British Museum copies of the 1645, 1671, and 1673 editions, and Dr. Aldis Wright's fac-simile of the MS. The MS. contains, it may be said, either the original drafts, or early copies, of Arcades, Comus, a few of the shorter lyrics, most of the sonnets, and some notes of great biographical interest relating to possible subjects for future work. The MS. is, of course, an immensely valuable document to students of Milton. There is also a Bridgewater MS. of Comus, which is thought to be in Lawes's hand. Todd printed this MS. in 1798, and in his 1801 edition of Milton gave the various MS. readings, which are not, however, of importance in settling difficulties: the most interesting variation is that which makes part of the invocation to Sabrina (867-889) a trio instead of a solo. Todd's complete edition of Milton (1801, and three times afterward re-issued) contains many variorum notes of value, especially in locating parallel passages. Professor Masson's several editions and his great Life of the poet have, in the field of literary scholarship, inseparably associated his name with Milton's. To Professor Masson every present-day editor of Milton must be under great obligation. Other editions (among them those of Newton, Keightley, Browne) I have carefully examined, finding occasional assistance, which I have duly recorded. I have been aided but little by the many school editions, excepting the edition. by Mr. Verity, the Samson Agonistes edited by Mr. Percival, and the Lycidas edited by Mr. Jerram, which have been of service. The text follows the first editions as closely as modern spelling, capitalization and punctuation permit. In punctuation I have tried to be logical rather than uniform. The proper order of the poems is not an easy matter to determine: a chronological order cannot be established with certainty. In this edition those poems that seem to belong together have been placed together, and within the groups the poems come in the order in which they were written, so far as that can be ascertained. I have made (with much diffidence) one emendation in the text. Line 1218 of Samson Agonistes, which in all editions reads: 'And had performed it if my known offence' is a line which has had no assured meaning. The proposed change is: 'And had performed it if mine own offence' -a reading which brings out, I believe, the obvious antithesis in the sentence. Milton was blind when he composed the line, and as my known' and 'mine own' sound alike, there was no reason for him to suspect the clerical or typographical error, if error it was. The Introduction aims to set forth the principal quality of Milton's style, the use of literary ma terial in Comus, and the structure of the dramatic forms in which Comus and Samson Agonistes are written. The lyric poems are not made the subject of especial discussion here, because in the Comments and Questions they receive sufficient comment to make obvious their simpler aspects. A teacher of Milton should have access, at least, to these books: Masson's Library Edition of Milton, 3 vols. (Macmillan, 1890); Robert Bridges' Milton's Prosody (Clarendon Press); Osgood's The Classical Mythology in Milton's English Poems (Yale Studies in English: VIII., Holt); Beeching's reprint of The Poems of John Milton (Clarendon Press); and some brief life of Milton-Pattison's (Harper's) or Garnett's (Scribner's). Masson's Life (6 vols., Macmillan) is necessary to any one who wishes to be fully informed concerning the details of Milton's life. References in this present edition to vol. i. are to the revised first volume. Material regarding the mask is to be found in Burckhardt's Civilization of the Renaissance, Symonds' Predecessors of Shakespeare, and Verity's Introduction to Comus. I am greatly indebted to my colleagues, Professor G. H. Stempel and Professor J. M. Clapp, for their criticism of my MS. CHATHAM, MASS., 12 July, 1901, M. W. S. |