Isaac Watts Neoclassical

Info

- Father of the Modern Hymn

- secret of hymns' strength was fusion of discreet artistry with vital spirituality

- most important part of congregational worship was least inspiring

- replace stiff psalmody not only with more vigorous and lyrical paraphrases but also with independent poems on Biblical themes

Works

- "Heavenly Joy on Earth"

- Hymns and Spiritual Songs - beginning of modern hymn

- Logic; Knowledge of the Heavens and Earth; Philosophical Essays; Improvement of the Mind

- Horae Lyricae

- Psalms of David

- Divine Songs Attempted in Easy Language for the Use of Children

- "Heavenly Joy on Earth"; "The Christian Race"; Breathing After the Holy Spirit"; "Against Idleness and Mischief"; "The Day of Judgement"

Terms

- genre

- didacticism

- meter

- rhyme

- empiricism - the philosophical view that all knowledge originates in sensory experience

- common, short, and long meters

Citation

Horton, Ronald A. British Literature for Christian Schools. Greenville, SC: Bob Jones University Press, 1992.