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)
The greatest literary genius that Germany has produced was born and
spent his early years at Frankfort-on-the-Main, then capital of the
German confederation. His later youth was spent in preparation for
the bar at Leipsic and Strasburg.
By 1775 he had rendered himself famous by his drama "Götz von
Berlichingen" and his novel, "The Sorrows of Werther." In that
year he removed to Weimar, which soon because of him became the
intellectual Mecca of Germany. He found a true friend in Karl August,
Duke of Weimar, and throughout his long life occupied one after
another of the chief offices of that little state. In the succeeding
years appeared many dramas and other works, principal among the
former being "Iphigenia," "Tasso," and "Egmont."
The year 1789 witnessed the beginning of his acquaintance with
Schiller, then professor of history at Jena. Schiller had established
a literary journal "Die Horen," to which Goethe contributed his
"Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship." And in the same year, 1796,
Goethe and Schiller wrote between them some six hundred "Xenien,"
pithy sayings on the philosophic tendencies of the age. The next
year Goethe published his "Hermann and Dorothea," a romance in verse
and one of his best works. Schiller removed to Weimar in 1799, and
Germany's two foremost poets worked together until the death of
Schiller in 1805.
Until his death, twenty-seven years later, Goethe was unceasingly
busy. Not satisfied with being preëminent in literature, he plunged
into anatomy, vegetable physiology, and optics, in each of which, far
from simply playing the amateur, he rendered permanent service to
science.
Throughout his whole life he labored at that greatest of all German
dramas, "Faust." Begun as early as 1774, it first appeared in 1790
and then only as a 'fragment.' Urged by Schiller, he took it up
again, and in 1808 the First Part was issued; the Second Part, only
after his death, in 1833. This Second Part is as deep in its thought
and philosophy as any poetic work that has been written; it has been
the subject of study and meditation by all the great thinkers since
its publication.
THE MAN
1. Give Heine's description of Goethe's personal appearance. VI,
389.
2. What was Goethe's education?
3. Were Goethe's love affairs limited to his youth? IV, 372.
4. What part did Goethe take in scientific research? VI, 237.
5. What part did he take in political affairs?
6. Name three eminent writers who visited Goethe at Weimar. VI,
377; VIII, 174, 180.
7. How late in life did Goethe retain his physical vigor? IV, 403.
8. Did Goethe conceive of God as a personal being? I, 392.
9. What great composer was among his intimate friends? I, 418.
10. See Goethe's forecast of the construction of the Panama Canal
by the United States. IV, 385.
STYLE AND WORKS
1. Give Goethe's own statement of his influence upon German
poetry and institutions. I, 170.
2. For what reason is Faust not fully appreciated by the reading
public? IV, 382.
3. What was Napoleon's opinion of Goethe's works? IV, 401.
4. During what portion of Goethe's life was "Faust" written?
5. Name three other dramas of note by Goethe.
6. The position assigned to "Hermann and Dorothea"?
7. Who was the continuator of Goethe's work? I, 168.
8. What was Heine's opinion of Goethe? I, 169.
9. Was he the author of any prose works?
10. From what you read of him in I, 168-171; IV, 371 ff.; VI,
388-390; VIII, 172 ff.; do you think he belonged to the Age of
Classicism or of Romanticism, or both? What conclusion do you
draw from his work, its subject-matter, and its style?
FROM "FAUST"
1. The selection from "Faust" includes practically the whole
tragedy of Margaret's temptation, and forms a complete drama in
itself. This is the central theme of the First Part of "Faust";
in the Second Part Faust saves himself from damnation by
abandoning selfishness and solitude and becoming a worker for the
good of humanity, at one with the world.
2. What is Faust's first purpose?
3. Mephistopheles is to be regarded either as an evil spirit or
else as Faust's own baser side, endeavoring to defeat the ideals
of his better self.
4. What does the character of Martha add to the drama?
5. Compare with Marlowe's "Doctor Faustus," IX, 43, ff.
6. Which is the more immediately powerful? Both are derived from
a medieval tale and are related to the medieval morality plays,
in which virtues and vices are represented struggling for the
souls of men. Does Goethe or Marlowe come nearer to this simple
form of drama in style? in spirit?
FOR REFERENCE
"Life of Goethe."--BIELSCHOWSKY.
"Goethe and Schiller."--BOYESEN.
"The World's Leading Poets."--BOYNTON.
"Goethe and his Woman Friends."--CRAWFORD.
"Critical and Miscellaneous Essays."--CARLYLE.
"Conversations with Goethe."--ECKERMANN.
"Life of Goethe."--LEWES.
FRIEDRICH VON SCHILLER
(1759-1805)
Schiller, the most beloved of German poets, was a native of the Duchy
of Würtemberg. Abandoning the study of the law for that of medicine,
he gave vent to his literary powers by writing the romantic drama of
"The Robbers," produced in 1782. Meanwhile he had become regimental
surgeon and was obliged to leave his regiment without permission in
order to witness the performance. As a result he was put under arrest
and involved in further trouble, fleeing at last into hiding, under a
false name.
Drifting through the literary centers of Germany, studying history
and writing drama the while, he came in 1787 to Weimar, where he was
received kindly by the duke, Goethe's patron and friend, and soon
after met Goethe himself. Through the latter's influence Schiller
received a post at the University of Jena as professor of history,
and devoted himself to that subject; his "History of the Thirty
Years' War" belongs to this period.
By 1795 he had become intimate with Goethe and renewed his poetic
work, his principal dramas and "The Song of the Bell," all
belonging to this period. Of the former, "Maria Stuart" and "The
Maid of Orleans" deserve high praise beside his masterpieces, the
"Wallenstein" trilogy, and "Wilhelm Tell," his last and most popular
play.
His character was noble and lovable, and his work possesses a
high finish in style and a lofty vein of idealism which gives it
a resemblance to those passages and plays of Shakespeare in which
princes and potentates appear. He was a lover of the Bard of Avon
and translated several of his plays into German. But Schiller did
not attempt the many-sided portrayal of life that was Shakespeare's
forte; for him the presentation of high ideals and a majestic plot
involving the great motives of human action was sufficient.
Yet his thought is not so profound as Goethe's, and its expression,
on the other hand, is not so simple. The story of Margaret's tragedy,
in "Faust," is bare as compared with the plots of "Tell" or "Maria
Stuart" and the character development therein; but the lesson which
Goethe drove home to the hearts of men was more forcible than any of
Schiller's.
THE MAN
1. What terms of intimacy existed between Goethe and Schiller?
VIII, 182.
2. Was his education calculated to fit him for the calling of a
poet?
3. Was Jean Paul Richter right in supposing Schiller to be of a
strong nature? VIII, 175.
4. What was the nature of his connection with Jena?
5. In what respect did he resemble Shelley? VII, 222.
6. Where, and in whose company, were his latter years spent?
7. Compare Goethe and Schiller in character and in work.
STYLE AND WORKS
1. In what two departments of literature did Schiller attain
eminence?
2. Which works treat of scenes outside of Germany?
3. Name his four greatest dramas.
4. Which of these is esteemed the masterpiece?
5. Which first brought him to public notice?
6. For what two great historical works are we indebted to him?
FROM "WILHELM TELL"
1. What are the social and political conditions in Switzerland
at the beginning of the play? How did they compare with those of
other lands?
2. From what class in society do the characters come? Is their
style of speech consistent with their social position? Is
absolute adherence to realism desirable? Why, and also why not?
3. What is the date of this play and what great social upheavals
had recently taken place?
4. Why is Tell's son introduced?
5. Is the character of Gessler too harshly drawn?
6. The scene on p. 363 occurs at the close of the play; meanwhile
previous acts have shown the development of the spirit of freedom
in the hearts of the people and the determination to do away with
tyranny. Does this justify Tell's act?
7. "The Robbers" was one of the first products of Romanticism; is
"Tell" also a good example of this age?
8. Compare the style in "Tell" with that of Shakespeare and
Goethe, making allowance for loss in translation.
FOR REFERENCE
"Life of Friedrich Schiller."--CARLYLE.
"Biographical Essays."--DE QUINCEY.
"Goethe and Schiller."--BOYESEN.
CHARLES DICKENS
(1812-1870)
Charles Dickens was born at Portsmouth, England. His parents were
poor and luckless. His early years were spent in moving from place
to place, and as a boy he performed the services of a drudge and was
rewarded with a mere pittance. Such education as he received was
gained in the severe school of experience.
Hence it is not surprising that, after having been connected with
various newspapers in a subordinate capacity, when he finally tried
his hand at serial fiction he astounded the world in "Pickwick
Papers" by his wonderful descriptions of middle and lower class
English life; a work also unexcelled in its good-natured merriment.
"Pickwick Papers" and its successors were among the first of those
social novels which form so marked a feature of modern literature.
They waged open and successful warfare against many of the crying
evils of the day, such as the work-houses, the barbarous school
system in vogue, and the legal and prison systems.
Dickens was too kind-hearted to sneer, but his mocking humor was
quite as effective. He won the hearts of high and low alike, and the
sale of his novels was phenomenal.
In addition to rollicking humor, touches of satire and a pronounced
tendency toward exaggerated pathos appear in his work, the latter
quality especially in "The Old Curiosity Shop" and "Dombey and Son."
His creative powers were immense, the numbers of his characters
running into the hundreds. Though some of these serve the purpose
of lay figures, yet they are redeemed from mere puppetry by some
whimsical oddity that stamps the character indelibly on one's mind.
"David Copperfield," "Bleak House," and "Pickwick Papers" are usually
held to be the best of his work.
THE MAN
1. Where did Dickens receive his education? Compare it with that
of other novelists.
2. Give the sources of his intimate acquaintance with conditions
among the lower class.
3. What moral characteristic of the man took the sting out of his
satire?
4. What great quality will ever endear him to the public?
5. Where did Dickens make his home after his reputation had
become established? V, 220.
6. What was his attitude toward the poor after he had become a
man of substance?
7. Have social conditions in England improved since his day? In
what lines and how?
STYLE AND WORKS
1. In what is Dickens related to the period of Romanticism? Is he
characteristically English? Compare him with Dumas, Daudet, and
Harte.
2. What beneficial effect has the reading of his novels had on
everyday life?
3. Explain his custom of running several stories at the same time
in a novel. III, 254, 259.
4. What is the true secret of his popularity? III, 250.
5. Whence did Dickens obtain the numerous characters that crowd
his pages?
6. What art lies at the bottom of his comic masterpiece? III, 258.
7. To what extent have Dickens's characters become common
property of the race? III, 248.
8. How does Dickens compare with the other novelists of the
nineteenth century? III, 264.
9. Does Dickens's continued popularity prove the contention that
the public likes bad literature? III, 252.
10. Which novel will endure the longer, that in which the
characters are exaggerated and impossible, as his often are, or
that in which the characters are carefully and realistically
drawn? III, 266.
11. Which is more popular at the present time, Dickens or
Kipling? III, 249.
12. What work brought Dickens into public notice?
13. Name three novels in which pathos predominates.
14. Which is considered his greatest work?
15. Dickens and Hood were masters of both humor and pathos, the
one as a novelist, the other as a poet. Compare them in these
qualities.
FROM "PICKWICK PAPERS"
1. Is this style clear and forcible? Why?
2. Is Mr. Magnus a common character of to-day whom one may meet
while traveling?
3. Would you expect to see the White Horse Inn at Ipswich if you
were in England?
4. Draw a character sketch of Mr. Pickwick.
5. When reading a story is it more effective when dialect is
introduced? How far may the use of dialect be carried?
6. Do you notice any exaggeration in incident or description? If
so what purpose does it serve?
7. Contrast the description of the temperance meeting with
Dickens's attitude on other social reforms.
8. Is this satire justified on any grounds then or now?
FOR REFERENCE
"The Life of Charles Dickens."--FORSTER.
"Charles Dickens."--CHESTERTON.
"Life of Charles Dickens as Revealed in his
Writings."--FITZGERALD.
"Great English Novelists."--DAWSON.
"Charles Dickens and His Girl Heroines."--MOSES.
"Dickens" ("English Men of Letters").--WARD.
"Masters of the English Novel."--BURTON.
WILLIAM MAKEPEACE THACKERAY
(1811-1863)
The novelist was born in Calcutta, India; he was sent to Cambridge
University. Here he was an intimate friend of Tennyson and Fitzgerald
(translator of the "Rubáiyát"). After losing his money in various
newspaper deals, he settled down in London as a literary hack. His
genius soon attracted the attention of "Punch," which welcomed his
sketches and satires against snobbery.
"Vanity Fair" in 1847 finally raised him to the highest rank among
writers of fiction. "Pendennis" followed, and a little later "Henry
Esmond," the equal of "Vanity Fair." Its sequel, "The Virginians,"
was not so powerful.
Thackeray came to the United States in 1852 and delivered his
lectures on "The English Humorists." So pleased was he with the
country that he returned again three years later and lectured on
"The Four Georges." During these trips he became acquainted with the
leading American writers of the day.
THE MAN
1. With what noted English periodical was he connected?
2. Did he soon show an aptitude for fiction?
3. What authors were numbered among his most intimate friends?
4. What other eminent English writer was born in India? VIII, 3.
5. Describe his American visits.
6. Is the vein of cynicism which runs through his writings
indicative of his real character?
STYLE AND WORKS
1. Was Thackeray a realist? III, 266, 267.
2. Upon what was his creation of character based?
3. What great service did he render English society?
4. Which of his works were delivered in America in the form of
lectures?
5. Which were particularly aimed at British snobbery?
6. Why is Dickens more popular than Thackeray? III, 248.
7. For which may we expect the more enduring fame? III, 264.
8. Read his metrical translations from Beranger. I, 428-431.
9. Which two novels are considered his masterpieces?
10. Was his work characteristically English, as contrasted with
that of other nations?
"CLUB SNOBS"
1. Why should bachelors be excluded from the luxuries of Clubs?
2. To whom should the privilege of attending these institutions
be given and during what hours?
3. What evils are attributed to these institutions; wrongly or
otherwise?
4. In general do women's clubs or men's clubs exert a more
beneficial influence on the surrounding community?
5. How serious is the author?
"THE SNOB ROYAL"
1. What queen of England is alluded to by "her present Majesty"?
(See the dates of Thackeray's life.)
2. How does Thackeray's definition of a "Snob" compare with your
conception of this type of person?
3. From your own knowledge of Charles II, do you consider him
worthy of the title "snob"?
4. Compare Chesterfield's ideas of a gentleman with Thackeray's.
III, 240-247.
5. Thackeray wrote several parodies of successful novels; which
type does he satirize in the opening paragraph of this essay?
6. 'The Baron of Bradwardine' refers to Scott; do you agree with
Thackeray's condemnation of Scott's conduct? Why? Why not?
FOR REFERENCE
"Life of Thackeray."--BENJAMIN.
"Thackeray."--CHESTERTON.
"Great English Novelists."--JACKSON.
"Literary Studies."--BAGEHOT.
"The Thackeray Country."--BENJAMIN.
"Victorian Prose Masters."--BROWNELL.
"Thackeray's Haunts and Homes."--CROWE.
"With Thackeray in America."--CROWE.
SAMUEL JOHNSON
(1709-1784)
Johnson was born at Lichfield, Staffordshire, and studied at Oxford.
His early years were one continuous struggle with poverty, first as a
teacher at Lichfield and other places and afterwards as a hack writer
in London. During the latter period, besides his ordinary duties as
an editor of various magazines, he found time to turn his hand to the
most diverse forms of literature. He wrote poems, "London" and the
"Vanity of Human Wishes"; a drama, "Irene"; a philosophic romance,
"Rasselas, Prince of Abyssinia"; two series of essays, the "Rambler"
and the "Idler," after the model of Addison's "Spectator"; and
prepared the first English dictionary.
In 1862 he was granted a pension of £300 by Lord Bute, from which
time dates his literary dictatorship. His only subsequent works of
importance were his "Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland" and
his "Lives of the Poets." The latter is his best work and one of the
monuments of English criticism in spite of its prejudiced tone.
During the latter half of his life he gathered about him a coterie
of the most intellectual men of the day, nearly all of whom belonged
to the literary society known as the Club. Burke, Goldsmith, Gibbon,
Garrick, Reynolds, and Boswell were among his intimates.
THE MAN
1. To see Johnson, the thinker and the man, read Boswell's
"Life," II, 100 ff., and then take up the following questions:
2. What attitude did Johnson maintain toward religious questions?
3. Quote Goldsmith on his roughness of manner.
4. What was Johnson's opinion of the married state?
5. Would you judge him to have been of a harsh or tender
disposition?
6. See Frances Burney's account of his sociability. II, 339 ff.
7. In what respect was the Doctor a typical Anglo-Saxon? VIII,
259.
8. What distinguishes Boswell from most biographers? II, 100.
9. Where did Johnson win his fame, in writing, or in society?
10. Is he a true follower of the spirit of Classicism?
STYLE AND WORKS
1. What peculiar position did Johnson occupy in the literary
world of his day?
2. If Johnson is to be called heroic for having kept at his
dictionary until its completion, why should not the term be
applied to later lexicographers, whose dictionaries are much more
extensive?
3. Under what circumstances does Johnson justify dissimulation?
4. Was his criticism of Milton fair? VIII, 350.
5. Why was he a poor critic of the Latin productions of modern
writers? VIII, 354.
6. Give Johnson's view of death.
7. By what works is he best known?
8. Is he comparable with Addison as an essayist in your opinion?
Why?
"THE VALLEY OF HAPPINESS"
1. 'The father of waters' is an appellation applied to what
African stream?
2. Can man be truly happy with luxury alone?
3. What occupations give the greatest pleasure to the normal
person?
4. How long is the active life of the average man or woman?
5. The power to enjoy our blessings is enhanced by what knowledge
or experience?
6. In the description of the Valley of Happiness, find some
combinations of setting which would not hold in real life.
7. Judging from this selection, would the human race be contented
in utter idleness?
8. What moral did Johnson wish to teach by this piece?
9. Would Johnson deserve immortality simply on the merits of
this, one of his best pieces of literary work?
FOR REFERENCE
"Life of Johnson."--BOSWELL.
"Dr. Johnson" ("Bell's Miniature series").--DENNIS.
"Life of Johnson."--MACAULAY.
"Six Essays on Johnson."--RALEIGH.
"Doctor Johnson and Mrs. Thrale."--BROADLEY.
"Essay on Boswell's Johnson."--CARLYLE.
OLIVER GOLDSMITH
(1728-1774)
Goldsmith was born in central Ireland, where his father was a
clergyman of the Established Church of England. His youth gave little
promise of future eminence. Educated at Trinity College, Dublin,
after various escapades he was sent by his uncle to study medicine in
Edinburgh. After a few months of study he started on a four years'
vagabond trip, during which he made the tour of Western Europe on
foot, paying his way with his flute.
Returning to England he was by turns a physician, proofreader,
teacher, and hack writer. In the latter capacity he came in contact
with Dr. Johnson, and was one of the nine charter members of the
Club, a literary society over which Johnson held genial sway. The
next year appeared his first work of any value, the poem, "The
Traveler." A year later he published his only novel, "The Vicar of
Wakefield," still one of the most popular of stories. From this he
turned to the drama and produced "The Good-Natured Man," and "She
Stoops to Conquer," the latter unsurpassed among later English
comedies. At some time prior to this appeared his greatest poem, "The
Deserted Village."
In character he was a strange mixture of generosity and vanity; the
butt and yet the envy of his many friends, uncouth in appearance and
yet gifted with so lucid a style.
THE MAN
1. Goldsmith was educated at the same college as Burke: did he
benefit as greatly?
2. Under what circumstances did he make the tour of the Continent?
3. Were his habits of dress eccentric? II, 115.
4. He was a member of what celebrated literary coterie?
5. What were his principal traits?
6. What was his opinion of his friend Johnson? II, 110, 122.
STYLE AND WORKS
1. Give Johnson's estimate of the "Good-Natured Man." II, 103.
2. Was Goldsmith a productive poet? See Goethe's statement to
Eckermann. IV, 393.
3. Name the principal prose writers of his time. II, 100, 331; V,
193, 406; VII, 334; XI, 294.
4. What other poet wrote at this period? VI, 106.
5. The style of Goldsmith is in imitation of what poet? X, 64.
6. What defects mar his writings?
7. Name three of his works in different departments of
literature, any one of which would have served to establish his
reputation.
8. What poem brought him into public notice?
"THE DESERTED VILLAGE"
1. What is the economic effect on a community when one large
landholder possesses the entire land?
2. The "bold peasantry" of England are similar to what class in
America?
3. What was Goldsmith's ideal of a happy old age?
4. To what qualities of character was the attracting power of the
village preacher due?
5. What were the qualifications of a rustic school teacher in
Goldsmith's time?
6. Why is wealth a barren possession?
7. Name some of the disagreeable surroundings of a life in the
tropics.
8. What plan does Goldsmith recommend to remedy the evils of the
present social system?
9. What is your judgment of the style of this poem?
10. Does Goldsmith's description ring true?
11. As an example of the influence of Classicism, compare it
with Milton's "L'Allegro" and "Il Penseroso," IX, 110, of the
Renaissance, and "The Cotter's Saturday Night," II, 343, of the
Romantic Period.
FOR REFERENCE
"Goldsmith" ("English Men of Letters").--BLACK.
"Oliver Goldsmith" ("Bell's Miniature Series").--BUCKLAND.
"Biographical Essays."--MACAULAY.
"Story-Lives of Great Authors."--ROWBOTHAM.
"Essays on the Poets."--DE QUINCEY.
"A Paladin of Philanthropy."--DOBSON.
THOMAS GRAY
(1716-1771)
After studying at Eton and at Cambridge University, Gray made
the customary tour of the Continent and then settled down to a
retired life among his books. His circle of friends was small but
intellectual. He spent most of his life at Cambridge, reading and
thinking.
In disposition he was very reserved, seldom revealing his feelings.
As he was sensitive and also rather melancholy it was natural that he
should find few intimates. Always a student, he none the less applied
himself to those topics only which attracted him, neglecting such
portions of the subject as did not appeal to him, so that although
one of the most learned men of his time he did not receive public
recognition until his appointment as regius professor of history and
modern languages at Cambridge, three years before his death.
The Age of Classicism, in which he lived, was repugnant to him; its
formal standards, as expressed especially by the poetry of Pope,
offended his fastidious taste, which was charmed by the wild beauty
of nature and longed for freedom of expression and avoidance of
convention in literary art.
He was the forerunner of the Romantic spirit. Had he lived forty
years later he would have been far more productive; the poetry of
Wordsworth, Byron, and the rest of that dazzling group of poets would
have strengthened and enthused him.
What little he wrote bears witness to the scholarship, refinement,
and depth of feeling of the recluse. His "Elegy," meditated in Stoke
Pogis churchyard near his mother's home, where he spent the summer,
is probably the most thoroughly English poem ever written. It was
begun in 1742 and finished in 1750; during the interval it was
polished and revised so effectively that not a word can be altered
without detracting from its symmetry and splendor. The dignity of
the classic spirit and the wistful grace of Romanticism are both
apparent, but the keynote is quiet, simple love of everyday life
tinged with moral reflection, the note sounded again and again in
English poetry and prose.
THE MAN
1. What was Gray's education; did he travel?
2. What was his nature?
3. How did he spend his life?
4. What was the character of the age in which he lived?
5. What influence did this period have upon Gray?
6. In what period would he have been more active?
7. How did he show national tendencies in his work?
"ELEGY WRITTEN IN A COUNTRY CHURCHYARD"
1. Select stanzas representative of the Romantic spirit.
2. Select stanzas that are Classic in tone.
3. Point out the ideas or phrases in each which lead you to make
the classification.
4. Sketch roughly on separate sheets of paper the outlines of the
pictures in each stanza.
5. Compare the pictures in the poem with those in Milton's
"L'Allegro" and "Il Penseroso," IX, 110.
6. Compare the poem also with Goldsmith's "Deserted Village," VI,
94.
7. What phrases or passages impress you as being especially
English in tone? Why?
8. What changes would you expect to find in a modern English
village neighborhood?
9. Where do you observe traces of Gray's scholarship?
10. Select the best stanzas and explain their superiority.
11. Do any lines suggest Gray's sensitive dislike of the spirit
of his times and the melancholy reserve in his nature? Which
lines?
FOR REFERENCE
"Life of Gray."--MASON.
"Life of Gray" ("English Men of Letters").--GOSSE.
"Gray and his Friends."--TOVEY.
"Essays."--LOWELL.
"Letters."--Ed. RIDEOUT.
EDMUND BURKE
(1729-1797)
Edmund Burke was a native of Dublin, Ireland. After a careful
preparatory training, he entered Trinity College, Dublin, where he
showed marked ability in eloquence, history, poetry, and philosophy.
After receiving his master's degree, he went to England, with the
intention of becoming a barrister, but found the profession not to
his taste. He accordingly spent the next six years making the tour of
Great Britain and the Continent, and forming the acquaintance of the
leading literary men.
The first years after his return to England were devoted to literary
work, resulting in two philosophical essays, "Vindication of Natural
Society," and "The Sublime and Beautiful." He also collaborated with
his cousin William Burke in "An Account of the European Settlements
in America."
But he soon turned his attention to politics. In 1766 he was elected
to Parliament, of which he remained a member for twenty-eight years.
He held many other positions under the Government, and his actions
were always distinguished by the strictest integrity. He labored
earnestly in the cause of humanity, against the slave trade and the
oppression of India and the American Colonies. His most widely read
works are his "Speech at the Trial of Warren Hastings," and the
speech on "Conciliation with America." But owing to his increasing
conservatism he failed to appreciate the causes of the French
Revolution and his "Reflections on the Revolution in France" is of
little critical value.
Burke was distinguished by great nobility of mind and purity of
life, both public and private. He possessed great oratorical powers,
a vigorous imagination, a rare gift of observation, and prodigious
industry.
Yet on the other hand, he appears not to have known how to contain
himself, but scattered his eloquence on all occasions, until the
public ear became dulled. He was also of a passionate and intractable
disposition, qualities which in the course of time left him in
political isolation.
Among his friends were Dr. Johnson, Goldsmith, Boswell, Sir Joshua
Reynolds, the famous painter, and Garrick, the great actor. These
were members of the Club, a society of the most brilliant intellects
in England at that day. Burke's learning and power were greatly
venerated by them, and by none more than by Johnson, who admitted
that he must be at his best to meet Burke in argument.
THE MAN
1. Of what city was Burke a native?
2. In what branches of learning did he achieve distinction?
3. State the mode he adopted for completing his education.
4. Were his first years in England devoted to oratory?
5. What was the extent of his connection with the British
Parliament?
6. Give his views with regard to contemporary conditions in
India, France, and the American Colonies.
7. Where did he die?
8. What was his social environment?
STYLE AND WORKS
1. What qualities distinguished Burke's oratory? V, 424.
2. Taking his utterances out of their forensic setting, how would
they compare with the finest of Milton's prose passages? VIII,
394.
3. Were his rhetorical sallies always in good taste? XI, 199.
4. What great service did he render to the British Constitution?
XI, 204.
5. Aside from his oration on Conciliation with the Colonies, what
evidence have we that Burke was thoroughly informed on American
affairs?
6. What great works did he compose in addition to speeches?
7. What are the principal elements of beauty and power in his
productions?
8. What characteristics detracted from permanent popularity?
9. Is his work characteristic of the Age of Classicism?
FROM "CONCILIATION WITH THE AMERICAN COLONIES"
1. What reasons does Burke give for concession on England's part
toward the American colonies?
2. Why did this statesman consider the use of force impractical?
3. What nation was very likely meant by "foreign enemy"?
4. Account for the excessive spirit of liberty which predominates
in the character of most Americans.
5. In what respect was England at a great disadvantage in
governing her colonies? How is this remedied now?
6. How was religion instrumental in making the colonists more
dissatisfied with English rule?
7. What was the condition of education in America at this time?
8. If England had followed Burke's plan of conciliation, is it
likely that the American Colonies would have revolted either then
or in a subsequent generation?
FOR REFERENCE
"Posthumous Essays."--COLLINS.
"Obiter Dicta."--BIRRELL.
"Edmund Burke; an Historical Sketch."--MORLEY.
"Appreciations and Addresses."--ROSEBERY.
DANIEL WEBSTER
(1782-1852)
Born at Salisbury (now Franklin), New Hampshire, Daniel Webster
received his education at Dartmouth College. He afterward studied law
and then removed to Massachusetts, where he soon obtained distinction
as a politician, and was in 1812 sent to Congress. He championed the
New England cause against the embargo and the other measures of the
administration, yet although his great oratorical powers were already
manifest, he displayed little of that breadth of character which
afterwards distinguished him.
To the years which followed we owe some of his most popular forensic
efforts and public addresses, the "Dartmouth College Case," the
"Girard Will," and the addresses at Plymouth and Bunker Hill.
In 1827 he was elected to the United States Senate. Three years later
he delivered his masterpiece, "The Reply to Hayne," on the floor of
the Senate. Under Presidents Harrison and Tyler he was Secretary
of State, and was instrumental in negotiating the celebrated
"Webster-Ashburton Treaty."
For many years the leading man of the Whig party, his presidential
aspirations were doomed to disappointment. His last years in the
Senate were, like those of Clay, consecrated to the effort to
preserve the Union. But his pleas for compromise fell in the North on
dull ears, and his pleas for concessions to the South were looked on
as treason. The time for compromise was passing.
The Whigs being returned to power in 1850, Webster again became
Secretary of State, but again failing to secure the nomination for
President, he returned to Marshfield, where, after a brief illness,
he died in October, 1852.
THE MAN
1. Of what college was Webster a graduate?
2. State the extent to which he filled the public eye at the time
of his death. III, 271.
3. In what respect did he "wear the double wreath of professional
and public supremacy"? III, 273.
4. What ties bound him to New Hampshire, and what to
Massachusetts? III, 275.
5. As a statesman, what division of the country did Webster
especially represent?
6. To what political party did he adhere?
7. To what do you ascribe the unpopularity which embittered his
declining years?
8. What important public positions did he fill?
FROM "REPLY TO HAYNE"
1. State the "nullification doctrine" propounded by Senator Hayne.
2. Why does Webster defend Massachusetts against the charge of
having formerly attempted to nullify an act of Congress?
3. Explain the impracticality of state nullification.
4. Was the federal government created by the States?
5. State how the mere existence of the federal constitution
implies the subordination of the States.
6. Show how Webster brings ridicule of his opponent to the aid of
his argument.
7. What would be the inevitable and direct result of
nullification?
8. Do you think the statement of Webster that he was "drawn into
the debate, with no previous deliberation," etc., to be literally
true?
9. Read carefully the peroration, pp. 281-283; one of the
grandest passages in American eloquence.
10. Does Webster show the influence of the classics as well as
the moderns? Compare his style with that of Demosthenes, IV, 161.
FOR REFERENCE
"Famous American Statesmen."--BOLTON.
"The True Daniel Webster."--FISHER.
"Daniel Webster."--MCCALL.
"John Adams, and Other Essays."--CHAMBERLAIN.
"Daniel Webster, the Expounder of the Constitution."--WHEELER.
"American Literature and other Papers."--WHIPPLE.
PLATO
(427 B.C.-347 B.C.)
An Athenian by birth, Plato's youth was spent in the midst of the
tumult and gloom in which Athens, the flower of Greek civilization,
fell victim to her greed and arrogance and succumbed to the sturdy,
rising power of Sparta. But his maturity and later years saw the
growth of a purified and enlightened spirit of culture which raised
Greek thought above local pettiness and prepared for the day of
alliance with Roman enterprise.
His youth was passed under the inspiring guidance of Socrates,
whose searching inquiries into the depths of human nature marked
the beginning of the loftiest philosophy of ancient times. Plato,
and Aristotle, his pupil, carried on the work begun by Socrates,
involving the discussion of the entire experience of Greek life and
the criticism of its principles.
Upon the condemnation and death of Socrates in 399 B.C. the circle of
his disciples was broken up, Plato fleeing with others to Megara. He
spent the next twelve years in travel, visiting most of the centers
of learning of the ancient world. On his return to Athens about 388
B.C. he founded the famous school of the Academy, and settled down to
the study and teaching of philosophy.
His teachings have come down to us in the form of dialogues between
Socrates and his disciples, but as they were written for the purpose
of setting forth Plato's system of philosophy, which differed in some
respects from that of Socrates, we do not of course know to what
extent the narrative is colored. It would appear, however, that in
the simpler dialogues, such as the "Apology," "Crito," "Laches," and
"Charmides," we may possess the unvarnished teachings of Socrates.
In some of his later dialogues the speculative interest is allowed to
become so absorbing that the dialogue form is rather inappropriate;
but the others have been generally acknowledged as comprising the
greatest masterpieces of dialogue that literature has to show,
in the skill with which the scene is suggested, the charm of the
conversation, and the artistic truth with which the characters are
set forth in the changing course of the discussion.
The "Republic" is the best summing up of his philosophy. In it is
best represented his Theory of Ideas, which has made his work the
great type of idealistic philosophy.
He ranks with Aristotle and Kant as one of the three greatest
thinkers of all ages.
THE MAN
1. During what period of the world's history did Plato live?
2. From what sources did he derive the principles set forth in
his teachings?
3. Of whom was he the disciple, and who in turn was his disciple?
4. What rank is generally accorded him as a philosopher?
5. How did Plato look upon pleasure? III, 291.
6. What is said to have been the manner of his death? III, 281.
7. By what name is his school of philosophy known?
8. Who are the three greatest philosophers of the ages?
9. What was the nature of his education?
STYLE AND WORKS
1. Are Plato's writings addressed to the select few, or to the
people of all classes? III, 253.
2. Give Milton's estimate of the "Republic." IX, 126.
3. What were Plato's views as to the proper age for marriage? IX,
190.
4. And what his views anent the right of the owner of property to
devise or bequeath it, as he sees fit? IX, 200.
5. Did the use of dialogue render his writings more effective
than they otherwise would have been?
6. Which of his dialogues are most read at the present day, and
why?
7. Would Plato have made a successful dramatist if he had turned
his energies in that direction? Your reason for so thinking?
8. Which is his greatest work from a philosophical point of view?
9. Explain his parable of the cave, in the selection from the
"Republic."
"THE TRIAL OF SOCRATES"
1. Why was Socrates brought to trial?
2. What was his refutation to these charges?
3. What was Socrates's view of death?
4. Does it seem likely that he might have been acquitted if he
had used ordinary methods of defense?
5. Wherein did Socrates's methods of teaching differ from
ordinary methods of to-day?
6. What were the customary penalties inflicted for serious crimes?
7. Did Socrates practise what he preached?
8. How do the teachings of Socrates compare with those of
Christianity?
9. What is the fundamental difference, in your understanding,
between philosophy and religion?
10. Did Socrates believe in one God or in many?
FOR REFERENCE
"Plato" ("The World's Epoch-Makers").--RITCHIE.
"Dialogues," translated by JOWETT.
"Plato the Teacher."--BRYAN.
"Representative Men."--EMERSON.
"The Myths of Plato."--STEWART.
"Plato's Republic" ("Historical and Critical Essays").--DE
QUINCEY.
AURELIUS
(121 A.D.-180 A.D.)
Marcus Aurelius (Antoninus), emperor and philosopher, was the child
of noble parents. His wonderful character, both intellectual and
moral, early attracted the attention of the emperor, Hadrian, who,
when Marcus had attained his seventeenth year, adopted Antoninus Pius
as his successor, upon the condition that the latter adopt Marcus.
Accordingly Marcus was adopted by Pius, who proceeded to lavish upon
him as heir presumptive to the Empire every position for which his
high character and thorough education fitted him; and upon the death
of Pius he ascended the throne, at the age of forty.
His reign covered a period of nineteen years, over two-thirds of
which he spent on the borders of the empire in ceaseless struggles
to sustain the tottering empire against the ravages of the outer
barbarians.
It was during these campaigns that his "Meditations," or "Thoughts,"
his only work, was written. In its present form, at least, it was
never intended for publication, nor is it probable that it was, as
some think, written for the instruction of his son, Commodus. It
was written in Greek, and consists of mere memoranda, disconnected
thoughts, and confessions, evidently hastily noted, a circumstance
which accounts for its repetitions, its obscurity, and its elliptical
form of expression. But in spite of this it has been an inspiration
to the despondent in all ages. Its tone and temper are sweet yet
dignified, courageous yet resigned, philosophical and speculative yet
intensely practical. It stands preëminent among those world-books
which teach men how to live and how to die.
The great blots on his memory, in popular estimation, are the
massacres of Christians in his reign, and his blindness to the
frailty of his wife and the worthlessness of his son. But the
Christians were in those days commonly looked upon as a pernicious
secret cult, and those who comprehend his philosophy will know why he
could see only good in the members of his family.
THE MAN
1. What circumstance illustrates the great value he set upon time?
2. Was he considered a man of letters by his contemporaries?
3. What two others deserve to be remembered with him as Roman
stoics? V, 90; X, 419.
4. Why would one hardly expect to find a great philosopher in
Marcus Aurelius?
5. Under what circumstances did he become Emperor of Rome?
6. How were his early years spent?
7. What was the extent of his education?
8. Why did he permit the persecution of the Christians?
9. What circumstances indicate the nobility of his character?
10. What other author wrote a work for the instruction of his
son, and, like Aurelius, was blind to the son's faults? III, 240.
11. Summarize his character.
STYLE AND WORKS
1. To what are his literary remains confined?
2. Were they written in Latin?
3. Under what circumstances were the "Meditations" composed?
4. For what purpose were they written?
5. In what form have they come down to us?
6. Does Aurelius consider that the absence of an overruling
Providence would relax moral obligations?
7. What position do the "Meditations" hold in the world's
literature?
8. What is the spirit of the philosophy which they breathe?
9. Probably no other book of the ancients is as widely read
to-day. Why is this?
10. Do its defects of form detract from its value?
FROM "MEDITATIONS"
1. From the viewpoint of this philosopher, are poverty, death,
and sickness inflicted on people as punishment for sins?
2. To what frame of mind does a righteous person school himself?
3. What prescription is given for the making of a happy man?
4. Would Marcus Aurelius have been in sympathy with the medieval
custom of pious people who shut themselves up in monasteries or
other secluded places?
5. Explain the relationship of man to his fellow beings.
6. Does this environment have an influence in the altering of an
adult's character?
7. Why does each of us live a complete life, whether we die young
or old?
8. Judging the Emperor's character from his writings, would you
consider him a wise ruler?
FOR REFERENCE
"Essays in Criticism."--ARNOLD.
"Marcus Aurelius and the Later Stoics."--BUSSELL.
"Seekers after God."--FARRAR.
"Glimpses of Truth."--SPALDING.
"Excursions in Art and Letters."--STORY.
FRANCIS BACON
(1561-1626)
Francis Bacon was born three years before his great contemporary,
William Shakespeare, but survived him many years. He was born in high
station and had every educational advantage which the times afforded.
He was the nephew of William Cecil, Elizabeth's great minister, and,
entering public life, himself became the favorite minister of James
I and Lord High Chancellor of England. But his character was not
in keeping with his literary merits and ability. He was venal and
corrupt, took bribes as a judge and sold justice for a price. He has
been called the wisest and meanest of mankind.
By the introduction of the inductive method in logic, Bacon overthrew
the scholastic system and facilitated the study of modern science.
It is true the inductive method was known before Bacon, but it had
been in general neglected. The great philosophical works which
accomplished this revolution were the "Advancement of Learning," and
the "Novum Organum." The latter and others of his metaphysical works
were written in Latin in order to reach a wider circle of readers!
His "Essays" are the best known and most popular of his writings.
The style is all his own; elaborate, sententious, often witty, often
metaphorical, and possessing a degree of conciseness rarely found in
the compositions of the Elizabethan age. Every sentence is pregnant
with thought. He alone of the writers of his time strikes straight at
the root of the matter.
What peculiarly impresses one in his "Essays" is the undoubted
truthfulness of the propositions advanced, and the manner in which he
illuminates his thought by the form in which he casts it. The slight
tinge of casuistry noticeable in his writings is in keeping with the
times.
The "Essays" were at first mere jottings down of desultory ideas,
mere note-book memoranda. They were revised and expanded from time to
time until they reached their present shape.
THE MAN
1. Of what great English poet was Bacon a contemporary?
2. From what walk of life did Bacon come? What can you say of his
preparation for literature?
3. What were his political connections?
4. How do Bacon's moral qualities compare with his intellectual
ability?
5. As a judge, did Bacon have a high regard for justice and the
'judicial ermine'?
6. What popular saying aptly describes his character?
STYLE AND WORKS
1. What services did Bacon render to the scientific world?
2. Was Bacon the first to make use of the inductive method in
investigations?
3. Name his leading philosophical works.
4. Why are his philosophical works not accessible to the ordinary
reader?
5. Which of his works are most read at the present day?
6. Does Bacon imitate any former authors or borrow from any
former school of thought?
7. What are the distinguishing characteristics of Bacon's style?
8. Contrast his style with that of his contemporaries.
9. Why is it that the matters stated in the "Essays" strike you
as being things which you have always known?
10. Knowing as we do in advance the truth of most of what he
says, why do we derive such peculiar pleasure from reading his
works?
11. What can you say as to the suggestiveness of his writings?
12. What trait, constantly appearing in his writings, is
displeasing to the modern reader?
13. How can you account for the lack of system in the choice of
subjects treated in the "Essays"?
"THE PRAISE OF KNOWLEDGE"
1. Which are the greater and truer pleasures, those of the
intellect or those of the affections?
2. What is Bacon's method of reasoning, and what are its
advantages over the method of Aristotle?
3. Did Aristotle have many followers in the universities of
Europe in Bacon's day?
4. What was Bacon's criticism of Greek philosophy and science?
5. What arguments does Bacon give to show the importance of
knowledge above all other possessions?
6. What sarcasm do you detect in Bacon's reference to the
universities?
7. What great intellectual movement resulted in part, at least,
from the three inventions mentioned, viz., printing, artillery,
and the compass?
8. What familiar quotation do you note in this essay?
9. Does Bacon attain as high intellectual levels as Plato? As
Marcus Aurelius?
FOR REFERENCE
"Bacon" ("English Men of Letters").--CHURCH.
"Francis Bacon; a Sketch of His Life, Works, etc."--STEEVES.
"Bacon" ("Critical and Miscellaneous Essays").--MACAULAY.
"Account of the Life and Times of Lord Bacon."--SPEDDING.
THOMAS CARLYLE
(1795-1881)
Carlyle was the son of a stone mason. He entered the University
of Edinburgh at the age of thirteen and remained there five
years, proving himself an omnivorous reader but impractical in
many respects, so that he took no degree. After several years of
hardship in Scotland as a teacher and a hack writer he married Jane
Welsh, whose intellect was almost the equal of his own and whose
eccentricity of temper was also similar to his, with the result
that much of their life was marred by bickering; yet there is no
question of their mutual affection. After a long fight against
poverty in London, he eventually won the esteem of Europe for his
bold personality and titanic literary power and died full of years
and honors, but sensitive and harsh to the last. It is only fair to
mention that he was the victim of lifelong dyspeptic trouble and the
depression resultant therefrom.
His writings all make a study of life, seeking the answer in the
lives of the great men, the Heroes, whether of literature or of
history. His early studies in German literature, especially the work
of Goethe, influenced him not only in his outlook on the universe
but in his literary style. Sacrificing everything to force, he adopts
every expedient to drive home each point in the lesson he wishes to
convey. This intense earnestness and unprecedented unconventionality,
although united with phenomenal descriptive powers, resulted in
an ungainly style, yet so filled with sincerity and the hatred of
shams and falsity as to hold and inspire not merely a select circle
of readers but a whole nation. His influence was that of a living
personality, a prophet to all English-speaking peoples.
"Sartor Resartus" expresses the doubts and hesitancies of youth,
when confronted with the materialism and apparent relentlessness of
nature, together with the bold, sturdy defiance which youth's courage
creates for its protection. In "Heroes and Hero-Worship," the "Essay
on Burns," "The French Revolution," and the "History of Frederick the
Great" he holds up examples of heroism as he sees them, searchingly
and vividly. So in the "Life of John Sterling," he studies the
character of one of his dearest friends, recently dead, and there
finds the same qualities of manly nobility. His work becomes not only
biographical but historical, obviously, and such volumes as "Past and
Present" and "Latter-Day Pamphlets" attack flagrant weaknesses of his
day. Work that is so daring and furious in tone could not be utterly
free from error; his conclusions are not always justified. Yet he
will always remain the prophet and seer of his century.
THE MAN
1. Of what extraction was Carlyle?
2. What was the nature of his education?
3. What occupations did he follow?
4. What places were the scenes of his literary life?
5. Do you think he can be called a genial soul?
6. Would you call him a typical or an exceptional Scotchman?
STYLE AND WORKS
1. What was the purpose of his writings? Is he a philosopher?
2. What particular phase of history interested him most?
3. Is he at his best in narration or description?
4. What is the source and the cause of his style?
5. Account for the distinct feeling of reality which arises from
a reading of his descriptive passages.
6. What work best illustrates his element of strength?
7. What defects are apparent in much of his writing?
8. Are his accounts of Coleridge, Burns, and Mahomet sympathetic?
Which do you prefer? Why?
9. Is he religious or unreligious in your opinion? Why do you
think so?
10. Among what people have his writings the greatest vogue? Why?
11. What trait renders Carlyle unreliable as a critic? I, 168.
12. Into what did Carlyle transmute the principles of German
philosophy? XI, 445.
"THE FALL OF THE BASTILLE"
1. What act on the part of Louis XVI caused the smouldering flame
of revolution to break out in this demonstration of violence?
2. How is the term Eumenides appropriate when applied to the
Parisian mob of the French Revolution? (Consult a classical
dictionary.)
3. Contrast the French and the English in revolutions.
4. Why did Carlyle choose the subject of the French Revolution?
5. What was the form of government at Paris during the Revolution?
6. Briefly describe the condition of the lower classes as
indicated in this account.
7. Are any of the other selections from Carlyle equal to this?
Why?
FOR REFERENCE
"Reminiscences."--CARYLE, ed. NORTON.
"Carlyle, Personally and in his Writings."--MASSON.
"Literary Remains."--JAMES.
"Thomas Carlyle."--CONWAY.
"Thomas Carlyle."--FROUDE.
JOHN RUSKIN
(1819-1900)
The son of a Scotch millionaire who had settled in London, Ruskin
received from private masters the best possible preparation for his
future and also traveled extensively with his father and mother.
Shortly after his graduation from Oxford he astonished the world with
the first volume of "Modern Painters," a work designed primarily to
show the superiority of Turner, and a few other modern artists, over
the older painters of landscape; in later volumes he wanders over the
whole field of art criticism, the burden of his advice being a return
to the study of nature itself.
"The Seven Lamps of Architecture" discusses the moral principles
which should underlie architecture. This subject was suggested to him
by his continual studies of the work of painters and architects in
Italy and France while in pursuit of material for his earlier work.
"The Stones of Venice" carries on the task set in both these works,
namely the problem of the moral basis underneath all art, the purpose
which should lie at the back of the artist's mind.
As he grew older his religious views, formerly rather narrow, became
broader, in common with the progress of the times, yet he laid more
and more stress on the need of upright and godly character in all who
have any purpose of attempting good work.
His later volumes, then, are filled with this moral teaching and also
take up the errors of the social conditions of the period. Old age
pensions, state education, radical improvements in the houses and
home life of the common people were among the needs which he saw, now
accomplished, but then regarded as rampant and foolish socialism.
In his style, as in his theories, there is a tendency to exaggerate,
a fault that is common among reformers, as in the cases of Dickens
and Carlyle. But the lofty ideals which he maintained and the grace
and power of his style far more than atone for the occasional error
of overstatement. In "Præterita," a brilliant autobiographical
fragment, he accounts for the rare clarity and beauty of his style,
for it was his custom for many years during his childhood and youth
to read the Bible through aloud to his mother every year in daily
selections. The simplicity and majesty of the Biblical language left
its impress on his own prose.
His economic theories have not been adopted in England or elsewhere,
but he himself lived up to them and spent his whole fortune in the
philanthropic endeavor to put his plans for the betterment of the
working classes into operation. In spite of the fact that his fortune
was great and that he received as much as $20,000 a year royalty from
the sale of his works in his latter days, his property at the time of
his death was inconsiderable.
THE MAN
1. What was Ruskin's education; his position in the world?
2. In what two rôles did he appear?
3. What cardinal doctrine did he preach?
4. What extraneous elements did he attempt to read into art?
5. At what university was he successively student and professor?
6. Was he merely a theorist in the matter of public reform?
7. Did he justify his economic teaching in his own conduct?
STYLE AND WORKS
1. Which of his works treats of the effect of human traits upon
architecture?
2. Name four works treating of Italian art specifically.
3. In what work does he seek to demonstrate the superiority of
modern over classical painters?
4. Had Ruskin any practical knowledge of the technique of art?
5. Which of his works is autobiographical?
6. Where did he get the inspiration for his style?
7. How, then, can his style be called original?
8. Is his style clear; logical; powerful? Why?
FROM "THE STONES OF VENICE"
1. What two orders of architecture are fundamental?
2. From what country are they primarily derived?
3. What is the distinguishing character of each?
4. How did Christianity affect architecture?
5. When the progress of advancement in architecture was losing
its vitality with the Romans, who took up their work?
6. What two nations played the most important part?
7. Describe the effects of each upon the older forms of
architecture.
8. Why is Venice the best place to study the different forms of
architecture?
"THE LAMP OF TRUTH"
1. Is falsity permissible under any circumstances?
2. Upon what does the pardonableness of a fault depend?
3. Which temptation is the harder to resist, that to tell a
"little lie," or a great one?
4. Is all imagination or fiction reprehensible as being
untruthful?
5. How may truth be violated in Architecture?
6. What three forms does architectural deceit take?
7. Give examples of each.
8. Why are machine work and cast work bad?
9. Concrete was unknown in Ruskin's day; what are its faults and
its values?
10. Explain the decay and deterioration of Gothic tracery.
FOR REFERENCE
"Life of John Ruskin."--COLLINGWOOD.
"Ruskin and his Circle."--EARLAND.
"Studies in Ruskin."--COOK.
"Witnesses of the Light."--GLADDEN.
"Essays in Biography and Criticism."--BAYNE.
"Literary Leaders of Modern England."--DAWSON.
"John Ruskin" ("English Men of Letters").--HARRISON.
RALPH WALDO EMERSON
(1803-1882)
Emerson, the 'Sage of Concord,' was born a Bostonian, of the
ecclesiastical class. He prepared for the ministry and for some time
occupied a Unitarian pulpit; but, disagreeing with his congregation
as to the nature of the Lord's Supper, he resigned his charge and
became a public lecturer, a popular profession in ante-bellum days
when every community had its Literary Society, or else its Debating
Club. His home from 1833, or for the last fifty years of his life,
was at Concord, Massachusetts. He shares with Longfellow the
distinction of being the best known abroad of all American writers.
No other American has measurably approached him as an essayist.
He is a transcendentalist of the most advanced school. Where he
wishes to be clear, no one can be clearer, but he often chooses
to clothe his thoughts in mystery. This trait is also noticeable
in his poems, some of which glitter like diamonds, while others
are enigmatic and baffling. His poetry is like his essays in being
pointed and laconic, but while this may be a merit in the essay, it
is not so in poetry, and his verse can hardly be considered first
class. Few people read his poetry except as an adjunct to the study
of his essays.
He had no reasoned and complete system of philosophy, but, like
Bacon, merely gave birth to grand principles from which a new
philosophy was to spring. He resembles Bacon also in that he
oftentimes does not reason, but utters the truth oracularly.
THE MAN
1. Where was Emerson born?
2. What can you say of his antecedents?
3. With what religious denomination was he at one time connected?
4. What part did Emerson take in public life?
5. What pseudonym is often applied to him?
6. For what two things is Concord equally famous? I, 340; V, 59.
7. How do the circumstances of his life contrast with Ruskin's,
Carlyle's, Plato's, Marcus Aurelius's?
STYLE AND WORKS
1. To what school of philosophy did Emerson belong?
2. What effect had Emerson on the thinkers of his generation? VI,
332-334.
3. Did Hawthorne prize his philosophy highly? His poetry? VI, 333.
4. How does he rank as an essayist?
5. Why are some of Emerson's thoughts so hard to grasp?
6. To what may his poems be compared?
7. Does he rank high as a poet?
8. What standing has Emerson among foreign critics as compared
with other American authors?
9. How does his style compare with Ruskin's and Carlyle's? with
Plato's?
"WORKS AND DAYS"
1. How does Emerson define the nineteenth century? Why?
2. "Works and days were offered us and we took works;" does
Emerson belittle the value of work?
3. Name some of the 'illusions' that hide values from us at the
present time.
4. "'Tis the measure of a man,--his apprehension of a day;" how
is this true?
5. Does Emerson prove his statements, or do you think that he is
playing the oracle in this essay?
6. "What has been best done in the world ... cost nothing;" do
you agree wholly with this doctrine?
7. Do we live up to the teaching of the last paragraph; should we
attempt to do so?
"FRIENDSHIP"
1. Give Emerson's definition of friendship.
2. Why are most so-called friendships of short duration?
3. Does age, sex, individual character, or circumstance influence
the formation of this compact?
4. What are the two most important elements in friendship?
5. Can a perfect friendship exist between more than two people at
one time?
6. Does friendship necessarily require an intimate personal
association of the participants in their home life?
7. Must friendship be reciprocal?
8. Would you accept Emerson's views on this subject for your own
use?
FOR REFERENCE
"Emerson; his Life, Writings and Philosophy."--COOKE.
"Four American Leaders."--ELIOT.
"Leading American Essayists."--PAYNE.
"Ralph Waldo Emerson" ("Beacon Biographies").--SANBORN.
"Emerson" ("English Men of Letters").--WOODBERRY.
"Discourses in America."--ARNOLD.
"Emerson as a Poet."--BENTON.
"American Prose Masters."--BROWNELL.
"On Emerson, and Other Essays."--MAETERLINCK.
HEINRICH HEINE
(1799-1856)
Heinrich Heine, the nephew of a rich Hamburg Jew, is the most gifted
German lyric poet since Goethe. Intended for the bar, he studied at
Bonn, Göttingen, and Berlin. He then traveled extensively for some
years, until publication of his "Journey in the Hartz Mountains" and
"Book of Songs" brought him to public notice.
But his tactless attacks on various authors, and upon several of the
petty German governments of the day began to make his native country
an uncomfortable place, and in 1831 he removed to Paris. His chief
occupation there was as correspondent for German newspapers. His
long poems, "Deutschland" and "Atta Troll," were written during this
period. For the last eight years of his life he was confined to his
bed, suffering terrible agonies from a disease of the spinal column.
Though born a Jew and baptized into the Christian faith, he was
neither Jew nor Christian; and his character was marred by many
defects.
THE MAN
1. In what city was he born? I, 171.
2. When did he take up his residence in Paris? I, 176.
3. What great faults stained his character? I, 190.
4. And how have they affected the character of his writings? I,
191.
5. See Heine's account of his first interview with Goethe. VIII,
174.
6. What caused his exile from Germany?
7. How does his early life resemble that of Goethe?
8. What position does he occupy among the German lyric poets of
the nineteenth century?
STYLE AND WORKS
1. Upon what service to modern society does Heine's fame rest? I,
167.
2. Of what great German writer is he the continuator? I, 168.
3. Did he have a true conception of Goethe's work? I, 169.
4. Upon what grounds did Heine prefer the French spirit to that
of the Germans and English? I, 172, 173.
5. Why has his fame proved more lasting than that of Byron and
Shelley? I, 181.
6. To what school of poetry did he belong? I, 178.
7. State the form which most of his poetry assumes. I, 183.
8. Is his Hebrew extraction apparent in his verse? I, 186.
FROM "TRAVEL PICTURES"
1. The German nation as a whole is noted for what special
qualities of character?
2. In connection with what great event would you associate the
name of Blücher? IV, 37.
3. Of what cause do the Swiss claim to be the champions?
4. During Heine's life was Germany politically at rest?
5. Would you consider the carousing scene of this selection
typical of Germany, or has Heine exaggerated it to make the
situation more ridiculous?
6. What impression of the author's personal character do you
receive from these selections?
7. Characterize Heine's wit.
FOR REFERENCE
"Life of Heinrich Heine."--SHARP.
"Poems and Ballads," translated by MARTIN.
"Wrecked lives; or, Men who have Failed."--ADAMS.
"Old Love Stories Retold."--LE GALLIENNE.
PLINY
(61 A.D.-113? A.D.)
Pliny the Younger was born in the year A.D. 61, at Como, Italy. Like
most famous Roman writers whose works have come down to us, he was
of high station. He accompanied his uncle, Pliny the Elder, when the
latter was summoned to Rome by the Emperor Vespasian in A.D. 72, and
devoted several years to the study of Roman and Greek literature
under the best instructors.
After the death of his uncle, in 79, he made his appearance as an
advocate, a profession in which he won great eminence. Ten years
later he entered upon an official career of remarkable success,
holding in succession most of the great offices of the Roman State,
until in 111 he was selected by Trajan as Governor of Bithynia.
His correspondence ceases in 113, and nothing is known of his life
thereafter.
While moving in the highest circles, the intimate of Tacitus,
Suetonius, Martial, and all of the senatorial class, he was
distinguished by great conscientiousness and public spirit, endowing
temples, baths, libraries, and schools. He was humane and even
affectionate toward his slaves and courteous to his dependents.
He sought fame as a poet and orator, as well as letter-writer, but
neither his "Panegyric on Trajan," nor the two sets of verses which
alone have escaped the ravages of time, would indicate that the world
is much the worse for the loss of the remainder of his orations and
poems.
But in his "Letters" he conferred an inestimable boon on future ages.
They are voluminous, in ten books, and covering almost every topic
of the times, our most valuable commentary upon Roman life in the
second century after Christ. They were undoubtedly written with a
direct view to publication, for he is careful to confine each one to
a single topic, and generally closes it with an epigrammatic point.
But they are models of graceful thought and refined expression.
Only twice is any one of whom an unfavorable opinion is expressed
mentioned by name.
The tenth book, the "Correspondence with Trajan," is valuable for
another reason--for the light it throws on early Christianity. It
reflects the greatest credit on the strict and almost punctilious
conscientiousness of Pliny, and on the assiduity and high principle
which animated the Emperor.
THE MAN
1. What does Pliny the Elder say of the form of money used in
early Rome? XI, 189.
2. To what class of society did Pliny the Younger belong?
3. Give a brief account of the death of his uncle.
4. What other author do you associate with the Lake of Como? I,
8, illustration.
5. What regular profession did Pliny follow during the earlier
years of his life? The latter?
6. Locate Bithynia on the map. Also Lake Como. (See classical
atlas.)
7. What authors were intimate associates of Pliny?
8. Enumerate the good points in his character.
STYLE AND WORKS
1. In what way does Pliny say we may add to the length of our
lives? V, 71.
2. Are his writings confined to his "Letters"?
3. Of what special use are the "Letters" to us?
4. How do we know that Pliny wrote his letters with publication
in mind?
5. What does he say of Phidias's attention to detail in his
sculpture? VI, 359.
6. Why should his correspondence with Trajan be of special
interest to us?
7. What do we glean from the correspondence as to the character
of Trajan?
8. Compare his account of the destruction of Pompeii with that of
Lytton. VIII, 285.
9. State what proficiency the Romans had attained in the art of
landscape gardening.
10. What would you judge to have been the climate of Tuscany,
from the allusion to plane, cypress, and other trees and plants
mentioned?
11. What reason lay behind the persecution of the Christians? Do
you think it was entirely religious?
12. What was the social condition of Rome at this time?
13. Did persecution lessen the number of adherents to
Christianity?
14. What was Pliny's estimate of this religion?
15. Was Trajan a just ruler, if his short letter be taken as an
indication of his character?
FOR REFERENCE
"Roman Life in Pliny's Time."--PELLISON.
"Letters."--Ed. BOSANQUET.
"Roads from Rome."--ALLINSON.
FOOTNOTES:
[1] These authors represent the transition from the Renaissance to
Classicism.
[2] Josephus is a remarkable example of the authority and influence
of Rome. He was a Jew, whose work might be classed as Hebrew and
hence as Oriental literature, and likewise as Greek literature
since he wrote in Greek. But he was educated at Rome and trained so
thoroughly upon Roman ideas and thought that his writings must be
included under this head.
[3] See Latin Lit., _note_.
TRANSCRIBER'S NOTE
Italic text is denoted by _underscores_.
Bold text is denoted by =equal signs=.
Obvious typographical errors and punctuation errors have been
corrected after careful comparison with other occurrences within
the text and consultation of external sources.
Footnote [1] is referenced multiple times from page 25.
Footnote [3] ("See Latin Lit., _note_") is in fact referencing
Footnote [2].
Except for those changes noted below, all misspellings in the text,
and inconsistent or archaic usage, have been retained. For example,
death-bed, deathbed; Snow Image, Snow-Image; skilful; unexcelled;
unreligious; unmoral; enigmatical.
Pg 8, 'Knights Templars' replaced by 'Knights Templar'.
Pg 24, 'inelegancies' replaced by 'inelegances'.
Pg 48, 'sublety' replaced by 'subtlety'.
Pg 54k, 'Dies Irae' replaced by 'Dies Iræ' for consistency.
Pg 135, '428-31' replaced by '428-431' for consistency.
Pg 147, 'impracticability' replaced by 'impracticality'.