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Full Description
First published in 1980, Thomas Gray is a comprehensive biography of Thomas Gray together with a selection of his letters, which reveal his character clearly, and a critical reassessment of his poems. The author's intention is to place the man and the poet in a truer focus than has any previous writer.
As any critic of Gray must, the author seeks answers to various questions—why did Gray, while enjoying an independent income and the comfort of rooms in Cambridge colleges, publish so little? Was Gray the delicate poet and fastidious scholar many of his contemporaries believed? Or was he, as Dr Johnson asserted, 'dull in conversation...dull everywhere, dull in a new kind of way? What is the value of Gray's literary output? Why has he remained well known by name? Why is the Churchyard Elegy one of the most celebrated poems in the language? Why did Gray refuse the offer of appointment as Poet Laureate; and yet actively seek the Chair of Modern History at Cambridge?
This book will be a valuable read for students and researchers of English literature and general readers interested in the topic.
Contents
Author's Preface Part One: The life 1. Cornhill and Eton: 1716-1734 2. Peterhouse: 1734-1737 3. Gray, West and Walpole: 1737-1739 4. France and Savoy: 1739 5. Italy: 1739-1741 6. The death of West and the return to Cambridge: 1741-1742 7. 'The Power of Laziness': 1742-1747 8. Fire in Cornhill: the Elegy and 'A Long Story': 1748-1751 9. The Six Poems and the death of Dorothy Gray: 1752-1753 10. The visit to Durham: the Pindaric Odes: 1753-1755 11. The move to Pembroke Hall: the Pindaric Odes (II): 1756-1757 12. Gray and Miss Speed: London and the British Museum: 1758-1759 13. Macpherson and Ossian: studies in Welsh and Norse Poetry: 1760-1761 14. A visit to Old Park: Nicholls, Algarotti and others: Lord Sandwich: 1762-1764 15. Glamis Castle and the Highlands...First Visit to the Lakes: 1765-1766 16. The Professorship of Modern History: Second Visit to the Lakes: 1768-1769 17. Bonstetten: 1770 18. The End: 1770-1771 Part Two: The works 1. The Poet 2. The Translator 3. The Letter Writer 4. The Scholar 5. The Critic 6. The Student of Natural History 7. Conclusion: The Man and the Writer Appendix: Gray's poetic diction, by Iris Lytton Sells
