CHAPTER SEVENTH The Poets

Section I.—The Domination of the Classical Spirit 3 Section II.—Alexander Pope.—His Education and Mode of Life 5 Section III.—Eloisa to Abelard.—The Rape of the Lock.—The Dunciad 10 Section IV.—Pope's Descriptive Talent.—His Didactic Poems 19 Section V.—The Poets Prior, Gay, and Thomson 28 Section VI.—The Beginnings of the Modern Age 34

CHAPTER FIRST Ideas and Productions

Section I.—Rise of Democracy 43 Section II.—Robert Burns 48 Section III.—Conservative rule in England.—Cowper's Poetry 65 Section IV.—The Romantic School 72 Section V.—Philosophy Enters into Literature.—Wordsworth.—Shelley 87

CHAPTER SECOND Lord Byron

Section I.—His Life and Character 102 Section II.—The Style of Byron's Poetry 110 Section III.—Byron's Short Poems 117 Section IV.—Manfred 125 Section V.—What Byron's Contemporaries Thought of Him.—His Morals 134 Section VI.—The Malady of the Age 148

Part I.—The Past

Section I.—The Saxon Invasion—The Norman Conquest 151 Section II.—Formative Periods 153 Section III.—The Broadening of Ideas 157

Part II.—The Present

Section I.—Effects of the Saxon Invasion and the Norman Conquest 159 Section II.—English Commerce and Industry 165 Section III.—Agriculture 170 Section IV.—English Society.—Philosophy.—Religion 175 Section V.—What Forces Have Produced the Present Civilization 180

BOOK V.—MODERN AUTHORS

Introductory Note 185

CHAPTER FIRST

The Novel.—Dickens 187

Part I.—The Author

Section I.—Importance of the Imaginative Faculty 189 Section II.—Boldness of Dickens's Imagination 189 Section III.—His Trivialities.—His Minuteness 197 Section IV.—His Emotions.—His Pathos.—His Humor 200

Part II.—The Public

Section I.—The Morality of English Novels 206

Part III.—The Characters

Section I.—Dickens's Love for Natural Characters 212 Section II.—The Hypocrite.—The Positive Man.—The Proud Man 213 Section III.—Children 218 Section IV.—The Ideal Man 221