A Reader of Tafte may easily obferve, that tho' Shakespear, almoft in every Scene of his hiftorical Plays, commits the groffeft Offences against Chronology, Hiftory, and Ancient Politicks; yet This was not thro' Ignorance, as is generally fuppofed, but thro' the too powerful Blaze of his Imagination; which, when once raifed, made all acquired Knowledge vanifh and disappear before it. But this Licence in him, as I have faid, muft not be imputed to Ignorance: fince as often we may find him, when Occafion ferves, reafoning up to the Truth of Hiftory; and throwing out Sentiments as juftly adapted to the Circumstances of his Subject, as to the Dignity of his Characters, or Dictates of Nature in general. Then to come to his Knowledge of the Latin Tongue, 'tis certain, there is a furprifing Effufion of Latin Words made English, far more than in any one Englifh Author I have feen; but we must be cautious to imagine, this was of his own doing. For the English Tongue, in his Age, began extremely to fuffer by an inundation of Latin: And this, to be fure, was occafion'd by the Pedantry of those two Monarchs, Elizabeth and James, Both great Latinifts. For it is not to be wonder'd at, if both the Court and Schools, equal Flatterers of Power, fhould adapt themselves to the Royal Tafte. But now I am touching on the Queftion, (which has been fo frequently agitated, yet fo entirely undecided) of his Learning and Acquaintance with the Languages; an additional Word or two naturally falls in here upon the Genius of our Author, as compared with that of fobnfon his Contemporary. They are confeffedly the greatest Writers our Nation could ever boaft of in the Drama. The firft, we fay, owed all to his prodigious natural Genius; and the other a great deal to his Art and Learning. This, if attended to, will explain a very remarkable Appearance in their Writings. Befides thofe wonderful Masterpieces of Art and Genius, which each has given us; They are the Authors of other Works very unworthy of them: But with this Difference; that in Johnson's bad Pieces we don't discover one fingle Trace of the Author of the Fox and Alchymift: but in the wild extravagant Notes of Shakespear, you every now and then encounter Strains that recognize the divine Compofer. This Difference may be thus accounted for. Johnson, as we faid before, owing all his Excellence to his Art, by which he fometimes ftrain'd himfelf to an uncommon Pitch, when at other times he unbent and play'd with his Subject, having nothing then to fupport him, it is no wonder he wrote fo far beneath himfelf. But Shakeffear, indebted more largely to Nature, than the Other to acquired Talents, in his moft negligent Hours could never fo totally divest himself of his Genius, but that it would frequently break out with aftonishing Force and Splendor. As I have never propos'd to dilate farther on the Character of my Author, than was neceffary to explain the Nature and Ufe of this Edition, I fhall pro. ceed to confider him as a Genius in Poffeffion of an everlasting Name. And how great that Merit must be, which could gain it againft all the Disadvantages of the horrid Condition in which he has hitherto appear'd! Had Homer, or any other admir'd Author, firft ftarted into Publick fo maim'd and deform'd, we cannot determine whether they had not funk for ever under the Ignominy of fuch an ill Appearance. The mangled Condition of Shakespear has been acknowledg'd by Mr. Rowe, who publifh'd him indeed, but neither corrected his Text, nor collated the old Copies. This Gentleman had Abilities, and fufficient Knowledge of his Author, had but his Industry been equal to his Talents. The fame mangled Condition has been acknowledg'd too by Mr. Pope, who publish'd him likewife, pretended to have collated the old Copies, and yet feldom has corrected the Text but to its In jury. I congratulate with the Manes of our Poet, that this Gentleman has been fparing in indulging his private Senfe, as he phrafes it; for He, who tampers with an Author, whom he does not understand, must do it at the Expence of his Subject. I have made it evident throughout my Remarks, that he has frequently inflicted a Wound where he intended a Cure. He has acted with regard to our Author, as an Editor, whom LIPSIUS mentions, did with regard to MARTIAL; Inventus eft nefcio quis Popa, qui non vitia ejus, fed ipfum excidit. He has attack'd him like an unhandy Slaughterman; and not lopp'd off the Errors, but the Poet. They When this is found to be the Fact, how abfurd muft appear the Praises of such an Editor? It seems a moot Point, whether Mr. Pope has done moft Injury to Shakespear as his Editor and Encomiaft; or Mr. Rymer done him Service as his Rival and Cenfurer. have Both fhewn themselves in an equal Impuiffance of fufpecting, or amending, the corrupted Paffages: and tho' it be neither Prudence to cenfure, or commend, what one does not underftand; yet if a man muft do one when he plays the Critick, the latter is the more ridiculous Office: And by That Shakespear fuffers moft. For the natural Veneration, which we have for him, makes us apt to fwallow whatever is given us as his, and fet off with Encomiums; and hence we quit all Sufpicions of Depravity: On the contrary, the Cenfure of fo divine an Author fets us upon his Defence; and this produces an exact Scrutiny and Examination, which ends in finding out and difcriminating the true from the fpurious. It is not with any fecret Pleafure, that I fo frequently animadvert on Mr. Pope as a Critick; but there are Provocations, which a Man can never quite forget. His Libels have been thrown out with fo much Inveteracy, that, not to difpute whether they fhould come from a Chriftian, they leave it a Question whether they could could come from a Man. I should be loth to doubt, as Quintus Serenus did in a like Cafe, Sive bomo, feu fimilis turpiffima beftia nobis, The Indignation, perhaps, for being reprefented a Blockbead, may be as ftrong in us as it is in the Ladies for a Reflexion on their Beauties. It is certain, I am indebted to Him for fome flagrant Civilities; and I fhall willingly devote a Part of my Life to the honeft Endeavour of quitting Scores: with this Exception however, that I will not return thofe Civilities in his peculiar Strain, but confine myself, at least, to the Limits of common Decency. I fhall ever think it better to want Wit, than to want Humanity: and impartial Pofterity may, perhaps, be of my Opinion. But, to return to my Subject; which now calls upon me to inquire into thofe Causes, to which the Depravations of my Author originally may be affign'd. We are to confider him as a Writer, of whom no authentic Manufcript was left extant; as a Writer, whofe Pieces were difperfedly perform'd on the feveral Stages then in Being. And it was the Cuftom of thofe Days for the Poets to take a Price of the Players for the Pieces They from time to time furnifh'd; and thereupon it was fuppos'd, they had no farther Right to print them without the Confent of the Players. As it was the Interest of the Companies to keep their Plays unpublish'd, when any one fucceeded, there was a Contest betwixt the Curiofity of the Town, who demanded to fee it in Print, and the Policy of the Stagers, who wish'd to fecrete it within their own Walls. Hence, many Pieces were taken down in Short-hand, and imperfectly copied by Ear, from a Reprefentation: Others were printed from piece-meal Parts furreptitiously obtain'd from the Theatres, uncorrect, and without the Poet's Knowledge. To fome of thefe Caufes we owe the Train of Blemishes, that deform thofe Pieces which ftole fingly into the World in our Author's Life-time. There are still other Reasons, which may be fuppos'd to have affected the whole Set. When the Players took upon them to publish his Works intire, every Theatre was ranfack'd to fupply the Copy; and Parts collected, which had gone thro' as many Changes as Performers, either from Mutilations or Additions made to them. Hence we derive many Chafms and Incoherences in the Senfe and Matter. Scenes were frequently tranfpofed, and fhuffled out of their true Place, to humour the Caprice, or fuppos'd Convenience, of fome particular Actor. Hence much Confusion and Impropriety has attended, and embarras'd the Business and rable. To thefe obvious Caufes of Corruption it must be added, that our Author has lain under the Difadvantage of having his Errors propagated and multiplied by Time: becaufe, for near a Century, his Works were publish'd from the faulty Copies, without the Affiftance of any intelligent Editor: which has been the Cafe likewife of many a Claffic Writer. The Nature of any Diftemper once found has generally been the immediate Step to a Cure. ShakeSpear's Cafe has in a great Measure refembled That of a corrupt Claffic; and, confequently, the Method of Cure was likewife to bear a Refemblance. By what Means, and with what Succefs, this Cure has been effected on ancient Writers, is too well known, and needs no formal Illuftration. The Reputation, confequent on Tafks of that Nature, invited me to attempt the Method here; with this view, the Hopes of restoring to the Publick their greatest Poet in his original Purity after having fo long lain in a Condition that was a Disgrace to common Senfe. To this end I have ventur'd on a Labour, that is the first Affay of the kind on any modern Author whatfoever. For the late Edition of Milton by the Learned Dr. Bentley is, in the main, a Performance of another Species. |