A handbook of Literary criticism

Front matter

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A HANDBOOK OF LITERARY CRITICISM

A comprehensive analysis of all the literary forms, including the letter, the essay, the oration, history, fiction, biography, the lyric poem, drama, and the epic.

Preface

The purpose of the writer is to supply teachers and students of literature with a suitable manual of literary criticism. As Sidney Lanier pointedly remarked, there is no book extant in any language which gives an analytical and comprehensive survey of all the well-marked, widely varying, literary forms which have differentiated themselves in the course of time — the letter, the essay, the oration, history, fiction, biography, the lyric, the drama, the epic. I have attempted to furnish such a survey as the vast range of subjects and the limitations of a handbook allow. The student thus enjoys the advantage of viewing critically the whole field of letters — an advantage which no other manual offers.

As a preliminary study, this handbook treats literature from the viewpoint of a fine art. In common with all the fine arts literature has its own province, its own form and content. And the art-form and art-content of literature should be ascertained before the student makes any detailed study of the various departments in which literary art finds expression. The introductory chapters of this manual are devoted to such an analysis.

A special claim in favor of this handbook is conciseness as well as comprehensiveness. While dealing in a practical way with all the departments of literature, I have endeavored to give the briefest possible compendium of the best criticism. The “ first principles ” of literary art are tersely set forth and their application to the various prose-forms and verse-forms is equally terse. In thus economizing the student’s time and attention, I have abbreviated the history of literary forms and ; ivi vi PREFACE neglected to estimate their more minute differentiations — work which, after all, can only be suggested within the limits of a manual covering such a large field. In drawing upon the various sources of literary criticism, I have adopted the same method of condensation; often compressing into a single paragraph the ideas of a critic, which have been elaborated through several pages. The condensed account often takes the place of, and is preferable to, the verbatim quotation.

In making selections from German and French sources for this volume, I have availed myself of the criticism of Professor Francis J. Schaefer, Ph. D., who has personally supervised much of the work. The thanks of the author are also due to the late Prof. Max Miller, of Oxford, who suggested the plan of this handbook, and made some valuable suggestions as to the selection of the subject-matter.

A full list of the writers, ancient and modern, to whom this handbook is in any way indebted, will be found at the close of . the volume. References are also made in the text, and those which usually occupy the place of foot-notes are incorporated in the work itself, as I believe such an arrangement is more satisfactory to the student.

If this handbook shall prove helpful to teachers and students, the object for which it was written will be attained.

WILLIAM HENRY SHERAN.

Chapter 1

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VII.

WAM IX. xs XI.

XII.

XIII.

CHAPTER IY XV.

XVI.

WINE XVIII.

XIX.

XX.

XXI.

XXII.

XXIII.

XXIV.

Part I Introduction

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Part II Analysis Of Prose-forms

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CHAPTER XXV.

XXVI.

XXVIII.

XXVIII.

ORI XXX.

XXXI.

XXXII XXXIII.

XXXIV.

XXXV.

XXXVI.

XXXVII.

XXXVIII.

XXXIX.

XLVI.

XLVII.

XLVIII.

XLIX.

I. Special Bibliographies of the Letter,

The Essay (continued) . . (continued) - The Essay ae aes

CONTENTS

Biography (uated)

Biography eee

History .

History Continued a ener. ee (concluded) The Oration

The Oration conivaedy The Oration (continued) The Oration (continued) The Oration (concluded)

Fiction (coneinded)

The Novel .

Representative Authors oh Fiction.

PART Sit

PAGE ye oe ea to ee te ee Et 178 at) ws tie CS 185

. es Ns 193

. ° . 201

. 263

. . 306

Pere is 327 ee ° e e e e ° 356

ANALYSIS OF POETIC FORMS

Poetry (conned) Sa et oat The Drama . * Characters of the Dee eas Ethics of the Drama

Representative Authors .

The Epic (ooneaued) :

The Lyric (conuaucd Ee

Conclusion .