3
. . . Mr. Swinburne has lived with the great suggests a resemblance. Athenian dramatists till his tone of thought has somewhat assimilated to theirs, but he has learnt rather to sympathize with them as a contemporary artist, than to copy them as a modern student."— Reader, April 22nd, 1865.
"
Our extracts have shown that we much prefer to let Mr. Swinburne present own marvellous earnestness and rich delivery of manner than to essay in this, our necessarily brief review, a lengthened criticism or analysis of such a remarkable work of promise. Apart from the serious endeavour and high devoir to which he has devoted himself in his first appeal to public attention, we would remark the sensuousness, brilliancy, and fervour of the which here and his
lyrics,
more sombre and sterner phases of the poem. Assuredly and most complete effort which has for a long time announced that a scholar and a poet has come amongst us."—Mobning Hebald, there relieve the
.
.
.
this is the choicest
April 27th, 1865.
"One
grave error, which Mr. Swinburne has almost entirely avoided, is the use of thoughts or expressions which, current now, would be out of place in a tragedy of Greece. He has, with rare artistic feeling, let scarcely a trace of modern life. The Poem is all with alive the life a appear of classic past
.... July
The whole play
is
instinct with
power of varied kinds."— Examinee,
15th, 1865.
"We have before said Mr. Swinburne is a subtle analyst of human motive, and possesses great tragic power. The present work shows him to have imagination of the highest order, wonderful play of fancy, and a complete command over every form of versification. He has command of imagery as great as his control of language. He has power which rises to sublimity; passion which deepens into terror; daring which soars beyond reach or control We have said enough to convince our readers that we regard this
- poem as a worthy companion to Chastelard,' and look upon its author as perenrolled manently among great English poets."— Sunday Times, December 31st,
...
.... 1865.
"These lines are marked by that melancholy that always characterizes the poetry in proportion to the absence of faith. . . . Could he have faith, of is not a trace throughout the poem, except the miserable vacuum created by its absence, he might do wonders as a poet."—The Tablet, August which there 12th, 1865.
"As
to the tragedy itself, we find in it everything to praise and nothing to It is one of the few really great poems that have been contributed
censure.
to English literature since the death of Shelley; and it entitles to a place among the great poets of his country.
its
author, at once
... A tragedy, on the
Grecian model, which
and
is
remarkable for its intense emotional
struction, and the combined Albion, November Uth, 1865.
"Not
stateliness, severity,
vitality,
the richness
and finish of its conand music of its diction."
reality of its imaginative images, the perfect precision
—
the least remarkable and interesting pages of this volume are those to
