development: Volume I., representing the period when the
individual is engrossed with subjects or objects as a Whole, and
his passion for life is expressed through rude energy, size--the
Colossal; Volume II., when he delights in so presenting The Parts
to which he has been attracted, as to make them Effective in
attracting the attention of others; Volume III., when his
appreciation of the use or Service of the Parts carries him beyond
the melodramatic to the Realistic; and Volume IV., in which his
dawning perception of that higher service resulting from the
truthful Relationship of the Parts leads him beyond realism to
idealism, the Suggestive.

In choosing the selections for this and the accompanying volumes,
the aim has been to preserve the natural oneness between the study
of literature and that of expression, and to encourage the
appreciation of this unity in the minds of teacher and student. It
may be said that the greatest of the world's literature was
written for the ear, not for the eye, and its noblest influence is
felt only when it is adequately voiced by an intelligent and
sympathetic reader. It is the object of these volumes to foster in
the student a keener and deeper appreciation of the truth and
beauty of great prose and verse, and at the same time to enrich
his own and other lives by cultivating the power of expressing the
glories which are opened to his vision.

The arrangement of the selections is for the purpose of teaching
the art of reading according to the steps of natural evolution
hinted at in the foregoing pages, and in a way which experience
has found most prolific in practical results.