The Project Gutenberg EBook of Table-Talk, by William Hazlitt

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Title: Table-Talk
Essays on Men and Manners

Author: William Hazlitt

Release Date: January, 2002 [Etext #3020]
Posting Date: November 2, 2009

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK TABLE-TALK ***

Produced by Christopher Hapka

TABLE-TALK

ESSAYS ON MEN AND MANNERS

By William Hazlitt

CONTENTS

VOLUME I

1. On the Pleasure of Painting
2. The Same Subject Continued
3. On the Past and Future
4. On Genius and Common Sense
5. The Same Subject Continued
6. Character of Cobbett
7. On People With One Idea
8. On the Ignorance of the Learned
9. The Indian Jugglers
10. On Living To One's-Self
11. On Thought and Action
12. On Will-Making
13. On Certain Inconsistencies In Sir Joshua Reynolds's Discourses
14. The Same Subject Continued
15. On Paradox and Common-Place
16. On Vulgarity and Affectation

VOLUME II

1. On a Landscape of Nicholas Poussin
2. On Milton's Sonnets
3. On Going a Journey
4. On Coffee-House Politicians
5. On the Aristocracy of Letters
6. On Criticism
7. On Great and Little Things
8. On Familiar Style
9. On Effeminacy of Character
10. Why Distant Objects Please
11. On Corporate Bodies
12. Whether Actors Ought To Sit in the Boxes
13. On the Disadvantages of Intellectual Superiority
14. On Patronage and Puffing
15. On the Knowledge of Character
16. On the Picturesque and Ideal
17. On the Fear of Death

VOLUME I

ESSAY I. ON THE PLEASURE OF PAINTING

'There is a pleasure in painting which none but painters know.' In
writing, you have to contend with the world; in painting, you have only
to carry on a friendly strife with Nature. You sit down to your task,
and are happy. From the moment that you take up the pencil, and look
Nature in the face, you are at peace with your own heart. No angry
passions rise to disturb the silent progress of the work, to shake the
hand, or dim the brow: no irritable humours are set afloat: you have no
absurd opinions to combat, no point to strain, no adversary to crush,
n