Write a note on Joseph Addison as an essayist.

Ans.

Although Addison started as a poet and dramatist, his lasting fame depends upon his essays. He gained popularity not as a writer of pamphlets but as a poet and dramatist. Later it was as an essayist that he made his mark and remains admired even now. Initially he was an essayist who contributed to Steele’s The Tatler. This he did for the sake of Steele who was his long time school and college friend. Then he contributed to Steele’s paper regularly. When Steele started The Spectator, Addison became a happy partner and contributed 274 essays out of a total of 555. The Spectator was a huge success and at one point, it is said, ten thousand copies were sold of its issue. It was something people waited for, on their tea table every morning.

Addison’s contribution of nearly four hundred essays is a reflection of the society of his times. He was a mild critic of the morals of the age. His aim was to censure those vices which are too trivial for the chastisement of the law and too fantastical for the cognizance of the pulpit. He also took deeper themes such as fashion, immorality, jealousy, prayer, etc. Addison was an advocate of moderation in everything and did not approve of excess. Sometimes he also used allegory, as in his essay The Vision of Mirza, and conveyed his theme forcefully. W. J. Long believes that the essays, Addison contributed to The Tatler and the Spectator, are truly enduring. He was gentle everywhere and in that age of coarseness and artificiality he gave message of refinement and simplicity. He did not hesitate to attack the vices, big or small, with a kind ness peculiarly his own.

The essays of Addison are significant as a presentation of the social picture of that time. They also present the art of literary criticism in a new way. Through his essays he presented characters like Sir Roger, the country, gentle man and Will Wimble, the poor relation who are immortal in the history of literature. In this way he not only gave the modern essay but also laid the foundation of English novel.

Addison’s best essays are those which have been woven round the character of Sir Roger. Although, it is believed, that the character of Sir Roger was the creation of Steele’s imagination, he gave him solidity. He made him an eccentric, old country squire, a member of their club. Yet Addison contributed some fine essays with Sir Roger at the center. Addison gave the Spectator club life and charm which maee these essays significant in the history of the essay.

Addison is remarkable for his gentle humour in his essays. His humour has been characterized as gentlemanly and delicate. There are fine touches of irony but he is rarely satirical. However, Swift ridiculed him for being eliminate. It was his gentle humour which made a deep mark on his readers and made him popular. The total behaviour of Sir Roger is full of humour with ironic undertones. In the essay Sir Roger at Church, Sir Roger is in the habit of stretching the life of the psalm longer than others. He pronounces amen loudly and repeatedly and checks others from taking a nap during the sermon but he him self takes one whenever he likes. The irony and humour cannot be missed by the reader.

Addison has been widely praised for his style. It was a perfect middle style. His choice of words for their meaning and graceful rhythm is unmatched. His style perfectly suits his subject and moves in harmony. He is a specimen for those who wish to learn how to write good prose. Dr. Johnson showered praise upon him when he said that the young man should devote their days and nights reading Addison to master the art of expression.

Addison’s contribution to the English society as a reformer has been widely accepted. He reformed the English taste. He moved to undo the dam age caused by Restoration drama and poetry which made virtue ridiculous and vice attractive. He boldly attacked vice to show its the ugly face and reveal virtue in its natural beauty. After him nobody tried to worship the false gods. Nobody tried to openly violate decency without being considered a fool. Addison also took advantage of the new social life and made it a regular subject of his essays upon men and manners. As a matter of fact he not only laid foundation of modern essay but also of the modern novel. His study of the various facets of Sir Roger became a land mark in the development of English novel.