affume the dignity of a writer, by defcriptions copied from defcriptions, by imitations borrowed from imitations, by traditional imagery, and hereditary fimilies, by readinefs of rhyme, and volubility of fyllable.

In perufing the works of this race of authors, the mind is exercifed either by recollection or inquiry either fomething already learned is to be retrieved, or fomething new is to be examined. If their greatness feldom elevates, their acuteness often furprises; if the imagination is not always gratified, at least the powers of reflection and comparifon are employed; and in the mafs of materials which ingenious abfurdity has thrown together, genuine wit and ufeful knowledge may be fometimes found, buried perhaps in groffness of expreffion, but ufeful to those who know their value; and fuch as, when they are expanded to perfpicuity, and polifhed to elegance, may give luftre to works which have more propriety, though lefs copioufnefs of fentiment.

This kind of writing, which was, I believe, borrowed from Marino and his followers, had been recommended by the example of Donne, a man of very extenfive and various knowledge, and by Jonfon, whofe manner refembled that of Donne more in the ruggedness of his lines than in the caft of his fentiments.

When their reputation was high, they had undoubtedly more imitators, than time has left behind. Their immediate fucceffors, of whom any remembrance can be faid to remain, were Suckling,

Waller, Denham, Cowley, Cleveland, and Milton. Denham and Waller fought another way to fame, by improving the harmony of our numbers. Milton tried the metaphyfick ftile only in his lines upon Hobfon the Carrier. Cowley adopted it, and excelled his predeceffors, having as much fentiment, and more mufick. Suckling neither improved verfification, nor abounded in conceits. The fashionable ftile remained chiefly with Cowley; Suckling could not reach it, and Milton difdained it.

Strictures on Paradife Loft, and Paradife Regained; from the Life of Milton. By the fame.

Br

Y the general confent of criticks, the first praise of genius is due to the writer of an

epick poem, as it requires an affemblage of all the powers which are fingly fufficient for other compofitions. Poetry is the art of uniting pleasure with truth, by calling imagination to the help of reafon. Epick poetry undertakes to teach the most important truths by the moft pleafing precepts, and therefore relates fome great event in the most affecting manner. Hiftory muft fupply the writer with the rudiments of narration, which he muft improve and exalt by a nobler art, ani-. mate by dramatick energy, and diverfify by retrofpection and anticipation; morality muft teach him the exact bounds, and different fhades, of vice and virtue ;' from policy, and the practice of

life, he has to learn the discriminations of character, and the tendency of the paffions, either fingle or combined; and phyfiology muft fupply him with illuftrations and image. To put thefe materials to poetical ufe, is required an imagination capable of painting nature, and realizing fiction. Nor is he yet a poet till he has attained the whole extenfion of his language, diftinguished all the delicacies of phrafe, and all the colours of words, and learned to adjuft their different founds to all the varieties of metrical modulation.

Boffu is of opinion that the poet's firft work is to find a moral, which his fable is afterwards to illuftrate and establish. This feems to have been the procefs only of Milton; the moral of other poems is incidental and confequent; in Milton's only it is effential and intrinfick. His purpose was the most ufeful and the moft arduous; to indicate the ways of God to man; to fhew the reasonableness of religion, and the neceffity of obedience to the Divine Law.

To convey this moral there must be a fable, a narration artfully conftructed, fo as to excite curiofity, and furprife expectation. In this part of his work, Milton must be confeffed to have equalled every other poet. He has involved in his account of the Fall of Man the events which preceded, and thofe that were to follow it: he has interwoven the whole fyftem of theology with fuch propriety, that every part appears to be neceffary; and fcarcely any recital is wifhed fhorter for the fake of quickening the progrefs of the main action.

The fubject of an epick poem is naturally an event of great importance. That of Milton is not the deftruction of a city, the conduct of a colony, or the foundation of an empire. His fubject is the fate of worlds, the revolutions of heaven and of earth; rebellion against the Supreme King, raised by the higheft order of created beings; the overthrow of their hoft, and the punishment of their crime; the creation of a new race of reafonable creatures; their original happinefs and innocence, their forfeiture of immortality, and their restoration to hope and peace.

Great events can be haftened or retarded only by perfons of elevated dignity. Before the greatnefs displayed in Milton's poem, all other greatnefs fhrinks away. The weakest of his agents are the higheft and nobleft of human beings, the original parents of mankind; with whofe actions the elements confented; on whofe rectitude, or deviation of will, depended the state of terreftrial nature, and the condition of all the future inhabitants of the globe.

Of the other agents in the poem, the chief are fuch as it is irreverence to name on flight occafions. The rest were lower powers;

of which the least could wield Thofe elements, and arm him with the Of all their regions.

force

can examine them, or human imagination represent them, is the tafk which this mighty poet has undertaken and performed.

In the examination of epick poems, much fpeculation is commonly employed upon the charac ters. The characters in the Paradife Loft, which admit of examination, are those of angels and of man; of angels good and evil; of man in his innocent and finful ftate.

Among the angels, the virtue of Raphael is mild and placid, of eafy condefcenfion and free communication; that of Michael is regal and lofty, and, as may feem, attentive to the dignity of his own nature. Abdiel and Gabriel appear occafionally, and act as every incident requires; the folitary fdelity of Abdiel is very amiably painted.

Of the evil angels the characters are more diverfified. To Satan, as Addifon obferves, fuch fentiments are given as fuit the most exalted and most depraved being. Milton has been cenfured, by Clark, for the impiety which fometimes breaks from Satan's mouth. For there are thoughts, as he justly remarks, which no obfervation of character can justify, because no good man would willingly permit them to pafs, however tranfiently, through his own mind. To make Satan fpeak as a rebel, without any fuch expreffions as might taint the reader's imagination, was indeed one of the great difficulties in Milton's undertaking, and I cannot but think that he has extricated himfelf with great happiness. There is in Satan's fpeeches little that

can give pain to a pious ear. The language of rebellion cannot be the fame with that of obedience. The malignity of Satan foams in haughtiness and obftinacy; but his expreffions are commonly general, and no otherwise offenfive than as they are wicked.

The other chiefs of the celestial rebellion are very judiciously dif criminated in the first and fecond books; and the ferocious character of Moloch appears, both in the battle and the council, with exact confiftency.

To Adam and to Eve are given, during their innocence, fuch fentiments as innocence can generate and utter. Their love is pure benevolence and mutual veneration; their repafts are without luxury, and their diligence without toil. Their addreffes to their Maker have little more than the voice

of admiration and gratitude. Fruition left them nothing to ask, and Innocence left them nothing to fear.

But with guilt enter diftrust and difcord, mutual accufation, and ftubborn felf-defence; they regard each other with alienated minds, and dread their Creator as the avenger of their tranfgreffion. At laft they feek fhelter in his mercy, foften to repentance, and melt in fupplication. Both before and after the fall, the fuperiority of Adam is diligently fuftained.

Of the probable and the marvellous, two parts of a vulgar epick poem, which immerge the critick in deep confideration, the Paradife Loft requires little to be faid.. It contains the hiftory of a miracle, of Creation and Redemption;

it

it difplays the power and the mercy of the Supreme Being; the probable therefore is marvellous, and the marvellous is probable. The fubftance of the narrative is truth; and as truth allows no choice, it is, like neceffity, fuperior to rule. To the accidental or adventitious parts, as to every thing human, fome flight exceptions may be made. But the main fabrick is immovably fupported.

It is july remarked by Addifon, that this poem has, by the nature of its fubject, the advantage above all others, that it is univerfally and perpetually interefting. All mankind will, through all ages, bear the fame relation to Adam and to Eve, and muft partake of that good and evil which extend to themselves.

Of the machinery, fo called from Θεὸς ὰ τὸ μηχανῆς, by which is meant the occafional interpofition of fupernatural power, another fertile topick of critical remarks, here is no room to fpeak, because every thing is done under the immediate and visible direction of heaven; but the rule is fo far obferved, that no part of the action could have been accomplished by any other means.

Of episodes, I think there are only two, contained in Raphael's relation of the war in heaven, and Michael's prophetick account of the changes to happen in this world. Both are clofely connected with the great action; one was neceffary to Adam as a warning, the other as a confolation.

To the compleatnefs or integrity of the defign nothing can be ob

jected; it has diftinctly and clearly what Ariftotle requires, a beginning, a middle, and an end. There is perhaps no poem, of the fame length, from which fo little can be taken without apparent mutilation. Here are no funeral games, nor is there any long defcription of a fhield. The short digreffions at the beginning of the third, feventh, and ninth books, might doubtlefs be fpared; but fuperfluities fo beautiful, who would take away? or who does not wish that the author of the Iliad had gratified fucceeding ages with a little knowledge of himfelf? Perhaps no paffages are more frequently or more attentively read than thofe extrinfick paragraphs; and, fince the end of poetry is pleasure, that cannot be unpoetical with with which all are pleafed.

The queftions, whether the action of the poem be strictly one, whether the poem can be properly termed heroick, and who is the hero, are raised by fuch readers as draw their principles of judgment rather from books than from reason. Milton, though he intituled Paradife Loft only a poem, yet calls it himself heroick fong. Dryden, petulantly and indecently, denies the heroifm of Adam, becaufe he was overcome; but there is no reason why the hero fhould not be unfortunate, except established practice, fince fuccefs and virtue do not go neceffarily together. Cato is the hero of Lucap; but Lucan's authority will not be fuffered by Quintilian to decide. However, if fuccefs be neceffary, Adam's deceiver was at laft crushed; Adam was restored

fore may fecurely resume his human rank.

After the scheme and fabrick of the poem, must be confidered its component parts, the fentiments and the diction.

The fentiments, as expreffive, of manners, or appropriated to characters, are, for the greater part, unexceptionably juft.

Splendid paffages, containing leffons of morality, or precepts of prudence, occur feldom. Such is the original formation of this poem, that, as it admits no human manners till the fall, it can give little affiftance to human conduct. Its end is to raise the thoughts above fublunary cares or pleafures. Yet, the praife of that fortitude, with which Abdiel maintained his fingularity of virtue against the scorn of multitudes, may be accommodated to all times; and Raphael's reproof of Adam's curiofity after the planetary motions, with the answer returned by Adam, may be confidently oppofed to any rule of life which any poet has delivered.

The thoughts which are occafionally called forth in the progrefs, are fuch as could only be produced by an imagination in the highest degree fervid and active, to which materials were fupplied by inceffant ftudy and unlimited curiofity. The heat of Milton's mind might be faid to fublimate his learning, to throw off into his work the spirit of fcience, unmingled with its groffer parts.

He had confidered creation in its whole extent, and his defcriptions are therefore learned. He

VOL. XXII.

He feems to have been well acquainted with his own genius, and to know what it was that nature had bestowed upon him more bountifully than upon others; the power of difplaying the vaft, illuminating the fplendid, enforcing the awful, darkening the gloomy, and aggravating the dreadful: he therefore chose a fubject on which too much could not be faid, on which he might tire his fancy without the cenfure of extravagance.

The appearances of nature, and the occurrences of life, did not fatiate his appetite of greatness. To paint things as they are, requires a minute attention, and employs the memory rather than the fancy. Milton's delight was to fport in the wide regions of poffibility; reality was a fcene too narrow for his mind. He fent his faculties out upon difcovery, into worlds where only imagination can travel, and delighted to form new modes of exiftence, and furnish fentiment and action to fuperior beings, to trace the counfels of hell, or accompany the choirs of heaven.

But he could not be always in other worlds: he muft fometimes

revific