placed in improper connections, disfigured by invidious comments, or misrepresented in the words of the Critic by a flight change of the Original conftruction, be fhewn in a point of view, not only irrational, but even abfurd and ridiculous. From the very nature of the Art likewife it happens, that observations of this last kind will have more feeming force, where an high degree of poetic beauty fubfifts, than where there is a moderate or a small proportion of it. Thus a man, actuated by envy or malevolence, will find it much easier to misrepresent the fublime beauties of the Iliad, than the plain good sense of the Effay on Criticism.

LET us try an example from each:-Pope fays,

'Tis with our judgment as our watches, none
Goes just aright, yet each believes his own.
In Poets, as true Genius is but rare,

True tafte as feldom is the Critic's fhare.

It is plain that our Critic must be wholly at a lofs with fuch a paffage as this. The fentiment is too obviously juft to be difputed; and the language too fimple to be misrepresented.—Let us next fee what he would make of the nobleft paffage in the most perfect of human productions; I mean Homer's celebrated defcription of the Omnipotent,

Omnipotent, with the thrones of Heaven trembling at his nod, and all Olympus fhaking beneath his feet!

It is evident, that glorious as this defcription is, a perfon, who would turn the paffage into ridicule without quoting it, needed only tell his readers that this Bard made Neptune officiate as Coachman and Hoftler to Father Jupiter; infift upon the abfurdity of placing that Being, who pervades all Nature, like one of the reptiles of the duft, upon a throne of gold; and make fome quaint remarks on the Heavens fhaking beneath this Perfonage at the inftant of his feating himself,

Εζετο, τω δε υπο ποσσι, &c.

and an air of burlesque will immediately be thrown on the whole. In short, by fuch a method as this, the greatest Genius that ever existed, may be made to speak almost any abfurdity whatever. So nearly allied is the height of human excellence to faults that are productive of contempt and of ridicule!

IN Criticism, as in human life, it is no doubt a much cafier task to detect weakness, than to expose malevo

a See the Iliad, book viii. The Reader, who cannot confult the Original, will find the fpirit of it nobly kept up in the admirable translation.

lence.

lence. The latter of thefe has many refources, by whofe aid it may be skreened from obfervation; whereas the former commonly exposeth itself. If, however, there is any certain method by which malignity may be detected upon every occafion, it is, by obferving whether a Critic gives the examples by which his obfervations are fuppofed to be confirmed, in the words of the Author, or in his own. This rule will hold equally either with regard to Panegyric or Çensure. A man of sense and discernment, however naturally inclined either to cenfure a good work, or to favour a bad one, will find it impoffible to hold his purpose, if he is obliged in proof of every remark to quote, not an Original of his own creation, nor detached half-fentences filled up by himself, but clear examples directly to the point; and these referred to as frequently as his own theory requires to be illuftrated.

IT is true indeed that after all, our critical Observer may even mislead a difcerning Reader, by felecting the moft frivolous part of a work intrinfically excellent, or the happiest stroke of a performance otherwise trifling or indifferent. But a conduct of this kind, however artfully carried on, will at last be eafily detected, when such a reader comes from perufing or hearing the criticisms to examine the originals. The fame obferva

tion

Omnipotent, with the thrones of F his nod, and all Olympus fhaking

ΖΕΥΣ δε ΠΑΤ

It is evident, that glorious as th
who would turn the paffage
ting it, needed only tell his
Neptune officiate as Co
ther Jupiter; infist upon
Being, who pervades al1
of the duft, upon a ↑
quaint remarks on t
Perfonage at the inf

and an air of br

the whole. I

greatest Geni almoft any 2 height of h

of contem

IN C cafier +

a Sec

ure or pane

Wica Critic

........., ▸ reader may be imIn the former, it is his

When a face withrode, the defect may be Orginal; or when the defor

verfally acknowledged, we fort, without examining the Canous features are exposed se

4

Mewn in their original union whether good or bad, is dashed reign is plainly fubftituted in its comitances fufpicion is immediately ence is produced upon which a fenher form a rational estimate, or prodie decifion.

will

THESE

ations on the Art of Criticism, ew to any particular Authors n here making a Collection of general been honoured by the I mean to exercise a right common essful Author, that of laying down the the justice of his claim to this approbaany time be decided. In order likewife to if poffible, the poffeffion of so agreeable an I have not only enlarged the first Volume with ...l poetical Pieces never before published, but, in the critique on Lyric Poetry, I have made observations on fome valuable fragments of antiquity, which had not fallen into my hands when that Effay was first wrote. In the fecond Volume, befides feveral corrections made throughout in the Poem intitled Providence, I have improved the argument, particularly in the fecond book, where it was defective, by entering into a detail of some length.—Juftice calls upon me to acknowledge, that this improvement (if it fhall be deemed fuch) as well as the additions made to the Eifay, were originally fuggested to me by the Critiques on each of these published in the Monthly Review. The Gentlemen concerned in that publication have done me a real favour, by pointing out fuch mistakes or omiffions as I could rectify; and (as far as my own judgment concurred with their animad

verions)