Macaulay's Essays on Milton and Addison (Classic Reprint)

IT is hard for an editor Of a book designed 'for formal study to determine precisely what parts Of the learning that has gathered about his subject should be Offered di rectly, by way Of annotation, to young students. Two methods Of treatment at once suggest themselves. He may annotate the text very sparingly, on the assumption that an intelligent boy knows enough to read ordinary English prose literature understandingly, and should be forced to find out for himself the meaning Of words or allusions that he does not comprehend. Or he may an notate profusely, on the much sounder assumption that boys and girls are not living dictionaries and encyclo psedias, and scarcely ought to be expected to interrupt reading which they are encouraged to enjoy in order to search various volumes for information that might just as well be put at once before them. Both extremes the editor of the present volume has tried to avoid. He has endeavored to give the pupil such facts as will enable him to read rapidly and understandingly; he has eu deavored also to stimulate in the pupil an intelligent curiosity with regard to matters worth further investigation and further knowledge. It is his belief, however, that in the editing Of text-books, as in all other parts Of the teach er's delicate task, unchecked devotion to any theory of work, sound though it be, may very well lead to disaster to some pupils. He hopes, therefore, that those Of his col leagues who use this book will understand that he has tried to prepare it for various uses, thinking of different classes.

About the Publisher

Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com

This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.