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horfes, enchanted armour, and enchanted caftles; adventures abfolutely incredible, yet fuited to the grofs ignorance of these ages, and to the legends, and fuperftitious notions concerning magic and necromancy, which then prevailed. This merit they had, of being writings of the highly moral and heroic kind. Their knights were patterns, not of courage merely, but of religion, generofity, courtesy, and fidelity; and the heroines were no lefs diftinguished for modefty, delicacy, and the utmost dignity of man

ners.

These were the first Compofitions that received the name of Romances.-In Spain, where the tafte for this fort of writing had been moft greedily caught, the ingenious Cervantes, in the beginning of the last century, contributed greatly to explode it; and the abolition of tournaments, the prohibition of fingle combat, the disbelief of - magic and enchantments, and the change in general of manners throughout Europe, began to give a new turn to fictitious Compofition. The heroifm and the gallantry, the moral and virtuous turn of the chivalry romance, were ftill preferved; but the dragons, the necromancers, and the enchanted caftles, were banished, and fome fmall resemblance to human nature was introduced. Still, however, there was too much of

the

the marvellous in them to please an age which now afpired to refinement. The characters were discerned to be strained; the ftyle to be fwoln; the adventures incredible: the books themfelves were voluminous and tedious.

Hence, this fort of Compofition foon affumed a third form, and from magnificent Heroic Romance, dwindled down to the Familiar Novel. These novels, both in France and England, during the age of Louis XIV. and King Charles II. were in general of a trifling nature, without the appearance of moral tendency, or useful inftruction. Since that time, however, fomewhat better has been attempted, and a degree of reformation introduced into the fpirit of Novel Writing. Imitations of life and character have been made their principal object. Relations have been professed to be given of the behaviour of perfons in particular interefting fituations, fuch as may actually occur in life; by means of which, what is laudable or defective in character and conduct may be pointed out, and placed in an useful light.

No fiction, in any language, was ever better fupported than the Adventures of Robinfon Crufoe. While it is carried on with that appearance of truth and fimplicity, which takes a ftrong hold

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hold of the imagination of all Readers, it fuggefts, at the fame time, very useful inftruction; by fhewing how much the native powers of man may be exerted for furmounting the difficulties of any external fituation. Mr. Fielding's Novels are highly diftinguished for their humour; a humour which, if not of the moft refined and delicate kind, is original, and peculiar to himself. The characters which he draws are lively and natural, and marked with the ftrokes of a bold pencil. The general fcope of his ftories is favourable to humanity and goodness of heart; and in Tom Jones, his greatest work, the artful conduct of the fable, and the subserviency of all the incidents to the winding up of the whole, deferve much praife. The most moral of all our Novel Writers is Richardfon, the Author of Clariffa, a Writer of excellent intentions, and of very confiderable capacity and genius; did he not poffefs the unfortunate talent of spinning out pieces of amusement into an immeasurable length. The trivial performances which daily appear in public under the title of Lives, Adventures, and Hiftories, by anonymous Authors, if they be often innocent, yet are most commonly infipid; and, though in the general it ought to be admitted that Characteristical Novels, formed upon Nature and upon Life, without extravagance, and without licentioufnefs, might furnish an agree

able

able and useful entertainment to the mind; yet confidering the manner in which thefe writings have been, for the most part, conducted, it muft alfo be confeffed, that they oftener tend to diffipation and idlenefs, than to any good purpose.

THE

OF POETRY.

'HE most just and comprehenfive definition which, I think, can be given of Poetry, is, "That it is the language of paffion, or of en"livened imagination, formned, most commonly, "into regular numbers." The Hiftorian, the Orator, the Philofopher, addrefs themselves, for the most part, primarily to the understanding: their direct aim is to inform, to perfuade, or to inftruct. But the primary aim of a Poet is to pleafe, and to move; and, therefore, it is to the Imagination, and the Paffions, that he fpeaks. He may, and he ought to have it in his view, to inftruct, and to reform; but it is indirectly, and by pleafing and moving, that he accomplishes this end. His mind is fuppofed to be animated by fome interefting object which fires his Imagination, or engages his Paffions; and which, of course, communicates to his Style a peculiar Dd 2 eleva

elevation fuited to his ideas; very different from that mode of expreffion, which is natural to the mind in its calm, ordinary ftate. I have added to my definition, that this language of Paffion, or Imagination, is formed, most commonly, into regular numbers; becaufe, though Verfification be, in general, the exterior distinction of Poetry, yet there are fome forms of Verse so loose and familiar, as to be hardly diftinguishable from Profe; fuch as the Verfe of Terence's Comedies; and there is alfo a fpecies of Profe, fo meafured in its cadence, and so much raised in its tone, as to approach very near to Poetical Numbers; fuch as the Telemachus of Fenelon; and the English Tranflation of Offian. The truth is, Verfe and Profe, on fome occafions, run into one another, like light and fhade. It is hardly poffible to determine the exact limit where Eloquence ends, and Poetry begins; nor is there any occafion for being very precise about the boundaries, as long as the nature of each is understood.

IT

THE ORIGIN OF POETRY.

T has been often faid, and the concurring voice of all antiquity affirms, that Poetry is older than Profe. But in what fenfe this feem

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