~John William Colenso~ (1814-83), Bishop of Natal, published a series of treatises on thePentateuch, extending from 1862-1879, opposing the traditional views about the literal inspiration of the Scriptures and the actual historical character of the Mosaic story. Arnold's censorious criticism of the first volume of this work is entitledThe Bishop and the Philosopher(Macmillan's Magazine, January, 1863). As an example of the Bishop's cheap "arithmetical demonstrations" he describes him as presenting the case of Leviticus as follows: "'If three priests have to eat 264 pigeons a day, how many must each priest eat?' That disposes of Leviticus." The essay is devoted chiefly to contrasting Bishop Colenso's unedifying methods with those of the philosopher Spinoza. In passing, Arnold refers also to Dr. Stanley'sSinai and Palestine(1856), quotations from which are characterized as "the refreshing spots" in the Bishop's volume.
[50] It has been said I make it "a crime against literary criticism and the higher culture to attempt to inform the ignorant." Need I point out that the ignorant are not informed by being confirmed in a confusion? [Arnold.]
[51] Joubert'sPensées, ed. 1850, II, 102, titre 23, 54.
[52] ~Arthur Penrhyn Stanley~ (1815-81), Dean of Westminster. He was the author of aLifeof (Thomas)Arnold, 1844. In university politics and in religious discussions he was a Liberal and the advocate of toleration and comprehension.
[53] ~Frances Power Cobbe~ (1822-1904), a prominent English philanthropist and woman of letters. The quotation below is fromBroken Lights(1864), p. 134. HerReligious Duty(1857), referred to on p. 46, is a book of religious and ethical instruction written from the Unitarian point of view.
[54] ~Ernest Renan~ (1823-92), French philosopher and Orientalist. TheVie de Jésus(1863), here referred to, was begun in Syria and is filled with the atmosphere of the East, but is a work of literary rather than of scholarly importance.
[55] ~David Friedrich Strauss~ (1808-74), German theologian and man of letters. The work referred to is theLeben Jesu1835. A popular edition was published in 1864.
[56] From "Fleury (Preface) on the Gospel."—Arnold'sNote Book.
[57] Cicero'sAtt.16. 7. 3.
[58] ~Coleridge's happy phrase~. Coleridge'sConfessions of an Inquiring Spirit, letter 2.
[59] ~Luther's theory of grace~. The question concerning the "means of grace," i.e. whether the efficacy of the sacraments as channels of the divine grace isex opere operato, or dependent on the faith of the recipient, was the chief subject of controversy between Catholics and Protestants during the period of the Reformation.
[60] ~Jacques Bénigne Bossuet~ (1627-1704), French divine, orator, and writer. HisDiscours sur l'histoire universelle(1681) was an attempt to provide ecclesiastical authority with a rational basis. It is dominated by the conviction that "the establishment of Christianity was the one point of real importance in the whole history of the world."
[61] From Virgil'sEclogues, iv, 5. Translated in Shelley'sHellas: "The world's great age begins anew."
[62] Published in 1880 as the General Introduction toThe English Poets, edited by T.H. Ward. Reprinted inEssays in Criticism, Second Series, Macmillan & Co., 1888.
[63] This quotation is taken, slightly condensed, from the closing paragraph of a short introduction contributed by Arnold toThe Hundred Greatest Men, Sampson, Low & Co., London, 1885.
[64] From the Preface to the second edition of theLyrical Ballads, 1800.
[65] ~Charles Augustin Sainte-Beuve~ (1804-69), French critic, was looked upon by Arnold as in certain respects his master in the art of criticism.
[66] ~a criticism of life~. This celebrated phrase was first used by Arnold in the essay onJoubert(1864), though the theory is implied inOn Translating Homer, 1861. InJoubertit is applied to literature: "The end and aim of all literature, if one considers it attentively, is, in truth, nothing but that." It was much attacked, especially as applied to poetry, and is defended as so applied in the essay onByron(1881). See alsoWordsworth, Selections, p. 230.[Transcriber's note: This is Footnote 371 in this e-text.]
[67] Compare Arnold's definition of the function of criticism,Selections, p. 52.[Transcriber's note: This approximates to the section following the text reference for Footnote 61 in this e-text.]
[68] ~Paul Pellisson~ (1624-93). French author, friend of Mlle. Scudéry, and historiographer to the king.
[69] Barren and servile civility.
70. ~M. Charles d' Hericault~ was joint editor of the Jannet edition (1868-72) of the poems of ~Clément Marot~ (1496-1544).
[71]Imitation of Christ, Book III, chap. 43, 2.
[72] ~Cædmon~. The first important religious poet in Old English literature. Died about 680 A.D.
[73] ~Ludovic Vitet~ (1802-73). French dramatist and politician.
[74] ~Chanson de Roland~. The greatest of theChansons des Gestes, long narrative poems dealing with warfare and adventure popular in France during the Middle Ages. It was composed in the eleventh century. Taillefer was the surname of a bard and warrior of the eleventh century. The tradition concerning him is related by Wace,Roman de Rou, third part, v., 8035-62, ed. Andreson, Heilbronn, 1879. The BodleianRolandends with the words: "ci folt la geste, que Turoldus declinet." Turold has not been identified.
[75] "Then began he to call many things to remembrance,—all the lands which his valor conquered, and pleasant France, and the men of his lineage, and Charlemagne his liege lord who nourished him."—Chanson de Roland, III, 939-42.[Arnold.]
[76]"So said she; they long since in Earth's soft arms were reposing,There, in their own dear land, their fatherland, Lacedæmon."Iliad, III, 243, 244 (translated by Dr. Hawtrey).[Arnold.]
[77] "Ah, unhappy pair, why gave we you to King Peleus, to a mortal? but ye are without old age, and immortal. Was it that with men born to misery ye might have sorrow?"—Iliad, XVII, 443-445.[Arnold.]
[78] "Nay, and thou too, old man, in former days wast, as we hear, happy."—Iliad, XXIV, 543.[Arnold.]
[79] "I wailed not, so of stone grew I within;—theywailed."—Inferno, XXXIII, 39, 40.[Arnold.]
[80] "Of such sort hath God, thanked be His mercy, made me, that your misery toucheth me not, neither doth the flame of this fire strike me." —Inferno, II, 91-93.[Arnold.]
[81] "In His will is our peace."—Paradiso, III, 85.[Arnold.]
[82]Henry IV, part 2, III, i, 18-20.
[83]Hamlet, V, ii, 361-62.
[84]Paradise Lost, I, 599-602.
[85]Ibid., I, 108-9.
[86]Ibid., IV, 271.
[87]Poetics, § 9.
[88] ~Provençal~, the language of southern France, from the southern Frenchocinstead of the northernoïlfor "yes."
[89] Dante acknowledges his debt to ~Latini~ (c. 1230-c. 1294), but the latter was probably not his tutor. He is the author of theTesoretto, a heptasyllabic Italian poem, and the proseLivres dou Trésor, a sort of encyclopedia of medieval lore, written in French because that language "is more delightful and more widely known."
[90] ~Christian of Troyes~. A French poet of the second half of the twelfth century, author of numerous narrative poems dealing with legends of the Round Table. The present quotation is from theCligés, ll. 30-39.
[91] Chaucer's two favorite stanzas, the seven-line and eight-line stanzas in heroic verse, were imitated from Old French poetry. See B. ten Brink'sThe Language and Meter of Chaucer, 1901, pp. 353-57.
[92] ~Wolfram von Eschenbach~. A medieval German poet, born in the end of the twelfth century. His best-known poem is the epicParzival.
[93] From Dryden'sPreface to the Fables, 1700.
[94] TheConfessio Amantis, the single English poem of ~John Gower~ (c. 1330-1408), was in existence in 1392-93.
[95] ~souded~. The Frenchsoudé, soldered, fixed fast.[Arnold.] From thePrioress's Tale, ed. Skeat, 1894, B. 1769. The line should read, "O martir, souded to virginitee."
[96] ~François Villon~, born in or near Paris in 1431, thief and poet. His best-known poems are hisballades. See R.L. Stevenson's essay.
[97] The nameHeaulmièreis said to be derived from a headdress (helm) worn as a mark by courtesans. In Villon's ballad, a poor old creature of this class laments her days of youth and beauty. The last stanza of the ballad runs thus:
"Ainsi le bon temps regretonsEntre nous, pauvres vieilles sottes,Assises bas, à croppetons,Tout en ung tas comme pelottes;A petit feu de chenevottesTost allumées, tost estainctes.Et jadis fusmes si mignottes!Ainsi en prend à maintz et maintes."
"Thus amongst ourselves we regret the good time, poor silly old things, low-seated on our heels, all in a heap like so many balls; by a little fire of hemp-stalks, soon lighted, soon spent. And once we were such darlings! So fares it with many and many a one."[Arnold.]
[98] FromAn Essay of Dramatic Poesy, 1688.
[99] A statement to this effect is made by Dryden in thePreface to the Fables.
[100] FromPreface to the Fables.
[101] See Wordsworth'sEssay, Supplementary to the Preface, 1815, and Coleridge'sBiographia Literaria.
[102]An Apology for Smectymnuus, Prose Works, ed. 1843, III, 117-18. Milton was thirty-four years old at this time.
[103] The opening words of Dryden'sPostscript to the Readerin the translation of Virgil, 1697.
[104] The opening lines ofThe Hind and the Panther.
[105]Imitations of Horace, Book II, Satire 2, ll. 143-44.
[106] FromOn the Death of Robert Dundas, Esq.
[107] ~Clarinda~. A name assumed by Mrs. Maclehose in her sentimental connection with Burns, who corresponded with her under the name of Sylvander.
[108] Burns to Mr. Thomson, October 19, 1794.
[109] FromThe Holy Fair.
[110] FromEpistle: To a Young Friend.
[111] FromAddress to the Unco' Quid, or the Rigidly Righteous.
[112] FromEpistle: To Dr. Blacklock.
[Footnote 4: See hisMemorabilia.][Transcriber's note: The reference for this footnote is missing from the original text.]
[113] FromWinter: A Dirge.
[114] From Shelley'sPrometheus Unbound, III, iv, last line.
[115]Ibid., II, v.
[116] Reprinted (considerably revised) from theNineteenth Century, August, 1882, vol. XII, inDiscourses in America, Macmillan & Co., 1885. It was the most popular of the three lectures given by Arnold during his visit to America in 1883-84.
[117] Plato'sRepublic, 6. 495,Dialogues, ed. Jowett, 1875, vol. 3, p. 194.
[118] ~working lawyer~. Plato'sTheoetetus,172-73,Dialogues, IV, 231.
[119] ~majesty~. All editions read "majority." What Emerson said was "majesty," which is therefore substituted here. See Emerson'sLiterary Ethics, Works, Centenary ed., I, 179.
[120] "His whole soul is perfected and ennobled by the acquirement of justice and temperance and wisdom. … And in the first place, he will honor studies which impress these qualities on his soul and will disregard others."—Republic, IX, 591,Dialogues, III, 305.
[121] SeeThe Function of Criticism, Selections, p. 52.[Transcriber's note: This approximates to the section following the text reference for Footnote 61 in this e-text.]
[122] Delivered October 1, 1880, and printed inScience and Culture and Other Essays, Macmillan & Co., 1881.
[123] SeeThe Function of Criticism, Selections, pp. 52-53. [Transcriber's note: This approximates to the section following the text reference for Footnote 61 in this e-text.]
[124] SeeL'Instruction supérieur en Francein Renan'sQuestions Contemporaines, Paris, 1868.
[125] ~Friedrich August Wolf~ (1759-1824), German philologist and critic.
[126] See Plato'sSymposium, Dialogues, II, 52-63.
[127] ~James Joseph Sylvester~ (1814-97), English mathematician. In 1883, the year of Arnold's lecture, he resigned a position as teacher in Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, to accept the Savilian Chair of Geometry at Oxford.
[128] Darwin's famous proposition.Descent of Man, Part III, chap. XXI, ed. 1888, II, 424.
[129] ~Michael Faraday~ (1791-1867), English chemist and physicist, and the discoverer of the induction of electrical currents. He belonged to the very small Christian sect called after ~Robert Sandeman~, and his opinion with respect to the relation between his science and his religion is expressed in a lecture on mental education printed at the end of hisResearches in Chemistry and Physics.
[130] Eccles. VIII, 17.[Arnold.]
[131]Iliad, XXIV, 49.[Arnold.]
[132] Luke IX, 25.
[133]Macbeth, V, iii.
[134] A touching account of the devotion of ~Lady Jane Grey~ (1537-54) to her studies is to be found in Ascham'sScholemaster, Arber's ed., 46-47.
[135] Reprinted from theCornhill Magazine, vol. VIII, August, 1863, inEssays in Criticism, 1st series, 1865.
[136] Written from Paris, March 30, 1855. See Heine'sMemoirs, ed. 1910, II, 270.
[137] The German Romantic school of ~Tieck~ (1773-1853), ~Novalis~ (1772-1801), and ~Richter~ (1763-1825) followed the classical school of Schiller and Goethe. It was characterized by a return to individualism, subjectivity, and the supernatural. Carlyle translated extracts from Tieck and Richter in hisGerman Romance(1827), and hisCritical and Miscellaneous Essayscontain essays on Richter and Novalis.
[138] FromEnglish Fragments; Conclusion, inPictures of Travel, ed. 1891, Leland's translation,Works, III, 466-67.
[139] ~Heine's~ birthplace was not ~Hamburg~, but ~Düsseldorf~.
[140] ~Philistinism~. In German university slang the termPhilisterwas applied to townsmen by students, and corresponded to the English university "snob." Hence it came to mean a person devoid of culture and enlightenment, and is used in this sense by Goethe in 1773. Heine was especially instrumental in popularizing the expression outside of Germany. Carlyle first introduced it into English literature in 1827. In a note to the discussion of Goethe in the second edition ofGerman Romance, he speaks of a Philistine as one who "judged of Brunswick mum, by itsutility." He adds: "Stray specimens of the Philistine nation are said to exist in our own Islands; but we have no name for them like the Germans." The term occurs also in Carlyle's essays onThe State of German Literature, 1827, andHistoric Survey of German Poetry, 1831. Arnold, however, has done most to establish the word in English usage. He applies it especially to members of the middle class who are swayed chiefly by material interests and are blind to the force of ideas and the value of culture. Leslie Stephen, who is always ready to plead the cause of the Philistine, remarks: "As a clergyman always calls every one from whom he differs an atheist, and a bargee has one or two favorite but unmentionable expressions for the same purpose, so a prig always calls his adversary a Philistine."Mr. Matthew Arnold and the Church of England, Fraser's Magazine, October, 1870.
[141] The word ~solecism~ is derived from[Greek: soloi], in Cilicia, owing to the corruption of the Attic dialect among the Athenian colonists of that place.
[142] The "~gig~" as Carlyle's symbol of philistinism takes its origin from a dialogue which took place in Thurtell's trial: "I always thought him a respectable man." "What do you mean by 'respectable'?" "He kept a gig." From this he coins the words "gigman," "gigmanity," "gigmania," which are of frequent occurrence in his writings.
[143]English Fragments, Pictures of Travel, Works, III, 464.
[144] SeeThe Function of Criticism, Selections, Note 2, p. 42. [Transcriber's note: This is Footnote 42 in this e-text.]
[145]English Fragments, chap. IX, inPictures of Travel, Works, III, 410-11.
[146] Adapted from a line in Wordsworth'sResolution and Independence.
[147] ~Charles the Fifth~. Ruler of The Holy Roman Empire, 1500-58.
[148]English Fragments, Conclusion, inPictures of Travel, Works, III, 468-70.
[149] A complete edition has at last appeared in Germany.[Arnold.]
[150] ~Augustin Eugène Scribe~ (1791-1861), French dramatist, for fifty years the best exponent of the ideas of the French middle class.
[151] ~Charles Louis Napoleon Bonaparte~ (Napoleon III), 1808-73, son of Louis Bonaparte, brother of Napoleon I, by thecoup d'étatof December, 1851, became Emperor of France. This was accomplished against the resistance of the Moderate Republicans, partly through the favor of his democratic theories with the mass of the French people. Heine was mistaken, however, in believing that the rule of Louis Napoleon had prepared the way for Communism. An attempt to bring about a Communistic revolution was easily crushed in 1871.
[152] ~J.J. von Goerres~ (1776-1848), ~Klemens Brentano~ (1778-1842), and ~Ludwig Achim von Arnim~ (1781-1831) were the leaders of the second German Romantic school and constitute the Heidelberg group of writers. They were much interested in the German past, and strengthened the national and patriotic spirit. Their work, however, is often marred by exaggeration and affectation.
[153] FromThe Baths of Lucca, chap. X, inPictures of Travel, Works, III, 199.
[154] Cf.Function of Criticism, Selections, p. 26.[Transcriber's note: This approximates to the section following the text reference for Footnote 27 in this e-text.]
[155] Job XII, 23: "He enlargeth the nations and straiteneth them again."
[156] Lucan,Pharsalia, book I, 135: "he stands the shadow of a great name."
[157] FromIdeas, inPictures of Travel, Works, II, 312-13.
[158] ~Robert Stewart, Viscount Castlereagh~ (1769-1822), as Foreign Secretary under Lord Liverpool, became the soul of the coalition against Napoleon, which, during the campaigns of 1813-14, was kept together by him alone. He committed suicide with a penknife in a fit of insanity in August, 1822.
[159] FromIdeas, inPictures of Travel, Works, II, 324.
[160] FromEnglish Fragments, 1828, inPictures of Travel, Works, III, 340-42.
[161] Song inMeasure for Measure, IV, i.
[162][Transcriber's note: "FromThe Dying One: for translation see p. 142." in original. Please see reference in text for Footnote 180.]
[163] FromMountain Idyll, Travels in the Hartz Mountains, Book of Songs. Works, ed. 1904, pp. 219-21.
[164] Published 1851.
[165] ~Rhampsinitus~. A Greek corruption ofRa-messu-pa-neter, the popular name of Rameses III, King of Egypt.
[166] ~Edith with the Swan Neck~. A mistress of King Harold of England.
[167] ~Melisanda of Tripoli~. Mistress of Geoffrey Rudel, the troubadour.
[168] ~Pedro the Cruel~. King of Castile (1334-69).
[169] ~Firdusi~. A Persian poet, author of the epic poem, theShahnama, or "Book of Kings," a complete history of Persia in nearly sixty thousand verses.
[170] ~Dr. Döllinger~. A German theologian and church historian (1799-1890).
[171]Spanish Atrides, Romancero, Works, ed. 1905, pp. 200-04.
[172] ~Henry of Trastamare~. King of Castile (1369-79).
[173] ~garbanzos~. A kind of pulse much esteemed in Spain.
[174] Adapted from Rom. VIII, 26.
[175] FromThe Baths of Lucca, chap. IX, inPictures of Travel, Works, III, 184-85.
[176]Romancero, book III.
[177] ~Laura~. The heroine of Petrarch's famous series of love lyrics known as theCanzoniere.
[178] ~Court of Love~. For a discussion of this supposed medieval tribunal see William A. Neilson'sThe Origins and Sources of the Court of Love, Studies and Notes in Philology and Literature, Boston, 1899, chap. VIII.
[179]Disputation, Romancero, book III.
[180]The Dying One, Romancero, book II, quoted entire.
[181] Written from Paris, September 30, 1850. SeeMemoirs, ed. 1910, II, 226-27.
[182] Reprinted fromThe Victoria Magazine, II, 1-9, November, 1863, inEssays in Criticism, 1865.
[183] ~John Stuart Mill~ (1806-73), English philosopher and economist.On Liberty(1859) is his most finished writing.
[184] TheImitation of Christ(Imitatio Christi), a famous medieval Christian devotional work, is usually ascribed to Thomas à Kempis (1380-1471), an Augustinian canon of Mont St. Agnes in the diocese of Utrecht.
[185] ~Epictetus~. Greek Stoic philosopher (born c. A.D. 60). He is an earnest preacher of righteousness and his philosophy is eminently practical. For Arnold's personal debt to him see his sonnetTo a Friend.
[186] ~Empedocles~. A Greek philosopher and statesman (c. 490-430 B.C.). He is the subject of Arnold's early poetical drama,Empedocles on Etna, which he later suppressed for reasons which he states in the Preface to thePoemsof 1853. SeeSelections, pp. 1-3. [Transcriber's note: This approximates to the section following the text reference for Footnote 1 in this e-text.]
[187]Encheiridion, chap. LII.
[188] Ps. CXLIII, 10; incorrectly quoted.
[189] Is. LX, 19.
[190] Mal. IV, 2.
[191] John I, 13.
[192] John III, 5.
[193] 1 John V, 4.
[194] Matt. XIX, 26.
[195] 2 Cor. V, 17.
[196]Encheiridion, chap. XLIII.
[197] Matt. XVIII, 22.
[198] Matt. XXII, 37-39, etc.
[199] ~George Long~ (1800-79), classical scholar. He publishedSelections from Plutarch's Lives, 1862;Thoughts of Marcus Aurelius, 1862; etc.
[200] ~Thomas Arnold~ (1795-1842), English clergyman and headmaster of Rugby School, father of Matthew Arnold.
[201] ~Jeremy Collier~ (1650-1726). His best-known work is hisShort View of the Immorality and Profaneness of the English Stage, 1698, a sharp and efficacious attack on the Post-Restoration drama.The Emperor M. Aurelius Antoninus, his Conversation with himself, appeared in 1701.
[202]Meditations, III, 14.
203. ~Antoninus Pius~. Roman Emperor, A.D. 138-161, and foster-father of M. Aurelius.
[204] To become current in men's speech.
[205] The real name of ~Voltaire~ was ~François Marie Arouet~. The name Voltaire was assumed in 1718 and is supposed to be an anagram of Arouet le j(eune).
[206] SeeFunction of Criticism, Selections, p. 36.[Transcriber's note: This approximates to the section following the text reference for Footnote 36 in this e-text.]
[207] ~Louis IX of France~ (1215-70), the leader of the crusade of 1248.
[208] ~The Saturday Review~, begun in 1855, was pronouncedly conservative in politics. It devoted much space to pure criticism and scholarship, and Arnold's essays are frequently criticized in its columns.
[209] He died on the 17th of March, A.D. 180.[Arnold.]
[210] ~Juvenal's sixth satire~ is a scathing arraignment of the vices and follies of the women of Rome during the reign of Domitian.
[211] See Juvenal,Sat.3, 76.
[212] Because he lacks an inspired poet (to sing his praises). Horace,Odes, IV, 9, 28.
[213] ~Avidius Cassius~, a distinguished general, declared himself Emperor in Syria in 176 A.D. Aurelius proceeded against him, deploring the necessity of taking up arms against a trusted officer. Cassius was slain by his own officers while M. Aurelius was still in Illyria.
[214] ~Commodus~. Emperor of Rome, 180-192 A.D. He was dissolute and tyrannical.
[215] ~Attalus~, a Roman citizen, was put to death with other Christians in A.D. 177.
[216] ~Polycarp~, Bishop of Smyrna, and one of the Apostolic Fathers, suffered martyrdom in 155 A.D.
[217] ~Tacitus~,Ab Excessu Augusti, XV, 44.
[218] ~Claude Fleury~ (1640-1723), French ecclesiastical historian, author of theHistoire Ecclésiastique, 20 vols., 1691.
[219]Med., I, 12.
[220]Ibid., I, 14.
[221]Ibid., IV, 24.
[222]Ibid., III, 4.
[223]Ibid., V, 6.
[224]Ibid., IX, 42.
[225] ~Lucius Annæus Seneca~ (c. 3 B.C.-A.D. 65), statesman and philosopher. His twelve so-calledDialoguesare Stoic sermons of a practical and earnest character.
[226]Med., III, 2.
[227]Ibid., V, 5.
[228]Ibid., VIII, 34.
[229]Ibid., IV, 3.
[230]Ibid., I, 17.
[231] ~Tiberius, Caligula, Nero, Domitian~. Roman Emperors, 14-37 A.D., 37-41 A.D., 54-68 A.D., and 81-96 A.D.
[232]Med., IV, 28.
[233]Ibid., V, 11.
[234]Ibid., X, 8.
[235]Ibid., IV, 32.
[236]Ibid., V, 33.
[237]Ibid., IX, 30.
[238]Ibid., VII, 55.
[239]Ibid., VI, 48.
[240]Ibid., IX, 3.
[241] Matt. XVII, 17.
[242]Med., X, 15.
[243]Ibid., VI, 45.
[244]Ibid., V, 8.
[245]Ibid., VII, 55.
[246]Ibid., IV, 1.
[247]Ibid., X, 31.
[248]Ibid.
[249] ~Alogi~. An ancient sect that rejected the Apocalypse and the Gospel of St. John.
[250] ~Gnosis~. Knowledge of spiritual truth or of matters commonly conceived to pertain to faith alone, such as was claimed by the Gnostics, a heretical Christian sect of the second century.
[251] The correct reading istendebantque(Æneid, VI, 314), which Arnold has altered to apply to the present case.
[252] FromOn The Study of Celtic Literature, London, 1867, chap. VI. It was previously published in theCornhill Magazine, vols. XIII and XIV, March-July, 1866. In the Introduction to the book Arnold says: "The following remarks on the study of Celtic literature formed the substance of four lectures given by me last year and the year before in the chair of poetry at Oxford." The chapter is slightly abridged in the present selection.
[253]Paradise Lost, III, 32-35.
[254]Tasso, I, 2, 304-05.
[255] ~Menander~. The most famous Greek poet of the New Comedy (342-291 B.C.).
[256] ~Gemeinheit~. Arnold defines the word five lines below.
[257] SeeThe Function of Criticism, Selections, Note 2, p. 42. [Transcriber's note: This is Footnote 42 in this e-text.]
[258] ~Bossuet~. SeeThe Function of Criticism, Selections, Note 2, p. 49.[Transcriber's note: This is Footnote 60 in this e-text.]
[259] ~Henry St. John, Viscount Bolingbroke~ (1678-1751), English statesman and man of letters, was author of theIdea of a Patriot King. Arnold is inclined to overestimate the quality of his style.
[260] ~Taliessin~ and ~Llywarch Hen~ are the names of Welsh bards, supposedly of the late sixth century, whose poems are contained in theRed Book of Hergest, a manuscript formerly preserved in Jesus College, Oxford, and now in the Bodleian. Nothing further is known of them. ~Ossian~, ~Ossin~, or ~Oisin~, was a legendary Irish third century hero and poet, the son of Finn. In Scotland the Ossianic revival was due to James Macpherson. See Note 1, p. 181.[Transcriber's note: This is Footnote 262 in this e-text.]
[261] From theBlack Book of Caermarthen, 19.
[262] ~James Macpherson~ (1736-96) published anonymously in 1760 hisFragments of Ancient Poetry, collected in the Highlands of Scotland and translated from the Gaelic or Erse language. This was followed by an epicFingaland other poems. Their authenticity was early doubted and a controversy followed. They are now generally believed to be forgeries. The passage quoted, as well as references to Selma, "woody Morven," and "echoing Lora" (notSora), is fromCarthon: a Poem.
[263] ~Werther~. Goethe'sDie Leiden des jungen Werthers(1774) was a product of theSturm und Drangmovement in German literature, and responsible for its sentimental excesses. Goethe mentions Ossian in connection with Homer inWerther, book II, "am 12. October," and translates several passages of considerable length toward the close of this book.
[264] ~Prometheus~. An unfinished drama of Goethe's, of which a fine fragment remains.
[265] For ~Llywarch Hen~, see Note 1, p. 180.[Transcriber's note: This is Footnote 260 in this e-text.] The present quotation is from book II of theRed Book. A translation of the poem differing somewhat from the one quoted by Arnold is contained in W.F. Skene'sThe Four Ancient Books of Wales, Edinburgh, 1868.
[266] FromOn this day I complete my thirty-sixth year, 1824.
[267] FromEuthanasia, 1812.
[268] ~Manfred, Lara, Cain~. Heroes of Byron's poems so named.
[269] FromParadise Lost, I, 105-09.
[270] Rhyme,—the most striking characteristic of our modern poetry as distinguished from that of the ancients, and a main source, to our poetry, of its magic and charm, of what we call itsromantic element— rhyme itself, all the weight of evidence tends to show, comes into our poetry from the Celts.[Arnold.] A different explanation is given by J. Schipper,A History of English Versification, Oxford, 1910: "End-rhyme or full-rhyme seems to have arisen independently and without historical connection in several nations…. Its adoption into all modern literature is due to the extensive use made of it in the hymns of the church."
[271] Lady Guest'sMabinogion, Math the Son of Mathonwy, ed. 1819, III, 239.
[272]Mabinogion, Kilhwch and Olwen, II, 275.
[273]Mabinogion, Peredur the Son of Evrawc, I, 324.
[274]Mabinogion, Geraint the Son of Erbin, II, 112.
[275] ~Novalis~. The pen-name of ~Friedrich von Hardenberg~ (1772-1801), sometimes called the "Prophet of Romanticism." See Carlyle's essay on Novalis.
[276] For ~Rückert~, seeWordsworth, Selections, Note 4, p. 224. [Transcriber's note: This is Footnote 356 in this e-text.]
[277] Take the following attempt to render the natural magic supposed to pervade Tieck's poetry: "In diesen Dichtungen herrscht eine geheimnissvolle Innigkeit, ein sonderbares Einverständniss mit der Natur, besonders mit der Pflanzen-und Steinreich. Der Leser fühlt sich da wie in einem verzauberten Walde; er hört die unterirdischen Quellen melodisch rauschen; wildfremde Wunderblumen schauen ihn an mit ihren bunten sehnsüchtigen Augen; unsichtbare Lippen küssen seine Wangen mit neckender Zärtlichkeit;hohe Pilze, wie goldne Glocken, wachsen klingend empor am Fusse der Bäume"; and so on. Now that stroke of thehohe Pilze, the great funguses, would have been impossible to the tact and delicacy of a born lover of nature like the Celt; and could only have come from a German who hashineinstudirthimself into natural magic. It is a crying false note, which carries us at once out of the world of nature-magic, and the breath of the woods, into the world of theatre-magic and the smell of gas and orange-peel.[Arnold.]
~Johann Ludwig Tieck~ (1773-1853) was one of the most prominent of the German romanticists. He was especially felicitous in the rehandling of the old German fairy tales. The passage quoted above is from Heine'sGermany, Part II, book II, chap. II. The following is the translation of C.G. Leland, slightly altered: "In these compositions we feel a mysterious depth of meaning, a marvellous union with nature, especially with the realm of plants and stones. The reader seems to be in an enchanted forest; he hears subterranean springs and streams rustling melodiously and his own name whispered by the trees. Broad-leaved clinging plants wind vexingly about his feet, wild and strange wonderflowers look at him with vari-colored longing eyes, invisible lips kiss his cheeks with mocking tenderness, great funguses like golden bells grow singing about the roots of trees."
[278]Winter's Tale, IV, iii, 118-20.
[279] Arnold doubtless refers to the passage inThe Solitary Reaperreferred to in a similar connection in the essay on Maurice de Guérin, though Wordsworth has written two poemsTo the Cuckoo.
[280] The passage on the mountain birch-tree, which is quoted in the essay on Maurice de Guérin, is from Sénancour'sObermann, letter 11. For his delicate appreciation of the Easter daisy seeObermann, letter 91.
[281]. Pope'sIliad, VIII, 687.
[282] Propertius,Elegies, book I, 20, 21-22: "The band of heroes covered the pleasant beach with leaves and branches woven together."
[283]Idylls, XIII, 34. The present reading of the line gives[Greek: hekeito, mega]: "A meadow lay before them, very good for beds."
[284] From theOde to a Grecian Urn.
[285] That is,Dedication.
[286] From theOde to a Nightingale.
[287]Ibid.
[288] Virgil,Eclogues, VII, 45.
[289]Ibid., II, 47-48: "Plucking pale violets and the tallest poppies, she joins with them the narcissus and the flower of the fragrant dill."
[290]Ibid., II, 51-52: "I will gather quinces, white with delicate down, and chestnuts."
[291]Midsummer Night's Dream, II, i, 249-52.
[292]Merchant of Venice, V, i, 58-59.
[293]Midsummer Night's Dream, II, i, 83-85.
[294]Merchant of Venice, V, i, 1 ff.
[295] Reprinted from theFortnightly Reviewfor June, 1877, inMixed Essays, Smith, Elder & Co., 1879. ~Amandine Lucile Aurore Dudevant~, née ~Dupin~ (1804-76), was the most prolific woman writer of France. The pseudonym ~George Sand~ was a combination of George, the typical Berrichon name, and Sand, abbreviated from (Jules) Sandeau, in collaboration with whom she began her literary career.
[296] ~Indiana~, George Sand's first novel, 1832.
[297] ~Nohant~ is a village of Berry, one of the ancient provinces of France, comprising the modern departments of Cher and Indre. The ~Indre~ and the ~Creuse~ are its chief rivers. ~Vierzon, Châteauroux, Le Châtre~, and ~Ste.-Sévère~ are towns of the province. ~Le Puy~ is in the neighboring department of Haute-Loire, and ~La Marche~ is in the department of Vosges. For the ~Vallée Noire~ see Sand'sThe Miller of Angibault, chap. III, etc.
[298] ~Jeanne~. The first of a series of novels in which the pastoral element prevails. It was published in 1844.
[299] The ~Pierres Jaunâtres~ (or ~Jomâtres~) is a district in the mountains of the Creuse (seeJeanne, Prologue). ~Touix Ste.-Croix~ is a ruined Gallic town (Jeanne, chap. I). For the druidical stones of ~Mont Barlot~ seeJeanne, chap. VII.
[300] ~Cassini's great map~. A huge folio volume containing 183 charts of the various districts of France, published by Mess. Maraldi and Cassini de Thury, Paris, 1744.
[301] For an interesting description of the patache, or rustic carriage, see George Sand'sMiller of Angibault, chap. II.
[302] ~landes~. An infertile moor.
[303] ~Maurice and Solange~. See, for example, theLetters of a Traveller.
[304] ~Chopin~. George Sand's friendship for the composer Chopin began in 1837.
[305] ~Jules Michelet~ (1798-1874), French historian.
[306] ~her death~. George Sand died at Nohant, June 8, 1876.
[307]. From theJournal d'un Voyageur, September 15, 1870, ed. 1871, p. 2.
[308] ~Consuelo~ (1842-44) is George Sand's best-known novel.
[309] ~Edmée, Geneviève, Germain~. Characters in the novelsMauprat, André, andLa Mare au Diable.
[310] ~Lettres d'un Voyageur, Mauprat, François le Champi~. Published in 1830-36, 1836, and 1848.
[311] ~F.W.H. Myers~ (1843-1901), poet and essayist. See hisEssays, Modern, ed. 1883, pp. 70-103.
[312] ~Valvèdre~. Published in 1861.
[313] ~Werther~. SeeThe Contribution of the Celts, Selections, Note 1, p. 182.[Transcriber's note: This is Footnote 263 in this e-text.]
[314] ~Corinne~. An esthetic romance (1807) by Mme. de Staël.
[315] ~Valentine~ (1832), George Sand's second novel, pointed out "the dangers and pains of an ill-assorted marriage." ~Lélia~ (1833) was a still more outspoken diatribe against society and the marriage law.
[316] FromLélia, chap. LXVII.
[317] ~Jacques~ (1834), the hero of which is George Sand in man's disguise, sets forth the author's doctrine of free love.
[318] FromJacques, letter 95.
[319] FromLettres d'un Voyageur, letter 9.
[320]Ibid., à Rollinat, September, 1834.
[321] ~Hans Holbein~, the younger (1497-1543), German artist.
[322] FromLa Mare au Diable, chap. 1.
[323]Ibid.,The Author to the Reader.
[324]Ibid., chap. 1.
[325]Ibid., chap. 1.
[326] FromImpressions et Souvenirs, ed. 1873, p. 135.
[327]Ibid., p. 137.
[328] From Wordsworth'sLines Composed a few Miles above Tintern Abbey.
[329] FromImpressions et Souvenirs, p. 136.
[330]Ibid., p. 139.
[331]Ibid., p. 269.
[332]Ibid., p. 253.
[333] SeeThe Function of Criticism, Selections, p. 29.[Transcriber's note: This approximates to the section following the text reference for Footnote 29 in this e-text.]
[334] ~Émile Zola~ (1840-1902), French novelist, was the apostle of the "realistic" or "naturalistic" school.L'Assommoir(1877) depicts especially the vice of drunkenness.
[335] FromJournal d'un Voyageur, February 10, 1871, p. 305.
[336] ~Émile Louis Victor de Laveleye~ (1822-92), Belgian economist. He was especially interested in bimetallism, primitive property, and nationalism.
[337] FromJournal d'un Voyageur, December 21, 1870, p. 202.
[338]Ibid., December 21, 1870, p. 220.
[339]Ibid., February 7, 1871, p. 228.
[340]Round my House: Notes of Rural Life in France in Peace and War(1876), by ~Philip Gilbert Hamerton~. See especially chapters XI and XII.
[341] ~Barbarians, Philistines, Populace~. Arnold's designations for the aristocratic, middle, and lower classes of England inCulture and Anarchy.
[342] ~Paul Amand Challemel-Lacour~ (1827-96), French statesman and man of letters.
[343] SeeThe Function of Criticism, Selections, Note 4, p. 44. [Transcriber's note: This is Footnote 54 in this e-text.]
[344] FromJournal d'un Voyageur, February 10, 1871, p. 309.
[345] The closing sentence of the Nicene Creed withexpectochanged toexspectat. For the English translation see Morning Prayer in the Episcopal Prayer Book; for the Greek and Latin see Schaff,Creeds of Christendom, II, 58, 59.
[346] Published inMacmillan's Magazine, July, 1879, vol. XL; as Preface toThe Poems of Wordsworth, chosen and edited by Arnold in 1879; and inEssays in Criticism, Second Series, 1888.
[347] ~Rydal Mount~. Wordsworth's home in the Lake District from 1813 until his death in 1850.
[348] ~1842~. The year of publication of the two-volume edition of Tennyson's poems, containingLocksley Hall,Ulysses, etc.
[349] ~candid friend~. Arnold himself.
[350] TheBiographie Universelle, ou Dictionnaire historiqueof F.X. de Feller (1735-1802) was originally published in 1781.
[351] ~Henry Cochin~. A brilliant lawyer and writer of Paris, 1687-1747.
[352] ~Amphictyonic Court~. An association of Ancient Greek communities centering in a shrine.
[353] ~Gottlieb Friedrich Klopstock~ (1724-1803) was author ofDer Messias.
[354] ~Lessing~. SeeSweetness and Light, Selections, Note 2, p. 271.[Transcriber's note: This is Footnote 427 in this e-text.]
[355] ~Johann Ludwig Uhland~ (1787-1862), romantic lyric poet.
[356] ~Friedrich Rückert~ (1788-1866) was the author ofLiebesfrühlingand other poems.
[357] ~Heine~. SeeHeinrich Heine, Selections, pp. 112-144.
[358] The greatest poems of ~Vicenzo da Filicaja~ (1642-1707) are six odes inspired by the victory of Sobieski.
[359] ~Vittorio, Count Alfieri~ (1749-1803), Italian dramatist. His best-known drama is hisSaul.
[360] ~Manzoni~ (1785-1873) was a poet and novelist, author ofI Promessi Sposi.
[361] ~Giacomo, Count Leopardi~ (1798-1837), Italian poet. His writings are characterized by deep-seated melancholy.
[362] ~Jean Racine~ (1639-99), tragic dramatist.
[363] ~Nicolas Boileau-Despréaux~ (1636-1711), poet and critic.
[364] ~André de Chénier~ (1762-94), poet, author ofJeune Captive, etc.
[365] ~Pierre Jean de Béranger~ (1780-1857), song-writer.
[366] ~Alphonse Marie Louis de Prat de Lamartine~ (1790-1869), poet, historian, and statesman.
[367] ~Louis Charles Alfred de Musset~ (1810-57), poet, play-writer, and novelist.
[368] FromThe Recluse, l. 754.
[369]Paradise Lost, XI, 553-54.
[370]The Tempest, IV, i, 156-58.
[371] ~criticism of life~. SeeThe Study of Poetry, Selections, Note 1, p. 57.[Transcriber's note: This is Footnote 66 in this e-text.]
[372]Discoursesof Epictetus, trans. Long, 1903, vol. I, book II, chap. XXIII, p. 248.
[373] ~Théophile Gautier~. A noted French poet, critic, and novelist, and a leader of the French Romantic Movement (1811-72).
[374]The Recluse, ll. 767-71.
[375]Æneid, VI, 662.
[376] ~Leslie Stephen~. English biographer and literary critic (1832-1904). He was the first editor of theDictionary of National Biography. Arnold quotes from the essay onWordsworth's EthicsinHours in a Library(1874-79), vol. III.
[377]Excursion, IV, 73-76.
[378]Ibid., II, 10-17.
[379]Intimations of Immortality from Recollections of Early Childhood.
[380]Excursion, IX, 293-302.
[381] See p. 232.[Transcriber's note: This approximates to the section following the text reference for Footnote 373 in this e-text.]
[382] ~the "not ourselves."~ Arnold quotes his own definition of God as "the enduring power, not ourselves, which makes for righteousness." SeeLiterature and Dogma, chap. I.
[383] The opening sentence of a famous criticism of theExcursionpublished in theEdinburgh Reviewfor November, 1814, no. 47. It was written by ~Francis Jeffrey, Lord Jeffrey~ (1773-1850), Scottish judge and literary critic, and first editor of theEdinburgh Review.
[384]Macbeth, III, ii.
[385]Paradise Lost, VII, 23-24.
[386]The Recluse, l. 831.
[387] From Burns'sA Bard's Epitaph.
[388] The correct title isThe Solitary Reaper.
[389] This selection is the first chapter ofCulture and Anarchy. It originally formed a part of the last lecture delivered by Arnold as Professor of Poetry at Oxford.Culture and Anarchywas first printed inThe Cornhill Magazine, July 1867,-August, 1868, vols. XVI-XVIII. It was published as a book in 1869.
[390] For ~Sainte-Beuve~, seeThe Study of Poetry, Selections, Note 2, p. 56.[Transcriber's note: This is Footnote 65 in this e-text.] The article referred to appeared in theQuarterly Reviewfor January, 1866, vol. CXIX, p. 80. It finds fault with Sainte-Beuve's lack of conclusiveness, and describes him as having "spent his life in fitting his mind to be an elaborate receptacle for well-arranged doubts." In this respect a comparison is made with Arnold's "graceful but perfectly unsatisfactory essays."
[391] From Montesquieu'sDiscours sur les motifs qui doivent nous encourager aux sciences, prononcé le 15 Novembre, 1725. Montesquieu'sOeuvres complètes, ed. Laboulaye, VII, 78.
[392] ~Thomas Wilson~ (1663-1755) was consecrated Bishop of Sodor and Man in 1698. His episcopate was marked by a number of reforms in the Isle of Man. The opening pages of Arnold'sPrefacetoCulture and Anarchyare devoted to an appreciation of Wilson. He says: "On a lower range than theImitation, and awakening in our nature chords less poetical and delicate, theMaximsof Bishop Wilson are, as a religious work, far more solid. To the most sincere ardor and unction, Bishop Wilson unites, in theseMaxims, that downright honesty and plain good sense which our English race has so powerfully applied to the divine impossibilities of religion; by which it has brought religion so much into practical life, and has done its allotted part in promoting upon earth the kingdom of God."
[393] ~will of God prevail~.Maxim450 reads: "A prudent Christian will resolve at all times to sacrifice his inclinations to reason, and his reason to the will and word of God."
[394] From Bishop Wilson'sSacra Privata, Noon Prayers,Works, ed. 1781, I, 199.
[395] ~John Bright~ (1811-89) was a leader with Cobden in the agitation for repeal of the Corn Laws and other measures of reform, and was one of England's greatest masters of oratory.
[396] ~Frederic Harrison~ (1831-), English jurist and historian, was president of the English Positivist Committee, 1880-1905. HisCreed of a Layman(1907) is a statement of his religious position.
[397] SeeThe Function of Criticism, Selections, Note 2, p. 37. [Transcriber's note: This is Footnote 38 in this e-text.]
[398] 1 Tim., IV, 8.
[399] The first of the "Rules of Health and Long Life" inPoor Richard's Almanacfor December, 1742. The quotation should read: "as the Constitution of thy Body allows of."
[400] Epictetus,Encheiridion, chap. XLI.
[401] ~Sweetness and Light~. The phrase is from Swift'sThe Battle of the Books, Works, ed. Scott, 1824, X, 240. In the apologue of the Spider and the Bee the superiority of the ancient over the modern writers is thus summarized: "Instead of dirt and poison we have rather chose to fill our hives with honey and wax, thus furnishing mankind with the two noblest of things, which are sweetness and light."
[402] ~Independents~. The name applied in England during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries to the denomination now known as Congregationalists.
[403] From Burke's Speech onConciliation with America, Works, ed. 1834, I, 187.
[404] 1 Pet., III, 8.
[405] ~Epsom~. A market town in Surrey, where are held the famous Derby races, founded in 1780.
[406] Sallust'sCatiline, chap. LII, § 22.
[407] The ~Daily Telegraph~ was begun in June, 1855, as a twopenny newspaper. It became the great organ of the middle classes and has been distinguished for its enterprise in many fields. Up to 1878 it was consistently Liberal in politics. It is a frequent object of Arnold's irony as the mouthpiece of English philistinism.
[408] ~Young Leo~ (or ~Leo Adolescens~) is Arnold's name for the typical writer of theDaily Telegraph(see above). He is a prominent character ofFriendship's Garland.
[409] ~Edmond Beales~ (1803-81), political agitator, was especially identified with the movement for manhood suffrage and the ballot, and was the leading spirit in two large popular demonstrations in London in 1866.
[410] ~Charles Bradlaugh~ (1833-91), freethought advocate and politician. His efforts were especially directed toward maintaining the freedom of the press in issuing criticisms on religious belief and sociological questions. In 1880 he became a Member of Parliament, and began a long and finally successful struggle for the right to take his seat in Parliament without the customary oath on the Bible.
[411] ~John Henry Newman~ (1801-90) was the leader of the Oxford Movement in the English Church. HisApologia pro Vita Sua(1864) was a defense of his religious life and an account of the causes which led him from Anglicanism to Romanism. For his hostility to Liberalism see theApologia, ed. 1907, pp. 34, 212, and 288.
[412]Æneid, I, 460.
[413] ~The Reform Bill of 1832~ abolished fifty-six "rotten" boroughs and made other changes in representation to Parliament, thus transferring a large share of political power from the landed aristocracy to the middle classes.
[414] ~Robert Lowe~ (1811-92), afterwards Viscount Sherbrooke, held offices in the Board of Education and Board of Trade. He was liberal, but opposed the Reform Bill of that party in 1866-67. His speeches on the subject were printed in 1867.