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Title: The Mirror of Taste, and Dramatic Censor
Vol. I. No. 3. March 1810

Author: Various

Release Date: August 3, 2008 [EBook #26178]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

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[Transcriber's Note:

This text is intended for users whose text readers cannot use the "real"
(unicode/utf-8) version or even the simplified Latin-1 version. A few
letters such as "oe" and "ae" have been unpacked, and curly quotes and
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Greek word has been transliterated and shown between +marks+.

The printed book contained the six Numbers of Volume I with their
appended plays. The Index originally appeared at the beginning of
the volume; it has been added to the end of the journal text,
before the play. Pages 189-268 refer to the present Number.

Errors are listed separately for the _Mirror of Taste_ and for the
_Novice of St. Mark's_.]

THE MIRROR OF TASTE,

AND

DRAMATIC CENSOR.

Vol. I. MARCH 1810. No. 3.

HISTORY OF THE STAGE.

CHAPTER III.

SOPHOCLES--EURIPIDES--DIONYSIUS.

AESCHYLUS and SHAKSPEARE have each been styled the father of the drama
of his country: yet their claims to this distinction stand on very
different grounds. Aeschylus laid the plan and foundation of the Grecian
tragedy and built upon it; but to his successor belongs the glory of
improving upon his invention. Shakspeare raised the drama of his country
at once to the utmost degree of perfection: succeeding poets have been
able to do nothing more than walk in the path trod by him, at an immense
distance, and endeavour to copy but without equalling his perfections.

The general admiration in which Aeschylus was held, gave birth to a herd
of imitators, among whom were sons and nephews of his own; but as, like
most imitators, they could do little more than mimic his defects without
reaching his excellencies, they served only as