the unseen world and other essays-第54节

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volumes；　witty；　acute；　and　learned；　and　already　he　is　often　ranked　with　Renan；　Littre；　and　Sainte…Beuve；　the　greatest　living　French　writers。

＇66＇　That　is；　in　1868。


Hippolyte　Adolphe　Taine　was　born　at　Vouziers；　among　the　grand　forests　of　Ardennes；　in　1828；　and　is　therefore　about　forty　years　old。　His　family　was　simple　in　habits　and　tastes；　and　entertained　a　steadfast　belief　in　culture；　along　with　the　possession　of　a　fair　amount　of　it。　His　grandfather　was　sub…prefect　at　Rocroi；　in　1814　and　1815；　under　the　first　restoration　of　the　Bourbons。　His　father；　a　lawyer　by　profession；　was　the　first　instructor　of　his　son；　and　taught　him　Latin；　and　from　an　uncle；　who　had　been　in　America；　he　learned　English；　while　still　a　mere　child。　Having　gone　to　Paris　with　his　mother　in　1842；　he　began　his　studies　at　the　College　Bourbon　and　in　1848　was　promoted　to　the　ecole　Normale。　Weiss；　About；　and　Prevost…Paradol　were　his　contemporaries　at　this　institution。　At　that　time　great　liberty　was　enjoyed　in　regard　to　the　order　and　the　details　of　the　exercises；　so　that　Taine；　with　his　surprising　rapidity；　would　do　in　one　week　the　work　laid　out　for　a　month；　and　would　spend　the　remainder　of　the　time　in　private　reading。　In　1851　he　left　college；　and　after　two　or　three　unsatisfactory　attempts　at　teaching；　in　Paris　and　in　the　provinces；　he　settled　down　at　Paris　as　a　private　student。　He　gave　himself　the　very　best　elementary　preparation　which　a　literary　man　can　have；a　thorough　course　in　mathematics　and　the　physical　sciences。　His　studies　in　anatomy　and　physiology　were　especially　elaborate　and　minute。　He　attended　the　School　of　Medicine　as　regularly　as　if　he　expected　to　make　his　daily　bread　in　the　profession。　In　this　way；　when　at　the　age　of　twenty…five　he　began　to　write　books；　M。　Taine　was　a　really　educated　man；　and　his　books　show　it。　The　day　is　past　when　a　man　could　write　securely；　with　a　knowledge　of　the　classics　alone。　We　doubt　if　a　philosophical　critic　is　perfectly　educated　for　his　task；　unless　he　can　read；　for　instance；　Donaldson's　〃New　Cratylus〃　on　the　one　hand；　and　Rokitansky's　〃Pathological　Anatomy〃　on　the　other；　for　the　sheer　pleasure　of　the　thing。　At　any　rate；　it　was　an　education　of　this　sort　which　M。　Taine；　at　the　outset　of　his　literary　career；　had　secured。　By　this　solid　discipline　of　mathematics；　chemistry；　and　medicine；　M。　Taine　became　that　which　above　all　things　he　now　is；a　man　possessed　of　a　central　philosophy；　of　an　exact；　categorical；　well…defined　system；　which　accompanies　and　supports　him　in　his　most　distant　literary　excursions。　He　does　not　keep　throwing　out　ideas　at　random；　like　too　many　literary　critics；　but　attaches　all　his　criticisms　to　a　common　fundamental　principle；　in　short；　he　is　not　a　dilettante；　but　a　savant。

His　treatise　on　La　Fontaine；　in　1853；　attracted　much　attention；　both　the　style　and　the　matter　being　singularly　fresh　and　original。　He　has　since　republished　it；　with　alterations　which　serve　to　show　that　he　can　be　docile　toward　intelligent　criticisms。　About　the　same　time　he　prepared　for　the　French　Academy　his　work　upon　the　historian　Livy；　which　was　crowned　in　1855。　Suffering　then　from　overwork；　he　was　obliged　to　make　a　short　journey　to　the　Pyrenees；　which　he　has　since　described　in　a　charming　little　volume；　illustrated　by　Dore。

His　subsequent　works　are　a　treatise　on　the　French　philosophers　of　the　present　century；　in　which　the　vapid　charlatanism　of　M。　Cousin　is　satisfactorily　dealt　with；　a　history　of　English　literature　in　five　volumes；　a　humorous　book　on　Paris；　three　volumes　upon　the　general　theory　of　art；　and　two　volumes　of　travels　in　Italy；　besides　a　considerable　collection　of　historical　and　critical　essays。　We　think　that　several　of　these　works　would　be　interesting　to　the　American　public；　and　might　profitably　be　translated。

Some　three　or　four　years　ago；　M。　Taine　was　appointed　Professor　in　the　ecole　des　Beaux　Arts；　and　we　suppose　his　journey　to　Italy　must　have　been　undertaken　partly　with　a　view　to　qualify　himself　for　his　new　position。　He　visited　the　four　cities　which　may　be　considered　the　artistic　centres　of　Italy；Rome；　Naples；　Florence；　and　Venice；and　a　large　part　of　his　account　of　his　journey　is　taken　up　with　descriptions　and　criticisms　of　pictures；　statues；　and　buildings。

This　is　a　department　of　criticism　which；　we　may　as　well　frankly　acknowledge；　is　far　better　appreciated　on　the　continent　of　Europe　than　in　England　or　America。　Over　the　English　race　there　passed；　about　two　centuries　ago；　a　deluge　of　Puritanism；　which　for　a　time　almost　drowned　out　its　artistic　tastes　and　propensities。　The　Puritan　movement；　in　proportion　to　its　success；　was　nearly　as　destructive　to　art　in　the　West；　as　Mohammedanism　had　long　before　been　in　the　East。　In　its　intense　and　one…sided　regard　for　morality；　Puritanism　not　only　relegated　the　love　for　beauty　to　an　inferior　place；　but　contemned　and　spat　upon　it；　as　something　sinful　and　degrading。　Hence；　the　utter　architectural　impotence　which　characterizes　the　Americans　and　the　modern　English；　and　hence　the　bewildered　ignorant　way　in　which　we　ordinarily　contemplate　pictures　and　statues。　For　two　centuries　we　have　been　removed　from　an　artistic　environment；　and　consequently　can　with　difficulty　enter　into　the　feelings　of　those　who　have　all　this　time　been　nurtured　in　love　for　art；　and　belief　in　art　for　its　own　sake。　These　peculiarities；　as　Mr。　Mill　has　ably　pointed　out；　have　entered　deep　into　our　ethnic　character。　Even　in　pure　morals　there　is　a　radical　difference　between　the　Englishman　and　the　inhabitant　of　the　continent　of　Europe。　The　Englishman　follows　virtue　from　a　sense　of　duty；　the　Frenchman　from　an　emotional　aspiration　toward　the　beautiful　The　one　admires　a　noble　action　because　it　is　right；　the　other　because　it　is　attractive。　And　this　difference　underlies　the　moral　judgments　upon　men　and　events　which　are　to　be　found　respectively　in　English　and　in　continental　literature。　By　keeping　it　constantly　in　view；　we　shall　be　enabled　to　understand　many　things　which　might　otherwise　surprise　us　in　the　writings　of　French　authors。

We　are　now　slowly　outgrowing　the　extravagances　of　Puritanism。　It　has　given　us　an　earnestness　and　sobriety　of　character；　to　which　much　of　our　real　greatness　is　owing；　both　here　and　in　the　mother　country。　It　has　made　us　stronger　and　steadier；　but　it　has　at　the　same　time　narrowed　us　in　many　respects；　and　rendered　our　lives　incomplete。　This　incompleteness；　entailed　by　Puritanism；　we　are　gradually　getting　rid　of；　and　we　are　learning　to　admire　and　respect　many　things　upon　which　Puritanism　set　its　mark　of　contempt。　We　are　beginning；　for　instance；　to　recognize　the　transcendent　merits　of　that　great　civilizing　agency；　the　drama；　we　no　longer　think　it　necessary　that　our　temples　for　worshipping　God　should　be　constructed　like　hideous　barracks；　we　are　gradually　permitting　our　choirs　to　discard　the　droning　and　sentimental　modern　〃psalm…tune〃　for　the　inspiring　harmonies　of　Beethoven　and　Mozart；　and　we　admit　the　classical　picture　and　the　undraped　statue　to　a　high　place　in　our　esteem。　Yet　with　all　this　it　will　probably　be　some　time　before　genuine　art　ceases　to　be　an　exotic　among　us；　and　becomes　a　plant　of　unhindered　native　growth。　It　will　be　some　time　before　we　cease　to　regard　pictures　and　statues　as　a　higher　species　of　upholstery；　and　place　them　in　the　same　category　with　poems　and　dramas；　duly　reverencing　them　as　authentic　revelations　of　the　beauty　which　is　to　be　found　in　nature。　It　will　be　some　time　before　we　realize　that　art　is　a　thing　to　be　studied；　as　well　as　literature；　and　before　we　can　be　quite　reconciled　to　the　familiar　way　in　which　a　Frenchman　quotes　a　picture　as　we　would　quote　a　poem　or　novel。

Artistic　genius；　as　M。　Taine　has　shown；　is　something　which　will　develop　itself　only　under　peculiar　social　circumstances；　and；　therefore；　if　we　have　not　art；　we　can　perhaps　only　wait　for　it；　trusting　that　when　the　time　comes　it　will　arise　among　us。　But　without　originating；　we　may　at　least　intelligently　appreciate。　The　nature　of　a　work　of　art；　and　the　mode　in　which　it　is　produced；　are　subjects　well　worthy　of　careful　study。　Architecture　and　music；　poetry；　painting　and　sculpture；　have　in　times　past　constituted　a　vast　portion　of　human　activity；　and　without　knowing　something　of　the　philosophy　of　art；　we　need　not　hope　to　understand　thoroughly　the　philosophy　of　history。

In　entering　upon　the　study　of　art　in　general；　one　may　find　many　suggestive　hints　in　the　little　books　of　M。　Taine；　reprinted　from　the　lectures　which　he　has　been　delivering　at　the　ecole　des　Beaux　Arts。　The　first；　on　the　Philosophy　of　Art；　designated　at　the　head　of　this　paper；　is　already　accessible　to　the　American　reader；　and　translations　of　the　others　are　probably　soon　to　follow。　We　shall　for　the　present　give　a　mere　synopsis　of　M。　Taine's　general　views。

And　first　it　must　be　determined　what　a　work　of　art　is。　Leaving　for　a　while　music　and　architecture　out　of　consideration；　it　will　be　admitted　that　poetry；　painting；　and　sculpture　have　one　obvious　character　in　common：　they　are　arts　of　IMITATION。　This；　says　Taine；　appears　at　first　sight　to　be　their　essential　character。　It　would　appear　that　their　great　object　is　to　IMITATE　as　closely　as　possible。　It　is　obvious　that　a　statue　is　intended　to　imitate　a　living　man；　that　a　picture　is　designed　to　represent　real　perso