george sand-第29节

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blishing　her　celebrated　_Lettres　a　Marcie_　in　_Le　Monde_。　　We　have　already　spoken　of　these　letters；　in　order　to　show　how　George　Sand　gradually　attenuated　the　harshness　of　her　early　feminism。


＇33＇　_Correspondance_：　　To　Jules　Janin；　February　15；　1837。


These　letters　alarmed　Lamennais；　nevertheless；　and　she　was　obliged　to　discontinue　them。　　Feminism　was　the　germ　of　their　disagreement。　　Lamennais　said：　　〃She　does　not　forgive　St。　Paul　for　having　said：　　‘Wives；　obey　your　husbands。'〃　　She　continued　to　acknowledge　him　as　〃one　of　our　saints；〃　but　〃the　father　of　our　new　Church〃　gradually　broke　away　from　her　and　her　friends；　and　expressed　his　opinion　about　her　with　a　severity　and　harshness　which　are　worthy　of　note。

Lamennais'　letters　to　Baron　de　Vitrolles　contain　many　allusions　to　George　Sand；　and　they　are　most　uncomplimentary。




〃I　hear　no　more　about　Carlotta〃　（Madame　Marliani）；　he　writes；　〃nor　about　George　Sand　and　Madame　d'Agoult。　I　know　there　has　been　a　great　deal　of　quarrelling　among　them。　　They　are　as　fond　of　each　other　as　Lesage's　two　_diables_；　one　of　whom　said：　　‘That　reconciled　us；　we　kissed　each　other；　and　ever　since　then　we　have　been　mortal　enemies。'〃　　He　also　tells　that　there　is　a　report　that　in　her　novel；　entitled　_Horace_；　she　has　given　as　unflattering　a　portrait　as　possible　of　her　dear；　sweet；　excellent　friend；　Madame　d'Agoult；　the　_Arabella_　of　the　_Lettres　d'un　voyageur_。　　〃The　portraits　continue；〃　he　writes；　〃all　true　to　life；　without　being　like　each　other。〃　　In　the　same　book；　_Horace_；　there　is　a　portrait　of　Mallefille；　who　was　beloved　〃during　one　quarter　of　the　moon；〃　and　abhorred　afterwards。　　He　concludes　the　letter　with　the　following　words：　　〃Ah；　how　fortunate　I　am　to　be　forgotten　by　those　people！　　I　am　not　afraid　of　their　indifference；　but　I　should　be　afraid　of　their　attentions。　。　。　。　　Say　what　you　like；　my　dear　friend；　those　people　do　not　tempt　me　at　all。　　Futility　and　spitefulness　dissolved　in　a　great　deal　of　_ennui_；　is　a　bad　kind　of　medicine。〃　　He　then　goes　on　to　make　fun；　in　terms　that　it　is　difficult　to　quote；　of　the　silly　enthusiasm　of　a　woman　like　Marliani；　and　even　of　George　Sand；　for　the　theories　of　Pierre　Leroux；　of　which　they　did　not　understand　the　first　letter；　but　which　had　taken　their　fancy。　　George　Sand　may　have　looked　upon　Lamennais　as　a　master；　but　it　is　very　evident　that　she　was　not　his　favoured　disciple。

It　was　due　to　his　teaching　that　George　Sand　obtained　her　definite　ideas　about　Catholicism；　or　rather　against　it。　　She　was　decidedly　its　adversary；　because　she　held　that　the　Church　had　stifled　the　spirit　of　liberty；　that　it　had　thrown　a　veil　over　the　words　of　Christ；　and　that　it　was　the　obstacle　in　the　way　of　holy　equality。　　What　she　owed　specially；　though；　to　Lamennais　was　another　lesson；　of　quite　another　character。　　Lamennais　was　the　man　of　the　nineteenth　century　who　waged　the　finest　battle　against　individualism；　against　〃the　scandal　of　the　adoration　of　man　by　man。〃＇34＇


＇34＇　Compare　Brunetiere；　_Evolution　de　la　poesie　lyrique_；　vol。　　i。　　p。　　310。


Under　his　influence；　George　Sand　began　to　attach　less　importance　to　the　personal　point　of　view；　she　ceased　applying　everything　to　herself；　and　she　discovered　the　importance　of　the　life　of　others。　　If　we　study　this　attentively；　we　shall　see　that　a　new　phase　now　commenced　in　the　history　of　her　ideas。　　Lamennais　was　the　origin　of　this　transformation；　although　it　is　personified　in　another　man；　and　that　other　man；　was　named　Pierre　Leroux。

What　a　strange　mystery　it　is；　among　so　many　other　mysteries；　that　of　one　mind　taking　possession　of　another　mind。　　We　have　come　into　contact　with　great　minds　which　have　made　no　impression　on　us；　whilst　other　minds；　of　secondary　intelligence；　perhaps；　and　it　may　be　inferior　to　our　own；　have　governed　us。

By　the　side　of　a　Lamennais；　this　Pierre　Leroux　was　a　very　puny　personage。　　He　had　been　a　compositor　in　a　printing　works；　before　founding　the　_Globe_。　　This　paper；　in　his　hands；　was　to　become　an　organ　of　Saint…Simonism。　He　belonged　neither　to　the　_bourgeois_　nor　to　the　working…class。　He　was　Clumsy；　not　well　built；　and　had　an　enormous　shock　of　hair；　which　was　the　joy　of　caricaturists。　　He　was　shy　and　awkward；　in　addition　to　all　this。　　He　nevertheless　appeared　in　various　_salons_；　and　was　naturally　more　or　less　ridiculous。　　In　January；　1840；　Beranger　writes：　　〃You　must　know　that　our　metaphysician　has　surrounded　himself　with　women；　at　the　head　of　whom　are　George　Sand　and　Marliani；　and　that；　in　gilded　drawing…rooms；　under　the　light　of　chandeliers；　he　exposes　his　religious　principles　and　his　muddy　boots。〃　　George　Sand　herself　made　fun　of　this　occasionally。　　In　a　letter　to　Madame　d'Agoult；　she　writes：

〃He　is　very　amusing　when　he　describes　making　his　appearance　in　your　drawing…room　of　the　Rue　Laffitte。　　He　says：　　‘I　was　all　muddy；　and　quite　ashamed　of　myself。　　I　was　keeping　out　of　sight　as　much　as　possible　in　a　corner。　　_This　lady_　came　to　me　and　talked　in　the　kindest　way　possible。　　She　is　very　beautiful。'〃＇35＇


＇35＇　_Correspondance_：　　To　Madame　d'Agoult；　October　16；　1837/。


There　are　two　features　about　him；　then；　which　seem　to　strike　every　one；　his　unkemptness　and　his　shyness。　　He　expressed　his　ideas；　which　were　already　obscure；　in　a　form　which　seemed　to　make　them　even　more　obscure。　　It　has　been　said　wittily　that　when　digging　out　his　ideas；　he　buried　himself　in　them。＇36＇　Later　on；　when　he　spoke　at　public　meetings；　he　was　noted　for　the　nonsense　he　talked　in　his　interminable　and　unintelligible　harangues。


＇36＇　P。　Thureau…Dangin；　_Histoire　de　la　Monarchie　de　Juillet。_


And　yet；　in　spite　of　all　this；　the　smoke　from　this　mind　attracted　George　Sand；　and　became　her　pillar　of　light　moving　on　before　her。　　His　hazy　philosophy　seemed　to　her　as　clear　as　daylight；　it　appealed　to　her　heart　and　to　her　mind；　solved　her　doubts；　and　gave　her　tranquillity；　strength；　faith；　hope　and　a　patient　and　persevering　love　of　humanity。　　It　seems　as　though；　with　that　marvellous　faculty　that　she　had　for　idealizing　always；　she　manufactured　a　Pierre　Leroux　of　her　own；　who　was　finer　than　the　real　one。　　He　was　needy；　but　poverty　becomes　the　man　who　has　ideas。　　He　was　awkward；　but　the　contemplative　man；　on　coming　down　from　the　region　of　thought　on　to　our　earth　once　more；　only　gropes　along。　　He　was　not　clear；　but　Voltaire　tells　us　that　when　a　man　does　not　understand　his　own　words；　he　is　talking　metaphysics。　　Chopin　had　personified　the　artist　for　her；　Pierre　Leroux；　with　his　words　as　entangled　as　his　hair；　figured　now　to　her　as　the　philosopher。　　She　saw　in　him　the　chief　and　the　master。　　_Tu　duca　e　tu　maestro_。

In　February；　1844；　she　wrote　the　following　extraordinary　lines：　　〃I　must　tell　you　that　George　Sand　is　only　a　pale　reflection　of　Pierre　Leroux；　a　fanatical　disciple　of　the　same　ideal；　but　a　disciple　mute　and　fascinated　when　listening　to　his　words；　and　quite　prepared　to　throw　all　her　own　works　into　the　fire；　in　order　to　write；　talk；　think；　pray　and　act　under　his　inspiration。　　I　am　merely　the　popularizer；　with　a　ready　pen　and　an　impressionable　mind；　and　I　try　to　translate；　in　my　novels；　the　philosophy　of　the　master。〃


The　most　extraordinary　part　about　these　lines　is　that　they　were　absolutely　true。　　The　whole　secret　of　the　productions　of　George　Sand　for　the　next　ten　years　is　contained　in　these　words。　　With　Pierre　Leroux　and　Louis　Viardot　she　now　founded　a　review；　_La　Revue　independante_；　in　which　she　could　publish；　not　only　novels　（beginning　with　_Horace_；　which　Buloz　had　refused）；　but　articles　by　which　philosophical…socialistic　ideas　could　have　a　free　course。　　Better　still　than　this；　the　novelist　could　take　the　watchword　from　the　sociologist。　　just　as　Mascarilla　put　Roman　history　into　madrigals；　she　was　able　to　put　Pierre　Leroux's　philosophy　into　novels。

It　would　be　interesting　to　know　what　she　saw　in　Pierre　Leroux；　and　which　of　his　ideas　she　approved　and　preferred。　　One　of　the　ideas　dear　to　Pierre　Leroux　was　that　of　immortality；　but　an　immortality　which　had　very　little　in　common　with　Christianity。　　According　to　it；　we　should　live　again　after　death；　but　in　humanity　and　in　another　world。　　The　idea　of　metempsychosis　was　very　much　in　vogue　at　this　epoch。　　According　to　Jean　Rcynaud　and　Lamennais；　souls　travelled　from　star　to　star；　but　Pierre　Leroux　believed　in　metempsychosis　on　earth。

〃We　are　not　only　the　children　and　the　posterity　of　those　who　have　already　lived；　but　we　are；　at　bottom；　the　anterior　generations　themselves。　　We　have　gone　through　former　existences　which　we　do　not　remember；　but　it　may　be　that　at　times　we　have　fragmentary　reminiscences　of　them。〃

George　Sand　must　have　been　very　deeply　impressed　by　this　idea。　　It　inspired　her　with　_Sept　cordes　de　la　lyre_；　_Spiridion_；　_Consuelo_　and　the　_Comtesse　de　Rudolstadt_；　the　whole　cycle　of　her　philosophical　novels。

The　_Sept　cordes　de　la　lyre_　is　a　dramatic　poem　after　the　manner　of　_Faust_。　　Maitre　Albertus　is　the　old　doctor　conversing　with　Mephistocles。　　He　has　a　ward；　named　Helene；　and　a　lyre。　　A　spirit　lives　in　this　lyre。　　It　is　all　in　vain　that　the　painter；　the　_maestro_；　the　poet；　the　critic　endeavour　to　make　the　cords　vibrate。　　The　lyre　remains　dumb。　　Helene；　even　without　putting　her　hands　on　it；　can　draw　from　it　magnificent　harmony；　Helene　is　mad。