The rise of the ballad in the eighteenth century . ation. iind again, These poems are pre-sented, not as labours of art, biit as effucions of nature,showing the first efforts of ancient genius, and exhibiting the customs and opinions of remote ages. llo active or comprehensive mind can forbear some attention tothe reliques of anticiuity. It is prompted by naturalcuriosity to survey the progress of life and manners, andto inquire by what gradations barbarity v/as civilized, grossness refined and ignorance instructed. By such bonds was the infancy of genius nurtured and advanced, bysuch were the
The rise of the ballad in the eighteenth century . ation. iind again, These poems are pre-sented, not as labours of art, biit as effucions of nature,showing the first efforts of ancient genius, and exhibiting the customs and opinions of remote ages. llo active or comprehensive mind can forbear some attention tothe reliques of anticiuity. It is prompted by naturalcuriosity to survey the progress of life and manners, andto inquire by what gradations barbarity v/as civilized, grossness refined and ignorance instructed. By such bonds was the infancy of genius nurtured and advanced, bysuch were the minds of unlettered warriors softened andenlarged, by such was the memory of illustrious actionspreserved and propagated. We feel that ho has taken rather an apologeticattitude, but we can understand it, for he was doubtful ofthe reception the v;ork was likely to obtain, thus callingthe contents of his volumes the barbarous productions ofunpolished ages, He spared no pains to illustrate hispoetry by dissertations upon ancient minstrels, and also. by additional verses when he felt they added to the interestin the poem. He baoked his own opinion of the interest inthe ballads by helievin,^ in the interest of Dr. Johnsonand his friends. But as Wordsworth says, The compilationwas ill suited to the then existing taste of oity society;and Dr. Johnson, v/ith the little senate to which he ^avelaws, was not sparing in his exertions to make it an ohjectof ridicule. The critic triumphed, the legendary writersv/ere undeservedly disregarded, and as deservedly theirill imitated models sank in this country into temporaryneglect.^ Dr. Johnson made parodies of the ballad style,and Warhurton sneered at the compiler as the man whowrote ahout the Chinese. On the other hand, the impetus given to the -collection of old ballads is shovm in the rapid volumes of the same character. Nearly all of these weredevoted to the puDlication of Scottish ballads 1769, David Herd, who
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1910, booksubjecttheses, bookyear1911
