PREFACE.
The following History is given in a Series of Letters, writtenprincipally in a double, yet separate, Correspondence;
Between Two young Ladies of Virtue and Honour, bearing an inviolableFriendship for each other, and writing upon the most interestingSubjects: And
Between Two Gentlemen of free Lives; one of them glorying in his Talentsfor Stratagem and Invention, and communicating to the other, inConfidence, all the secret Purposes of an intriguing Head, and resoluteHeart.
But it is not amiss to premise, for the sake of such as may apprehendHurt to the Morals of Youth from the more freely-written Letters, Thatthe Gentlemen, tho' professed Libertines as to the Fair Sex, and makingit one of their wicked Maxims, to keep no Faith with any of theIndividuals of it who throw themselves into their Power, are not,however, either Infidels or Scoffers: Nor yet such as think themselvesfreed from the Observance of those other moral Obligations, which bindMan to Man.
On the contrary, it will be found, in the Progress of the Collection,that they very often make such Reflections upon each other, and eachupon himself, and upon his Actions, as reasonable Beings, who disbelievenot a future State of Rewards and Punishments (and who one day proposeto reform) must sometimes make:--One of them actually reforming, andantidoting the Poison which some might otherwise apprehend would bespread by the gayer Pen, and lighter Heart, of the other.
And yet that other, [altho' in unbosoming himself to a _select Friend_,he discover Wickedness enough to intitle him to general Hatred]preserves a Decency, as well in his Images, as in his Language, which isnot always to be found in the Works of some of the most celebratedmodern Writers, whose Subjects and Characters have less warranted theLiberties they have taken.
Length will be naturally expected, not only from what has been said,but from the following Considerations:
That the Letters on both Sides are written while the Hearts of theWriters must be supposed to be wholly engaged in their Subjects: TheEvents at the Time generally dubious:--So that they abound, not onlywith critical Situations; but with what may be called _instantaneous_Descriptions and Reflections; which may be brought home to the Breast ofthe youthful Reader:--As also, with affecting Conversations; many ofthem written in the Dialogue or Dramatic Way.
To which may be added, that the Collection contains not only the Historyof the excellent Person whose Name it bears, but includes The Lives,Characters, and Catastrophes, of several others, either principally orincidentally concerned in the Story.
But yet the Editor [to whom it was referred to publish the Whole in sucha Way as he should think would be most acceptable to the Public] was sodiffident in relation to this Article of _Length_, that he thoughtproper to submit the Letters to the Perusal of several judiciousFriends; whose Opinion he desired of what might be best spared.
One Gentleman, in particular, of whose Knowlege, Judgment, andExperience, as well as Candor, the Editor has the highest Opinion,advised him to give a Narrative Turn to the Letters; and to publish onlywhat concerned the principal Heroine;--striking off the collateralIncidents, and all that related to the Second Characters; tho' heallowed the Parts which would have been by this means excluded, to beboth instructive and entertaining. But being extremely fond of theaffecting Story, he was desirous to have every-thing parted with, whichhe thought retarded its Progress.
This Advice was not relished by other Gentlemen. They insisted, that theStory could not be reduced to a Dramatic Unity, nor thrown into theNarrative Way, without divesting it of its Warmth; and of a great Partof its Efficacy; as very few of the Reflections and Observations, whichthey looked upon as the most useful Part of the Collection, would, then,find a Place.
They were of Opinion, That in all Works of This, and of the DramaticKind, STORY, or AMUSEMENT, should be considered as little more than the_Vehicle_ to the more necessary INSTRUCTION: That many of the Sceneswould be render'd languid, were they to be made less busy: And that theWhole would be thereby deprived of that Variety, which is deemed theSoul of a Feast, whether _mensal_ or _mental_.
They were also of Opinion, That the Parts and Characters, which must beomitted, if this Advice were followed, were some of the most natural inthe whole Collection: And no less instructive; especially to _Youth_.Which might be a Consideration perhaps overlooked by a Gentleman of theAdviser's great Knowlege and Experience: For, as they observed, there isa Period in human Life, in which, youthful Activity ceasing, and Hopecontenting itself to peep out of its own domestic Wicket upon boundedProspects, the half-tired Mind aims at little more than_Amusement_.--And, with Reason; for what, in the _instructive_ Way, canappear either _new_ or _needful_ to one who has happily got over thosedangerous Situations which call for Advice and Cautions, and who hasfill'd up his Measures of Knowlege to the Top?
Others, likewise gave _their_ Opinions. But no Two being of the sameMind, as to the Parts which could be omitted, it was resolved to presentto the World, the Two First Volumes, by way of Specimen: and to bedetermined with regard to the rest by the Reception those should meetwith.
If that be favourable, Two others may soon follow; the whole Collectionbeing ready for the Press: That is to say, If it be not found necessaryto abstract or omit some of the Letters, in order to reduce the Bulk ofthe Whole.
Thus much in general. But it may not be amiss to add, in particular,that in the great Variety of Subjects which this Collection contains itis one of the principal Views of the Publication,
To caution Parents against the _undue_ Exertion of their natural Authority over their Children, in the great Article of Marriage:
And Children against preferring a Man of Pleasure to a Man of Probity, upon that dangerous, but too commonly received Notion, _That a Reformed Rake makes the best Husband_.
But as the Characters will not all appear in the Two First Volumes, ithas been thought advisable, in order to give the Reader some furtherIdea of Them, and of the Work, to prefix
_HINTS OF PREFACES FOR CLARISSA_