This admirable End, Order, Harmony and Defign must be fixt, and thofe are only to be found in the Rules laid down by Ariftotle. The Excellence, of which I think I have made fufficiently evident from Dacier.

If, Sir, you have now any thing to object against what I have deliver'd, I should be glad to hear it.

I confefs (faid Tyro) I cannot deny the Reasons you have urg'd from Mr. Dacier, and I believe, that if Ariftotle were a little more study'd by our Tragedy Writers, we should have their Works of a longer Life than they now generally enjoy. But as Tragedy is not the only Sort of Poetry that has appeared in the World, fo I can't find, but we shou'd be at a Lofs in deciding the Standard in several other Sorts of Poetry.

As for that (answerd Laudon) we have Reafong: and Nature, and the Practice of the Antients in all the valuable Parts of it. And as all Poetry is Imitation, Ariftotle will be no little Help to us in thofe very Parts, which he has not profeffedly touch'd upon. It is fufficient, I think to the Point, that we have. been arguing upon, that it is evident, that as there is a Right, and a Wrong, in all Poetical Perforinances, fo there must be a certain Way of knowing which is the Right, and which the Wrong, else all must be Confufion; and every Man being left Judge of thefe QuaJities, there would be no fuch thing at last, if there were not fated Rules of them; and I think it is as plain, that thefe ftated Rules are to be found in Ariftotle, Horace, and their beft Commentators. And till fome new Discoverer fhall arife, who thall fhew use from a farther Penetration into Nature, that our prefent Guides have mistaken her, we ought to be directed by them.

For my Part (faid Manilia) I have but few Objections to make to what has been faid, and as they come from a Woman uninform'd by Learning, I hope they will meet a favourable Hearing. The firft is in the Behalf of Opera's, that is in the Juftification of Mufic All that can be faid can never perfuade our Ears, and Eyes, not to be pleas'd with that which pleases them.

And

And next, though I fhou'd own that it feems neceffary, that there thould be fated Rules of Right and Wrong in Poetry, as well as in all Things elfe; yet whilst you Men wrap up that Knowledge in fuch difficult and obfcure Terms, that we Women cannot eafily understand them; you labour at a Point which can never be obrain'd, for that wou'd exclude our Sex from the Prerogative we have of deciding on the publick Diverfions, which we fhall never willingly part with.

As for your firft Objection (faid Laudon) we do not endeavour to diffuade your Ears and Eyes, not to be pleas'd with what diverts them. All that we aim at is to perfuade you not to be meer Senfualifts, and pay more Deference to the Gratification of thofe two Senfes, than to that of your Reafon, and Understanding; nay, not to facrifice your Reafon and your Understanding to the Gratification of thofe two Senfes. We wou'd not pretend to exclude the noble Entertainment of Mufic, we wou'd only have it reduc'd to its primitive Inftitution to be fubfervient to Poetry, and not to overwhelm it. We wou'd have it the Servant, and not the Mafter, as it originally was.

As for the latter, tho' my Friend Gamaliel designs a Piece for the Publick to render Criticism eafy and familiar to the Ladies, yet if he, and this Company, think fit to humour me with two or three Meetings. I do not queftion but we may run through all the Parts of Poetry in fuch a Manner as may give a Lady, of your good Senfe, a perfect View of the Art of Poetry in all its Parts.

Tyro and Manilia feem'd mightily pleas'd with the Propofal, and agreed to meet two Days after in order to begin the Difquifition. But Mrs. Lamode, Ifachar, and Tom Trifle, made a Jeft of it, and after Ceremonies paft, took their Leave.

And this Crites was the Subftance of our fecond Converfation, in which if I have done Juftice to the Perfons who made up the Difcourfe, and come up to your Notions of the Matter, I am fatisfy'd that I am not, far from the Truth.

The End of the Second Dialogue.

.

142

THE

Complete ART

OF

POETRY.

DIALOGUE III.

Of the Manner, Rules, and Art of Compofing Epigrams, Paftorals, Odes, &c.

T

HUS far, Crites, I have given you an Account of our Converfation at the ingenious Laudon's, which reach'd no farther than the Preliminaries of the Art of Poetry, I now come to the Precepts of the Art it felf, in which you must not expect the fine Turns of Fontinelle, whofe Subject was fimple, and allow'd Room for Embellishments, which the prefent Subject, confifting of fuch Variety, cannot admit, without fwelling the Volume into a Bulk not fo agreeable to the Buyers as I defire this should be. I think it fufficient to the End and Aim of my Undertaking, if, from what pafs'd, I give only intelligible and plain Rules obvious to the Capacity of every Reader of Common Senfe.

According to Agreement, Tyro and Manilia met in Oder to purfine our Difcourfe. For having found that Criticifm was abfolutely neceffary to diftinguish bettween what was good and what was bad, it naturally gave them a Defire of knowing the Rules of each Part of them, that they might form their Judg ment by them.

As

As foon as we were feated and left to our felves, -Alas! faid Manilia) I despair of ever attaining the Art of Criticism; the Tafk is too difficult, and fo many Qualifications are requir'd, that I fear it is impoffible that I fhou'd ever make any tolerable Benefit of all my Enquiries and Application that Way.

Whence arife thefe Difficulties (faid Laudon) which feem to cool that Ardour with which you appear'd to be fo fir'd, to distinguish your felf from the vulgar Readers and Hearers when we were laft together.

Laft Night (reply'd Manilia) I happen'd to caft my Eyes on a certain celebrated Author, who abfolutely requires a Skill in the learned Languages, and a Familiarity with the Greek and Latin Poets, to the forming a just Critic. Logic and feveral other difficult Sciences he also makes necessary to the fame End; Accomplishments which we Women can rarely arrive at.

Be not difcourag'd, fair Manilia (affum'd Laudon) by thefe Bugbears conjur'd up by the Spirit of Pedantry,and the Affectation of fome Men of Learning, who would engrofs the Knowledge of things to themselves, as a Recompence of their Pains and Time spent in attaining of Words; Good Senfe and Nature is of all Languages, aud true Criticism is only good Senfe and Nature with Reafon, let the Pedants preach what they please.

I formerly told you of a Sort of Criticks, who were the Piece-Brokers of Parnaffus, and I am forry, that I must say, that this Gentleman (for I know the Author by what you have faid) difcovers himself to be one of this Fraternity; for indeed the whole Subftance and Aim of his Difcourfe on this Head, is that if you read the Greek and Latin Poets without Understanding (I will add) without a Mastery in the Greek and Latin Languages, you will not be able to discover the Beauties and Graces of the Diction of thofe admirable Poets. For this reaches no farther than the Diction, the bare Expreflion, which I have formerly fhew'd you was drawn from Grammar and Rhetorick, and only admitted, into, Poetry, as a Ve

C

hicle for the more pleafing Conveyance of the more valuable and truly poetical Qualities of Invention Difpofition, Fable, Characters, Paffions, G. However, I fhall obferve, that his Author differs very much in his Notion of a Critic with fome of his Fraternity, with whom he has not difdain'd to join himfelf, tho' much above their Level; for he makes a Critic a very confiderable Perfon, and requires as many Accomplishments in him, as are generally given to Homer and Virgil; whereas, the others (I mean the merry Laughers at all things ferious and folid) make a very despicable Animal of him, and turn the Name of Critic into Ridicule, as an Impertinence not to be endur'd in a polite Converfation.

For my Part, I think them in an Error on both Sides. For firft, I do not fee, that all this Depth of Learning, the Knowledge of all the Sciences, and the like, are abfolutely neceffary to the forming a a very good Critic, that is a Judge in Poetry, in any one, or in all its Parts: Good Senfe, a Knowledge of the Rules, and a Taste or Gusto in Art and Nature; and a Converfation with the beft Authors he can un derstand, are Qualifications fufficient to make a good Judge of him who understands not one Word of Latin or Greek, of Homer or Virgil, in their own original Drefs. For the Diction only depends upon the Knowledge of the Tongues, a Part (as I have often obferv'd) only of Grammar and Rhetoric, and not Poetry; and for that Reason, Ariftotle only tranfiently touching on it, refers you to thofe for your Accom plishment in it.

I would not be misunderstood here, in what I fay against the Pedants, as if I would extend my Ceafure to the Condemnation of the Greek and Latin Languages, For the Study of them. There is no doubt, but that they are excellent and perfect, and that the Study of them is of great Ufe, if purfu'd by those who know, that Language is only the Shell of Learning, and not Learning it elf. And for Greek and Latin, 'tis confefs'd, that we are

in