Excerpt from Introduction to the Literature of Europe in the 15th, 16th, and 17th Centuries, Vol. 1 of 3 The advantages of such a synoptical view of literature as displays its various departments in their simultaneous condition through an extensive period, and 111 their mutual dependency, seem too manifest to be disputed. And, as we possess little of this kind in our own language, I have been induced to undertake that to which I am, in some respects at least, very unequal, but which no more capable person, as far as I could judge, was likely to perform. In offering to the public this introduction to the literary history of three centuries - for I cannot venture to give it a title of more pretension - it is convenient to state my general secondary sources of information, exclusive of the acquaint ance I possess with original writers; and, at the same time, by showing what has already been done, and what is left undone, to furnish a justification of my own under taking. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.