Under this dreadful brother uterine,This kinsman feared, Tellus, behold me come,Thy son stern-nursed; who mortal-mother-like,To turn thy weanlings' mouth averse, embitter'st,Thine over-childed breast. Now, mortal-sonlike,I thou hast suckled, Mother, I at lastShall sustenant be to thee. Here I untrammel,Here I pluck loose the body's cerementing,And break the tomb of life; here I shake offThe bur o' the world, man's congregation shun,And to the antique order of the deadI take the tongueless vows.
Under this dreadful brother uterine,This kinsman feared, Tellus, behold me come,Thy son stern-nursed; who mortal-mother-like,To turn thy weanlings' mouth averse, embitter'st,Thine over-childed breast. Now, mortal-sonlike,I thou hast suckled, Mother, I at lastShall sustenant be to thee. Here I untrammel,Here I pluck loose the body's cerementing,And break the tomb of life; here I shake offThe bur o' the world, man's congregation shun,And to the antique order of the deadI take the tongueless vows.
But those last lines:
And to the antique order of the deadI take the tongueless vows.
And to the antique order of the deadI take the tongueless vows.
we cannot compare with any model. They stand by themselves, unsurpassable, lines such as are only to be found here and there even in the great poets.
The more one reads this poetry of Thompson's the more one discovers that it is something essentially individual. Harmonies that one may miss on a first reading become more apparent and more insistent as one reads again, and the exquisite, haunting melody of his verse pursues us, and its faultless, rich rhythms seem to create new patterns of form. One may miss not a little of his thought, because the engrossing beauty of the language lays hold of the senses. In almost every poem one finds some lingering phrase:
Whatso looks lovelilyIs but the rainbow on life's weeping rain.
Whatso looks lovelilyIs but the rainbow on life's weeping rain.
Or:
The little sweetness making grief complete.
The little sweetness making grief complete.
Often he shows that exact sense of lyrical fitness which Milton pre-eminently possessed, and, second only to him, Shelley. We see it in the passage which begins:
Suffer me at your leafy feastTo sit apart, a somewhat alien guest,And watch your mirth,Unsharing in the liberal laugh of earth.
Suffer me at your leafy feastTo sit apart, a somewhat alien guest,And watch your mirth,Unsharing in the liberal laugh of earth.
The Hound of Heaven, I think, has rightly been pronounced his greatest poem, for whilst in its wealth of melody, its magnificence of imagery, and its pathos, it is unsurpassed, it reveals also the finest depths of his thought as he takes us "down the labyrinthineways" of his mind's flight. But next to that I would putThe Making of Viola, a poem which no other, except Rossetti or his sister Christina, could have written:
IThe Father of Heaven.Spin, daughter Mary, spin,Twirl your wheel with silver din;Spin, daughter Mary, spin,Spin a tress for Viola.Angels.Spin, Queen Mary, aBrown tress for Viola!IIThe Father of Heaven.Weave, hands angelical,Weave a woof of flesh to pallWeave, hands evangelical—Flesh to pall our Viola.Angels.Weave, singing brothers, aVelvet flesh for Viola!IIIThe Father of Heaven.Scoop, young Jesus, for her eyes,Wood-browned pools of Paradise—Young Jesus, for the eyes,For the eyes of Viola.Angels.Tint, Prince Jesus, aDusked eye for Viola!
I
The Father of Heaven.Spin, daughter Mary, spin,Twirl your wheel with silver din;Spin, daughter Mary, spin,Spin a tress for Viola.
Angels.Spin, Queen Mary, aBrown tress for Viola!
II
The Father of Heaven.Weave, hands angelical,Weave a woof of flesh to pallWeave, hands evangelical—Flesh to pall our Viola.
Angels.Weave, singing brothers, aVelvet flesh for Viola!
III
The Father of Heaven.Scoop, young Jesus, for her eyes,Wood-browned pools of Paradise—Young Jesus, for the eyes,For the eyes of Viola.
Angels.Tint, Prince Jesus, aDusked eye for Viola!
It may be that he will always be a poet for the few; that his mystical, esoteric spirit, finding its proper expression in baffling imagery and elusive, other-worldly rhythms, will never be whollycongenial to the many. But his place is assured; for he had no traffic with the things of a day or the language of a day. The beauty which haunts his prose and his verse is of that universal order which can hardly fade by the mere passing of time. Only a change in the human spirit can make it dim.
Many of the foregoing chapters are based upon articles which have been published in periodicals. My thanks are due to the Editors of the following journals, which I name in the order of my indebtedness:—The English Review,The Nation,The Daily News,The North American Review,The British Review, andThe Athenæum.
Many of the foregoing chapters are based upon articles which have been published in periodicals. My thanks are due to the Editors of the following journals, which I name in the order of my indebtedness:—The English Review,The Nation,The Daily News,The North American Review,The British Review, andThe Athenæum.
THE COMPLETE DRAMATIC WORKS OFGerhart HauptmannAUTHORIZED EDITION IN SIX VOLUMESIt is generally conceded that Gerhart Hauptmann is the most notable dramatist of the present day. His work combines literary, psychological and dramatic interest in greater measure than that of any other contemporary writer, and the award of the Nobel prize in literature was a public recognition of his genius.An authorized translation of his dramas makes it possible at last for English people to study and enjoy Hauptmann. Excellent translations of a few plays had already been made and these, by arrangement with the respective translators, will be adapted to the present edition, but new translation will be made whenever it seems necessary in order to maintain the highest standard. The editor of the edition is Professor Ludwig Lewisohn. He supplies a general introduction to Hauptmann's works in Volume I, and a briefer introduction to each succeeding volume.CONTENTSVolume IVolume IISocial DramasSocial DramasBefore DawnThe WeaversThe Beaver CoatThe ConflagrationDrayman HenschelRose BerndThe RatsVolume IIIVolume IVDomestic DramasSymbolic and Legendary DramasThe ReconciliationLonely LivesColleague CramptonMichael KramerHanneleThe Sunken BellHenry of AueVolume VVolume VISymbolic and Historical DramasLater Dramas in ProseSchluck and JauAnd Pippa DancesCharlemagne's HostageThe Maidens of the MountGriseldaGabriel Schilling's FlightEach Volume Crown 8vo. Price Five Shillings net
It is generally conceded that Gerhart Hauptmann is the most notable dramatist of the present day. His work combines literary, psychological and dramatic interest in greater measure than that of any other contemporary writer, and the award of the Nobel prize in literature was a public recognition of his genius.
An authorized translation of his dramas makes it possible at last for English people to study and enjoy Hauptmann. Excellent translations of a few plays had already been made and these, by arrangement with the respective translators, will be adapted to the present edition, but new translation will be made whenever it seems necessary in order to maintain the highest standard. The editor of the edition is Professor Ludwig Lewisohn. He supplies a general introduction to Hauptmann's works in Volume I, and a briefer introduction to each succeeding volume.
CONTENTSVolume IVolume IISocial DramasSocial DramasBefore DawnThe WeaversThe Beaver CoatThe ConflagrationDrayman HenschelRose BerndThe RatsVolume IIIVolume IVDomestic DramasSymbolic and Legendary DramasThe ReconciliationLonely LivesColleague CramptonMichael KramerHanneleThe Sunken BellHenry of AueVolume VVolume VISymbolic and Historical DramasLater Dramas in ProseSchluck and JauAnd Pippa DancesCharlemagne's HostageThe Maidens of the MountGriseldaGabriel Schilling's Flight
Each Volume Crown 8vo. Price Five Shillings net
TWO NEW VOLUMES IN THIS SERIESWALT WHITMANA CRITICAL STUDYBYBASIL DE SELINCOURTWALTER PATERA CRITICAL STUDYBYEDWARD THOMASEach Volume Demy Octavo. With a FrontispiecePortrait in Photogravure.Price 7s. 6d. net.
UNIFORM WITH "PEOPLE AND QUESTIONS"DRAMATICPORTRAITSBy P.P. HOWEThroughout this book a particular point of view has been adhered to, from which the drama is looked upon as a separate art from literature, and from which especial attention is paid to the manner of its practice. Thus nearly all the plays of the dramatists passed under review are to be studied in book form, but they are spoken of here, as far as possible, in terms of their actual presentation in the theatre. The dramatists include Pinero, Henry Arthur Jones, Henry James, Oscar Wilde, Bernard Shaw, Barrie, Hubert Henry Davies, Granville Barker, Hankin, Galsworthy and Masefield. It is a book for all playgoers who have done their playgoing in the English theatre of the last twenty-five years.The portraits which illustrate it are from camera studies by Mr. E.O. Hoppé, reproduced by a new process which does full justice to his original prints.Large Crown 8vo. Price 5s. net.
Throughout this book a particular point of view has been adhered to, from which the drama is looked upon as a separate art from literature, and from which especial attention is paid to the manner of its practice. Thus nearly all the plays of the dramatists passed under review are to be studied in book form, but they are spoken of here, as far as possible, in terms of their actual presentation in the theatre. The dramatists include Pinero, Henry Arthur Jones, Henry James, Oscar Wilde, Bernard Shaw, Barrie, Hubert Henry Davies, Granville Barker, Hankin, Galsworthy and Masefield. It is a book for all playgoers who have done their playgoing in the English theatre of the last twenty-five years.
The portraits which illustrate it are from camera studies by Mr. E.O. Hoppé, reproduced by a new process which does full justice to his original prints.
Large Crown 8vo. Price 5s. net.
NEW FICTIONSINISTER STREETBy COMPTON MACKENZIEAuthor of "Carnival."THE STORY OF LOUIEBy OLIVER ONIONSAuthor of "The Debit Account."HANDS UP!By FREDERICK NIVENAuthor of "The Porcelain Lady."TELLING THE TRUTHBy WILLIAM HEWLETTAuthor of "Uncle's Advice."UNDERGROWTHBy F. and E. BRETT YOUNGA First Novel.THE BANKRUPTBy HORACE HORSNELLA First Novel.THE FOOL'S TRAGEDYBy A. SCOTT CRAVENA First Novel.
SINISTER STREETBy COMPTON MACKENZIEAuthor of "Carnival."
THE STORY OF LOUIEBy OLIVER ONIONSAuthor of "The Debit Account."
HANDS UP!By FREDERICK NIVENAuthor of "The Porcelain Lady."
TELLING THE TRUTHBy WILLIAM HEWLETTAuthor of "Uncle's Advice."
UNDERGROWTHBy F. and E. BRETT YOUNGA First Novel.
THE BANKRUPTBy HORACE HORSNELLA First Novel.
THE FOOL'S TRAGEDYBy A. SCOTT CRAVENA First Novel.
Typographical errors corrected in text:Page  33:  poietic replaced with poetic
Typographical errors corrected in text: