Discuss the life and works of Joseph Addison.

Ans.

LIFE AND WORKS

Introduction – Steele’s contemporary Addison enjoys greater fame as a periodical essayist. He was well read in the classics. he had also travelled widely on the Continent. He held some very important posts in the government and he was a whigs in his politics.

His association with “The Tatler”- Addison came early in contact with Steele as soon as the latter started his famous paper The Tatler. At first his contributions were rather few and infrequent. but later on his papers became so frequent and were so excellent in their quality that Steele could not do without Addison’s co-operation.

Addison and “The Spectator”- The Tatler ceased to appear in the early January of 1711. Two months later The Spectator took its place. It was a joint venture of the two friends. But Addison’s share in this famous paper was greater both in the quality and the quantity of his contributions. The Tatler was planned and executed wholly by Steele. it originally published advertisements and news, as well as papers of criticism, anecdotes, original poetry, etc. Gradually it developed into a series of essays on books, manners, and morals. The Spectator followed closely this latter pattern of The Tatler. According to Deighton, the plan of the paper was conceived by Addison. but Hugh Walker in his book English Essay and Essayists is inclined to give equal credit to both Addison and Steele.

Addison and The Coverley Papers- The fame of Addison as an essayist rests principally on those of his contributions to The Spectator which touch the character of Sir Roger de Coverley. The credit for suggesting the character of Sir Roger goes to Steele. he introduced him ably in his famous essay “The Spectator Club.” The essay shadows forth almost all those traits which Addison afterwards developed with such happy skill. Sir Roger is a country gentleman of those days. He has the pride of birth and blood. Naturally he suffers from certain weaknesses and oddities. His oddities are further strengthened by a disappointment in love. But Sir Roger is a gentleman through and through. He is kind-hearted, generous, and hospitable. He is simple-hearted. But he is a man of honour, and he believes in preserving decorum and main training his dignity. With themes like these for his discourse, Addison loves to amuse himself and his readers. He draws from each trait of Sir Roger some lesson of morality, or some material for playful satire, or some occasion for depicting a class of men even then fast disappearing from the English social scene.

A brief appreciation of his contribution – Addison’s principal literary gifts are a delicate taste, a keen sense of humour, and an insight into char acter. They are all united into what is his greatest literary achievement – the character of Sir Roger de Coverley. Sir Roger is in the main Addison’s creation. And he is undoubtedly one of the treasures of English literature. In nothing else has Addison shown such originality and such exquisite skill as in the delineation of Sir Roger. The Coverley Papers still retain their original charm and novelty.