PROPOSALS FOR PUBLISHING A NEW AND IMPROVED EDITION OF SHAKSPEARE ILLUSTRATED.

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AT a very early period of the Author's life this Work was written, and publiſhed with all the vivacity and confidence of youth: Elated by diſcovering that ſhe had traced from whence the immortal dramatic Poet of our nation had borrowed many of his plots, and fond of diſplaying her critical ſagacity in ſhewing that he made uſe of the old tranſlations of CYNTHIO, BANDELLO, and ARIOSTO'S Tales and Novels, and not of the originals, of which ſhe gives a new tranſlation in this Work, ſhe was thought by ſome to have treated SHAKSPEARE with leſs reverence than might have been wiſhed. Nevertheleſs the Public was pleaſed to ſee ſo much merit in the performance, that it was received with very general favour, and was honoured by ſuch marks of attention, as not to acknowledge would argue rather arrogance than modeſty. The learned Profeſſor GOTSCHED of LEIPSIC tranſlated her remarks into the German language, and the illuſtrious Dr. JOHNSON adopted ſome of them in his edition of SHAKSPEARE. He preſented her book to the Univerſity of Oxford, depoſiting it in the Bodleian library; and quoted it as one of the authorities in his Dictionary.

Now, when the fame of SHAKSPEARE has had conſiderable acceſſions by the labours of various commentators, and when, by a wide diffuſion of good taſte, his works juſtly enjoy a popularity ſo extenſive, that the world is ready to afford the moſt liberal patronage to correct, elegant, and ſplendid editions of them, ſhe is willing to flatter herſelf that her friends are not miſtaken in thinking that her book, entitled, SHAKSPEARE ILLUSTRATED, may now advantageouſly be produced in a more reſpectable form, and with the improvements which, at a mature age, ſhe truſts ſhe can give it: She therefore propoſes to publiſh it on the following

CONDITIONS.
  • I. THE Work to be elegantly printed in Two Volumes octavo; the price to Subſcribers to be Twelve Shillings in boards.
  • II. The Work to be put to the preſs as ſoon as there is a ſufficient number of Subſcribers; and it is to be hoped it will be ready for delivery in January 1794.

SUBSCRIPTIONS received at Mr. CADELL'S, in the Strand; Mr. DILLY'S, in the Poultry; Mr. HOOKHAM'S, in Bond Street; and Mr. BECKETT'S, in Pall-mall.

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Citation Suggestion for this Object
TextGrid Repository (2020). TEI. 3414 Proposals for publishing a new and improved edition of Shakspeare illustrated By Charlotte Lennox. University of Oxford Text Archive. . https://hdl.handle.net/21.T11991/0000-001A-5FA4-1