Chapter X: The Return to Nature (3)

(_b_) His _contribution to the novel_ is very great indeed. To the historical novel he brought a knowledge that was not pedantically exact, but manageable, wide, and bountiful. To the sum of this knowledge he added a life-giving force, a vitalizing energy, an insight, and a genial dexterity that made the historical novel an entirely new species. Earlier historical novels, such as Clara Reeve’s _Old English Baron_ (1777) and Miss Porter’s _Scottish Chiefs_ (1810), had been lifeless productions; but in the hands of Scott the historical novel became of the first importance, so much so that for a generation after his time it was done almost to death. It should also be noted that he did much to develop the domestic novel, which had several representatives in the Waverley series, such as _Guy Mannering_ and _The Antiquary_. To this type of fiction he added freshness, as well as his broad and sane handling of character and incident.

(_c_) _His Shakespearian Qualities._ Scott has often been called the prose Shakespeare, and in several respects the comparison is fairly just. He resembles Shakespeare in the free manner in which he ranges high and low, right and left, in his search for material. On the other hand, in his character-drawing he lacks much of the Elizabethan’s deep penetration, though he has much of Shakespeare’s genial, tolerant humor, in which he strongly resembles also his great predecessor Fielding. It is probably in this large urbanity that the resemblance to Shakespeare is observed most strongly.

(_d_) _His Style._ The following extract will give some idea of Scott’s style at its best. It lacks suppleness, but it is powerful, solid, and sure. In his use of the Scottish vernacular he is exceedingly natural and vivacious. His characters who employ the Scottish dialect, such as Cuddie Headrigg or Jeanie Deans, owe much of their freshness and attraction to Scott’s happy use of their native speech:

Fergus, as the presiding judge was putting on the fatal cap of
judgment, placed his own bonnet upon his head, regarded him with
a steadfast and stern look, and replied in a firm voice: “I
cannot let this numerous audience suppose that to such an appeal
I have no answer to make. But what I have to say you would
not bear to hear, for my defence would be your condemnation.
Proceed, then, in the name of God, to do what is permitted to
you. Yesterday and the day before you have condemned loyal and
honourable blood to be poured forth like water. Spare not mine.
Were that of all my ancestors in my veins, I would have perilled
it in this quarrel.” He resumed his seat, and refused again to
rise.

Evan Maccombich looked at him with great earnestness, and,
rising up, seemed anxious to speak; but the confusion of the
court and the perplexity arising from thinking in a language
different from that in which he was to express himself, kept him
silent. There was a murmur of compassion among the spectators,
from the idea that the poor fellow intended to plead the
influence of his superior as an excuse for his crime. The judge
commanded silence, and encouraged Evan to proceed.

“I was only ganging to say, my lord,” said Evan, in what he
meant to be an insinuating manner, “that if your excellent
Honour and the honourable court would let Vich Ian Vohr go
free just this once, and let him gae back to France, and no to
trouble King George’s government again, ony six o’ the very best
of his clan will be willing to be justified in his stead; and if
you’ll just let me gae down to Glennaquoich, I’ll fetch them up
to ye mysell, to head or hang, and you may begin wi’ me the very
first man.”
_Waverley_

JANE AUSTEN (1775–1817)

=1. Her Life.= Jane Austen was the daughter of a Hampshire clergyman. She was educated at home; her father was a man of good taste in the choice of reading material, and Jane’s education was conducted on sound lines. Her life was unexciting, being little more than a series of pilgrimages to different places of residence, including the fashionable resort of Bath (1801). On the death of the rector his wife and two daughters removed to the neighbourhood of Southampton, where the majority of Jane Austen’s novels were written. Her first published works were issued anonymously, and she died in middle age, before her merits had received anything like adequate recognition.

=2. Her Novels.= The chronology of Miss Austen’s novels is not easy to follow, for her earliest works were the last to be published. In what follows we shall take the books approximately in their order of composition, not of publication.

Her first novel was _Northanger Abbey_, which was finished in 1798, but not published till 1818, after her death. The book begins as a burlesque of the Radcliffe type of the terror novel, which was then all the rage. The heroine, after a visit to Bath, is invited to an abbey, where she imagines romantic possibilities, but is in the end ludicrously undeceived. The incidents in the novel are ingloriously commonplace, and the characters flatly average. Yet the treatment is deft and touched with the finest needle-point of satiric observation. The style is smooth and unobtrusive, but covers a delicate pricking of irony that is agreeable and masterly in its quiet way. Nothing quite like it had appeared before in the novel.

In _Pride and Prejudice_ (1797) the same methods are to be seen. We have the same middle-class people pursuing the common round. The heroine is a girl of spirit, but she has no extraordinary qualities; the pride and prejudice of rank and wealth are gently but pleasingly titillated, as if they are being subjected to an electric current of carefully selected intensity. In unobtrusive and dexterous art the book is considered to be her masterpiece.

_Sense and Sensibility_ (1798) was her third novel, and it followed the same general lines as its predecessors. Then came a long pause, for she could find no publisher to issue her work. The first to see print was the last mentioned, which appeared in 1811. Stimulated to further effort, in quick succession she wrote _Mansfield Park_ (1814), _Emma_ (1816), and _Persuasion_ (1818). The latter group are of the type of the others; if there is development it is seen in the still more inflexible avoidance of anything that is unusual or startling. The novels are all much the same, yet subtly and artistically different.

=3. Features of her Novels.= (_a_) _Her Plots._ Her plots are severely unromantic. Her first work, beginning as a burlesque of the horrible in fiction, finishes by being an excellent example of her ideal novel. As her art develops, even the slight casualties of common life--such an incident, for example, as the elopement that appears in _Pride and Prejudice_--become rarer; with the result that the later novels, such as _Emma_, are the pictures of everyday existence. Only the highest art can make such plots attractive, and Jane Austen’s does so.

(_b_) Her _characters_ are developed with minuteness and accuracy. They are ordinary people, but are convincingly alive. She is fond of introducing clergymen, all of whom strike the reader as being exactly like clergymen, though each has his own individual characteristics. She has many characters of the first class, like the servile Mr. Collins in _Pride and Prejudice_, the garrulous Miss Bates in _Emma_, and the selfish and vulgar John Thorpe in _Northanger Abbey_. Her characters are not types, but individuals. Her method of portrayal is based upon acute observation and a quiet but incisive irony. Her male characters have a certain softness of thew and temper, but her female characters are almost unexceptionable in perfection of finish.

(_c_) Her _place in the history of fiction_ is remarkable. Her qualities are of a kind that are slow to be recognized, for there is nothing loud or garish to catch the casual glance. The taste for this kind of fiction has to be acquired, but once it is acquired it remains strong. Jane Austen has won her way to a foremost place, and she will surely keep it.

We add a short extract to illustrate her clear and careful style, her skill in handling conversation, and the quiet irony of her method.

(_Catherine Morland, the heroine of the novel, is introduced
to the society of Bath, where she cuts rather a lonely figure
till she meets a young man called Tilney--“not quite handsome,
but very near it.” The following is part of their conversation
at a dance._)

After chatting some time on such matters as naturally arose from
the objects around them, he suddenly addressed her with--“I have
hitherto been very remiss, madam, in the proper attentions of a
partner here; I have not yet asked you how long you have been in
Bath; whether you were ever here before; whether you have been
at the Upper Rooms, the theatre, and the concert; and how you
like the place altogether. I have been very negligent--but are
you now at leisure to satisfy me in these particulars? If you
are I will begin directly.”

“You need not give yourself that trouble, sir.”

“No trouble, I assure you, madam.” Then forming his features
into a set smile, and affectedly softening his voice, he added,
with a simpering air, “Have you been long in Bath, madam?”

“About a week, sir,” replied Catherine, trying not to laugh.

“Really!” with affected astonishment.

“Why should you be surprised, sir?”

“Why, indeed!” said he, in his natural tone; “but some emotion
must appear to be raised by your reply, and surprise is more
easily assumed, and not less reasonable, than any other.--Now
let us go on. Were you never here before, madam?”

“Never, sir.”

“Indeed! Have you yet honoured the Upper Rooms?”

“Yes, sir, I was there last Monday.”

“Have you been to the theatre?”

“Yes, sir, I was at the play on Tuesday.”

“To the concert?”

“Yes, sir, on Wednesday.”

“And are you altogether pleased with Bath?”

“Yes--I like it very well.”

“Now I must give one smirk, and then we may be rational again.”
_Northanger Abbey_

OTHER NOVELISTS

=1. Maria Edgeworth (1767–1849).= This novelist was born in County Longford, Ireland. Her life is largely the catalogue of her books, which are numerous, varied, and in quality very unequal. Her best novels deal with Irish life. They were warmly praised by Scott, who declared that they gave him ideas for his own stories. _Castle Rackrent_ (1800) is successful in its dealing with Irish characters; _Lenora_ (1806) shows a good deal of power; _Tales of Fashionable Life_ (1809) contains much of her best work, including _The Absentee_, which is commonly considered her masterpiece. Other works are _Patronage_ (1814), _Harrington_ (1817), and _Ormand_ (1817). Her type of fiction is lively and agreeable, except when she indulges in a shallow kind of moralizing. In her day her popularity ran a close second to Scott’s, but now only a slight flicker survives.

=2. John Galt (1779–1839)= was born in Ayrshire, and there he passed the early years of his life, afterward removing to Greenock. He studied for the Bar, but delicate health drove him abroad. After much traveling he settled in Scotland, and produced a large amount of literary work. He engaged unsuccessfully in business transactions, then took once more to writing novels and to journalism. He died at Greenock, where his career had commenced.

The best of his novels are _The Ayrshire Legatees_ (1820), in the form of a letter-series, containing much amusing Scottish narrative; _The Annals of the Parish_ (1821), his masterpiece, which is the record of a fictitious country minister, doing in prose very much what Crabbe had done in verse; _The Entail_ (1821); and _The Provost_ (1822). Galt had a vigorous style and abundant imagination, with a great deal of humor and sympathetic observation. He is too haphazard and uneven to be a great novelist, though he has value as a painter of Scottish manners.

=3. William Harrison Ainsworth (1805–82)= was an early imitator of Scott. He wrote a great number of novels, which cover many periods of English history. The first was _Sir John Chiverton_ (1825), but he scored his great success with the Dick Turpin romance _Rookwood_ (1834). A few of the many others were _Jack Sheppard_ (1839), an immense success, _The Tower of London_ (1840), _Old St. Paul’s_ (1841), _Windsor Castle_ (1843), _The Star Chamber_ (1854), _The Constable of the Tower_ (1861), and _Preston Fight_ (1875). Ainsworth possesses little of Scott’s genius, for his handling of history is crude and heavy, and consists of throwing in large, undigested lumps of history. He is feeble in his treatment of his characters, but when he is in the right vein he can give the reader a vigorous narrative and a fair quality of description.

=4. George P. R. James (1801–60)= was another follower of the method of Scott, and he was responsible for a hundred and eighty-nine volumes, chiefly novels. He was born in London; traveled abroad; settled down to novel-writing; on the strength of some serious historical work was appointed Historiographer Royal; entered the consular service; and died at Venice.

_Richelieu_ (1828), which bears a strong resemblance to _Quentin Durward_, was his earliest, and is by many considered to be his best, novel. Others include _Darnley_ (1830), _De l’Orme_ (1830), _The Gipsy_ (1835), and _Lady Montague’s Page_ (1858). As was almost inevitable with such mass-production, he makes his novels on a stock pattern. He is fond of florid pageantry, and can be rather ingeniously mysterious in his plots. He has little power in dealing with his characters, and no imaginative grasp of history. In style he is undistinguished, but fluent and clear.

=5. Charles Lever (1806–72).= Lever was born in Dublin, was educated at Trinity College and Göttingen, and became a physician. The success of his novels caused him to desert his profession, and in the course of time (1842) he became editor of _The Dublin University Magazine_, which had published his first stories. In his latter years he lived abroad, was appointed consul in Sardinia (1858), and after some other changes died when consul at Trieste.

_Harry Lorrequer_ (1839), his first novel, made a great hit. It is a novel of the picaresque type, dealing with the adventures of the hare-brained but lovable hero. _Charles O’Malley_ (1841) is of the same species, and others are _Jack Hinton_ (1842) and _Tom Burke of Ours_ (1844). The scenes of these novels are pitched in Ireland; there is little plot, what there is consisting of the scrapes of the heroes; the humor is rough-and-tumble, though agreeably lively; and the heroes, who are all much the same, are amiable fellows, with a propensity for falling into trouble and falling out of it. A later class of Lever’s novels was more of the historical cast, and includes _The O’Donovan_ (1845) and _The Knight of Gwynne_ (1847). Others dealt with the Continent, and include _The Dodd Family Abroad_ (1854) and _The Fortunes of Glencore_ (1857). These latter are more stable and serious, and as novels are better than the earlier groups.

=6. Frederick Marryat (1792–1848)= followed the Smollett tradition of writing sea-stories. He was born in London, entered the Navy at an early age (1806), and saw some fighting just before the conclusion of the Napoleonic Wars. He saw further service in different parts of the world, rose to be a captain, and spent much of his later life writing the novels that have given him his place in literature.

His earliest novel was _The Naval Officer_ (1829), a loose and disconnected narrative, which was followed by _The King’s Own_ (1830), a much more able piece of work. From this point he continued to produce fiction at a great rate. The best of his stories are _Jacob Faithful_ (1834), _Peter Simple_ (1834), _Japhet in Search of a Father_ (1836), _Mr. Midshipman Easy_ (1836), and _Masterman Ready_ (1841). All his best books deal with the sea, and have much of its breeziness. Marryat has a considerable gift for plain narrative, and his humor, though it is often coarse, is entertaining. His characters are of the stock types, but they are lively and suit his purpose, which is to produce a good yarn.

=7. Michael Scott (1789–1835)= was another novelist whose favorite theme was the sea. Scott was not a sailor like Marryat, but a merchant, first in Jamaica and then in his native city of Glasgow. His two tales, _Tom Cringle’s Log_ (1829) and _The Cruise of the Midge_ (1834), were published in _Blackwood’s Magazine_. They have attempts at fine writing which Marryat did not aspire to, and are none the better for it, for Scott seldom succeeds in being impressive. His actual nautical details lack the intimacy and freshness of Marryat’s. He was, however, a gifted story-teller, and his tales are rarely dull.

=8. Benjamin Disraeli (1804–81), Lord Beaconsfield=, was a Londoner of Jewish race, and after many struggles and failures rose to be leader of the Tory party in Parliament and Prime Minister. His political career does not concern us here.

He began his literary career as a novelist. _Vivian Grey_ (1826) soon set the fashionable world talking of its author. It dealt with fashionable society, it was brilliant and witty, and it had an easy arrogance that amused, incensed, and attracted at the same time. The general effect of cutting sarcasm was varied, but not improved, by passages of florid description and sentimental moralizing. His next effort was _The Voyage of Captain Popanilla_ (1829), a modern _Gulliver’s Travels_. The wit is very incisive, and the satire, though it lacks the solid weight of Swift’s, is sure and keen. Disraeli wrote a good number of other novels, the most notable of which were _Contarini Fleming_ (1831), _Henrietta Temple_ (1837), _Coningsby_ (1844), _Sybil_ (1845), and _Tancred_ (1847). These last books, written when experience of public affairs had added depth to his vision and edge to his satire, are polished and powerful novels dealing with the politics of his day. At times they are too brilliant, for the continual crackle of epigram dazzles and wearies, and his tawdry taste leads him to overload his ornamental passages. Disraeli also carried further the idea of _Captain Popanilla_ by writing _Alroy_ (1832), _Ixion in Heaven_ (1833), and _The Infernal Marriage_, which are half allegorical, half supernatural, but wholly satirical romances. In style the prose is inflated, but the later novels sometimes have flashes of real passion and insight.

=9. Edward Bulwer-Lytton (1805–73)= was the son of General Bulwer. On the death of his mother he succeeded to her estate and took the name of Lytton, later becoming Lord Lytton. He was at first educated privately, and then at Cambridge, where he won a prize for English verse. He had a long and successful career both as a literary man and as a politician. He entered Parliament, was created in turn a baronet and a peer, and for a time held Cabinet rank.

His earliest efforts in literature were rather feeble imitations of the Byronic manner. His first novel was _Falkland_ (1827), which was published anonymously, and then came _Pelham_ (1828). These are pictures of current society, and are immature in their affectation of wit and cynicism. They contain some clever things, but they lack the real merit of the early novels of Disraeli. Another of the same kind was _Devereux_ (1829). _Paul Clifford_ (1830) changed the scene to the haunts of vice and crime, but was not at all convincing. Lytton now took to writing historical novels, the best of which were _The Last Days of Pompeii_ (1834), _Rienzi_ (1835), and _Harold_ (1848). They are rather garish, but clever and attractive, and they had great popularity. He did not neglect the domestic novel, writing _The Caxtons_ (1849) and _My Novel_ (1853); and the terror and supernatural species were ably represented by _A Strange Story_ (1862) and _The Coming Race_ (1871). Lytton is never first-rate, but he is astonishingly versatile, and, considering the speed of his production, his books are of a high quality. His plays, such as _Richelieu_ (1839) and _Money_ (1840), had great success.

CHARLES LAMB (1775–1834)

=1. His Life.= Lamb was born in London, his father being a kind of factotum to a Bencher of the Middle Temple. The boy, who was a timid and retiring youth, was educated at Christ’s Hospital, where he was a fellow-pupil of Coleridge, whose early eccentricities he has touched upon with his usual felicity. He would have entered the Church, but an impediment in his speech made such a course impossible; instead he obtained a clerkship first in the South Sea House, then (1792) in the East India House, where the remainder of his working life was spent. There was a strain of madness in the family which did not leave him untouched, for in 1795–96 he was under restraint for a time. In the case of his sister, Mary Lamb, the curse was a deadly one. In September 1796 she murdered her mother in a sudden frenzy, and thereafter she had intermittent attacks of insanity. Lamb devoted his life to the welfare of his afflicted sister, who frequently appears in his essays under the name of Cousin Bridget. After more than thirty years’ service Lamb retired (1825) on a pension, and the last ten years of his life were passed in blessed release from his desk. He was a charming man, a delightful talker, and one of the least assuming of writers. His reputation, based upon his qualities of humor, pathos, and cheery goodwill, is unsurpassed in our literature.

=2. His Essays.= Lamb started his literary career as a poet, producing short pieces of moderate ability, including the well-known _The Old Familiar Faces_ and _To Hester_. He attempted a tragedy, _John Woodvil_ (1801), in the style of his favorite Elizabethan playwrights, but it had no success on the stage. His _Tales from Shakespeare_ (1807), written in collaboration with his sister, are skillfully done, and are agreeable to read. His critical work, narrow in scope, is remarkable for its delicate insight and good literary taste. All these writings, however, are of little importance compared with his essays.

The first of his essays appeared in _The London Magazine_ in 1820, when Lamb was forty-five years old. It was signed “Elia,” a name taken almost at random as that of an old foreigner who used to haunt the South Sea House. The series continued till October 1822, and was published as _The Essays of Elia_ (1823). A second series lasted from May 1824 to August 1825, and was published under the title of _The Last Essays of Elia_ (1833).

The essays are unequaled in English. In subject they are of the usual miscellaneous kind, ranging from chimneysweeps to old china. They are, however, touched with personal opinions and recollections so oddly obtruded that interest in the subject is nearly swamped by the reader’s delight in the author. No essayist is more egotistical than Lamb; but no egotist can be so artless and yet so artful, so tearful and yet so mirthful, so pedantic and yet so humane. It is this delicate clashing of humors, like the chiming of sweet bells, that affords the chief delight to Lamb’s readers.

It is almost impossible to do justice to his style. It is old-fashioned, bearing echoes and odors from older writers like Sir Thomas Browne and Fuller; it is full of long and curious words; and it is dashed with frequent exclamations and parentheses. The humor that runs through it all is not strong, but airy, almost elfish, in note; it vibrates faintly, but in application never lacks precision. His pathos is of much the same character; and sometimes, as in _Dream-Children_, it deepens into a quivering sigh of regret. He is so sensitive and so strong, so cheerful and yet so unalteringly doomed to sorrow.

The extract given below deals with the playhouse, which was one of his greatest passions. The reader can easily observe some of the above-mentioned features of his style.

In those days were pit orders. Beshrew the uncomfortable manager
who abolished them!--with one of these we went. I remember
the waiting at the door--not that which is left--but between
that and an inner door in shelter--O when shall I be such an
expectant again!--with the cry of nonpareils, an indispensable
playhouse accompaniment in those days. As near as I can
recollect, the fashionable pronunciation of the theatrical
fruiteresses then was, “Chase some oranges, chase some
num-parels, chase a bill of the play;”--chase _pro_ chuse.
But when we got in, and I beheld the green curtain that veiled
a heaven to my imagination, which was soon to be disclosed--the
breathless anticipations I endured! I had seen something like it
in the plate prefixed to _Troilus and Cressida_, in Rowe’s
Shakespeare--the tent scene with Diomede--and a sight of that
plate can always bring back in a measure the feeling of that
evening.--The boxes at that time, full of well-dressed women of
quality, projected over the pit; and the pilasters reaching down
were adorned with a glistering substance (I know not what) under
glass (as it seemed), resembling--a homely fancy--but I judged
it to be sugar-candy--yet, to my raised imagination, divested
of its homelier qualities, it appeared a glorified candy!--The
orchestra lights at length arose, those “fair Auroras!” Once the
bell sounded. It was to ring out yet once again--and, incapable
of the anticipation, I reposed my shut eyes in a sort of
resignation upon the maternal lap. It rang the second time. The
curtain drew up--I was not past six years old--and the play was
_Artaxerxes_!
_My First Play_

THOMAS DE QUINCEY (1785–1859)

=1. His Life.= De Quincey was born at Manchester, where his father was a rich merchant. The elder De Quincey left considerable property, but De Quincey himself was improvident and unreliable in his financial affairs. He was educated first at Manchester Grammar School and then at Oxford. There he studied for a long time (1803–8), distinguishing himself by his ability in Greek. While he was an undergraduate (1804) he first became acquainted with opium, soaking his tobacco in the drug and then smoking it in order to alleviate the pains of neuralgia. His money was always easily spent, and his early struggles were a painful effort to make both ends meet. He earned a precarious livelihood by journalism, and lived for a long time (1809–30) in the Lake District, becoming intimate with the local literary celebrities. During this time his devotion to the drug was excessive, but he produced a large amount of work. Then, becoming loosely attached to the staff of _Blackwood’s Magazine_, he removed to Edinburgh. In this neighborhood he remained till the end of his long life, and was buried in the Scottish capital.

=2. His Works.= De Quincey is one of the authors whose work is to be rigorously sifted. He wrote a large amount of prose; most of it is hack-work, a fair proportion is of good quality, and a small amount is of the highest merit. He wrote no book of any great length, in this respect resembling another opium-eater, Coleridge.

The book that made his name was his _Confessions of an English Opium-Eater_ (1821), which appeared in _The London Magazine_. The work, which is chaotic in its general plan, is a series of visions that melt away in the manner of dreams. Much is tawdry and unreal, but the book contains passages of great power and beauty. The remainder of his work is a mass of miscellaneous production, the best of which is _The English Mail-coach_, _Suspiria de Profundis_, and _Murder considered as One of the Fine Arts_.

A great part of his work is dreary and diffuse, and vitiated by a humor that is extremely flat and ineffective. He displays a wide range of knowledge, though it is often flawed with inaccuracy. In style he is apt to stumble into vulgarity and tawdriness; but when inspiration descends upon him he gives to the English tongue a wonderful strength and sweetness. In these rare moments he plunges into an elaborate style and imagery, but never loses grip, sweeping along with sureness and ease. In rhythm and melody he is almost supreme; he can “blow through bronze” and “breathe through silver,” and be impressive in both.

The passage we now give is among his most impressive efforts. It has the unity and passion of the lyric, and its effect is both thrilling and profound. Observe the studied rhythm, often ejaculatory, the deep and solemn beauty, and the simplicity of diction. This is poetic prose at its best:

As a final specimen, I cite one of a different character, from
1820.

The dream commenced with a music which now I often heard in
dreams--a music of preparation and of awakening suspense; a
music like the opening of the coronation anthem, and which,
like _that_, gave the feeling of a vast march--of infinite
cavalcades filing off--and the tread of innumerable armies. The
morning was come of a mighty day--a day of crisis and of final
hope for human nature, then suffering some mysterious eclipse,
and labouring in some dread extremity. Somewhere, I knew not
where--somehow, I knew not how--by some beings, I knew not
whom--a battle, a strife, an agony was conducting--was evolving
like a great drama, or piece of music; with which my sympathy
was the more insupportable from my confusion as to its place,
its cause, its nature, and its possible issue. I, as is usual in
dreams (where, of necessity, we make ourselves central to every
movement), had the power, and yet had not the power, to decide
it. I had the power, if I could raise myself, to will it; and
yet again had not the power, for the weight of twenty Atlantics
was upon me, or the oppression of inexpiable guilt. “Deeper than
ever plummet sounded,” I lay inactive.

Then, like a chorus, the passion deepened. Some great interest
was at stake; some mightier cause than ever yet the sword
had pleaded, or trumpet had proclaimed. Then came sudden
alarms: hurryings to and fro: trepidations of innumerable
fugitives, I knew not whether from the good cause or the
bad: darkness, and lights: tempest, and human faces; and at
last, with the sense that all was lost, female forms, and the
features that were worth all the world to me, and but a moment
allowed,--and clasped hands, and heart-breaking partings, and
then--everlasting farewells! and with a sigh, such as the caves
of hell sighed when Sin uttered the abhorred name of Death, the
sound was reverberated--everlasting farewells! and again, and
yet again reverberated--everlasting farewells!

And I awoke in struggles, and cried aloud--“I will sleep no
more!”
_The Confessions of an English Opium-Eater_

WILLIAM HAZLITT (1778–1830)

The period now under review is very rich in critical and miscellaneous work. Of the writers of literary criticism Hazlitt may be taken as representative.

=1. His Life.= Hazlitt was born in Shropshire, the son of a Unitarian minister. His first intention was to be a painter, but he abandoned the idea and took to letters as a profession. He was a friend of Coleridge, with whom he shared an ardent admiration for revolutionary principles. This enthusiasm, and others of a similar nature, Hazlitt was not slack in expressing; and this habit, added to a brawling acerbity of temper, made his life largely a series of quarrels and controversies.

=2. His Works.= His output was very large, and included many political works. Those that are of importance here are _The Characters of Shakespeare’s Plays_ (1817), _Lectures on the English Poets_ (1818), and _The Spirit of the Age_ (1825). His longest work was the _Life of Napoleon_ (1828) but it was of no great value.

Hazlitt’s criticism, though it is limited in scope to English literature, shows great ability, shrewd insight, and sanity in its enthusiasms. It is far more precise and equable than that of Coleridge, broader and more incisive than Lamb’s, and much more reasoned and scientific than De Quincey’s. It is often spoilt by his political views, but when they are allowed for it can be trusted to a great degree.

His style is admirable for his purpose. It is readable and clear, and when necessary it can rise into expressing the keen zest that Hazlitt felt for the good and the wholesome in English literature. The following extract is of interest as a comparison of Addison and Steele:

It may be said, that all this is to be found, in the same or a
greater degree, in the _Spectator_. For myself, I do not think
so; or, at least, there is in the last work a much greater
proportion of commonplace matter. I have, on this account,
always preferred the _Tatler_ to the _Spectator_. Whether
it is owing to my having been earlier or better acquainted
with the one than the other, my pleasure in reading these two
admirable works is not at all in proportion to their comparative
reputation. The _Tatler_ contains only half the number of
volumes, and, I will venture to say, at least an equal quantity
of sterling wit and sense. “The first sprightly runnings” are
there--it has more of the original spirit, more of the freshness
and stamp of nature. The indications of character and strokes
of humour are more true and frequent; the reflections that
suggest themselves arise more from the occasion, and are less
spun out into regular dissertations. They are more like the
remarks which occur in sensible conversation, and less like a
lecture. Something is left to the understanding of the reader.
Steele seems to have gone into his closet chiefly to set down
what he observed out of doors. Addison seems to have spent most
of his time in his study, and to have spun out and wire-drawn
the hints, which he borrowed from Steele, or took from nature,
to the utmost. I am far from wishing to depreciate Addison’s
talents, but I am anxious to do justice to Steele, who was,
I think, upon the whole, a less artificial and more original
writer. The humorous descriptions of Steele resemble loose
sketches, or fragments of a comedy; those of Addison are rather
comments, or ingenious paraphrases, on the genuine text.
_The English Comic Writers_

OTHER WRITERS OF MISCELLANEOUS PROSE

=1. Francis Jeffrey (1773–1850)=, one of the founders of _The Edinburgh Review_, was born at Edinburgh, educated at the high school and university of his native city, and was called to the Scottish Bar. Though for many years an industrious writer for his journal, he maintained a considerable legal practice, and distinguished himself in politics as an ardent Whig and a supporter of the Reform Bill of 1832. When, after the passage of the Bill, his party came into office he was rewarded by being appointed Lord Advocate. This meant the abandonment of his position on the _Review_, though he always kept a paternal eye on its progress. He was finally appointed to the Bench, with the title of Lord Jeffrey.

_The Edinburgh Review_ was at first a joint production of a group of young and zealous Whigs, including Sydney Smith and Dr. John Brown. After the first number Jeffrey was in sole control, and he drew around him a band of distinguished contributors, including at one time Sir Walter Scott and Lockhart. The journal led the way among the larger reviews, and was noted for its briskness. It was not above prejudice, as was shown in its opposition to the Lake School, but it did much to raise the standard of criticism, and it succeeded in bringing much talent to light, including the early efforts of Macaulay.

=2. Sydney Smith (1771–1845)= was for a time a colleague of Jeffrey. He was born in Essex, and was the son of a clergyman. He was educated at Winchester and Oxford, and became a clergyman in his turn. After traveling on the Continent as a tutor, he settled for a time at Edinburgh, and assisted in the launching of _The Edinburgh Review_ (1802). He took a large share in the political squabbles of the time, and wrote much on behalf of the Whig party.

His works consist of many miscellaneous pieces, most of them of a political character. The most noteworthy of them is a collection called _The Letters of Peter Plymley_ (1807), which deals with Catholic Emancipation. A more general selection from his writings was published in 1855, and his _Wit and Wisdom_ in 1861. Nowadays it is somewhat difficult to account for his great influence, for he has left so little of real merit; but to his own contemporaries he was a very important person. He was admired and feared as a wit, and some of his best witticisms have been preserved. He was always a gentlemanly opponent, always easy but deadly in the shafts leveled against his political foes. He wrote the prose of an educated man, and is clear and forcible.

=3. John Wilson (1785–1854)=, who appears in literature as =Christopher North=, was born at Paisley, the son of a wealthy manufacturer. He was educated at Glasgow and Oxford, wrote poetry, and for a time settled in the Lake District. He lost most of his money, tried practice as a barrister, and then joined the staff of _Blackwood’s Magazine_. He was appointed in 1820 Professor of Moral Philosophy at Edinburgh University.

His early poems, _The Isle of Palms_ (1812) and _The City of the Plague_ (1816), are passable verse of the romantic type. His novels--for example, _The Trials of Margaret Lyndsay_ (1823)--are sentimental pictures of Scottish life. His longest work, and the one that perpetuates his name, is his _Noctes Ambrosianæ_ (beginning in 1822), which had a long and popular run in _Blackwood’s_. This is an immensely long series of dialogues on many kinds of subjects. The characters are the members of a small club who meet regularly, consume great quantities of meat and drink, and frequently indulge in immoderate clowning. The talk is endless, and is often tedious in the extreme. At times Wilson rises into striking descriptive passages, more florid and less impressive than De Quincey’s, but beautiful in a sentimental fashion. His taste, however, cannot be trusted, and his humor is too often crude and boisterous.

=4. John G. Lockhart (1794–1854)= was born at Cambusnethan, educated at Glasgow and Oxford, and became a member of the Scottish Bar. He soon (1817) became a regular contributor to _Blackwood’s Magazine_, sharing in its strong Tory views and its still stronger expression of them. He rather gloried in these literary and political fisticuffs, which in one case led to actual bloodshed, though he did not participate in it. In 1820 he married Scott’s favorite daughter Sophia, and lived to be the biographer of his famous father-in-law. He was editor of _The Quarterly Review_ from 1826 till 1852.

Lockhart wrote four novels, the best of which are _Valerius_ (1821) and _Adam Blair_ (1822). They are painstaking endeavors, but they lack the fire of genius, and are now almost forgotten. His poetry is quite lively and attractive, especially his _Spanish Ballads_ (1821). _Peter’s Letters to his Kinsfolk_ (1819) is a collection of brilliant sketches of Edinburgh society. Lockhart’s fame, however, rests on _The Life of Scott_ (1837–38), which was first published in seven volumes. This book ranks as one of the great biographies in the language. Though it is full of intimate and loving detail, it possesses a fine sense of perspective and coherence; and while it is influenced by a natural partiality for its subject, the story is judiciously told. In this book Lockhart casts aside his aggressiveness of manner. His descriptions, as, for example, that of the death of Scott, have a masterly touch.

=5. William Cobbett (1762–1835)= was born at Farnham, Surrey, and was the son of a farm-laborer. He enlisted in the Army, rose to be sergeant-major, emigrated to America, where he took to journalism, and returned to England, to become actively engaged in politics. In 1835 he was elected to Parliament, but was not a success as a public man. He was a man of violent opinions, boxed the political compass, and died an extreme Radical.

He was an assiduous journalist, beginning with _Peter Porcupine’s Journal_ (1801). His other paper was his _Political Register_, which he began in 1802 and carried on till 1835. His further literary work is contained in his _Rural Rides in England_. He writes with an unaffected simplicity that reminds the reader of Bunyan, and his descriptions of contemporary England are clear and forcible.

=6.= The =historians= belonging to this period are both numerous and important, but we can mention only a few.

(_a_) =Henry Hart Milman (1791–1868)= was educated at Eton and Oxford, and afterward wrote some plays, including the tragedy _Fazio_ (1817). His chief historical works are _The History of the Jews_ (1829) and _The History of Latin Christianity_ (1856). Milman is a solid and reliable historian, with a readable style.

(_b_) =George Grote (1794–1871)= was a London banker, and entered politics. His _History of Greece_ (1846–56) is based on German research, and is well informed and scholarly. The work, however, is sometimes considered to be too long and tedious in its detail.

(_c_) =Henry Hallam (1777–1859)= was a member of the Middle Temple, but he practiced very little. He wrote on both literary and historical subjects, and contributed to _The Edinburgh Review_. His historical works include _A Constitutional History of England_ (1827) and _An Introduction to the Literature of Europe_ (1838–39). Hallam acquired a great and deserved reputation for solid scholarship. Like Gibbon, he tried to attune his style to his subject, and wrote in a grave and impressive manner, but, lacking the genius of Gibbon, he succeeded only in making his style lifeless and frigid.

THE DEVELOPMENT OF LITERARY FORMS

The amount of actual development during this period was not so great as the immense output. Authors were content with the standard literary forms, and it was upon these as models that the development took place.

=1. Poetry.= (_a_) This was indeed the golden age of the _lyric_, which reflected the Romantic spirit of the time in liberal and varied measure. It comprised the exalted passion of Shelley, the meditative simplicity of Wordsworth, the sumptuous descriptions of Keats, and the golden notes of Coleridge. It is to be noted that in form the lyric employed the ancient externals of the stereotyped meters and rhymes. There was some attempt at rhymeless poems in the work of Southey and the early poems of Shelley, but this practice was never general.

(_b_) With _descriptive and narrative poems_ the age was richly endowed. One has only to recall Byron’s early work, Keats’s tales, Coleridge’s supernatural stories, and Scott’s martial and historical romances to perceive how rich was the harvest. Once more the poets work upon older methods. The Spenserian stanza is the favorite model, but the ballad is nearly as popular. These older types suffered some change, as was almost inevitable with such inspired minds at work upon them. The Spenserian manner was loosened and strengthened; it was given richer and more varied beauties in _The Eve of St. Agnes_, and a sharper and more personal note in the _Childe Harold_ of Byron. In the case of Wordsworth we observe the frequent use of blank verse for meditative purposes, as in _The Prelude_.

(_c_) _Satirical poems_ were numerous; and their tone was fierce, for the success of the French Revolution led to the expression of new hopes and desires. Outstanding examples were Byron’s _Don Juan_ and _The Vision of Judgment_ and Shelley’s _Masque of Anarchy_.

=2. Drama.= Drama was written as freely as ever, but rather as a form of literary exercise than as a serious attempt at creating a new dramatic standard. Tragedy almost monopolized the activities of the major poets. Of all the tragedies Shelley’s _Cenci_ came first in power and simplicity. Byron’s tragedies had little merit as dramas; and Wordsworth’s _Borderers_ and Coleridge’s _Remorse_ added little to the fame of their authors.

The comic spirit in drama was in abeyance. Shelley’s _Œdipus Tyrannus, or Swellfoot the Tyrant_, is almost the only instance of it worth mention, and this was a poor specimen of that writer’s creative power.

=3. Prose.= (_a_) _The Novel._ Of the different kinds of prose composition, the novel showed in this period the most marked development. This was largely due to the work of Scott and Jane Austen, who respectively established the historical and domestic types of novel.

With regard to the work of Scott, we can here only briefly summarize what has already been said. He raised the historical novel to the rank of one of the major kinds of literature; he brought to it knowledge, and through the divine gift of knowledge made it true to life; he fired historical characters with living energy; he set on foot the device of the unhistorical hero--that is, he made the chief character purely fictitious, and caused the historical persons to rotate about it; he established a style that suited many periods of history; and pervading all these advances was a great and genial personality that transformed what might have been mere lumber into an artistic product of truth and beauty.

Miss Austen’s achievement was of a different kind. She revealed the beauty and interest that underlie ordinary affairs; she displayed the infinite variety of common life, and so she opened an inexhaustible vein that her successors were assiduously to develop.

Most of the other novelists of the time were either imitators of Scott, like James and Ainsworth, or a combination of Scott and Miss Austen, like Bulwer-Lytton. Disraeli developed a rather different species in his brilliant society novels, which depended for their chief effects on satiric insight and caustic epigram. _Tancred_ is probably the best of this species.

(_b_) _Periodical Literature._ At the beginning of this chapter we noted the chief members of a great new community of literary journals. These periodicals were of a new type. Previous literary journals, like _The Gentleman’s Magazine_ (1731), had been feeble productions, the work of elegant amateurs or underpaid hack-writers. Such papers had little weight. The new journals were supreme in the literary world; they attracted the best talent; they inspired fear and respect; and in spite of many defects their literary product was worthy of their reputation.

(_c_) _The Essay._ Finding a fresh outlet in the new type of periodical, the essay acquired additional importance. The purely literary essay, exemplified in the works of Southey, Hazlitt, and Lockhart, increased in length and solidity. It now became a review--that is, a commentary on a book or books under immediate inspection, but in addition expounding the wider theories and opinions of the reviewer. This new species of essay was to be developed still further in the works of Carlyle and Macaulay.

The miscellaneous essay, represented in the works of Lamb, likewise, acquired an increased dignity. It was growing beyond the limits set by Addison and Johnson. It was more labored and aspiring, and contained many more mannerisms of the author. This kind also was to develop in the hands of the succeeding generation.

(_d_) Other prose works must receive scanty notice. The art of letter-writing still flourished, as can be seen in the works of Byron, Shelley, and Lamb. Lamb in particular has a charm that reminds the reader of that of Cowper. Byron’s letters, though egotistical enough, are breezy and humorous.

Biographical work is adequately represented in _The Life of Byron_, by Moore, and _The Life of Scott_, by Lockhart. These books in their general outlines follow the model of Boswell, though they do not possess the artless self-revelation of their great predecessor. There is an advance shown by their division into chapters and other convenient stages, a useful arrangement that Boswell did not adopt.

The amount of historical research was very great, and the historians ranged abroad and tilled many fields; but in their general methods there was little advance on the work of their predecessors.

THE DEVELOPMENT OF LITERARY STYLE

=1. Poetry.= This period being instinct with the spirit of revolt, it may be taken for granted that in poetic style there is a great range of effort and experiment. The general tendency is toward simplicity of diction and away from the mannerisms of the eighteenth century. In the case of the major poets, the one who comes nearest in style to the eighteenth century is Byron; next to him, in spite of his theories of simplicity, comes Wordsworth, who has a curious inflation of style that is kept within bounds only by his intense imaginative power. The best work of Coleridge and Shelley is marked by the greatest simplicity; but, on the other hand, Keats is too fond of golden diction to resist the temptation to be ornate.

=2. Prose.= In this period we behold the dissolution of the more formal prose style of the previous century. With this process the journalists and miscellaneous prose-writers have much to do. In the place of the older type we see a general tendency toward a useful middle style, as in the books of Southey and Hazlitt. Outside this mass of middle prose we have a range from the greatest simplicity to the highest efforts of poetic prose. At one end of the scale we have the perfectly plain style of Cobbett. The passage we give (from the _Rural Rides_) could not be simpler, but it is energetic and expressive:

When I returned to England in 1800, after an absence from the
country parts of it for sixteen years, the trees, the hedges,
even the parks and woods, seemed so small! It made me laugh to
hear little gutters, that I could jump over, called rivers. The
Thames was but a ‘creek!’ But when in about a month after my
arrival in London, I went to Farnham, the place of my birth,
what was my surprise! Every thing was become so pitifully small!
I had to cross in my postchaise the long and dreary heath of
Bagshot. Then at the end of it, to mount a hill called Hungry
Hill: and from that hill I knew that I should look down into the
beautiful and fertile vale of Farnham. My heart fluttered with
impatience, mixed with a sort of fear, to see all the scenes of
my childhood; for I had learned before the death of my father
and mother.

From Cobbett we range through a large number of writers, like Lockhart and Miss Austen, who write in the usual middle style to the more labored manner of Scott, who in his descriptive passages adopts a kind of Johnsonese. When he writes in the Scots dialect he writes simply and clearly, but in his heavier moods we have a style like that which follows. Note the long and complicated sentences, and the labored diction.

The brow of the hill, on which the Royal Life-Guards were now
drawn up, sloped downwards (on the side opposite to that which
they had ascended) with a gentle declivity for more than a
quarter of a mile, and presented ground which, though unequal in
some places, was not altogether unfavourable for the manœuvres
of cavalry, until near the bottom, when the slope terminated
in a marshy level, traversed through its whole length by what
seemed either a natural gully or a deep artificial drain, the
sides of which were broken by springs, trenches filled with
water, out of which peats and turf had been dug, and here
and there by some straggling thickets of alders, which loved
the moistness so well that they continued to live as bushes,
although too much dwarfed by the sour soil and the stagnant
bog-water to ascend into trees. Beyond this ditch or gully the
ground arose into a second heathy swell, or rather hill, near to
the foot of which, and as if with the object of defending the
broken ground and ditch that covered their front, the body of
insurgents appeared to be drawn up with the purpose of abiding
battle.
_Old Mortality_

From Scott the evolution of style can be traced through the mannered, half-humorous ornateness of Lamb to the florid poetic prose of Wilson and the dithyrambic periods of De Quincey. As a final specimen we give an extract from the _Noctes Ambrosianæ_. The style is fervidly exclamatory, but it lacks the depth of De Quincey’s at its best.

_Shepherd._ Oh that I had been a sailor! To hae
circumnavigated the world! To hae pitched our tents, or built
our bowers, on the shores o’ bays sae glittering wi’ league-long
wreaths o’ shells, that the billows blushed crimson as they
murmured! To hae seen our flags burning meteor-like, high up
among the primeval woods, while birds, bright as bunting, sat
trimming their plumage amang the cordage, sae tame in that
island where ship had haply never touched before, nor ever might
touch again, lying in a latitude by itself, and far out of the
breath o’ the tradewinds! Or to hae landed with a’ the crew,
marines and a’--except a guard on shipboard to keep aff the
crowd o’ canoes--on some warlike isle, tossing wi’ the plumes on
chieftain’s heads, and sound--sound--sounding wi’ gongs! What’s
a man-o’-war’s barge, Mr Tickler, beautiful sight tho’ it be, to
the hundred-oared canoe o’ some savage Island-king!

TABLE TO ILLUSTRATE THE DEVELOPMENT OF LITERARY FORMS