English Literature
(Moffat, Yard & Company, 1907). Essay, by A.C. Benson, in Essays.
_Thomson_. Texts: Works, Aldine edition; The Seasons, and Castle of
Indolence, in Clarendon Press, etc. Life: by Bayne; by G.B. Macaulay
(English Men of Letters). Essay, by Hazlitt, in Lectures on the English
Poets.
_Collins_. Works, edited by Bronson, in Athenaeum Press; also in Aldine
edition. Life: by Johnson, in Lives of the Poets. Essay, by Swinburne, in
Miscellanies. See also Beers's English Romanticism in the Eighteenth
Century.
_Crabbe_. Works, with memoir by his son, G. Crabbe, 8 vols. (London,
1834-1835); Poems, edited by A.W. Ward, 3 vols., in Cambridge English
Classics (Cambridge, 1905); Selections, in Temple Classics, Canterbury
Poets, etc. Life: by Kebbel (Great Writers); by Ainger (English Men of
Letters). Essays, by L. Stephen, in Hours in a Library; by Woodberry, in
Makers of Literature; by Saintsbury, in Essays in English Literature; by
Courthope, in Ward's English Poets; by Edward Fitzgerald, in Miscellanies;
by Hazlitt, in Spirit of the Age.
_Macpherson_. Texts: Ossian, in Canterbury Poets; Poems, translated by
Macpherson, edited by Todd (London, 1888). Life and Letters, edited by
Saunders (London, 1894). Criticism: J.S. Smart's James Macpherson (Nutt,
1905). See also Beers's English Romanticism. For relation of Macpherson's
work to the original Ossian, see Dean of Lismore's Book, edited by
MacLauchlan (Edinburgh, 1862); also Poems of Ossian, translated by Clerk
(Edinburgh, 1870).
_Chatterton_. Works, edited by Skeat (London, 1875); Poems, in Canterbury
Poets. Life: by Russell; by Wilson; Masson's Chatterton, a Biography.
Criticism: C.E. Russell's Thomas Chatterton (Moffatt, Yard & Company);
Essays, by Watts-Dunton, in Ward's English Poets; by Masson, in Essays
Biographical and Critical. See also Beers's English Romanticism.
_Percy_. Reliques, edited by Wheatley (London, 1891); the same, in
Everyman's Library, Chandos Classics, etc. Essay, by J.W. Hales, Revival of
Ballad Poetry, in Folia Literaria. See also Beers's English Romanticism,
etc. (Special works, above.)
_Defoe_. Texts: Romances and Narratives, edited by Aitken (Dent); Poems and
Pamphlets, in Arber's English Garner, vol. 8; school editions of Robinson
Crusoe, and Journal of the Plague Year (Ginn and Company, etc.); Captain
Singleton, and Memoirs of a Cavalier, in Everyman's Library; Early
Writings, in Carisbrooke Library (Routledge). Life: by W. Lee; by Minto
(English Men of Letters); by Wright; also in Westminster Biographies
(Small, Maynard). Essay, by L. Stephen, in Hours in a Library.
_Richardson_. Works: edited by L. Stephen (London, 1883); edited by
Philips, with life (New York, 1901); Correspondence, edited by A. Barbauld,
6 vols. (London, 1804). Life: by Thomson; by A. Dobson. Essays, by L.
Stephen, in Hours in a Library; by A. Dobson, in Eighteenth Century
Vignettes.
_Fielding_. Works: Temple Edition, edited by Saintsbury (Dent); Selected
Essays, in Athenaeum Press; Journal of a Voyage to Lisbon, in Cassell's
National Library. Life: by Dobson (English Men of Letters); Lawrence's Life
and Times of Fielding. Essays, by Lowell; by Thackeray; by L. Stephen; by
A. Dobson (see above); by G.B. Smith, in Poets and Novelists.
_Smollett_. Works, edited by Saintsbury (London, 1895); Works, edited by
Henley (Scribner). Life: by Hannah (Great Writers); by Smeaton; by
Chambers. Essays, by Thackeray; by Henley; by Dobson, in Eighteenth Century
Vignettes.
_Sterne_. Works: edited by Saintsbury (Dent); Tristram Shandy, and A
Sentimental Journey, in Temple Classics, Morley's Universal Library, etc.
Life: by Fitzgerald; by Traill (English Men of Letters); Life and Times, by
W.L. Cross (Macmillan). Essays, by Thackeray; by Bagehot, in Literary
Studies.
_Horace Walpole_. Texts: Castle of Otranto, in King's Classics, Cassell's
National Library, etc. Letters, edited by C.D. Yonge. Morley's Walpole, in
Twelve English Statesmen (Macmillan). Essay, by L. Stephen, in Hours in a
Library. See also Beers's English Romanticism.
_Frances Burney_ (Madame d'Arblay). Texts: Evelina, in Temple Classics, 2
vols. (Macmillan). Diary and Letters, edited by S.C. Woolsey. Seeley's
Fanny Burney and her Friends. Essay, by Macaulay.
SUGGESTIVE QUESTIONS. 1. Describe briefly the social development of the
eighteenth century. What effect did this have on literature? What accounts
for the prevalence of prose? What influence did the first newspapers exert
on life and literature? How do the readers of this age compare with those
of the Age of Elizabeth?
2. How do you explain the fact that satire was largely used in both prose
and poetry? Name the principal satires of the age. What is the chief object
of satire? of literature? How do the two objects conflict?
3. What is the meaning of the term "classicism," as applied to the
literature of this age? Did the classicism of Johnson, for instance, have
any relation to classic literature in its true sense? Why is this period
called the Augustan Age? Why was Shakespeare not regarded by this age as a
classical writer?
4. _Pope_. In what respect is Pope a unique writer? Tell briefly the story
of his life. What are his principal works? How does he reflect the critical
spirit of his age? What are the chief characteristics of his poetry? What
do you find to copy in his style? What is lacking in his poetry? Compare
his subjects with those of Burns of Tennyson or Milton, for instance. How
would Chaucer or Burns tell the story of the Rape of the Lock? What
similarity do you find between Pope's poetry and Addison's prose?
5. _Swift_. What is the general character of Swift's work? Name his chief
satires. What is there to copy in his style? Does he ever strive for
ornament or effect in writing? Compare Swift's _Gulliver's Travels_ with
Defoe's _Robinson Crusoe_, in style, purpose of writing, and interest. What
resemblances do you find in these two contemporary writers? Can you explain
the continued popularity of _Gulliver's Travels_?
6. _Addison and Steele_. What great work did Addison and Steele do for
literature? Make a brief comparison between these two men, having in mind
their purpose, humor, knowledge of life, and human sympathy, as shown, for
instance, in No. 112 and No. 2 of the Spectator Essays. Compare their humor
with that of Swift. How is their work a preparation for the novel?
7. _Johnson_. For what is Dr. Johnson famous in literature? Can you explain
his great influence? Compare his style with that of Swift or Defoe. What
are the remarkable elements in Boswell's _Life of Johnson_? Write a
description of an imaginary meeting of Johnson, Goldsmith, and Boswell in a
coffeehouse.
8. _Burke_. For what is Burke remarkable? What great objects influenced him
in the three periods of his life? Why has he been called a romantic poet
who speaks in prose? Compare his use of imagery with that of other writers
of the period. What is there to copy and what is there to avoid in his
style? Can you trace the influence of Burke's American speeches on later
English politics? What similarities do you find between Burke and Milton,
as revealed in their prose works?
9. _Gibbon_. For what is Gibbon "worthy to be remembered"? Why does he mark
an epoch in historical writing? What is meant by the scientific method of
writing history? Compare Gibbon's style with that of Johnson. Contrast it
with that of Swift, and also with that of some modern historian, Parkman,
for example.
10. What is meant by the term "romanticism?" What are its chief
characteristics? How does it differ from classicism? Illustrate the meaning
from the work of Gray, Cowper, or Burns. Can you explain the prevalence of
melancholy in romanticism?
11. _Gray_. What are the chief works of Gray? Can you explain the continued
popularity of his "Elegy"? What romantic elements are found in his poetry?
What resemblances and what differences do you find in the works of Gray and
of Goldsmith?
12. _Goldsmith_. Tell the story of Goldsmith's life. What are his chief
works? Show from _The Deserted Village_ the romantic and the so-called
classic elements in his work. What great work did he do for the early
novel, in _The Vicar of Wakefield_? Can you explain the popularity of _She
Stoops to Conquer_? Name some of Goldsmith's characters who have found a
permanent place in our literature. What personal reminiscences have you
noted in _The Traveller_, _The Deserted Village_, and _She Stoops to
Conquer_?
13. _Cowper_. Describe Cowper's _The Task_. How does it show the romantic
spirit? Give passages from "John Gilpin" to illustrate Cowper's humor.
14. _Burns_. Tell the story of Burns's life. Some one has said, "The
measure of a man's sin is the difference between what he is and what he
might be." Comment upon this, with reference to Burns. What is the general
character of his poetry? Why is he called the poet of common men? What
subjects does he choose for his poetry? Compare him, in this respect, with
Pope. What elements in the poet's character are revealed in such poems as
"To a Mouse" and "To a Mountain Daisy"? How do Burns and Gray regard
nature? What poems show his sympathy with the French Revolution, and with
democracy? Read "The Cotter's Saturday Night," and explain its enduring
interest. Can you explain the secret of Burns's great popularity?
15. _Blake_. What are the characteristics of Blake's poetry? Can you
explain why Blake, though the greatest poetic genius of the age, is so
little appreciated?
16. _Percy_. In what respect did Percy's _Reliques_ influence the romantic
movement? What are the defects in his collection of ballads? Can you
explain why such a crude poem as "Chevy Chase" should be popular with an
age that delighted in Pope's "Essay on Man"?
17. _Macpherson_. What is meant by Macpherson's "Ossian"? Can you account
for the remarkable success of the Ossianic forgeries?
18. _Chatterton_. Tell the story of Chatterton and the Rowley Poems. Read
Chatterton's "Bristowe Tragedie," and compare it, in style and interest,
with the old ballads, like "The Battle of Otterburn" or "The Hunting of the
Cheviot" (all in Manly's _English Poetry_).
19. _The First Novelists_. What is meant by the modern novel? How does it
differ from the early romance and from the adventure story? What are some
of the precursors of the novel? What was the purpose of stories modeled
after _Don Quixote_? What is the significance of _Pamela_? What elements
did Fielding add to the novel? What good work did Goldsmith's _Vicar of
Wakefield_ accomplish? Compare Goldsmith, in this respect, with Steele and
Addison.
CHRONOLOGY
_End of Seventeenth and the Eighteenth Century_
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HISTORY | LITERATURE
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1689. William and Mary | 1683-1719. Defoe's early writings
Bill of Rights. |
Toleration Act |
| 1695. Press made free
1700(?) Beginning of London clubs |
1702. Anne (d. 1714) |
War of Spanish Succession |
| 1702. First daily newspaper
1704. Battle of Blenheim | 1704. Addison's The Campaign
| Swift's Tale of a Tub
1707. Union of England and Scotland |
| 1709. The Tatler
| Johnson born (d. 1784)
| 1710-1713. Swift in London. Journal
| to Stella
| 1711. The Spectator