Hearts of Controversy

In Short

This collection of critical essays serves as a rigorous, elegantly written re-evaluation of major nineteenth-century English writers. By meticulously separating a poet’s true voice from their stylistic mannerisms, the text challenges settled reputations—both for Tennyson, Dickens, and the Brontës, as well as the later excesses of Swinburne. It endures because it refuses to accept the "herding of opinion," insisting instead on a standard of intellectual sincerity and linguistic precision. It is a work of deep appreciation, yet it is never afraid to pinpoint exactly where a writer’s art falters or fails.

The Story

The collection begins by confronting the shifting tides of fame, specifically the cycle of adoration and subsequent detraction that has followed Tennyson. The central argument posits that Tennyson is two poets in one: the master of a luminous, magical style and the practitioner of a "dainty" mannered artifice. The reader is guided through the necessity of "parting" these two sides, acknowledging that while Tennyson may have written for his specific time, he also possessed an innate, wild, and honest genius capable of touching the eternal.

From the ethereal landscape of Tennyson, the inquiry shifts to the grounding, gritty humanity of Charles Dickens. Here, the focus is on the novelist’s immense capacity for faith in human goodness, even when surrounded by a sea of scoundrels. The narrative arc of these essays identifies the exact point where Dickens transcends mere characterization to become a true wit and dramatist. Yet, the critique is unflinching; it highlights the moments where Dickens’s pandering to an excitable public or his reliance on artificial sentimentality weakens his work. The reader is encouraged to see Dickens not as a caricature, but as a watchful, precise observer of both inanimate objects and the human heart.

The focus then turns to the "corrupt following" of eighteenth-century styles that plagued the nineteenth century, using Charlotte Brontë as a primary case study. The arc of her development—from the stiff, Latinate phrasing of her formal education to the sudden, piercing, and solitary genius of her most vital passages—demonstrates the triumph of the individual voice over the "wreckage of Gibbon." This leads naturally into a contrast with Emily Brontë, whose prose is described as possessing an "inner key" that bypasses imagery entirely to reach simple, raw reality. The tragic, wild nature of Emily’s legacy is presented as a final testament to an artist who, in her own lifetime, was effectively banished by the indifference of her peers.

Finally, the collection expands its scope to the "century of moderation." Through brief, pointed examinations of poets like Pope and the shifting aesthetic of the garden, the argument culminates in a plea for the "rectitude of intellect." The reader is left with the understanding that beauty in literature is not a matter of mere decoration or emotional excess, but of finding the precise word that captures a genuine, unhurried passion. The journey concludes not with a resolution, but with a challenge to the reader to judge for themselves, balancing the "lily and languor" of popular verse against the genuine, tough-minded truth of real poetry.

How It Unfolds

The parting of the poet The text opens by dissecting the reputation of Tennyson, arguing that one must separate his "magical style" from his "dainty manner" to understand his true legacy. It establishes the theme of intellectual independence, urging the reader to ignore the "sorry custom of reaction" that dictates current taste.

The humanity of the humourist The focus shifts to Dickens, defending his use of caricature as a sign of high intelligence rather than a vulgarity. By comparing him to Thackeray, the analysis highlights Dickens's rare and unfashionable capacity for believing in human sanctity.

The struggle for a voice The narrative examines how Charlotte Brontë fought against the "Latin-English" of her time to find her own, more powerful expression. It distinguishes between her formal, stiff prose and the moments where her "solitary and afraid" genius breaks through.

The reality of the moors The discussion turns to Emily Brontë, identifying her as an artist who moved beyond imagery into the realm of simple, stark reality. Her work is portrayed as a "murderous story" that nonetheless contains the most exquisite, natural landscapes in the language.

The judgment of the reader The final sections contrast the "excessive praise" of the nineteenth century with a more disciplined standard of criticism. It concludes by calling upon the reader to maintain "dignity of nerves" and sincerity of heart when confronting the work of poets like Swinburne or the legacy of the eighteenth century.

The People

Alfred Tennyson is the central figure of the opening, described as a man caught between the "student of material science and the mystic." He is a poet who occasionally walks with a "little fopery" but remains fundamentally wild and clear-eyed.

Charles Dickens appears as an intensely positive force, defined by his "single sight" and his deep-seated faith in goodness. He is a man who "imagined more evil people than did Thackeray," yet found holiness in the most unlikely, simple places.

Charlotte Brontë is depicted as a soul in transition, a writer who struggled to escape the "drift and refuse" of the corrupt language inherited from her predecessors. She ends up as a figure of "sensitive interior solitude," capable of sudden, incomparable beauty.

Emily Brontë remains a "wild fugitive," defined by her ability to avoid the "rituals of literature" and move among "simple realities." She is the ultimate outsider, whose brilliance was met with the world’s indifference, leading her to "banish" the society that failed to understand her.

Alernon Charles Swinburne serves as a cautionary tale of "literary insensibility." He is portrayed as a man of great emotional impetus but lacking in "responsible intellect," whose poetry often mistakes the "lilies and languors" of vice for true passion.

In Its Own Voice

"He sheds the luminous suns of dreams upon men & women who would do well with footlights; waters their way with rushing streams of Paradise and cataracts from visionary hills; laps them in divine darkness."

The author describes the artificial, stage-like quality of Tennyson's landscapes in contrast to his better work.

"The Charlotte Bronte who used the English of a world long corrupted by 'one good custom'—the good custom of Gibbon's Latinity grown fatally popular—could at any time hold up her head amongst her reviewers; for her there was no sensitive interior solitude in that society."

This reflects on how Charlotte Brontë's adoption of the era’s stiff, academic language served as a shield against the world.

What It's Really About

At its core, this book is an argument for the "rectitude of intellect." It investigates the relationship between an author’s technical craft and their moral or spiritual sincerity. It asks: Does a writer’s style serve their subject, or does it merely provide a mask for "paltry" emotions? The text argues that true literature must possess a "key" that unlocks simple realities, rather than obscuring them with fashion or excessive ornamentation. It is a defense of the solitary, honest voice against the corruption of "the multitude" and the "shallow places" of literary criticism. It posits that while the world changes, the demand for a poet who speaks with "the flower of the mind" remains constant and eternal.

Why Read It Today

Readers who appreciate prose that is as precise as a surgeon’s scalpel and as warm as a lit hearth will find much to admire here. You will enjoy this book if you are weary of modern marketing-driven literary analysis and crave a critic who isn’t afraid to be harsh, provided the critique is grounded in a deep, abiding love for the art itself. The experience of reading these essays feels like a conversation with a highly cultivated, uncompromising mind that has spent a lifetime in the library.

However, the book is not for those looking for a light, breezy overview. The writing is dense, occasionally demanding a high level of literary literacy, and it assumes the reader is familiar with the nuances of nineteenth-century authors and the specific historical figures mentioned. The author’s own style—rich in metaphor and occasionally as challenging as the prose she critiques—demands your full attention. It is a work for the patient reader, one who values the slow, rewarding labor of digging through the "wreckage" of history to find the few, shining gems of truth that still remain. You will walk away from these pages with a renewed sense of what it means to read with both the heart and the head.