Class JPEl4-08_ Book A}.. \%7\ f $8*1 - 7 ENGLISH LESSONS FOR ENGLISH PEOPLE. ENGLISH LESSONS FOE ENGLISH PEOPLE. BY THE REV. EDWIN A. ABBOTT, MA., • I HEAD MASTER OF THE CITY OF LONDON SCHOOL ; J. R. SEELEY, M.A., PROFESSOR OF MODERN HISTORY IN THE UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE. "It is not so much a merit to know English as it is a shame not to know it ; and I look upon this knowledge as essential for an Englishman, and not merely for a fine speaker. " — Adapted from Cicero. THIKD THOUSAND. SEELEY, JACKSON, AND HALLIDAY, 54, FLEET STREET. LONDON. MDCCCLXXI. 1ST I ^5 & > TO THE REV. G. F. W. MORTIMER, D.D., Prebendary of St. Paul's Cathedral, late Head Master of the City of London School. Dear Doctor Mortimer, We have other motives, beside the respect and grati- tude which must be felt for you by all those of your old pupils who are capable of appreciating the work you did at the City of London School, for asking you to let us dedicate to you a little book which we have entitled " English Lessons for English People." Looking back upon our school life, we both feel that among the many educational advantages which we enjoyed under your care, there was none more important than the study of the works of Shakspeare, to which we and our schoolfellows were stimulated by the special prizes of the Beaufoy Endowment. We owe you a debt of gratitude not always owed by pupils to their teachers. Many who have passed into a life IV DEDICATION. of engrossing activity without having been taught at school to use rightly, or to appreciate the right use of, their native tongue, feeling themselves foreigners amid the language of their country, may turn with some point against their teachers the reproach of banished Bolingbroke : — My tongue's use is to me no more Than an unstringed viol or a harp, Or like a cunning instrument cased up, Or, being open, put into his hands That knows no touch to tune the harmony \ Within my mouth you have engaoled my tongue, Doubly portcullis'd with my teeth and lips, And dull, unfeeling, barren ignorance Is made my gaoler to attend on me. I am too old to fawn upon a nurse, Too far in years to be a pupil now. It is our pleasant duty, on the contrary, to thank you for encouraging us to study the " cunning instrument" of our native tongue. Our sense of the benefits which we derived from this study, and our recollection that the study was at that time optional, and did not affect more than a small number of the pupils, lead us to anticipate that when once the English language and literature become recognized, not as an optional but as a regular part of our educational course, the advantages will be so great as to constitute nothing short of a national benefit. DEDICATION. V The present seems to be a critical moment for English instruction. The subject has excited much attention of late years : many schools have already taken it up ; others are on the point of doing so ; it forms an important part of most Government and other examinations. But there is a complaint from many teachers that they cannot teach English for want of text-books and manuals : and, as the study of English becomes year by year more general, this complaint makes itself more and more distinctly heard. To meet this want we have written the following pages. If we had had more time, we might perhaps have been tempted to aim at producing a more learned and exhaustive book on the subject ; but, setting aside want of leisure, we feel that a practical text-book, and not a learned or exhaustive treatise, is what is wanted at the present crisis. We feel sure that you will give a kindly welcome to our little book, as an attempt, however imperfect, to hand on the torch which you have handed to us ; we beg you also to accept it as a token of our sincere gratitude for more than ordinary kindnesses, and to believe us Your affectionate pupils, J. R. SEELEY, EDWIN A. ABBOTT. PEEFACE. This book is not intended to supply the place of an English Grammar. It presupposes a knowledge of Grammar and of English idiom in its readers, and does not address itself to foreigners, but to those who, having already a familiar knowledge of English, need help to write it with taste and exactness. Some degree of knowledge is presumed in the reader ; nevertheless we do not presume that he pos- sesses so much as to render him incapable of profiting from lessons. Our object is, if possible, not merely to in- terest, but to teach ; to write lessons, not essays, — lessons that may perhaps prove interesting to some who have passed beyond the routine of school life, but still lessons, in the strictest sense, adapted for school classes. Aiming at practical utility, the book deals only with those difficulties which, in the course of teaching, we have found to be most common and most serious. For there are many difficulties, even when grammatical accuracy has been at- tained, in the way of English persons attempting to write and speak correctly. First, there is the cramping restriction Vlll PREFACE. of an insufficient vocabulary ; not merely a loose and inexact apprehension of many words that are commonly used, and a consequent difficulty in using them accurately, but also a total ignorance of many other words, and an inability to use them at all ; and these last are, as a rule, the very words which are absolutely necessary for the comprehension and ex- pression of any thought that deals with something more than the most ordinary concrete notions. There is also a very com- mon inability to appreciate the differences between words that are at all similar. Lastly, where the pupil has studied Latin, and trusts too much for his knowledge of English words to his knowledge of their Latin roots, there is the possibility of misderiving and misunderstanding a word, owing to igno- rance of the changes of letters introduced in the process of derivation ; and, on the other hand, there is the danger of misunderstanding and pedantically misusing words correctly derived, from an ignorance of the changes of meaning which a word almost always experiences in passing from one lan- guage to another. The result of all this non-understanding or slovenly half- understanding of words is a habit of slovenly reading and slovenly writing, which when once acquired is very hard to shake off. Then, following on the difficulties attending the use of words, there are others attending the choice and arrangement of words. There is the danger of falling into " poetic prose, " of thinking it necessary to write " steed " or " charger " in- PKEFACE. IX stead of " horse," " ire " instead of " anger," and the like ; and every teacher who has had much experience in looking over examination papers, will admit that this is a danger to which beginners are very liable. Again, there is the tempta- tion to shrink with a senseless fear from using a plain word twice in the same page, and often from using a plain word at all. This unmanly dread of simplicity, and of what is called " tautology," rise gives to a patchwork made up of scraps of poetic quotations, unmeaning periphrases, and would-be humorous circumlocutions, — a style of all styles perhaps the most objectionable and offensive, which may be known and avoided by the name of Fine Writing. Lastly, there is the danger of obscurity, a fault which cannot be avoided without extreme care, owing to the uninflected nature of our language. All these difficulties and dangers are quite as real, and require as much attention, and are fit subjects for practical teaching in our schools, quite as much as many points which, at present, receive perhaps an excessive attention in some of our text-books. To use the right word in the right place is an accomplishment not less valuable than the know- ledge of the truth (carefully recorded in most English Grammars, and often inflicted as a task upon younger pupils) that the plural of cherub is cherubim, and the feminine of bull is cow. To smooth the reader's way through these difficulties is X PREFACE. the object of the first three Parts of this book. Difficulties connected with Vocabulary are considered first. The stu- dent is introduced, almost at once, to Synonyms, He is taught how to define a word, with and without the aid of its synonyms. He is shown how to eliminate from a word whatever is not essential to its meaning. The processes of Definition and Elimination are carefully explained : a system or scheme is laid down which he can exactly follow ; and ex- amples are subjoined, worked out to illustrate the method which he is to pursue. A system is also given by which the reader may enlarge his vocabulary, and furnish himself easily and naturally with those general or abstract terms which are often misunderstood and misused, and still more often not understood and not used at all. Some information is also given to help the reader to connect words with their roots, and at the same time to caution him against supposing that, because he knows the roots of a word, he necessarily knows the meaning of the word itself. Exercises are inter- spersed throughout this Part which can be worked out with, or without, an English Etymological Dictionary, 1 as the nature of the case may require. The exercises have not been selected at random ; many of them have been subjected to the practical test of experience, and have been used in class teaching. 1 An Etymological Dictionary is necessary for pupils studying the First Part. Chambers's or Ogilvie's will answer the purpose. PREFACE. XI The Second Part deals with Diction. It attempts to illus- trate with some detail the distinction — often ignored by those who are beginning to write English, and sometimes by others also — between the Diction of Prose, and that of Poetry. It endeavours to dissipate that excessive and vulgar dread of tautology which, together with a fondness for misplaced pleasantry, gives rise to the vicious style described above. It gives some practical rules for writing a long sentence clearly and impressively ; and it also examines the differ- ence between slang, conversation, and written prose. Both for translating from foreign languages into English, and for writing original English composition, these rules have been used in teaching, and, we venture to think, with encouraging results. A Chapter on Simile and Metaphor concludes the subject of Diction. We have found, in the course of teaching, that a great deal of confusion in speaking and writing, and still more in reading and attempting to understand the works of our classical English authors, arises from the inability to ex- press the literal meaning conveyed in a Metaphor. The application of the principle of Proportion to the explanation of Metaphor has been found to dissipate much of this con- fusion. The youngest pupils readily learn how to " expand a Metaphor into its Simile ;" and it is really astonishing to see how many difficulties that perplex young heads, and . sometimes old ones too, vanish at once when the key of Xll PREFACE. " expansion" is applied. More important still, perhaps, is the exactness of thought introduced by this method. The pupil knows that, if he cannot expand a metaphor, he does not understand it. All teachers will admit that to force a pupil to see that he does not understand anything is a great stride of progress. It is difficult to exaggerate the value of a process which makes it impossible for a pupil to delude himself into the belief that he understands when he does not understand. Metre is the subject of the Third Part. The object of this Part (as also, in a great measure, of the Chapter just men- tioned belonging to the Second Part) is to enable the pupil to read English Poetry with intelligence, interest, and appre- ciation. To teach any one how to read a verse so as to mark the metre on the one hand, without on the other hand con- verting the metrical line into a monotonous doggrel, is not so easy a task as might be supposed. Many of the rules stated in this Part have been found of practical utility in teaching pupils to hit the mean. Kules and illustrations have there- fore been given, and the different kinds of metre and varieties of the same metre have been explained at considerable length. This Chapter may seem to some to enter rather too much into detail. We desire, however, to urge as an explanation, that in all probability the study of English metre will rapidly assume more importance in English schools. At present, very little is generally taught, and perhaps known, about PEEFACE. Xlii this subject. In a recent elaborate edition of the works of Pope, the skill of that consummate master of the art of epigrammatic versification is impugned because in one of his lines he suffers the to receive the metrical accent. When one of the commonest customs (for it is in no sense a license) of English poets, — a custom sanctioned by Shakspeare, Dry den, Milton, Wordsworth, Byron, Shelley, and Tennyson, — can be censured as a fault, and this in a leading edition of a leading poet of our literature, it must be evident that much still remains to be done in teaching English Metre. At pre- sent this Part may seem too detailed. Probably, some few years hence, when a knowledge of English Metre has become more widely diffused, it will seem not detailed enough. The Fourth Part (like the Chapter on Metaphor) is con- cerned not more with English than with other languages. It treats of the different Styles of Composition, the appropriate subjects for each, and the arrangement of the subject-matter. We hope that this may be of some interest to the general reader, as well as of practical utility in the higher classes of schools. It seems desirable that before pupils begin to write essays, imaginary dialogues, speeches, and poems, they should receive some instruction as to the difference of arrangement in a poem, a speech, a conversation, and an essay. An Appendix adds a few hints on some Errors in Beason- ing. This addition may interfere with the symmetry of the . book ; but if it is found of use, the utility will be ample XIV PREFACE. compensation. In reading literature, pupils are continually meeting instances of false reasoning, which, if passed over without comment, do harm, and if commented upon, require some little basis of knowledge in the pupil to enable him to understand the explanation. Without entering into the details of formal Logic, we have found it possible to give pupils some few hints which have appeared to help them. The hints are so elementary, and so few, that they cannot possibly delude the youngest reader into imagining that they are anything more than hints. They may induce him here- after to study the subject thoroughly in a complete treatise, when he has leisure and opportunity; but, in any case, a boy will leave school all the better prepared for the work of life, whatever that work may be, if he knows the meaning of induction, and has been cautioned against the error, post hoc, ergo propter hoc. No lesson, so far as our experience in teaching goes, interests and stimulates pupils more than this ; and our experience of debating societies in the higher forms of schools, forces upon us the conviction that such lessons are not more interesting than necessary. Questions on the different paragraphs have been added at the end of the book, for the purpose of enabling the student to test his knowledge of the contents, and also to serve as home lessons to be prepared by pupils in classes. 1 1 Some of the passages quoted to illustrate style are intended to be com- mitted to memory and used as repetition-lessons. — See pp. 177, 178,309 233, etc. PREFACE. XV A desire, expressed by some teachers of experience, that these lessons should be published as soon as possible, has rather accelerated the publication. Some misprints and other inaccuracies may possibly be found in the following pages, in consequence of the short time which has been allowed us for correcting them. Our thanks are due to several friends who have kindly assisted us in this task, and who have also aided us with many valuable and practical suggestions. Among these we desire to mention Mr. Joseph Payne, whose labours on Norman French are well known ; Mr. J. S. Philpotts, late Fellow of New College, Oxford, and one of the Assistant Masters of Rugby School ; Mr. Edwin Abbott, Head Master of the Philological School ; Mr. Howard Candler, Mathematical Master of Uppingham School ; and the Rev. R. H. Quick, one of the Assistant Masters of Harrow School. In conclusion, we repeat that we do not wish our book to be regarded as an exhaustive treatise, or as adapted for the use of foreigners. It is intended primarily for boys, but, in the present unsatisfactory state of English education, we entertain a hope that it may possibly be found not unfit for some who have passed the age of boyhood ; and in this hope we have ventured to give it the title of English Lessons for English People. SHORT TABLE OF CONTENTS. PART I.— Vocabulary. page Chapter I. Words defined by Usage . . 1 Chapter IT. Words defined by Derivation . . .21 PART II.— Diction. Chapter I. Diction of Poetry . . . . .54 Chapter II. Diction of Prose . . . . .86 Chapter III. Faults in Diction . . . . .102 Chapter IV. Metaphorical Diction .... 126 PART III.— Metre. Chapter I. Metre in General ..... 143 Chapter II. Disyllabic Metre . . . . .190 Chapter III. Trisyllabic Metre . . . . .210 PART IV. Hints on Selection and Arrangement .... 216 APPENDIX. Hints on some Errors in Reasoning .... 255 Table of Consonants .... . *JS4 Questions and References to Exercises .... 285 CONTENTS. FIEST PART. CHAPTER I. WORDS DEFINED BY USAGE. PARAGRAPH The process of Definition explained __-_-_ 1 — 6 Synonyms ----------- 7, 8 Anonyms -----------9, 10 General, or abstract, Terms -------- 11 Classification of Words -------- 12 CHAPTER II. WORDS DEFINED BY DERIVATION. The use of Derivation --------- 13 The danger of Pedantry -------- 14 Hybrids ----------- 15 Latin Prefixes ---------- 16 Greek Prefixes ---------- 17 Teutonic Prefixes --------- 18 Noun Affixes ---------- 19 Adjective Affixes --------- 20 Verbal Affixes ---------- 21 Derivation, insufficient by itself -------22 Latin Roots „-_____--_ 23 Greek Roots ---------- 24 Grimm's Law ---------- 25 b XV111 CONTENTS. PARAGRAPH Classification of Consonants ------- 26 Grimm's Law exemplified -------- 27 Other Changes of Consonants ------- 28 Contraction and Extension of Words - - - - - - 29, 30 Liquid Changes and Assimilation of Vowels - - - - 31, 32 Changes of Meaning in Derivation ------ 33 The Law of Change --------- 34 The Law of Contraction -------- 35 The Law of Metaphor- -------- 36 The Law of Extension --------- 37 The Law of Deterioration -------- 38 The Law of Amelioration -------- 39 SECOND PART. CHAPTER I. POETIC DICTION. Poetic Diction ---------- 40 ,, „ is Archaic -------- 41 „ „ is Picturesque ------- 42 „ „ uses Epithets for Things - 4'2a M „ uses Ornamental Epithets ----- 4-2 h m9 „ uses Essential Epithets ------ 42c , „ is averse to lengthiness - - -43a, 436 „ is euphonious _______ 43^ ,, Characteristics of, exaggerated - 44 9 „ different styles of------- 45 The Elevated Style (Paradise Lost) ------ 46 Grotesqueness, Bombast - - - - - - - - 47, 48 Tameness, Bathos --------- 4;) Misapplication of Elevated Style (Pope's Odyssey) - 50 The Graceful Style (Tennyson) ------- 51 Pedantry, Conventionalism -------- 59 Deficiency of Grace --------- 53 The Forcible Style (Shakspeare) ------- r>4 Coarseness ----------- 55 The want of Force --------- 56 CONTENTS. XIX PARAGRAPH The Simple Style --------- 57 Childishness ----- ----- - 58 CHAPTER II. THE DICTION OF PROSE. The Diction of Prose 59 Impassioned Prose -------- 60 Exceptional Poetic Prose -------- 61 Speech the Guide to Prose -------- 62 Difference between Speech and Prose ------ 63 Writing more exact than Speech ------ 64 Writing less brief than Speech ------- 65 Writing less varied in Construction than Speech - - - - 66 CHAPTER III. FAULTS IN DICTION AND THEIR REMEDIES. Slang - - - 67 Technical Slang ---68 Fine Writing ---------- 69 Patch-work 70 The Antidote for Tautology 71 Obscurity, from mis-arrangement -------72 Obscurity, from ambiguous words -------73 The Antidote for Obscurity -•- - - -- - - 74 The Rhetorical Period ---------75 CHAPTER IY. SIMILE AND METAPHOR. A Simile 76,77 Compression of Simile into Metaphor - - - - - 78, 79 Implied Metaphor, the basis of Language ----- 80 Metaphor expounded ---------81 Personification, cannot be expounded ----- 82—84 Personification analysed -- - - - - - -85 XX CONTENTS. PARAGRAPH Personal Metaphor, natural and convenient ----- 86 Pseudo-Metaphors and Hyperbole -------87 Confusions of Similarity -------- 88 Good and bad Metaphors -------- 89 ,. ,, Personifications ------- 90 THIRD PART. CHAPTER I. METRE. Rhythm, when appropriate ------- -91 Metre, when appropriate --------gg Prose and Poetry in Shakspeare -------93 Didactic Poetry ----------94 Language, Metrical and Unmetrical ------ 95 Metre, different kinds of --------96 Names of Feet ---------- 97 Accent ------------98 Emphasis ----------- 90 Accent favours Disyllabic Metre ------- 100 Accent in Trisyllables and Monosyllables - - - - - 101 Pope's Use of the Unemphatic Accent ------ 103 Dubious Monosyllabic Accent - - - - - - -109 The Third Accent often Unemphatic in Pope - - - - 104 The Purpose of Unemphatic Accents __---- 105 Emphatic Accents - - - - - -- - - -106 The Number of Unaccented Syllables in each Foot - - - - 107 The Prevalent Foot --------- 108 Rhyme ------------109 Faults in Rhyming --------- no Double Rhyme ---------- HJ Quantity ----------- no Effect of Quantity, exaggerated - - - - - -113 Slurred Syllables ----------114 Pause in Blank Verse --------- 115 Pause in Pope - - - - - - - - - -116 Pause in Dryden ---------- 117 CONTENTS. XXI PARAGRAPH Compensation of Pauses --------- 118 Introductory Pause - - - - - - - - -119 The Pause in Descriptive Poetry ------- 120 The Pause at the end of the Line ------- 121 Alliteration ----- 122 Concealed Alliteration --------- 123 Early English Alliterative Poetry ------- 124 Influence of Early English Poetry - - - - - -125 Alliteration in Elizabethan Authors ------ 126 Milton's Alliteration - - - - 127 Vowel Alliteration ---------- 128 Influence of Early English Poetry on the Initial Foot - 129 CHAPTER II. DISYLLABIC METRE. Lines with One Accent --------- 130 „ „ Two Accents --------- 131 „ , , Three Accents and Six Accents (Alexandrine) - - - 132 Iambic with four Accents -------- 133 Trochaic with Four Accents - - - - - - - -134 Iambic with Five Accents -------- 135 Trisyllabic Variation in 136 Elision in 137 Trochaic Variation in - 138 with Ehyme ------ 139 in Rhyming Narrative - 140 Trochaic with Five Accents -------- 141 Spenserian Stanza, and Sonnet ------- 142 CHAPTER III. TRISYLLABIC METRE. Trisyllabic Metre, Early Use of -------143 „ „ Effect of - - - - - - - - 144 „ „ Scansion of __"'._•_-.- 145 Anapaest with Two Accents ---I---- 146 ,, „ Three Accents -------- 147 • ,, „ Four Accents --------- 148 XX11 CONTENTS. PARAGRAPH Disyllabic and Trisyllabic Metre, Confusion between - 149 Classical Metres ---..----- 150 FOURTH PART. HINTS ON SELECTION AND ARRANGEMENT. Difference between Scientific and Non-Scientific Composition - - 151 Non-scientific Composition, subdivision of - - - - - 152 Selection in Conversation - - - - - - - -153 Selection in Oratory - - - - - - - - -154 Selection in Didactic Composition - - - - - - -155 Selection in Imaginative Literature - - - - - - -156 Limit of Fiction ---------- 157 Imaginative Literature dealing with History - - - - - 158 Unity of Feeling ---------- 159 Selection in Dramatic Poetry - - - - - - -ICO Arrangement in Argument - - ~ - - - - -161 Argument in Oratory - - - - - - - - -162 Argument in Didactic Composition - - - - - - -163 Arrangement in Oratorical Narration - - - - - -164 Arrangement in Didactic Narration - - - - - - -165 Arrangement in Imaginative Narration - - - - - -166 Construction of a Plot - - - - - - - - -167 Different kinds of Interest - - - - - - - -168 Incidents interesting in themselves - - - - - - -169 Incidents that illustrate Character - - - - - - -170 Idyllic Incidents - - - - - - - - - -171 Epic Incidents - - - - - - - - - -172 APPENDIX. HINTS ON SOME ERRORS IN REASONING. Use of Logic in Literature - - - - - - - -173 Sources of Knowledge : I. Personal Observation - - - - - -174 II. Induction ____---- 175 III. Deduction -------- 176 CONTENTS. XX111 PARAGRAPH Sources of Error : I. Prejudice --__-___ J77 II. Mai- Observation ------- 173 III. False Induction - - 179 IV. Confusion - - 180 V. False Ratiocination - - - - - - -181 Personal Observation and Prejudice --__-_ 182 Induction by Enumeration - - - - - - - -183 Induction always incomplete - - - - - - -184 Induction with Experiment - - - - - - -185 Induction without Experiment - - - - - - -186 Partial Induction -----____ 137 Analogy meaning Likeness - - - - - - - -188 ,, „ Similarity of Relations ------ 189 The Argument from Analogy - - - - - - - -190 Deduction, Technical Terms of - - - - - - -191 A Syllogism implies Inclusion - - - - - - -192 Illustration of the Inclusion of the Syllogism ----- 193 Ambiguous Case ------____ 194 Propositions of Identity -----____ 295 Ambiguity of Predicate - - - - - - _ -196 Conversion of Propositions - - - - - - _ -197 Denial of the Antecedent -----___ igg The Error of the Suppressed Premise ---___ 199 The Error of the Variable Middle ______ £00 The Error of the Forgotten Condition --____ 201 Ignoratio Elenchi - ---_____ 202 Begging the Question ; Reasoning in a Circle - 203 Definitions ---------- 204 Definition and Description -------- 205 Essentials and Accidents -' - - - - _ _ 206 Mathematical Certainty -------- 207 Probable Propositions ------__._ £08 PAGE Table of Consonants -----_■--_ 283 Questions and References to Exercise ------ 284 The following is a scheme showing the manner in which the book is intended to be used as a text-book in the different classes of a school. Class A represents a class that has passed through a course of English Grammar, begins the study of Latin, and understands Proportion. Class. Paragraphs a B c 13—39; 76—83; 95—99;* 138; 173— 181. '9— 39; 72—90; 95— 99;* 138; 173— 181. ' 9—58 ; 67—101 ; * 133—138 ; 1 73— 181. _ (begins Geometry f ^^ i ^~ 101 5 * H2-122 ; 133-138 ; D and Latin Prosody) | 15 q . 173_187. E F (begins Greek) ( Omits 102— 104; 108; 124—128; 130— \ 132; 141—149; and 151—172. ( Omits 124—128; 130, 131; 143—149; ( and 151—172. G Omits 151—172. H Omits none. Some of the longer examples in the Chapter on the Diction of Poetry, and on pages 174, 177, 178, 188, 208, 209, etc., should be committed to memory. * The attention of the Pupils should also be directed from the first to the substance of Paragraphs 10G, 109, 122, the first half of 129, 188, and 173—181. ENGLISH LESSONS. FIEST PAET. CHAPTER I. WORDS DEFINED BY USAGE. 1, The Method of Induction, — The natural way to discover the meaning of a word in our native language is the method of induction. 1 We hear a word, e.g., oppression, repeated, in a certain context, in such a way as to give us, as we think, some approximate notion of its meaning, say, violence : then we hear it again in different context, and per- ceive that it cannot mean exactly violence; it seems to mean injustice : but again some further mention of the word makes it evident that, though oppression is always unjust, yet it is not identical with injustice. If we live in society where the word is often and correctly used, or if we read the works of accurate authors, we shall in course of time reject incorrect notions of the word, and arrive at its exact meaning. This process of rejection may be technically called elimination. The process by which, by introducing the different instances in which a word occurs, we arrive at the meaning which the word has in every instance, is called " The Method of Induction.'" 1 See paragraph 175. i WOKDS DEFINED BY USAGE. 2. Elimination and Definition.— Suppose the square A l Bj C x Di to represent our first notion of a word. When we reject or eliminate some part of this notion as being in- accurate, we contract our square ; we draw the boundaries more closely ; in other words, we define. This process of elimination is unconsciously used in the discovery of the meaning of the simplest word in our native language. The following example should be studied and reproduced with the diagram. Aj Qualities belonging to sugar, but not to salt. SWEETNESS. Qualities belonging to sugar and salt, but not to snow. EDIBILITY. Qualities belonging to sugar, salt, and snow, but not to paper. SOLUBILITY. D, B2 Qualities common to sugar, salt, snow, and paper. These include WHITENESS. WOKDS DEFINED BY USAGE. 3 How does a child discover what is meant by white ? He perhaps hears that sugar is white, and he hence infers that white has something to do with sugar. Let the square Ai B x Ci T>i represent this quality of sugar. What particular quality of sugar does white represent ? Perhaps ' sweet.' But presently he hears that " salt is white" Then .white can have nothing to do with ' sweetness,' since salt is not ' sweet.' Hence the child eliminates 'sweetness,' which is peculiar to sugar, and narrows the square to A 2 B 2 C 2 D 2 . " Whiteness is something common to sugar and salt." What is this common quality ? Both sugar and salt are good to eat. Perhaps then white means ' good to eat.' But he finds snow called white, and snow is not ' good to eat.' Hence he eliminates the quality of ' edibility,' and narrows the square a second time to A 3 B 3 C 3 D 3 , which represents qualities common to sugar, salt, and snow. Sugar, salt, and snow all melt in water. Perhaps then white means 'able to melt.' But, lastly, paper is called white, and paper cannot melt. The last elimination of ' solubility ' is therefore made, and the square is narrowed to A 4 B 4 C 4 D 4 , which represents qualities common to sugar, salt, snow, and paper. These qualities (those at least that are obvious to a child) are so few that in all probability the child would now hit upon the most obvious of them, whiteness. This process of induction and elimination, though it draws the boundaries closer round the thing to be defined, does not completely define it in the case above mentioned and in many other cases. A 4 B 4 C 4 D 4 includes whiteness, but it also includes visibility, tangibility, and other qualities common to sugar, salt, snow, and paper. It would have been a final definition if we had said, "whiteness is the colour of snow,'' for that definition would not have included anything beside whiteness. 4 WORDS DEFINED BY USAGE. A definition is a description separating the thing defined from all other things. 3. How can we attain to a final definition ?— When the thing to be denned belongs to a certain class, we can mention the class, and then the qualities which distinguish it from other things in the same class. This will be a final definition, and may be illustrated by a diagram. Whiteness belongs to the class of colours. Draw CB to represent the class colour. Whiteness is somewhere or other in C R. Now draw another line S W T representing salt and inter- secting C R in W. The point W is definitely fixed by the intersection of the two lines, and it represents the colour of salt or whiteness. Caution : A definition, if it be not based upon usage, may be very useless even though it be correct. Thus, " man is a cooking animal" (even supposing this to be a correct and final definition), is by no means so useful a definition as one based upon the intellect or moral sense, or upon some other faculty supposed to be peculiar to man. Such definitions are liable to be not only useless, but incorrect. Hence all the definitions of children, not being based upon sufficient knowledge, and not being subjected sufficiently to WORDS DEFINED BY USAGE. 5 the eliminating test, are imperfect. Thus a child might define a cat as " a striped quadruped," which would include the zebra. In much the same way Plato is said to have defined man as " a featherless biped," a definition which was at once ridiculed by Diogenes, who exhibited a plucked cock to the philosopher's disciples. 4. Necessity of Elimination before Definition — Since a definition is final, and elimination a long and often imperfect process, it may be asked, " Why eliminate ? " The answer is, in order to define. Definition is simple when we know the class and the defining peculiarities of the thing to be defined. But how if we do not know them ? Take as an example the definition of the word oppression. Suppose we say " since oppression involves some kind of pain to the sufferer, pain shall; be selected as the class ; and, since it is always the strong who oppress the weak, that shall be selected as the distinguishing peculiarity. " We therefore define oppression as " pain inflicted by the strong on the weak.'' 1 It will soon be evident that this definition will not bear the test of usage. " The father oppressed his son for telling a falsehood" would be an absurd expression, and would show that our definition is faulty. If we had used the test of this and a few other sentences before defining, we should have escaped this error. We should have seen that punished not oppressed was the correct word in the above sentence, and we should have eliminated "punishment." 5. Sentences of Elimination. — Having first made some rough kind of approximation to the meaning of the word to be defined, we can construct sentences containing 6 WORDS DEFINED BY USAGE. the word, and from these sentences our knowledge of English idiom will at once enable us to determine whether the approximate meaning requires to be further limited, and in what direction. These sentences may be called sentences of elimination, because they help us to eliminate from the first rough approximate definition whatever is not essential to the word. 6. Approximation.— Care should be taken that the approximate definition should be too broad rather than too narrow. For instance, if we are going to define oppression, we must not take violence as an approximation, for all oppres- sion is not violence ; some conduct is oppressive, and yet not violent ; violence is therefore too narrow. But all oppression is injustice, and injustice will therefore serve as a first ap- proximation. Any word that can stand as a predicate in a sentence where the word to be defined, preceded by " all," e.g., "all oppression,' 7 is the subject, will serve as a first ap- proximation. Now let us take a few sentences describing unjust conduct, and let us use the word oppress. (1.) " The tenant oppressed his landlord by defrauding him of his rent." We feel that this is incorrect, for oppression is exerted by a superior on an inferior, or by the strong on the weak. (2.) " The high- wayman oppressed the traveller by taking his purse." This is incorrect, because oppression denotes conduct more public and self-reliant than the violence of a robber, who may at any time be caught and hung. (8.) " The tyrant oppn one of his body-guard by giving him a blow." This is not correct, for oppression implies systematic injustice, not a single isolated action. Hence we eliminate from the broad approximation of injustice all injustice that is not (1) practised WORDS DEFINED BY USAGE. 7 by the strong against the weak ; (2) public and self-reliant ; (3) systematic. The residuum, i.e., " injustice more or less open and systematic, practised by the strong against the weak," is a fair definition of oppression. Here, as very often, more than two new notions are necessary for the purpose of defining. 7. Synonyms. — One word can seldom be explained (otherwise than very roughly) by any other single word in the same language. Even if at first two words are identical in meaning, as, perhaps, pig and pork originally were, there is a constant tendency (34) to differentiate their meanings. It is true that the English language, more than any other, is open to the charge of such superfluity. There is perhaps little difference between begin and commence, answer and reply, end and finish. The former in each pair of words is Teutonic, the latter of Latin origin, and the one is very nearly an exact translation of the other. But even here, though the meaning is nearly the same, the use of the words is not the same. Commence requires the verbal noun after it, whereas begin can take the infini- tive instead. " They began to dance," but " they commenced dancing." Moreover begin is far more colloquial than com- mence. End is used with impersonal subjects, " the day has ended," not " finished," but " I have finished." Again, finish refers more to the result produced. "I have now ended (not so well finished) forty years of toil," but "I hav e finished (not ended) the book." Lastly, answer is more colloquial, and may sometimes imply more of retort than reply. So few then are the exceptions, that we may lay it down as a rule that no English word can be perfectly explained by any other single word. If synonyms be used to mean words 8 WORDS DEFINED BY USAGE. of similar meaning, then they have an existence ; but if they mean words of precisely the same meaning, then synonyms rarely or never occur. Def. Synonyms are words that have not the same, but similar, meanings. 8. The use of Synonyms in defining, — In eliciting the exact meaning of a word we are naturally brought into contact with synonyms. It is by eliminating synonyms that we draw nearer to the meaning of the word to be defined. Thus we draw nearer to the meaning of oppression by saying it is not the same as violence, or cruelty, or Injustice. Each of these eliminations teaches us something, whereas we should learn nothing from saying "oppression is not the same as fame." One way then of preparing ourselves for the task of defining a word is to jot down a group of synonymous words. Thus, if we have to define pride, set down vanity, conceit, arrogance, assurance, presumption, haughtiness, and insolence. Then ascertain (1) what is the common quality pervading all these synonyms ; (2) what are the special qualities in which pride differs from each of its synonyms. Thus (1) the common quality is "an exaggerated sense of one's own worth as compared with the worth of others." But (2) the proud man is more in- different to the opinion of others than the vain man ; he has a more solid foundation of merit than the conceited man ; the proud man will wait to be honoured, and will seldom pre- sume upon his own merits, or upon the yielding nature of others ; he is not so selfishly exacting as the arrogant man, not so open in betraying his defect as the haughty man, not so brutally unfeeling as the insolent man : he is far too dignified to be accused of assurance. WORDS DEFINED BY USAGE. 9 By this process we clear up the meaning not only of the word to be defined, but also of all the words in the synony- mous group, and this with a brevity and an exactness which would be impossible if we took each word separately. The following words are intended to be explained and defined in this way by reference to their synonyms. Sentences are to be constructed containing the word to be defined. Some of these sentences will be correct, and may be called defining sentences ; others will be incorrect (requiring some synonym, and not the word to be defined), and may be called elimina- ting sentences. GROUP OF SYNONYMS. WORD TO BE DEFINED. (1) Presumptuous, (2) Insolent, (3) Haughty, (4) Vain. Proud. Defining Sentences. (1) He has reason to be proud of his discoveries, his son, etc. (2) He was too proud to beg. Eliminating Sentences.— (1) He was [ 1 ] enough to ask for the chief command. (Eliminates the dis- position to obtrude ones claims.) (2) The brutal | 2 ] of the drunken and exacting soldiery alienated the natives. (Eliminates brutal contempt for the rights of others.) (3) The general, when requested to lay down his arms, [ 3 ly] replied, " Come and take them." (Elimi- nates contemptuous bearing.) (4) The poet's [ 4 ] induced him to take every oppor- tunity of reciting his works. (Eliminates desire for the admiration of others.) 10 WORDS DEFINED BY USAGE. Summary. — (1) Pride is a high opinion of the merits of one's self, or something connected with one's self. (2) It is not pushing like presumption, not brutal like insolence, not openly contemptuous like haughtiness, not influenced by the desire of admiration like vanity. GROUP OF SYNONYMS. WORD TO BE DEFINED. (1) Power, (2) Strength, (3) Force. Authority. Defining Sentences. (1) Authority is respected by all who respect the laws. (3) I am supported by the best au- thorities in this statement. Eliminating Sentences. — (1) It is out of my [ 1 ] to oblige you. (Eliminates power in the sense of mere ability.) (2) I give you full [ 1 ] to release him. (Here authority could be used, and the elimination fails, showing that power sometimes includes authority.) (3) A horse has the [ 2 ] of seven men. (Eliminates muscular power.) (4) The blow descended with [ 3 ]. (Eliminates dyna- mic power.) (5) I yielded to [ 3 ], not to argument. (Eliminates violence.) Summary. — (1) Authority is some kind of power. It is power resting upon right, and so, in a secondary sense, it is the weight rightfully attaching to a writer recognized as judicious. (2) It is not power in the sense of ability, not mere muscular power, not dynamic power, not power founded on violence. WORDS DEFINED BY USAGE. 11 GROUP OF SYNONYMS. WORD TO BE DEFINED. (1) Nation, (2) People, (3) Race, (4) Populace, (5; Population, (6) Family. Tribe. Defining Sentences.-, (1) The nation of Israel was com- posed of twelve tribes. (2) The Bedouin, Red Indian, finny tribes, etc. (3) I hate the whole tribe of para- sites. (2) Eliminating Sentences. — (1) The three great [ 1 ] of the ancient world represent respectively theology, philosophy, and law. (Eliminates magnitude and or- ganization.) 'This news was soon brought to the [ 2 ] on the shore. (Eliminates people who are merely connected by being in the same place at a given moment.) The [ 2 J of England ought to be proud of their national history. (Eliminates people merely inhabit- ing the same territory.) (3) The English [ 2 ] is composed of several distinct [ 3 ]. (Eliminates people connected by relation- ship, but not living together isolated from others.) (4) The clamour of the infuriated [ 4 ] drowned the voice of the more respectable part of the nation. (Eliminates people considered contemptuously.) (5) The [ 5 ] of London is about three millions and a quarter. (Eliminates people considered numerically.) (6) The [ 6 ] is the most natural combination of indi- viduals . (Eliminates people having the same father and mother. ) 12 WORDS DEFINED BY USAGE. Summary.— (1) A tribe is a number of people (seconda- rily, of animals) connected together. (2) The connection of a tribe is not on so vast a scale, nor so complicated, as that of a nation ; it is not a connection of mere place ; not of mere relationship, without connection of place ; a tribe is not people considered contemptuously ; not people considered nu- merically ; not people living together and having the same father or mother. The connection is a common habitation and common ancestry, and metaphorically a " family likeness." The following words can be defined as above : WOKD TO BE GKOUP OF SYNONYMS. DEFINED. Total, whole, entire Complete. Bravery, courage, gallantry Fortitude. Aware Conscious. Un-natural, non-natural Super-natural. Religious, holy Pious. Obvious, clear Evident. Customary, fashionable Conventional. Intelligent, clever, sensible Wise. Truthfulness, accuracy, correctness Veracity. Imagination Fancy. Reason, intellect Understanding. Comprehend, understand Apprehend. Consciousness, (a) sense (of) Perception. Anger, vexation, annoyance, wrath Resentment. Bold, stout-hearted, courageous Brave. Gentle, tender, kind Mild. Shy, meek, retiring, bashful Humble. Wisdom, learning, acquaintance Knowledge. Aid, help Assist. Pardon, pass over Forgive. WORDS DEFINED BY USAGE. 13 GROUP OF SYNONYMS. Description, explanation Notorious, illustrious, renowned, well- known, notable Agreement, compact Useful, advantageous Adoration, homage Thoughtful, far-sighted Statesman Superfluous, needless Harmless, innocuous Examine, inquire into Distinguish Discover, reveal, uncover Just Temperance Crime, fault, vice, immorality Novel, independent Influence Autocrat, despot Repentance Hasty, premature Occurrence, event Affectionate Pain, grief, sorrow, agony Adversity, calamity, misery Plan, project, step Object Scoff- Wit Frank, naive Lampoon Jocose, funny, ludicrous WORD TO BE DEFINED. Definition. Famous. Convention Expedient. Worship. Prudent. Politician. Unnecessary. Innocent. Investigate. Discriminate. Invent Virtuous. Self-control. Sin. Original. Ascendency. Monarch. Remorse. Precipitate. Circumstance. Loving. Anguish. Tribulation. Measure. Purpose. Sneer. Humour. Ingenuous. Satire. Ridiculous. 14 WORDS DEFINED BY USAGE. 9. Anonyms. — In defining words, and distinguishing between different shades of the same meaning, we some- times stumble upon a notion that is not expressed by any single English word. Such notions have no names, and may therefore be called anonyms. 10. How to find Anonyms. — Differences of meaning often spring from differences of degree in the same quality. A good many qualities, such as bravery, humility, may be treated as being means between extremes of excess or defect. Too much bravery may be called rashness, the ' extreme of excess ; ' too little may be called cowardice, the ' extreme of defect.' And so of humility. EXCESS. MEAN. DEFECT. Rashness. Servility. Bravery. Humility. Cowardice. Pride, or Haughtiness. It will be good practice to arrange a number of words in this way. But we shall soon find that among these words there are some which cannot be arranged in complete triplets. One or more of the three terms cannot be inserted, not having any name. Thus, virtuous anger against ill- doing, which we call resentment, may on the side of excess become relentlessness, but we have no name to express the defect. EXCESS. MEAN. DEFECT. Relentlessness. Presentment. Anonym. WORDS DEFINED BY USAGE. 15 Sometimes we may have one of the extremes given us in order to determine the corresponding extreme and the mean. Thus, if we have given us fickleness, reserve, and ambition: EXCESS. MEAN. DEFECT. Fickleness. Loquacity. Ambition. Versatility . Frankness. Anonym, 1 (proper ambition). Obstinacy. Reserve. Anonym, (unambitious). "Where we can find no names for the extreme or mean, we can sometimes fill up the vacancy with some foreign word. But even where we cannot do this, it is useful as well as interesting to note what qualities (very often faults or virtues) have not been recognized by the national language as sufficiently common or important to deserve names. It may be also noticed that language is deficient in those terms which express the mean or average. The extremes strike us, and therefore gain priority in naming. Thus we have no one ward to denote the mean between swift and slow, big and little, clever and dull, deep and shallow. Hence the word denoting excess is generally used to denote the average. Thus the word magnitude is used for size, and even qualified by " smallest" in — This pendent world in bigness 2 as a star Of smallest magnitude close by the moon. Milton, P. Z.,n. 1053. 1 Sometimes, emulation. 2 Words ending in -ness are rarely used in this sense to denote an average. We say speed, not swiftness ; magnitude, not greatness or big- ness ; ability, not cleverness ; depth, not deepness. 16 WORDS DEFINED BY USAGE. Exercises. (1) Give the extremes of : patient, just, industrious, digni- fied, lively, ornate, peaceable, sober, simplicity, faithful, gentle, natural (applied to style), forcible (applied to style), cheerful, conscientious, tasteful, judicious, self-respect, straightforward, meek. (2) Give the other extreme, and the mean of : sly, meddle- some, impetuous, covetous, pedantic, mean, inquisitive, parsi- monious, coarse, cruel, selfish, credulous, reserved, avarice, suspicious, passionate, childish, impudent, quarrelsome, hypo- crisy. 11. Generalizing. — To increase one's vocabulary does not always imply increasing the number of one's notions. The technical words of a railway engineer — for example, such as sleeper, shunt, etc. — may express objects or actions that we have often previously noticed. Similarly, to be able to dis- tinguish between a flock of sheep or birds, a herd of oxen or swine, a covey of partridges, and a swarm of flies, need not be intellectually improving. But to learn the meanings and uses of more general words, especially those that represent the operations of the mind, is often accompanied by another kind of learning : we gain new notions at the same time with the new words. Thus we are all in the habit of using the words sight, hearing, taste, etc., denoting the several faculties of sense particularly, but not many use the general word sensation, and for want of this word many do not grasp the notion. The same may be said of such words as substance, incorporeal, art, science, culture, litera- ture, politics, government. Of these words many persons neve i' succeed in grasping the meaning. Instead of these general or abstract terms, they take some f 4 WOEDS DEFINED BY USAGE. 17 particular or concrete term that is included in the general term, and they substitute this imperfect meaning for the reality. Thus, many, whenever they use the word science, think of some one of those sciences which are called "natural," associating the word with "chemistry" or " botany," and they are consequently quite unprepared for such an expression as " the science of philology or psycho- log} 7 ." It will therefore be a valuable exercise to perform the reverse process to that which we have been describing above, and to generalize as well as to define. In generalizing, we take away (abstract) that which is peculiar to the in- dividual, and leave that which is common to the class (genus), or general. Thus motion round our own planet is peculiar to the moon. Abstract that, and what remains is motion round any planet, which gives us the generic term "satel- lite," including Saturn's moons as well as ours. Examples.— Moon is included in (1) satellites : satellites in (2) planets : planets in (3) heavenly bodies. Weight (1) the attraction of the earth; (2) the attraction of every particle of matter by every other ; (3) laws of nature. A circle is included in (1) conic sections; (2) curves; (3) figures; (4) lines. Corn, (1) vegetable; (2) product. Sword, (1) weapon; (2) instrument. County-court, (1) judicature ; (2) institution. Policeman, (1) executive ; (2) government. A shilling, (1) money ; (2) currency. Another kind of generalizing consists in giving a name to some quality common to two or three objects. Thus " the quality of giving light" is common to a lamp and the sun. We might try to express it by bright. But a looking-glass is bright, and yet does not give light of its own, like the sun. We therefore require another word. We might invent " light- 2 18 WORDS DEFINED BY USAGE. bearing," but the English language generally prefers to ex- press such compound words in Latin or Greek, and so we say " luminiferous." In the same way, " that which con- cerns the mind " is expressed by the Latin mental ; " that which pertains to the material objects of nature " is ex- pressed by the Greek physical ; the work which anything animate or inanimate is fitted to perform is called function, and so on. Exercises.— Some of these words are so important tha 1 it will be a valuable exercise to explain them for their own sakes ; and as they are not words in common use, reference to a dictionary may be allowed. (1) Explain, giving in each case a sentence containing the word : Propensity, provisional, observation, theory, anticipation, realize, generalize, induction, abstraction, analysis, synthesis, deduction, categories, essentials, accidents, reaction, organi- zation, modification, periodical, maximum, minimum, resi- duum, definite, predicate, parallelism, social, tendency, voli- tion, empirical, abstract, concrete, eclectic, esoteric, aesthetic, individuality, identity, ethics, metaphysics. (2) Give names to express " occurring exactly at the same time," " living about the same time," " liability to combus- tion," " the power of lasting," " able to be understood," " the power of not being pierced," "a centre about which additional matter may be collected," " the recurring path of a planet," " in the act of recovering from illness." 12. Classification of Words.— The method last men- tioned suggests a very useful exercise. Take some general notion, such as time, space, action, quantity, boundary, motion, thought, speech, mind, body, substance. Each of these will have a great number of dependent notions, which can be WOKDS DEFINED BY USAGE. 19 well learned by taking them in groups that show the neces- sity of each word, and its connection with the rest of the group. Take time, for example. We want words to apply to occurrences that happen at the same time (simultaneous), to those that happen in the same period (contemporary), that which is only for a time (temporary), only for a short time (momentary), for all time (eternal), too soon (pre- mature), at the right time (seasonable), very long ago (ancient), the present as compared with antiquity (modern), the time between antiquity and modern times (mediaeval). Next take motion. That which causes motion (force), motion forward (progress), backward (retrogression), upward (elevation), downward (depression), step by step (gradation), the rate of motion (velocity), increased motion (acceleration), diminished (retardation), the tendency of anything to cause motion in another thing towards itself (attraction), the sudden communication of motion (impulse), motion asunder (disjunction), motion resulting in impact (collision), hasty and inconsiderate motion (precipitation), the tendency to move downwards (gravitation), motion increasing the space occupied (extension), motion diminishing it (compression, contraction), motion recovering the original bulk (elasticity), the neutralization of each other caused by opposite tendencies to motion (equilibrium), the motion resulting from a number of tendencies to motion in different directions (resultant), liability or non-liability to motion (mobility, immobility), harmonious motion (rhythm), motion from different quarters to a single point (concentration), property of not moving of itself (inertia), the science of motion (dynamics), the science relating to the motion of water (hydro -dynamics). A few general rules may be given for the collection of a group. After the central word, for example, think, has been 20 WOEDS DEFINED BY USAGE. mentioned, we may ask the questions How, when, and where does the thing denoted principally manifest itself ? We may think rapidly (quick- thoughted), beforehand (fore-thought), out of sight of an object before seen (remember, recall). Then, what is its object or objects ? We can think of our own deeds, thoughts, etc. (consciousness), of one thing at a time (concentration). Of course different questions will be suitable to different notions. Treating of a science, we should above all ask, About what ? What are the different subjects which have divided science into different depart- ments ? An emotion, e.g., anger, would on the other hand suggest, Caused by what motive ? And the next question would be, In what degree ? Subjoined are two examples. (1) Think. Hoiv ? Deeply (meditate, muse, reflect), sadly (brood, mope), quickly (quick-thoughted), slowly (dull), rightly (sensible), logically (reasonable), with tact (judicious). Wlien? . Beforehand (fore-thought, anticipation), too late (after-thought, memory), as a preparation for action (plan, pro- ject), at the right moment (presence of mind). Where? Out of sight of the object thought of (imagine, remember), with others (consult). Of ivhat ? Of one's own deeds or thoughts (consciousness), of one thing at a time (concentration), of trifles (frivolity), of nothing but the immediate present (imprudence, improvidence), of two or more objects set side by side (compare, contrast, ponder, estimate, judge, doubt, perplexity), of one proposition as necessarily resulting from others (deduce, induction, infer, reason, conclude, logic). Faculty of thinking. Thought, reason, intellect, under- standing. WORDS DEFINED BY DERIVATION. 21 (2) Anger. Excited by what? By the sense of personal wrong and the desire of revenge (vindictiveness), by the sense of wrong without thought of self (resentment), by some slight fault (vexation), by inconvenience or disappointment (annoyance). When ? Lasting (displeasure), too long (relentless, sulky, unforgiving), too soon (choleric, irascible, passionate, irritable). To what degree ? Too much (fury, rage, passion), too little (impassible, indulgent, fond, tame, spiritless). CHAPTER II. WORDS DEFINED BY DERIVATION. 13. The method of explaining a word by deduc- tion. — When we have ascertained the meaning of a word by the method of induction, it is sometimes of use to confirm or narrow still further our definition by another method, — the method of deduction. 1 Many of our least familiar words are derived directly from Latin and Greek words ; others from Latin through the French. By taking such compound Eng- lish words to pieces, and translating their foreign roots into English, we can often deduce the exact meaning of the com- pound word. Thus, by knowing that ge is Greek for " earth," and that -logy often means " science," we may see that " geo- logy " means " science of the earth." But this is not always a safe process, as will be shown in the next paragraph. 1 See paragraph 176. 22 WOKDS DEFINED BY USAGE. 14. The danger of Pedantry. — Some technical terms, it is true, especially those derived from Greek, such as esoteric, eclectic, hyperbole, etc., being confined to the use of the learned, have not experienced the fluctuation of popular inaccuracy, and retain their original meanings unchanged. But even here there is danger. " Astrology," for instance, does not now mean the "science of the stars." And of other words less technical it may be said as a rule that they never mean precisely the same thing in English that they meant 1900 years ago in Latin. If, therefore, we relied en- tirely, or even mainly, on our knowledge of Latin or Greek, we should always be just a little incorrect in the use of English derived words. We should use them in what is called a peclantical sense. Thus Gibbon writes that "the army of the emperor oppressed a superior force of the enemy," where he ought to have written crushed, but was misled by the Latin meaning of the word oppressit. Still, though this process must not supplant the method of induction, it is often of use as a corroboration of the results of induction. 15. Hybrids. — The strict rule for the construction of a compound word is that all the parts must be from the same language, i.e., all Greek, or all Latin, or all English. Thus, since hi is a Latin prefix, and gamy a Greek root, bi-gamy is a mongrel word, or (which is the Greek for " mongrel") a " hybrid." The word should be strictly, di-gamy. But this rule is often violated. It would be an absurd restriction if we were not to allow ourselves to use the English affixes, -ncss, Ay, and -less after Latin derived words, as, rude-ness, equal -hj, care-less. All these are hybrids, but they are recognized English. Still we cannot imitate Shak- speare in saying " equal-ness " or "crime-less." In the WORDS DEFINED BY DERIVATION. 23 same way we can say dis-like, but not with Chapman dis- livedj i.e., " deprived of life." On the other hand, the English prefix an- can be freely used before Latin-derived adjectives. Custom, and custom only, can determine where to draw the line. It may be stated generally, that though the common words and the grammatical inflections of English are mostly of English origin, yet the power of forming new words out of the purely English element is nearly extinct. We can use the adverbial -ly freely, because it is regarded as a necessary inflection, but we cannot freely use be- or -en in order to make new words like be-lwwl or glad-(d)en. We are often obliged to resort to some Latin-derived word, as stultify, and indeed sometimes we use a Latin affix after an English word, as ic-icle, talk-&-tive. The English prepositions are almost useless for the formation of compound words. We cannot now use, for instance, the preposition against or gain, but have to use the Greek and-, sometimes even before Latin- derived words, e.g., anti-religious. 16. Latin Prefixes. 1 It will be a useful exercise to write out the exact meanings of the words in the right-hand column, tracing the present meaning back to the original meaning of the prefix and root. An Etymological Dictionary may be used for this purpose. A-, ah-, | a- vert, ab-ject. Abs before c and t, j J abs-tract, abs-cond. 1 Words like subter in subter-fuge, sine in sine-cure, juxta in juxta- position, that occur once or seldom in the language, are not included in the list of Prefixes. 24 WORDS DEFINED BY DERIVATION. Ad-, \ ad-here. Ac- before c ac-cess. Af- „ / af-fect. Ag- „ 9 ag-gregate. Al- „ I al-lude. Am- ,, m \ to, at am-munition. An- „ n r an-nul. Ap- „ P ap-plaud. Ar- ,, r arrogance. As- „ s as-sist. At „ t) at-tend. Amb-, on both sides, around ; amb-iguous, am-putate Ante-, 1 before ; ante-diluvian. Bis-, \. Bi- J bis-cuit, bi-lateral ice, two ; bi-gamy. Circum-, 2 around ; circum-spect. Con- 3 ^ con-nect. Col- before I col-lect. Com- ,, b and^ h with, com-bine, corn-pact. Cor- „ r together cor-rupt. Co- before a vowel or h, co-eval, co-heir, co- or independent word ; , partner. Contra- ) \ aerainst : contra-vene. Contro-i contro-vert. modified (French) into Counter- , against ; counter-feit. De-, down, from, off > de-duce, de-throne. Demi, half demi-quaver. 1 In the word anti-cipate, ante assumes the exceptional form anti, which must carefully be distinguished from the regular Greek a/ifi-, meaning " against." 2 Circu-, in circu-it, circu-itous. 8 Court- in counsel, coun-cil, coun-tenance, derived through the French. WORDS DEFINED BY DERIVATION. 25 Dis-, \ Di-, L apart, not; Dif- before/] En-, a Gallicized form of in, 1 which see Ex-, dis-join, dis-please. di-vulge. dif-fer. E- before d, n, I, m J> ut of, out ; 1 W- „ f Equi-, equally; Extra-, beyond (the bounds); In-, modified into ^ 11- before I Im- ,, p, m Ir- ,, r Gallicized into Em-, en 1 - In- before h and ^ vowels, modified into II- before I Im- ,, m, p Ir- „ r Inter-,* Gallicized into) Enter- /between; Intro-, within ; Male,^ ex-press e-duce, e-nervate, e- normous, e-lucidate, e-manate. ef-fect. equi- distant. extra-vagant. in-vade. il-luminate. m, into, on, against im-press, im-merge. (used with verb) ir-radiate. em-ploy, en-act, en- title. in-human. Mai-, Mann-, hand not; (used with il-legal. adjective) im-measurable. impendent, ir-rational. inter-vention. enter-tain, intro-duce. male-volent. mal-content. manu- script. 1 To be carefully distinguished from the regular Greek prefix en-, as in 1 en-cyclical." 2 M in inter and per becomes I in intel-ligence and pel-lucid. 26 WORDS DEFINED BY DERIVATION. Non- 9 not Ob-, modified into\ Oc- before c in front of, Of- „ / H against ; Op- „ p Omni-, all ; Per-, through, thoroughly ; Post, after ; Pre-, before ; Prefer-, past; Pro-, Gallicized into) p t [forward, forth ; Quadr-, four ; T J d _ \ back, again ; Pietro-, backwards ; Se-, apart, away ; Semi-, half ; Sub-, modified into^ Sue- before c Suf- „ f under, or, up from Sug- „ g Sup- „ ^ under ; Sur- ,, r Su(«) ,,5 J Super- Gallicized intO)^ ovp . SW- I Trans- or tra-, 1 across ; Tri-, thrice ; non-entity. ob-stacle. oc-currencei of-fend. op-pose. omni-potent. per-fect. post-pone. pre-cursor. preter-natural. pro-pose. pur-pose. quadr -o on. re-duce. red-eem. retro -spective. se-cede. semi-colon. sub-terraneous. suc-cour. suf-fer. sug-gest. sup-press. sur-render. su(s)-spect. super-fluous. sur-feit. trans-itive, tra-mon- tane. tri-ple, tri-partite. 1 Gallicized into tres- in tres-pass. WORDS DEFINED BY DERIVATION. 27 Ultra-,* beyond, advance ; Un-, ) Urn-, r" 1 ultra-liberal, un-animous. uni-form. 17. Greek Prefixes; A-, modified into ^ .,, , i [without; An- beiore vowels ) Amphi-, on both sides ; Ana-, up, up to, according to ; Anti-,) , r against, opposite to; Aph-y) Arch-, } ft *. Archi-,) Auto-, ) Aut- before a vowel j • ' Cata-,\ Cath-, I down, thoroughly ; Cat-, J Deca-, ten Di-, 3 two ; Dia-, through ; Bys-, ill ; Ec-, modified into \ Ex-, before a vowel) ' J a-pathy. an-archy. amphi-bious. ana-lysis, ana-logy. anti-septic. ant-arctic. apo-gee. aph-orism. arch- an gel. archi-tect. auto-crat. aut-opsy, aut-hentic. cata-strophe. cat-hedral. cat-egorical. deca-gon. di-phthong. dia-meter. dys -peptic. ec-lectic. ex-orcism. 1 In the word ultra-montane it has a prepositional force, but usually it is employed as an adjective, or adverb, meaning " very " or " excessive." 2 Use Etymological Dictionary. Explanation is purposely omitted. 3 An erroneous distinction is often made in spelling the words di-syllable, and trisyllable, by inserting an unnecessary s in the former. 28 WORDS DEFINED BY DERIVATION. En-, modified into "j Em- before m, b, or p yin, on ; El- before I. ) Endo-, within ; Epi- modified into Ep- before a vowel or Eu-, 1 well; Exo-, 2 outside ; »} on : Hemi-, half; Hexa-, six ; Hetero-, different ; Hepta-, seven ; Hier-, sacred ; Holo-, whole ; Homo-, together, similar; Hydr-, water. Hyper-, above, above measure ; Hypo-, modified into ) , Hyp- before a vowel or h ) Meta-, modified into Met- before a vowel or h ) Mono-, modified into| Mon- before a vowel) ' OrtJio- right ; Oxii-, modified into) .-, , J ' [tacia, sharp, Ox- before a vowel, ) Pan-, all ; Para-, modified into | beside . Par- before a vowel) after, change; en-comium. em-phasis. el-liptical. endo-genous. epi-taph. ep-hemeral, ep-och. eu-phony. exo-genous, exo-tic, exo-teric. hemi-stich. hexa-meter. hetero-geneous. hepta-gon. hier-archy. holo-caust. homo-geneous. hydr-aulic. hyper-critical, hypo-thesis, hyp-hen. meta-phor. met-hod. mono-graph, mon-arch. ortho-epy. oxy-gen, oxy-tone. ox-ide. pan-oply. para-site, par-helion. 1 In Utopia then is the Greek ou," no "so that w-fc/Mameans" no-place." 2 Eso-, " into," is found only in eso-terlc. WOKDS DEFINED BY DERIVATION. 29 Pent a-, five ; Peri-, round Philo-, modified into \ , . Phil- before a vowel j Poly-, many; Pro-, before ; Pros-, towards ; Pseudo-, modified into) ri Pseud- before a vowel j Syn- modified into Syl- before I Sym- ,, b, m, OYp, Sy- „ s and z Tri-, three ; -with; penta-teuch. peri-od. philo-logy. phil-anthropy. poly-pod. pro-gnostic. pros-elyte. pseudo-philosopher. pseud-onym. syn-opsis, syn-chronize. syl-lable. sym-bol, sym-metry, sym-pathy. sy-stem, sy-zygy. tri-glyph. The meanings of these words are not given, in order that the pupil may find out their meanings for himself, in a dictionary if necessary, and may carefully trace the meaning of the prefix in the compound word. 18. Teutonic Prefixes. The following verbal prefixes are of importance — Be- and en- convert a noun into a trans, verb : x be-fool. Un- (with sense of negation) un-sex. For-, fore- (German ver, connected with from or fro), from, away. Thus, 1 lie also makes an adjective and an intr. verb trans., as be-grim(e), be-howl. 30 WORDS DEFINED BY DERIVATION. For-bear, to keep one's self away from ; forswear, to swear away from the truth. For-give, to give away ; fore-done (Spencer), made away with, wearied. This must be distinguished from Fore-, beforehand ; fore-tell. Gain- (a-gainst), opposition ; gain-say. With- (not our modern with, but German wider), against ; — with-hold, with- stand. 19. Affixes. A knowledge of the affixes is not so necessary for un- derstanding words as the knowledge of prefixes. We all know that liar is one who lies, without being told that -ar signifies a male agent. But some of the affixes have under- gone curious corruptions which have obscured them. It is as well to know that sweet-heart has nothing to do with the heart, nor coward with herding coxes. A list of the principal affixes liable to be misunderstood is therefore appended. Noun Affixes in Alphabetical Okder. 1 affix. meaning. example. -age (French), condition, vassal-^. „ ,, result of action, break-^^. 99 „ collective notion, herb-ogre. -ar, -er (Anglo- j ma]e agen ^ W, brew-.r. Saxon), / 1 Only those affixes which seem to have some definite meaning (for ex- ample, more definite than the Lat. -ion, and -// in victory or symmetry, affixes denoting a noun, or little more) are inserted in this and the follow- ing lists. Those which explain themselves, as -less, -full, arc also omitted. -eer (Fr.), -yer (A.-S.), -ier,- (Fr.), WOKDS DEFINED BY DERIVATION. 31 AFFIX. MEANING. EXAMPLE. I augmentative, often] cow -ard, br agg- art with opprobrious r but also meaning, J sweet-heart (-ard). I place or person adapt- ) ed for some purpose! 1 *' p . 1 lapicL-rtr?/. or profession, ; r J -cule (L.), diminutive, corpus -cute. -ee (Fr.), object of an action, nomin-00. 'personal, indicating) . .... . [mon-eer, how -yer, profession, otten mi- r r J ,., grenad-z ] rhetoi -ician. -icle (L.), diminutive, part-zcJe. -ic (G-r.), art, science, rhetor-ie, log-ic. (originally a mere ad- j e pidem-fc, Anacre- i jective termination, j ont-ze. ,. ~, t • i- (farth-(i.£. fourth) - -mg (A.-S.) ? diminutive, \ . v y I creed, school of phi-\ dogmat-ww, Pla- -ism (Gr.), j losophy, a state (of L ton-ism, aneur- [ disease), j i SMm -ist (See st, below), -kin (A.-S.), diminutive, lamb-Am 32 WORDS DEFINED BY DERIVATION. AFFIX. MEANING. EXAMPLE. -Ie(A.-S.), form of / instrument, or dimio d .^ noz .^ -el (See above), 1 nutive, J -le (L.), originally adiminutive cast-Ze, circ-7it-ula,te, chapt-er, chap-el, coip-oial. 2 Curb-, curs-, run. Curr-ency, curs-ory, suc-conr. Die-, say. In-dite 9 vei-dict, in-dic-ative, m-dex, dic-i&tor. 1 Verbs in Latin usually form the passive participle by adding t to the root. Thus audi-, hear, " audi-ence," appears in the form "audit.'' Where, however, the root ended in d, I, n, v, g, modifications were made for euphony. This explains why two apparently different roots are often found side by side, e.g., ced-e, cession; im-pel, im-puls-e ; tend, tens-ion solv-e, solu-tion ; ag-ent, act-ion. 2 Some, however, consider that the French caporal is itself a corruption of corporal. 36 WORDS DEFINED BY DERIVATION. Da-, dit-, give. Ad-d, dat-e, e-dit, swcren-der. Fer-, irregular lat-, bring, bear. Con-fer-ence, re-fer-ee, di-lat-ory, fer-iile, super-to-ive, re-to-ive. Gen-, gener-, a race. De-gener-&te, gener-olize, indi-#67?s-ation, mde-pend-ence, expense, equi-jwise, pens- ive. Plic-, plex-,/o/^. Ex-jjlic-it, im-ply, sim-ple, dou-ble, sup-j9?/c-ate. Pose-, pos-, place. Com-^os-ition, jjos-itive, re-jwse, swp-pose. Beg-, rect-, make straight. Cov-rect, roy-td, reg-ion, reg-imen. Hog-, ask. Vre-rog-ative, ob-rog-nte, pro-/w/-ue, de-rog-tite. 1 Sometimes spelt premiss in logic. WORDS DEFINED BY DERIVATION. 37 SED-, SID-, SESS-, sit. B>esid-num, assize, ses-sions, subsid-y. Sequ-, secut-, follow. Ex-(s)ee-ute, con-sequ-enee, sequ-el, en-sue, obsequ-ies, sue, suite. Solv-, solut-, loose (the restraint of debt). Solve, absolv-e, absol-nte, solv-ent, solu-ble, dissolut-e, resolv-e, Spec-, spic-, see. Gon-spic-VLOVLS, respect, despite, suspic-ion, cirenmsj^ect, auspic-es. Sta-, stat-, Stic-, stand. Stat-e, statistics, circum-sta-nce, con-sta-nt, ex-ta-nt, in- sta-nee, msta-nt, ob-sta-cle, inter-s£ic-e, sol-s£ic-e, stat-ion, sub-sta-nce. Tend-, tens-, stretch, direct one's path. Tend, at-tend-2in.ee, tens-ion, in-tent-\on, tend-on, in-tens- ity. Trac-, tract-, draw, manage. Treat, treat-j, treat-ise, abs-tract, eon-tract, re-tract, re- treat, dis-tract, sub-tract, tract-able, tract, train, trait, por- tray. Yen-, vent-, come. Conventional, eo-ven-ant, eon-vent, nre-vent, a-ven-ue, re-ven-ne, supervene, eireum-vent. Vert-, vers-, turn. Con-vert, eon-verse-\y, divers-ion, di-vorce, di-verse, re- vers-ion, re-verse, ad-vert, ad-verse, ner-vert, tra-verse, trans- verse, t'ers-atile, vers-ed (in), and hence malvers-ation, conr vers- ation, etc. Vid-, vis-, see. Provis-ional, provid-ence, e-vid-eni, en-vy, nro-vis-o. 38 WORDS DEFINED BY DERIVATION. Volv-, voLUT-, roll. In-to/?tf-ion, e-roto-ion, re-roZirt-ion, con-ro?w£-ion, vault (verb and noun). 24. Greek Roots. The Greek roots are less common and less disguised by change than the Latin. Hence there is little scope for ingenuity in tracing a Greek root, like a Latin root, through various disguises. But there is a peculiar utility in the study of Greek roots. As the Greek compounds are generally used for scientific purposes in technical meanings, they have not been subjected to the modifications of popular usage ; they (for the most part) still retain their original meanings, which can be deduced at once from a knowledge of the roots. Moreover, new terms are being continually created by combinations of these roots for technical pur- poses. Thus, take the root iso-, equal, demo-, people, arch-, rule, and log-, discourse. Is-archy might be invented to mean "equality of rule," or dem-archy to mean "the rule of the people," and demo-logy and arch-o-logy might represent "the science of peoples" and "the science of government." As these words do not often occur in conversation, they must be learned by study, and if the reader has not studied Greek he is recommended to master the meanings of the appended words, referring to a dictionary when it is necessary, and ascertaining how the meaning of the compound is deduced from the meanings of the roots. Thus, " epi-tfem-ic means that which is over or on a people." It is an adjective with disease understood, and is therefore a short way of saying a disease spreading over a whole people. Some of the compounds have been purposely omitted, in WOKDS DEFINED BY DEEIVATION. 39 order that the pupil may be on the alert to suggest ad ditional compounds. Anthropo-, man; Arch-, prior (in time or in rank) ; Aster- astro-, star ; anthropo -logy. arc/i-aism, heipt-arch-y. Bed-, throw; Biblio-, book ; Bio-, life ; Ceico-, bad ; Chron-, time ; Cosm-, world or ornament ; Creit-, (crac-y), govern- ment ; Grit- (cris-), judge ; Crypt-, cryp-, secret ; Cycl-, circle ; Bern-, people ; Box-, opinion ; Byneim-, force ; Erg-, org-, urg-, work ; Gam-, marriage ; Ge-, earth ; Gen-, kind ; Graph-, greim-, write, or draw, written ; Heelron, a seat, flat side of a solid : Helio-, sun ; Hod- (ocl-), way ; Hyelr-, water; eister-isk, eistro-logy, eistro -nomy, hyiper-bole, para-fe, "ovo-blem, sym-bol. biblio -m&nm. ceno-bi-te. caco-phony. iso-chron-ous. cosm- etic, micro -cosm. bureau-crac-y. era-is, hy^o-crite. cr?/£tf-o-gamous, apo-cn/p-hal, en-cyclo-Tpee&m. eipi-dem-ic, para-cfoa?. hydro- dynetm-ics. en-erg-y, met&ll-urg-y, org-sm, orypto-#am-ia, apo-^6*. homo-gen-eous. tele-greiph, par-allelo-^raw,. ^o\j -heelron, ^Qri-helion. met-hod, peri-od. %dr-ates, cleTps-ydra, 40 WORDS DEFINED BY DERIVATION. Idio-, peculiar ; Iso-, equal ; Leg-, choose, speak; Litho-, stone ; Log-, discourse, science ; Lysis-, melting, weakening Mechan- (Lat. machin-), machine ; Metr- (-meter), measure ; Mon-, alone ; Naus- (naut), ship ; Neo-, new ; Nom-, law, measure out ; Ode-, song ; Onym-, name ; Paid-, peed-, boy ; Path-, suffering, feeling ; Phan- (j)hen-,fan-), cause to appear ; Pharmac-, drug ; Phil-, friend, love; Phon-, sound; Phrasis-, speaking; Phys-, nature ; Plas-, mould, shape ; Polis-, a country ; Pod-, foot ; Poi-, make ; Proto-, first ; Psych-, soul ; Pter-, wing; idio-t, idio-syncrasy. iso -thermal. ec-le(g)c-tic, le(g)x-icon. litho -gr&phy, mono-lith. dm-log-ue, apo-Zo#-y. ; ema-lysis, para-fo/sis. v mechan-ism. (sym-m^tr-y, hydro -meter, tri-gon- 1 o-metr-y. mono-tony, ??wmo-poly. aero-naut, naus-e&. neo -phyte. &stro-nom-y, eco-iiom-y. rhaps-od-y, par-od-y. raet-onym-y, onomat-o-rycem. paid-eutics, £>«d-o-baptism. path-o-logy, sym-path-y. I 2)han-t&sm,fan-cy, jihen-omenon. pharmac -o-poeia. phil-teY, jc/u7-o-soph-er. sym-phon-y, jihon-etic. iperi-jrfirasis. met&-phys-ics, jihys-i-o-logy. plas-tic, proto-plasm. polit-ics, cosmo-polit<\ polic-e. anti-podes, poly-;>?/s-. onomat-o-jo^w. proto-co\, proto --plasm. met-em-jw^/c/t-osis, y^/c/z-o-logy. lepido-^/ — George Eliot. In the following the rhythm is perceptible and singularly fascinating, though the law of rhythm cannot be detected : " I at least hardly ever look at a bent old man or a wizened old woman, but I see also with my mind's eye that Past of which they are the shrunken remnant ; and the unfinished romance of rosy cheeks and bright eyes seems sometimes of feeble interest and significance, compared with that drama of hope and love which has long ago reached its catastrophe, and left the poor soul like a dim and dusty stage, with all its sweet garden-scenes and fair perspectives, overturned and thrust out of Bight." — lb. In the following, the omission of the conjunctions in the third and fourth lines suggests the brevity of poetry, and in THE DICTION OF PROSE. 89 the middle of the passage there are rhythmical short sentences, with three or four accents each, which approach to verses : " Blessed influence of one true loving human soul on another ! Not calculable by algebra, not deducible by logic, but mysteri- ous, effectual, mighty, as the hidden process by which the tiny seed is quickened and bursts forth into tall stem and broad leaf and groiving tasselled floiver. Ideas are often poor ghosts, our sun-filled eyes cannot discern them ; they pass athwart us in thin vapour, and cannot make themselves felt. But sometimes they are made flesh : they breathe upon us with warm breath, they touch us with soft responsive hands, they look at us with sad sincere eyes, and speak to us in appealing tones, — they are clothed in a living soul with all its conflicts, its faith, and its love. Then their presence is a power." — George Eliot. The omission of the article may be noticed also in the following : " The temptations of beauty are much dwelt upon, but I fancy they only bear the same relation to those of ugliness, as the temptation to excess at a feast, where the delights are varied for eye and ear as well as palate, bears to the temptations that assail the desperation of hunger." — lb. In prose like this, the use of simile for metaphor is allow- able, and is introduced with exquisite effect, together with a certain transposition of the words for emphasis, in — "But Catarina moved through all this joy and beauty like a poor wounded leveret, painfully dragging its little body through the sweet clover tufts — for it, sweet in vain." — lb. Or again, an emphatic position may be given to some detail. in a description which would be quite unwarranted in ordinary prose, but which adds greatly to the picturesque- ness, besides superadding a subtle rhythmical effect : 90 THE DICTION OF PROSE. "But good society, floated on gossamer wings of light irony, is of very expensive production, requiring nothing less than a wide and arduous national life, condensed in unfragrant, deafening factories, cramping itself in mines, sweating at furnaces, grinding, hammering, weaving under more or less oppression of carbonic acid — or else spread over sheep-walks and scattered in lonely houses and huts in the clayey or chalky corn lands, where the rainy days look dreary." — George Eliot. The rhythm of the last part of the passage just quoted approaches too near to the form of lyrical poetry to be al- lowable in a speech, or historical treatise. But it will be observed that in all the above passages, as well as in those that follow, the vocabulary of prose is strictly observed. Different rhythms are suitable for different subjects, and seem natural to different authors ; but, even in the highest flight of fancy, and under the influence of the strongest pas- sion, the best prose-writers l use the diction of prose, and not that of poetry. Exceptions are rare, even in archaic prose : " Methinks I see in my mind a noble and puissant nation rousing herself like a strong man after sleep, and shaking her invincible locks : methinks I see her as an eagle muing 2 her mighty youth, and kindling her undazzVd eyes at the full midday beam, purging and unsealing her long abused sight at the fountain itself of heav'nly radiance, while the whole noise of timorous and flocking birds, with those also that love the twilight, flutter about, amaz'd at what she means, and in their envious gabble would prognosticate a year of sects and schisms." — Milton, u Areopagitica." It might be expected that in the earlier prose-writers of the language the distinction between prose and poetic diction 1 Exceptions will be noted hereafter. 2 Milton's spelling of the word. 3 Probably not recognized then as poetic. THE DICTION OF PEOSE. 91 should not be established. Methinks was common in the prose of Milton's time, and muing was a common term in falconry. Note the repetition " Methinks I see," which is common in impassioned prose, and is exemplified in the following passage : " It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the Queen of France, then the Dauphiness, at Versailles : and surely never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she just began to move in, — glittering like the morning-star, full of life, and splendour, and joy. Oh, what a revolution ! and what a heart must I have, to contemplate without emotion that eleva- tion and that fall ! Little did I dream when she added titles of veneration to those of enthusiastic, distant love, that she should (sic) ever be obliged to carry the sharp antidote against disgrace concealed in that bosom ; little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fallen upon her in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honour and of cavaliers. I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards to avenge even a look that threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone. That of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded, and the glory of Europe is extinguished for ever. Never, never more shall we behold that generous loyalty to rank and sex, that proud submission, that dignified obedience, and that subordination of the heart, which kept alive, even in servitude itself, the spirit of an exalted freedom." — Burke. If anywhere, poetic diction might be expected in the following passage. But though the rhythm is almost metre, there is no trace (except perhaps in the noun sighing) of the poetic diction : " For so have I seen a lark rising from his bed of grass, || and 92 THE DICTION OF PROSE. soaring upwards, singing as he rises, \\ and (he) hopes to get to heaven and climb above the clouds ;\\ but the poor bird was beaten back || with the loud sighings of an eastern wind,, || and his motion made irregular and inconstant, descending more at every breath of the tempest than it could recover by the libra- tion and frequent weighing of his wings ; till the little creature was forced to sit down and pant, and stay till the storm was over ; and then it made a prosperous flight, and did rise and sing as if it had learned music and motion from an angel as he passed sometimes through the air about his ministries here below : so is the prayer of a good man." — Jeremy Taylor. The same remark applies to the following : " Let us watch him (man) with reverence || as he sets side by side the burning gems, || and smooths with soft sculpture the jasper pillars, that are to reflect a ceaseless sunshine, and rise into a cloudless sky : but not with less reverence let us stand by him when, with rough strength and hurried stroke, he smites an uncouth animation out of the rocks which he has torn from among the moss of the moorland, and heaves into the darkened air the pile of iron buttress and rugged wall, instinct with work of an imagination || as wild and wayward as the northern sea : || creations of ungainly shape and rigid limb, but full of wolfish life : fierce as the winds that beat, and changeful as the clouds that shade them." — Buskin. Even in the description of St. Mark's at Venice, a passage in which prose soars far above its usual pitch, only a few forms (not words) can be found peculiar to poetic diction : " And in the midst of it the solemn forms of angels, sceptn d and robed to the feet, and leaning to each other across the gates, their figures indistinct among the gleaming of the golden ground through the leaves beside them, interrupted and dim like the morning light as it faded back among the branches of Eden, when first its gates were angel-guarded long ago." — lb. 1 The expression " smites the rock" seems suggested by Biblical diction. THE DICTION OF PKOSE. 93 Here, though faded is of course common in prose diction, yet the condensed expression " faded back " is poetical. The following is a very close approximation to poetic rhythm, and at the close the author seems to find poetry necessary as a vent for the impassioned sentiment. Yet, with the exception, perhaps, of untimely, used as an adverb, the diction is that of pure prose. It is the conclusion of a description of the last days of George III. : " What preacher need moralize on this story 1 What words save the simplest are requisite to tell if? It is too terrible for tears. The thought of such a misery smites me down in submission before the Ruler of kings and men, the Monarch Supreme over empires and republics, the inscrutable Dispenser of life, death, happiness, victory. ' O brothers ! ' I said to those who heard me first in America, ' O brothers ! speak- ing the same dear mother-tongue ; O comrades ! enemies no more, let us take a mournful hand together as we stand by this royal corpse and call a truce to battle ! Low (transposition) he lies, to whom the proudest used to kneel once, and who was cast lower than the poorest ; dead whom millions prayed for in vain. Driven off his throne ; buffeted by rude hands ; with his children in revolt ; the darling of his old age killed before him untimely, 1 our Lear hangs over her breathless lips, and cries, ' Cordelia, Cordelia, stay a little ! ' Vex not his ghost — oh ! let him pass— he hates him That would upon the rack of this tough world Stretch him out longer. Hush ! strife and quarrel, over the solemn grave. Sound, trum- pets, a mournful march. Fall, dark curtain, upon his pageant, || his pride, | his grief, | his aw|ful tr£g|edy." — Thackeray. It should be stated with reference to the use of save as a 1 " Killed before him before her time," would he intolerably harsh. 94 THE DICTION OF PROSE. preposition, smite, and buffeted, that the authorised version of the Bible has exercised a great influence upon the stand- ard of prose. The solemn tone of submission before the decrees of God insensibly causes the diction to assume a Biblical hue. Hence the use of save, for which except might have been substituted. Smite, however, could not be re- placed by strike, for the divine origin of the blow would not be expressed ; nor could beaten express the author's meaning so well as buffeted, which suggests the deepest and most un- deserved humiliation. In discourses and treatises on re- ligious subjects, the Biblical phraseology is sanctioned by custom, and is freely used — perhaps too freely ; for the use of antique religious phraseology, except where the thought is impassioned, tends to give a sense of unreality to the words, and is liable to degenerate into what is called cant. Not even in this impassioned style does Thackeray venture to use brethren for brothers. Smite expresses a meaning that strike does not : brethren would only have differed from brothers by being less real. Before quitting this very important subject it will be well to give an example of poetic prose which has passed the border-land between prose and poetry, and which in its ex- cessive transpositions, its ambitious attempts at perceptible rhythm, and its occasional use of poetic words, presents a good specimen of a style that ought to be most carefully avoided : "The whole school were in ecstasies to hear tales and stories from his genius ; even like a flock of birds, chirping in their joy, || all new|ly alight|ed 6n | a vern|al hind. || In spite of that difference in our age — or oh ! say rather because that difference did touch the one heart with tenderness and the other with reverence ; how often did we two wander, like elder THE DICTION OF PROSE. 95 and younger brother, in || the siin|light and | the moon|light solijtiides ! || Woods into whose inmost recesses we should have quaked | alone | to pen|etrate, || in his company were glad as gardens, through their most awful umbrage ; and there was beauty in the shadows of the old oaks. Cataracts, in whose lonesome thunder, as it pealed into those pitchy pools, (excessive alliteration) || we diirst | not by | ourselves | have faced | the spray, || — in his presence, || tinned with j a merrjy mii|sic in | the cZesert (excessive alliteration) and cheerful was (un- necessary transposition) the thin mist they cast sparkling up into the air. Too severe for our uncompanied spirit, then easily overcome with awe, ivas (inexcusable transposition) the solitude of those remote inland locks. But as || we acalked ] with him [ along | the | u-indjing shores, || how pass||ing sweet I the calm | of both | blue depths || — how magnificent the white- crested waves, tumbling beneath the black thunder-cloud ! More beautiful, (inexcusable transposition and omission of verb) because our eyes gazed on it along with his, at the beginning or ending of some sudden storm, the apparition of the rainbow." — Wilson. Among other faults in this passage, the excessive allitera- tion is a prominent one. The double alliteration of Dinned with | a merr|y miisijc in | the desert, is intolerable, except in the metre of poetry ; and elsewhere the excess, though concealed from the eye, is obvious to the ear, as in " cMrping in their joy, all newZy aZighted in a ver- naZ Zand," Alliteration was from the earliest times noticed by the English ear. By itself, without rhyme, it was once sufficient to constitute poetry. It will be seen hereafter that the early English poetry recognised two accented and allite- rated' initial syllables (and all vowels were considered identi- cal for the purpose of alliteration) to denote a verse. This may explain why an excess of alliteration in prose is pecu- .96 THE DICTION OF PROSE. liarly offensive. Ruskin, in the passage quoted above, writes, " among the gleaning of the golden ground ; " but it is the combination of poetic characteristics in excess that renders the poetic prose of the last quoted passage objectionable. The worst fault of all is the use of poetic words — quaked, lonesome, umbrage, and even for " just." 61. Exceptional Poetic Prose. — It has been shown that, as a rule, the master-writers of impassioned Prose in the English language preserve the distinction between the diction of Prose and Poetry. Most students will do well to preserve the same distinction. But there are specimens of prose which {a) in rhythm, (b) in icords, approximate to poetry, and are nevertheless approved, some by the popular, some even by the most cultivated taste, (a) The impas- sioned descriptive prose of Dickens is almost written in metre, as well as with poetic words. (b) The prose of Lamb, Coleridge, and writers formed in his school, such as Hazlitt, and De Quincey, sometimes employs poetic words; and the first two, at least, are thought to be classical writers of English prose : (a) The earth covered with a sable pall, 1 As for the burial of yesterday ; The clumps of dark trees 2 Its giant plumes of funeral feathers 2 Waving sadly to and fro : 1 All hushed, all noiseless and in deep repose, 1 Save the swift clouds that shun across the moon, And the cautious wind, 1 As creeping after them upon the ground 1 It stops to listen, and goes rustling on, And stops again, and follows, like a savage On the trail. Dickens. THE DICTION OF PBOSE. 97 Here all the verses marked 1 are strict dramatic blank verse, while the couplet marked 2 has a decided trochaic effect. (b) "Nothing-plotting, nought-caballing, unmischievous synod ! Convocation without intrigue ! parliament without debate ! what a lesson dost thou read to council and consistory ! If my pen treat of you lightly — as haply it will wander — yet my spirit hath gravely felt the wisdom of your custom, when, sitting among you in deepest peace, which some out-welling tears would rather confirm than disturb, I have reverted to the times of your beginnings, and the sowings of the seed by Fox andDewesbury." — Lamb, " A Quakers' Meeting." The poetic diction of Lamb, together with his careful avoid- ance of poetic metre, forms a pleasant kind of incongruity, as when he apostrophizes St. Valentine thus : " Great is thy name in the rubric, thou venerable Archflamen of Hymen ! Immortal Go-between ! who and what manner of person art thou ] . . . . Wert thou indeed a mortal prelate, with thy tippet and thy rochet on, and decent lawn sleeves ? Mysterious personage ! Like unto thee, assuredly there is no other mitred father in the calendar." Here there is a humorous affectation of sublimity, and poetic diction is in its place. And even in his serious passages the humour peeps out, and is often expressed by a poetic expression or quotation, as : "What is the stillness of the desert compared with this place 1 what the uncommunicating muteness of fishes ? " "Their garb and stillness conjoined present a uniformity tranquil and herd-like — as in the pasture — ' forty feeding like one.' " When poetic diction is used in this humorous manner, it is the result of affectation, an intentional and pleasant affecta- tion of bard-like sublimity. When it is not used humorously, 7 98 THE DICTION OF PROSE. there is the danger that the writer will appear to be affected without intending to be so. Nothing but sublimity of thought can possibly make sublime diction seem natural. It may be a matter of question how far poetic prose — i. e., prose using poetic diction — has been justified by success in individual instances. It is no question at all that this style is very rarely successful, and to be successful at all, must be original. A beginner who wants to write poetic prose wishes to suc- ceed where only a few men of genius have tried, and only a few of those few have succeeded. 62. Speech the Guide to Prose. — It is impossible to write prose by merely resolving to write what is not poetry. A positive standard is required as well as negative rules ; and the best positive rule that can be given is, subject to certain qualifications which will be mentioned presently, to write as you would speak. This rule leaves great latitude for variety of style and rhythm, as much latitude as is re- quired by speech. A man speaks in a very different manner according as he is conversing at the dinner-table, or holding a literary discussion, or arguing in a law-court, or addressing a public meeting or a congregation ; and every different shade in speaking will be represented in writing. But the differences will consist almost entirely in the rhythm of the sentences, in the use of question instead of statement, of short sentences instead of long ones, not in words, ichich will be very nearly the same throughout. 63. The differences between Speech and Prose spring very naturally from the different circumstances of either. The speaker must make his meaning immediately intelligible, and must arrest attention at once ; otherwise the THE DICTION OF PROSE, 99 effect is lost altogether. The reader can review a written sentence at his leisure. Hence the sentences may fairly be a little longer and more complicated in writing than in speech; and hence also, for the sake of arresting attention, a little sacrifice of literal truth to vividness, in other words, a little exaggeration, is not uncommon in speech. While speaking, the speaker can explain himself if he perceives that he is not understood ; this cannot be done in writing. Hence speech is more irregular and less exact than writing. In speaking there are certain aids to help the speaker, action and gesticu- lation, the modulation of the voice, and the changing expres- sion of the countenance ; objects or persons mentioned can often be indicated by the hand ; the auditor or audience can be questioned, and the expression of their faces can be interpreted as assent or dissent, and answered accordingly. The result of all these differences in circumstance is that speech as compared with writing is, («) less exact in the choice of words, (b) more brief, and (c) more varied in construction. 64. Writing is more exact than Speech in the choice of words. "We cannot stand thinking about the most exact word when some word to produce an immediate effect is required, and therefore in conversation we allow ourselves to say, " he's a clever fellow," where, perhaps, we mean " origi- nal," or "thoughtful," or "judicious," or "sagacious." In the same way "a fine fellow" may be sometimes used in conversation to express "gallant," or "unselfish," or "noble." This inexactness is extremely common in super- latives, which seem almost necessary as stimulants to give a flavour to familiar conversation, and to arrest attention. Hence, " I feared ' becomes in conversation " I was terribly afraid," " It is a pleasant day " becomes " a most delightful 100 THE DICTION OF PROSE. day," and "I was in haste," is changed into " I was in a tremendous hurry." This craving for picturesqueness some- times manifests itself in similes that would scarcely bear the test of writing, e.g., "He's as grave as a judge," "as sharp as a needle," etc. Some exaggeration and inexactness of this kind is pardonable in speech, though where it is exces- sive and obtrusive it makes conversation somewhat tedious ( and good talkers avoid it) ; but in written prose such in- exactness is a fault, except in letters, when something of the carelessness of conversation is agreeable. 65. Writing is less brief than Speech. — The brevity of conversation manifests itself in such contractions as don't, can't, won't, 's for is, Til for I will, and the like ; in the omission of prepositions in such phrases as "What time will the train start ?", " What day will you come to see me ?" ; in elliptical phrases, such as "I tell you what," "I say "; in the use of short, inexact approximations to a meaning that can be expressed by a periphrasis, e.g., "It is very unlucky," only for "it is very much to be regretted "; " he is sharp enough," for "he is sufficiently alive to his own interests" ; and also in the use of other short and expressive words which border upon, or are, slang, e.g., a snob, a bore, a swell, a muff. 66. Writing is less varied in construction than Speech. — The greater variety of speech is a natural result of the presence of a second person who may at any moment interrupt, or be appealed to. Thus, compare the following narrative translated from Plutarch with the same words put into the mouth of Cassius by Shakspeare, and mark the con- versational abruptness of the hitter rendering : " When they raised their camp, there came two eagles that, flying with a marvellous force, lighted upon two of the foremost THE DICTION OF PEOSE. 101 ensigns, and followed the soldiers, which gave them meat and fed them until they came near to the city of Philippi, and there, one day before the battle, they both fled away." Coming from Sardis, on our former ensign Two mighty eagles fell ; and there they perched, Gorging and feeding from our soldiers' hands ; Who to Philippi here consorted us. This morning are they fled away and gone. This conversational abruptness also appears in the dra- matic rendering by Shakspeare of the following passage from Plutarch. Here both passages are intended to represent speech ; but it cannot be doubted that Shakspeare's render- ing is the more like speech of the two : " Among the Yolsces there is an old friend and host of mine, an honest, wealthy man, and now a prisoner, who, living before in great wealth in his own country, liveth now a poor prisoner in the hands of his enemies ; and yet, notwithstanding all this his misery and misfortune, it would do me great pleasure if I could save him from this one great danger, to keep him from being sold as a slave." — North's PhitarcK I sometime lay here at Corioli At a poor man's house : he used me kindly : He cried to me: I saw him prisoner ; But then Aufidius was within my view And wrath o'erwhelmed my pity : I request you To give my poor host freedom. Coriolanus. The greater vividness and abruptness of conversation, and the appeal to the personal knowledge of the person addressed, are illustrated by comparing the two following passages : A common slave— you Tmoiv him well by sight- Held up his left hand, which did flame and burn Like twenty torches join'd, and yet his hand, Not sensible of fire, remain'd unscorch'd, — Julius Ccesar. 102 FAULTS IN DICTION, AND THEIR REMEDIES. 6 ' There was a slave of the soldiers that did cast a marvellous burning flame out of his hand, insomuch as they that saw it thought he had been burnt : when the fire was out, it was found he had no hurt." — North's Plutarch, CHAPTER III. FAULTS IN DICTION, AND THEIR REMEDIES. 67. Slang arises in part from conversational exaggeration carried to excess. " Comfortable" or " merry" being some- what sober words, we use " jolly " as being more expressive ; so " plucky " is used instead of " bold," a " dodge " instead of a " trick," "awfully" instead of " very," a "sham" instead of a " deception." Again, a desire to speak humorously sometimes origi- nates slang. In the attempt to be picturesque, the device of poetry is adopted, and an object is represented not by the ordinary word representing it, but by some epithet or periphrasis. Thus, wine has been called " the rosy," a bed "the downy," tobacco "the noxious weed" or "the fragrant weed," and a father "the governor." In many cases these epithets are quite out of place, and a comical effect is produced by the incongruity. The whole of the vocabulary of the prize-ring is based upon this principle ; it throws a veil of grotesqueness and comicality over descriptions that are intrinsically disgusting and brutal. More often slang is used to save the trouble of choosing the right word. Thus, " he is a jolly fellow," is often used to mean that the person spoken of is kind-hearted, or FAULTS IN DICTION, AND THEIR REMEDIES. 103 generous, or pleasant, or amiable, or good-humoured, or amusing, or good. In some cases slang may cover positive ignorance of the words of polite diction ; but more often it is not so much ignorance as laziness that is the cause. Slang is intended to save the necessity of thinking, and it answers the purpose. 68. Technical Slang. — Another kind of slang may be called technical. Some technical slang is altogether vulgar. No one in polite society could use the slang of thieves or roughs. But (i.) every art and profession and trade has some technical terms of its own, which may be called its slang. Thus the Cambridge man speaks of being " plucked," the Oxford man of being " ploughed," the barrister of " eating his terms" and "getting silk," the cavalry officer of " the heavies," and so on. And besides this legitimate use of slang in speaking of particular employments, there is (ii.) another which consists in the metaphorical application of technical terms of some employment, to objects not in the scope of that employment. Thus, men are said " to pull well together," instead of "to work well together;" a diplomatist outwitting another, is said to " force his antagonist's hand;" a witness is exposed to "a running fire of questions." All these expressions lie within the province of polite diction. They are technical metaphors borrowed from athletic sports, polite amusements, and war- fare ; and being also vivid and real, they are liked by the English people, and used by our best authors. King Henry Y. answers the French ambassadors with an elabo- rate metaphor from the game of tennis : When we have match'd our rackets to these balls, We will, in France, by God's grace, play a set Shall strike his father's crown into the hazard. 104 FAULTS IN DICTION, AND THEIR REMEDIES. Tell him he hath made a match with such a wrangler That all the courts of France will be disturbed With chaces. Henry V. l But many other technical metaphors, borrowed from agriculture and horse-racing, are in bad taste and vulgar. The only safe rule by which we can distinguish between polite and vulgar diction in such cases, is the custom of polite society. But the principle upon which the rule of discrimination ought to be based is this : The metaphor should be (1) obvious, and not far-fetched ; (2) necessary, or, at all events, very useful, substituting a short and clear expression for a long and vague one. Thus we might perhaps say of the result of a competitive examination, that the first man " won in a canter; " but it would be an unnecessary and vulgar expression to speak of " trotting a person out," or instead of saying that a child is " nearly ten years old," to say that he is " rising ten." Again, though we can say metaphorically, " The die is cast," and, " I will stake my all," it is slang to say, " He is a trump," for this is unnecessary, and the metaphorical meaning too loosely corresponds to the technical reality. On the other hand, "This fellow is evidently hedging," contains a terse and almost necessary metaphor. 69. Fine Writing, — Closely connected with slang, is a kind of writing very common in inferior newspapers, in which the writer carefully avoids saying what he means in a natural manner, always preferring some kind of circumlo- cution. This, which may be called the fault of fine writing, often springs from the consciousness of a want of familiarity 1 Of course the present of the tennis-balls is a special reason for this elaborate Metaphor.— Henry V., Act i. Sc. 2. 1. 258. FAULTS IN DICTION, AND THEIR REMEDIES. 105 with the common words of polite diction, and from a con- sequent determination to avoid vulgarity at any price. Thus, instead of " a fine lot of poultry," we find " an interesting assortment of the feathered creation;" "they lunched or dined," becomes " they partook of some refreshment," and instead of "women," we have " that moiety of the popula- tion wont to be termed the gentler sex." Sometimes the chase after fine words results in letting slip any intelligible meaning, or, at all events, it produces an inconvenient vagueness, as in " The return of youths to their respective boarding-houses induces a solicitude for their personal comfort and attraction." The one peculiarity of this very offensive style is that it eschews words of pure English derivation as much as possible. Instead of a " man," ilprefers an " individual; " instead of a "kind," a "species;" instead of "May I help you to some potatoes ? " it prefers " may I assist you ; " instead of " I have enough of this," it prefers "I have sufficient of this," which is as incorrect as "I have in- adequate of this." In ascending a hill, a man is said (in fine writing) to " climb to its wpex" instead of to its top. Besides spoiling the particular sentence in which it occurs, this substitution of recondite for common words engenders an inaccurate use of the former, as when period is used for a point of time, and a man proposes to do something " at the earliest practicable period/ 5 instead of "as soon as possible," or, " at the earliest opportunity: 5 ' Even where fine ivriiing does not result in vagueness, it is sure to be pompous and stilted. A well-known example of this style is quoted by Lord Macaulay from Dr. Johnson, who tells the same story in the two following different styles. The former and more natural version is taken from 106 FAULTS IN DICTION, AND THEIR REMEDIES. his letters ; the latter from his " Journey to the Hebrides." Dr. Johnson seems to have thought the diction, as well as the rhythm of epistolary correspondence unfit for the dignity of a book. (1) "When we were taken upstairs, a dirty fellow bounced out of the bed on which one of us was to lie." (2) " Out of one of the beds on which we were to repose, started up at our entrance a man as black as a Cyclops from the forge." One common fault in this pompous style is to substitute " we " for "I." ' Where a person is writing in the name of a number of persons, — as, for instance, in a newspaper, — or where he includes the reader, as his companion, the "we" is in place : it represents the truth, and, because it represents the truth, it adds a certain weight to what is written. But where a man is expressing his individual convictions, or narrating his personal experiences, " we " is is out of place, and is often ridiculous, as if a man should write " we once went with our wife to the Crystal Palace." 70. Patch-work. — The fault of fine writing very often manifests itself in a hankering after little chips of poetic expressions as substitutes for common words. Thus, in- stead of "portrait," we are treated to "a counterfeit pre- sentment ;" instead of " a dinner-table," we have " a festive board;" instead of "tea," "the cup that cheers, but not inebriates;" and, in the same way, we are told that "the head and front" of an author's offending is that his moments of common sense are "few and far between." Are we then never to use poetic quotations or amusing 1 Sec extract from Wilson above. Par. CO. FAULTS IN DICTION, AND THEIR REMEDIES. 107 periphrases to illustrate and enliven what we have to say ? Yes, when they really are amusing and really do illustrate, e.g., Addison's periphrasis for a "fan," " this little modish machine," at once suggests a deliberate use of it in a systematic warfare of flirtation. But a poetic quotation that has been quoted threadbare is neither amusing nor illustrative, and a commonplace periphrasis is offensive. Lamb's essays contain many exquisite examples of the use of (a) quotation and (b) periphrasis, which show at once the beauty of his style and the danger of imitating it : (a) a Dost thou love silence deep as that i before the winds were made ? ' go not into the wilderness, descend not into the profundities of the earth, shut not up thy casements, nor pour wax into the little cells of thy ears, with little-faith'd, self-mis- trusting Ulysses. — Retire with me into a Quaker's Meeting. . . . What is the stillness of the desert compared with this place ? what the uncommunicating muteness of fishes f 1 Here the god- dess reigns and revels. e Boreas and Cesias and Argestes loud ' do not with their interconfounding uproars more augment the brawl, nor the waves of the blown Baltic with their clubbed sounds — than their opposite (Silence her sacred self) is multiplied and rendered more intense by numbers and by sympathy." (b) " In other words, this is the day on which those charming little missives ycleped Valentines, cross and intercross each other at every street and turning. The weary and all forspent two- penny postman sinks beneath a load of delicate embarrassments, not his own. It is scarcely credible to what extent this ephemeral courtship is carried on in this loving town, to the great enrich- ment of porters, and detriment of knockers and bell- wires. In these little visioal interpretations no emblem is so common as the heart, — that little three-cornered exponent of all our hopes and 1 Horace, "mutis piscibus." 108 FAULTS IN DICTION, AND THEIR REMEDIES. fears. . . . Custom has settled these things, and awarded the seat of sentiment to the aforesaid triangle.'' 9 Further on, the posting of a Valentine is described thus : " This, on Valentine's eve, he committed to the all-sivalloiving indiscriminate orifice (0 ignoble trust) of the common post ; but the humble medium did its duty, and from his watchful stand, the next morning he saw the cheerful messenger knock, and by- and-by the precious charge delivered." The antidote to " fine writing "Is simplicity and straight- forwardness. Slang is more difficult to avoid, and when any one has once contracted a habit of slang, he often afterwards, in the reaction from one bad habit, falls into another almost as bad, the habit of u fine writing;" In the great anxiety to avoid what is grossly vulgar, the writer chooses, not the simplest, but the finest words that he can think of. Familiarity with one or two standard English works, such as the authorized version of the Bible, and Shakspeare, will go far to cure both slang and fine writing. But besides these, there must be a feeling that one has something to say, and a desire to say it as clearly as possible — a supe- riority to that temptation of making petty jokes and wittic- isms which characterizes the writer who now to sense,- bow nonsense, leaning, Means not, but blunders round about a meaning, and a determination to go straight to the point, and to use the clearest words in the clearest possible way. 71. The Antidote for Tautology. — " Fine writing " thinks it can escape tautology of thought by avoiding mere repetition of language. Repetition of thought is unques- tionably a fault, but it is only increased by being glossed over by variety of expression. When we are' reading FAULTS IN DICTION, AND THEIR REMEDIES. 109 one of Bishop Burnet's descriptions of character, it is no doubt unpleasant to find seven or eight consecutive sen- tences beginning with: "he." Such a style of writing betokens a want of connected thought, and an absence of that discrimination which would emphasize now one, now another circumstance, and which, by placing the emphatic word in each case at the beginning, would naturally vary the rhythm and construction. But the cure for the fault lies in an improvement of the thought, not merely in vary- ing the expression of it. If the thought that is uppermost in the writer's mind be allowed its proper emphatic position in the sentence, the result will be (provided that the writer thinks clearly) a clear, straightforward style which will not involve any un- pleasant tautology. The following passage is a description of the character of Charles II. in Bishop Burnet's characteristic style. Almost every sentence begins with he or his, and the subject is in each case closely followed by the verb. Such a repetition in good authors would imply an increasing emphasis on the pronoun, denoting he and no one else. Thus, " The captain was the life and soul of the expedition : it was he who first pointed out the possibility of advancing ; he warned them of the approaching scarcity of provisions ; he showed how they might replenish their exhausted stock ; he calmed the excessive exultation of the ignorant ; he cheered the weary and dejected ; in a word, he, and he alone, was entitled to the merit of their ultimate success." No such justification exists for the monotonous repetition in Bishop Burnet : "He had a very good understanding. He knew well the state of affairs both at home and abroad. He had a softness of temper that charmed all who came near him, till they found 110 FAULTS IN DICTION, AND THEIR REMEDIES. how little they could depend on good looks, kind words, and fair promises, in which he was liberal to excess, because he intended nothing by them but to get rid of importunities, and to silence all farther pressing upon him. He seemed to have no sense of religion : both at prayers and at sacrament, he, as it were, took care to satisfy people that he was in no sort con- cerned in that about which he was employed. So that he was very far from being a hypocrite, unless his assisting at those performances was a sort of hypocrisy (as no doubt it was) : but he was sure not to increase that, by any the least appearance of religion. He said once to myself he was no atheist, but he could not think God could make a man miserable only for taking a little pleasure out of the way." The cure for such tautology is, not to adopt a periphrasis for every he, — " The merry monarch had a very good under- standing;" " The son of Charles I. knew well the state of affairs;" " The royal votary of pleasure had a softness of temper; " " The third of the Stuarts seemed to have no sense of religion ;" " This irreligious monarch said once to myself," — but rather to give its duly emphatic position to every word that should be emphatic, and to supply the necessary logical connection between each sentence, e.g., "He had a very good understanding, and knew well," etc. " His temper was so soft," etc. In the following description of a " Poor Eelation," Lamb seems, whether consciously or not, to imitate the description of the Virtuous Woman in the Book of Proverbs. 1 There is a mock assumption of dignity, superior to rhetoric and emphasis : " He entereth smiling and — embarrassed. He holdeth out his 1 Proverbs xxxi. Examples of the Oriental fondness for repetition are the recurring' "Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego," "cornet, flute, harp," etc., in the Book of Daniel. There are cases where such repetition befits the nature of the subject. FAULTS IN DICTION, AND THEIR REMEDIES. Ill hand to you to shake, and — draweth it back again. He casually looketh in about dinner-time — when the table is full. He offereth to go away, seeing you have company — but is induced to stay." Six sentences follow beginning in the same way. Three or four sentences may sometimes naturally and pleasingly begin in the same way, but an excess is to be avoided, though not by the use of periphrasis. Of course there are cases where a periphrasis is an essential part of the sense. " The conqueror of Jena was not likely to consent to such terms as these," is quite a different statement from the same sentence with " Napoleon" for " the conqueror of Jena." It is equivalent to saying, " Napoleon, flushed with the victory of Jena, was not likely, to," etc. But without this justification, a periphrasis used merely to disguise tautology, is objectionable. Contrast with the passage quoted above from Burnet the variety of the following description of the valour of Corio- lanus, where some repetition is natural and justifiable, as the he is emphatic. Here tautology is not avoided by peri- phrases, but by the emphatic position of the object, or of some adverbial phrase or sentence. He bestrid An o'er-pressed Roman, and i' the consul's view Slew three opposers : Tar quirts self he met, And struck him on his knee : in that day's feats, When he might act the woman in the scene, He proved best man i' the field, and for his meed Was brow-bound with the oak. His pupil-age Man-enter 'd thus, he waxed like a sea, And in the brunt of seventeen battles since, He lurch'd all swords of the garland. 72. Obscurity may arise (i.) from an inaccurate and lax 112 FAULTS IN DICTION, AND THEIR REMEDIES. use of words, the same word being used in different senses; (ii.) from a careless arrangement of words ; (iii.) from a care- less use of certain ambiguous words, especially the pronouns. The accurate use of words is treated of above in the Chapter on Words, and need not be discussed here. A few remarks will be made on (ii.) the arrangement of sentences ; (iii.) the use of jironouns, etc., with a view to clearness. Obscurity is not a necessary accompaniment of long sentences, nor can it be avoided by merely avoiding long sentences. A well- arranged sentence may be clear, however long it may be, if the dependent and subordinate clauses are so arranged as not to interfere with the independent part which constitutes, as it were, the back bone of the sentence. A marked dis- tinction must be made between (a) the sentences that are long by reason of enumeration (i.e., the number of the subordinate clauses), and (b) sentences that are long by reason of complication. The number of subordinate clauses makes but little difference provided that they are simple, and simply connected with the main part of the sentence. Thus : (a.) A long enumerative sentence : — " Now that you have recognized the failure of your plans, and have lost all hope of success ; now that you are deserted by your followers and suspected by your own family ; a king with- out subjects, a general without an army, and a plotter without so much as the basis for a plot, — it is absurd for you to expect to dictate in your adversity the same conditions which you rejected in prosperity." But if the subordinate clauses are complicated, and them- selves contain other subordinate clauses, it is difficult to make even a short sentence readily perspicuous, e.g., (b.) A complicated sentence: — "The former, being a man of good parts of learning, and FAULTS IN DICTION, AND THEIR REMEDIES. ll3 after some years spent in New College in Oxford, of which his father had been formerly fellow (that family pretending and enjoying many privileges there, as of kin to the founder), had spent his time abroad, in Geneva and among the cantons of Switzerland." — Clarendon. When the sentence is longer, the difficulty is greatly increased : " Yet when that discovery drew no other severity but the turning him out of office, and the passing a sentence con- demning him to die for it (which was presently pardoned, and he was after a short confinement restored to his liberty), all men believed that the king knew of the letter, and that the pre- tended confession of the secretary was only collusion to lay the jealousies of the king's favouring popery, which still hung upon him, notwithstanding his writing on the Revelation, and his affecting to enter on all occasions into controversy, asserting in particular that the Pope was antichrist." — Burnet. A sentence that is heterogeneous cannot be readily com- prehended. There is a difficulty in passing rapidly from one statement to a second having no natural connection with the first. This difficulty remains, even if the statements are written as separate sentences. The mere transition from one subject of a verb to another, if too abrupt, is sufficient to prevent ready comprehension. The following sentence describes an execution, its subse- quent legalization, a pardon, the suppression of a rebellion, a popular reaction, the consequent unpopularity of a states- man, and a general characteristic of the English people. Such a sentence would have been far better broken up into two or three sentences. (c.) Heterogeneous sentence: " In all, fifty-eight were executed in several places, whose 114 FAULTS IN DICTION, AND THEIR REMEDIES. attainders were confirmed by an act of the f ollowing parliament ; six hundred of the rabble were appointed to come before the queen with halters about their necks, and to beg their lives, which she granted them ; and so was this storm dissipated : only the effusion after it was thought too liberal : and this excess of punishment was generally cast on Gardiner, and made him become very hateful to the nation, which has been always much moved at a repetition of such sad spectacles." Obscurity also arises from inversions and omissions. — In letter- writing, inversions are not uncommon, and sometimes cause mistakes, especially where punctuation is neglected ; but they are most common in poetry, e.g., (d.) Inversion : And all the air a solemn stillness holds. Gray's Elegy. The following is a case of intentional ambiguity : The duke yet lives that Henry shall depose, But him outlive and die a violent death. Skakspeare. When Adam, first of men, To first of women, Eve, thus moving speech, Turned him all ear to hear new utterance flow. Milton. Here there would have been some obscurity even if the sentence had run " turned him to Eve (who was) all ear to hear," etc. But the inversion makes the obscurity still greater. The omission or rather non-repetition of the Subject some- times strains the attention, and causes some degree of obscu- rity, especially when the non-repetition is in a subordinate clause. FAULTS IN DICTION, AND THEIR REMEDIES. 115 (e.) Non-repetition of Subject : " So that it is but a groundless fiction, made by those who have either been the authors, or at least have laid down the principles of all the rebellions, and yet would cast that blame on others, and exempt themselves from it ; as if they were the surest friends of princes, while they design to enslave them to a foreign power, and will neither allow them to reign nor to live, but at the mercy of the head of that principality to which all other powers must bend ; or break if they meet with an age that is so credulous and superstitious as to receive their dictates." — Burnet. The omission of the Subject is particularly likely to cause obscurity after a Kelative standing as Subject : " Just at this moment I met a man who seemed a suspicious sort of fellow, and turned down a lane ( to avoid \ lm " ) V ( me. ; Here, if the sentence ended at the word " lane," the ambi- guity would be complete. 73. Ambiguous Words, and above all the pronouns, often cause obscurity. A rule should be laid down that no pronoun is to be used unless the context clearly shows what noun is represented by the pronoun. (a.) Ambiguity of personal pronouns : — - " By these the King was mollified, and resolved to restore him (the Duke of Monmouth) again to his favour. It stuck much at the confession that he was to make. The King promised that no use should be made of it : but he stood on it, that he must tell him the whole truth of the matter. Upon which he con- sented to satisfy the King. But he would say nothing to the (Duke of York) more than to ask his pardon in a general com- pliment." 116 FAULTS IN DICTION, AND THEIR REMEDIES. The ambiguity arising from he in a reported speech is well known : "He told the coachman that he would be the death of him if he did not take care what he was about and mind what he said." Here the intention of the writer was that the he in the " he would be the death" should refer to the coachman, who would cause his employer to lose his life by rash driving, but the employer might very easily be meant. (b.) The relative pronoun also causes ambiguity when the antecedent is not clearly indicated. When the relative may refer to a noun in the preceding sentence, or to the whole of the sentence, the ambiguity is sometimes very perplexing, e.g., " There was a public-house next door which was a great nuisance." Here which may refer to the " public- house," but it may refer, not to the " public-house," but to to the fact that the public-house was next door. Strictly speaking, that should have been used in the former case, and which in the latter. 1 It is a vulgar fault to connect heterogeneous sentences and combine them into one long sentence by a frequent use of the relative pronoun. Every repetition of the relative in the same sentence introduces a possibility of ambiguity, and therefore an excessive use of which (or, as it has been jestingly termed, " the sin of witchcraft") ought to be care- fully avoided. The standard prose writers of the seven- teenth and eighteenth centuries sometimes commit this fault. It would have been better not to combine two sentences by the relative adverb where, but to keep the two distinct in — 1 That should introduce a clause defining or limiting the antecedev t, which a fact about the antecedent. "A friend that helps is better thin my friend who (for he) only advises." — See Shakespearian Grammar, p. 176-7. FAULTS IN DICTION, AND THEIR REMEDIES. 117 "He is supposed to have fallen by his father's death into the hands of his uncle, a vintner near Charing Cross, who sent him for some time to Dr. Busby at Westminster ; but, not intending to give him any education beyond that of the school, took him when he was well advanced in literature to his own house, where the Earl of Dorset, celebrated for patronage of genius, found him by chance, as Burnet relates, reading Horace, and was so well pleased with his proficiency, that he undertook the care and cost of his academical education." Here, preceded by a fullstop, would be better than where. This leads us to distinguish those cases (a) where the relative who, etc., is divisible into the demonstrative with some conjunction, " and he," "for he," etc., from those cases (j3) where the relative is indivisible. (a). Divisible Relative. "And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them into prison, charging the jailor to keep them safely ; who, (and he) having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks." — Acts of the Apostles, xvi. 23, 24. This use of the Belative is perhaps an imitation of Latin. It is at all events more suitable for Latin, where the Antece- dent of the Eelative is indicated by the gender and number of the Belative, than for English where no inflectional means exist for connecting the Belative with its Antecedent, so as to avoid ambiguity. 1 (]3). Indivisible Relative. The man that hath no music in himself, Nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds, Is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils. Merchant of Venice. 1 When and where are often thus used. 118 FAULTS IN DICTION, AND THEIR REMEDIES. Here the Kelative does not introduce an additional fact, but an essential part of the subject, which is not complete without the Eelative clause. In this case the Relative cannot be avoided by using the demonstrative and a conjunction. (c.) The Negative often causes ambiguity when it is not clear what part of the sentence is modified by not. " The remedy for drunkenness is not-to-be-ascetic, or is-not to-be-ascetic." " I shall not help-you-because-you-are-my-friend (but because you are in the right)," or " I shall-not-help-you, because- you-are-my-enemy." The following instance, though not itself ambiguous, suggests the ambiguities that may arise in this way : " They shall not build, and another inhabit ; they shall not plant, and another eat." — Isaiah lxv. 22. (A. Y.) (d.) Any is often ambiguously used. When not modified by a negative, it means " any you like," i.e., " every ;" but " not any" instead of meaning "not every," means "not a single one." Hence, where the negative is carelessly placed, any becomes ambiguous, because we cannot tell whether it means every or one, e.g., ' i No person shall derive any benefit from this rule who has not been engaged for at least five years to a house of business employing not less than a hundred clerks at any time." This ought to mean " em}jloying at no time less than a hundred;" but any in such cases is often confused with some. Again, in "I cannot believe anything that you say," and " I cannot believe anything that you choose to say," anything means in the first case " a single thing," in the second case " everything." It is quite impossible to determine, without fuller context, the meaning of the word any in such a sentence as : FAULTS IN DICTION, AND THEIR REMEDIES. 119 "I am not bound to receive any messenger whom you may send." (e.) But sometimes causes obscurity, and since it may mean, according to the context, except, or on the other hand, or only, must be very carefully handled. (a) " As for the falsehood of your brother, I feel no doubt ; but what you say is true." " As for the falsehood of your brother, I feel no doubt but what you say is true." (,3) " I expected twelve; but (either only or contrary to my expectation) ten came." The following is perfectly clear, but shows the possibility of ambiguity : (7) There's ne'er a villain dwelling in all Denmark But he's an arrant knave. Hamlet. (/.) Adverbs, when misplaced, or even inverted for em- phasis, may easily cause obscurity. Sometimes without being positively wrongly placed, they cause confusion when they come at the end of a clause, and are followed by a new clause beginning with a participle : " He left the room very slowly repeating his determination not to obey." ' ' He charged me with peculation falsely asserting that I had not sent in my accounts." (g.) Participles are often used with nothing to show what noun they qualify. This produces great obscurity in poetry. Thus, in the passage quoted above from Milton : Adam, first of men, To first of women, Eve, thus moving speech Turned him. 120 FAULTS IN DICTION, AND THEIR REMEDIES. But such ambiguity is also common in the most ordinary- prose. (a) "I did not hear what you said coming so suddenly into the noisy room." (/3) "I saw an old schoolfellow yesterday when I was in London ivalking down Regent Street, carpet-bag in hand." (7) "I must be forgiven if this stranger has not received allowance from me, placed in these trying circumstances, and surrounded by everything that can perplex and distract." (h.) A congestion of infinitives causes ambiguity, when it is not clear whether an infinitive is parallel to or depending on a previous infinitive. This ambiguity may occur even in a very short sentence : "Do you intend to send your son to help me to work or to play?" (1) " Do you intend (to send your son, or to help me, or to work, or to play ?) " (2) "... to send your son (that he may help me or that he may work or that he may play V) " (3) " ... to send your son to help me (that I may work or that I may play V) " 74. The Antidote for Obscurity is a careful obser- vation of such natural obscurities of the English language as^have been enumerated above, and watchfulness in avoiding them. The causes of error are very few, but they recur again and again ; and if they are once carefully noted and avoided, a very few simple rules will be sufficient to prevent a great many mistakes. For example, a careful use of the relative and personal pronouns will remove a great many common obscurities. Conversational license sometimes encourages us to take liberties in writing which produce obscurity : against this FAULTS IN DICTION, AND THEIR REMEDIES. 121 we must be on our guard. As there are few inflections in English, the function of a word in a sentence is determined partly by the position of the word, partly by emphasis and modulation of the voice. The four words " When will you ride ? " admit of four somewhat different meanings, accord- ing as the emphasis is laid on one or other of the words. There is a danger that when we write we may write too much as we speak, forgetting that a reader cannot be ex- pected to put the precise emphasis which we should put. The emphasis is perhaps necessary to explain the exact meaning, and in such cases what was clear when spoken, becomes obscure when written. Almost all the ambiguous sentences noted in the last paragraph would be free from obscurity if they were spoken. It follows that more care must be bestowed upon the arrangement of words in writing than in conversation, A few further remarks on the best way to write or speak a long sentence intelligibly, will be conveniently given under the head of the rhetorical period. 75. The Rhetorical Period is based upon the necessity for (a) clearness and (b) impressiveness which is felt by those who have to persuade a large assembly. The paren- theses and rambling anarchy of conversation are out of place here : for rhetoric must be pointed and incisive. The continuous pursuit of some thread of subtle thought, the quiet soliloquizing or sudden outburst of lyrical poetry, are also out of place, — either too subtle, or too quiet, or too difficult to follow for a large audience of average persons. Excitement must be sometimes produced, but the way for it must be carefully prepared. There must be no surprises and perplexities to the audience, nothing to prevent them 122 FAULTS IX DICTION, AND THEIR REMEDIES. from being carried uninterruptedly and insensibly along with the speaker. No speaker would begin a long speech by O that this too, too solid flesh would melt ! or, Ruin seize thee, ruthless king ! or, Hence, loathed Melancholy. Accordingly, a long rhetorical sentence is often preceded by a kind of introductory epitome of what is going to be said. Many examples of this might be extracted from Burke. The two following, which are consecutive in the original, will /suffice : "But now all is to be changed. All the pleasing illusions which made power gentle, and obedience liberal, which harmo- nized the different shades of life, and which, by a bland assimi- lation, incorporated into politics the sentiments which beautify and soften private society, are to be dissolved by this new con- quering empire of light and reason. All the decent drapery of life is to be rudely torn off. All the superadded ideas furnished from the wardrobe of a moral imagination, which the heart owns and the understanding ratifies as necessary to cover the defects of our naked shivering nature, and to raise it to dignity in our own estimation, are to be exploded as a ridiculous, absurd, and antiquated fashion." — Burke. The repetition of the connecting words, the conjunctions, relative pronouns, auxiliary verbs, and prepositions in a long sentence is very conducive to clearness, often also to impressiveness, as in the following example : " My lords, you have here also the lights of our religion ; you have the bishops of England. My lords, yoii have that true image of the primitive church in its ancient form, in its ancient ordinances, purified from the superstitions and the vices which a FAULTS IN DICTION, AND THEIR REMEDIES. 123 long succession of ages will bring upon the best institutions. You have the representatives of that religion which says that their God is love, that the very vital spirit of their institution is charity; a religion which" etc. " Therefore it is with confi- dence that, ordered by the Commons, I impeach Warren Hast- ings, Esq., of high crimes and misdemeanors. I impeach him in the name of the Commons of Great Britain in Parliament assembled, whose parliamentary trust he has betrayed. I im- peach him in the name of," etc. (three more times repeated.) — Burke. (b.) Impressiveness and clearness both require the antithe- tical style, which is very common in rhetoric. Very common- place considerations may explain the kind of duality of expression which pervades many great popular harangues. The mere effort to make one's meaning perfectly clear in a somewhat noisy audience (and perhaps the convenience of gaining more time for thought) may explain why speakers should sometimes use two words for one, so that if one be lost, the meaning may be explained by the other, e.g., " If I saw a hamlet, or if I saw a homestead at the foot of yonder mountain." 1 But, independent of all such obvious considerations of ex- pediency, there is something striking in the neatness and sym- metry of a well-balanced antithesis which arrests the attention. Very often the meaning of one-half of the antithesis is also illustrated by the other half. For example, in considering the meaning of liberal in such a sentence as " all the pleasing illusions which made power gentle, and obedience liberal," we are helped very much by bearing in mind that 1 Twice repeated in a beautiful and well-known passage in one of Mr. Bright' s speeches (as reported in the Times), illustrating the danger from impending political disturbance by a description of the danger of a hamlet situated at the foot of a volcanic mountain. 124 FAULTS IN DICTION, AND THEIR REMEDIES. " liberal obedience " corresponds to " gentle power," i.e., power without the natural defect of power, brutality ; and hence we are led to the inference that " liberal obedience M means obedience without the natural defect of obedience, i.e., without servility. Any page of Burke's speeches will give instances of antithesis : " They had long views. They aimed at the rule, not at the destruction of their country. They were men of great civil and great military talents, and, if the terror, the ornament of their age." — Burke. A constant repetition of antithesis becomes forced and wearisome, especially when accompanied by alliteration : " Who can persuade where treason is above reason, and might ruleth right, and it is had for lawful whatsoever is lust- ful, and commotioners are better than commissioners, and common woe is named common wealth 1 " — CheJce, quoted by Ben Jonson. When the audience is worked up to a sufficient height, the impressiveness of rhetoric not only justifies, but some- times demands the impassioned exclamations and repetitions of poetry. See the passage quoted from Burke 1 in para- graph 60, where, after the quiet introduction, "It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the Queen of France," the speaker 1 goes on to, " Oh, what a revolution ! . . . . Never, never more shall we behold . ... It is gone, that sensibility' of principle, ' ' etc. The impressiveness of rhetoric requires an abundant use 1 The " Reflections on the Revolution in France," though written in "a letter intended to have been sent to a gentleman in Paris/' have notlung but the " dear sir " at the beginning in common with the style of a letter. SIMILE AND METAPHOE. 125 of metaphor, — not the quiet, subtle, and exquisite metaphor of the higher kind of written prose, but effective and in- telligible metaphor. Khetoric is altogether alien from ex~ quisiteness; it addresses itself to the average person, and is very often forcible at the expense of grace : " In the groves of their Academy, at the end of eveiy vista, you see nothing but the gallows." — Burke. It is scarcely necessary to add that a repetition of the period, unbroken by more abrupt sentences, would soon become monotonous, and produce a sense of artificiality. Cicero says that the continuous use of the period is fitter for history and panegyric than for forensic oratory. He adds that in oratorical narration and compliment it can be more freely used than in other parts of an orator's speech. The frequent use of the period may tend to ornateness, as in Burke ; but we know that Burke's speeches were not re- markable for their success in persuading. 1 CHAPTER IV. SIMILE AND METAPHOR. 76. Similarity. — In order to describe an object that has not been seen we use the description of some object or objects that have been seen. Thus, to describe a lion to a person who had never seen one, we should say that it had some- thing like a horse's mane, the claws of a cat, etc. We might say, " A lion is like a monstrous cat with a horse's 1 See page 222. 126 SIMILE AND METAPHOR. mane." This sentence expresses a likeness of things, or a similarity. 77. Simile. — In order to describe some relation that can- not be seen, e.g., the relation between a ship and the water, as regards the action of the former upon the latter, to a lands- man who had never seen 1 the sea or a ship, we might say, "The ship acts upon the water as a plough turns up the land." In other words, " The unknown relation between the ship and the sea is similar to the known relation between the plough and the land." This sentence expresses a simi- larity of relations, and is called a simile. It is frequently expressed thus : " As the plough turns up the land, so the ship acts on the sea." Def. — A Simile is a sentence expressing a simi- larity of relations. 1 Very rarely a simile illustrates what is seen by what is not seen. Take, as an example, the following description of the rainbow over a cataract : But on the verge From side to side, beneath the glittering morn An Iris sits, amidst the infernal surge, Like Hope upon a deathbed, and, unworn Its steady dyes, while all around is torn By the distracted waters, bears serene Its brilliant hues with all their beams unshorn : Resembling, 'mid the horror of the scene, Love watching Madness with unalterable mien. Childe Harold. These similes are intended, not to make the object described clearer, but more interesting. They suggest a kind of sympathy and personality in Nature. " A sighing oak" and " an angry torrent" give clearness as well as interest, because sighs and anger are familiar to all; but " Love watching SIMILE AND METAPHOE. 127 Consequently a simile is a kind of rhetorical proportion, and must, when fully expressed, contain four terms : A : B : : C : D. 78. Compression of Simile into Metaphor. — A simile lingers over illustration and ornament, and is there- fore better suited for poetry than for prose. Moreover, when a simile has been long in use, there is a tendency to consider the assimilated relations not merely as similar but as identical. The simile modestly asserts that the relation between the ship and the sea is like ploughing. The compressed simile goes further, and asserts that the relation between the ship and the sea is ploughing. It is expressed thus: " The ship ploughs the sea." Thus the relation between the plough and the land is transferred to the ship and the sea. A simile thus com- pressed is called a Metaphor, i.e., transference. Def. A Metaphor is a transference of the relation between one set of objects to another, for the pur- pose of brief explanation. 79. Metaphor fully stated or implied. — A metaphor may be either fully stated, as " The ship ploughs (or is the plough of) the sea" or implied, as "The winds are the horses that draw the plough of the sea." In the former case it is Madness " does not help you to see the waterfall, but only to feel the charm of it. The following is not on quite the same footing : She sat like Patience on a monument, Smiling at Grief. Twelfth Night. A woman is compared, not to Patience in the abstract, but to a female figure representing it. The prose version would be, " She looked so patient, that she might have stood for a statue of Patience." 128 SIMILE AND METAPHOR. distinctly stated, in the latter implied, that the " plough of the sea " represents a ship. 80. Implied Metaphor the basis of Language. — A great part of our ordinary language, all that concerns the relations of invisible things, consists of implied metaphors; for we most naturally describe the relations of those things which are not visible, tangible, etc., by means of the re- lations of those things which are visible, tangible, etc. We are in the habit of assuming the existence of a certain proportion or analogy between the relations of the mind and those of the body. This analogy is the foundation of all words that express mental and moral qualities. For example, we do not know how a thought suggests itself suddenly to the mind, but we do know how an external object makes itself felt by the body. Experience teaches us that anything which strikes the body makes itself suddenly felt. Analogy suggests that whatever is suddenly perceived comes in the same way into contact with the mind. Hence the simile — " As a stone strikes the body, so a thought makes itself perceptible to the mind." This simile may be compressed into the full metaphor, thus, " The thought struck my mind," or into the implied metaphor, thus, " This is a striking thought." In many words that express im- material objects the implied method can easily be traced through the derivation, as in " excellence," "tribulation," "integrity," " spotlessness," etc. N.B. The use of metaphor is well illustrated in words that describe the effects of sound. Since the sense of hearing seems less powerful and less suggestive of words than the senses of sight, taste, and touch, the poorer sense is compelled to borrow a part of its vocabulary from the richer senses. Thus SIMILE AND METAPHOR. 129 we talk of " a sweet voice," "a soft whisper," "a sharp scream," " a piercing shriek," and the Romans used the ex- pression " a dark- coloured voice," 1 where we should say " a rough voice." 81. Metaphor expanded. — As every simile can be com- pressed into a metcqjhor, so, conversely, every metaphor can be expanded into its simile. The following is the rule for expansion. It has been seen above that the simile consists of four terms. In the third term of the simile stands the subject ("ship," for instance) whose unknown predicated relation (" action of ship on water") is to be explained. In the first term stands the corresponding subject (" plough") whose predicated relation (" action on land") is known. In the second term is the known relation. The fourth term is the unknown predicated relation which requires explanation. Thus— the plough Known subject. turns up the land, Known predicate. the ship Subject whose predicate is unknown. acts on the sea, Unknown predicate. Sometimes the fourth term or unknown predicate may re- present something that has received no name in the language. Thus, if we take the words of Hamlet, " In my mind's eye," the metaphor when expanded would become — As the body is enlightened by the eye, so the mind Subject whose is enlightened by a certain percep- tive faculty. Unknown predi- Known subject. Known predicate. predicate is un- known. cate. 1 " Voxfusca." 130 SIMILE AND METAPHOR, For several centuries there was no word in the Latin lan- guage to describe this " perceptive faculty of the mind." At last they coined the word " imaginatio," which appears in English as "imagination." This word is found as early as Chaucer ; but it is quite conceivable that the English lan- guage should, like the Latin, have passed through its best period without any single word to describe the " mind's eye." The details of the expansion will vary according to the point and purpose of the metaphor. In " the ship is the plough of the sea," nothing more than the action of the plough on the surface of the water is the relation considered ; but in " the conversation of Socrates was the plough of the Greek mind," the point of the metaphor is the fertilizing action of the plough in breaking up the land and making it ready to receive the seed. 82. Personifications. — (1) Men are liable to certain feelings, such as shame, fear, repentance, and the like, which seem not to be originated by the person, but to come upon him from without. For this reason such impersonal feelings are in some languages represented by impersonal verbs. In Latin these verbs are numerous, "pudet," "piget," "taedet," "pcenitet," " libet," etc. In early English they were still more numerous, and we retain "it snows," "it rains," "it hails," though we have almost, or quite, lost " methinks," " meseems," " it shames me," " it pitieth me," " it repents me." Men are, however, not contented with separating their feelings from their own person ; they also feel a desire to account for them. For this purpose they have often imagined as the cause of their feelings, Per- sonal Beings, such as Hope, Fear, Faith, etc. Hence arose what may be called Personification. SIMILE AND METAPHOR. 131 (2) Personification is also used to account for results in the outer world of which the causes are not visible. Hence the Winds and the Seasons are connected or identified with Persons, e.g., Zephyr, Flora, and other natural objects which seem to have a kind of life, are personified in the same way. Thus, the trees are personified as Dryads. (3) Personal Metaphor is the name that should strictly be given to a third class of Personifications. A complex system, such as the earth, or sea, considered and spoken of as a whole, comes easily to be regarded and spoken of as possessing a kind of Personality. Thus Wordsworth, in the following verses, is on the point of personifying evening and the sun : the tendency becomes stronger as he con- tinues, and at last the Sea is spoken of as a " Being," and actually personified : It is a beauteous evening-, calm and free, The holy time is quiet as a Nun Breathless with adoration ; the broad sun Is sinking down in its tranquillity ; The gentleness of heaven is on the Sea : Listen ! the mighty Being is awake, And doth with his eternal motion make A sound like thunder — everlastingly. Sonnets. For the same reason nations and cities, e.g., England, France, Rome, Jerusalem, are regarded as Persons possess- ing individual characteristics. Lastly, Youth, Pleasure, Old Age, appear sometimes to be instances of this kind of Personification : 1 Youth at the prow, and Pleasure at the helm. — Gray. 1 These cases, however, approximate to those in Classes (1) and (2) above. See page 134 to distinguish between Personal Metaphor and Personification. 132 SIMILE AND METAPHOR. Def. Personification is the creation of a fictitious Person in order to account for (1) Psychological or (2) obscure Physical phenomena. 83. Personifications of Classes (1) and (2) cannot be expanded. — The process of expansion into Simile can be performed in the case of a Metaphor, because there is implied a comparison. But the process cannot be performed in a Personification of class (1) and (2) where no comparison is implied. " A frowning mountain " can be expanded, because this is a Metaphor implying a comparison between a mountain and a person, a gloom and a frown. But " frown- ing Wrath " cannot be expanded, because this is a Personifi- cation of class (1) implying no comparison. The same applies to " the joyful Dryads." It is the essence of a Metaphor that it should be literally false, as in " a frowning mountain." It is the essence of a Personification that, though founded on imagination, it is conceived to be literally true, as in " pale Fear," " dark Dis- honour." A painter would represent " Death" as "pale," and "Dishonour" as "dark," though he would not represent a "mountain" with a "frown," or a " ship " as a "plough." 84. Apparent Exception. — The only case where a simile is involved and an expansion is possible is where there is an implied Metaphor as well as a Personification. Thus the phrase " Mars mows down his foes " is not literally true. No painter would represent Mars (though he would Time) with a scythe. It is therefore a Metaphor, and, as such, capable of expansion thus : " As easily as a haymaker mows down the grass, so easily does Mars cut down his foes with his sword." SIMILE AND METAPHOR. 133 But the phrase "Mars slays his foes" is, from a poet's or painter's point of view, literally true. It is therefore no metaphor, and cannot be expanded. 85. Personification analysed. — Though we cannot expand a Personification into a Simile, we can explain the details of it. The same analogy which leads men to find a correspondence between visible and invisible objects leads them also to assume a similarity between cause and effect. This belief, which is embodied in the line Who drives fat oxen should himself be fat, is the basis of all Personification. Since fear makes men look pale, and dishonour gives a dark and scowling ex- pression to the face, it is inferred that Fear is " pale," and Dishonour " dark." And in the same way famine is " gaunt ; " Jealousy " green-eyed ; " Faith " pure-eyed ; " Hope " white-handed." 86. Personal Metaphor, natural and convenient. — We instinctively wish that visible nature, e.g., mountains, winds, trees, rivers, etc., should have a power of sympathising with men. This desire begets a kind of poetical belief that such a sympathy actually exists. Further, the vocabulary expressing the variable moods of man is so much richer than that which expresses the changes of nature that the latter borrows from the former. For these reasons, even where we do not venture on distinct Personification, we often attri- bute some of the relations of a Person to inanimate objects, and thus the morn is said to laugh, mountains to frown, winds to whisper, rivulets to prattle, oaks to sigh. The following may be given as a definition of Personal Metaphor. 134 SIMILE AND METAPHOR. Def. A Personal Metaphor is a transference of personal relations to an impersonal object for the purpose of assisting conception. In Personal Metaphors, if we attempt to expand them, the first term will always be " a person;'' the second, the predicated relation properly belonging to the person, and improperly transferred to the impersoDal object ; the third, the impersonal object. Thus — u As a person frowns, so an overhanging mountain (looks gloomy). " As a child prattles, so a brook (makes a ceaseless cheerful noise)." It is not always easy to draw the line between Personifi- cation and Personal Metaphor. " The grey morn comes on apace," or " the morn steals on the night," may fairly be treated as Personal Metaphors. But when pictorial details are added, e.g., But see the Morn, in russet mantle clad, Walks o'er the dew of yon high eastward hill, Hamlet. there seems to be a Personification, which is still more evi- dent in Not trick'd and frounced as she was wont With the Attic boy to hunt. II Penseroso. 87. Pseudo-Metaphors and Hyperbole. — Little or nothing can be gained by expanding a Personal Meta- phor, A frown or a sigh presupposes & person, and there- fore we learn little from stating the relation fully, a as a person sighs, so an oak makes a noise." The expression, " a sighing oak" may either be treated as a Personification SIMILE AND METAPHOE. 135 (in which case the oak is regarded as a Dryad), or else as an exaggerated and terse way of expressing, not a simile, but a similarity : thus there is no metaphor in the " fleecy flood" applied to " snow" : it is merely a short way of saying that " snow" resembles " fleece" in colour. Just so " a sighing oak" may be considered as a short exaggeration for "an oak the sound of whose leaves resembles sighing." It is almost as unnecessary to explain in the one case by saying, " as a person sighs," etc., as it would be in the other to explain by saying, " as a sheep has fleece," etc. " Fleece" presupposes " sheep" little more than "sigh" presupposes " person." In some cases the exaggeration is evident, and it is clear there is no metaphor. Thus, in Thy voice is thunder, but thy looks are humble, the meaning is merely " thy voice is as loud and terrible as thunder." Again, Every man's conscience is a thousand swords To fight against that bloody homicide. Richard III. Or, But he, poor soul, by your first order died, And that a winged Mercury did bear ; Some tardy cripple bore the countermand, That came too lag to see him buried. lb. In the last passage one messenger is said to be as swift as Mercury, and the other as slow as a cripple. This is Hyper- bole, and not Metaphor. For there is no similarity of rela- tions; it is an exaggeration of degree. Sometimes it is not easy to see whether there is a Metaphor or not. Take an instance : " The earth drank up his blood." Now here there is either a very strong Per- 136 SIMILE AND METAPHOR. sonification, or else there is only the slightest possible Metaphor, and the context must determine for us which is the case. Thus, if the context described Gessler dying on the land that he had oppressed, Switzerland might be represented as vindictively draining the life-blood of her oppressor, and this might be a distinct and vivid Personi- fication. But in most cases the Personification would be weak or non-existent, and the expression would be no more than a way of saying that the blood oozed into the earth almost as rapidly as water disappears when drunk up by man or beast. There would be little more Metaphor in this than in saying " a sponge imbibes water." 88. Confusions of Similarity. — There is no Metaphor in saying that " a man has a cold or warm heart," or " a clear head," and in many similar expressions. Easily distinguish- able from genuine metaphors (such as "a stiff-necked gene- ration"), these pseudo-metaphors are found in all languages, and they indicate an ancient belief that certain moral qualities are caused by or identical with certain qualities of the bodily organs. We still retain many of these old expressions, and use them in a confused manner, with a certain feeling that there must be a similarity between cause and effect. Thus the paleness of cowardice seemed naturally to spring from " a white liver ; ' n " clear reasoning" seems still the natural product of a "clear brain;" and, since warmth is genial and fostering, what can be a more natural explanation of a man whose conduct is kind and genial than to say that "lie has a warm heart " ? So we say of a satirist that " his pen 1 Go prick thy face, and over-red thy fear, Thou lily-liver d boy. Macbeth. SIMILE AND METAPHOR. 137 is steeped in gall." An instance of this natural confusion is found in Bichard III.'s exhortation to the murderers — Your eyes drop mill-stones when fools' eyes drop tears. Here the murderers are instructed to be hard : and nothing can be more natural than the hyperbole which asserts that the conduct of hard men bears the impress of hardness, and that even their tears are of stone. 89. Good and bad Metaphors. — There are certain laws regulating the formation and employment of Metaphors which should be borne in mind. (1.) A Metaphor must not be used unless it is needed for explanation or vividness, or to throw light upon the thought of the speaker. Thus the speech of the Gardener in Richard II., Go then, and like an executioner Cut off the heads of our fast-growing sprays, etc., is inappropriate to the character of the speaker, and conveys an allusion instead of an explanation. It illustrates what is familiar by what is unfamiliar, and can only be justified by the fact that the gardener is thinking of the disordered con- dition of the kingdom of England, and the necessity of a powerful king to repress unruly subjects. (2.) A Metaphor must not enter too much into detail: for every additional detail increases the improbability that the correspondence of the whole comparison can be sustained. Thus, if King Richard (Richard II.) had been content, while musing on the manner in which he could count time by his sighs, to say — For now hath Time made me his numbering clock. 138 SIMILE AND METAPHOR. there would have been little or no offence against taste. But when he continue.: — My thoughts are minutes, and with sighs they jar Their watches on unto mine eyes, the outward watch, Whereto my finger, like a dial's point, Is pointing still, in cleansing them from tears. Now, sir, the sound that tells what hour it is Are clamorous groans which strike upon my heart, Which is the bell, — we have an excess of detail which is only justified because it illustrates the character of one who is always " studying to compare," 1 and " hammering out" unnatural comparisons. Sometimes a single word in a Metaphor will suggest a minute detail far more effectively than a whole sentence would describe it. Take the word liveries in the following : Right against the Eastern gate, Where the great sun begins his state, Robed in flames and amber bright, The clouds in thousand liveries dight ; where this word suggests a comparison between the colours which the sun bestows upon the attendant clouds and the liveries of servants bearing the cognizance of their lord. The morning sun, surrounded by the clouds that reflect his rays, is compared to a great king or lord issuing from his palace gate, and accompanied by his attendants, who are clothed in the liveries that he has given them. The comical effect produced by excessively minute ela- 1 I have been studying how I may compare This prison where I live unto the world ; ***** I cannot do it; yet 111 hammer it out. Richard II. SIMILE AND METAPHOR. 139 boration of a metaphor is well illustrated by the following parody : Can the quick current of a patriot heart Thus stagnate in a cold and weedy converse, Or freeze in tideless inactivity ? No ! rather let the fountain of your valour Spring through each narrow stream of enterprise, Each petty channel of conducive daring, Till the full torrent of your foaming wrath O'erwhelm the flats of sunk hostility ! The Critic. (3.) A Metaphor must not be far -fetched, nor dwell upon the details of a disgusting picture : Here lay Duncan, His silver skin laced with his golden blood ; there the murderers, Steep'd in the colours of their trade, their daggers Unmannerly breech' d icith gore, Macbeth. There is but little, and that far-fetched, similarity between gold lace and blood, or between bloody daggers and breech 1 d legs. The slightness of the similarity, recalling the greatness of the dissimilarity, disgusts us with the attempted com- parison. Language so forced is only appropriate in the mouth of a conscious murderer dissembling guilt. Of course the same metaphors may be natural in one con- text and far-fetched in another. For instance, since a tree inhales and exhales certain gases through the medium of its leaves, " the leaves are the lungs of a tree " may be a suitable metaphor in a treatise on natural science, but a poet would not write — Spring returns, furnishing the trees with their green lungs. 140 SIMILE AND METAPHOR. Again, for the introspective Hamlet, the " mind's eye" is a very appropriate and beautiful metaphor ; and Menenius Agrippa, wrangling with a cobbler, may appropriately call the latter — You, the great toe of this assembly. Even Hamlet, in his lighter mood, may say that his friends in their moderate prosperity, are " Neither the soles of For- tune's feet, nor the button on her cap," but scarcely any context could justify such a metaphor as " the mind's foot,'' or "the mind's toe." (4.) Two Metaphors must not he confused together, particu- larly if the action of the one is inconsistent with the action of the other. It may be pardonable to surround, as it were, one meta- phor with another. Thus, fear may be compared to an ague- fit, and an ague-fit passing away may be compared to the overblowing of a storm. Hence, " This ague-fit of fear is overblown" (Richard II.) is justifiable. But Was the hope drunk Wherein you dressed yourself? Hath it slept since ? Macbeth. is, apart from the context, objectionable ; for it makes Hope a person and a dress in the same breath. It may, however, probably be justified on the supposition that Lady Macbeth is playing on her husband's previous expression — I have bought Golden opinions from all sorts of people, Which would be worn now in their newest gloss, Not cast aside so soon. SIMILE AND METAPHOR. 141 (5.) A Metaphor must be ivholly false, and must not combine truth w i th fa Iseh ood. " A king is the pilot of the state," is a good metaphor. " A careful captain is the pilot of his ship," is a bad one. You may speak of " assailing with the pen," but scarcely (unless with a touch of humorous irony) of " blackening a spotless character with his ink." So Ere my tongue Shall wound mine honour with such feeble wrong, Or sound so base a parle, Richard II. is objectionable. The tongue, though it cannot " wound," can touch. Honour can be wounded intangibly by " slander's venom'd spear" [Richard II.) ; but, in a metaphor, not so well by the tangible tongue. " Words " would not have been open to objection, for " his words wounded my feelings " suggests nothing literally true. The same objection applies to Ten thousand bloody crowns of mothers' sons Shall ill-become the flower of England's face, Change the complexion of her maid-pale peace To scarlet indignation, and bedew Her pastures' grass with faithful English blood. Richard II. If England is to be personified, it is England's blood, not the blood of ten thousand mothers, which will stain her face. There is also a confusion between the blood which mantles in a blush and which is shed ; and, in the last line, instead of " England's face," we come down to the literal " pastures' grass." 90. Personifications must be regulated by the laws of 142 SIMILE AND METAPHOR. personality. No other rule can be laid down. But exaggera- tions like the following must be avoided : Comets, importing change of times and states, Brandish your crystal tresses in the sky, And with them scourge the bad revolting stars. 1. Henry VI. The Furies may be supposed to scourge their prostrate vic- tims with their snaky hair, and comets have been before now regarded as scourges in the hand of God. But the liveliest fancy would be tasked to imagine the stars in re- volt, and scourged back into obedience by the crystal hair of comets. THIRD PART, CHAPTER I. METKE. The arrangement of words has two objects, (1) the convey- ing of the sense, (2) the giving of pleasure to the ear. One of the principal modes of giving pleasure by the ar- rangement of words is Rhythm. 9 1. Rhythm, when appropriate. — Rhythm is a prin- ciple of proportion introduced into language. Conversation being necessarily irregular, abrupt, and liable to interruption, has no leisure for rhythm. Proportion, even if introduced into conversation, might be broken at any moment. Scientific and philosophic writing does not require rhythm, The reader's mind being in a state of tension, and the writer's main object being great precision, rhythm appears unneces- sary and impertinent. The logical sequence of argument dictates the arrangement of the words, and ought not to be interfered with by any consideration of pleasure. But when we talk or write continuously about any subject that appeals to the passions, we gratify a natural instinct by falling into a certain regularity. Both the voice and the arrangement of the words fall under this regular influence : 144 METRE. the voice is modulated, and the words are regulated in a kind of flow called rhythm. Without rhythm, the expres- sion of passion becomes spasmodic and painful, like the sobbing of a child. Rhythm averts this pain by giving a sense of order controlling and directing passion. Hence rhythm is in place wherever speech is impassioned, and intended at the same time to be pleasurable : and impas- sioned speech without rhythm is, when long continued, un- pleasing. The regularity of rhythm is not so great that it can be reduced to a law. When it can be reduced to a law, it loses the name of rhythm, and becomes metre. 92. Metre, when appropriate. — When a subject ex- cites the feelings very strongly, or when a subject is re- garded in a very pleasurable manner, the feelings often most naturally and pleasurably express themselves in song. Not that we do sing in moments of excessive sorrow, or plea- surable excitement ; often we have not sufficient self-control, or sufficient knowledge of music, to do so. But there is a tendency (varying, as to intensity, in different nations and in different individuals) to song, as being the most natural and pleasurable expression of very strong feeling. Xow just as the voice rises from (a) conversational non-modula- tion to (b) rhetorical modulation, and from modulation to (c) singing, so the arrangement of words rises from (a') conver- sational non-arrangement to (U) rhetorical rhythm, and from rhythm to {(•/) metre. The highest passion of all expresses itself, as regards the sound of the voice, in a shriek or scream, and as regards the arrangement of words, in the spasmodic non-arrange- ment of uncontrolled and unrhythmical passion. Un- METRE. 145 metrical ejaculations are allowable in metre (very often standing by themselves outside the metre), but the un- rhythmical expression of intense passion is, when prolonged, extremely painful, producing pain untempered by any feeling of artistic pleasure. It is therefore rarely admitted. An exception is the speech, if it can be so called, of Othello (Act iv. Sc. 1. 1. 38), just before his fit of epilepsy. Though metre is peculiarly fitted for the pleasurable ex- pression of high passion, it can be applied also to subjects where there is little or no passion, provided that the plea- surable arrangement of words is in place. Composition which has only rhythm, or not even that, is called prose ; composition which has metre is called poetry. 93, Prose and Poetry in Shakspeare serve, as a rule, for distinct purposes. Prose is used in the dialogue between servants, and in jest, and in light conversation. For instance, Falstaff always speaks in prose, even in scenes where the other characters speak verse. Again, in " Julius Caesar," Act i. Sc. 2, Casca speaks prose when Brutus and Cassius speak in verse. Prose is used for letters, and on other occasions, where it is desirable to give a matter-of- fact effect. There is rhythm, but not metre, in the following impassioned letter : Sweet Bassanio, my ships have all miscarried, my creditors grow cruel, my estate is very low, my bond to the Jew is forfeit ; and since in paying it, it is impossible I should live, all debts are cleared between you and I, if I might but see you at my death. Notwithstanding, use your pleasure : if your love do not persuade you to come, let not my letter. — Merchant of Venice. Often a scene begins with prose in a conversational tone, v and rises to verse as the feelings become more passionate. Thus the scene of the bargain, Merchant of Venice, Act i. Sc. 3, begins 10 146 METRE. Shy. Three thousand ducats ; well. Bass. Ay, sir, for three months ; and does not become verse till the entrance of Antonio develops passion in Shylock : Shy. Who is he comes here ? Bass. This is Signor Antonio. Shy. {aside."] How like a fawning publican he looks. A similar change occurs in the household scene in " Corio- lanus," Act i. Sc. 3, where the scene begins with prose, then passes into verse, and finally returns to prose. Another instance where verse begins and prose follows is in " The Two Gentlemen of Verona," Act i. Sc. 1. The student should note other instances, and, where it is possible to do so, should trace the change of thought corresponding to the change of language. One remarkable instance where prose is used instead of verse is in the speech of Brutus to the populace after the murder of Cassar. Elsewhere Brutus always speaks verse ; but in addressing the people, he refuses to ' appeal to their feelings, and affects a studiously cold and unimpassioned style. His speech serves in this respect as a useful foil to Antony's highly impassioned harangue. But even in this studiously frigid speech it is noticeable how, as soon as the speaker begins to appeal to the feelings of the audience, he approaches and finally falls into metre : As Csesar loved me, I weep for him : As he was fortunate, I rejoice at it : As he was valiant, I honour liim : But, as lie was ambitious, I slew him. There is teen for his love ; joy for his fortune ; Honour for his valour ; and death for his ambition. METEE. 147 So far we have merely rhythm, though rhythm on the brink of metre : now comes the appeal to the feelings, and after one line that is all but metre, the rhythm becomes absolute metre : Who is here so base that would ( ) be a bondman ? If any, speak ; for him have I offended. Who is here so rude that would not be a Roman ? If any, speak ; for him have I offended. Who is here so vile that will not love his country ? If any, speak; for him have I offended. I pause for a reply. AIL None, Brutus, none. Brutus. Then none have I offended. 94. Didactic Poetry. — Although prose seems to us the most natural style, and poetry might be supposed to be an invention of civilized and ingenious nations, the truth is that poetry is earlier and more universal than prose. So strong was the natural inclination to give form and some kind of regularity to every " set form" 1 of words, that written composition assumed at once a metrical form, and prose is rather the after-thought of a more advanced civilization. The earliest philosophers hampered themselves with metre, and their example has been followed in modern times by a doubtful style, didactic (or teaching) poetry, of which the most famous example in English literature is Pope's " Essay on Man." It is only, however, when the subject requires very precise reasoning, or deals with very dry abstractions, that any objection can be made to this style. A subject which excites the feelings will always admit of high rhythm and of metre so long as it is not handled too closely. There is a kind of prose composition which is 1 Compare the Latin " carmen." 148 METRE. essentially didactic, and yet is highly rhythmical ; and there is a kind of didactic poetry which is to be regarded as the highest exaltation of this style, e.g., many poems of Words- worth, and some parts of the " Essay on Man." A specimen of the false didactic style is Darwin's " Loves of the Plants," which should be compared with the burlesque of it in Can- ning and Frere's " Loves of the Triangles." 95. Language Metrical and Unmetrieal. — As an example of the difference between metrical and unmetrieal language, compare Achilles' wrath to Greece the direful spring with The wrath of Achilles, the spring direful to Greece. The former gives more pleasure to the ear than the latter, by its superior regularity. In the former the syllables are so arranged that the first is to the second as the third to the fourth and the fifth to the sixth, etc. In the latter no law can be discovered. It is the regularity itself which gives pleasure. Of what kind the regularity may be is of less importance, provided that it be readily perceptible. In early English poetry we find a regularity of a different sort, a regular recurrence in the first letters of certain accented syllables : iucifer with Zegions || Zearned it in | heaven. And in modern English poetry there is commonly another regularity by the side of the regularity in accent. Syllables terminating with the same letters are introduced at regular distances. These syllables are said to rhyme, Achilles' wrath, to Greece the direful spring Of woes unnumbered, heavenly goddess, sing. METRE. 149 Here the tenth and twentieth syllables terminate in the same letters, or rhyme. We proceed, then, to examine the dif- ferent kinds of metre, 96. Metre, different kinds of. — The regularity on which Metre, as we have just said, depends, may affect (a) syllables ; (b) small combinations of syllables, called feet; (c) combinations of feet, called lines or verses ; (d) combina- tions of verses, called couplets, stanzas, etc. i. [a) Syllables may be merely counted, and not classified at all. ii. (a) Syllables, e.g., strives, in, might be classified accord- ing to the time necessary to pronounce them, i.e., their quantity. This has never been the English system. iii. (a) Syllables, e.g., the first in Lucifer and Z^gion, may be classified according to their initial letter, i.e., by allitera- tion — the ancient English system. iv. (a) Syllables, e.g., the first and second in happy, may be classified according as they are pronounced, more (')or less ( N ), loudly than the syllables next to them, i.e., accord- ing to accent. v. (a) Syllables, e.g., hate and mate, may be classified ac- cording as they have the same vowel sound (in English the vowel sound has to be followed by the same, and preceded by a different, consonantal sound, but this is not necessary in Spanish), i.e., according to rhyme. The smallest recurring combination of syllables is called (b) a Foot. Feet might depend on any of the five classifications of syllables mentioned above. The following is an example oifeet depending on classification (iv.), i.e., accent. Zephyr | with Aur)6ra | playing. Milton. 150 METRE. Here an accented syllable is followed by an unaccented one, and this recurring combination is a foot. The various kinds of feet will be enumerated in the next paragraph. A combination of feet (mostly the same feet) for metrical purposes is called (c) a verse, 1 e.g., the line quoted above from Milton. A combination of verses is called by many different names, according to the number of verses in the combina- tion, or according to the recurrence of rhymes. The most common names are (d) couplet and stanza. A couplet consists of two verses, a stanza 1 of a variable number, but each stanza in the same poem has generally the same number of verses. Examples of the different kinds of metre, based upon the five classifications mentioned above, are : i. The French Alexandrine (which adds rhyme), owing to the want of marked accents in French words, approximates to this. ii. The Greek and Latin poetry. iii. Early English Alliterative poetry (which, however, counts accents). iv. Blank verse. v. Doggrel, i.e., when rhyme is used without regard to the number of accents. Modern English poetry is based upon (iv.) and (v.), {.*., upon accent and rhyme, apart or conjoined; but (ii.) quantity and (iii.) alliteration, though secondary, yet exercise a consi- derable influence ; and (i.) the reckoning of the mere number of syllables imposes certain restrictions. 97. Names of Feet. — The following names of feet, or measures, are most of them connected with the metres of 1 Sometimes line is used for verse, and verse for stanza, especially in hymns. METEE. 151 Greek and Latin poetry, where a foot was estimated by- quantity, and not by accent. It will be easily borne in mind that in English poetry, which has rules quite uninfluenced by quantity, the names of feet denote groups of accented and non-accented syllables, without reference to quantity. I. The Monosyllabic Foot, — This is very rare. Coleridge, in his poem of " Christabel," where, as he says, " in each line the accents will be found to be only four," may perhaps have intended What | sees | she | there ? to be pronounced slowly as a verse of four monosyllabic feet, and so of the verse describing the hooting of the owl : Tu— whit— tu— whoo. In Cowper's " Loss of the Royal George," each verse has three accents, which makes it probable that we should read the italicised syllables as monosyllabic feet in Toll \for\ the brave. Weigh | the vess|el tip. In Chaucer, monosyllabic feet are not uncommon as an irregular first foot in a disyllabic metre. They are also common in Shakspeare : Now | it shin | eth, now | it rain | eth fast. Chaucer. Stay, | the king | hath thrown | his ward | er down. Shakspeare. II. Disyllabic Feet. — (An unaccented syllable is denoted by v 152 METRE. (1) The accented syllable may come first. Such a foot may be called the first disyllabic, but it is usually called a trochee — Comfort Trochee, or 1st disyllabic. (2) The accented syllable may come second — Agree Iambic, or 2nd disyllabic. III. Trisyllabic feet. (1). The accented syllable may come first — Frequently Dactyl, or 1st trisyllabic. (2). The accented syllable may come second. This foot is perhaps not required in English poetry. Keceiving Amphibrach, or 2nd trisyllabic. (3). The accented syllable may come third. Colonnade Anapaest, or 3rd trisyllabic. 98. Accent means a loud stress of the voice. Every English polysyllable has at least one syllable more loudly pronounced than the syllable or syllables next to it, e.g., the first in servile, the second in servility. Sometimes two or more accents are distinctly heard, as in incompatibility, where there are three, viz., on the first, third, and fifth syllables. Accent in Metre, if it fall on any syllable in a word, must fall on the principal Word- accent. The following is intended to be faulty : But wonder on, till truth make all things plain, This beauteous lady Thisby is certain. Midsummer Night's Dream, v. 1. 131. Accent in Metre may fall on syllables that have not a distinct Word-accent. The following rules are subject to no exceptions but those which spring from contractions in pro- METRE. 153 nunciation.i The first applies to Monosyllables as well as to Polysyllables : (1) We can never have three consecutive clearly pronounced Syllables without a Metrical Accent. (2) We cannot have two consecutive Syllables in the same word Metrically Accented. (3) In Polysyllables, Metrical Accent, if it falls on more than one Syllable, falls on alternate Syllables, Thus we cannot have solitary, interesting. This rule is subject to many exceptions from slurring or contraction, e.g., ted(i)ousness. See 114. 99. Emphasis is a stress laid in speaking on mono- syllables, or on the accented syllables of polysyllables, for the purpose of calling attention to the meaning. Emphasis often means "this and nothing else," e.g., "He did it," i.e., "He and no one else." In good poetry an emphatic monosyllable will generally receive a metrical accent. But there are exceptions to this rule which will be given hereafter. See 101, ii., where it is also shown that unemphatic syllables sometimes receive the metrical accent. Meanwhile let it be noted distinctly that when accent in metre is mentioned hereafter, it is to be remembered that all accented syllables are not equally emphatic (which would produce an unpleasant monotony both in conversation and metre), but only that they are emphatic relative to the syllables in the same foot. 1 It will be understood that we are speaking of ordinary English poetry not of the early English alliterative poems. 154 METRE. 100. Accent favours Disyllabic Metre. — This is evi- dent from a glance at one of the examples in Paragraph 98. If servile made servility, it would suit trisyllabic metre very- well, but could never be used as two trochees, or as two iambs. Thus the word solitary is easily admitted in Thy foll|y, or | with soljitarly hand ; Milton, whereas we could not have All in a I fishing-boat | out on the | sea, Hopeless and | helpless and | solitary. Indeed, words of four syllables, with the principal accent on the first syllable, 1 cannot be used in anapaestic metre, for the use would enforce disregard of Rule (3) above. Hence words of more than three syllables are of rare occurrence in the best examples of this metre, e.g., in Browning's " Good News from Ghent," and in Cowper's " Poplars." 101. Accent in Trisyllables and Monosyllables. — (i.) Trisyllables. — Although there is often little or no more accent on the third than on the second syllable of a trisyllable, e.g., urgency, yet the system of accentuation described in Paragraph 98 is consistently carried out, even in trisyllables, for metrical purposes. Tivo accents cannot come together in the same word ; therefore we cannot have urgency ; again, three unaccented syllables cannot come together ; and therefore if urgency is followed in metre by an unaccented syllable, there must be an accent on the y. In trisyllabic metre a dactyl, e.g., merrily, would be fol- lowed by an accented syllable : J e.g., Interesting. METEE. 155 Merrily, merrily, shall I live now, Under the blossom that hangs on the bough ; Tlie Tempest. and therefore the poetic accent on -y would not be required. But in disyllabic metre, the accent on -y is necessary if the word is fully pronounced, as in Full merrily the humble bee doth sing. Troilus and Cressida. The same accent is allowed in disyllabic metre when the word comes at the end of the line : Good gentlemen, look fresh and merrily. Julius Ccesar. (ii.) Monosyllables. — Again the same rule holds good. All monosyllables are, in themselves, for the purposes of metre, neutral, and can be used either with or without the Metrical Accent. (See 112.) But since three unaccented syllables cannot come together, any monosyllable, however unemphatic, that comes betiveen two unaccented monosyllables, must receive a Metrical Accent in disyllabic metre. Examples are very common in all poets : That heals the wound and cures not the disgrace. Shakspeare. But fooPd by hope, men favour the deceit. Dryden. Oh, weep for Adona^s. The quick dreams. Shelley. Then tore with bloody talon the rent plain. Byron. O'er the four rivers the first roses blew. Tennyson. The mother of manendi, what time his pride. Milton, 156 METRE. With joy and love triumphing * and fair truth. Milton." The examples above quoted bring out another rule : when two emphatic monosyllables come together, and one of them receives the metrical accent, the other may be without the metrical accent. Thus quick, rent, first, man, fair, in the above examples are all emphatic, more emphatic certainly than the, and, a, which receive the metrical accent ; but, since quick precedes a metrically accented monosyllable, quick is allowed to remain unaccented. It will be noticed that in all these instances an unemphatic accent is folloived by an emphatic non-accented syllable. This sequence, so common in our best poets, seems not to be mere accident. The lightness of the unemphatic accent is perhaps compensated by the length and emphasis of the following unaccented syllable. By a rule similar to the above, one or two emphatic syl- lables in trisyllabic metre are left unaccented after a Metrical Accent : The winds play no longer and sing in the leaves. Cowper. 2 102. Pope's Use of the Unemphatic Accent.— The accent falls more easily on an unemphatic monosyllable when the syllable preceding it is still less emphatic. Now when the last syllable of a polysyllable is unaccented, it is likely to be less emphatic than a monosyllable. For example, the -ing in trembling and the -ure in pleasure are less emphatic than you, he, do, of, to, etc. Hence, where the metre is strict, as in Pope, the unemphatic accent on a monosyllable follows most pleasingly after a polysyllable. Thus the foot 1 Milton thus accents the word, not triumphing. 3 See page 212, Note. METRE. 157 is cut into two parts belonging to different words. This cutting is called ccesura : and cmsura is very common in Pope before an unemphatic accent on a monosyllable : That secret to each fool, that he's an ass. Pope. Make satire a lampoon, and fiction lie. lb. Smit with the mighty pleasure to be seen. lb. Soon as thy letters trembly I unclose. lb. I view my crime, but kindZe tit the view. lb. 'Tis sure the hardest science to forget. lb. Often, though a monosyllable precedes, it is so closely connected with some other word as really to form a kind of compound polysyllable : Offend-her, and she knows not to forgive ; Oblige-her } and she'll hate you while you live. Pope. Where there is no ccesura, the accent often begins the verse in Pope : (a) Love, free as air, at sight of human ties, Spreads his light wings and in a moment flies. Pope. (b) Pant on thy lip, and to thy heart be pressed. (c) Proud to catch cold at a Venetian door. lb. (d) Health to himself, and to his infants bread. lb. 158 METRE. (e) Paints as you plant, and, as you work, designs. Pope, We may safely assert that Pope would not have written such a line as The lone couch of his everlasting sleep. Shelley. 103. Dubious Monosyllabic Accent.— In the five cases last quoted, the accent of the monosyllable is doubtful, for it is uncertain whether and to, at a, and as are iambics or trochees. It will be seen (129, 138) that in disyllabic metre a trochee can be substituted for an iamb, not only at the beginning of a verse, but also in the middle of the verse after a pause : Alike my scorn, if he succeed or fail, Sporus at court, or Japhet in a jail. Pope. The use of the trochee in the middle of the verse is not so common in Pope as in Shakspeare and Milton : but as all the five lines above quoted 1 begin unquestionably with a trochee, it seems as though the initial trochee in the examples of the last paragraph was intended to prepare the way for a following trochee. On that supposition the accent will be placed on the first syllable in each of the fiwo examples, f Vice is a monster of so frightful mien Trochaic Pause \ f I As, to be hated, needs but to be seen ; Iambic Pause i Yet seen to ° oft ' famaiar with her face > I We first endure, then pity, then embrace. In description, however, the pause is more varied, as in the following example, where note the final couplet with two lines identical in form, both containing iambic pause, which adds intensity to the epigrammatic sting. The final couplet is the more effective because it is immediately preceded by lines with the trochaic pause, and by pauseless lines : 2 Peace to all such ! But were there one whose fires 2£ True genius kindles, and fair fame inspires ; No pause. Blest with each talent and each art to please, METRE. 177 2 & 3 And born to write, converse, and live with ease : 2 Should such a man, too fond to rule alone, \ & 2 Bear, like the Turk, no brother near the throne, 2£ View him with scornful yet with jealous eyes, 2 And hate for arts that caus'd himself to rise ; 2 Damn with faint praise, assent with civil leer, 2J And without sneering, teach the rest to sneer ; 2 Willing to wound, and yet afraid to strike, 2 Just hint a fault, and hesitate dislike ; No pause. Alike reserved to blame or to commend, 2 A tim'rous foe, and a suspicious friend, 2 Dreading ev'n fools, by flatterers besieged, 2J And so obliging, that he ne'er obliged, 1^ Like Cato, give his little senate laws, No pause. And sit attentive to his own applause, No pause. While wits and Templars every sentence raise, No pause. And wonder with a foolish face of praise 2 Who but must laugh, if such a man there be, 2 Who but must weep, if Atticus were he ? 117. Pause in Dryden, — Effective and unsurpassable as these lines are in their peculiar style, they are somewhat artificial. The style of Dryden, which is no less vigorous and more natural than that of Pope, seems better suited for a continuous poem. Though there are more pauseless lines in Dryden, yet the monotony is not excessive. No pause. Of these the false Achitophel was first, No pause. A name to all succeeding ages curst : No pause. For close designs and crooked counsels fit, 1 J & 2 Sagacious, bold, and turbulent of wit. 1 Restless, unfixed in principles and place, 2 In power unpleased, impatient of disgrace. 2 A fiery soul, which, working out its way, No pause. Fretted the pigmy body to decay, No pause. And o'er informed the tenement of clay. No pause. A daring pilot in extremity, 2J Pleased with the danger, when the waves went high, 2 He sought the storms : but, for a calm unfit No pause. Would steer too nigh the sands to boast his wit. 12 178 METKE. Again : No pause. Some of their chiefs were princes in the land ; No pause. In the first rank of these did Zimri stand, No pause. A man so various that he seemed to be 1 Not one, but all mankind's epitome : 2J Stiff in opinions, always in the wrong", 3 Was everything by starts, and nothing long ; No pause. But, in the course of one revolving moon, \\ & 2J Was chemist, fiddler, statesman, and buffoon ; 2J & 3J & 4J Then all for women, painting, rhyming, drinking, No pause. Beside ten thousand freaks that died in thinking : \\ Blest madman, who could every hour employ 2 With something new to wish or to enjoy ! No pause. Railing and praising were his usual themes, 1 & 3J And both, to show his judgment, in extremes : No pause. So over- violent or over-civil, No pause. That every man with him was God or Devil. 118. Compensation of Pauses. — Where there is an ex- cess of pauses in one line, a kind of compensation is ob- tained by avoiding all pause, or, at all events, the usual pause in the other line of the couplet : (a) Here files of pins extend their shining rows, Puffs, powders, patches, bibles, billets-doux. (b) Pretty ! in amber to observe the forms Of hairs, or straws, or dirt, or grubs, or worms. (c) Laugh'd at the loss of friends he never had, The dull, the proud, the wicked, and the mad. (d) I only wear it in a land of Hectors, Thieves, supercargoes, sharpers, and directors. (e) The courtly Talbot, Somers, Sheffield read ; Even mitred Rochester would nod the head. The following exceptions are intentionally harsh : METRE. 179 (a) In puns, or politics, or tales, or lies, Or spite, or smut, or rhymes, or blasphemies. His wit all see-saw, between " that " and " this," Now high, now low, now master up, now miss. (b) What ! Like Sir Richard, rumbling, rough, and fierce, With arms, and George, and Brunswick crowd the verse ; Rend with tremendous sound your ears asunder, With gun, drum, trumpet, blunderbuss, and thunder ? 119, Introductory Pause. — The above remarks are in- tended to call the reader's attention to the importance of the pause, and to the necessity of regarding it in reading. To trace and describe in detail rules that may have been observed by certain poets would be a complicated and not a very profitable task. It may be sufficient to show that the 2| pause, which has been said to be suitable for introducing a subject, is a favourite prelude for a simile. (a) As some lone miser, visiting his store, etc. Goldsmith. (b) As some fair female, unadorned and plain, etc. lb. In both the two following examples the pause in the second line is 1, while it is 2| in the first, and the effect is singularly beautiful. As some fair tulip, by a storm opprest, Shrinks up, and folds its silken arms to rest. Dry den, So tivo hind turtles, when a storm is nigh, Look up, and see it gathering in the sky. lb. 120. The Pause in Descriptive Poetry. — The unfit- ness of conjunctions for poetic diction increases the need of pauses, and makes the pause more marked, especially in a description comprising many distinct objects, each of which 180 METRE. must be briefly mentioned. The following passage from Spenser illustrates the importance of the pause in such cases. For the most part Spenser does not apparently take much pains to vary the pause, and many verses have no pause at all ; but here, if the same pause which is repeated in the first three verses had been continued longer, the monotony would have been disagreeable, and therefore the pause is most carefully varied : No pause. Much 'gan they praise the trees so straight and high, — 2 The sapling Pine ; the Cedar proud and tall ; 2 The vine-propp Elm ; the Poplar never dry ; 2 The buildder Oake, sole king of forrests all ; 3 The Aspine good for staves ; the Cypresse funerall ; 1J The Laurell, meed of mighty conquerours 2 And poets sage ; the Firre that weepeth still ; 1^ The Willow, worne of forlorne Paramoures; 1 The Eugh, obedient to the bender's will ; 2 The Birche for shaftes ; the Sallow for the mill ; 1 The Mirrhe, sweet-bleeding in the bitter wound ; 2 The warlike Beech : the Ash for nothing ill ; 2J The fruitful Olive ; and the Platane sound ; 2 The carver Holme : the Maple seldom inward sound. 121. The Pause at the end of the line is almost essential to the couplet, and it is generally to be found in dramatic blank verse. But in descriptive blank verse, and in some of the plays of Shakspeare, it is sometimes dis- pensed with : When, to enshrine his reliques in the Sun's Bright temple, to Egyptian Thebes he flies. Milton. I know not : but I'm sure 'tis safer to Avoid what's grown than question how 'tis born. Winter's Tale. The following, in the rhyming couplet, is an exception : METRE. 181 But lost, dissolved in thy superior rays, One flood of glory, one unclouded blaze O'erfloiv thy courts, the light himself shall shine Revealed, and God's eternal day be thine. The Messiah. 122. Alliteration is not, like accent, recognized in theory as an essential requisite of poetry. Yet in practice some kind of alliteration forms a noticeable feature in all the best English poets, and especially in poetry that has taken the popular fancy. Take as examples two well-known hymns : (a) Gentle Jesus, meek and mild, iook upon a Zittle child, Pity my simplicity, Suffer me to come to Thee. (b) Sun of my soul, thou Saviour dear, It is not mght, if Thou be near. In the verse of Dryden the alliteration is often as obvious and simple as in the above examples : (a) .Deep in a dungeon was the captive cast, Deprived of day, and held in/etters/ast; (&) Then day and darkness in the mass were mixed, Till #ather'd in a globe the beams were fixed. Pope seldom indulges in this obvious kind of consecutive alliteration repeated in both lines of the couplet. He con- ceals it, for the most part, more carefully, by separating the words. The following are exceptional in him : (a) Alas, no more ! methinks we icandering go Thro' dreary wastes, and tceep each other's woe. (b) Soft as the slumbers of a saint forgiven. (c) Who shall decide when doctors disagree ! The following examples represent a more common type of the alliteration in Pope : 182 METRE. (a) And 7*eals with morals what it /jurt with wit. {b) May every JBavius have his .Bufo still. ( f P- -floats as they j^ass, /ann'd with unnumber'd flumes : From branch to branch, the smaller birds with song $, xo ; s, zv. Solaced the tcoo&s, and spread their painted icings Till even. Paradise Lost. d, m; d, m. Our dreadful marches to delightful measures. Richard III. sp, I ; sp,'l. So speechless for a Zittle space he ?ay. Dry den. Or, again, there may be alliteration between the words that are the extremes and means of a kind of verbal proportion : h, t, h. The 7iallow'd faper trembling in thy 7*and. Pope. I, h, I. One Zaced the Tielm, another held the fence. Dry den. s, m, s. /Sonorous ?/*etal making martial sounds. Milton. Cjf, c. We conquer'd Prance, butj^elt our captive's charms. Pope. Lastly, the alliteration may depend, not upon the initial, but upon the middle syllables of words : METRE. 183 {a) The Zustre of the Zong convoZvuZuses. Tennyson. (b) The Zeague-Zong roZZer thundering on the reef. lb. Often the alliteration may repeat similar, not the same, letters, for example, d and t, or b and p, as in This truth came borne with Mer and pa.ll, I felt it when I sorrowed most, 'Tis Setter to have Zoved and Zost, Than never to have Zoved at a 11. lb. It is not to be supposed that poets, in the act of writing poetry, observed any distinct laws of alliteration, or were even aware in all cases that they were employing alliteration at all. They were guided by their ear, and by the traditions of English poetry. It will hereafter be shown that allite- ration was an essential part, or rather the basis, of early English poetry. What rhyme is now, that was alliteration then. An ignorance of the traditional importance of allitera- tion may perhaps account for the harshness of the words of many modern songs as compared with the smoothness of the songs of the seventeenth century. 124. Early English Alliterative Poetry consisted of couplets in which each section contained two or more accented initial syllables. 1 Of these four syllables, the two in the first section, and, as a rule, the first of the two in the second section, were alliterated : I sftope me in s/iroudes || as I a sheve were. Piers the Ploivman. 1 "More than two are frequently found in the first half-line, hut rarely in the second." — Skeat. 184 METRE. It is an exception, and perhaps an accidental one, when both accented syllables in the second section are alliterated : Inmer seson, || whan soft was the aos Sonne. Piers the Plowman. More often, though still an exception, there are more than two alliterative syllables in the first section, and one in the second : jPaire floures/br to/ecche || that he bi-ybre him seye (saw). William and Werwolf. By an exceptional license, unaccented syllables are some- times alliterated : And ivith him to wonge (dwell) with too \\ whil God is in hevene. Piers the Plowman. 125. Influence of Early English Poetry on the Elizabethan Writers.— The introduction of a fourth allite- rated letter is a mark of lateness of date in early English poetry. This shows that the taste for alliteration did not vanish with the decay of alliterative poetry. It is true that the introduction of rhyme, supplying a different kind of poetic regularity, diminished the need of alliteration ; but alliteration still clung even to rhyming poetry. Rhyme, and not alliteration, was the basis of the French metres, and it is natural to suppose that foreign influence helped much in extending the use of rhyme. As rhyme in itself is a considerable restraint on the free choice of words, rhyme and alliteration together became an intolerable restric- tion ; and alliteration, from being a law, became a custom frequently, but not invariably, observed. Yet the attempt to combine the now rhyming system with the old alliterative METRE. 185 system was made. The following example is taken from a poem written about a.d. 1360 : A gvene hors gret and thikke, A stedefull stiffto str&yne. In frrawden (embroidered) bry&el quik, To pe (the) gome (man) he watz (was) ful #ayn (useful). Sir Gawayne and the Green Knight, There is little difference between this systematic allitera- tion and the alliteration of some passages in Dryden. But some of the Elizabethan writers use the old alliteration, not as Dryden did, in occasional passages, but continuously. 126. Alliteration in Elizabethan Authors. 1 — The fol- lowing is a curious example of the original early English alliteration in couplets. The date is about 1600 a.d. Sitting by a river's side, Where a silent stream did glide, 31use I did of many things That the mind in quiet brings. Greene, The same poet sometimes places the double alliteration in the second line : It was/rosty winter season And /air -Flora's wealth was geason. When I saw a shepherd fold Sheey in cote to shun the cold. Greene. But the effect of the continued alliteration, combined with rhyme, was artificial and hampering in the extreme. Take the following as an example : . 1 Lyly's " Euphues " abounds in instances of complicated alliteration. 186 METRE. To trust the t /ayned t /ace, to rue on/orced tears To credit/inely/orged tales, wherein there oft appeares And &?'eathes as from the &reast a smoke of kindled smart Where only lurkes a dene deceit within the /iollow hart. Tottel's Miscellany, a.d. L>j7. It therefore came to be considered archaic, and when found in excess in Spenser's "Faerie Queene," it must be treated as an archaism. (a) The wise soothsayer seeing so sad sight. Faerie Queen. Repining courage yields (J?) No/oot to foe; the flashing fire flies As from a forge. lb. As an archaism, this excess of alliteration is ridiculed by Shakspeare : Whereat Tvith blade, with &Zoody 5Zameful 5Zade, He &?*avely Z>roach'd Ins froiZing &Zoody frreast. Midsummer Nighfs Dream. Shakspeare uses little alliteration in his descriptive verses of four accents (except in the songs) ; but in the non- rhyming dramatic lines he uses it on occasion with great effect, sometimes in an obvious manner, as : This precious stone set in the .silver sea. Richard III. More often the alliterative syllables are separated : (a) With roclts unscaleable and roaring waters. (b) He capers nimbly in a lady's chamber To the Zascivious pleasing of a late. METRE. 187 127. Milton's Alliteration in the " Paradise Lost" is somewhat less marked than in the " Comus " and the smaller poems ; but in all his poetry, written in the verse of five ac- cents, he tones down the alliterative effect by often alliterat- ing unaccented syllables. It has been stated that this is an irregular license in early English poetry. (a) Or 'gainst the rugged &ark of some frroad elm. Comus. (b) With thy ZoEg Zevell'd rule of streaming Zight. lb. (c) Perhaps some cold frank is her bolster now. lb. (d) Though sun and moon Were in the flat sea sunk. lb. Often the alliterative syllables are not initial. Thus it is impossible not to perceive the force of alliteration in the following line, though only one of the alliterative letters is initial : Yet they in pZeasing sZumber ZuZZed the sense. lb. Alliteration is also disguised (1) when the alliterative con- sonants are not identical, but similar, as b and p, d and t, r and Z, m and n, c hard and g hard, and the like ; (2) when initial syllables alliterate with syllables that are not initial ; (3) when the alliterating syllables are not in the same line. We do not intend to do more than direct the reader's atten- tion to the exquisiteness of Milton's versification in this respect. It is pervaded by a continuous and varying allite- ration which, without being obtrusive, gives a distinct 188 METRE. pleasure to the pronunciation of his verses, apart from their meaning. The following is an instance. The last line sub- stitutes for alliteration a powerful vowel effect. b, p ; t, t. But .Beauty, like the fair Hesperian free, Z, d, g. Laden with bZooming gold had need the guard g, ch. Of dragon watc/i, with unencftanted eye, s, f. To save her blossoms and defend her/ruit a, a, o, o. From the rash hand of bold Incontinence. In Milton's four-accent verse, alliteration is more obvious and frequent, but nowhere so marked as in the following passage, describing the " wanton heed and giddy cunning" of poetic euphony : Or sweetest #hakspeare, Fancy's child, TFarble his native wood-notes wild. And ever against eating cares Zap me in soft Zydian airs, .Married to immortal verse ; Such as the meeting soul may pierce, In notes, with many a winding bout Of Zinked sweetness Zong drawn out, With wanton heed and giddy cunning The melting voice through mazes running, Untfwisftng all the chains that tie The Mdden soul of harmony. 128. In Vowel Alliteration in early English poetry it was not necessary that the vowels at the beginning of the accented syllables should be the same. Any vowels what- ever satisfied the requirement. Vowel alliteration is not so obvious or common as the alliteration of consonants. The following is perhaps an example : Where awful arches make a noonday night. Pope. METRE. 189 The following~certainly~is : Though oft the ear the open vowels tire. lb. But it is more common in Milton : (a) With sudden adoration and blank awe, (&) Of ^.mram's son, in Egypt's evil day. (e) -4ir, and ye elements, the eldest birth. 129. The Influence of Early English Poetry on the Initial Foot. — In all the iambic and trisyllabic metres of modern English poetry, a great license is noticeable in the first or initial foot of a line. In the iambic metre, instead of an iamb, a trochee is often found, as : Comfort | my liege ! | Why looks | your grace | so pale ? Michard II. Again, in the trisyllabic metre an iamb is often found for an anapaest: The winds | play no longjer and sing | in the leaves. Cowper. This may be explained by reference to the early English poetry, as follows : Lines or half-lines in early English poetry do not always begin with an accented syllable. Often one or more sylla- bles precede the accented syllable. These syllables, which may be called a catch, are not necessary to the scansion, though they are to the sense. The catch consists of one syllable, and of two syllables respectively, in the two sections of the following couplet : 190 METRE. In a | somer sesun || when softe was the sonne. Piers the Ploughman. Now it is evident that this license of adding syllables at the beginning of the line, or of a section of a line, alters the character of the initial foot. In early English alliterative poetry, the number of syllables in a verse was not counted ; in the foreign rhyming metre the syllables were counted. When these two totally distinct systems blended together, the Early English license of disregarding unaccented syllables was curtailed, though not destroyed, in the middle of the verse ; but at the beginning of the verse, and after a marked pause in a verse, the license was retained almost unimpaired, as will be seen hereafter. SPECIAL METRES. DISYLLABIC. 130. One Accent.— Iambic lines, if they may be so called, of one accent, are found in some lyrical poems of the seven- teenth century, as — Fair Daffodils, we weep to see You haste away so soon : As yet the early rising sun Has not attained his noon. Stay, stau, Until the hasting day Has run But to the even-song j And having pray'd together, we Will go with you along. Herrick. METRE. 191 Such short lines are very commonly used by Shakspeare, especially to express ejaculations and appellations : Alack, I love myself. Wherefore ? For any good ? Richard III. For, sir, It is as sure as you are Roderigo. Othello. The trochaic line with one accent scarcely exists. Perhaps the word " never " in Longfellow's well-known refrain, Never, for ever, may be considered a specimen of a one-accent rhyming trochaic line. 131. Two Accents, — Iambic lines of two accents occur sometimes in odes, e.g., in Wordsworth's " Ode on the Inti- mations of Immortality," and in Dryden's " Ode on the Power of Music." They are often found in lyrical poems of the seventeenth century. Your date is not so past, But you may stay yet here awhile, To blush and gently smile, And go at last. Herrick — " Blossoms." Sceptre and croicn Must tumble dozen, And in the dust be equal made With the poor crooked scythe and spade. Shirley. The iambic line, with an extra unaccented syllable, is often used by Burns as a short line : 192 METRE. There's ither poets much your betters, Far seen m Greek, deep men of letters, Hae thought they had insured their debtors A' future ages ; Now moths deform in shapeless tetters Their unknown pages. Trochaic lines of two accents are rare. The two following are the only lines of the kind in Dryden's " Alexander's Feast": Rich the treasure, Sweet the pleasure, Sweet the pleasure after pain. The trochaic metre of two accents, omitting the last un- accented syllable, is not fitted for serious subjects. It is used by Pope in a little poem called "An Ode by Tilly-Tit, Poet Laureate to His Majesty of Lilliput," addressed to " The Man-Mountain." From his nose Clouds he blows : When he speaks, Thunder breaks : When he eats, Famine threats ; When he drinks, Neptune shrinks. It is remarkable that Pope should have used this lillipu- tian metre in his " Ode on St. Cecilia's Day/' The effect is very bad. Dreadful gleams, Dismal screams, Fires that glow, Shrieks of woe. METRE. 193 132. Three Accents and Six Accents.— -The iambic line of three accents is very common in ballads and hymns. It is often used alternately with the iambic line of four accents. O Brignall banks are wild and fair And Greta woods are green ; And you may gather garlands there Would grace a summer-queen. Scott. In the narrative poetry of Scott it often concludes a stanza of iambic verses of four accents, much as it is used in All thoughts, all passions, all delights, Whatever stirs this mortal frame, All are but ministers of love, And feed his sacred flame. Coleridge — " Love." The trochaic verse with three accents is very rare. In the following example it is often connected with an irregular trochaic verse containing an extra syllable in the initial foot, or omitting the final unaccented syllable. Who is | he that \ cometh Like an | honour'd | guest ? (With) banner | and with | music (With) soldier | and with | priest. With a | nation | weeping, (And) breaking | on my | rest ? Tennyson. The extra syllable in the last example renders it possible to call the line iambic instead of trochaic ; but the trochaic spirit is so clearly prevalent throughout the passage, that it seems better to call such lines irregular trochaics, treating the extra syllable as a " catch." * 1 See Paragraph 129. 12 194 METRE. The three -accent iambic is often used by Shakspeare for rapid retort, sometimes with rhyme : Rosalind. The hour that fools should ask. JBiron. Now fair befal your mask. Love's Labour Lost. But more often without rhyme : Anne. I would I knew thy heart. Gloucester. 'Tis figured in my tongue. Bichard III. The three- accent iambic with alternate rhyme, though occasionally used in modern hymns, is somewhat mono- tonous. It is not uncommon in the poems of Surrey and Wyatt. Though I regarded not The promise made by me, Or passed (recked) not to spot My faith and honestie. Surrey. When two iambic three-accent lines have no marked pause between them, and the first line does not rhyme with the second, the two become one line with six accents, called an Alexandrine. The following is not only a specimen, but intended to be descriptive of the somewhat dragging eflect of such a line, — A needless Alexandrine ends the song, And, like a wounded snake, drags its slow length along. Pope. Dryden freely intersperses it in his longer poems, generally at the end of a paragraph ; Spenser inserts it at the end of each stanza in the " Faery Queene." It is unfit for dramatic purposes, though sometimes used with rhyme, as by Peele, METRE. 195 the contemporary of Shakspeare, in his. " Arraignment of Paris." Shakspeare seldom uses it except where the pause is so marked as to make the line really two lines of three accents each. He introduces it into the mouth of ranting Pistol, and uses it for an inscription : Portia. Now make your choice. Morocco. The first, of gold, who this inscription bears, •* Who chooseth me shall gain what many men desire : " The second silver, which this promise carries, "Who chooseth me shall get as much as he deserves : " The third dull lead, with warning all as blunt, " Who chooseth me must give and hazard all he hath." Merchant of Venice. It is followed by a verse of seven accents in : Alcwiades. [Reads the epitaph.] " Here lies a wretched corse, of wretched soul bereft : Seek not my name : a plague consume you wicked caitiffs left." In Sir Thomas North's Plutarch, a book from which Shakspeare drew largely for the subjects of his plays, the Alexandrine metre is constantly employed to translate quota- tions and inscriptions ; and this may have influenced Shaks- peare in his use of this metre. Many apparent Alexandrines in Shakspeare are Alexandrines only in appearance. The three-accent rhyming couplet, used alternately with the three-accent non-rhyming couplet, becomes a spirited ballad metre in Lord Macaulay's " Battle of Naseby " : Their heads all stooping low, their points all of a row, Like a whirlwind on the trees, like a deluge on the dykes, Our cuirassiers have burst on the ranks of the accurst, And at a shock have shattered the forest of his pikes. The Iambic three-accent verse has sometimes an extra syllable. This line is not often used unmixed. It precedes 196 METKE. the shorter three- accent iambic, and is used seriously in the following : I fly to scenes romantic, Where never men resort, For in an age so frantic Impiety is sport. Cowper. When it follows the longer line of four accents, it generally has a comic effect, as in Patron of all those luckless brains That, to the wrong side leaning, Indite much metre with much pains, And little or no meaning . lb. The same metre is used with the same effect by Tennyson in his " Will Waterproof " and "Amphion." The trochaic three-accent sometimes dispenses with the final unaccented syllable : Crabbed age and youth Cannot live together : Youth is full of pleasance, Age is full of care. The Passionate Pilgrim. 133. Iambic verse with four accents is commonly used for ballad-narrative, as in Scott's Poems. In ballads and hymns it is generally followed by a line, of three accents, and the poems of Scott contain a few three-accent lines irregularly interspersed. Unmixed with other lines, the four- accent iambic is somewhat monotonous. There is a great difference between the earlier verses in his metre, written by Surrey and Wyatt, and the later metre of Scott. In the former the verse is generally split METRE. 197 Into two halves, as in the following anonymous poem from Totters Miscellany, 1557 a.d. The sun when he | hath spread his rays And showed his face | ten thousand ways, Ten thousand things | do then begin To show the life | that they are in. In the poem from which this extract is taken, out of the first forty-five verses, only two are found without the division in the middle. Very different is the metre of Scott: With early dawn | Lord Marmion rose, And first the chap\el doors unclose ; Then after mom\ing rites were done (A hasty mass | from Friar John), And knight and squire | had broke their fast On rich substantial repast, Lord Marmion's bu\gles blew to horse ; Then came the stir\rup cup in course Between the Bar\on and his host : No point of court\esy was lost. In fables and the lighter kind of narrative this metre often has interspersed lines with an extra syllable unaccented, as in Butler's Hudibras : Whose honesty they all would swear for, Tho' not a man of them knew wherefore. The extra syllable is rare in serious poetry. 134. The trochaic verse of four accents was more common in the Elizabethan period than the iambic verse of four accents. The English tendency to throw back the accent in disyllabic and other words facilitates the use of this metre. A great part of the Allegro and Penseroso is written in this metre : 198 METRE. Straight mine eye hath caught new pleasures While the landscape round it measures. Well adapted for lively bustle, this metre does not suit a sober or quietly graceful subject ; and the necessity of a double rhyme is a serious practical obstacle to its continuous use in a long poem. Hence, the final unaccented syllable is often dropped, and the result is a truncated trochaic metre, which is more common than the full trochaic. The follow- ing is an instance : Russet lawns and fallows gray, Where the nibbling flocks do stray. The addition of a monosyllable at the beginning of a tro- chaic line allows us to scan the truncated trochaic as iambic : Labouring | clouds do | often | rest is trochaic ; The labouring clouds | do 6ft,en rest is iambic. But the extra syllable may perhaps be regarded as a remnant of the licensed addition called in early English a " catch " (see 129), which does not interfere with the scansion. In that case the prevalent trochaic effect will be maintained, and the second as well as the first line, in the following couplets, will be scanned trochaically : (a) Mountains on whose barren breast The | labouring clouds do often rest ; (b) Where perhaps some beauty lies The | cynosure of neighbouring eyes, (c) There let Hymen 6ft appear In | saffron robe with taper clear. Sometimes the "catch" is added to the first line in a couplet : METRE. 199 When the merry bells ring round, And the jocund rebecks sound, To many a youth and many a maid Dancing in the chequer'd shade. Whether the line be called trochaic with a " catch," or iambic, matters little, provided that, in reading, the " catch" be subordinated. In the initial foot a dactyl is sometimes substituted by Milton for the trochee : (a) Till the livelong daylight fail : Then to the spicy nut-brown ale. This license is most common after a trochaic line with a " catch," or, if that name be preferred, after an iambic line : (b) And I stretch'd out all the chimney's length, Basks at the fire his hairy strength, And | crop-full out of doors he flings Ere the first cock his matin sings, (c) And | every shepherd tells his tale Under the hawthorn in the dale. (d) Or | sweetest Shakspeare, Fancy's child, Warble his native wood-notes wild. 1 Of course, if we prefer to scan both lines iambically, the latter line in each couplet can be scanned as an iambic with an initial trochee. But to do this the words will have to be cut up sometimes rather unnaturally, and unlike the rest of the poem : Or sweet|est Shak|speare, Fanlcy's child, Warble | his najtive wood-|notes wild. 1 It will not escape notice that in three instances the trisyllabic foot con- tains the or th', which is often dropped in Elizabethan poetry, and the fourth can be explained by elision, -le being elided before his. See Par. 137. 200 METRE. In the middle of the trochaic verse of four accents no sub- stitute for the trochee is allowed, except (and this is very- rare) a monosyllabic foot : Toad that | under | cold | stone Days and | nights has | twenty- j one. Shakspeare. Such monosyllabic feet mostly contain r or some diphthong, so that they are almost pronounced like two syllables, e. .g, fire, dear. Our English o in cold, home, is really a diphthong, o followed by a slight it. But in the following extract mono- syllabic feet are introduced not containing diphthongs or r : A | hat of straw, like a swain, Shelter for the sun and rain ; Legs were bare, arms unclad Such attire this palmer had. His | face fair like Titan's shine ; Grey and buxom were his eyne. Whereout dropt pearls of sorrow; Such sweet tears Love doth borrow : Ruby lips, cherry cheeks ; Such rare mixture Venus seeks. Greene. The truncated trochaic when combined in alternate rhymes is often used in hymns, as, Trials must and will befall ; But with humble faith to see Love inscribed upon them all, This is happiness to me. The full metre and the truncated metre are also combined in hymns, and in the lighter kind of ballad narrative, as In her ear he whispers gaily, If my heart by si^ns can tell, METEE. 201 Maiden, I have watch'd thee daily, And I think thou lov'st me well." Unmixed with other metre, and with rhymes following consecutively, the truncated metre is monotonous. Shak- speare makes Touchstone parody it : Sweetest nut hath sourest rind ; Such a nut is Eosalind. As You Like It, And he adds, "I'll rhyme you so eight years together, dinners and suppers and sleeping hours excepted ; this is the very false gallop of verses." 135. The Iambic with five accents, without rhyme, is the. common metre of dramatists. The four- accent line is too short, and breaks the sense too frequently ; and the six- accent line is so long as to he tedious without rhyme ; or else, if broken by a pause, it frequently divides into two verses of three accents each. Hence Shakspeare as a rule reserves four-accent rhyming verses for the mouths of witches, fairies, etc. The six-accent verse is generally really two three-accent verses. (See 132.) The five-accent verse, as the mean between the two, is the common dramatic measure. 136- Trisyllabic License. — The dramatic line, repre- senting as it does the language of life, approaches more nearly to prose, and enjoys more license than any other metre. Not merely is the trochee freely substituted for the iamb after any pause however slight: an extra syllable is also allowed at the end of a line or sentence, and in some cases even two extra syllables, as in I dare avouch it, sir. What, fifty followers I Lear. 202 METRE. The license of using one extra syllable is not uncommon in Milton also. He more rarely uses two extra syllables: Thy words, with grace divine Imbued, bring to their sweetness no satiety. Paradise Lost. Extra syllables are also allowed in the other feet. This license is in strict accordance with the traditions of early English alliterative poetry, where no rule was laid down about the number of syllables in each line. But this license of Shakspeare is not unregulated by rule. The rule was the custom of Elizabethan language in which some unac- cented syllables in polysyllabic words, and also some mono- syllables when unaccented, e. g., the, with, in, were less distinctly pronounced than with us. These monosyllables were often written in contracted forms, th\ wi\ i, and by their lightness were peculiarly fitted for trisyllabic feet. The details of the Elizabethan dramatic metre can only be learned by special study. For modern drama the same rule holds good, that any extra syllables may be admitted that are felt not to interfere with the regular recurrence of the accent. Non-rhyming five-accent iambic metre is often called blank verse. As a general rule it may be stated that the modern blank verse is, for the most part, more strict than that of Milton, and Milton is more strict than Shak- speare, in limiting himself to ten syllables in a line. Milton uses capital, populous, as trisyllabic feet. But we also find in modern verse, — Even to | the last | dip of | the vanishing sail. Tennyson. Thro' all | his fu|ture ; but | now hdst\dy caught. lb. METEE. 203 In The sound | of man|y a heav\ily galloping hoof, Tennyson. there is an evident intention to produce a subdued anapaestic effect, imitative of the sound of galloping. Otherwise two consecutive trisyllabic feet in a disyllabic measure are rare : they tend to give a trisyllabic effect to the whole line, and thus to destroy the metre. 137. License of Elision.— A vowel termination before an initial vowel is often elided in Milton, and sometimes in modern poetry, especially in " many a" as in the last example of the last Paragraph : (a) Anguish | and doubt | and fear | and sorrow | and pain. (b) In glo { ry and power | to judge j both quick | and dead. So we ought to scan (c) Anger | and obsjtinacly and hate | and guile. (d) City or | suburban, stu|dious walks | and shades. So even Pope, — (a) End all dispute, and fix the year precise When British bards begin f immortalize. (b) Or damn all Shakspeare, like th' affected fool At court who hates whatever he read at school. 138. License of Trochee.— It has been stated above (129) that in the initial foot, and after a pause, in iambic metre, a trochee instead of an iamb is allowed. A very slight pause in the dramatic and free iambic metres justifies a trochee ; even a long syllable, with the slight pause necessary for its distinct pronunciation, is sufficient. But some slight 204 METRE. pause is necessary, and hence it may be laid down as a rule that in iambic metre one trochee cannot follow another. It is usual to quote as an exception, — Universal reproach far worse to bear. Milton. Such a line would be a monstrosity, and it is far more likely that Milton pronounced the word universal, perhaps influenced by the fact that the i is long in Latin. Words derived from Latin are accented somewhat capriciously ; compare aspect and respect. Similarly, Tennyson accents compensating as follows : To barter, nor compensating the want, Enoch Arden. which seems exactly parallel to Milton's universal. The line,— Down the | low turrjet stairs, pdl\pitdting, Tennyson. may perhaps be differently explained by treating the word stairs as a disyllable. The reason why a pause is neces- sary before a trochee seems to be this, that between two accented syllables the voice needs time to recover itself. Hence it is allowable to write, Be in | their flowjing cups \ freshly | remembered, because the emphatic word cups, long in quantity as well us emphatic, necessitates a kind of pause after it which makes a break between the two accents. But we could not so well write Be in their happing freshly remembered, Here the unemphatic -ness not being (98) between two un- accented syllables, should not receive the Metrical Accent. METRE. 205 Hence we may lay down as a rule that a trochee in the middle of a verse must not follow an unemphatic accent. The following seem to be remarkable exceptions : Burn'd after them to the bottomless pit. Milton. Light from above from the fountain of light. lb. 139. The Five-accent Iambic with rhyme is more strict than the same line when non-rhyming. In the sonnets and verses of Shakspeare, trisyllabic feet are not nearly so common as in his dramas. In part this may arise from the distinction of the subject. Dramatic verse will generally be more conversational, and given to slur syllables, than de- scriptive verse. But the rhyme in itself, giving a certain precision to the metre, imposes a restraint on the license of slurring ; the rhyming passages of Shakspeare's dramas are more regular than the non-rhyming passages. The rhyming couplet of Pope is the strictest specimen of this metre. Anything like irregularity in the lines would blunt the point of the epigram which almost each couplet contains. Such words as dev'l (compare the Shakspearian use and the Scotch de'il), punctu(a)l, mod' rate, tim'rous, (244) casuists, Mali met, diamond, vilet, amWous, simpering, have a syllable slurred ; but in all these words, with the ex- ception of the first three, the slurred syllable is scarcely pro- nounced even in modern English ; probably the syllable was still less audible in Pope's time. 140. The Rhyming Iambic of Narrative Poetry of which Chaucer, and not Pope's "Iliad," furnishes the 206 METRE. true type, differs materially from the rhyming couplet. The couplet is complete in itself, and requires a decided pause at its conclusion, marked by a decided rhyme. The narrative rhyme, on the other hand, is purposely unemphatic, in order not to give the effect of a pause. Yery often a couplet is broken by the introduction of a new paragraph at the begin- ning of the second line. The following is an instance of this : Then Jason rose, and did on him a fair Blue woollen tunic, such as folk do wear On the Magnesian cliffs, and at his thigh An iron-hilted sword hung carefully ; And on his head he had a russet hood ; And in his hand two spears of cornel -wood Well steeled and bound with brazen bands he shook. Then from the Centaur's hands at last he took The tokens of his birth, the ring and horn. Morris, Jason. Keats' " Endymion " is in the same metre, The rhyme- words are generally monosyllables, rarely trisyllables, and still more rarely disyllables. The accent on the final syllable of a disyllable, as remain, is too strong for the rhyme in this metre. The double rhyme is sparingly used. 141. The Trochaic Five-accent Verse is very rare : Mountain | winds ! oh ! | wliither | do ye | call me ? Vainly, | vainly | would my | steps pur sue. The last verse is truncated. Of the truncated trochaic, the following is a specimen : L6, the | leader | in these | glorious | wars Now to | glorious | burial | slowly borne, Follow'd | by the j brave of | other | lauds, He on | whom from | both her | open | hands METKE. 207 Lavish | honour | shower'd | all her | stars, (And) affluent, | Fortune | emptied | all her | horn. Verses have been written in the trochaic metre containing six, seven, and eight accents ; but they can mostly be divided into shorter verses of three or four accents. The eight- accent truncated verse is best entitled to be regarded as a distinct metre : Comrades, leave me here a little, while as yet 'tis early morn : Leave me here, and when you want me, sound upon the bugle horn. Locksley Hall. 142. The Spenserian Stanza, and Sonnet. — Iambic rhyming five- accent lines do not always rhyme in couplets. Different effects can be produced by placing the rhymes in different order, and repeating them more or less frequently, In the Spenserian stanza which consists of nine lines, the last an Alexandrine, the second line rhymes with the fourth, fifth, and seventh, the sixth with the eighth and ninth, and the first with the third. Shakspeare's Sonnet consists of fourteen lines, each of five accents. The first twelve rhyme alternately; the last two rhyme together. The Sonnet proper (on the pattern of Petrarch) consists of fourteen lines, each of ^ve accents, the whole being divided into two unequal parts, (a) the first of eight lines, (b) the second of six. (a). In the first part there are two four-line stanzas. In each stanza the two middle lines rhyme together, and the two outside lines rhyme together, as in the stanza of " In Memoriam :" and the second stanza repeats the same rhymes as the first, (b). The second part consists of two three-line stanzas. The first, second, and third lines in the first stanza rhyme severally with the first, second, and third lines in the second stanza. 208 METRE. IWhen I consider how my light is spent, a. Ere half my days, in this dark world and wide, b. And that one talent which is death to hide b. Lodged with me useless, though my soul more bent a. I To serve therewith my Maker, and present a. My true account, lest He returning chide ; b. 6 Doth God exact day-labour, light denied! ' b. I fondly ask ; but Patience, to prevent a. /That murmur soon replies : ' God doth not need c. 1 } Either man's work or His own gifts ; who best d. (Bear His mild yoke, they serve Him best : His state e. « ■° | Is kingly ; thousands at His bidding speed, c. 2 J And post o'er land and ocean without rest : d. (They also serve who only stand and wait.' e. Milton. In the second part of the sonnet great variety prevails. The six lines all rhyme in some way together ; but sometimes there are only two rhymes, instead of three, as in the following example : nightingale, that on yon bloomy spray Warblest at eve, when all the woods are still ; Thou with fresh hope the lover's heart dost fill, While the jolly (116) hours lead on propitious May : Thy liquid notes that close the eye of day, First heard before the shallow cuckoo's bill Portend success in love. 0, if Jove's will Have link'd that amorous power to thy soft lay, Now timely sing, ere the rude bird of hate c. Foretell my hopeless doom in some grove nigh : d. As thou from year to year hast sung too late c. For my relief, yet hadst no reason why : d. Whether the Muse or Love call thee his mate, c. Both them I serve, and of their train am i". d. lb. Here the rhymes do not keep the regular order, and even where there are three rhymes, the order is often varied. Milton, however, only once allows a rhyming couplet to end the sonnet ; but Wordsworth often ends with a rhyming colet, as upin the following example : METRE. 209 Scorn not the Sonnet : Critic, you have frowned, Mindless of its just honours ; with this key Shakspeare unlocked his heart ; the melody Of this small lute gave ease to Petrarch's wound ; A thousand times this pipe did Tasso sound ; With it Camoens soothed an exile's grief ; The Sonnet glittered a gay myrtle leaf Amid the cypress with which Dante crowned His visionary brow ; a glowworm lamp, c. It cheered mild Spenser, called from Faery- land d. To struggle through dark ways ; and when a damp c. Fell round the path of Milton, in his hand d. The thing became a trumpet, whence he blew e. Soul-animating strains, — alas, too few. e. Two of the objects of a sonnet are (1) to preserve the unity of the poem, and not to suffer it to be broken up into a number of couplets ; (2) to diffuse the effect throughout the whole, and (as Wordsworth distinctly says) to avoid anything like an epigram at the end. Hence (1) the poem is so ar- ranged that it cannot possibly divide itself into halves, and as a further precaution, the beginning of the second section (underlined above) is often not separated by the slightest pause from the first section. 1 Hence also (2) Milton rejected as too epigrammatic the couplet with which Shakspeare always concluded his sonnets. Though there is no pause in either of the two sonnets of Milton quoted above, yet there is a change in the meaning. In the first sonnet, there is a change from the " murmur" to the " reply"; in the second, from statement to appeal, " Now timely sing." The change of metre suggests a change in thought, and therefore seems to make a pause appropriate. On the other hand, a pause, combined with a change of 1 There is no pause at all in half of Milton's sonnets ; and when there is a pause, it is sometimes slight. 14 210 METRE. thought, endanger the unity of the poem by cutting it into two distinct parts. Thus it would appear that the sonnet attempts to combine two effects somewhat incongruous in their nature. Hence its peculiar difficulty. TRISYLLABIC METRE. 143. Early Use of Trisyllabic Metre. — Although in early English alliterative poetry the number of syllables was not regulated by rule, yet for the most part the general effect is trisyllabic. When there is no catch, 1 the effect is tri- syllabic, with accent on the first syllable, i.e., dactylic. Lucifer with legionnes || lerned it in hevene. Piers the Plowman. This dactylic metre, when preceded by a catch of two sylla- bles, gives the effect of an anapaestic metre. When the catch is of one syllable, the effect is of mixed iambs and anapaests, or amphibrachs ; 2 but in any case the metre has a trisyllabic effect. Consequently, this trisyllabic, or, as it has been some- times called, tumbling metre, is very common in the earlier ballads. The following extract from Skelton of a description of Envy, written in the beginning of the sixteenth century, illustrates the irregularity of this metre : Whan other are glad, Than is hee sad, Frantiche and mad, His tonnge never styll For to save yll. Writhing and wringing, Biting and stinging. 1 See paragraph 129. 2 For explanation of these terms, see 97. METRE. 211 Here the last two lines are dactylic, the rest of a mixed trisyllabic, disyllabic, and monosyllabic metre. 144. The Effect of the Trisyllabic Metre when following the trochaic metre is to give a telling and merry effect. Thus : There I | couch, when | owls do | cry ; On the | bat's back | I do | fly, After | slimmer, | merri | If. Merrily, | merrily, | shall I live | now Under the | blossom that | hangs on the | bough. The Tempest. Conversely, the trisyllabic gives a merry beginning, fol- lowed by a serious trochaic end, in Merrily [ swim we, the | moon shines | bright Downward we | drift through the | shadow and | light. Under yon | rock the | eddies | sleep Calm and | silent, | dark and I deep. Scott. 1 In the trisyllabic metre, it is not necessary that every foot should be trisyllabic. The first foot is, as often as not, disyllabic ; and disyllabic feet occur in the middle of the verse, but not at the end. The third foot is often disyllabic : Behold, | how they toss ] their torch\es on high, Dryden. And now, | in the grass ] behold | they are laid. Coivper. In the ballad metre, trisyllabic feet are often used, without interfering with the general disyllabic effect ; and the result is a certain free, merry, and almost rollicking effect, which suits the ballad style very well. It is only in this free disyllabic metre that a trisyllabic foot is frequent at the end of a verse. In most strict disyllabic metre, a trisyllabic foot 1 This and the two preceding example are quoted from Guest's " History of English Rhythms. ;; 212 METRE. at the end of the verse would injure the effect, though allowable in the middle. But see exception, p. 203. In the following example from a ballad whose general effect is disyllabic, the trisyllabic foot occurs even at the end of the verse : We | have a letjter, sayd A (dam Bell, To the justice we must | it bring ; Let | us in | our mess' age to do, That we | were againe | to the 145. The Scansion of the Trisyllabic Metre must often be a matter of taste. In some poems, as in Hood's " Bridge of Sighs/' the effect is unquestionably dactylic, — Sisterly, brotherly, Fatherly, motherly. And so in a great part of the following : Over the mountains, Over the waves, Under the fountains, And under the graves. Under floods that are deeper, Which Neptune obey, Over rocks which are steeper, Love will find out the way. Anon. But here the fourth line may begin with an amphibrach, and the last four are decidedly anapaestic. Again, the line Dirck gallop'd, I gallop'd, we gallop'd all three. Browning* seems amphibrachic ; but Neck by neck, stride by stride, never changing our place, lb. 1 Even the strictest trisyllabic metre allows an accented syllable in a disyllabic, and sometimes a weak accent in a quadrisyllable, to be without the Metrical Accent, after a Metrical Accent: Have a still shorter date and die sooner than we*. — Cotcper. Are pleased to be kind, but I hate ostentation.— Goldsmith. METRE. 213 is equally clearly anapaestic. So in Nse damn', nse gabbin but sighing, and sabbing, and Sighing and moaning on ilka green loaming, Lament for Flodden. the former seems amphibrachic, and the latter dactylic. The modern tendency, however, seems to be to write in anapaestic rather than in amphibrachic metre, and most modern trisyllabic poems are better scanned anapaestically. The necessity of the rhyme favours the anapaest. For, since the rhyme must be on the accented syllable, the amphibrachic termination requires a double, the dactylic termination a treble rhyme. The amphibrach and the dactyl seem suitable to express sorrow and tender pathos. The amphibrach is used in the suppressed melancholy of — Most friendship | is feigning, Most loving | mere folly ; Then heigh-ho, | the holly, This life is | most jolly. The following is, strictly speaking, anapaestic, but the effect is amphibrachic : (He) is gone on | the mountain, (He) is lost to | the forest, (Like) a siimmer-|dried fountain (When) our need was | the sorest. Scott. The dactyl is used in Hood's well-known poem, " The Bridge of Sighs": Take her up tenderly, Lift her with care, Fashioned so slenderly, Young and so fair. 214 METRE. Here the dactyl is interspersed with monosyllabic feet. Unmixed, it would soon become monotonous. The trisyllabic metre is mostly now used for lighter poetry. Tennyson has however employed it for serious poetry in Maud and other poems. The following is an instance : Under the cross of gold That shines over city and river, There he shall rest for ever Among- the wise and the bold. Let the bell be toll'd. On the Duke of Wellington. In Dry den's " Ode on Alexander's Feast," the anapaBstic measure is effectively used to represent wild uproar, and is succeeded by the trochaic and iambic (with a trochaic effect) representing rapid action : The princes applaud -with a furious joy : And the king seized a flambeau with zeal to destroy ; Thais | led the | way To | light him to his prey, And | like another Helen fired another Troy. 146. The Anapaestic verse of two accents might often be written as a verse of four accents, as, 'Tis the last rose of summer left blooming alone, All her lovely companions are faded and gone. But when there is a sectional rhyme, as in the passage quoted from Scott, in Paragraph 145, the division is clear. 147. The Anapaestic verse of three accents is a favourite metre of Cowper's, sometimes alternately with the anapaest of four accents : The rose had been washed, just washed by a shower, Which Mary to Anna conveyed. The Rose. METRE. 215 Sometimes unmixed, as in I am monarch of all I survey, My right there is none to dispute ; From the centre all round to the sea, I am lord of the fowl and the brute. Alexander Selkirk. 148. The Anapaestic verse of four accents is the most common anapaestic metre. Since the first foot in English metre is peculiarly variable, and the anapaestic verse of four accents often divides itself naturally into two verses of two accents, it follows that the third foot has something of the license of the first. The _po/?|lars are felPd, [| farewell | to the shade, And noiv | in the grass || behold | they are laid. The Poplars. The' rose | had been wash'd, \\just icash'd | in a shower. The Rose. This license, however, is not so common in Cowper's lighter pieces. In Browning's " Good News from Ghent," the first foot is sometimes disyllabic, but every other foot is trisyllabic throughout the poem. 149. Difficulty of distinguishing between Disylla- bic and. Trisyllabic Metre. — If the question were asked, of what metre is the following passage, Speak, speak thou fearful guest, Who, in rude armour drest, Longfellow. it would be impossible to reply with certainty, and we should probably incline to say " disyllabic," but the next line, Comest to daunt me, 216 METRE. makes it almost certain that the metre is intended to be trisyllabic. This will show how easily the early English alliterative trisyllabic verse could pass into disyllabic verse. Take as examples, (a) To | &ind and to unMnd, || as the booke telleth. Piers the Plowman. (b) How he it | Zeft with Zove. || as our Zord hight. lb. As soon as a system of counting syllables was introduced, such verses might be scanned disyllabically : («) To bind and to unbind, as the book telleth, (b) How he it left with love as our Lord hight. 150. Classical Metres. — Attempts have been made (be- ginning asjiearly as the sixteenth century) with more or less of success, to introduce the hexameter, and other metres common in Greek and Latin, into English poetry. But these metres cannot be said as yet to be naturalised in English, and may best be studied in connection with the literature, whence they originated. In many of these at- tempts it is difficult to recognize any vestige of the metre which is aimed at. The following, Worn out | with iing|uish, toil, | and cold, | and hunger, would pass very well for a five- accent iambic line, whereas it is intended for something quite different. In Mr. Kingsley's "Andromeda," however, the hexameter is written both with correctness and spirit, and Mr. dough's " Bothie of Tober-na-voilich " is also correct in the main, and written with real ease and freedom. FOURTH PART. CHAPTER I. HINTS OX SELECTION AND ARKANGEMENT. 151, Difference between Scientific and Non-Scien- tific Composition. — Composition may be (1) scientific, or (2) non-scientific (literary). Scientific -composition aims ex- clusively at clearness, preciseness, and completeness. Scientific composition is perfectly uniform in arrangement. Scientific description enumerates the characteristics of a phenomenon according to a fixed classification ; scientific reasoning proceeds according to the order of logic ; scientific narration according to chronological order. In non-scientific composition the arrangement is much less uniform, and affords room for judgment and skill. This chapter will state some of the principles which should govern it. First, non-scientific composition is .seldom exhaustively complete. It omits much that might be stated. We there- fore require a principle to determine what to admit and what to suppress — that is, a principle of Selection. Secondly, non-scientific composition does not aim merely at conveying truth. It is therefore not satisfied with clear- ness and preciseness. It aims sometimes at attracting the attention, sometimes at exciting the imagination, sometimes 218 SELECTION AND ARRANGEMENT. at stimulating the feelings. These objects introduce new principles of Arrangement. 152. Non-Scientific Composition may be subdivided into several different species. The humblest form of it is — (1). Conversation. — This, having no object but passing amusement, is often omitted in classifications of styles of composition. Nevertheless, conversation may be considered as an art governed by definite principles, and there have been persons who have attained special excellence in it. (2). Oratory. — By this is here meant all forms of pleading intended to determine special persons or bodies of people to special resolutions, e.g., parliamentary or forensic speeches. Though for the most part it refers to speeches, and does not refer to books, yet there are some written treatises which are comprised under it, e.g., pamphlets or books written to advocate particular measures ; on the other hand, it excludes some speeches, e.g., sermons, which are intended to influence men's general conduct, not their particular acts, and pane- gyrical or commemorative speeches, which are merely in- tended to give expression to feelings. (3). Didactic (Non-Scientific) Composition. — This name, for want of a better, may be given to the third class. It includes all compositions which have a practical object, but not like class (2) a limited and definite one, and, on the other hand, have not the precision of science. Some of these compositions may approach to the character of speeches, e.g., "Burke's Reflections on the French Revolu- tion; " they may have the form of speeches, e.g., Milton's " Areopagitica ; " they may be delivered as speeches, e.g., the sermons of Taylor or Tillotson. Others may approach the SELECTION AND ARRANGEMENT. 219 character of scientific treatises, e.g., some of the works of Coleridge, or Mill's " Essay on Liberty." Others, again, may be narrative in form, provided the narration be true and seriously meant. Thus history and biography are to be re- garded as forms of didactic composition. The same may be said even of fictitious narrative, when it is used solely for the purpose of illustrating truth. The common characteristic of all compositions of this class is that they have an object which is not purely speculative, and yet is not limited to a special and immediate occasion. (4). Imaginative Literature, including Poetry. — By poetry is commonly understood metrical composition. But metrical compositions evidently belong for the most part to the larger class of compositions, the object of which is to gratify the imagination and creative power. Poems, then, and novels must here be classed together. This style, being largely imitative, includes imitation of conversation and oratory (styles 1 and 2). In novels there is generally much conversation, and often speeches are introduced. Dramatic poetry assumes the form of conversation throughout. Some of the most brilliant specimens of oratory in English may be quoted from the poets, e.g., the speech of Antony in " Julius Caesar," the speech of Belial in " Paradise Lost," B. 2. In old times, when some of these styles had not been clearly distinguished, historians were in the habit of intro- ducing speeches of their own composition, which they put in the mouths of statesmen, whose policy they were describing. Livy and Thucydides are examples. Such speeches, being imitative, belong to imaginative literature, while history itself belongs to didactic composition. The mixture of the two styles is not now tolerated. 220 SELECTION. SELECTION. What ought to be suppressed in each of these four styles. — It is most important to know this. It was a maxim of Schiller that the master of style is shown rather by what he omits than by what he says. 153. Conversation. — Of conversation as a means of transacting business or pursuing philosophical investigation, we do not treat here. It is only as a relaxation that con- versation can be considered as a literary style. It excludes whatever is abstruse. Though it admits argu- ment and dispute up to a certain point, as soon as the argument begins to turn upon nice distinctions, or become sustained and elaborate, in other words to demand a painful intellectual effort, conversation, properly speaking, is at an end. In like manner, when the dispute turns upon a matter of fact which can only be determined by evidence, it is generally unfit for conversation, since the evidence can rarely be pro- duced on the spot. It excludes deep passion, because it is unnatural to discover the deepest emotions before many people. As a general rule it excludes all tojrics that cannot be handled briefly and in short speeches. This is because long speeches are seldom felt as a relaxation either to speaker or hearers, and in excep- tional cases where it is otherwise, as in the case of Coleridge, since two such men seldom meet, conversation passes into lecture, i.e., into didactic composition. Good talkers are those who perceive readily whether a topic broached has or has not these characteristics, and easily think of such topics. Bad conversers broach the first topic that occurs to them, and find too late that it has in- volved them in abstruse dialectics, or differences that cannot SELECTION. 221 be settled, or speech-making, or embarrassing personal reve- lations, etc. Admirable examples of the art of conversation may be found in Mr. Helps' books, "Friends in Council," "Realmah," etc. On the other hand, Landor's Imaginary Conversations, always admirable for composition, often trespass into the didactic style. 154. Oratory. — This has been confined by our definition to speeches intended to influence particular decisions. Such speeches exclude, in a word, whatever is not likely to influ- ence the decision. Of this sort are — (a). Considerations that are subtle or far-fetched. — Though an audience may applaud these if they are skilfully pre- sented, they will be practically guided by plainer and coarser arguments. (b). Language and imagery that are subtle or pedantic. — In Taylor's " Edwin the Fair," the Pedant in addressing an audience of monks, begins figuratively — On Mount Olympus with the Muses nine I ever dwelt. Upon which the cry is, He doth confess it, lo ! He doth confess it ! Faggots and a stake ! He is a heathen ; shall a heathen speak ? (c). Considerations alien to the ivays of thinking of the assembly addressed. — Thus it has been said in the House of Commons of a scheme laid before it by a philosopher, " It is not of our atmosphere." For the same reason it has been remarked that lawyers seldom succeed in the House of Commons ; and Erskine, the greatest of advocates, excited nothing but contempt in Pitt, who ruled the House of Commons. Hence, also, the kind of oratory which suits a 222 SELECTION. jury, i.e., an unskilled audience, differs from that which is likely to convince a judge, i.e., & skilled auditor. (d). Considerations of a higher moral tone than is likely to be appreciated by the assembly. — A speaker may feel it his duty to urge such considerations, but they are not ora- torical. An interesting example of oratory ineffective for this reason is the speech in justification of the murder of Caesar attributed by Shakspeare to Brutus. It appeals to abstract principles of morality quite beyond the compre- hension of the crowd, and therefore excites nothing but a cold respect for the speaker. Then follows Antony, with an appeal to feelings, some good, some bad, but actually present in the minds of the audience, and excites them to frenzy. (d). Imagery, phraseology, and rhythm, too rich and exquisite to be readily appreciated. — Specimens have been given above of the highest eloquence of English prose. Scarcely one of them belongs to oratory as here defined ; that is, scarcely one of them would be tolerated in the House of Commons, or in a law-court. Students must not be misled by the speeches of Burke so as to suppose that the richness and ingenuity of his style is properly oratorical. Burke was, in fact, little listened to in the House of Commons. The true oratorical style is much less elaborate and ingenious. The following is a specimen of the manner of Fox, the most powerful of English orators : " We must keep Bonaparte for some time longer at war, as a state of probation ! Gracious God, sir, is war a state of proba- tion 1 Is peace a rash system ? Is it dangerous for nations to live in amity with each other? Is your vigilance, your policy, your common powers of observation, to be extinguished by putting an end to the horrors of war ? Cannot this state of pro- bation be as well undergone without adding to the catalogue of SELECTION. 223 human sufferings ? But we must^xmse / What ! must the bowels of Great Britain be torn out, her best blood spilt, her treasure wasted, that you may make an experiment ? Put yourselver — oh that you would put yourselves in the field of battle and learn to judge of the sort of horrors that you excite. In former wars a man might at least have some feeling, some interest, that served to balance in his mind the impressions which a scene of carnage and of death must inflict. If a man had been present at the battle of Blenheim, for instance, and had inquired the motive of the battle, there was not a soldier engaged who could not have satisfied his curiosity, and even perhaps allayed his feelings — they were fighting to repress the uncontrolled ambition of the Grand Monarque. But if a man were present now at a field of slaughter, and were to inquire for what they were fight- ing, ' Fighting ! ' would be the answer, ' they are not fighting, they are pausing.' c Why is tha,t man expiring? why is that other writhing in agony 1 what means this implacable fury 1 ' The answer must be, ' You are quite wrong, sir ; you deceive yourself. They are not fighting. Do not disturb them ; they are merely pausing. This man is not expiring with agony — that man is not dead — he is only pausing ! They are not angry with one another ; they have now no cause of quarrel, but their country thinks there should be a pause. All that you see, sir, is nothing like fighting — there is no harm, nor cruelty, nor bloodshed in it whatever ; it is nothing more than a political pause I It is merely to try an experiment, to see whether Bonaparte will not behave himself better than heretofore ; and in the meantime we have agreed to a pause in pure friendship ! ' And is this the way, sir, that you are to show yourselves the advocates of order? You take up a system calculated to uncivilize the world, to destroy order, to trample on religion, to stifle in the heart not merely the generosity of noble sentiment, but the affections of social nature, and in the prosecution of this system you spread terror and desolation all round you." What is to be chiefly remarked in this passage is — (1), the 224 SELECTION, simplicity and homeliness of the thought it expresses ; (2), the carelessness of the language and the complete absence of rhythm, the orator evidently beginning his sentences without knowing how he would end them. To these two character- istics it owes very much of its persuasiveness. What you are asked to believe is not anything paradoxical, and the language used is so direct and natural that you suspect no artifice. Oratory, however, need not always be as common as this in thought and style. When the speaker has mastered the attention of his audience, he may gradually raise them above their ordinary selves, persuade them to take higher views than are natural to them, and prepare their ears for richly metaphorical and rhythmical language. The following passage from Burke reaches, perhaps, the limit of oratory proper : "Do you imagine that it is the Land Tax Act which raises your revenue, that it is the annual vote in the Committee of Supply which gives you your army, or that it is the Mutiny Bill which inspires it with bravery and discipline ? No, surely no ! It is the love of the people, it is their attachment to their Government, from the sense of the deep stake they have in such a glorious constitution, which gives you your army and your navy, and infuses into both that liberal obedience without which your army would be a base rabble, and y« >ur navy nothing but rotten timber. All this, I know well enough, will sound wild and chimerical to the profane herd of those vulgar and mechanical politicians who have no place amongst us — a sort of people who think that nothing exists but what is gross and material, and who therefore, far from being qualified to be directors of the great movement of empire, are not fit to turn a wheel in the machine. But to men truly initiated and rightly taught, these ruling and master principles, which in the opinion of such men as I have mentioned have no substantial SELECTION". 225 existence, are, in truth, everything and all in all. Magnanimity in politics is not seldom the truest wisdom ; and a great empire and little minds go ill together. If we are conscious of our situation, and glow with zeal to fill our places as becomes our station and ourselves, we ought to auspicate all our public pro- ceedings in America with the old warning of the Church — Sursum corda ! "We ought to elevate our minds to the great- ness of that trust to which the order of Providence has called us. By adverting to the dignity of this high calling, our ancestors have turned a savage wilderness into a glorious empire ; and have made the most extensive and the only honourable conquests, not by destroying, but by promoting the wealth, the number, the happiness of the human race. Let us get an American revenue as we have got an American empire. English privileges have made it all that it is ; English privileges alone will make it all it can be. " 155. Didactic Composition. — As oratory occupies itself with the matters that are occupying the minds of the audi- ence at the time, it admits a multitude of details which are sure to lose their interest very soon after the speech has been delivered. For this reason very few successful speeches are interesting to read. Of the matters discussed a very small proportion commonly have any intrinsic interest. Here is the great difference between oratory and didactic composi- tion. The latter is occupied, not with special measures on which a vote is about to be taken, but with principles of action, large courses of policy. Moreover, it is either not delivered to an audience at all, but simply published, or it is delivered to an audience whose minds are quite at leisure, and not preoccupied with the vote they have to give. All therefore that we have marked as inadmissible in oratory, subtleties of argument and style, reflections, and language elevated above the level of common life, are at home here. 15 226 SELECTION. On the other hand, much that is admissible in oratory be- comes inadmissible in didactic composition. (1). Details of merely ephemeral interest. — It is particularly in biography and history that it becomes important and diffi- cult to decide what is ephemeral and what is not. Macaulay remarks of the historian of British India, Orme, that " in one volume he allots on an average a closely printed quarto page to the events of every forty-eight hours." It may be ques- tioned whether in the later volumes of Macaulay's own history too much space is not given to parliamentary disputes which have lost their interest in a century and a half. Still more often is the same mistake made in biographies, where letters are preserved perhaps a century after the writer's death, which at the time they were written could only interest a personal friend ; nay, often were only written at all to dis charge a debt of courtesy. (2). Reflections that are within the reach of every one. — In oratory, as has been said, these are almost the only reflec- tions that are allowed. That war is a horrible thing, that we ought to be prepared against invasion, that Government ought not to be extravagant, that liberty is an inestimable treasure, that it is politic to be just, — these are topics which are always admissible in oratory, and not at all the less admissible because they have been urged a thousand times before. On the other hand, original reflections have no legitimate place in oratay, because we are guided in action, not by new and imperfectly known principles, but by prin- ciples that we have tested and made our own. But didactic composition, which aims not at determining special actions but at imparting new views, establishing and inculcating im- proved principles, admits only what is more or less novel, and suppresses, or passes as lightly as possible over, whatever SELECTION. 227 is trite. It is partly because in what we read we expect originality, while a good speech avoids originality, that good speeches are generally disappointing when read. 156. Imaginative Literature. — This differs principally from oratory and didactic composition in admitting fiction. Whatever is stated in oratory and didactic composition, is stated as true, or, if fiction is introduced, it is for the sake of the truth contained in it. But imaginative literature admits fiction as such, and for the sake of the pleasure it gives to the imagination. Not only does it invent characters and incidents, but it will assert speculative propositions with the greatest solemnity, which, nevertheless, are not meant to be taken as true, but simply as what the imagination likes to believe. For example : It is not vain or fabulous (Though so esteemed by shallow ignorance) What the sage poets taught by the heavenly Muse, Storied of old in high immortal verse, Of dire chimeras and enchanted isles, And rifted rocks, whose entrance leads to hell ; For such there be, but unbelief is blind. So the poetic merit of the following passage does not depend upon the truth of the doctrine conveyed in it : Our birth is but a sleep and a forgetting ; The soul that rises with us, our life's star, Hath had elsewhere its setting, And cometh from afar. This is an imaginative extension of philosophy, just as the supernatural, in which poets indulge so much, is an imagina- tive extension of experience. 228 SELECTION. 157. Limit of Fiction. — But poetry recognizes a limit to this license of creation. There must be some strong inducement to go beyond reality, otherwise such imaginative creation is recognized as childish. For example, in the Middle Ages, when the earth had been only partially ex- plored, and nature was little known, and therefore curiosity had free scope, tales of supernatural adventures in unknown lands were subjects for the greatest writers ; but now that curiosity of this sort has been appeased by real knowledge, they only interest children. The subject of the future life has always attracted poets, because on this subject there has been, at the same time, a strong general belief, and a strong sense of ignorance in details. But poetic creation, where there exists no curiosity, and no groundwork of belief, is recognized as frivolous. In the case of the "Pilgrim's Progress," these requisites were present; hence the success of the book. Southey's " Thalaba " and " Curse of Kehama" wanted both. As a mere sport of fancy, the supernatural may still be admissible, if sparingly r as in the " Rape of the Lock." 1 158. Imaginative Literature dealing with History. — As fictitious matter is admissible in this style, so historical matter is often inadmissible. Epic poems and historical novels frequently err in admitting incidents because they are true, although they do not gratify the imagination. In the last book of " Paradise Lost" the poem degenerates into a 1 Sometimes philosophy uses the supernatural in order to illustrate the interdependence of things In nature. To show how much in life d< i upon the size of human being**, we may imagine Lilliputians and Brob- dignags. To show what follows from the relation of human beings to parents, we may imagine a man made artificially, a Frankenstein. In these eases the supernatural is rigidly limited to a single point; the author hinds himself as it were to deduce only natural consequences from his supernatural postulate. SELECTION. 229 historical summary. Lucan and Camoens may be mentioned as poets who have fallen into this error. Shakspeare in his historical plays, and Scott in his historical romances, may be mentioned as having treated history successfully from the imaginative point of view. Scott's plan is to put ficti- tious characters into the foreground, and to introduce his- torical incidents and characters only occasionally, and, as it were, by way of ornament. Shakspeare's success is mainly owing to the fact that English history in his age was still rather a tradition than a history, and hence allowed freedom of treatment. The great epic poems, founded upon facts be- lieved to be historical, have only been successful eithtr when the facts were really legendary, and not historical, as in the cases of the siege of Troy, the wanderings of iEneas, the lives of Arthur and Charlemagne, or else when history has been freely altered, as in Tasso's " Jerusalem Delivered." 159. Unity of Feeling. — Great imaginative works have generally a prevailing tone pervading incident and character, which may be called unity of feeling. Hence everything is inadmissible which violates this. The " Rape of the Lock," for example, — one of the most finished works of imaginative art we have, — excludes intentionally everything which is not insignificant and frivolous. The introduction of any serious incident, any grave reflection, would have spoiled the work. When the spirits boast of influencing the female imagination, they say — Nay, oft in dreams invention we bestow To change a flounce or add a furbelow. The mention of anything so serious as true love would have been a jarring note. If statesmen are mentioned, something is added to lower the conception : 230 SELECTION. Here Britain's statesmen oft the fall foredoom Of foreign tyrants, and of nymphs at home. So of a great queen in council : Here thou, great Anna, whom three realms obey, Dost sometimes counsel take — and sometimes tea. On the other hand, " Paradise Lost" excludes as rigidly every thing that is insignificant or frivolous ; what is merely graceful is not admitted unless it is also important; e.g., the light touches in the character of Eve are admitted only because she is the type of Womanhood. It has been ques- tioned whether the Paradise of Fools in Book III. is not a violation of the unity of tone. What the proper limit of this rule of exclusion is, has been a matter of dispute. French critics have held, for example, that comedy and tragedy ought never to be mixed. Shakspeare, however, habitually introduces a comic ingredient into his tragedies, and in his comedies he admits tragic passions, though perhaps not tragic incidents. (" Cymbeline " and " Winter's Tale" are not properly comedies: see below.) In one case he seems to have felt his subject to be too great to allow of mirth. In " Macbeth " there is only one short comic scene, which has furnished the subject of much discussion. 160. Selection in Dramatic Poetry.— Dramatic poetry, we have said, is an imitation of conversation, and sometimes of oratory. Not everything, however, that is admissible in real conversation or oratory is admissible in the imitation of it. Heal conversation is extremely desultory and unme- thodical, and always contains much that would not be inte- resting to an audience of strangers. It is the business o^ the dramatic poet to diminish to the utmost this uninteresting element, and to give some unity to what is in reality ge SELECTION. 231 rally wanting in unity. But in doing so lie must carefully preserve something of both characteristics of real conversa- tion, and carefully avoid giving to his imaginary conversation the appearance of a methodical discussion, really devised by one mind, and only for form's sake distributed among dif- ferent interlocutors. Here is a specimen from "Hamlet" which illustrates the unmethodical character conversation will assume when a principal interlocutor is pursuing a private train of thought with intense eagerness : Ham. Indeed, indeed, sirs, but this troubles me. Hold you the watch to-night? All. We do, my lord. Earn. Armed, say you ? All. Armed, my lord. Ham. From top to toe ? All. My lord, from head to foot. Ham. Then saw you not his face ? Hor. Oh yes, my lord ; he wore his beaver up. Ham. What, looked he frowningly ? Hor. A countenance more In sorrow than in anger. Ham. Pale or red ? Hor. Nay, very pale. Ham. And fixed his eyes ilpon you? Hor. Most constantly. Ham. I would I had been there, Hor. It would have much amazed you. .60771. Very like, very like. Stayed it long? Hor. While one with moderate haste might tell a hundred, Mar. Ber. Longer, longer. Hor. Not when I saw it. Ham. His beard was grizzled, — no ? Hor. It was, as I have seen it in his life, A sable silvered. Ham. I will watch to-night ; Perchance 'twill walk again. Hor. I warrant it will. 232 SELECTION. In the same way, real oratory, we have said, is seldom interesting except to the particular audience to which it is addressed. The dramatic poet, in imitating oratory, has to overcome this difficulty. His temptation will be to substitute didactic composition for oratory, that is, to fill the speech with generalities and subtleties fit for his own but unfit for his speaker's audience. But a skilful dramatist will know how to make oratory interesting without depriving it of its essential character, will attach it by particulars to the time and the place, and contrive to find reflections that are universally intelligible, and can yet be made permanently interesting. This talent Shakspeare has in an unrivalled degree. The following specimen of true dramatic oratory is from Taylor's ' ' Philip Van Artavelde ' ' : Sirs, ye have heard these knights discourse to you Of your ill fortune, telling on their fingers The worthy leaders ye have lately lost : True, they were worthy men, most gallant chiefs; And ill would it become us to make light Of the great loss we suffer by their fall ; They died like heroes ; for no recreant step Had e'er dishonoured them, no stain of fear, No base despair, no cowardly recoil : They had the hearts of freemen to the last, And the free blood that bounded in their veins Wa^ shed for freedom with a liberal joy. But had they guessed, or could they but have dreamed, The great examples which they died to show Should fall so flat, should shine so fruitless hero. That men should say, " For liberty they died, Wherefore let us be slaves ; " had they thought this, Oh, then, with what an agony of shame, Their blushing faces buried in the dust, Had their great spirits parted hence for heaven ! What! shall we teach our chroniclers henceforth To write that in five bodies were contained SELECTION. 233 The sole brave hearts of Ghent ? which five defunct, The heartless town, by brainless counsels led, Delivered up her keys, stript off her robes, And so with all humility besought Her haughty lord that he would scourge her lightly ! It shall not be — no, verily ! for now Thus looking on you as ye stand before me, Mine eye can single out full" many a man Who lacks but opportunity to shine As great and glorious as the chiefs that fell. — But lo ! the Earl is mercifully minded ! And surely if we, rather than revenge The slaughter of our bravest, cry them shame, And fall upon our knees and say we've sinned, Then will my lord the Earl have mercy on us, And pardon us our letch for liberty ! What pardon it shall be if we know not, Yet Ypres, Courtray, Grammont, Bruges, they know ; For never can those towns forget the day When by the hangman's hands five hundred men, The bravest of each guild, were done to death In those base butcheries that he called pardons. And did it seal their pardons, all this blood ? Had they the Earl's good love from that time forth ? Oh, sirs ! look round you lest ye be deceived ; Forgiveness may be spoken with the tongue, Forgiveness may be written with the pen, But think not that the parchment and mouth pardon Will e'er eject old hatreds from the heart. There's that betwixt you been which men remember Till they forget themselves, till all's forgot, Till the deep sleep falls on them in that bed From w T hich no morrow's mischief knocks them up. There's that betwixt you been which you yourselves, Should you forget, would then not be yourselves ; For must it not be thought some base men's souls Have ta'en the seats of yours, and turned you out, If in the coldness of a craven heart Ye should forgive this bloody-minded man For all his black and murderous monstrous crimes? Think of your mariners, three hundred men, 234 ARRANGEMENT. After long absence in the Indian seas, Upm their peaceful homeward voyage bound. And now, all dangers conquered as they thought, Warping the vessels up their native stream, Their wives and children waiting them at home In joy, with festal preparation made, — Think of tnese mariners, their eyes torn out, Their hands chopped otf, turned staggering into Ghent, To meet the blasted eyesight of their friends ! And was not this the Earl? 'Twas none but he ! No Hauterive of them all had dared to do it, Save at the express instance of the Earl. And now what asks he ? ARRANGEMENT IN ARGUMENT. Arrangement may be considered under the heads of Argu- ment and Narration, which are the two principal forms that composition assumes. Argument and Narration are subject to rules which differ somewhat according as they occur in compositions belonging to the four styles above described. 161. Arrangement in Argument. — In conversation, argument scarcely admits of any arrangement, and therefore only such arguments are adapted for conversation as can be stated very briefly. In imaginative literature also, few special rules are required for argument. When argument occurs in this style it is generally put into the mouths of imaginary characters, and belongs therefore either to con- versation or to oratory. Accordingly, it adopts the rules to which it is subject in those styles. There are poems, in- deed, such as Pope's " Essay on Man," or Dry den' a 4 - Be- ligio Laici," in which the poet reasons throughout in his own person; but these compositions belong essentially to didactic composition, and not to imaginative literature ARRANGEMENT. 235 They are exceptional cases in which metre, which is com- monly confined to imaginative literature, is adopted in didactic composition. Argument, therefore, may be said to belong almost ex- clusively to Oratory and Didactic Composition. 162. Argument in Oratory. — It is the characteristic of oratory that it must be understood at once, and produce all its effect at once, since it attempts to influence a certain de- cision which is near at hand. The whole effort of the orator, therefore, is devoted to attaining (1) clearness, (2) force. The whole argumentation of a speech consists of a number of separate arguments which the speaker has to combine, and each argument consists of facts alleged in evidence, and a conclusion drawn from the evidence. To attain clearness, the speaker must make the connection between his facts and his conclusion perceived in each sepa- rate argument. To attain force, he must combine his argu- ments in such a way that they may be all apprehended and felt at once. In other words, he has two problems to solve : first, to form facts into an argument ; secondly, to compound argu- ments into an argumentation. State the conclusion you are going to arrive at before pro- ducing your facts. In didactic composition you may conceal your conclusion, and, as it were, entice your reader into it gradually. But in oratory this is scarcely possible, and nothing is so unendurable as a long statement of facts from which some conclusion is afterwards to be drawn. It is not enough to state the conclusion, and then produce the facts that prove it. The conclusion must be stated over and over again. It must be made, if possible, to 236 ARRANGEMENT. penetrate the whole statement of evidence, so as to appear in every sentence of it. If this statement of evidence involves, as it often will, long quotations from documents, then there must be a recapitulation for the express purpose of bringing the facts into connection with the conclusion. The combining of arguments into an argumentation is done by an introduction and a close, an exordium and a peroration. In the one a survey is given of what the audience is to expect, and in the other a recapitulation, in which the argu- ments are rapidly enumerated and so concentrated upon the hearer's mind. But the speaker has not only to convey his arguments to an attentive audience, he has to make it attentive at the beginning, and prevent it from becoming inattentive during the progress of his speech. For this purpose all the wit and imagination he has will be serviceable. But also he must remember that the beginning is important, — the beginning of the whole speech, the beginning of each division of it. It is necessary to seize the attention at first ; when this has been done, the less interesting facts, arguments of minor import- ance, qualifications, concessions, may be cautiously intro- duced. The audience must be presumed, not only inattentive, but forgetful, and even dull. The most important points of the argument, therefore, must be stated pointedly, with antithesis or striking metaphor, so that they may be easily remembered. The following is an admirable example of facts and arguments powerfully concentrated, so as to force a particular conclu- sion upon the mind : — "The noble lord, after owning that we had no foreign alliances, had triumphantly spoken of unanimity, and congratulated gentle- men on that side of the House upon having aMied themselves with ARRANGEMENT. 237 those who sat on the other. This was an assertion for which there was not the smallest foundation ; and it was impossible for him to state, in any phrase that language would admit of, the shock he felt when the noble lord ventured to suggest what was exceedingly grating to his ears, and he doubted not to the ears of every gentleman who sat near him. What ! enter into an alliance with those very Ministers who had betrayed their coun- try, who had been prodigal of the public strength, who had been prodigal of the public wealth, who had been prodigal of what was still more valuable, the glory of the nation ! The idea was too monstrous to be admitted for a moment. Gentlemen must have foregone their principles, and have given up their honour, before they could have approached the threshold of an alliance so abominable, so scandalous, and so disgraceful ! Did the noble lord think it possible that he could ally himself with those Minis- ters who had lost America, ruined Ireland, thrown Scotland into tumult, and put the very existence of Great Britain to the hazard 1 — ally himself with those Ministers who had, as they now confessed, foreseen the Spanish war, the fatal mischief which goaded us to destruction, and yet had from time to time told Parliament that the Spanish war was not to be feared 1 — ally himself with those Ministers who, knowing of the prospect of a Spanish war, had taken no sort of pains to prepare for it 1 — ally himself with those Ministers who had, when they knew of a Spanish war, declared in Parliament, no longer ago than last Tuesday, that it was right for Parliament to be prorogued, for that no Spanish war was to be dreaded, and yet had come down two days afterwards with the Spanish rescript ] — ally himself with those Ministers who, knowing of a Spanish war, and knowing that they had not more than thirty sail of the line ready to send out with Sir Charles Hardy, had sent out Admiral Arbuthnot to America with seven sail of the line, and a large body of troops on board 1 — ally himself ivith those Ministers who, knowing of a Spanish war, had suffered seven ships of the line lately to sail to the East Indies, though two or three ships were all that were wanted for that service, and the rest might have stayed at home 238 ARRANGEMENT. to reinforce the great fleet of England ? — ally himself with those Ministers who, knowing of a Spanish war, and knowing that the united fleets of the House of Bourbon consisted of at least forty, perhaps fifty, and possibly sixty sail of the line, had suffered Sir Charles Hardy to sail on Wednesday last, the day before the Spanish rescript was, as they knew, to be delivered, with not thirty sail of the line, although, if he had stayed a week longer, he might have been reinforced with five or six, or, as Ministers themselves said, seven or eight more capital ships ? To ally himself with men capable of such conduct would be to ally him- self to disgrace and ruin. He begged, therefore, for himself and his friends, to disclaim any such alliance; and he declared he was the rather inclined to disavow such a connection, because, from the past conduct of Ministers, he was warranted to declare and to maintain that such an alliance would be something worse than an alliance with France and Spain ; it would be an alliance with those who pretended to be the friends of Great Britain, but who were in fact and in truth her worst enemies." — Fox. It is further to be remembered that even an attentive audience finds a certain difficulty in following a close argu- ment. It is therefore found necessary to adopt contrivances for making language clearer than it is as commonly used. Of these the principal is a perpetual repetition in long sentences of some important or connecting words. This subject has been treated above. See Pages 122, 123. 163. Argument in Didactic Composition — Such contrivances, though necessary in oratory, are not wanted in treatises intended to be read at leisure, and admitting of being read over again. And, in becoming unnecessary, they become positive faults and hindrances to persuasion. A rhetorical speech is one adapted to persuade, but a book is generally the less persuasive for being rhetorical. ARRANGEMENT. 239 In didactic composition, argument should approach the character of scientific demonstration, and should borrow in the main its arrangement. But, (1.) It should suppose the reader capable indeed of follow- ing a scientific demonstration, but requiring some helps. It should answer objections, furnish illustrations, and in fact render such assistance as a tutor might render in explaining a scientific theorem to a pupil. (2.) It should affect moderation in language. The orator seeks forcible expression to produce an immediate effect, but the writer should always rather understate than overstate his case. Unmeasured praise or blame may carry away an audience, but a reader will suspect exaggeration. (3.) It should be careful to make all reasonable conces- sions to the opposite side. An orator has seldom space to do this. He must be content to bring out the merits of his own case. But as there is always something to be said on the other side, a reader, when he sees a case made out too clearly, has time to suspect that the opposite case has been suppressed, and will not give full confidence to his author unless he finds the opposite case exhibited with scrupulous and anxious candour. Macaulay sometimes fails to convince in consequence of forgetting this rule, and of trying to overwhelm an opponent in the rhetorical fashion. ARRANGEMENT IN NARRATION. Narration is of secondary importance in oratory, as argu- ment is in imaginative literature. Narration belongs princi- pally to didactic composition and to imaginative literature, 240 ARRANGEMENT. 164. Narration in Oratory — In oratorical narration everything is subordinate to clearness. Where the incidents are numerous and minute, a hearer's memory is apt to fail him. To assist it, the orator will use (1) Omission. That is, he will omit as many minute incidents as he can spare. (2) Emphasis. That is, he will distinguish the more important incidents by marked prominence, (3) Grouping. That is, he will group them as much as possible by likeness in kind, and as little as possible by mere chronological order. Oratorical narration is always subordinate to argument. The conclusion which it is intended to establish should, therefore, serve to bind together the different incidents intro- duced. In the following account of the changes which followed the accession of George III., remark how the notion of a court cabal is introduced to explain all the incidents, and how almost every sentence either begins or ends with it : — "It happened very favourably for the new system, that under a forced coalition {i.e., between Pitt and Newcastle) there rankled an incurable alienation and disgust between the parties which composed the administration. Mr. Pitt was first attacked. Not satisfied with removing him from office, they endeavoured by various artifices to ruin his character. The other party seemed rather pleased to get rid of so oppressive a support, perceiving that their own fall was prepared by fcis, onrfl 1-4 St flH ^.9 fl a P 9 ^3 09 to a .fl 43 *3 K 02 ► > 02 S 43 a N i fl .fl o •-3 .a fl R .a >* 43 i o .a 4? A fl *g-S 4^ o , o o s $ » 43 fl o 03 8&4 88 fl o o O* M 03 "3 •r-4 £2 •fl O •iH HH 1 02 43 fl 02 Ph v ojwbSiq 3 fl 43 43 s » O CD ^0 CD CD « fl •S9OTBU ^J QUESTIONS. FIRST PART. CHAPTER I. Words Defined by Usage. 1. Show how the Method of Induction is applied to the discovery of the meaning-s of words. Illustrate by the word oppression. (Par. l.)i 2. What do you mean by elimination ? Show how the meaning and deri- vation of the word define are connected. (1,2.) 3. Show, illustrating by a diagram, how a child might discover by induction the meaning of the word black, (2.) 4. Show the connection between classification and definition. (3.) 5. Show by an example the use of elimination before definition. (4.) 6. What are synonyms ? Give instances. (7). 7. Why are synonyms more common in English than in other lan- guages? (7.) 8. Define, using the process of elimination, (a) proud as compared with presumptuous, insolent, haughty, vain ; (b) authority compared with strength, influence; (c), tribe compared with nation, people, race, popu- lace, population, family. (8.) 9. What is an anonym ? Show how anonyms can often be readily found. Mention any anonyms connected with resentment, ambition. (10.) 10. Show, by instances, that language is deficient in terms expressing average qualities. Why is this ? (10.) 11. What is generalizing? What is an abstract term? Explain the origin of these names. (11.) 12. Give general terms including moon, circle, sword, shilling. (11.) 1 The number at the end of each question refers to the paragraph whore the question will be found answered. QUESTIONS. 285 13. Give groups of words connected severally with time, motion, think, anger. (12.) For other questions, see pages 12, 13, 16. CHAPTER II. "Words Defined by Derivation. 1. Show, with instances, how a word can sometimes be at once understood from knowing the meaning of its roots. (13.) 2. Show, with instances, the danger of trusting entirely for the meaning of a word to a knowledge of its roots. (14.) 3. What are hybrids? Mention hybrids that are recognized as good English. (15.) 4. Show, by instances, that the Latin prefixes are often disguised in English words. (16.) 5. What is the derivation and original meaning of Utopia ? What is its present meaning ? 6. What is the force of the verbal prefixes be-, for-? (18.) 7. What is the force of the noun affixes -ard, -eery, -ing, -ism ? (19.) 8. What is the force of the adjective affixes -ly, -tive? (20.) 9. Show, by the derivative from the Latin root fac-, that the method of derivation is insufficient to ascertain the meaning of a word. (22.) 10. Why is a knowledge of the Greek roots peculiarly useful ? (24.) 11. Mention the different classifications of the consonants ? (26.) 12. What is Grimm's Law ? Give instances. (25, 27.) 13. Give instances of contraction of words in derivation. (29.) 14. Give instances of liquid changes in derivation. (31.) 15. Show that it is natural for a word to change its meaning in passing from one language to another. (34.) 16. Show that the Law of Contraction of Meaning is natural in a civilized nation. (35.) 17. What words are especially liable to have their meaning extended ? (33.) 18. Give instances of the Law of Deterioration. For other questions, see pages 23, 29, 35 — 41, 44, and the following pages. SECOND PART. CHAPTER I. 1. What is the object of poetry as distinct from that of ordinary prose? (40.) 286 QUESTIONS. 2. What arc the three characteristics of poetic diction, as distinct from the diction of prose ? (40.) 3. Show, by instances, that poetic diction is archaic. (41.) 4. What is meant by sensuous when Milton says that poetry should be " simple, sensuous, and passionate"? Why does sensuous language eschew generic terms ? Give instances. (42.) 5. Show that Poetic Diction uses epithets for the things denoted. (42# .) 6. What is meant by Ornamental Epithets! Give instances. (42b.) 7. What is meant by Essential Epithets ? Give instances. (4*2c.) 8. Show that Poetry is averse to lengthy phrases. Give instances ot Poetic Compounds. (43a.) 9. Give instances of short Poetic forms of words. (43&.) 10. Give instances to show that Poetry prefers euphonious words. (43r.) 11. Mention some exaggerations of the Poetic Characteristics, giving any instances that you remember. (44.) 12. Mention some different styles of Poetry, and the characteristics of each. (45.) 13. What is the style of Milton's " Paradise Lost" ? Give an instance anp an exception. (46.) 14. What is grotesqueness ? What is bombast ? (47, 48.) 15. What is bathos ? Give an instance. (49.) 16. Criticize the style of Pope's " Odyssey," giving instances. (50.) 17. What is the Graceful Style ? Give instances, and illustrate by the correction in the later edition of " The Miller's Daughter." (51.) 18. What are the dangers of the Graceful Style? Illustrate by Thom- son's " Seasons." (52.) 19. What is the general style of the Elizabethan dramatists ? Give in- stances. Quote some passages in which the characteristics of this style appear to be carried to excess. What justification is in some cases possible ? (54, 55.) 20. Criticize the diction of Dryden. (54.) 21. When is the Simple Style in place ? What is its danger ? (06, 57.) CHAPTER II. 1. How does the diction of Prose differ from that of Poetry ? Why should it? (59.) 2. Show that impassioned prose may approximate to the (a) metre, (b) brevity, of Poetry. In what point does the best Prose of this kind keep itself distinct from Poetry? (60.) 3. Mention some writers who have not preserved the distinction referred to in the last question. (61.) QUESTIONS. 287 4. How has the authorized version of the Bible influenced our choice of words ? (Page 94.) 5. Criticize the style of Lamb. (61) 6. What is the best broad rule for writing English Prose ? (62.) 7. To what qualifications is this rule subject ? (63, 64, 65, 66.) CHAPTER III. ? 1. What technical metaphors are admissible, as a rule, in polite diction What technical metaphors are inadmissible, and treated as slang? (6&.) 2. What is the fault of fine icriting ? Whence does it arise ? (69.) 3. When are poetic quotations and periphrases admissible, and when not ? (70.) 4. Whence does tautology arise ? What is the remedy for tautology ? (71. ) 5. What different causes may give rise to obscurity ? (72.) 6. Distinguish between a long enumerative sentence and a long com- plicated sentence. WTiat is a heterogeneous sentence ? Wherein consists the difficulty of underst anding the latter ? (72.) 7. Show how Inversion, and the non-repetition of the Nominative, some- times produce obscurity. (Pages 114, 115.) 8. Show how (a) the Personal Pronouns and (b) the Relative Pronouns sometimes give rise to ambiguity. (Pages 116, 117.) 9. Show how (c) not, (d) any, (e) but, are sometimes ambiguously used. (Pages 118, 119.) 10. Show how (/) Adverbs, (g) Participles, (h) Infinitives sometimes cause ambiguity. (Pages 119, 120.) 11. Why must we bestow more pains on the arrangement of words in writing than in conversation ? (74.) 12. Describe the Rhetorical Period. What are the two great requisites of Rhetoric, and show how they lead to the Rhetorical Period ? (75.) CHAPTER IV. 1. What is a Simile? (77.) 2. What is a Metaphor? Why is Metaphor better suited than Simile lor Prose ? (78.) 3. Show, by instances, that implied Metaphor is the basis of a great part oi language. (80.) 4. Give definite rules for expanding a Metaphor. What is the fourth term in the proportion ? Give instances. (81.) 5. What is Personification ? Give instances. (82.) 288 QUESTIONS. 6. Distinguish between Personification and Personal Metaphor. (83.) 7. Show that Personification can be analysed. (85.) 8. Show the naturalness and convenience of Personal Metaphor. (86.) 9. Show the difficulty of distinguishing between Personification and Meta- phor. (87.) 10. Distinguish between Metaphor and Hyperbole. Give instances. (87.) 11. Distinguish between Metaphor and Confusions of Similarity. (88.) 12. Give rules for distinguishing between good and bad Metaphors. Illus- trate bv instances. (89.) THIRD PART. CHAPTER I. 1. When is Rhythm appropriate ? When is Metre ? (91, 92.) 2. Show that Shakspeare does not use Poetry and Prose at random. (93.) 3. Explain the origin of Didactic Poetry. (94.) 4. Show that there might be more than one basis for the distinction be- tween Prose and Poetry. What is the basis in English Poetry? (96.) 5. What is a Foot ? State, with instances, the different kinds of feet. (97.) 6. Distinguish between Accent and Emphasis. (99.) 7. Show that English Accent favours Disyllabic Metre ? (100.) 8. State clearly, with instances, the rules respecting the use of the unem- phatic Metrical Accent. Show that an unemphatic Metrical Accent is often followed by an emphatic non-accented syllable. Why is this? (101.) 9. What is the purpose served by unemphatic Metrical Accents ? (105.) 10. Show, by instances, that the Metrical Accent is not always equally emphatic. (106.) 11. Within what limits does the number of unaccented syllables in each foot vary. Mention some recognized variations. (107.) 12. Show, by examples, that the prevalent foot must sometimes determine whether Metre is disyllabic or trisyllabic ? (108.) 13. What is Rhyme ? Mention some faults in Rbvmin"-. (109, 110.) 14. What is the disadvantage of Double Rhyme ? When is it mostly used ? (111.) 15. What is the effect of Quantity on English Metre ? (112.) 10. What are " Slurred Syllables " ? Show that the Elizabethan pronun- ciation differed from ours. (114.) QUESTIONS. 289 17. What is the effect of the Pause in Metre ? Give some instances. (115 —121.) 18. What is Alliteration ? Give instances of artistic and also of excessive Alliteration; and show the influence exerted by early English Poetry in this respect. (122—128.) 19. Show that in the Initial Foot more license is allowed than in the other feet. What is the cause of this? (129.) CHAPTER II. 1. Show that some of Shakspeare's so-called Alexandrines are in reality couplets of three accents. (132.) 2. Show the effect of Coesura in the Iambic of four accents. (133.) 3. How does Milton use the Trochaic of four accents ? (134.) 4. Give instances of Elision. (137.) 5. In what cases can you have a Trochee in the five-accent Iambic line. (138.) 6. How does Blank Verse differ from Rhyming Verse ? (139.) 7. How does Rhyming Narrative differ from the Rhyming Couplet. (140.) 8. Describe (1) Shakspeare's Sonnet, (2) Milton's Sonnet. (141.) CHAPTER III. 1. What is the general effect of the Trisyllabic Metre ? (144.) 2. Show the difficulty of determining in all cases the Scansion of Tri- syllabic Metre. (145.) 3. What disadvantages attend the use of Trisyllabic Metre ? (100.) FOURTH PART. 1. How do scientific and non-scientific composition differ ? (151.) 2. Distinguish between Oratory and Didactic Composition. (154, 155.) 3. In what class of composition may Poetry generally be placed ? (152.) 4. What kind of argument is unsuited for oratory ? (154.) 5. Give an instance from Shakspeare of the difference between effective and ineffective oratory. (154d.) 6. Give instances of the successful and oi the unsuccessful use of the supernatural. (156, 157.) 7. What is meant by the unity of feeling in an imaginative work ? Give instances of the violation of it. (159.) 19 290 QUESTIONS. 8. Give examples of purely argumentative poems. How should these be classified? (161.) 9. In what styles of composition does argument principally occur, and how should the style of composition modify the handling of it ? (102.) 10. Give instances of faulty arrangement in historical narration. (105.) 11. How does a novel differ from a romance ? Give instances of each. (100.) 12. How may a play be neither a tragedy, nor a comedy? Give an instance of such a play. (100.) 13. What is the original meaning of the word idyll, and what is its meaning in usage ? (171.) 14. What principle is followed in constructing the plot of an epic poem ? Illustrate from the iEneid. (172.) QUESTIONS ON APPENDIX. 1. " All the world's a stage, And all the men and women merely players." As You Like It, ii. 7. 140. By what logical process does Jaques arrive at this conclusion? Give other instances of this process, e.g., the conclusion arrived at by Timon of Athens. (173,175.) 2. "If thou never wast at court, thou never sawest good manners ; if thou never sawest good manners, then thy manners must be wicked ; and wickedness is sin, and sin is damnation. Truly, shepherd, thou art in a parlous state." As You Like It, iii. 1. 40. Under what head does this error come ? Give another instance pre- senting greater difficulty. (180.) 3. " The pale-faced moon looks bloody on the earth. * ♦ * * These signs forerun the death or fall of kings." Richard II. ii. 4. 10. Explain this reasoning, and give other instances. (182.) 4. " When beggars die, there are no comets seen. The heavens themselves blaze forth the death of princes." Julius Ccesar, ii. 2, 30. Many beggars die when one great man dies ; whence then the belief QUESTIONS. 291 that comets are not seen when beggars die, but are seen when a great man dies ? Refer to a statement of Lord Bacon. (187.) 5. What are "the five Fallacies'-" ? (177—181.) 6. What is Induction ? What was the original meaning of the word ? Explain exactly the meaning of generalise. (175.) 7. Give instances of hasty generalization. (183, 184.) 8. What is meant by induction through enumeration ? (183.) 9. Why is experiment necessary to induction ? Show how experiment can prevent the error post hoc, ergo propter hoc. (186.) 10. It is said that induction is always, incomplete. But if we can observe the whole of a class, can we not attain a complete induction ? (184.) 11. Give instances of the misleading effects of prejudice. (182.) 12. What are the two senses in which the word Analogy has been used ? Which of them is correct ? (188, 189.) 13. In what sense is -the Argument from Analogy an argument, and in what sense is it not ? Give instances. (190.) 14. What is meant by Proposition, Logical Predicate, Middle Term, Minor Premise, Antecedent, Syllogism, Copula, and Deduction! (191.) 15. When can a Logical Proposition not be treated as implying that the subject is included in the Logical Predicate ? (196.) 16. IS T ot all rich men are happy. Some good men are rich. What can be deduced from these premises ? Illustrate by a diagram. (195.) 17. Express in diagrams the cases where a conclusion can be deduced from premises. (194.) 18. What is meant by " the quantification of the predicate " ? (197.) i9. What is meant by (1) a universal, (2) a particular proposition? (198.) 20. What is meant by a convertible proposition ? When can a universal proposition be converted ? What is the result of converting a universal affirmative proposition (not being a proposition of identity) ? (198.) 21. If this evidence were given by an eye-witness, we should be bound to believe it ; But it is not given by an eye-witness ; Therefore we are not bound to believe it. Discuss this reasoning. (199.) 22. Trial by jury is an essential part of the British constitution; Therefore trial by jury must be the best possible method of trial. Discuss this reasoning, and supply what is omitted. (200. ) 23. When the antecedent or the consequent of a proposition is denied, what follows ? Illustrate your answer by an example. (199.) 292 QUESTIONS. 24. Anything is excused by necessity. I am under a necessity to preserve my life, Therefore anything that I do to preserve my life must be excused. Discuss this. (201.) 25. Men are rational animals ; Thomas acts irrationally ; Therefore Thomas is not a man. Discuss this. (200, 180.) 26. Suppose that hereafter there were to be discovered an animal resembling man externally, and also endowed with reason, but destitute oi the moral sense, what two courses would be open with respect to the definition, " Man is a rational animal " ? (204. ) 27. What is meant by " Ignoratio Elenchi " ? Give an instance. (202.) 28. A palace is a building ; This is a small palace ; Therefore this is a small building. Discuss this. (201.) 29. What is meant by begging the question ? Give an instance. (203.) 30. What is meant by reasoning in a circle ? Give an instance. (203.) 31. Distinguish between Definition and Description. (205.) 32. On what does " mathematical certainty " depend ? (207.) 33. It is probable that he will come here to-day; It is probable that when he comes he will dine ; Therefore it is probable that he will dine here to-day. Comment on the conclusion, and show that there is a danger of being misled by the use of the word probable. (208.) Watson and HazelL Printers, London and Aylesbury. RECENTLY PUBLISHED. A SHAKESPEARIAN GRAMMAR.— An attempt to illustrate some of the differences between Elizabethan and Modern English. By the Rev. E. A. Abbott, M.A., Head Master of the City of London School. For the use of Schools. New and Enlarged Edition. Extra fcap. 8vo, 6s. Third Thousand. The principal object being to make a useful booh of reference for students, and especially for classes in schools, the Plays most commonly read have been indexed so fully, that, with the aid of a glossary and historical notes, the references will serve for a complete commentary. MACMILLAN AND CO., LONDON. LIVY. — Books I. — X. With Notes and Dissertations by J. R. Seeley, M.A., Professor of Modern History in the University of Cambridge. Vol. I. containing Book I. 8vo, cloth. Oxford. Printed at the Clarendon Press, and Published by MACMILLAN AND CO., LONDON, Publishers to the University. CHEAP SCHOOL BOOKS. It is proposed to publish a series of very cheap School Books, books containing from fifty to one hundred pages, in strong cloth binding, which will be sold at prices varying from Sixpence to One Shilling. School Books are seldom preserved for any length of time. They are exposed to many accidents, and, if they survive these in a presentable form, they often become obsolete before they reach the hands of another generation. At the same time they often contain much more than, as a matter of fact, can be made use of. Small books, sold at a low price, which would serve for a term, or a half-year, and would be read from beginning to end, would, it is thought, be found by parents to effect an economy in what is often a heavy expense. Schoolmasters, too, would be thus enabled to give a variety to the studies of their pupils, which is now frequently prohibited by considerations of cost. The following books of the series are just ready : — 1. OYID. Select passages ; with Notes and Introductions by the Rev. A. J. Church, M.A., Head Master of the Gram- mar School, Henley-on-Thames. 16mo, cloth, 6d. 2. HORACE. Select Odes ; with Notes and Introductions by the Rev. W. J. Brodribb, M.A., Rector of Wootton Rivers, and late Fellow of St. John's College, Cambridge. 16mo, cloth, 8d. 3. CAESAR. Selections from the Commentaries, including the British Expeditions. With Notes by the Rev. F. B. Butler, Assistant Master in Haileybury College. 16mo, cloth, 6d. 4. MILTON. Comus, Lycidas, L'Allegro, II Penseroso, and select Sonnets. With Notes and Introductions by the Rev. H. R. Huckin, M.A., Fourth Master in Merchant Taylor's School. 16mo, cloth, 8d. SEELEY, JACKSON, & HALLIDAY, 54, FLEET STREET. LONDON. MDCCCLXXI *>wvottw<*x • 6 V9fr vee coo o ... •.itumi iiiii mil mil m mi ill Hill ssaaoNODioxwaan i s W\v*l 'M:'') 1 1 1 1 IHHB