The balance of private good and general welfare is at the bottom of civilized morals; but the morals of the Heroic Age are founded on individuality, and on nothing else.
quote by Lascelles Abercrombie
Added by Lucian Velea
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!
The Border Ballads, for instance, and the Robin Hood Ballads, clearly suppose a state of society which is nothing but a very circumscribed and not very important heroic age.
quote by Lascelles Abercrombie
Added by Lucian Velea
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!
The world knows of a vast stock of epic material scattered up and down the nations; sometimes its artistic value is as extraordinary as its archaeological interest, but not always.
quote by Lascelles Abercrombie
Added by Lucian Velea
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!
That is to say, epic poetry has been invented many times and independently; but, as the needs which prompted the invention have been broadly similar, so the invention itself has been.
quote by Lascelles Abercrombie
Added by Lucian Velea
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!
With several different kinds of poetry to choose from, a man would decide that he would like best to be an epic poet, and he would set out, in conscious determination, on an epic poem.
quote by Lascelles Abercrombie
Added by Lucian Velea
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!
But the gravest difficulty, and perhaps the most important, in poetry meant solely for recitation, is the difficulty of achieving verbal beauty, or rather of making verbal beauty tell.
quote by Lascelles Abercrombie
Added by Lucian Velea
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!
But the development of human society does not go straight forward; and the epic process will therefore be a recurring process, the series a recurring series - though not in exact repetition.
quote by Lascelles Abercrombie
Added by Lucian Velea
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!
The epic poet collaborates with the spirit of his time in the composition of his work. That is, if he is successful; the time may refuse to work with him, but he may not refuse to work with his time.
quote by Lascelles Abercrombie
Added by Lucian Velea
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!
There is only one thing which can master the perplexed stuff of epic material into unity; and that is, an ability to see in particular human experience some significant symbolism of man's general destiny.
quote by Lascelles Abercrombie
Added by Lucian Velea
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!
The epic poet has behind him a tradition of matter and a tradition of style; and that is what every other poet has behind him too; only, for the epic poet, tradition is rather narrower, rather more strictly compelling.
quote by Lascelles Abercrombie
Added by Lucian Velea
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!