Johnson's quotes- Preface to Shakespeare
Quotes from "Preface to Shakespeare", written by Samuel Johnson
Preface to Shakespeare is a critical essay by the neo-classical writer Samuel Johnson. In this essay, he has judged the merits and demerits of William Shakespeare's plays. Here are some of the merits of his plays-
Merits/Qualities of Shakespeare-
"Nothing can please many, and please long, but just representation of general nature." [80-81]
👉Here, Johnson says that the popularity and demand of any play lies in its true representation of human nature.
"Shakespeare is above all writers, at least above all modern writers, the poet of nature; the poet that holds up to his readers a faithful mirror of manners and of life."[88-90]
👉In Johnson's view Shakespeare is the greatest among all writers, particularly above all modern writers, because he presents the true nature of human beings. He faithfully presents genuine emotions- hate, love, anger, jealousy, of common people through his characters. In that condition how a person will behave and think is also presented through his play.
"His characters...are the genuine progeny of common humanity,...his persons act and speak by the influence of those general passion and principles by which all minds are agitated, and the whole system of life is continued in motion." [90-98]
👉 Here, Johnson says that Shakesperae's characters are true to the nature of humans. The elementary feelings and emotions that perturb, perplex, and worry the mind of the common human, the same emotions are the driving force of his characters.
"...But the dialogue of this author is often so evidently determined by the incident which produces it, and is pursued with so much ease and simplicity, that it seems scarcely to claim the merit of fiction, but to have been gleaned by diligent selection out of common conversation and common occurrence." [123-128]
👉Here, Johnson presents his view regarding Shakespeare's language selection in his play. According to Johnson, the selection of words of Shakespeare's characters is raised from the incident and the emotions in which she/he is in. He diligently selects the common dialogue and languages. The language is so simple that it hardly bears the shreds of evidence that his works have any merit.
"Upon every other stage, the universal agent is love, by whose power all good and evil is distributed, and every action quickened and retarded. To bring a lover, a lady and a rival into the fable; to entangle them in contradictory obligations, perplex them with oppositions of interest, and harass them with violence of desires inconsistent with each other..." [129-134]
👉In every other dramatic work of Shakespeare the universal or the prime agent which sets the action in motion is love. It is love that brings a lover, a lady and a rivel and entangles them in contradictory obligation, feeling and thought.
"Shakespeare has no heroes; his scenes are occupied only by men and speak as the reader thinks that he should himself have spoken or acted on the same occasion: Even the agency is supernatural the dialogue is levelled with life." [160-164]
👉Johnson says that Shakespeare's plays have no hero because his heroes speak and act in such a that if a common human were there she /he would act in similar ways. Johnson further mentions that even the supernatural agency has a dialogue that parallels with humans. For instance- In Tempest Ariel speaks, and feels just like humans.
" Shakespeare approximates the remote, and familiarizes the wonderful; the event that represents will not happen, but if it were possible, its effects would be such as he has assigned...This therefore is the praise of Shakespeare, that his drama is the mirror of life." [167-170,173-74]
👉It is Shakespeare's genius that presents even the remotest events of human life that apparently will not happen but if would happen then the person will respond in such situations as his characters have responded on the stage. That is why he has been praised and his dramas are considered as a "mirror of life".
"Shakespeare always makes nature predominance over accident; and if he preserves the essential characters, is not very careful of distinctions superinduced and adventitious."
👉In Shakespeare's play, the nature of the character plays more role than the events or accidents. It is the nature of characters that brings him in any accident and rise or downfall, For instance- The suffering of Lear in "King Lear" is due to his nature (i.e. the love of flattery), and this nature in him provokes anger for Cordelia and becomes a cause of his unbearable suffering.
Source-
ENGLISH CRITICAL TEXTS by Ernst De Chickera D J Enright.