Project Gutenberg's Beautiful Stories from Shakespeare, by E. Nesbit

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Title: Beautiful Stories from Shakespeare

Author: E. Nesbit

Posting Date: August 15, 2008 [EBook #1430]
Release Date: August, 1998

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK BEAUTIFUL STORIES FROM SHAKESPEARE ***

Produced by Morrie Wilson and James Rose

BEAUTIFUL STORIES FROM SHAKESPEARE

By E. Nesbit

"It may be said of Shakespeare, that from his works may be
collected a system of civil and economical prudence. He has
been imitated by all succeeding writers; and it may be
doubted whether from all his successors more maxims of
theoretical knowledge, or more rules of practical prudence
can be collected than he alone has given to his country."--
Dr. SAMUEL JOHNSON.

PREFACE

The writings of Shakespeare have been justly termed "the richest, the
purest, the fairest, that genius uninspired ever penned."

Shakespeare instructed by delighting. His plays alone (leaving mere
science out of the question), contain more actual wisdom than the
whole body of English learning. He is the teacher of all good-- pity,
generosity, true courage, love. His bright wit is cut out "into little
stars." His solid masses of knowledge are meted out in morsels and
proverbs, and thus distributed, there is scarcely a corner of the
English-speaking world to-day which he does not illuminate, or a cottage
which he does not enrich. His bounty is like the sea, which, though
often unacknowledged, is everywhere felt. As his friend, Ben Jonson,
wrote of him, "He was not of an age but for all time." He ever kept the
highroad of human life whereon all travel. He did not pick out by-paths
of feeling and sentiment. In his creations we have no moral highwaymen,
sentimental thieves, interesting villains, and amiable, elegant
adventuresses--no delicate entanglements of situation, in which
the grossest images are presented to the mind disguised under the
superficial attraction of style and sentiment. He flattered no bad
passion, disguised no vice in the garb of virtue, trifled with no just
and generous principle. W