Sidney quotes of importance

"Among the Romans a poet was called 'vates', which is as much as a diviner, foreseer, or prophet, as by his conjoined words, vaticinium and vacticinari, in manifest; so heavenly a title did that excellent people bestow upon this hear-ravishing knowledge."
-pg 3, paragraph 7

The philosopher therefore and the historian are they which would win the goal, the one by precept, the other by example; but both not having both, do both halt. For the philosopher, setting down with thorny arguments the bare rule...For his knowledge standeth so upon the abstract and general that happy is that man who may understand him, and more happy that can apply what he doth understand...The historian, wanting the precept, is so tied, not to what should be but to what is, to the particular truth of things, and not to the general reason of things, that his example draweth no necessary consequence, and therefore a less fruitful doctrine.

22

Now doth the peerless poet perform both; for whatsoever the philosopher saith should be done, he giveth a perfect picture of it in some one by whom he presupposeth it was done, so as he coupleth the general notion with the particular example....he yieldeth to the powers of the mind an image of that whereof the philosopher bestoweth but a wordish description, which doth neither strike, pierce, nor possess the sight of the soul so much as that other doth. -pg 7, paragraph 22-23 But he cometh to you with words set in delightdul proportion, either acconpanied with, or prepared for, the well-enchanting skills of music; and with a tale, forsooth, he cometh unto you, with a tale which holdeth children from play, and old men from the chimney-corner, and, pretending no more, doth intend the winning of the mind from wickedness to virtue... -pg 10 paragraph 36