Edward Young
Overview
 
Edward Young was an English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...

, best remembered for Night Thoughts
Night Thoughts (poem)
The Complaint: or, Night-Thoughts on Life, Death, & Immortality, better known simply as Night-Thoughts, is a long poem by Edward Young published in nine parts between 1742 and 1745.The poem is written in blank verse...

.
He was the son of Edward Young, later Dean of Salisbury
Dean of Salisbury
The Dean of Salisbury is the Head of the Chapter of Salisbury Cathedral in the Church of England. The current Dean is The Very Revd June Osborne, who was installed in 2004.-Selected office-holders:*Walter 1102*Osbert 1105*Robert 1111*Serlo 1122...

, and was born at his father's rectory
Rectory
A rectory is the residence, or former residence, of a rector, most often a Christian cleric, but in some cases an academic rector or other person with that title...

 at Upham
Upham
-Places:* Upham, Hampshire, England* Upham, New Mexico* Upham, North Dakota* Upham, Wisconsin* Upham, Devon, England-Ships:*USS Upham , a United States Navy destroyer escort converted during construction into the high-speed transport USS Upham *USS Upham , a United States Navy high-speed transport...

, near Winchester, where he was baptized on 3 July 1683. He was educated at Winchester College
Winchester College
Winchester College is an independent school for boys in the British public school tradition, situated in Winchester, Hampshire, the former capital of England. It has existed in its present location for over 600 years and claims the longest unbroken history of any school in England...

, and matriculated in 1702 at New College, Oxford
New College, Oxford
New College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom.- Overview :The College's official name, College of St Mary, is the same as that of the older Oriel College; hence, it has been referred to as the "New College of St Mary", and is now almost always...

. He later moved to Corpus Christi
Corpus Christi College, Oxford
Corpus Christi College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom...

, and in 1708 was nominated by Archbishop Tenison
Thomas Tenison
Thomas Tenison was an English church leader, Archbishop of Canterbury from 1694 until his death. During his primacy, he crowned two British monarchs.-Life:...

 to a law fellowship at All Souls
All Souls College, Oxford
The Warden and the College of the Souls of all Faithful People deceased in the University of Oxford or All Souls College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England....

. He took his degree of D.C.L.
Doctor of Canon Law
Doctor of Canon Law is the doctoral-level terminal degree in the studies of canon law of the Roman Catholic Church.It may also be abbreviated I.C.D. or dr.iur.can. , ICDr., D.C.L., D.Cnl., D.D.C., or D.Can.L. . Doctor of both laws are J.U.D...

 in 1719.
His first publication was an Epistle to ...
Quotations

Great let me call him, for he conquered me.

The Revenge, Act I, sc. i (1721)

Life is the desert, life the solitude;Death joins us to the great majority.

The Revenge, Act IV, sc. i

Souls made of fire, and children of the sun,With whom revenge is virtue.

The Revenge, Act V, sc. ii

The blood will follow where the knife is driven,The flesh will quiver where the pincers tear.

The Revenge, Act V, sc. ii

In youth, what disappointments of our own making: in age, what disappointments from the nature of things.

A Vindication of Providence; or, A True Estimate of Human Life (1728)

The man that makes a character makes foes.

To Mr. Pope, epistle I, l. 28 (1730)

Their feet through faithless leather met the dirt,And oftener chang'd their principles than shirt.

To Mr. Pope, epistle I, l. 277

There is something in Poetry beyond Prose-reason; there are Mysteries in it not to be explained, but admired.

Conjectures on Original Composition (1759) p. 28.

When the Law shows her teeth, but dares not bite.

Satire I, l. 17

The love of praise, howe'er concealed by art,Reigns more or less, and glows in ev'ry heart.

Satire I, l. 51

 
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