The commercial. (Union City, Tenn.) 190?-193?, 1904-07-15
FOR OUR PUBLIC
HIGH SCHOOL LIBRARY

The Department of History AM
Literature, over which Mrs. Nan
ME G. Carter presides with digni
ty and scholarly ability, has beef
greatly strengthened by the pur
chase of a recent publication whicl
will be of marked value to tn,
school, The wide range of tn,
work makes it available along
many lines requiring accurate in
formation, especially in History
and Literature. Character sketch
es of Poetry, Fiction, Romance
and Drama by a distinguished Ok
ford scholar, Rev. Gotham Brew.
er, LII. D., has a range of valuable
information that cannot be found
in any other work of similar char.
acter.
To give the reader a better idea
of the real value of the work, we
will state that in history and liter
ature the student is constantly
running across illusions which the
most cleverly edited texts do not
explain and therefore leave the
reader in doubt. This failure on
the part of the editor and very
often on the part of the teacher, is
precluded entirely when the stu
dent is in possession of, or has
access to, this valuable work.
In it we have complete sketches
of poetry, drama, romance and fic-
ton running back to the tragedies
of Homer, through the tragedies
of Aeschylus, Sophocles and Eu-
ripides. 1t makes the student ia
miliar with those poetic figures
which were not only the creations
of Greek imagination, but were
the expression of their ideals and
aspirations; for to the Greek,
mythology and poetry were vital
part of life.
The figures that move through
the Aeneid; stories Of the Nibe-
lungen Lied which form the fore
ground of German poetry and
drama: the Divine Comedy of
Dante, the great epic of English
verse Paradise Lost and Paradise
Regained, are all fields from which
the author has gathered a wonder
full summary. Over five hundred
Shakespearan characters are treat
ed in the work, with valuable in
formation in reference to the
sources or originality Of plots,
date of publication, etc. The
modern dramas of Goldsmith,
Sheridan, Bulwer, Rostand and
Phillips, are brought to the atten-
ton of the student by vital char
Moreover these val
liable books contain the Sagas and
Eddas of Icelandic and NorsIandic
literatures; the great and minor
operas, emphasizing their sources
in a pictorial and literary sense.
Poetic Characterization brought |
down from its earliest creation,
through the literature of Germany,
Italy, England and our
own country to the present time.
The personalities that have been
created by the realism of Balzac,
Dickens, Scott, Fielding, Eliot,
Thackeray, Hugo and Tolstoi, are
re-sketched with accuracy and con-
ciseness.
The illustrations of these vol
lmes cover a field of valuable sug-
gestion, are of superior workman
ship, chosen from the best models,
Illustrate lofty thought and should
create in the minds of our students
he highest ideals.
1t is the intention of the associa-
ion to purchase number of :
,hoice volumes and to place same
IN the shelves in the library for
he use principally of the high
'chool students.
The writer predicts that the
ime is not far off when the Board
With its accustomed progressive
less will, after the custom Of other
titles, make an annual appropria-
ion to be used in building up