The Arte of English Poesie

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Title: The Arte of English Poesie
Author: George Puttenham
Release Date: August 3, 2005 [EBook #16420]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
0. START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE ARTE
OF ENGLISH POESIE ***
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THE ARTE
OF ENGLISH
POESIE.
Contriued into three Bookes: The first of Poets and Poesie, the second
of Proportion, the third of Ornament.
[Illustration: AN CHORA SPEI (shield with hand coming out of a
cloud and holding onto an anchor entwined with vine)]
AT LONDON
Printed by Richard Field,
dwelling in the black-Friers, neere Ludgate.

1589.

TO THE RIGHT HONORABLE SIR WILLIAM CECILL
KNIGHT,
LORD OF BVRGHLEY, LORD HIGH TREASVRER
OF ENGLAND, R.F.
Printer wisheth health and prosperitie, with the commandement and vse
of his continuall seruice.
_This Booke (right Honorable) coming to my handes, with his bare title
without any Authours name or any other ordinarie addresse, I doubted
how well it might become me to make you a present thereof, seeming
by many expresse passages in the same at large, that it was by the
Authour intended to our Soueraigne Lady the Queene, and for her
recreation and seruice chiefly deuised, in which case to make any other
person her highnes partener in the honour of his guift it could not stand
with my dutie, nor be without some prejudice to her Maiesties interest
and his merrite. Perceyuing besides the title to purport so slender a
subiect, as nothing almost could be more discrepant from the grauitie of
your yeeres and Honorable function, whose contemplations are euery
houre more seriously employed upon the publicke administration and
services: I thought it no condigne gratification, nor scarce any good
satisfaction for such a person as you. Yet when I considered, that
bestowing vpon your Lordship the first vewe of this mine impression (a
feat of mine owne simple facultie) it could not scypher her Maiesties
honour or prerogatiue in the guift, nor yet the Authour of his thanks:
and seeing the thing it selfe to be a deuice of some noueltie (which
commonly it giveth euery good thing a speciall grace) and a noueltie so
highly tending to the most worthy prayses of her Maiesties most
excellent name. So deerer to you I dare conceiue them any worldly
thing besides love although I could not deuise to have presented your
Lordship any gift more agreeable to your appetite, or fitter for my
vocation and abilitie to bestow, your Lordship beyng learned and a
louer of learning, my present a Book and my selfe a printer alwaies
ready and desirous to be at your Honourable commaundement. And
thus I humbly take my leave from the Black-friers, this xxvii of May,
1589._
Your Honours most humble
at commaundement,

R.F.
A colei
[Illustration of Queen holding orb and sceptre.]
Che se stessa rassomiglia & non altrui.
THE FIRST BOOKE,
_Of Poets and Poesie.
CHAP. I.
_What a Poet and Poesie is, and who may be worthily sayd the most
excellent Poet of our time._
A Poet is as much to say as a maker. And our English name well
conformes with the Greeke word: for of [Greek: poiein] to make, they
call a maker Poeta. Such as (by way of resemblance and reuerently) we
may say of God: who without any trauell to his diuine imagination,
made all the world of nought, nor also by any paterne or mould as the
Platonicks with their Idees do phantastically suppose. Euen so the very
Poet makes and contriues out of his owne braine both the verse and
matter of his poeme, and not by any foreine copie or example, as doth
the translator, who therefore may well be sayd a versifier, but not a
Poet. The premises considered, it giueth to the name and profession no
smal dignitie and preheminence aboue all other artificers, Scientificke
or Mechanicall. And neuerthelesse without any repugnancie at all, a
Poet may in some sort be said a follower or imitator, because he can
expresse the true and liuely of euery thing is set before him, and which
he taketh in hand to describe: and so in that respect is both a maker and
a counterfaitor: and Poesiean art not only of making, but also of
imitation. And this science in his perfection, can not grow, but by some
diuine instinct, the Platonicks call it furor: or by excellencie of nature
and complexion: or by great subtiltie of the spirits &