Chapter VII: Part III: Studies of Great Authors (2)

8. Is this type of tale worth preserving apart from its
excellence in style? Do you think it easy or difficult to tell
such a story? Why?

9. Is Poe immoral or unmoral?

"THE RAVEN"

1. Why is the raven chosen as the bird of ill omen?

2. Compare the raven with the albatross in Coleridge's "Ancient
Mariner."

3. It has been often claimed that the poem was written by Poe in
a fit of delirium. As a matter of fact it was composed during his
wife's illness and then polished into its present shape during
subsequent months of grief. "The Bells" was written at the same
time.

4. "Annabel Lee" is another expression of his passionate love for
his wife.

5. "The Raven" is written in the first person. Is this
characteristic of Poe? Does he gain anything by it? What does he
lose?

6. Whence was the name, Lenore, derived?

7. What do you understand by the reference to "the Night's
Plutonian shore"?

8. As "The Raven" may be said to be the masterpiece of American
poetry, so the stanza, "Then methought the air grew denser," is
considered the supreme moment in the poem. Can you see why?

9. For a critical analysis of the structure of this poem see
Poe's essay, "The Philosophy of Composition," in the complete
editions of his works.

FOR REFERENCE

"Four Famous American Writers."--CODY.

"Life and Letters of Edgar Allan Poe."--HARRISON.

"Edgar Allan Poe; the Man, the Master, the Martyr."--LEIGH.

"The Home Life of Poe."--WEISS.

"Poe" ("American Men of Letters").--WOODBERRY.

"The Mind and Art of Poe's Poetry."--FRUIT.

NATHANIEL HAWTHORNE

(1804-1864)

Nathaniel Hawthorne, by general repute the greatest of American novelists, was of sound New England lineage, and his forefathers had for generations followed the sea. After graduating from Bowdoin College, where he had formed a close friendship with Longfellow and Pierce, he returned to Salem, resolved to take up literature as a life-work.

Here he wrote for years, but with so little success that he was glad to accept of George Bancroft, the historian, the offer of a subordinate position in the Boston Custom House. He had, however, just previously published his first work, "Twice-Told Tales," to be followed, upon his retirement from the custom house with the change of administration, by "Grandfather's Chair."

Some years after he was appointed surveyor of customs at Salem, then an important port, and the succession of tales which had come from his pen for so many years suddenly ceased. But during the following four years of apparent cessation of literary endeavor, he was but husbanding his forces for a final effort, and the year 1850 witnessed the publication of his masterpiece, "The Scarlet Letter," the epic of sin and remorse, by common consent the best American romance and by many held without an equal, either here or abroad.

His old schoolmate, Franklin Pierce, having become President of the United States, Hawthorne was appointed Consul to Liverpool, and upon the expiration of his term spent two years traveling in France, Switzerland, and Italy. The "English Note Books" and "Our Old Home" tell of his life in England, and "The Marble Faun," one of his greatest works, is the product of his wanderings in Italy.

His writings are distinguished by a wonderful power of analysis, and a singularly graceful diction. He seems in a way the incarnation of the old Puritan spirit, probes the innermost recesses of the heart, and appears to take a strange delight in the darker side of life. But he is in no sense morbid; his musings are merely the offspring of a solitary but eminently manly spirit. All through his works one realizes the dominating and all-pervading supremacy of conscience.

THE MAN

1. With what historic towns do we associate the name of Hawthorne?

2. What led to his deep interest in New England lore?

3. Would you judge him to be a good business man? Why?

4. How did he happen to visit Europe?

5. Under what circumstances was "The Scarlet Letter" produced?

6. How does Hawthorne rank among American writers?

7. To what trait of character must his slow acceptance by the
public be attributed?

8. Was he a Puritan? Why?

STYLE AND WORKS

1. Which was the first of Hawthorne's works to attract public
attention?

2. What rank does "The Scarlet Letter" hold in American
literature? In world literature?

3. Wherein lies its great hold upon the human heart?

4. Name his works dealing with English life.

5. What elements of strength do you discover in his style?

6. In what respects does he resemble Poe; wherein does he differ
from him?

7. Is his work indicative of his education as well as of his
character? How?

"THE OLD MANSE"

1. How long did Hawthorne live in the "Old Manse"?

2. Does Hawthorne show a detailed knowledge of nature?

3. What qualities must a book possess to retain its interest and
value for centuries beyond its time of writing?

4. According to Hawthorne's views, what is the best remedy for a
troubled mind or worn body?

5. What qualities does Hawthorne's style possess which make an
otherwise uninteresting subject have such charm?

6. Notice the passages which bring out the personal character of
the author. From these give a complete character sketch of the
man.

7. What places of interest in Concord attract visitors? VI,
312, 316, also _Frontispiece_ and illustrations, 310, 338; V,
_Frontispiece_, 82; XII, 116.

8. Does this selection offer good material for illustration? Find
several scenes especially beautiful in color or shading.

9. What was Hawthorne's view of Emerson? Do you agree with it?
Why?

FOR REFERENCE

"Nathaniel Hawthorne and his Wife."--HAWTHORNE (JULIAN).

"Memories of Hawthorne."--LATHROP.

"Nathaniel Hawthorne."--FIELDS.

"Hawthorne" ("English Men of Letters").--JAMES.

"Life and Genius of Nathaniel Hawthorne."--STEARNS.

"American Prose Masters."--BROWNELL.

WILLIAM CULLEN BRYANT

(1794-1878)

William Cullen Bryant was born among the Berkshire hills, in Western Massachusetts, the son of a country physician of limited means. He did not complete his college course, and after devoting several years to the practice of law, he removed to New York, where for nearly fifty years he remained as editor of one of the principal metropolitan papers. He took a leading part in all public affairs, and was a most uncompromising abolitionist.

In appearance patriarchal, a "grand old man," he was lofty, self-contained, and cold. He died at the age of 83, his mental powers still in full vigor.

He was the first poet of high rank which America produced; and above all, the first to paint American scenes with a discerning eye. His poems are American in subject, imagery, and spirit. The volume of his poetry is not large, nor is its range wide, but it is characterized by a dignity and simplicity which imparts a peculiar charm.

His "Thanatopsis," written at the remarkably early age of eighteen, was the first poem written on the American continent destined to win enduring fame.

His works are almost entirely devoted to nature. Man is generally treated merely in the abstract. In all his verse the tendency to moralize is strongly apparent; but his writings, though instinct with morality and religion, never rise above the teachings of natural theology.

THE MAN

1. What were his antecedents?

2. To what extent was he an educated man?

3. What was Bryant's calling?

4. Where did Bryant's political sympathies lie?

5. Was his personal appearance in keeping with his profession?

6. What celebrity of antiquity would you say he most resembled in
this respect?

7. For what reason does Bryant lack in popularity?

8. Though his first poem was his greatest, can we say that there
was any decline in Bryant's mental powers?

9. Does he belong to the New England authors or to the New York
group? Why?

STYLE AND WORKS

1. At what age did he write "Thanatopsis"?

2. What unique position does "Thanatopsis" occupy in American
literature?

3. Were his literary remains extensive?

4. What pleasing qualities characterize his style?

5. His rank as a poet of nature?

6. For what scenes does Bryant appear to have a special
predilection?

7. In which was Bryant more deeply versed, nature or man?

8. What other poets does his work suggest?

"THANATOPSIS"

1. What is the connection between the title of the poem and its
subject-matter?

2. How does communion with nature affect the thought of death?

3. Is the description of death effective?

4. What consolation is derived from the manner of our burial?

5. Does Bryant consider preparation for death essential?

6. Are there indications of youthfulness in the poem?

7. Do any passages suggest Bryant's early home?

FOR REFERENCE

"Atlas Essays."--PALMER.

"William Cullen Bryant" ("American Authors").--HILL.

"Throne Makers."--THAYER.

"Bryant and His Friends."--WILSON.

"Studies in Bryant" ("Literature Primers").--ALDEN.

HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW (1807-1882)

Longfellow was born at Portland, Maine, a lineal descendant of "Priscilla, the Puritan Maiden." He was educated at Bowdoin College, in which he was subsequently offered a professorship. To prepare himself for the position he traveled extensively in Europe, acquainting himself with its languages and institutions.

After some years at Bowdoin he was appointed to the chair of modern languages and literature at Harvard. He now settled down at Cambridge, which remained his home till the day of his death, though he made several trips to Europe.

After several ineffectual essays at authorship, he won recognition with his "Voices of the Night." Some years later appeared a second collection of poems, "Poems of Slavery," which, with Whittier's poems and Mrs. Stowe's works, were largely instrumental in stirring up New England to the evils of slave-holding. Finally, in 1847, appeared the greatest of all his works, "Evangeline." It is also remarkable as introducing the dactylic hexameter of the ancients, ever since popular in America.

In his choice of subjects Longfellow oscillated between America and Europe, and, although he doubtless was not conscious of the fact, his American poems were easily best; especially "Hiawatha" (based on a Finnish epic, the "Kalevala"), "The Courtship of Miles Standish," and the "Tales of a Wayside Inn,"--all three of which may vie with "Evangeline" for excellence. He was less successful with his European poems, though "The Golden Legend," and his translation of the "Divine Comedy" are good.

Longfellow made several attempts at writing prose fiction, notably in "Hyperion" and "Kavanaugh," but none of his prose works proved to be of any permanent value.

Longfellow was neither original nor deep. He attempts to discover no new secrets in nature. But, like Scott, he was a lover of the heroic, of the spirit of self-sacrifice. His poems, whatever their form, are ever subjective, have ever a moral to teach. And so, like Scott, he has ever been and ever will be popular. In England and Canada he is said to be even more popular than Tennyson.

Of all American authors, Longfellow was the model Christian; noted for his superabundant sympathy, love, and charity. It is recorded that when Poe lashed him with his merciless criticism, he was delivering enthusiastic discourses on Poe's poetry to his classes.

THE MAN

1. What was Longfellow's origin; his education?

2. In what respect does his life resemble that of Irving?

3. His profession was literature. What chair did he occupy, and
in what colleges?

4. What interest, if any, did Longfellow take in public affairs?

5. Give the salient points in his character.

6. Was his foreign experience as significant as that of Irving,
Hawthorne, and Lowell?

STYLE AND WORKS

1. With what collection of poems did Longfellow first win public
notice?

2. What work links his name with those of Whittier and Harriet
Beecher Stowe?

3. Name his best poems.

4. In which is the dactylic hexameter popularized?

5. From what two sources was his "Hiawatha" derived?

6. How is Longfellow's name connected with that of Dante?

7. What are the merits of his style; the defects?

8. Longfellow is easily the most popular American poet. Why?

9. What British poet does he most resemble in his shorter poems?
In what respects?

10. What can you say as to his popularity abroad?

FROM "EVANGELINE"

1. Who were the Druids, and why are they appropriately associated
with the "forest primeval"?

2. What is the present name of the territory once called Acadie?

3. What lines express the central thought underlying the tale?

4. What is there peculiarly appropriate in the words "turbulent
tides"? (See geography on Bay of Fundy, etc.)

5. Select a few of the most beautiful similes or metaphors which
illustrate the poet's power of imagination.

6. Is the cruelty of the English exaggerated?

7. During what period of history did this event occur?

8. What picture of Acadian life pleases you most?

9. Compare this narrative style with that of the narrative poems
of Scott, Tennyson, Macaulay, and Homer.

FOR REFERENCE

"Life of Longfellow."--LONGFELLOW (SAMUEL).

"Henry W. Longfellow, Life, Works, Friendships."--AUSTIN.

"Henry Wadsworth Longfellow."--CARPENTER.

"Four American Poets."--CODY.

"Longfellow's Country."--CLARKE.

"Authors and Friends."--FIELDS.

"Old Cambridge."--HIGGINSON.

"Longfellow."--NORTON.

JOHN GREENLEAF WHITTIER

(1807-1892)

Whittier was born at Haverhill, Mass., the son of a poor Quaker farmer. His boyhood was spent at work on his father's farm and he had few opportunities for schooling. But he showed his talent for verse at an early age, and in this manner attracted the interest and friendship of William Lloyd Garrison. Determined to obtain an education, he learned the trade of making slippers, and with this as a means of support was able to attend two years at Haverhill Academy.

For some years after this he led a shifting life, sometimes editing one of a number of periodicals with which he was successively connected, and at other times working the ancestral farm. In 1836 the farm was sold and the Whittiers removed to Amesbury, destined to remain his home until his death in 1892, fifty-six years after.

Whittier was a Quaker, and, like most of that sect, a zealous champion of abolition. To that cause he sacrificed ambition and love; and, like most of the early abolitionists, he suffered for his faith. While editor of the "Pennsylvania Freeman," at Philadelphia, his printing plant was sacked and burned by the mob.

Whittier never married. His sister Elizabeth, who became his lifelong companion, and whose verse is preserved with his own, shared likewise in the war he made on slavery.

His poems may be divided into two classes: those descriptive of rural life and scenery, among which the best are "Snow Bound," his masterpiece, "The Tent on the Beach," "Maud Muller," and "Among the Hills"; and his polemics against slavery, including "Voices of Freedom," "Barbara Frietchie," and "The Slaves of Martinique." He also collaborated with Lucy Larcom in the compilation of "Child Life," "Child Life in Prose," and "Songs of Three Centuries."

Poetry was no fine art with him, and his verse seldom rises above the ballad; but his style is characterized by great simplicity, sincerity, directness, and fervor. The elements of passion and sturdier humor are lacking, but he was the master-painter of New England scenery, as evidenced in his "Snow Bound," the best verse of that kind since "The Deserted Village," and "The Cotter's Saturday Night." Rustic winter scenes have never been more beautifully described.

THE MAN

1. From what rank in life did Whittier come?

2. What can you say of his childhood?

3. How would his education compare with that of most of the
authors of his day?

4. The formation of what friendship had a lasting effect on his
life?

5. What profession did he enter in common with many other
American authors?

6. Of what faith was he an adherent?

7. At what place did he live during the greater part of his life?

8. Explain the part taken by him in political matters.

9. What can you tell of his sister Elizabeth?

10. Why is he called "The Quaker Poet," and "The Amesbury Sage"?

STYLE AND WORKS

1. Wherein does his style resemble that of Mrs. Browning?

2. What great poems of Burns and Whittier are properly classed
together, and why?

3. Name four poems descriptive of New England life and scenery.

4. What are his best poems on slavery?

5. In what field do he and Longfellow meet? VIII, 222.

6. State what shows his great interest in children.

7. What form did his verse generally take?

8. How does he compare as to form with Poe and Bryant?

9. Why is he esteemed the New England poet _par excellence_?

10. In the description of what particular scenes does he excel?

11. Give the elements of strength in his style.

"MAUD MULLER"

1. What is meant by the "mock-bird" in the third couplet? Are
these mocking birds in New England?

2. Of what class is Maud with her "vague unrest" a type?

3. Is city life still as attractive to country girls and boys?

4. Is the Judge's aimless talk well worked out by the poet?

5. Had Maud and the Judge married, would they have been happier
in the end?

6. Have lawyers changed with the flight of years?

7. Is it true that "humming" is a telltale habit?

8. What do you understand by "spinnet," "astral," and "chimney
lug"?

9. Point out a couplet which has passed into a proverb.

10. What "sweet hope" is intended in the next to the last stanza?

FOR REFERENCE

"Life of John Greenleaf Whittier" ("Great Writers
Series").--LINTON.

"John Greenleaf Whittier" ("American Men of letters").--CARPENTER.

"Whittier-Land."--PICKARD.

"Reminiscences of Whittier's life at Oak Knoll."--WOODMAN.

"Biographic Clinics."--GOULD.

"Authors and Friends."--FIELDS.

"John Greenleaf Whittier" ("English Men of Letters").--HIGGINSON.

JAMES RUSSELL LOWELL

(1819-1891)

JAMES RUSSELL LOWELL, the son of a Unitarian minister, was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the home of so many of our eminent authors. Educated at Harvard University, where he also prepared for the practice of law, he entered that profession, but finding it little to his taste quickly abandoned it for literature. In 1855 he succeeded Longfellow in the chair of modern languages at Harvard, a position which he held for the following twenty-two years. During this period he was for a time editor of the _Atlantic Monthly_, and the _North American Review_. In 1877 he was appointed minister to Spain, and in 1880 was transferred to the Court of St. James, where he remained five years. He died in 1891 at the age of seventy-two years.

Lowell was a many-sided character, eminent as a poet, an essayist, a critic, and a public speaker. His friends included all the New England writers of his day and many English authors, who for the first time appreciated America's intellectual standing. His poetry is very uneven; this is due largely to the fact that he wrote principally for immediate effect, and, while his poems sparkle with wit and humor, they very commonly lack polish and form. This criticism would hardly apply to "The Vision of Sir Launfal," his best poem, or to the "Commemoration Ode."

Lowell is probably better known as an essayist and critic, his best works in this line being "Fireside Travels," "My Study Windows," and "Among my Books." He was the leading American critic of his time.

In closing, two anomalous works should be mentioned. His "Biglow Papers" are two series of satirical poems, ordinary verse rather than actual poetry, but very fine as satire. The former series, published in 1846, was directed against the Mexican war, and the latter, published during the Civil War, against the slavery party. They served to popularize the 'Yankee dialect,' here used for the first time.

The second is the "Fable for Critics," a criticism in verse of his leading contemporaries, like the "Biglow Papers," full of wit and striking puns and keenly critical, though lacking in true poetic value.

THE MAN

1. What similarity between Lowell's antecedents and those of
Emerson?

2. How does his first choice of a profession resemble that of
Bryant and Irving?

3. Whom did he succeed at Harvard and what chair did he fill in
that institution?

4. Give his connection with journalism.

5. What diplomatic missions did he fill, and what other famous
American authors had filled the same positions?

6. Did he, like Irving, Prescott, and Hawthorne, make any great
use of his European experience for literary purposes?

7. What impression did he make in England?

STYLE AND WORKS

1. Mention seven different lines along which Lowell directed his
energies.

2. What is the principal defect in his style?

3. What are his strong points?

4. Mention his three best poems. His three best collections of
essays.

5. Against what evil were the "Biglow Papers" directed?

6. What new element did they bring into American literature?

7. Name a favorite poem in the Yankee dialect.

8. Why is some of his verse scarcely to be considered poetry?

FROM "THE VISION OF SIR LAUNFAL"

1. Compare "druid wood" with the opening lines of Longfellow's
"Evangeline," VIII, 231, and explain the allusion.

2. Point out the best couplet in the extract.

3. What beautiful metaphor is near the close of the poem?

4. What analogy may we draw between the tide and the year-cycle?

5. What is the purpose of the first stanza?

6. Explain the line "Each ounce of dross costs its ounce of
gold," and find examples in life to verify it.

7. What are the signs of summer?

8. How does this season of the year affect the human heart?

9. Compare the second stanza with the theme and the style of
Wordsworth's "Ode on Immortality," XII, 324.

FOR REFERENCE

"Four Famous American Writers."--CODY.

"James Russell Lowell."--SCUDDER.

"American Prose Masters."--BROWNELL.

"James Russell Lowell."--CURTIS.

"Essays in London and Elsewhere."--JAMES.

"Nature Knowledge in Modern Poetry."--MACKIE.

"Stelligeri, and other Essays."--WENDELL.

OLIVER WENDELL HOLMES

(1809-1894)

The "genial Autocrat" was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and was the son of a Congregational minister. After graduating at Harvard, he began the study of law, but, like so many other authors, not finding it to his taste, changed to medicine. After finishing his studies in Paris he returned to America, and opened office in Boston. Despite his fondness for literature, he gained a fair practice.

In 1847, however, he was elected Professor of Anatomy in Harvard University, a position he held for thirty-five years. His duties were far from arduous, so that like Emerson, he was able to devote much of his time to lecturing and poetry.

The founding of _The Atlantic Monthly_ was an important event in his life. He was engaged to write for it, and the result was his greatest work, "The Autocrat of the Breakfast Table," a series of talks on many subjects, interspersed with some poems. Of the same nature are "The Professor at the Breakfast Table," "The Poet at the Breakfast Table," and "Over the Teacups," written at intervals of many years. They are distinguished by careless grace and irrepressible humor. The "Autocrat" is the most original and brilliant, and the series became successively more serious as the doctor grew older.

These are the works by which he will be remembered, but, like Lowell, he was a man of many parts, and chose to work in several fields. He was eminent as a physician, lecturer, poet, and essayist, as we have seen, and he even tried his hand at fiction. "The Guardian Angel," his best novel, "Elsie Venner," and "A Mortal Antipathy," have been called 'medicated novels,' dealing as they do with questions of heredity and prenatal influence.

He also appeared in the rôle of biographer, with the lives of his friends, Motley and Emerson.

Holmes was a lovable man, genial, brilliant, witty, and yet deeply in earnest for all that. He was a thoroughly religious man and a firm believer in immortality, holding his life to be merely the avenue or vestibule to a greater beyond. He was, however, conservative, and took little part in the abolitionist movement which so agitated his brethren.

He died at the advanced age of eighty-five, having outlived all his companions in the field of letters.

THE MAN

1. Give a brief account of Holmes's birth and antecedents.

2. Where was he educated, and on what lines?

3. What connection did he subsequently form with Harvard
University?

4. In what respect does his life resemble that of Emerson, and
how does he resemble Lowell?

5. Mention several different fields in which he achieved
distinction.

6. Give a summary of his character.

7. According to Holmes, what is it that makes life worth living?

STYLE AND WORKS

1. Which is esteemed to be Holmes's best work?

2. Enumerate the four books of the Autocrat series.

3. What is the general character of these books?

4. What progressive difference is noted in the successive books
of the series?

5. Give the main elements of his style.

6. Name three novels written by Holmes.

7. For what biographies are we indebted to him?

8. As a humorist compare him with Lowell, VIII, 255; with Irving,
VII, 271; with Lamb, VIII, 73, 86.

FROM "THE AUTOCRAT OF THE BREAKFAST TABLE"

1. Is there a moral to the poem "The Wonderful One-hoss-shay"? If
so, what is it?

2. When is slang permissible, according to Holmes?

3. To whom does the title of this selection refer?

4. Account for the sudden changes of topic and their diversity of
character.

5. What is the effect of the quotation connected with the poem
"Contentment"?

6. Is the intermingling of poetry and prose common? How is it
peculiarly suitable here?

7. What are Holmes's views concerning the literary talent of the
United States?

8. If the works of an author portray his character, how would you
classify Oliver Wendell Holmes as a man?

FOR REFERENCE

"Holmes: The Autocrat and his Fellow Boarders."--CROTHERS.

"Authors and Friends."--FIELDS.

"Old Cambridge" ("National Studies in American
Letters").--HIGGINSON.

"The Poet Among the Hills."--SMITH.

HOMER

(1000 B.C.)

The ancient Greek tradition assigned the authorship of the "Iliad" and the "Odyssey" to the blind bard, Homer, of whose origin and personality nothing is known, although seven cities claimed to be his birthplace. More than a century of the closest study and research, including the investigation of ancient Troy, has shown that these two immortal epic poems are hardly to be called the work of one man, but that they have been compiled and unified by one poet from several shorter works, dealing with incidents leading to the fall of Troy and the wanderings of Odysseus.

The site of Troy, close to the entrance to the Dardanelles, has been occupied by nine cities, excavations showing their remains resting in distinct layers, five of which belong to the pre-Homeric times, the sixth being the city of the "Iliad," sacked in the year 1184 B.C. Its fall was due, originally, to a dispute among the gods as to which was the fairest, Hera, the wife of Zeus, goddess of earthly dominion, Athene, goddess of wisdom, or Aphrodite, goddess of love. Paris, the son of Priam, king of Troy, was chosen judge and awarded the prize to Aphrodite, tempted by her offer of the most beautiful woman in the world for his wife and rejecting the bribes of empire and of wisdom which were offered by the others.

Helen, the wife of Menelaus, whose beauty was acclaimed as divine, accordingly was abducted by Paris. Menelaus and his brother, both powerful kings in Greece, collected an army with the aid of several other Greek princes and set sail at once for Troy, which they besieged in vain for nine years and finally captured by the stratagem of the Trojan horse. This was a huge wooden figure of a horse, in which certain of the Greek leaders lay hid while the rest sailed away, apparently giving up the siege and leaving the horse as an offering to the gods. The Trojans, rejoicing, dragged the monster within their walls, broken down to admit it, and at nightfall the concealed Greeks came out and opened the gates to the rest of their army, which had landed again under cover of darkness.

Helen's life was spared, as she seems to have been regarded as a being of another world, guiltless of wrong intent, driven by fate into these misfortunes. The tragedies that befell upon the return of Agamemnon and his brother Menelaus form the subject of the great dramas of Æschylus, Euripides, and Sophocles.

The "Iliad" narrates events in the course of the siege, in which Achilles is the Greek hero, angered by Agamemnon and refusing to lead the troops to battle, until roused by the death of his friend Patroclus he rushes to the fray and slays Hector, the Trojan prince and leader, with whose funeral rites the poem closes.

The fall of Troy is not treated by Homer; in fact it did not receive the consideration due its dramatic possibilities until a thousand years later, when Vergil, the Roman poet, described it in his "Æneid." This may be explained by the fact that the Greeks desired to hear the tale of their heroism and their leader's triumph rather than the sorrows of the enemy, while the Roman emperor Augustus, at whose request Vergil composed the "Æneid," wished to glorify Rome by tracing her origin back to the son of the Trojan prince, Æneas, who fled to Italy after Troy's downfall.

The "Odyssey" recounts the wanderings of the Greek prince, Odysseus, detained by various casualties on his way home round the south of Greece to Ithaca, his island home in the Adriatic, and also deals with his vengeance on the suitors whom he found endeavoring to win the hand of his faithful wife Penelope.

The "Iliad," as a piece of literature, seems to belong to a somewhat earlier day than the "Odyssey." The latter is more unified in construction, and shows greater knowledge of travel and a higher religious and social standard.

The selections of the former are from the two great metrical translations of Pope and of Chapman. Pope's work (1715) is in the full flower of the Age of Classicism, and is thoroughly characteristic of that period. Chapman's (1611), less polished, belongs to the late Renaissance, whose rugged, adventurous spirit was far nearer that of the Homeric age and is preferred by many on this account.

The prose translation, from which the passages of the "Odyssey" are taken, is better suited to present-day taste, trained by prose fiction rather than verse. It retains as far as has ever been done the Greek feeling and ideas, with all its richness of imagery and none of the affectation which we feel to-day in lengthy verse.

THE MAN AND THE AGE

1. Who was Homer?

2. What is the history of Troy?

3. What was the value of its geographical situation in those
days? (Consult an atlas, classical, if possible.)

4. What was the character of social conditions in those days? See
V, 432.

5. Apart from scientific progress, what distinctions can you make
between this era and that of Homer?

6. The fall and sack of Troy is told by whom, in what epic?
Explain why Homer did not deal with this dramatic episode.

STYLE AND WORKS

1. Why has Achilles' fame lasted two thousand years? III, 266.

2. What is one of Homer's leading merits? VIII, 356.

3. What was Alexander the Great's opinion of the "Iliad"? IX, 8.

4. Which do you prefer, the prose or the verse translation? Why?

5. In what respects are the verse translations molded by the
spirit of the periods when they were made?

6. How is it that the Renaissance, when Chapman made his
translation, was more like the Homeric period than the twentieth
century?

FROM THE "ODYSSEY"

1. What phrases suggest the Greek love of beauty?

2. Do you conclude that the poet was observant of life in times
of peace as well as in times of war?

3. Had he ever lived on a farm? What makes you think so?

4. How did Odysseus treat the minstrel? Was the writer himself
probably just such a bard?

5. Compare Circe's palace and the home of Odysseus; what was the
probable status of the hero, king or chieftain? Why?

6. Note the use of sulphur for purifying the house. What does
this show you regarding early Greek civilization?

7. Outline the social and political conditions of life in the
Homeric period as shown in the "Odyssey."

FOR REFERENCE

The "Iliad," translated by LANG, LEAF, and MYERS.

The "Odyssey," translated by BUTCHER and LANG.

"Homer and his Age."--LANG.

"The World of Homer."--LANG.

"On Translating Homer."--ARNOLD.

"Ethics of the Heroic Age."--GLADSTONE.

"Life in the Homeric Age."--SEYMOUR.

VERGIL

(70 B.C.-19 B.C.)

Unlike most distinguished Roman writers, Vergil was country born, coming from the district of Andes, near Mantua--hence 'the Mantuan,' as he was known to the scholastics.

After studying at Cremona and Rome, he returned to his father's small estate and wrote pastoral poetry; but being obliged to flee when the lands of Italy were assigned by the Triumvirs to their adherents, he again visited Rome, where he speedily became a favorite of Augustus. The liberality of Augustus and his own thrift enabled him to live in comparative opulence. Most of his life he spent in retirement on his estate in Campania. Here his time was given wholly to his art, except in so far as he was taken up with scientific and antiquarian studies, which he thought essential to elevate his thought and strengthen his grasp of profound subjects.

His character is universally commended. He was gentle, innocent, modest, and of a singular sweetness of disposition. He is generally conceded to be the greatest Roman poet and the most patriotic. Like other epic poets he was of a philosophic nature, and unlike the generality of Roman writers, he was reserved as to his personal feelings. He never married.

Before coming to Rome he had written his "Eclogues," the first of Latin pastorals, in imitation of Theocritus. His next poems, the "Georgics," were written to create fresh interest in agriculture, which had been the mainstay of republican Rome but was fast falling into decay. But his enduring fame rests upon the "Æneid," written at the request of Augustus, which treats of the founding of Rome by a colony from ancient Troy under the leadership of Æneas. In it Vergil sums up the glory of Rome and its culmination under Augustus. The "Æneid," the "Divine Comedy," and "Paradise Lost" enjoy the distinction of being the only great epics written in the full light of civilized society, and the inspiration of the latter works was largely drawn from Vergil.

He was a master of literary form, seen at its best in the "Georgics" and the "Æneid," though the latter is an unfinished work with which Vergil was so little satisfied that in his will he directed its destruction. This wish was rightly regarded as the fastidious, nervous whim of the poet and was therefore unheeded.

The "Messianic Eclogue" prophesies the birth of a child under whose rule the Golden Age with prosperity and happiness should be restored to the earth. It is not certain what child the poet had in mind, though the phrase, "a world by righteous father tamed," would indicate a flattering reference to Antony or Augustus, who then shared the control of the world. In the Middle Ages it was firmly believed by the scholars that Vergil had been divinely inspired with the knowledge of the coming of Christ, and his fame as a magician was partly based on this idea.

THE MAN

1. In what part of Italy was the childhood of Vergil spent?

2. Why do subsequent epic poets refer to him as 'the Mantuan' and
'father Vergil'?

3. Of what court may we call him the poet laureate?

4. Did Vergil realize that in the reign of Augustus the Roman
world had reached its zenith? XII, 188, 189.

5. Where was most of his literary work done?

6. Give the salient points in Vergil's character.

7. What element in his character especially fitted him for the
post of Rome's epic poet?

8. Did he enjoy "a long life's evening" to sing the praises of
Pollio? XII, 190.

9. Compare the civilization of Vergil's time with that of the
Homeric age. V, 143, 432.

STYLE AND WORKS

1. What rank is generally accorded Vergil among Roman poets?

2. Name his three principal productions.

3. The "Eclogues" or "Bucolics" were written in imitation of what
Greek author?

4. What field of literature did the Romans cultivate, which is
best treated in the "Georgics," and almost entirely neglected by
the writers of the other nations of antiquity?

5. Give Montaigne's opinion of the "Georgics." IX, 209.

6. Why was Vergil regarded as an enchanter in the Middle Ages?
VIII, 95. Give another reason.

7. What two good qualities of Vergil's character ennoble his
verse?

FROM THE "ÆNEID"

1. Æneas, after fleeing from Troy, sacked by the Greeks,
encountered various misfortunes, like Odysseus, and at last
arrived at Carthage, recently founded by Dido, of Phœnicia. He
narrates his adventures to her, and she, doomed by the gods, who
desire to keep Æneas out of Italy, is consumed with love for him.
Warned by friendly divinities to sail for Italy at once, Æneas
has already begun preparations for departure.

2. The "Iliad" and the "Odyssey" were composed and listened to
by men of action, familiar with battlefield, shipwreck, and the
whole outdoor struggle for existence. The "Æneid" was written in
a library by a gentle scholar for an audience whose culture was
far advanced beyond that of Homer's warriors. In the main this
fact is not immediately apparent, for Vergil was a consummate
artist and took pains to prevent his work from 'smelling of the
lamp'; that is, from showing its bookish and studied origin.
But his phrases are hackneyed by comparison with Homer's
"rosy-fingered Dawn" and "Odysseus of many counsels."

3. Find contrasting passages from Vergil and Homer, VII, 79,
illustrating the comparison in 2.

4. Is Dido true to life; is her rash self-destruction
convincingly handled by the poet?

5. Æneas figures in this episode as the villain; what excuse
could Vergil make for him which would be valid in the eyes of the
Romans?

6. What series of wars that almost overwhelmed Rome was carried
on by Carthage centuries later? VIII, 198 ff.

FOR REFERENCE

"The World's Leading Poets."--BOYNTON.

"Stories from Vergil."--CHURCH.

"The Æneid of Vergil" ("Everyman's Library").--TAYLOR.

"The Story of the Æneid."--BROOKS.

"The Country of Horace and Vergil."--BOISSIER.

"Roman Poets of the Augustan Age."--SELLAR.

"Old Pictures of Life."--SWING.

"Great Writers."--WOODBERRY.

DANTE ALIGHIERI

(1265-1321)

Dante Alighieri, who ranks with Homer and Shakespeare as one of the three greatest poets of all time, was a citizen of the Republic of Florence. Though we commonly think of him only as a poet, his youth was distinguished by gallant feats of arms, and he was later one of the principal officers of the republic. But it was impossible to hold office long under the turbulent city states of that age. Two factions, the Whites and the Blacks, contended for the supremacy at Florence, and in 1302 Dante, with many of his followers, was banished from the city.

The remaining nineteen years of Dante's life were spent in exile, the victorious party at Florence steadily refusing to remove the ban. He appears to have spent the years wandering from one seat of learning to another, and from one court to another, though but little is actually known relative to the matter. His last years were certainly spent at Ravenna, at the court of his friend, Guido da Polenta.

Upon his death the fickle republic attempted to secure the return of the remains of its first citizen, but the request was denied, and he still lies at Ravenna.

His great poem, the "Vita Nuova" (new life) would well have served to immortalize him, but it does not compare with his "Divine Comedy," an account of his journey through hell, purgatory, and heaven. It is one of the world's greatest epics. The machinery of the poem was largely derived from the medieval legends and passion plays. But whether this be so or not, we know that Dante was thoroughly competent to have originated everything which the work contains. He calls Vergil his master, but while Vergil may have been his equal in style, he was far inferior to Dante in constructive genius.

When about nine years of age Dante met and was filled with poetic love for Beatrice Portinari. She married another, and after her death a couple of years later, Dante married Gemma Donati, by whom he had several children. Gemma, it seems, was something of a shrew, and perhaps she cannot be blamed for not sympathizing with Dante's continued love for Beatrice. At any rate, she seems to have been a competent person, and when Dante was banished she successfully claimed a part of his property as dower and maintained the family in comfort.

We cannot of course know at this time whether Beatrice was a person worthy of the adoration so abundantly bestowed. However this may be, the undying devotion of Dante, whose nature neither time nor adversity could change, has sufficed to immortalize her name.

THE MAN

1. Of what stock was Dante descended? VIII, 263.

2. Of what state was he a citizen?

3. Under what circumstances did he leave Florence?

4. How did he spend the last nineteen years of his life?

5. What one element is most conspicuous in Dante's character?
VIII, 368.

6. State the facts in regard to Beatrice.

7. Read Michelangelo's sonnet on Dante. IX, 93.

8. Where are his remains interred, and why?

STYLE AND WORKS

1. Compare Dante's view of life with that of Chaucer. VIII, 263.

2. Whence did he derive the precision which characterizes his
narrative? VIII, 263.

3. Did Dante have a broad outlook on the life of his day? III,
253.

4. Compare Dante with Petrarch. VIII, 262.

5. What was Dante's opinion of the Arthurian legends? VIII, 262.

6. What was the effect of Dante's work on the language of Italy?
VIII, 267.

7. Compare the different modes in which Milton and Dante handle
the imagery of their epics. VIII, 361.

8. Why does Dante enter into such minute detail in describing the
scenes he attempts to depict? VIII, 362.

9. Which succeeded best in introducing the agency of supernatural
beings? VIII, 363.

10. In what sense is Dante's description of supernatural beings
picturesque? VIII, 366.

11. In what two respects do Dante and Milton present an exact
parallel? VIII, 368.

FROM THE "PARADISO"

1. The "Singer" is an appellation given to what Biblical
character?

2. According to this poem, are all souls of equal rank in heaven?

3. What determines a person's rank there?

4. Find verses which describe Adam and St. Peter.

5. To whom does the following refer:

"That leader under whom on manna lived
The people ingrate, fickle, and stiff-necked." (See Exodus
XXXII, 9.)

6. How was Dante's life connected with the life of Beatrice?

7. What do the "three circles" represent which Dante saw when he
looked on Christ?

FOR REFERENCE

"The World's Leading Poets."--BOYNTON.

"Witnesses of the Light."--GLADDEN.

"Dante and the Divine Comedy."--WRIGHT.

"The Moral System of Dante's Inferno."--READE.

"Introduction to the Study of Dante."--BOTTA.

"Dante, his Times and his Work."--BUTLER.

"Aids to the Study of Dante."--DINSMORE.

JOHN MILTON

(1608-1674)

John Milton, the son of a scrivener of some means, was born in London. He studied in succession at St. Paul's School, London, and Christ's College, Cambridge, and on account of his beauty, and the purity of his morals, was known as the "lady of Christ's Church." Upon graduation from Cambridge he went to live with his father (who had in the meantime removed to the village of Horton, Buckinghamshire), determined to devote his life to literature. At Horton he wrote his early poems, "L'Allegro," "Il Penseroso," "Lycidas," and "Comus." "Lycidas" is an elegy in memory of his intimate friend Henry King, drowned off the Welsh coast.

After six years at Horton, he spent fifteen months making the Continental tour, and would have stayed longer; but the civil war breaking out, he returned, considering it dishonorable to be enjoying himself abroad while his countrymen were striking a blow for freedom. He laid aside all thought of belles lettres and devoted his pen to the cause of Puritanism, writing many pamphlets in defense of regicide, freedom of the press, divorce, etc. In 1849 he was appointed Latin Secretary to the Council of State, and became the recognized literary champion of the Government in the fierce controversies of that age.

Upon the restoration of the monarchy Milton was for a time in hiding, but after 1660 was permitted to go unmolested. In his blind old age he again reverted to poetry, and wrote the immortal epics, "Paradise Lost," "Paradise Regained," and the tragedy, "Samson Agonistes."

THE MAN

1. What political opinions did Milton hold? VIII, 390.

2. Give your impression of his morals and personal appearance.

3. Account for the three main divisions of his works--lyric
poems, prose, and epic poems, with their differing tone--by his
condition in life at different times.

4. In what remarkable respect does Milton's character resemble
that of the Satan of his epic? VIII, 367, 369.

5. With what religious and political party did he ally himself?

6. What office did he hold under the Commonwealth?

7. In what virtues was he preëminent?

8. State two circumstances illustrating the heroism of his nature.

STYLE AND WORKS

1. What was the extent of Milton's education? VIII, 354.

2. In what field does "Comus" stand among the foremost? VIII, 359.

3. Which did Milton consider his best poem? VIII, 360.

4. Compare "Paradise Lost" with the "Divine Comedy" as to the
different modes pursued by Milton and Dante in exciting the
imagination. VIII, 361.

5. Are Milton's grand visions the result of inspiration or of
industry? I, 404.

6. Why is Milton so little read at the present time? VI, 279.

7. Were the civilization with which he was surrounded and the
learning which he had acquired helps or hindrances to the
composition of a great epic poem? VIII, 350.

8. Characterize the style of his prose writings. VIII, 394.

"LYCIDAS"

1. What qualities are attributed to laurel, myrtle, and ivy by
the 'language of the flowers'?

2. Lycidas is the poetic appellation of what deceased friend of
Milton?

3. Who were the "sisters of the sacred well"?

4. To what circumstance does the allusion to "the remorseless
deep" closing o'er the head of Lycidas refer? And what is the
propriety of referring to Druids and Mona in that connection?

5. Who is meant by "The pilot of the Galilean lake"? Note the
symbols of his office which he carries, "two massy keys."

6. "Shepherd" and "sheep" are used in a metaphorical sense.
Explain their real meaning. To whom do these terms refer in the
Bible?

7. Why are the pansy, primrose, jessamine, violet, etc., used as
emblems of mourning?

8. Tennyson's "In Memoriam," XII, 47; Shelley's "Adonais," XI,
95; and Gray's "Elegy," VI, 106, are all laments of the same
nature. Compare the four in style, mood, etc.

FOR REFERENCE

"The World's Leading Poets."--BOYNTON.

"Story-Lives of Great Authors."--ROWBOTHAM.

"Criticisms on Paradise Lost."--ADDISON.

"Literary Studies."--BAGEHOT.

"Great Books."--FARRAR.

"Among my Books."--LOWELL.

"Essay on Milton" (VIII, 347).--MACAULAY.

"The Age of Milton" ("Handbooks of English Literature
").--MASTERMAN.

Masson's annotated edition of Milton's poems is invaluable for the student's use.

WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

(1564-1616)

Comparatively little is known of Shakespeare's life. His education was slight, with but "small Latin and less Greek," as his friend Ben Jonson puts it. There is little doubt that the financial depression of the times brought poverty upon his family, that he was charged with deer-stealing by a local landlord, Sir Thomas Lucy, and that he soon after went to London to seek his fortune, at the age of twenty-one, in 1585. There he seems to have held horses at the theater entrances, then to have served as "call-boy" for the players, and by 1592 had begun to patch and revise plays. By 1594 he was an actor, and made more money than by play-writing, although he is nowhere mentioned as more than passable on the stage. Original plays had already appeared from his pen, comedies and historical drama first, followed by the tragedies, and ending with "A Winter's Tale," and "The Tempest"; the order of appearance as usually accepted is given in X, 424. What with the success of his dramatic work, his acting, and the patronage of the Earl of Southampton, to whom he dedicated "Venus and Adonis" and "Lucrece," he was able to take shares in the Globe theater, invest in land and houses at Stratford, and at last retire, as he long had wished, to New Place, his Stratford residence, there to spend his last years as a prosperous landlord. He died in 1616 and was buried in the chancel of Trinity Church, on the banks of the Avon. On the stone floor over his grave is the familiar inscription:

"Good friend, for Jesus sake forbeare
To digg the dust encloased heare;
Blest be the man that spares thes stones,
And curst be he that moves my bones."

What books did Shakespeare read? Few, as compared with the average author of his or any other age. Apart from the plays which he remade, he gleaned material and plot from Plutarch (North's translation), Holinshed, Geoffrey of Monmouth's history of British kings, now almost forgotten because of its mythical medley and inaccuracy, Boccaccio, Chaucer, and Montaigne. But the book of human life spread open before him is the source of his characters and the descriptive touches that lend vividness to his scenes. Falstaff, Lear, Rosalind, Antony, Macbeth, and Hamlet are all taken from his knowledge and observation of human nature in the living flesh.

THE MAN

1. What can be said as to Shakespeare's private life and
anecdotes in reference thereto? VI, 132.

2. Did he take to the stage from choice? VI, 133.

3. What was his reputation among his fellow playwrights? VI, 134.

4. Of what faith was Shakespeare, and what was his attitude
toward Puritanism? VI, 138.

5. What led him to turn from comedy to tragedy after his fortieth
year? VI, 142.

6. Through what occupations did Shakespeare pass to reach the
position of dramatist?

7. Was he able to turn his experience to practical account?
Explain.

8. Was Shakespeare what would be called in these days a man of
the world?

9. Why do you suppose he wrote plays if acting was more lucrative?

10. Show his application of business sense to his poetry.

STYLE AND WORKS

1. Did Shakespeare make any considerable use of the pun? I, 13.

2. To what do Shakespeare and his contemporaries owe their unique
greatness in English literature? I, 180.

3. Are his dramas all of the first quality? III, 265.

4. Was it ever necessary for Shakespeare to 'court the muse'
before writing? IV, 397.

5. Give a classification of his works. (See encyclopedia.)

6. Name his first poetic productions, and state when they were
published. VI, 135.

7. What is known as to the order of publication of his dramas?
VI, 135.

8. Which of Shakespeare's plays have endeared him most with his
countrymen? VI, 137, 138.

9. What plays were written in the retirement of his latter years
at Stratford? VI, 143.

10. Compare Marlowe's "Faustus," IX, 43, with "King Lear," XI, 3;
and Jonson's "Every Man in his Humor" and "The Alchemist," VII,
346-354, with "Henry IV," X, 424. What are the divergences in
style; in method of portraying character?

FROM "KING LEAR"

1. This act from "King Lear" is the most masterful passage in all
Shakespeare's work. The characters are all of them tense with
emotion, either grief-stricken or insane. Lear himself, at first
vexed, then infuriated (XI, 7), broken with anguish (11), and
apprehending madness (16), collapses and goes completely insane
(19). Kent, his faithful retainer, whom he had previously sent
into exile, watches him with a sorrow that is almost more than he
can bear. The Fool, crack-brained and simple, is the blending of
idiocy and shrewdness sometimes known as 'an innocent.' Edgar,
Gloucester's good son, cast out by his shortsighted father,
feigns madness for the sake of disguise. Each of these four
characters represents a different psychological condition. Such
a task as the dramatic manipulation of these personalities has
never been attempted before or since. Madness, though a common
subject with Shakespeare's contemporaries, has not elsewhere been
handled with success.

The use of prose indicates disorder of the mind; thus Lear speaks
in blank verse until his intellect gives way (19), and thereafter
only when showing the power of reasoning, as in the speech (35)
on which Edgar makes the comment: "O, matter and impertinency
mix'd!" The Fool uses prose or nonsense rhyme throughout; Edgar
while playing the madman does the same, and assumes blank verse
when he drops the disguise.

FROM "AS YOU LIKE IT"

1. How is the title of the play appropriately suggestive of its
tenor?

2. Compare Rosalind of this play with Juliet of "Romeo and
Juliet."

3. What is Rosalind's object in deceiving Orlando concerning her
identity?

4. What part does Touchstone take in the play?

FROM "ROMEO AND JULIET"

1. Select several lines which indicate the outcome of this
youthful passion.

2. Both "As You Like It" and "Romeo and Juliet" have the same
theme--young lovers; compare the style of treatment of each.

3. In each case does the language used suit the scene in which
the play is laid?

4. What difficulties does Romeo have to encounter to see Juliet?

FOR REFERENCE

"Shakespeare, a Critical Study of his Mind and Art."--DOWDEN.

"William Shakespeare."--WENDELL.

"Introduction to Shakespeare."--DOWDEN.

"Studies in Shakespeare."--COLLINS.

"The Age of Shakespeare."--SECCOMBE AND ALLEN.

"On Ten Plays of Shakespeare."--BROOKE.

"Shakespeare" ("English Men of Letters").--RALEIGH.

"Shakespeare."--SWINBURNE.

"Tales from Shakespeare."--LAMB.

JOHANN WOLFGANG VON GOETHE

(1749-1832)