Critical and Historical Essays Contributed to the Edinburgh Review, Volume 1Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans, 1843 - English literature |
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admiration Antinomian army authority believe Boswell Bunyan called Catholic century character Charles Christian Church Clarendon conduct constitution contempt court crime Croker Cromwell death doctrines doubt effect eminent enemies England English evil executive government favour feeling genius Hallam Hampden honour House of Commons human interest Italy Jews John Hampden Johnson King liberty literary lived Long Parliament Lord Byron Machiavelli manner means ment military Milton mind moral nation nature never noble opinion oppression Paradise Lost Parliament party passages passed passions persecution person Petition of Right Pilgrim's Progress poems poet poetry political Pope Prince principles produced Puritans racter readers reason reign religion respect Revolution Robert Montgomery says scarcely seems Sir Walter Scott sophisms Southey Southey's spirit Strafford strong talents temper thing tion tyranny tyrant violent wealth Whigs whole writer
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Page 12 - in his attempt to translate into his own diction some parts of the Paradise Lost, is a remarkable instance of this. In support of these observations we may remark, that scarcely any passages in the poems of Milton are more generally known, or more frequently repeated, than those which arc little more than
Page 7 - have created an lago ? Well as he knew how to resolve characters into their elements, would he have been able to combine those elements in such a manner as to make up a man, a real, living, individual man ? Perhaps no person can be a poet, or can even enjoy poetry, without a certain unsoundness of mind, if any
Page 385 - demeanour in society should be harsh and despotic. For severe distress he had sympathy, and not only sympathy, but munificent relief. But for the suffering which a harsh word inflicts upon a delicate mind he had no pity; for it was a kind of suffering which he could scarcely conceive. He would
Page 383 - as the reward of mere literary merit. One or two of the many poets who attached themselves to the opposition, Thomson in particular and Mallet, obtained, after much severe suffering, the means of subsistence from their political friends. Richardson, like a man of sense, kept his shop ; and his shop kept him, which his novels,
Page 22 - fault inseparable from the plan of his poem, which, as we have already observed, rendered the utmost accuracy of description necessary. Still it is a fault. His supernatural agents excite an interest; but it is not the interest which is proper to supernatural agents. We feel that we could talk to
Page 53 - still remains to be mentioned. If he exerted himself to overthrow a forsworn king and a persecuting hierarchy, he exerted himself in conjunction with others. But the glory of the battle which he fought for that species of freedom which is the most valuable, and which was then
Page 376 - puffings, his vigorous, acute, and ready eloquence, his sarcastic wit, his vehemence, his insolence, his fits of tempestuous rage, his queer inmates, old Mr. Levett and blind Mrs. Williams, the cat Hodge and the negro Frank, all arc as familiar to us as the objects by which we have been surrounded from childhood.
Page 41 - reformed the representative system in a manner which has extorted praise even from Lord Clarendon. For himself he demanded indeed the first place in the commonwealth; but with powers scarcely so great as those of a Dutch stadtholdcr, or an American president. He gave the Parliament a voice in the
Page 11 - is the extreme remoteness of the associations by means of which it acts on the reader. Its effect is produced, not so much by what it expresses, as by what it suggests; not so much by the ideas which it directly conveys, as by other ideas which are
Page 64 - of the Vatican. Alexander, when he commanded our Henry the Second to submit to the lash before the tomb of a rebellious subject, was himself an exile. The Romans, apprehending that he entertained designs against their liberties, had driven him from their city; and, though he solemnly promised to confine himself for the future