‘We cannot give the whole extract of the story,—only she becomes more deeply engaged as she comes to the love scenes.—What follows, we think is very exquisitely written.
[“Ready she sat with one hand to turn o’er,” to
“Desperate the joy.—That day they read no more.”]
‘We do not think the execution of the fourth and last Canto quite equal to that of the third: Yet there are passages in it of the greatest beauty; and an air of melancholy breathes from the whole with irresistible softness and effect.
‘The feelings of Francesca, arising from the consciousness of her melancholy situation and broken vows, are thus finely represented.
[“And oh, the morrow, how it used to rise!” to
“That Heaven would take her, if it pleased, away.”]
‘From the distress and agitation of her mind, she afterwards betrays the secret of her infidelity to her husband in her sleep. This leads to a rencounter between the two brothers, which is fatal to Paulo, who runs voluntarily upon his brother’s sword; and partly from the shock of the news, partly from previous grief preying on her mind and body, Francesca dies the same day. Her death is profoundly affecting, and leaves an impression on the imagination, icy, cold, and monumental. The squire of Paulo is admitted to the side of her sad couch, to tell the dismal story—and repeats, in the Prince’s own words, how he had been forced to fight with his brother—
[“——And that although,” to
“The gentle sufferer was at peace in death.”]