Note 276 — CHAPTER 1. BEFORE QUINTILIAN—CICERO, HORACE, SENECA THE ELDER, VARRO.

I am not aware of any work, corresponding to Egger’s, in reference to Latin Criticism.Criticism. But in English there is an Essay of the first excellence on the subject by the late Mr Henry Nettleship (reprinted at vol. ii. p. 44 of his Lectures and Essays, Oxford, 1895). In my case old personal obligations were not needed to deepen the admiration which every one, who would even like to be a scholar, must feel for Mr Nettleship’s work. I am here, however, to demur to his opening division of criticism into “criticism of philosophy, which investigates the principles of beauty,” and “isolated and spontaneous judgments, never rising beyond personal impression.” It is one main purpose of this book to show that a third course is possible and desirable, by way of the wide and systematic comparison of the manifestations of literary beauty in the accomplished work of letters.