[Sketch of his Own Character]
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[Sketch of his Own Character]
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[Sketch of his Own Character] Skip to next line
Metrical foot type: anapaestic (--+)
Metrical foot number: tetrameter (4 feet) (catalectic) (hypercatalectic)
Rhyme scheme: aabbcc
Rhyme (stanza position): pair (aabb)
Syllable pattern: 12.12.11.11.11.11
Stanza: sestet (6 lines)
Notation symbols: | (foot boundary), || (caesura), / (metrical line boundary), + (metrically prominent), - (metrically non-prominent)
Metre: -+|--+|--+|--+|-/ | Syllables: 12
Metre: -+|--+|--+|--+|-/ | Syllables: 12
Metre: -+|--+|--+|--+/ | Syllables: 11
Metre: -+|--+|--+|--+/ | Syllables: 11
Metre: -+|--+|--+|--+/ | Syllables: 11
Metre: -+|--+|--+|--+/ | Syllables: 11
Expanding the poem lines () shows notes and queries taken from various critical editions of Gray's works, as well as those contributed by users of the Archive. There are 0 textual and 6 explanatory notes/queries.
[Sketch of his Own Character] 1 Explanatory Skip to next line
Title/Paratext] "Some editors suppose that Goldsmith [...]" J. Bradshaw, 1891.
"Some editors suppose that Goldsmith took these lines as the model of his character of Burke in "Retaliation"; but the latter was published in April, 1774, and Gray's lines did not appear till printed in Mason's edition in 1775 (as a footnote to a letter dated August, 1758)."
The Poetical Works of Thomas Gray: English and Latin. Edited with an introduction, life, notes and a bibliography by John Bradshaw. The Aldine edition of the British poets series. London: George Bell and sons, 1891, 258.1.1-10 Too ... importune,] ""This is similar to a [...]" J. Bradshaw, 1891.
""This is similar to a passage in one of Swift's letters to Gay, speaking of poets: 'I have been considering why poets have such ill success in making their court. They are too libertine to haunt ante-chambers, too poor to bribe porters, and too proud to cringe to second-hand favourites in a great family.' See Pope's 'Works,' xi. 36, ed. Wharton."—Mitford."
The Poetical Works of Thomas Gray: English and Latin. Edited with an introduction, life, notes and a bibliography by John Bradshaw. The Aldine edition of the British poets series. London: George Bell and sons, 1891, 257.1.10 importune,] "importune must here be pronounced [...]" J. Bradshaw, 1891.
"importune must here be pronounced with the accent on the second syllable, for the sake of the rhyme."
The Poetical Works of Thomas Gray: English and Latin. Edited with an introduction, life, notes and a bibliography by John Bradshaw. The Aldine edition of the British poets series. London: George Bell and sons, 1891, 257.4.1-9 No ... God.] "This means—"I am not like [...]" J. Bradshaw, 1891.
"This means—"I am not like some of the wits of the day who profess not to believe in God.""
The Poetical Works of Thomas Gray: English and Latin. Edited with an introduction, life, notes and a bibliography by John Bradshaw. The Aldine edition of the British poets series. London: George Bell and sons, 1891, 257.6.7-8 Charles Townshend] "Charles Townshend was Chancellor of [...]" J. Bradshaw, 1891.
"Charles Townshend was Chancellor of the Exchequer in Chatham's last ministry (1767). Horace Walpole regarded him as scarcely inferior to Charles James Fox in wit and forensic ability; and Macaulay calls him the most brilliant and versatile of mankind, adding that he "belonged to every party and cared for none.""
The Poetical Works of Thomas Gray: English and Latin. Edited with an introduction, life, notes and a bibliography by John Bradshaw. The Aldine edition of the British poets series. London: George Bell and sons, 1891, 257.6.10 Squire.] "Dr. Samuel Squire, at that [...]" J. Bradshaw, 1891.
"Dr. Samuel Squire, at that time Fellow of St. John's College, Cambridge, and afterwards Bishop of St. David's. He died in 1766."
The Poetical Works of Thomas Gray: English and Latin. Edited with an introduction, life, notes and a bibliography by John Bradshaw. The Aldine edition of the British poets series. London: George Bell and sons, 1891, 258.Works cited
- The Poetical Works of Thomas Gray: English and Latin. Edited with an introduction, life, notes and a bibliography by John Bradshaw. The Aldine edition of the British poets series. London: George Bell and sons, 1891.
Spelling has been modernized throughout, except in case of conscious archaisms. Contractions, italics and initial capitalization have been largely eliminated, except where of real import. Obvious errors have been silently corrected, punctuation has been supplied. The editor would like to express his gratitude to the library staff of the Göttingen State and University Library (SUB Göttingen) for their invaluable assistance.