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Rev. George Gilfillan, in his introductory essay to the 1865 edition of The poetical works, describes Shenstone as "this true but self-stunted Poet" and as " …possessed of great accomplishments, much true talent, and a distinct although narrow vein of poetic genius." Certainly Shenstone's contemporaries, apart from a small circle of close friends, seemed to be more impressed by his work in landscaping his estate at the Leasowes than by his poetry. There was a great deal of poetry: his first published work, The judgement of Hercules, appeared in 1740, and this was followed throughout the poet's relatively short life by the publication of works as varied as odes, elegies, ballads, and Latin inscriptions.
Levities is subtitled "pieces of humour"; several of the poems are based on classical models, or are preceded by Latin tags, and it is evident that Shenstone's style will be one of educated wit, rather than robust comedy.
The full text of Levities can be read online or downloaded free of charge. It is in XHTML format, like this page. Please note the file size is 43kb and it may take some time to open-up if you choose to read it online. Downloading for reading later may be the preferred option and this can be typically achieved by calling up an option box. If you have a mouse and it is configured for left click to select, right clicking the link may give you this option.
Gilfillan is particularly scathing about Levities, but the potential reader should not be put off by his rather dismissive comment:
As his Elegies have started few tears, so his Levities have produced little laughter.
One might not laugh out loud, but the light-hearted squibs,such as The progress of advice or the satirical The extent of cookery, can still raise a smile. And Colemira, with its the mock-heroics and high-flown language, is a neat pastiche of a Virgilian eclogue. While often using classical models to good effect, Shenstone is not above criticising others who try to do the same, as in On certain pastorals.
So rude and tuneless are thy lays,
The weary audience vow
'Tis not th' Arcadian swain that sings,
But 'tis his herds that low.
Page created 13 December 2002 and last
updated 6 February 2003
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