The Poetical Works of James Beattie

This collected volume assembles a long two‑part narrative lyric on the progress of genius alongside shorter odes, elegies, fables, translations, epitaphs, and previously excluded pieces, all framed by a contemporary memoir. The poems move between pastoral description and moral reflection, exploring nature, the cultivation of feeling and imagination, virtue, and occasional melancholy, often invoking classical models and formal variety. The accompanying life narrative sketches the poet's upbringing, career, literary relationships, and the reception of his work, adding personal context to the themes and compositional choices found throughout the verse.