ABSTRACT

This chapter explores the paradox of a return to the Bible precisely during the so-called secular Enlightenment: at the same time as Encyclopedists and philosophers fought against the Church, scholars in France and England turned the Bible into the focus of inquiries about language and poetry that reached a wider audience than in the previous century. Lowth's methodical criticism innovated by its object, the Bible, but even more original was his subtle yet unmistakable reversal of the hierarchy of traditional genres in favor of the lyric and the dramatic. Lowth's critical assessment of the Bible stood apart from earlier praise of biblical style due to his knowledge of the Hebrew language. Just as Dacier's mastery of Greek helped her capture the spirit and letter of Homeric poetry, Lowth's understanding of Hebrew provided his readers with a unique entry into the texture of the biblical text.