Walter Savage Landor's Views on English Life and Literature: A Critical Study of His English Imaginary Conversations

To students of literature, Landor's dialogues of exposition will be worthwhile for their literary criticism and views on political and social history. On the other hand, the essentially dramatic Conversations have a more universal appeal as literary art, because in them principles and ideas give way to artistic presentation of character. In these dramatic scenes of historical and literary figures ot the English past, Landor skillfully creates drama or reve­ lation of character in the attitudes and personal reflections of his speakers without burdening the dialogues with his own historical documentation and exposition of ideas.