CONTENTS |
Prefatory Note |
Table of Principal Dates |
|
Chapter I. |
Richardson |
| By L. CAZAMIAN, Maître de Conférences at the Sorbonne, Paris
- Antecedents of the change introduced by Richardson into the history of the English Novel
- Richardsons life before 1741
- Pamela: its qualities and extraordinary success
- Continuation, Stage adaptation and Parody; Fielding and Richardson
- Clarissa: its unique place among its authors works; its Sentimentalism
- Sir Charles Grandison: its shortcomings and its psychological value
- Richardsons later years and death
- Decline of his popularity; Limitations of his art
- His momentous influence upon English and European Literature
- His literary descendants
- His influence upon French Literature and national sentiment: Prévost, Voltaire, Diderot; Richardson and Rousseau
- His influence in Germany: Gellert, Wieland, Klopstock and Goethe; Dutch and Italian reproductions
BIBLIOGRAPHY |
|
II. |
Fielding and Smollett |
| By HAROLD CHILD, sometime Scholar of Brasenose College, Oxford
- Fielding and Smollett compared
- Fieldings descent and earlier life
- His first and subsequent Plays
- His Farces and cognate Dramatic Pieces
- His marriage
- Pasquin and The Historical Register; Journalistic work: The Champion
- Joseph Andrews and Pamela; The character of Parson Adams
- Fielding and Cervantes
- Miscellanies
- Jonathan Wild
- Political Journalism: The True Patriot and The Jacobites Journal
- Magisterial work and humane efforts
- Tom Jones
- The morality and the realism of the book: the authors openness of soul
- Further pamphlets on social reform
- Amelia: its distinctive charm
- The Covent Garden Journal
- Fielding seriously ill
- His journey to Lisbon, and his posthumous account of it; His death
- Smolletts parentage and early training as a surgeon; His arrival in London, with The Regicide in his pocket; His stay in the West Indies; Satirical and other verse
- Roderick Random and the Picaresque Novel
- Ferdinand Count Fathom
- The Critical Review; Historical and Miscellaneous work
- Sir Launcelot Greaves
- Travels through France and Italy
- Humphrey Clinker; Smolletts last journey and death
- Final comparison between the literary achievements and influence of Fielding and Smollett
BIBLIOGRAPHY |
|
III. |
Sterne, and the Novel of His Times |
| By C. E. VAUGHAN, M.A., Balliol College, Oxford, Professor of English Literature in the University of Leeds
- New elements in the English Novel of the period from 1760 to 1780: Personality, Emotion and Sentiment
- Pre-eminence of Sterne
- His life
- Tristram Shandy and its success; Fiction as the vehicle of the Novelists idiosyncrasy
- Sterne as the Liberator of the Novel; His Humour the groundwork of his Characters
- Tristram Shandy and Don Quixote
- Sternes artificiality and pruriency
- Nature of his Sentimentalism
- Henry Mackenzie: The Man of Feeling; The Man of the World; Julia de Roubigné
- Henry Brooke: The Fool of Quality
- Horace Walpoles Castle of Otranto and Clara Reeves Old English Baron
- Fanny Burney as a Novelist: Evelina; Cecilia; Camilla; The Wanderer
- Spontaneity a leading characteristic of these Novels; Proof of this in the Diary of Mme. dArblay
- Her best qualities as surviving in her later stories
BIBLIOGRAPHY |
|
IV. |
The Drama and the Stage |
| By GEORGE HENRY NETTLETON, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of English in Yale University
- Significance of the term The Eighteenth Century English Drama; Queen Annes reign a period of transition in English Dramatic History; Cibber, Steele and Rowe
- Sentimental Comedy in England and on the Continent
- French Classical and Native influences upon English Eighteenth Century Drama
- New developments: Pantomime and Ballad Opera: John Rich
- The Beggars Opera
- Mrs. Centlivre
- Young, Hughes and Thomson
- Lillo and Prose Domestic Tragedy: George Barnwell
- Lillos Morality
- Fatal Curiosity
- Other works by Lillo
- His influence upon French and German Dramatic Literature; Diderot and Lessing
- Edward Moores Gamester
- Voltaire and the English Drama
- English versions of his Plays; Voltaire and Shakespeare
- Fielding and Burlesque
- Stage Political Satire and the Licensing Act of 1737
- The Novel and the Theatre
- Garrick and Shakespeare
- Other Plays of the Garrick Era; Whitehead
- Homes Douglas
- Footes Comic Mimicry; His Farces
- Murphy and Bickerstaff
- George Colman the Elder: The Jealous Wife and The Clandestine Marriage
- Kelly
- The Reaction against Sentimental Comedy
BIBLIOGRAPHY |
|
V. |
Thomson and Natural Description in Poetry |
| By A. HAMILTON THOMPSON, M.A., F.S.A., St. Johns College
- Relations of Thomsons Poetry to the tendencies of the age; His life and literary career
- The Seasons
- Influence of Milton
- Thomsons interest in Nature
- Nature pictures in The Seasons, and the Human Element in these pictures
- Thomsons objective attitude towards Nature
- His frequent vagueness of Description, and striking Incidental Digressions
- Patriotic Reflections: Britannia and Liberty
- The Castle of Indolence, its points of contact with Spenser, and the commonplace character of its Allegory
- Thomsons Dramatic Work, from Sophonisba to Coriolanus
- Influence of Thomson on the younger generation of poets
- Somerviles Chace and other Poems
- Jagos Edge-Hill
- Lytteltons Dialogues of the Dead and other Writings
BIBLIOGRAPHY |
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VI. |
Gray |
| By the late Rev. DUNCAN C. TOVEY, M.A., Trinity College
- Grays family and life
- His friends at Eton and Cambridge; His vacations at Burnham
- His continental tour with Horace Walpole
- Their quarrel
- Grays return and Correspondence with West; The Agrippina Fragment
- Lyrics written at Stoke
- Gray again in residence at Peterhouse
- Reconciliation with Walpole
- An Elegy in a Country Churchyard
- Characteristics of the Elegy
- The Progress of Poesy; Vicissitude and The Bard
- Studies from the Norse
- Gray quits Peterhouse for Pembroke
- Researches in the British Museum and tour in Yorkshire and Derbyshire; Gray appointed Professor of Modern History
- The Installation Ode
- Visit to the Lake country
- Gray and Bonstetten
- Grays death
- His Letters, their value and their charm
- Friendship with Mason: projected joint History of English Poetry
- Concluding summary
BIBLIOGRAPHY |
|
VII. |
Young, Collins and Lesser Poets of the Age of Johnson |
| By GEORGE SAINTSBURY, M.A., LL.D., D.Litt., F.B.A., Professor of Rhetoric and English Literature in the University of Edinburgh
- Reasons of the relative familiarity of readers with this group of English Verse-writers
- Youngs life and literary career
- Night Thoughts and its long-enduring popularity
- His other Writings: The Complaint
- Collinss Odes and Eclogues
- Contrast between his individual inspiration and the influences of his age
- How Sleep the Brave and The Ode to Evening
- Dyers Grongar Hill
- Matthew Green
- Blairs Grave
- Conscious or half-conscious Burlesque Verse; John Armstrong; His Art of Preserving Health
- Glovers Ballad Admiral Hosiers Ghost; Mannerisms in his Blank Verse
- Shenstones Poetical Works and their characteristics
- His Schoolmistress and Miscellaneous Poems
- Attractiveness and shortcomings of his Verse
- Akensides Pleasures of Imagination
- Smarts A Song to David
- Beatties Minstrel
- His treatment of the Spenserian Stanza
- Falconers Shipwreck
- Concluding remarks
BIBLIOGRAPHY |
|
VIII. |
Johnson and Boswell |
| By DAVID NICHOL SMITH, M.A., Goldsmiths Reader in English, University of Oxford
- Boswells Johnson the Johnson familiarly known to us; His personality and his Works
- Johnsons early life: Lichfield, Oxford and Birmingham
- His first writings and his Translation of A Voyage to Abyssinia
- Foreshadowings of Johnsons style
- His school at Edial and migration to London
- Irene and its subsequent production on the Stage
- His work on The Gentlemans Magazine his real start as a man of letters
- Reports of Debates in Parliament
- Other Contributions to the Magazine
- The Life of Savage
- Greater Schemes
- Johnsons Earlier Verse
- London and The Vanity of Human Wishes
- The Rambler and the Revival of the Periodical Essay
- Openly didactic purpose of The Rambler; success of the Collected Edition
- A Dictionary of the English Language; new features of its design; distinctive merits of the work: the Definitions
- Lesser work
- Dedications
- Journalistic projects and labours
- The Idler
- Rasselas and its lesson
- Johnsons Edition of Shakespeare: value of its Text and Notes
- Political Pamphlets
- A Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland
- The Lives of the Poets: their original plan and distinctive features
- Equipoise of biography and criticism
- Influence of personal feeling
- Johnsons last years and death
- His literary growth, and advance in ease of style
- The weight of his words carried by the strength of his thought
- Ill success of his Parodists
- Effect of Johnsons death; Mrs. Piozzis Anecdotes and Sir John Hawkinss Life
- Boswells earlier experiences and Writings
- An Account of Corsica; His later life and labours; His death, and his posthumously published Letters
- His Life of Johnson, with the Journal of a Tour to the Hebrides, his enduring title to fame
BIBLIOGRAPHY |
|
IX. |
Oliver Goldsmith |
| By HENRY AUSTIN DOBSON, LL.D.
- Goldsmiths early life and the uncertainties surrounding it
- Childhood at Lissoy and schooldays at Elphin
- The Old House, a New Inn
- College life at Trinity, Dublin
- Goldsmith, B.A
- Wanderings at home and abroad
- Sojourn at Leyden
- Medical and literary efforts in London: the parting of the ways
- Contributions to The Monthly Review
- Translation of Marteilhes Memoirs
- An Enquiry into the Present State of Polite Learning in Europe and its Reception
- The Bee, and its Verse and Prose
- Contributions to The British Magazine and The Public Ledger, the Chinese Letters (reprinted as The Citizen of the World)
- Goldsmith in Wine Office Court; his friendship with Johnson
- The History of England in Letters
- The Traveller and its success
- The Vicar of Wakefield: the History of the Book
- More Compilation
- The Good-Naturd Man
- The Temple and Islington
- The Deserted Village
- The Haunch of Venison
- She Stoops to Conquer
- Closing years and death
- Goldsmiths personality and literary genius
BIBLIOGRAPHY |
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X. |
The Literary Influence of the Middle Ages
MACPHERSONS OSSIAN. CHATTERTON. PERCY AND THE WARTONS. |
| By W. P. KER, M.A., F.B.A., Fellow of All Souls College, Oxford, Professor of English Literature, University College, London
- Limited Influence of the Middle Ages upon Modern Literature
- Influence of Architecture
- The Literary Gothic Terror or Wonder
- Drydens, Popes and Addisons estimates of Medieval Poetic masterpieces
- Temple and The Death-Song of Ragnar
- Northern Studies: Hickess Thesaurus
- Percys Five Runic Pieces
- Translations from the Icelandic: Gray
- The Movement in favour of Ballads and Border Songs
- Ossian and Macpherson
- Literary career of Macpherson
- Gaelic Elements in Fingal and Temora
- Macphersons Literary Talent
- Percys Reliques
- Their direct influence upon Modern Poetry
- Chatterton and his indebtedness to Spenser
- The Rowley Imposture
- The Wartons
- Thomas Warton the Younger and his Poems
- His History of English Poetry
- Hurd
- Tyrwhitt, the Restorer of Chaucer
BIBLIOGRAPHY |
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XI. |
Letter-Writers |
|
By HENRY B. WHEATLEY, F.S.A.
- Horace Walpole as the Prince of Letter-Writers; His personal character vindicated
- His earlier life
- Strawberry Hill
- His Letters and their qualities
- Mann and other Correspondents
- Walpole as a Critic
- His Anecdotes of Painting in England, Castle of Otranto and Historic Doubts on Richard III
- Chesterfield: His personality and public services; His wit
- His genius for friendship
- His Letters to his Son and to his Godson; Their actual nature
- Fanny Burney (Mme. d Arblay): her Early Diary, and her Diary and Letters
- Mrs. Elizabeth Montagu as a literary hostess
- Garrick and his Correspondents
- Sir Joshua Reynoldss Discourses
- Hannah More as a Letter-Writer in youth and middle age
- Gilbert Whites Natural History and Antiquities of Selborne
THE WARWICKSHIRE COTERIE
By the Ven. W. H. HUTTON, B.D., Archdeacon of Northampton, Canon of Peterborough and Fellow of St. Johns College, Oxford
- The Warwickshire Circle and its connecting Links
- Somerville
- Lady Luxborough and the Literary Society at Barrels: Shenstone
- The Correspondence between the Countesses of Hertford and Pomfret
- Jago
- Richard Graves and his literary work
- The Spiritual Quixote and Columella
- Literature at Bath
BIBLIOGRAPHY |
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XII. |
Historians, I
HUME AND MODERN HISTORIANS |
| By the Rev. WILLIAM HUNT, D.Litt., Trinity College, Oxford
- Cause of late development of good Historical Writing; Rymers Foedera
- Ockleys History of the Saracens
- The Scottish School, influences on its character
- David Hume: Influences on his Historical work
- Humes History of England: its character and literary style; its Toryism
- William Robertson and his Histories; their value
- His literary style
- Robert Henrys History of England
- Historical works of Sir David Dalrymple (Lord Hailes)
- Sir John Dalrymples Memoirs of Great Britain, etc
- Watsons Philip II
- Horace Walpoles Historic Doubts; William Guthrie
- Lord Lytteltons Henry II; Archibald Bowers History of the Popes
- Smolletts Compleat History and Continuation; Oliver Goldsmiths History of England
- Lelands History of Ireland; Ormes Military Transactions in Indostan; William Russells Modern Europe
- Adam Fergusons History of Civil Society; Delolmes Constitution of England
BIBLIOGRAPHY |
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XIII. |
Historians, II
GIBBON |
| By Sir A. W. WARD, Litt.D., F.B.A., Master of Peterhouse
- Gibbons mind a type of the Literary mind; Completeness of his Historical achievement
- Lord Sheffields Memoirs
- Gibbons earlier life
- His residence at Lausanne
- Essai sur lÉtude de la Littérature
- Militia experience
- Choice of a Theme
- The original conception of The Decline and Fall
- Gibbon establishes himself in London and enters Parliament
- Publication of Vol. 1 of The Decline and Fall
- Attacks and Criticisms
- Gibbons return to Lausanne; Publication of the concluding Volumes; Other Historical Writings; Gibbons death
- Estimate of The Decline and Fall: greatness of the Theme and adequacy of the treatment
- Substantial accuracy
- Lucidity of style
- Faults and shortcomings of the work
- Middletons Life of Cicero
- Adam Fergusons Progress and Termination of the Roman Republic
- Mitfords History of Greece
- Whitakers History of Manchester
BIBLIOGRAPHY |
|
XIV. |
Philosophers |
| By W. R. SORLEY, Litt. D., F.B.A., Fellow of Kings College, Knightbridge Professor of Moral Philosophy
DAVID HUME
- Humes literary ambition
- His life and literary career
- His posthumous Autobiography
- His disclaimer of his earliest and greatest work, A Treatise of Human Nature
- Humes New Medium
- His analysis of Philosophical Relations
- The Problem of Causation
- Humes Theory of Belief
- His sceptical solution
- His Theological Writings: Of Miracles; Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion
- Political and Economical Essays
ADAM SMITH
- Life and Writings
- The Theory of Moral Sentiments
- The Wealth of Nations; Its relation to Sir James Steuarts Inquiry into the Principles of Political Economy
- Adam Smiths Scientific Treatment of Economic Facts
- The System of Natural Liberty: Free Trade
OTHER PHILOSOPHICAL WRITERS
- David Hartley
- Abraham Tucker
- Richard Price and Joseph Priestley
- Paley and his Theological Utilitarianism
- Reid, Campbell and Beattie
- The Principles of Common Sense
BIBLIOGRAPHY |
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XV. |
Divines |
| By the Ven. Archdeacon W. H. HUTTON, B.D.
- General character of the English Theological Literature of the Period; Its abhorrence of Enthusiasm; Earlier Writers distinguished by power or outspokenness: Samuel Johnson
- Atterbury and his career
- Smalridge
- The Convocation Controversy: Wake
- Hoadly and the Bangorian Controversy
- The later Nonjurors: the Wagstaffes; Deacon; Henry Dodwell; Bonwicke
- Robert Forbes; Bingham
- Thomas Sherlock
- Butler, Wilson and Waterland: A Review of the Doctrine of the Eucharist
- Butlers Analogy
- Herring and Secker
- The Methodist Movement: Whitefield
- James Hervey
- Fletcher of Madeley
- John and Charles Wesley
BIBLIOGRAPHY |
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XVI. |
The Literature of Dissent, 16601760 |
| By W. A. SHAW, Litt.D. Vict., Public Record Office
- The Historical Evolution of Dissent reflected in its Literature
- The principle of Liberty of Conscience and the struggle for Toleration
- The Literature of Dissent from Defoe to Watts
- Michaijah Towgood
- Controversial Literature on Church Polity and Dogma
- The Happy Union, and the Disruption between Independents and Presbyterians
- The spread of Arianism and the First Socinian Controversy
- The Arian Controversy proper: Peirce and Hallett
- The Salters Hall Synod and the question of Subscription: John Taylor and Samuel Bourn
- The Free Thought effect of the Unitarian Movement; Conservative contributions by Dissenters to the Deistic Controversy
- The Nonconformist Academy System
- Hymns and Devotional Literature
BIBLIOGRAPHY |
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XVII. |
Political Literature, 175575 |
| By C. W. PREVITÉ-ORTON, M.A., Fellow of St. Johns College
- Revival of Controversy after the death of Henry Pelham
- The Monitor; John Shebbeare and Arthur Murphy
- Accession of George III; Loyal Tory Pamphleteers
- Smollett and The Briton
- Wilkes and The North Briton
- Wilkess literary triumph
- Antipathy to the Scots
- Churchill: his earlier life
- His beginnings as a Satirist; The Rosciad
- Night
- The Prophecy of Famine
- The Epistle to William Hogarth; The Duellist
- Gotham; The Conference and its personal confession
- Churchills Later Satires
- Force of his invective
- Political Pamphlets in Prose
- Candor in The Public Advertiser
- Woodfalls editorship of the Advertiser
- The Letter-Writers
- Junius: His literary personality and antecedents
- The Letters of Junius proper
- Their substance and characteristics
- Their supremacy in slanderous polemic
- The Mystery of Junius
- The Franciscan claim
- Junius the culmination of a notable series of Political Writings
BIBLIOGRAPHY
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