Frank Sayers
Encyclopedia
Frank Sayers was an English poet and metaphysical writer.
on 3 April, he was son of Francis Sayers, an insurance broker, by his wife Anne, daughter of John Morris of Great Yarmouth
. His father died within a year, and he went with his mother to her father's house in Friar's Lane, Yarmouth. At the age of ten he was sent to a boarding-school at North Walsham
, where Horatio Nelson was his schoolfellow. A year later he was transferred to a school at Palgrave, Suffolk
, a dissenting academy kept by Rochemont Barbauld and Anna Barbauld. There he for remained three years, and met his lifelong friend William Taylor.
In October 1778 his mother's father died, leaving him a small estate, and he went to learn farming at Oulton
. Subsequently he attended John Hunter
's surgery lectures in London, where he saw much of his cousin James Sayers
, the caricaturist. For two years from the autumn of 1786 he pursued medical and scientific study at Edinburgh. In poor health, he visited the Lake District
in June 1788, and later in the year he went abroad. After graduating M.D. from the University of Harderwyk, he returned to Norwich
at the end of 1789, giving up medicine and starting to write.
In 1792, on his mother's death, Sayers moved to the Close at Norwich, and joined Norwich literary society. Among his friends and guests at various times were Robert Southey
, Sir James Mackintosh, Thomas Fanshawe Middleton, and Thomas Amyot
. The death of an aunt in 1799 increased his fortune.
He died at Norwich on 16 August 1817. A mural monument was erected to his memory in Norwich Cathedral
by his heir, James Sayers. Sayers left benefactions to local institutions, and bequeathed his library to the dean and chapter. His portrait, by John Opie
(1800), hung in William Taylor's library, and passed to Amyot.
's versions of the Runic poems and Thomas Percy's ‘Northern Antiquities’, Sayers derived his ‘Dramatic Sketches of Northern Mythology,’ which he issued in 1790. The volume consisted of three tragedies, ‘Moina,’ ‘Starno,’ and ‘The Descent of Frea’; Jann Ewald's Danish tragedy ‘The Death of Balder,’ on which the last piece is based, was subsequently translated by George Borrow
. In 1792 a reissue of the volume included an ‘Ode to Aurora,’ and a monodrama
, ‘Pandora.’ A third edition is dated 1803, and the last in 1807. Two German translations appeared, one in blank verse
by Friedrich David Gräter, with notes, and another in rhyme by Valerius Wilhelm Neubeck (1793). In 1793 he published ‘Disquisitions, Metaphysical and Literary.’ He followed David Hartley
and Joseph Priestley
in his metaphysical essays. In 1803 he published ‘Nugæ Poeticæ,’ mainly versifications of Jack the Giant-Killer
and Guy of Warwick
.
He then devoted himself to archæology, philology, and history. In 1805 he published ‘Miscellanies, Antiquarian and Historical.’ In one dissertation he maintained that Hebrew
was originally the east
, and not the west
, Aramaic dialect. Other papers dealt with English architecture, English poetry, Saxon literature, and early English history. In 1808 appeared ‘Disquisitions,’ another collection of his prose works, dedicated to T. F. Middleton. He was also a frequent contributor to the Quarterly Review
.
, writing on 20 June 1807 to acknowledge a copy of his collected poems, said he had long been an admirer of his ‘runic rhymes.’ In July 1801 Southey expressed to Taylor his indebtedness to Sayers for the metre of Madoc
. In 1823 William Taylor published a collective edition of Sayers's works, with Opie's portrait engraved by William Camden Edwards
as frontispiece, and an engraving of Sayers's house in the Close. Southey favourably reviewed the work in the Quarterly Review for January 1827.
Life
Born in London on 3 March 1763, being baptised at St Margaret PattensSt Margaret Pattens
St Margaret Pattens is a Church of England church in the City of London, located on Eastcheap near the Monument. The dedication is to St. Margaret of Antioch.-History:...
on 3 April, he was son of Francis Sayers, an insurance broker, by his wife Anne, daughter of John Morris of Great Yarmouth
Great Yarmouth
Great Yarmouth, often known to locals as Yarmouth, is a coastal town in Norfolk, England. It is at the mouth of the River Yare, east of Norwich.It has been a seaside resort since 1760, and is the gateway from the Norfolk Broads to the sea...
. His father died within a year, and he went with his mother to her father's house in Friar's Lane, Yarmouth. At the age of ten he was sent to a boarding-school at North Walsham
North Walsham
North Walsham is a market town and civil parish in Norfolk, England in the North Norfolk district.-Demographics:The civil parish has an area of and in the 2001 census had a population of 11,998. For the purposes of local government, the parish falls within the district of North...
, where Horatio Nelson was his schoolfellow. A year later he was transferred to a school at Palgrave, Suffolk
Palgrave, Suffolk
Palgrave is a village and civil parish in the Mid Suffolk district of Suffolk in eastern England. It is located on the south bank of the River Waveney, opposite Diss and adjacent to the Great Eastern Main Line. In 2005 its population was 780.hi Palgrave has a small primary school, and church...
, a dissenting academy kept by Rochemont Barbauld and Anna Barbauld. There he for remained three years, and met his lifelong friend William Taylor.
In October 1778 his mother's father died, leaving him a small estate, and he went to learn farming at Oulton
Oulton
Oulton may refer to:*Oulton, Cumbria*Oulton, Norfolk*Oulton, Staffordshire*Oulton, Suffolk*Oulton Broad, Suffolk*Oulton, West Yorkshire-See also:*Oulton Estate, former house and grounds in Cheshire - containing**Oulton Park, Motor racing circuit...
. Subsequently he attended John Hunter
John Hunter (surgeon)
John Hunter FRS was a Scottish surgeon regarded as one of the most distinguished scientists and surgeons of his day. He was an early advocate of careful observation and scientific method in medicine. The Hunterian Society of London was named in his honour...
's surgery lectures in London, where he saw much of his cousin James Sayers
James Sayers
James Sayers was an English caricaturist.He was born at Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, the son of a merchant captain. He began as clerk in an attorney's office, and was for a time a member of the borough council. In 1780 his father's death provided him with a small fortune, and he went to London...
, the caricaturist. For two years from the autumn of 1786 he pursued medical and scientific study at Edinburgh. In poor health, he visited the Lake District
Lake District
The Lake District, also commonly known as The Lakes or Lakeland, is a mountainous region in North West England. A popular holiday destination, it is famous not only for its lakes and its mountains but also for its associations with the early 19th century poetry and writings of William Wordsworth...
in June 1788, and later in the year he went abroad. After graduating M.D. from the University of Harderwyk, he returned to Norwich
Norwich
Norwich is a city in England. It is the regional administrative centre and county town of Norfolk. During the 11th century, Norwich was the largest city in England after London, and one of the most important places in the kingdom...
at the end of 1789, giving up medicine and starting to write.
In 1792, on his mother's death, Sayers moved to the Close at Norwich, and joined Norwich literary society. Among his friends and guests at various times were Robert Southey
Robert Southey
Robert Southey was an English poet of the Romantic school, one of the so-called "Lake Poets", and Poet Laureate for 30 years from 1813 to his death in 1843...
, Sir James Mackintosh, Thomas Fanshawe Middleton, and Thomas Amyot
Thomas Amyot
-Early life:Amyot was born at Norwich on 7 January 1775, and was descended from one of the Huguenot families settled in that city. Intended for the profession of a country attorney, he was articled to a Norwich firm, and eventually spent a year in London before entering into the full practice of...
. The death of an aunt in 1799 increased his fortune.
He died at Norwich on 16 August 1817. A mural monument was erected to his memory in Norwich Cathedral
Norwich Cathedral
Norwich Cathedral is a cathedral located in Norwich, Norfolk, dedicated to the Holy and Undivided Trinity. Formerly a Catholic church, it has belonged to the Church of England since the English Reformation....
by his heir, James Sayers. Sayers left benefactions to local institutions, and bequeathed his library to the dean and chapter. His portrait, by John Opie
John Opie
John Opie was an English historical and portrait painter. He painted many great men and women of his day, most notably in the artistic and literary professions.-Life and work:...
(1800), hung in William Taylor's library, and passed to Amyot.
Work
From Thomas GrayThomas Gray
Thomas Gray was a poet, letter-writer, classical scholar and professor at Cambridge University.-Early life and education:...
's versions of the Runic poems and Thomas Percy's ‘Northern Antiquities’, Sayers derived his ‘Dramatic Sketches of Northern Mythology,’ which he issued in 1790. The volume consisted of three tragedies, ‘Moina,’ ‘Starno,’ and ‘The Descent of Frea’; Jann Ewald's Danish tragedy ‘The Death of Balder,’ on which the last piece is based, was subsequently translated by George Borrow
George Borrow
George Henry Borrow was an English author who wrote novels and travelogues based on his own experiences around Europe. Over the course of his wanderings, he developed a close affinity with the Romani people of Europe. They figure prominently in his work...
. In 1792 a reissue of the volume included an ‘Ode to Aurora,’ and a monodrama
Monodrama
A monodrama is a theatrical or operatic piece played by a single actor or singer, usually portraying one character.- Monodrama in opera :...
, ‘Pandora.’ A third edition is dated 1803, and the last in 1807. Two German translations appeared, one in blank verse
Blank verse
Blank verse is poetry written in unrhymed iambic pentameter. It has been described as "probably the most common and influential form that English poetry has taken since the sixteenth century" and Paul Fussell has claimed that "about three-quarters of all English poetry is in blank verse."The first...
by Friedrich David Gräter, with notes, and another in rhyme by Valerius Wilhelm Neubeck (1793). In 1793 he published ‘Disquisitions, Metaphysical and Literary.’ He followed David Hartley
David Hartley
David Hartley may refer to:*David Hartley , English philosopher*David Hartley , son of the philosopher, and signatory to the Treaty of Paris*David Hartley...
and Joseph Priestley
Joseph Priestley
Joseph Priestley, FRS was an 18th-century English theologian, Dissenting clergyman, natural philosopher, chemist, educator, and political theorist who published over 150 works...
in his metaphysical essays. In 1803 he published ‘Nugæ Poeticæ,’ mainly versifications of Jack the Giant-Killer
Jack the Giant-killer
"Jack the Giant Killer" is a British fairy tale about a plucky lad who slays a number of giants during King Arthur's reign. The tale is characterized by violence, gore, and blood-letting. Giants are prominent in Cornish folklore and Welsh Bardic lore, but the source of "Jack the Giant Killer" is...
and Guy of Warwick
Guy of Warwick
Guy of Warwick is a legendary English hero of Romance popular in England and France from the 13th to the 17th century. The story of Sir Guy is considered by scholars to be part of the Matter of England.-Plot:...
.
He then devoted himself to archæology, philology, and history. In 1805 he published ‘Miscellanies, Antiquarian and Historical.’ In one dissertation he maintained that Hebrew
Hebrew language
Hebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
was originally the east
Eastern Aramaic languages
Eastern Aramaic languages have developed from the varieties of Aramaic that developed in and around Mesopotamia, as opposed to western varieties of the Levant. Historically, eastern varieties of Aramaic have been more dominant, due, in good part, to their political acceptance in the Neo-Assyrian...
, and not the west
Western Neo-Aramaic
Western Neo-Aramaic is a modern Aramaic language. Today, it is spoken in three villages in the Anti-Lebanon mountains of western Syria. Western Neo-Aramaic is the only modern living Aramaic language drawn from the branch of Western Aramaic languages...
, Aramaic dialect. Other papers dealt with English architecture, English poetry, Saxon literature, and early English history. In 1808 appeared ‘Disquisitions,’ another collection of his prose works, dedicated to T. F. Middleton. He was also a frequent contributor to the Quarterly Review
Quarterly Review
The Quarterly Review was a literary and political periodical founded in March 1809 by the well known London publishing house John Murray. It ceased publication in 1967.-Early years:...
.
Reputation
Walter ScottWalter Scott
Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet was a Scottish historical novelist, playwright, and poet, popular throughout much of the world during his time....
, writing on 20 June 1807 to acknowledge a copy of his collected poems, said he had long been an admirer of his ‘runic rhymes.’ In July 1801 Southey expressed to Taylor his indebtedness to Sayers for the metre of Madoc
Madoc (poem)
Madoc is an 1805 epic poem composed by Robert Southey. It is based on the legend of Madoc, a supposed Welsh prince who fled internecine conflict and sailed to America in the 12th century. The origins of the poem can be traced to Southey's school boy days where he completed a prose version of...
. In 1823 William Taylor published a collective edition of Sayers's works, with Opie's portrait engraved by William Camden Edwards
William Camden Edwards
William Camden Edwards was a Welsh engraver.-Biography:Edwards was born in Monmouthshire in 1777. Early in the nineteenth century he went to Bungay, Suffolk to engrave portraits and illustrations for the Bible, Pilgrim's Progress, and similar works published by the Bungay printer Charles Brightly...
as frontispiece, and an engraving of Sayers's house in the Close. Southey favourably reviewed the work in the Quarterly Review for January 1827.