Christine -- Addison has added one bit to Boileau, and may have neglected a connotation. The phrase "sentiroit son Rheteur" could mean "savours of the rhetorician" (but there's no epigrammatist in sight). Or it could mean "smacks of his rhetoric teacher." That incorporates the possessive pronoun "son," which the other translation ignores. In other words, Boileau suggests that exact comparisons are pedantic. (Speaking of the bad effects of academic instruction in writing, again....) The other passage stresses the pleasurable effects of comparisons, again offering a contrast with pedantic uses of rhetoric. Boileau is more down on teachers than Addison is. Hope this is of some use. Margaret