Images de page
PDF
ePub

Of humble life, secure from foes!
My friend sincere,

My judgment clear,

And gentle business my repose."

191. The “Night Thoughts."— The chief work entitling Young to a place in the annals of English literature is his "Night Thoughts." It was inspired by a triple bereavement that overwhelmed the poet with sorrow. "It differs," as he tells us, “from the common mode of poetry, which is, from long narratives to draw short morals; here, on the contrary, the narrative is short, and the morality arising from it makes the bulk of the poem. The reason of it is that the facts mentioned did naturally pour these reflections on the thoughts of the writer." The poem embodies a sombre, ascetic view of life. Its style is characterized by short, exclamatory utterances, the suggestiveness of which is often quite effective. The opening lines, which are often referred to, are as follows:

"Tired Nature's sweet restorer, balmy Sleep!

He, like the world, his ready visit pays,

Where Fortune smiles; the wretched he forsakes;
Swift on his downy pinion flies from woe,
And lights on lids unsullied by a tear."

Young's works abound in brief sententious sayings, and he rivals Shakespeare and Pope in the number of proverbial expressions that have passed into current use. A few will serve for illustration:

""Tis impious in a good man to be sad."

"Tis vain to seek in men for more than man.”

"Pygmies are pygmies still, though perched on Alps."

"Death loves a shining mark, a signal blow."

"The man that blushes is not quite a brute."

"Earth's highest station ends in 'Here he lies';

[ocr errors]

And dust to dust' concludes the noblest song."

The mind that coined these and many similar expressions was endowed with no ordinary gifts.

FOR FURTHER READING AND STUDY.

The England of Charles II., Green, "History of the English People," vol. III. pp. 327–339. The social and political condition of England during "The Augustan age," Green, “History of the English People," vol. IV. pp. 105-124.

Some interesting entries from The Diarists. Locke as an educational reformer, "Thoughts Concerning Education," and Painter's History of Education," pp. 230-238. A typical passage from Richardson's "Pamela." A description of the hero of "Hudibras." Thompson's minute observation of nature as illustrated in his "Spring." A review of Night I. in Young's "Night Thoughts." The story of Gulliver's voyage to Lilliput. A description of his experiences in Brobdingnag. An outline of Swift's 'Battle of the Books," Stephen, 'Life of Swift," Ch. 3, or Orrery's "Life and Writings of Swift." A review of the "Tale of a Tub," Stephen or Orrery (as above). The relations of Swift to Stella and Vanessa, Stephen, "Life of Swift," ch. 6, Craik, "Life of Swift," Thackeray, "The English Humorists," and Painter "History of English Literature."

[ocr errors]
[graphic][subsumed][subsumed][subsumed][merged small][merged small]

JOHN DRYDEN.

[ocr errors]

192. Rank in Literature.- One of the greatest names in the literature of this period is John Dryden. He does not deserve, indeed, to stand by the side of Chaucer, Spenser, Shakespeare, or Milton; but after these great names he comes at the head of the second rank. It was the fault of his age that he was not greater. No man can wholly detach himself from the influences by which he is surrounded; and Dryden came on the stage when a false taste prevailed, and when licentiousness gave moral tone to poetry. Living in the midst of burning religious and political questions, he was drawn into the vortex of controversy. He was always a partisan in some religious or political issue of the day. While this fact has given us some of the best satirical and didactic poems in our language, it did not contribute, perhaps, to the largest development of his poetical powers.

193. Absence of High Aims.- His aims were not high enough. "I confess," he said, "my chief endeavors are to delight the age in which I live. If the humor of this be for low comedy, small accidents, and raillery, I will force my genius to obey it." This was a voluntary degrading of his genius and an intentional renouncing of the artistic spirit. Guided by such motives, it was impossible for him to attain the highest results. If, like Milton, he had concentrated all the energies of his strong nature on an epic poem, as he once contemplated, or on poetry as an art, his work would no doubt have been less faulty. But, taking him as he was, we cannot help admiring his genius, which created for him a distinct place in English literature.

194. Early Years.- Dryden was born of good family in Northamptonshire in 1631. Both on his father's and his mother's side his ancestry was Puritan and republican. He was

« PrécédentContinuer »