ON THE STRUCTURE OF ENGLISH VERSE BY C. WITCOMB MAÎTRE DE CONFÉRENCES HONORAIRE A L'ÉCOLE NORMALE SUPÉRIEURE LONDON SAMPSON LOW, MARSTON, SEARLE AND RIVINGTON CROWN BUILDINGS, 188, FLEET STREET 1884 All rights reserved 2809.e.23 PREFACE The object of these pages is to assist the student in his endeavours to obtain a knowledge of the mechanism of English verse and of the variety of forms into which it may be wrought. The explanations and remarks that follow will, it is hoped, serve to guide the reader through the not very narrow field of English poetry spread before him in the numerous passages quoted. These have been purposely multiplied; they are not all mere fragments; their number, and the length of many of them, may enable the reader to form some idea of the characteristics of the poets from whom they are borrowed, and to familiarise himself to a certain extent with the manner of each and with the peculiar harmony of his verse. The extracts have been chosen with a view to render the task of the student agreeable and interesting, so that he may not rest contented with what this small volume can teach, but be animated with a desire to extend his knowledge of English poetry and English poets much farther. |