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Book Review, English 20th Century, Europe 18th Century, Europe 19th Century, History, My Ramblings, Social Commentary
Book Review: The Conservative Mind: From Burke to Eliot
The cornerstone of Kirk’s essay is that Edmund Burke (1729-1797) was the founder of Modern Conservatism. I have read two of Burke’s works, Speech on Conciliation with America (1775) and Reflections on the Revolution in France (1790). I found them both to be profound. Kirk takes up the conservative conversation starting with Burke and expounds upon it. He goes into depth explaining what he feels are the key points that Burke stressed and how these were continued in both the United Kingdom and the United States of America.
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Book Review: Wordsworth and Coleridge Lyrical Ballads 1798
Title: Wordsworth and Coleridge Lyrical Ballads 1798 Authors: William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge Editor: W. J. B. Owen, Professor of English McMaster University Published: Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1969. Pages-180. This was the first collection of poems that Wordsworth and Coleridge put out. It was released in 1798. I got this book from my local library because I am interested in finding out more about the Lake poets. Therefore, this was not a random pick out of the hat. I have some meaning for reading and discussing this work. This essay will cover a brief biographical sketch of the two poets and the editor, and next a discussion of the editor’s portion, and then finally my impression of the poems contained therein. William Wordsworth was born April 7, 1770 in Cockermouth, Cumberland, England and died April 23, 1850 in Grasmere, Westmorland, England.[1] His mother died when he was eight, and his father five years later.[2] Before the age of thirteen , his father had him memorize “large portions” of Spenser, Shakespeare, and Milton.[3] He attended St. John’s College, Cambridge, in which he exhibited mediocre academic progress, and instead of striving for honors and fellowship, he settled with a pass…
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Book Review: John Gay’s The Beggar’s Opera and Other Eighteenth-Century Plays
Title: John Gay’s The Beggar’s Opera and Other Eighteenth-Century Plays (Everyman’s Library 818 Poetry & Drama) Editor: John Hampden Published: London: J. M. Dent & Sons Ltd., 1962. Hardcover 408-pages. This book is a natural segue from the last book I read, Garrick and His Circle. Hampden has selected seven plays that he says were “chosen as representative of the most important forms of eighteenth- century drama.” In his introduction, he states there are better plays that were left out of this selection, but these were chosen to help the reader understand the transition and development of the stage during this period. The plays are presented in chronological order as they were released on the stage. The Prologue written by Dr. Samuel Johnson and spoken by David Garrick at the reopening of the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in 1747, is an excellent choice to open the presentation of the seven plays. I particularly love the line: “Ah! Let not Censure term our fate our choice; The stage but echoes back the publick voice; The drama’s laws, the drama’s patrons give, For we that live to please, must please to live.” In other words, we should not blame the actors and…
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Book Review: Garrick and His Circle
I would recommend it to someone who was already familiar with the time period and some of the major characters. I do not recommend it as a starting point to learn about Garrick or his circle, however, it is an excellent addendum to someone who has already started to learn about this period.
