In 1808 Lamb entered the field of criticism, and for the next decade his published writings indicate that his interests were, broadly, of a critical nature. His chief motive for this change seems to have been his desire to express in the form of comment the admiration for the early writers which he had expressed, by imita tion, in his own dramas, and, by transcript, in such works as the In 1808 appeared his 'Specimens of English Dramatic Poets Contemporary with Shakspeare,> with his valu able notes thereon. Other important essays are the Tragedies of Shakspeare' and the Genius and Character of Hogarth,> both of which appeared in Leigh Hunt's Reflector in 1811, an essay on Wordsworth's in the Quarterly in 1814, and 'On the Poetical Works of George published in the col lected works of Lamb, issued in 1818. There are also a few minor pieces of criticism, but the amount of Lamb's critical work is exceed ingly small in view of its high reputation, and its form is fragmentary. Its place is probably due to the fact that Lamb did very much to restore to their rightful heritage those old writ ers from whom he drew much of his own in spiration and to the fact that, in an age of critical dogmatism, Lamb insists constantly, though not always with an eye to logic or his torical fact, on broad appreciation.
Lamb's fame rests chiefly on the next im portant work, or rather kind of work, which he attempted. Having practically failed in crea tive narrative and drama and having achieved only a moderate contemporaneous success in fields of retold stories and criticism and poetry, he turned his attention to the literary essay and found it a proper vehicle for his peculiar gen ius. Lamb had from time to time during his earlier life as well as his later written miscel laneous essays of a quaintly humorous quality, like 'The Inconvenience of Being (1811) and 'The Melancholy of Tailors) (1814), but the idea of regularly using the es say form did not occur to him until the famous of Elia.> These were published as books in two series, in 1823 and in 1833, but they originally appeared in the London Magazine.
For the first two or three years, from August 1820 to December 1822, they were published almost every month; after that they came out at very irregular intervals until 1833. Of the 51 essays and 16 'Popular Fallacies) in the two series only about 14 are really well known; of these (Imperfect and 'A Dis sertation on Roast Pig) are probably the most famous, though such essays as 'The South Sea House,' 'Mrs. Battle's Opinions on Whist,' Children' and Relations> are scarcely less well known and in no wise infe rior. The essays have, in the main, come to be regarded as the best examples of the per sonal essay that English literature possesses. Certainly no English essays more completely reveal the personality of the author or reveal it in more winning terms. They are renowned for their quaintness, their wit, their sympathy, their humor, their serenity and their rever ence.
Between Lamb's retirement in 1825 and his death, his work in literature was of rather a miscellaneous character. A few essays of the Elia type and some miscellaneous pieces of criticism, and a wholly undramatic and unsuc cessful drama, 'The Wife's Trial, or, The In truding Widow,' are about all that he produced after he "'came home forever.'" See ESSAYS OF ELM.
The best edition of Lamb's works is that by Canon Alfred Ainger, in six volumes. This does not include the 'Speci mens,' which are most conveniently to be had in the Bohn Library. A full bibliography of Lamb's writing is to be found in B. E. Martin's 'In the Footprints of Charles Lamb' (New York 1890). Canon Ainger's (Life,' in the English Men of Letters, is the most convenient biography of Lamb; it contains a short but ex cellent bibliography of the contemporary writ ers from whom we gain our knowledge of the author. To his list of titles may be added De Quincey's of Charles Lamb.' Of the many essays on the subject, that of Pater, in is probably the near est to finality.