Henry Brooke
Encyclopedia
Henry Brooke was a novelist and dramatist. He was born in Ireland
, the son of a clergyman, studied law at Trinity College
, Dublin, but embraced literature as a career.
Brooke began his career as a poet. His now forgotten Universal Beauty was published in 1735, and Alexander Pope
thought its sentiments and poetry fine. He then turned dramatist by adapting extant plays, such as The Earl of Essex. He wrote from the Tory
point of view and became one of the most important figures in Augustan drama
, although not for his successes. His Gustavus Vasa (1739) has the distinction of being the first play banned by the Licensing Act
of 1737. The play concerned the liberation of Sweden
from Denmark
in 1521 by King Gustav I of< Sweden. Robert Walpole
believed that the villain of the play resembled him. Further, a facetious "attack" on it was the first public writing of Samuel Johnson
, whose A Complete Vindication of the Licensers of the English Stage feigns support for Walpole while it drives the censor's argument to reductio ad absurdum
.
Brooke lived in Ireland most of his life, but he spent time in London
when his plays were on the stage. In politics, he was somewhat radical in arguing publicly for loosening the laws persecuting Roman Catholics in the United Kingdom
. His daughter Charlotte Brooke
was herself an important figure in the history of Irish literature
, publishing Reliques of Irish Poetry (1789) and working to increase the profile of Irish language poetry.
Later, his Earl of Essex came back to the boards in a revival. Again, Samuel Johnson offered his public support of Brooke, but when he heard the Earl saying at the end of Act II, "He who rules o'er free men must himself be free," Johnson replied, "He who drives fat oxen must himself be fat." Although Johnson was objecting to the misuse and overuse of "freedom" and was at that time in a vexatious debate over the United States
War of Independence (saying, "Why is it that we hear the loudest cries for liberty from the drivers of Negroes?"), Brooke was mortified by Johnson's parody and changed the line for his Collected Works.
Brooke had a difficult life and made a very poor living. The Licensing Act
robbed him of his primary avenue to making a living, for, after the Act, he was the first man banned by it. Whatever fame this lent him was made up for by his inability to get new plays performed. His greatest commercial successes came from the Earl of Essex and his two novels, The Fool of Quality (1760-1772) and Juliet Grenville (1774), which are two of the finest sentimental novel
s. John Wesley
was so fond of The Fool of Quality
, in which Brooke declares his belief in universal salvation, that he sought to have a copy of it given out to all new Methodist churches.
He had twenty-two children. Of these, only Charlotte survived adolescence. She shepherded his Works through the press after his death.
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, the son of a clergyman, studied law at Trinity College
Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin , formally known as the College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, was founded in 1592 by letters patent from Queen Elizabeth I as the "mother of a university", Extracts from Letters Patent of Elizabeth I, 1592: "...we...found and...
, Dublin, but embraced literature as a career.
Brooke began his career as a poet. His now forgotten Universal Beauty was published in 1735, and Alexander Pope
Alexander Pope
Alexander Pope was an 18th-century English poet, best known for his satirical verse and for his translation of Homer. He is the third-most frequently quoted writer in The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations, after Shakespeare and Tennyson...
thought its sentiments and poetry fine. He then turned dramatist by adapting extant plays, such as The Earl of Essex. He wrote from the Tory
Tory
Toryism is a traditionalist and conservative political philosophy which grew out of the Cavalier faction in the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. It is a prominent ideology in the politics of the United Kingdom, but also features in parts of The Commonwealth, particularly in Canada...
point of view and became one of the most important figures in Augustan drama
Augustan drama
Augustan drama can refer to the dramas of Ancient Rome during the reign of Caesar Augustus, but it most commonly refers to the plays of Great Britain in the early 18th century, a subset of 18th-century Augustan literature...
, although not for his successes. His Gustavus Vasa (1739) has the distinction of being the first play banned by the Licensing Act
Licensing Act
Licensing Act may refer to several Acts of Parliament:*Licensing Order of 1643, an Act imposing pre-publication censorship and prompting Milton to write Areopagitica*Licensing of the Press Act 1662, an Act regulating the printing industry...
of 1737. The play concerned the liberation of Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
from Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
in 1521 by King Gustav I of< Sweden. Robert Walpole
Robert Walpole
Robert Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford, KG, KB, PC , known before 1742 as Sir Robert Walpole, was a British statesman who is generally regarded as having been the first Prime Minister of Great Britain....
believed that the villain of the play resembled him. Further, a facetious "attack" on it was the first public writing of Samuel Johnson
Samuel Johnson
Samuel Johnson , often referred to as Dr. Johnson, was an English author who made lasting contributions to English literature as a poet, essayist, moralist, literary critic, biographer, editor and lexicographer...
, whose A Complete Vindication of the Licensers of the English Stage feigns support for Walpole while it drives the censor's argument to reductio ad absurdum
Reductio ad absurdum
In logic, proof by contradiction is a form of proof that establishes the truth or validity of a proposition by showing that the proposition's being false would imply a contradiction...
.
Brooke lived in Ireland most of his life, but he spent time in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
when his plays were on the stage. In politics, he was somewhat radical in arguing publicly for loosening the laws persecuting Roman Catholics in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. His daughter Charlotte Brooke
Charlotte Brooke (writer)
Charlotte Brooke, , born in Rantavan, County Cavan, Ireland, was the author of' Reliques of Irish Poetry,' and was one of twenty-two children Henry Brooke had, the author of 'GustavusVasa,' and she was the only one that survived. She was born in 1740, and from an early age was attracted to books....
was herself an important figure in the history of Irish literature
Irish literature
For a comparatively small island, Ireland has made a disproportionately large contribution to world literature. Irish literature encompasses the Irish and English languages.-The beginning of writing in Irish:...
, publishing Reliques of Irish Poetry (1789) and working to increase the profile of Irish language poetry.
Later, his Earl of Essex came back to the boards in a revival. Again, Samuel Johnson offered his public support of Brooke, but when he heard the Earl saying at the end of Act II, "He who rules o'er free men must himself be free," Johnson replied, "He who drives fat oxen must himself be fat." Although Johnson was objecting to the misuse and overuse of "freedom" and was at that time in a vexatious debate over the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
War of Independence (saying, "Why is it that we hear the loudest cries for liberty from the drivers of Negroes?"), Brooke was mortified by Johnson's parody and changed the line for his Collected Works.
Brooke had a difficult life and made a very poor living. The Licensing Act
Licensing Act
Licensing Act may refer to several Acts of Parliament:*Licensing Order of 1643, an Act imposing pre-publication censorship and prompting Milton to write Areopagitica*Licensing of the Press Act 1662, an Act regulating the printing industry...
robbed him of his primary avenue to making a living, for, after the Act, he was the first man banned by it. Whatever fame this lent him was made up for by his inability to get new plays performed. His greatest commercial successes came from the Earl of Essex and his two novels, The Fool of Quality (1760-1772) and Juliet Grenville (1774), which are two of the finest sentimental novel
Sentimental novel
The sentimental novel or the novel of sensibility is an 18th century literary genre which celebrates the emotional and intellectual concepts of sentiment, sentimentalism, and sensibility...
s. John Wesley
John Wesley
John Wesley was a Church of England cleric and Christian theologian. Wesley is largely credited, along with his brother Charles Wesley, as founding the Methodist movement which began when he took to open-air preaching in a similar manner to George Whitefield...
was so fond of The Fool of Quality
The Fool of Quality
The Fool of Quality; or, The History of Henry, Earl of Moreland , a picaresque and sentimental novel by the Irish writer Henry Brooke, is the only one of his works which has enjoyed any great reputation...
, in which Brooke declares his belief in universal salvation, that he sought to have a copy of it given out to all new Methodist churches.
He had twenty-two children. Of these, only Charlotte survived adolescence. She shepherded his Works through the press after his death.