HAZLITT, WILL.Lim, a distinguished English essayist and miscellaneous writer, the son of a Unitarian clergyman, was b. at Maidstone, hi Kent, on April 10, 1778. His father went to America with his family when Hazlitt was about five years of age, but returned in two years, and became paster of a congregation at Wem, in Shropshire. In 1793 Hazlitt became a student in the Unitarian college at Hackney, but did not take kindly to theological pursuits. In 1795 he left college, and returned to his father's house, where he devoted himself to metaphysics and paintino; about this time he met Coleridge, and by the conversation of the poet was awakened to a keener intellectual life than he bad before known. In 1802 he visited Paris, and studied in the Louvre, and on his return lie attempted to support himself by portrait painting; but, as he could neither please himself nor his patrons, he relinquished the easel, and threw himself into literature, for which he was much better adapted. In 1803 he went to London, and shortly after published his essay On the Principles of llionan Action. In 1808 he married, and retired into the country. In 1811 he was again in London. In 1813 he delivered a course of lectures on the history of English philosophy, and he subsequently delivered courses on the English poets. He wrote
essays in the Examiner in conjunction with Mr. Leigh Hunt, which were afterwards re published in a volume entitled the Round Table. Other essays lie collected into volumes, entitled Table Ta/le, and the Plain Speaker. He also published Characters of Shakes peare's Plays and the Spirit of the Age. In 1822 lie was divorced from his wife. and two years afterwards married a second time. He died Sept. 18, 1830. His last work was the Life of Napoleon, of whom he was an enthusiastic admirer. An edition of his principal works was edited by his son; and Memoirs of William Hazlitt were published by his grandson in 1807.
The fame of Hazlitt rests upon his essays, which are in every sense remarkable. He exhibits great acuteness and penetration in his criticism, and every now and again a passage, by reason of passionate force and abandon, rises into the regions of poetry. On the whole, his essays are inferior to Lamb's and Hunt's, but they contain pages quite as striking and memorable as any to be found in theirs.