1000000030

e o

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Thu all the \Vorl" lhall be io love lVith Night,

Aod pay 00 1V0rnlip to Ihe

g~fllh

fuo.

R?I!/Co

Q/J.I

J:dir f,

0(/

But it \ViII he a bctler illullratino of the prcfent heaJ,

lo gi"e exa:nples wherc

COl1lp~1

ifnos

~rc

impropedy io·

troduced. Similes are OOt the I,ogunge of a mao io his

ordioary

lI~te

of miod, difpmhiog his Jaily aod

tJfu~ 1

",ork : for that reafoo, the followin¡: fpecch of a gardenel'

to his

ferv~ot,

is extremely impr.opcr :

Go bind thou up yoo dangliog

~pricocks,

Which, like uorul y children, make their lire

Stoop with opprellion of thei r prodig:d weight :

Give fome fuppllrtaoce to the beoding twigs.

Go thou, aod, like ao executiooer,

Cut off the heads of too.fall.growing fprays,

That look too lofty io ou r commoowea!th :

AII

mull.be

even in our goveroment.

Richard

11.

a{}

3·

fe .

The fenility

Shakefpeal 's veio bettays him fre o

que~ly

into' this error.

Rooted grief, deep aogui!h, lerror, remorfe, dcfpair,

lod

.JI

the feme difpiritiog pallioos,

~re

declared eoe–

mies, perhaps oot to figurad ve laoguage io general, but

uodoubtedly to the pom p aoJ folcmoity of colllp..rifoo.

Upoo this accouot, ¡he fimile prooouoced by young Rut–

laod, uoder terror of death from ao ioveterate eoem)', aod

prayiog mercy, is uooatural :

So look! Ihe peot-up lioo o'er the wretch

That trembles uoder his de.ouriog paws ;

Aod fo he walks iofultiog o'er !Jis prey,

1I0d fo he comes 10 reod his limbs afuoder.

Ah, geode Clifford, kili me with thy I¡"ord,

lIod not with fuch a cruel Ihreat'oiog look.

r¡,ird parf HmrJ

VI.

a{}

fc :

A mao fpeot aod difpirited after lofiog

batde, is

001

Mpofed 10 hcighteo or iHullrare his dtfcourfe by

fi–

miles.

forA.

With this we charg'd agaio; bUI out! alas,

We bodg'd agaio; as

have feeo a fwao

With boodefs labour fwim agaiol! the tide,

And fpeod her

lI~eogth

lVith over.matchiog waves.

Ah! hark, Ihe fatal foJlowers do purfue;

Aod

am faiot aod caooot fly their fury.

The fands are oumber'd that make up my life

Here mun lllay, aod here my life mu{l 'cod.

'fhird , arf H<nrJ

V!.

a{}

J .

le.

SimilC! thus uofeafooably iotroduced, are fioely ridi-

culed io the

R,h,arfa f.

"Da)'u.

NolV here /he mull make a fim ile.

SmÍlh.

Where's the n,cefficy of that, MrBayes?

BaJO,

Becaufefile s furprized; th'.t's a geoeral

.. rule; you mull ever make a Gmile when you are

.. fnrprized; 'tis a oew way

writiog."

A comparifoo is not always fauldefs eveo where it is

properly ¡otroduced. A comporilon, like other human

produélions, may faII !hon of its eod; of which defetl:

toflances are OOt rare eveo amoog good IVriters: aod to

complm lhe prefent fubjeé!, it wiII be oecelfary to make

fO',ne ubCcrvauoos upoo [uch faulty COOlparilons. No–

tlung 'ao be more er(ooeouS thao to ionitute

com–

parifoo too faiot: a diHaot

refembl~oce

or cootrall fa-

VOL.U. No. 40.

tigues Ihe miod lVith its obfcurity, iollead of ame–

fing it; and teous not lO fu ffi

any ooe eod of a com–

parifolt. The followiog fimih fcem lO labour uoder this

defeét.

K. I/ich.

Give me the crown.- Here, coufio,

feize the crolVO,

Here, 00 this fide, my hand; 00 that fide, thine.

NolV is this goldeo crolVO like a deep well,

Tlm o\Vcs t\Vo buckets, filliog ooe another;

Tile emptier ever dancing in the air,

The other dowo, uofeeo aod full of water;

That hucket Jowo, aod full

tears, am

Drinkiog my griefs, whilll you mouol up 00 high.

Richard

a{} 4·/e. 3,

K. Johll.

Oh! coufio, Iholl art come to fet mine

e~e

The tackle ofmy hean is crack'd aod burot:

Aod all the !hrouds wherewith Oly life

fl~ould

fail,

Are turned to ooe thread, ooe linle hair :

hem hath ooe poor Ilring to lIay Il by,

Which holds but till thy O(IVS be uttered.

Killg John, a{J

j .

fe-

tOo

f ort

My uodes both are naio in refcuing me :

Aod

~Il

my followers to lhe eager foe

Turo back, aod

like Ihips before Ihe wind,

Or lambs purfu'd by huoger.flan·cd 1V0lves.

7¡'¡" ,1

p.rl

P.,nrJ

V!.

a{}

l .

fc .

The latter of the 1100 fim ilies is good: the ¡ormer, be–

caufe of the

faiot~efs

of the relembl, oce, produces 00

gond effeét, aod cruuds the oarration IVlth aD ufdcli i–

magc.

lo ao epic poem, or io aoy elevated Cubjeét,

wtjter

ought to avoid raiGng a fimile upoo a low image, which

oever fails to briog down the priocipal fubjeét.

In.ge

–

neral, it is a rule, that a grand objcét ought oever to

be reCemblrd to one that is diminutive, however deli–

cate the refemblaoce may be: ror it is the peculiar cha–

raéter of a grand objeét to

the atteotioo, aod fweU

Ihe mind; in which {late, it is difagreeable to cootraét

the miod lO a mioute objeé!, however elegaot. The

refembliog an objeét to one that is greater, has, on the

contrary, a good effea, by raifiog or

fwelli~g

lhe Oliod :

for ooe paITes \Vith fatisf,étioo froOl a fmaH to

great ob–

jeét; but caoool be dralVo dowo, withoUl relutl:ance,

from great tO fmall. Heoce Ihe followiog fimiles are

faulty.

Meaowhile the

trOOPS

beneath Palroclus' care,

Iovade the Trojans, aod commeoce the wac.

wafp~,

provok'd by children in their play,

1'our from their maofioos by the broad higblvay,

lo fwarms Ihe guiltlefs traveller eogage,

Whet all their flings, aod call fonh aU Iheir

ragc;

AU rife in arms, and with a geoeral cry

Alfert their waxeo domes aod bUIZiog progeoy:

Thus from

t~e

teolS the fervent legioo fwarml,

So loud their clamours, aod fo keen thei, arml.

¡fiad,

xvi.

[~_

So buros the veogeful hornet (Coul aU o'er)

Repuls'd io vain, aod thirft}' flill of gore ;

(Hold foo . f ,ir and heat) 00 angry

win.gs

UotaAt'd, uorír'd, he tU ros,

attac~s,

aod lIinllS.

3 R

Th~