The Defence of Poesie.
pictures, what should be, and not stories what haue bin, they will neuer giue the lie to things not Affirmatiuely, but Allegorically and figuratiuely written; and therefore as in historie looking for truth, they may go away full fraught with falshood: So in Poesie, looking but for fiction, they shall vse the narration but as an imaginatiue ground plat of a profitable inuention. But hereto is replied, that the Poets giue names to men they write of, which argueth a conceit of an actuall truth, and so not being true, prooueth a falshood. And dooth the Lawier lye, then when vnder the names of Iohn of the Stile, and Iohn of the Nokes, hee putteth his Case? But that is easily answered, their naming of men, is but to make their picture the more liuely, and not to build anie Historie. Painting men, they cannot leaue men namelesse: wee see, wee cannot plaie at Chestes, but that wee must giue names to our Chessemen; and yet mee thinkes he were a verie partiall Champion of truth, that would say wee lyed, for giuing a peece of wood the reuerende title of a Bishop. The Poet nameth Cyrus and Aeneas, no other way, then to shewe what men of their fames, fortunes, and estares, should doo. Their third is, how much it abuseth mens wit, training it to wanton sinfulnesse, and lustfull loue. For indeed that is the principall if not onely abuse, I can heare alleadged. They say the Comedies rather teach then reprehend amorous cōceits. They say the Lirick is larded with passionat Sonets, the Elegiack weeps the want of his mistresse, and that euen to the Heroical, Cupid hath ambitiouslyclimed.
