec decies repetita placebit4 #cfe ,o major juvenum1 quamvis et voce paterna ,fingeris ad rectum1 et per te sapis2 hoc tibi dictum ,tolle memor3 certis medium et tolerabile rebus ,recte concedi3 consultus juris1 et actor ,causarum mediocris2 abest virtute diserti #cgj ,messallae1 nec scit quantum ,cascellius ,aulus2 ,sed tamen in pretio est3 mediocribus esse potis ,non homines1 non ,d1 non concessere columnae4 ,ut gratas inter mensas symphonia discors1 ,et crassum unguentum1 et ,sardo cum melle papaver #cge ,offendunt2 poterat duci quia coena sine istis3 ,sic animis natum inventumque poma juvandis1 ,si paulum summo decessit1 vergit ad imum4 ,ludere qui nescit1 campestribus abstinet armis2 ,indoctusque pilae1 discive1 trochive1 quiescit2 #chj ,ne spissae risum tollant inpune coronae3 ,qui nescit versus1 tamen audet fingere4 ,quid n8 ,liber et ingenuus2 praesertim census equestrem ,summam nummorum1 vitioque remotus ab omni4 ,tu nihil invita dices faciesve ,minerva3 #che ,id tibi judicium est1 ea mens1 si quid tamen olim ,scripseris1 in ,maec descendat judicis auris1 ,et patris1 et nostras2 nonumque prematur in annum1 ,membranis intus positis4 ,delere licebit ,quod non edideris3 nescit vox missa reverti4 #cij ,silvestris homines sacer interpresque ,deorum ,caedibus et victu foedo deterruit ,orpheus2 ,dictus ob hoc lenire tigris rabidosque leones4 ,dictus et ,amphion1 ,thebanae conditor arcis1 ,saxa movere sono testudinis1 et prece blanda #cie ,ducere quo vellet4 fuit haec sapientia quondam1 ,publica privatis secernere1 sacra profanis2 ,concubitu prohibere vago2 dare jura maritis2 ,oppida moliri2 leges incidere ligno4 ,sic honor et nomen divinis vatibus atque #djj ,carminibus venit4 post hos insignis ,homerus ,tyrtaeusque mares animos in ,martia bella ,versibus exacuit4 dictae per carmina sortes1 ,et vitae monstrata via est1 et gratia regum ,pieriis tentata modis1 ludusque repertus1 #dje ,et longorum operum finis2 ne forte pudori ,sit tibi ,musa lyrae solers1 et cantor ,apollo4 ,natura fieret laudabile carmen1 an arte1 ,quaesitum est4 ,ego nec studium sine divite vena1 ,nec rude quid possit video ingenium3 alterius sic #daj ,altera poscit opem res1 et conjurat amice4 ,qui studet optatam cursu contingere metam1 ,multa tulit fecitque puer2 sudavit et alsit2 ,abstinuit venere et vino4 qui ,pythia cantat ,tibicen1 didicit prius1 extimuitque magistrum4 #dae ,nec satis est dixisse1 ,ego mira pomata pango3 ,occupet extremum scabies3 mihi turpe relinqui est1 ,et1 quod non didici1 sane nescire fateri4 ,ut praeco1 ad merces turbam qui cogit emendas2 ,adsentatores jubet ad lucrum ire pota #dbj ,dives agris1 dives positis in foenore nummis4 ,si vero est1 unctum qui recte ponere possit1 ,et spondere levi pro paupere1 et eripere artis ,litibus inplicitum2 mirabor1 si sciet inter- ,noscere mendacem verumque beatus amicum4 #dbe ,tu seu donaris seu quid donare voles cui2 ,nolito ad versus tibi factos ducere plenum ,laetitiae2 clamabit enim1 ,pulchre1 bene1 recte6 ,pallescet3 super his etiam stillabit amicis ,ex oculis rorem2 saliet2 tundet pede terram4 #dcj ,ut qui conducti plorant in funere1 dicunt ,et faciunt prope plura dolentibus ex animo3 sic ,derisor vero plus laudatore movetur4 ,reges dicuntur multis urguere culullis1 ,et torquere mero quem perspexisse laborant #dce ,an sit amicitia dignus4 si carmina condes1 ,nunquam te fallant animi sub volpe latentes4 ,quintilio si quid recitares3 ,corrige sodes ,hoc1 aiebat1 et hoc4 melius te posse negares1 ,bis terque expertum frustra8 delere jubebat1 #ddj ,et male ter natos incudi reddere versus4 ,si defendere delictum1 quam vertere1 malles2 ,nullum ultra verbum1 aut operam insumebat inanem1 ,quin sine rivali teque et tua solus amares4 ,vir bonus et prudens versus reprehendet inertis2 #dde ,culpabit duros2 incomptis adlinet atrum ,transverso calamo signum2 ambitiosa recidet ,ornamenta2 parum claris lucem dare coget2 ,arguet ambigue dictum2 mutanda notabit2 ,fiet ,aristarchus2 non dicet1 ,cur ego amicum #dej ,offendam in nugis8 ,hae nugae seria ducent ,in mala derisum semel1 exceptumque sinistre4 ,ut mala quem scabies aut morbus regius urguet1 ,aut fanaticus error1 et iracunda ,diana2 ,vesanum tetigisse timent fugiuntque potam1 #dee ,qui sapiunt3 agitant pueri1 incautique sequuntur4 ,hic1 dum sublimis versus ructatur1 et errat1 ,si veluti merulis intentus decidit auceps ,in puteum1 foveamve2 licet1 ,succurrite1 longum ,clamet1 io cives3 non sit qui tollere curet4 #dfj ,si curet quis opem ferre1 et demittere funem2 ,qu scis1 an prudens huc se projecerit1 atque ,servari nolit8 dicam3 ,siculique potae ,narrabo interitum4 ,deus inmortalis haberi ,dum cupit ,empedocles1 ardentem frigidus ,aetnam #dfe ,insiluit4 sit jus1 liceatque perire potis4 ,invitum qui servat1 idem facit occidenti4 ,nec semel hoc fecit2 nec si retractus erit jam1 ,fiet homo1 et ponet famosae mortis amorem4 ,nec satis adparet1 cur versus factitet2 utrum #dgj ,minxerit in patrios cineres1 an triste bidental ,moverit incestus3 certe furit1 ac velut ursus ,objectos caveae valuit si frangere clathros1 ,indoctum doctumque fugat recitator acerbus4 ,quem vero arripuit1 tenet1 occiditque legendo1 #dge ,non missura cutem1 nisi plena cruoris1 hirudo4 ,,commentary4 ,the subject of this piece being1 as ,i suppose1 one1 viz4 the state of the ,roman ,drama1 and common sense requiring1 even in the freest forms of composition1 some kind of method1 the intelligent reader will not be surprised to find the poet prosecuting his subject in a regular1 well-ordered plan2 which1 for the more exact description of it1 ,i distinguish into three parts3 ,i4 ,the first of them from v4 #a to #hi is preparatory to the main subject of the epistle1 containing some general rules and reflexions on poetry1 but principally with an eye to the following parts3 by which means it serves as an useful introduction to the poet's design1 and opens with that air of ease and negligence1 essential to the epistolary form4 ,,ii4 ,the main body of the epistle from v4 #hi to #bie is laid out in regulating the ,roman stage2 but chiefly in giving rules for tragedy2 not only as that was the sublimer species of the ,drama1 but1 as it should seem1 less cultivated and understood4 ,,iii4 ,the last part from v4 #bie to the end exhorts to correctness in writing2 yet still with an eye1 principally1 to the dramatic species2 and is taken up partly in removing the causes1 that prevented it1 and partly in directing to the use of such means1 as might serve to promote it4 ,such is the general plan of the epistle4 ,in order to enter fully into it1 it will be necessary to trace the poet1 attentively1 through the elegant connexions of his own method4 ,,part ,i4 ,,general ,,reflexions ,,on ,,poetry4 ,the epistle begins to v4 #i with that general and fundamental precept of preserving an unity in the subject and the disposition of the piece4 ,this is further explained by defining the use1 and fixing the character of poetic licence from v4 #i to #ac which unskilful writers often plead in defence of their transgressions against the law of ,,unity4 ,to v4 #bc is considered and exposed that particular violation of uniformity1 into which young poets especially1 under the impulse of a warm imagination1 are apt to run1 arising from frequent and ill-timed descriptions4 ,these1 however beautiful in themselves1 and with whatever mastery they may be executed1 yet1 if foreign to the subject1 and incongruous to the place1 where they stand1 are extremely impertinent3 a caution1 the more necessary1 as the fault itself wears the appearance of a virtue1 and so writers from v4 #bc to #be come to transgress the rule of right from their very ambition to observe it4 ,there are two cases1 in which this ambition remarkably misleads us4 ,the first is when it tempts us to push an acknowledged beauty too far4 ,great beauties are always in the confines of great faults2 and therefore1 by affecting superior excellence1 we are easily carried into absurdity4 ,thus from v4 #be to #cj brevity is often obscurity2 sublimity1 bombast2 caution1 coolness2 and1 to come round to the point1 a fondness for varying and diversifying a subject1 by means of episodes and descriptions1 such as are mentioned above v4 #ae will often betray a writer into that capital error of violating the unity of his piece4 ,for1 though variety be a real excellence under the conduct of true judgment1 yet1 when affected beyond the bounds of probability1 and brought in solely to strike and surprize1 it becomes unseasonable and absurd4 ,the several episodes or descriptions1 intended to give that variety1 may be inserted in improper places2 and then the absurdity is as great1 as that of the painter1 who1 according to the illustration of v4 #ai1 #bj1 should introduce a cypress into a sea-piece1 or1 according to the illustration of the present verse1 who paints a dolphin in a wood1 or a boar in the sea4 #b4 ,another instance1 in which we are misled by an ambition of attaining to what is right1 is1 when1 through an excessive fear of committing faults1 we disqualify ourselves for the just execution of a whole1 or of such particulars1 as are susceptible of real beauty4 ,for not the affectation of superior excellencies only1 but even ,in vitium ducit culpae fuga1 si caret arte4 ,this is aptly illustrated by the case of a sculptor4 ,an over-scrupulous diligence to finish single and trivial parts in a statue1 which1 when most exact1 are only not faulty1 leaves him utterly incapable of doing justice to the more important members1 and1 above all1 of designing and completing a whole with any degree of perfection4 ,but this latter is commonly the defect of a minute genius2 who1 having taken in hand a design1 which he is by no means able to execute1 naturally applies himself to labour and finish those parts1 which he finds are within his power4 ,it is of consequence therefore from v4 #ch to #dj for every writer to be well acquainted with the nature and extent of his own talents3 and to be careful to chuse a subject1 which is1 in all its parts1 proportioned to his strength and ability4 ,besides1 from such an attentive survey of his subject1 and of his capacity to treat it1 he will also derive these further advantages v4 #da #a4 ,that he cannot be wanting in a proper fund of matter1 wherewith to inlarge under every head3 nor1 #b4 can he fail1 by such a well-weighed choice1 to dispose of his subject in the best and most convenient method4 ,especially1 as to the latter1 which is the principal benefit1 he will perceive to v4 #de where it will be useful to preserve1 and where to change1 the natural order of his subject1 as may best serve to answer the ends of poetry4 ,thus far some general reflexions concerning poetical distribution2 principally1 as it may be affected by false notions1 #a4 ,of poetic licence v4 #aj and1 #b4 ,of poetic perfection v4 #be4 ,but the same causes will equally affect the language1 as method1 of poetry4 ,to these then are properly subjoined some directions about the use of words4 ,now this particular depending so entirely on what is out of the reach of rule1 as the fashion of the age1 the taste of the writer1 and his knowledge of the language1 in which he writes1 the poet only gives directions about new words3 or1 since every language is necessarily imperfect1 about the coining of such words1 as the writer's necessity or convenience may demand4 ,and here1 after having prescribed l4 #df a great caution and sparingness in the thing itself1 he observes1 #a4 to l4 #di ,that where it ought to be done1 the better and less offensive way will be1 not to coin a word entirely new 7for this is ever a task of some envy7 but1 by means of an ingenious and happy position of a well-known word1 in respect of some others1 to give it a new air1 and cast4 ,or1 if it be necessary to coin new words1 as it will be in subjects of an abstruse nature1 and especially such1 as were never before treated in the language1 that then1 #b4 to l4 #ed this liberty is very allowable2 but that the reception of them will be more easy1 if we derive them gently1 and without too much violence1 from their proper source1 that is1 from a language1 as the ,greek1 already known1 and approved4 ,and1 to obviate the prejudices of over-scrupulous critics on this head1 he goes on from l4 #ed to l4 #gc in a vein of popular illustration1 to alledge1 in favour of this liberty1 the examples of antient writers1 and the vague1 unsteady nature of language itself4 ,from these reflexions on poetry1 at large1 he proceeds now to particulars3 the most obvious of which being the different forms and measures of poetic composition1 he considers1 in this view from v4 #ge to #hf the four great species of poetry1 to which all others may be reduced1 the ,epic1 ,elegiac1 ,dramatic1 and ,lyric4 ,but the distinction of the measures to be observed in the several species of poetry is so obvious1 that there can scarcely be any mistake about them4 ,the difficulty is to know from v4 #hf to #hi how far1 each may partake of the spirit of other1 without destroying that natural and necessary difference1 which ought to subsist betwixt them all4 ,to explane this1 which is a point of great nicety1 he considers from v4 #hi to #ii the case of dramatic poetry2 the two species of which are as distinct from each other1 as any two can be1 and yet there are times1 when the features of the one will be allowed to resemble those of the other4 ,for1 #a4 ,comedy1 in the passionate parts1 will admit of a tragic elevation3 and1 #b4 ,tragedy1 in its soft distressful scenes1 condescends to the ease of familiar conversation4 ,but the poet had a further view in chusing this instance4 ,for he gets by this means into the main of his subject1 which was dramatic poetry1 and1 by the most delicate transition imaginable1 proceeds from l4 #hi to #cbc to deliver a series of rules1 interspersed with historical accounts1 and enlivened by digressions1 for the regulation and improvement of the ,,roman ,,stage4 ,,part ,,ii4 ,,directions ,,for ,,the ,,regulation ,,and ,,improvement ,,of ,,the ,,roman ,,stage4 ,having fixed the distinct limits and provinces of the two species of the drama1 the poet enters directly on his subject1 and considers1 ,i4 from v4 #ii to #aai the properties of the ,,tragic ,,style2 which will be different1 #a4 to v4 #aaa according to the internal state and character of the speaker3 thus one sort of expression will become the angry2 another1 the sorrowful2 this1 the gay1 that1 the severe4 ,and1 #b4 from v4 #aaa to #aai according to the outward circumstances of rank1 age1 office1 or country4 ,,ii4 ,next to v4 #agi he treats of the ,,characters1 which are of two sorts4 #a4 ,old ones1 revived3 and #b4 ,invented1 or new ones4 ,in relation to the first from v4 #aai to #abe the precept is1 to follow fame2 that is1 to fashion the character according to the received1 standing idea1 which tradition and elder times have consecrated2 that idea being the sole test1 whereby to judge of it4 #b4 ,in respect of the latter from v4 #abe to #abh the great requisite is uniformity1 or consistency of representation4 ,but the formation of quite new characters is a work of great difficulty and hazard4 ,for here1 there is no generally received and fixed archetype to work after1 but every one judges1 of common right1 according to the extent and comprehension of his own idea4 ,therefore to v4 #acf he advises to labour and refit old characters and subjects2 particularly those1 made known and authorized by the practice of ,homer and the epic writers2 and directs1 at the same time1 by what means to avoid that servility and unoriginal air1 so often charged upon such pieces4 ,i said characters and subjects1 for his method leading him to guard against servility of imitation in point of characters1 the poet chose to dispatch the whole affair of servile imitation at once1 and therefore to v4 #acf includes subjects1 as well as characters4 ,but this very advice1 about taking the subjects and characters from the epic poets1 might be apt to lead into two faults1 arising from the ill conduct of those poets themselves4 ,for1 #a4 to v4 #adf the dignity and importance of a subject1 made sacred by antient fame1 had sometimes occasioned a boastful and ostentatious beginning1 than which nothing can be more offensive4 ,and1 #b4 ,the whole story being composed of great and striking particulars1 injudicious writers1 for fear of losing any part of it1 which might serve to adorn their work1 had been led to follow the round of plain historic order1 and so had made the disposition of their piece uninteresting and unartful4 ,now both these improprieties1 which appear so shocking in the epic poem1 must needs1 with still higher reason1 deform the tragic4 ,for1 taking its rise1 not from the flattering views of the poet1 but the real situation of the actor1 its opening must of necessity1 be very simple and unpretending4 ,and being1 from its short term of action1 unable naturally to prepare and bring about many events1 it1 of course1 confines itself to one2 as also for the sake of producing a due distress in the plot2 which can never be wrought up to any trying pitch1 unless the whole attention be made to fix on one single object4 ,the way to avoid both these faults1 will be to observe 7for here the imitation cannot be too close7 the well-judged practice of ,homer4 ,having thus considered the affair of imitation1 and shewn how old characters1 and1 to carry it still further1 old subjects1 may be successfully treated1 he resumes the head of characters1 and proceeds more fully from v4 #aec to #agi to recommend it as a point of principal concern in the drawing of them1 to be well acquainted with the manners1 agreeing to the several successive periods and stages of human life4 ,and this with propriety3 for1 though he had given a hint to this purpose before1 ,maturusne senex1 an adhuc florente juvent ,fervidus1 yet1 as it is a point of singular importance1 and a regard to it1 besides other distinctions1 must be constantly had in the draught of every character1 it well deserved a separate consideration4 ,,iii4 ,these instructions1 which1 in some degree1 respect all kinds of poetry1 being dismissed2 he now delivers some rules more peculiarly relative to the case of the drama4 ,and1 as the misapplication of manners1 which was the point he had been considering1 was destructive of probability1 this leads the poet1 by a natural order1 to censure some other species of misconduct1 which have the same effect4 ,he determines then1 #a4 from v4 #agi to #ahi ,the case of representation and recital3 or what it is1 which renders some things more fit to be acted on the stage1 others more fit to be related on it4 ,next1 #b4 ,in pursuance of the same point1 viz4 probability to v4 #aic he restrains the use of machines2 and prescribes the number of acts1 and of persons1 to be introduced on the stage at the same time4 ,and1 #c4 lastly1 the persona dramatis1 just mentioned1 suggesting it to his thoughts1 he takes occasion from thence to pass on to the chorus from v4 #aic to #bjb whose double office it was1 #a4 ,to sustain the part of a persona dramatis in the acts2 and1 #b4 ,to connect the acts with songs1 persuading to good morals1 and suitable to the subject4 ,further1 tragedy being1 originally1 nothing more than a chorus or song1 set to music1 from which practice the harmony of the regular chorus in aftertimes had its rise1 he takes occasion to digress from v4 #bjb to #bbj in explaining the simplicity and barbarity of the old1 and the refinements of the later1 music4 ,the application of this account of the dramatic music to the case of the tragic chorus1 together with a short glance at the other improvements of numbers1 stile1 c4 necessarily connected with it1 gives him the opportunity of going off easily into a subject of near affinity with this1 viz4 the ,roman satiric piece2 which was indeed a species of tragedy1 but of so extraordinary a composition1 as to require a set of rules1 and instructions1 peculiar to itself4 ,a point1 in which they agreed1 but which was greatly misunderstood or ill-observed by his countrymen1 was the kind of verse or measure employed in them4 ,this therefore1 by a disposition of the most beautiful method1 he reserves for a consideration by itself1 having1 first of all1 delivered such rules1 as seemed necessary about those points1 in which they essentially differed4 ,he explains then from v4 #bbj to #bbe the use and end of the satires1 shewing them to be designed for the exhilaration of the rustic youth1 on their solemn festivities1 after the exhibition of the graver1 tragic shews4 ,but1 #b4 ,to convert1 as far as was possible1 what was thus a necessary sacrifice to the taste of the multitude into a tolerable entertainment for the better sort1 he lays down from v4 #bbe to #bdj the exactest description or idea of this sort of poem2 by means of which he instructs us in the due temperature and decorum of the satyric style4 #c4 ,lastly1 from v4 #bdj to #bea he directs to the choice of proper subjects1 and defines the just character of those principal and so uncommon personages in this drama1 the satyrs themselves4 ,this being premised1 he considers1 as was observed1 what belongs in common to this with the regular tragedy from v4 #bea to #bge the laws and use of the iambic foot2 reproving1 at the same time1 the indolence or ill-taste of the ,roman writers in this respect1 and sending them for instruction to the ,grecian models4 ,having introduced his critique on the stage-music1 and satyric drama1 with some account of the rise and progress of each1 the poet very properly concludes this whole part from v4 #bge to #bie with a short1 incidental history of the principal improvements of the ,greek tragedy and comedy2 which was artfully contrived to insinuate the defective state of the ,roman drama1 and to admonish his countrymen1 how far they had gone1 and what yet remained to complete it4 ,and hence with the advantage of the easiest transition he slides into the last part of the epistle2 the design of which1 as hath been observed1 was to reprove an incorrectness and want of care in the ,roman writers4 ,for1 having just observed their defect1 he goes on1 in the remaining part of the epistle1 to sum up the several causes1 which seem to have produced it4 ,and this gives him the opportunity1 under every head1 of prescribing the proper remedy for each1 and of inserting such further rules and precepts for good writing1 as could not so properly come in before4 ,the whole is managed with singular address1 as will appear from looking over particulars4 ,,part ,,iii4 ,a ,,care ,,and ,,diligence ,,in ,,writing ,,recommended4 ,i4 from l4 #bie to l4 #cbc ,the poet ridicules that false notion1 into which the ,romans had fallen1 that poetry and possession were nearly the same thing3 that nothing more was required in a poet1 than some extravagant starts and sallies of thought2 that coolness and reflexion were inconsistent with his character1 and that poetry was not to be scanned by the rules of sober sense4 ,this they carried so far1 as to affect the outward port and air of madness1 and1 upon the strength of that appearance1 to set up for wits and poets4 ,in opposition to this mistake1 which was one great hindrance to critical correctness1 he asserts wisdom and good sense to be the source and principle of good writing3 for the attainment of which he prescribes1 #a4 from v4 #caj to #cab ,a careful study of the ,socratic1 that is1 moral wisdom3 and1 #b4 from v4 #cab to #cah ,a thorough acquaintance with human nature1 that great exemplar of manners1 as he finely calls it1 or1 in other words1 a wide extensive view of real1 practical life4 ,the joint direction of these two1 as means of acquiring moral knowledge1 was perfectly necessary4 ,for the former1 when alone1 is apt to grow abstracted and unaffecting3 the latter1 uninstructing and superficial4 ,the philosopher talks without experience1 and the man of the world without principles4 ,united they supply each other's defects2 while the man of the world borrows so much of the philosopher1 as to be able to adjust the several sentiments with precision and exactness2 and the philosopher so much of the man of the world as to copy the manners of life 7which we can only do by experience7 with truth and spirit4 ,both together furnish a thorough and complete comprehension of human life2 which manifesting itself in the just1 and affecting1 forms that exquisite degree of perfection in the character of the dramatic poet2 the want of which no warmth of genius can atone for1 or excuse4 ,nay such is the force of this nice adjustment of manners from l4 #cai to #cbc that1 where it has remarkably prevailed1 the success of a play hath sometimes been secured by it1 without one single excellence or recommendation besides4 ,,ii4 ,he shews from l4 #cbc to #ccc another cause of their incorrectness and want of success1 in any degree1 answering to that of the ,greek writers1 to have been the low and illiberal education of the ,roman youth2 who1 while the ,greeks were taught to open all their mind to glory1 were cramped in their genius by the rust of gain1 and1 by the early infusion of such sordid principles1 became unable to project a great design1 or with any care and mastery to complete it4 ,,iii4 ,a third impediment to their success in poetry from l4 #ccc to #cdf was their inattention to the entire scope and purpose of it1 while they contented themselves with the attainment of one only of the two great ends1 which are proposed by it4 ,for the double design of poetry being to instruct and please1 the full aim and glory of the art cannot be attained without uniting them both3 that is1 instructing so as to please1 and pleasing so as to instruct4 ,under either head of instruction and entertainment the poet1 with great address1 insinuates the main art of each kind of writing1 which consists1 #a4 in instructive or didactic poetry from v4 #cce to #cch in the conciseness of the precept3 and1 #b4 in works of fancy and entertainment l4 #cch to #cda in probability of fiction4 ,but both these l4 #cda to #cdg must concur in a just piece4 ,but here the bad poet objects the difficulty of the terms1 imposed upon him1 and that1 if the critic looked for all these requisites1 and exacted them with rigour1 it would be impossible to satisfy him3 at least it was more likely to discourage1 than quicken1 as he proposed1 the diligence of writers4 ,to this the reply is from l4 #cdg to #cfj that he was not so severe1 as to exact a faultless and perfect piece3 that some inaccuracies and faults of less moment would escape the most cautious and guarded writer2 and that1 as he should contemn a piece1 that was generally bad1 notwithstanding a few beauties1 he could1 on the contrary1 admire a work1 that was generally good1 notwithstanding a few faults4 ,nay1 he goes on from l4 #cfj to #cff to observe in favour of writers1 against their too rigorous censurers1 that what were often called faults1 were really not so3 that some parts of a poem ought to be less shining1 or less finished1 than others2 according to the light1 they were placed in1 or the distance1 from which they were viewed2 and that1 serving only to connect and lead to others of greater consequence1 it was sufficient if they pleased once1 or did not displease1 provided that those others would please on every review4 ,all this is said agreeably to nature1 which does not allow every part of a subject1 to be equally susceptible of ornament2 and to the end of poetry1 which cannot so well be attained1 without an inequality4 ,the allusions to painting1 which the poet uses1 give this truth the happiest illustration4 ,having thus made all the reasonable allowances1 which a writer could expect1 he goes on to inforce the general instruction of this part1 viz4 a diligence in writing1 by shewing from l4 #cff to #cgi that a mediocrity1 however tolerable1 or even commendable1 it might be in other arts1 would never be allowed in this3 for which he assigns this very obvious and just reason2 that1 as the main end of poetry is to please1 if it did not reach that point 7which it could not do by stopping ever so little on this side excellence7 it was1 like indifferent music1 indifferent perfumes1 or any other indifferent thing1 which we can do without1 and whose end should be to please1 offensive and disagreeable1 and for want of being very good1 absolutely and insufferably bad4 ,this reflexion leads him with great advantage from l4 #cgi to #cia to the general conclusion in view1 viz4 that as none but excellent poetry will be allowed1 it should be a warning to writers1 how they engage in it without abilities2 or publish without severe and frequent correction4 ,but to stimulate the poet1 who1 notwithstanding the allowances already made1 might be something struck with this last reflexion1 he flings out from l4 #cia to #djh into a fine encomium1 on the dignity and excellence of the art itself1 by recounting its ancient honours4 ,this encomium1 besides its great usefulness in invigorating the mind of the poet1 has this further view1 to recommend and revive1 together with its honours1 the office of ancient poesy2 which was employed about the noblest and most important subjects2 the sacred source1 from whence those honours were derived4 ,from this transient view of the several species of poetry1 terminating1 as by a beautiful contrivance it is made to do1 in the ,ode1 the order of his ideas carries him into some reflexions on the power of genius 7which so essentially belongs to the lyric ,muse7 and to settle thereby a point of criticism1 much controverted among the ancients1 and on which a very considerable stress would apparently be laid4 ,for1 if after all1 so much art and care and caution be demanded in poetry1 what becomes of genius1 in which alone it had been thought to consist8 would the critic insinuate1 that good poems can be the sole effect of art1 and go so far1 in opposition to the reigning prejudice1 as to assert nature to be of no force at all8 ,this objection1 which would be apt to occur to the general scope and tenor of the epistle1 as having turned principally on art and rules without insisting much on natural energy1 the poet obviates at once from v4 #djh to #dai by reconciling two things which were held1 it seems1 incompatible1 and demanding in the poet1 besides the fire of real genius1 all the labour and discipline of art4 ,but there is one thing still wanting4 ,the poet may be excellently formed by nature1 and accomplished by art1 but will his own judgment be a sufficient guide1 without assistance from others8 will not the partiality of an author for his own works sometimes prevail over the united force of rules and genius1 unless he call in a fairer and less interested guide8 ,doubtless it will3 and therefore the poet1 with the utmost propriety1 adds from v4 #dai to #dej as a necessary part of this instructive monition to his brother poets1 some directions concerning the choice of a prudent and sincere friend1 whose unbiassed sense might at all times correct the prejudices1 indiscretions1 and oversights of the author4 ,and to impress this necessary care1 with greater force1 on the poet1 he closes the whole with shewing the dreadful consequences of being imposed upon in so nice an affair2 representing1 in all the strength of colouring1 the picture of a bad poet1 infatuated1 to a degree of madness1 by a fond conceit of his own works1 and exposed thereby 7so important had been the service of timely advice7 to the contempt and scorn of the public4 ,and now1 an unity of design in this epistle1 and the pertinent connection of its several parts being1 it is presumed1 from this method of illustration1 clearly and indisputably shewn1 what must we think of the celebrated ,,french interpreter of ,horace1 who1 after a studied translation of this piece1 supported by a long1 elaborate commentary1 minutely condescending to scrutinize each part1 could yet perceive so little of its true form and character1 as to give it for his summary judgment1 in conclusion2 8,comme il ,horace ne travailloit pas cela de suite et qu'il ne gardoit d'autre ordre que celui des matieres que le hazard lui donnoit lire et examiner1 il est arriv del qu' ,,il ,n' ,y ,a ,,aucune ,,methode ,,ni ,,aucune ,,liaison ,,de ,,parties ,,dans ,,ce ,,trait1 qui mme n'a jamais t achev1 ,horace n' ayant pas eu le tems d'y mettre la derniere main1 ou1 ce qui est plus vraisemblable1 n'ayant pas voulu s'en donner la peine40 ,m4 ,dacier's ,introd4 remarks to the art of poetry4 ,the softest thing that can be said of such a critic1 is1 that he well deserves the censure1 he so justly applied to the great ,scaliger1 ,s',,il ,l',,avoit ,,bien ,,entendu1 ,,il ,,lui ,,auroit ,,rendu ,,plus ,,de ,,justice1 ,,et ,,en ,,auroit ,,parl ,,plus ,,modestement4 ,,notes ,,on ,,the ,,art ,,of ,,poetry4 ,the text of this epistle is given from ,dr4 ,,bentley',s edition1 except in some few places1 of which the reader is advertized in the notes4 ,these1 that they might not break in too much on the thread of the ,commentary1 are here printed by themselves4 ,for the rest1 let me apologize with a great critic3 ,nobis viri docti ignoscent1 si hc fusius3 prsertim si cogitent1 veri critici esse1 non literulam alibi ejicere1 alibi innocentem syllabam et qu nunqum male merita de patria fuerit1 per jocum et ludum trucidare et configere2 verm recte de autoribus et rebus judicare1 quod et solid et absolut eruditionis est4 ,,heinsius4 99 99 99 99 99 #a4 ,,humano ,,capiti1 c4 ,it is seen1 in the comment1 with what elegance this first part to v4 #hi is made preparatory to the main subject1 agreeably to the genius of the ,epistle4 ,but elegance1 in good hands1 always implies propriety2 as is the case here4 ,for the critic's rules must be taken either1 #a4 from the general standing laws of composition2 or1 #b4 from the peculiar ones1 appropriated to the kind4 ,now the direction to be fetched from the former of these sources will of course precede1 as well on account of its superior dignity1 as that the mind itself delights to descend from universals to the consideration of particulars4 ,agreeably to this rule of nature1 the poet1 having to correct1 in the ,roman drama1 these three points1 #a4 a misconduct in the disposition2 #b4 an abuse of language2 and #c4 a disregard of the peculiar characters and colorings of its different species1 hath chosen to do this on principles of universal nature2 which1 while they include the case of the drama1 at the same time extend to poetic composition at large4 ,these prefatory1 universal observations being delivered1 he then proceeds1 with advantage1 to the second source of his art1 viz4 the consideration of the laws and rules peculiar to the kind4 99 99 99 99 99 #i4--;,,ictoribus ,,atque ,,poetis--,,quidlibet ,,audendi ,,semper ,,fuit ,,aequa ,,potestas4 ,the modern painter and poet will observe that this aphorism comes from the mouth of an objector4 99 99 99 99 99 #ad4 ,,inceptis ,,gravibus1 c4 ,these preparatory observations concerning the laws of poetic composition at large have been thought to glance more particularly at the epic poetry3 ,which was not improper3 ,for1 #a4 ,the drama1 which he was about to criticize1 had its rise and origin from the epos4 ,thus we are told by the great critic1 that ,homer was the first who invented dramatic imitations1 -- 4 ,and to the same purpose ,plato3 4 ,de ,rep4 l4 x4 ,hence1 as our noble critic observes1 8,there was no more left for tragedy to do after him1 than to erect a stage1 and draw his dialogues and characters into scenes2 turning in the same manner upon one principal action or event1 with regard to place and time1 which was suitable to a real spectacle40 ,characterist4 vol4 i4 p4 #aih4 #b4 ,the several censures1 here pointed at the epic1 would bear still more directly against the tragic poem2 it being more glaringly inconsistent with the genius of the drama to admit of foreign and digressive ornaments1 than of the extended1 episodical epopia4 ,for both these reasons it was altogether pertinent to the poet's purpose1 in a criticism on the drama1 to expose the vicious practice of the epic models4 ,though1 to preserve the unity of his piece1 and for the reason before given in note on v4 #a4 he hath artfully done this under the cover of general criticism4 99 99 99 99 99 #ai4 ,,sed ,,nunc ,,non ,,erat ,,his ,,locus4 ,if one was to apply this observation to our dramatic writings1 ,i know of none which would afford pleasanter instances of the absurdity1 here exposed1 than the famous ,,orphan of ,otway4 ,which1 notwithstanding its real beauties1 could hardly have taken so prodigiously1 as it hath done1 on our stage1 if there were not somewhere a defect of good taste as well as of good morals4 99 99 99 99 99 #bc4 ,,denique ,,sit ,,quidvis3 ,,simplex ,,duntaxat ,,et ,,unum4 ,is not it strange that he1 who delivered this rule in form1 and1 by his manner of delivering it1 appears to have laid the greatest stress upon it1 should be thought capable of paying no attention to it himself1 in the conduct of this epistle8 99 99 99 99 99 #be-bh4 ,,brevis ,,esse ,,laboro1 ,,obscurus ,,fio3 ,,sectantem ,,lenia ,,nervi ,,deficiunt ,,animique3 ,,professus ,,grandia ,,turget3 ,,serpit ,,humi ,,tutus ,,nimium ,,timidusque ,,procellae4 ,if these characters were to be exemplified in our own poets1 of reputation1 the first1 ,i suppose1 might be justly applied to ,donne2 the second1 to ,parnell2 the third1 to ,thomson2 and the fourth1 to ,addison4 ,as to the two following lines2 ,qui variare cupit rem prodigialiter unam1 ,delphinum silvis adpingit1 fluctibus aprum3 they are applicable to so many of our poets1 that1 to keep the rest in countenance1 ,i will but just mention ,shakespear himself2 who1 to enrich his scene with that variety1 which his exuberant genius so largely supplied1 hath deformed his best plays with these prodigious incongruities4 99 99 99 99 99 #bi4 ,,qui ,,variare ,,cupit ,,rem ,,prodigialiter ,,unam1 c4 ,though ,i agree with ,m4 ,dacier that prodigialiter is here used in a good sense1 yet the word is so happily chosen by our curious speaker as to carry the mind to that fictitious monster1 under which he had before allusively shadowed out the idea of absurd and inconsistent composition1 in v4 #a4 ,the application1 however1 differs in this1 that1 whereas the monster1 there painted1 was intended to expose the extravagance of putting together incongruous parts1 without any reference to a whole1 this prodigy is designed to characterize a whole1 but deformed by the ill-judged position of its parts4 ,the former is like a monster1 whose several members1 as of right belonging to different animals1 could1 by no disposition1 be made to constitute one consistent animal4 ,the other1 like a landskip1 which hath no objects absolutely irrelative1 or irreducible to a whole1 but which a wrong position of the parts only renders prodigious4 ,send the boar to the woods2 and the dolphin to the waves2 and the painter might shew them both on the same canvass4 ,each is a violation of the law of unity1 and a real monster3 the one1 because it contains an assemblage of naturally incoherent parts2 the other1 because its parts1 though in themselves coherent1 are misplaced1 and disjointed4 99 99 99 99 99 #cd4 ,,infelix ,,operis ,,summa3 ,,quia ,,ponere ,,totum ,,nesciet4 ,this observation is more particularly applicable to dramatic poetry1 than to any other1 an unity and integrity of action being of its very essence4--,the poet illustrates his observation very happily in the case of statuary2 but it holds of every other art1 that hath a whole for its object4 ,nicias1 the painter1 used to say#aj1 8,that the subject was to him1 what the fable is to the poet40 ,which is just the sentiment of ,horace1 reversed4 ,for by the subject is meant the whole of the painter's plan1 the totum1 which it will be impossible for those to express1 who lay out their pains so solicitously in finishing single parts4 ,thus1 to take an obvious example1 the landskip-painter is to draw together1 and form into one entire view1 certain beautiful1 or striking objects4 ,this is his main care4 ,it is not even essential to the merit of his piece1 to labour1 with extreme exactness1 the principal constituent parts4 ,but for the rest1 a shrub or flower1 a straggling goat or sheep1 these may be touched very negligently4 ,we have a great modern instance4 ,few painters have obliged us with finer scenes1 or have possessed the art of combining woods1 lakes1 and rocks1 into more agreeable pictures1 than ,g4 ,,poussin3 ,yet his animals are observed to be scarce worthy an ordinary artist4 ,the use of these is simply to decorate the scene2 and so their beauty depends1 not on the truth and correctness of the drawing1 but on the elegance of their disposition only4 ,for1 in a landskip1 the eye carelessly glances over the smaller parts1 and regards them only in reference to the surrounding objects4 ,the painter's labour therefore is lost1 or rather misemployed1 to the prejudice of the whole1 when it strives to finish1 so minutely1 particular objects4 ,if some great masters have shewn themselves ambitious of this fame1 the objects1 they have laboured1 have been always such1 as are most considerable in themselves1 and have1 besides1 an effect in illustrating and setting off the entire scenery4 ,it is chiefly in this view1 that ,ruisdale's waters1 and ,claude ,lorain's skies are so admirable4 99 99 99 99 99 #dj4--;,,cui ,,lecta ,,potenter ,,erit ,,res4 ,potenter i4 e4 1 ,lambin3 which gives a pertinent sense1 but without justifying the expression4 ,the learned editor of ,statius proposes to read pudenter1 a word used by ,horace on other occasions1 and which suits the meaning of the place1 as well4 ,a similar passage in the epistle to ,augustus adds some weight to this conjecture2 nec meus audet ,,rem tentare ,,pudor1 quam vires ferre recusent4 99 99 99 99 99 #de4 ,,hoc ,,amet1 ,,hoc ,,spernat1 ,,promissi ,,carminis ,,auctor--,,in ,,verbis ,,etiam ,,tenuis ,,cautusque ,,serendis4 ,dr4 ,bentley hath inverted the order of these two lines2 not merely1 as ,i conceive1 without sufficient reason1 but in prejudice also to the scope and tenor of the poet's sense2 in which case only ,i allow myself to depart from his text4 ,the whole precept1 on poetical distribution1 is delivered1 as of importance3 ,ordinis haec virtus erit et venus1 aut ego fallor4 ,and such indeed it is3 for1 #a4 ,it respects no less than the constitution of a whole1 i4 e4 the reduction of a subject into one entire1 consistent plan1 the most momentous and difficult of all the offices of invention1 and which is more immediately addressed1 in the high and sublime sense of the word1 to the ,,poet4 #b4 ',tis no trivial whole1 which the ,precept had in view1 but1 as the context shews1 and as is further apparent from v4 #aej1 where this topic is resumed and treated more at large1 the epos and the drama3 ,with what propriety then is a rule of such dignity inforced by that strong emphatic conclusion1 ,hoc amet1 hoc spernat1 promissi carminis auctor3 i4 e4 8,be this rule held sacred and inviolate by him1 who hath projected and engaged in a work1 deserving the appellation of a poem40 ,were the subject only the choice or invention of words1 the solemnity of such an application must be ridiculous4 ,as for the construction1 the commonest reader can find himself at no loss to defend it against the force of the ,doctor's objections4 99 99 99 99 99 #df4 ,,in ,,verbis ,,etiam ,,tenuis1 c4 ,i have said1 that these preparatory observations concerning an unity of design1 the abuse of language1 and the different colourings of the several species of poetry1 whilst they extend to poetic composition at large1 more particularly respect the case of the drama4 ,the first of these articles has been illustrated in note on v4 #cd4 ,the last will be considered in note v4 #gc4 ,i will here shew the same of the second1 concerning the abuse of words4 ,for #a4 the style of the drama representing real life1 and demanding1 on that account1 a peculiar ease and familiarity in the language1 the practice of coining new words must be more insufferable in this1 than in any other species of poetry4 ,the majesty of the epic will even sometimes require to be supported by this means1 when the commonest ear would resent it1 as downright affectation upon the stage4 ,hence the peculiar propriety of this rule to the dramatic writer1 ,in verbis etiam tenuis cautusque serendis4 #b4 ,next1 it is necessary to keep the tragic style1 though condescending1 in some sort1 to the familiar cast of conversation1 from sinking beneath the dignity of the personages1 and the solemnity of the representation4 ,now no expedient can more happily effect this1 than what the poet prescribes concerning the position and derivation of words4 ,for thus1 the language1 without incurring the odium of absolutely invented terms1 sustains itself in a becoming stateliness and reserve1 and1 whilst it seems to stoop to the level of conversation1 artfully eludes the meanness of a trite1 prosaic style4--,there are wonderful instances of this management in the ,samson ,agonistes of ,milton2 the most artificial and highly finished1 though for that reason1 perhaps1 the least popular and most neglected1 of all the great poet's works4 99 99 99 99 99 #dg4 ,,dixeris ,,egregie1 ,,notum ,,si ,,callida ,,verbum ,,reddiderit ,,junctura ,,novum4-- ,this direction1 about disposing of old words in such a manner as that they shall have the grace of new ones1 is among the finest in the whole poem4 ,and because ,shakespear is he1 of all our poets1 who has most successfully practised this secret1 it may not be amiss to illustrate the precept before us by examples taken from his writings4 ,but first it will be proper to explain the precept itself as given by ,horace4 ,his critics seem not at all to have apprehended the force of it4 ,dacier and ,sanadon1 the two best of them1 confine it merely to the formation of compound words2 which1 though one way in which this callida junctura shews itself1 is by no means the whole of what the poet intended by it4 ,their mistake arose from interpreting the word junctura too strictly4 ,they suppose it to mean only the putting together two words into one2 this being the most obvious idea we have of the joining of words4 ,as if the most literal construction of terms1 according to their etymology1 were always the most proper4 ,but ,mr4 ,dacier has a reason of his own for confining the precept to this meaning4 8,the question1 he says1 is de verbis serendis2 and therefore this junctura must be explained of new words1 properly so called1 as compound epithets are2 and not of the grace of novelty which single words seem to acquire from the art of disposing of them40 ,by which we understand1 that the learned critic did not perceive the scope of his author2 which was manifestly this4 8,the invention of new terms1 says he1 being a matter of much nicety1 ,i had rather you would contrive to employ known words in such a way as to give them the effect of new ones4 ',tis true1 new words may sometimes be necessary3 ,and if so10 c4 ,whence we see that the line1 ,in verbis etiam tenuis cautusque serendis is not given here in form as the general rule1 and the following line as the example4 ,on the other hand1 the rule is just mentioned carelessly and in passing1 while the poet is hastening to another consideration of more importance1 and which he even opposes to the former4 8,instead of making new words1 you will do well to confine yourself merely to old ones40 ,whatever then be the meaning of junctura1 it is clear we are not to explain it of such words as exemplify the rule de verbis serendis4 ,but junctura will best be interpreted by the usage of ,horace together with the context2 #a4 ,the word occurs only once more in this poet1 and that in this very ,epistle4 ,it is where he advises a conduct with regard to the subject-matter of a poem1 analogous to this concerning the language of it4 ,ex noto fictum carmen sequar-- ----tantum series juncturaque pollet4 v4 #bdb4 ,does he mean the joining two subjects together and combining them into one1 so as that the compound subject shall be a new one8 ,no such thing2 8,the subject1 says he1 shall be a known1 an old one4 ,yet the order1 management1 and contrivance shall be such as to give it the air of an original fiction40 ,apply now this sense of junctura to words1 and we are only told1 that expression may be so ordered as to appear new1 when the words1 of which it is made up1 are all known and common4 ,we have then the authority of the poet himself against the opinion of the ,french critic4 ,but we have also the authority of his great imitator1 or rather interpreter1 ,persius2 who speaking of the language of his satires says1 in allusion to this passage of ,horace1 8,verba tog sequeris1 junctur callidus acri4 ,s4 v4 #ad4 i4 e4 he took up with words of common and familiar use1 but contrived to bring them into his style in such a manner as to give them the force1 spirit1 and energy of satiric expression40 #b4 ,again3 the context1 as ,i observed1 leads us to this meaning4 ,the poet in v4 #db4 had been giving his opinion of the nature and effect of method1 or orderly disposition in the conduct of a fable4 ,the course of his ideas carries him to apply the observation to words2 which he immediately does1 only interposing v4 #df4 by way of introduction to it4 ,on the whole then junctura is a word of large and general import1 and the same in expression1 as order or disposition1 in a subject4 ,the poet would say1 8,instead of framing new words1 ,i recommend to you any kind of artful management by which you may be able to give a new air and cast to old ones40 ,having now got at the true meaning of the precept1 let us see how well it may be exemplified in the practice of ,shakespear4 #a4 ,the first example of this artful management1 if it were only in complaisance to former commentators1 shall be that of compound epithets2 of which sort are1 ,high-sighted ,tyranny ,j4 ,c4 ,a4 ,,ii4 ,s4 #b4 ,a barren-spirited fellow ,a4 ,,iv4 ,s4 #a4 ,an arm-gaunt steed ,a4 ,c4 ,a4 ,i4 ,s4 #f4 ,flower-soft hands ,a4 ,,ii4 ,s4 #c4 ,lazy-pacing clouds ,r4 ,j4 ,a4 ,,ii4 ,s4 #b4 and a thousand instances more in this poet4 ,but this is a small part of his craft1 as may be seen by what follows4 ,for this end is attained1 #b4 ,by another form of composition2 by compound verbs as well as compound adjectives4 ,to candy and limn are known words4 ,the poet would express the contrary ideas1 and he does it happily1 by compounding them with our ,english negative dis1 ----8,the hearts ,that pantler'd me at heels1 to whom ,i gave ,their wishes1 do discandy1 melt their sweets ,on blossoming ,csar-- ,a4 ,c4 ,a4 ,,iv4 ,s4 #i4 8,that which is now a horse1 ev'n with a thought ,the rack dislimns1 and makes it indistinct ,as water is in water-- ,a4 ,c4 ,a4 ,,iv4 ,s4 #aj4 ,though here we may observe1 that for the readier acceptation of these compounds1 he artfully subjoins the explanation4 #c4 ,by a liberty he takes of converting substantives into verbs2 ,a glass that featur'd them4 ,cymb4 ,a4 ,i4 ,s4 #a4 ----,simon's weeping ,did scandal many a holy tear-- ,a4 ,,iii4 ,s4 #d4 ,great griefs1 ,i see1 medicine the less4 ,a4 ,,iv4 ,s4 #e4 ----that kiss ,i carried from thee1 ,dear2 and my true lip ,hath virgin'd it e'er since-- ,cor4 ,a4 ,v4 ,s4 #c4 ,or verbs into substantives2 ----,then began ,a stop i' th' chaser1 a ,retire-- ,cymb4 ,a4 ,v4 ,s4 #b4 ----take ,no stricter render of me-- ,a4 ,v4 ,s4 #c4 ----handkerchief ,still waving1 as the fits and stirs of's mind ,could best express-- ,cymb4 ,a4 ,i4 ,s4 #e4 ----,sextus ,pompeius ,hath giv'n the dare to ,csar-- ,a4 ,c4 ,a4 ,i4 ,s4 #c4 #d4 ,by using active verbs neutrally1 ----,he hath fought to-day ,as if a god in hate of mankind had ,destroy'd1 in such a shape-- ,a4 ,c4 ,a4 ,,iv4 ,s4 #f4 ,it is the bloody business1 that informs ,thus to mine eyes-- ,macb4 ,a4 ,,ii4 ,s4 #b4 ,and neutral verbs actively1 ----never man ,sigh'd truer breath2 but that ,i see thee here1 ,thou noble thing6 more dances my rapt heart ,than when ,i first my wedded mistress saw ,bestride my threshold-- ,cor4 ,a4 ,,iv4 ,s4 #d4 ----like smiling ,cupids1 ,with divers-colour'd fans1 whose wind did seem ,to glow the delicate cheeks which they did cool-- ,a4 ,c4 ,a4 ,,ii4 ,s4 #c4 #e4 ,by converting ,adjectives into ,substantives4 ----,i do not think ,so fair an outward and such stuff within ,endows a man but him-- ,cymb4 ,a4 ,i4 ,s4 #a4 #f4 ,by converting ,participles into ,substantives4 ,he would have well become this place1 and grac'd ,the thankings of a ,king-- ,cymb4 ,a4 ,v4 ,s4 #e4 ,the herbs1 that have in them cold dew o' th' night1 ,are strewings fitt'st for ,graves-- ,a4 ,,iv4 ,s4 #e4 ----8,then was ,i as a tree ,whose boughs did bend with fruit4 ,but1 in one night1 ,a storm1 or robbery1 call it what you will1 ,shook down my mellow hangings---- ,cymb4 ,a4 ,,iii4 ,s4 #c4 ----,comes in my father1 ,and like the tyrannous breathing of the ,north ,shakes all our ,buds from blowing---- ,cymb4 ,a4 ,i4 ,s4 #e4 ,which last instance ,i the rather give for the sake of proposing an emendation1 which ,i think restores this fine passage to its ,integrity4 ,before the late edition of ,shakespear it stood thus1 ,and like the tyrannous breathing of the ,north ,shakes all our ,buds from growing-- ,but the sagacious ,editor saw that this reading was corrupt1 and therefore altered the last word1 growing1 for unanswerable reasons1 into blowing4 ,see ,mr4 ,w's note upon the place4 ,this slight change gives propriety and beauty to the passage1 which before had no sort of meaning4 ,yet still all is not quite right4 ,for1 as the great ,critic himself observes1 8,breathing is not a very proper word to express the rage and bluster of the north wind40 ,besides1 one does not see how the shaking of these ,buds is properly assign'd as the cause of their not blowing4 ,the wind might shake off the blossoms of a fruit tree1 i4 e4 the ,buds when they were full-blown2 but so long as the blossom lies folded up in the ,bud1 it seems secure from shaking4 ,at least the shaking is not the immediate cause of the effect1 spoken of2 it is simply the cold of the north-wind that closes the ,bud and keeps it from blowing4 ,i am therefore tempted to propose another alteration of the text1 and to read thus1 ,and like the tyrannous ,breathing of the ,north ,shuts all our ,buds from blowing-- ,if this correction be allowed1 every thing is perfectly right4 ,it is properly the breathing1 the cold breath of the ,north1 that shuts up the ,buds when they are on the point of blowing4 ,whence the epithet tyrannous will be understood not as implying the idea of blust'ring 7an idea indeed necessary if we retain the word shakes7 but simply of cruel1 the tyranny of this wind consisting in imprisoning the flower in its ,bud and denying it the liberty of coming out into ,blossom4 ,the application too of this comparison1 which required the change of growing into blowing1 seems also to require the present alteration of shakes4 ,for there was no manner of violence in the father's coming in upon the lovers4 ,all the effect was1 that his presence restrained them from that interchange of tender words1 which was going to take place between them4 ,thus far ,i had written in the last edition of these notes1 and ,i1 now1 see no cause to doubt the general truth and propriety of this emendation4 ,only it occurs to me that1 instead of ,,shuts1 the poet's own word might1 perhaps1 be ,,checks2 as not only being more like in sound to the word shakes1 but as coming nearer to the traces of the ,letters4 ,besides1 ,,checks gives the precise idea we should naturally look for1 whether we regard the integrity of the figure--tyrannous--checks--1 or the thing illustrated by it1 viz4 the abrupt coming in of the father1 which was properly a check upon the lovers4 ,lastly1 the expression is mended by this reading2 for though we may be allowed to say shuts from blowing1 yet checks from blowing1 is easier and better ,english4 ,but to return to other ,instances of the ,poet's artifice in the management of known words4 ,an apparent ,novelty is sometimes effected #g4 ,by turning ,participles into ,adverbs-- ----tremblingly she stood ,and on the sudden dropt-- ,a4 ,c4 ,a4 ,v4 ,s4 #e4 7,one remembers the fine use ,mr4 ,pope has made of this word in1 ,or touch1 if tremblingly alive all o'er--7 ----,but his flaw'd heart1 ,alack1 too weak the conflict to support1 ',twixt two extremes of ,passion1 joy and grief1 ,burst smilingly-- ,lear1 ,a4 ,v4 ,s4 #h4 #h4 ,by figurative terms2 i4 e4 by such terms as though common in the plain1 are unusual in the figurative application4 ----,this common ,body ,like to a vagabond flag1 upon the stream1 ,goes to1 and back1 lacquying the varying tide4 ,a4 ,c4 ,a4 ,i4 ,s4 #e4 ----,when snow the ,pasture sheets4 ib4 ,to this head may be referred those innumerable terms in ,shakespear which surprize us by their novelty2 and which surprize us generally1 on account of his preferring the specific idea to the general in the subjects of his ,metaphors and the circumstances of his ,description2 an excellence in poetical expression which cannot be sufficiently studied4 ,the examples are too frequent1 and the thing itself too well understood1 to make it necessary to enlarge on this article4 #i4 ,by plain words1 i4 e4 such as are common in the figurative1 uncommon in the literal acceptation4 ,disasters vail'd the ,sun-- ,ham4 ,a4 ,i4 ,s4 #a4 ,see the note on the place4 ,th' extravagant and erring spirit hies ,to his confine-- ib4 ----,can't such things be ,and overcome us1 like a ,summer's cloud1 ,without our special wonder8-- ,macb4 ,a4 ,,iii4 ,s4 #e4 #aj4 ,by transposition of words--unauthoriz'd use of terms--and ungrammatical construction4 ,instances in all his plays1 passim4 #aa4 ,by foreign idioms4 ',tis true these are not frequent in ,shakespear4 ,yet some ,latinisms and e'en ,grecisms we have4 ,as ,quenched of hope-- ,cymb4 ,a4 ,v4 ,s4 #e4 ,and the like4 ,but1 which is more remarkable and served his purpose just as well1 the writers of that time had so latiniz'd the ,english language2 that the pure ,english ,idiom1 which ,shakespear generally follows1 has all the air of novelty which other writers are used to affect by a foreign phraseology4 ,the ,reader sees1 it were easy to extend this list of ,shakespear's arts in the ,callida junctura much farther4 ,but ,i intended only a specimen of them2 so much as might serve to illustrate the rule of ,horace4 ,it is enough1 that we have now a perfect apprehension of what is meant by ,,callida ,,junctura2 ,and that it is1 in effect1 but another word for ,licentious ,expression3 ,the use of which is1 as ,quintilian well expresses it1 8,ut quotidiani et semper eodem modo formati sermonis ,fastidium levet1 et nos vulgari dicendi genere defendat40 ,in short1 the articles1 here enumerated1 are but so many ways of departing from the usual and simpler forms of speech1 without neglecting too much the grace of ease and perspicuity2 ,in which well-tempered licence one of the greatest charms of all poetry1 but especially of ,shakespear's poetry1 consists4 ,not that ,he was always and every where so happy1 as in the instances given above4 ,his expression sometimes1 and by the very means1 here exemplified1 becomes hard1 obscure1 and unnatural4 ,this is the extreme on the other side4 ,but in general1 we may say1 that ,he hath either followed the direction of ,horace very ably1 or hath hit upon his ,rule very happily4 ,we are not perhaps to expect the same ability1 or good fortune from others4 ,novelty is a charm which nothing can excuse the want of1 in works of entertainment4 ,and the necessity of preventing the tedium arising from hacknied expression is so instant1 that those1 who are neither capable of prescribing to themselves this ,rule of the callida ,junctura1 or of following it when prescribed by others1 are yet inclined to ape it by some spurious contrivance2 which being slight in itself will soon become liable to excess1 and ridiculous by its absurdity4 ,i have a remarkable instance in view1 with which the reader will not be displeased that ,i conclude this long note4 ,about the middle of the #agth century one of the most common of these mimic efforts was the endless multiplication of ,epithets2 which soon made their poetry at once both stiff and nerveless4 ,when frequent and excessive use had made this expedient ridiculous as well as cheap1 they tried another1 it's very opposite the rejection of all ,epithets1 and so of languid poetry1 made rigid ,prose4 ,this too had it's day4 ,a dramatic ,poet of that time has exposed these opposite follies with much humour4 ,a character of sense and pleasantry is made to interrogate a ,poetaster in the following manner4 ,,goldsworth4 ,master ,,caperwit1 before you read1 pray tell me1 ,have your verses any ,,adjectives8 ,,caperwit4 ,adjectives6 ,would you have a poem without ,adjectives8 ,they are the flow'rs1 the grace of all our language2 ,a well-chosen ,epithete doth give new ,soule ,to fainting ,poesie2 and makes everye verse ,a ,bribe4 ,with ,adjectives we baite our lines1 ,when we do fish for ,gentlewomen's loves1 ,and with their sweetness catch the nibbling ear ,of amorous ,ladies3 ,with the music of ,these ravishing ,nouns1 we charm the silken tribe1 ,and make the ,gallant melt with apprehension ,of the rare word3 ,i will maintain 't 7against ,a bundle of ,grammarians7 in ,poetry ,the ,substantive itself cannot subsist ,without an ,adjective4 ,,goldsworth4 ,but for all that1 ,these words would sound more full1 methinks1 that are not ,so larded2 and1 if ,i might counsel you1 ,you should compose a ,sonnet1 cleane without them4 ,a row of stately ,,substantives would march1 ,like ,switzers1 and bear all the field before them2 ,carry their weight1 shew fair1 like ,,deeds enroll'd2 ,not ,,writs1 that are first made1 and after fill'd3 ,thence first came up the title of ,,blank verse4 ,you know1 ,sir1 what ,blank signifies8 ,when the ,sense ,first fram'd1 is tied with ,adjectives1 like ,points1 ,and could not hold together1 without wedges4 ,hang 't1 'tis ,pedanticke1 vulgar ,poetry4 ,let children1 when they versifye1 sticke here ,and there these pidling words1 for want of matter2 ,,poets write masculine numbers4 ,,caperwit4 ,you have given me a pretty hint3 ',tis ,,new4 ,i will bestow these verses on my footman2 ,they'll serve a ,chambermaid-- ,,shirley',s ,chances1 or ,love in a ,maze4 99 99 99 99 99 #ed4 ,c,,cilio ,,plautoque ,,dabit ,,romanus1 ,,ademptum ,,virgilio ,,varioque8 ,the question is but reasonable4 ,yet the answer will not be to the satisfaction of him that puts it4 ,this humour1 we may observe1 holds here in ,england1 as it did formerly at ,rome2 and will1 ,i suppose1 hold every-where1 under the same circumstances4 ,ccilius and ,plautus were allowed to coin1 but not ,virgil and ,varius4 ,the same indulgence our authors had at the restoration of letters2 but it is denied to our present writers4 ,the reason is plainly this4 ,while arts are refining or reviving1 the greater part are forced1 and all are content to be ,learners4 ,when they are grown to their usual height1 all affect to be ,teachers4 ,with this affectation1 a certain envy1 as the poet observes1 ----cur adquirere pauca1 ,si possum1 invideor-- insinuates itself2 which is for restraining the privileges of writers1 to all of whom every reader is now become a ,rival4 ,whereas men1 under the first character of ,learners1 are glad to encourage every thing that makes for their instruction4 ,but whatever offence may be taken at this practice1 good writers1 as they safely may1 should dare to venture upon it4 ,a perfect language is a chimra4 ,in every state of it there will frequently be occasion1 sometimes a necessity1 to hazard a new word4 ,and let not a great genius be discouraged1 by the fastidious delicacy of his age1 from a sober use of this privilege4 ,let him1 as the poet directs1 ,command old words1 that long have slept1 to wake1 ,words1 that wise ,,bacon1 or brave ,,ralegh spake2 ,or bid the new be ,english ages hence1 ,for ,,use will father what's begot by ,,sense4 ,this too was the constant language of ancient criticism4 8,audendum tamen2 namque1 ut ait ,cicero1 etiam qu prim dura visa sunt1 usu molliuntur10 ,quintil4 l4 i4 c4 v4 99 99 99 99 99 #gj4 ,,multa ,,renascentur1 ,,quae ,,jam ,,cecidere4 ,this revival of old words is one of those niceties in composition1 not to be attempted by any but great masters4 ,it may be done two ways1 #a4 by restoring such terms1 as are grown entirely obsolete2 or1 #b4 by selecting out of those1 which have still a currency1 and are not quite laid aside1 such as are most forcible and expressive4 ,for so ,i understand a passage in ,cicero1 who urges this double use of old words1 as an argument1 to his orator1 for the diligent study of the old ,latin writers4 ,his words are these3 ,loquendi elegantia1 quamquam expolitur scienti literarum1 tamen augetur legendis oratoribus veteribus et poetis3 sunt enim illi veteres1 qui ornare nondum poterant ea1 quae dicebant1 omnes prope prclare locuti--,neque tamen erit utendum verbis iis1 quibus jam consuetudo nostra non utitur1 nisi quando ornandi caus1 parc1 quod ostendam2 sed usitatis ita poterit uti1 lectissimis ut utatur is1 qui in veteribus erit scriptis studios et multum volutatus4 ,de ,orat4 l4 iii4 c4 x4 ,these choice words amongst such as are still in use1 ,i take to be those which are employed by the old writers in some peculiarly strong and energetic sense1 yet so as with advantage to be copied by the moderns1 without appearing barbarous or affected4 ,see ,,hor4 lib4 ii4 ep4 ii4 v4 #aae4 ,and the reason1 by the way1 of our finding such words in the old writers of every language1 may be this4 ,when ideas are new to us1 they strike us most forcibly2 and we endeavour to express1 not our sense only1 but our sensations1 in the terms we use to explain them4 ,the passion of wonder1 which ,philosophy would cure us of1 is of singular use in raising the conception1 and strengthening the expression of poets4 ,and such is always the condition of old writers1 when the arts are reviving1 or but beginning to refine4 ,the other use of old terms1 i4 e4 when become obsolete1 he says1 must be made parc1 more sparingly4 ,the contrary would1 in oratory1 be insufferable affectation4 ,the rule holds in poetry1 but with greater latitude2 for1 as he observes in another place1 and the reason of the thing speaks1 hc sunt ,poetarum licenti liberiora4 ,de ,or4 iii4 #ch4 ,but the elegance of the style1 we are told1 is increased both ways4 ,the reason is1 according to ,quinctilian 7who was perfectly of ,cicero's mind in this matter4 ,see l4 x4 c4 i47 ,verba vetustate repetita afferunt orationi majestatem aliquam non sine delectatione2 nam et auctoritatem antiquitatis habent2 et1 quia intermissa sunt1 gratiam novitati similem parant4 ,lib4 i4 c4 vi4 sub fin4 ,but this is not all3 ,the riches of a language are actually increased by retaining its old words2 and besides1 they have often a greater real weight and dignity1 than those of a more fashionable cast1 which succeed to them4 ,this needs no proof to such as are versed in the earlier writings in any language4 ,a very capable judge hath observed it in regard of the most admired modern one3 ,nous avons tellement laiss ce qui toit au viel franois1 que nous avons laiss quant et quant la plus part de ce qu'il avoit de bon4 ,trait4 prparatif l' ,apol4 pour ,herod4 l4 i4 c4 xxviii4 ,or1 if the reader requires a more decisive testimony1 let him take it in the words of that curious speaker1 ,fenelon4 ,ntre langue manque d'un grand nombre de mots et de phrases4 ,il me semble mme qu'on l'a gene et appauvrie depuis environ cent ans en voulant la purifier4 ,il est vrai qu'elle toit encore un peu informe et trop verbeuse4 ,mais le vieux language se fait regretter1 quand nous le retrouvons dans ,,marot1 dans ,,amiot1 dans le ,cardinal d',,ossat1 dans les ouvrages les plus enjoues1 et dans les plus serieux4 ,il y avoit je ne scai quoi de court1 de nif1 de vif et de passion4 ,reflex4 sur la ,rhetorique1 ,amst4 #agcc4 p4 #d4 ,from these testimonies we learn the extreme value1 which these masters of composition set upon their old writers2 and as the reason of the thing justifies their opinions1 we may further see the important use of some late attempts to restore a better knowledge of our own4 ,which ,i observe with pleasure1 as the growing prevalency of a very different humour1 first catched1 as it should seem1 from our commerce with the ,french models1 and countenanced by the too scrupulous delicacy of some good writers amongst ourselves1 had gone far towards unnerving the noblest modern language1 and effeminating the public taste4 ,this was not a little forwarded by1 what generally makes its appearance at the same time1 a kind of feminine curiosity in the choice of words2 cautiously avoiding and reprobating all such 7which were not seldom the most expressive7 as had been prophaned by a too vulgar use1 or had suffered the touch of some other accidental taint4 ,this ran us into periphrases and general expression2 the peculiar bane of every polished language4 ,whereas the rhetorician's judgment here again should direct us3 ,omnia verba 7exceptis paucis parum verecundis7 sunt alicubi optima2 nam et humilibus interim et vulgaribus est opus1 et qu cultiore in parte videntur sordida1 ubi res poscit1 propri dicuntur4 ,which seems borrowed from ,dionysius of ,halicarnassus 4 4 xii4 1 1 1 1 1 4 ,however those two causes1 8,the rejection of old words1 as barbarous1 and of many modern ones1 as unpolite10 had so exhausted the strength and stores of our language1 that1 as ,i observed1 it was high time for some master-hand to interpose and send us for supplies to our old poets2 which1 there is the highest authority for saying1 no one ever despised1 but for a reason1 not very consistent with his credit to avow3 rudem enim esse omnino in nostris potis aut inertissim segniti est aut fastidii delicatissimi4 ,cic4 de fin4 l4 i4 c4 ii4 99 99 99 99 99 #gb4--,,si ,,volet ,,usus1 c4 ,consuetudo certissima loquendi magistra2 utendumque plan sermone1 ut nummo1 qui publica forma est4 ,quinctil4 l4 i4 c4 vi4 imitated from ,horace4 ,in ,lucian too1 we find it one of the charges brought against the ,pedant1 ,lexiphanes1 that he clipped the standard ,,coin of the ,greek language-- 1 7c4 #bj47 99 99 99 99 99 #gc4 ,,res ,,gestae1 etc4 ,the purport of these lines from v4 #gc to #hf and their connexion with what follows1 hath not been fully seen4 ,they would express this general proposition1 8,that the several kinds of poetry essentially differ from each other1 as may be gathered1 not solely from their different subjects1 but their different measures2 which good sense1 and an attention to the peculiar natures of each1 instructed the great inventors and masters of them to employ40 ,the use made of this proposition is to infer1 8that therefore the like attention should be had to the different species of the same kind of poetry v4 #hi1 c4 as in the case of tragedy and comedy 7to which the application is made7 whose peculiar differences and correspondencies1 as resulting from the natures of each1 should1 in agreement to the universal law of decorum1 be exactly known and diligently observed by the poet40 ,singula quque locum teneant sortita decentem4 v4 #ib4 ,but1 there is a further propriety in this enumeration of the several kinds of poetry1 as addressed to the dramatic writer4 ,he is not only to study1 for the purposes here explained1 the characteristic differences of either species of the drama3 ,he must further be knowing in the other kinds of poetry1 so as to be able1 as the nature of his work shall demand1 to adopt the genius of each1 in its turn1 and to transfer the graces of universal poetry into the drama4 ,thus1 to follow the division here laid down1 there will sometimes be occasion for the pomp and high coloring of the ,,epic narration2 sometimes for the plaintive softness and passionate inconnexion of the ,,elegy3 and the chorus1 if characterized in the ancient manner1 must catch the fiery1 inraptured spirit of the ,,ode4 ,descriptas servare vices operumque colores1 ,cur ego1 si nequeo ignoroque1 ,,poeta salutor8 ,hence is seen the truth of that remark1 which there hath been more than once occasion to make1 8,that1 however general these prefatory instructions may appear1 they more especially respect the case of the drama40 99 99 99 99 99 #ij4 ,,indignatur ,,item1 etc4--,,coena ,,thyestae4 ,il met le souper de ,thyeste pour toutes sortes de tragedies1 says ,m4 ,dacier2 but why this subject was singled out1 as the representative of the rest1 is not explained by him4 ,we may be sure1 it was not taken up at random4 ,the reason was1 that the ,thyestes of ,ennius was peculiarly chargeable with the fault1 here censured3 as is plain from a curious passage in the ,orator2 where ,cicero1 speaking of the loose numbers of certain poets1 observes this1 in particular1 of the tragedy of ,thyestes1 ,similia sunt qudam apud nostros3 velut in ,thyeste1 ,quemnam te esse dicam8 qui tard in senectute4 et qu sequuntur3 qu nisi cm tibicen accesserit1 ,,orationi ,,sunt ,,solut ,,simillima3 which character exactly agrees to this of ,horace1 wherein the language of that play is censured1 as flat and prosaic1 and hardly rising above the level of ordinary conversation in comedy4 ,this allusion to a particular play1 written by one of their best poets1 and frequently exhibited on the ,roman stage1 gives great force and spirit to the precept1 at the same time that it exemplifies it in the happiest manner4 ,it seems further probable to me1 that the poet also designed an indirect compliment to ,varius1 whose ,thyestes1 we are told1 ,quinctil4 l4 x4 c4 i4 was not inferior to any tragedy of the ,greeks4 ,this double intention of these lines well suited the poet's general aim1 which is seen through all his critical works1 of beating down the excessive admiration of the old poets1 and of asserting the just honours of the modern4 ,it may further be observed that the critics have not felt the force of the words exponi and narrari in this precept4 ,they are admirably chosen to express the two faults condemned3 the first implying a kind of pomp and ostentation in the language1 which is therefore improper for the low subjects of comedy3 and the latter1 as ,i have hinted1 a flat1 prosaic expression1 not above the cast of a common narrative1 and therefore equally unfit for tragedy4 ,nothing can be more rambling than the comment of ,heinsius and ,dacier on this last word4 99 99 99 99 99 #id4 ,,iratusque ,,chremes ,,tumido ,,dilitigat ,,ore3 ,,et ,,tragicus ,,plerumque ,,dolet ,,sermone ,,pedestri4 ,it may not be amiss to open a little more particularly the grounds of this criticism3 which may best be done by a commentary on the following lines of the poet3 ,format enim natura pris nos ints ad omnem ,fortunarum habitum2 juvat aut impellit ad iram2 ,aut ad humum mrore gravi deducit et angit3 ,pst effert animi motus interprete lingu3 ,to draw after the life1 in any given conjuncture1 the poet must recollect 7which may easily be done by consulting with his own conscious experience7 that peculiar disposition of mind1 into which the speaker is1 of necessity1 carried by the circumstances of his situation4 ,and the sentiments1 which give the image of this peculiar disposition1 are the genuine lineaments of the character intended4 ,but the truth of sentiment may be hurt or effaced by incongruous language1 just as the exactest lineaments of a portrait are often disguised or lost under a vicious coloring4 ,to paint then as well as draw after the truth1 it is requisite that a further regard be had to the expression4 ,which again is no great difficulty for the artist1 the same common nature holding the torch to him1 as before4 ,for in entering into ourselves we find1 that as the mind1 in any supposed situation1 gives birth to a certain set of conceptions and sentiments1 correspondent to its true state1 and expressive of it3 so by attending to the language1 in which those sentiments ordinarily manifest themselves1 we easily perceive they take one style or manner of expression preferably to every other4 ,for expression1 where false art is not employed to distort it1 gives the just image of our sentiments2 just as these1 when nature is not suppressed or counteracted1 are ever the faithful representatives of the manners4 ,they result1 like the famous ,simulacra of ,epicurus1 as by a secret destination1 from their original forms2 and are1 each1 the perfect copies of other4 ,all which will be clearly understood by applying these general observations to the instances in view4 ,the passion of ,,anger rouses all the native fire and energy of the soul4 ,in this disorder1 and1 as it were1 insurrection of the mental powers1 our sentiments are strong and vigorous2 nature prompting us to liberal and lofty conceptions of ourselves1 and a superior disdainful regard of others4 ,this again determines the genius of our language1 which1 to conform to such sentiments1 must be bold and animated2 breaking out into forcible imagery1 and swelling in all the pomp of sounding epithets and violent figures4 ,and this even amidst the humbler concerns of private and inferior fortunes3 ,iratusque ,chremes ,,tumido ,,dilitigat ,,ore4 ,in the passion of ,,grief1 on the contrary1 the reverse of this takes place4 ,for the mind1 oppressed and weighed down by its sorrows1 sinks into a weak and timorous despondency2 inclining us to submit1 almost without resistance1 to the incumbent affliction2 or if we struggle at all with it1 it is only to ease the labouring heart by putting forth some fruitless sighs and ineffectual complainings4 ,thus we find it represented by those perfect masters of simple nature1 the ,greek tragedians4 ,so far are their sorrowing personages from entertaining any vigorous thoughts or manly resolutions1 that they constantly languish into sad repinings at their present1 and trembling apprehensions of future1 misery4 ,when these sentiments come to express themselves in words1 what can they be but the plainest and simplest which the language of the complainant furnishes8 ,such negligence1 or more properly such dejection1 of sorrow disposes the speaker to take up with terms as humble as his fortune4 ,his feeble conception is not only unapt or unable to look out for fine words and painted phrases2 but1 if chance throw them in his way1 he even rejects them as trappings of another condition1 and which serves only to upbraid his present wretchedness4 ,the pomp of numbers and pride of poetic expression are so little his care1 that it is well if he even trouble himself to observe the ordinary exactness of mere prose#aa4 ,and this even where the height of rank and importance of affairs conspire to elevate the mind to more state and dignity4 ,et tragicus plerumque ,,dolet ,,sermone ,,pedestri4 ,thus far the dramatic writer may inform himself by entering into his own consciousness1 and observing the sure dictates of experience4 ,for what concerns the successful application of this rule in practice1 every thing1 as is remarked below1 on v4 #ajb4 must depend on the constitution of his own mind2 which yet may be much assisted by the diligent study of those writers1 who excel most in this way3 in which class all agree to give the palm to ,,euripides4 ,but here it may not be improper to obviate a common mistake that seems to have arisen from the too strict interpretation of the poet's ,rule4 ,tragic characters1 he says1 will generally express their sorrows in a prosaic language4 ,from this just observation1 hastily considered and compared with the absurd practice of some writers1 it hath been concluded1 ,that what we call pure ,poetry1 the essence of which consists in bold figures and a lively imagery1 hath no place on the ,stage4 ,it may not be sufficient to oppose to this notion the practice of the best poets1 ancient and modern2 for the question recurrs1 how far that practice is to be justified on the principles of good criticism and common sense4 ,to come then1 to the ,reason of the thing4 ,the capital rule in this matter is1 ,reddere ,person--convenientia cuique4 ,but to do this1 the ,situation of the persons1 and the various passions resulting from such situation1 must be well considered4 ,each of these has a character or turn of thinking peculiar to itself4 ,but all agree in this property1 that they occupy the whole attention of the speaker1 and are perpetually offering to his mind a set of pictures or images1 suitable to his state1 and expressive of it4 ,in these the tragic character of every denomination loves to indulge2 as we may see by looking no farther than on what passes before us in common life1 where persons1 under the influence of any passion1 are more eloquent and have a greater quickness at allusion and imagery1 than at other times4 ,so that to take from the speaker this privilege of representing such pictures or images is so far from consulting ,nature1 that it is1 in effect1 to overlook or reject one of her plainest lessons4 ',tis true1 if one character is busied in running after the ,images which ,nature throws in the way only of some other2 or if1 in representing such images as are proper to the character1 the ,imagination is taken up in tracing minute resemblances and amusing itself with circumstances that have no relation to the case in hand3 then indeed the censure of these critics is well applied4 ,it may be fine poetry1 if you will1 but very bad dramatic writing4 ,but let the imagery be ever so great or splendid1 if it be such only as the governing passion loves to conceive and paint1 and if it be no further dilated on1 and with no greater sollicitude and curiosity1 than the natural working of the passion demands1 the ,drama is so far from rejecting such ,poetry that it glories in it1 as what is most essential to its true end and design4 ,ille per extentum funem mihi posse videtur ,ire poeta1 meum qui pectus inaniter angit1 ,inritat1 mulcet1 falsis terroribus implet1 ,ut magus---- ,an office1 which the dramatic poet hath no means of sustaining but by that strong painting and forcible imagery1 above described4 ,what seems to have given a colour to the opposite opinion1 is the faulty practice which good critics have observed in the ,french tragedies1 and in some of our own that have been formed upon their model4 ,but the case is mistaken4 ,it is not the ,poetry of the ,french or ,english drama that deserves their censure1 but its prolix and languid ,declamation1 neglecting passion for sentiment1 or expressing passion in a calm circuit of words and without spirit4 ,even ,mr4 ,addison's ,,cato1 which from being immoderately extolled has had the usual fate of being as immoderately undervalued1 is not to be censured for its abundance of poetry1 but for its application of it in a way that hurts the passion4 ,general sentiments1 uncharacteristic imagery1 and both drawn out in a spiritless1 or1 which comes to the same thing1 a too curious expression1 are the proper faults of this drama4 ,what the critic of just taste demands in this fine tragedy1 is even more poetry1 but better applied and touched with more spirit4 ,still1 perhaps1 we are but on the surface of this matter4 ,the true ground of this mistaken ,criticism1 is1 ,the ,notion1 that when the ,hero is at the crisis of his fate1 he is not at liberty to use ,poetical1 that is1 highly figurative expression3 but that the proper season for these things is when he has nothing else to do4 ,whereas the truth is just the contrary4 ,the figures1 when he is greatly agitated1 come of themselves2 and1 suiting the grandeur and dignity of his situation1 are perfectly natural4 ,to use them in his cool and quiet moments1 when he has no great interests to prosecute or extricate himself from1 is directly against ,nature4 ,for1 in this state of things1 he must seek them1 if he will have them4 ,and when he has got them and made his best use of them1 what do they produce8 ,not sublimity1 but ,bombast4 ,for it is not the figures1 but the suitableness to the occasion1 that produces either4 ,not that ,i am ignorant that there are vices in the formation of figures1 as well as in their application4 ,but these vices go under various other names4 ,the pure simple ,bombast 7if ,i may be indulged so bold a catachresis7 arises from putting figurative expression to an improper use4 ,to give an instance of what ,i mean4 ,,tacitus writes under one continued resentment at the degeneracy of his times1 and speaking of some sumptuary ,laws proposed by the ,senate1 in #b ,ann4 c4 #cc1 he says they decreed1 ,ne ,vestis ,serica viros ,,foedaret4 ,this became the dignity of his historic character and genius4 ,but had his ,contemporary1 ,suetonius1 who wrote ,chronicles in the spirit of our ,,stow and ,,holinshed1 used the same language1 it would have set his readers a laughing4 ,not but figurative expression1 even when suitable to the character1 genius1 and general subject of a writer1 may still be misplaced4 ,thus1 had ,tacitus1 speaking of the honours decreed to ,tiberius on a certain occasion1 said with his translator ,gordon--which of these he meant to accept or which to reject1 the approaching issue of his days has ,,buried in oblivion--the figure1 the reader sees1 would have been miserably out of place2 the conceit of the burial of his intentions1 on the mention of his death1 being even ridiculous4 ,but the ridicule1 we may be sure1 falls on the translator only1 and not on his great original1 who expresses himself on this occasion1 not only with propriety1 but with the greatest simplicity--quos omiserit receperitve ,,in ,,incerto fuit ob propinquum vit finem4 ,ann4 l4 vi4 c4 #de4 ,i have brought these instances to shew that figurative expression is not improper even in a fervent animated historian1 on a fit subject1 and in due place3 much less should the tragic poet1 when his characters are to be shewn in the conflict of the stronger passions1 be debarred the use of it4 ,the short of the matter is1 in one word1 this4 ,civil ,society first of all tames us to humanity1 as ,cicero expresses it2 and1 in the course of its discipline1 brings us down to one dead level4 ,its effect is to make us all the same pliant1 mimic1 obsequious things2 not unlike1 in a word1 7if our pride could overlook the levity of the comparison7 what we see of trained ,apes4 ,but when the violent passions arise 7as in the case of these ,apes when the apples were thrown before them7 this artificial discipline is all shaken off1 and we return again to the free and ferocious state of ,nature4 ,and what is the expression of that state8 ,it is 7as we understand by experience7 a free and fiery expression1 all made up of bold metaphors and daring figures of ,speech4 ,the conclusion is1 that ,poetry1 pure ,poetry1 is the proper language of ,passion1 whether we chuse to consider it as ennobling1 or debasing the human character4 ,there is1 as ,i have said1 an obvious distinction to be made 7and to that the poet's rule1 as explained in this note1 refers7 between the soft and tender1 and the more vigorous passions4 ,when the former prevail1 the mind is in a weak languid state2 and though all allusion and imagery be not improper here1 yet as that fire and energy of the soul is wanting1 which gives a facility of ranging over our ideas and of seizing such as may be turned to any resemblance of our own condition1 it will for that reason be less frequent in this state of the mind than any other4 ,such imagery1 too1 will for the same reason be less striking1 because the same languid affections lead to1 and make us acquiesce in a simpler and plainer expression4 ,but universally in the stronger passions the poetical character prevails1 and rises only in proportion to the force and activity of those passions4 ,to draw the whole then of what has been said on this subject into a standing ,,rule for the observance of the dramatic ,poet4 8,,man is so formed that whether he be in joy1 or grief2 in confidence or despair2 in pleasure or pain2 in prosperity or distress2 in security or danger2 or torn and distracted by all the various modifications of ,love1 ,hate1 and ,fear3 ,the ,imagination is incessantly presenting to the mind an infinite variety of images or pictures1 conformable to his ,situation3 ,and these ,pictures receive their various coloring from the habits1 which his birth and condition1 his education1 profession and pursuits have induced4 ,the representation of these is the ,,poetry1 and a just representation1 in a great measure1 the ,,art1 of dramatic writing40 99 99 99 99 99 #ie4 ,,et ,,tragicus ,,plerumque ,,dolet ,,sermone ,,pedestri4 ,dr4 ,bentley connects this with the following line3 ,et tragicus plerumque dolet sermone pedestri ,telephus aut ,peleus for the sake1 as he says1 of preserving the opposition4 ,in comdi iratus ,chremes tumido1 in tragdi ,telephus pauper humili sermone utitur4 ,this is specious2 but1 if the reader attends1 he will perceive1 that the opposition is better preserved without his connection4 ,for it will stand thus3 ,the poet first asserts of comedy at large1 that it sometimes raises its voice1 ,interdum tamen et vocem comdia tollit4 ,next1 he confirms this general remark1 by appealing to a particular instance1 ,iratusque ,chremes tumido dilitigat ore4 ,exactness of opposition will require the same method to be observed in speaking of tragedy2 which accordingly is the case1 if we follow the vulgar reading4 ,for1 first1 it is said of tragedy1 that1 when grief is to be expressed1 it generally condescends to an humbler strain1 ,et tragicus plerumque dolet sermone pedestri4 ,and then the general truth1 as before1 is illustrated by a particular instance1 ,telephus aut ,peleus1 cum pauper et exul uterque1 ,projicit ampullas1 c4 ,there is no absurdity1 as the ,doctor pretends1 in taking tragicus for tragdiarum scriptor4 ,for the poet1 by a common figure1 is made to do that1 which he represents his persons1 as doing4 ,but this is not the whole1 that will deserve the reader's regard in this place4 ,a strict attention to the scope and turn of the passage from v4 #if to #aad will lead him to conclude1 #a4 8,that some real tragedy of ,telephus and ,peleus was intended in v4 #if1 in which the characters were duly preserved and set forth in proper language40 ,this the opposition to the ,chremes of ,terence absolutely demands4 ,let us inquire what this might be4 ,euripides1 we know1 composed tragedies under these names2 but it is unlikely1 the poet should contrast the instance of a ,greek tragedy to a ,latin comedy4 ,nor need it be supposed4 ,the subject was familiar to the ,roman poets4 ,for we find a ,telephus ascribed to no less than three of them1 ,ennius1 ,accius1 and ,nvius#ab4 ,one of these then ,i doubt not1 is here intended4 ,but the ,roman1 in those times1 were little more than translations of the ,greek plays4 ,hence it is most likely1 that the tragedy of ,telephus 7and probably of ,peleus1 though we have not so direct authority for this7 was1 in fact1 the tragedy of ,euripides1 translated into ,latin1 and accommodated to the ,roman stage1 by one of these writers4 ,it remains only to enquire1 if the ,telephus itself of ,euripides answered to this character4 ,which1 ,i think1 it manifestly did1 from considering what his enemy1 the buffoon ,aristophanes1 hath said concerning it4 ,every body knows1 that the ,,batraxoi of this poet contains a direct satyr1 and ,burlesque upon ,euripides4 ,some part of it is particularly levelled against his ,telephus3 whence we may certainly learn the objections1 that were made to it4 ,yet the amount of them is only this1 8,that he had drawn the character of ,telephus in too many circumstances of distress and humiliation40 ,his fault was1 that he had represented him more like a beggar1 than an unfortunate prince4 ,which1 in more candid hands1 would1 ,i suppose1 amount only to this1 8,that the poet had painted his distress in the most natural1 and affecting manner40 ,he had stripped him of his royalty1 and1 together with it of the pomp and ostentation of the regal language1 the very beauty1 which ,horace applauds and admires in his ,telephus4 #b4 ,next1 ,i think it as clear from what follows1 8,that some real tragedy of ,telephus1 and ,peleus1 was also glanced at1 of a different stamp from the other1 and in which the characters were not supported by such propriety of language40 ,let the reader judge4 ,having quoted a ,telephus and ,peleus1 as examples to the rule concerning the style of tragedy1 and afterwards enlarged from v4 #ih to #ajc on the reasons of their excellence1 he returns1 with an air of insult1 to the same names1 apostrophizing them in the following manner3 ,telephe1 vel ,peleu1 male si mandata loquris1 ,aut dormitabo aut ridebo3 ,but why this address to characters1 which he had before alleged1 as examples of true dramatical drawing8 ,would any tolerable writer1 after having applauded ,shakespear's ,king ,lear1 as an instance of the kingly character in distress1 naturally painted1 apostrophize it1 with such pointed vehemence1 on the contrary supposition8 ,but let this pass4 ,the ,poet1 as though a notorious violation of the critic's rules was to be thoroughly exposed1 goes on1 in the seven following lines1 to search into the bottom of this affair1 laying open the source and ground of his judgment2 and concludes upon the whole1 ,si dicentis erunt fortunis absona dicta1 ,,romani ,,tollent ,,equitesque ,,patresque ,,cachinnum4 ,can any thing be plainer1 than that this last line points at some well-known instance of a ,latin play1 which had provoked1 upon this account1 the contempt and laughter of the best judges8 ,it may further be observed1 that this way of understanding the passage before us1 as it is more conformable to what is here shewn to be the general scope of the epistle1 so doth it1 in its turn1 likewise countenance1 or rather clearly shew1 the truth and certainty of this method of interpretation4 99 99 99 99 99 #ii4 ,,non ,,satis ,,est ,,pulchra1 etc4 ,dr4 ,bentley objects to pulchra1 because this1 he says1 is a general term1 including under it every species of beauty1 and therefore that of dulcis or the affecting4 ,but the great critic did not sufficiently attend to the connexion1 which1 as ,f4 ,robortellus1 in his paraphrase on the epistle1 well observes1 stands thus3 8,it is not enough1 that tragedies have that kind of beauty1 which arises from a pomp and splendor of diction1 they must also be pathetic or affecting40 ,objiciat se mihi hoc loco aliquis et dicat1 si id fiat i4 e4 si projiciantur ampull corrumpi omnem venustatem et gravitatem pomatis tragici1 quod nihil nisi grande et elatum recipit4 ,huic ego ita respondendum puto1 non satis esse1 ut pomata venusta sint et dignitatem suam servent3 nam dulcedine quoque et suavitate qudam sunt conspergenda1 ut possint auditoris animum inflectere in quamcunque voluerint partem4 ,but a very ingenious person1 who knows how to unite philosophy with criticism2 and to all that is elegant in taste1 to add what is most just and accurate in science1 hath1 in the following note1 shewn the very foundation of ,dr4 ,bentley's criticism to be erroneous4 8,there are a multitude of words in every language1 which are sometimes used in a wider1 sometimes in a more restrained sense4 ,of this kind are of the ,greeks1 the pulchrum of the ,romans1 and the words by which they are translated in modern languages4 ,to whatever subjects these epithets are applied1 we always intend to signify that they give us pleasure3 and we seldom apply them to any subjects1 but those which please by means of impressions made on the fancy3 including under this name the reception of images conveyed directly by the sight itself4 ,as ,poetry therefore always addresses itself to the imagination1 every species of poetical excellence obtains the name of ,beauty3 and1 among the rest1 the power of pleasing us by affecting the passions2 an effect which intirely depends on the various images presented to our view4 ,in this sense of the word beautiful1 it cannot be opposed to pathetic4 ,pulchrum enim quascunque carminis virtutes1 etiam ipsam dulcedinem1 in se continere merit videatur4 ,but nothing1 ,i think1 can be plainer1 than that this epithet is often used more determinately4 ,visible forms are not merely occasions of pleasure1 in common with other objects1 but they produce a pleasure of a singular kind4 ,and the power they have of producing it1 is properly denominated by the name of ,beauty4 ,whether ,regularity and ,variety have been rightly assigned1 as the circumstances on which it depends1 is a question1 which in this place we need not consider4 ,it cannot at least be denied1 that we make a distinction among the objects of sight1 when the things themselves are removed from our view3 and that we annex the names of ,beauty and ,deformity to different objects and different pictures1 in consequence of these perceptions4 ,i ask then1 what is meant1 when the words are thus applied8 ,is it only that we are pleased or displeased8 ,this surely cannot be said4 ,for the epithets would then be applied with equal propriety to the objects of different senses3 and the fragrance of a flower1 for instance1 would be a species of beauty2 the bitterness of wormwood a species of deformity4--,do we then mean1 that we receive pleasure and pain by means of the ,imagination8 ,we may indeed mean this3 but we certainly mean more than this4 ,for the same names are used and applied1 in a manner perfectly similar1 by numbers of persons who never once thought of this artificial method of distinguishing their ideas4 ,there is then some kind of perception1 common to them and us1 which has occasioned this uniformity in our ways of speaking3 and whether you will chuse to consider the perceptive faculty as resulting only from habit1 or allow it the name of a ,sense of ,beauty2 whether these perceptions can1 or cannot1 be resolved into some general principle1 imagination of private advantage1 or sympathy with others1 are1 in the present case1 circumstances wholly indifferent4 ,if it be admitted that the epithets1 of which we are speaking1 were originally used in this restrained sense1 it is easy to see that they would readily obtain the more extended signification4 ,for the species of pleasure to which they were first confined1 was found always to arise from images impressed on the fancy3 what then more natural1 than to apply the same words to every species of pleasure resulting from the imagination1 and to every species of images productive of pleasure8 ,thus the beauty of a human person might originally signify such combinations of figure and colour1 as produced the peculiar perception above-mentioned4 ,pulchritudo corporis 7says ,cicero7 apt compositione membrorum movet oculos1 et eo ipso delectat1 c4--,but from this signification to the other the transition was easy and obvious4 ,if every beautiful form gave pleasure1 every pleasing form might come to be called beautiful3 not because the same perceptions are excited by all 7the pleasures being apparently different7 but because they are all excited in the same manner4 ,and this is confirmed by a distinction which every one understands between beauties of the regular and irregular kind4 ,when we would distinguish these from each other1 we call the latter agreeable1 and leave to the former only the name of beautiful3 that is1 we confine the latter term to its proper and original sense4--,in much the same manner objects not visible may sometimes obtain the name of beauty1 for no other reason than because the imagination is agreeably employed about them2 and we may speak of a beautiful character1 as well as a beautiful person3 by no means intending that we have the same feeling from the one as the other1 but that in both cases we are pleased1 and that in both the imagination contributes to the pleasure4 ,now as every representative art is capable of affording us pleasure1 and this pleasure is occasioned by images impressed on the fancy2 every pleasing production of art1 will of course obtain the name of beautiful4 ,yet this hinders us not from considering beauty as a distinct excellence in such productions4 ,for we may distinguish1 either in a picture or poem1 between the pleasures we receive directly from the imitation of visible forms1 and those which principally depend on other kinds of imitation3 ,and we may consider visible forms themselves either as occasions of pleasure1 in common with other objects2 or as yielding us that peculiar delight which they alone are capable of yielding4 ,if we use the word beautiful in this limited sense1 it is very intelligibly opposed to pathetic4 ,images of ,groves1 ,fields1 ,rocks and ,water1 afford us a pleasure extremely different from that which we find in the indulgence of our tender affections3 nor can there be any danger of confounding the agreeable perception received from a masterly statue of an ,apollo or a ,venus1 with that which arises from a representation of the terrors men feel under a storm or a plague4 ,it is no objection to what has been said1 that the objects we call beautiful may also in some cases be occasions of passion4 ,the sight1 for instance1 of a beautiful person may give birth to the passion of ,love3 yet to perceive the beauty and to feel the passion are two different things4 ,for every beautiful object does not produce love in every observer1 and the same passion is sometimes excited by objects not beautiful2 ,i mean not called beautiful by the persons themselves who are affected by them4 ,and the distinction between these feelings1 would receive further confirmation 7if indeed there could be any doubt of it7 from observing that people frequently speak of beauty1 and as far as appears intelligibly1 in persons of their own sex2 who feel perhaps no passion but that of envy3 which will not surely be thought the same with the perception of beauty4 ,there is then no room for an objection to the text of ,horace1 as it stood before ,dr4 ,b4's emendation3 unless it should be thought an impropriety to oppose two epithets which are capable of being understood in senses not opposite4 ,but there is not the least ground for this imagination4 ,for when a word of uncertain signification is opposed to another whose signification is certain2 the opposition itself determines the sense4 ,the word day in one of its senses includes the whole space of twenty-four hours3 yet it is not surely an impropriety to oppose day to night4--,in like manner the words pulchra pomata1 if we were not directed by the context1 might signify good poems in general3 but when the beauty of a poem is distinguished from other excellences1 this distinction will lead us to confine our idea to beautiful imagery2 and1 we know it is agreeable to the sentiments which ,horace expresses in other places1 to declare that this kind of merit is insufficient in dramatic writers1 from whom we expect a pleasure of very different kind4 ,indeed the most exquisite painting1 if it is not constantly subordinate to this higher end1 becomes not only insufficient1 but impertinent3 serving only to divert the attention1 and interrupt the course of the passions4 ,it may seem perhaps that the force of a ,latin expression cannot be ascertained from reflections of this sort1 but must be gathered from citations of particular passages4 ,and this indeed is true with regard to the peculiarities of the language4 ,but the question before us is of a different kind4 ,it is a question of ,philosophy rather than ,criticism3 as depending on those differences of ideas1 which are marked by similar forms of expression in all languages40 99 99 99 99 99 #ajb4 ,,si ,,vis ,,me ,,flere1 ,,dolendum ,,est ,,primum ,,ipsi ,,tibi3 ,tragedy1 as#ac one said1 who had a heart to feel its tenderest emotions1 shewed forth the ulcers that are covered with tissue4 ,in order to awaken and call forth in the spectator all those sympathies1 which naturally await on the lively exhibition of such a scene1 the writer must have a soul tuned to the most exquisite sensibility1 and susceptible of the same vibrations from his own created images1 which are known to shake the sufferer in real life4 ,this is so uncommon a pitch of humanity1 that 'tis no wonder1 so few have succeeded in this trying part of the drama4 ,euripides1 of all the ancients1 had most of this sympathetic tenderness in his nature1 and accordingly we find him without a rival in this praise4 1 says ,aristotle of him 4 4 4 and to the same purpose another great critic1 ,in affectibus cum omnibus mirus1 tum in iis1 qui ,,miseratione constant1 facile prcipuus4 ,quinct4 l4 x4 c4 i4 ,they1 who apply themselves to express the pitiable in tragedy1 would do well to examine their own hearts by this rule1 before they presume to practise upon those of others4 ,see1 further1 this remark applied by ,cicero to the subject of oratory1 and inforced with his usual elegance and good sense4 l4 ii4 c4 xlv4 ,de oratore4 99 99 99 99 99 #ajc4 ,,tunc ,,tua ,,me ,,infortunia ,,laedent4 ,this is expressed with accuracy4 ,yet the truth is1 ,the more we are hurt with representations of this sort1 the more we are pleased with them4 ,whence arises this strange ,pleasure8 ,the question hath been frequently asked1 and various answers have been given to it4 ,but of all the solutions of this famous difficulty1 that which we have just now received from ,mr4 ,hume1 is by far the most curious4 ,his account in short is1 8,that the force of imagination1 the energy of expression1 the power of numbers1 the charms of imitation1 are all naturally of themselves delightful to the mind2 that these sentiments of beauty1 being the predominant emotions1 seize the whole mind1 and convert the uneasy melancholy passions into themselves4 ,in a word1 that the sentiments of beauty1 excited by a good tragedy1 are the superior prevailing movements1 and transform the subordinate impressions arising from grief1 compassion1 indignation1 and terror1 into one uniform and strong enjoyment40 ,see four ,dissertations by ,d4 ,hume1 ,esq4 p4 #ahe1 c4 ,i have but two objections to this ingenious theory4 ,,one is1 that it supposes the impression of grief or terror1 excited by a well-written tragedy1 to be weaker than that which arises from our observation of the faculties of the writer1 the power of numbers1 and imitation4 ,which to me is much the same thing as saying1 ,that the sight of a precipice hanging over our heads makes a fainter impression on the eye1 than the shrubs and wild flowers with which it happens to be covered4 ,the fact is so far otherwise1 that1 if the tragedy be well-written1 ,i will venture to say1 the faculties of the writer1 the charms of poetry1 or even the thought of imitation1 never come into the spectator's head4 ,but he may feel the effect of them1 it will be said1 for all that4 ,true3 ,but unluckily the whole effect of these things is 7and that was my ,,other objection7 to deepen the impressions of grief and terror4 ,they are out of place1 and altogether impertinent1 if they contribute to any other end4 ,so that to say1 ,the impression of grief and terror from a tragic story1 strong as it is in itself1 and made still stronger by the art of the poet1 is a weaker impression1 than the mere pleasure arising from that art1 is methinks to account for one mystery by another ten times greater1 and to make the poet a verier magician than ,horace ever intended to represent him4 ,this ingenious solution then1 being so evidently founded on the supposition of a false fact1 deserves no further notice4 ,as to the difficulty itself1 the following hints may1 perhaps1 enable the reader1 in some measure1 to account for it4 #a4 ,it is not to be doubted but that we love to have our attention raised1 and our curiosity gratified4 ,so far the ,,abb ,,du ,,bos' system may be admitted4 #b4 ,the representation1 however distressful1 is still seen to be a representation4 ,we find our hearts affected1 and even pained1 by a good tragedy4 ,but we instantly recollect that the scene is fictitious2 and the recollection not only abates our uneasiness1 but diffuses a secret joy upon the mind in the discovery we make that the occasion of our uneasiness is not real4 ,just as our awaking from a frightful dream1 and sometimes a secret consciousness of the illusion during the dream itself1 is attended with pleasure4 ,that so much of ,m4 ,,de ,,fontenelle',s notion must be admitted1 is clear1 because children1 who take the sufferings on the stage for realities1 are so afflicted by them that they don't care to repeat the experiment4 ,but still1 all this is by no means a full account of the matter4 ,for1 #c4 ,it should be considered1 that ,,all the uneasy ,passions1 in the very time that we are distressed by them1 nay1 though the occasions be instant and real1 have a secret complacency mixed with them4 ,it seems as if ,providence1 in compassion to human feeling1 had1 together with our sorrows1 infused a kind of balm into the mind1 to temper and qualify1 as it were1 these bitter ingredients4 ,but1 #d4 ,besides this general provision1 the nature of the peculiar passions1 excited by tragedy1 is such as1 in a more eminent degree1 must produce pleasure4 ,for what are these1 but indignation at prosperous vice1 or the commiseration of suffering virtue8 ,and the agitation of these passions is even1 in real life1 accompanied with a certain delight1 which was1 no doubt1 intended to quicken us in the exercise of those social offices4 ,still further4 #e4 ,to the pleasure directly springing from these passions we may add another which naturally1 but imperceptibly almost steals in upon us from reflexion4 ,we are conscious to our own humanity on these tender occasions4 ,we understand and feel that it is right for us to be affected by the distresses of others4 ,our pain is softened by a secret exultation in the rectitude of these sympathies4 ',tis true1 this reflex act of the mind is prevented1 or suspended at least for a time1 when the sufferings are real1 and concern those for whom we are most interested4 ,but the fictions of the stage do not press upon us so closely4 ,putting all these things together1 the conclusion is1 ,that though the impressions of the theatre are1 in their immediate effect1 painful to us1 yet they must1 on the whole1 afford an extreme pleasure1 and that in proportion to the degree of the first painful impression4 ,for not only our attention is rouzed1 but our moral instincts are gratified2 we reflect with joy that they are so1 and we reflect too that the sorrows which call them forth and give this exercise to our humanity1 are but fictitious4 ,we are occupied1 in a word1 by a great event2 we are melted into tears by a distressful one2 the heart is relieved by this burst of sorrow2 is cheared and animated by the finest moral feelings2 exults in the consciousness of its own sensibility2 and finds1 in conclusion1 that the whole is but an illusion4 ,the sum is1 that we are not so properly delighted by the ,passions1 as through them4 ,they give occasion to the most pleasing movements and gratulations4 ,the art of the poet indeed consists in giving pain4 ,but nature and reflexion fly to our relief2 and though they do not convert our pain into joy 7for that methinks would be little less than a new kind of ,transubstantiation7 they have an equivalent effect in producing an exquisite joy out of our preceding sorrows4 99 99 99 99 99 #aai4 ,,aut ,,famam ,,sequere1 c4 ,the connexion lies thus3 ,language must agree with character2 character with fame1 or at least with itself4 99 99 99 99 99 #abc4 ,,sit ,,medea ,,ferox ,,invictaque4 ,horace took this instance from ,euripides1 where the unconquered fierceness of this character is preserved in that due mediocrity1 which nature and just writing demand4 ,the poet1 in giving her character1 is content to say of her1 ' ' ,and 4 1 4 ,and she herself1 when opening to the chorus her last horrid purpose1 says1 fiercely indeed1 but not frantically3 ' 4 ,and this is nature1 which ,seneca not perceiving1 and yet willing to write up to the critic's rule1 hath outraged her character beyond all bounds1 and1 instead of a resolute1 revengeful woman1 hath made of her a downright fury4 ,hence her passion is wrought up to a greater height in the very first scene of the ,latin play1 than it ever reaches in the ,greek poet4 ,the tenor of her language throughout is1 invadam deos1 ,et cuncta quatiam4 ,and hence1 in particular1 the third and fourth acts expose to our view all the horrors of sorcery 7and those too imaged to an extravagance7 which ,euripides1 with so much better judgment1 thought fit entirely to conceal4 99 99 99 99 99 #abf4 ,,servetur ,,ad ,,imum ,,qualis ,,ab ,,incepto ,,processerit1 ,,et ,,sibi ,,constet4 ,the rule is1 as appears from the reason of the thing1 and from ,aristotle1 8,let an uniformity of character be preserved1 or at least a consistency30 i4 e4 either let the manners be exactly the same from the beginning to the end of the play1 as those of ,medea1 for instance1 and ,orestes2 or1 if any change be necessary1 let it be such as may consist with1 and be easily reconciled to1 the manners formerly attributed2 as is seen in the case of ,electra and ,iphigenia4 ,we should read then1 it is plain1 servetur ad imum ,qualis ab incepto processerit1 ,,aut sibi constet4 ,the mistake arose from imagining1 that a character could no other way consist with itself1 but by being uniform4 ,a mistake however1 which1 as ,i said1 not the reason of the thing only1 but ,aristotle's rule might have set right4 ,it is expressed thus3 4 1 1 4 4 4 4 which last words1 having been not at all understood1 have kept his interpreters from seeing the true sense and scope of the precept4 ,for they have been explained of such characters1 as that of ,tigellius in ,horace2 which1 however proper for satyr1 or for farcical comedy1 are of too fantastic and whimsical a nature to be admitted into tragedy2 of which ,aristotle must there be chiefly understood to speak1 and to which ,horace1 in this place1 alone confines himself4 8',tis true1 indeed1 it may be said1 that though a whimsical or fantastic character be improper for tragedy1 an irresolute one is not4 ,nothing is finer than a struggle between different passions2 and it is perfectly natural1 that in such a circumstance1 each should prevail by turns40 ,but then there is the widest difference between the two cases4 ,tigellius1 with all his fantastic irresolution1 is as uniform a character as that of ,mitio4 ,if the expression may be allowed1 its very inconsistency is of the essence of its uniformity4 ,on the other hand1 ,electra1 torn with sundry conflicting passions1 is most apparently1 and in the properest notion of the word1 ununiform4 ,one of the strongest touches in her character is that of a high1 heroic spirit1 sensible to her own1 and her family's injuries1 and determined1 at any rate1 to revenge them4 ,yet no sooner is this revenge perpetrated1 than she softens1 relents1 and pities4 ,here is a manifest ununiformity1 which can1 in no proper sense of the expression lay claim to the critic's 1 but may be so managed1 by the poet's skill1 as to become consistent with the basis or foundation of her character1 that is1 to be 4 ,and that this1 in fact1 was the meaning of the critic1 is plain from the similar example to his own rule1 given in the case of ,iphigenia3 which he specifies 7how justly will be considered hereafter7 as an instance of the 1 irregular1 or ununiform1 character1 ill-expressed1 or made inconsistent4 ,so that the genuine sense of the precept is1 8,let the manners be uniform2 or1 if ununiform1 yet consistently so1 or uniformly ununiform30 exactly copied1 according to the reading1 here given by ,horace4 ,whereas in the other way1 it stands thus3 8,let your characters be uniform1 or unchanged2 or1 if you paint an ununiform character 7such as ,tigellius7 let it be ununiform all the way2 i4 e4 such an irregular character to the end of the play1 as it was at the beginning2 which is1 in effect1 to say1 let it be uniform30 which apparently destroys the latter part of the precept1 and makes it an unmeaning tautology with the former4 99 99 99 99 99 #abg4 ,,aut ,,sibi ,,constet4 ,the ,,electra and ,,iphigenia of ,euripides have been quoted1 in the preceding note1 as instances of ununiform characters1 justly sustained1 or what ,aristotle calls1 uniformly ununiform3 ,and this1 though the general opinion condemns the one1 and the great critic himself1 the other2 the reader will expect some account to be given of this singularity4 #a4 ,the objection to ,electra1 is1 that her character is drawn with such heightenings of implacability and resentment1 as make it utterly incredible1 she should1 immediately on the murder of ,clytmnestra1 fall into the same excess of grief and regret1 as ,orestes4 ,in confutation of this censure ,i observe1 #a4 ,that the objection proceeds on a mistaken presumption1 that the distress of ,electra is equally violent with that of ,orestes4 ,on the contrary1 it is discriminated from it by two plain marks4 #a4 ,orestes's grief is expressed in stronger and more emphatic terms--he accuses the ,gods--he reproaches his sister--he dwells upon every horrid circumstance1 that can inhance the guilt of the murder4 ,electra1 in the mean time1 confesses the scene to be mournful--is apprehensive of bad consequences--calmly submits to the just reproaches of her brother4 #b4 ,he labours as much as possible1 to clear himself from the imputation of the act4 ,she takes it wholly on herself1 but1 regarding it rather as her fate1 than her fault1 comforts herself in reflecting on the justice of it4 ' 4 ,act v4 ,this last circumstance puts the widest difference between the two cases4 ,the one shews a perfect distraction of mind1 which cannot even bear the consciousness of its crimes3 the other1 a firm and steddy spirit1 sensible indeed to its misery1 but not oppressed or astonished by it4 #b4 ,but this measure of grief1 so delicately marked1 and1 with such truth of character1 ascribed to ,electra1 ought not1 it is further insisted1 to have shewn itself1 immediately1 on the murder of ,clytmnestra4 ,but why not8 ,there is nothing in the character of ,electra1 the maxims of those times1 or in the disposition of the drama itself1 to render this change improper or incredible4 ,on the contrary1 there is much under each of these heads1 to lead one to expect it4 #a4 ,electra's character is indeed that of a fierce1 and determined1 but withal of a generous and virtuous woman4 ,her motives to revenge were1 principally1 a strong sense of justice1 and superior affection for a father2 not a rooted1 unnatural aversion to a mother4 ,she acted1 as appears1 not from the perturbation of a tumultuous revenge 7in that case indeed the objection had been of weight7 but from a fixed abhorrence of wrong1 and a virtuous sense of duty4 ,and what should hinder a person of this character from being instantly touched with the distress of such a spectacle8 #b4 ,the maxims of those times also favour this conduct4 ,for1 #a4 ,the notions of strict remunerative justice were then carried very high4 ,this appears from the ,lex talionis1 which1 we know1 was in great credit in elder ,greece2 from whence it was afterwards transferred into the ,law of the ,,xii ,tables4 ,hence blood for blood ' 1--as the messenger1 in his account of the death of gysthus1 expresses it1 ,act iv4 was the command and rule of justice4 ,this the ,chorus1 as well as the parricides1 frequently insist upon1 as the ground and justification of the murder4 #b4 ,this severe vengeance on enormous offenders was believed1 not only consonant to the rules of human1 but to be the object1 and to make the especial care of the divine1 justice4 ,and thus the ancients conceived of this very case4 ,juvenal1 speaking of ,orestes1 ,quippe ille ,,deis ,,auctoribus ultor ,patris erat csi media inter pocula4 ,sat4 viii4 ,and to this opinion agrees that tradition1 or rather fiction1 of the poets1 who1 though they represent the judges of the ,areopagus as divided in their sentiments of this matter1 yet make no scruple of bringing in ,minerva herself to pronounce his absolution4 ,hoc etiam fictis fabulis doctissimi homines memori prodiderunt1 eum1 qui patris ulciscendi caus matrem necavisset1 variatis hominum sententiis1 non solum divin1 sed etiam sapientissim ,de sententi absolutum ,,cic4 pro ,,milon4 ,the venerable council of ,areopagus1 when judging by the severe rules of written justice1 it seems1 did not condemn the criminal2 and the unwritten law of equity1 which the fable calls the wisdom of ,pallas1 formally acquitted him4 ,the murder then was not against human1 and directly agreeable to the determinations of divine1 justice4 ,of this too the ,chorus takes care to inform us3 4 ,act4 iv4 ,this explains the reason of ,electra's question to ,orestes1 who had pleaded the impiety of murdering a mother1 1 2 the force of which lies in this1 that a father's death revenged upon the guilty mother1 was equally pious as just4 #c4 ,this vengeance was1 of course1 to be executed by the nearest relations of the deceased4 ,this the law prescribed in judicial prosecutions4 ,who then so fit instruments of fate1 when that justice was precluded to them8 ,this is expressed1 in answer to the plea of ,orestes1 that he should suffer the vengeance of the ,gods for the murder of his mother2 ,electra replies1 2 i4 e4 ,who then shall repay vengeance to our father8 ,she owns the consequence1 yet insists on the duty of incurring it4 ,there was no other1 to whom the right of vengeance properly belonged4 #d4 ,further the pagan doctrine of fate was such1 that1 in order to discharge duty in one respect1 it was unavoidable to incur guilt1 in another4 ,this was the case here1 ,phbus commanded and fate had decreed3 yet obedience was a crime1 to be expiated by future punishment4 ,this may seem strange to us1 who have other notions of these matters1 but was perfectly according to the pagan system4 ,the result is1 that they knowingly exposed themselves to vengeance1 in order to fulfil their fate4 ,all that remained was to lament their destiny1 and revere the awful and mysterious providence of their ,gods4 ,and this is1 exactly1 what ,orestes pleads1 in vindication of himself1 elsewhere3 ' 1 '1 1 4 ,orest4 ,act4 ii4 #e4 ,lastly1 it should be remembered1 how heinous a crime adultery was esteemed in the old world2 when1 as well as murder1 we find it punished with death4 ,the law of the ,,xii ,tables expressly says1 ,,advlterii ,,convictam ,,vir ,,et ,,cognati1 ,,vti ,,velint1 ,,necanto4 ,now1 all these considerations put together1 ,electra might assist at the assassination of her mother1 consistently with the strongest feelings of piety and affection4 ,that these then should instantly break forth1 so soon as the debt to justice1 to duty1 and to fate was paid1 is nothing wonderful4 ,and this1 by the way1 vindicates the ,chorus from the inconsistency1 by some charged upon it1 in condemning the act1 when done1 which before they had laboured to justify4 ,the common answer1 8,that the ,chorus follows the character of the people10 is insufficient4 ,for 7besides that the ,chorus always sustains a moral character7 whence that inconsistency in the people themselves8 ,the reason was1 the popular creed of those times4 ,it had been an omission of duty to have declined1 it was criminal to execute1 the murder4 #c4 ,the disposition of the drama 7whether the most judicious1 or not1 is not the question7 was calculated to introduce this change with the greatest probability4 ,electra's principal resentment was to gysthus4 ,from him chiefly proceeded her ill treatment1 and from him was apprehended the main danger of the enterprize4 ,now1 gysthus being taken off in the beginning of the preceding act1 there was time to indulge all the movements and gratulations of revenge1 which the objection supposes should precede1 and for a while suspend the horrors of remorse1 before they come to the murder of ,clytmnestra4 ,this is rendered the more likely by the long parley1 that goes before it2 which rather tends to soften1 than exasperate1 her resentments1 and seems artfully contrived to prepare the change1 that follows4 ,on the whole1 ,electra's concern1 as managed by the poet1 is agreeable to the tenor of her character1 and the circumstances of her situation4 ,to have drawn her otherwise1 had been perhaps in the taste of modern tragedy1 but had certainly been beside the line of nature1 and practice of the ancients4 ,,ii4 ,the case of ,iphigenia1 though a greater authority stand in the way1 is still easier4 ,aristotle's words are1 4 1 i4 e4 8,iphigenia is an instance of the inconsistent character3 for there is no probable conformity betwixt her fears and supplications at first1 and her firmness and resolution afterwards40 ,but how doth this appear1 independently of the name of this great critic8 ,iphigenia is drawn indeed1 at first1 fearful and suppliant3 and surely with the greatest observance of nature4 ,the account of her destination to the altar was sudden1 and without the least preparation2 and1 as ,lucretius well observes1 in commenting her case1 ,,nubendi ,,tempore ,,in ,,ipso2 when her thoughts were all employed1 and1 according to the simplicity of those times1 confessed to be so1 on her promised nuptials4 ,the cause of such destination too1 as appeared at first1 was the private family interest of ,menelaus4 ,all this justifies1 or rather demands1 the strongest expression of female fear and weakness4 8,but she afterwards recants and voluntarily devotes herself to the altar40 ,and this1 with the same strict attention to probability4 ,she had now informed herself of the importance of the case4 ,her devotement was the demand of ,apollo1 and the joint petition of all ,greece4 ,the glory of her country1 the dignity and interest of her family1 the life of the generous ,achilles1 and her own future fame1 were1 all1 nearly concerned in it4 ,all this considered1 together with the high1 heroic sentiments of those times1 and the superior merit1 as was believed1 of voluntary devotement1 ,iphigenia's character must have been very unfit for the distress of a whole tragedy to turn upon1 if she had not1 in the end1 discovered the readiest submission to her appointment4 ,but1 to shew with what wonderful propriety the poet knew to sustain his characters1 we find her1 after all1 and notwithstanding the heroism of the change1 in a strong and passionate apostrophe to her native ,mycen1 confessing some involuntary apprehensions and regrets1 the remains of that instinctive abhorrence of death1 which had before so strongly possessed her4 -- ' 4 ,once the bright star of ,greece-- ,but ,i submit to die4 ,this1 ,i take to be not only a full vindication of the consistency of ,iphigenia's character1 but as delicate a stroke of nature1 as is1 perhaps1 to be found in any writer4 ,after the writing of this note1 ,i was pleased to find1 that so sensible a critic1 as ,p4 ,brumoi1 had been before me in these sentiments concerning the character of ,iphigenia4 ,the reasons he employs1 are nearly the same4 ,only he confirms them all by shewing1 that the ,iphigenia of ,racine1 which is modelled1 not according to the practice of ,euripides1 but the ,comment of ,aristotle1 is1 in all respects1 so much the worse for it4 ,in justice to this ingenious writer1 it should be owned1 that he is almost the only one of his nation1 who hath perfectly seen through the foppery1 or1 as some affect to esteem it1 the refinement of ,french manners4 ,this hath enabled him to give us1 in his ,thatre des ,grecs1 a masterly and very useful view of the ,greek stage2 set forth in all its genuine simplicity1 and defended on the sure principles of nature and common sense4 99 99 99 99 99 #abh4 ,,difficile ,,est ,,proprie ,,communia ,,dicere3 ,lambin's ,comment is ,communia hoc loco appellat ,horatius argumenta fabularum nullo adhuc tractata3 et ita1 qu cuivis exposita sunt et in medio quodammodo posita1 quasi vacua et nemine occupata4 ,and that this is the true meaning of communia is evidently fixed by the words ignota indictaque1 which are explanatory of it3 so that the sense1 given it in the commentary1 is unquestionably the right one4 ,yet1 notwithstanding the clearness of the case1 a late critic hath this strange passage3 ,difficile quidem esse proprie communia dicere1 hoc est1 materiam vulgarem1 notam1 et medio petitam ita immutare atque exornare1 ut nova et scriptori propria videatur1 ultro concedimus2 et maximi proculdubio ponderis ista est observatio4 ,sed omnibus utrinque collatis1 et tum difficilis1 tum venusti1 tam judicii quam ingenii ratione habita1 major videtur esse gloria fabulam formare penitus novam1 quam veterem1 utcunque mutatam1 de novo exhibere4 ,poet4 ,prl4 v4 ii4 p4 #afd4 ,where having first1 put a wrong construction on the word communia1 he imploys it to introduce an impertinent criticism4 ,for where does the poet prefer the glory of refitting old subjects1 to that of inventing new ones8 ,the contrary is implied in what he urges about the superior difficulty of the latter2 from which he dissuades his countrymen1 only in respect of their abilities and inexperience in these matters2 and in order to cultivate in them1 which is the main view of the ,epistle1 a spirit of correctness1 by sending them to the old subjects1 treated by the ,greek writers4 99 99 99 99 99 #aca4 ,,publica ,,materies ,,privati ,,juris ,,erit1 c4 ,publica materies is just the reverse of what the poet had before stiled communia2 the latter meaning such subjects or characters1 as1 though by their nature left in common to all1 had yet1 in fact1 not been occupied by any writer--the former those1 which had already been made public by occupation4 ,in order to acquire a property in subjects of this sort1 the poet directs us to observe the three following cautions3 #a4 ,not to follow the trite1 obvious round of the original work1 i4 e4 not servilely and scrupulously to adhere to its plan or method4 #b4 ,not to be translators1 instead of imitators1 i4 e4 if it shall be thought fit to imitate more expressly any part of the original1 to do it with freedom and spirit1 and without a slavish attachment to the mode of expression4 #c4 ,not to adopt any particular incident1 that may occur in the proposed model1 which either decency or the nature of the work would reject4 ,m4 ,dacier illustrates these rules1 which have been conceived to contain no small difficulty1 from the ,iliad2 to which the poet himself refers1 and probably not without an eye to particular instances of the errors1 here condemned1 in the ,latin tragedies4 ,for want of these1 it may be of use to fetch an illustration from some examples in our own4 ,and we need not look far for them4 ,almost every modern play affords an instance of one or other of these faults4 ,the single one of ,catiline by ,b4 ,jonson is1 itself1 a specimen of them all4 ,this tragedy1 which hath otherwise great merit1 and on which its author appears to have placed no small value1 is1 in fact1 the ,catilinarian war of ,sallust1 put into poetical dialogue1 and so offends against the first rule of the poet1 in following too servilely the plain beaten round of the ,chronicle4 #b4 ,next1 the speeches of ,cicero and ,catiline1 of ,cato and ,csar are1 all of them1 direct and literal translations of the historian and orator1 in violation of the second rule1 which forbids a too close attachment to the mode1 or form of expression4 #c4 ,there are several transgressions of that rule1 which injoins a strict regard to the nature and genius of the work4 ,one is obvious and striking4 ,in the history1 which had1 for its subject1 the whole ,catilinarian war1 the fates of the conspirators were distinctly to be recorded1 and the preceding debates1 concerning the manner of their punishment1 afforded an occasion1 too inviting to be overlooked by an historian1 and above all a republican historian1 of embellishing his narration by set harangues4 ,hence the long speeches of ,csar and ,cato in the senate have great propriety1 and are justly esteemed among the leading beauties of that work4 ,but the case was totally different in the drama2 which1 taking for its subject the single fate of ,catiline1 had no concern with the other conspirators1 whose fates at most should only have been hinted at1 not debated with all the circumstance and pomp of rhetoric on the stage4 ,nothing can be more flat and disgusting1 than this calm1 impertinent pleading2 especially in the very heat and winding up of the plot4 ,but the poet was misled by the beauty it appeared to have in the original composition1 without attending to the peculiar laws of the drama1 and the indecorum it must needs have in so very different a work4 99 99 99 99 99 #acf4 ,,nec ,,sic ,,incipies1 ,,ut ,,scriptor ,,cyclicus ,,olim3 ,all this to v4 #aec is a continuation of the poet's advice1 given above1 ,rectius ,iliacum carmen deducis in actus ,quam si proferres ignota indictaque primus4 ,for1 having first shewn in what respects a close observance of the epic form would be vicious in tragedy1 he now prescribes how far it may be usefully admitted4 ,and this is1 #a4 from #acf to #adf in the simplicity and modesty of the exordium2 and1 #b4 to v4 #aec in the artificial method and contexture of the piece4 #a4 ,the reason of the former rule is founded on the impropriety of raising a greater expectation1 at setting out1 than can afterwards be answered by the sequel of the poem4 ,but1 because the epic writers themselves1 from whom this conduct was to be drawn1 had sometimes transgressed this rule1 and as the example of such an error would be likely to infect1 and1 in all probability1 actually did infect1 the tragic poets of that time1 he takes occasion1 #a4 to criticize an absurd instance of it2 and1 #b4 to oppose to it the wiser practice of ,homer4 #b4 ,the like conduct he observes under the second article4 ,for1 being to recommend to the tragic writer such an artificial disposition of his subject1 as hastens rapidly to the event1 and rejects1 as impertinent1 all particulars in the round of the story1 which would unnecessarily obstruct his course to it--a plan essentially necessary to the legitimate epic--he first glances at the injudicious violation of this method in a certain poem on the return of ,diomed1 and then illustrates and lays open the superior art and beauty of the ,iliad4 ,and all this1 as appears1 for the sole purpose of explaining and enforcing the precept about forming the plots of tragedies from epic poems4 ,whence we see1 how properly the examples of the errors1 here condemned1 are taken1 not from the drama1 as the less attentive reader might expect1 but solely from the epos2 for1 this being made the object of imitation to the dramatic poet1 as the tenor of the place shews1 it became necessary to guard against the influence of bad models4 ,which ,i observe for the sake of those1 who1 from not apprehending the connection of this and such like passages in the epistle1 hastily conclude it to be a confused medley of precepts concerning the art of poetry1 in general2 and not a regular well-conducted piece1 uniformly tending to lay open the state1 and to remedy the defects1 of the ,roman stage4 99 99 99 99 99 #adh4 ,,semper ,,ad ,,eventum ,,festinat2 c4 ,the disposition1 here recommended to the poet1 might be shewn universally right from the clearest principles4 ,but the propriety and beauty of it will1 perhaps1 be best apprehended by such1 as are unused to the more abstract criticism1 from attending to a particular instance4 ,let us conceive an objector then to put the following query3 8,supposing the author of the neis to have related1 in the natural order1 the destruction of ,troy1 would not the subject have been1 to all intents and purposes1 as much one1 as it is under its present form2 in which that event is told1 in the second book1 by way of episode80 ,i answer by no means4 ,the reason is taken from the nature of the work1 and from the state and expectations of the reader4 #a4 ,the nature of an epic or narrative poem is this1 that it lays the author under an obligation of shewing any event1 which he formally undertakes in his own person1 at full length1 and with all its material circumstances4 ,every figure must be drawn in full proportion1 and exhibited in strong1 glowing colours4 ,now had the subject of the second book of the neis been related1 in this extent1 it must not only have taken up one1 but many books4 ,by this faithful and animated drawing1 and the time it would necessarily have to play upon the imagination1 the event had grown into such importance1 that the remainder could only have passed for a kind of ,appendix to it4 #b4 ,the same conclusion is drawn from considering the state of the reader4 ,for1 hurried away by an instinctive impatience1 he pursues the proposed event with eagerness and rapidity4 ,so circumstantial a detail1 as was supposed1 of an intermediate action not necessarily connected with it1 breaks the course of his expectations1 and throws forward the point of view to an immoderate distance4 ,in the mean time the action1 thus interposed and presented to his thoughts1 acquires by degrees1 and at length ingrosses his whole attention4 ,it becomes the important theme of the piece2 or1 at least1 what follows sets out with the disadvantage of appearing to him1 as a new and distinct subject4 ,but now being related by way of episode1 that is1 as a succinct1 summary narration1 not made by the poet himself1 but coming from the mouth of a person1 necessarily ingaged in the progress of the action1 it serves for a short time to interrupt1 and1 by that interruption to sharpen1 the eager expectation of the reader4 ,it holds the attention1 for a while1 from the main point of view2 yet not long enough to destroy that impatient curiosity1 which looks forward to it4 ,and thus it contributes to the same end1 as a piece of miniature1 properly introduced into a large picture4 ,it amuses the eye with something relative to the painter's design1 yet not so1 as to with-hold its principal observation from falling on the greater subject4 ,the parallel will not hold very exactly1 because the painter is1 of necessity1 confined to the same instant of time2 but it may serve for an illustration of my meaning4 ,suppose the painter to take1 for his subject1 that part of neas's story1 where1 with his penates1 his father1 and his son1 he is preparing to set sail for ,italy4 ,to draw ,troy in flames1 as a constituent part of this picture1 would be manifestly absurd4 ,it would be painting two subjects1 instead of one4 ,and perhaps ,troja incensa might seize the attention before ,ascanium ,anchisenque patrem ,teucrosque penates4 ,but a distant perspective of burning ,troy might be thrown into a corner of the piece1 that is1 episodically1 with good advantage2 where1 instead of distracting the attention1 and breaking the unity of the subject1 it would concenter1 as it were1 with the great design1 and have an effect in augmenting the distress of it4 99 99 99 99 99 #aec4 ,,tu1 ,,quid ,,ego ,,et ,,populus1 c4 ,the connexion is this4 8,but though the strict observance of these rules will enable the poet to conduct his plot to the best advantage1 yet this is not all which is required to a perfect tragedy4 ,if he would seize the attention1 and secure the applause1 of the audience1 something further must be attempted4 ,he must 7to return to the point1 from which ,i digressed1 v4 #abg7 be particularly studious to express the manners4 ,besides the peculiarities of office1 temper1 condition1 country1 c4 before considered1 all which require to be drawn with the utmost fidelity1 a singular attention must be had to the characteristic differences of age40 tatis cujusque notandi sunt tibi mores4 ,the reason of this conduct is given in the commentary4 ,it further serves to adorn this part of the epistle which is wholly preceptive from v4 #hi to #bjb with those beautiful pourtraitures of human life1 in its several successive stages1 which nature and ,aristotle had instructed him so well to paint4 99 99 99 99 99 #aeg4 ,,mobilibusque ,,decor ,,naturis ,,dandus ,,et ,,annis4 ,,mobilibus non levibus aut inconstantibus1 sed qu variatis tatibus immutantur4 ,lambin4 ,,naturis ,by this word is not meant1 simply1 that instinctive natural biass1 implanted in every man1 to this or that character1 but1 in general1 nature1 as it appears diversified in the different periods of life4 ,the sense will be3 ,a certain decorum or propriety must be observed in painting the natures or dispositions of men varying with their years4 ,there is then no occasion for changing the text1 with ,dr4 ,bentley1 into ,mobilibusque decor1 maturis dandus et annis4 99 99 99 99 99 #agi4 ,,aut ,,agitur ,,res ,,in ,,scenis1 ,,aut ,,acta ,,refertur3 c4 ,the connexion is this4 ,the misapplication1 just now mentioned1 destroys the credibility4 ,this puts the poet in mind of another misconduct1 which hath the same effect1 viz4 intus digna geri promere in scenam4 ,but1 before he makes this observation1 it was proper to premise a concession to prevent mistakes1 viz4 ,segnius irritant animos1 c4 99 99 99 99 99 #ahb4 ,,non ,,tamen ,,intus ,,digna ,,geri ,,promes ,,in ,,scenam3 ,i know not a more striking example of the transgression of this rule1 than in ,seneca's ,hippolytus2 where ,theseus is made to weep over the mangled members of his son1 which he attempts to put together on the stage4 ,this1 which has so horrid an appearance in the action1 might have been so contrived1 as to have an infinite beauty in the narration2 as may be seen from a similar instance in ,xenophon's ,cyropdia1 where ,panthea is represented putting together the torn limbs of ,abradates4 99 99 99 99 99 #ahe4 ,,ne ,,pueros ,,coram ,,populo1 c4 ,seneca1 whom we before v4 #abc saw so sollicitous to keep up to one rule of ,horace1 here makes no scruple to transgress another4 ,for1 in violation of the very letter of this precept1 and of all the laws of decency and common sense1 he represents ,medea butchering her children in the face of the people2 and1 as if this too faintly painted the fury of her character1 he further aggravates the cruelty of the execution1 with all the horrors of a lingering act4 ,this1 seemingly inconsistent1 conduct of the poet was1 in truth1 owing to one and the same cause1 namely1 8,the endeavour to sustain ,medea's character40 ,for1 wanting true taste to discern the exact boundaries1 which nature had prescribed to the human character1 or true genius to support him in a due preservation of it1 he1 as all bad writers use1 for fear of doing too little1 unfortunately does too much2 and so1 as ,shakespear well expresses it1 o'ersteps the modesty of nature1 inflating her sentiments with extravagant passion1 and blackening her acts with circumstances of unnatural horror4 ,though some of these faults ,i suspect he only copied4 ,for1 to say nothing of that of ,ennius1 ,ovid's ,medea was1 at this time1 very famous1 and as1 ,i think1 may be collected from the judgment passed upon it by ,quinctilian1 had some of the vices1 here charged upon ,seneca4 ,ovidii ,medea1 says he1 videtur mihi ostendere1 quantum vir ille prstare potuerit1 si ingenio suo temperare1 qum indulgere1 maluisset4 ,it is not possible indeed to say exactly1 wherein this intemperance consisted2 but it is not unlikely1 that1 amongst other things1 it might shew itself in the sorceries and incantations2 a subject1 intirely suited to the wildness of ,ovid's genius2 and which1 as appears from his relation of this story in the metamorphosis1 he knew not how to treat without running into some excess and luxuriance in that part4 ,but whether this were the cause1 or no1 the very treating a subject1 which had gone through such hands1 as ,euripides1 ,ennius1 and ,ovid1 was enough to expose a writer of better judgment1 than ,seneca1 to some hazard4 ,for1 in attempting to outdo originals1 founded on the plan of simple nature1 a writer is in the utmost danger of running into affectation and bombast4 ,and indeed1 without this temptation1 our writers have generally found means to incur these excesses2 the very best of them being too apt to fill their plots with unnatural incidents1 and to heighten their characters into caracatures4 ,though it may be doubted1 whether this hath been owing so much to their own ill taste1 as to a vicious compliance with that of the public2 for1 as one says1 who well knew the expediency of this craft1 and practised accordingly1 to write unnatural things is the most probable way of pleasing them who understand not nature4 ,dryd4 ,pref4 to ,mock ,astrol4 99 99 99 99 99 #aic4 ,,actoris ,,partes ,,chorus1 c4 ,see also ,aristotle 4 4 4 4 ,the judgment of two such critics1 and the practice of wise antiquity concurring to establish this precept concerning the ,chorus1 it should thenceforth1 one would think1 have become a fundamental rule and maxim of the stage4 ,and so indeed it appeared to some few writers4 ,the most admired of the ,french tragic poets ventured to introduce it into two of his latter plays1 and with such success1 that1 as one observes1 ,it should1 in all reason1 have disabused his countrymen on this head3 l'essai heureux de ,m4 ,racine1 qui les churs a fait revivre dans ,,athalie et dans ,,esther1 devroit1 ce semble1 nous avoir detrompez sur cet article4 ,p4 ,brumoi1 vol4 i4 p4 #aje4 ,and1 before him1 our ,milton1 who1 with his other great talents1 possessed a supreme knowledge of antiquity1 was so struck with its use and beauty1 as to attempt to bring it into our language4 ,his ,sampson ,agonistes was1 as might be expected1 a master-piece4 ,but even his credit hath not been sufficient to restore the ,chorus4 ,hear a late ,professor of the art declaring1 ,de choro nihil disserui1 quia non est essentialis dramati1 atque neotericis penitus1 ,,et1 ,,me ,,judice1 ,,merito1 ,,repudiatur4 ,prl4 ,poet4 vol4 ii4 p4 #ahh4 ,whence it hath come to pass1 that the chorus hath been thus neglected1 is not now the inquiry4 ,but that this critic1 and all such are greatly out in their judgments when they presume to censure it in the ancients1 must appear 7if we look no further7 from the double use1 insisted on by the poet4 ,for1 #a4 ,a chorus interposing1 and bearing a part in the progress of the action1 gives the representation that probability#ad1 and striking resemblance of real life1 which every man of sense perceives and feels the want of upon our stage2 a want1 which nothing but such an expedient as the chorus can possibly relieve4 ,and1 #b4 ,the importance of its other office v4 #aif to the utility of the representation1 is so great1 that1 in a moral view1 nothing can compensate for this deficiency4 ,for it is necessary to the truth and decorum of characters1 that the manners1 bad as well as good1 be drawn in strong1 vivid colours1 and to that end that immoral sentiments1 forcibly expressed and speciously maintained1 be sometimes imputed to the speakers4 ,hence the sound philosophy of the chorus will be constantly wanting to rectify the wrong conclusions of the audience1 and prevent the ill impressions that might otherwise be made upon it4 ,nor let any one say1 that the audience is well able to do this for itself3 ,euripides did not find even an ,athenian theatre so quick-sighted4 ,the story is well known ,sen4 ,ep4 #aae4 that when this painter of the manners was obliged1 by the rules of his art1 and the character to be sustained1 to put a run of bold sentiments in the mouth of one of his persons1 the people instantly took fire1 charging the poet with the imputed villany1 as though it had been his own4 ,now if such an audience could so easily misinterpret an attention to the truth of character into the real doctrine of the poet1 and this too1 when a chorus was at hand to correct and disabuse their judgments1 what must be the case1 when the whole is left to the sagacity and penetration of the people8 ,the wiser sort1 'tis true1 have little need of this information4 ,yet the reflexions of sober sense on the course and occurrences of the representation1 clothed in the noblest dress of poetry1 and inforced by the joint powers of harmony and action 7which is the true character of the chorus7 might make it1 even to such1 a not unpleasant or unprofitable entertainment4 ,but these two are a small part of the uses of the chorus3 which in every light is seen so important to the truth1 decorum1 and dignity of the tragic scene1 that the modern stage1 which hath not thought proper to adopt it1 is even1 with the advantage of1 sometimes1 the justest moral painting and sublimest imagery1 but a very faint shadow of the old2 as must needs appear to those1 who have looked into the ancient models1 or1 divesting themselves of modern prejudices1 are disposed to consult the dictates of plain sense4 ,for the use of such ,i once designed to have drawn into one view the several important benefits1 arising to the drama from the observance of this rule1 but have the pleasure to find myself prevented by a sensible dissertation of a good ,french writer1 which the reader will find in the ,,viii ,tom4 of the history of the ,academy of ,inscriptions and ,belles ,lettres4--,or1 it may be sufficient to refer the ,english ,reader to the late tragedies of ,,elfrida and ,,caractacus2 which do honour to modern poetry1 and are a better apology1 than any ,i could make1 for the ancient chorus4 99 99 99 99 99 #aic4 ,,officiumque ,,virile ,heinsius takes virile adverbially for viriliter4 ,but this is thought harsh4 ,what hinders1 but that it may be taken adjectively8 ,and then1 agreeably to his interpretation1 officium virile will mean a strenuous1 diligent office1 such as becomes a person interested in the progress of the action4 ,the precept is leveled against the practice of those poets1 who1 though they allot the part of a persona dramatis to the chorus1 yet for the most part make it so idle and insignificant an one1 as is of little consequence in the representation3 by which means the advantage of probability1 intended to be drawn from this use of the chorus1 is1 in great measure1 lost4 99 99 99 99 99 #aid4 ,,neu ,,quid ,,medios ,,intercinat ,,actus1 ,,quod ,,non ,,proposito ,,conducat ,,et ,,haereat ,,apte4 ,how necessary this advice might be to the writers of the ,augustan age cannot certainly appear2 but1 if the practice of ,seneca may give room for any suspicion1 it should seem to have been much wanted2 in whom ,i scarcely believe there is one single instance of the chorus being employed in a manner1 consonant to its true end and character4 ,to support this general censure1 which may seem to bear hard on the poet1 let us examine1 in this view1 one of the best of his plays1 ,i mean1 the ,hippolytus2 whose chorus1 throughout1 bears a very idle and uninteresting part--hath no share in the action--and sings impertinently4 ,at the end of the first act1 when ,phdra had avowed her passion for ,hippolytus1 instead of declaiming against her horrid purpose1 enlarging on the danger and impiety of giving way to unnatural lusts1 or something of this nature1 which was surely the office of the chorus1 it expatiates wantonly1 and with a poetic luxuriance1 on the sovereign1 wide-extended powers of love4 ,in the close of the second act1 instead of applauding the virtuous obstinacy of ,hippolytus1 and execrating the mad attempt of ,phdra1 it coolly sings the danger of beauty4 ,the third act contains the false accusation of ,hippolytus1 and the too easy deception of ,theseus4 ,what had the chorus to do here1 but to warn against a too great credulity1 and to commiserate the case of the deluded father8 ,yet it declaims1 in general1 on the unequal distribution of good and ill4 ,after the fourth act1 the chorus should naturally have bewailed the fate of ,hippolytus1 and reverenced the mysterious conduct of ,providence in suffering the cruel destiny of the innocent4 ,this1 or something like it1 would have been to the purpose4 ,but1 as if the poet had never heard of this rule of coherence1 he harangues1 in defiance of common sense1 on the instability of an high fortune1 and the security of a low4 ,it will further justify this censure of ,seneca1 and be some amusement to the critical reader1 to observe1 how the several blunders1 here charged upon him1 arose from an injudicious imitation of ,euripides4 ,i4 ,there are two places in the ,greek ,hippolytus1 which ,seneca seems to have had in view in his first chorus4 ,we will consider them both4 #a4 ,when the unhappy ,phdra at length suffers the fatal secret of her passion to be extorted from her1 she falls1 as was natural1 into all the horrors of self-detestation1 and determines not to survive the confession of so black a crime4 ,in this conjuncture1 the nutrix1 who is not drawn1 as in modern tragedy1 an unmeaning confidante1 the mere depositary of the poet's secrets1 but has real manners assigned to her1 endeavours1 with the highest beauty of character1 to divert these horrid intentions1 and mitigate in some sort the guilt of her passion1 by representing to her the resistless and all-subduing force of love4 8,venus1 says this virtuous monitrix1 is not to be withstood1 when she rushes upon us with all her power4 ,nor is any part of creation vacant from her influence4 ,she pervades the air1 and glides through the deeps4 ,we1 the inhabitants of the earth1 are all subject to her dominion4 ,nay1 ask of the ancient bards1 and they will tell you1 that the ,gods themselves are under her controul40 ,and so goes on1 enumerating particular examples1 from all which she infers at last the necessity of ,phdra's yielding to her fate4 ,again1 #b4 ,towards the close of the ,greek play1 when1 upon receiving the tragical story of his son's sufferings1 ,theseus began to feel his resentments give way to the workings of paternal affection1 and1 on that account1 though he was willing to conceal the true motive1 even from himself1 had given orders for the dying ,hippolytus to be brought before him1 the chorus very properly flings out into that fine address to ,venus1 1 c4 the substance of which is1 8,that ,venus1 with her swift-winged boy1 who traverses the earth and ocean1 subdues the stubborn hearts of ,gods and men3 inspiring into all1 on whom her influence rests1 whether inhabitants of the land or deep1 and more especially the race of man1 a soft and sympathizing tenderness2 demonstrating hereby1 that she alone extends her all-controuling dominion over universal nature40 ,this song1 as thus connected with the occasion1 is apparently very proper1 and1 when reduced from the pomp of lyric eloquence to plain prose1 is only an address of congratulation to the powers of love2 confessing and celebrating their influence1 in thus softening the rigors of a father's hate1 and awakening in his breast the soft touches of returning pity and affection4 ,now these two places1 taken together1 are plainly the ground-work of that song1 ,diva1 non miti generata ponto1 c4 but how improperly applied1 has appeared1 in respect of the latter of them1 from what has been observed concerning the occasion2 and must be acknowledged of the other1 from the different character of the person to whom it is given2 and also from hence1 that the chorus in the ,greek poet expressly condemns the impiety of such suggestions in the nurse1 and admonishes ,phdra not to lend an ear to them4 ,the chorus1 when it comes to sing in him1 is far otherwise employed2 not in celebrating the triumphs1 but deprecating the pernicious fury of this passion1 and in lamenting the fatal miscarriages of ,hymeneal love4 ,,ii4 ,the second song1 on the graces of the prince's person1 and the danger of beauty1 which follows on the abrupt departure of ,hippolytus1 rejecting1 with a virtuous disdain1 the mad attempts of ,phdra and her confidante1 is so glaringly improper1 as not to admit an excuse from any example4 ,and yet1 ,i am afraid1 the single authority1 it has to lean on1 is a very short hint1 slightly dropped by the chorus in the ,greek poet on a very different occasion4 ,it is in the entrance of that scene1 where the mangled body of ,hippolytus is brought upon the stage2 on the sight of which the chorus very naturally breaks out1 4 and yet1 as the reader of just taste perceives1 nothing beyond a single reflexion could have been endured even here4 ,,iii4 ,the next song of the chorus may seem directly copied from ,euripides4 ,yet the two occasions will be found extremely different4 ,in ,seneca1 ,theseus1 under the conviction of his son's guilt1 inveighs bitterly against him1 and at last supplicates the power of ,neptune to avenge his crimes4 ,the chorus1 as anticipating the effects of this imprecation1 arraigns the justice of the ,gods4 ,in the ,greek poet1 the father1 under the like circumstances1 invokes the same avenging power1 and1 as some immediate relief to his rage1 pronounces the sentence of banishment1 and urges the instant execution of it1 against him4 ,hippolytus1 unable to contend any longer with his father's fury1 breaks out into that most tender complaint 7than which nothing was ever more affecting in tragedy7 1 1 4 c4 containing his last adieu to his country1 companions1 and friends4 ,the chorus1 touched with the pathos of this apostrophe1 and commiserating his sad reverse of fortune1 enters with him into the same excess of lamentation1 and1 as the first expression of it1 lets fall this natural sentiment1 8,that though from coolly contemplating the divine superintendency of human affairs1 there results abundant confidence and security against the ills of life1 yet when we look abroad into the lives and fortunes of men1 that confidence is apt to fail us1 and we find ourselves discouraged and confounded by the promiscuous and undistinguishing appointments of good and ill40 ,this is the thought1 which ,seneca hath imitated1 and1 as his manner is1 outraged in his chorus of the third act3 ,o magna parens1 ,natura1 ,dem1 c4 ,but the great difference lies here4 ,that1 whereas in ,euripides this sentiment is proper and agreeable to the state and circumstances of the chorus1 which is ever attentive to the progress of the action1 and is most affected by what immediately presents itself to observation2 in ,seneca it is quite foreign and impertinent2 the attention of the chorus naturally turning1 not on the distresses of ,hippolytus1 which had not yet commenced1 but on the rashness and unhappy delusion of ,theseus1 as being that1 which had made the whole subject of the preceding scene4 ,but the consequence of that delusion1 it will be said1 was obvious4 ,it may be so4 ,but the chorus1 as any sensible spectator1 is most agitated by such reflexions1 as occur to the mind from those scenes of the drama1 which are actually passing before it1 and not from those which have not yet taken place4 ,,iv4 ,what was remarked of the second song of the chorus will be applicable to the fourth1 which is absurdly founded on a single reflexion in the ,greek poet1 but just touched in a couple of lines1 though much more naturally introduced4 ,theseus1 plunged in the deepest affliction by the immature death of ,phdra1 and not enduring the sight of the supposed guilty author of it1 commands him into banishment1 8,lest1 as he goes on1 his former triumphs and successes against the disturbers of mankind1 should in consequence of the impunity of such unprecedented crimes1 henceforth do him no honour40 ,the chorus1 struck with the distressful situation of the old king1 and recollecting with him the sum of his former glories1 is made to exclaim1 ' ' ' 4 i4 e4 there is henceforth no such thing1 as human happiness1 when the first examples of it are thus sadly reversed4 ,which casual remark ,seneca seizes and extends through a whole chorus2 where it visibly serves to no other end1 but to usurp a place1 destined for far more natural and affecting sentiments4 ,if ,i have been rather long upon this head1 it is because ,i conceive this critique on the ,hippolytus will let the reader1 at once1 into the true character of ,seneca2 which1 he now sees1 is that of a mere declamatory moralist4 ,so little deserving is he of the reputation of a just dramatic poet4 99 99 99 99 99 #aif4 ,,ille ,,bonis ,,faveatque1 c4 ,the chorus1 says the poet1 is to take the side of the good and virtuous1 i4 e4 is always to sustain a moral character4 ,but this will need some explanation and restriction4 ,to conceive aright of its office1 we must suppose the chorus to be a number of persons1 by some probable cause assembled together1 as witnesses and spectators of the great action of the drama4 ,such persons1 as they cannot be wholly uninterested in what passes before them1 will very naturally bear some share in the representation4 ,this will principally consist in declaring their sentiments1 and indulging their reflexions freely on the several events and distresses as they shall arise4 ,thus we see the moral1 attributed to the chorus1 will be no other than the dictates of plain sense2 such as must be obvious to every thinking observer of the action1 who is under the influence of no peculiar partialities from affection or interest4 ,though even these may be supposed in cases1 where the character1 towards which they draw1 is represented as virtuous4 ,a chorus1 thus constituted1 must always1 it is evident1 take the part of virtue2 because this is the natural and almost necessary determination of mankind1 in all ages and nations1 when acting freely and unconstrained4 ,but then it is to be observed1 #a4 ,that this moral character1 or approbation of virtue1 must also be considerably influenced by the common and established notions of right and wrong2 which1 though in essential points1 for the most part1 uniformly the same under all circumstances1 yet will1 in some particular instances1 be much distorted by the corrupt principles and practices of different countries and times4 ,hence the moral of the stage will not be always strictly philosophical2 as reflecting to us the image not of the sage's speculation1 but1 of the obvious sense of common1 untutor'd minds4 ,the reader will find this observation applied to the case of the chorus in the ,medea1 in note on v4 #bjj1 and it might further1 perhaps1 be extended to the vindication of some others1 to which the ignorant temerity of modern criticism hath taken occasion to object4 ,but1 #b4 ,the moral character of the chorus will not only depend very much on the several mistaken notions and usages1 which may happen1 under different circumstances1 to corrupt and defile morality2 but allowance is also to be made for the false policies1 which may prevail in different countries2 and especially if they constitute any part of the subject1 which the drama would represent4 ,if the chorus be made up of free citizens1 whether of a republic1 or the milder and more equal royalties1 they can be under little or no temptation to suppress or disguise their real sentiments on the several events1 presented to their observation2 but will be at liberty to pursue their natural inclination of speaking the truth4 ,but should this venerable assembly1 instead of sustaining the dignity of free subjects1 be1 in fact1 a company of slaves1 devoted by long use to the service and interests of a master1 or awed1 by the dread of tyrannical power1 into an implicit compliance with his will1 the baleful effect1 which this very different situation must have on their moral character1 is evident4 ,their opinions of persons and things will cease to be oracular2 and the interposition of the chorus will be more likely to injure the cause of virtue1 than to assist and promote it4 ,nor can any objection be made1 on this account1 to the conduct of the poet2 who keeps to nature and probability in drawing the chorus with this imperfectly moral character2 and is only answerable for his ill choice of a subject1 in which such a pernicious representation is required4 ,an instance will explane my meaning more perfectly4 ,the chorus in the ,antigone1 contrary to the rule of ,horace1 takes the side of the wicked4 ,it consists of a number of old ,thebans1 assembled by the order of ,creon to assist1 or rather to be present1 at a kind of mock council2 in which he meant to issue his cruel interdict of the rites of sepulture to the body of ,polynices2 a matter of the highest consequence in those days1 and upon which the whole distress of the play turns4 ,this veteran troop of vassals enter at once into the horrid views of the tyrant1 and obsequiously go along with him in the projects of his cruelty2 calmly1 and without the appearance of any virtuous emotion1 consenting to them all4 ,the consequence is that the interludes of the chorus are1 for the most part1 impertinent1 or something worse2 cautiously avoiding such useful reflexions1 as the nature of the case must suggest1 or indulging1 by their flatteries1 the impotent tyranny of their prince4 ,and yet no blame can be fairly charged upon the great poet1 who hath surely represented1 in the most striking colours1 the pernicious character1 which a chorus1 under such circumstances1 would naturally sustain4 ,the fault must therefore fall1 where the poet manifestly intended to throw it1 on the accursed spirit of despotism2 which extinguishes1 or over-rules1 the suggestions of common sense2 kills the very seeds of virtue1 and perverts the most sacred and important offices1 such as is that of the chorus1 into the means and instruments of vice4 ,the glory1 which he designed1 by this representation1 to reflect upon the government and policy of his own state1 is too glaring to be overlooked4 ,and he hath artfully contrived to counter-act any ill impressions on the minds of the people1 from the prostituted authority of the chorus1 by charging them1 in the persons of ,hmon and ,antigone1 with their real motives and views4 ,in all indifferent things1 in which the passions or interests of their master were not concerned1 even this chorus would of course preserve a moral character4 ,but we are to look for it no further4 ,this is the utmost verge and boundary of a slave's virtue4 ,an important truth1 which1 among many greater and more momentous instructions1 furnishes this to the dramatic poet1 8,that1 if he would apply the chorus to the uses of a sound and useful moral1 he must take his subjects1 not from the annals of despotic tyranny1 but from the great events1 which occur in the records of free and equal commonwealths40 99 99 99 99 99 #bjj4 ,,ille ,,tegat ,,commissa ,this important advice is not always easy to be followed4 ,much indeed will depend on the choice of the subject1 and the artful constitution of the fable4 ,yet1 with all his care1 the ablest writer will sometimes find himself embarrassed by the chorus4 ,i would here be understood to speak chiefly of the moderns4 ,for the ancients1 though it has not been attended to1 had some peculiar advantages over us in this respect1 resulting from the principles and practices of those times4 ,for1 as it hath been observed of the ancient epic muse1 that she borrowed much of her state and dignity from the false theology of the pagan world1 so1 ,i think1 it may be justly said of the ancient tragic1 that she has derived great advantages of probability from its mistaken moral4 ,if there be truth in this reflexion1 it will help to justify some of the ancient choirs1 that have been most objected to by the moderns4 ,to give an instance or two1 and leave the curious reader to extend the observation at his leisure4 ,i4 ,in the ,hippolytus of ,euripides1 the chorus1 which is let into ,phdra's design of killing herself1 suffers this rash attempt to take effect1 rather than divulge the intrusted secret4 ,this1 to a modern reader1 seems strange2 and we are ready to arraign the poet of having allotted a very unfit and unbecoming part to his chorus1 which1 in order to observe a critical1 is thus made to violate a moral precept1 or at least to sacrifice the more essential part of its character to a punctilio of honour4 ,but the case was quite otherwise4 ,this suicide of ,phdra1 which1 on our stricter moral plan1 is repugnant to the plain rules of duty1 was1 in the circumstances supposed1 fully justified on the pagan system4 ,phdra had confessed the secret of her criminal passion4 ,by the forward zeal of her confident1 her disgrace is made known to ,hippolytus2 and thereby1 as she conceives1 rendered notorious to the public4 ,in this distress she had only one way to vindicate her honour1 and that was at the expence of her life4 ,rather than bear the insupportable load of public infamy1 she kills herself4 ,that this was a justifiable cause of self-murder in the eye of the chorus is clear from the reason1 there assigned1 of her conduct1 manifestly in approbation of it4 8,phdra1 says the chorus1 oppressed and borne down by her afflictions1 has recourse to this expedient of suicide1 ' 1 ' 4 for the sake of her good fame1 and in order to free herself from the tortures of a cruel passion40 ,and how agreeable this was to the pagan system1 in general1 let the reader collect from the following testimonies in ,cicero3 ,si omnia fugiend turpitudinis adipiscendque honestatis caus faciemus1 non modo stimulos doloris1 sed etiam fulmina fortun contemnamus licebit3 prsertim cum paratum sit illud ex hestern disputatione perfugium4 ,ut enim1 si1 cui naviganti prdones insequantur1 ,deus quis dixerit1 ,ejice te navi2 prsto est1 qui excipiat1 c4 omnem omittas timorem2 sic1 urgentibus asperis et odiosis doloribus1 si tanti non sint ut ferendi sint1 quo sit confugiendum vides4 ,tusc4 ,disp4 l4 ii4 #bf4 ,and1 again1 in the close of the ,vth disputation1 ,mihi quidem in vita servanda videtur illa lex1 qu in ,grcorum conviviis obtinet3 ,aut bibat1 inquit1 aut abeat4 ,et recte4 ,aut enim fruatur aliquis pariter cum aliis voluptate potandi2 aut1 ne sobrius in violentiam vinolentorum incidat1 ante discedat3 sic ,,injurias ,,fortun1 ,,quas ,,ferre ,,nequeas1 ,,defugiendo ,,relinquas4 ,,ii4 ,another example may1 ,i think1 be fetched from the ,medea4 ,scarcely any thing has been more the subject of modern censure1 than the part1 which the chorus is made to act in this tragedy4 ,whence comes it1 says ,m4 ,dacier1 that the chorus1 which consists of ,corinthian women1 is faithful to a stranger against their sovereign#ae8 ,this good ,frenchman1 it seems1 thought it a kind of treason1 even on the stage1 and where a moral character was to be sustained1 to take part against a tyrant4 ,but he will further say1 that the moral character of the chorus was forfeited in thus concealing1 and1 in effect1 abetting the impious cruelties of ,medea4 ,the laws of nature and of ,god were transgressed in rendering this service to her4 ,all which is very true1 supposing the reader to judge of this matter by the purer christian moral4 ,but how will he prove this to be the case on the received notions and practices of paganism8 ,it appears1 this critic did not apprehend1 what a moderate attention to ancient history and manners might have taught him1 that the violation of conjugal fidelity was a crime of that high nature1 as to deserve in the public opinion1 and to excuse1 the severest vengeance of retaliation4 ,this the laws expresly allowed to the injuries of the husband4 ,and1 it is probable1 the wife might incline to think the reason of the case extended also to her4 ,what is certain is1 that we find some of the deepest scenes of horror1 which ancient history furnishes1 or ancient fiction could paint1 wrought up from the occasion of this neglect of conjugal faith4 ,and it is well observed by one1 in speaking of the difference between the ancient and modern stage1 that what is now held the fit subject of comic mirth and ridicule in christian theatres1 was never employed but to stir up the utmost horror and commiseration1 on the heathen4 8,we do not find1 says this agreeable writer1 any comedy in so polite an author1 as ,terence1 raised upon the violations of the marriage-bed4 ,the falsehood of the wife or husband has given occasion to noble tragedies2 but a ,scipio and ,llius would have looked upon incest or murder1 to have been as proper subjects for comedy40 ,this is strictly and precisely the truth4 ,and1 therefore1 as the crimes of incest or murder were believed deserving of the highest punishment by the ,pagans1 and every good man was ready to interest himself in seeing it inflicted#af2 so1 in the case of the open violation of the marriage-compact1 the fiercest acts of revenge were justified in the public opinion1 and passed only for acts of strict justice4 ,and for this1 if we wanted further authority1 we have the express word of the chorus4 ,the ,corinthian women do not barely consent to secrecy1 in virtue of an extorted oath or promise 7though more might have been said for this1 than every reader is aware of7 but in consequence of their entire and full approbation of her intentions4 ,for thus1 in answer to ,medea's petition to them1 without the least reserve or hesitation1 they are made to reply1 ' 4 ,i will do it2 for this revenge on a husband is just4 ,we see then the chorus1 in keeping the secret of ,medea's murders1 was employed in its great office of countenancing and supporting salubrem justitiam1 wholesome justice4 ,and1 therefore1 the scholiast1 with ,m4 ,dacier's leave1 gave a fit and proper account of the matter 7so far was it from being impious and ridiculous7 in saying1 that the ,corinthian women being free1 i4 e4 not devoted to the service of ,creon1 by the special duties of any personal attachment1 take the side of justice1 as the chorus is wont to do on other occasions4 ,the circumstance of their freedom is properly mentioned4 ,for this distinguishes their case from that of the nutrix1 who upon receiving the account of ,jason's cruelties1 cries out1 1 ' 1 ' 4 ,and that the chorus enter'd into ,medea's designs against her husband1 the tyrant ,creon1 and her rival1 on reasons of justice and equity only1 and not 7as is hastily believed by some1 who have not enough attended to the decorum of the ancient tragedy7 for the sake of forwarding the poet's plot1 may be certainly shewn4 ,for when1 in the fury of her resentments1 and as the full completion of her revenge1 the mother comes to propose the murder of her innocent children1 the chorus starts with horror at the thought1 dissuades her from it in the most earnest and affecting manner#ag1 and seems to have concealed the dreadful secret only from the persuasion1 that it was too horrid and unnatural to be perpetrated4 ,the reader will collect this with pleasure1 by turning to the fine song1 which follows4 ,it may be further observed1 that ,medea herself1 in opening this last purpose of her rage to the chorus1 exacts fidelity of them only1 as they wished well to an injured queen1 and were women2 1 ' 4 which is beautifully contrived by the poet1 to discriminate the two cases1 and to intimate to us1 that reasons of justice were now no longer to be pleaded4 ,in sum1 though these acts of severe avenging justice might not be according to the express letter of the laws1 or the more refined conclusions of the ,,porch or ,,academy2 yet there is no doubt1 that they were1 in the general account1 esteemed fit and reasonable4 ,and1 it is to be observed1 in order to pass a right judgment on the ancient chorus1 that1 though in virtue of their office1 they were obliged universally to sustain a moral character2 yet this moral was rather political and popular1 than strictly legal or philosophic4 ,which is also founded on good reason4 ,the scope and end of the ancient theatre being to serve the interests of virtue and society1 on the principles and sentiments1 already spread and admitted amongst the people1 and not to correct old errors1 and instruct them in philosophic truth4 99 99 99 99 99 #bjb4 ,,tibia ,,non1 ,,ut ,,nunc1 ,,orichalco1 c4 from v4 #bjb to v4 #bbj4 ,this is one of those many passages in the epistle1 about which the critics have said a great deal1 without explaining any thing4 ,in support of what ,i mean to offer1 as the true interpretation1 ,i observe1 ,that the poet's intention certainly was1 not to censure the false refinements of their stage-music2 but1 in a short digressive history 7such as the didactic form will sometimes require7 to describe the rise and progress of the true4 ,this ,i collect1 #a4 ,from the expression itself2 which cannot1 without violence1 be understood in any other way4 ,for1 as to the words licentia and prceps1 which have occasioned much of the difficulty1 the first means a freer use1 not a licentiousness1 properly so called2 and the other only expresses a vehemence and rapidity of language1 naturally productive of a quicker elocution1 such as must of course attend the more numerous harmony of the lyre3--not1 as ,m4 ,dacier translates it1 une eloquence temeraire et outre1 an extravagant straining and affectation of style4 #b4 ,from the reason of the thing2 which makes it incredible1 that the music of the theatre should then be most complete1 when the times were barbarous1 and entertainments of this kind little encouraged or understood4 #c4 ,from the character of that music itself2 for the rudeness of which1 ,horace1 in effect1 apologizes in defending it only on the score of the imperfect state of the stage1 and the simplicity of its judges4 ,but what shall we say then to those lines1 ,indoctus quid enim saperet liberque laborum1 ,rusticus urbano confusus1 turpis honesto8 which seem to imply a censure on these ,improvements1 as unworthy the approbation of wise men2 contrary to what ,i have just now supposed to be the scope of this whole passage4 ,on the strictest attention1 ,i believe we are to understand them as a ,sneer1 in passing1 on what grave and philosophic men have observed of these refinements1 which they constantly treat1 as ,corruptions4 ,see note on v4 #bah4 ,but the mixed auditories of these days1 says the poet with his usual badinage1 were not so wise4 ',tis1 as if he had said1 8,what ,i mention here as an improvement in dramatic music is1 in the ideas and language of some grave men1 an abuse and perversion of it to immoral purposes4 ,it may be so3 but consider1 for what sorts of people these theatrical entertainments were designed3 for the ignorant clown and citizen1 the plebeian and gentleman1 huddled together into one confused mass1 and crowding to the theatre1 on a holyday1 for some relief from their ordinary toils and occupations4 ,and alas1 what do these men know1 or consider of this austere wisdom8 ,but the cast of the whole passage is1 besides1 such as favours the supposition of an intended ,irony4 ,hence the ,tibia non1 ut nunc1 orichalco vincta1 c4 delivered in the usual tone of declaimers against modern manners4 ,hence the epithets1 frugi castusque verecundusque1 to denote the quality of those who assisted1 of old1 at these virtuous entertainments4 ,and hence the enormity of that state of things1 when the people were afterwards permitted to regale on holy days1 impune4 ,this intention too accounts for the terms licentia1 luxuries1 facundia1 prceps1 and others1 which being of ambiguous interpretation1 the poet purposely chose1 to mimic1 and humour1 as it were1 the objectors in their favourite language on this occasion4 ,till at last1 impatient to continue the raillery any further1 he concludes at once with an air of solemnity very proper to confound the impertinence of such criticism4 ,utiliumque sagax rerum1 et divina futuri ,sortilegis non discrepuit sententia ,delphis4 ,all this the reader sees is agreeable to the poet's prescription elsewhere1 --,sermone opus est tristi1 spe jocoso4 and indeed to his own practice on an hundred occasions4 ,so that on the whole there is little doubt of his intention in the lines1 ,indoctus quid enim saperet1 c4 ,at least1 in this view the poet1 ,i am apt to think1 will be found intelligible and even elegant4 ,whereas1 on any other supposition of his numerous commentators1 ,i cannot see that the verses before us 7as they here stand7 have either propriety or common sense40 ,the interpretation then of this whole passage1 from v4 #bjb to #bbj1 will stand thus4 8,the ,tibia1 says the poet1 was at first low and simple4 ,the first1 as best agreeing to the state of the stage1 which required only a soft music to go along with1 and assist the chorus2 there being no large and crowded theatres to fill in those days4 ,and the latter1 as suiting best to the state of the times2 whose simplicity and frugal manners exacted the severest temperance1 as in every thing else1 so1 in their dramatic ornaments and decorations4 ,but1 when conquest had enlarged the territory1 and widened the walls of ,rome2 and1 in consequence thereof1 a social spirit had dispelled that severity of manners1 by the introduction of frequent festival solemnities2 then1 as was natural to expect1 a freer and more varied harmony took place4 ,nor let it be objected that this freer harmony was itself an abuse1 a corruption of the severe and moral music of ancient times4 ,alas6 we were not as yet so wise1 to see the inconveniencies of this improvement4 ,and how should we1 considering the nature and end of these theatrical entertainments1 and the sort of men of which our theatres were made up8 ,but1 leaving the ,philosopher to speculate at his ease1 on this matter1 thus1 in fact1 it was1 8that the ,tibicen1 the musician1 who played to the declamation in the acts1 instead of the rude and simpler strain of the old times1 gave a richness and variety of tone2 and1 instead of the old inactive posture1 added the grace of motion to his art4 ,just in the same manner1 continues he1 it happened to the ,lyre1 i4 e4 the music in the chorus1 which originally1 as that of the ,tibia1 was severe and simple2 but1 by degrees1 acquired a quicker and more expressive modulation1 such as corresponded to the more elevated and passionate turn of the poet's style1 and the diviner enthusiasm of his sentiment40 ,all that is further wanting to support and justify this interpretation1 will be found in the notes on particular passages4 99 99 99 99 99 #bjc4 ,,tenuis ,,simplexque1 c4 ,it may here be observed of the manner1 in which the poet hath chosen to deliver this whole part from v4 #bjb to #bie that1 besides its other uses1 it tends directly to convey to his readers1 and impress upon them in the strongest manner1 the principal instruction1 he has in view1 and with which the epistle more expresly concludes1 viz4 ,the uses and importance of a spirit of critical application4 ,for1 in speaking of the stage music1 of the satyrs1 and the ,greek tragedy 7all which come naturally in his way1 and are very artfully connected7 he chuses to deduce the account of each from its ruder and less polished original2 tracing it through its several successive stages1 and marking out to us the gradual polish and refinement1 which it acquired from increasing diligence and correctness4 ,the ,tibia at first was simple and rude--,the satyrs naked and barbarous--and the ,greek tragedy itself deformed and shapeless in the cart of ,thespis4 ,care and attention reformed each4 ,it follows1 ,nil intentatum nostri liquere poet1 c4 i4 e4 our poets have not been wanting in their attempts to excel in these several particulars4 ,what is necessary to their success is1 lim labor et mora4 ,if the reader bear this in mind1 it will help him to see the order and scope of this part more distinctly4 99 99 99 99 99 #bjd4 ,,aspirare ,,et ,,adesse ,,choris1 c4 ,chorus here means the whole dramatic performance1 which was originally nothing else4 99 99 99 99 99 #bjf4 ,,utpote ,,parvus1 ,,et ,,frugi ,,castusque ,,verecundusque1 c4 ,m4 ,dacier finds here four causes of the little regard the ancients had for plays he should have said1 of their being satisfied with the ,tibia1 all rude and simple as is here described la premiere1 que le peuple ,romain toit encore alors en petit nombre3 la seconde1 qu'il toit sage3 la troisime1 qu'il toit chaste1 c'est dire pieux3 et la quatrime1 qu'il toit modeste4 ,but the three last epithets are synonymous1 all of them expressing what1 though he took three guesses for it1 he had the ill fortune to miss at last1 that plainness and simplicity of character1 that frugal reserve and moderation in the use of any thing1 which so essentially belongs to rude minds1 uninstructed in the arts of life4 ,his four causes are1 in fact1 then but two2 which have been fully considered in note on v4 #bjb4 99 99 99 99 99 #baa4 ,,accessit ,,numerisque ,,modisque ,,licentia ,,major4 ,m4 ,dacier takes licentia major in a bad sense1 as implying lascivet1 a culpable and licentious refinement4 ,but the licence1 here spoken of1 with regard to numbers and sounds1 like that in another place1 which respects words l4 #ea4 is one of those1 which is allowed1 when sumpta pudenter4 ,the comparative major1 which is a palliative1 shews this2 and is further justified by a like passage in ,cicero1 ,de ,oratore l4 iii4 c4 #dh4 where speaking of this very licence in poetry1 he observes1 that out of the ,heroic and ,iambic measure1 which were at first strictly observed1 there arose by degrees the ,anapst1 procerior quidam numerus1 et ille licentior et divitior ,dithyrambus2 evidently not condemning this change1 but opposing it to the rigorous and confined measure of the elder poets4 ,but the expression itself occurs in the piece entitled ,orator1 in which1 comparing the freedoms of the poetical and oratorial style1 in ea i4 e4 poetica says he1 licentiam statuo majorem esse1 quam in nobis1 faciendorum jungendorumque verborum4 ,the poet says1 this licence extended numeris modisque1 the former of which words will express that licence of metre1 spoken of by ,cicero1 and which is further explained v4 #bef1 c4 where an account is given of the improvement of the ,iambic verse4 99 99 99 99 99 #bad4 ,,sic ,,priscae1 -- -- -- ,,arti ,,tibicen1 c4 ,,sic ,,etiam ,,fidibus1 c4 ,this is the application of what hath been said1 in general1 concerning the refinement of theatrical music to the case of tragedy4 ,some commentators say1 and to comedy4 ,but in this they mistake1 as will appear presently4 ,m4 ,dacier hath1 ,i know not what conceit about a comparison betwixt the ,roman and ,greek stage4 ,his reason is1 that the lyre was used in the ,greek chorus1 as appears1 he says1 from ,sophocles playing upon this instrument himself in one of his tragedies4 ,and was it not used too in the ,roman chorus1 as appears from ,nero's playing upon it in several tragedies8 ,but the learned critic did not apprehend this matter4 ,indeed from the caution1 with which his guides1 the dealers in antiquities1 always touch this point1 it should seem1 that they too had no very clear conceptions of it4 ,the case ,i take to have been this3 ,the ,tibia1 as being most proper to accompany the declamation of the acts1 cantanti succinere1 was constantly employed1 as well in the ,roman tragedy as comedy4 ,this appears from many authorities4 ,i mention only two from ,cicero4 ,quam multa ,acad4 l4 ii4 #g4 qu nos fugiunt in cantu1 exaudiunt in eo genere exercitati3 ,qui1 primo inflatu ,tibicinis1 ,antiopam esse aiunt aut ,andromacham1 cum nos ne suspicemur quidem4 ,the other is still more express4 ,in his piece1 entitled ,orator1 speaking of the negligence of the ,roman writers1 in respect of numbers1 he observes1 that there were even many passages in their tragedies1 which1 unless the ,,tibia played to them1 could not be distinguished from mere prose3 qu1 nisi cum ,tibicen accesserit1 orationi sint solut simillima4 ,one of these passages is expresly quoted from ,thyestes1 a tragedy of ,ennius2 and1 as appears from the measure1 taken out of one of the acts4 ,it is clear then1 that the ,tibia was certainly used in the declamation of tragedy4 ,but now the song of the tragic chorus1 being of the nature of the ode1 of course required ,fides1 the lyre1 the peculiar and appropriated instrument of the lyric ,muse4 ,and this is clearly collected1 if not from express testimonies2 yet from some occasional hints dropt by the ancients4 ,for1 #a4 the lyre1 we are told1 ,cic4 ,de ,leg4 ii4 #i4 #ae4 and is agreed on all hands1 was an instrument of the ,roman theatre2 but it was not employed in comedy4 ,this we certainly know from the short accounts of the music prefixed to ,terence's plays4 #b4 ,further1 the ,tibicen1 as we saw1 accompanied the declamation of the acts in tragedy4 ,it remains then1 that the proper place of the lyre was1 where one should naturally look for it1 in the songs of the chorus2 but we need not go further than this very passage for a proof4 ,it is unquestionable1 that the poet is here speaking of the chorus only2 the following lines not admitting any other possible interpretation4 ,by ,fidibus then is necessarily understood the instrument peculiarly used in it4 ,not that it need be said that the ,tibia was never used in the chorus4 ,the contrary seems expressed in a passage of ,seneca1 ,ep4 lxxxiv4 and in ,julius ,pollux l4 iv4 #ae4 #ajg4 ',tis sufficient1 if the lyre was used solely1 or principally in it1 at this time4 ,in this view1 the whole digression is more pertinent and connects better4 ,the poet had before been speaking of tragedy4 ,all his directions1 from l4 #ajj4 respect this species of the drama only4 ,the application of what he had said concerning music1 is then most naturally made1 #a4 to the ,tibia1 the music of the acts2 and1 #b4 to ,fides1 that of the choir3 thus confining himself1 as the tenor of this part required1 to tragedy only4 ,hence is seen the mistake1 not only of ,m4 ,dacier1 whose comment is in every view insupportable2 but1 as was hinted1 of ,heinsius1 ,lambin1 and others1 who1 with more probability1 explained this of the ,roman comedy and tragedy4 ,for though ,tibia might be allowed to stand for comedy1 as opposed to ,tragdia1 as in fact1 we find it in l4 ii4 ,ep4 #a4 #ih4 that being the only instrument employed in it2 yet1 in speaking expresly of the music of the stage1 ,fides could not determinately enough1 and in contradistinction to ,tibia1 denote that of tragedy1 it being an instrument used solely1 or principally in the chorus2 of which1 the context shews1 he alone speaks4 ,it is further to be observed1 that1 in the application here made1 besides the music1 the poet takes in the other improvements of the tragic chorus1 these happening1 as from the nature of the thing they would do1 at the same time4 99 99 99 99 99 #bad4 ,,sic ,,priscae ,,motumque ,,et ,,luxuriem4 ,these two words are employed to express that quicker movement1 and richer modulation of the new music2 the peculiar defects of the old being1 #a4 ,that it moved too slowly1 and1 #b4 ,that it had no compass or variety of notes4 ,it was that movement1 that velocity and vehemence of the music1 which ,roscius required to have slackened in his old age4 99 99 99 99 99 #bae4 ,,traxitque ,,vagus ,,per ,,pulpita ,,vestem4 ,this expresses not only the improvement arising from the ornament of proper dresses1 but from the grace of motion3 not only the actor1 whose peculiar office it was1 but the minstrel himself1 as appears from hence1 conforming his gesture in some sort to the music4 ,of the use and propriety of these gestures1 or dances1 it will not be easy for us1 who see no such things attempted on the modern stage1 to form any very clear or exact notions4 ,what we cannot doubt of is1 #a4 ,that the several theatrical dances of the ancients were strictly conformable to the genius of the different species of composition1 to which they were applied4 #b4 ,that1 therefore1 the tragic dance1 which more especially accompanied the chorus1 must have been expressive of the highest gravity and decorum1 tending to inspire ideas of what is becoming1 graceful1 and majestic2 in which view we cannot but perceive the important assistance it must needs lend to virtue1 and how greatly it must contribute to set all her graces and attractions in the fairest light4 #c4 ,this idea of the ancient tragic dance1 is not solely formed upon our knowledge of the conformity1 beforementioned2 but is further collected from the name1 usually given to it1 which was 4 ,this word cannot well be translated into our language2 but expresses all that grace and concinnity of motion1 which the dignity of the choral song required4 #d4 ,lastly1 it must give us a very high notion of the moral effect of this dance1 when we find the severe ,plato admitting it into his commonwealth4 99 99 99 99 99 #baf4 ,,sic ,,etiam ,,fidibus ,,voces1 c4 ,he is here speaking of the great improvement in the tragic chorus1 after the ,roman conquests1 when the ,latin writers began to enquire ,quid ,sophocles et ,thespis et schylus utile ferrent4 ,this improvement consisted1 #a4 ,in a more instructive moral sentiment3 #b4 ,in a more sublime and animated expression2 which of course produced1 #c4 ,a greater vehemence in the declamation3 to which conformed1 #d4 ,a more numerous and rapid music4 ,all these particulars are here expressed1 but1 as the reason of the thing required1 in an inverted order4 ,the music of the lyre 7that being his subject1 and introducing the rest7 being placed first2 the declamation1 as attending that1 next2 the language1 facundia1 that is1 the subject of the declamation1 next2 and the sentiment1 sententia1 the ground and basis of the language1 last4 ,et tulit eloquium insolitum facundia prceps4 literally1 8,a vehemence and rapidity of language produced an unusual vehemence and rapidity of elocution in the declaimer60 ,this 8rapidity of language10 is exactly the same1 as that ,cicero speaks of in ,democritus and ,plato1 ,orat4 #fch4 ,elz4 which1 because of its quick and rapid movement1 quod incitatius feratur1 some critics thought to be poetical4 ,unaccustomed1 we may observe1 is indifferently a censure or encomium1 according as the preceding state of the thing spoken of was wrong1 or right4 ,much the same may be concluded of prceps2 its literal sense is a degree of motion in any thing above what it had before4 ,this may be excessive1 or otherwise1 as it chances3 ,when applied to the bleak ,east wind1 dispersing a flight of bees1 and dashing them on the stream1 si forte morantes ,sparserit1 aut prceps ,neptuno immerserit ,eurus4 ,virg4 ,georg4 iv4 #bi4 the epithet implies excess2 but when spoken of the gentle ,south1 whose strongest gale is but sufficient to drive the willing ship to port1 n4 vii4 #daj4 ,prcipiti delata ,noto1 it then only expresses due measure4 ,as for the criticism from ,quintilian1 who opposes prcipitia to sublimibus1 it is doubly impertinent3 #a4 ,as the sense is necessarily fixed by its opposition to sublimibus3 and #b4 ,as the word is here used1 not as implying motion1 but height1 in which view its sense is absolute1 and always denotes excess4 99 99 99 99 99 #bah4 ,,utiliumque ,,sagax ,,rerum1 ,,et ,,divina ,,futuri1 ,,sortilegis ,,non ,,discrepuit ,,sententia ,,delphis4 ,it is amazing that these two lines should ever have been misunderstood as a censure1 the import of them being highly encomiastic1 yet with great exactness declaring the specific boast and excellence of the chorus2 which lay1 as ,heinsius hath well observed1 #a4 ,in inculcating important moral lessons2 and #b4 ,in delivering useful presages and monitions concerning future conduct1 with an almost oracular prudence and authority4 ,,sic ,,priscae -- -- -- -- ,,arti4 ,what hath chiefly misled the ,critics in their explanation of this place1 ,i suspect to have been the frequent encomiums on the severity of the ancient music1 by the ,greek and ,latin writers4 ,though here they seem to have overlooked two very material considerations3 #a4 ,that the former have chiefly treated the subject in a moral or political view1 and therefore preferred the ancient music only as it was conceived to influence the public manners4 ,for this reason ,plato1 one of the chief of those encomiasts1 applauds1 as we find1 the practice of gypt1 in suffering no change of her poetry1 but continuing1 to his time1 her fondness for the ,songs of ,isis ,de ,leg4 l4 ii4 sub4 init4 which just as much infers the perfection of those songs1 considered in a critical view1 as ,rome's sticking to her ,saliar verses would have shewn those poor1 obscure orisons to have exceeded the regular odes and artificial compositions of ,horace4 ,and it was this kind of criticism which1 as ,i suppose1 the poet intended to expose in the famous verses1 which ,i explain in note on v4 #bjb4 #b4 ,that the latter1 the principal of them at least1 who talk in the same strain1 lived under the ,emperors2 in whose time1 indeed1 music had undergone a miserable prostitution1 being broken1 as one of the best of those writers complains1 into an effeminate and impure delicacy--,in scenis effeminata et impudicis modis fracta1 ,quint4 ,i4 l4 x4 ,as to the times in question1 ,i know but of one passage1 which clearly and expresly condemns the music then in vogue2 and that will admit of some alleviation from its being found in a treatise concerning laws4 ,the passage ,i mean is in ,cicero1 ,de ,leg4 l4 ii4 #ae4 who1 following ,plato in his high-flown principles of legislation1 exclames1 ,illa qu solebant quondam compleri severitate jucunda ,livianis et ,nvianis modis2 nunc ut eadem exultent1 cervices oculosque pariter eum ,,modorum ,,flexionibus torqueant6 ,for the severitas jucunda of the music1 to which ,livius's plays were set1 it may be tolerably guessed from hence1 that he was the first who brought a written ,play upon the stage2 i4 e4 the first writer whose plays were acted to a regular and precomposed music4 ,and it is not1 we know1 very usual for the first essays in any art to be perfect4 ,it should seem then1 that the flexiones modorum1 as opposed to the plainness of the old music1 are here condemned1 not so much in the view of a critic1 estimating the true state of the stage2 but1 as was hinted1 of a legislator1 treading in the steps of ,plato4 ,though indeed ,i have no doubt1 that the music in those times was much changed1 and had even suffered some degree of corruption4 ,this ,i infer1 not so much from any express authorities that have occurred1 as from the general state of those times1 which were degenerating apace into the worst morals1 the sure fore-runners of a corrupt and vitiated music2 for1 though it may indeed1 in its turn1 and doubtless does1 when established1 contribute much to help on the public depravity1 yet that depravity itself is originally not the effect1 but the cause of a bad music2 as is more than hinted to be ,cicero's real opinion in the place referred to1 where1 observing that the manners of many ,greek states had kept pace with their music1 he adds1 that they had undergone this change1 ,aut hac dulcedine corruptelaque depravati1 ut quidam putant2 aut cum severitas eorum ob alia vitia cecidisset1 tum fuit in auribus animisque mutatis etiam huic mutationi locus4 ,leg4 ii4 #ae4 ,but be this as it will1 ,horace1 as we have seen1 is no way concerned in the dispute about the ancient music4 99 99 99 99 99 #bai4 ,,sententia ,,delphis4 ,sententia is properly an aphorism taken from life1 briefly representing either what is1 or what ought to be the conduct of it3 ,oratio sumpta de vita1 qu aut quid sit1 aut quid esse oporteat1 in vita1 breviter ostendit4 ,ad ,herenn4 ,rhet4 l4 iv4 ,these aphorisms are here mentioned1 as constituting the peculiar praise and beauty of the chorus4 ,this is finely observed1 and was intended to convey an oblique censure on the practice of those poets1 who stuff out every part of the drama alike with moral sentences1 not considering1 that the only proper receptacle of them is the chorus1 where indeed they have an extreme propriety2 it being the peculiar office and character of the chorus to moralize4 ,in the course of the action they should rarely be used2 and that for the plain reason assigned by the author1 just quoted1 for the rule holds on the stage1 as well as at the bar ,ut rei actores1 non vivendi prceptores1 esse videamur4 ,that there was some ground for this reproof of the ,roman drama1 is collected from the few remaining fragments of the old ,latin plays1 which have much of this sententious cast1 and from what ,quintilian expresly tells us of the old ,latin poets1 whose fame1 it seems1 was principally raised upon this merit4 ,tragdi scriptores1 ,accius et ,pacuvius1 clarissimi gravitate sententiarum1 c4 l4 x4 c4 #a4 ,to how intolerable an extreme this humour of moralizing in plays was afterwards carried1 ,seneca has given us an example4 ,but here a question will be started1 8,why then did the ,greeks moralize so much1 or1 if we condemn ,accius and ,seneca1 how shall we defend ,sophocles and ,euripides80 ,an ingenious#ah modern hath taken some pains to satisfy this difficulty1 and in part1 ,i think1 hath succeeded4 ,his solution1 in brief1 is1 8,that the moral and political aphorisms of the ,greek stage generally contained some apt and interesting allusion to the state of public affairs1 which was easily catched by a quick1 intelligent auditory2 and not a dry1 affected moral1 without further meaning1 as for the most part was that of the ,latins40 ,this account is not a little confirmed by particular instances of such acknowledged allusions1 as well as from reflexions on the genius and government of the ,athenians1 at large4 ,but this1 though it goes some way1 does not fully extricate the matter4 ,the truth is1 these sentences are too thick sown in the ,greek writers1 to be fully accounted for from the single consideration of their democratical views4 ,not to observe1 that the very choice of this medium for the conveyance of their political applications1 presupposes the prior acknowledged use and authority of it4 ,i would then account for it in the following manner4 ,i4 ,in the virtuous simplicity of less polished times1 this spirit of moralizing is very prevalent2 the good sense of such people always delighting to shew itself in sententious or proverbial 1 or observations4 ,their character1 like that of the clown in ,shakespear1 is to be very swift and sententious4 ,as you like it1 ,act v4 sc4 #a4 ,this is obvious to common experience1 and was long since observed by the philosopher1 1 1 ,arist4 ,rhet4 l4 ii4 c4 #ba4 an observation1 which of itself accounts for the practice of the elder poets in ,greece1 as in all other nations4 ,a custom1 thus introduced1 is not easily laid aside1 especially when the oracular cast of these sentences1 so fitted to strike1 and the moral views of writers themselves 7which was more particularly true of the old dramatists7 concurred to favour this taste4 ,but1 #b4 there was added to this1 more especially in the age of ,sophocles and ,euripides1 a general prevailing fondness for moral wisdom1 which seems to have made the fashionable study of men of all ranks in those days2 when schools of philosophy were resorted to for recreation as well as instruction1 and a knowledge in morals was the supreme accomplishment in vogue3 ,the fruit of these philosophical conferences would naturally shew itself in certain brief1 sententious conclusions1 which would neither contradict the fashion1 nor1 it seems1 offend against the ease and gaiety of conversation in those times4 ,schools and pedantry1 morals and austerity1 were not so essentially connected1 in their combinations of ideas1 as they have been since2 and a sensible moral truth might have fallen from any mouth1 without disgracing it4 ,nay1 which is very remarkable1 the very scholia1 as they were called1 or drinking catches of the ,greeks1 were seasoned with this moral turn2 the sallies of pleasantry1 which escaped them in their freest hours1 being tempered for the most part1 by some strokes of this national sobriety4 8,during the course of their entertainments1 says ,athenus1 l4 xv4 c4 #ad4 they loved to hear1 from some wise and prudent person1 an agreeable song3 and those songs were held by them most agreeable1 which contained exhortations to virtue1 or other instructions relative to their conduct in life40 ,and to give the reader a taste of these moral songs1 ,i will take leave to present him with a very fine one1 written by no less a person than ,aristotle himself2 and the rather1 as ,i have it in my power to present him1 at the same time1 with an elegant translation of it4 ,but its best recommendation will be that it comes from the same hand which has so agreeably entertained us of late with some spirited imitations of ,horace#ai4 1 4 1 1 1 4 1 1 ' 4 ' ' ' 1 4 ' ' 4 1 1 1 #bj4 ,i4 ,hail1 ,virtue6 ,goddess6 sov'reign ,good1 ,by man's bold race with pain pursu'd6 ,where'er thou dart'st thy radiant eye1 ,greece sees her sons with transport fly2 ,danger before thee disappears1 ,and death's dark frown no terror wears4 ,,ii4 ,so full into the breast of man descends ,thy rich ambrosial show'r2 ,a show'r1 that gold1 that parents far transcends1 ,or1 sleep's soft-soothing pow'r4 ,,iii4 ,by thee ,,alcides soar'd to fame1 ,thy influence ,,leda',s twins proclaim2 ,heroes for thee have dauntless trod ,the dreary paths of hell's abode2 ,fir'd by thy form1 all beamy bright1 ,atarneus' nursling left the light4 ,,iv4 ,his deeds1 his social love 7so will the nine1 ,proud to spread wide the praise ,of friendship and of friendly ,jove7 shall shine ,with ever-living rays4 ,this moralizing humour1 so prevalent in those times1 is1 ,i dare be confident1 the true source of the sententious cast of the ,greek dramatic writers1 as well as of that sober air of moral1 which1 to the no small disgust of modern writers1 is spread over all their poets4 ,not but there would be some difference in those poets themselves1 and in proportion as they had been more or less conversant in the ,academy1 would be their relish of this moral mode2 as is clearly seen in the case of ,euripides1 that philosopher of the stage1 as the ,athenians called him1 and who is characterized by ,quinctilian1 as sententiis densus1 et in iis1 qu a sapientibus tradita sunt1 pne ipsis par4 ,l4 x4 c4 #a4 ,yet still the fashion was so general1 that no commerce of the world could avoid1 or wholly get clear of it2 and therefore ,sophocles1 though his engagements in the state kept him at a greater distance from the schools1 had yet his share of this philosophical humour4 ,now this apology for the practice of the ,greek poets doth by no means extend to the ,roman2 ,philosophy having been very late1 and never generally1 the taste of ,rome4 ,cicero says1 ,philosophia quidem tantum abest ut proinde1 ac de hominum est vit merita1 laudetur1 ut a plerisque neglecta1 a multis etiam vituperetur4 ,in another place he tells us1 that in his time ,aristotle was not much known1 or read1 even by the philosophers themselves4 ,cic4 ,top4 sub init4 ,and1 though in the age of ,seneca1 ,sentences1 we know1 were much in use1 yet the cast and turn of them evidently shew them to have been the affectation of the lettered few1 and not the general mode and practice of the time4 ,for the quaintness1 in which ,seneca's aphorisms are dressed1 manifestly speaks the labour and artifice of the closet1 and is just the reverse of that easy1 simple expression1 which cloaths them in the ,greek poets1 thus demonstrating their familiar currency in common life4 ,under any other circumstances than these1 the practice1 as was observed1 must be unquestionably faulty2 except only in the chorus1 where for the reason before given1 it may always1 with good advantage1 be employed4 99 99 99 99 99 #bbj4 ,,carmine ,,qui ,,tragico1 c4 ,the connexion with v4 #bja1 from whence the poet had digressed1 is worth observing4 ,the digression had been taken up in describing the improved state of dramatic music2 the application of which to the case of tragedy1 brings him round again to his subject1 the tragic chorus2 to which alone1 as hath been observed1 the two last lines refer4 ,this too is the finest preparation of what follows4 ,for to have passed on directly from the tibia to the satyrs1 had been abrupt and inartificial2 but from tragedy1 the transition is easy1 the satyrs being a species of the tragic drama4 ,that it was so accounted may be seen from the following passage in ,ovid1 ,est et in obscnos deflexa tragdia risus1 ,multaque prteriti verba pudoris habet4 ,trist4 l4 ii4 v4 #dji4 ,for the tragedy1 here referred to1 cannot be the regular ,roman tragedy4 ,that he had distinctly considered before1 and1 besides1 it in no age admitted1 much less in this1 of which we are speaking1 so intolerable a mixture4 ,as little can it be understood of the proper ,atellane fable1 for besides that ,ovid is here considering the ,greek drama only1 the ,atellane was ever regarded as a species1 not of tragedy1 but comedy3 ,the authority of ,donatus is very express2 8,comdiarum form sunt tres3 ,palliat1 ,togat1 ,atellan1 salibus et jocis composit1 qu in se non habent nisi vetustam elegantiam40 ,prol4 in ,terent4 ,and ,athenus l4 vi4 speaking of some pieces of this sort1 which ,l4 ,sylla had composed1 calls them 1 satyric comedies2 comedies1 because1 ss ,donatus says1 8salibus et jocis composit30 and satyric1 not that satyrs were introduced in them1 but1 according to ,diomedes1 from their being 8argumentis dictisque similes satyricis fabulis ,grcis40 ,of what then can ,ovid be understood to speak1 but the true satyric piece1 which was always esteemed1 and1 as appears from the ,cyclops1 in fact is1 what ,demetrius elegantly calls it1 1 a lighter kind of tragedy2 the very name1 which ,horace1 as well as ,ovid in this place1 gives to it8 ,but this is further clear from the instance quoted by ,ovid1 of this loose tragedy2 for he proceeds3 ,nec nocet autori1 mollem qui fecit ,achillem1 ,infregisse suis fortia facta modis4 which well agrees to the idea of a satyric piece1 and1 as ,vossius takes notice1 seems to be the very same subject1 which ,athenus and others tell us1 ,sophocles had work'd into a satyric tragedy1 under the title of 4 99 99 99 99 99 #bba4 ,,mox ,,etiam1 c4 ,it is not the intention of these notes to retail the accounts of others4 ,i must therefore refer the reader1 for whatever concerns the history of the satyric1 as ,i have hitherto done1 of the tragic1 and comic drama1 to the numerous dissertators on the ancient stage2 and above all1 in the case before us1 to the learned ,casaubon2 from whom all that hath been said to any purpose1 by modern writers1 hath been taken4 ,only it will be proper to observe one or two particulars1 which have been greatly misunderstood1 and without which it will be impossible1 in any tolerable manner1 to explane what follows4 ,i4 ,the design of the poet1 in these lines1 is not to fix the origin of the satyric piece1 in ascribing the invention of it to ,thespis4 ,this hath been concluded1 without the least warrant from his own words1 which barely tell us1 8that the ,representation of tragedy was in elder ,greece1 followed by the satyrs20 and indeed the nature of the thing1 as well as the testimony of all antiquity1 shews it to be impossible4 ,for the satyr here spoken of1 is1 in all respects1 a regular drama1 and therefore could not be of earlier date1 than the times of schylus1 when the constitution of the drama was first formed4 ',tis true indeed1 there was a kind of entertainment of much greater antiquity1 which by the ancients is sometimes called satyric1 out of which 7as ,aristotle assures us7 tragedy itself arose1 1 1 1 4 4 4 4 ,but then this was nothing but a chorus of satyrs ,athenus1 l4 xiv4 celebrating the festivals of ,bacchus1 with rude songs1 and uncouth dances2 and had little resemblance to that1 which was afterwards called satyric2 which1 except that it retained the chorus of satyrs1 and turned upon some subject relative to ,bacchus1 was of a quite different structure1 and1 in every respect1 as regular a composition1 as tragedy itself4 ,,ii4 ,there is no doubt but the poem1 here distinguished by the name of ,,satyri1 was in actual use on the ,roman stage4 ,this appears from the turn of the poet's whole criticism upon it4 ,particularly1 his address to the ,pisos1 v4 #bce4 and his observation of the offence which a loose dialogue in this drama would give to a ,roman auditory1 v4 #bdh4 make it evident that he had1 in fact1 the practice of his own stage in view4 ,it hath1 however1 been questioned1 whether by ,satyri we are to understand the proper ,greek ,satyrs1 or the ,latin ,atellane fable1 which1 in the main of its character1 very much resembled that drama4 ,if the authority of ,diomedes be any thing1 the former must be the truth1 for he expresly asserts1 8that the ,satyric and ,atellane pieces1 though similar in the general cast of their composition1 differed in this essential point1 that the persons in the former were satyrs1 in the other1 not40 ,l4 iii4 c4 ,de pom4 gen4 ,now the poet expresly tells us1 the ,persons in the drama he is here describing1 were ,satyrs1 and accordingly delivers rules for the regulation of their characters4 ,as to the ,atellane1 according to the way in which ,vossius reads the words of ,diomedes1 the characters were ,oscan1 person ,osc1 which is very probable1 not so much for the reasons assign'd by this ,critic 7for they are indeed very frivolous7 but because1 as it should seem from a passage in ,strabo1 ,lib4 v4 #bcc4 the language of the ,,osci was used in these ,atellanes1 and therefore common sense would require1 that the persons also introduced should be ,oscan4 ,the difficulty is to know how it happened that1 in a work written purposely to reform the ,roman stage1 the poet should say nothing of one species1 the ,atellane1 which was of great authority and constant use at ,rome1 and yet say so much of another1 the ,satyrs1 which was properly a ,greek entertainment and certainly much less cultivated by the ,roman poets4 ,the plain solution of the matter1 is1 that1 when now the ,romans were become acquainted with the ,greek models1 and had applied themselves to the imitation of them1 these ,oscan characters were exchanged for the ,greek satyrs1 which they before resembled in the main parts of their character2 and which appear1 on other occasions1 to have been no strangers at ,rome2 as we collect from the ,sileni and ,satyrs making a part 7as ,dionysius relates it7 in their triumphal processions4 ,so that this change of the ,oscan persons for ,satyrs is to be considered only as an improvement of the old ,atellane1 and not the introduction of an intirely new drama4 ,in every other respect the precepts here given for the regulation of the ,satyrs are such as would equally serve to improve the ,atellane4 ,the probable reason why the poet chose to insist so much on this alteration1 or rather why he laboured so strenuously to support it1 will be given in its place4 ,in the mean time supposing his view to have been this of countenancing the introduction of satyric persons into the ,atellane 7and that they were1 in fact1 introduced1 we learn from an express authority#ba7 every thing said on the subject will not only be pertinent and agreeable to what is here taught to be the general tenor of the epistle1 but will be seen to have an address and contrivance1 which will very much illustrate this whole part1 and recommend it to the exact reader4 ,but before ,i quit this subject of the ,atellane fable it will be proper to observe1 ,that when ,i every where speak of it1 as of early original1 and ancient use on the ,roman stage1 ,i am not unmindful that ,velleius ,paterculus speaks of ,pomponius as the ,inventor of this ,poem2 which1 if taken in the strict sense1 will bring the date of it very low4 8,sane non ignoremus edem tate fuisse ,pomponium1 sensibus celebrem1 verbis rudem1 et novitate inventi a se operis commendabilem40 ,l4 ii4 c4 ix4 ,for the age he is speaking of is that of ,,sylla4 ,but the authorities for the high antiquity of the ,atellane fable are so express1 that1 when ,pomponius is called the ,inventor of it1 it is but as ,horace calls ,lucilius the ,inventor of the ,roman ,satire4 ,that is1 he made so considerable a change in the form and conduct of this poem1 as to run away with all the honour of it4 ,the improvements made by ,lucilius in ,satire have been taken notice of in the ,introduction4 ,and it happens that a curious passage in ,athenus will let us into the ,improvements made by ,pomponius in the ,atellanes4 ,but first we are to understand that this sort of entertainment1 as the name speaks1 was imported to ,rome from ,,atella1 a town of the ,,osci in ,campania2 and that the ,dialect of that people was constantly and only used in it1 even when the ,osci themselves had ceased to be a people4 ,this we learn from ,strabo4 1 4 ,l4 v4 #bcc4 ,the ,,oscan language1 we see1 was made use of in the ,atellane plays1 just as the ,welsh1 or some ,provincial ,dialect1 is often employed in our ,comedies4 ,but now we learn from ,athenus that ,l4 ,sylla writ some of these ,atellanes in the ,,roman ,,language4 ' 4 ,l4 vi4 p4 #bfa4 ,ed4 ,casaub4 ,the difficulty then clears up4 ,for the ,pomponius whom ,velleius speaks of was contemporary with ,l4 ,sylla4 ,so that to give any propriety to the term of ,inventor1 as applied to ,pomponius1 we must conclude that he was the first person who set this example of composing ,atellane plays in the vulgar dialect3 which took so much that he was even followed in this practice by the ,roman ,general4 ,this account of the matter perfectly suits with the encomium given to ,pomponius4 ,he would naturally1 on such an alteration1 endeavour to give this buffoon sort of ,comedy a more rational cast3 ,and this reform of itself would entitle him to great honour4 ,hence the ,,sensibus ,,celebris of ,paterculus#bb4 ,but to preserve some sort of resemblance 7which the people would look for7 to the old ,atellane1 and not to strip it of all the pleasantry arising from the barbarous dialect1 he affected1 it seems1 the antique in the turn of his expression4 ,hence the other part of his character 7which in the politer age of ,paterculus grew offensive to nice judges7 ,,verbis ,,rudis4 ,the conclusion is1 ,that the ,atellane ,fable was in its first rude form and ,oscan ,dialect of ancient use at ,rome1 where it was admitted1 as ,strabo speaks1 3 ,that ,pomponius afterwards reformed its barbarities1 and brought it on the ,stage in a ,roman dress2 which together were thought so great improvements1 that later writers speak of him as the ,,inventor of this ,poem4 ,but to return to our proper subject1 the ,greek ,satyrs4 ,,iii4 ,for the absolute merit of these satyrs1 the reader will judge of it himself by comparing the ,cyclops1 the only piece of this kind remaining to us from antiquity1 with the rules here delivered by ,horace4 ,only it may be observed1 in addition to what the reader will find elsewhere n4 v4 #bbc4 apologized in its favour1 that the double character of the satyrs admirably fitted it1 as well for a sensible entertainment to the wise1 as for the sport and diversion of the vulgar4 ,for while the grotesque appearance1 and jesting vein of these fantastic personages amused the one2 the other saw much further2 and considered them1 at the same time1 as replete with science1 and informed by a spirit of the most abstruse wisdom4 ,hence important lessons of civil prudence1 interesting allusions to public affairs1 or a high1 refined moral1 might1 with the highest probability1 be insinuated1 under the slight cover of a rustic simplicity4 ,and from this instructive cast1 which from its nature must be very obscure1 if not impenetrable1 to us at this day1 was1 ,i doubt not1 derived the principal pleasure which the ancients found in this species of the drama4 ,if the modern reader would conceive any thing of the nature and degree of this pleasure1 he may in part guess at it1 from reflecting on the entertainment he himself receives from the characters of the clowns in ,shakespear2 who1 as the poet himself hath characterized them1 use their folly1 like a stalking horse1 and1 under the presentation of that1 shoot their wit4 ,as you like it4 99 99 99 99 99 #bba4 ,,agrestis ,,satyros1 c4 ,it hath been shewn1 that the poet could not intend1 in these lines1 to fix the origin of the satyric drama4 ,but1 though this be certain1 and the dispute concerning that point be thereby determined1 yet is it to be noted1 that he purposely describes the satyr in its ruder and less polished form2 glancing even at some barbarities1 which deform the ,bacchic chorus2 which was properly the satyric piece1 before schylus had1 by his regular constitution of the drama1 introduced it1 under a very different form on the stage4 ,the reason of this conduct is given in n4 on v4 #bjc4 ,hence the propriety of the word nudavit1 which ,lambin rightly interprets1 nudos introduxit ,satyros1 the poet hereby expressing the monstrous indecorum of this entertainment in its first unimproved state4 ,alluding also to this ancient character of the ,satyr1 he calls him asper1 i4 e4 rude and petulant2 and even adds1 that his jests were intemperate1 and without the least mixture of gravity4 ,for thus1 upon the authority of a very ingenious and learned critic1 ,i explane incolumi gravitate1 i4 e4 rejecting every thing serious1 bidding farewell1 as we say1 to all gravity4 ,thus ,l4 iii4 ,o4 #e4 ,incolumi ,jove et urbe ,roma2 i4 e4 bidding farewell to ,jupiter ,capitolinus and ,rome2 agreeably to what is said just before1 ,anciliorum et nominis et tog ,,oblitus1 ternque ,vest4 or1 as ,,salvus is used still more remarkably in ,martial #aj4 l4 v4 ,ennius est lectus ,,salvo tibi1 ,roma1 ,marone3 ,et sua riserunt secula ,monidem4 ,farewell1 all gravity1 is as remote from the original sense of the words fare well1 as incolumi gravitate from that of incolumis1 or salvo ,marone from that of salvus4 99 99 99 99 99 #bbc4 ,,inlecebris ,,erat ,,et ,,grata ,,novitate ,,morandus ,,spectator-- ,the poet gives us in these words the reason1 why such gross ,ribaldry1 as we know the ,atellanes consisted of1 was endured by the politest age of ,rome4 ,scenical representations1 being then intended1 not1 as in our days1 for the entertainment of the better sort1 but on certain great solemnities1 indifferently for the diversion of the whole city1 it became necessary to consult the taste of the multitude1 as well as of those1 quibus est equus1 et pater et res4 ,and this reason is surely sufficient to vindicate the poet from the censure of a late critic1 who has fallen upon this part of the epistle with no mercy4 8,the poet1 says he1 spends a great number of verses about these satyrs2 but the subject itself is unworthy his pen4 ,he1 who could not bear the elegant mimes of ,laberius1 that he should think this farcical and obscene trash1 worth his peculiar notice1 is somewhat strange40 ,i doubt not1 it appeared so to this writer1 who neither considered the peculiar necessity of the satyric piece1 nor attended to the poet's purpose and drift in this epistle4 ,the former is the more extraordinary1 because he hath told us1 and rightly too1 8that1 to content the people1 the satyric was superadded to the tragic drama40 ,and he quotes a passage from ,diomedes1 which gives the same account1 ,satyros induxerunt ludendi causa jocandique1 simul ut spectator inter res tragicas seriasque satyrorum quoque jocis et ludis delectaretur4 ,should not this have taught him1 that what was so requisite to content the people1 might deserve some notice from the poet8 ,this farcical trash was chiefly calculated for those1 who without the enticement of so agreeable a change in the entertainment of the day1 would not have had patience to sit out the tragedy2 which being intended for the gratification of the better sort1 urbani et honesti1 they1 in their turn1 required to be diverted in the only way1 which was to the level of their taste1 that of farce and pleasantry4 ,and this ,i dare be confident1 so great a patron of liberty1 as this writer1 will agree with me in thinking to be but reasonable in a free state2 which ought to make some provision for the few1 that may chance1 even under such advantages1 to want a truly critical spirit4 ,i hold then1 that ,horace acted1 not only in the character of a good critic1 but of a prudent man1 and good citizen1 in attempting to refine1 what it had not been equitable1 or was not in his power1 wholly to remove4 ,but #b4 the learned critic as little attended to the drift of the epistle1 as to the important use and necessity of the satyric drama4 ,he must otherwise have seen1 that1 in an essay to improve and regulate the ,roman theatre 7which is the sole purpose of it7 the poet's business was to take it1 as it then stood1 and to confine himself to such defects and abuses1 as he found most likely to admit a correction1 and not1 as visionary projectors use1 to propose a thorough reform of the public taste in every instance4 ,the ,atellanes had actual possession of the stage1 and1 from their antiquity1 and other prejudices in their favour1 as well as from the very design and end of their theatrical entertainments1 would be sure to keep it4 ,what had the poet then1 in these circumstances1 to do but1 in pursuance of his main design1 to encourage a reformation of that entertainment1 which he was not at liberty absolutely1 and under every shape1 to reject4 ,this he judged might most conveniently be done by adopting the ,greek ,satyrs instead of their own ,oscan characters4 ,with this change1 though the ,atellanes might not1 perhaps1 be altogether to his own taste1 yet he hoped to render it a tolerable entertainment to the better sort4 ,and this1 in fact1 it might have been by following the directions here given2 part of which were intended to free it from that obscene and farcical trash1 which appears to have been no less offensive to the poet1 than to this critic4 ,as for the so much applauded mimes1 they had not1 it is probable1 at this time gained a footing on the stage1 sufficient to entitle them to so much consideration4 ,this was a new upstart species of the drama1 which1 though it had the common good-fortune of absurd novelties1 to take with the great2 yet was generally disapproved by men of better taste1 and better morals4 ,cicero had passed a severe censure upon it in one of his epistles1 ,ad famil4 ix4 #af4 which intimates1 that it was of a more buffoon and ridiculous composition1 than their ,atellanes2 whose place it began to be the fashion to supply with this ribaldry4 ,and we collect the same thing from what ,ovid observes of it in apology for the looseness of his own verses1 ,quid si scripsissem ,,mimos obscna jocantes1 ,qui semper vetiti crimen amoris habent8 ,nec satis incestis temerari vocibus aures1 ,assuescunt oculi multa pudenda pati4 ,trist4 l4 ii4 v4 #dig4 ,horace1 with this writer's leave1 might therefore judge it better to retain the ,atellanes under some restrictions1 than adopt what was much worse4 ,but the mimes of ,laberius were quite another thing4 ,they were all elegance4 ,so ,j4 ,scaliger ,comment1 de ,comd4 et ,tragd4 c4 vi4 and1 after him1 this writer1 tells us2 but on no better grounds1 than that he wrote good ,latin 7though not always that1 as may be seen in ,a4 ,gellius1 l4 xvi4 c4 #g47 and hath left a few elegant1 moral scraps behind him4 ,but what then8 the kind of composition was ridiculous and absurd1 and1 in every view1 far less tolerable1 than the satyrs under the regulation of ,horace4 ,the latter was a regular drama1 consisting of an intire fable1 conducted according to the rules of probability and good sense1 only dashed with a little extravagance for the sake of the mob4 ,the character of the former hath been given above from unquestionable authorities4 ,accordingly ,diomedes iii4 p4 #dhh4 ed4 ,putsch4 defines it to be an irreverent and lascivious imitation of obscene acts--mimus est sermonis cujuslibet motus sine reverentia1 vel factorum et turpium cum lascivia imitatio4 ,and ,scaliger himself owns veri mimi proprium esse qudam sordida ut affectet1 loc4 cit4 ,it seems1 in short1 to have been a confused medley of comic drollery on a variety of subjects1 without any consistent order or design2 delivered by one actor1 and heightened with all the licence of obscene gesticulation4 ,its best character1 as practised by its greatest master1 ,laberius1 was that of being witty in a very bad way ,sen4 ,controv4 l4 iii4 c4 #ah4 and its sole end and boast1 risu diducere rictum ,hor4 i4 ,s4 x4 #g4 which1 whatever virtue it may be1 is not always a proof of much elegance4 ,but ,i have spent too many words on a criticism1 which the ingenious author1 ,i am persuaded1 let fall unawares1 and did not mean to give us as the result of a mature and well-weighed deliberation on this subject4 99 99 99 99 99 #bbe4 ,,verum ,,ita ,,risores1 c4 ,the connecting particle1 verum1 expresses the opposition intended between the original satyr and that which the poet approves4 ,for having insinuated the propriety of the satyric shews1 as well from the practice of ,greece1 as the nature of festival solemnities1 the poet goes on to animadvert on their defects1 and to prescribe such rules1 in the conduct of them1 as might render them a tolerable diversion1 even to the better sort4 ,this introduction of the subject hath no small art4 ,for1 there being at this time 7as hath been shewn7 an attempt to bring in the ,greek satyrs1 while the ,atellane plays 7as was likely7 still held the affections of the people1 the poet was not openly to reproach and discredit these2 but1 by a tacit preference1 to support and justify the other4 ,this is done with address4 ,for1 instead of criticising the ,atellanes1 which came directly in his way1 after having closed his account of the ,roman tragedy1 he relates1 as it were1 incidentally1 the practice of ancient ,greece in exhibiting satyrs1 and thence immediately passes on1 without so much as touching on the other favourite entertainment1 to offer some directions concerning the satyric drama4 99 99 99 99 99 #bbg4 ,,ne ,,quicunque ,,deus1 ,,quicunque ,,adhibebitur ,,heros1 c4 ,gods and ,heroes were introduced as well into the satyric as tragic drama1 and often the very same ,gods and ,heroes1 which had born a part in the preceding tragedy3 a practice1 which ,horace1 ,i suppose1 intended1 by this hint1 to recommend as most regular4 ,this gave the serious1 tragic air to the satyr4 ,the comic arose from the risor and dicax1 who was either a satyr himself1 or some character of an extravagant1 ridiculous cast1 like a satyr4 ,of this kind1 says ,diomedes1 from whom ,i take this account1 are ,autolychus and ,burris3 which last particular ,i mention for the sake of justifying a correction of the learned ,casaubon4 ,this great critic conjectured1 that1 instead of ,burris1 in this place1 it should be read ,busiris4 ,his reason is 8nam ,burris iste ex ,grcorum poetis mihi non notus30 which reason hath more force1 than appears at first sight4 ,for the very nature of this diversion required1 that the principal character of it should be well known1 which it was scarce likely to be1 if not taken from a common story in their poets4 ,but ,vossius objects1 8sed non ea fuerit persona ridicula30 contrary to what the grammarian represents it4 ,but how so8 ,busiris was a savage1 inhospitable tyrant1 who sacrificed strangers4 ,and what should hinder this character from being made ridiculous1 as well as ,polypheme in the ,cyclops8 ,their characters were not unlike4 ,and1 as is seen in that case1 the ancients knew to set forth such monsters of cruelty in a light1 that rendered them equally absurd and detestable4 ,this was agreeable to their humanity1 which1 by such representations1 loved to cultivate a spirit of benevolence in the spectators2 and shews the moral tendency of even the absurdest of the ancient dramatic shews4 ,the objection of ,vossius is then of no weight4 ,but what further confirms the emendation of the excellent ,casaubon1 is a manuscript note on the margin of a printed copy of this book#bc1 which ,i have now by me1 as it should seem1 from his own hand1 8lectionem vero quam restituimus etiam in optimo codice ,puteano postea invenimus40 ,the learned reader will therefore1 henceforth1 look upon the text of ,diomedes1 in this place1 as fully settled4 99 99 99 99 99 #bbi4 ,,migret ,,in ,,obscuras c4--,,aut1 ,,dum ,,vitat c4 ,the two faults1 cautioned against1 are #a4 a too low1 or vulgar expression1 in the comic parts2 and #b4 a too sublime one1 in the tragic4 ,the former of these faults would almost naturally adhere to the first essays of the ,roman satyrs1 from the buffoon genius of the old ,atellane3 and the latter1 from not apprehending the true measure and degree of the tragic mixture4 ,to correct both these1 the poet gives the exactest idea of the satyrs1 in the image of a ,roman matron1 sharing in the mirth of a religious festival4 ,the occasion obliged to some freedoms3 and yet the dignity of her character demanded a decent reserve4 99 99 99 99 99 #bcd4 ,,non ,,ego ,,inornata c4 ,the scope of these lines may be to regulate the satyric style1 by the idea of its character1 before given1 in the allusion to a ,roman matron4 ,conformably to that idea1 a plain1 unornamented expression from v4 #bcd to #bcf4 must not always be used4 ,the three following lines inforce this general application by example4 ,if the exact reader find himself dissatisfied with this gloss1 which seems the only one1 the words1 as they now stand1 will bear1 he may1 perhaps1 incline to admit the following conjecture1 which proposes to read1 instead of inornata1 honorata4 ,i4 ,the context1 ,i think1 requires this change4 ,for the two faults observed above v4 #bbi1 #cj4 were1 #a4 a too low expression1 and1 #b4 a too lofty4 ,corresponding to this double charge1 the poet having fixed the idea of this species of composition v4 #bca1 #b1 #c4 should naturally be led to apply it to both points in questions3 #a4 to the comic part1 in prescribing the true measure of its condescension1 and1 #b4 to the tragic1 in settling the true bounds of its elevation4 ,and this1 according to the reading here offered1 the poet doth1 only in an inverted order4 ,the sense of the whole would be this1 #a4 ,non ego ,,honorata et dominantia nomina solum ,verbaque1 ,pisones1 satyrorum scriptor amabo3 i4 e4 in the tragic scenes1 ,i would not confine myself to such words only1 as are in honour1 and bear rule in tragic1 and the most serious subjects2 this stateliness not agreeing to the condescending levity of the satyr4 #b4 ,nec sic enitar tragico differre colori1 ,ut nihil intersit ,davusne loquatur1 et audax ,pythias1 emuncto lucrata ,simone talentum1 ,an custos famulusque ,dei ,silenus alumni4 i4 e4 nor1 on the contrary1 in the comic scenes1 would ,i incur the other extreme of a too plain1 and vulgar expression1 this as little suiting its inherent matronlike dignity4 ,but1 ,,ii4 this correction improves the expression as well as the sense4 ,for besides the opposition1 implied in the disjunctive1 nec1 which is this way restored1 dominantia hath now its genuine sense1 and not that strange and foreign one forced upon it out of the ,greek language4 ,as connected with honorata1 it becomes a metaphor1 elegantly pursued2 and hath too a singular propriety1 the poet here speaking of figurative terms4 ,and then1 for honorata itself1 it seems to have been a familiar mode of expression with ,horace4 ,thus #b ,ep4 ii4 #aab4 honore indigna vocabula are such words as have parum splendoris and are sine pondere4 ,and 8qu sunt in honore vocabula0 is spoken of the contrary ones1 such as are fit to enter into a serious tragic composition1 in this very epistle1 v4 #ga4 99 99 99 99 99 #bdj4 ,,ex ,,noto ,,fictum c4 ,this precept from v4 #bdj to #bdd is analogous to that1 before given v4 #abi concerning tragedy4 ,it directs to form the satyrs out of a known subject4 ,the reasons are1 in general1 the same for both4 ,only one seems peculiar to the satyrs4 ,for the cast of them being necessarily romantic1 and the persons1 those fantastic beings1 called satyrs1 the 1 or probable1 will require the subject to have gained a popular belief1 without which the representation must appear unnatural4 ,now these subjects1 which have gained a popular belief1 in consequence of old tradition1 and their frequent celebration in the poets1 are what ,horace calls nota2 just as newly invented subjects1 or1 which comes to the same thing1 such as had not been employed by other writers1 indicta1 he1 on a like occasion1 terms ignota4 ,the connexion lies thus4 ,having mentioned ,silenus in v4 #bci1 one of the commonest characters in this drama1 an objection immediately offers itself2 8but what good poet will engage in subjects and characters so trite and hackney'd80 ,the answer is1 ex noto fictum carmen sequar1 i4 e4 however trite and well known this and some other characters1 essential to the satyr1 are1 and must be2 yet will there be still room for fiction and genius to shew itself4 ,the conduct and disposition of the play may be wholly new1 and above the ability of common writers1 tantum series juncturaque pollet4 99 99 99 99 99 #bdd4 ,,sylvis ,,deducti ,,caveant c4 ,having before v4 #bcb settled the true idea of the satyric style in general1 he now treats of the peculiar language of the satyrs themselves4 ,this common sense demands to be in conformity with their sylvan character1 neither affectedly tender and gallant1 on the one hand2 nor grossly and offensively obscene1 on the other4 ,the first of these cautions seems leveled at a false improvement1 which1 on the introduction of the ,roman satyr1 was probably attempted on the simple1 rude plan of the ,greek1 without considering the rustic extraction and manners of the fauns and satyrs4 ,the latter1 obliquely glances at the impurities of the ,atellane1 whose licentious ribaldry1 as hath been observed1 would1 of course1 infect the first essays of the ,roman satyr4 ,but these rules so necessary to be followed in the satyric1 are 7to observe it by the way7 still more essential to the ,,pastoral poem3 the fortunes and character of which 7though numberless volumes have been written upon it7 may be given in few words4 ,the prodigious number of writings1 called ,pastoral1 which have been current in all times1 and in all languages1 shews there is something very taking in this poem4 ,and no wonder1 since it addresses itself to ,,three leading principles in human nature1 ,,the ,,love ,,of ,,ease1 ,,the ,,love ,,of ,,beauty1 and ,,the ,,moral ,,sense3 such pieces as these being employed in representing to us the ,,tranquillity1 the ,,innocence1 and the ,,scenery1 of the rural life4 ,but though these ideas are of themselves agreeable1 good sense will not be satisfied unless they appear to have some foundation in truth and nature4 ,and even1 then1 their impression will be but faint1 if they are not1 further1 employed to convey instruction1 or interest the heart4 ,hence the different forms1 under which this poem hath appeared4 ,,theocritus thought it sufficient to give a reality to his pictures of the rural manners4 ,but in so doing it was too apparent that his draught would often be coarse and unpleasing4 ,and1 in fact1 we find that his shepherds1 contrary to the poet's rule1 ----immunda crepent ignominiosaque dicta4 ,,virgil avoided this extreme4 ,without departing very widely from the simplicity of rustic nature1 his shepherds are more decent1 their lives more serene1 and1 in general1 the scene more inviting4 ,but the refinements of his age not well agreeing to these simple delineations1 and his views in writing not being merely to entertain1 he saw fit to allegorize these agreeable fancies1 and make them the vehicles of historical1 and sometimes even of philosophic1 information4 ,our ,,spenser wanted to engross all the beauties of his masters3 and so1 to the artless and too natural drawing of the ,greek1 added the deep allegoric design of the ,latin1 poet4 ,one easily sees that this nigmatic cast of the pastoral was meant to give it an air of instruction1 and to make it a reasonable entertainment to such as would nauseate a sort of writing1 8,where pure description held the place of sense40 ,but this refinement was out of place1 as not only inconsistent with the simplicity of the pastoral character1 but as tending to rob us in a good degree of the pleasure1 which these amusing and picturesque poems are intended to give4 ,others therefore took another route4 ,the famous ,,tasso1 by an effort of genius which hath done him more honour than even his epic talents1 produced a new kind of pastoral1 by engrafting it on the drama4 ,and under this form1 pastoral poetry became all the vogue4 ,the charming ,,amintas was even commented by the greatest scholars and critics4 ,it was read1 admired1 and imitated by all the world4 ,there is no need to depreciate the fine copies that were taken of it1 in ,italy4 ,but those by our own poets were1 by far1 the best4 ,,shakespeare had1 indeed1 set the example of something like pastoral dramas1 in our language2 and in his ,winter's ,tale1 ,as ye like it1 and some other of his pieces1 has enchanted every body with his natural sylvan manners1 and sylvan scenes4 ,but ,,fletcher set himself1 in earnest1 to emulate the ,italian1 yet still with an eye of reverence towards the ,english1 poet4 ,in his faithful shepherdess he surpasses the former1 in the variety of his paintings and the beauty of his scene2 and only falls short of the latter1 in the truth of manners1 and a certain original grace of invention which no imitation can reach4 ,the fashion was now so far established1 that every poet of the time would try his hand at a pastoral4 ,even surly ,,ben1 though he found no precedent for it among his ancients1 was caught with the beauty of this novel drama1 and1 it must be owned1 has written above himself in the fragment of his sad shepherd4--,the scene1 at length1 was closed with the ,comus of ,,milton1 who1 in his rural paintings1 almost equalled the simplicity and nature of ,shakespeare and ,fletcher1 and1 in the purity and splendor of his expression1 outdid ,,tasso4 ,in this new form of the pastoral1 what was childish before1 is readily admitted and excused4 ,a simple moral tale being the groundwork of the piece1 the charms of description and all the embellishments of the scene are only subservient to the higher purpose of picturing the manners1 or touching the heart4 ,but the good sense of ,shakespeare1 or perhaps the felicity of his genius1 was admirable4 ,instead of the deep tragic air of ,tasso 7which has been generally followed7 and his continuance of the pastoral strain1 even to satiety1 through five acts1 he only made use of these playful images to enrich his comic scenes4 ,he saw1 ,i suppose1 that pastoral subjects were unfit to bear a tragic distress4 ,and besides1 when the distress rises to any height1 the wantonness of pastoral imagery grows distasteful4 ,where as the genius of comedy admits of humbler distresses2 and leaves us at leisure to recreate ourselves with these images1 as no way interfering with the draught of characters1 or the management of a comic tale4 ,but to make up in surprize what was wanting in passion1 ,shakespeare hath1 with great judgment1 adopted the popular system of ,faeries2 which1 while it so naturally supplies the place of the old sylvan theology1 gives a wildness to this sort of pastoral painting which is perfectly inimitable4 ,in a word2 if ,tasso had the honour of inventing the pastoral drama1 properly so called1 ,shakespeare has shewn us the just application of pastoral poetry2 which1 however amusing to the imagination1 good sense will hardly endure1 except in a short dialogue1 or in some occasional dramatic scenes2 and in these only1 as it serves to the display of characters and the conduct of the poet's plot4 ,and to confirm these observations on pastoral poetry1 which may be thought too severe1 one may observe that such1 in effect1 was the judgment passed upon it by that great critic1 as well as wit1 ,,cervantes4 ,he concludes his famous adventures1 with a kind of project for his knight and squire to turn shepherds3 an evident ridicule on the turn of that time for pastoral poems and romances1 that were beginning to succeed to their books of heroic knight-errantry4 ,not1 but it contains1 also1 a fine stroke of moral criticism1 as implying1 what is seen from experience to be too true1 that men capable of running into one enthusiasm are seldom cured of it but by some sudden diversion of the imagination1 which drives them into another4 ,in conclusion1 the reader will scarcely ask me1 why1 in this deduction of the history and genius of pastoral poetry1 ,i have taken no notice of what has been written of this kind1 in ,france2 which1 if it be not the most unpoetical nation in ,europe1 is at least the most unpastoral4 ,nor is their criticism of this poem much better than their execution4 ,a late writer#bd indeed pronounces ,m4 de ,fontenelle's discourse on pastoral poetry to be one of the finest pieces of criticism in the world4 ,for my part1 ,i can only say it is rather more tolerable than his pastorals4 99 99 99 99 99 #bdh4 ,,offendentur ,,enim ,,quibus ,,est ,,equus ,,et ,,pater ,,et ,,res4 ,the poet1 in his endeavour to reclaim his countrymen from the taste obscene1 very politely1 by a common figure1 represents that as being the fact1 which he wished to be so4 ,for what reception the rankest obscenities met with on the ,roman stage we learn from ,ovid's account of the success of the ,,mimi3 ,nobilis hos virgo matronaque1 virque puerque1 ,spectat3 et magn parte senatus adest4 ,trist4 ii4 v4 #eja4 ,this1 indeed1 was not till some time after the date of this epistle4 ,but we may guess from hence what must have been the tendency of the general disposition1 and may see to how little effect the poet had laboured to divert the public attention from the ,mimes to his reformed ,atellanes4 99 99 99 99 99 #bea4 ,,syllaba ,,longa ,,brevi1 c4 ,this whole critique on the satyrs concludes with some directions about the ,iambic verse4 ,when the commentary asserts1 that this metre was common to tragedy and the satyrs1 this is not to be taken strictly2 the satyrs1 in this respect1 as in every other1 sustaining a sort of intermediate character betwixt tragedy and comedy4 ,for1 accurately speaking1 their proper measure1 as the ,grammarians teach1 was the ,iambic enlivened with the tribrachys4 8,gaudent ,victor4 l4 ii4 c4 met4 ,iamb4 trisyllabo pede et maxime tribrache40 ,yet there was likeness enough to consider this whole affair of the metre under the same head4 ,the ,roman dramatic writers were very careless in their versification1 which arose1 as is hinted1 v4 #bei1 from an immoderate and undistinguishing veneration of their old poets4 ,in conclusion of all that has been delivered on the subject of these satyrs1 it may be amusing to the learned reader to hear a celebrated ,french critic express himself in the following manner3 8,les ,romains donnoient encore le nom de ,satyre une espece de ,piece ,pastorale2 qui tenoit1 dit on le milieu entre la ,tragedie et la ,comedie4 ,c'est tout ce que nous en savons40 ,mem4 de l',hist4 des ,belles ,lett4 tom4 xvii4 p4 #baa4 99 99 99 99 99 #bfd4 ,,et ,,data ,,romanis ,,venia ,,est ,,indigna ,,poetis4 ,it appears certainly1 that what is said here concerning the metre of dramatic poems1 was peculiarly calculated for the correction of the ,roman negligence1 and inaccuracy in this respect4 ,this1 if it had not been so expresly told us1 would have been seen from the few remaining fragments of the old ,latin plays1 in which a remarkable carelessness of numbers is observed4 ,this gives a presumption1 that1 with the like advantage of consulting them1 it would also appear1 that the rest of the poet's rules were directed to the same end1 and that even such1 as are delivered in the most absolute and general form1 had a peculiar reference1 agreeably to what is here taught of the plan of this poem1 to the corresponding defects in the state of the ,roman stage4 99 99 99 99 99 #bgj4 ,,at ,,vestri ,,proavi ,,plautinos ,,et ,,numeros ,,et ,,laudavere ,,sales2 ,,nimium ,,patienter ,,utrumque1 ,,ne ,,dicam ,,stulte1 ,,mirati2 ,it hath been thought strange1 that ,horace should pass so severe a censure on the wit of ,plautus1 which yet appeared to ,cicero so admirable1 that he speaks of it as elegans1 urbanum1 ingeniosum1 facetum4 ,de ,off4 i4 #bi4 ,nor can it be said1 that this difference of judgment was owing to the improved delicacy of taste for wit1 in the ,augustan age1 since it doth not appear1 that ,horace's own jokes1 when he attempts to divert us in this way1 are at all better than ,cicero's4 ,the common answer1 so far as it respects the poet1 is1 ,i believe1 the true one3 8that endeavouring to beat down the excessive veneration of the elder ,roman poets1 and1 among the rest 7as appears from #b ,ep4 i4 and ,a4 ,p4 #ed47 of ,plautus1 he censures1 without reserve1 every the least defect in his writings2 though1 in general1 he agreed with ,cicero in admiring him40 ,but then this was all4 ,for that he was not so over-nice as to dislike ,plautus' wit in the main1 and1 but in this view1 probably had not criticized him at all1 ,i collect from his express approbation of the wit of the old comedy2 which certainly was not more delicate1 than that of ,plautus4 ridiculum acri ,fortius et melius magnas plerumque secat res4 ,illi1 scripta quibus comdia prisca viris est1 ,hoc stabant1 ,,hoc ,,sunt ,,imitandi4 ,i ,s4 x4 #ae4 ,i know1 it hath been thought1 that1 even in this very place1 where he censures the wit of ,plautus1 he directs us ad ,grca exemplaria1 i4 e4 as his critics understand him1 to ,aristophanes1 and the other writers of the old ,comedy2 but such a direction in this place1 were altogether improper1 and the supposition is1 besides1 a palpable mistake4 ,for the ,grca exemplaria are referred to only1 as models in exact versification1 as the tenor of the place fully shews4 ,and what ,horace afterwards remarks on the wit of ,plautus1 in addition to the observations on metre1 is a new and distinct criticism1 and hath no kind of reference to the preceding direction4 ,but still1 as ,i said1 ,horace appears no such enemy to the old comic wit1 as1 without the particular reason assigned1 to have so severely condemned it4 ,the difficulty is to account for ,cicero's so peculiar admiration of it1 and that a taste1 otherwise so exact1 as his1 should delight in the coarse humour of ,plautus1 and the old comedy4 ,the case1 ,i believe1 was this3 ,cicero had imbibed a strong relish of the frank and libertine wit of the old comedy1 as best suited to the genius of popular eloquence2 which1 though it demands to be tempered with some urbanity1 yet never attains its end so effectually1 as when let down and accommodated1 in some certain degree1 to the general taste and manners of the people4 ,this ,cicero in effect owns1 when he tells us1 the main end of jesting at the bar ,de ,orat4 ccxl4 is1 not to acquire the credit of consummate humour1 but to carry the cause1 ut proficiamus aliquid3 that is1 to make an impression on the people2 which is generally1 we know1 better done by a coarser joke1 than by the elegance of refined raillery4 ,and that this was the real ground of ,cicero's preference of the old comedy to the new1 may be concluded1 not only from the nature of the thing1 and his own example 7for he was ever reckoned intemperate in his jests1 which by no means answer to the elegance of his character7 but is certainly collected from what ,quintilian1 in his account of it1 expresly observes of the old comedy1 ,nescio an ulla poesis 7post ,homerum7 aut similior sit oratoribus1 aut ad oratores faciendos aptior4 ,the reason1 doubtless1 was1 that strength1 and prompt and eloquent freedom1 ,vires et facundissima libertas1 which he had before observed1 so peculiarly belonged to it4 ,and this1 ,i think1 will go some way towards clearing an embarrassing circumstance in the history of the ,roman learning1 which ,i know not1 if any writer hath yet taken notice of4 ,it is1 that though ,menander and the authors of the new comedy were afterwards admired1 as the only masters of the comic drama1 yet this does not appear to have been seen1 or1 at least1 so fully acknowledged1 by the ,roman writers1 till after the ,augustan age2 notwithstanding that the ,roman taste was1 from that time1 visibly declining4 ,the reason1 ,i doubt not1 was1 that the popular eloquence1 which continued1 in a good degree of vigour1 to that time1 participating more of the freedom of the old comic banter1 and rejecting1 as improper to its end1 the refinements of the new1 insensibly depraved the public taste2 which1 by degrees only1 and not till a studied and cautious declamation had1 by the necessary influence of absolute power1 succeeded to the liberty of their old oratory1 was fully reconciled to the delicacy and strict decorum of ,menander's wit4 ,even the case of ,terence1 which1 at first sight1 might seem to bear hard against it1 confirms this account4 ,this poet1 struck with the supreme elegance of ,menander's manner1 and attempting too soon1 before the public taste was sufficiently formed for it1 to bring it on the stage1 had occasion for all the credit1 his noble patrons could give him1 to support himself against the popular clamour4 ,what was the object of that clamour1 we learn from a curious passage in one of his prologues1 where his adversary is made to object1 ,quas--fecit--fabulas ,tenui esse oratione et scriptura levi4 ,prol4 ad ,phorm4 ,the sense of which is not1 as his commentators have idly thought1 that his style was low and trifling1 for this could never be pretended1 but that his dialogue was insipid1 and his characters1 and1 in general1 his whole composition1 without that comic heightening1 which their vitiated tastes required4 ,this further appears from those common verses of ,csar1 where1 characterizing the genius of ,terence's plays1 as devoid of this comic spirit1 he calls them lenia scripta3 ,,lenibus atque utinam ,,scriptis adjuncta foret vis ,,comica3 words1 which are the clearest comment on the lines in question4 ,but this famous judgment of ,csar deserves to be scrutinized more narrowly4 ,for it may be said 8that by vis comica ,i suppose him to mean the comic drollery of the old and middle comedy2 whereas it is more probable he meant the elegant but high humour of the best writers of the new1 particularly of ,menander2 why else doth he call ,terence1 8,dimidiate ,menander80 ,there is the more force in this objection1 because the elegant but high humour1 here mentioned1 is of the truest merit in comedy2 and because ,menander1 of whom the ancients speak so honourably1 and whom we only know by their encomiums1 may be reasonably thought to have excelled in it4 ,what occurs in answer to it1 is this4 #a4 ,the ,ancients are generally allowed to have had very little of what we now understand by comic humour4 ,lucian is the first1 indeed the only one1 who hath properly left us any considerable specimens of it4 ,and he is almost modern with regard to the writers under consideration4 ,but1 #b4 ,that ,menander and the writers of the new comedy did not excel in it1 is probable for these reasons4 #a4 ,the most judicious critic of antiquity1 when he is purposely considering the excellencies of the ,greek comedians1 and1 what is more1 exposing the comparative deficiencies of the ,roman1 says not a word of it4 ,he thinks1 indeed1 that ,terence's1 which yet he pronounces to be most elegant1 is but the faintest shadow of the ,greek1 comedy4 ,but then his reason is1 quod sermo ipse ,romanus non recipere videatur illam solis concessam ,atticis venerem4 ,l4 x4 #a4 ,it seems then as if the main defect1 which this critic observed in ,terence's comedy1 was a want of that inexplicable grace of language1 which so peculiarly belonged to the ,greeks2 a grace of so subtle a nature that even they could only catch it in one dialect--quando eam ne ,grci quidem in alio genere lingu non obtinuerint4 ,ib40 #b4 ,some of ,terence's plays may be almost said to be direct translations from ,menander4 ,and the comic humour1 supposed in the objection1 being of the truest taste1 no reason can be imagined why the poet should so industriously avoid to transfuse this last and highest grace into his comedy4 ,especially since the popular cry against him proceeded from hence1 that he was wanting in comic pleasantry2 a want1 which by a stricter attention to this virtue of his great original1 supposing ,menander to have been possessed of it1 he might so easily have supplied4 ,and lest it should be thought he omitted to do this1 as not conceiving any thing of this virtue1 or as not approving it1 we find in him1 but rarely indeed1 some delicate touches1 which approach as nearly as any thing in antiquity to this genuine comic humour4 ,of which kind is that in the ,hecyra3 ,tum tu igitur nihil adtulisti huc plus un sententi8 ,for these reasons ,i should suppose that ,menander and the writers of the new comedy1 from whom ,terence copied1 had little of this beauty4 ,but what shall we say then to ,csar's dimidiate ,menander8 ,it refers1 ,i believe1 solely to what ,quintilian1 as we have seen1 observed1 that1 with all his emulation of ,attic elegance1 he was unable1 through the native stubbornness of the ,latin tongue1 to come up to the ,greek comedy4 ,the very text of ,csar leads to this meaning4 ,tu quoque1 tu in summis1 dimidiate ,menander1 ,poneris1 et merito1 ,,puri ,,sermonis ,,amator4 ,his excellence consisted in the purity and urbanity of his expression1 in which praise if he still fell short of his master1 the fault was not in him1 but the intractability of his language4 ,and in this view ,csar's address carries with it the highest compliment4 ,quintilian had said in relation to this point1 ,vix levem consequimur umbram4 ,but ,csar1 in a fond admiration of his merit1 cries out1 ,tu quoque1 ,,tu in summis1 ,,dimidiate ,,menander4 ,his censure of him is delivered in the following lines3 ,lenibus atque utinam scriptis adjuncta foret vis ,comica1 ut quato virtus polleret honore ,cum ,grcis1 neque in hc despectus parte jaceres2 ,unum hoc maceror et doleo tibi deesse1 ,terenti4 ,which1 again1 gives no countenance to the supposition of ,menander's excelling in comic humour4 ,for he does not say1 that with the addition of this talent he had equalled ,menander1 but in general1 the ,,greeks--quato virtus polleret honore cum ,,gr,,cis4 ,and this was what occasioned ,csar's regret4 ,he wished to see him unite all the merits of the ,greek comedy4 ,as far as the ,latin tongue would permit1 he had shewn himself a master of the elegance of the new4 ,what he further required in him was the strong wit and satyr of the old4 ,his favourite had then rivalled1 in every praise1 the ,greek writers4 ,and1 if this be admitted1 nothing hinders but that by vis comica ,csar may be understood to mean 7how consistently with the admired urbanity of ,terence is not the question7 the comic pleasantry of the middle or old comedy4 ,the thing indeed could hardly be otherwise4 ,for ,plautus1 who chiefly copied1 from the middle comedy1 had1 by the drollery of his wit1 and the buffoon pleasantry of his scenes1 so enchanted the people as to continue the reigning favourite of the stage1 even long after ,afranius and ,terence had appeared on it4 ,nay the humour continued through the ,augustan age#be1 when1 as we learn from ,horace1 in many parts of his writings1 the public applause still followed ,plautus2 in whom though himself could see many faults1 yet he does not appear to have gone so far1 as1 upon the whole1 to give the preference to ,terence4 ,afterwards indeed the case altered4 ,paterculus admires2 and ,plutarch and ,quintilian are perfectly charmed3 ita omnem vit imaginem expressit1 ita est omnibus rebus1 personis1 affectibus accommodatus4 ,this character1 one would think1 should have fitted him also for a complete model to the orator4 ,and this1 as might be expected1 was ,quintilian's opinion4 ,for1 though he saw1 as appears from the passage already quoted1 that the writers of the old comedy were1 in fact1 the likest to orators1 and the most proper to form them to the practice of the ,forum1 yet1 in admiration of the absolute perfection of ,menander's manner1 and criticising him by the rules of a just and accurate rhetoric1 and not at all in the views of a practical orator1 he pronounces him to be a complete pattern of oratorial excellence3 vel unus1 diligenter lectus1 ad cuncta efficienda sufficiat1 l4 x4 c4 #a4 ,yet ,cicero1 it seems1 thought otherwise2 for he scarcely1 as ,i remember1 mentions the name of ,menander in his rhetorical books1 though he is very large in commending the authors of the old ,greek comedy4 ,the reason was unquestionably that we have been explaining3 ,the delicate observance of decorum1 for which this poet was so famous1 in omnibus mire custoditur ab hoc poeta decorum1 rendered him an unfit model for a popular speaker1 especially in ,rome1 where an orator was much more likely to carry his point by the vis comica1 the broader mirth of ,aristophanes1 or ,plautus1 than by the delicate railleries1 and exquisite paintings of ,menander1 or ,terence4 99 99 99 99 99 #bgc4 ,,si ,,modo ,,ego ,,et ,,vos ,,scimus ,,inurbanum ,,lepido ,,seponere ,,dicto4 ,it was very late ere the ancients became acquainted with this distinction4 ,indeed it does not appear1 they ever possessed it in that supreme degree1 which might have been expected from their exquisite discernment in other instances4 ,even ,horace himself1 though his pictures of life are commonly the most delicate1 and wrought up in the highest beauty of humour1 yet1 when he affects the plaisant1 and purposely aims at the comic style and manner1 is observed to sink beneath himself extremely4 ,the truth is1 there is something low1 and what the ,french call grossier1 in the whole cast of ancient wit2 which is rather a kind of rude1 illiberal satire1 than a just and temperate ridicule1 restrained by the exact rules of civility and good sense4 ,this a celebrated writer1 who seems willing to think the most favourably of the ancient wits1 in effect owns1 when1 after quoting certain instances of their raillery1 he says1 ,ces exemples1 quoique vifs et bons en leur genre1 ont qulque chose de trop dur1 qui ne s'accommoderoit pas ntre maniere de vivre2 et ce seroit ce que nous appellons rompre en visiers1 que de dire en face des veritez aussi forts que celles-l4 ,rec4 de bons ,contes et de bons ,mots1 p4 #hi4 ,this rudeness1 complained of1 appears in nothing more evident1 than in their perpetual banter on corporal infirmities1 which runs through all the wits both of ,greece and ,rome4 ,and to shew us1 that this was not a practice1 they allowed themselves in against rule1 ,cicero mentions corporal infirmities ,de ,or4 l4 ii4 c4 #ei4 as one of the most legitimate sources of the ,,ridiculous4 ,est deformitatis et corporis vitiorum satis bella materies4 ,and in another place1 ,valde ridentur etiam imagines1 qu fere in deformitatem1 aut in aliquod vitium corporis ducuntur cum similitudine turpioris1 c4 ib4 c4 #ff4 ,and this1 which is very remarkable1 though they saw the absurdity of it1 as appears from the answer of ,lamia1 recorded by ,cicero1 to a joke of this kind1 ,non potui mihi formam ipse fingere1 ib4 c4 #fe4 ,the universal prevalence of a practice so absurd in itself1 and seen by themselves to be so1 in the two politest states of the old world1 must needs have sprung from some very general1 and powerful cause2 which1 because it hath not1 that ,i know of1 been considered by any writer1 ,i shall here attempt to open and explane4 ,the subject is curious1 and would require a volume to do it justice4 ,i can only hint at the principal reasons1 which appear to me to have been these4 ,i4 ,the free and popular government of those states4 ,this1 preserving an equality of condition1 and thereby spreading a fearlessness and independency through all ranks and orders of men1 of course produced and indulged the utmost freedom of expression1 uninfluenced by hopes of favour1 and unawed by fear of personal offence2 the two sources1 from whence the civility of a more cautious ridicule is derived4 ,now of all the species of raillery1 the most natural and obvious to a people unrestrained by these causes1 is ever the coarsest1 such as that on corporal deformities2 as appears from its prevailing every where1 in all forms of government1 among the lowest of the people1 betwixt whom those causes never subsist4 ,but this reason involves in it some particulars1 which deserve to be considered4 #a4 ,the orators1 who catched it from the constitution themselves1 contributed in their turn to forward and help on this disposition to uncivilized mirth4 ,for1 the form of their government requiring immediate1 and almost continual1 applications to the people2 and the nature of such applications giving frequent exercise to their wit1 it was natural for them to suit it to the capacities of their auditory2 if indeed they had seen better themselves4 ,thus we find the orators in the ,forum1 even in the later times of the ,roman republic1 exposing their adversary to the broad mirth of the populace1 by enlarging on his low stature1 ugly face1 or distorted chin4 ,instances of which may be met with in ,cicero's treatise ,de oratore2 and even1 as hath been observed1 in some orations and other pieces of ,cicero himself4 #b4 ,from the ,forum the humour insensibly spread amongst all orders1 and particularly1 amongst the writers for the stage1 where it was kept up in its full vigour1 or rather heightened to a further extravagance1 the laughter of the people being its more immediate and direct aim4 ,but1 the stage not only conformed1 as of course it would1 to the spirit of the times 7which1 for the reason already given1 were none of the most observant of decorum7 but1 as we shall also find1 it had perhaps the greatest influence in producing and forming that spirit itself4 ,this will appear1 if we recollect1 in few words1 the rise1 progress1 and character of the ancient stage4 ,the ,greek drama1 we know1 had its origin from the loose1 licentious raillery of the rout of ,bacchus1 indulging to themselves the freest sallies of taunt and invective1 as would best suit to lawless natures1 inspirited by festal mirth1 and made extravagant by wine4 ,hence arose1 and with a character answering to this original1 the satyric drama2 the spirit of which was afterwards1 in good measure1 revived and continued in the old comedy1 and itself preserved1 though with considerable alteration in the form1 through all the several periods of the ,greek stage2 even when tragedy1 which arose out of it1 was brought to its last perfection4 ,much the same may be observed of the ,roman drama1 which1 we are told1 had its rise in the unrestrained festivity of the rustic youth4 ,this gave occasion to their ,satyr1 that is1 medleys of an irregular form1 acted for the diversion of the people4 ,and1 when afterwards ,livius ,andronicus had1 by a further reform1 reduced these ,satyr into regular tragedies1 another species of buffoon ridicule was cultivated1 under the name of ,atellan fabul2 which1 according to ,diomedes' character of them1 were replete with jocular witticisms1 and very much resembled the ,greek satyrs4 ,dictis jocularibus refert1 similes fere sunt satyricis fabulis ,grcorum4 ,these were ever after retained1 and annexed to their most regular dramatic entertainments in ,rome1 just as the satyrs were in ,greece2 and this 7as was seen in its place7 though much pains was taken to reform1 if not wholly remove1 them4 ,but to shew how strong the passion of the ,romans was for this rude illiberal banter1 even the licentious character of the ,atellanes did not fully satisfy them2 but1 as if they were determined to stick to their genuine rusticity1 they continued the ,satyr themselves1 under the name of ,exodia1 that is farces of the grossest and most absurd composition2 which1 to heighten the mirth of the day1 were commonly interwoven with the ,atellane pieces4 ,the reason of the continuance of such ribaldry in the politest ages of ,greece and ,rome hath been inquired into4 ,at present it appears1 what effect it must necessarily have upon the public taste4 ,,ii4 ,another cause connected with the foregoing1 and rising out of it1 seems to have been the festal licence of particular seasons1 such as the ,dionysia and ,panathena1 amongst the ,greeks2 and the ,bacchanalia and ,saturnalia1 at ,rome4 ,these latter1 it is observable1 were continued to the latest period of the ,roman empire1 preserving in them an image1 as well of the frank and libertine wit of their old stage1 as of the original equality and independency of their old times4 ,quintilian thinks1 that1 with some regulation1 good use might have been made of these seasons of licence1 for the cultivating a just spirit of raillery in the orators of his time4 ,as it was1 there is no doubt1 they helped much to vitiate and deprave it4 ,his words are these3 ,quin ill ips1 qu ,,dicta sunt ac vocantur1 quas certis diebus fest licenti dicere solebamus1 si paulum adhibita ratione fingerentur1 aut aliquid in his serium quoque esset admixtum1 plurimum poterunt utilitatis afferre3 qu nunc juvenum1 aut sibi ludentium exercitatio est4 ,quint4 l4 iv4 c4 #c4 ,besides1 in ,greece1 the jester was a character by profession1 necessary to the pleasantry of private feasts1 and1 as we learn from the fine satyr in ,xenophon's ,symposium1 even in that polite age1 welcome to all companies#bf4 ,from these reasons ,i think it not difficult to account for the coarseness of ancient wit4 ,the free genius of the ,greek and ,roman constitution was unquestionably its main spring and support4 ,but1 when this character of their government was seconded by the freedom of their demagogues1 the petulance of the stage1 and the uncontrouled licence of recurring festival solemnities1 it was no wonder1 the illiberal manner so thoroughly infected all ranks and degrees of the people1 as by no after diligence and refinement wholly to be removed4 ,and this theory is indeed confirmed by fact4 ,for1 when now the tyranny of one man had ingrossed the power1 and oppressed the liberties1 of ,greece1 their stage refined1 their wit polished1 and ,menander wrote4 ,and though a thorough reform was never made in the ,roman stage1 partly1 as ,quintilian thinks1 from the intractability of their language1 but chiefly1 it may be1 as to the point in question1 from the long continuance of their rude farcical shews1 yet something like this appears to have followed upon the loss of their freedom2 as is plain from the improved delicacy of their later critics2 who1 as ,quintilian and ,plutarch1 are very profuse in their encomiums on ,menander1 and the new comedy2 whereas we find little said of it by the ,augustan writers1 who seem generally to have preferred the coarser wit and pleasantry of the old4 ,the state of modern wit too confirms this account4 ,for it has grown up1 for the most part1 under limited monarchies1 in which their scenical entertainments were more moderate1 or for plain reasons must less affect the public taste4 ,whenever therefore a turn for letters has prevailed1 a poignant1 but liberal kind of wit hath generally sprung up with it4 ,where it is worth observing1 the growing tyranny in some states hath either extinguished it intirely1 or refined it into an effeminate and timid delicacy1 as the growing licentiousness in others hath sunk it into a rude and brutal coarseness2 whilst by a due mixture of liberty and letters1 we have seen it acquire a proper temperament at home1 and1 as managed by our best writers1 exhibit a specimen of that strong1 yet elegant ridicule1 which hath never yet been equalled by any other nation in the world4 99 99 99 99 99 #bge4 ,,ignotum ,,tragicae ,,genus ,,invenisse ,,camenae1 c4 ,the poet1 having just remarked the negligence of the ,roman writers1 in two or three instances1 and1 at the same time recommended to them the superior care and accuracy of the ,greeks 7all which is elegantly preparatory to the last division of the epistle7 proceeds in a short view of the ,greek drama1 to insinuate1 as well the successful pains of the ,greek writers1 as the real state of the ,roman stage2 the complete glory of which could only be expected1 as immediately follows1 from a spirit of diligence and correctness4 ,as this whole connexion is clear and easy1 so is the peculiar method1 in which it is conducted1 extremely proper4 #a4 ,to shew1 how great the advantage of their situation was over that of the ,greeks1 he observes1 that the latter had the whole constitution of the drama to invent and regulate2 which yet1 by the application and growing experience of their poets1 was soon effected2 their tragedy1 all rude and shapeless1 as it was1 in the cart of ,thespis1 appearing in its just form and proportion on the stage of schylus2 and their comedy also 7which1 from that time1 began to be cultivated7 asserting its proper character1 and1 but for the culpable omission of a chorus1 reaching the full extent and perfection of its kind4 #b4 ,to shew1 what still remained to them1 he brings down the history of tragedy no lower than schylus2 under whom it received its due form and all the essentials of its nature1 yet still wanted1 to its absolute perfection1 the further accuracy and correctness of a ,sophocles4 ,and1 for their comedy1 he hints the principal defect of that2 its omission1 after the manner of the new comedy1 of the chorus4 ,there is great address in this conduct4 ,the censure also implied in it1 is perfectly just4 ,for1 #a4 the character of the ,roman tragedy1 in the times of ,horace1 was exactly that of schylus4 schylus1 says ,quintilian1 was the first1 8qui protulit tragdias10 i4 e4 who composed true legitimate tragedies1 sublimis et gravis et grandiloquus spe usque ad vitium2 sed rudis in plerisque et incompositus ,l4 x4 c4 i4 the very description1 which ,horace gives #b ,ep4 i4 #afe4 of the ,roman tragedy4 natura sublimis et acer1 ,nam spirat tragicum satis et feliciter audet2 ,sed turpem putat inscitus metuitque lituram4 #b4 ,the state of their comedy1 as managed by their best writers1 ,afranius and ,terence1 was1 indeed1 much more complete2 yet wanted the chorus1 which1 in the judgment of the poet1 it seems1 was equally necessary to the perfection of this1 as of the other drama4 #c4 ,but the application is made in express terms4 ,nil intentatum nostri liquere poet1 c4 i4 e4 our poets1 as well as the ,greek1 have1 in some degree1 applied themselves to improve and regulate the stage4 ,in particular1 a late innovation1 in taking their subjects1 both of tragedy and comedy1 from domestic facts1 is highly to be applauded4 ,their sole disadvantage is1 a neglect or contempt of that labour and accuracy1 which gave the last perfection to the ,greek scene4 ,after this clear and natural exposition of the connexion of these lines1 all the difficulties1 that have been found in them by certain great critics1 vanish of themselves4 ,and the reader now sees 7what the sagacious ,heinsius thought impossible to be shewn7 an 1 or consistent1 natural order in this part of the epistle2 which was in imminent danger of losing all its grace and beauty1 by the wild transpositions of that critic4 99 99 99 99 99 #bgh4 ,,post ,,hunc ,,personae ,,pallaeque1 c4 ,m4 ,dacier hath here puzzled himself with a difficulty of his own raising4 ,he wonders1 that ,horace should omit1 in this history1 the other improvements of schylus1 mentioned by ,aristotle1 and that ,aristotle1 in his turn1 should omit those1 mentioned by ,horace4 ,the truth is1 neither of them intended a complete account of the improvements of the ,greek stage2 but only so much of them1 as was necessary to the views of each4 ,aristotle1 treating of the internal constitution of the drama1 speaks of such changes1 made in it by schylus1 as respected that end4 ,horace1 treating in general of its form1 as perfected by the pains and application of the same poet1 selects those improvements only1 which contrast best to the rude essays of ,thespis1 and1 while they imply the rest1 exhibit tragedy1 as it were1 in her proper person1 on the stage4 ,the reader feels the effect of this in the poetry4 99 99 99 99 99 #bhh4 ,,vel ,,qui ,,praetextas1 ,,vel ,,qui ,,docuere ,,togatas4 ,there hath been much difficulty here in settling a very plain point4 ,the question is1 whether prtextas means tragedy1 or a species of comedy8 ,the answer is very clear from ,diomedes1 whose account is1 in short1 this4 8#a,togat is a general term for all sorts of ,latin plays1 adopting the ,roman customs and dresses2 as ,palliat is1 for all1 adopting the ,grcian4 ,of the ,togat1 the several #bspecies are1 #a4 ,prtexta1 or ,prtextata1 in which ,roman kings and generals were introduced1 and is so called1 because the prtexta was the distinguishing habit of such persons4 #b4 ,tabernaria1 frequently called #c,togata1 though that word1 as we have seen1 had properly a larger sense4 #c4 ,atellana4 #d4 ,planipedis40 ,he next marks the difference of these several sorts of ,togat1 from the similar1 corresponding ones of the ,palliat1 which are these3 8#a4 #d,tragdia1 absolutely so styled4 #b4 #e;,comdia1 #c4 #f,satyri4 #d4 #g40 ,these four sorts of the palliat were also probably in use at ,rome2 certainly1 at least1 the two former4 ,it appears then from hence1 that prtextata was properly the ,roman tragedy4 ,but he adds1 8,togata prtextata tragdia differt1 and it is also said1 to be only like tragedy1 tragdi similis40 ,what is this difference and this likeness8 ,the explanation follows4 8#h;,heroes are introduced in tragedy1 such as ,orestes1 ,chryses1 and the like4 ,in the prtextata1 ,brutus1 ,decius1 or ,marcellus40 ,so then we see1 when ,grcian characters were introduced1 it was called simply tragdia2 when ,roman1 prtextata2 yet both1 tragedies4 ,the sole difference lay in the persons being foreign or domestic4 ,the correspondence in every other respect was exact4 ,the same is observed of the ,roman comedy2 when it adopted #i;,greek characters1 it was called comdia3 when ,roman1 #bj,togata ,tabernaria1 or #c,togata1 simply4 ,that the reader may assure himself of the fidelity of this account1 let him take it at large1 in the ,grammarian's own words4 8#a,togat fabul dicuntur1 qu script sunt secundum ritus et habitus hominum togatorum1 id est1 ,romanorum 7,toga namque ,romana est71 sicut ,grcas fabulas ab habitu que palliatas ,varro ait nominari4 #c,togatas autem cum sit generale nomen1 specialiter tamen pro tabernariis1 non modo communis error usurpat1 sed et poet4--,togatarum fabularum #bspecies tot fere sunt1 quot et palliatarum4 ,nam prima species est togatarum1 qu prtextat dicuntur1 in quibus imperatorum negotia agebantur et publica1 et reges ,romani vel duces inducuntur1 personarum et argumentorum sublimitate #dtragdiis similes3 ,prtextat autem dicuntur1 quia fere regum vel magistratuum1 qui prtexta utuntur1 in hujusmodi fabulis acta comprehenduntur4 ,secunda species togatarum1 qu tabernari dicuntur1 humilitate personarum et argumentorum similitudine #e;comdiis pares--,tertia species est fabularum latinarum1 qu--,atellan dict sunt1 similes #fsatyricis fabulis1 ,grcis4 ,quarta species est planipedis1 ,grce dicitur #g4--,togata prtextata1 #dtragdia differt4 ,in tragdia #h;heroes introducuntur4 ,pacuvius tragdias nominibus heroicis scripsit ,oresten1 ,chrysen1 et his similia4 ,item ,accius4 ,in prtextata autem scribitur1 ,brutus1 vel ,decius1 vel ,marcellus4 #ai,togata tabernaria #e;comdia differt1 quod in #i;comdia ,grci ritus inducuntur1 personque ,grc1 ,laches1 ,sostrata4 ,in illa vero ,latin40 ,l4 iii4 c4 de ,com4 et ,trag4 diff4 ,with this account of ,diomedes agrees perfectly that of ,festus2 from which1 however1 ,m4 ,dacier draws a very different conclusion4 8,togatarum duplex est genus3 prtextarum--et tabernariarum40 ,his inference is1 that prtextat1 as being a species of the togat1 must needs be comedies2 not considering that togata is here a generic term1 comprehending under it all the several species both of the ,roman tragedy and comedy4 ,after what hath been said1 and especially1 after the full and decisive testimony of ,diomedes1 there can no longer be any doubt about the meaning of prtextas2 and one must be surprized to find ,m4 ,dacier prefacing his long note on this place in the following important manner3 ,c'est un des plus difficiles passages d',horace1 et peuttre celui qu'il est le plus mal ais d'eclaircir cause du peu de lumiere que nous donnent les auteurs ,latins sur tout ce qui regarde leurs pieces de theatre4 99 99 99 99 99 #bha4 ,,successit ,,vetus ,,his ,,comoedia1 c4 i4 e4 ,comedy began to be cultivated and improved from the time that tragedy had obtained its end1 1 under schylus4 ,there is no reason to suppose1 with some critics1 that ,horace meant to date its origin from hence4 ,the supposition is1 in truth1 contradicted by experience and the order of things4 ,for1 as a celebrated ,french writer observes1 8,le talent d'imiter1 qui nous est naturel1 nous porte plutt la comedie qui roule sur des choses de ntre connoissance qu' la ,tragedie1 qui prend des sujets plus loigns de l'usage commun2 et en effet1 en ,grce aussi bien qu'en ,france1 la ,comedie est l'ane de la tragedie40 ,hist4 du ,theat4 ,franc4 par ,m4 de ,fontenelle4 ,the latter part of this assertion is clear from the piece referred to2 and the other1 which respects ,greece1 seems countenanced by ,aristotle himself 4 4 4 4 ',tis true1 ,comedy1 though its rise be every where1 at least1 as early as that of tragedy1 is perfected much later4 ,menander1 we know1 appeared long after schylus4 ,and1 though the ,french tragedy1 to speak with ,aristotle1 in the hands of ,corneille1 this cannot be said of their comedy1 which was forced to wait for a ,moliere1 before it arrived at that pitch of perfection4 ,but then this is owing to the superior difficulty of the comic drama4 ,nor is it any objection that the contrary of this happened at ,rome4 ,for the ,romans1 when they applied themselves in earnest to the stage1 had not to invent1 but to imitate or rather translate1 the perfect models of ,greece4 ,and it chanced1 for reasons which ,i shall not stay to deduce1 that their poets had better success in copying their comedy1 than tragedy4 99 99 99 99 99 #bhd4 ,,turpiter ,,obticuit-- ,evidently because1 though the jus nocendi was taken away1 yet that was no good reason1 why the chorus should entirely cease4 ,m4 ,dacier mistakes the matter4 ,le chur se tt ignominieusement1 parceque la loi reprima sa licence1 et que ce fut1 proprement parler1 la loi qui le bannit2 ce qu' ,horace regarde comme une espece de fltrissure4 ,properly speaking1 the law only abolished the abuse of the chorus4 ,the ignominy lay in dropping the entire use of it1 on account of this restraint4 ,horace was of opinion1 that the chorus ought to have been retained1 though the state had abridged it of the licence1 it so much delighted in1 of an illimited1 and intemperate satyr4 ,sublatus chorus fuit1 says ,scaliger1 cujus ill videntur esse prcipu partes1 ut potissimum quos liberet1 lderent4 99 99 99 99 99 #bhf4 ,,nec ,,minimum ,,meruere ,,decus ,,vestigia ,,gr,,ca ,,ausi ,,deserere ,,et ,,celebrare ,,domestica ,,facta4 ,this judgment of the poet1 recommending domestic subjects1 as fittest for the stage1 may be inforced from many obvious reasons4 ,as ,i4 that it renders the drama infinitely more affecting3 and this on many accounts4 #a4 ,as a subject1 taken from our own annals1 must of course carry with it an air of greater probability1 at least to the generality of the people1 than one borrowed from those of any other nation4 #b4 ,as we all find a personal interest in the subject4 #c4 ,as it of course affords the best and easiest opportunities of catching our minds1 by frequent references to our manners1 prejudices1 and customs4 ,and of how great importance this is1 may be learned from hence1 that1 even in the exhibition of foreign characters1 dramatic writers have found themselves obliged to sacrifice truth and probability to the humour of the people1 and to dress up their personages1 contrary to their own better judgment1 in some degree according to the mode and manners of their respective countries#bg4 ,and #d4 as the writer himself1 from an intimate acquaintance with the character and genius of his own nation1 will be more likely to draw the manners with life and spirit4 ,,ii4 ,next1 which should ever be one great point in view1 it renders the drama more generally useful in its moral destination4 ,for1 it being conversant about domestic acts1 the great instruction of the fable more sensibly affects us2 and the characters exhibited1 from the part we take in their good or ill qualities1 will more probably influence our conduct4 ,,iii4 ,lastly1 this judgment will deserve the greater regard1 as the conduct recommended was1 in fact1 the practice of our great models1 the ,greek writers2 in whose plays1 it is observable1 there is scarcely a single scene1 which lies out of the confines of ,greece4 ,but1 notwithstanding these reasons1 the practice hath1 in all times1 been but little followed4 ,the ,romans1 after some few attempts in this way 7from whence the poet took the occasion of delivering it as a dramatic precept71 soon relapsed into their old use2 as appears from ,seneca's1 and the titles of other plays1 written in1 or after the ,augustan age4 ,succeeding times continued the same attachment to ,grecian1 with the addition of an equal fondness for ,roman1 subjects4 ,the reason in both instances hath been ever the same3 that strong and early prejudice1 approaching somewhat to adoration1 in favour of the illustrious names of those two great states4 ,the account of this matter is very easy2 for their writings1 as they furnish the business of our younger1 and the amusement of our riper1 years1 and more especially make the study of all those1 who devote themselves to poetry and the stage1 insensibly infix in us an excessive veneration for all affairs in which they were concerned2 insomuch that no other subjects or events seem considerable enough1 or rise1 in any proportion1 to our ideas of the dignity of the tragic scene1 but such as time and long admiration have consecrated in the annals of their story4 ,our ,shakespeare was1 ,i think1 the first that broke through this bondage of classical superstition4 ,and he owed this felicity1 as he did some others1 to his want of what is called the advantage of a learned education4 ,thus uninfluenced by the weight of early prepossession1 he struck at once into the road of nature and common sense3 and without designing1 without knowing it1 hath left us in his historical plays1 with all their anomalies1 an exacter resemblance of the ,athenian stage1 than is any where to be found in its most professed admirers and copyists4 ,i will only add1 that1 for the more successful execution of this rule of celebrating domestic acts1 much will depend on the ra1 from whence the subject is taken4 ,times too remote have almost the same inconveniences1 and none of the advantages1 which attend the ages of ,greece and ,rome4 ,and1 for those of later date1 they are too much familiarized to us1 and have not as yet acquired that venerable cast and air1 which tragedy demands1 and age only can give4 ,there is no fixing this point with precision4 ,in the general1 that ra is the fittest for the poet's purpose1 which1 though fresh enough in our minds to warm and interest us in the event of the action1 is yet at so great a distance from the present times1 as to have lost all those mean and disparaging circumstances1 which unavoidably adhere to recent deeds1 and1 in some measure1 sink the noblest modern transactions to the level of ordinary life4 99 99 99 99 99 #bie4 ,,ingenium ,,misera1 c4 ,spe audivi poetam bonum neminem 7id quod ,democrito et ,platone in scriptis relictum esse dicunt7 sine inflammatione animorum existere posse et sine quodam afflatu quasi furoris4 ,cic4 ,de orat4 l4 ii4 c4 xlvi4 ,and so ,petronius1 prcipitandus liber spiritus1 ut furentis animi vaticinatio appareat4 c4 cxviii4 ,and to the same purpose every good critic1 ancient or modern4 ,but who can endure the grimace of those minute genii1 who1 because the truly inspired1 in the ravings of the fit1 are touched with the flame and fury of enthusiasm1 must1 therefore1 with a tame1 frigid fancy1 be laying claim to the same fervent and fiery raptures8 ,the fate of these aspirants to divinity is that 1 1 ,longin4 4 4 4 4 ,and ,quintilian opens the mystery of the whole matter3 ,quo quisque ingenio minus valet1 hoc se magis attollere et dilatare conatur3 ut statura breves in digitos eriguntur et plura infirmi minantur4 ,nam tumidos et corruptos et tinnulos et quocunque alio cacozeli genere peccantes1 certum habeo1 non virium1 sed infirmitatis vitio laborare3 ut corpora non robore1 sed valetudine inflantur3 et recto itinere lapsi plerumque divertunt4 ,l4 ii4 c4 #c4 99 99 99 99 99 #bih4 ,,bona ,,pars ,,non ,,ungues1 c4 ,the constant and pitiful affectation of the race before spoken of1 who1 with the modesty of laying claim to the thing1 will be sure not to omit the sign1 and so1 from fancying an inspiration1 they have not come to adopt every foppery1 that has ever disgraced it in those who have4 99 99 99 99 99 #cjh4 ,,quid ,,deceat1 ,,quid ,,non3 ,nihil est difficilius quam1 quid deceat1 videre4 appellant hoc ,grci3 nos dicamus sane ,decorum4 ,de quo prclare et multa prcipiuntur1 et res est cognitione dignissima4 ,hujus ignoratione non modo in vit1 sed spissime in ,,poematis et in oratione peccatur4 ,orator4 xxi4 99 99 99 99 99 #cji4 ,,scribendi ,,recte1 ,,sapere ,,est ,,et ,,principium ,,et ,,fons4 ,the ,orator was of the same mind1 when he sent his pupil to the academy for instruction4 ,quis nescit maximam vim existere oratoris in hominum mentibus vel ad iram1 aut dolorem incitandis1 vel ab hisce iisdem permotionibus ad lenitatem misericordiamque revocandis8 qu1 nisi qui naturas hominum1 vimque omnem humanitatis1 causasque eas quibus mentes aut incitantur aut reflectuntur1 penitus perspexerit1 dicendo1 quod volet1 perficere non poterit4 ,atqui ,,totus ,,hic ,,locus ,,philosophorum ,,proprius ,,videtur4 ,de ,orat4 l4 i4 c4 xii4 ,and he spoke1 we know1 from his own experience1 having acquired his oratorial skill not in the schools of the rhetoricians1 but the walks of the academy3 fateor me oratorem1 si modo sim1 aut etiam quicunque sim1 non ex rhetorum officinis1 sed ex ,academi spatiis extitisse4 ,orat4 p4 #fbb4 ,elz4 ed4 ,but the reason he gives for this advice1 though common to the poet2 whose character1 as well as the orator's1 it is1 posse voluntates impellere1 quo velis1 unde velis1 deducere1 is yet1 not the only one1 which respects the poet4 ,for his business is to paint1 and that not only1 as the orator does1 in order to move1 but for the sole end of pleasing3 solam petit voluptatem4 ,quinct4 l4 x4 c4 i4 ,the boast of his art is to catch every different aspect of nature1 and more especially to exhibit the human character in every varying light and form1 under which it presents itself4 ,but this is not to be done without an exquisite study1 and philosophical knowledge of man2 to which end1 as is remarked in n4 on v4 #cag4 the ,socratic philosophy is more peculiarly adapted4 ,add to this1 that it is the genius of true poetry1 not only to animate1 but to personalize every thing1 omnia debent esse morata4 ,hence the indispensable necessity of moral science3 all poetry being1 in effect1 what ,mr4 ,dryden somewhere calls comedy1 ,,the ,,theft ,,of ,,poets ,,from ,,mankind4 99 99 99 99 99 #caj4 ,,socraticae ,,chartae4 ,an admired writer1 in many respects deservedly so1 thus comments on these words3 8,the philosophical writings1 to which our poet refers1 were in themselves a kind of poetry1 like the mimes1 or personated pieces of early times1 before philosophy was in vogue1 and when as yet ,dramatical imitation was scarce formed3 or at least1 in many parts1 not brought to due perfection4 ,they were pieces1 which1 besides their force of style1 and hidden numbers1 carried a sort of action and imitation1 the same as the ,epic and ,dramatic kinds4 ,they were either real dialogues1 or recitals of such personated discourses2 where the persons themselves had their characters preserved throughout2 their manners1 humours1 and distinct turns of temper and understanding maintained1 according to the most exact poetical truth4 ',twas not enough1 that these pieces treated fundamentally of morals1 and1 in consequence1 pointed out real characters and manners3 ,they exhibited them alive1 and set the countenances and complexions of men plainly in view4 ,and by this means they not only taught us to know others2 but1 what was principal and of highest virtue in them1 they taught us to know ourselves40 ,thus far then these models are of unquestioned use to writers of every denomination4 ,i forbear to mention1 what this noble author finds occasion frequently to insinuate1 and1 by his own practice1 labours to recommend1 the superior excellency of the manner1 as well as matter1 of these highly-rated originals4 ,not that ,i presume to think it unworthy of imitation4 ,but the public taste1 as appears1 is running full fast that way1 insomuch that some may even doubt1 if the state of literary composition be more endangered by the neglect1 or vicious imitation1 of the ,platonic manner4 ,its graces1 when sparingly employed by a real genius1 for the embellishment of strong sense1 have1 it must be owned1 great beauty4 ,but when this humour of platonizing seizes on some minuter spirit1 bent on ennobling a trivial matter1 and all over-run with academic delicacy and affectation1 nothing1 to a just and manly relish1 can be more disgusting4 ,one must wink hard not to see frequent examples of this1 in the master ,platonist himself4 ,but his mimics1 of late1 have gone much farther4 ,there is no need1 in such a croud of instances1 to point to particulars4 ,what ,i would rather observe is1 that this folly1 offensive as it is1 may perhaps admit of some excuse from the present state of our literature1 and the character of the great original himself1 whom these writers aspire to imitate4 ,when a language1 as ours at this time1 hath been much polished and enriched with perfect models of style in almost every way1 it is in the order of things1 that the next step should be to a vicious affectation4 ,for the simplicity of true taste1 under these circumstances1 grows insipid4 ,something better than the best must be aimed at2 and the reader's languid appetite raised by the provocatives of an ambitious refinement4 ,and this in sentiment1 as well as language4 ,whence we see how it happened1 that even in ,greece itself1 where composition was studied with a more than common accuracy1 ,philosophy1 when it passed out of the hands of its great masters1 degenerated by degrees into the subtilties of sophistry1 as did ,eloquence1 likewise1 into the tricks of rhetoric4 ,but there was something1 as ,i hinted1 too1 in the character of the writer imitated1 of a very ticklish and dangerous nature2 and of which our tribe of imitators were not sufficiently aware4 ,a very exact critic of antiquity hath told us what it was4 ,it lay in ,plato's bringing the tumor of poetic composition into discourses of philosophy1 #bh4 ,and though the experiment1 for the most part1 succeeded not amiss 7as what contradiction is there which superior genius cannot reconcile87 yet it sometimes failed even in his hands4 ,and as a ,french writer well expresses it1 ,le ,,divin ,plato1 pour avoir voulu s'elever trop au dessus des hommes1 est souvent tomb dans un ,,galimatias pompeux que quelques uns confondent avec le ,,sublime4 ,the ,,phaedrus1 though the most remarkable1 is not the only example of such mischance in the writings of this great man4 99 99 99 99 99 #cag4 ,,veras ,,hinc ,,ducere ,,voces4 ,truth1 in poetry1 means such an expression1 as conforms to the general nature of things2 falsehood1 that1 which1 however suitable to the particular instance in view doth yet not correspond to such general nature4 ,to attain to this truth of expression in dramatic poetry two things are prescribed3 #a4 ,a diligent study of the ,socratic philosophy2 and #b4 ,a masterly knowledge and comprehension of human life4 ,the first1 because it is the peculiar distinction of this school ad veritatem vit propius accedere4 ,cic4 de ,or4 i4 #ea4 ,and the latter1 as rendering the imitation more universally striking4 ,this will be understood by reflecting that truth may be followed too closely in works of imitation1 as is evident in two respects4 ,for1 #a4 the artist1 when he would give a ,copy of nature1 may confine himself too scrupulously to the exhibition of particulars1 and so fail of representing the general idea of the kind4 ,or1 #b4 in applying himself to give the general idea1 he may collect it from an enlarged view of real life1 whereas it were still better taken from the nobler conception of it as subsisting only in the mind4 ,this last is the kind of censure we pass upon the ,flemish school of painting1 which takes its model from real nature1 and not1 as the ,italian1 from the contemplative idea of beauty#bi4 ,the former corresponds to that other fault objected also to the ,flemish masters1 which consists in their copying from particular odd and grotesque nature in contradistinction to general and graceful nature4 ,we see then that in deviating from particular and partial1 the poet more faithfully imitates universal1 truth4 ,and thus an answer occurs to that refined argument1 which ,plato invented and urged1 with much seeming complacency1 against poetry4 ,it is1 that poetical imitation is at a great distance from truth4 8,poetical expression1 says the ,philosopher1 is the copy of the poet's own conceptions2 the poet's conception1 of things1 and things1 of the standing archetype1 as existing in the divine mind4 ,thus the poet's expression1 is a copy at third hand1 from the primary1 original truth40 ,plat4 ,de rep4 l4 x4 ,now the diligent study of this rule of the poet obviates this reasoning at once4 ,for1 by abstracting from existences all that peculiarly respects and discriminates the individual1 the poet's conception1 as it were neglecting the intermediate particular objects1 catches1 as far as may be1 and reflects the divine archetypal idea1 and so becomes itself the copy or image of truth4 ,hence too we are taught the force of that unusual encomium on poetry by the great critic1 that it is something more severe and philosophical than history1 4 ,the reason follows1 which is now very intelligible2 1 ' ' 4 4 4 4 4 ,and this will further explain an essential difference1 as we are told1 between the two great rivals of the ,greek stage4 ,sophocles1 in return to such as objected a want of truth in his characters1 used to plead1 that he drew men such as they ought to be1 ,euripides such as they were4 1 1 4 4 4 4 4 ,the meaning of which is1 ,sophocles1 from his more extended commerce with mankind1 had enlarged and widened the narrow1 partial conception1 arising from the contemplation of particular characters1 into a complete comprehension of the kind4 ,whereas the philosophic ,euripides1 having been mostly conversant in the academy1 when he came to look into life1 keeping his eye too intent on single1 really existing personages1 sunk the kind in the individual2 and so painted his characters naturally indeed1 and truly1 with regard to the objects in view1 but sometimes without that general and universally striking likeness1 which is demanded to the full exhibition of poetical truth4 ,but here an objection meets us1 which must not be overlooked4 ,it will be said1 8that philosophic speculations are more likely to render men's views abstract and general than to confine them to individuals4 ,this latter is a fault arising from the small number of objects men happen to contemplate3 and may be removed not only by taking a view of many particulars1 which is knowledge of the world2 but also by reflecting on the general nature of men1 as it appears in good books of morality4 ,for the writers of such books form their general notion of human nature from an extensive experience 7either their own1 or that of others7 without which their writings are of no value40 ,the answer1 ,i think1 is this4 ,by reflecting on the general nature of man the philosopher learns1 what is the tenor of action arising from the predominancy of certain qualities or properties2 i4 e4 in general1 what that conduct is1 which the imputed character requires4 ,but to perceive clearly and certainly1 how far1 and with what degree of strength this or that character will1 on particular occasions1 most probably shew itself1 this is the fruit only of a knowledge of the world4 ,instances of a want of this knowledge cannot be supposed frequent in such a writer1 as ,euripides2 nor1 when they occur1 so glaring as to strike a common reader4 ,they are niceties1 which can only be discerned by the true critic2 and even to him1 at this distance of time1 from an ignorance of the ,greek manners1 that may possibly appear a fault1 which is a real beauty4 ,it would therefore be dangerous to think of pointing out the places1 which ,aristotle might believe liable to this censure in ,euripides4 ,i will however presume to mention one1 which1 if not justly criticized1 will1 at least1 serve to illustrate my meaning4 ,the story of his ,electra is well known4 ,the poet had to paint1 in the character of this princess1 a virtuous1 but fierce1 resentful woman2 stung by a sense of personal ill treatment2 and instigated to the revenge of a father's death1 by still stronger motives4 ,a disposition of this warm temperament1 it might be concluded by the philosopher in his closet1 would be prompt to shew itself4 ,electra would1 on any proper occasion1 be ready to avow her resentment1 as well as to forward the execution of her purpose4 ,but to what lengths would this resentment go8 i4 e4 what degree of fierceness might ,electra express1 without affording occasion to a person widely skilled in mankind1 and the operation of the passions1 to say1 8this is improbable80 ,here abstract theories will be of little service4 ,even a moderate acquaintance with real life will be unable to direct us4 ,many individuals may have fallen under observation1 that will justify the poet in carrying the expression of such a resentment to any extreme4 ,history would1 perhaps1 furnish examples1 in which a virtuous resentment hath been carried even farther than is here represented by the poet4 ,what way then of determining the precise bounds and limits of it8 ,only by observing in numerous instances1 i4 e4 from a large extensive knowledge of practical life1 how far it usually1 in such characters1 and under such circumstances1 prevails4 ,hence a difference of representation will arise in proportion to the extent of that knowledge4 ,let us now see1 how the character before us1 hath1 in fact1 been managed by ,euripides4 ,in that fine scene1 which passes between ,electra and ,orestes1 whom as yet she suspects not to be her brother1 the conversation very naturally turns upon ,electra's distresses1 and the author of them1 ,clytmnestra1 as well as on her hopes of deliverance from them by the means of ,orestes4 ,the dialogue upon this proceeds3 ,or4 ,what then of ,orestes1 were he to return to this ,argos8 ,el4 ,ah6 wherefore that question1 when there is no prospect of his return at all8 ,or4 ,but supposing he should return1 how would he go about to revenge the death of his father8 ,el4 ,in the same way1 in which that father suffered from the daring attempts of his enemies4 ,or4 ,and could you then dare to undertake with him the murder of your mother8 ,el4 ,yes1 with that very steel1 with which she murdered my father4 ,or4 ,and am ,i at liberty to relate this to your brother1 as your fixed resolution8 ,el4 ,i desire only to live1 till ,i have murdered my mother4 ,the ,greek is still stronger3 ,may ,i die1 as soon as ,i have murdered my mother6 ,now that this last sentence is absolutely unnatural1 will not be pretended4 ,there have been doubtless many examples1 under the like circumstances1 of an expression of revenge carried thus far4 ,yet1 ,i think1 we can hardly help being a little shocked at the fierceness of this expression4 ,at least ,sophocles has not thought fit to carry it to that extreme4 ,in him1 ,electra contents herself with saying to ,orestes1 on a similar occasion3 8,the conduct of this affair now rests upon you4 ,only let me observe this to you1 that1 had ,i been left alone1 ,i would not have failed in one of these two purposes1 either to deliver myself gloriously1 or to perish gloriously40 ,whether this representation of ,sophocles be not more agreeable to truth1 as collected from wide observation1 i4 e4 from human nature at large1 than that of ,euripides1 the capable reader will judge4 ,if it be1 the reason ,i suppose to have been1 that ,sophocles painted his characters1 such1 as1 from attending to numerous instances of the same kind1 he would conclude they ought to be2 ,euripides1 such1 as a narrower sphere of observation had persuaded him they were4 99 99 99 99 99 #cai4 ,,interdum ,,speciosa ,,locis1 c4 ,the poet's science in ethics will principally shew itself in these two ways1 #a4 in furnishing proper matter for general reflexion on human life and conduct2 and1 #b4 in a due adjustment of the manners4 ,by the former of these two applications of moral knowledge a play becomes1 what the poet calls1 speciosa locis1 i4 e4 7for the term is borrowed from the rhetoricians7 striking in its moral topics3 a merit of the highest importance on the ancient stage1 and which1 if prudently employed in subserviency to the latter more essential requisite of the drama1 a just expression of the manners1 will deserve to be so reputed at all times and on every theatre4 ,the danger is1 lest a studied1 declamatory moral1 affectedly introduced1 or indulged to excess1 should prejudice the natural exhibition of the characters1 and so convert the image of human life into an unaffecting1 philosophical dialogue4 99 99 99 99 99 #cai4 ,,morataque ,,recte ,,fabula1 c4 ,this judgment of the poet1 in regard of the superior efficacy of manners1 is generally thought to be contradicted by ,aristotle2 who in treating this subject1 observes1 8that let a piece be never so perfect in the manners1 sentiments1 and style1 it will not so well answer the end and purpose of tragedy1 as if defective in these1 and finished only in the fable and composition40 1 1 1 4 4 4 ,m4 ,dacier thinks to clear this matter by saying1 8that what ,aristotle remarks holds true of tragedy1 but not of comedy1 of which alone ,horace is here speaking40 ,but granting that the artificial contexture of the fable is less necessary to the perfection of comedy1 than of tragedy 7as it certainly is71 yet the tenor of this whole division1 exhorting to correctness in general1 makes it unquestionable1 that ,horace must intend to include both4 ,the case1 as it seems to me1 is this4 ,the poet is not comparing the respective importance of the fable and manners1 but of the manners and diction1 under this word including also numbers4 ,he gives them the preference not to a good plot1 nor even to fine sentiments1 but to versus inopes rerum nugque canor4 ,the art he speaks of1 is the art of expressing the thoughts properly1 gracefully1 and harmoniously3 the pondus is the force and energy of good versification4 ,venus is a general term including both kinds of beauty4 ,fabula does not mean the fable 7in distinction from the rest7 but simply a play4 99 99 99 99 99 #cbc4 ,,graiis ,,ingenium1 c4 ,the ,greeks being eminent for philosophy1 especially morals2 the last observation naturally gives rise to this4 ,for the transition is easy from their superiority1 as philosophers1 to their superiority as poets2 and the more easy1 as the latter is shewn to be1 in part1 the effect of the former4 ,now this superiority of the ,greeks in genius and eloquence 7which would immediately occur1 on mentioning the ,socratic chart7 being seen and confessed1 we are led to ask1 8whence this arises40 ,the answer is1 from their making glory1 not gain1 the object of their wishes4 99 99 99 99 99 #ccj4 ,,aerugo ,,et ,,cura ,,peculi ,,cum ,,semel ,,imbuerit1 c4 ,this love of gain1 to which ,horace imputes the imperfect state of the ,roman poetry1 hath been uniformly assigned1 by the wisdom of ancient times1 as the specific bane of arts and letters4 ,longinus and ,quintilian account1 from hence1 for the decay of eloquence1 ,galen of physic1 ,petronius of painting1 and ,pliny1 of the whole circle of the liberal arts4 ,an ingenious modern is indeed for carrying his views much further4 ,he1 it seems1 would account ,refl4 sur la ,poes4 et sur la ,peint4 v4 ii4 xiv4 for this public degeneracy of taste and literature1 not from the malignity of the selfish passions1 but the baleful influences of the air1 emulating1 ,i suppose1 herein1 the wisdom of that philosophy1 which teaches to lay the private degeneracy of individuals on the stars4 ,thus much however may be true1 that other causes have generally co-operated with it4 ,some of these1 as might be shewn1 did not escape the attention of these wise ancients4 ,yet they did right to insist chiefly on this1 which is every way equal to the effect ascribed to it4 ,it is so in its nature3 ,for being1 as ,longinus calls it1 1 a disease which narrows and contracts the soul1 it must1 of course1 restrain the generous efforts and expansions of genius2 cramp the free powers and energies of the mind1 and render it unapt to open itself to wide views1 and to the projection of great1 extensive designs4 ,it is so in its consequences4 ,for1 as one says elegantly1 when the passion of avarice grows general in a country1 the temples of ,honour are soon pulled down1 and all men's sacrifices are made to ,fortune#cj4 ,thus extinguishing the sense of honour1 that divinest movement in our frame1 and the only one1 which can invigorate the mind under the long labours of invention1 it must needs be1 that the fire and high spirit of genius go out with it2 and dragging in its train the love of pleasure1 that unmanliest of all the passions1 it diffuses such a languor and impotency over the mind1 as must leave it at length a prey to a supine wasting indolence2 till1 as ,longinus observes of his own age 7and let every friend to letters deprecate the omen71 1 1 1 1 4 99 99 99 99 99 #ccc4 ,,aut ,,prodesse ,,volunt1 ,,aut ,,delectare ,,poetae1 c4 ,though these lines have the appearance of general criticism1 yet do they more especially respect the dramatic poesy4 ,this will be evident from attending to the context4 ,the full boast and glory of the drama is to delight and instruct mankind4 #a4 ,the latter praise was more especially due to the ancient tragic muse1 who did not think it sufficient to paint lovely pourtraitures of public and social virtue1 and to call in the moralizing chorus to her assistance1 but1 which was one of her discriminating characters1 she was perpetually inculcating every branch of true moral in those brief sententious precepts1 which inform and solemnize her page4 ,to these precepts then the poet manifestly refers in those lines1 ,quicquid prcipies1 esto brevis2 ut cito dicta ,percipiant animi dociles1 teneantque fideles4 ,but what follows is still clearer1 #b4 ,the other end of the drama is to entertain1 and this by the means of probable fiction4 ,ficta1 voluptatis causa1 sint proxima veris4 ,and the poet applies this to the case of the drama in express words3 ,ne quodcunque volet1 poscat sibi fabula credi3 ,neu prans ,lami vivum puerum extrahat alvo4 ,the instance of ,lamia1 as ,mr4 ,dacier observes1 is certainly taken from some poet of that time1 who had been guilty of this misconduct4 ,the reader may learn from hence1 how intently ,horace pursues his design of criticizing the ,roman stage1 when1 in treating a subject1 from its nature1 the most general of any in the epistle1 viz4 critical correctness1 we yet find him so industriously recurring to this point4 99 99 99 99 99 #cdc4 ,,miscuit ,,utile ,,dulci4 ,the unnatural separation of the ,,dulce ,,et ,,utile hath done almost as much hurt in letters as that of the ,,honestum ,,et ,,utile1 which ,tully somewhere complains of1 hath done in morals4 ,for while the polite writer1 as he is called1 contents himself with the former of these qualities1 and the man of erudition with the latter1 it comes to pass1 as the same writer expresses it1 that ,,et ,,doctis ,,eloquentia ,,popularis1 ,,et ,,disertis ,,elegans ,,doctrina ,,desit ,orat4 iii4 99 99 99 99 99 #cfc4 ,,haec ,,amat ,,obscurum1 ,,volet ,,haec ,,sub ,,luce ,,videri4 ,cicero hath given the same precept in relation to oratory1 habeat illa in dicendo admiratio ac summa laus umbram aliquam et recessum1 quo magis id1 quod erit illuminatum1 extare atque eminere videatur4 ,de orat4 l4 iii4 c4 xxvi4 99 99 99 99 99 #cgc4 ,,mediocribus ,,esse ,,poetis ,,non ,,homines1 c4 ,this judgment1 however severe it may seem1 is according to the practice of the best critics4 ,we have a remarkable instance in the case of ,apollonius ,rhodius1 who1 though1 in the judgment of ,quintilian1 the author of no contemptible poem1 yet on account of that equal mediocrity1 which every where prevails in him1 was struck out of the list of good writers by such sovereign judges of poetical merit1 as ,aristophanes and ,aristarchus4 ,quint4 l4 x4 c4 i4 99 99 99 99 99 #djc4 ,,dictae ,,per ,,carmina ,,sortes1 ,the oracles here spoken of1 are such as respect not private persons 7whom a natural curiosity1 quickened by anxious superstition1 has ever prompted to pry into their future fortunes7 but entire communities2 and for these there was little place1 till ,ambition had inspired great and eventful designs1 and by involving the fate of nations1 had rendered the knowledge of futurity important4 ,hence1 in marking the progress of ancient poesy1 ,horace judiciously postpones oracles1 to the celebration of martial prowess1 as being that1 which gave the principal eclat to them4 ,this species of poetry then is rightly placed1 though it be true1 as the commentators have objected1 that oracles were much ancienter than ,homer1 and the ,trojan war4 99 99 99 99 99 #djd4 ,,et ,,vitae ,,monstrata ,,via ,,est2 ,meaning the writings of ,theognis1 ,phocylides1 ,hesiod1 and others1 which1 consisting wholly of moral precepts1 are elegantly said to lay open1 or discover the road of life4 ,mr4 ,dacier's interpretation1 which makes the poet mean physics by viam vit1 is supported by no reason4 ,il ne faut pas1 says he1 entendre ceci de la philosophie et des murs2 ,,car ,horace se contrediroit1 puisque il a dit que ce fut le premier soin de la poesie4 ,the learned critic did not consider1 that the first care of poesy1 as explained above1 and as employed by ,orpheus and ,amphion1 was to inculcate policy1 not moral4 99 99 99 99 99 #djd4 ,,et ,,gratia ,,regum1 ,,pieriis ,,tentata ,,modis1 ,,ludusque ,,repertus1 ,,et ,,longorum ,,operum ,,finis3 ,,ne ,,forte ,,pudori ,,sit ,,tibi ,,musa ,,lyrae ,,solers1 ,,et ,,cantor ,,apollo4 ,this is one of those master-strokes1 which make the sovereign charm of this poet4 ,but the way in which it hath been understood1 extinguishes all its grace and beauty4 ,on les vers employa1 says an interpreter1 who speaks the sense of the rest1 gagner la faveur des rois1 et on les mit de tous les jeux et de tous les spectacles1 qu'on inventa pour se delasser de ses longs travaux et de toutes ses fatigues4 ,je vous dis cela afin que vous n'ayez point de honte de faire la cour aux ,muses et ,apollon4 ,and1 lest this should not seem explicit enough1 he adds in a couple of notes1 that by ludus repertus1 c4 il le poete veut parler des tragedies et des comedies que l'on faisoit jour dans les ftes solemnelles4 ,and then1 as to the ne forte pudori1 ,cela prouve qu' ,horace ne fait cet eloge de la poesie que pour empecher que ,pison n'en ft degout4 ,can any thing be more insipid8 ,for could the poet think so meanly of his art1 as to believe it wanted an apology8 ,or had the courtier so little address1 as to direct that apology immediately to the ,pisos8 ,besides1 what species of poesy is it that he labours to excuse8 ,why1 according to this interpretation1 the dramatic3 the supreme boast of his art1 and the main subject of the epistle4 ,and in what manner does he excuse it8 ,why1 in recommending it1 as an agreeable amusement4 ,but his master1 ,aristotle1 would have furnished him with a nobler plea3 and 'tis certain1 the ancients talked at another rate of the use and end of the drama4 ,let us see then1 if the sense1 given in the commentary1 will bring any relief to the poet4 ,in fact1 this whole passage from et vit1 c4 to cantor ,apollo obliquely glances at the two sorts of poetry peculiarly cultivated by himself1 and is an indirect apology for his own choice of them4 ,for #a4 vit monstrata via est is the character of his sermones4 ,and #b4 all the rest1 of his ,odes4 ,these are recommended1 agreeably to their nature1 #a4 as of use to conciliate the favour of princes2 hereby glancing at the success of his own odes1 and1 with the happiest address1 insinuating the regard1 which ,augustus paid to letters4 #b4 ,as contributing to the mirth and entertainment of feasts1 and especially as holding a principal place in the celebration of those more sacred1 secular festivities 7longorum operum finem7 which could not be duly solemnized1 without the ministration of the lyric muse4 ,castis cum pueris ignara puella mariti1 ,disceret unde preces1 vatem ni musa dedisset8 #b ,ep4 i4 #acb4 ,and again3 ego ,diis amicum1 ,sculo festas referente luces1 ,reddidi carmen docilis modorum ,vatis ,horat4 ,carm4 ,sec4 ,in another place both ends are expressed3 testudo ,divitum ,,mensis et amica ,,templis4 #c ,od4 xi4 ,where it may be observed1 this double character of lyric poetry exactly corresponds to that1 which the poet had before expressly given of it in this very epistle3 the gratia regum being the same as ,musa dedit fidibus ,divos puerosque ,deorum ,et pugilem victorem et equum certamine primum4 v4 #hc4 ,and ludusque repertus1 describing its other office1 ,et juvenum curas et libera vina referre4 ib4 ,in this view the following line1 which apologizes1 not for poesy in general1 or its noblest species1 the drama1 but for his own lyrics only1 hath1 as the reader perceives1 infinite grace2 and is peculiarly marked with that vein of exquisite humour1 so suited to the genius of the epistle1 and which makes one of the distinguishing beauties of the poet4 ,it hath also an extreme propriety2 the levity of the ode admitting1 or rather requiring some apology to the ,pisos2 who would be naturally led to think but meanly of it1 in comparison of the sublimer dramatic poetry4 ,i must add1 the very terms of the apology so expresly define and characterize lyric poetry1 that it is something strange1 it should have escaped vulgar notice3 musa lyr solers being evidently explained by ,roman fidicen lyr #d ,od4 iii4 #bc4 and the epithet cantor1 describing ,apollo1 as clearly as words can do it1 in the peculiar character of ,lyric4 99 99 99 99 99 #djg4 ,,cantor ,,apollo4 ,,natura ,,fieret1 c4 ,the transition is delicate1 and a fine instance of that kind of method1 which the ,epistle demands4 ,the poet had just been speaking of the ode1 and its inspirer1 cantor ,apollo2 and this1 in the natural train of his ideas1 suggested that enthusiasm1 and stretch of genius1 which is at once the characteristic and glory of the lyric composition4 ,and this was ground enough1 in an ,epistle1 to pass on to say something concerning the power and influence of genius in poetry in general4 ,it was for want of attending to so plain a reflexion as this1 that the excellent ,heinsius trifled so egregiously1 in his transpositions of the ,epistles1 and in particular of this very place4 ,and the hasty censures1 which ,m4 ,dacier passed on the poet's method1 are apparently owing to no other cause4 ,see his introduct4 remarks4 ,but to declare my sense at parting1 of the latter of these critics1 ,i would say1 as he himself does of the former1 ,c'est assez parl contre ,m4 ,,dacier1 dont j'estime et admire autant la profonde rudition1 que je condamne la mauvais usage qu'il en a fait en quelques rencontres4 99 99 99 99 99 #daj4 ,,alterius ,,sic ,,altera ,,poscit ,,opem ,,res1 ,,et ,,conjurat ,,amice4 ,this conclusion1 8that art and nature must conspire to the production of a perfect piece10 is1 in the general1 unquestionably just4 ,if we would know the distinct powers and provinces of each1 a fine passage in ,longinus will inform us4 ,for1 of the five sources of the sublime1 enumerated by that critic1 two only1 8a grandeur of conception1 and the pathetic10 come from nature3 the rest1 8a just arrangement of figures10 8a splendid diction10 and 8dignity of composition10 are of the province of art4 ,yet1 though their powers are thus distinct1 each1 in order to attain its due perfection1 must conspire1 and be consociated1 with the other4 ,for that 8sublime of conception0 and 8pathetic enthusiasm0 never make a more sure and lasting impression1 than when cloathed in the graces1 and moderated by the sober sense of art3 as1 on the contrary1 the milder beauties of 8language0 and 8artificial composition0 are never so secure of seizing the attention1 as when raised and inspirited by the pathos1 or sublime4 ,so that the nature of the union1 here recommended1 is such1 as makes it not only necessary to the completion of that great end1 viz4 the glory of perfect composition2 but that either part1 in the alliance1 may fully effect its own4 ,all which is but the larger explication of another passage in ,longinus1 who teaches1 that 1 ' ' 1 4 4 4 4 4 ,but here1 in parting1 it will be amusing1 perhaps1 to the curious reader to observe1 what perpetual matter of debate this question hath furnished to the ancient learned4 ,it seems first to have taken its rise from the high pretension of poets to inspiration see ,pind4 ,od4 iii4 ,nem41 which was afterwards understood in too literal a sense1 and in time extended to all works of genius or imitation4 ,the orator1 who1 as ,cicero tells us1 is near a-kin to the poet1 set up the same claim2 principally1 as it should seem1 on the authority of ,socrates1 who1 taking occasion from the ill use that had been made of rhetoric1 to decry it as an art1 was herein followed by the most illustrious of his scholars2 amongst whom was ,aristotle1 ,quinct4 l4 ii4 c4 #ag4 who had written a set treatise professedly with this view1 though his books of rhetoric proceed on very different principles4 ,the question afterwards appeared of so much moment to ,cicero1 that he discussed it in form1 in one of his dialogues ,de ,oratore4 ,and ,quinctilian1 in still later times1 found himself obliged to resume the same debate1 and hath accordingly considered it in an entire chapter4 ,the long continuance of so frivolous a dispute1 and which admits so easy a decision1 would go near to persuade one1 if1 as ,shakespeare speaks1 they had not the privilege of antiquity upon them1 that the pens of the ancient literati were not always more wisely employed1 than those of modern controversialists4 ,if we ask the reason1 it would seem to be owing to that ambitious spirit of subtlety and refinement1 which1 as ,quintilian observes1 puts men upon teaching not what they believe to be true1 but what1 from the falsehood or apparent strangeness of the matter1 they expect the praise of ingenuity from being able to maintain4 ,this1 ,i say1 might seem to be the cause of so much perversity1 on the first view1 and unquestionably it had its influence4 ,but the truth is1 the real cause was something more general and extensive4 ,it was1 in fact1 that natural proneness1 so ,longinus terms it1 in mankind1 to censure and degrade things present1 4 ,this in nothing holds truer1 than in what concerns the state of literature2 as may be seen from that unwearied industry of the learned to decry whatever appears to be the prevailing taste of the times2 whether it be in suggesting some defect to be made good by future improvements2 or1 as is more common1 because the easier and less invidious task1 in setting up1 and magnifying some former examples of a different cast and merit4 ,thus1 in the case before us1 exquisite art and commanding genius1 being the two only means of rising to superior literary excellence1 in proportion as any age became noted for the one1 it was constantly defamed1 and the preference given to the other4 ,so1 during the growth of letters in any state1 when a sublimity of sentiment and strength of expression make1 as under those circumstances they always will1 the characteristic of the times1 the critic1 disgusted with the rude workings of nature1 affects to admire only the nicer finishings and proportions of art4 ,when1 let but the growing experience of a few years refine and perfect the public taste1 and what was before traduced as roughness and barbarity1 becomes at once nerves1 dignity1 and force4 ,then art is effeminacy2 and judgment want of spirit4 ,all now is rapture and inspiration4 ,the exactest modern compositions are unmanly and unnatural1 et solos veteres legendos putant1 neque in ullis aliis esse naturalem eloquentiam et robur viris dignum arbitrantur4 ,quinct4 l4 x4 c4 i4 ,the truth of this observation might he justified from many examples4 ,the learning and art of ,pacuvius 7for so ,i understand the epithet doctus7 carried it before the sublime of ,accius2 just as in elder ,greece the smooth and correct ,simonides1 tenuis ,simonides1 as ,quinctilian characterizes him1 bore away the prize from the lofty and high-spirited schylus4 ,afterwards indeed the case was altered4 ,the ,athenians1 grown exact in the rules of good writing1 became so enamoured of the bold flights of schylus1 as with a little correction to admit him on the stage1 who1 by this means1 frequently gained the prize from a polite and knowing people1 for what had certainly lost it him in the simpler1 and less informed theatre of his own times4 ,thus too it fared with the elder ,latin poets1 who1 though admired indeed in their own age1 but with considerable abatement from the reason before assigned1 were perfectly idolized in that of ,augustus2 so as to require the sharpest satire of our poet1 to correct the malevolent principle from whence the affectation arose4 ,but the observation holds of our own writers4 ,there was a time1 when the art of ,,jonson was set above the divinest raptures of ,,shakespeare4 ,the present age is well convinced of the mistake4 ,and now the genius of ,,shakespeare is idolized in its turn4 ,happily for the public taste1 it can scarcely be too much so4 ,yet1 should any1 in the rage of erecting trophies to the genius of ancient poesy1 presume to violate the recent honours of more correct poets1 the cause of such critical perversity will be ever the same4 ,for all admiration of past times1 when excessive1 is still to be accounted for the same way1 ,ingeniis non ille favet plauditque sepultis1 ,nostra sed impugnat1 nos nostraque lividus odit4 ,,the ,,end ,,of ,,the ,,notes ,,on ,,the ,,art ,,of ,,poetry4 ,q4 ,,horatii ,,flacci ,,epistola ,,ad ,,augustum4 ,,to ,,the ,,reverend ,,mr4 ,,warburton4 ,,reverend ,,sir1 ,give me leave to present to you the following ,essay on the ,epistle to ,augustus2 which1 whatever other merit it may want1 is secure of this1 that it hath been planned upon the best model4 ,for ,i know not what should hinder me from declaring to you in this public manner1 that it was the early pleasure ,i received from what you had written of this sort1 which first engaged me in the province of criticism4 ,and1 if ,i have taken upon me to illustrate another of the finest pieces of antiquity after the same method1 it is because ,i find myself encouraged to do so by higher considerations1 than even the ,authority of your example4 ,,criticism1 considered in its ancient and noblest office of doing justice to the merits of great writers1 more especially in works of poetry and invention1 demands1 to its perfect execution1 these two qualities3 a philosophic spirit1 capable of penetrating the fundamental reasons of excellence in every different species of composition2 and a strong imagination1 the parent of what we call true taste1 enabling the critic to feel the full force of his author's excellence himself1 and to impress a lively sense of it upon others4 ,each of these abilities is necessary4 ,for by means of philosophy1 criticism1 which were otherwise a vague and superficial thing1 acquires the soundness and solidity of science4 ,and from the power of fancy1 it derives that light and energy and spirit1 which are wanting to provoke the public emulation and carry the general conclusions of reason into practice4 ,of these talents 7to regard them in their separate state7 that of a strong imagination1 as being the commoner of the two1 one would naturally suppose should be the first to exert itself in the service of criticism4 ,and thus it seems1 in fact1 to have happened4 ,for there were very early in ,greece a sort of men1 who1 under the name of ,,rhapsodists1 made it their business to illustrate the beauties of their favourite writers4 ,though their art1 indeed1 was very simple2 for it consisted only in acting the finest passages of their works1 and in repeating them1 with a rapturous kind of vehemence1 to an ecstatic auditory4 ,whence it appears1 that criticism1 as being yet in its infancy1 was wholly turned to admiration2 a passion which true judgment as little indulges in the schools of ,art1 as sound philosophy in those of ,nature4 ,accordingly these enraptured declaimers1 though they travelled down to the politer ages1 could not subsist in them4 ,the fine ridicule of ,plato1 in one of his ,dialogues#ca1 and the growing taste for just thinking1 seem perfectly to have discredited this folly4 ,and it was presently seen and acknowledged even by the ,rhapsodist himself1 that1 how divinely soever he might feel himself affected by the magnetic virtue of the muse1 yet1 as he could give no intelligible account of its subtle operations1 he was assuredly no ,artist2 4 ,from this time they1 who took upon themselves the office of commenting and recommending the great writers of ,greece1 discharged it in a very different manner4 ,their researches grew severe1 inquisitive1 and rational4 ,and no wonder2 for the person1 who now took the lead in these studies1 and set the fashion of them1 was a philosopher1 and1 which was happy for the advancement of this art1 the justest philosopher of antiquity4 ,hence scientific or speculative criticism attained to perfection1 at once2 and appeared in all that severity of reason and accuracy of method1 which ,aristotle himself could bestow upon it4 ,but now this might almost seem as violent an extreme as the other4 ,for though to understand be better than to admire1 yet the generality of readers cannot1 or will not1 understand1 where there is nothing for them to admire4 ,so that reason1 for her own sake1 is obliged to borrow something of the dress1 and to mimic the airs1 of fancy3 ,and ,aristotle's reason was too proud to submit to this management4 ,hence1 the critical plan1 which the ,stagirite had formed with such rigour of science1 however it might satisfy the curious speculatist1 wanted to be relieved and set off to the common eye by the heightenings of eloquence4 ,this1 ,i observed1 was the easier task of the two2 and yet it was very long before it was successfully attempted4 ,amongst other reasons of this delay1 the principal1 as you observe1 might be the fall of the public freedom of ,greece1 which soon after followed4 ,for then1 instead of the free and manly efforts of genius1 which alone could accomplish such a reformation1 the trifling spirit of the times declined into mere verbal amusements3 8whence10 as you say1 8so great a cloud of scholiasts and grammarians so soon over-spread the learning of ,greece1 when once that famous community had lost its liberty#cb40 ,and what ,greece was thus unable1 of a long time1 to furnish1 we shall in vain seek in another great community1 which soon after flourished1 in all liberal studies4 ,the genius of ,rome was bold and elevated enough for this task4 ,but ,criticism1 of any kind1 was little cultivated1 never professed as an art1 by this people4 ,the specimens we have of their ability in this way 7of which the most elegant1 beyond dispute1 are the two epistles to ,augustus1 and the ,pisos7 are slight occasional attempts2 made in the negligence of common sense1 and adapted to the peculiar exigencies of their own taste and learning3 and not by any means the regular productions of art1 professedly bending itself to this work1 and ambitious to give the last finishing to the critical system4 ,for so great an effort as this we are to look back to the confines of ,greece4 ,and there at length1 and even from beneath the depression of slavery 7but with a spirit that might have done honour to its age of greatest liberty7 a ,,critic arose1 singularly qualified for so generous an undertaking4 ,his profession1 which was that of a rhetorical sophist1 required him to be fully instructed in the graces and embellishments of eloquence2 and these1 the vigour of his genius enabled him to comprehend in their utmost force and beauty4 ,in a word1 ,,longinus was the person1 whom1 of all the critics of antiquity1 nature seems to have formed with the proper talents to give the last honour to his profession1 and penetrate the very soul of fine writing4 ,yet so bounded is human wit1 and with such difficulty is human art compleated1 that even here the advantage1 which had been so fortunately gained on the one hand1 was1 in great measure1 lost and forfeited on the other4 ,he had softened indeed the severity of ,aristotle's plan2 but1 in doing this1 had gone back again too far into the manner of the admiring ,rhapsodist4 ,in short1 with the brightest views of nature and true beauty1 which the finest imagination could afford to the best critic1 he now wanted1 in a good degree1 that precision1 and depth of thought1 which had so eminently distinguished his predecessor4 ,for1 as ,plotinus long ago observed of him1 though he had approved himself a master of polite literature1 he was ,,no ,philosopher2 1 4 ,thus the art had been shifting reciprocally into two extremes4 ,and in one or other of these extremes1 it was likely to continue4 ,for the fame and eminent ability of their great founders had made them considered as models1 in their different ways1 of perfect criticism4 ,only it was easy to foresee which of them the humour of succeeding times would be most disposed to emulate4 ,the catching enthusiasm and picturesque fancy of the one would be sure to prevail over the coolness and austerity of the other4 ,accordingly in the last and present century1 when now the diligence of learned men had1 by restoring the purity1 opened an easy way to the study1 of the old classics1 a numberless tribe of commentators have attempted1 after the manner of ,longinus1 to flourish on the excellencies of their composition4 ,and some of them1 indeed1 succeeded so well in this method1 that one is not to wonder it soon became the popular and only authorized form of what was reputed just ,criticism4 ,yet1 as nothing but superior genius could make it tolerable even in the best of these1 it was to be expected 7what experience hath now fully shewn71 that it would at length1 and in ordinary hands1 degenerate into the most unmeaning1 frivolous1 and disgustful jargon1 that ever discredited polite letters4 ,this1 ,sir1 was the state in which you received modern ,criticism3 a state1 which could only shew you1 that1 of the two models1 antiquity had furnished to our use1 we had learned1 by an awkward imitation of it1 to abuse the worst4 ,but it did not content your zeal for the service of letters barely to remedy this abuse4 ,it was not enough1 in your enlarged view of things1 to restore either of these models to its ancient splendour4 ,they were both to be revived2 or rather a new original plan of criticism was to be struck out1 which should unite the virtues of each of them4 ,the experiment was made on the ,,two greatest of our own poets2 and1 by reflecting all the lights of the imagination on the severest reason1 every thing was effected1 which the warmest admirer of ancient art could promise to himself from such an union4 ,but you went farther4 ,by joining to these powers a perfect insight into human nature1 and so ennobling the exercise of literary1 by the addition of the justest moral1 censure1 you have now1 at length1 advanced ,,criticism to its full glory4 ,not but1 considering the inveterate foible of mankind1 which the poet so justly satirizes in the following work1 ,i mean that1 which disposes them to malign and depreciate all the efforts of wit and virtue1 --nisi quae terris semota suisque ,temporibus defuncta videt-- ,considering1 ,i say1 this temper of mankind1 you may sooner1 perhaps1 expect the censures of the dull and envious of all denominations1 than the candid applause of the public1 even for this service4 ,i apprehend this consequence the rather1 because criticism1 though it be the last fruit of literary experience1 is more exposed to the cavils of ignorance and vanity1 than1 perhaps1 any other species of learned application3 all men being forward to judge1 and few men giving themselves leave to doubt of their being able to judge1 of the merits of well-known and popular writers4 ,nor is this all3 ,when writers of a certain rank condescend to this work of criticism1 the innovation excites a very natural ferment in the men of the profession4 ,their ,,jealousy is alarmed1 as if there was a design to strip them of the only honour they can reasonably pretend to1 that of sitting in judgment on the inventions of their betters4 ,but to ,,judge1 he well as to ,,invent1 is thought a violent encroachment in the republic of ,letters2 not unlike the ambition of the ,roman emperors1 who would be consuls1 and censors too1 that is1 would have the privilege of excluding from the senate1 as well as of presiding in it4 ,but if jealousy were out of the case1 their ,,malignity would be much inflamed by this intrusion4 ,for who can bear to see his own weak endeavours in any art1 disgraced by a consummate model8 ,besides1 to say the truth1 the conceptions of such writers1 as ,i before spoke of1 lie so remote from vulgar apprehension1 that1 without either jealousy or malignity1 ,,dullness itself will be sure to create them many peevish detractors4 ,for an ordinary critic can scarce help finding fault with what he does not understand1 or being angry where he has no ideas4 ,on all these accounts it may possibly happen1 as ,i said1 that your critical labours will draw upon you much popular resentment and invective4 ,but if such should be the present effect of your endeavours to cultivate and complete this elegant part of literature1 you1 who know the temper of the learned world1 and1 by your eminent merits1 have so oft provoked its injustice1 will not be disturbed or surprized at it3 much less should it discourage those who are disposed to do you more right1 from celebrating1 and1 as they find themselves able1 from copying your example2 ,for ,,use will father what's begot by ,,sense1 as well in this1 as in other instances4 ,you see1 ,sir1 what there is of encomium in the turn of this ,letter1 was intended not so much for your sake1 as my own4 ,had my purpose been any other1 ,i must have chosen very ill among the various parts of your character to take this for the subject of an address to you4 ,for1 after all ,i have said and think of your critical abilities1 it might seem almost as strange in a panegyrist on ,mr4 ,warburton to tell of his admirable criticisms on ,,pope and ,,shakespear1 as it would be in him1 who should design an encomium on ,socrates1 to insist on his excellent sculpture of ,,mercury and the ,,graces4 ,yet there is a time1 when it may be allowed to lay a stress on the amusements of such men4 ,it is1 when an adventurer in either art would do an honour to his profession4 ,i am1 with the truest esteem1 ,reverend ,sir1 ,your most obedient and most humble servant1 ,r4 ,,hurd4 ,,cambridge1 ,march #bi1 #agec4 ,q4 ,,horatii ,,flacci ,,epistola ,,ad ,,augustum4 ,cum tot sustineas et tanta negotia solus1 ,res ,italas armis tuteris1 moribus ornes1 ,legibus emendes2 in publica commoda peccem1 ,si longo sermone morer tua tempora1 ,caesar4 ,romulus1 et ,liber pater1 et cum ,castore ,pollux1 #e ,post ingentia fata1 ,deorum in templa recepti1 ,dum terras hominumque colunt genus1 aspera bella ,conponunt1 agros adsignant1 oppida condunt2 ,ploravere suis non respondere favorem ,speratum meritis4 diram qui contudit ,hydram1 #aj ,notaque fatali portenta labore subegit1 ,comperit invidiam supremo fine domari4 ,urit enim fulgore suo1 qui praegravat artis ,infra se positas3 extinctus amabitur idem4 ,praesenti tibi maturos largimur honores1 #ae ,jurandasque tuum per numen ponimus aras1 ,nil oriturum alias1 nil ortum tale fatentes4 ,sed tuus hoc populus sapiens et justus in uno1 ,te nostris ducibus1 te ,graiis anteferendo1 ,cetera nequaquam simili ratione modoque #bj ,aestimat2 et1 nisi quae terris semota suisque ,temporibus defuncta videt1 fastidit et odit3 ,sic fautor veterum1 ut ,tabulas peccare vetantis1 ,quas bis quinque viri sanxerunt1 ,foedera regum ,vel ,gabiis vel cum rigidis aequata ,sabinis1 #be ,pontificum libros1 annosa volumina ,vatum1 ,dictitet ,albano ,musas in monte locutas4 ,si1 quia ,graiorum sunt antiquissima quaeque ,scripta vel optima1 ,romani pensantur eadem ,scriptores trutina2 non est quod multa loquamur3 #cj ,nil intra est olea1 nil extra est in nuce duri3 ,venimus ad summum fortunae3 pingimus1 atque ,psallimus1 et luctamur ,achivis doctius unctis4 ,si meliora dies1 ut vina1 poemata reddit2 ,scire velim1 chartis pretium quotus arroget annus1 #ce ,scriptor ab hinc annos centum qui decidit1 inter ,perfectos veteresque referri debet1 an inter ,vilis atque novos8 excludat jurgia finis4 ,est vetus atque probus centum qui perficit annos4 ,quid8 qui deperiit minor uno mense vel anno1 #dj ,inter quos referendus erit8 veteresne poetas1 ,an quos et praesens et postera respuat aetas8 ,iste quidem veteres inter ponetur honeste1 ,qui vel mense brevi1 vel toto est junior anno4 ,utor permisso1 caudaeque pilos ut equinae #de ,paullatim vello2 et demo unum1 demo et item unum2 ,dum cadat elusus ratione ruentis acervi1 ,qui redit in fastos1 et virtutem aestimat annis1 ,miraturque nihil1 nisi quod ,libitina sacravit4 ,ennius et sapiens1 et fortis1 et alter ,homerus1 #ej ,ut critici dicunt1 leviter curare videtur ,quo promissa cadant1 et somnia ,pythagorea4 ,naevius in manibus non est1 et mentibus haeret ,pene recens8 adeo sanctum est vetus omne poema4 ,ambigitur quotiens1 uter utro sit prior2 aufert #ee ,pacuvius docti famam senis1 ,accius alti3 ,dicitur ,afran toga convenisse ,menandro3 ,plautus ad exemplar ,siculi properare ,epicharmi2 ,vincere ,caecilius gravitate1 ,terentius arte4 ,hos ediscit1 et hos arto stipata theatro #fj ,spectat ,roma potens2 habet hos numeratque poetas ,ad nostrum tempus1 ,liv ,scriptoris ab aevo4 ,interdum volgus rectum videt3 est ubi peccat4 ,si veteres ita miratur laudatque poetas1 ,ut nihil anteferat1 nihil illis comparet2 errat3 #fe ,si quaedam nimis antique1 si pleraque dure ,dicere cedit eos1 ignave multa fatetur2 ,et sapit1 et mecum facit1 et ,jove judicat aequo4 ,non equidem insector1 delendave carmina ,laev ,esse reor1 memini quae plagosum mihi parvo #gj ,orbilium dictare2 sed emendata videri ,pulchraque1 et exactis minimum distantia1 miror3 ,inter quae verbum emicuit si forte decorum1 ,si versus paulo concinnior unus et alter2 ,injuste totum ducit venitque poema4 #ge ,indignor quicquam reprehendi1 non quia crasse ,compositum1 inlepideve putetur1 sed quia nuper3 ,nec veniam antiquis1 sed honorem et praemia posci4 ,recte necne crocum floresque perambulet ,attae ,fabula1 si dubitem2 clament periisse pudorem #hj ,cuncti pene patres3 ea cum reprehendere coner1 ,quae gravis ,aesopus1 quae doctus ,roscius egit4 ,vel quia nil rectum1 nisi quod placuit sibi1 ducunt2 ,vel quia turpe putant parere minoribus1 et1 quae ,inberbi didicere1 senes perdenda fateri4 #he ,jam ,saliare ,numae carmen qui laudat1 et illud ,quod mecum ignorat1 solus volt scire videri2 ,ingeniis non ille favet plauditque sepultis1 ,nostra sed inpugnat1 nos nostraque lividus odit4 ,quod si tam ,graiis novitas invisa fuisset1 #ij ,quam nobis2 quid nunc esset vetus8 aut quid haberet1 ,quod legeret tereretque viritim publicus usus8 ,ut primum positis nugari ,graecia bellis ,coepit1 et in vitium fortuna labier aequa2 ,nunc athletarum studiis1 nunc arsit equorum3 #ie ,marmoris1 aut eboris fabros1 aut aeris amavit2 ,suspendit picta vultum mentemque tabella2 ,nunc tibicinibus1 nunc est gavisa tragoedis3 ,sub nutrice puella velut si luderet infans1 ,quod cupide petiit1 mature plena reliquit4 #ajj ,quid placet1 aut odio est1 quod non mutabile credas8 ,hoc paces habuere bonae1 ventique secundi4 ,romae dulce diu fuit et sollenne1 reclusa ,mane domo vigilare1 clienti promere jura3 ,scriptos nominibus rectis expendere nummos3 #aje ,majores audire1 minori dicere1 per quae ,crescere res posset1 minui damnosa libido4 ,mutavit mentem populus levis1 et calet uno ,scribendi studio3 puerique patresque severi ,fronde comas vincti coenant1 et carmina dictant4 #aaj ,ipse ego1 qui nullos me adfirmo scribere versus1 ,invenior ,parthis mendacior2 et prius orto ,sole vigil1 calamum et chartas et scrinia posco4 ,navem agere ignarus navis timet3 abrotonum aegro ,non audet1 nisi qui didicit1 dare3 quod medicorum est1 #aae ,promittunt medici3 tractant fabrilia fabri3 ,scribimus indocti doctique poemata passim4 ,hic error tamen et levis haec insania quantas ,virtutes habeat1 sic collige3 vatis avarus ,non temere est animus3 versus amat1 hoc studet unum2 #abj ,detrimenta1 fugas servorum1 incendia ridet3 ,non fraudem socio1 puerove incogitat ullam ,pupillo3 vivit siliquis1 et pane secundo3 ,militiae quanquam piger et malus1 utilis urbi2 ,si das hoc1 parvis quoque rebus magna juvari2 #abe ,os tenerum pueri balbumque pota figurat3 ,torquet ab obscoenis jam nunc sermonibus aurem2 ,mox etiam pectus praeceptis format amicis1 ,asperitatis et invidiae corrector et irae3 ,recte facta refert2 orientia tempora notis #acj ,instruit exemplis2 inopem solatur et aegrum4 ,castis cum pueris ignara puella mariti ,disceret unde preces1 vatem ni ,musa dedisset8 ,poscit opem chorus1 et praesentia numina sentit2 ,coelestis implorat aquas1 docta prece blandus2 #ace ,avertit morbos1 metuenda pericula pellit2 ,inpetrat et pacem1 et locupletem frugibus annum3 ,carmine ,d superi placantur1 carmine ,manes4 ,agricolae prisci1 fortes1 parvoque beati1 ,condita post frumenta1 levantes tempore festo #adj ,corpus et ipsum animum spe finis dura ferentem1 ,cum sociis operum pueris et conjuge fida1 ,tellurem porco1 ,silvanum lacte piabant1 ,floribus et vino ,genium memorem brevis aevi4 ,fescennina per hunc invecta licentia morem #ade ,versibus alternis opprobria rustica fudit2 ,libertasque recurrentis accepta per annos ,lusit amabiliter3 donec jam saevus apertam ,in rabiem coepit verti jocus1 et per honestas ,ire domos impune minax4 doluere cruento #aej ,dente lacessiti3 fuit intactis quoque cura ,conditione super communi3 quin etiam lex ,poenaque lata1 malo quae nollet carmine quemquam ,describi4 vertere modum1 formidine fustis ,ad bene dicendum delectandumque redacti4 #aee ,graecia capta ferum victorem cepit1 et artis ,intulit agresti ,latio4 sic horridus ille ,defluxit numerus ,saturnius1 et grave virus ,munditiae pepulere3 sed in longum tamen aevum ,manserunt1 hodieque manent1 vestigia ruris4 #afj ,serus enim ,graecis admovit acumina chartis2 ,et post ,punica bella quietus quaerere coepit1 ,quid ,sophocles et ,thespis et ,aeschylos utile ferrent3 ,tentavit quoque rem1 si digne vertere posset3 ,et placuit sibi1 natura sublimis et acer4 #afe ,nam spirat tragicum satis1 et feliciter audet2 ,sed turpem putat inscitus metuitque lituram4 ,creditur1 ex medio quia res arcessit1 habere ,sudoris minimum2 sed habet ,comoedia tanto ,plus oneris1 quanto veniae minus4 aspice1 ,plautus #agj ,quo pacto partis tutetur amantis ephebi2 ,ut patris attenti1 lenonis ut insidiosi3 ,quantus sit ,dossennus edacibus in parasitis3 ,quam non adstricto percurrat pulpita socco4 ,gestit enim nummum in loculos demittere2 post hoc #age ,securus1 cadat an recto stet fabula talo4 ,quem tulit ad scenam ventoso gloria curru1 ,exanimat lentus spectator1 sedulus inflat4 ,sic leve1 sic parvum est1 animum quod laudis avarum ,subruit ac reficit4 valeat res ludicra1 si me #ahj ,palma negata macrum1 donata reducit opimum4 ,saepe1 etiam audacem1 fugat hoc terretque poetam2 ,quod numero plures1 virtute et honore minores1 ,indocti1 stolidique1 et depugnare parati ,si discordet eques1 media inter carmina poscunt #ahe ,aut ursum aut pugiles3 his nam plebecula gaudet4 ,verum equiti quoque jam migravit ab aure voluptas ,omnis1 ad ingratos oculos1 et gaudia vana4 ,quatuor aut pluris aulaea premuntur in horas2 ,dum fugiunt equitum turmae1 peditumque catervae3 #aij ,mox trahitur manibus regum fortuna retortis3 ,esseda festinant1 pilenta1 petorrita1 naves3 ,captivum portatur ebur1 captiva ,corinthus4 ,si foret in terris1 rideret ,democritus2 seu ,diversum confusa genus panthera camelo1 #aie ,sive elephas albus volgi converterit ora3 ,spectaret populum ludis attentius ipsis1 ,ut sibi praebentem mimo spectacula plura3 ,scriptores autem narrare putaret asello ,fabellam surdo4 nam quae pervincere voces #bjj ,evaluere sonum1 referunt quem nostra theatra8 ,garganum mugire putes nemus1 aut mare ,tuscum4 ,tanto cum strepitu ludi spectantur1 et artes1 ,divitiaeque peregrinae3 quibus oblitus actor ,cum stetit in scena1 concurrit dextera laevae3 #bje ,dixit adhuc aliquid8 nil sane4 quid placet ergo8 ,lana ,tarentino violas imitata veneno4 ,ac ne forte putes me1 quae facere ipse recusem1 ,cum recte tractent alii1 laudare maligne3 ,ille per extentum funem mihi posse videtur #baj ,ire poeta2 meum qui pectus inaniter angit1 ,inritat1 mulcet1 falsis terroribus inplet1 ,ut magus2 et modo me ,thebis1 modo ponit ,athenis4 ,verum age1 et his1 qui se lectori credere malunt1 ,quam spectatoris fastidia ferre superbi1 #bae ,curam impende brevem3 si munus ,apolline dignum ,vis complere libris2 et vatibus addere calcar1 ,ut studio majore petant ,helicona virentem4 ,multa quidem nobis facimus mala saepe potae1 7,ut vineta egomet caedam mea7 cum tibi librum #bbj ,sollicito damus1 aut fesso3 cum laedimur1 unum ,si quis amicorum est ausus reprendere versum3 ,cum loca jam recitata revolvimus inrevocati3 ,cum lamentamur non adparere labores ,nostros1 et tenui deducta poemata filo3 #bbe ,cum speramus eo rem venturam1 ut1 simul atque ,carmina rescieris nos fingere1 commodus ultro ,arcessas1 et egere vetes1 et scribere cogas4 ,sed tamen est operae pretium cognoscere1 qualis ,aedituos habeat belli spectata domique #bcj ,virtus1 indigno non committenda poetae4 ,gratus ,alexandro regi ,magno fuit ille ,choerilos1 incultis qui versibus et male natis ,rettulit acceptos1 regale nomisma1 ,philippos4 ,sed veluti tractata notam labemque remittunt #bce ,atramenta1 fere scriptores carmine foedo ,splendida facta linunt4 idem rex ille1 poma ,qui tam ridiculum tam care prodigus emit1 ,edicto vetuit2 ne quis se1 praeter ,apellen ,pingeret1 aut alius ,lysippo cuderet aera #bdj ,fortis ,alexandri voltum simulantia4 quod si ,judicium subtile videndis artibus illud ,ad libros et ad haec ,musarum dona vocares2 ,boeotum in crasso jurares are natum4 ,at neque dedecorant tua de se judicia1 atque #bde ,munera1 quae multa dantis cum laude tulerunt1 ,dilecti tibi ,virgilius ,variusque poetae3 ,nec magis expressi voltus per anea signa1 ,quam per vatis opus mores animique virorum ,clarorum adparent4 nec sermones ego mallem #bej ,repentis per humum1 quam res componere gestas1 ,terrarumque situs1 et flumina dicere1 et arcis ,montibus impositas1 et barbara regna1 tuisque ,auspiciis totum confecta duella per orbem1 ,claustraque custodem pacis cohibentia ,janum1 #bee ,et formidatam ,parthis1 te principe1 ,romam3 ,si quantum cuperem1 possem quoque4 sed neque parvum ,carmen majestas recipit tua2 nec meus audet ,rem tentare pudor1 quam vires ferre recusent4 ,sedulitas autem stulte1 quem diligit1 urguet2 #bfj ,praecipue cum se numeris commendat et arte4 ,discit enim citius1 meminitque libentius illud ,quod quis deridet1 quam quod probat et veneratur4 ,nil moror officium1 quod me gravat3 ac neque ficto ,in pejus voltu proponi cereus usquam1 #bfe ,nec prave factis decorari versibus opto3 ,ne rubeam pingui donatus munere1 et una ,cum scriptore meo capsa porrectus operta1 ,deferar in vicum vendentem tus et odores1 ,et piper1 et quicquid chartis amicitur ineptis4 #bgj ,,commentary4 ,,epistola ,,ad ,,augustum4 ,in conducting this work1 which is an apology for the poets of his own time1 the method of the writer is no other1 than that which plain sense1 and the subject itself1 required of him4 ,for1 as the main dislike to the ,augustan poets had arisen from an excessive reverence paid to their elder brethren1 the first part of the epistle from v4 #a to #aah is very naturally laid out in the ridicule and confutation of so absurd a prejudice4 ,and having1 by this preparation1 obtained a candid hearing for his defence1 he then proceeds in what follows1 to the end to vindicate their real merits2 setting in view the excellencies of the ,latin poetry1 as cultivated by the great modern masters2 and throwing the blame of their ill success1 and of the contempt in which they had lain1 not so much on themselves1 or their profession 7the dignity of which1 in particular1 he insists highly upon1 and asserts with spirit7 as on the vicious taste of the age1 and certain unfavouring circumstances1 which had accidentally concurred to dishonour both4 ,this idea of the general plan being comprehended1 the reader will find it no difficulty to perceive the order and arrangement of particular parts1 which the natural transition of the poet's thought insensibly drew along with it4 #e-aah4 ,,romulus1 ,,et ,,liber ,,pater1 c4 ,the subject commences from v4 #e1 where1 by a contrivance of great beauty1 a pertinent illustration of the poet's argument becomes an offering of the happiest address to the emperor4 ,its double purpose may be seen thus4 ,his primary intention was to take off the force of prejudice against modern poets1 arising from the superior veneration of the ancients4 ,to this end the first thing wanting was to demonstrate by some striking instance1 that it was1 indeed1 nothing but prejudice2 which he does effectually in taking that instance from the heroic1 that is1 the most revered1 ages4 ,for if such1 whose acknowledged virtues and eminent services had raised them to the rank of heroes1 that is1 in the pagan conception of things1 to the honours of divinity1 could not secure their fame1 in their own times1 against the malevolence of slander1 what wonder that the race of wits1 whose obscurer merit is less likely to dazzle the public eye1 and yet1 by a peculiar fatality1 is more apt to awaken its jealousy1 should find themselves oppressed by its rudest censure8 ,in the former case the honours1 which equal posterity paid to excelling worth1 declare all such censure to have been the calumny of malice only4 ,what reason then to conclude1 it had any other original in the latter8 ,this is the poet's argument4 ,but now1 of these worthies themselves1 whom the justice of grateful posterity had snatched out of the hands of detraction1 there were some1 it seems1 whose illustrious services the virtue or vain-glory of the emperor most affected to emulate2 and these1 therefore1 the poet1 by an ingenious flattery1 selects for examples to his general observation1 ,romulus1 et ,liber pater1 et cum ,castore ,pollux ,post ingentia fata1 c4 ,further1 as the good fortune of ,augustus1 though adorned with the same enviable qualities1 had exempted him from the injuries which had constantly befallen those admired characters1 this peculiar circumstance in the history of his prince affords him the happiest occasion1 flattery could desire1 of paying distinguished honours to his glory4 ,praesenti tibi maturos largimur honores4 ,and this constitutes the fine address and compliment of his ,application4 ,but this justice1 which ,augustus had exacted1 as it were1 by the very authority of his virtue1 from his applauding people1 was but ill discharged in other instances4 ,sed tuus hoc populus sapiens et justus in uno1 ,te nostris ducibus1 te ,graiis anteferendo1 ,cetera nequaquam simili ratione modoque ,aestimat1 c4 ,and thus the very exception to the general rule1 which forms the encomium1 leads him with advantage into his argument2 which was to observe and expose 8the malignant influence of prepossession in obstructing the proper glories of living merit40 ,so that1 as good sense demands in every reasonable panegyric1 the praise results from the nature and foundation of the subject-matter1 and is not violently and reluctantly dragged into it4 ,his general charge against his countrymen 8of their bigotted attachment to those1 dignified by the name of ancients1 in prejudice to the just deserts of the moderns10 being thus delivered2 and the folly of such conduct1 with some agreeable exaggeration1 exposed2 he sets himself with a happy mixture of irony and argument1 as well becomes the genius and character of the epistle1 to confute the pretences1 and overturn the very foundations1 on which it rested4 ,one main support of their folly was taken from an allowed fact1 viz4 8,that the oldest ,greek writers were incontestably superior to the modern ones40 ,from whence they inferred1 that it was but according to nature and the course of experience1 to give the like preference to the oldest ,roman masters4 ,his confutation of this sophism consists of two parts4 ,first1 from v4 #bh to #cb he insists on the evident absurdity of the opinion he is confuting4 ,there was no reasoning with persons1 capable of such extravagant positions4 ,but1 secondly1 the pretended fact itself1 with regard to the ,greek learning1 was grossly misunderstood1 or perversely applied4 ,for from v4 #cb to #cd it was not true1 nor could it be admitted1 that the very oldest of the ,greek writers were the best1 but those only1 which were old1 in comparison of the mere modern ,greeks4 ,the so much applauded models of ,grecian antiquity were themselves modern1 in respect of the still older and ruder essays of their first writers4 ,it was long discipline and cultivation1 the same which had given the ,greek artists in the ,augustan reign a superiority over the ,roman1 that by degrees established the good taste1 and fixed the authority of the ,greek poets2 from which point it was natural and even necessary for succeeding1 i4 e4 the modern ,greeks to decline4 ,but no consequence lay from hence to the advantage of the ,latin poets1 in question2 who were wholly unfurnished with any previous study of the arts of verse2 and whose works could only be compared with the very oldest1 that is1 the rude forgotten essays of the ,greek poetry4 ,so that the fine sense1 so closely shut up in this concise couplet1 comes out thus3 8,the modern ,greek masters of the fine arts are confessedly superior to the modern ,roman4 ,the reason is1 they have practised them longer1 and with more diligence4 ,just so1 the modern ,roman writers must needs have the advantage of their old ones3 who had no knowledge of writing1 as an art1 or1 if they had1 took but small care to put it in practice40 ,further1 this plea of antiquity is as uncertain in its application1 as it was destitute of all truth and reason in its original foundation4 ,for if age only must bear away the palm1 what way is there of determining1 which writers are modern1 and which ancient8 ,the impossibility of fixing this to the satisfaction of an objector1 which is pursued to v4 #ej with much agreeable raillery1 makes it evident1 that the circumstance of antiquity is absolutely nothing2 and that in estimating the merit of writers1 the real1 intrinsic excellence of their writings themselves is alone to be regarded4 ,thus far the poet's intent was to combat the general prejudice of the critic1 ,qui redit in fastos et virtutem aestimat annis4 ,taking the fact for granted 8of his strong prepossession for antiquity1 as such0 he would discredit1 both by raillery and argument1 so absurd a conduct4 ,what he gains1 by this disposition1 is to come to the particulars of his charge with more advantage4 ,for the popular contempt of modern composition1 sheltering itself under a shew of learned admiration of the ancients1 whose age and reputation had made them truly venerable1 and whose genuine merits1 in the main1 could not be disputed1 a direct attack upon their fame1 at setting out1 without any softening1 had disgusted the most moderate2 whereas this prefatory appeal to common sense1 under the cover of general criticism1 would even dispose bigotry itself to afford the poet a candid hearing4 ,his accusation then of the public taste comes in1 here1 very pertinently2 and is delivered1 with address from v4 #ej to #fc in a particular detail of the judgements passed upon the most celebrated of the old ,roman poets1 by the generality of the modern critics2 where1 to win upon their prejudices still further by his generosity and good faith1 he scruples not to recount such of their determinations on the merit of ancient writers1 as were reasonable and well founded1 as well as others1 that he deemed less just1 and as such intended more immediately to expose4 ,we see then with what art the poet conducts himself in this attack on the ancients1 and how it served his purpose1 by turns1 to soften and aggravate the charge4 ,first1 8he wanted to lower the reputation of the old poets40 ,this was not to be done by general invective or an affected dissimulation of their just praise4 ,he admits then from v4 #fc to #ff their reasonable pretensions to admiration4 ',tis the degree of it alone1 to which he objects4 ,si veteres ,,ita miratur laudatque1 c4 ,secondly1 8he wanted to draw off their applauses from 8the ancient to the modern poets40 ,this required the advantages of those moderns to be distinctly shewn1 or1 which comes to the same1 the comparative deficiencies of the ancients to be pointed out4 ,these were not to be dissembled1 and are1 as he openly insists to v4 #fi obsolete language1 rude and barbarous construction1 and slovenly composition1 ,si quaedam nimis ,,antique1 si pleraque ,,dure1 ,dicere cedit eos1 ,,ignave multa4 ,but what then8 an objector replies1 these were venial faults1 surely2 the deficiencies of the times1 and not of the men2 who1 with such incorrectnesses as are here noted1 might still possess the greatest talents1 and produce the noblest designs4 ,this from v4 #fi to #gi is readily admitted4 ,but1 in the mean time1 one thing was clear1 that they were not finished models--exactis minimum distantia4 ,which was the main point in dispute4 ,for the bigot's absurdity lay in this1 ,non veniam antiquis1 sed honorem et praemia posci4 ,nay1 his folly is shewn to have gone still greater lengths4 ,these boasted models of antiquity1 with all their imperfections1 had occasionally v4 #gc1 #gd though the instances were indeed rare and thinly scattered1 striking beauties4 ,these1 under the recommendation of age1 which1 of course1 commands our reverence1 might well impose on the judgements of the generality1 and standing forth with advantage1 as from a shaded and dark ground1 would naturally catch the eye and admiration of the more learned4 ,thus much the poet candidly insinuates in excuse of the bigot's ill judgment4 ,but1 unluckily1 he had cut himself off from the benefit of this plea1 by avowedly grounding his admiration1 not merely on the intrinsic excellence1 so far as it went1 of the ancient poetry itself2 but on the advantage of any extraneous circumstance1 which but casually stuck to it4 ,the accident of a play's having passed though the mouth1 and been graced by the action1 of a just speaker1 was sufficient from v4 #gi to #hc 7so inexcusable were his prejudices7 to attract his wonder1 and justify his esteem4 ,in so much that it became an insolence1 generally cried out upon1 for any one to censure such pieces of the theatre1 ,quae gravis sopus1 quae doctus ,roscius egit4 ,this being the case1 it was no longer a doubt1 whether the affected admiration of antiquity proceeded from a deluded judgment only1 or a much worse cause4 ,it could plainly be resolved into no other1 than the willful agency of the malignant affections2 which1 wherever they prevail1 corrupt the simple and ingenuous sense of the mind1 either #a4 v4 #hc in engendring high conceits of self1 and referring all degrees of excellence to the supposed infallible standard of every man's own judgment2 or #b4 to v4 #hf in creating a false shame1 and reluctancy in us to be directed by the judgments of others1 though seen to be more equitable1 whenever they are found in opposition to our own rooted and preconceived opinions4 ,the bigotry of old ,men is1 especially1 for this reason1 invincible4 ,they hold themselves upbraided by the sharper sight of their juniors2 and regard the adoption of new sentiments1 at their years1 as so much absolute loss on the side of the dead stock of their old literary possessions4 ,these considerations are generally of such prevalency in great veteran critics1 that from v4 #hf to #ij whenever1 as in the case before us1 they pretend an uncommon zeal for antiquity1 and their sagacity piques itself on detecting the superior value of obscure rhapsodists whom no body else reads1 or is able to understand1 we may be sure the secret view of such1 is1 not the generous defence and patronage of ancient wit1 but a low malevolent pleasure in decrying the just pretensions of the modern4 ,ingeniis non ille favet plauditque sepultis1 ,nostra sed impugnat1 nos nostraque lividus odit4 ,the poet had1 now1 made appear the unreasonable attachment of his countrymen to the fame of their old writers4 ,he had thoroughly unravelled the sophistical pretences1 on which it affected to justify itself2 and had even dared to unveil the secret iniquitous principle1 from which it arose4 ,it was now time to look forward to the effects of it2 which were1 in truth1 very baleful2 its poisonous influences being of force to corrupt and wither1 as it were1 in the bud1 every rising species of excellence1 and fatally to check the very hopes and tendencies of true genius4 ,nothing can be truer1 than this remark2 which he further enforces1 and brings home to his adversaries1 by asking a pertinent question1 to which it concerned them to make a serious reply4 ,they had magnified v4 #bh the perfection of the ,greek models4 ,but what to v4 #ic if the ,greeks had conceived the same aversion to novelties1 as the ,romans8 ,how then could those models have ever been furnished to the public use8 ,the question1 we see1 insinuates what was before affirmed to be the truth of the case2 that the unrivalled excellence of the ,greek poets proceeded only from long and vigorous exercise1 and a painful uninterrupted application to the arts of verse4 ,the liberal spirit of that people led them to countenance every new attempt towards superior literary excellence2 and so1 by the public favour1 their writings1 from rude essays1 became at length the standard and admiration of succeeding wits4 ,the ,romans had treated their adventurers quite otherwise1 and the effect was answerable4 ,this is the purport of what to a common eye may look like a digression from v4 #ic to #ajh1 in which is delineated the very different genius and practice of the two nations4 ,for the ,greeks to v4 #ajb had applied themselves1 in the intervals of their leisure from the toils of war1 to the cultivation of every species of elegance1 whether in arts1 or letters2 and loved to cherish the public emulation1 by affording a free indulgence to the various and volatile disposition of the times4 ,the activity of these restless spirits1 was incessantly attempting some new and untryed form of composition2 and1 when that was brought to a due degree of perfection1 it turned1 in good time1 to the cultivation of some other4 ,quod cupide petiit1 mature plena reliquit4 ,so that the very caprice of humour v4 #aja assisted1 in this libertine country1 to advance and help forward the public taste4 ,such was the effect of peace and opportunity with them4 ,hoc paces habuere bonae ventique secundi4 ,whereas the ,romans to v4 #ajh by a more composed temperament and saturnine complexion had devoted their pains to the pursuit of domestic utilities1 and a more dexterous management of the arts of gain4 ,the consequence of which was1 that when to v4 #aag by the decay of the old frugal spirit1 the necessary effect of overflowing plenty and ease1 they began1 at length1 to seek out for the elegancies of life2 and a fit of versifying1 the first of all liberal amusements1 that usually seizes an idle people1 had come upon them2 their ignorance of rules1 and want of exercise in the art of writing1 rendered them wholly unfit to succeed in it4 ,so that their awkward attempts in poetry were now as disgraceful to their taste1 as their total disregard of it1 before1 had been to their civility4 ,the root of this mischief was the idolatrous regard paid to their ancient poets3 which unluckily1 when the public emulation was set a going1 not only checked its progress1 but gave it a wrong bias2 and1 instead of helping true genius to outstrip the lame and tardy endeavours of ancient wit1 drew it aside into a vicious and unprofitable mimicry of its very imperfections4 ,whence it had come to pass1 that1 whereas in other arts1 the previous knowledge of rules is required to the practice of them1 in this of versifying1 no such qualification was deemed necessary4 ,scribimus indocti doctique poemata passim4 ,this mischance was doubly fatal to the ,latin poetry4 ,for the ill success of these blind adventurers had increased the original mischief1 by confirming1 as it needs must1 the superstitious reverence of the old writers2 and insensibly brought1 as well the art itself1 as the modern professors of it1 into disrepute with the discerning public4 ,the vindication of both1 then1 at this critical juncture1 was become highly seasonable2 and to this1 which was the poet's main purpose1 he addresses himself through the remainder of the epistle4 #aah to the end4 ,,hic ,,error ,,tamen1 c4 ,having sufficiently obviated the popular and reigning prejudices against the modern poets1 his office of advocate for their fame1 which he had undertaken1 and was now to discharge1 in form1 required him to set their real merits and pretensions in a just light4 ,he enters therefore immediately on this task4 ,and1 in drawing the character of the true poet1 endeavours to impress the ,emperor with as advantageous an idea as possible1 of the worth and dignity of his calling4 ,and this1 not in the fierce insulting tone of a zealot for the honour of his order1 which to the great is always disgusting1 and where the occasion is1 confessedly1 not of the last importance1 plainly absurd2 but with that unpretending air of insinuation1 which good sense1 improved by a thorough knowledge of the world1 teaches3 with that seeming indifference which disarms prejudice3 in a word1 with that gracious smile in his aspect1 which his strong admirer and faint copyer1 ,persius1 so justly noted in him1 and which convinces almost without the help of argument2 or to say it more truly1 persuades where it doth not properly convince4 ,in this disposition he sets out on his defence2 and yet omits no particular1 which could any way serve to the real recommendation of poets1 or which indeed1 the gravest or warmest of their friends have ever pleaded in their behalf4 ,this defence consists from v4 #aah to #aci in bringing into view their many civil1 moral1 and religious virtues4 ,for the muse1 as the poet contends 7and nothing could be more likely to conciliate the esteem of the politic emperor7 administers1 in this threefold capacity1 to the service of the state4 ,but ,religion1 which was its noblest end1 was1 besides1 the first object of poetry4 ,the dramatic muse1 in particular1 had her birth1 and derived her very character1 from it4 ,this circumstance then leads him with advantage1 to give an historical deduction of the rise and progress of the ,latin poesy1 from its first rude workings in the days of barbarous superstition1 through every successive period of its improvement1 down to his own times4 ,such a view of its descent and gradual reformation was directly to the poet's purpose4 ,for having magnified the virtues of his order1 as of such importance to society1 the question naturally occurred1 by what unhappy means it had fallen out1 that it was1 nevertheless1 in such low estimation with the public4 ,the answer is1 that the state of the ,latin poetry1 as yet1 was very rude and imperfect3 and so the public disregard was occasioned1 only1 by its not having attained to that degree of perfection1 of which its nature was capable4 ,many reasons had concurred to keep the ,latin poetry in this state1 which he proceeds to enumerate4 ,the first and principal was from v4 #aci to #afd the little attention paid to critical learning1 and the cultivation of a correct and just spirit of composition4 ,which1 again1 had arisen from the coarse illiberal disposition of the ,latin muse1 who had been nurtured and brought up under the roof of rural superstition2 and this1 by an impure mixture of licentious jollity1 had so corrupted her very nature1 that it was only by slow degrees1 and not till the conquest of ,greece had imported arts and learning into ,italy1 that she began to chastise her manners1 and assume a juster and more becoming deportment4 ,and still she was but in the condition of a rustic beauty1 when1 practising her aukward airs1 and making her first ungracious essays towards a manner4 in longum tamen aevum ,manserunt1 hodieque manent vestigia ruris4 ,her late acquaintance with the ,greek models had1 indeed1 improved her air1 and inspired an inclination to emulate their noblest graces4 ,but how successfully1 we are given to understand from her unequal attempts in the two sublimer species of their poetry1 the ,,tragic1 ,,and ,,comic ,,dramas4 #a4 from v4 #afj to #afh ,the study of the ,greek tragedians had very naturally1 and to good purpose1 in the infancy of their taste1 disposed the ,latin writers to translation4 ,here they stuck long2 for their tragedy1 even in the ,augustan age1 was little else2 and yet they succeeded but indifferently in it4 ,the bold and animated genius of ,rome was1 it is readily owned1 well suited to this work4 ,and for force of colouring1 and a truly tragic elevation1 the ,roman poets came not behind their great originals4 ,but unfortunately their judgment was unformed1 and they were too soon satisfied with their own productions4 ,strength and fire was all they endeavoured after4 ,and with this praise they sate down perfectly contented4 ,the discipline of correction1 the curious polishing of art1 which had given such a lustre to the ,greek tragedians1 they knew nothing of2 or1 to speak their case more truly1 they held disgraceful to the high spirit and energy of the ,roman genius3 ,,turpem ,,putat ,,in ,,scriptis ,,metuitque ,,lituram4 #b4 ,it did not fare better with them from v4 #afh to #age in their attempts to rival the ,greek comedy4 ,they preposterously set out with the notion of its being easier to execute this drama than the tragic3 whereas to hit its genuine character with exactness was1 in truth1 a point of much more difficulty4 ,as the subject of comedy was taken from common life1 they supposed an ordinary degree of care might suffice1 to do it justice4 ,no wonder then1 they overlooked or never came up to that nice adjustment of the manners1 that truth and decorum of character1 wherein the glory of comic painting consists1 and which none but the quickest eye can discern1 and the steadiest hand execute2 and1 in the room1 amused us with high colouring1 and false drawing2 with extravagant1 aggravated portraitures2 which1 neglecting the modest proportion of real life1 are the certain arguments of an unpractised pencil1 or vicious taste4 ,what contributed to this prostitution of the comic muse1 was to v4 #agg the seducement of that corruptress of all virtue1 the love of money2 which had thoroughly infected the ,roman wits1 and was1 in fact1 the sole object of their pains4 ,hence1 provided they could but catch the applauses of the people1 to which the pleasantry of the comic scene more especially aspires1 and so secure a good round price from the magistrates1 whose office it was to furnish this kind of entertainment1 they became indifferent to every nobler view and honester purpose4 ,in particular to v4 #ahb they so little considered fame and the praise of good writing1 that they made it the ordinary topic of their ridicule2 representing it as the mere illusion of vanity1 and the pitiable infirmity of lean-witted minds1 to be catched by the lure of so empty and unsubstantial a benefit4 ,though1 were any one1 in defiance of public ridicule1 so daring 7as there is no occasion in life1 which calls for1 or demonstrates a greater firmness71 as frankly to avow and submit himself to this generous motive1 the surest inspirer of every virtuous excellence1 yet one thing remained to check and weaken the vigour of his emulation4 ,this from v4 #ahb to #ahg was the folly and ill taste of the undiscerning multitude2 who1 in all countries1 have a great share in determining the fate and character of scenical representations1 but1 from the popular constitution of the government1 were1 at ,rome1 of the first consequence4 ,these1 by their rude clamours1 and the authority of their numbers1 were enough to dishearten the most intrepid genius2 when1 after all his endeavours to reap the glory of an absolute work1 the action was almost sure to be mangled and broken in upon by the shews of wild beasts and gladiators2 those dear delights1 which the ,romans1 it seems1 prized much above the highest pleasures of the drama4 ,nay1 the poet's case was still more desperate4 ,for it was not the untutored rabble1 as in other countries1 that gave a countenance to these illiberal sports3 even rank and quality1 at ,rome1 debased itself in shewing the fiercest passion for these shews1 and was as ready1 as abject commonalty itself1 to prefer the uninstructing pleasures of the eye to those of the ear4 ,,equiti quoque jam migravit ab aure voluptas ,omnis ad ingratos oculos et gaudia vana4 ,and1 because this barbarity of taste had contributed more than any thing else to deprave the poetry of the stage1 and discourage its best masters from studying its perfection1 what follows from v4 #ahi to #bjg is intended1 in all the keenness of raillery1 to satyrize this madness4 ,it afforded an ample field for the poet's ridicule4 ,for1 besides the riotous disorders of their theatre1 the senseless admiration of pomp and spectacle in their plays had so inchanted his countrymen1 that the very decorations of the scene1 the tricks and trappings of the comedians1 were surer to catch the applauses of the gaping multitude1 than any regard to the justness of the poet's design1 or the beauty of his execution4 ,here the poet should naturally have concluded his defence of the dramatic writers2 having alledged every thing in their favour1 that could be urged1 plausibly1 from the state of the ,roman stage3 the genius of the people3 and the several prevailing practices of ill taste1 which had brought them into disrepute with the best judges4 ,but finding himself obliged1 in the course of this vindication of the modern stage-poets1 to censure as sharply1 as their very enemies1 the vices and defects of their poetry2 and fearing lest this severity on a sort of writing1 to which himself had never pretended1 might be misinterpreted as the effect of envy only1 and a malignant disposition towards the art itself1 under cover of pleading for its professors1 he therefore frankly avows from v4 #bjh to #bad his preference of the dramatic1 to every other species of poetry2 declaring the sovereignty of its pathos over the affections1 and the magic of its illusive scenery on the ,imagination1 to be the highest argument of poetic excellence1 the last and noblest exercise of the human genius4 ,one thing still remained4 ,he had taken upon himself to apologize for the ,roman poets1 in general2 as may be seen from the large terms1 in which he proposes his subject4 ,hic error tamen et levis haec insania quantas ,virtutes habeat1 sic collige4 ,but1 after a general encomium on the office itself1 he confines his defence to the writers for the stage only4 ,in conclusion then1 he was constrained1 by the very purpose of his address1 to say a word or two in behalf of the remainder of this neglected family2 of those1 who1 as the poet expresses it1 had rather trust to the equity of the closet1 than subject themselves to the caprice and insolence of the theatre4 ,now1 as before1 in asserting the honour of the stage-poets he every where supposes the emperor's disgust to have sprung from the wrong conduct of the poets themselves1 and then extenuates the blame of such conduct1 by considering1 still further1 the causes which gave rise to it2 so he prudently observes the like method here4 ,the politeness of his address concedes to ,augustus1 the just offence he had taken to his brother poets2 whose honour1 however1 he contrives to save by softening the occasions of it4 ,this is the drift of what follows from v4 #bad to #bbi where he pleasantly recounts the several foibles and indiscretions of the muse2 but in a way1 that could only dispose the emperor to smile at1 or at most1 to pity her infirmities1 not provoke his serious censure and disesteem4 ,they amount1 on the whole1 but to certain idlenesses of vanity1 the almost inseparable attendant of wit1 as well as beauty2 and may be forgiven in each1 as implying a strong desire of pleasing1 or rather as qualifying both to please4 ,one of the most exceptionable of these vanities was a fond persuasion1 too readily taken up by men of parts and genius1 that preferment is the constant pay of merit2 and that1 from the moment their talents become known to the public1 distinction and advancement are sure to follow4 ,they believed1 in short1 they had only to convince the world of their superior abilities1 to deserve the favour and countenance of their prince4 ,but fond and presumptuous as these hopes are 7continues the poet from v4 #bbi to #bdd with all the insinuation of a courtier1 and yet with a becoming sense of the dignity of his own character7 it may deserve a serious consideration1 what poets are fit to be entrusted with the glory of princes2 what ministers are worth retaining in the service of an illustrious ,,virtue1 whose honours demand to be solemnized with a religious reverence1 and should not be left to the profanation of vile1 unhallowed hands4 ,and1 to support the authority of this remonstrance1 he alledges the example of a great ,monarch1 who had dishonoured himself by a neglect of this care2 of ,,alexander ,,the ,,great1 who1 when master of the world1 as ,augustus now was1 perceived1 indeed1 the importance of gaining a poet to his service2 but unluckily chose so ill1 that his encomiums 7as must ever be the case with a vile panegyrist7 but tarnished the native splendor of those virtues1 which his office required him to present1 in their fullest and fairest glory1 to the admiration of the world4 ,in his appointment of artists1 whose skill is1 also1 highly serviceable to the fame of princes1 he shewed a truer judgment4 ,for he suffered none but an ,,apelles and a ,,lysippus to counterfeit the form and fashion of his person4 ,but his taste1 which was thus exact and even subtile in what concerned the mechanic execution of the fine arts1 took up with a ,,choerilus1 to transmit an image of his mind to future ages2 so grosly undiscerning was he in works of poetry1 and the liberal offerings of the muse6 ,and thus the poet makes a double use of the illjudgment of this imperial critic4 ,for nothing could better demonstrate the importance of poetry to the honour of greatness1 than that this illustrious conqueror1 without any particular knowledge or discernment in the art itself1 should think himself concerned to court its assistance4 ,and1 then1 what could be more likely to engage the emperor's further protection and love of poetry1 than the insinuation 7which is made with infinite address7 that1 as he honoured it equally1 so he understood its merits much better8 ,for from v4 #bde to #bdh1 where1 by a beautiful concurrence1 the flattery of his prince falls in with the honester purpose of doing justice to the memory of his friends it was not the same unintelligent liberality1 which had cherished ,choerilus1 that poured the full stream of ,caesar's bounty on such persons1 as ,,varius and ,,virgil4 ,and1 as if the spirit of these inimitable poets had1 at once1 seized him1 he breaks away in a bolder run of verse from v4 #bdh to #bej to sing the triumphs of an art1 which expressed the manners and the mind in fuller and more durable relief1 than painting or even sculpture had ever been able to give to the external figure3 ,and from v4 #bej to the end apologizes for himself in adopting the humbler epistolary species1 when a warmth of inclination and the unrivaled glories of his prince were continually urging him on to the nobler1 encomiastic poetry4 ,his excuse1 in brief1 is taken from the conscious inferiority of his genius1 and a tenderness for the fame of the emperor1 which is never more disserved than by the officious sedulity of bad poets to do it honour4 ,and with this apology1 one while condescending to the unfeigned humility of a person1 sensible of the kind and measure of his abilities1 and then1 again1 sustaining itself by a freedom and even familiarity1 which real merit knows1 on certain occasions1 to take without offence1 the epistle concludes4 ,if the general opinion may be trusted1 this1 which was one of the last1 is also among the noblest1 of the great poet's compositions4 ,perhaps1 the reader1 who considers it in the plain and simple order1 to which the foregoing analysis hath reduced it1 may satisfy himself1 that this praise hath not been undeservedly bestowed4 ,,notes ,,on ,,the ,,epistle ,,to ,,augustus4 ,,epistola ,,ad ,,augustum4 ,the epistle to ,,augustus is an apology for the ,roman poets4 ,the epistle to the ,,pisos1 a criticism on their poetry4 ,this to ,augustus may be therefore considered as a sequel of that to the ,pisos2 and which could not well be omitted2 for the author's design of forwarding the study and improvement of the art of poetry required him to bespeak the public favour to its professors4 ,but as1 there1 in correcting the abuses of their poetry1 he mixes1 occasionally1 some encomiums on poets2 so1 here1 in pleading the cause of the poets1 we find him interweaving instructions on poetry4 ,which was but according to the writer's occasions in each work4 ,for the freedom of his censure on the art of poetry was to be softened by some expressions of his good-will towards the poets2 and this apology for their fame had been too direct and unmanaged1 but for the qualifying appearance of its intending the further benefit of the art4 ,the coincidence1 then1 of the same general method1 as well as design1 in the two epistles1 made it not improper to give them together1 and on the same footing1 to the public4 ,though both the subject and method of this last are so clear as to make a continued commentary upon it much less wanted4 99 99 99 99 99 #d4 ,,si ,,longo ,,sermone ,,morer ,,tua ,,tempora1 ,,caesar4 ,the poet is thought to begin with apologizing for the shortness of this epistle4 ,and yet 'tis one of the longest he ever wrote4 ,how is this inconsistency to be reconciled8 8,horace parle puttre ainsi pour ne pas rebuter ,auguste1 et pour lui faire connitre1 qu'il auroit fait une lettre1 beaucoup plus longue1 s'il avoit suivi son inclination40 ,this is the best account of the matter we have1 hitherto1 been able to come at4 ,but the familiar civility of such a compliment1 as ,m4 ,dacier supposes1 though it might be well enough to an equal1 or1 if dressed up in spruce phrases1 might make a figure in the lettres familieres et galantes of his own nation2 yet is surely of a cast1 entirely foreign to the ,roman gravity1 more especially in an address to the emperor of the world4 ,mr4 ,pope1 perceiving the absurdity of the common interpretation1 seems to have read the lines interrogatively2 which though it saves the sense1 and suits the purpose of the ,english poet very well1 yet neither agrees with the language nor serious air of the original4 ,the case1 ,i believe1 was this4 ,the genius of epistolary writing demands1 that the subject-matter be not abruptly delivered1 or hastily obtruded on the person addressed2 but1 as the law of decorum prescribes 7for the rule holds in writing1 as in conversation7 be gradually and respectfully introduced to him4 ,this obtains more particularly in applications to the great1 and on important subjects4 ,but1 now1 the poet1 being to address his prince on a point of no small delicacy1 and on which he foresaw he should have occasion to hold him pretty long1 prudently contrives to get1 as soon as possible1 into his subject2 and1 to that end1 hath the art to convert the very transgression of this rule into the justest and most beautiful compliment4 ,that cautious preparation1 which is ordinarily requisite in our approaches to greatness1 had been1 the poet observes1 in the present case1 highly unseasonable1 as the business and interests of the empire must1 in the mean time1 have stood still and been suspended4 ,by sermone then we are to understand1 not the body of the epistle1 but the proeme or introduction only4 ,the body1 as of public concern1 might be allowed to engage1 at full length1 the emperor's attention4 ,but the introduction1 consisting of ceremonial only1 the common good required him to shorten as much as possible4 ,it was no time for using an insignificant preamble1 or1 in our ,english phrase1 of making long speeches4 ,the reason1 too1 is founded1 not merely in the elevated rank of the emperor1 but in the peculiar diligence and sollicitude1 with which1 history tells us1 he endeavoured to promote1 by various ways1 the interests of his country4 ,so that the compliment is as just1 as it is polite4 ,it may be further observed1 that sermo is used in ,horace1 to signify the ordinary style of conversation ,see ,sat4 i4 #c1 #fe1 and iv4 #db4 and therefore not improperly denotes the familiarity of the epistolary address1 which1 in its easy expression1 so nearly approaches to it4 99 99 99 99 99 #ac4 ,,urit ,,enim ,,fulgore ,,suo1 ,,qui ,,praegravat ,,artes ,,infra ,,se ,,positas3 ,,extinctus ,,amabitur ,,idem4 ,the poet1 we may suppose1 spoke this from experience4 ,and so might another of later date when he complained3 ,unhappy ,wit1 like most mistaken things1 ,attones not for that envy which it brings4 ,essay on ,crit4 v4 #did4 ,unless it be thought1 that1 as this was said by him very early in life1 it might rather pass for a prediction of his future fortunes4 ,be this as it will1 the sufferings1 which unhappy wit is conceived to bring on itself from the envy it excites1 are1 ,i am apt to think1 somewhat aggravated2 at least if one may judge from the effects it had on this ,complainant4 ,that which would be likely to afflict him most1 was the envy of his friends4 ,but the generosity of these deserves to be recorded4 ,the wits took no offence at his fame1 till they found it eclipse their own3 ,and his ,philosopher and ,guide1 'tis well known1 stuck close to him1 till another and brighter star had gotten the ascendant4 ,or supposing there might be some malice in the case1 it is plain there was little mischief4 ,and for this little the poet's creed provides an ample recompence4 ,,extinctus ,,amabitur ,,idem3 not1 we may be sure1 by those he most improved1 enlightened1 and obliged2 but by late impartial posterity2 and by ,,one at least of his surviving friends2 who generously took upon him the patronage of his fame1 and who inherits his genius and his virtues4 99 99 99 99 99 #ad4 ,,extinctus ,,amabitur ,,idem4 ,envy1 says a discerning ancient1 is the vice of those1 who are too weak to contend1 and too proud to submit3 vitium eorum1 qui nec cedere volunt1 nec possunt contendere#cc4 ,which1 while it sufficiently exposes the folly and malignity of this hateful passion1 secures the honour of human nature2 as implying at the same time1 that its worst corruptions are not without a mixture of generosity in them4 ,for this false pride in refusing to submit1 though absurd and mischievous enough1 when unsupported by all ability to contend1 yet discovers such a sense of superior excellence1 as shews1 how difficult it is for human nature to divest itself of all virtue4 ,accordingly1 when the too powerful splendor is withdrawn1 our natural veneration of it takes place3 ,extinctus amabitur idem4 ,this is the true exposition of the poet's sentiment2 which therefore appears just the reverse of what his ,french interpreter would fix upon him4 8,la justice1 que nous rendons aux grands hommes aprs leur mort1 ne vient pas de l',,amour1 que nous avons pour leur vertu1 mais de la ,,haine1 dont notre cur est rempli pour ceux1 qui ont pris leur ,,place40 ,an observation1 which only becomes the misanthropy of an old cynic virtue1 or the selfishness of a modern system of ethics4 99 99 99 99 99 #ae4 ,,praesenti ,,tibi ,,maturos1 c4 to v4 #ah4 ,we are not to wonder at this and the like extravagances of adulation in the ,augustan poets4 ,they had ample authority for what they did of this sort4 ,we know1 that altars were erected to the ,emperor by the command of the ,senate2 and that he was publicly invoked1 as an established1 tutelary divinity4 ,but the seeds of the corruption had been sown much earlier4 ,for we find it sprung up1 or rather 7as of all the ill weeds1 which the teeming soil of human depravity throws forth1 none is more thriving and grows faster than this of flattery7 flourishing at its height1 in the tyranny of ,j4 ,,caesar4 ,balbus1 in a letter to ,cicero ,ep4 ad ,att4 l4 ix4 ,swears by the health and safety of ,caesar3 it1 incolumi ,caesare1 moriar4 ,and ,dio tells us ,l4 xliv4 that it was1 by the express injunction of the ,senate1 decreed1 even in ,caesar's life-time1 that the ,romans should bind themselves by this oath4 ,the ,senate also1 as we learn from the same writer1 ,l4 xliii4 upon receiving the news of his defeat of ,pompey's sons1 caused his statue to be set up1 in the temple of ,romulus1 with this inscription1 ,,deo ,,invicto#cd4 ',tis true1 these and still greater honours had been long paid to the ,roman governors in their provinces1 by the abject1 slavish ,asiatics4 ,and this1 no doubt1 facilitated the admission of such idolatries into the capital#ce4 ,but that a people1 from the highest notions of an independent republican equality1 could so soon be brought to this prostrate adoration of their first ,lord1 is perfectly amazing6 ,in this1 they shewed themselves ripe for servitude4 ,nothing could keep them out of the hands of a master4 ,and one can scarcely read such accounts1 as these1 without condemning the vain efforts of dying patriotism1 which laboured so fruitlesly1 may one not almost say1 so weakly8 to protract the liberty of such a people1 ,who can1 after this1 wonder at the incense1 offered up by a few court-poets8 ,the adulation of ,virgil1 which has given so much offence1 and of ,horace1 who kept pace with him1 was1 we see1 but the authorized language of the times2 presented indeed with address1 but without the heightenings and privileged licence of their profession4 ,for1 to their credit1 it must be owned1 that1 though in the office of poets1 they were to comply with the popular voice1 and echo it back to the ears of sovereignty2 yet1 as men1 they had too much good sense1 and too scrupulous a regard to the dignity of their characters1 to exaggerate and go beyond it4 ,it should1 in all reason1 surprize and disgust us still more1 that modern writers have not always shewn themselves so discrete4 ,the grave and learned ,,lipsius was not ashamed1 even without the convenient pretext of popular flattery1 or poetic coloring1 in so many words1 to make a ,god of his patron3 who though neither ,king1 nor ,pope1 was yet the next best material for this manufacture1 an ,archbishop4 ,for1 though the critic knew1 that it was not every wood1 that will make a ,mercury1 yet no body would dispute the fitness of that1 which grew so near the altar4 ,in plain words1 ,i am speaking of an ,archbishop of ,,mechlin1 whom1 after a deal of fulsome compliment 7which was the vice of the man7 he exalts at last1 with a pagan complaisance1 into the order of ,deities4 8,ad haec1 says he1 erga omnes humanitas et facilitas me faciunt1 ut omnes te non tanqum hominem aliquem de nostro coetu1 sed tanquam ,,deum ,,quendam ,,de ,,coelo ,,delapsum ,,intueantur ,,et ,,admirentur40 99 99 99 99 99 #af4 ,,jurandasque ,,tuum ,,per ,,numen ,,ponimus ,,aras4 ,on this idea of the ,,apotheosis1 which was the usual mode of flattery in the ,augustan age1 but1 as having the countenance of public authority1 sometimes inartificially enough employed1 ,virgil hath projected one of the noblest allegories in ancient poetry1 and at the same time hath given to it all the force of just compliment1 the occasion itself allowed4 ,each of these excellencies was to be expected from his talents4 ,for1 as his genius led him to the sublime2 to his exquisite judgment would instruct him to palliate this bold fiction1 and qualify1 as much as possible1 the shocking adulation1 implied in it4 ,so singular a beauty deserves to be shewn at large4 ,the third ,,georgic sets out with an apology for the low and simple argument of that work1 which1 yet1 the poet esteemed1 for its novelty1 preferable to the sublimer1 but trite1 themes of the ,greek writers4 ,not but he intended1 on some future occasion1 to adorn a nobler subject4 ,this was the great plan of the ,aenes1 which he now prefigures and unfolds at large4 ,for1 taking advantage of the noblest privilege of his art1 he breaks away1 in a fit of prophetic enthusiasm1 to foretel his successes in this projected enterprize1 and1 under the imagery of the ancient triumph1 which comprehends1 or suggests to the imagination1 whatever is most august in human affairs1 to delineate the future glories of this ambitious design4 ,the whole conception1 as we shall see1 is of the utmost grandeur and magnificence2 though1 according to the usual management of the poet 7which1 as not being apprehended by his critics1 hath furnished occasion1 even to the best of them1 to charge him with a want of the sublime7 he hath contrived to soften and familiarize its appearance to the reader1 by the artful manner1 in which it is introduced4 ,it stands thus3 tentanda via est1 qua me quoque possim ,tollere humo1 ,,victorque virm volitare per ora4 ,this idea of victory1 thus casually dropped1 he makes the basis of his imagery2 which1 by means of this gradual preparation1 offers itself easily to the apprehension1 though it thereby loses1 as the poet designed it should1 much of that broad glare1 in which writers of less judgment love to shew their ideas1 as tending to set the common reader to a gaze4 ,the allegory then proceeds3 ,primus ego patriam mecum 7modo vita supersit7 ,aonio rediens deducam vertice ,musas4 ,the projected conquest was no less than that of all the ,grecian ,muses at once2 whom1 to carry on the decorum of the allegory1 he threatens1 #a4 to force from their high and advantageous situation on the summit of the ,aonian mount2 and1 #b4 bring captive with him into ,italy3 the former circumstance intimating to us the difficulty and danger of the enterprize2 and the latter1 his complete execution of it4 ,the palmy1 triumphal entry1 which was usual to victors on their return from foreign successes1 follows3 ,primus ,idumaeas referam tibi1 ,mantua1 palmas4 ,but ancient conquerors did not hold it sufficient to reap this transient fruit of their labours4 ,they were ambitious to consecrate their glory to immortality1 by a temple1 or other public monument1 which was to be built out of the spoils of the conquered cities or countries4 ,this the reader sees is suitable to the idea of the great work proposed2 which was1 out of the old remains of ,grecian art1 to compose a new one1 that should comprize the virtues of them all3 as1 in fact1 the ,aened is known to unite in itself whatever is most excellent1 not in ,homer only1 but1 universally1 in the wits of ,greece4 ,the everlasting monument of the marble temple is then reared3 ,et viridi in campo templum de ,,marmore ponam4 ,and1 because ancient superstition usually preferred1 for these purposes1 the banks of rivers to other situations1 therefore the poet1 in beautiful allusion to the site of some of the most celebrated pagan temples1 builds his on the ,,mincius4 ,we see with what a scrupulous propriety the allusion is carried on4 ,propter aquam1 tardis ingens ubi flexibus errat ,,mincius1 et tenera praetexit arundine ripas4 ,next1 this temple was to be dedicated1 as a monument of the victor's piety1 as well as glory1 to some propitious1 tutelary deity1 under whose auspices the great adventure had been atchieved4 ,the dedication is then made to the poet's divinity1 ,augustus3 ,in medio mihi ,,caesar erit1 templumque tenebit4 ,,templum ,,tenebit4 ,the expression is emphatical2 as intimating to us1 and prefiguring the secret purpose of the ,aenes1 which was1 in the person of ,aeneas1 to shadow forth and consecrate the character of ,augustus4 ,his divinity was to fill and occupy that great work4 ,and the ample circuit of the epic plan was projected only1 as a more awful enclosure of that august presence1 which was to inhabit and solemnize the vast round of this poetic building4 ,and now the wonderful address of the poet's artifice appears4 ,the mad servility of his country had deified the emperor in good earnest2 and his brother poets made no scruple to worship in his temples1 and to come before him with handfuls of real incense1 smoking from the altars4 ,but the sobriety of ,virgil's adoration was of another cast4 ,he seizes this circumstance only to embody a poetical fiction2 which1 on the supposition of an actual deification1 hath all the force of compliment1 which the fact implies1 and yet1 as presented through the chast veil of allegory1 eludes the offence1 which the naked recital must needs have given to sober and reasonable men4 ,had the emperor's popular divinity been flatly acknowledged1 and adored1 the praise1 even under ,virgil's management1 had been insufferable for its extravagance2 and1 without some support for his poetical numen to rest upon1 the figure had been more forced and strained1 than the rules of just writing allow4 ,as it is1 the historical truth of his apotheosis authorizes and supports the fiction1 and the fiction1 in its turn1 serves to refine and palliate the history4 ,the ,aenes being1 by the poet's improvement of this circumstance1 thus naturally predicted under the image of a temple1 we may expect to find a close and studied analogy betwixt them4 ,the great1 component parts of the one will1 no doubt1 be made1 very faithfully1 to represent and adumbrate those of the other4 ,this hath been executed with great art and diligence4 #a4 ,the temple1 we observed1 was erected on the banks of a river4 ,this site was not only proper1 for the reason already mentioned1 but also1 for the further convenience of instituting public games1 the ordinary attendants of the consecration of temples4 ,these were generally1 as in the case of the ,olympic and others1 celebrated on the banks of rivers4 ,illi victor ego1 et ,tyrio conspectus in ostro1 ,centum quadrijugos agitabo ad flumina currus4 ,cuncta mihi1 ,alpheum linquens lucosque ,molorchi1 ,cursibus et crudo decernet ,graecia caestu4 ,to see the propriety of the figure in this place1 the reader needs only be reminded of the book of games in the ,aened1 which was purposely introduced in honour of the ,emperor1 and not1 as is commonly thought1 for a mere trial of skill between the poet and his master4 ,the emperor was passionately fond of these sports1 and was even the author1 or restorer1 of one of them4 ,it is not to be doubted1 that he alludes also to the quinquennial games1 actually celebrated1 in honour of his temples1 through many parts of the empire4 ,and this the poet undertakes in the civil office of ,,victor4 #b4 ,what follows is in the religious office of ,,priest4 ,for it is to be noted1 that1 in assuming this double character1 which the decorum of the solemnities1 here recounted1 prescribed1 the poet has an eye to the political design of the ,aenes1 which was to do honour to ,caesar1 in either capacity of a civil and religious personage2 both being essential to the idea of the ,,perfect ,,legislator1 whose office and character 7as an eminent critic hath lately shewn us#cf7 it was his purpose1 in this immortal work1 to adorn and recommend4 ,the account of his sacerdotal functions is delivered in these words3 ,ipse caput tonsae foliis ornatus olivae ,dona feram4 ,jam1 nunc solemnes ducere pompas ,ad delubra juvat1 caesosque videre juvencos2 ,vel scena ut versis discedat frontibus1 utque ,purpurea intexti tollant aulaea ,britanni4 ,the imagery in this place cannot be understood1 without reflecting on the customary form and disposition of the pagan temples4 ,,delubrum1 or ,,delubra1 for either number is used indifferently1 denotes the shrine1 or sanctuary1 wherein the statue of the presiding ,god was placed4 ,this was in the center of the building4 ,exactly before the delubrum1 and at no great distance from it1 was the ,,altar4 ,further1 the shrine1 or delubrum1 was inclosed and shut up on all sides by doors of curious carved-work1 and ductile veils1 embellished by the rich embroidery of flowers1 animals1 or human figures4 ,this being observed1 the progress of the imagery before us will be this4 ,the procession ad delubra1 or shrine3 the sacrifice on the altars1 erected before it2 and lastly1 the painted1 or rather wrought scenery of the purple veils1 inclosing the image1 which were ornamented1 and seemed to be sustained or held up by the figures of inwoven ,britons4 ,the meaning of all which1 is1 that the poet would proceed to the celebration of ,caesar's praise in all the gradual1 solemn preparation of poetic pomp3 that he would render the most grateful offerings to his divinity in those occasional episodes1 which he should consecrate to his more immediate honour3 and1 finally1 that he would provide the richest texture of his fancy1 for a covering to that admired image of his virtues1 which was to make the sovereign pride and glory of his poem4 ,the choice of the inwoven ,britons1 for the support of his veil1 is well accounted for by those1 who tell us1 that ,augustus was proud to have a number of these to serve about him in quality of slaves4 ,the ornaments of the ,,doors of this delubrum1 on which the sculptor used to lavish all the riches of his art1 are next delineated4 ,in foribus pugnam ex auro solidoque elephanto ,gangaridum faciam1 victorisque arma ,quirini2 ,atque hic undantem bello1 magnumque fluentem ,nilum1 ac navali surgentes aere columnas4 ,addam urbes ,asiae domitas1 pulsumque ,niphatem1 ,fidentemque fug ,parthum versisque sagittis2 ,et duo rapta manu diverso ex hoste trophaea1 ,bisque triumphatas utroque ex littore gentes4 ,here the covering of the figure is too thin to hide the literal meaning from the commonest reader1 who sees1 that the several triumphs of ,caesar1 here recorded in sculpture1 are those1 which the poet hath taken most pains to finish1 and hath occasionally inserted1 as it were1 in miniature1 in several places of his poem4 ,let him only turn to the prophetic speech of ,anchises' shade in the ,,vith1 and to the description of the shield in the ,,viiith book4 ,hitherto we have contemplated the decorations of the shrine1 i4 e4 such as bear a more direct and immediate reference to the honour of ,caesar4 ,we are now presented with a view of the remoter1 surrounding ornaments of the temple4 ,these are the illustrious ,trojan chiefs1 whose story was to furnish the materials1 or1 more properly1 to form the body and case1 as it were1 of his august structure4 ,they are also connected with the idol deity of the place by the closest ties of relationship1 the ,julian family affecting to derive its pedigree from this proud original4 ,the poet then1 in his arrangement of these additional figures1 with admirable judgment1 completes and rounds the entire fiction4 ,stabunt et ,parii lapides1 spirantia signa1 ,assaraci proles1 demissaeque ab ,jove gentis ,nomina3 ,trosque parens et ,trojae ,cynthius auctor4 ,nothing now remains but for fame to eternize the glories of what the great architect had1 at the expence of so much art and labour1 completed2 which is predicted in the highest sublime of ancient poetry1 under the idea of ,,envy1 whom the poet personalizes1 shuddering at the view of such transcendent perfection2 and tasting1 beforehand1 the pains of a remediless vexation1 strongly pictured in the image of the worst1 infernal tortures4 ,,invidia infelix furias amnemque severum ,cocyti metuet1 tortosque ,ixionis angues1 ,immanemque rotam1 et non exuperabile saxum4 ,thus have ,i presumed1 but with a religious awe1 to inspect and declare the mysteries of this ideal temple4 ,the attempt after all might have been censured1 as prophane1 if the great ,mystagogue himself1 or some body for him#cg1 had not given us the undoubted key to it4 ,under this encouragement ,i could not withstand the temptation of disclosing thus much of one of the noblest fictions of antiquity2 and the rather1 as the propriety of allegoric composition1 which made the distinguished pride of ancient poetry1 seems but little known or attended to by the modern professors of this fine art4 99 99 99 99 99 #ag4 ,,nil ,,oriturum ,,alias1 ,,nil ,,ortum ,,tale ,,fatentes4 ,il n'est impossible1 says ,m4 ,,de ,,balzac1 in that puffed1 declamatory rhapsody1 intitled1 ,,le ,,prince1 de resister au mouvement interieur1 qui me pousse4 ,je ne saurois m'empecher de parler du ,,roy1 et de sa vertu2 de crier tous les princes1 que c'est l'exemple1 qu'ils doivent suivre2 ,,de ,,demander ,a ,,tous ,,les ,,peuples1 ,,et ,a ,,tous ,,les ,,ages1 ,s',,ils ,,ont ,,jamais ,,rien ,,veu ,,de ,,semblable4 ,this was spoken of a king of ,france1 who1 it will be owned1 had his virtues4 ,but they were the virtues of the man1 and not of the ,prince4 ,this1 however1 was a distinction1 which the eloquent encomiast was not aware of1 or1 to speak more truly1 his business required him to overlook4 ,for the whole elogy is worth perusing1 as it affords a striking proof of the uniform genius of flattery1 which1 alike under all circumstances1 and indifferent to all characters1 can hold the same language of the weakest1 as the ablest of princes1 of ,,louis ,,le ,,juste1 and ,,caesar ,,octavianus ,,augustus4 99 99 99 99 99 #bc4 ,,sic ,,fautor ,,veterum1 c4 to v4 #bh4 ,the folly1 here satyrized1 is common enough in all countries1 and extends to all arts4 ,it was just the same preposterous affectation of venerating antiquity1 which put the connoisseurs in painting1 under the emperors1 on crying up the simple and rude sketches of ,,aglaophon and ,,polygnotus1 above the exquisite and finished pictures of ,,parrhasius and ,,zeuxis4 ,the account is given by ,quintilian1 who in his censure of this absurdity1 points to the undoubted source of it4 ,his words are these3 8,primi1 quorum quidem opera non vetustatis mod grati visenda sunt1 clari pictores fuisse dicuntur ,polygnotus et ,aglaophon2 quorum simplex color tam sui studiosos adhuc habet1 ut illa prop rudia ac velut futurae mox artis primordia1 maximis1 qui post eos extiterunt1 auctoribus praeferantur1 ,,proprio ,,quodam ,,intelligendi 7ut mea fert opinio7 ,,ambitu40 ,l4 xii4 c4 #aj4 ,the lover of painting must be the more surprized at this strange preference1 when he is told1 that ,aglaophon1 at least1 had the use of only one single colour3 whereas ,parrhasius and ,zeuxis1 who are amongst the maximi autores1 here glanced at1 not only employed different colours1 but were exceedingly eminent1 the one of them for correct drawing1 and the delicacy of his outline2 the other1 for his invention of that great secret of the chiaro oscuro4 8,post ,zeuxis et ,parrhasius3 quorum prior ,,luminum ,,umbrarumque ,,invenisse ,,rationem1 secundus1 ,,examinasse ,,subtilius ,,lineas ,,dicitur40 ,ibid4 99 99 99 99 99 #bh4 ,,si1 ,,quia ,,graiorum ,,sunt ,,antiquissima ,,quaeque ,,scripta vel ,,optima1 c4 ,the common interpretation of this place supposes the poet to admit the most ancient of the ,greek writings to be the best4 ,which were even contrary to all experience and common sense1 and is directly confuted by the history of the ,greek learning4 ,what he allows is1 the superiority of the oldest ,greek writings extant2 which is a very different thing4 ,the turn of his argument confines us to this sense4 ,for he would shew the folly of concluding the same of the old ,roman writers1 on their first rude attempts to copy the finished models of ,greece1 as of the old ,greek writers themselves1 who were furnished with the means of producing those models by long discipline and cultivation4 ,this appears1 certainly1 from what follows3 ,venimus ad summum fortunae3 pingimus atque ,psallimus et luctamur ,achivis doctius unctis4 ,the design of which hath been entirely overlooked4 ,for it hath been taken only for a general expression of falsehood and absurdity1 of just the same import1 as the proverbial line1 ,nil intra est ole1 nil extra est in nuce duri4 ,whereas it was designedly pitched upon to convey a particular illustration of the very absurdity in question1 and to shew the maintainers of it1 from the nature of things1 how senseless their position was4 ,it is to this purpose3 8,as well it may be pretended1 that we ,romans surpass the ,greeks in the arts of painting1 music1 and the exercises of the palaestra1 which yet it is confessed1 we do not1 as that our old writers surpass the modern4 ,the absurdity1 in either case1 is the same4 ,for1 as the ,greeks1 who had long devoted themselves1 with great and continued application1 to the practice of these arts 7which is the force of the epithet ,,uncti1 here given them7 must1 for that reason1 carry the prize from the ,romans1 who have taken very little pains about them2 so1 the modern ,romans1 who have for a long time been studying the arts of poetry and composition1 must needs excel the old ,roman writers1 who had little or no acquaintance with those arts1 and had been trained1 by no previous discipline1 to the exercise of them40 ,the conciseness of the expression made it necessary to open the poet's sense at large4 ,we now see1 that his intention1 in these two lines1 was to expose1 in the way of argumentative illustration1 the ground of that absurdity1 which the preceding verses had represented as1 at first sight1 so shocking to common sense4 99 99 99 99 99 #cc4 ,,unctis4 ,this is by no means a general unmeaning epithet3 but is beautifully chosen to express the unwearied assiduity of the ,greek artists4 ,for the practice of anointing being essential to their agonistic trials1 the poet elegantly puts the attending circumstance for the thing itself4 ,and so1 in speaking of them1 as ,,uncti1 he does the same1 as if he had called them 8the industrious1 or exercising ,greeks20 which was the very idea his argument required him to suggest to us4 99 99 99 99 99 #dc4--;,,honeste4 ,expressing the credit such a piece was held in1 as had the fortune to be ranked inter veteres1 agreeably to what he said above--,,perfectos veteresque v4 #cg--;and--vetus atque ,,probus v4 #ci3 which affords a fresh presumption in favour of ,dr4 ,bentley's conjecture on v4 #da1 where1 instead of veteres poetas1 he would read1 ,inter quos referendus erit8 veteresne ,,probosque1 ,an quos c4 99 99 99 99 99 #ed4 ,,adeo ,,sanctum ,,est ,,vetus ,,omne ,,poema4 ,the reader is not to suppose1 that ,horace1 in this ridicule of the foolish adorers of antiquity1 intended any contempt of the old ,roman poets1 who1 as the old writers in every country1 abound in strong sense1 vigorous expression1 and the truest representation of life and manners4 ,his quarrel is only with the critic3 ,qui redit in fastos et virtutem aestimat annis4 ,an affectation1 which for its folly1 if it had not too apparently sprung from a worse principle1 deserved to be laughed at4 ,for the rest1 he every where discovers a candid and just esteem of their earlier writers2 as may be seen from many places in this very epistle2 but more especially from that severe censure in #a ,s4 x4 #ag4 7which hath more of acrimony in it1 than he usually allows to his satyr7 when1 in speaking of the writers of the old comedy1 he adds1 ,quos neque pulcher ,hermogenes unquam legit1 neque simius iste ,nil praeter ,calvum et doctus cantare ,catullum4 ,with all his zeal for correct writing1 he was not1 we see1 of the humour of that delicate sort1 who are for burning their old poets2 and1 to be well with women and court critics1 confine their reading and admiration to the innocent sing-song of some soft and fashionable rhymer1 whose utter insipidity is a thousand times more insufferable1 than any barbarism4 99 99 99 99 99 #ef4 ,,pacuvius ,,docti ,,famam ,,senis1 ,,accius ,,alti3 ,the epithet doctus1 here applied to the tragic poet1 ,pacuvius1 is1 ,i believe1 sometimes misunderstood1 though the opposition to altus clearly determines the sense4 ,for1 as this last word expresses the sublime of sentiment and expression1 which comes from nature1 so the former word must needs be interpreted of that exactness in both1 or at least of that skill in the conduct of the scene 7the proper learning of a dramatic poet7 which is the result of art4 ,the ,latin word doctus is indeed somewhat ambiguous3 but we are chiefly misled by the ,english word1 learned1 by which we translate it1 and by which1 in general use1 is meant1 rather extensive reading1 and what we call erudition1 than a profound skill in the rules and principles of any art4 ,but this last is frequently the sense of the ,latin term doctus1 as we may see from its application1 in the best classic writers1 to other1 besides the literary professions4 ,thus1 to omit other instances1 we find it applied very often in ,horace himself4 ,it is applied to a singing-girl--doctae psallere ,chiae--in one of his ,odes1 l4 iv4 #ac4 ,it is applied to several mechanic arts in this epistle--8doctius ,achivis pingimus atque psallimus et luctamur30 ,it is even applied1 absolutely1 to the player ,roscius--doctus ,roscius1 in v4 #hb1 where his skill in acting could only be intended by it4 ,it is1 also1 in this sense1 that he calls his imitator1 doctus1 i4 e4 skilled and knowing in his art1 ,a4 ,p4 v4 #cai4 ,nay1 it is precisely in this sense that ,quinctilian uses the word1 when he characterizes this very ,pacuvius--,pacuvium videri doctiorem1 qui esse docti affectant1 volunt l4 x4 c4 #a4 i4 e4 they1 who affect to be thought knowing in the rules of dramatic writing1 give this praise to ,pacuvius4 ,the expression is so put1 as if ,quinctilian intended a censure of these critics2 because this pretence to dramatic art1 and the strict imitation of the ,greek poets1 was grown1 in his time1 and long before it1 into a degree of pedantry and affectation2 no other merit but this of docti1 being of any significancy1 in their account4 ,there is no reason to think that ,quinctilian meant to insinuate the poet's want of this merit1 or his own contempt of it3 though he might think1 and with reason1 that too much stress had been laid upon it by some men4 ,it is in the same manner that one of our own poets has been characterized2 and the application of this term to him will shew the force of it1 still more clearly4 ,in ,mr4 ,pope's fine imitation of this epistle1 are these lines-- ,in all debates1 where critics bear a part1 ,not one but nods1 and talks of ,jonson's art-- ,one sees1 then1 how ,mr4 ,pope understood the docti1 of ,horace4 ,but our ,milton applies the word learned itself1 and in the ,latin sense of it1 to ,jonson-- ,when ,jonson's learned sock is on-- ,for what is this learning8 ,indisputably1 his dramatic learning1 his skill in the scene1 and his observance of the ancient rules and practice4 ,for1 though ,jonson was indeed learned1 in every sense1 it is the learning of his profession1 as a comic artist1 for which he is here celebrated4 ,the ,latin substantive1 doctrina1 is used with the same latitude1 as the adjective1 doctus4 ,it sometimes signifies the peculiar sort of learning1 under consideration2 though sometimes again it signifies learning1 or erudition1 at large4 ,it is used in the former sense by ,cicero1 when he observes of the satires of ,lucilius1 that they were remarkable for their wit and pleasantry1 not for their learning--doctrina mediocris4 ,so that there is no contradiction in this judgment1 as is commonly thought1 to that of ,quinctilian1 who declares roundly--eruditio in eo mira--,for1 though doctrina and eruditio be sometimes convertible terms1 they are not so here4 ,the learning ,cicero speaks of in ,lucilius1 as being but moderate1 is his learning1 or skill in the art of writing and composition4--,that this was the whole purport of ,cicero's observation1 any one may see by turning to the place where it occurs1 in the proeme to his first book ,,de ,,finibus4 99 99 99 99 99 #ei4 ,,vincere ,,caecilius ,,gravitate1 ,,terentius ,,arte4 ,it should be observed1 that the judgment1 here passed from v4 #ee to #fj on the most celebrated ,roman writers1 being only a representation of the popular opinion1 not of the poet's own1 the commendations1 given to them1 are deserved1 or otherwise1 just as it chances4 ,interdum volgus rectum videt1 est ubi peccat4 ,to give an instance of this in the line before us4 ,a critic of unquestioned authority acquaints us1 wherein the real distinct merit of these two dramatic writers consists4 8,in ,,argumentis1 ,caecilius palmam poscit2 in ,,ethesin1 ,,terentius40 ,varro4 ,now by gravitate1 as applied to ,caecilius1 we may properly enough understand the grave and affecting cast of his comedy2 which is further confirmed by what the same critic elsewhere observes of him4 8,,pathe ,trabea1 ,attilius1 et ,,caecilius facile moverunt40 ,but ,terence's characteristic of painting the manners1 which is1 plainly1 the right interpretation of ,varro's ,,ethesin1 is not so significantly expressed by the attribute arte1 here given to him4 ,the word indeed is of large and general import1 and may admit of various senses2 but being here applied to a dramatic writer1 it most naturally and properly denotes the peculiar art of his profession1 that is1 the artificial contexture of the plot4 ,and this ,i doubt not was the very praise1 the town-critics of ,horace's time intended to bestow on this poet4 ,the matter is easily explained4 ,the simplicity and exact unity of the plots in the ,greek comedies would be1 of course1 uninteresting to a people1 not thoroughly instructed in the genuin beauties of the drama4 ,they had too thin a contexture to satisfy the gross and lumpish taste of a ,roman auditory4 ,the ,latin poets1 therefore1 bethought themselves of combining two stories into one4 ,and this1 which is what we call the double plot1 affording the opportunity of more incidents1 and a greater variety of action1 was perfectly suited to their apprehensions4 ,but1 of all the ,latin ,comedians1 ,terence appears to have practised this secret most assiduously3 at least1 as may be concluded from what remains of them4 ,plautus hath very frequently single plots1 which he was enabled to support by1 what was natural to him1 a force of buffoon pleasantry4 ,terence1 whose genius lay another way1 or whose taste was abhorrent from such ribaldry1 had recourse to the other expedient of double plots4 ,and this1 ,i suppose1 is what gained him the popular reputation of being the most artificial writer for the stage4 ,the ,,hecyra is the only one of his comedies1 of the true ancient cast4 ,and we know how it came off in the representation4 ,that ill-success and the simplicity of its conduct have continued to draw upon it the same unfavourable treatment from the critics1 to this day2 who constantly speak of it1 as much inferior to the rest2 whereas1 for the genuin beauty of dramatic design1 and the observance1 after the ancient ,greek manner1 of the nice dependency and coherence of the fable1 throughout1 it is1 indisputably1 to every reader of true taste1 the most masterly and exquisite of the whole collection4 99 99 99 99 99 #fc4 ,,interdum ,,volgus ,,rectum ,,videt3 ,,est ,,ubi ,,peccat4 ,the capricious levity of popular opinion hath been noted even to a proverb4 ,and yet it is this1 which1 after all1 fixes the fate of authors4 ,this seemingly odd phaenomenon ,i would thus account for4 ,what is usually complimented with the high and reverend appellation of public judgment is1 in any single instance1 but the repetition or echo1 for the most part eagerly catched and strongly reverberated on all sides1 of a few leading voices1 which have happened to gain the confidence1 and so direct the cry of the public4 ,but 7as1 in fact1 it too often falls out7 this prerogative of the few may be abused to the prejudice of the many4 ,the partialities of friendship1 the fashionableness of the writer1 his compliance with the reigning taste1 the lucky concurrence of time and opportunity1 the cabal of a party1 nay1 the very freaks of whim and caprice1 these1 or any of them1 as occasion serves1 can support the dullest1 as the opposite disadvantages can depress the noblest performance2 and give the currency or neglect to either1 far beyond what the genuin character of each demands4 ,hence the public voice1 which is but the aggregate of these corrupt judgments1 infinitely multiplied1 is1 with the wise1 at such a juncture1 deservedly of little esteem4 ,yet1 in a succession of such judgments1 delivered at different times and by different sets or juntos of these sovereign arbiters of the fate of authors1 the public opinion naturally gets clear of these accidental corruptions4 ,every fresh succession shakes off some2 till1 by degrees1 the work is seen in its proper form1 unsupported of every other recommendation1 than what its native inherent excellence bestows upon it4 ,then1 and not till then1 the voice of the people becomes sacred2 after which it soon advances into divinity1 before which all ages must fall down and worship4 ,for now ,reason alone1 without her corrupt assessors1 takes the chair4 ,and her sentence1 when once promulgated and authorized by the general voice1 fixes the unalterable doom of authors4 1 ,longinus1 vii4 ,and the reason follows1 agreeably to the account here given4 1 1 1 1 1 1 ' 4 ,ibid4 ,this is the true account of popular fame1 which1 while it well explains the ground of the poet's aphorism1 suggests an obvious remark1 but very mortifying to every candidate of literary glory4 ,it is1 that1 whether he succeeds in his endeavours after public applause1 or not1 fame is equally out of his reach1 and1 as the moral poet teaches1 a thing beyond him1 before his death1 on either supposition4 ,for at the very time1 that this bewitching music is sounding in his ears1 he can never be sure1 if1 instead of the divine consentient harmony of a just praise1 it be not only the discordant din and clamour of ignorance or prepossession4 ,if there be any exception to this melancholy truth1 it must be in the case of some uncommon genius1 whose superior power breaks through all impediments in his road to fame1 and forces applause even from those very prejudices1 that would obstruct his career to it4 ,it was the rare felicity of the poet1 just mentioned1 to receive1 in his life-time1 this sure and pleasing augury of immortality4 99 99 99 99 99 #hh4 ,,ingeniis ,,non ,,ille ,,favet1 c4 ,,malherbe was to the ,french1 pretty much what ,,horace had been to the ,latin1 poetry4 ,these great writers had1 each of them1 rescued the lyric muse of their country out of the rude1 ungracious hands of their old poets4 ,and1 as their talents of a good ear1 elegant judgment1 and correct expression1 were the same1 they presented her to the public in all the air and grace1 and yet severity1 of beauty1 of which her form was susceptible4 ,their merits and pretensions being thus far resembling1 the reader may not be incurious to know the fate and fortune of each4 ,horace hath very frankly told us1 what befel himself from the malevolent and low passions of his countrymen4 ,malherbe did not come off1 with the wits and critics of his time1 much better2 as we learn from a learned person1 who hath very warmly recommended his writings to the public4 ,speaking of the envy1 which pursued him in his prose-works1 but1 says he1 8,comme il faisoit une particuliere profession de la poesie1 c'est en cette qualit qu'il a de plus severes censeurs1 et receu des injustices plus signales4 ,mais il me semble que je fermerai la bouche ceux1 que le blament1 quand je leur aurai monstr1 que sa faon d'escrire est excellente1 quoiqu'elle s'eloigne un peu de celle des ,,nos ,,anciens ,,poetes1 ,,qu',,ils ,,louent ,,plustot ,,par ,,un ,,degoust ,,des ,,choses ,,presentes1 ,,que ,,par ,,les ,,sentiments ,d',,une ,,veritable ,,estime40 ,,disc4 ,,de ,m4 ,,godeau ,,sur ,,les ,,oeuvres ,,de ,m4 ,,malherbe4 99 99 99 99 99 #ig4 ,,suspendit ,,mentem ,,vultumque4 ,the expression hath great elegance1 and is not liable to the imputation of harsh1 or improper construction4 ,for suspendit is not taken1 with regard either to mentem or vultum1 in its literal1 but figurative1 signification2 and1 thus1 it becomes1 in one and the same sense1 applicable to both4 ,otherwise1 this way of coupling two substantives to a verb1 which does not1 in strict grammatical usage1 govern both2 or1 if it doth1 must needs be construed in different senses2 hath given just offence to the best critics4 ,mr4 ,pope censures a passage of this kind1 in the ,iliad1 with severity2 and thinks the taste of the ancients was1 in general1 too good for those fooleries#ch4 ,mr4 ,addison is perfectly of the same mind1 as appears from his criticism on that line in ,ovid1 ,consiliis1 non curribus utere nostris1 8,this way of joining1 says he1 two such different ideas as chariot and counsel to the same verb1 is mightily used by ,ovid1 but is a very low kind of wit1 and has always in it a mixture of pun2 because the verb must be taken in a different sense1 when it is joined with one of the things1 from what it has in conjunction with the other4 ,thus in the end of this story he tells you1 that ,jupiter flung a thunderbolt at ,phaton2 pariterque animaque rotisque expulit aurigam3 where he makes a forced piece of ,latin 7anim expulit aurigam7 that he may couple the soul and the wheels to the same verb#ci40 ,these1 the reader will think1 are pretty good authorities4 ,for1 in matters of taste1 ,i know of none1 that more deserve to be regarded4 ,the mere verbal critic1 one would think1 should be cautious1 how he opposed himself to them4 ,and yet a very learned ,dutchman1 who has taken great pains in elucidating an old ,greek love-story1 which1 with its more passionate admirers1 may1 perhaps1 pass for the ,,marianne of antiquity1 hath not scrupled to censure this decision of their's very sharply#dj4 ,having transcribed the censure of ,mr4 ,pope1 who1 indeed1 somewhat too hastily1 suspects the line in ,homer for an ,interpolation1 our critic fastens upon him directly4 ,,en ,,cor ,,zenodoti1 ,,en ,,jecur ,,cratetis6 ,but foul language and fair criticism are different things2 and what he offers of the latter rather accounts for than justifies the former4 ,all he says on the subject1 is in the good old way of authorities1 which1 he diligently rakes together out of every corner of ,greek and ,roman antiquity4 ,from all these he concludes1 as he thinks1 irresistibly1 not that the passage in question might be genuin 7for that few would dispute with him7 but that the kind of expression itself is a real beauty4 ,bona elocutio est3 honesta figura4 ,though1 to the praise of his discretion be it remembered1 he does not even venture on this assertion1 without his usual support of precedent4 ,and1 for want of a better1 he takes up with old ,servius4 ,for so1 it seems1 this grammarian hath declared himself1 with respect to some expressions of the same kind in ,virgil4 ,but let him make the best of his authorities4 ,and1 when he has done that1 ,i shall take the liberty to assure him1 that the persons1 he contends against1 do not think themselves1 in the least1 concerned with them4 ,for1 though he believes it an undeniable maxim1 ,critici non esse inquirere1 utrum recte autor quid scripserit1 sed an omnino sic scripserit#da3 yet1 in the case before us1 he must not be surprized1 if others do not so conceive of it4 ,indeed1 where the critic would defend the authenticity of a word or expression1 the way of precedent is1 doubtless1 the very best1 that common sense allows to be taken4 ,for the evidence of fact1 at once1 bears down all suspicion of corruption or interpolation4 ,again2 if the elegance of single words 7or of intire phrases1 where the suspicion turns on the oddity or uncommoness of the construction1 only7 be the matter in dispute1 full and precise authorities must decide it4 ,for elegance1 here1 means nothing else but the practice of the best writers4 ,and thus far ,i would join issue with the learned censurer2 and should think he did well in prescribing this rule to himself in the correction of approved ancient authors4 ,but what have these cases to do with the point in question8 ,the objection is made1 not to words1 which alone are capable of being justified by authority1 but to things1 which must ever be what they are1 in spite of it4 ,this mode of writing is shewn to be abundantly defective1 for reasons taken from the nature of our ideas1 and the end and genius of the nobler forms of composition4 ,and what is it to tell us1 that great writers have overlooked or neglected them8 #a4 ,in our customary train of thinking1 the mind is carried along1 in succession1 from one clear and distinct idea to another4 ,or1 if the attention be at once employed on two senses1 there is ever such a close and near analogy betwixt them1 that the perceptive faculty1 easily and almost instantaneously passing from the one to the other1 is not divided in its regards betwixt them1 but even seems to itself to consider them1 as one3 as is the case with metaphor3 and1 universally1 with all the just forms of allusion4 ,the union between the literal and figurative sense is so strict1 that they run together in the imagination2 and the effect of the figure is only to let in fresh light and lustre on the literal meaning4 ,but now1 when two different1 unconnected ideas are obtruded1 at the same time upon us1 the mind suffers a kind of violence and distraction1 and is thereby put out of that natural state1 in which it so much delights4 ,to take the learned writer's instance from ,polybius3 4 ,how different is the idea of collecting forces1 and of that act of the mind1 which we call taking courage6 ,these two perceptions are not only distinct from each other1 but totally unconnected by any natural bond of relationship betwixt them4 ,and yet the word must be seen in this double view1 before we can take the full meaning of the historian4 #b4 ,this conjunction of unrelated ideas1 by the means of a common term1 agrees as ill to the end and genius of the writer's composition1 as the natural bent and constitution of the mind4 ,for the question is only about the greater poetry1 which addresses itself to the ,,passions1 or ,,imagination4 ,and1 in either case1 this play of words which ,mr4 ,pope condemns1 must be highly out of season4 ,when we are necessitated1 as it were1 to look different ways1 and actually to contemplate two unconnected significations of the same word1 before we can thoroughly comprehend its purpose1 the mind is more amused by this fanciful conjunction of ideas1 than is consistent with the artless1 undesigning simplicity of passion4 ,it disturbs and interrupts the flow of affection1 by presenting this disparted image to the fancy4 ,again2 where fancy itself is solely addressed1 as in the nobler descriptive species1 this arbitrary assemblage of ideas is not less improper4 ,for the poet's business is now1 to astonish or entertain the mind with a succession of great or beautiful images4 ,and the intervention of this juggler's trick diverts the thought from contemplating its proper scenery4 ,we should be admiring some glorious representation of nature1 and are stopped1 on a sudden1 to observe the writer's art1 whose ingenuity can fetch1 out of one word1 two such foreign and discrepant meanings4 ,in the lighter forms of poetry indeed1 and more especially in the burlesque epic1 this affectation has its place2 as in that line of ,mr4 ,pope1 quoted by this critic2 sometimes counsel takes1 and sometimes tea4 ,for #a4 ,the writer's intention is here1 not to affect the passions1 or transport the fancy1 but solely to divert and amuse4 ,and to such end this species of trifling is very apposite4 #b4 ,the manner1 which the burlesque epic takes to divert1 is by confounding great things with small4 ,a mode of speech then1 which favours such confusion1 is directly to its purpose4 #c4 ,this poem is1 by its nature1 satyrical1 and1 like the old comedy1 delights in exposing the faults and vices of composition4 ,so that the expression is here properly employed 7and this was1 perhaps1 the first view of the writer7 to ridicule the use of it in grave works4 ,if ,m4 ,d',orville then could seriously design to confute ,mr4 ,pope's criticism by his own practice in that line of the ,rape of the ,lock1 he has only shewn1 that he does not1 in the least1 comprehend the real genius of this poem4 ,but to return3 ,there is1 as appears to me1 but one case1 in which this double sense of words can be admitted in the more solemn forms of poetry4 ,it is1 when1 besides the plain literal meaning1 which the context demands1 the mind is carried forward to some more illustrious and important object4 ,we have an instance in the famous line of ,virgil1 ,attollens humeris famamque et fata nepotum4 ,but this is so far from contradicting1 that it furthers the writer's proper intention4 ,we are not called off from the subject matter to the observation of a conceit1 but to the admiration of kindred sublime conceptions4 ,for even here1 it is to be observed1 there is always required some previous dependency and relationship1 though not extremely obvious1 in the natures of the things themselves1 whereon to ground and justify the analogy4 ,otherwise1 the intention of the double sense is perfectly inexcusable4 ,but the instance from ,virgil1 as we have seen it explained 7and for the first time7 by a great critic#db1 is so curious1 that ,i shall be allowed to enlarge a little upon it3 and the rather as ,virgil's practice in this instance will let us into the true secret of conducting these double senses4 ,the comment of ,servius on this line is remarkable4 8,hunc versum notant ,critici1 quasi superflu et inutiliter additum1 nec convenientem gravitati ejus1 namque est magis neotericus40 ,mr4 ,addison conceived of it in the same manner when he said1 8,this was the only witty line in the neis20 meaning such a line as ,ovid would have written4 ,we see the opinion which these ,critics entertained of the double sense1 in general1 in the greater ,poetry4 ,they esteemed it a wanton play of fancy1 misbecoming the dignity of the writer's work1 and the gravity of his character4 ,they took it1 in short1 for a mere modern flourish1 totally different from the pure unaffected manner of genuin antiquity4 ,and thus far they unquestionably judged right4 ,their defect was in not seeing that the use of it1 as here employed by the ,poet1 was an exception to the general rule4 ,but to have seen this was not1 perhaps1 to be expected even from these ,critics4 ,however1 from this want of penetration arose a difficulty in determining whether to read1 ,facta or ,fata ,nepotum4 ,and1 as we now understand that ,servius and his ,critics were utter strangers to ,virgil's noble idea1 it is no wonder they could not resolve it4 ,but the latter is the ,poet's own word4 ,he considered this shield of celestial make as a kind of ,palladium1 like the ,,ancile1 which fell from ,heaven1 and used to be carried in procession on the shoulders of the ,,salii4 8,quid de scutis10 says ,lactantius1 8jam vetustate putridis dicam8 ,quae cum portant1 ,deos ipsos se gestare ,,humeris ,,suis arbitrantur40 ,div4 ,inst4 l4 i4 c4 #ba4 ,virgil1 in a fine flight of imagination1 alludes to this venerable ceremony1 comparing1 as it were1 the shield of his ,hero to the sacred ,,ancile2 and in conformity to the practice in that sacred procession represents his ,hero in the priestly office of ,religion1 ,attollens ,,humero famamque et ,,fata ,nepotum4 ,this idea then of the sacred shield1 the guard and glory of ,rome1 and on which1 in this advanced situation1 depended the fame and fortune of his country1 the poet1 with extreme elegance and sublimity1 transfers to the shield which guarded their great progenitor1 while he was laying the first foundations of the ,roman ,empire4 ,but to return to the subject before us4 ,what has been said of the impropriety of double senses1 holds of the construction of a single term in two senses1 even though its authorized usage may equally admit both4 ,so that ,i cannot be of a mind with the learned critic's wise men#dc2 who acknowledge an extreme elegance in this form1 when the governing verb equally corresponds to the two substantives4 ,but when it properly can be applied but to one of them1 and with some force and straining only1 to the second1 as commonly happens with the application of one verb to two substantives1 it then degenerates1 as ,mr4 ,addison observes1 into a mere quibble1 and is utterly incompatible with the graver form of composition4 ,and for this we have the concurrent authority of the cordati themselves1 who readily admit1 durum admodum et fieri orationem1 si verbum hoc ab alterutro abhorreat#dd4 ,without softening matters1 besides the former absurdity of a second sense1 we are now indebted to a forced and barbarous construction for any second sense at all4 ,but surely this venerable bench of critics1 to whom our censurer thinks fit to make his solemn appeal1 were not aware of the imprudence of this concession4 ,for why1 if one may presume to ask1 is the latter use of this figure condemned1 but for reasons1 which shew the manifest absurdity of the thing1 however countenanced by authorities8 ,and is not this the case of the former8 ,or1 is the transgression of the standing rules of good sense1 in the judgment of these censors1 a more pardonable crime in a writer1 than of common usage or grammar8 ,after all1 since he lays so great stress on his authorities1 it may not be amiss to consider the proper force of them4 ,the form of speaking under consideration has been censured as a trifling1 affected witticism4 ,this censure he hopes entirely to elude by shewing it was in use1 more especially among two sorts of persons1 the least likely to be infected with wrong taste1 the oldest1 that is to say1 the simplest2 and the most refined writers4 ,in short1 he thinks to stop all mouths by alledging instances from ,homer and ,virgil4 ,but what if ,homer and ,virgil in the few examples of this kind to be met with in their writings have erred8 ,and1 which is more1 what if that very simplicity on the one hand1 and refinement on the other1 which he builds so much upon1 can be shewn to be the natural and almost necessary occasions of their falling into such errors8 ,this1 ,i am persuaded1 was the truth of the case4 ,for1 #a4 ,in the simpler ages of learning1 when1 as yet1 composition is not turned into an art1 but every writer1 especially of vehement and impetuous genius1 is contented to put down his first thoughts1 and1 for their expression1 takes up with the most obvious words and phrases1 that present themselves to him1 this improper construction will not be unfrequent4 ,for the writer1 who is not knowing enough to take offence at these niceties1 having an immediate occasion to express two things1 and finding one word1 which1 in common usage1 at least with a little straining1 extends to both1 he looks no further1 but1 as suspecting no fault1 employs it without scruple4 ,and ,i am the more confirmed in this account1 from observing1 that sometimes1 where the governing verb cannot be made to bear this double sense1 and yet the meaning of the writer is clear enough from the context1 the proper word is altogether omitted4 ,of this kind are several of the modes of speaking1 alledged by the writer as instances of the double sense4 ,as in that of ,sophocles#de1 where ,electra1 giving orders to ,chrysothemis1 about the disposal of the libations1 destined for the tomb of her father1 delivers herself thus1 ' 1 4 ,the writer's first intention was to look out for some such verb1 as would equally correspond to and 1 but this not occurring1 he sets down one1 that only agrees to the last1 and leaves the other to be understood or supplied by the reader2 as it easily might1 the scope of the place necessarily directing him to it4 ,it cannot be supposed1 that ,sophocles designed to say1 4 ,there is no affinity of sense or sound to lead him to such construction4 ,again3 in that verse of ,homer#df1 1 ' 1 the poet never meant to say 1 but neglectingly left it thus1 as trusting the nature of the thing would instruct the reader to supply 1 or some such word1 expressive of the posture required4 ,nay1 writers of more exactness than these simple ,greek poets have occasionally overlooked such inaccuracies3 as ,cicero#dg1 who1 when more intent on his argument1 than expression1 lets fall this impropriety2 ,nec vero ,,supra ,,terram1 sed etiam ,,in ,,intimis ,,ejus ,,tenebris plurimarum rerum ,,latet utilitas4 ',tis plain1 the writer1 conceiving extat1 patet1 or some such word1 to be necessarily suggested by the tenor of his sentence1 never troubled himself to go back to insert it4 ,yet these are brought as examples of the double application of single words4 ,the truth is1 they are examples of indiligence in the writers1 and as such1 may shew us1 how easily they might fall1 for the same reason1 into the impropriety of double senses4 ,in those of this class then the impropriety1 complained of1 is the effect of mere inattention or carelessness4 #b4 ,on the other hand1 when this negligent simplicity of thinking and speaking gives way to the utmost polish and refinement in both1 we are then to expect it1 for the contrary reason4 ,for the more obvious and natural forms of writing being1 now1 grown common1 are held insipid1 and the public taste demands to be gratified by the seasoning of a more studied and artificial expression4 ,it is not enough to please1 the writer must find means to strike and surprize4 ,and hence the antithesis1 the remote allusion1 and every other mode of affected eloquence4 ,but of these the first that prevails1 is the application of the double sense4 ,for the general use justifying it1 it easily passes with the reader and writer too1 for natural expression2 and yet as splitting the attention suddenly1 and at once1 on two different views1 carries with it all the novelty and surprize1 that are wanted4 ,when the public taste is not1 yet1 far gone in this refinement1 and the writer hath himself the truest taste 7which was ,,virgil',s case7 such affectations will not be very common2 or1 when they do occur1 will1 for the most part1 be agreeably softened4 ,as in the instance of retroque pedem cum voce repressit2 where1 by making voce immediately dependent on the preposition1 and remotely on the verb1 he softens the harshness of the expression1 which seems much more tolerable in this form1 than if he had put it1 pedem vocemque repressit4 ,so again in the line1 ,crudeles aras trajectaque pectora ferro ,nudavit1 the incongruity of the two senses in nudavit1 is the less perceived from its metaphorical application to one of them4 ,but the desire of pleasing continually1 which1 in the circumstance supposed1 insensibly grows into a habit1 must1 of necessity1 betray writers of less taste and exactness into the frequent commission of this fault4 ,which1 as ,mr4 ,addison takes notice1 was remarkably the case with ,,ovid4 ,the purpose of all this is to shew1 that the use of this form of speaking arose from negligence1 or affectation1 never from judgment4 ,and such being the obvious1 and1 it is presumed1 true account of the matter1 the learned ,animadvertor on ,,chariton is left1 as ,i said1 to make the best of his authorities2 or1 even to enlarge his list of them with the ,centuries#dh of his good friends1 at his leisure4 ,for till he can tell us of a writer1 who1 neither in careless1 nor ambitious humours1 is capable of this folly1 his accumulated citations1 were they more to his purpose1 than many of them are1 will do him little service4 ,unless perhaps we are to give up common sense to authority1 and pride ourselves on mimicking the very defects of our betters4 ,and even here he need not be at a loss for precedents4 ,for so the disciples of ,plato1 we are told1 in former times1 affected to be round-shouldered1 in compliment to their master2 and ,aristotle's worshipers1 because of a natural impediment in this philosopher's speech1 thought it to their credit to turn ,stammerers4 ,and without doubt1 while this fashion prevailed1 there were critics1 who found out a ,je ne sai quoi in the air of the one party1 and in the eloquence of the other4 99 99 99 99 99 #ig4 ,,suspendit ,,picta ,,vultum ,,mentemque ,,tabella2 ,horace judiciously describes painting by that peculiar circumstance1 which does most honour to this fine art4 ,it is1 that1 in the hands of a master1 it attaches1 not the eyes only1 but the very soul1 to its representation of the human affections and manners4 ,for it is in contemplating subjects of this kind1 that the mind1 with a fond and eager attention1 hangs on the picture4 ,other imitations may please1 but this warms and transports with passion4 ,and1 because whatever addresses itself immediately to the eye1 affects us most2 hence it is1 that painting1 so employed1 becomes more efficacious to express the manners and imprint characters1 than poetry itself3 or rather1 hath the advantages of the best and usefullest species of poetry1 the dramatic1 when enforced by just action on the stage4 ,quintilian gives it the like preference to ,oratory4 ,speaking of the use of action in an orator1 he observes1 8,is gestus quantum habeat in oratore1 momenti2 satis vel ex eo patet1 quod pleraque1 etiam citra verba1 significat4 ,quippe non manus solum1 sed nutus etiam declarant nostram voluntatem1 et in mutis pro sermone sunt3 et salutatio frequenter sine voce intelligitur atque afficit1 et ex ingressu vultuque perspicitur habitus animorum3 et animantium quoque1 sermone carentium1 ira1 laetitia1 adulatio1 et oculis et quibusdam aliis corporis signis deprehenditur4 ,nec mirum1 si ista1 quae tamen aliquo sunt posita motu1 tantum in animis valent3 quum pictura1 tacens opus1 et habits semper ejusdem1 sic intimos penetret affectus1 ut ipsam vim dicendi nonnunquam superare videatur#di40 ,we see then of what importance it is1 since affections of every kind are equally within his power1 that the painter apply himself to excite only those1 which are subservient to good morals4 ,an importance1 of which ,aristotle himself 7who was no enthusiast in the fine arts7 was so sensible1 that he gives it in charge1 amongst other political instructions1 to the governors of youth1 8that they allow them to see no other pictures1 than such as have this moral aim and tendency2 of which kind were more especially those of ,,polygnotus40 ,,polit4 lib4 viii4 c4 #e4 ,for the manner1 in which this moral efficacy of picture is brought about1 we find it agreeably explained in that conversation of ,socrates with ,parrhasius in the ,memorabilia of ,xenophon4 ,the whole may be worth considering4 8,,painting1 said ,socrates1 one day1 in a conversation with the painter ,parrhasius1 is1 ,i think1 the resemblance or imitation of sensible objects4 ,for you represent in colours1 bodies of all sorts1 hollow and projecting1 bright and obscure1 hard and soft1 old and new4 8,we do40 ,and1 when you would draw beautiful pourtraits1 since it is not possible to find any single figure of a man1 faultless in all its parts and of exact proportion2 your way is to collect1 from several1 those members or features1 which are most perfect in each1 and so1 by joining them together1 to compound one whole body1 completely beautiful4 8,that is our method40 ,what then1 continued ,socrates1 and are you not able1 also1 to imitate in colours1 the ,,manners2 those tendencies and dispositions of the soul1 which are benevolent1 friendly1 and amiable2 such as inspire love and affection into the heart1 and whose soft insinuations carry with them the power of persuasion8 8,how1 replied ,parrhasius1 can the pencil imitate that1 which hath no proportion1 colour1 or any other of those properties1 you have been just now enumerating1 as the objects of sight80 ,why1 is it not true1 returned ,socrates1 that a man sometimes casts a kind1 sometimes1 an angry1 look on others8 8,it is40 ,there must then be something in the eyes capable of expressing those passions4 8,there must40 ,and is there not a wide difference between the look of him1 who takes part in the prosperity of a friend1 and another1 who sympathizes with him in his sorrows8 8,undoubtedly1 there is the widest4 ,the countenance1 in the one case1 expresses joy1 in the other1 concern40 ,these affections may then be represented in picture4 8,they may so40 ,in like manner1 all other dispositions of our nature1 the lofty and the liberal1 the abject and ungenerous1 the temperate and the prudent1 the petulant and profligate1 these are severally discernible by the look or attitude3 and that1 whether we observe men in action1 or at rest4 8,they are40 ,and these1 therefore1 come within the power of graphical imitation8 8,they do40 ,which then1 concluded ,socrates1 do you believe1 men take the greatest pleasure in contemplating2 such imitations1 as set before them the ,,good1 the ,,lovely1 and the ,,fair1 of those1 which represent the ,,bad1 the ,,hateful1 and the ,,ugly1 qualities and affections of humanity8 ,there can be no doubt1 said ,parrhasius1 of their giving the preference to the former40 ,lib4 iii4 ,the conclusion1 the philosopher drives at in this conversation1 and which the painter readily concedes to him1 is what1 ,i am persuaded1 every master of the art would be willing to act upon1 were he at liberty to pursue the bent of his natural genius and inclination4 ,but it unfortunately happens1 to the infinite prejudice of this mode of imitation1 above all others1 that the artist designs not so much what the dignity of his profession requires of him1 or the general taste of those1 he would most wish for his judges1 approves2 as what the rich or noble ,connoisseur1 who bespeaks his work1 and prescribes the subject1 demands4 ,what this has usually been1 let the history of ancient and modern painting declare#ej4 ,yet1 considering its vast power in ,,morals1 as explained above1 one cannot enough lament the ill destiny of this divine ,,art2 which1 from the chaste hand-maid of virtue1 hath been debauched1 in violence to her nature1 to a shameless prostitute of vice1 and procuress of pleasure4 99 99 99 99 99 #aag4 ,,scribimus ,,indocti ,,doctique ,,poemata ,,passim4 ,the ,,docti ,,poetae have at all times been esteemed by the wise and good1 or1 rather1 have been reverenced1 as ,plato speaks1 4 ,as for the ,,indocti1 we may take their character as drawn by the severe1 but just pen of our great ,milton--8,poetas equidem ver doctos et diligo et colo et audiendo saepissim delector--istos ver versiculorum nugivendos quis non oderit8 quo genere nihil stultius aut vanius aut corruptius1 aut mendacius4 ,laudant1 vituperant1 sine delectu1 sine discrimine1 judicio aut modo1 nunc principes1 nunc plebeios1 doctos juxta atque indoctos1 probos an improbos perind habent2 prout cantharus1 aut spes nummuli1 aut fatuus ille furor inflat ac rapit2 congestis undique et verborum et rerum tot discoloribus ineptiis tamque putidis1 ut laudatum long praestet sileri1 et pravo1 quod aiunt1 vivere naso1 qum sic laudari3 vituperatus ver qui sit1 haud mediocri san honori sibi ducat1 se tam absurdis1 tam stolidis nebulonibus displicere40 ,,def4 ,,secund4 ,,pro ,,pop4 ,,ang4 p4 #ccg4 #dto ,lond4 #agec4 99 99 99 99 99 #aah4 ,,hic ,,error ,,tamen1 c4 ,what follows from hence to v4 #acf1 containing an encomium on the office of poets1 is one of the leading beauties in the epistle4 ,its artifice consists in this1 that1 under the cover of a negligent commendation1 interspersed with even some traits of pleasantry upon them1 it insinuates to the emperor1 in the manner the least offensive and ostentatious1 the genuin merits1 and even sacredness of their character4 ,the whole is a fine instance of that address1 which1 in delivering rules for this kind of writing1 the poet prescribes elsewhere4 ,et sermone opus est modo tristi1 saepe jocoso1 ,defendente vicem modo ,rhetoris atque ,poetae2 ,interdum ,,urbani ,,parcentis ,,viribus ,,atque ,,extenuantis ,,eas ,,consulto4 #a ,s4 x4 #ad4 ,this conduct1 in the place before us1 shews the poet's exquisite knowledge of human nature4 ,for there is no surer method of removing prejudices1 and gaining over others to an esteem of any thing we would recommend1 than by not appearing to lay too great a stress on it ourselves4 ,it is1 further1 a proof of his intimate acquaintance with the peculiar turn of the great2 who1 not being forward to think highly of any thing but themselves and their own dignities1 are1 with difficulty1 brought to conceive of other accomplishments1 as of much value2 and can only be won by the fair and candid address of their apologist1 who must be sure not to carry his praises and pretensions too high4 ,it is this art of entering into the characters1 prejudices1 and expectations of others1 and of knowing to suit our application1 prudently1 but with innocence1 to them1 which constitutes what we call ,a ,,knowledge ,,of ,,the ,,world4 ,an art1 of which the great poet was a consummate master1 and than which there cannot be a more useful or amiable quality4 ,only we must take care not to confound it with that supple1 versatile1 and intriguing genius1 which1 taking all shapes1 and reflecting all characters1 generally passes for it in the commerce of the world1 or rather is prized much above it2 but1 as requiring no other talents in the possessor than those of a low cunning and corrupt design1 is of all others the most mischievous1 worthless1 and contemptible character1 that infests human life4 99 99 99 99 99 #aah4 ,,hic ,,error ,,tamen ,,et ,,levis ,,haec ,,insania ,,quantas ,,virtutes ,,habeat1 ,,sic ,,collige3 ,this apology for poets1 and1 in them1 for poetry itself1 though delivered with much apparent negligence and unconcern1 yet1 if considered1 will be found to comprize in it every thing1 that any1 or all1 of its most zealous advocates have ever pretended in its behalf4 ,for it comprehends1 ,i4 ,from v4 #aah to #abd1 ,,the ,,personal ,,good ,,qualities ,,of ,,the ,,poet4 ,nothing is more insisted on by those1 who take upon themselves the patronage and recommendation of any art1 than that it tends to raise in the professor of it all those virtues1 which contribute most to his own proper enjoyment1 and render him most agreeable to others4 ,now this1 it seems1 may be urged1 on the side of poetry1 with a peculiar force4 ,for not only the study of this art hath a direct tendency to produce a neglect or disregard of worldly honours and emoluments 7from the too eager appetite of which almost all the calamities1 as well as the more unfriendly vices1 of men arise7 but he1 whom the benign aspect of the muse hath glanced upon and destined for her peculiar service1 is1 by constitution1 which is ever the best security1 fortified against the attacks of them4 ,thus his ,,raptures in the enjoyment of his muse make him overlook the common accidents of life v4 #aba2 he is generous1 open1 and undesigning1 by ,,nature v4 #abb2 to which we must not forget to add1 that he is temperate1 that is to say1 poor1 by ,,profession4 ,,vivit ,,siliquis ,,et ,,pane ,,secundo4 ,,ii4 ,from v4 #abd to #acb4 ,,the ,,utility ,,of ,,the ,,poet ,,to ,,the ,,state3 and this both on a civil and moral account4 ,for1 #a4 the poets1 whom we read in our younger years1 and from whom we learn the power of words1 and hidden harmony of numbers1 that is1 as a profound ,scotchman teaches1 the first and most essential principles of eloquence#ea1 enable1 by degrees1 and instruct their pupil to appear with advantage1 in that extensively useful capacity of a public speaker4 ,and1 indeed1 graver writers1 than our poet1 have sent the orator to this school4 ,but the pretensions of poetry go much farther4 ,it delights from v4 #acj to #acb to immortalize the triumphs of virtue3 to record or feign illustrious examples of heroic worth1 for the service of the rising age3 and1 which is the last and best fruit of philosophy itself1 it can relieve even the languor of ill-health1 and sustain poverty herself under the scorn and insult of contumelious opulence4 #b4 ,in a moral view its services are not less considerable4 7,for it may be observed the poet was so far of a mind with the philosopher1 to give no quarter to immoral poets74 ,and to this end it serves1 #a4 v4 #abg in turning the ear of youth from that early corruptor of its innocence1 the seducement of a loose and impure communication4 #b4 ,next v4 #abh in forming our riper age 7which it does with all the address and tenderness of friendship3 ,,amicis praeceptis7 by the sanctity and wisdom of its precepts4 ,and1 #c4 which is the proper office of tragedy1 in correcting the excesses of the natural passions v4 #abb4 ,the reader who doth not turn himself to the original1 will be apt to mistake this detail of the virtues of poetry1 for an account of the ,policy and ,legislation of ancient and modern times2 whose proudest boast1 when the philanthropy of their enthusiastic projectors ran at the highest1 was but to prevent the impressions of vice3 to form the mind to habits of virtue3 and to curb and regulate the passions4 ,,iii4 ,,his ,,services ,,to ,,religion4 ,this might well enough be said1 whether by religion we understand an internal reverence of the ,gods1 which poetry first and principally intended2 or their popular adoration and worship1 which1 by its fictions1 as of necessity conforming to the received fancies of superstition1 it must greatly tend to promote and establish4 ,but the poet1 artfully seizing a circumstance1 which supposes and includes in it both these respects1 renders his defence vastly interesting4 ,all the customary addresses of ,heathenism to its gods1 more especially on any great and solemn emergency1 were the work of the poet4 ,for nature1 it seems1 had taught the pagan world1 what the ,hebrew ,prophets themselves did not disdain to practice1 that1 to lift the imagination1 and1 with it1 the sluggish affections of human nature1 to ,heaven1 it was expedient to lay hold on every assistance of art4 ,they therefore presented their supplications to the ,divinity in the richest and brightest dress of eloquence1 which is poetry4 ,not to insist1 that devotion1 when sincere and ardent1 from its very nature1 enkindles a glow of thought1 which communicates strongly with the transports of poetry4 ,hence the language of the ,gods 7for so was poetry accounted1 as well from its being the divinest species of communication1 our rude conceptions can well frame even for superior intelligencies1 as for that it was the fittest vehicle of our applications to them7 became not the ornament only1 but an essential in the ceremonial1 of paganism4 ,and this1 together with an allusion to a form of public prayer 7for such was his secular ode7 composed by himself1 gives1 at once1 a grace and sublimity to this part of the apology1 which are perfectly inimitable4 ,thus hath the great poet1 in the compass of a few lines1 drawn together a complete defence of his art4 ,for what more could the warmest admirer of poetry1 or1 because zeal is quickened by opposition1 what more could the vehement declaimer against ,plato 7who proscribed it71 urge in its behalf1 than that it furnishes1 to the poet himself1 the surest means of solitary and social enjoyment3 and further serves to the most important ,,civil1 ,,moral1 and ,,religious purposes8 99 99 99 99 99 #aai4--,,vatis ,,avarus ,,non ,,temere ,,est ,,animus3 ,there is an unlucky ,italian proverb1 which says1 ,chi ben scrive1 non sara mai ricco4--,the true reason1 without doubt1 is here given by the poet4 99 99 99 99 99 #abd4 ,,militiae ,,quamquam ,,piger ,,et ,,malus1 ,the observation has much grace1 as referring to himself1 who had acquired no credit1 as a soldier1 in the civil wars of his country4--,we have an example of this misalliance between the poetic and military character1 recorded in the history of our own civil wars1 which may be just worth mentioning4 ,sir ,p4 ,warwick1 speaking of the famous ,earl of ,newcastle1 observes--8his edge had too much of the razor in it1 for he had a tincture of a romantic spirit1 and had the misfortune to have somewhat of the ,poet in him2 so as he chose ,sir ,william ,davenant1 an eminent good poet1 and loyal gentleman1 to be lieutenant-general of his ordnance4 ,this inclination of his own1 and such kind of witty society 7to be modest in the expressions of it7 diverted many councils1 and lost many opportunities1 which the nature of that affair1 this great man had now entered into1 required40 ,,memoirs1 p4 #bce4 99 99 99 99 99 #acb4 ,,castis ,,cum ,,pueris1 c4 ,we have1 before1 taken notice1 how properly the poet1 for the easier and more successful introduction of his apology1 assumed the person urbani1 parcentis viribus4 ,we see him here1 in that of ,rhetoris atque ,poetae4 ,for admonished1 as it were1 by the rising dignity of his subject1 which led him from the moral1 to speak of the religious uses of poetry1 he insensibly drops the badineur1 and takes an air1 not of seriousness only1 but of solemnity4 ,this change is made with art4 ,for the attention is carried from the uses of poetry1 in consoling the unhappy1 by the easiest transition imaginable1 to the still more solemn application of it to the offices of piety4 ,and its use is1 to impress on the mind a stronger sense of the weight of the poet's plea1 than could have been expected from a more direct and continued declamation4 ,for this is the constant and natural effect of knowing to pass from gay to severe1 with grace and dignity4 99 99 99 99 99 #afi4 ,,sed ,,habet ,,comoedia ,,tanto ,,plus ,,oneris1 ,,quanto ,,veniar ,,minus4 ,tragedy1 whose intention is to affect1 may secure what is most essential to its kind1 though it fail in some minuter resemblances of nature3 ,comedy1 proposing for its main end exact representation1 is fundamentally defective1 if it do not perfectly succeed in it4 ,and this explains the ground of the poet's observation1 that ,comedy hath veniae minus2 for he is speaking of the draught of the manners only1 in which respect a greater indulgence is very deservedly shewn to the tragic than comic writer4 ,but though ,tragedy hath thus far the advantage1 yet in another respect its laws are more severe than those of ,comedy2 and that is in the conduct of the fable4 ,it may be asked then1 which of the two dramas is1 on the whole1 most difficult4 ,to which the answer is decisive4 ,for ,tragedy1 whose end is the ,pathos1 produces it by action1 while ,comedy produces its end1 the ,humourous1 by ,character4 ,now it is much more difficult to paint manners1 than to plan action2 because that requires the philosopher's knowledge of human nature2 this1 only the historian's knowledge of human events4 ,it is true1 in one sense1 the tragic muse has veniae minus2 for though grave and pleasant scenes may be indifferently represented1 or even mixed together1 in comedy1 yet1 in tragedy1 the serious and solemn air must prevail throughout4 ,indeed1 our ,shakespear has violated this rule1 as he hath1 upon occasion1 almost every other rule1 of just criticism3 ,whence1 some writers1 taking advantage of that idolatrous admiration which is generally professed for this great poet1 and nauseating1 ,i suppose1 the more common1 though juster1 forms of literary composition1 have been for turning his very transgression of the principles of common sense1 into a standing precept for the stage4 8,it is said1 that1 if comedy may be wholly serious1 why may not tragedy now and then be indulged in being gay80 ,if these critics be in earnest in putting this question1 they need not wait long for an answer4 ,the end of comedy being to paint the manners1 nothing hinders 7as ,i have shewn at large in the dissertation on the provinces of the drama7 but 8that it may take either character of pleasant or serious1 as it chances1 or even unite them both in one piece30 ,but the end of tragedy being to excite the stronger passions1 this discordancy in the subject breaks the flow of those passions1 and so prevents1 or lessens at least1 the very effect which this drama primarily intends4 8,it is said1 indeed1 that this contrast of grave and pleasant scenes1 heightens the passion30 if it had been said that it heightens the surprize1 the observation had been more just4 ,lastly1 8we are told1 that this is nature1 which generally blends together the ludicrous1 and the sublime40 ,but who does not know ,that art is nature to advantage dress'd2 and that to dress out nature to advantage in the present instance1 that is1 in a composition whose laws are to be deduced from the consideration of its end1 these characters are to be kept by an artist1 perfectly distinct8 ,however this restraint upon tragedy does not prove that1 upon the whole1 it has plus oneris4 ,all ,i can allow1 is1 that either drama has weight enough in all reason1 for the ablest shoulders to sustain4 99 99 99 99 99 #agg4 ,,quem ,,tulit ,,ad ,,scenam ,,ventoso ,,gloria ,,curru1 ,,exanimat ,,lentus ,,spectator1 c4 to v4 #ahb4 ,there is an exquisite spirit of pleasantry in these lines1 which hath quite evaporated in the hands of the critics4 ,these have gravely supposed them to come from the person of the poet1 and to contain his serious censure of the vanity of poetic fame4 ,whereas1 besides the manifest absurdity of the thing1 its inconsistency with what is delivered elsewhere on this subject ,a4 ,p4 v4 #cbd4 where the ,greeks are commended as being praeter laudem nullius avari1 absolutely requires us to understand them as proceeding from an objector2 who1 as the poet hath very satirically contrived1 is left to expose himself in the very terms of his objection4 ,he had just been blaming the venality of the ,roman dramatic writers4 ,they had shewn themselves more sollicitous about filling their pockets1 than deserving the reputation of good poets4 ,and1 instead of insisting further on the excellency of this latter motive1 he stops short1 and brings in a bad poet himself to laugh at it4 8,and what then1 says he1 you would have us yield ourselves to the very wind and gust of praise2 and1 dropping all inferior considerations1 drive away to the expecting stage in the puffed car of vain-glory8 ,for what8 ,to be dispirited1 or blown up with air1 as the capricious spectator shall think fit to enforce1 or withhold1 his inspirations4 ,and is this the mighty benefit of your vaunted passion for fame8 ,no2 farewel the stage1 if the breath of others is that1 on which the silly bard is to depend for the contraction or enlargement of his dimensions40 ,to all which convincing rhetoric the poet condescends to say nothing2 as well knowing1 that no truer service is1 oftentimes1 done to virtue or good sense1 than when a knave or fool is left to himself1 to employ his idle raillery against either4 ,these interlocutory passages1 laying open the sentiments of those against whom the poet is disputing1 are very frequent in the critical and moral writings of ,horace1 and are well suited to their dramatic genius and original4 99 99 99 99 99 #baj4 ,,ille ,,per ,,extentum ,,funem1 c4 ,the ,romans1 who were immoderately addicted to spectacles of every kind1 had in particular esteem the funambuli1 or rope-dancers2 ,ita populus studio stupidus in ,,funambulo ,animum occuparat4 ,,prol4 in ,,hecyr4 ,from the admiration of whose tricks the expression1 ire per extentum funem1 came to denote1 proverbially1 an uncommon degree of excellence and perfection in any thing4 ,the allusion is1 here1 made with much pleasantry1 as the poet had just been rallying their fondness for these extraordinary atchievements4 99 99 99 99 99 ,ibid4 ,,ille ,,per ,,extentum ,,funem1 c4 to v4 #bad4 ,it is observable1 that ,horace1 here1 makes his own feeling the test of poetical merit4 ,which is said with a philosophical exactness4 ,for the pathos in tragic1 humour in comic1 and the same holds of the sublime in the narrative1 and of every other species of excellence in universal poetry1 is the object1 not of reason1 but sentiment2 and can be estimated only from its impression on the mind1 not by any speculative or general rules4 ,rules themselves are indeed nothing else but an appeal to experience2 conclusions drawn from wide and general observation of the aptness and efficacy of certain means to produce those impressions4 ,so that feeling or sentiment itself is not only the surest1 but the sole ultimate arbiter of works of genius4 ,yet1 though this be true1 the invention of general rules is not without its merit1 nor the application of them without its use1 as may appear from the following considerations4 ,it may be affirmed1 universally1 of all didactic writing1 that it is employed in referring particular facts to general principles4 ,general principles themselves can often be referred to others more general2 and these again carried still higher1 till we come to a single principle1 in which all the rest are involved4 ,when this is done1 science of every kind hath attained its highest perfection4 ,the account1 here given1 might be illustrated from various instances4 ,but it will be sufficient to confine ourselves to the single one of criticism2 by which ,i understand that species of didactic writing1 which refers to general rules the virtues and faults of composition4 ,and the perfection of this art would consist in an ability to refer every beauty and blemish to a separate class2 and every class1 by a gradual progression1 to some one single principle4 ,but the art is1 as yet1 far short of perfection4 ,for many of these beauties and blemishes can be referred to no general rule at all2 and the rules1 which have been discovered1 seem many of them unconnected1 and not reducible to a common principle4 ,it must be admitted however that such critics are employed in their proper office1 as contribute to the confirmation of rules already established1 or the invention of new ones4 ,rules already established are then confirmed1 when more particulars are referred to them4 ,the invention of new rules implies1 #a4 ,a collection of various particulars1 not yet regulated4 #b4 ,a discovery of those circumstances of resemblance or agreement1 whereby they become capable of being regulated4 ,and #c4 ,a subsequent regulation of them1 or arrangement into one class according to such circumstances of agreement4 ,when this is done1 the rule is completed4 ,but if the critic is not able to observe any common circumstance of resemblance in the several particulars he hath collected1 by which they may1 all of them1 be referred to one general class1 he hath then made no advancement in the art of criticism4 ,yet the collection of his particular observations may be of use to other critics2 just as collections of natural history1 though no part of philosophy1 may yet assist philosophical inquirers4 ,we see then from this general view of the matter1 that the merit of inventing general rules consists in reducing criticism to an art2 and that the use of applying them1 in practice1 when the art is thus formed1 is1 to direct the caprices of taste by the authority of rule1 which we call reason4 ,and1 thus much being premised1 we shall now be able to form a proper judgment of the method1 which some of the most admired of the ancients1 as well as moderns1 have taken in this work of criticizing4 ,the most eminent1 at least the most popular1 are1 perhaps1 ,longinus1 of the ,greeks2 ,p4 ,bouhours1 of the ,french2 and ,mr4 ,addison1 with us in ,england4 #a4 ,all the beautiful passages1 which ,,longinus cites1 are referred by him to five general classes4 ,and #b;dly1 ,these general classes belong all to the common principle of sublimity4 ,he does not say this passage is excellent1 but assigns the kind of excellence1 viz4 sublimity4 ,neither does he content himself with the general notion of sublimity1 but names the species1 viz4 ,grandeur of sentiment1 power of moving the passions1 c4 ,his work therefore enables us to class our perceptions of excellence1 and consequently is formed on the true plan of criticism4 #b4 ,the same may be observed of ,p4 ,,bouhours4 ,the passages1 cited by him1 are never mentioned in general terms as good or bad3 but are instances of good or bad sentiment4 ,this is the genus1 in which all his instances are comprehended3 but of this genus he marks also the distinct species4 ,he does not say1 this sentiment is good2 but it is sublime1 or natural1 or beautiful1 or delicate3 or1 that another sentiment is bad2 but that it is mean1 or false1 or deformed1 or affected4 ,to these several classes he refers his particular instances3 and these classes themselves are referred to the more comprehensive principles of the excellence or fault of single sentiment1 as opposed to the various other excellencies and faults1 which are observed in composition4 #c4 ,mr4 ,,addison1 in his criticism on ,milton1 proceeded in like manner4 ,for1 first1 these remarks are evidently applicable to the general observations on the poem2 in which every thing is referred to the common heads of fable1 morals1 sentiments1 and language2 and even the specific excellencies and faults considered under each head distinctly marked out4 ,secondly1 ,the same is true concerning many of the observations on particular passages4 ,the reader is not only told1 that a passage has merit2 but is informed what sort of merit belongs to it4 ,neither are the remaining observations wholly without use4 ,for such particular beauties and blemishes1 as are barely collected1 may yet serve as a foundation to future inquirers for making further discoveries4 ,they may be considered as so many single facts1 an attention to which is excited by the authority of the critic2 and when these are considered jointly with such as others may have observed1 those general principles of similitude may at length be found1 which shall enable us to constitute new classes of poetical merit or blame4 ,thus far the candid reader may go in apologizing for the merits of these writers4 ,but1 as1 in sound criticism1 candour must not be indulged at the expence of justice1 ,i think myself obliged to add an observation concerning their defects2 and that1 on what ,i must think the just principles here delivered4 ,though the method1 taken by these writers1 be scientifical1 the real service they have done to criticism1 is not very considerable4 ,and the reason is1 they dwell too much in generals3 that is1 not only the genus to which they refer their species is too large1 but those very subordinate species themselves are too comprehensive4 ,of the three critics1 under consideration1 the most instructive is1 unquestionably1 ,longinus4 ,the genus itself1 under which he ranks his several classes1 is as particular as the species of the other two4 ,yet even his classes are much too general to convey my very distinct and useful information4 ,it had been still better1 if this fine critic had descended to lower and more minute particularities1 as subordinate to each class4 ,for to observe of any sentiment1 that it is grand1 or pathetic1 and so of the other species1 of sublime1 is saying very little4 ,few readers want to be informed of this4 ,it had been sufficient1 if any notice was to be taken at all of so general beauties1 to have done it in the way1 which some of the best critics have taken1 of merely pointing to them4 ,but could he have discovered and produced to observation those peculiar qualities in sentiment1 which occasion the impression of grandeur1 pathos1 c4 this had been advancing the science of criticism very much1 as tending to lay open the more secret and hidden springs of that pleasure1 which results from poetical composition4 ,p4 ,bouhours1 as ,i observed1 is still more faulty4 ,his very species are so large1 as make his criticism almost wholly useless and insignificant4 ,it gives one pain to refuse to such a writer as ,mr4 ,addison any kind of merit1 which he appears to have valued himself upon1 and which the generality of his readers have seemed willing to allow him4 ,yet it must not be dissembled1 that criticism was by no means his talent4 ,his taste was truly elegant2 but he had neither that vigour of understanding1 nor chastised1 philosophical spirit1 which are so essential to this character1 and which we find in hardly any of the ancients besides ,aristotle1 and but in a very few of the moderns4 ,for what concerns his criticism on ,milton in particular1 there was this accidental benefit arising from it1 that it occasioned an admirable poet to be read1 and his excellencies to be observed4 ,but for the merit of the work itself1 if there be any thing just in the plan1 it was1 because ,aristotle and ,bossu had taken the same route before him4 ,and as to his own proper observations1 they are for the most part1 so general and indeterminate1 as to afford but little instruction to the reader1 and are1 not unfrequently1 altogether frivolous4 ,they are of a kind with those1 in which the ,french critics 7for ,i had rather instance in the defects of foreign writers than of our own7 so much abound2 and which good judges agree to rank in the worst sort of criticism4 ,to give one example for all4 ,cardinal ,,perron1 taking occasion to commend certain pieces of the poet ,,ronsard1 chuses to deliver himself in the following manner3 8,prenez de lui quelque pome que ce soit1 il paye toujours son lecteur1 et quand la verve le prend1 il se guinde en haut1 il vous porte jusques dans les nus1 il vous fait voir mille belles choses4 8,que ses saisons sont bien-faites6 ,que la description de la lyre a ,bertaut est admirable6 ,que le discours au ministre1 excellent6 ,tous ses hymnes sont beaux4 ,celui de l'eternit est admirable2 ceux des saisons marveilleux40 ,perroniana4 ,what now has the reader learned from this varied criticism1 but that his ,eminence was indeed very fond of his poet2 and that he esteemed these several pieces to be 7what with less expence of words he might1 in one breath1 have called them7 well-turned1 beautiful1 excellent1 admirable1 marvellous1 poems8 ,to have given us the true character of each1 and to have marked the precise degree1 as well as kind1 of merit in these works1 had been a task of another nature4 99 99 99 99 99 #baa4--,,qui ,,pectus ,,inaniter ,,angit1 ,the word inaniter as well as falsi1 applied in the following line to terrores1 would express that wondrous force of dramatic representation1 which compels us to take part in feigned adventures and situations1 as if they were real2 and exercises the passions with the same violence1 in remote fancied scenes1 as in the present distresses of real life4 ,and this is that sovereign quality in poetry1 which1 as an old writer of our own naturally expresses it1 is of force to hold children from play1 and old men from the chimney corner#eb4 ,the poet1 in the place before us1 considers it as a kind of magic virtue1 which transports the spectator into all places1 and makes him1 occasionally1 assume all persons4 ,the resemblance holds1 also1 in this1 that its effects are instantaneous and irresistible4 ,rules1 art1 decorum1 all fall before it4 ,it goes directly to the heart1 and gains all purposes at once4 ,hence it is1 that1 speaking of a real genius1 possessed of this commanding power1 ,horace pronounces him1 emphatically1 ,,the ,,poet1 ,ille per extentum funem mihi posse videtur ,ire ,,poeta3 it being more especially this property1 which1 of itself1 discovers the true dramatist1 and secures the success of his performance1 not only without the assistance of art1 but in direct opposition to its clearest dictates4 ,this power has been felt on a thousand other occasions4 ,but its triumphs were never more conspicuous1 than in the famous instance of the ,,cid of ,p4 ,corneille2 which1 by the sole means of this enchanting quality1 drew along with it the affections and applauses of a whole people3 notwithstanding the manifest transgression of some essential rules1 the utmost tyranny of jealous power1 and1 what is more1 in defiance of all the authority and good sense of one of the justest pieces of criticism in the ,french language1 written purposely to discredit and expose it4 99 99 99 99 99 #bbd4 ,,cum ,,lamentamur ,,non ,,adparere ,,labores ,,nostros1 c4 ,it was remarked upon verse #baa1 that the beauties of a poem can only appear by being felt4 ,and they1 to whom they do not appear in this instance1 are the writer's own friends1 who1 it is not to be supposed1 would disguise their feelings4 ,so that the lamentation1 here spoken of1 is at once a proof of impertinence in the poet1 and of the badness of his poetry1 which sets the complainant in a very ridiculous light4 99 99 99 99 99 #bbh4 ,,egere ,,vetes4 ,the poet intended1 in these words1 a very just satire on those presuming wits and scholars1 who1 under the pretence of getting above distressful want1 in reality aspire to public honours and preferments2 though this be the most inexcusable of all follies 7to give it the softest name71 which can infest a man of letters3 ,both1 because experience1 on which a wise man would chuse to regulate himself1 is contrary to these hopes2 and1 because if literary merit could succeed in them1 the ,reward1 as the poet speaks1 would either bring ,no joy1 or be destructive of the thing3 ,that is1 the learned would either have no relish for the delights of so widely different a situation2 or1 which hath oftener been the case1 would lose the learning itself1 or the love of it at least1 on which their pretensions to this reward are founded4 99 99 99 99 99 #bcb4 ,,gratus ,,alexandro ,,regi ,,magno c4 ,this praise of ,augustus1 arising from the comparison of his character with that of ,alexander1 is extremely fine4 ,it had been observed of the ,macedonian by his historians and panegyrists1 that1 to the stern virtues of the conqueror1 he had joined the softer accomplishments of the virtuoso1 in a just discernment and love of poetry1 and of the elegant arts4 ,the one was thought clear from his admiration and study of ,homer3 ,and the other1 from his famous edict concerning ,apelles and ,lysippus1 could not be denied4 ,horace finds means to turn both these circumstances in his story to the advantage of his prince4 ,from his extravagant pay of such a wretched versifier1 as ,choerilus1 he would insinuate1 that ,alexander's love of the muse was1 in fact1 but a blind unintelligent impulse towards glory4 ,and from his greater skill in the arts of sculpture and painting1 than of verse1 he represents him as more concerned about the drawing of his figure1 than the pourtraiture of his manners and mind4 ,whereas ,augustus1 by his liberalities to ,varius and ,virgil1 had discovered the truest taste in the art1 from which he expected immortality3 and1 in trusting to that1 as the chief instrument of his fame1 had confessed a prior regard to those mental virtues1 which are the real ornament of humanity1 before that look of terror1 and air and attitude of victory1 in which the brute violence of ,alexander most delighted to be shewn4 99 99 99 99 99 #bdc4 ,,musarum ,,dona ,the expression is happy2 as implying1 that these images of virtue1 which are represented as of such importance to the glory of princes1 are not the mere offerings of poetry to greatness1 but the free-gifts of the muse to the poet4 ,for it is only to such works1 as these1 that ,horace attributes the wondrous efficacy of expressing the manners and mind in fuller and more durable relief1 than sculpture gives to the exterior figure4 ,non magis expressi vultus per anea signa1 ,quam per vatis opus mores animique virorum ,clarorum adparent4 99 99 99 99 99 #bdg4--,,virgilius4 ,virgil is mentioned1 in this place1 simply as a ,poet4 ,the precise idea of his poetry is given us elsewhere4 molle atque facetum ,virgilio annuerunt gaudentes rure ,camoenae4 #a ,sat4 x4 #dd4 ,but this may appear a strange praise of the sweet and polished ,virgil4 ,it appeared so to ,quinctilian1 who cites this passage1 and explains it1 without doubt1 very justly1 yet in such a way as shews that he was not quite certain of the truth of his explanation4 ,the case1 ,i believe1 was this4 ,the word facetum1 which makes the difficulty1 had acquired1 in ,quinctilian's days1 the sense of pleasant1 witty1 or facetious1 in exclusion to every other idea1 which had formerly belonged to it4 ,it is true that1 in the ,augustan age1 and still earlier1 facetum was sometimes used in this sense4 ,but its proper and original meaning was no more than exact1 factitatum1 ben factum4 ,and in this strict sense1 ,i believe1 it is always used by ,horace4 ,malthinus tunicis demissis ambulat3 est qui ,inguen ad obscoenum subductis usque facetus4 #a ,s4 ii4 #be4 i4 e4 tucked up1 trim1 expedite4 ,mutatis tantm pedibus numerisque facetus4 #a ,s4 iv4 #g4 i4 e4 he ,lucilius adopted a stricter measure1 than the writers of the old comedy2 or1 by changing the loose iambic to the ,hexameter verse1 he gave a proof of his art1 skill1 and improved judgment4 frater1 pater1 adde2 ,ut cuique est aetas1 ita quemque facetus adopta4 #a4 ,ep4 vi4 #ee4 i4 e4 nicely and accurately adapt your address to the age and condition of each4 ,i do not recollect any other place where facetus is used by ,horace2 and in all these it seems probable to me that the principal idea1 conveyed by it1 is that of care1 art1 skill1 only differently modified according to the subject to which it is applied3 a gown tucked up with care--a measure studiously affected--an address nicely accommodated--,no thought of ridicule or pleasantry intended4 ,it is the same in the present instance-- ,,molle ,,atque ,,facetum i4 e4 a soft flowing versification1 and an exquisitely finished expression3 the two precise1 characteristic merits of ,virgil's rural poetry4 ,this change1 in the sense of words1 is common in all languages1 and creeps in so gradually and imperceptibly as to elude the notice1 sometimes1 of the best critics1 even in their own language4 ,the transition of ideas1 in the present instance1 may be traced thus4 ,as what was wittily said1 was most studied1 artificial1 and exquisite1 hence in process of time facetum lost its primary sense1 and came to signify merely1 witty4 ,we have a like example in our own language4 ,a good wit meant formerly a man of good natural sense and understanding3 but because what we now call wit was observed to be the flower and quintessence1 as it were1 of good sense1 hence a man of wit is now the exclusive attribute of one who exerts his good sense in that peculiar manner4 99 99 99 99 99 #bdg4 ,,dilecti ,,tibi ,,virgilius c4 ,it does honour to the memory of ,augustus1 that he bore the affection1 here spoken of1 to this amiable poet2 who was not more distinguished from his contemporary writers by the force of an original1 inventive genius1 than the singular benevolence and humanity of his character4 ,yet there have been critics of so perverse a turn1 as to discover an inclination1 at least1 of disputing both4 #a4 ,some have taken offence at his supposed unfriendly neglect of ,horace1 who1 on every occasion1 shewed himself so ready to lavish all his praises on him4 ,but the folly of this slander is of a piece with its malignity1 as proceeding on the absurd fancy1 that ,virgil's friends might as easily have slid into such works1 as the ,georgics and ,enes1 as those of ,horace into the various occasional poems1 which employed his pen4 ,just such another senseless suspicion hath been raised of his jealousy of ,homer's superior glory 7a vice1 from which the nature of the great poet was singularly abhorrent71 only1 because he did not think fit to give him the first place among the poets in ,elysium1 several hundred years before he had so much as made his appearance upon earth4 ,but these petty calumnies of his moral character hardly deserve a confutation4 ,what some greater authorities have objected to his poetical1 may be thought more serious4 ,for1 #b4 ,it has been given out by some of better note among the moderns1 and from thence1 according to the customary influence of authority1 hath become the prevailing sentiment of the generality of the learned1 that the great poet was more indebted for his fame to the exactness of his judgment2 to his industry1 and a certain trick of imitation1 than to the energy of natural genius2 which he is thought to have possessed in a very slender degree4 ,this charge is founded on the similitude1 which all acknowledge1 betwixt his great work1 the ,aeneis1 and the poems of ,homer4 ,but1 8how far such similitude infers imitation2 or1 how far imitation itself infers an inferiority of natural genius in the imitator10 this hath never been considered4 ,in short the affair of imitation in poetry1 though one of the most curious and interesting in all criticism1 hath been1 hitherto1 very little understood3 as may appear from hence1 that there is not1 as far as ,i can learn1 one single treatise1 now extant1 written purposely to explain it2 the discourse1 which the learned ,menage intended1 and which1 doubtless1 would have given light to this matter1 having never1 as ,i know of1 been made public4 ,to supply1 in some measure1 this loss1 ,i have thought it not amiss to put together and methodize a few reflexions of my own on this subject1 which 7because the matter is large1 and cannot easily be drawn into a compass1 that suits with the nature of these occasional remarks7 the reader will find in a distinct and separate dissertation upon it#ec4 ,,conclusion4 ,,and1 now1 having explained1 in the best manner ,i could1 the two famous ,epistles of ,horace to ,augustus and the ,pisos1 it may be expected1 in conclusion1 that ,i should say something of the rest of our poet's critical writings4 ,for his ,sermones 7under which general term ,i include his ,epistles7 are of two sorts1 ,,moral and ,,critical2 and1 though both are exquisite1 the latter are perhaps1 in their kind1 the more perfect of the two2 his moral principles being sometimes1 ,i believe1 liable to exception1 his critical1 never4 ,the two pieces1 illustrated in these volumes1 are strictly critical3 the first1 being a professed criticism of the ,roman drama2 and the last1 in order to their vindication1 of the ,roman poets4 ,the rest of his works1 which turn upon this subject of criticism1 may be rather termed ,apologetical4 ,they are the ,,ivth and ,xth of the ,,first1 and ,ist of the ,,second book of ,satires2 and the ,,xixth of the ,,first1 and1 in part1 the ,,iid of the ,,second book of ,epistles4 ,in these1 the poet has ,,three great objects2 one or other of which he never loses sight of1 and generally he prosecutes them all together1 in the same piece4 ,these objects are1 #a4 to vindicate the way of writing in satire4 #b4 ,to justify his opinion of a favourite writer of this class1 the celebrated ,lucilius4 ,and #c4 to expose the careless and incorrect composition of the ,roman writers4 ,he was himself deeply concerned in these three articles2 so that he makes his own apology at the same time that he criticizes or censures others4 ,the address of the poet's manner will be seen by bearing in mind this general purpose of his critical poetry4 ,how he came to be engaged in this controversy1 will best appear from a few observations on the state of the ,roman learning1 when he undertook to contribute his pains to the improvement of it4 ,i have1 in the introduction to the first of these volumes1 given a slight sketch of the rise and progress of the ,roman satire4 ,this poem1 was purely of ,roman invention3 first of all1 struck out of the old fescennine farce1 and rudely cultivated1 by ,ennius3 ,next1 more happily treated1 and enriched with the best part of the old comedy1 by ,lucilius3 ,and1 after some succeeding essays1 taken up and finally adorned1 by ,horace4 ,,horace was well known to the public by his lyric compositions1 and still more perhaps by his favour at court1 when he took upon him to correct the manners and taste of his age1 by his ,lucilian ,satires4 ,but1 here1 he encountered1 at once1 many prejudices2 and all his own credit1 together with that of his court-friends1 was little enough to support him1 against the torrent4 ,,first1 the kind of writing itself was sure to give offence4 ,for1 though men were well enough pleased to have their natural malignity gratified by an old poet's satire against a former age1 yet they were naturally alarmed at the exercise of this talent upon their own1 and1 as it might chance1 upon themselves4 ,the poet's eminence1 and favour1 would1 besides1 give a peculiar force and effect to his censures1 so that all who found1 or thought themselves liable to them1 were concerned1 in interest1 to discredit the attempt1 and blast his rising reputation4 ,omnes hi metuunt versus1 odere ,,poetam4 ,hence1 he was constrained to stand upon his own defence1 and to vindicate1 as well the thing itself1 as his management of it1 to the tender and suspicious public4 ,but this was not all3 ,for1 ,,secondly1 an old satirist1 of high birth and quality1 ,,lucilius1 was considered1 not only as an able writer of this class1 but as a perfect model in it2 and of course1 therefore1 this new satirist would be much decried and undervalued1 on the comparison4 ,this circumstance obliged the poet to reduce this admired writer to his real value2 which could not be done without thwarting the general admiration1 and pointing out his vices and defects in the freest manner4 ,this perilous task he discharged in the ,,ivth satire of his first book1 and with such rigour of criticism1 that not only the partizans of ,lucilius1 in the poet's own age1 but the most knowing and candid critics of succeeding times1 were disposed to complain of it4 ,however1 the obnoxious step had been taken2 and nothing remained but to justify himself1 as he hath done at large1 in his ,xth satire4 ,on the whole1 in comparing what he has said in these two satires with what ,quinctilian long after observed on the subject of them1 there seems no reason to conclude1 that the poet judged ill2 though he expressed his judgment in such terms as he would1 no doubt1 have something softened 7out of complaisance to the general sentiment1 and a becoming deference to the real merits of his master71 if his adversaries had been more moderate in urging their charge1 or if the occasion had not been so pressing4 ,lastly1 this attack on ,lucilius produced1 or rather involved in it1 a ,,third quarrel4 ,the poet's main objection to ,lucilius was his careless1 verbose1 and hasty composition1 which his admirers1 no doubt1 called genius1 grace1 and strength4 ,this being an inveterate folly among his countrymen1 he gives it no quarter4 ,through all his critical works1 he employs the utmost force of his wit and good sense to expose it3 ,and his own writings1 being at the same time supremely correct1 afforded his enemies 7which would provoke them still more7 no advantage against him4 ,yet they attempted1 as they could1 to repay his perpetual reproaches on the popular writers for their neglect of limae labor1 by objecting to him1 in their turn1 that what he wrote was sine nervis3 and this1 though they felt his force themselves1 and though another set of men were complaining1 at the same time1 of his severity4 ,sunt quibus in satyr videor nimis ,,acer-- ,,sine ,,nervis altera quicquid ,composui pars esse putat1 similesque meorum ,mille die versus deduci posse-- ,his detractors satirically alluding1 in these last words1 to his charge against ,lucilius-- in hor saep ducentos1 ,ut magnum1 versus dictabat1 stans pede in uno4 ,it is not my purpose1 in this place1 to enlarge further on the character of ,lucilius1 whose wordy satires gave occasion to our poet's criticism4 ,several of the ancient writers speak of him occasionally1 in terms of the highest applause2 and without doubt1 he was a poet of distinguished merit4 ,yet it will hardly be thought1 at this day1 that it could be any discredit to him to be censured1 rivalled1 and excelled by ,horace4 ,what ,i have here put together is only to furnish the young reader with the proper ,,key to ,horace's critical works1 which generally turn on his own vindication1 against the enemies of satire--the admirers of ,lucilius--and the patrons of loose and incorrect composition4 ,in managing these several topics1 he has found means to introduce a great deal of exquisite criticism4 ,and though his scattered observations go but a little way towards making up a complete critical system1 yet they are so luminous1 as the ,french speak1 that is1 they are so replete with good sense1 and extend so much further than to the case to which they are immediately applied1 that they furnish many of the principles on which such a system1 if ever it be taken in hand1 must be constructed3 ,and1 without carrying matters too far1 we may safely affirm of these ,critical ,discourses1 that1 next to ,aristotle's immortal work1 they are the most valuable remains of ancient art upon this subject4 ,the ,end of the ,notes on the ,epistle to ,,augustus4 99 99 99 99 99 ,,the ,,end ,,of ,,the ,,first ,,volume4 ,j4 ,nichols and ,son1 ,printers1 ,red ,lion ,passage1 ,fleet ,street1 ,london4 ,,footnotes3 #a ,a ,cross with the initials on a label--,i4 ,n4 ,r4 ,i4 a ,glory above1 and the motto below 4 #b 8,we1 the ,bishop and ,dean and ,chapter and ,clergy of the ,church and ,diocese of ,worcester1 humbly beg leave to present our dutiful respects to your ,majesty1 and to express the joy we feel on your ,majesty's arrival at this place4 8,your presence1 ,sir1 gladdens the hearts of your faithful subjects1 wherever you go4 ,but ,we1 the ,clergy of this place1 have a peculiar cause to rejoice in the honour vouchsafed us at this time2 a time1 devoted to an excellent charity for the relief of a most deserving1 though unfortunate part of our ,order4 ,this gracious notice and countenance of us at such a moment1 shews1 as your whole life has invariably done1 your zealous concern for the interests of ,religion1 and the credit of its ,ministers4 ,and we trust1 ,sir1 that we entertain a due sense of this goodness2 and that we shall never be wanting in the most dutiful attachment to your ,majesty's sacred person1 to your august house1 and to your mild and beneficent government4 8,in our daily celebration of the sacred offices1 committed to our charge1 we make it our fervent prayer to ,almighty ,god1 that ,he will be pleased to take your ,majesty into his special protection2 and that your ,majesty may live long1 very long1 in health and honour1 to be the blessing and the delight of all your people40 ,the above is the substance1 and ,i believe the words1 of my address to the ,king at ,worcester1 #fth ,august #aghh4 ,to this address his ,majesty was pleased to return an answer1 very gracious1 personally1 to the ,bishop himself1 and expressive of the highest regard for the ,clergy of the ,established ,church4 ,r4 ,w4 #c ,edward ,foley1 ,esq4 ,member of ,parliament for the ,county1 and ,william ,langford1 ,d4 ,d4 late ,prebendary of ,worcester4 #d ,the ,reverend ,mr4 ,,budworth1 ,head-,master of the ,grammar ,school at ,,brewood1 in ,staffordshire4 ,he died in #agde4 #e ,satyra hc est in sui sculi poetas1 ,,pr,,cipue vero in ,romanum drama4 ,baxter4 #f ,prf4 in ,,lib4 ,,poet4 et l4 vi4 p4 #cch4 #g ,mrorem minui1 says ,tully1 grieving for the loss of his daughter1 dolorem nec potui1 nec1 si possem1 ,,vellem4 ,ep4 ad ,att4 xii4 #bh4 ,a striking picture of real grief6 #h ,vel tibi composita cantetur ,,epistola voce2 ,,ignotum ,,hoc ,,aliis ,,ille ,,novavit ,,opus4 ,,art4 ,,amat4 l4 iii4 v4 #cde4 #i ,j4 ,scaliger says1 ,epistolas1 ,grcorum more1 ,phocylid atque ,theognidis ,horatius scripsit3 prceptis philosophi divulsis minimeque inter se cohrentibus4 ,and of this ,epistle1 in particular1 he presumes to say1 ,de ,arte qures quid sentiam4 ,quid8 ,equidem quod de ,arte sine arte tradit4 ,and to the same purpose another great ,critic2 ,non solum antiquorum in moralibus hoc habuere1 ut non servarent1 sed etiam alia de quibuscunque rebus prcepta4 ,sic ,epistola ,horatii ad ,pisones de ,potic perpetuum ordinem seriemque ,,nullam habet2 sed ab uno prcepto ad aliud transilit1 quamvis ,,nulla sit materi affinitas ad sensum connectendum4 ,salmasii ,not4 in ,epictetum et ,simplicium1 p4 #ac4 ,lugd4 ,bat4 #afdj4 #aj ,see ,victor4 ,comm4 in ,dem4 ,phaler4 p4 #gc4 ,florent4 #aeid4 #aa ,the reader may see a fine speech in the ,cyropdia of ,xenophon l4 iv4 where not so much as this is observed4 #ab ,see ,robert ,stephens's ,fragm4 ,vet4 ,latinorum4 #ac ,sir ,philip ,sidney4 #ad ,quel avantage ne peut il le pote pas tirer d'une troupe d'acteurs1 qui remplissent sa scene1 qui rendent plus sensible la continuit de l'action1 et qui la font paroitre ,,vraisemblable1 puisqu'il n'est pas naturel qu'elle se passe sans temoins4 ,on ne sent que trop le vuide de notre ,thatre sans churs1 c4 ,le ,thatre des ,grecs1 vol4 i4 p4 #aje4 #ae ,see also to the same purpose ,p4 ,corneille's ,exam4 sur la ,mede4 ,if the objection1 made by these critics1 to the part of the chorus1 be1 the improbability1 as was explained at large in the preceding note1 of a slave's taking the side of virtue against the pleasure of his tyrant1 the manifest difference of the two cases will shew it to be without the least foundation4 ,for #a4 the chorus in the ,medea consists of women1 whom compassion and a secret jealousy and indignation at so flagrant an instance of the violated faith of marriage1 attach1 by the most natural connexion of interests1 to the cause and person of the injured queen4 ,in the ,antigone1 it is composed of old courtiers1 devoted1 by an habitude of slavery1 to the will of a master1 assembled1 by his express appointment1 as creatures of his tyranny1 and1 prompted1 by no strong movements of self-love1 to take part against him4 #b4 ,in the ,antigone1 the part of ,creon is principal4 ,every step1 in the progress of the play1 depends so immediately upon him1 that he is almost constantly upon the stage4 ,no reflexions could therefore be made by the chorus1 nor any part against him be undertaken1 but directly in his presence1 and at their own manifest hazard4 ,the very reverse of this is the case in the ,medea4 ,creon is there but a subaltern person--has a very small part assigned him in the conduct of the play--is1 in fact1 introduced upon the stage but in one single scene4 ,the different situation of the chorus1 resulting from hence1 gives occasion for the widest difference in their conduct4 ,they may speak their resentments freely4 ,unawed by the frowns and menaces of their tyrant1 they are left at liberty to follow the suggestions of virtue4 ,nothing here offends against the law of probability1 or1 in the least1 contradicts the reasoning about the chorus in the ,antigone4 #af ,see note on v4 #abg4 #ag ,for her own sake1 as is pleaded1 and in obedience to the laws1 ' 1 1 ' 4 v4 #hab4 which shews1 that the other murders were not against the spirit of the laws1 whatever became of the letter of them4 #ah ,p4 ,brumoy1 ,disc4 sur le parall4 des ,theat4 p4 #afe4 ,amst4 #agcb4 #ai ,imitations of ,horace by ,thomas ,nevile1 ,m4 ,a4 ,fellow of ,jesus ,college1 ,cambridge1 #ageh4 #bj ,there is a considerable difference in the copies of this ode1 as given us in the best editions of ,athenus and ,diogenes ,laertius4 ,but the ,,sixth verse is1 in all of them1 so inexplicable1 in respect of the measure1 the construction1 and the sense1 that ,i have no doubt of its being extremely corrupt4 ,in such a case one may be indulged in making conjectures4 ,and the following one1 by a learned person1 exactly skilled in the proprieties as well as elegancies of the ,greek language1 is so reasonable1 that ,i had almost ventured to give it a place in the text4 ,the ,poet had been celebrating v4 #c4 the divine form of virtue2 which inspired the ,grecian youth with an invincible courage and contempt of danger4 ,it was natural therefore to conclude his panegyric with some such ,epiphonema as this3 8,such a passion do'st thou kindle up in the minds of men60 ,to justify this passion1 he next turns to the fruits1 or advantages which virtue yields2 which1 he tells us1 are more excellent than those we receive from any other possession1 whether of wealth1 nobility1 or ease1 the three great idols of mankind4 ,something like this we collect from the obscure glimmerings of sense that occur to us from the common reading1 ' 1 1 c4 ,but it is plain1 then1 that a very material word must have dropt out of the first part of the line1 and that there is an evident corruption in the last4 ,in a word1 the whole passage may be reformed thus1 ' 4 1 ' 4 ,it need not be observed how easily is changed into 3 ,and as to the restored word 1 besides the necessity of it to complete the sense1 it exactly suits with in v4 #ab4 ,lastly1 the measure will now sufficiently justify itself to the learned reader4 #ba ,agite1 fugite1 quatite1 ,satyri3 ,a verse cited from one of these ,latin satyrs by ,marius ,victorinus4 #bb ,this1 ,i think1 must be the interpretation of sensibus celebrem1 supposing it to be the true reading4 ,but a learned critic has shewn with great appearance of reason1 that the text is corrupt and should be reformed into sensibus ,,celerem4 ,according to which reading the encomium here past on ,pomponius must be understood of his ,wit1 and not the gravity of his moral ,sentences4 ,either way his title to the honour of ,invention is just the same4--,see a ,specimen of a new ,edition of ,paterculus in ,,bibliotheque ,,britannique1 ,juillet1 c4 #agcf4 #bc ,in the library of ,emmanuel ,college1 ,cambridge4 #bd ,mr4 ,hume1 ,,of ,,simplicity ,,and ,,refinement4 #be ,and no wonder1 when1 as ,suetonius tells us1 the emperor himself was so delighted with the old comedy4 c4 #hi4 #bf ,this is further confirmed from ,lucian1 who1 in the description of a splendid feast in his 1 and in the ,symposium of his 1 brings in the as necessary attendants on the entertainment4--,but the reader will not take what is said of the fine satyr of ,xenophon's ,symposium1 who hath not observed1 that this sort of compositions1 which were in great credit with the ancients1 are of the nature of dramas1 1 as ,aristotle would call them4 ,in which the dialogists1 who are real personages as in the old comedy1 give a lively1 and sometimes exaggerated expression of their own characters4 ,under this idea of a ,symposium we are prepared to expect bad characters as well as good4 ,nothing in the kind of composition itself confined the writer to the latter2 and the decorum of a festal conversation1 which1 in a republic especially1 would have a mixture of satyr in it1 seemed to demand the former4 ,we see then the undoubted purpose of ,xenophon in the persons of his ,,jester and ,,syracusian2 and of ,plato1 in those of ,,aristophanes and some others4 ,where we may further take notice1 that1 to prevent the abuse and misconstruction1 to which these personated discourses are ever liable1 ,socrates is brought in to correct the looseness of them1 in both dialogues1 and in some measure doth the office of the dramatic chorus1 ,,bonis ,,favendi4 ,but it is the less strange that the moderns have not apprehended the genius of these ,symposia1 when ,athenus1 who professedly criticises them1 and one would think1 had a better opportunity of knowing their real character1 hath betrayed the grossest ignorance about them4--,i can but just hint these things1 which might afford curious matter for a dissertation4 ,but enough is said to let the intelligent reader into the true secret of these convivial dialogues1 and to explane the ground of the encomium here passed upon one of them4 #bg 8,l'tude gale des potes de diffrens tems plaire leurs spectateurs1 a encore influ dans la maniere de peindre les characters4 ,ceux qui paroissent sur la scene ,angloise1 ,espagnole1 ,franoise1 sont plus ,anglois1 ,espagnols1 ou ,franois que ,grecs ou ,romains1 en un mot que ce qu'ils doivent tre4 ,il ne faut qu'en peu discernement pour s'appercevoir que nos ,csars et nos ,achilles1 en gardant mme une partie de leur caractere primitif1 prennent droit de naturalit dans le pas o ils sont transplantez1 semblables ces portraits1 qui sortent de la main d'un peintre ,flamand1 ,italien1 ou ,franois1 et qui portent l'empreinte du pas4 ,on veut plaire sa nation1 et rien ne plait tant que la resemblance de manieres et de genie40 ,p4 ,brumoy1 vol4 i4 p4 #bjj4 #bh ,,dionys4 ,,halicarn4 ,,ep4 ,,ad ,c4 ,,pomp4 p4 #bje4 ,edit4 ,huds4 #bi ,in conformity with the ,antique4 ,nec enim ,phidias1 cum faceret ,jovis formam aut ,minerv1 contemplabatur aliquem e quo similitudinem duceret3 sed ipsius in mente incidebat species pulchritudinis eximia qudam1 quam intuens in eaque defixus ad illius similitudinem artem et manum dirigebat ,cic4 ,orat4 #b4 #cj ,sir ,william ,temple4 #ca 4 #cb ,pope's ,works1 vol4 ,v4 p4 #bdd4 #hvo4 #cc ,quinctilian1 lib4 xi4 c4 #a4 #cd 4 ,though1 to complete the farce1 it was with the greatest shyness and reluctance1 that the humility of these lords of the universe could permit itself to accept the ensigns of deity1 as the court-historians of those times are forward to inform us4 ,an affectation1 which was thought to sit so well upon them1 that we find it afterwards practised1 in the absurdest and most impudent manner1 by the worst of their successors4 #ce ,see a learned and accurate dissertation on the subject in ,,hist4 ,,de ,l',,acad4 ,,des ,,inscr4 c4 tom4 i4 #cf ,,div4 ,,leg4 vol4 i4 ,b4 ii4 ,s4 #d4 #cg ,in these lines1 ,mox tamen ardentes accingar dicere pugnas ,caesaris1 et nomen fam tot ferre per annos1 ,tithoni prim quot abest ab origine ,caesar4 ,which ,i suspect not to have been from the hand of ,virgil4 ,and1 ,i4 ,on account of some peculiarities in the expression4 #a4 ,accingar is of frequent use in the best authors1 to denote a readiness and resolution to do any thing2 but as joined with an infinitive mood1 accingar dicere1 ,i do not remember to have ever seen it4 ',tis often used by ,virgil1 but1 if the several places be consulted1 it will always be found with an accusative and preposition1 expressed1 or understood1 as magicas accingier artes1 or with an accusative and dative1 as accingere se praedae1 or lastly1 with an ablative1 expressing the instrument1 as accingor ferro4 ,,la ,,cerda1 in his notes upon the place1 seemed sensible of the objection1 and therefore wrote1 ,graeca locutio3 the common1 but paltry1 shift of learned critics1 when they determine1 at any rate1 to support an ancient reading4 #b4 ,ardentes pugnas1 burning battles1 sounds well enough to a modern ear1 but ,i much doubt1 if it would have passed in the times of ,virgil4 ,at least1 ,i recollect no such expression in all his works2 ardens being constantly joined to a word1 denoting a substance of apparent light1 heat1 or flame1 to which the allusion is easy1 as ardentes gladios1 ardentes oculos1 campos armis sublimibus ardentes1 and1 by an easy metaphor1 ardentes hostes1 but no where1 that ,i can find1 to so abstract a notion1 as that of fight4 ,it seems to be to avoid this difficulty1 that some have chosen to read ardentis1 in the genitive1 which yet ,servius rejects as of no authority4 #c4 ,but the most glaring note of illegitimacy is in the line1 ,tithoni prim quot abest ab origine ,caesar4 ,it has puzzled all the commentators from old ,servius down to the learned ,mr4 ,martyn1 to give any tolerable account of the poet's choice of ,tithonus1 from whom to derive the ancestry of ,augustus1 rather than ,anchises1 or ,assaracus1 who were not only more famous1 but in the direct line4 ,the pretences of any or all of them are too frivolous to make it necessary to spend a thought about them4 ,the instance stands single in antiquity3 much less is there any thing like it to be found in the ,augustan poets4 ,,ii4 ,but the phraseology of these lines is the least of my objection4 ,were it ever so accurate1 there is besides1 on the first view1 a manifest absurdity in the subject-matter of them4 ,for would any writer1 of but common skill in the art of composition1 close a long and elaborate allegory1 the principal grace of which consists in its very mystery1 with a cold1 and formal explanation of it8 ,or would he pay so poor a compliment to his patron1 as to suppose his sagacity wanted the assistance of this additional triplet to lead him into the true meaning8 ,nothing can be more abhorrent from the usual address and artifice of ,virgil's manner4 ,or1 ,,iii4 ,were the subject-matter itself passable1 yet1 how1 in defiance of all the laws of disposition1 came it to be forced in here8 ,let the reader turn to the passage1 and he will soon perceive1 that this could never be the place for it4 ,the allegory being concluded1 the poet returns to his subject1 which is proposed in the six following lines3 ,intere ,dryadum sylvas1 saltusque sequamur ,intactos1 tua1 ,maecenas1 haud mollia jussa2 ,te sine nil altum mens inchoat3 en age segnes ,rumpe moras2 vocat ingenti clamore ,cithaeron1 ,taygetique canes1 domitrixque ,epidaurus equorum1 ,et vox assensu nemorum ingeminata remugit4 ,would now any one expect1 that the poet1 after having conducted the reader1 thus respectfully1 to the very threshold of his subject1 should immediately run away again to the point1 from which he had set out1 and this on so needless an errand1 as the letting him into the secret of his allegory8 ,but this inserted triplet agrees as ill with what follows1 as with what precedes it4 ,for how abrupt is the transition1 and unlike the delicate connexion1 so studiously contrived by the ,augustan poets1 from ,tithoni prim quot abest ab origine ,caesar4 to ,seu quis ,olympiacae miratus praemia palmae1 c4 ,when omit but these interpolated lines1 and see how gracefully1 and by how natural a succession of ideas1 the poet slides into the main of his subject4-- ,intere ,dryadum silvas saltusque sequamur ,intactos-- ,te sine nil-- ,rumpe moras3 vocat ingenti clamore ,cithaeron ,taygetique canes1 domitrixque ,epidaurus ,,equorum1 ,et vox assensu nemorum ingeminata ,,remugit4 ,seu quis ,olympiacae miratus praemia palmae ,pascit ,,equos2 seu quis fortes ad aratra ,,juvencos4 ,on the whole1 ,i have not the least doubt1 that the lines before us are the spurious offspring of some later poet2 if indeed the writer of them deserve that name2 for1 whoever he was1 he is so far from partaking of the original spirit of ,virgil1 that1 at most he appears to have been but a servile and paltry mimic of ,ovid2 from the opening of whose ,metamorphosis the design was clearly taken4 ,the turn of the thought is evidently the same in both1 and even the expression4 ,mutatas dicere formas is echoed by ardentes dicere pugnas3 dicere fert animus1 is1 by an affected improvement1 accingar dicere3 and ,tithoni prim ab origine is almost literally the same as primque ab origine mundi4 ,for the insertion of these lines in this place1 ,i leave it to the curious to conjecture of it1 as they may3 but in the mean time1 must esteem the office of the true critic to be so far resembling that of the poet himself1 as1 within some proper limitations1 to justify the honest liberty here taken4 ,cum tabulis animum censoris sumet honesti2 ,audebit quaecunque parum splendoris habebunt ,et sine pondere erunt1 et honore indigne feruntur1 ,,verba ,,movere ,,loco2 ,,quamvis ,,invita ,,recedant1 ,,et ,,versentur ,,adhuc ,,intra ,,penetralia ,,vestae4 #b ,ep4 ii4 #aaj4 #ch ,b4 ix4 v4 #fda4 #ci ,notes on the story of ,phaton4 v4 #bc4 #dj ,,jacobi ,,philippi ,d' ,,orville ,animadversiones in ,,charit4 ,,aphrod4 lib4 iv4 c4 #d4 #da ,ibid4 vol4 ii4 p4 #cbe4 #db ,d4 ,l4 vol4 ii4 p4 #fdd4 #dc ,at inspiciamus porr1 quid alii1 quibus correctius sapit1 de hoc loquendi modo ,,censuerint4 ,agnoscunt enim1 etc4 p4 #bii4 #dd ,ibid4 #de v4 #dcg4 #df ,iliad1 4 #cbg4 #dg ,n4 ,d4 ii4 #fd4 #dh ,pag4 #cig4 #di ,,inst4 ,,orat4 xi4 #c4 #ej ,there having been such wretches1 as the ,painter ,plutarch speaks of--1 4 ,de aud4 ,poet4 #ea ,see an essay on the ,composition of the ,antients1 by ,j4 ,,geddes1 ,esq4 #eb ,sir ,philip ,sidney4 #ec ,diss4 ,,iii4 vol4 ii4 ,transcriber's ,note3 ,poetry line numbers normalized4 ,all instances of a stigma 77 in words have been changed to sigma tau 774 ,the original text had an alternative pi 77 at the start of a word4 ,these have been changed to the standard pi 774 ,inconsistent spelling and hyphenation are as in the original4