Dryden's Relation to Germany 35 



a partial translation of Dryden's Essay, was published. In order 

 to regain his lost prestige, Gottsched eagerly seized the opportu- 

 nity afforded by the Lettres to introduce Dryden, an English 

 authority, supporting his contention, that the French drama was 

 superior to the English. The Essay contains two main propo- 

 sitions for consideration: first, the relative merits of the ancient 

 and modern theater ; and second, the relative merits of the French 

 and English dramatists. Four friends debate these two proposi- 

 tions. Crites takes up the issue with Eugenius, and defends the 

 ancients ; while Lisidieus takes issue against Neander, and de- 

 fends the French. Dryden specifically states in the preface that 

 Neander is his spokesman." Now Bocage, and then Gottsched 

 from him, translate the speech of Lisidieus, who argued the cause 

 of the French to prove Dryden an authority favoring the French 

 drama. 



Lessing was still partly adhering to Gottsched at the time the 

 latter published his partial translation of the Essay of Dryden. 

 His too numerous plans, and his diversified interests prevented 

 him from carrying out the program mapped out in the Beytrdgen 

 in his new journal, the Theatralischen Bihliothek,'^^ founded in 

 1754. But Gottsched's manner of introducing Dryden to prove 

 his own theories, no doubt induced Lessing to turn to Dryden and 

 the Essay, when he became convinced that the repudiation of Gott- 

 sched was necessary. That he devoted himself to the study of 

 Dryden before the publication of the translation of the Essay 

 in 1758^^ is proven by the letter to Mendelssohn in 1756 in which 

 he says : " Bitten Sie doch den Hrn. Nicolai in meinem Namen 

 mir mit ehestem denjenigen Theil von Gibbers Lebensbeschreib- 

 ungen der englischen Dichter zu schicken, in welchem Drydens 

 Leben steht. Ich brauche ihn."^' 



^* " The drift of the ensuing discourse was chiefly to vindicate the honor 

 of the English writers from the censure of those who unjustly prefer the 

 French before them." 



15 Lessings Werke, V, D. N. L., Chap. XIII, contains : Von Johann 

 Dryden und dessen dramatischen Werken. 



1^ According to a review in the Berlinischen priv. Zeitung, 1759, May 22, 

 it was not published until 1759. 



!''■ Mendelssohns Schriften, V, p. 69, Leipzig, 1756. Gibber's life re- 



323 



