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ON THE STUDY OF ITALIAN. 



IT is the well-known eulogy of the Emperor Charles V. on the 

 Italian language, that it is the proper language in which to address 

 a lady, and it has been said by one in later days, who was quite as 

 well able to form an opinion as the Spanish monarch, that the lari- 



fuage sounds as if it should be written on satin, and that its " sylla- 

 les breathe of the sweet South." All this is very right and true, 

 but it merely expresses the sweetness of the language, and leaves 

 out of the consideration its strength and versatility, in which qualities 

 it yields to no language in Europe. Its powers and its beauty are 

 not the only inducements to study it : it contains mines of literary 

 wealth. Its historians rank the first among the modern historians ; 

 and its poets who that loves poetry does not exult and delight irr 

 the poets of Italy ? 



In strongly recommending the study of Italian, my intention is 

 not to write a regular treatise, mentioning what grammar and dic- 

 tionary are to be studied, or what plans are to be pursued. Leaving 

 these elementary points to those whom they may concern, I would 

 throw together a few remarks on the Italian authors which generally 

 are put into the hands of young ladies, and mention such books as 

 are adapted to them, and to other students of Italian. 



After going through the elementary parts of the language, it 

 is usual to begin Metastasio. The Abbe Metastasio, as it is ge- 

 nerally known, has written certain little Dramas, consisting of 

 three acts, in which he has to arrange the various incidents form- 

 ing the plot, develope characters, mark the variety of passions, and 

 accomplish different and difficult things, for which other poets 

 calling themselves dramatic require full five acts, and find those 

 five acts scarcely sufficient. The consequence is obvious ; there is 

 not "ample room and verge enough" to trace what ought to be 

 traced. This is an original fault in the nature of the compositions 

 to which Metastasio devoted his versifying powers. But this is 

 not all : there is a sameness in his productions ; read one and you 

 have read all ; they have been called, with perhaps quite as much 

 truth as severity, " tissues of love and nonsense." The lovers are 

 all alike the ladies are alike the plots are alike the denotements 

 are alike ; and it is only to be marvelled at, that such productions 

 have been so be-praised. Add to this, that every one, after 

 strutting his appointed minutes on the stage, whether in the lan- 

 guishing of love, or the raging of anger, vents his excited feelings 

 in a song, and little more need be said in support of the writer's 

 private opinion, that whosoever puts Metastasio into the hands of a 

 pupil, be that pupil man, woman, or child (except for the express 

 purpose of making the book a stepping-stone to poetry worthy to be 

 read), commits an offence against good taste, and at the same time 

 M.M.-No.8. T 



