This book contains volumes 1 and 2 of the original work. Of the general nature both of these Conversations and the various papers which precede them, Sir Lytton observes that they belong rather to the poetical than the logical philosophy, that, for the most part, they address the sentiment rather than the intellect, choosing for their materials the metaphysics of the heart and the passions, which are more often employed in the fiction than the essay. Partial Contents: Vol. 1; The World as it is; Departure of Youth; Infidelity in Love; True Ordeal of Love; Want of Sympathy; On Ill Health. Vol. II; Conversations with an Ambitious Student in Ill Health; View of the Social Life of England and France; Too Handsome for Anything.