PREFACE THE Only attempt that has been made in the following little sketch of Oliver Goldsmith's Life and Work is to arouse such an interest in them as may lead the student to desire to enter more fully into both. For this reason a full list of works to be consulted has been given, with the thought that if one book were not accessible another might be. At the same time it is hoped that enough has been said about Goldsmith and his critics to enable the student to make correct inferences both of his character and the place of his work in English Literature, bearing in mind the fact that fifteen busy years of middle life really determine the one and the other so far as literature is strictly concerned. One thing which is certain is that in studying the "Vicar of Wakefield" we are concerned very nearly with the man and his work, for the one lives in the other in a manner that is more peculiarly true of Goldsmith than of most other writers. While it is hoped that the teacher may find suggestive material in the sketch, care has been taken |