friendly offices, as well as fincere criticisms of Mr. Congreve, who had led me the way in tranflating some parts of Homer. I must add the name of Mr. Rowe and Dr. Parnell, though I fhall take a further opportunity of doing juftice to the laft, whofe good-nature (to give it a great panegyric) is no lefs extenfive than his learning. The favour of thefe gentlemen is not entirely undeferved by one who bears them so true an affection. But what can I fay of the honour fo many of the Great have done me, while the first names of the age appear as my fubfcribers, and the most distinguishing patrons and ornaments of learning as my chief encouragers. Among these it is a particular pleasure to me to find, that my highest obligations are to fuch who have done moft honour to the name of Poet: That his Grace the Duke of Buckingham was not difpleafed I should undertake the author to whom he has given (in his excellent Efay) fo compleat a praise. Read Homer once, and you can read no more; That the Earl of Halifax was one of the firft to favour me, of whom it is hard to fay whether the advancement of the polite arts is more owing to his generofity or his example. That fuch a Genius as my Lord Bolingbroke, not more diftinguifhed in the great fcenes of business, than in all the useful and entertaining parts of learning, has not refufed to be the critic of these sheets, and the patron of their writer. And that the noble author of the Tragedy of Heroic Love, has continued his partiality to me, from my writing Paftorals to my attempting the Iliad. I cannot deny myfelf the pride of confeffing, that I have had the advantage not only of their advice for the conduct in general, but their correction of feveral particulars of this tranflation. I could fay a great deal of the pleasure of being diftin guished guifhed by the Earl of Carnarvon, but it is almost abfurd to particularize any one generous action in a perfon whose whole life is a continued feries of them. Mr. Stanhope, the prefent Secretary of State, will pardon my defire of having it known that he was pleafed to promote this affair. The particular zeal of Mr. Harcourt (the fon of the late Lord Chancellor) gave me a proof howmuch I am honoured in a share of his friendship. Imuft attribute to the fame motive that of several others of my friends, to whom all acknowledgments are rendered unneceffary by the privileges of a familiar correspondence: and I am fatisfied I can no way better oblige men of their turn, than by my filence. In short, I have found more patrons than ever Homer wanted. He would have thought himself happy to have met the fame favour at Athens, that has been shewn me by its learned rival, the Univerfity of Oxford. And I can hardly envy him thofe pompous honours he received. after death, when I reflect on the enjoyment of so many agreeable obligations, and easy friendships, which make the fatisfaction of life. This diftinction is the more to be acknowledged, as it is fhewn to one whofe pen has ne- . ver gratified the prejudices of particular parties, or the vanities of particular men. Whatever the fuccefs may prove, I shall never repent of an undertaking in which I have experienced the candour and friendship of so many perfons of merit; and in which I hope to pass some of those years of youth that are generally loft in a circle of follies, after a manner neither wholly unuseful to others, nor disagreeable to myself. PREFACE PREFACE TO THE WORKS OF SHAKESPEAR. IT Tis not my defign to enter into a criticism upon this author; though to do it effectually and not fuperficially, would be the best occafion that any juft writer could take, to form the judgment and tafte of our nation. For of all English poets Shakespear muft be confeffed to be the fairest and fulleft fubject for criticifm, and to afford the most numerous, as well as most confpicuous inftances, both of beauties and faults of all forts. But this far exceeds the bounds of a Preface, the business of which is only to give an account of the fate of his works, and the difadvantages under which they have been transmitted to us. We fhall hereby extenuate many faults which are his, and clear him from the imputation of many which are not: A defign, which, though it can be no guide to future critics to do him juftice in one way, will at least be fufficient to prevent their doing him an injuftice in the other. I cannot however but mention fome of his principal and characteristic excellencies, for which (notwithstanding his defects) he is juftly and univerfally elevated above all other dramatic Writers. Not that this is the proper place of praifing him, but because I would not omit any occafion of doing it. If ever any author deferved the name of an Original, it was Shakespear. Homer himfelf drew not his art fo immediately from the fountains of Nature; it proceeded through Egyptian ftrainers and channels, and came to him not without fome tincture of the learning, or some caft of the models, of thofe before him. The poetry of Shakespear Shakespear was infpiration indeed he is not fo much an Imitator, as an Inftrument of Nature; and 'tis not fo juft to fay he speaks from her, as that fhe fpeaks through him. His Characters are fo much Nature herfelf, that 'tis a fort of injury to call them by fo diftant a name as copies of her. Thofe of other Poets have a conftant refemblance, which fhews that they received them from one another, and were but multipliers of the fame image: each picture, like a mock-rainbow, is but the reflection of a reflection. But every fingle character in Shakefpear is as much an individual, as thofe in life itself; it is as impoffible to find any two alike; and fuch as from their relation or affinity in any respect appear most to be twins, will upon comparison be found remarkably diftinct. To this life and variety of character, we must add the wonderful prefervation of it; which is fuch throughout his Plays, that, had all the fpeeches been printed without the very names of the perfons, I believe one might have applied them with certainty to every speaker. The Power over our Paffions was never poffeffed in a more eminent degree, or difplayed in fo different inftances. Yet all along, there is feen no labour, no pains to raise them; no preparation to guide our guefs to the effect, or be perceived to lead toward it: but the heart fwells, and the tears burst out, juft at the proper places: we are furprized the moment we weep; and yet upon reflection find the paffion fo juft, that we fhould be furprized if we had not wept, and wept at that very mo ment. How aftonishing is it again, that the paffions directly oppofite to thefe, Laughter and Spleen, are no less at his command! that he is not more a mafter of the great than of the ridiculous in human nature; of our nobleft tenderneffes, than of our vaineft foibles; of our ftrongest emotions, than of our idleft fenfations! 1 Nor does he only excel in the Paffions: in the coolness of reflection and reasoning he is full as admirable. His Sentiments Sentiments are not only in general the most pertinent and judicious upon every subject; but by a talent very peculiar, fomething between penetration and felicity, he hits upon that particular point on which the bent of each argument turns, or the force of each motive depends. This is perfectly amazing, from a man of no education or experience in thofe great and publick scenes of life which are utually the fubject of his thoughts: fo that he seems to have known the world by intuition, to have looked thro' human nature at one glance, and to be the only author that gives ground for a very new opinion, That the philofopher, and even the man of the world, may be born as well as the poet. It must be owned that with all thefe great excellencies, he has almoft as great defects; and that as he has certainly written better, fo he has perhaps written worse than any other. But I think I can in some measure account for thefe defects, from feveral caufes and accidents; without which it is hard to imagine that fo large and fo enlightened a mind could ever have been susceptible of them. That all thefe contingencies fhould unite to his difadvantage, feems to me almoft as fingularly unlucky, as that fo many various (nay contrary) talents fhould meet in one man, was happy and extraordinary. It must be allowed that Stage-poetry, of all other, is more particularly levelled to please the populace, and its fuccefs more immediately depending upon the common fuffrage. One cannot therefore wonder if Shakespear, having at his first appearance no other aim in his writings than to procure a fubfiftence, directed his endeavours folely to hit the tafte and humour that then prevailed. The audience was generally compofed of the meaner fort of people; and therefore the images of life were to be drawn from those of their own rank; accordingly we find, that not our author's only, but almost all the old comedies have their fcene among Tradesmen and Mechanics and even their hiftorical plays ftrictly follow the common old stories or vulgar traditions, of that kind of people, |