The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1880-08-07
Recent Publications..

A History of Classical Greek Literature.
By Rev. J. P. Mahaffy (New York: Harper
& Brothers; Portland: Loring, Short & Har-
NOM. This valuable and well-designed work
is especially suited to the needs of students,
pursuing their classical education in college
course. The authors, whose works they study
without regard to their sequence of time, or
connection in literary history, are grouped by
Prof. Mahaffy in such order that a general
view may be obtained Of classic literature as a
whole and tn relations of various writers de-
termined, as clearly as may be at this distance
of time. Following natural line of division,
Prof. Mahaffy devotes one volume to the poets,
another to the prose writer's. He excl udes the
Alexandrian authors, except Aristotle, from
the list of true classics The manner and mat
ter of the work are clear and unaffe cted,
while evidencing great learning and familiari-
ty in ancient literature The author first ira
ces the faint dawn OF poetry before Homer.
His remarks upon the controversy concerning
the unity of authorship of the Homeric poems
are interesting and fair-mnded: as he justly
observes, never was there discussion in which
such nnanswerable arguments were brought
forward on each side without convincing the
other. He comments subtly upon the episode
of Penelopes failure to welcome at once the
returned Ulysses, .snd considers that the dra-
matte feeling of tho episode is far in advance
of the simpler and more direct emotions of
other scenes of the poem; that it is concep-
ton worthy OF the deep and delicate instinct
of Shakespeare. The epic and lyric poetry of
Greece, and its tragedies and comedies, with
appendices upon the language of the epic poets
and on the date of the Odyssey, conclude the
first volume of the work.
The second volume treats of the prose writ
ers from 600 B. C. Herodotus and his contem-
poraries, Socrates and the sophists, Attic liter
ature of the Restoration, the orators, Aristotle,
and the Lost Historians of the fourth century,
b. c., are among the subjects considered.
Prof. Mahaffys remarks upon the gradual
rise of literature in Greece are very fine and
poetic; and his analysis and outline of the
work of the various classic writers illuminate
the subject This is a work of which the i'm
portance and value cannot fail to be felt by
students and professors.
Little Comedies, by Julian Sturgs. (Apple-
tons Handy-Volume Series, D. Appleton and
TO-. new lOih, IOitltshu. 1lOyb, LOSS "HN
Donham) 1t is reported to be the fashion at
present in London, to play these pretty como
dies of Mr.. Julian Sturgis upon amateur stages,
for which their piquant dialogue, their brew
ty, and their modest requirements in the way
OF scenery, fit them excellently. Mr.. Stur-
gis evidently stands on the borders of the
artistic clique which, with their strange and
picturesque adornments and conscious con-
slant reference to antique form of speech and
thought, are very effective and brilliant
group in modern social life. Mr.. Sturgis who
evinces in these modestly-styled Little Come
dies decidedly poetic vein-holds his gilt
lightly, and with a little look of intelligence
toward the outside and Philistine world, He
has small sympathy with the morbid colofing
and perfunctory griefs Of the neo-romantic set