Matthew Arnold discusses literature and expresses happiness at his brother knowin about Merope. He praises Maffei’s version of Merope before commenting on Voltaire’s, comparing both versions with Alfieri’s and concluding that Maffei’s was ‘poetically the best tragedy of the three’. He then goes on to discuss Wordsworth, Shelley, and Coleridge and their popularity within England, remarking that the contemporary period is intellectually richer than Pope’s time but that modern poetry is inadequate. He moves on to discuss Ancient Greek literature, comparing it to Shakespeare, and offering his opinions on the works of Voltaire and Goethe. He adds that these thoughts will form the basis of his inaugural lecture.

Pyat suggests parallels between art and politics, and he references several of his own works (Une révolution d’autrefois, Ango, Le brigand et le philosophe, Les deux serruriers, Mathilde, Diogène, Le chiffonnier de Paris). Mentions the 1848 revolution and the Paris Commune. Includes references to Goethe, Shakespeare, Molière, Voltaire, and others. Harshly criticizes the vicomte de Chateaubriand and Victor Hugo.

Notebook ‘1934’ includes 137 encrypted pages, plus the backs of the covers and unencrypted cover sheers. Gide discusses his notes on his readings (Dos Passos, Shakespeare, Hölderlin, Voltaire, Racine, Lamennais, Zola, Goethe, Platen, Schiller, Descartes, and Balzac), his reflections on music (Bach and Chopin), and his reflections on lierature (Goethe, Voltaire, the diction of verses, and Baudelaire).