hich every one of these
qualities would have been reversed. "The less we copy the ancients,"
said Dr. Young, "we shall resemble them the more." The undue exaltation
of antiquity is complete in the Temple of Fame. No English king,
warrior, statesman, or patriot; no Christian martyr or evangeliser; no
poet or philosopher was deemed worthy to be ranked with the men of old.
The fictitious phantoms of heathen mythology, the heroes of decayed
empires, and the authors whose works are in dead languages, are the sole
immortals of Pope. Within the limits of his narrow world several of his
names appear to have been selected at random, and others are applauded
upon mistaken principles. He extols the virtue of Brutus, whose chief
glory was to have plotted the death of his preserver, patron, and
friend. Nations do not need, and virtue disowns the patriotism which
manifests itself in ingratitude, treachery, and murder. Pope's
admiration of tyrannicides even led him to celebrate Timoleon for
killing his brother, notwithstanding that Timoleon had forfeited his
claim to the panegyric by bitterly repenting his crime. To consecrate
political assassinations is to put the lives of rulers at the mercy of
any individual who conceives their policy to be mischievous. In short,
the portion of the Temple of Fame which was not directly borrowed from
Chaucer is merely a school-boy's theme in verse. The manner in which
Pope sets forth his worthies is not, for him, felicitous. His portraits
are nearly all faint and feeble sketches, without distinctness of
outline, individuality of feature, or brilliancy of colouring.

The contemporary literature of the middle ages could not compete with
the classical masterpieces, and Chaucer might have been justified in
peopling his House of Fame with ancients alone. But he does not believe
that genius and grandeur expired with the Romans. He has faith in
authors whose light has long since been dimmed or extinguished, and
confidently ranks such writers as Guido de Columpnis and Geoffrey of
Monmouth with the loftiest Greek and Latin names. The statues of
minstrel bards, musicians, and professors of magic adorn the exterior of
the palace; the wall within is crowded with heralds, and on their coats
are embroidered the armorial ensigns of all the persons who had been
famous in Europe, Asia, and Africa since chivalry began. Everywhere we
have the true reflection of the world in which Chaucer lived. His
narrative represent