THe Vertues required in an Heroick Poem (and indeed in all Writings published) are compre­hended all in this one word Discretion.

And Discretion consisteth in this, That every part of the Poem be con­ducing, and in good order placed to the end and designe of the Poet. And the Designe is not only to profit, but also to delight the Reader.

By Profit, I intend not here any ac­cession of Wealth either to the Poet, or to the Reader; but accession of Prudence, Justice, and Fortitude, by the Example of such Great and Noble [Page]Persons as he introduceth speaking, or describeth acting. For all men love to behold, though not to practise Ver­tue. So that at last the work of an Heroique Poet is no more but to fur­nish an ingenuous Reader (when his leisure abounds) with the diversion of an honest and delightful Story, whe­ther true or feigned.

But because there be many men cal­led Critiques, and Wits, and Vertuosi, that are accustomed to censure the Poets, and most of them of divers Judgements: How is it possible (you'll say) to please them all? Yes, very well; if the Poem be as it should be. For men can judge what's good, that know not what is best. For he that can judge what is best, must have con­sidered all those things (though they be almost innumerable) that concur to make the reading of an Heroique Poem pleasant. Whereof I'll name as many as shall come into my mind.

And they are contained, first, in the choice of Words. Secondly, in [Page]the Construction. Thirdly, in the Contrivance of the Story or Fiction. Fourthly, in the Elevation of the Fancie. Fifthly, in the Justice and Impartiality of the Poet. Sixthly, in th [...] clearness of Descriptions. Se­venthly, in the Amplitude of the Subject.

And (to begin with words) the first Indiscretion is, The use of such words as to the Readers of Poesie (which are commonly Persons of the best Quality) are not sufficiently known. For the work of an Heroick Poem is to raise admiration (princi­pally) for three Vertues, Valour, Beau­ty, and Love; to the reading whereof Women no less than Men have a just pretence, though their skill in Lan­guage be not so universal. And there­fore forein words till by long use they become vulgar, are unintelligible to them. Also the names of Instruments and Tools of Artificers, and words of Art, though of use in the Schools, are far from being fit to be spoken by a [Page]Heroe. He may delight in the Arts themselves, and have skill in some of them; but his Glory lies not in that, but in Courage, Nobility, and other Vertues of Nature, or in the Com­mand he has over other men. Nor does Homer in any part of his Poem attribute any praise to Achilles, or any blame to Alexander, for that they had both learnt to play upon the [...]hittarre. The Character of words that become a Heroe are Property, and Significan­cy, but without both the malice and lasciviousness of a Satyr.

Another Vertue of an Heroique Poem is the Perspicuity and the Faci­lity of Construction, and consisteth in a natural contexture of the words, so as not to discover the labour but the natural ability of the Poet; and this is usually called a good Style. For the order of words when placed as they ought to be, carries a light before it, whereby a man may foresee the length of his period; as a torch in the night shews a man the stops and uneveness in [Page]his way. But when plac'd unnaturally, the Reader will often find unexpected checks, and be forced to go back and hunt for the sense, and suffer such un­ease, as in a Coach a man unexpectedly finds in passing over a furrow. And though the Laws of Verse (which have bound the Greeks and Latines to number of Feet, and quantity of Syl­lables, and the English and other Na­tions to number of Syllables and Rime) put great constraint upon the natural course of Language; yet the Poet, ha­ving the liberty to depart from what is obstinate, and to chuse somewhat else that is more obedient to such Laws, and no less fit for his purpose, shall not be (neither by the measure, nor by the necessity of Rime) excused; though a Translation often may.

A third Vertue lies in the Contri­vance. For there is difference be­tween a Poem and a History in Prose. For a History is wholly related by the Writer; but in a Heroique Poem the Narration is, a great part of it, put [Page]upon some of the persons introduced by the Poet. So Homer begins not his Iliad with the injury done by Pa­ris, but makes it related by Menelaus, and very briefly as a thing notorious; nor begins he his Odysses with the de­parture of Ʋlysses from Troy, but makes Ʋlysses himself relate the same to Alcinous, in the midst of his Poem; which I think much more pleasant and ingenious, than a too precise and close following of the time.

A fourth is in the Elevation of Fan­cy, which is generally taken for the greatest praise of Heroick Poetry; and is so, when governed by discretion. For men more generally affect and ad­mire Fancy than they do either Judg­ment, or Reason, or Memory, or any o­ther intellectual Vertue, and for the pleasantness of it, give to it alone the name of Wit, accounting Reason and Judgment but for a dull entertainment. For in Fancy consisteth the Sublimity of a Poet, which is that Poetical Fury which the Readers for the most part [Page]call for. It flies abroad swiftly to fetch in both Matter and Words; but if there be not Discretion at home to distinguish which are fit to be used and which not, which decent, and which undecent for Persons, Times, and Places, their delight and grace is lost. But if they be discreetly used, they are greater ornaments of a Poem by much than any other. A Metaphor also (which is a Comparison contracted into a word) is not unpleasant; but when they are sharp, and extraordi­nary, they are not fit for an Heroick Poet, nor for a publick consultation, but only for an Accusation or Defence at the Bar.

A fifth lies in the Justice and Im­partiality of the Poet, and belongeth as well to History as to Poetry. For both the Poet and the Historian wri­teth only (or should do) matter of Fact. And as far as the truth of Fact can defame a man, so far they are al­lowed to blemish the reputation of persons. But to do the same upon Re­port, [Page]or by inference, is below the dignity not onely of a Heroe but of a Man. For neither a Poet nor an Hi­storian ought to make himself an ab­solute Master of any mans good name. None of the Emperors of Rome whom Tacitus or any other Writer hath con­demned, was ever subject to the Judg­ment of any of them, nor were they ever heard to plead for themselves, which are things that ought to be an­tecedent to condemnation. Nor was (I think) Epicurus the Philosopher (who is transmitted to us by the Sto­icks for a man of evil and voluptuous life) ever called, convented, and law­fully convicted, as all men ought to be before they be defamed. There­fore 'tis a very great fault in a Poet to speak evil of any man in their Wri­tings Historical.

A sixth Vertue consists in the per­fection and curiosity of Descriptions, which the ancient Writers of Elo­quence call Icones, that is Images. And an Image is always a part, or ra­ther [Page]the ground of a Poetical compa­rison. As (for example) when Virgil would set before our eyes the fall of Troy, he describes perhaps the whole Labour of many men together in the felling of some great Tree, and with how much ado it fell. This is the Image. To which if you but add these words, So fell Troy, you have the Comparison en­tire; the grace whereof lieth in the lightsomness, and is but the description of all (even of the minutest) parts of the thing described; that not onely they that stand far off, but also they that stand neer, and look upon it with the oldest spectacles of a Critick, may approve it. For a Poet is a Painter, and should paint Actions to the under­standing with the most decent words, as Painters do Persons and Bodies with the choicest colours, to the eye; which if not done nicely, will not be worthy to be plac'd in a Cabinet.

The seventh Vertue which lying in the amplitude of the Subject, is nothing but variety, and a thing without which [Page]a whole Poem would be no pleasanter than an Epigram, or one good Verse; nor a Picture of a hundred figures better than any one of them asunder, if drawn with equal art. And these are the Vertues which ought especially to be looked upon by the Criticks, in the comparing of the Poets, Homer with Virgil, or Virgil with Lucan. For these only, for their excellency, I have read or heard compared.

If the comparison be grounded up­on the first and second Vertues, which consist in known words and Style un­forc'd, they are all excellent in their own Language, though perhaps the Latine than the Greek is apter to dis­pose it self into an Hexameter Verse, as having both fewer Monosyllables and fewer Polysyllables. And this may make the Latin Verse appear more grave and equal, which is taken for a kinde of Majesty; though in truth there be no Majesty in words, but then when they seem to proceed from an high and weighty employment of the [Page]minde. But neither Homer, nor Vir­gil, nor Lucan, nor any Poet writing commendably (though not excellent­ly) was ever charged much with un­known words, or great constraint of Style, as being a fault proper to Tran­slators, when they hold themselves too superstitiously to their Authors words.

In the third Vertue, which is Con­trivance, there is no doubt but Homer excels them all. For their Poems (ex­cept the Introduction of their Gods) are but so many Histories in Verse; where Homer has woven so many Hi­stories together as contain the whole Learning of his time (which the Greeks call Cyclopaedia) and furnished both the Greek and Latin Stages with all the Plots and Arguments of their Tragedies.

The fourth Vertue, which is the height of Fancy, is almost proper to Lucan, and so admirable in him, that no Heroique Poem raises such admiration of the Poet, as his hath done, though [Page]not so great admiration of the persons he introduceth. And though it be a mark of a great Wit; yet it is fitter for a Rhetorician than a Poet, and re­belleth often against Discretion; as when he says ‘Victrix causa Diis placuit, sed victa Catoni.’ that is,

Than which nothing could be spo­ken more gloriously to the Exaltation of a man, nor more disgracefully to the Depression of the Gods. Homer in­deed maketh some Gods for the Greeks, and some for the Trojans; but always makes Jupiter impartial. And never prefers the judgement of a Man before that of Jupiter; much less be­fore the judgement of all the Gods together.

The fifth Vertue, which is the Ju­stice and Impartiality of a Poet, is [Page]very eminent in Homer and Virgil, but the contrary in Lucan. Lucan shews himself openly in the Pompeyan Faction, inveighing against Caesar throughout his Poem, like Cicero against Cataline or Marc Antony; and is therefore just­ly reckon'd by Quintilian as a Rhe­torician rather than a Poet. And a great part of the delight of his Readers pro­ceedeth from the pleasure which too many men take to hear Great persons censured. But Homer and Virgil (e­specially Homer) do every where what they can to preserve the Reputation of their Heroes.

If we compare Homer and Virgil by the sixth Vertue, which is the clear­ness of Images (or Descriptions) it is manifest that Homer ought to be pre­ferr'd, though Virgil himself were to be the Judge. For there are very few Images in Virgil besides those which he hath translated out of Homer; so that Virgil's Images are Homer's Praises. But what if he have added something to it of his own? Though he have, yet [Page]it is no addition of praise, because 'tis easie. But he hath some Images which are not in Homer, and better than his. It may be so, and so may other Poets have which never durst compare them­selves with Homer. Two or three fine sayings are not enough to make a Wit. But where is that Image of his better done by him than Homer, of those that have been done by them both? Yes, Eustathius (as Mr. Ogilby hath observ'd) where they both de­scribe the falling of a Tree, prefers Vir­gil's description. But Eustathius is in that, I think, mistaken. The place of Homer is in the fourth of the Iliads, the sense whereof is this:

It is mauifest that in this place Ho­mer [Page]intended no more than to shew how comely the body of Simoisius ap­peared as he lay dead upon the Bank of Scamander, streight, and tall, with a fair head of hair, and like a streight and high Poplar with the boughs still on; and not at all to describe the manner of his falling, which (when a man is wounded through the breast, as he was with a Spear) is always sudden.

The description of how a great Tree falleth, when many men together hew it down, is in the second of Virgil's Aeneads. The sense of it, with the comparison, is in English this:

And here again it is evident that Virgil meant to compare the manner [Page]how Troy after many Battles, and af­ter the losses of many Cities, con­quer'd by the many Nations under Agememnon in a long War, and thereby weak'ned, and at last overthrown, with a great Tree hewn round about, and then falling by little and little leisurely.

So that neither these two Descrip­tions, nor the two Comparisons can be compared together. The Image of a man lying on the ground is one thing; the Image of falling (especially of a Kingdom) is another. This therefore gives no advantage to Virgil over Ho­mer. 'Tis true, that this Description of the Felling and Falling of a Tree is exceeding graceful. But is it there­fore more than Homer could have done if need had been? Or is there no De­scription in Homer of somewhat else as good as this? Yes, and in many of our English Poets now alive. If it then be lawful for Julius Scaliger to say, that if Jupiter would have descri­bed the fall of a Tree, he could not [Page]have mended this of Virgil; it will be lawful for me to repeat an old Epigram of Antipater, to the like purpose, in favour of Homer.

The seventh and last commendati­on of an Heroick Poem consisteth in Amplitude and Variety; and in this Homer exceedeth Virgil very much, and that not by superfluity of words, but by plenty of Heroick matter, and multitude of Descriptions and Com­parisons (whereof Virgil hath transla­ted but a small part into his Aeneads) such as are the Images of Shipwracks, Battles, Single Combats, Beauty, Pas­sions of the mind, Sacrifices, Entertain­ments, and other things, whereof Vir­gil (abating what he borrows of Ho­mer) has scarce the twentieth part. It is no wonder therefore if all the an­cient Learned men both of Greece and [Page] Rome having given the first place in Poetry to Homer. It is rather strange that two or three, and of late time, and but Learners of the Greek tongue, should dare to contradict so many com­petent Judges, both of Language and Discretion. But howsoever I defend Homer, I aim not thereby at any re­flection upon the following Transla­tion. Why then did I write it? Be­cause I had nothing else to do. Why publish it? Because I thought it might take off my Adversaries from shewing their folly upon my more serious Wri­tings, and set them upon my Verses to shew their wisdom. But why without Annotations? Because I had no hope to do it better than it is already done by Mr. Ogilby.