Fortune will still have her part in every victory, and
it is strange that one of the best poems should be written by a man
who has hardly written any other. And "Godiva" is a parable which
belongs to the same gospel. "Locksley Hall" and "the Two Voices" are
meditative poems, which were slowly written to be slowly read. "The
Talking Oak," though a little hurt by its wit and ingenuity, is
beautiful, and the most poetic of the volume. "Ulysses" belongs to a
high class of poetry, destined to be the highest, and to be more
cultivated in the next generation. "oEnone" was a sketch of the same
kind. One of the best specimens we have of the class is Wordsworth's
"Laodamia," of which no special merit it can possess equals the total
merit of having selected such a subject in such a spirit.
Next to the poetry the novels, which come to us in every ship
from England, have an importance increased by the immense extension
of their circulation through the new cheap press, which sends them to
so many willing thousands. So much novel reading ought not to leave
the readers quite unaffected, and undoubtedly gives some tinge of
romance to the daily life of young merchants and maidens.
Pages:
211
212
213
214
215
216
217
218
219
220
221
222
223
224
225
226
227
228
229
230
231
232
233
234
235