A short course of the choicest selections from the whole field of general literature. It may easily be read through in a year, and will form a taste and provide a standard that will enable the reader ever after to judge for himself of the quality and value of whatever books may come before the senate of his soul to ask for an appropriation of his time in their behalf.
Very few books are requisite for this course, but it will awaken a desire that will demand a library of standard literature. No. 1, No. 2, etc., refer to the numbers of the "100 Choice Selections." Monroe's "Sixth Reader" and Palgrave's "Golden Treasury" are also referred to, because they contain a great number of these gems, and are books likely to be in the possession of the reader.
For the meaning of the other abbreviations, see the last section of the Introductory Remarks.
| | [*] | Manner
of
Reading. | Where found. |
| 1. Shakspeare. | | | |
| Hamlet, especially noting Hamlet's
conversations with the Ghost, with
his mother and Ophelia, his advice
to the players, his soliloquy, and his
discourse on the nobleness of man | d. | R.D.C.G. | Shakspeare's
Plays are published
separately, and also together,
Richard Grant White's edition
being the best. |
| Merchant of Venice, especially
noting the scene in court, and
the parts relating to Portia | e. | R.D.C.G. | |
| Julius Cæsar, especially noting the
speeches of Brutus and Antony,
and the quarrel of Brutus and
Cassius | m. | R.D.C.G. | |
| Taming of the Shrew | e. | R.G. | |
| Henry the Eighth | m. | R.D. | |
| Henry the Fourth, read for the wit
of Falstaff | m. | R.D. | |
| Henry the Fifth, noting especially
the wooing | m. | R.D. | |
| Coriolanus, noting especially the
grand fire and force and
frankness of Coriolanus | m. | R.D.C.G. | |
| Sonnets in Palgrave's Golden
Treasury, Nos. 3, 6, 11, 12, 13,
14, 18, 36, 46 | m. | R.D.C. | |
| 2. Milton. | | | |
| The Opening of the Gates of Hell,
one of the sublimest conceptions
in literature. It is in Paradise
Lost, about six pages from the
end of Book II. Read sixty lines
beginning, "Thus saying, from her
side the fatal key, Sad
instrument of all our woe" | d. | R.D.G. | Milton's Poems. |
| Satan's Throne, ten lines at the
beginning of Book II. | m. | R.D.G. | |
| Opening of Paradise Lost, 26 lines
at the beginning of Book I. | m. | R.D.G. | |
| The Angels uprooting the Mountains
and hurling them on the Rebels.
Fifty lines beginning about the
640th line of Book VI., "So they
in pleasant vein," etc. | m. | R.D.G. | |
| "Hail, Holy Light," fifty-five
lines at the beginning of Book
III. | m. | R.D.G. | |
| Comus, a masque, and one of the
masterpieces of English
literature | d. | R.D.C.G. | Milton's Poems. The last three of this list are in Palgrave. |
| L' Allegro, a short poem on mirth | d. | R.D.C.G. | |
| Il Penseroso, a short poem
on melancholy | d. | R.D.C.G. | |
| Lycidas, a celebrated elegy | d. | R.G. | |
| 3. Homer. | | | Homer has had many translators, Pope, Derby, Worsley, Chapman, Flaxman, Lang, Bryant, etc. |
| Pope's translation. At least the
first book of the Iliad. A
simple, clear story of battles
and quarrels, and counsels,
charming in its sublimity,
pathos, vigor, and naturalness.
The world's greatest epic | e. | R.D.C.G. | |
| 4. Æschylus. | | | Potter, Morshead, Swanwick, Milman, and Browning have translated Æschylus. The
first two are the best. Flaxman's designs add much. |
| Prometheus Bound, the sublimest of
the sublime. Be sure to reach and
grasp the grand picture of the
human race and its troubles which
underlies this most magnificent
poem | d. | R.D.C.G. | |
| Agamemnon, the grandest tragedy
in the world | m. | R.D.G. | |
| 5. Dante. | | | |
| Divine Comedy. Read Farrar's little
Life of Dante (John Alden,
N. Y.), and then take the Comedy
and read the thirty-third canto,
the portions relating to the
Hells of Incontinence and of
Fraud, thepicture of Satan, and
the whole of the Purgatorio | d. | R.D.G. | Translated by Longfellow, Carey, John Carlyle, Butler, and Dean Church. |
| 6. Spenser. | | | |
| Faerie Queen, noting specially the
first book and the book of
Britomart, endeavoring to grasp
and apply to your own life the
truths that underlie the rich and
beautiful imagery | d. | R.D.G. | Spenser's Poems. The Calendar is published separately. |
| Hymn in Honor of his own Wedding | d. | R.D.G. | |
| Fable of the Oak and the Briar, in
Shepherd's Calendar, February | m. | R. | |
| 7. Scott. | | | |
| Lady of the Lake | e. | R. | Scott's Poems, or separate. |
| Marmion | e. | R. | |
Transcriber's note: Numbers 8 and 9 are missing in the original.
| | [*] | Manner
of
Reading. | Where found. |
| 10. Payne. | | | |
| Home, Sweet Home | e. | C. | |
| Longfellow. | | | |
| Psalm of Life. Paul Revere's Ride | e. | R.D.C. | Longfellow's Poems. |
| The Building of the Ship
(These may be found in most
of the reading-books.) | e. | R. | |
| Suspiria, and the close of
Morituri Salutamus | m. | R.D. | |
| Holmes. | | | |
| Nautilus; the last stanza commit. | e. | R.D. | Autocrat of the Breakfast-Table. |
| The Stars and Flowers, a
lovely little poem,—the
first verses in the
Autocrat of the
Breakfast-Table | e. | R.D. | |
| Hunt. | | | |
| Abou Ben Adhem | e. | R.D. | Monroe. |
| Carew. | | | |
| The True Beauty | e. | R.D. | Palgrave, 87. |
| Gray. | | | |
| Elegy in a Country Churchyard | m. | R.D.C. | Palgrave, 147. |
| Hymn to Adversity | m. | R.D. | Palgrave, 159. |
| Progress of Poesy | m. | R.D. | Palgrave, 140. |
| The Bard | m. | R.D. | Palgrave, 123. |
| Saxe. | | | |
| The Blind Men and the Elephant | e. | R.D. | No. 4. |
| Jackson. | | | Poems of H. H. Jackson. |
| The Release | m. | R.D. | |
| 11. Hood. | | | |
| Bridge of Sighs | m. | R.D. | Palgrave, 231. |
| Song of the Shirt | e. | R.D. | No. 2. |
| Burns. | | | |
| Ye Banks and Braes o' Bonnie Doon | e. | R.D. | Palgrave, 139. |
| To a Field-mouse | e. | R.D. | Palgrave, 144. |
| Mary Morrison | e. | R.D. | Palgrave, 148. |
| Bonnie Lesley | e. | R.D. | Palgrave, 149. |
| Jean | e. | R.D. | Palgrave, 155. |
| John Anderson | e. | R.D. | Palgrave, 156. |
| A Man's a Man for a' that | e. | R.D. | Burns's Poems. |
| Auld Lang Syne | e. | R.D. | |
| Robert Bruce's Address to his
Army | e. | R.D. | |
| Moore. | | | |
| Come rest in this Bosom | e. | R.D. | Irish Melodies |
| At the Mid Hour of Night | e. | R.D. | Irish Melodies |
| Those Evening Bells | e. | R.D. | Monroe. |
| Coleridge. | | | |
| Rime of the Ancient Mariner | d. | R.D.G. | Coleridge's Poems. |
| Vale of Chamouni | e. | R. | Monroe. |
| Whittier. | | | |
| The Farmer's Wooing, in Among
the Hills | m. | R.D.C. | Whittier's Poems. |
| The Harp at Nature's Advent
Strung, etc., in Tent on
the Beach | m. | R.D.C. | |
| Snow Bound, Centennial Hymn
(No. 13), and at least
glance at his Voices of
Freedom | m. | R.D.C. | |
| Barefoot Boy | e. | R.D.C. | |
| Tennyson. | | | |
| "Break, break, break, on thy
cold gray Stones, O Sea" | m. | R.D.C. | Tennyson's Poems. |
| "Ring out, wild Bells," in
the In Memoriam | m. | R.D.C. | |
| Bugle Song, in The Princess | m. | R.D.C. | No. 2. |
| Charge of the Light Brigade | e. | R.D.C. | No. 2. |
| The Brook | e. | R.D.C. | Monroe. |
| Chaucer. | | | |
| The Clerk's Tale, or the
Story of Grisilde, in the
Canterbury Tales | m. | R. | Chaucer's Poems. |
| 12. Key. | | | |
| The Star-Spangled Banner | e. | C. | No. 4. |
| Drake. | | | |
| The American Flag | e. | R. | No. 1. |
| Smith. | | | |
| "My Country, 'tis of thee" | e. | C. | |
| Boker. | | | |
| The Black Regiment | e. | R. | No. 1. |
| Campbell, full of fire
and martial music. | | | |
| Ye Mariners of England | m. | R.D.C. | Palgrave, 206. |
| Battle of the Baltic | m. | R.D.C. | Palgrave, 207. |
| Soldier's Dream | m. | R.D.C. | Palgrave, 267. |
| Hohenlinden | m. | R.D.C. | Palgrave, 215. |
| Lord Ullin's Daughter | m. | R.D.C. | Palgrave, 181. |
| Love's Beginning | m. | R.D.C. | Palgrave, 183. |
| Ode to Winter | m. | R.D.C. | Palgrave, 256. |
| Thomson. | | | |
| Rule Britannia | m. | R.C. | Palgrave, 122. |
| Lowell. | | | |
| The Crisis | d. | R.D.C.G. | Lowell's Poems. |
| Harvard Commemoration Ode | d. | R.D.C.G. | |
| The Fountain | e. | R.D.C.G. | |
| Halleck. | | | |
| Marco Bozzaris | e. | R. | No. 1. |
| Macaulay. | | | |
| Lays of Ancient Rome,
especially Horatius, and
Virginia, also the Battle of Ivry | e. | R.D. | No. 2. |
| O'Hara. | | | |
| The Bivouac of the Dead | m. | R.D. | No. 5. |
| Mitford. | | | |
| Rienzi's Address | m. | R. | No. 1. |
| Croly. | | | |
| Belshazzar | m. | R. | No. 4. |
| 13. Shelley. | | | Shelley's Poems. |
| Ode to the West Wind | m. | R.D.C. | Palgrave, 275. |
| Ode to a Skylark | m. | R.D.C. | Palgrave, 241. |
| To a Lady with a Guitar | m. | R.D.C. | Palgrave, 252. |
| Italy | m. | R.D.C. | Palgrave, 274. |
| Naples | m. | R.D.C. | Palgrave, 227. |
| The Poet's Dream | d. | R.D.C. | Palgrave, 277. |
| The Cloud, Sensitive Plant,
etc. | m. | R.D.C. | |
| Byron. | | | Byron's Poems. |
| All for Love | m. | R.D. | Palgrave, 169. |
| Beauty | m. | R.D. | Palgrave, 171. |
| Apostrophe to the Ocean, and
The Eve of Waterloo | m. | R.D.C. | Monroe. |
| The Field of Waterloo
(These are among the most
magnificent poems in any
language.) | m. | R.D.C. | No. 1. |
| Bryant. | | | |
| Thanatopsis | m. | R.C.G. | No. 1. |
| Prentice. | | | |
| The Closing Year | m. | R.C.G. | No. 1. |
| Poe. | | | |
| The Bells; The Raven | m. | R.C.G. | No. 1. |
| Annabel Lee | m. | R. | No. 5. |
| Keats. | | | Keats's Poems. |
| The Star | m. | R. | Palgrave, 198. |
| Ode to a Nightingale | m. | R. | Palgrave, 244. |
| Ode to Autumn | m. | R. | Palgrave, 255. |
| Ode on the Poets | m. | R. | Palgrave, 167. |
| Wordsworth. | | | |
| A Beautiful Woman | e. | R.C. | Palgrave, 174. |
| The Reaper | m. | R. | Palgrave, 250. |
| Simon Lee | m. | R. | Palgrave, 219. |
| Intimations of Immortality | | | Palgrave, 367. |
| Herbert. | | | |
| Gifts of God | e. | R.D.C. | Palgrave, 74. |
| Read. | | | |
| Drifting | m. | R.D.C. | No. 1. |
| Sheridan's Ride | e. | R. | No. 1. |
| Fletcher. | | | |
| Melancholy | e. | R. | Palgrave, 104. |
| Pope. | | | |
| Rape of the Lock | m. | R. | Pope's Poems. |
| 14. Ingelow. | | | |
| The Brides of Enderby
High Tide, etc. | m. | R. | No. 2. |
| Cowper. | | | |
| Loss of the Royal George | e. | R. | Palgrave, 129. |
| Solitude of Selkirk | m. | R. | Palgrave, 160. |
| Dryden. | | | |
| Alexander's Feast | d. | R. | Palgrave, 116. |
| Collins. | | | |
| The Passions | d. | R. | Palgrave, 141. |
| Jonson. | | | |
| Hymn to Diana | m. | R. | Palgrave, 78. |
| Addison. | | | |
| Cato's Soliloquy | m. | R. | No. 1. |
| Lodge. | | | |
| Rosaline | m. | R. | Palgrave, 16. |
| Herrick. | | | |
| Counsel to Girls | e. | R. | Palgrave, 82. |
| The Poetry of Dress | e. | R. | Palgrave, 92. |
| 15. Goethe. | | | |
| Raphael Chorus,—a wonderful
chorus of three stanzas in
Faust. Read Shelley's
translations, both literal
and free, in his Fragments | m. | R.C.G. | Shelley's Poems. |
| Omar Khayyám. | | | |
| Rubáiyát, especially the
"moving shadow-shape" and the
"phantom caravan" stanzas,
for their magnificent imagery | m. | R.C.G. | Fitzgerald's Translation. |
| Euripides. | | | |
| Chorus in Medea—Campbell's
translation | m. | R.C.G. | Campbell's Poems. |
| Calderon. | | | |
| Read Shelley's Fragments | m. | R.C.G. | Shelley's Poems. |
| Schiller. | | | Schiller's Poems. |
| The Battle | m. | R. | No. 4. |
| The Song of the Bell | m. | R. | Publ. separately. |
| Molière. | | | |
| Tartuffe, or The Hypocrite | e. | R.D. | Molière's Plays. |
| Le Misanthrope, or The Man-Hater | e. | R.D. | |