Joseph Ritson
Encyclopedia
Joseph Ritson was an English
antiquary.
He was born at Stockton-on-Tees
, of a Westmorland
yeoman
family. He was educated for the law, and settled in London as a conveyancer at the age of twenty-two. He devoted his spare time to literature, and in 1782 published an attack on Thomas Warton
's History of English Poetry. The tone of his Observations, in which Warton was treated as a pretender, charged with cheating and lying to cover his ignorance, caused a sensation in literary circles.
In nearly all the small points with which he dealt, Ritson was in the right, and his corrections have since been adopted, but the unjustly bitter language of his criticisms roused great anger at the time, much, it would appear, to Ritson's delight. In 1783 Samuel Johnson
and George Steevens
were attacked in the same bitter fashion as Warton for their text of Shakespeare
. Bishop Percy was next subjected to a furious onslaught in the preface to a collection of Ancient Songs (printed 1787, dated 1790, published 1792). In a letter (March 14, 1803) to Samuel Taylor Coleridge
, Robert Southey
wrote that “Ritson is the oddest, but most honest of all our antiquarians, and he abuses Percy and Pinkerton with less mercy than justice.”
Ritson spared no pains himself to ensure accuracy in the texts of old songs, ballad
s and metrical romances which he edited. His collection of the Robin Hood
ballads is perhaps his greatest single achievement. Sir Walter Scott
, who admired his industry and accuracy in spite of his temper, was almost the only man who could get on with him. According to Scott, Ritson was “a man of acute observation, profound research, and great labour.” On one occasion, when he called in Scott's absence, he spoke so rudely to his wife that he was threatened with being thrown out of the window.
Spelling
was one of his eccentricities, his own name being an example: Ritson is short for Richardson. As early as 1796, Ritson showed signs of mental collapse, and on 10 September 1803 he became completely insane, barricaded himself in his chambers at Gray's Inn
, made a bonfire of manuscripts, and was finally forcibly removed to Hoxton
, where he died.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
antiquary.
Stockton-on-Tees
Stockton-on-Tees is a market town in north east England. It is the major settlement in the unitary authority and borough of Stockton-on-Tees. For ceremonial purposes, the borough is split between County Durham and North Yorkshire as it also incorporates a number of smaller towns including...
, of a Westmorland
Westmorland
Westmorland is an area of North West England and one of the 39 historic counties of England. It formed an administrative county from 1889 to 1974, after which the entirety of the county was absorbed into the new county of Cumbria.-Early history:...
yeoman
Yeoman
Yeoman refers chiefly to a free man owning his own farm, especially from the Elizabethan era to the 17th century. Work requiring a great deal of effort or labor, such as would be done by a yeoman farmer, came to be described as "yeoman's work"...
family. He was educated for the law, and settled in London as a conveyancer at the age of twenty-two. He devoted his spare time to literature, and in 1782 published an attack on Thomas Warton
Thomas Warton
Thomas Warton was an English literary historian, critic, and poet. From 1785 to 1790 he was the Poet Laureate of England...
's History of English Poetry. The tone of his Observations, in which Warton was treated as a pretender, charged with cheating and lying to cover his ignorance, caused a sensation in literary circles.
In nearly all the small points with which he dealt, Ritson was in the right, and his corrections have since been adopted, but the unjustly bitter language of his criticisms roused great anger at the time, much, it would appear, to Ritson's delight. In 1783 Samuel Johnson
Samuel Johnson
Samuel Johnson , often referred to as Dr. Johnson, was an English author who made lasting contributions to English literature as a poet, essayist, moralist, literary critic, biographer, editor and lexicographer...
and George Steevens
George Steevens
George Steevens was an English Shakespearean commentator.He was born at Poplar, the son of a captain and later director of the East India Company. He was educated at Eton College and at King's College, Cambridge, where he remained from 1753 to 1756...
were attacked in the same bitter fashion as Warton for their text of Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
. Bishop Percy was next subjected to a furious onslaught in the preface to a collection of Ancient Songs (printed 1787, dated 1790, published 1792). In a letter (March 14, 1803) to Samuel Taylor Coleridge
Samuel Taylor Coleridge
Samuel Taylor Coleridge was an English poet, Romantic, literary critic and philosopher who, with his friend William Wordsworth, was a founder of the Romantic Movement in England and a member of the Lake Poets. He is probably best known for his poems The Rime of the Ancient Mariner and Kubla...
, 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...
wrote that “Ritson is the oddest, but most honest of all our antiquarians, and he abuses Percy and Pinkerton with less mercy than justice.”
Ritson spared no pains himself to ensure accuracy in the texts of old songs, ballad
Ballad
A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of British and Irish popular poetry and song from the later medieval period until the 19th century and used extensively across Europe and later the Americas, Australia and North Africa. Many...
s and metrical romances which he edited. His collection of the Robin Hood
Robin Hood
Robin Hood was a heroic outlaw in English folklore. A highly skilled archer and swordsman, he is known for "robbing from the rich and giving to the poor", assisted by a group of fellow outlaws known as his "Merry Men". Traditionally, Robin Hood and his men are depicted wearing Lincoln green clothes....
ballads is perhaps his greatest single achievement. Sir Walter Scott
Walter Scott
Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet was a Scottish historical novelist, playwright, and poet, popular throughout much of the world during his time....
, who admired his industry and accuracy in spite of his temper, was almost the only man who could get on with him. According to Scott, Ritson was “a man of acute observation, profound research, and great labour.” On one occasion, when he called in Scott's absence, he spoke so rudely to his wife that he was threatened with being thrown out of the window.
Spelling
Spelling
Spelling is the writing of one or more words with letters and diacritics. In addition, the term often, but not always, means an accepted standard spelling or the process of naming the letters...
was one of his eccentricities, his own name being an example: Ritson is short for Richardson. As early as 1796, Ritson showed signs of mental collapse, and on 10 September 1803 he became completely insane, barricaded himself in his chambers at Gray's Inn
Gray's Inn
The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court in London. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and Wales, an individual must belong to one of these Inns...
, made a bonfire of manuscripts, and was finally forcibly removed to Hoxton
Hoxton
Hoxton is an area in the London Borough of Hackney, immediately north of the financial district of the City of London. The area of Hoxton is bordered by Regent's Canal on the north side, Wharf Road and City Road on the west, Old Street on the south, and Kingsland Road on the east.Hoxton is also a...
, where he died.
Further reading
- Burd, Henry A., Joseph Ritson: A Critical Biography, Illinois, 1916, (BiblioBazaar, 2008) ISBN 0554584492
- Morton, Timothy, Marilyn Butler, and James Chandler. Shelley and the Revolution in Taste : The Body and the Natural World. New York: Cambridge Univ. Press, 1995.
- Stuart, Tristram, The Bloodless Revolution: A Cultural History of Vegetarianism From 1600 to Modern TimesThe Bloodless Revolution: A Cultural History of Vegetarianism From 1600 to Modern TimesThe Bloodless Revolution: A Cultural History of Vegetarianism From 1600 to Modern Times is a history of the vegetarian movement in Western/Eastern society system by Tristram Stuart.From the book's Introduction:From the book jacket:...
, W. W. Norton & Co., 2007, ISBN 0393052206 - Williams, Howard, The Ethics of Diet: A Catena of Authorities Deprecatory of the Practice of Flesh-Eating, University of Illinois Press, 2003, ISBN 0252071301