The Lives of the Poets of Great Britain and Ireland (1753) Volume I.Cibber, Theophilus
General
The Lives of the Poets of Great Britain and Ireland (1753) Volume I.
Cibber, Theophilus
Poets, English -- Biography -- Early works to 1800; Poets, Irish -- Biography -- Early works to 1800
the son of the celebrated epigramatist, was born in London, and in the
12th year of his age, 1517, was sent to the University, where he was
educated in grammar and logic. In 1553 he took a degree in Arts, and
was immediately elected Probationer fellow of Merton College, where he
gained a superiority over all his fellow students in disputations at
the public school. Wood informs us, that upon a third admonition, from
the warden and society of that house, he resigned his fellowship, to
prevent expulsion, on the 4th of April, 1558; he had been guilty of
several misdemeanors, such as are peculiar to youth, wildness and
rakishness, which in those days it seems were very severely punished.
Soon after this he quitted England, and entered himself into the
society of Jesus at St. Omer's [1]; but before he left his native
country, he writ and translated (says Wood), these things following.
Various Poems and Devices; some of which are printed in a book called
the Paradise of Dainty Devices, 1574, 4to.
Hercules Furens, a Tragedy, which some have imputed to Seneca, and
others have denied to be his, but it is thought by most learned men to
be an imitation of that play of Euripides, which bears the same name,
and tho, in contrivance and economy, they differ in some things, yet
in others they agree, and Scaliger scruples not to prefer the Latin to
the Greek Tragedy [2].
Troas, a Tragedy of Seneca's, which the learned Farnaby, and Daniel
Heinsius very much commend; the former stiling it a divine tragedy,
the other preferring it to one of the same name by Euripides, both in
language and contrivance, but especially he says it far exceeds it in
the chorus. In this tragedy the author has taken the liberty of adding
several things, and altering others, as thinking the play imperfect:
First as to the additions, he has at the end of the chorus after
the first act, added threescore verses of his own invention: In the
beginning of the second act he has added a whole scene, where he
introduces the ghost of Achilles rising from hell, to require the
sacrifice of Polyxena! to the chorus of this act he added three
stanza's. As to his alterations, instead of translating the chorus
of the third act, which is wholly taken up with the names of foreign
countries, the translation of which without notes he thought would
be tiresome to the English reader, he has substituted in its stead
another chorus of his own invention. This tragedy runs in verses of
fourteen syllables, and for the most part his chorus is writ in verse
of ten syllables, which is called heroic.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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