SCHOFIELD, WILLIAM HENRY. Mythical bards, and The life of William Wallace. (Harvard studies in comparative literature) *$3 Harvard univ. press 821.09
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“This is primarily a discussion of the authorship of the metrical fifteenth century life of the Scottish patriot (d. 1305), which is ascribed to ‘Blind Harry.’ Mr Schofield contends that ‘Blind Harry’ is a pseudonym, and that the biographer was no quiet scholar or amiable ecclesiastic like Barbour, but ‘a vigorous propagandist, a ferocious realpolitiker without principle when it was a question of Scotland’s place in the sun.’ The writer diverges from this problem to chapters on ‘Blind Harry and blind Homer,’ and on Conceptions of poesy which occupy the last two chapters.”—The Times [London] Lit Sup
“It is all readable enough and often not uninteresting: whether it proves anything must be left to the reader to decide.”
+ − Ath p761 D 3 ’20 450w
“Every page of it betrays the author’s enjoyment of an opportunity to build a huge structure of learning around—a soap bubble.”
− Boston Transcript p6 Jl 21 ’20 950w
“In general, ‘Mythical bards’ is marked by the broad scholarship and the keen vision of literary problems which have always been the chief characteristics of the author’s work.” T. P. Cross
+ Mod Philol 18:53 Ag ’20 1200w