Sonnet LXVIII. On The Posthumous Fame Of Doctor Johnson.

Well it becomes thee, Britain, to avow
    JOHNSON's high claims! - yet boasting that his fires
    Were of unclouded lustre, TRUTH retires
    Blushing, and JUSTICE knits her solemn brow;
The eyes of GRATITUDE withdraw the glow
    His moral strain inspir'd. - Their zeal requires
    That thou should'st better guard the sacred Lyres,
    Sources of thy bright fame, than to bestow
Perfection's wreath on him, whose ruthless hand,
    Goaded by jealous rage, the laurels tore,
    That JUSTICE, TRUTH, and GRATITUDE demand
Should deck those Lyres till Time shall be no more. -
    A radiant course did Johnson's Glory run,
    But large the spots that darken'd on its Sun.

Anna Seward

Anna Seward was an English Romantic poet often called the 'Swan of Lichfield'. She was known for both her poetry and her extensive letter writing, which provided insight into 18th-century literary life. Seward was a steadfast critic of the neoclassicism that dominated much of the contemporary poetry scene, favoring a Romantic approach that sought to capture emotion and natural beauty. Her works often revolved around themes of love, loss, and nature. She was also a close friend of writers such as Erasmus Darwin and Samuel Johnson.

Anna Seward

Sonnet LXXXVI. To The Lake Of Killarney[1].

Anna Seward, Simple Poetry

Sonnet LVIII.

Anna Seward, Simple Poetry

Sonnet LXXIV.

Anna Seward, Simple Poetry

Sonnet XV. Written On Rising Ground Near Lichfield.

Anna Seward, Simple Poetry

English

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Sonnet LXVII. On Doctor Johnson's Unjust Criticisms In His Lives Of The Poets[1].

Cou'd aweful Johnson want poetic ear,
    Fancy, or judgment? - no! his splendid strain,
    In prose, or rhyme, confutes that plea. - The pain
    Which writh'd o'er Garrick's fortunes, shows us clear
Whence all his spleen to GENIUS. - Ill to bear
    A Friend's renown, that to his own must reign,
    Compar'd, a Meteor's evanescent train,
    To Jupiter's fix'd orb, proves that each sneer,
Subtle and fatal to poetic Sense,
    Did from insidious ENVY meanly flow,
    Illumed with dazzling hues of eloquence,
And Sophist-Wit, that labor to o'er-throw
    Th' awards of AGES, and new laws dispense
    That lift the mean, and lay the MIGHTY low.

1: When Johnson's Idolaters are hard pressed concerning his injustice in those fallacious thoug...

Anna Seward

Epitaph On Dr. Johnson.

Here Johnson liesa sage by all allowd,
Whom to have bred may well make England proud,
Whose prose was eloquence, by wisdom taught,
The graceful vehicle of virtuous thought;
Whose verse may claimgrave, masculine, and strong
Superior praise to the mere poets song;
Who many a noble gift from heaven possessd,
And faith at last, alone worth all the rest.
O man, immortal by a double prize,
By fame on earthby glory in the skies!

William Cowper

Sonnet LXXVI. The Critics Of Doctor Johnson's School[1].

Lo! modern Critics emulously dare
    Ape the great Despot; throw in pompous tone
    And massy words their true no meaning down!
    But while their envious eyes on Genius glare,
While axioms false assiduously they square
    In arrogant antithesis, a frown
    Lours on the brow of Justice, to disown
    The kindred malice with its mimic air.
Spirit of Common Sense[2]! must we endure
    The incrustation hard without the gem?
    Find in th' Anana's rind the wilding sour,
The Oak's rough knots on every Osier's stem?
    The dark contortions of the Sybil bear,
    Whose inspirations never meet our ear?

1: In jargon, like the following, copied from a REVIEW, are the works of Genius perpetually criticized in our public Prints: "Passion ha...

Anna Seward

Sonnet LIII. Written In The Spring 1785 On The Death Of The Poet Laureat.

The knell of WHITEHEAD tolls! - his cares are past,
    The hapless tribute of his purchas'd lays,
    His servile, his Egyptian tasks of praise! -
    If not sublime his strains, Fame justly plac'd
Their power above their work. - Now, with wide gaze
Of much indignant wonder, she surveys
    To the life-labouring oar assiduous haste
    A glowing Bard, by every Muse embrac'd. -
O, WARTON! chosen Priest of Phoebus' choir!
    Shall thy rapt song be venal? hymn the THRONE,
    Whether its edicts just applause inspire,
Or PATRIOT VIRTUE view them with a frown?
    What needs for this the golden-stringed Lyre,
    The snowy Tunic, and the Sun-bright Zone[1]!

1: Ensigns of Apollo's Priesthood.

Anna Seward

Sonnet XXI.

Proud of our lyric Galaxy, I hear
    Of faded Genius with supreme disdain;
    As when we see the Miser bend insane
    O'er his full coffers, and in accents drear
Deplore imagin'd want; - and thus appear
    To me those moody Censors, who complain,
    As [1]Shaftsbury plain'd in a now boasted reign,
    That "POESY had left our darken'd sphere."
Whence may the present stupid dream be traced
    That now she shines not as in days foregone?
    Perchance neglected, often shine in waste
Her LIGHTS, from number into confluence run,
    More than when thinly in th' horizon placed
    Each Orb shone separate, and appear'd a Sun.

1: Of the Poets, who were cotemporary with Lord Shaftsbury, Dryden, Cowley, Pope, Prior, Congreve, Gay, Addison, &c. in th...

Anna Seward

Sonnet XIV.

INGRATITUDE, how deadly is thy smart
    Proceeding from the Form we fondly love!
    How light, compared, all other sorrows prove!
    THOU shed'st a Night of Woe, from whence depart
The gentle beams of Patience, that the heart
    'Mid lesser ills, illume. - Thy Victims rove
    Unquiet as the Ghost that haunts the Grove
    Where MURDER spilt the life-blood. - O! thy dart
Kills more than Life, - e'en all that makes Life dear;
    Till we "the sensible of pain" wou'd change
    For Phrenzy, that defies the bitter tear;
Or wish, in kindred callousness, to range
    Where moon-ey'd IDIOCY, with fallen lip,
    Drags the loose knee, and intermitting step.

July 1773.

Anna Seward