Excerpt from New Letters of Thomas Carlyle, Vol. 1
This Selection from Carlyle's Correspondence is a sequel to the "Letters of Thomas Carlyle," published some years ago under the editorship of Professor Charles Eliot Norton, and brings to a completion the "Epistolary autobiography" begun by the publication of the "Early Letters."
The New Letters have been chosen from an immense number now in my possession, or placed at my disposal by the kindness of the owners; and the two principal objects aimed at in making the Selection, have been, first, to present only the best and most characteristic examples of Carlyle's Letters; and, secondly, to arrange these, with occasional extracts from other Letters which are not of sufficient importance for publication in full, so that when read in connection with his "Reminiscences" and his Notes and Introductions to the "Letters and Memorials of Jane Welsh Carlyle," the whole might serve as an autobiography or picture of his life, self-drawn and therefore indisputably true and faithful in outline, and complete enough in detail for all legitimate purposes. As no Life of Carlyle, satisfactory to those who knew him intimately, has yet appeared, the autobiography which he has thus unconsciously traced in his Letters and Annotations is of more than usual value and importance in elucidating his character and conduct and in explaining the conditions and circumstances under which he lived and worked.
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Thomas Carlyle was a Scottish satirical writer, essayist, historian and teacher during the Victorian era. He called economics "the dismal science", wrote articles for the Edinburgh Encyclopedia, and became a controversial social commentator.
Coming from a strict Calvinist family, Carlyle was expected by his parents to become a preacher, but while at the University of Edinburgh, he lost his Christian faith. Calvinist values, however, remained with him throughout his life. This combination of a religious temperament with loss of faith in traditional Christianity made Carlyle's work appealing to many Victorians who were grappling with scientific and political changes that threatened the traditional social order.
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