From all these things, the architectonics, the zeal
for justice and the revelation of character, we get an added and wholesome
delight which gives Milton's work a place of definitely greater eminence
than Herrick's song in the record of human activity. In effect, Milton
besides being a poet, which is the greatest of all distinctions, becomes,
by possession of those other qualities, a great man as well, and I think
that this is really what we mean when we speak of a great poet. Without his
poetic faculty, although he would fall in the scale of human distinction,
which is not at all the same thing as renown, below, say, so humble a
personality yet so true a poet as John Clare[2], Milton would still be a
great man, while Herrick without his poetry would be indistinguishable from
the crowd. And the great man is as clearly evident in Milton's poetry as he
is clearly not evident in Herrick's.
[2: It may be asked: "Do you really think that a poet who has left
no other record of himself than a page or two of songs, even perfect songs,
can claim a greater distinction than a great man who is not a poet?" Let me
say, once for all, that I do think so.
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