e preceding pages,
presented the strongest temptation to the exercise of argumentative
poetry in sounding rhyme, Dryden was at length contented to abandon it
for the more pure and chaste style of tragedy, which professes rather
the representation of human beings, than the creation of ideal
perfection, or fantastic and anomalous characters. The best of Dryden's
performances in this latter style, are unquestionably "Don Sebastian,"
and "All for Love." Of these, the former is in the poet's very best
manner; exhibiting dramatic persons, consisting of such bold and
impetuous characters as he delighted to draw, well contrasted, forcibly
marked, and engaged in an interesting succession of events. To many
tempers, the scene between Sebastian and Dorax must appear one of the
most moving that ever adorned the British stage. Of "All for Love," we
may say, that it is successful in a softer style of painting; and that
so far as sweet and beautiful versification, elegant language, and
occasional tenderness, can make amends for Dryden's deficiencies in
describing the delicacies of sentimental passion, they are to be found
in abundance in that piece. But on these, and on the poet's other
tragedies, we have enlarged in our preliminary notices prefixed to each
piece.

Dryden's comedies, besides being stained with the licence of the age (a
licence which he seems to use as much from necessity as choice), have,
generally speaking, a certain heaviness of character. There are many
flashes of wit; but the author has beaten his flint hard ere he struck
them out. It is almost essential to the success of a jest, that it
should at least seem to be extemporaneous. If we espy the joke at a
distance, nay, if without seeing it we have the least reason to suspect
we are travelling towards one, it is astonishing how the perverse
obstinacy of our nature delights to refuse it currency. When, therefore,
as is often the case in Dryden's comedies, two persons remain on the
stage for no obvious purpose but to say good things, it is no wonder
they receive but little thanks from an ungrateful audience. The
incidents, therefore, and the characters, ought to be comic; but actual
jests, or _bon mots_, should be rarely introduced, and then naturally,
easily, without an appearance of premeditation, and bearing a strict
conformity to the character of the person who utters them. Comic
situation Dryden did not greatly study; indeed I hardly recollect any,
unless in th