G. Gregory Smith — Elizabethan Critical Essays by First Edition

Oxford, At the Clarendon Press, 1904. First edition. Cloth. The complete first edition of this insightful selection of Elizabethan literary criticism. First edition.   Complete in two volumes.   In the publisher's original blue cloth binding.   A collection of contemporary criticisms of popular literature in the Elizabethan era from Scottish scholar George Gregory Smith. Smith's collection recovers what passed as criticism among Elizabethan literary circles to gain a vivid insight into the beliefs and opinions of the time, including on Puritanism, the purpose of poetry and the prevailing importance of Graeco-Roman philosophy. Critics include Shakespeare's relative, Thomas Nash, and King James VI of Scotland. In the publisher's original blue cloth binding. Previous bookseller's ticket of William George's Sons Ltd to the front paste down of Volume I. Externally, smart with bumping and rubbing resulting in minor loss of cloth and slight tearing to the spine head and tail, also extending, less signficantly, to the joints and spine tips. Boards lightly marked. Internally, generally firmly bound, marginally more delicate to pages 1 and 224 to Volume I and 144, 224 and 368 to Volume II. Pages 429-431 of Volume I subtly chipped to the top corner. Bright and clean copies with spotting heavier to the first and last few pages. Very Good . Ill.: Not Stated. Very Good .