William Hazlitt Classic Reprint: Essayist and Critic - Selected

Our review of William Hazlitt Classic Reprint: Essayist and Critic looks at this carefully chosen collection for readers who want a readable introduction to Hazlitt's prose and judgment. Edited with a memoir and critical notes, this edition presents what the editor intends as the most characteristic passages of Hazlitt's essays on literature, life, manners, and art, making it valuable to students and general readers seeking historical criticism rather than a comprehensive scholarly edition.

Key Features

• Curated selections: The volume gathers what the editor identifies as the most characteristic extracts, so readers encounter Hazlitt's tone and critical approach without paging through his complete works.
• Memoir included: A concise biographical and critical memoir frames the selections, offering context for Hazlitt's life and critical development across decades.
• Editor authority: The selections reflect a life-long acquaintance with Hazlitt's writings, which lends the edition a coherent editorial perspective and sensible arrangement.
• Range of topics: Essays span literature, manners, and art, giving readers a broad sense of Hazlitt's interests and an accessible sampling of his critical voice.
• Readable format: As a reprint, the book is aimed at readability and accessibility, suited to casual study and classroom use.

Who It's For

This edition is best for students, general readers, and instructors who want a compact introduction to Hazlitt's essays rather than a full scholarly corpus. The selections and memoir make it useful as a course text or for readers sampling Romantic-era criticism.

Scholars seeking exhaustive texts, textual variants, or complete editions should look elsewhere; this reprint emphasizes representative pieces and editorial judgment over exhaustive bibliographic apparatus.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Provides a thoughtfully chosen set of essays that showcases Hazlitt's strengths as a critic of literature and art.
• The accompanying memoir supplies useful biographical and critical context for readers new to Hazlitt.
• Compact and approachable format makes it suitable for classroom adoption or casual reading.

Cons

• Not a complete works edition, so those wanting every essay or detailed scholarly notes will need a more comprehensive volume.

Specifications

Title	William Hazlitt (Classic Reprint): Essayist and Critic
Editor / Brand	Alexander Ireland
Contents	Selections from Hazlitt's writings with a memoir
Focus	Literature, life, manners, and art
Editorial approach	Selected characteristic passages with biographical and critical notes
Coverage period	Works drawn from roughly 1805 onward across Hazlitt's career

Our Verdict

This reprint is a solid introduction for readers and students who want a representative sampler of Hazlitt's essays and an accessible memoir to situate his work; it offers good value for those seeking flavor and context rather than exhaustive scholarship.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does this edition include a biography of Hazlitt?
Yes, the book contains a biographical and critical memoir intended to provide context for the selections.

Is this a complete works edition?
No, it is a selection of characteristic essays chosen by the editor and not a complete collected works.

Who edited this reprint?
The selections and memoir are presented by Alexander Ireland, who assembled excerpts from Hazlitt's writings.