William Hazlitt

Born in 1778, William Hazlitt became one of the great English essayists of the early 19th century. He was also a literary and drama critic, a social commentator, and for a time a painter, and his writing earned a lasting reputation for its force, clarity, and independence.

Hazlitt moved in the world of major Romantic writers and is especially remembered for essays that bring ideas and personality together in a vivid, conversational way. He wrote about Shakespeare, the stage, politics, and the pleasures and frustrations of ordinary experience, often with strong feeling and fearless opinions.

He died in 1830, but his essays continue to attract readers who enjoy criticism that sounds alive on the page. Whether he was writing about books, public life, or human nature, he had a gift for making serious thought feel immediate and personal.