SOURCE: Lein, Clayton D. “Art and Structure in Walton's Life of Mr. George Herbert,” in University of Toronto Quarterly 46, No. 2 (Winter, 1976): 162-76.

In the essay below, Lein posits that The Life of Mr. George Herbert represents the pinnacle of Walton's biographical writing, building upon his earlier foundation and adding unique elements of style which reflect Walton's view of Herbert.

When Izaak Walton presented his Life of Mr. George Herbert as a ‘Free-will-offering,’ he provided a clue to its character. The other biographies, he would have us believe, he had been compelled to write, some to honour the obligations of friendship, others to comply with the entreaties of men he respected and revered. All the early biographies were thus biographies of duty. But here was one of inner compulsion, a ‘free-will offering’ in the full sense of the term—an unsolicited giving to the church. And for this offering...