But those last lines:
we cannot compare with any model. They stand by themselves, unsurpassable, lines such as are only to be found here and there even in the great poets.
The more one reads this poetry of Thompson's the more one discovers that it is something essentially individual. Harmonies that one may miss on a first reading become more apparent and more insistent as one reads again, and the exquisite, haunting melody of his verse pursues us, and its faultless, rich rhythms seem to create new patterns of form. One may miss not a little of his thought, because the engrossing beauty of the language lays hold of the senses. In almost every poem one finds some lingering phrase:
Or:
Often he shows that exact sense of lyrical fitness which Milton pre-eminently possessed, and, second only to him, Shelley. We see it in the passage which begins:
The Hound of Heaven, I think, has rightly been pronounced his greatest poem, for whilst in its wealth of melody, its magnificence of imagery, and its pathos, it is unsurpassed, it reveals also the finest depths of his thought as he takes us "down the labyrinthine ways" of his mind's flight. But next to that I would put The Making of Viola, a poem which no other, except Rossetti or his sister Christina, could have written:
It may be that he will always be a poet for the few; that his mystical, esoteric spirit, finding its proper expression in baffling imagery and elusive, other-worldly rhythms, will never be wholly congenial to the many. But his place is assured; for he had no traffic with the things of a day or the language of a day. The beauty which haunts his prose and his verse is of that universal order which can hardly fade by the mere passing of time. Only a change in the human spirit can make it dim.
Many of the foregoing chapters are based upon articles which have been published in periodicals. My thanks are due to the Editors of the following journals, which I name in the order of my indebtedness:—The English Review, The Nation, The Daily News, The North American Review, The British Review, and The Athenæum.
It is generally conceded that Gerhart Hauptmann is the most notable dramatist of the present day. His work combines literary, psychological and dramatic interest in greater measure than that of any other contemporary writer, and the award of the Nobel prize in literature was a public recognition of his genius.
An authorized translation of his dramas makes it possible at last for English people to study and enjoy Hauptmann. Excellent translations of a few plays had already been made and these, by arrangement with the respective translators, will be adapted to the present edition, but new translation will be made whenever it seems necessary in order to maintain the highest standard. The editor of the edition is Professor Ludwig Lewisohn. He supplies a general introduction to Hauptmann's works in Volume I, and a briefer introduction to each succeeding volume.
| CONTENTS | |
| Volume I | Volume II |
| Social Dramas | Social Dramas |
| Before Dawn The Weavers The Beaver Coat The Conflagration |
Drayman Henschel Rose Bernd The Rats |
| Volume III | Volume IV |
| Domestic Dramas | Symbolic and Legendary Dramas |
| The Reconciliation Lonely Lives Colleague Crampton Michael Kramer |
Hannele The Sunken Bell Henry of Aue |
| Volume V | Volume VI |
| Symbolic and Historical Dramas | Later Dramas in Prose |
| Schluck and Jau And Pippa Dances Charlemagne's Hostage |
The Maidens of the Mount Griselda Gabriel Schilling's Flight |
Each Volume Crown 8vo. Price Five Shillings net
Throughout this book a particular point of view has been adhered to, from which the drama is looked upon as a separate art from literature, and from which especial attention is paid to the manner of its practice. Thus nearly all the plays of the dramatists passed under review are to be studied in book form, but they are spoken of here, as far as possible, in terms of their actual presentation in the theatre. The dramatists include Pinero, Henry Arthur Jones, Henry James, Oscar Wilde, Bernard Shaw, Barrie, Hubert Henry Davies, Granville Barker, Hankin, Galsworthy and Masefield. It is a book for all playgoers who have done their playgoing in the English theatre of the last twenty-five years.
The portraits which illustrate it are from camera studies by Mr. E.O. Hoppé, reproduced by a new process which does full justice to his original prints.
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SINISTER STREET
By COMPTON MACKENZIE
Author of "Carnival."
THE STORY OF LOUIE
By OLIVER ONIONS
Author of "The Debit Account."
HANDS UP!
By FREDERICK NIVEN
Author of "The Porcelain Lady."
TELLING THE TRUTH
By WILLIAM HEWLETT
Author of "Uncle's Advice."
UNDERGROWTH
By F. and E. BRETT YOUNG
A First Novel.
THE BANKRUPT
By HORACE HORSNELL
A First Novel.
THE FOOL'S TRAGEDY
By A. SCOTT CRAVEN
A First Novel.