The southern literary messenger, Vol. II., No. 7, June, 1836Various
History
The southern literary messenger, Vol. II., No. 7, June, 1836
Various
American literature -- 19th century -- Periodicals
whether of omission, addition, or correction, than the mere act of
arranging, and the opportunity of seeing the whole collectively bring
with them of course,—I. Characteristics of Shakspeare's Dramatic
Works, with a Critical Review of each Play; together with a relative
and comparative Critique on the kind and degree of the Merits and
Demerits of the Dramatic Works of Ben Johnson, Beaumont and Fletcher,
and Massinger. The History of the English Drama; the accidental
advantages it afforded to Shakspeare, without in the least detracting
from the perfect originality or proper creation of the {452}
Shakspearian Drama; the contradistinction of the latter from the Greek
Drama, and its still remaining _uniqueness_, with the causes of this,
from the combined influences of Shakspeare himself, as man, poet,
philosopher, and finally, by conjunction of all these, dramatic poet;
and of the age, events, manners, and state of the English language.
This work, with every art of compression, amounts to three volumes of
about five hundred pages each.—II. Philosophical Analysis of the
Genius and Works of Dante, Spenser, Milton, Cervantes, and Calderon,
with similar, but more compressed, Criticisms on Chaucer, Ariosto,
Donne, Rabelais, and others, during the predominance of the Romantic
Poetry. In one large volume. These two works will, I flatter myself,
form a complete code of the principles of judgment and feeling applied
to Works of Taste; and not of _Poetry_ only, but of Poesy in all its
forms, Painting, Statuary, Music, &c. &c.—III. The History of
Philosophy considered as a Tendency of the Human Mind to exhibit the
Powers of the Human Reason, to discover by its own Strength the Origin
and Laws of Man and the World, from Pythagoras to Locke and Condillac.
Two volumes.—IV. Letters on the Old and New Testaments, and on the
Doctrine and Principles held in common by the Fathers and Founders of
the Reformation, addressed to a Candidate for Holy Orders; including
Advice on the Plan and Subjects of Preaching, proper to a Minister of
the Established Church.
To the completion of these four works I have literally nothing more to
do than _to transcribe_; but as I before hinted, from so many scraps
and _Sibylline_ leaves, including margins of books and blank pages,
that, unfortunately, I must be my own scribe, and not done by myself,
they will be all but lost; or perhaps (as has been too often the case
already) furnish feathers for the caps of others; some for this
purpose, and some to plume the arrows of detraction, to be let fly
against the luckless bird from whom they had been plucked or moulted.
In addition to these—of my GREAT WORK, to the preparation of which
more than twenty years of my life have been devoted, and on which my
hopes of extensive and permanent utility, of fame, in the noblest
sense of the word, mainly rest—that, by which I might,
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account