,,goethe',s ,,literary ,,essays ,,goethe ,,as ,a ,,critic 8,goethe1 the greatest of modern critics1 the greatest critic of all times40--,,sainte-,,beuve4 8,that great and supreme critic40--,,matthew ,,arnold4 8,goethe1 the most widely receptive of all critics40--,,james ,,russell ,,lowell4 8,goethe1 the master of all modern spirits40--,,taine4 8,the perusal of his ,works would show that ,criticism is also a science of which he is master2 that if ever a man had studied ,art in all its branches and bearings1 from its origin in the depths of the creative spirit to its minutest finish on the canvas of the painter1 on the lips of the poet1 or under the finger of the musician1 he was that man40--,,carlyle4 8,he is also a great critic2 yet he always said the best he could about an author4 ,good critics are rarer than good authors40--,,tennyson4 8,the view of ,hamlet scattered throughout the book ,wilhelm ,meister is not so much criticism as high poetry4 ,and what else except a poem can be born when a poet intuitively presents anew a work of poetry80--,,friedrich ,,schlegel4 8,i shall die ungoethed1 ,i doubt1 so far as ,poetry goes2 ,i always believe he was ,critic and ,philosopher40--,,edward ,,fitzgerald4 8,for the ,goethe of ,faust1 of the great lyrics1 and of some other things1 ,i have almost unlimited admiration2 but for the critical ,goethe ,i feel very much less40--,,george ,,saintsbury4 8,goethe is the supreme hero of intellectual humanity40--,,remy ,,de ,,gourmont4 8,goethe1 as usual1 must be pronounced to have the last word of reason and wisdom1 the word which comprehends most of the truth of the matter40--,,lord ,,morley4 ,,goethe',s ,,literary ,,essays ,a ,,selection ,,in ,,english ,,arranged ,,by ,j4 ,e4 ,,spingarn ,,with ,a ,,foreword ,,by ,,viscount ,,haldane ,illustration ,,new ,,york ,,harcourt1 ,,brace ,,and ,,company #aiba ,,copyright1 #aiba1 ,,by ,,harcourt1 ,,brace ,,and ,,company1 ,,inc4 ,,printed ,,in ,,the ,u4 ,s4 ,a4 ,,by ,,the ,,quinn ,,boden ,,company ,,rahway1 ,n4 ,j4 ,,foreword ,by ,,viscount ,,haldane ,of ,goethe ,sainte-,beuve held that he was the 8king of criticism40 ,sainte-,beuve was among the most competent of judges on such a point1 and ,matthew ,arnold has endorsed his conclusion4 ,the reason for it is not far to seek4 ,goethe's gifts as a critic fell within a large whole of knowledge which was his in a degree for which we must look back over two thousand years to ,aristotle if we wish to find a rival4 ,he wrote lyrics that are supreme in their kind4 ,his capacity for observation of nature was1 as ,helmholtz has pointed out1 of the first order4 ,although he hated philosophy1 he had1 none the less1 a fine instinct for great metaphysical conceptions4 ,spinoza and ,kant both made appeal to him1 and the appeal was responded to from the depths of his nature4 ,the world has seen no poem like ,faust1 with the exquisite perfection of the 8,dedication0 and the lyrical outbursts with which the first part is studded1 set in a structure which signifies a profound conception of life as a whole1 into which far-reaching reflection has entered4 ,the second part of the drama is as great in this latter regard as is the first part in its occasional exhibitions of the purest lyrical gift4 ,goethe's work was uneven1 as was his life4 ,that is what we must expect from the variety which both contained4 ,but through each a great purpose is obviously in process of continuous realization1 a purpose which never flags1 of presenting the world as a place where man may work out what is directed towards the highest and belongs to what is above ,time4 ,it is always the effort that counts1 and not any result outside1 conceived abstractly and apart from the effort4 ,the quality of the struggle 8to conquer life and freedom daily anew0 is what constitutes the victory4 ,we are apt to remain with ,goethe's poetry and to content ourselves with the enjoyment of its perfection4 ,but that is to miss half the lesson which this man1 one of the very greatest sons the earth ever bore1 has to teach us4 ,it is his outlook on life as a whole which we must master if we would learn for ourselves what freedom from what is narrow means with him4 ,and this outlook we find at least as much in his criticism as in his lyrics4 ,we have to turn to the ,autobiography1 to ,meister1 and to the ,prose ,sayings1 if we would find the other half4 ,beyond these books1 too1 there remains much else which it would occupy years for the student to discover for himself unaided4 ,that is why a book such as that to which these lines are written by way of preface may prove a source of help and inspiration to the general reader4 ,,contents ,i4 ,,the ,,theory ,,of ,,art ,,page ,on ,german ,architecture #c ,introduction to the ,propyla #ae ,upon the ,laocoon #bb ,the ,collector and his ,friends #cf ,on ,truth and ,probability in ,works of ,art #ea ,simple ,imitation of ,nature1 ,manner1 ,style #ei ,ancient and ,modern #fe ,notes on ,dilettantism #ga ,,ii4 ,,the ,,theory ,,of ,,literature ,the ,production of a ,national ,classic #hc ,goethe's ,theory of a ,world ,literature #hi ,on ,epic and ,dramatic ,poetry #ajj ,supplement to ,aristotle's ,poetics #ajd ,on the ,german ,theatre #aji ,ludwig ,tieck's ,dramaturgic ,fragments #abf ,on ,didactic ,poetry #acj ,superstition and ,poetry #acc ,the ,methods of ,french ,criticism #acd ,on ,criticism #adj ,,iii4 ,,on ,,shakespeare ,wilhelm ,meister's ,critique of ,hamlet #ade ,shakespeare ad ,infinitum #agd ,the ,first ,edition of ,hamlet #aij ,troilus and ,cressida #aie ,,iv4 ,,on ,,other ,,writers ,goethe as a ,young ,reviewer #aii ,byron's ,manfred #bjb ,byron's ,don ,juan #bje ,calderon's ,daughter of the ,air #bjh ,molire's ,misanthrope #bab ,old ,german ,folksongs #bac ,folksongs again ,commended #bbj ,laurence ,sterne #bbb ,the ,english ,reviewers #bbd ,german ,literature in ,goethe's ,youth #bbf ,v4 ,,extracts ,,from ,,the ,,conversations ,,with ,,eckermann ,the ,universality of ,poetry1 #bdi2 ,poetry and ,patriotism1 #bea2 ,poetry and ,history1 #bec2 ,originality1 #bee2 ,personality in ,art1 #beh2 ,subject-,matter of ,poetry1 #bei2 ,the ,influence of ,environment1 #bfa2 ,culture and ,morals1 #bfc2 ,classic and ,romantic1 #bfc2 ,taste1 #bfd2 ,style1 #bfe2 ,intellect and ,imagination1 #bff2 ,definition of ,poetry1 #bff2 ,definition of ,beauty1 #bff2 ,architecture and ,music1 #bfg2 ,primitive ,poetry1 #bfg2 ,weltliteratur1 #bfg2 ,french ,critics1 #bfh2 ,the ,construction of a ,good ,play1 #bfh2 ,dramatic ,unities #bgj2 ,the ,theatre1 #bga2 ,acting1 #bga2 ,dramatic ,situations1 #bgb2 ,management of the ,theatre1 #bgb2 ,menander1 #bgc2 ,calderon1 #bgc2 ,molire1 #bgc2 ,shakespeare1 #bge2 ,a4 ,w4 ,schlegel's ,lectures on ,dramatic ,art and ,literature1 #bgf2 ,the ,french ,romanticists1 #bgg2 ,victor ,hugo1 #bgi2 ,the 8,idea0 of ,tasso and ,faust1 #bhj2 ,schiller1 #bhb2 ,edinburgh ,review1 #bhc2 ,byron1 #bhc2 ,scott1 #bhf4 ,,appendix ,i4 ,on the ,selection and ,translation of the ,essays in this ,volume #bia ,,ii4 ,on the ,chronology of ,goethe's ,critical ,studies #bie ,,index #cja ,,the ,,theory ,,of ,,art ,,on ,,german ,,architecture 7#aggc7 ,,von ,,deutscher ,,baukunst ,d4 ,m4 ,,ervini ,a ,,steinbach ,as ,i wandered about at your grave1 noble ,erwin1#a in order to pour out my veneration for you at the sacred spot itself1 ,i looked for the stone which bore this inscription3 8,anno ,domini #acah1 ,,xvi4 ,kal4 ,febr4 obiit ,magister ,ervinus1 ,gubernator ,fabricae ,ecclesiae ,argentinensis20 and when ,i could not find it and none of your countrymen could point it out to me1 ,i became sad of soul1 and my heart1 younger1 warmer1 more tender and better than it is now1 vowed a memorial to you1 of marble or sandstone1 as might be in my power1 when ,i came into the peaceful enjoyment of my fortune4 ,but what need have you for a memorial6 ,you have built the most splendid memorial for yourself2 and although the ants who crawl around there do not trouble themselves about your name1 yet you have a destiny like that of the builder who heaped up mountains into the clouds4 ,to few has it been granted to create such mighty ideas in their minds1 complete1 gigantic1 and consistently beautiful down to the last detail1 like trees of ,god2 to fewer was it given to find a thousand willing hands to work1 to excavate the rocky foundation1 to conjure up towering structures upon it1 and then when dying to say to their sons1--,i remain with you in the works of my genius2 carry on to its completion in the clouds what ,i have begun4 ,what need have you for memorials6 and from me6 ,when the rabble utters sacred names1 it is either superstition or blasphemy4 ,those of feeble spirit and taste will always have their head turned before your mighty work1 and genuine souls will come to know you without a guide4 ,therefore1 honored man1 before ,i venture again my patched-up bark upon the ocean1 destined as it is more likely to death than to fame and fortune1 see1 here in this grove where bloom the names of my loves1 ,i cut yours on a beech-tree which lifts its slender trunk high in the air like your own tower1 and ,i hang on it too this handkerchief filled with gifts1 not unlike that sheet which was let down from the clouds to the holy apostle1 full of clean and unclean beasts2 for this is full of flowers and buds and leaves1 and some dried grass and moss and fungi1 which on my walk through these uninteresting regions ,i coldly gathered as a pastime for my botanical collection1--,i dedicate them to death in your honor4 99 99 99 99 99 ,what a trivial style1 says the ,italian1 and passes by4 ,childishness1 lisps the ,frenchman1 and snaps his finger against his snuff-box la ,grecque4 ,what have you done that you dare to despise8 ,but you1 ,o ,italian1 you have let the genius of the ancients1 arising from its grave1 fetter and bind your own4 ,you crept to beg for artistic knowledge from the splendid relics of the olden time1 you patched together palaces from these sacred ruins1 and consider yourself the guardian of the secrets of art1 because you can give account of the measurements by inch and line of enormous buildings4 ,had you felt more than you measured1 had the spirit of the gigantic structures at which you gazed come to you1 you would not have imitated merely because they did it thus and it is beautiful4 ,but you would have created your own designs1 and there would have flowed out of them living beauty to instruct you4 ,thus upon your shortcomings you have plastered a whitewashing1 a mere appearance of truth and beauty4 ,the splendid effect of pillars struck you1 you wished to use them in your building and have great rows of columns too2 so you encircled ,st4 ,peter's with marble passageways1 which lead nowhere in particular1 so that mother ,nature1 who despises and hates the inappropriate and the unnecessary1 drove your rabble to prostitute that splendor for public 8cloaca10 with the result that you turn away your eyes and hold your nose before the wonder of the world4 ,everything goes the same way3 the whim of the artist serves the caprice of the rich man2 the writer of travels stands agape1 and our beaux esprits1 called philosophers1 wrest out of formless myths facts and principles of art to be applied to the present day2 and their evil genius murders sincere men at the threshold of these mysteries4 ,more harmful to the genius than examples are rules4 ,before his time individual men may have worked up individual parts and aspects4 ,he is the first from whose mind come the parts grown together into one ever-living whole4 ,but a school or a rule fetters all the power of his insight and his activity4 ,what is it to us1 you modern ,french philosophical critic1 that the first inventor1 responding to necessity1 stuck four trunks in the ground1 bound on them four poles and covered it all with branches and moss8 ,to determine from this what is appropriate for our present needs is like demanding that your new ,babylon be ruled by the old despotic patriarchal father-right4 ,and in addition it is not true that this house of yours is the most primitive form in the world4 ,that with two poles in front crossed at the end1 two in back and one lying straight between them for a ridge-pole is1 as we can notice every day in the huts in the fields and vineyards1 a far more primitive invention1 from which you could hardly abstract a principle for your pig-pen4 ,thus none of your conclusions are able to rise into the region of truth1 but all hang in the lower atmosphere of your system4 ,you wish to teach us what we ought to use1 since what we do use1 according to your principles cannot be justified4 ,the column is very dear to you1 and in another clime you would be prophet4 ,you say3 ,the column is the first essential ingredient of a building1 and the most beautiful4 ,what noble elegance of form1 what pure grandeur1 when they are placed in a row6 ,only guard against using them inappropriately2 it is their nature to be free and detached4 ,alas for the unfortunates who try to join the slender shape of them to heavy walls6 ,yet it seems to me1 dear abb1 that the frequent repetition of this impropriety of building columns into walls1 so that the moderns have even stuffed the inter-columnia of ancient temples with masonry1 might have aroused in your mind some reflections4 ,if your ears were not deaf to the truth1 these stones would have preached a sermon to you4 ,columns are in no way an ingredient in our dwellings2 they contradict rather the style of all our buildings4 ,our houses have not their origin in four columns placed in four corners4 ,they are built out of four walls on four sides1 which take the place of columns1 indeed exclude all columns1 and where these are used to patch up1 they are an encumbrance and a superfluity4 ,this is true of our palaces and churches1 with the exception of a few cases1 which ,i do not need to mention4 ,thus your buildings exhibit mere surface1 which1 the broader it is extended1--the higher it is raised to the sky1--the more unendurable must become the monotony which oppresses the soul4 ,but ,genius came to our aid1 and said to ,erwin von ,steinbach3 ,diversify the huge wall1 which you are to raise heavenward1 so that it may soar like a lofty1 far-spreading tree of ,god1 which with a thousand branches1 millions of twigs1 and leaves like the sand of the sea1 proclaims everywhere the glory of ,god1 its ,master4 99 99 99 99 99 ,when ,i went for the first time to the ,minster1 my head was full of the common cant of 8good taste40 ,from hearsay1 ,i was an admirer of the harmony of mass1 the purity of form1 and was a sworn enemy to the confused arbitrariness of ,gothic adornment4 ,under the term1 8,gothic10 like the article in a dictionary1 ,i piled all the misconceptions which had ever come into my head1 of the indefinite1 the unregulated1 the unnatural1 the patched-up1 the strung-together1 the superfluous1 in art4 ,no wiser than a people which calls the whole foreign world1 8barbarous10 everything was ,gothic to me that did not fit into my system1 from the turned wooden dolls and pictures of gay colors1 with which the bourgeois nobility decorate their houses1 to the dignified relics of the older ,german architecture1 my opinion of which1 because of some bizarre scrollwork1 had been that of everybody1--8,quite buried in ornamentation602 consequently ,i had an aversion to seeing it1 such as ,i would have before a malformed bristling monster4 ,with what unexpected emotions did the sight surprise me when ,i actually saw it6 ,an impression of grandeur and unity filled my soul1 which1 because it consisted of a thousand harmonizing details1 ,i could taste and enjoy1 but by no means understand and explain4 ,they say it is thus with the rapture of heaven4 ,how often ,i returned to enjoy this heavenly-earthly rapture1 to embrace the stupendous genius of our older brothers in their works4 ,how often ,i returned to view from every side1 at every distance1 in every light of the day1 its dignity and splendor4 ,hard it is for the mind of man when his brother's work is so elevated that he can only bow down and pray4 ,how often has the evening twilight refreshed with its friendly calm my eyes wearied by too much gazing2 it made countless details melt together into a complete whole and mass1 and now1 simple and grand1 it stood before my eyes1 and1 full of rapture1 my power unfolded itself both to enjoy and to understand it at once4 ,there was revealed to me in soft intimations the genius of the great builder4 8,why are you astonished80 ,he whispered to me4 8,all these masses were necessary1 and do you not see them in all the older churches of my city8 ,only ,i have given harmonious proportion to their arbitrary vastnesses4 ,see how1 over the principal entrance which commands two smaller ones on either side1 the wide circle of the window opens which corresponds to the nave of the church and was formerly merely a hole to let the light in2 see how the bell-tower demands the smaller windows6 ,all this was necessary1 and ,i designed it with beauty4 ,but what of these dark and lofty apertures here at the side which seem to stand so empty and meaningless8 ,in their bold slender forms ,i have hidden the mysterious strength which was to raise both of those towers high in the air1 of which alas only one stands there sadly1 without the crown of five towers which ,i had planned for it1 so that to it and its royal brother the country about would do homage40 ,and so he parted from me1 and ,i fell into a sympathetic mood of melancholy1 until the birds of morning1 which dwelt in its thousand orifices1 greeted the sun joyously and waked me out of my slumber4 ,how freshly it shone in the morning rays1 how joyfully ,i stretched my arms towards it1 surveying its vast harmonious masses1 animated by countless delicate details of structure6 as in the works of eternal ,nature1 every form1 down to the smallest fibril1 alive1 and everything contributing to the purpose of the whole6 ,how lightly the monstrous1 solidly grounded building soared into the air6 how free and delicate everything about it1 and yet solid for eternity6 ,to your teaching1 noble genius1 ,i owe thanks that ,i did not faint and sink before your heights and depths1 but that into my soul flowed a drop of that calm rapture of the mighty soul which could look on this creation1 and like ,god say1--8,it is good60 99 99 99 99 99 ,and now ,i ought not to be angry1 revered ,erwin1 when the ,german critic and scholar1 taking the cue from envious neighbors1 and misjudging the superiority of your work1 belittles it by the little understood term1 8,gothic02 since he ought rather to give thanks that he can proclaim loudly that this is ,german architecture1--our architecture1--whereas the ,italians cannot boast of any distinctively native style1 much less the ,french4 ,and if you are not willing to admit to yourself this superiority1 at least show us then that the ,goths have already built in this style1--in which effort you may encounter some difficulties4 ,and finally1 if you cannot demonstrate that there was a ,homer already before ,homer1 then we will gladly allow the story of small attempts1 successful and unsuccessful1 and come reverently back to the work of the master who first drew the scattered elements together into one living whole4 ,and you1 my dear brother in the spirit1 in your search for truth and beauty1 close your ears to the loud talk about the plastic arts1--come1 enjoy1 survey4 ,beware of desecrating the name of your noblest artist1 and hasten here that you may enjoy and see his glorious work4 ,if it makes an unfavorable impression or none1 then farewell1 hitch up1 and take the road straight for ,paris4 ,but you ,i would accompany1 dear youth1 who stand there1 your soul moved1 and yet unable to harmonize the contradictions which conflict in your mind1 now feeling the irresistible power of the great whole1 now calling me a dreamer for seeing beauty where you see only violence and roughness4 ,do not let a misunderstanding part us1 do not let the feeble teaching of the modern standards of beauty spoil you for vigorous though rough strength1 so that finally your sickly sensibility is able to endure only meaningless insipidities4 ,they would have you believe that the fine arts originated in the tendency which they impute to us to beautify the things about us4 ,that is not true6 ,for in the sense in which it could be true1 it is the bourgeois and the artisans who use the words and not the philosopher4 ,art has a long period of growth before it is beautiful1 certainly sincere and great art has1 and it is often sincerer and greater then than when it becomes beautiful4 ,for in man there is a creative disposition1 which comes into activity as soon as his existence is assured4 ,as soon as he has nothing to worry about or to fear1 this semi-divinity in him1 working effectively in his spiritual peace and assurance1 grasps materials into which to breathe its own spirit4 ,thus the savage depicts1 with strange lines and forms1 ghastly figures1 lurid colors1 his weapons and his body4 ,and even if these pictures consist of the most arbitrary and incongruous forms and lines1 they will1 without any intended proportion or balance1 yet have a sort of harmony2 for a unity of feeling created out of them a characteristic whole4 ,now this characteristic art is the only genuine art4 ,if only it comes fresh from the inner soul1 expressing the original1 unique sensibilities1 untroubled1 indeed unconscious of any external element1 it may spring from rough savagery or from cultivated sensitiveness1 yet it will always be complete and alive4 ,this you can see among nations and individual men in countless degrees4 ,the more the soul rises to the feeling for relations1 which alone are beautiful and from eternity1 whose master-chords one can demonstrate1 whose mysteries one can only feel1 in which alone the life of the divine genius seeks expression in enraptured melodies2 the more this beauty pervades the soul of a genius so that it seems to have originated with him1 so that nothing else satisfies him1 so that he can bring nothing else out of himself1 the more fortunate is the artist1 the more splendid is he1 and the more reverently do we stand there and worship ,god's anointed4 ,from the level to which ,erwin has mounted no one will drag him down4 ,here stands his work2 gaze at it and appreciate the deepest feelings for truth and beauty and proportion1 working out of a strong1 sturdy1 rough ,german soul1 out of the narrow1 somber1 priest-haunted 8medium aevum40 ,and our own 8aevum08 ,it has neglected its genius1 driven forth its sons to collect strange excrescences for their corruption4 ,the agile ,frenchman1 who in unscrupulous fashion collects where he will1 has at least an ingenuity in working together his booty into a sort of unity2 he builds his wonderful church of the ,magdalene out of ,greek columns and ,german arches and vaults4 ,from one of our architects1 who was requested to design a portal for an old ,german church1 ,i have seen a model of perfect1 stately antique column-work4 ,how hateful our varnished doll-painters are to me ,i cannot express4 ,by their theatrical positions1 their false tints1 and gaily-colored costumes1 they have captured the eyes of women4 ,but1 manly ,albrecht ,drer1 whom these novices laugh at1 your woodcut figures are more welcome to me4 ,and you yourselves1 excellent men1 to whom it was given to enjoy the highest beauty1 and now come down to announce your bliss1 you do prejudice to genius4 ,it will soar and progress on no alien wings1 even though they were the wings of the morning4 ,its own original powers are those which unfold in the dreams of childhood1 which grow during the life of youth1 until strong and supple like the mountain-lion he starts out after his prey4 ,nature does most in training these powers1 for you pedagogues can never counterfeit the multifarious scene which she provides for a youth to draw from and enjoy in the measure of his present strength4 ,welcome1 to you1 young man1 who have been born with a keen eye for form and proportion1 with the facility to practise in all forms4 ,if then there awakes gradually in you the joy of life1 and you come to feel the rapture which men know after work1 fear and hope1--the spirited cries of the laborer in the vineyard when the bounty of the harvest swells his vats1 the lively dance of the reaper when he has hung his idle sickle high on the beam1--when all the powerful nerves of desire and suffering live again more manfully in your brush1 and you have striven and suffered enough and have enjoyed enough1 and are filled with earthly beauty1 and worthy to rest in the arms of the goddess1 worthy to feel on her bosom what gave new birth to the deified ,hercules--then receive him1 heavenly beauty1 thou mediator between gods and men1 and let him1 more than ,prometheus1 carry down the rapture of the gods to the earth4#b ,,footnotes3 #a ,erwin von ,steinbach1 one of the architects of the ,strassburg ,cathedral4 #b 8,what ,i had thought and imagined with respect to that style of architecture1 ,i wrote in a connected form4 ,the first point on which ,i insisted was that it should be called ,german1 and not ,gothic2 that it should be considered not foreign1 but native4 ,the second point was that it could not be compared with the architecture of the ,greeks and ,romans1 because it sprang from quite another principle4 ,if these1 living under a more favorable sky1 allowed their roof to rest upon columns1 a wall1 broken through1 arose of its own accord4 ,we1 however1 who must always protect ourselves against the weather1 and everywhere surround ourselves with walls1 have to revere the genius who discovered the means of endowing massive walls with variety1 of apparently breaking them through1 and of thus occupying the eye in a worthy and pleasing manner on a broad surface4444 ,if ,i had been pleased to write down these views 7the value of which ,i will not deny7 clearly and distinctly1 in an intelligible style1 the paper ,on ,german ,architecture would then1 when ,i published it1 have produced more effect1 and would sooner have drawn the attention of the native friends of art4 ,but1 misled by the example of ,herder and ,hamann1 ,i obscured these very simple thoughts and observations by a dusty cloud of words and phrases1 and1 both for myself and others1 darkened the light which had arisen within me4 ,however1 the paper was well received1 and reprinted in ,herder's work on ,german ,manner and ,art40--,goethe1 ,autobiography 7#ahab74 ,the 8dear abb0 to whom ,goethe is replying in this essay is the ,abb ,laugier1 author of the ,essai sur l',architecture 7#agec74 ,,introduction ,,to ,,the ,,propyl,a 7#agih7 ,there is no more striking sign of the decay of art than when we find its separate provinces mixed up together4 ,the arts themselves1 as well as their subordinate forms1 are closely related to each other1 and have a certain tendency to unite1 and even lose themselves in each other2 but herein lies the duty1 the merit1 the dignity of the true artist1 that he knows how to separate that department in which he labors from the others1 and1 so far as may be1 isolates it4 ,it has been noticed that all plastic art tends towards painting1 all poetry to the drama2 and this may furnish the text for some important observations hereafter4 ,the genuine1 law-giving artist strives after artistic truth2 the lawless1 following a blind instinct1 after an appearance of naturalness4 ,the former leads to the highest pinnacle of art1 the latter to its lowest step4 ,this is no less true of the separate arts than of art in general4 ,the sculptor must think and feel differently from the painter1 and must go to work differently to execute a work in relief from what he would do with a round and complete piece of statuary4 ,when the work in low relief came to be brought out more and more1 and by degrees parts and figures were brought out from the ground1 at last buildings and landscapes admitted1 and thus a work produced1 half picture half puppet-show1 true art was on the decline2 and it is to be deplored that excellent artists have in more recent times taken this direction4 ,whenever we enunciate hereafter such maxims as we esteem true1 we shall feel a real desire1 since these maxims are drawn from works of art1 to have them practically tested by artists4 ,how seldom does one man agree with another concerning a theoretic principle2 the practical and immediately useful is far more quickly adopted4 ,how often do we see artists at a loss in the choice of a subject1 in the general composition1 according to their rules of art1 in the arrangement of details2 the painter doubtful about the choice of his colors6 ,then is the time to make trial of a principle2 then will it be easier to decide the question1--,do we by its aid come nearer to the great models1 and all that we love and prize1 or does it forsake us in the empirical confusion of an experiment not thoroughly thought out8 ,if such maxims should prove useful in forwarding the culture of artists1 in guiding them among difficulties1 they will also aid the understanding1 true estimation1 and criticism of ancient and modern works1 and1 vice versa1 will again be discovered in the examination of these works4 ,this is all the more necessary1 since1 in spite of the universally acknowledged excellence of the antique1 individuals as well as whole nations have in modern times often misconceived those very things wherein the highest excellence of those works lies4 ,an exact scrutiny of these will be the best means of securing us against this evil4 ,let us now take1 as an example1 the usual course of proceeding of the amateur in plastic art1 in order to make it evident how necessary a thorough criticism of ancient as well as modern works is1 if we would profit by it4 ,no person of a fine natural perception1 however uncultivated1 can see even an imperfect1 incorrect cast of a fine ancient work without being greatly impressed by it2 for such a representation still gives the idea1 the simplicity and greatness of the form1 in a word1 the general notion at least1 such as a man of imperfect sight would see at a distance4 ,we may often observe how a strong inclination towards art is awakened through such an imperfect reproduction4 ,but the effect is analogous to the object that caused it1 and such beginners in art are rather impressed with a blind and indefinite feeling than with the true worth and significance of the object itself4 ,it is such as these who are the authors of the theory that a too curious critical examination destroys our pleasure1 and who decry and resist the investigation of details4 ,but when by degrees their experience and knowledge become wider1 and a sharper cast in place of the imperfect one1 or an original instead of a cast comes under their observation1 their satisfaction increases with their insight1 and continually advances when at last the originals themselves1 the perfect originals1 become known to them4 ,we are not deterred by the labyrinth of thorough examination1 when the details are of equal perfection with the whole work4 ,nay1 we learn that we are able to appreciate the perfect1 just so far as we are in a condition to discern the defective3 to distinguish the restored from the original parts1 the copy from the model1 to contemplate in the smallest fragments the scattered excellence of the whole1 is a satisfaction that belongs only to the perfect connoisseur2 and there is a wide difference between the contemplation of an imperfect whole with groping sense1 and the seeing and seizing1 with clear eye1 of a perfect one4 ,he who devotes himself to any department of knowledge should aim at the highest4 ,insight and ,practice follow widely different paths1 for in the practical each one soon becomes aware that only a certain measure of power is meted to him4 ,but a far greater number of men are capable of knowledge1 of insight2 we may even say that every man is so who can deny himself1 subordinate himself to objects1 and does not strive with a rigid and narrow individuality to bring in himself and his poor one-sidedness amid the highest works of nature and art4 ,to speak suitably1 and with real advantage to one's self and others1 of works of art1 can properly be done only in their presence4 ,all depends on the sight of the object4 ,on this it depends whether the word by which we hope to elucidate the work has produced the clearest impression or none at all4 ,hence it so often happens that the author who writes concerning works of art deals only in generalities1 whereby indeed the mind and imagination are awakened2 but of all his readers1 he only will derive satisfaction who1 book in hand1 examines the work itself4 ,on this account1 therefore1 we may in our essays often excite rather than gratify the desire of our readers2 for there is nothing more natural than that they should wish to have before their eyes any excellent work of which they read a minute criticism1 to enjoy that whole which is in question1 and to subject to their own judgments the opinions they hear concerning the parts4 ,but whilst it is the expectation of the authors to labor in behalf of those who are already acquainted with some works and will see others hereafter1 we shall try to do what is possible for those who have neither the prospect nor the retrospect4 ,we shall make mention of copies1 point out where casts from the antique or ancient works themselves1 especially when these are within easy reach1 may be found1 and thus forward1 as far as in us lies1 a true love and knowledge of art4 ,the history of art can be based only on the highest and most complete conception of art2 only through an acquaintance with the most perfect that man has ever been enabled to produce can the chronological and psychological progress of mankind in art1 as in other departments1 be displayed4 ,at first a limited activity occupied itself in a dry and dismal imitation of the insignificant as well as the significant1 then a more delicate and agreeable feeling of ,nature was developed4 ,afterwards1 accompanied by knowledge1 regularity1 strength and earnestness1 aided by favorable circumstances1 art rose to the highest point1 until at last it became possible for the fortunate genius who found himself surrounded by all these auxiliaries to produce the enchanting1 the perfect4 ,unfortunately1 works of art1 which give themselves forth with such facility1 which make men feel themselves so agreeably1 which inspire man with clearness and freedom1 suggest to the artist who would emulate them the notion of facility in their production4 ,the last achievement of ,art and ,genius being an appearance of ease and lightness1 the imitator is tempted to make it easy for himself1 and to labor at this appearance4 ,thus1 by degrees1 art declines from its high estate1 in the whole as well as in details4 ,but if we would form to ourselves a true conception of art1 we must descend to details of details1 an occupation by no means always agreeable and alluring1 but for which gradually our eye's ready mastery of the whole will richly indemnify us4 ,if we work out certain general principles through the examination of ancient and medival works of art1 we shall find them particularly needful in our judgment of contemporary productions2 for in forming an estimate of living or lately deceased artists1 personal considerations1 regard or dislike for individuals1 popular attraction or repulsion1 are so easily mixed up1 that we are still more in need of principles in order to express a judgment of our contemporaries4 ,the examination can be undertaken in two ways4 ,arbitrary influence is diminished1 and the case is brought into a higher court4 ,an opportunity is afforded for proving the principles themselves as well as their application2 and even where we cannot agree1 the point in dispute is clearly and certainly ascertained4 ,we especially desire that living artists1 about whose works we may perhaps have something to say1 should make trial of our judgments in this way4 ,for every one who deserves this name is in our time called upon to form1 out of his own experience and reflection1 if not a theory1 at least a certain set of receipts1 by the use of which he finds himself aided in various cases4 ,but it must have been frequently remarked how apt a man is1 by proceeding in this way1 to advance as principles certain maxims which are commensurate with his talents1 his inclinations1 his convenience4 ,he is subject to the common lot of mankind4 ,how many in other departments follow the same course4 ,but we do not add to our culture when we simply set in motion without trouble or difficulty what already existed in us4 ,every artist1 like every man1 is only an individual being1 and will always abide by one side2 and therefore a man should take in to himself as far as possible that which is theoretically and practically opposed to him4 ,the lively should look about for strength and earnestness1 the severe should keep in view the light and agreeable1 the strong should look for loveliness1 the delicate for strength1 and each will thus best cultivate his peculiar nature1 while he seems to be going most out of himself4 ,each art demands the whole man1 the highest step of art all humanity4 ,the practice of the imitative arts is mechanical1 and the cultivation of the artist begins naturally in his earliest years with the mechanical4 ,the rest of his education is often slighted1 whereas it should be far more carefully attended to than that of others who have the opportunity of learning from life itself4 ,society soon civilizes the unpolished2 a life of business makes the most open circumspect4 ,literary labors1 which by means of the press come before the great public1 find resistance and correction on all sides4 ,but the artist is for the most part confined to a narrow studio1 and has few dealings save with those who pay for his works1 with a public that is often guided only by a certain sickly feeling1 with connoisseurs who worry him1 with auctioneers who receive anything new with formulas of praise and estimation that would not be too high for the most perfect4 ,,upon ,,the ,,laocoon 7#agih7 ,a true work of art1 like a true work of nature1 never ceases to open boundlessly before the mind4 ,we examine1--we are impressed with it1--it produces its effect2 but it can never be all comprehended1 still less can its essence1 its value1 be expressed in words4 ,in the present remarks concerning the ,laocoon1 our object is by no means to say all that can be said on the subject2 we shall make this admirable work rather the occasion than the subject of what we have to say4 ,may it soon be placed once more in a situation where all lovers of art may be able to enjoy and speak of it1 each in his own way4 ,we can hardly speak adequately of a high work of art without also speaking of art in general2 since all art is comprehended in it1 and each one is able1 according to his powers1 to develop the universal out of such a special case4 ,we shall therefore begin with some remarks of a general nature4 ,all high works of art are expressions of humanity4 ,plastic art relates particularly to the human form2 it is of this we are now speaking4 ,art has many steps1 in all of which there have been admirable artists2 but a perfect work of art embraces all the qualities that are elsewhere encountered only separately4 ,the highest works of art that we know exhibit to us-- ,living1 highly organized natures4 ,we look1 in the first place1 for a knowledge of the human body1 in its parts and proportions1 inward and outward adaptation1 its forms and motions generally4 ,character4 ,knowledge of the varieties in form and action of their parts2 peculiarities are discriminated1 and separately set forth4 ,out of this results character1 through which an important relation may be established among separate works2 and1 in like manner1 when a work is put together1 its parts may hold an analogous relation to each other4 ,the subject may be-- ,at rest1 or in motion4 ,a work1 or its parts1 may either be self-centred1 simply showing its character in a state of rest1 or it may be exhibited in movement1 activity1 or fullness of passionate expression4 ,ideal4 ,to the attainment of this1 the artist needs a deep1 well-grounded1 steadfast mind1 which must be accompanied by a higher sense1in order to comprehend the subject in all its bearings1 to find the moment of expression1 to withdraw this from the narrowness of fact1 and give to it1 in an ideal world1 proportion1 limit1 reality and dignity4 ,agreeableness4 ,the subject and its mode of exhibition are moreover connected with the sensible laws of art2 viz41 harmony1 comprehensibility1 symmetry1 contrast1 etc42 whereby it becomes visibly beautiful1 or agreeable1 as it is called4 ,beauty4 ,farther1 we find that it obeys the laws of spiritual beauty1 which arises from just proportion1 and to which he who is complete in the creation or production of the beautiful knows how to subject even the extremes4 ,now that ,i have defined the conditions which we demand of a high work of art1 much will be comprised in a few words when ,i say that the ,laocoon group fulfils them all1 nay1 that out of it alone all of them could be developed4 ,it will be conceded by all that it exhibits acquaintance with the human form1 and with what is characteristic in it1 and at the same time expression and passion4 ,in how high and ideal a way the subject is treated will presently be shown2 and no one who recognizes the harmony with which the extremes of bodily and mental suffering are set forth can hesitate in calling the work beautiful4 ,on the other hand1 many will think ,i am uttering a paradox when ,i maintain that the work is also agreeable4 ,a word upon this point4 ,every work of art must show on the face of it that it is such2 and this can be done only through what we call sensuous beauty1 or agreeableness4 ,the ancients1 far from entertaining the modern notion that a work of art must have the appearance of a work of nature1 designated their works of art as such through an intentional arrangement of parts2 by means of symmetry they rendered easy for the eye an insight into relations1 and thus a complicated work was made comprehensible4 ,through symmetry and opposition slight deviations were made productive of the sharpest contrasts4 ,the pains of the artist were most happily bestowed to place the masses in opposition to each other1 and particularly in groups1 to bring the extremities of the bodies against each other in a harmonious position2 so that every work1 when we disregard its import1 and look only at its general outline from a distance1 strikes the eye by its ornamental air4 ,the antique vases furnish a hundred instances of this sort of agreeable composition1 and perhaps it would be possible to exhibit a series of examples of symmetrically artistic and charming groupings1 from the most quiet vase-sculptures up to the ,laocoon4 ,i shall therefore venture to repeat the assertion that the group of ,laocoon1 in addition to its other acknowledged merits1 is at once a model of symmetry and variety1 of repose and action1 of contrast and gradation1 which produce an impression partly sensible1 partly spiritual1 agreeably stimulate the imagination by the high pathos of the representation1 and by their grace and beauty temper the storm of passion and suffering4 ,it is a great advantage for a work of art to be self-included and complete4 ,an object at rest1 exhibiting simple being1 is thus complete by and in itself4 ,a ,jupiter1 the thunderbolt resting in his lap2 a ,juno1 reposing in her majesty and feminine dignity2 a ,minerva1 inwardly intent--are all subjects that have no impulse outwards1 that rest upon and in themselves2 the first1 the most lovely subjects of sculpture4 ,but within the noble round of the mythic circle of art1 where these separate self-existent natures stand and rest1 there are smaller circles1 within which the figures are conceived and wrought out with reference to other figures2 for example1 the nine ,muses1 with their leader1 ,apollo1 are each conceived and executed separately1 but they become far more interesting in their complete and diversified choir4 ,when art attempts scenes of exalted passion1 it can treat them also in the same manner2 it may either present to us a circle of figures holding a passionate relation to each other1 like the ,niobe and her children1 pursued by ,apollo and ,diana1 or exhibit in the same piece the action and the motive2 we have in mind such groups as the graceful boy extracting the thorn from his foot1 the wrestler1 two groups of fawns and nymphs in ,dresden1 and the noble and animated group of ,laocoon4 ,sculpture is justly entitled to the high rank it holds1 because it can and must carry expression to its highest point of perfection1 from the fact that it leaves man only the absolutely essential4 ,thus1 in the present group1 ,laocoon is a bare name2 the artists have stripped him of his priesthood1 his ,trojan nationality1 of every poetical or mythological attribute2 there remains nothing of all that fable had clothed him with2 he is a father with his two sons1 in danger of destruction from two fierce animals4 ,in like manner1 we see no messenger of the gods1 but two plain1 natural serpents1 powerful enough to overcome three men1 but1 by no means1 either in form or action1 supernatural and avenging ministers of wrath4 ,they glide in1 as it is their nature to do1 twine around1 knot together1 and one1 being irritated1 bites4 ,if ,i had to describe this work without knowing the farther intent of it1 ,i should say it were a ,tragic ,idyl4 ,a father was sleeping1 with his two sons beside him2 two serpents twined about them1 and now waking1 they struggled to free themselves from the living net4 ,the expression of the moment is1 in this work1 of the highest importance4 ,when it is intended that a work of art shall move before the eye1 a passing moment must1 of course1 be chosen2 but a moment ago not a single part of the whole was to be found in the position it now holds1 and in another instant all will be changed again2 so that it presents a fresh1 living image to a million beholders4 ,in order to conceive rightly the intention of the ,laocoon1 let a man place himself before it at a proper distance1 with his eyes shut2 then let him open his eyes1 and shut them again instantly4 ,by this means he will see the whole marble in motion2 he will fear lest he finds the whole group changed when he opens his eyes again4 ,it might be said that1 as it stands1 it is a flash of lightning fixed1 a wave petrified in the moment it rushes towards the shore4 ,the same effect is produced by the contemplation of the group by torchlight4 ,the situation of the three figures is represented with a wise gradation4 ,in the oldest son only the extremities are entangled2 the second is encumbered with more folds1 and especially by the knot around his breast2 he endeavors to get breath by the motion of his right arm2 with the left he gently holds back the serpent's head1 to prevent him from taking another turn round his breast4 ,the serpent is in the act of slipping under the hand1 but does not bite4 ,the father1 on the other hand1 tries to set himself and the children free by force2 he grasps the other serpent1 which1 exasperated1 bites him on the hip4 ,the best way to understand the position of the father1 both in the whole and in detail1 seems to be to take the sudden anguish of the wound as the moving cause of the whole action4 ,the serpent has not bitten1 but is just now biting1 and in a sensitive part1 above and just behind the hip4 ,the position of the restored head of the serpent does not represent the bite correctly2 fortunately1 the remains of the two jaws may yet be seen on the hinder part of the statue1 if only these important vestiges are not destroyed in the course of the present paltry alterations4 ,the serpent inflicts a wound upon the unhappy man1 in a part where we are excessively sensible to any irritation1 where even a little tickling is able to produce the action which in this case is caused by the wound4 ,the figure starts away towards the opposite side1 the abdomen is drawn in1 the shoulder forced down1 the breast thrust out1 the head sinks towards the wounded side2 the secondary portion of the situation or treatment appears in the imprisoned feet and the struggling arms2 and thus from the contrast of struggle and flight1 of action and suffering1 of energy and failing strength1 results an harmonious action that would perhaps be impossible under other conditions4 ,we are lost in astonishment at the sagacity of the artist2 if we try to place the bite in some different position the whole action is changed1 and we find it impossible to conceive one more fitting4 ,this1 therefore1 is an important maxim3 the artist has represented a sensuous effort1 he shows us also its sensuous cause4 ,i repeat1 the situation of the bite renders necessary the present action of the limbs4 ,the movement of the lower part of the figure1 as if to fly1 the drawing in of the abdomen1 the downward action of the shoulders and the head1 the breast forced out1 nay1 the expression of each feature of the face1 all are determined by this instant1 sharp1 unlooked-for irritation4 ,far be it from me to destroy the unity of human nature1 to deny the sympathetic action of the spiritual powers of this nobly complete man1 to misconceive the action and suffering of a great nature4 ,i see also anguish1 fear1 horror1 a father's anxiety pervading these veins1 swelling this breast1 furrowing this brow4 ,i freely admit that the highest state of mental as well as bodily anguish is here represented2 only let us not transfer the effect the work produces on us too vividly to the piece itself2 and above all1 let us not be looking for the effect of poison in a body which the serpent's fang has but just reached4 ,let us not fancy we see a death-struggle in a noble1 resisting1 vigorous1 but slightly wounded frame4 ,here let me have leave to make an observation of importance in art3 ,the maximum expression of pathos that can be given by art hovers in the transition from one state or condition to another4 ,you see a lively child running with all the energy and joy of life1 bounding1 and full of delight2 he is unexpectedly struck somewhat roughly by a playmate1 or is otherwise morally or physically hurt4 ,this new sensation thrills like an electric shock through all his limbs1 and this transition is full of pathos in the highest meaning2 it is a contrast of which one can form no idea without having seen it4 ,in this case plainly the spiritual as well as the physical man is in action4 ,if during the transition there still remain evident traces of the previous state1 the result is the noblest subject for plastic art1 as is the case in the ,laocoon where action and suffering are shown in the same instant4 ,thus1 for instance1 ,eurydice1 bitten in the heel by the snake she has trodden on1 as she goes joyfully through the meadow with the flowers she has collected1 would make a statue of great pathos1 if the twofold state1 the joyful advance and its painful arrest1 might be expressed not only by the flowers that she lets fall1 but by the direction of her limbs and the doubtful fluttering of her dress4 ,having now a clear conception1 in this respect1 of the main figure1 we shall be enabled to give a free and secure glance over the relations1 contrasts1 and gradations of the collective parts of the whole4 ,the choice of subject is one of the happiest that can be imagined1--men struggling with dangerous animals1 and animals that do not act as a mass of concentrated force1 but with divided powers2 that do not rush in at one side1 nor offer a combined resistance1 but capable by their prolonged organization of paralyzing without injuring them1 three men1 or more or less4 ,from the action of this numbing force results1 consistently with the most violent action1 a pervading unity and repose throughout the whole4 ,the different action of the serpents is exhibited in gradation4 ,the one is simply twined around its victims1 the other becomes irritated and bites its antagonist4 ,the three figures are in like manner most wisely selected3 a strong1 well-developed man1 but evidently past the age of greatest energy1 and therefore less able to endure pain and suffering4 ,substitute in his place a robust young man and the charm of the group vanishes4 ,joined with him in his suffering are two boys1 small in proportion to his figure2 again still two natures susceptible of pain4 ,the struggles of the youngest are powerless2 he is frightened1 but not injured4 ,the father struggles powerfully1 but ineffectually2 his efforts have rather the effect to exasperate the opposed force4 ,his opponent1 becoming irritated1 wounds him4 ,the eldest son is least encumbered4 ,he suffers neither anguish nor pain2 he is frightened by the sudden wounding of his father1 and his movement thereupon2 he cries out1 at the same moment endeavoring to free his foot from the serpent's fold4 ,here then is spectator1 witness1 and accessory to the fact2 and thus the work is completed4 ,let me here repeat what ,i alluded to above1--that all three figures exhibit a twofold action1 and thus are occupied in most manifold ways4 ,the youngest son strives to free himself by raising his right arm1 and with his left hand keeps back the serpent's head2 he is striving to alleviate the present1 and avert the greater1 evil1--the highest degree of action he can attain in his present imprisoned condition4 ,the father is striving to shake off the serpents1 while his body recoils from the immediate bite4 ,the oldest son is terrified by his father's starting1 and seeks at the same time to free himself from the lightly entwining serpent4 ,the choice of the highest moment of expression has already been spoken of as a great advantage possessed by this work of art2 let us now consider this problem in greater detail4 ,we assumed the case of natural serpents twining about a father sleeping by his sons1 so that in considering the separate moments1 we might be led to a climax of interest4 ,the first moments of the serpents' winding about them in sleep are portentous1 but not significant for art4 ,we might perhaps imagine an infant ,hercules asleep1 with a serpent twined about him2 but in this case the form in repose would show us what we were to expect when he waked4 ,let us now proceed and figure to ourselves a father with his children1 when first--let it have happened how it may--he discovers the serpents wound about him4 ,there is only one moment of the highest interest1--when one of the figures is made defenseless by the pressure1 the second can still fight1 but is wounded1 the third still retains a hope of escape4 ,in the first condition is the younger son2 in the second1 the father2 in the third1 the eldest son4 ,seek now to find another1 a fourth condition6 ,try to change the order of the dramatis personae6 ,if we now consider the treatment from the beginning1 we must acknowledge that it has reached the highest point2 and in like manner1 if we reflect upon the succeeding moments1 we shall perceive that the whole group must necessarily be changed1 and that no moment can be found equal to this in artistic significance4 ,the youngest son will either be suffocated by the entwining serpent1 or should he in his helpless condition exasperate it1 he must be bitten4 ,neither alternative could we endure1 since they suppose an extremity unsuitable for representation4 ,as to the father1 he would either be bitten by the serpent in other places1 whereby the position of the body would be entirely changed and the previous wounds would either be lost to the beholder or1 if made evident1 would be loathsome1 or the serpent might turn about and assail the eldest son1 whose attention would then be turned to himself1--the scene loses its participator1 the last glimpse of hope disappears from the group1 the situation is no longer tragical1 it is fearful4 ,the figure of the father1 which is now self-centred in its greatness and its suffering1 would in that case be turned towards the son and become a sympathizing subordinate4 ,man has1 for his own and others' sufferings1 only three sorts of sensations1 apprehension1 terror1 and compassion1--the anxious foreseeing of an approaching evil1 the unexpected realization of present pain1 and sympathy with existing or past suffering2 all three are excited by and exhibited in the present work1 and in the most fitting gradations4 ,plastic art1 laboring always for a single point of time1 in choosing a subject expressive of pathos will seize one that awakens terror2 while ,poetry prefers such as excite apprehension and compassion4 ,in the group of ,laocoon the suffering of the father awakens terror1 and that in the highest degree4 ,sculpture has done her utmost for him1 but1 partly to run through the circle of human sensations1 partly to soften the effect of so much of the terrible1 it excites pity for the younger son1 and apprehension for the elder1 through the hope that still exists for him4 ,thus1 by means of variety1 the artists have introduced a certain balance into their work1 have softened and heightened effect by other effects1 and completed at once a spiritual and sensuous whole4 ,in a word1 we dare boldly affirm that this work exhausts its subject and happily fulfils all the conditions of art4 ,it teaches us that if the master can infuse his feeling of beauty into tranquil and simple subjects1 this feeling can also be exhibited in its highest energy and dignity when it manifests itself in the creation of varied characters1 and knows how1 by artistic imitation1 to temper and control the passionate outbreak of human feeling4 ,we shall give in the sequel a full account of the statues known by the name of the family of ,niobe1 as well as the group of the ,farnesian ,bull2 these are among the few representations of pathos that remain to us of antique sculpture4 ,it has been the usual fate of the moderns to blunder in their choice of subjects of this sort4 ,when ,milo1 with both his hands fast in the cleft of a tree1 is attacked by a lion1 art in vain endeavors to create a work that will excite a sincere sympathy4 ,a twofold suffering1 a fruitless struggle1 a helpless state1 a certain defeat can only excite horror1 if they do not leave us cold4 ,finally1 a word concerning this subject in its connection with poetry4 ,it is doing ,virgil and poetic art a great injustice to compare even for a moment this most succinct achievement of ,sculpture with the episodical treatment of the subject in the neid4 ,since the unhappy exile1 neas1 is to recount how he and his fellow-citizens were guilty of the unpardonable folly of bringing the famous horse into their city1 the ,poet must hit upon some way to provide a motive for this action4 ,everything is subordinated to this end1 and the story of ,laocoon stands here as a rhetorical argument to justify an exaggeration if only it serves its purpose4 ,two monstrous serpents come out of the sea with crested heads2 they rush upon the children of the priest who had injured the horse1 encircle them1 bite them1 besmear them1 twist and twine about the breast and head of the father as he hastens to their assistance1 and hold up their heads in triumph while the victim1 inclosed in their folds1 screams in vain for help4 ,the people are horror-struck and fly at once2 no one dares to be a patriot any longer2 and the hearer1 satiated with the horror of the strange and loathsome story1 is willing to let the horse be brought into the city4 ,thus1 in ,virgil1 the story of ,laocoon serves only as a step to a higher aim1 and it is a great question whether the occurrence be in itself a poetic subject4 ,,the ,,collector ,,and ,,his ,,friends 7#agii7 ,yesterday a stranger made his appearance1 whose name ,i was already familiar with1 and who has the reputation of a skilful connoisseur4#c ,i was pleased to see him1 made him acquainted generally with my possessions1 let him choose what he would from what ,i exhibited to him4 ,i soon noticed his cultivated eye for works of art1 and especially for their history4 ,he knew the masters as well as the scholars2 in cases of doubtful works he was familiar with the grounds of uncertainty1 and his conversation was highly interesting to me4 ,perhaps ,i should have been hurried on to open myself in a more lively manner towards him1 had not my resolve to sound my guest made me from the first take a more quiet tone4 ,his judgment in many cases agreed with mine2 in many ,i was forced to admire his sharp and practised eye4 ,the first thing that struck me was his unmitigated hatred of all ,mannerists4 ,i was in pain for some of my favorite pictures1 and was curious to discover from what source such a dislike could spring4444 ,before we were all assembled ,i seized an opportunity to lend a helping hand to my poor mannerists against the stranger4 ,i spoke of their beautiful nature1 their happy handling1 their grace1 and added1 to keep myself safe3 ,thus much ,i say only to claim for them a certain degree of forbearance1 though ,i admit that that high beauty1 which is the highest end and aim of ,art1 is in fact quite a different thing4 ,he replied--with a smile that did not altogether please me1 inasmuch as it seemed to express a special self-satisfaction and a sort of compassion for me3--,are you then stanch in the old-fashioned principle that ,beauty is the last aim of art8 ,i answered that ,i was not aware of any higher4 ,can you tell me what ,beauty is8 he exclaimed4 ,perhaps not1 ,i replied2 but ,i can show it to you4 ,let us go and see1 even by candlelight1 a fine cast of ,apollo or a beautiful marble bust of ,bacchus that ,i possess1 and try if we cannot agree that they are beautiful4 ,before we go upon this quest1 said he1 it would be necessary for us to examine more closely this word ,beauty and its derivation4 ,beauty 7,schnheit7 comes from show 7,schein72 it is an appearance1 and not worthy to be the object of art4 ,the perfectly characteristic only deserves to be called beauty2 without ,character there is no ,beauty4 ,surprised by this mode of expression1 ,i replied3 ,granted1 though it be not proved1 that beauty must be characteristic2 yet from this it only follows that character lies at the root of beauty1 but by no means that ,beauty and ,character are the same4 ,character holds to the beautiful the same relation that the skeleton does to the living man4 ,no one will deny that the osseous system is the foundation of all highly organized forms4 ,it consolidates and defines the form1 but is not the form itself2 still less does it bring about that last appearance which1 as the veil and integument of an organized whole1 we call ,beauty4 ,i cannot embark in similitudes1 said my guest1 and from your own words1 moreover1 it is evident that beauty is something incomprehensible1 or the effect of something incomprehensible4 ,what cannot be comprehended is naught2 what we cannot make clear by words is nonsense4 ,i4--,can you then clearly express in words the effect that a colored body produces on your eyes8 ,he4--,that is again a metaphor that ,i will not be drawn into4 ,it is enough that character can be indicated4 ,you find no beauty without it1 else it would be empty and insignificant4 ,all the beauty of the ,ancients is only ,character1 and only out of this quality is beauty developed4 ,our ,philosopher#d had arrived meanwhile and was conversing with my nieces1 when1 hearing us speak earnestly1 he stepped forward2 and the stranger1 stimulated by the accession of a new hearer1 proceeded3 ,that is just the misfortune when good heads1 when people of merit1 get hold of such false principles1 which have only an appearance of truth1 and spread them wider and wider4 ,none appropriate them so willingly as those who know and understand nothing of the subject4 ,thus has ,lessing fastened upon us the principle that the ancients cultivated only the beautiful2 thus has ,winckelmann put us to sleep with his 8noble simplicity and serene greatness02 whereas the art of the ancients appears in all imaginable forms4 ,but these gentlemen tarry by ,jupiter and ,juno1 ,genii and ,graces1 and hide the ignoble forms and skulls of ,barbarians1 the rough hair1 foul beard1 gaunt bones1 and wrinkled skin of deformed age1 the protruding veins and hanging breasts4 ,in the name of ,god1 ,i exclaimed1 are there then independent1 self-existing works of the best age of ,ancient ,art that exhibit such frightful objects8 ,or are they not rather subordinate works1 occasional pieces1 creations of an art that must demean itself according to outward circumstances1 an art on the decline8 ,he4--,i give you the specification1 you can yourself search and judge4 ,but you will not deny that the ,laocoon1 that ,niobe1 that ,dirce with her stepsons1 are self-subsistent works of art4 ,stand before the ,laocoon and contemplate nature in full revolt and desperation4 ,the last choking pang1 the desperate struggle1 the maddening convulsion1 the working of the corroding poison1 the vehement fermenting1 the stagnating circulation1 suffocating pressure1 and paralytic death4 ,the ,philosopher seemed to look at me with astonishment1 and ,i answered3 ,we shudder1 we are horrified at the bare description4 ,in sooth1 if it be so with the group of ,laocoon1 what are we to say of the pleasure we find in this as in every other true work of art8 ,but ,i will not meddle in the question4 ,you must settle it with the authors of the ,propyla1 who are of just the opposite mind4 ,it must be admitted1 said my guest1 that all ,antiquity speaks for me2 for where do horror and death rage more hideously than in the representation of the ,niobe8 ,i was confounded by this assertion1 for only a short time before ,i had been looking at the copperplates in ,fabroni1 which ,i immediately brought forward and opened4 ,i find no trace in the statues of raging horror and death1 but rather the greatest subordination of tragical situation under the highest ideas of dignity1 nobleness1 beauty1 and simplicity4 ,i trace everywhere the artistic purpose to dispose the limbs agreeably and gracefully4 ,the character is expressed only in the most general lines1 which run through the work like a sort of ideal skeleton4 ,he4--,let us turn to the bas-reliefs1 which we shall find at the end of the book4 ,we turned to them4 ,i4--,of anything horrible1 to speak truly1 ,i see no trace here either4 ,where is this rage of horror and death8 ,i see figures so artfully interwoven1 so happily placed against or extended upon each other1 that while they remind me of a mournful destiny1 they give room at the same time for the most charming imaginations4 ,all that is characteristic is tempered1 the violent is elevated1 and ,i might say that ,character lies at the foundation2 upon it rest simplicity and dignity2 the highest aim of art is beauty and its last effect the feeling of pleasure4 ,the agreeable1 which may not be immediately united with the characteristic1 comes remarkably before our eyes in these sarcophagi4 ,are not the dead sons and daughters of ,niobe here made use of as ornaments8 ,this is the highest luxury of art2 she adorns no longer with flowers and fruits1 but with the corpses of men1 with the greatest misfortune that can befall a father or mother1 to see a blooming family all at once snatched away4 ,yes1 the beauteous genius who stands beside the grave1 his torch reversed1 has stood beside the artist as he invented and perfected1 and over his earthly greatness has breathed a heavenly grace4 ,my guest looked at me with a smile1 and shrugged his shoulders4 ,alas1--said he1 as ,i concluded1--alas1 ,i see plainly that we can never agree4 ,what a pity that a man of your acquirements1 of your sense1 will not perceive that these are all empty words2 that to a man of understanding ,beauty and ,ideal must always be a dream which he cannot translate into reality1 but finds to be in direct opposition to it4444 ,i4--,will you allow me also to put in a word8 ,the guest 7somewhat scornfully47--,with all my heart1 and ,i hope nothing about mere phantoms4 ,i4--,i have some acquaintance with the poetry of the ancients1 but have little knowledge of the plastic arts4 ,guest4--,that ,i regret2 for in that case we can hardly come to an understanding4 ,i4--,and yet the fine arts are nearly related1 and the friends of the separate arts should not misunderstand each other4 ,uncle4--,let us hear what you have to say4 ,i4--,the old tragic writers dealt with the stuff in which they worked in the same way as the plastic artists1 unless these engravings1 representing the family of ,niobe1 give an altogether false impression of the original4 ,guest4--,they are passably good4 ,they convey an imperfect but not a false impression4 ,i4--,well1 then1 to that extent we can take them for a ground to go upon4 ,uncle4--,what is it you assert of the treatment of the ancient tragic writers8 ,i4--,the subjects they chose1 especially in the early times1 were often of an unbearable frightfulness4 ,guest4--,were the ancient fables insupportably frightful8 ,i4--,undoubtedly2 in the same manner as your account of the ,laocoon4 ,guest4--,did you find that also unbearable8 ,i4--,i ask pardon4 ,i meant the thing you describe1 not your description4 ,guest4--,and the work itself also8 ,i4--,by no means the work itself1 but that which you have seen in it1--the fable1 the history1 the skeleton1--that which you name the characteristic4 ,for if the ,laocoon really stood before our eyes such as you have described it1 we ought not to hesitate a moment to dash it to pieces4 ,guest4--,you use strong expressions4 ,i4--,one may do that as well as another4 ,uncle4--,now then for the ancient tragedies4 ,guest4--,yes1 these insupportable subjects4 ,i4--,very good2 but also this manner of treatment that makes everything endurable1 beautiful1 graceful4 ,guest4--,and that is effected by means of 8simplicity and serene greatness80 ,i4--,so it appears4 ,guest4--,by the softening principle of ,beauty8 ,i4--,it can be nothing else4 ,guest4--,and the old tragedies were after all not frightful8 ,i4--,hardly1 so far as my knowledge extends1 if you listen to the poets themselves4 ,in fact1 if we regard in poetry only the material which lies at the foundation1 if we are to speak of works of art as if in their place we had seen the actual circumstances1 then even the tragedies of ,sophocles can be described as loathsome and horrible4 ,guest4--,i will not pass judgment on poetry4 ,i4--,nor ,i on plastic art4 ,guest4--,yes1 it is best for each to stick to his own department4 ,i4--,and yet there is a common point of union for all the arts wherefrom the laws of all proceed4 ,guest4--,and that is-- ,i4--,the soul of man4 ,guest4--,ay1 ay2 that is just the way with you gentlemen of the new school of philosophy4 ,you bring everything upon your own ground and province2 and1 in fact1 it is more convenient to shape the world according to your ideas than to adapt your notions to the truth of things4 ,i4--,here is no question of any metaphysical dispute4 ,guest4--,if there were ,i should certainly decline it4 ,i4--,i shall admit for the sake of argument that ,nature can be imagined as absolutely apart from man1 but with him art necessarily concerns itself1 for art exists only through man and for man4 ,guest4--,where does all this tend8 ,i4--,you yourself1 when you make ,character the end of art1 appoint the understanding1 which takes cognizance of the characteristic1 as the judge4 ,guest4--,to be sure ,i do4 ,what ,i cannot seize with my understanding does not exist for me4 ,i4--,yet man is not only a being of thought1 but also of feeling4 ,he is a whole2 a union of various1 closely connected powers2 and to this whole of man the work of art is to address itself4 ,it must speak to this rich unity1 this simple variety in him4 ,guest4--,don't carry me with you into these labyrinths1 for who could ever help us out again8 ,i4--,it will then be best for us to give up the dispute and each retain his position4 ,guest4--,i shall at least hold fast to mine4 ,i4--,perhaps a means may still be found whereby1 if one does not take the other's position1 he can at least observe him in it4 ,guest4--,propose it then4 ,i4--,we will for a moment contemplate art in its origin4 ,guest4--,good4 ,i4--,let us accompany the work of art on its road to perfection4 ,guest4--,but only by the way of experience1 if you expect me to follow4 ,i will have nothing to do with the steep paths of speculation4 ,i4--,you allow me to begin at the beginning8 ,guest4--,with all my heart4 ,i4--,a man feels an inclination for some object2 let us suppose a single living being4 ,guest4--,as1 for instance1 this pretty lap-dog4 ,julia4--,come1 ,bello6 ,it is no small honor to serve as example in such a discussion4 ,i4--,truly1 the dog is pretty enough1 and if the man we are speaking of had the gift of imitation1 he would try in some way to make a likeness of it4 ,but let him prosper never so well in his imitation1 we are still not advanced1 for we have at best only two ,bellos instead of one4 ,guest4--,i will not interrupt1 but wait and see what is to become of this4 ,i4--,suppose that this man1 to whom for the sake of his talent we will give the name of ,artist1 has by no means satisfied himself as yet2 that his desire seems to him too narrow1 too limited2 that he busies himself about more individuals1 varieties1 kinds1 species1 in such wise that at last not the creature itself1 but the ,idea of the creature stands before him1 and he is able to express this by means of his art4 ,guest4--,bravo6 ,that is just my man1 and his work must be characteristic4 ,i4--,no doubt4 ,guest4--,and there ,i would stop and go no farther4 ,i4--,but we go beyond this4 ,guest4--,i stop here4 ,uncle4--,i will go along for the sake of experiment4 ,i4--,by this operation we may arrive at a canon useful indeed1 and scientifically valuable1 but not satisfactory to the soul of man4 ,guest4---,how then are you going to satisfy the fantastic demands of this dear soul8 ,i4--,not fantastic2 it is only not satisfied in its just claims4 ,an old tradition informs us that the ,elohim once took counsel together1 saying1 let us make man after our own image2 and man says therefore1 with good cause1 let us make gods and they shall be in our image4 ,guest4--,we are getting into a dark region4 ,i4--,there is only one light that can aid us here4 ,guest4--,and that is8 ,i4--,reason4 ,guest4--,how far it be a guide or a will-o'-wisp is hard to say4 ,i4--,we need not give it a name2 but let us ask ourselves what are the demands the soul makes of a work of art4 ,it is not enough that it fulfils a limited desire1 that it satisfies our curiosity1 or gives order and stability to our knowledge2 that which is ,higher in us must be awakened2 we must be inspired with reverence1 and feel ourselves worthy of reverence4 ,guest4--,i begin to be at a loss to comprehend you4 ,uncle4--,but ,i think ,i am able to follow in some measure2--how far1 ,i shall try to make clear by an example4 ,we will suppose our artist had made an eagle in bronze which perfectly expressed the idea of the species1 but now he would place him on the sceptre of ,jupiter4 ,do you think it would be perfectly suitable there8 ,guest4--,it would depend4 ,uncle4--,i say1 ,no6 ,the artist must first impart to him something beyond all this4 ,guest4--,what then8 ,uncle4--,it is hard to express4 ,guest4--,so ,i should think4 ,i4--,and yet something may be done by approximation4 ,guest4--,to it then4 ,i4--,he must give to the eagle what he gave to ,jupiter1 in order to make him into a ,god4 ,guest4--,and this is-- ,i4--,the ,godlike1--which in truth we should never become acquainted with1 did not man feel and himself reproduce it4 ,guest4--,i continue to hold my ground1 and let you ascend into the clouds4 ,i see that you mean to indicate the high style of the ,greeks1 which ,i prize only so far as it is characteristic4 ,i4--,it is something more to us1 however2 it answers to a high demand1 but still not the highest4 ,guest4--,you seem to be very hard to satisfy4 ,i4--,it beseems him to demand much for whom much is in store4 ,let me be brief4 ,the human soul is in an exalted position when it reverences1 when it adores2 when it elevates an object and is elevated by it again4 ,but it cannot remain long in this state4 ,the general concept of genus leaves it cold2 the ,ideal raises it above itself2 but now it must return again into itself2 and it would gladly enjoy once more that affection which it then felt for the ,individual1 without coming back to the same limited view1 and will not forego the significant1 the spirit-moving4 ,what would become of it now1 if ,beauty did not step in and happily solve the riddle8 ,she first gives life and warmth to the ,scientific1 and breathing her softening influence and heavenly charm over even the ,significant and the ,high1 brings it back to us again4 ,a beautiful work of art has gone through the entire circle2 it becomes again an ,individual that we can embrace with affection1 that we can make our own4 ,guest4--,have you done8 ,i4--,for the present4 ,the little circle is completed2 we have come back to our starting point2 the soul has made its demands1 and those demands have been satisfied4 ,i have nothing further to add4 7,here our good uncle was peremptorily called away to a patient47 ,guest4--,it is the custom of you philosophic gentlemen to engage in battle behind high-sounding words1 as if it were an gis4 ,i4--,i can assure you that ,i have not now been speaking as a philosopher4 ,these are mere matters of experience4 ,guest4--,do you call that experience1 whereof another can comprehend nothing8 ,i4--,to every experience belongs an organ4 ,guest4--,do you mean a separate one8 ,i4--,not a separate one2 but it must have one peculiarity4 ,guest4--,and what is that8 ,i4--,it must be able to produce4 ,guest4--,produce what8 ,i4--,the experience6 ,there is no experience which is not brought forth1 produced1 created4 ,guest4--,this is too much6 ,i4--,this is particularly the case with artists4 ,guest4--,indeed6 ,how enviable would the portrait painter be1 what custom would he not have1 if he could reproduce all his customers without troubling people with so many sittings6 ,i4--,i am not deterred by your instance1 but rather am convinced no portrait can be worth anything that the painter does not in the strictest sense create4 ,guest 7springing up74--,this is maddening6 ,i would you were making game of me1 and all this were only in jest4 ,how happy ,i should be to have the riddle explained in that manner6 ,how gladly would ,i give my hand to a worthy man like you6 ,i4--,unfortunately1 ,i am quite in earnest1 and cannot come to any other conclusion4 ,guest4--,now ,i did hope that in parting we should take each other's hand1 especially since our good host has departed1 who would have held the place of mediator in your dispute4 ,farewell1 ,mademoiselle6 ,farewell1 ,sir6 ,i shall inquire to-morrow whether ,i may wait on you again4 ,so he stormed out of the door1 and ,julia had scarce time to send the maid1 who was ready with the lantern1 after him4 ,i remained alone with the sweet child1 for ,caroline had disappeared some time before1--,i think about the time that my opponent had declared that mere beauty1 without character1 must be insipid4 ,you went too far1 my friend1 said ,julia1 after a short pause4 ,if he did not seem to me altogether in the right1 neither can ,i give unqualified assent to you2 for your last assertion was only made to tease him4 ,the portrait painter must make the likeness a pure creation8 ,fair ,julia1 ,i replied1 how much ,i could wish to make myself clear to you upon this point4 ,perhaps in time ,i shall succeed4 ,but you1 whose lively spirit is at home in all regions1 who not only prize the artist but in some sense anticipate him1 and who know how to give form to what your eyes have never seen1 as if it stood bodily before you1 you should be the last to start when the question is of creation1 of production4 ,julia4--,i see it is your intention to bribe me4 ,that will not be hard1 for ,i like to listen to you4 ,i4--,let us think well of man1 and not trouble ourselves if what we say of him may sound a little bizarre4 ,everybody admits that the poet must be born4 ,does not every one ascribe to genius a creative power1 and no one thinks he is repeating a paradox8 ,we do not deny it to works of fancy2 but the inactive1 the worthless man will not become aware of the good1 the noble1 the beautiful1 either in himself or others4 ,whence came it1 if it did not spring from ourselves8 ,ask your own heart4 ,is not the method of intercourse born with intercourse8 ,is it not the capacity for good deeds that rejoices over the good deed8 ,who ever feels keenly without the wish to express that feeling8 and what do we express but what we create8 and in truth1 not once only1 that it may exist and there end1 but that it may operate1 ever increase1 and again come to life1 and again create4 ,this is the god-like power of love1 of the singing and speaking of which there is no end1 that it reproduces at every moment the noble qualities of the beloved object1 perfects it in the least particulars1 embraces it in the whole1 rests not by day1 sleeps not by night1 is enchanted with its own work1 is astonished at its own restless activity1 ever finds the familiar new1 because at every moment it is re-created in the sweetest of all occupations4 ,yes1 the picture of the beloved cannot grow old1 for every moment is the moment of its birth4 ,the maid returned from lighting the stranger4 ,she was highly satisfied with his liberality1 for he had given her a handsome pourboire2 but she praised his politeness still more highly1 for he had dismissed her with a friendly word1 and1 moreover1 called her 8,pretty ,maid40 ,i was not in a humor to spare him1 and exclaimed3 8,oh1 yes6 ,i can easily credit that one who denies the ideal should take the common for the beautiful40 ,,footnotes3 #c ,alois ,hirt1 protagonist of the theory of the 8characteristic40 #d ,schiller4 ,,on ,,truth ,,and ,,probability ,,in ,,works ,,of ,,art ,a ,dialogue 7#agih7 ,in a certain ,german theatre there was represented a sort of oval amphitheatrical structure1 with boxes filled with painted spectators1 seemingly occupied with what was being transacted below4 ,many of the real spectators in the pit and boxes were dissatisfied with this1 and took it amiss that anything so untrue and improbable was put upon them4 ,whereupon the conversation took place of which we here give the general purport4 ,the ,agent of the ,artist4--,let us see if we cannot by some means agree more nearly4 ,the ,spectator4--,i do not see how such a representation can be defended4 ,agent4--,tell me1 when you go into a theatre1 do you not expect all you see to be true and real8 ,spectator4--,by no means6 ,i only ask that what ,i see shall appear true and real4 ,agent4--,pardon me if ,i contradict even your inmost conviction and maintain this is by no means the thing you demand4 ,spectator4--,that is singular6 ,if ,i did not require this1 why should the scene painter take so much pains to draw each line in the most perfect manner1 according to the rules of perspective1 and represent every object according to its own peculiar perfection8 ,why waste so much study on the costume8 ,why spend so much to insure its truth1 so that ,i may be carried back into those times8 ,why is that player most highly praised who most truly expresses the sentiment1 who in speech1 gesture1 delivery1 comes nearest the truth1 who persuades me that ,i behold not an imitation1 but the thing itself8 ,agent4--,you express your feelings admirably well1 but it is harder than you may think to have a right comprehension of our feelings4 ,what would you say if ,i reply that theatrical representations by no means seem really true to you1 but rather to have only an appearance of truth8 ,spectator4--,i should say that you have advanced a subtlety that is little more than a play upon words4 ,agent4--,and ,i maintain that when we are speaking of the operations of the soul1 no words can be delicate and subtle enough2 and that this sort of play upon words indicates a need of the soul1 which1 not being able adequately to express what passes within us1 seeks to work by way of antithesis1 to give an answer to each side of the question1 and thus1 as it were1 to find the mean between them4 ,spectator4--,very good4 ,only explain yourself more fully1 and1 if you will oblige me1 by examples4 ,agent4--,i shall be glad to avail myself of them4 ,for instance1 when you are at an opera1 do you not experience a lively and complete satisfaction8 ,spectator4--,yes1 when everything is in harmony1 one of the most complete ,i know4 ,agent4--,but when the good people there meet and compliment each other with a song1 sing from billets that they hold in their hands1 sing you their love1 their hatred1 and all their passions1 fight singing1 and die singing1 can you say that the whole representation1 or even any part of it1 is true8 or1 ,i may say1 has even an appearance of truth8 ,spectator4--,in fact1 when ,i consider1 ,i could not say it had4 ,none of these things seems true4 ,agent4--,and yet you are completely pleased and satisfied with the exhibition8 ,spectator4--,beyond question4 ,i still remember how the opera used to be ridiculed on account of this gross improbability1 and how ,i always received the greatest satisfaction from it1 in spite of this1 and find more and more pleasure the richer and more complete it becomes4 ,agent4--,and you do not then at the opera experience a complete deception8 ,spectator4--,deception1 that is not the proper word1--and yet1 yes6--,but no-- ,agent4--,here you are in a complete contradiction1 which is far worse than a quibble4 ,spectator4--,let us proceed quietly2 we shall soon see light4 ,agent4--,as soon as we come into the light1 we shall agree4 ,having reached this point1 will you allow me to ask you some questions8 ,spectator4--,it is your duty1 having questioned me into this dilemma1 to question me out again4 ,agent4--,the feeling you have at the exhibition of an opera cannot be rightly called deception8 ,spectator4--,i agree4 ,still it is a sort of deception2 something nearly allied to it4 ,agent4--,tell me1 do you not almost forget yourself8 ,spectator4--,not almost1 but quite1 when the whole or some part is excellent4 ,agent4--,you are enchanted8 ,spectator4--,it has happened more than once4 ,agent4--,can you explain under what circumstances8 ,spectator4--,under so many1 it would be hard to tell4 ,agent4--,yet you have already told when it is most apt to happen1 namely1 when all is in harmony4 ,spectator4--,undoubtedly4 ,agent4--,did this complete representation harmonize with itself or some other natural product8 ,spectator4--,with itself1 certainly4 ,agent4--,and this harmony was a work of art8 ,spectator4--,it must have been4 ,agent4--,we have denied to the opera the possession of a certain sort of truth4 ,we have maintained that it is by no means faithful to what it professes to represent4 ,but can we deny to it a certain interior truth1 which arises from its completeness as a work of art8 ,spectator4--,when the opera is good1 it creates a little world of its own1 in which all proceeds according to fixed laws1 which must be judged by its own laws1 felt according to its own spirit4 ,agent4--,does it not follow from this1 that truth of nature and truth of art are two distinct things1 and that the artist neither should nor may endeavor to give his work the air of a work of nature8 ,spectator4--,but yet it has so often the air of a work of nature4 ,agent4--,that ,i cannot deny4 ,but may ,i on the other hand be equally frank8 ,spectator4--,why not8 our business is not now with compliments4 ,agent4--,i will then venture to affirm1 that a work of art can seem to be a work of nature only to a wholly uncultivated spectator2 such a one the artist appreciates and values indeed1 though he stands on the lowest step4 ,but1 unfortunately1 he can only be satisfied when the artist descends to his level2 he will never rise with him1 when1 prompted by his genius1 the true artist must take wing in order to complete the whole circle of his work4 ,spectator4--,your remark is curious2 but proceed4 ,agent4--,you would not let it pass unless you had yourself attained a higher step4 ,spectator4--,let me now make trial1 and take the place of questioner1 in order to arrange and advance our subject4 ,agent4--,i shall like that better still4 ,spectator4--,you say that a work of art could appear as a work of nature only to an uncultivated person8 ,agent4--,certainly4 ,you remember the birds that tried to eat the painted cherries of the great master8 ,spectator4--,now does not that show that the cherries were admirably painted8 ,agent4--,by no means4 ,it rather convinces me that these connoisseurs were true sparrows4 ,spectator4--,i cannot1 however1 for this reason concede that this work could have been other than excellent4 ,agent4--,shall ,i tell you a more modern story8 ,spectator4--,i would rather listen to stories than arguments4 ,agent4--,a certain great naturalist1 among other domesticated animals1 possessed an ape1 which he missed one day1 and found after a long search in the library4 ,there sat the beast on the ground1 with the plates of an unbound work of ,natural ,history scattered about him4 ,astonished at this zealous fit of study on the part of his familiar1 the gentleman approached1 and found1 to his wonder and vexation1 that the dainty ape had been making his dinner of the beetles that were pictured in various places4 ,spectator4--,it is a droll story4 ,agent4--,and seasonable1 ,i hope4 ,you would not compare these colored copperplates with the work of so great an artist8 ,spectator4--,no1 indeed4 ,agent4--,but you would reckon the ape among the uncultivated amateurs8 ,spectator4--,yes1 and among the greedy ones6 ,you awaken in me a singular idea4 ,does not the uncultivated amateur1 just in the same way1 desire a work to be natural1 that he may be able to enjoy it in a natural1 which is often a vulgar and common way8 ,agent4--,i am entirely of that opinion4 ,spectator4--,and you maintain1 therefore1 that an artist lowers himself when he tries to produce this effect8 ,agent4--,such is my firm conviction4 ,spectator4--,but here again ,i feel a contradiction4 ,you did me just now the honor to number me1 at least1 among the half-cultivated spectators4 ,agent4--,among those who are on the way to become true connoisseurs4 ,spectator4--,then explain to me1 ,why does a perfect work of art appear like a work of nature to me also8 ,agent4--,because it harmonizes with your better nature4 ,because it is above natural1 yet not unnatural4 ,a perfect work of art is a work of the human soul1 and in this sense1 also1 a work of nature4 ,but because it collects together the scattered objects1 of which it displays even the most minute in all their significance and value1 it is above nature4 ,it is comprehensible only by a mind that is harmoniously formed and developed1 and such an one discovers that what is perfect and complete in itself is also in harmony with himself4 ,the common spectator1 on the contrary1 has no idea of it2 he treats a work of art as he would any object he meets with in the market4 ,but the true connoisseur sees not only the truth of the imitation1 but also the excellence of the selection1 the refinement of the composition1 the superiority of the little world of art2 he feels that he must rise to the level of the artist1 in order to enjoy his work2 he feels that he must collect himself out of his scattered life1 must live with the work of art1 see it again and again1 and through it receive a higher existence4 ,spectator4--,well said1 my friend4 ,i have often made similar reflections upon pictures1 the drama1 and other species of poetry1 and had an instinct of those things you require4 ,i will in future give more heed both to myself and to works of art4 ,but if ,i am not mistaken1 we have left the subject of our dispute quite behind4 ,you wished to persuade me that the painted spectators at our opera are admissible1 and ,i do not yet see1 though we have come to an agreement1 by what arguments you mean to support this license1 and under what rubric ,i am to admit these painted lookers-on4 ,agent4--,fortunately1 the opera is repeated to-night2 ,i trust you will not miss it4 ,spectator4--,on no account4 ,agent4--,and the painted men8 ,spectator4--,shall not drive me away1 for ,i think myself something more than a sparrow4 ,agent4--,i hope that a mutual interest may soon bring us together again4 ,,simple ,,imitation ,,of ,,nature1 ,,manner1 ,,style 7#aghi7 ,it does not seem to be superfluous to define clearly the meaning we attach to these words1 which we shall often have occasion to make use of4 ,for1 however long we may have been in the habit of using them1 and however they may seem to have been defined in theoretical works1 still every one continues to use them in a way of his own1 and means more or less by them1 according to the degree of clearness or uncertainty with which he has seized the ideas they express4 ,simple ,imitation of ,nature ,if an artist1 in whom we must of course suppose a natural talent1 is in the first stage of progress1 and after having in some measure practised eye and hand1 turns to natural objects1 uses all care and fidelity in the most perfect imitation of their forms and colors1 never knowingly departs from nature1 begins and ends in her presence every picture that he undertakes1--such an artist must possess high merit1 for he cannot fail of attaining the greatest accuracy1 and his work must be full of certainty1 variety and strength4 ,if these conditions are clearly considered1 it will be easily seen that a capable but limited talent can in this way treat agreeable but limited subjects4 ,such subjects must always be easy to find4 ,leisurely observation and quiet imitation must be allowed for2 the disposition that occupies itself in such works must be a quiet one1 self-contained1 and satisfied with moderate gratification4 ,this sort of imitation will thus be practised by men of quiet1 true1 limited nature1 in the representation of dead or still-life subjects4 ,it does not by its nature exclude a high degree of perfection4 ,manner ,but man finds1 usually1 such a mode of proceeding too timid and inadequate4 ,he perceives a harmony among many objects1 which can only be brought into a picture by sacrificing the individual4 ,he gets tired of using ,nature's letters each time to spell after her4 ,he invents a way1 devises a language for himself1 so as to express in his own fashion the idea his soul has attained1 and give to the object he has so many times repeated a distinctive form1 without having recourse to nature itself each time he repeats it1 or even without recalling exactly the individual form4 ,thus a language is created1 in which the mind of the speaker expresses and utters itself immediately2 and as in each individual who thinks1 the conceptions of spiritual objects are formed and arranged differently1 so will every artist of this class see1 understand1 and imitate the outward world in a different manner1 will seize its phenomena with a more or less observant eye1 and reproduce them more accurately or loosely4 ,we see that this species of imitation is applied with the best effect in cases where a great whole comprehends many subordinate objects4 ,these last must be sacrificed in order to attain the general expression of the whole1 as is the case in landscapes1 for instance1 where the aim would be missed if we attended too closely to the details1 instead of keeping in view the idea of the whole4 ,style ,when at last art1 by means of imitation of ,nature1 of efforts to create a common language1 and of clear and profound study of objects themselves1 has acquired a clearer and clearer knowledge of the peculiarities of objects and their mode of being1 oversees the classes of forms1 and knows how to connect and imitate those that are distinct and characteristic1--then will ,style reach the highest point it is capable of1 the point where it may be placed on a par with the highest efforts of the human mind4 ,simple ,imitation springs from quiet existence and an agreeable subject2 ,manner seizes with facile capacity upon an appearance2 ,style rests upon the deepest foundations of knowledge1 upon the essence of things1 so far as we are able to recognize it in visible and comprehensible forms4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the elaboration of what we have advanced above would fill whole volumes2 and much is said upon the subject in books1 but a true conception of it can only be arrived at by the study of nature and works of art4 ,we subjoin some additional considerations1 and shall have occasion to refer to these remarks whenever plastic art is in question4 ,it is easy to see that these three several ways of producing works of art are closely related1 and that one may imperceptibly run into the others4 ,the simple imitation of subjects of easy comprehension 7we shall take fruits and flowers as an example7 may be carried to a high point of perfection4 ,it is natural that he who paints roses should soon learn to distinguish and select the most beautiful1 and seek for such only among the thousand that summer affords4 ,thus we have arrived at selection1 although the artist may have formed no general idea of the beauty of roses4 ,he has to do with comprehensible forms2 everything depends upon the manifold purpose and the color of the surface4 ,the downy peach1 the finely dusted plum1 the smooth apple1 the burnished cherry1 the dazzling rose1 the manifold pink1 the variegated tulip1 all these he can have at will in his quiet studio in the perfection of their bloom and ripeness4 ,he can put them in a favorable light2 his eye will become accustomed to the harmonious play of glittering colors2 each year would give him a fresh opportunity of renewing the same models1 and he would be enabled1 without laborious abstraction1 by means of quiet imitative observation1 to know and seize the peculiarities of the simple existence of these subjects4 ,in this way were produced the masterpieces of a ,huysum and ,rachel ,ruysch1 artists who seem almost to have accomplished the impossible4 ,it is evident that an artist of this sort must become greater and more characteristic1 if in addition to his talent1 he is also acquainted with botany2 if he knows1 from the root up1 the influences of the several parts upon the expansion and growth of the plant1 their office1 and reciprocal action2 if he understands and reflects upon the successive development of leaves1 fruit1 flowers1 and the new germ4 ,by this means he will not only exhibit his taste in the selection of superficial appearance1 but will at once win admiration and give instruction through a correct representation of properties4 ,in this wise it might be said that he had formed a style2 while1 on the other hand1 it is easy to see how such a master1 if he proceeded with less thoroughness1 if he endeavored to give only the striking and dazzling1 would soon pass into mannerism4 ,simple ,imitation therefore labors in the ante-chamber that leads to ,style4 ,in proportion to the truth1 care1 and purity with which it goes to work1 the composure with which it examines and feels1 the calmness with which it proceeds to imitate1 the degree of reflection it uses1 that is to say1 with which it learns to compare the like and separate the unlike1 and to arrange separate objects under one general idea1--will be its title to step upon the threshold of the sanctuary itself4 ,if now we consider ,manner more carefully1 we shall see that it may be1 in the highest sense and purest signification of the word1 the middle ground between simple imitation of nature and style4 ,the nearer it approaches1 with its more facile treatment1 to faithful imitation and on the other side1 the more earnestly it endeavors to seize and comprehensibly express the character of objects1 the more it strives1 by means of a pure1 lively1 and active individuality1 to combine the two1 the higher1 greater1 and more worthy of respect it will become4 ,but if such an artist ceases to hold fast by and reflect upon nature1 he will soon lose sight of the true principles of art1 and his manner will become more and more empty and insignificant in proportion as he leaves behind simple imitation and style4 ,we need not here repeat that we use the word ,manner in a high and honorable sense1 so that artists who1 according to our definition1 would be termed ,mannerists have nothing to complain of4 ,it is only incumbent upon us to preserve the word ,style in the highest honor1 in order to have an expression for the highest point art has attained or ever can attain4 ,to be aware of this point is in itself a great good fortune1 and to enter upon its consideration in company with sensible people1 a noble pleasure1 for which we hope to have many opportunities in the sequel4 ,,ancient ,,and ,,modern 7#ahah7 ,i have been obliged1 in what precedes1 to say so much in favor of antiquity1 and particularly of the plastic artists of those times1 that ,i may possibly be misunderstood1 which so often happens where the reader1 instead of preserving a just balance1 throws himself at once into the opposite scale4 ,i therefore seize the present opportunity to explain my meaning1 using plastic art as a symbol of the never-ceasing life of human actions and affairs4 ,a young friend1 ,karl ,ernst ,schubarth1 in his pamphlet1 ,a ,critique on ,goethe1 which in every respect calls for my esteem and thanks1 says3 8,i do not agree with those worshipers of the ancients1 among whom is ,goethe himself1 who maintain that in high and complete development of humanity nothing has ever been arrived at to compare with the ,greeks40 ,fortunately1 ,schubarth's own words give us an opportunity to adjust this difference1 where he says1 8,as to our ,goethe1 let me say that ,i prefer ,shakespeare to him1 for this reason1--that in ,shakespeare ,i seem to find a strong1 unconscious man1 who is able1 with perfect certainty1 and without reasoning1 reflecting1 subtilizing and classifying1 to seize with never-failing hand the true and false in man1 and express it quite naturally2 whilst in ,goethe1 though ,i recognize the same ultimate aim1 ,i am always fighting with obstacles1 and must be always taking heed lest ,i accept for plain truth what is only an exhibition of plain error40 ,here our friend hits the nail on the head2 for in that very point where he places me below ,shakespeare do we stand below the ancients4 ,and what is it we advance concerning the ancients8 ,any talent1 the development of which is not favored by time and circumstances1 and must on that account work its way through a thousand obstacles1 and get rid of a thousand errors1 must always be at a disadvantage1 when compared with a contemporary one that has the opportunity to cultivate itself with facility and act to the extent of its capacity without opposition4 ,it often happens that people who are no longer young are able1 out of the fullness of their experience1 to furnish an illustration that will explain or strengthen an assertion2 and this is my excuse for relating the following anecdote4 ,a practised diplomatist who had desired my acquaintance1 after the first interview1 when he had had but little opportunity of seeing or conversing with me1 remarked to his friends3 8,voil un homme qui a eu de grands chagrins60 ,these words set me to thinking4 ,the skilful physiognomist's eye did not deceive him1 only he laid to the effect of suffering the phenomenon that should also have been ascribed to opposition4 ,an observant1 straightforward ,german might have said1 8,here is a man who has had a very hard time of it40 ,since1 then1 the signs of past endurance and of persevering activity do not disappear from the face1 it is no wonder if all that remains of us and our strivings should bear the same impress1 and indicate1 to the attentive observer1 a mode of being whose aim has been to preserve its balance alike under circumstances of happiest development or narrowest limitation1 and to maintain the stubbornness1 if it could not always the highest dignity1 of human existence4 ,but letting pass old and new1 past and present1 we may in general assert that every artistic production places us in the same state of mind the author was in4 ,if that was clear and bright1 we shall feel free2 if that was narrow1 timid1 or anxious1 we shall feel limited in the same proportion4 ,upon reflection1 we should add that this refers only to treatment4 ,material and import do not enter into consideration4 ,if we bear in mind this principle1 and look around in the world of art1 we maintain that every work will afford us pleasure which the artist himself produced with ease and facility4 ,what amateur does not rejoice in the possession of a successful drawing or etching of our ,chodowiecki8 ,we see in them such an immediate apprehension of nature1 as we know it1 that they leave nothing to wish for4 ,but he would not be able to go beyond his mark and line1 without losing all the advantage he derives from his peculiar qualifications4 ,we shall even go farther1 and confess that we have derived great pleasure from ,mannerists1 when the manner has not been carried too far1 and that we are pleased with the possession of their works4 ,the artists who have received this name have been gifted with uncommon talent1 but became early aware that1 in the state of the times as well as of the schools into which they were cast by fate1 there was no room for minute labor1 but that they must choose their part1 and perfect themselves speedily4 ,they therefore made themselves a language1 into which they could1 without farther trouble1 translate with ease and dexterity all visible subjects1 and exhibit to us representations of all sorts of scenes with greater or less success4 ,thus whole nations have been entertained and hoodwinked for long periods of time1 until at last one or another artist has found the way back to nature and a higher feeling of art4 ,we may perceive1 by the ,herculanean antiquities1 how the ancients also fell into this kind of manner2 only their models were too great1 too present1 fresh1 and well preserved1 for their second and third rate artists to be able to lose themselves entirely in insignificance4 ,let us now assume a higher and more agreeable point of view1 and consider the talent with which ,raphael was so singularly gifted4 ,born with the happiest natural gifts1 at a time when art combined the most conscientious labor1 attention1 industry1 and truth1 the young man was already led by excellent masters to the threshold1 and had only to raise his foot to enter the temple4 ,disciplined by ,perugino in the most careful elaboration1 his genius was developed by ,leonardo da ,vinci and ,michelangelo4 ,neither of these artists1 in spite of their long life and the cultivation of their powers1 seems ever to have reached the true enjoyment of artistic production4 ,the former1 if we look closely1 wearied himself with thought1 and dissipated his powers in mechanical inquiries2 and we have to blame the latter for spending his fairest years among stone quarries1 getting out marble blocks and slabs1 so that1 instead of carrying out his intention of carving all the heroes of the ,old and ,new ,testament1 he has left only his ,moses as an example of what he could and should have done4 ,raphael1 however1 during his whole life1 ever increased in the even facility of his work4 ,we see in him the development of the intellectual and active powers1 which preserve such remarkable balance that it may be affirmed that no modern artist has possessed such purity and completeness of thought and such clearness of expression4 ,in him we have another instance of a talent that pours out to us the freshest water from the purest source4 ,he never affects a ,greek manner1 but feels1 thinks1 works like a ,greek4 ,we see the fairest talent developed in the most favorable hours4 ,the same thing occurred1 under like conditions and circumstances1 in the time of ,pericles4 ,it may therefore always be maintained that native talent is indeed indispensable to production1 but equally indispensable is a commensurate development in the provinces of nature and art4 ,art cannot dispense with its prerogatives1 and cannot achieve perfection without favorable outward circumstances4 ,consider the school of the ,caracci4 ,here was a ground-work of talent1 earnestness1 industry1 and consistent development2 here was an element for the natural and artistic development of admirable powers4 ,we see a whole dozen of excellent artists produced by it1 each practising and cultivating his peculiar talent according to the same general idea1 so that it hardly seems possible that after times should produce anything similar4 ,let us consider the immense stride made by the highly gifted ,rubens into the world of art6 ,he too was no son of earth2 look at the rich inheritance he was heir to1 from the old masters of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries1 through all the admirable artists of the sixteenth1 at the close of which he was born4 ,again1 think of the crowd of ,dutch painters of the seventeenth century1 whose great abilities found development now at home1 now south1 now north1 until we can no longer deny the incredible sagacity with which their eye pierced into nature1 and the facility with which they have succeeded in expressing her legitimate charm1 so as to enchant us everywhere4 ,nay1 in proportion as we possess their productions1 we are willing to limit ourselves for long stretches of time to their study and admiration1 and are far from blaming those amateurs who are contented with the possession and enjoyment of this class of pictures exclusively4 ,in the same way1 we could bring a hundred examples in support of our assertion4 ,to see distinctly1 to apprehend clearly1 to impart with facility1--these are the qualities that enchant us2 and when we maintain that all these are to be found in the genuine ,greek works1 united with the noblest subjects1 the most unerring and perfect execution1 it will be seen why it is we always begin and end with them4 ,let each one be a ,greek in his own way1 but let him be a ,greek6 ,the same is true of literary merit4 ,what is comprehensible is always the first to attract us and give us complete satisfaction4 ,if we even take the works of one and the same poet1 we shall find some that seem to indicate a degree of laborious effort1 and others again affect us like natural products1 because the talent was commensurate with the form and import4 ,and once more1 it is our firm belief that although any age may give birth to the fairest talent1 it is not given to all to be able to develop it in its perfect proportions4 ,,notes ,,on ,,dilettantism 7#agii7 ,dilettantism presupposes ,art1 as botch-work does handicraft4--,idea of ,artist1 in opposition to ,dilettante4--,practice of ,art scientifically4--,adoption of an ,objective ,art4--,legitimate progress and advancement4--,calling and profession4--,connection with a world of ,art and ,artists4--,schools4 ,the ,dilettante does not hold the same relation to all the arts4 ,all the arts have an objective and a subjective side1 and according as one or the other of these is predominant1 the ,dilettante has value or not4 ,where the subjective of itself is of great importance1 the ,dilettante must and can approximate to the artist4 ,for instance1 oratory1 lyrical poetry1 music1 dance4 ,where the reverse is the case1 there is a more marked distinction between ,artist and ,dilettante1 as in architecture1 the arts of design1 epic and dramatic poetry4 99 99 99 99 99 ,art itself gives laws1 and commands the time4 ,dilettantism follows the lead of the time4 ,when masters in art follow a false taste1 the ,dilettante expects so much the sooner to reach the level of art4 ,the ,dilettante1 receiving his first impulse to self-production from the effect of works of art on him1 confounds these effects with the objective causes and motives1 and would now make the state of feeling he has been put into productive and practical2 as if out of the fragrance of flowers one should try to reproduce flowers themselves4 ,the speaking to the feelings1 the last effect of all poetical organization1 but which presupposes the concurrences of the whole of art1 seems to the ,dilettante to be the thing itself1 and out of it he endeavors to produce4 ,in general1 the ,dilettante1 in his ignorance of himself1 puts the passive in the place of the active1 and because he receives a lively impression from effects1 thinks from these impressed effects to produce other effects4 ,the peculiar want of the ,dilettante is ,architectonic1 in the highest sense1--that practical power which creates1 forms1 constitutes4 ,of this he has only a sort of misgiving1 and submits himself to his material1 instead of commanding it4 ,it will be found that the ,dilettante runs particularly to neatness1 which is the completion of the thing in hand1 wherefrom a sort of illusion arises1 as if the thing itself were worthy of existing4 ,the same holds true of accuracy 7accuratesse71 and all the last conditions of ,form1 which can just as well accompany the formless4 ,general principles on which ,dilettantism is allowable3-- ,when the ,dilettante subjects himself to the severest rules at the outset1 and undertakes to complete all the successive steps with the greatest strictness1--which he can the better afford to do1 inasmuch as 7#a7 the goal is not demanded of him2 and1 7#b7 if he wishes to retreat1 he has prepared the surest path to connoisseurship4 ,in opposition to the general maxim1 the ,dilettante will thus be subject to more severe criticism than the ,artist1 who1 resting upon a secure basis of art1 incurs less danger in departing from rules1 and may even by that means enlarge the province of art itself4 ,the true artist rests firmly and securely upon himself4 ,his endeavor1 his mark1 is the highest aim of art4 ,in his own estimation he will always be far from that aim1 and necessarily1 therefore1 will be always modest in regard to art or the idea of art1 and will maintain that he has as yet accomplished little1 no matter how excellent his work may be1 or how high his consciousness of superiority1 in reference to the world1 may reach4 ,dilettanti1 or real botchers1 seem1 on the other hand1 not to strive towards an aim1 not to see what is beyond1 but only what is beside them4 ,on this account they are always comparing1 are for the most part extravagant in their praise1 unskilful where they blame1 have an infinite deference for their like1 thus giving themselves an air of friendliness and fairness1 which is in fact only to exalt themselves4 ,dilettantism in ,lyrical ,poetry ,the fact that the ,german language was in the beginning applied to poetry1 not by any one great poetic genius1 but through merely middling heads1 must inspire ,dilettantism with confidence to essay itself in it4 ,the cultivation of ,french literature and language has made even ,dilettanti more artistic4 ,the ,french were always more rigorous1 tended to severer correctness1 and demanded even of ,dilettanti taste and spirit within1 and externally a faultless diction4--,in ,england1 ,dilettantism held more by ,latin and ,greek4--,sonnets of the ,italians4 ,impudence of the latest ,dilettantism1 originated and maintained through reminiscences of a richly cultivated poetic dialect1 and the facility of a good mechanical exterior4 ,polite literature of universities1 induced by a modern method of study4--,lady poems4--,schngeisterei 7bel esprit74--,annual ,keepsakes4--,musenalmanache4--,journals 4--,beginning and spread of translations4 ,immediate transition from the classes and the university to authorship4--,epoch of ballads1 and songs of the people4--,gessner1 poetic prose4--,imitation of the bards4--,brger's influence on sing-song4--,rhymeless verses4--,klopstockean odes4--,claudius4--,wieland's laxity4--,in earlier times3 ,latin verses2 pedantism2 more handicraft2 skill1 without poetic spirit4 ,dilettantism in ,pragmatic ,poetry ,reasons why the ,dilettante hates the powerful1 the passionate1 the characteristic1 and only represents the middling1 the moral4 ,the ,dilettante never paints the object1 but only the feeling it gives rise to in him4 ,he avoids the character of the object4 ,all ,dilettante creations in this style of poetry will have a pathological character1 and express only the attractions and repulsions felt by their author4 ,the ,dilettante thinks to reach poetry by means of his wits4 ,dramatic botchers go mad when they desire to give effect to their work4 ,dilettantism in ,dramatic ,art ,french comedy is1 even among amateurs1 obligato1 and a social institution4 ,italian amateur-comedy is founded on a puppet1 or puppet-like1 representation4 ,germany1 in former times1 ,jesuit-schools4 ,in later times3 ,french amateur comedies1 for aiding the cultivation of the language1 in noble houses4 ,mixing up of ranks in ,german amateur-comedy4 ,conditions1 under which1 perhaps1 a moderate practice in theatrical matters may be harmless and allowable1 or even in some measure advantageous3 ,permanence of the same company4 ,to avoid passionate pieces1 and choose such as are reflective and social4 ,to admit no children or very young persons4 ,greatest possible strictness in outward forms4 ,advantages of ,dilettantism in ,general ,it prevents an entire want of cultivation4 ,dilettantism is a necessary consequence of a general extension of art1 and may even be a cause of it4 ,it can1 under certain circumstances1 help to excite and develop a true artistic talent4 ,elevates handicraft to a certain resemblance to art4 ,has a civilizing tendency4 ,in case of crude ignorance1 it stimulates a certain taste for art1 and extends it to where the artist would not be able to reach4 ,gives occupation to productive power1 and cultivates something serious in man4 ,appearances are changed into ideas4 ,teaches to analyze impressions4 ,aids the appropriation and reproduction of forms4 ,in ,lyrical ,poetry ,cultivation of language in general4 ,more manifold interest 8in humanioribus10 in contrast to the crudeness of the ignorant1 or the pedantic narrowness of the mere man of business or pedant4 ,cultivation of the feelings and of the verbal expression of the same4 ,the cultivated man ought to be able to express his feelings with poetic beauty4 ,idealization of concepts regarding objects of common life4 ,cultivation of the imagination1 especially as an integral part of the culture of the intellect4 ,awaking and direction of the productive imagination to the highest functions of the mind in the sciences and practical life4 ,cultivation of the sense of the rhythmical4 ,there being no objective laws1 either for the internal or external construction of a poem1 the amateur ought to hold fast to acknowledged models much more strongly than the master does1 and rather imitate the good that exists than strive after originality2 and in the external and metrical parts1 follow strictly the well-known general rules4 ,and as the ,dilettante can only form himself after models1 he ought1 in order to avoid one-sidedness1 to acquire the most universal knowledge of all models1 and survey the field of poetic literature even more perfectly than is required of the artist himself4 ,in the ,dramatic ,art ,opportunity of farther cultivation in declamation4 ,attention to one's own representations4 ,participates in the advantages predicated of ,dancing4 ,exercise of the ,memory4 ,sensuous attention and accuracy4 ,disadvantage of ,dilettantism in ,general ,the ,dilettante jumps over the steps1 stops at certain steps which he regards as the end1 and from which he thinks himself justified in judging of the whole2 this prevents his perfectibility4 ,he subjects himself to the necessity of working by false rules1 because he cannot work even as a ,dilettante without some rules1 and he does not understand the true objective rules4 ,he departs more and more from the truth of objects1 and loses himself in subjective errors4 ,dilettantism deprives art of its element1 and spoils art's public by depriving it of its earnestness and strictness4 ,all tendency to easy contentment destroys art1 and ,dilettantism brings in indulgence and favor4 ,at the expense of the true artists1 it brings into notice those that stand nearest to ,dilettantism4 ,with ,dilettantism the loss is always greater than the gain4 ,from handicraft the way is open to rise to art1 but not from botch-work4 ,dilettantism favors the indifferent1 partial1 and characterless4 ,injury ,dilettanti do to art by bringing artists down to their level4 ,can bear no good artist near them4 ,in all cases where the art itself has no proper regulative power1 as in ,poetry1 the art of ,gardening1 acting1 the injury ,dilettantism does is greater1 and its pretensions more arrogant4 ,the worst case is that of histrionic art4 ,in ,lyrical ,poetry ,belletristic shallowness and emptiness1 withdrawal from solid studies1 or superficial treatment4 ,a greater danger exists in this than in the other arts of mistaking a merely ,dilettante dexterity for a true genius for art1 and in this case1 the subject is worse off than in any other ,dilettantism1 because its existence becomes an entire nullity2 for the poet is nothing at all except through earnestness and conformity to art4 ,dilettantism in general1 but especially in poetry1 weakens the feeling and perception for the good that lies beyond it1 and whilst it is indulgent to a restless desire to produce1 which leads it to nothing perfect1 robs itself of all the culture it might derive through the perception of foreign excellences4 ,poetical ,dilettantism may be of two sorts4 ,either it neglects the 7indispensable7 mechanical1 and thinks enough done if it shows mind and feeling2 or it seeks poetry only in the mechanical1 acquiring a technical dexterity therein1 but without spirit or significance4 ,both are injurious1 but the former rather injures the art1 and the latter the subject4 ,all ,dilettanti are ,plagiarists4 ,they enervate and pull to pieces all that is original in manner or matter1 and at the same time imitate1 copy1 and piece out their own emptiness with it4 ,thus the language gets filled with phrases and formulae stolen from all sides1 which have no longer any meaning1 and you may read whole books written in a fine style and containing nothing4 ,in a word1 all that is really beautiful and good in true poetry is profaned1 rendered common1 and degraded4 ,in ,pragmatical ,poetry ,all the disadvantages of ,dilettantism in ,lyrical ,poetry apply here in a far higher degree4 ,not the art alone1 but the subject also1 suffers more4 ,mixing up of different kinds4 ,in ,histrionic ,art ,caricature of one's own faulty individuality4 ,incapacitates the mind for all occupation1 through the illusion of a fantastic mode of viewing objects4 ,expense of interest and passion1 without fruit4 ,eternal circle of monotonous1 ever repeated1 ineffectual activity4 7,there is nothing so attractive to ,dilettanti as rehearsals4 ,professional actors hate them47 ,special forbearance and pampering of theatrical ,dilettanti with applause4 ,eternal stimulation towards a passionate condition and behavior1 without balance4 ,feeding all hateful passions1 with the worst results for civic and domestic existence4 ,blunting the feeling for poetry4 ,use of exalted language for commonplace sentiments4 ,a rag-fair of thoughts1 commonplaces1 and descriptions in the memory4 ,pervading affectation and mannerism1 reaching also into life4 ,most injurious indulgence towards the indifferent and faulty1 in a public and quite personal case4 ,the general tolerance for the home-made becomes in this case more pronounced4 ,most pernicious use of amateur comedies for the education of children1 where it turns into caricature4 ,in the same manner1 the most dangerous of all amusements for universities1 c4 ,destruction of the ideality of art1 because the ,dilettante1 not being able to raise himself through the appropriation of artistic ideas and traditions1 must do all through a pathological reality4 ,,the ,,theory ,,of ,,literature ,,the ,,production ,,of ,a ,,national ,,classic#e 7,literarischer ,sansculottismus7 7#agie7 ,those who consider it an absolute duty to connect definite concepts with the words which they employ in speaking and writing will very rarely use the expressions1 8classical author0 and 8classical work40 ,what are the conditions that produce a classical national author8 ,he must1 in the first place1 be born in a great commonwealth1 which after a series of great and historic events has become a happy and unified nation4 ,he must find in his countrymen loftiness of disposition1 depth of feeling1 and vigor and consistency of action4 ,he must be thoroughly pervaded with the national spirit1 and through his innate genius feel capable of sympathizing with the past as well as the present4 ,he must find his nation in a high state of civilization1 so that he will have no difficulty in obtaining for himself a high degree of culture4 ,he must find much material already collected and ready for his use1 and a large number of more or less perfect attempts made by his predecessors4 ,and finally1 there must be such a happy conjuncture of outer and inner circumstances that he will not have to pay dearly for his mistakes1 but that in the prime of his life he may be able to see the possibilities of a great theme and to develop it according to some uniform plan into a well-arranged and well-constructed literary work4 ,if any one1 who is endowed with clearness of vision and fairness of mind1 contrasts these conditions under which alone a classic writer1 especially a classic prose-writer1 is possible1 with the conditions under which the best ,germans of this century have worked1 he will respect and admire what they have succeeded in doing1 and notice with tactful regret in what they have failed4 ,an important piece of writing1 like an important speech1 can only be the outgrowth of actual life4 ,the author no more than the man of action can fashion the conditions under which he is born and under which he acts4 ,each one1 even the greatest genius1 suffers in some respects from the social and political conditions of his age1 just as in other respects he benefits by them4 ,and only from a real nation can a national writer of the highest order be expected4 ,it is unfair1 however1 to reproach the ,german nation because1 though closely held together by its geographical position1 it is divided politically4 ,we do not wish for ,germany those political revolutions which might prepare the way for classical works4 ,and so any criticism which approaches the question from such a false point of view is most unfair4 ,the critic must look at our conditions1 as they were and as they now are2 he must consider the individual circumstances under which ,german writers obtained their training1 and he will easily find the correct point of view4 ,there is nowhere in ,germany a common centre of social culture1 where men of letters might gather together and perfect themselves1 each one in his particular field1 in conformity with the same standard4 ,born in the most widely scattered portions of the land1 educated in the most diverse ways1 left almost entirely to themselves or to impressions derived from the most varied environments1 carried away by a special liking for this or that example of ,german or foreign literature1 the ,german men of letters are forced1 without any guidance1 to indulge in all sorts of experiments1 even in botch-work1 in order to try their powers4 ,only gradually and after considerable reflection do they realize what they ought to do4 ,practice alone teaches them what they can do4 ,again and again the bad taste of a large public1 which devours the bad and the good with equal pleasure1 leads them into doubt4 ,then again an acquaintance with the educated though widely scattered population of the great empire encourages them1 and the common labors and endeavors of their contemporaries fortify them4 ,such are the conditions under which ,german writers finally reach man's estate4 ,then concern for their own support1 concern for a family1 force them to look about in the world at large1 and often with the most depressing feeling1 to do work for which they have no respect themselves1 in order to earn a livelihood1 so that they can devote themselves to that kind of work with which alone their cultured minds would occupy themselves4 ,what ,german author of note will not recognize himself in this picture1 and will not confess with modest regret that he often enough sighed for an opportunity to subordinate sooner the peculiarities of his original genius to a general national culture1 which unfortunately did not exist8 ,for foreign customs and literatures1 irrespective of the many advantages they have contributed to the advancement of the higher classes1 have prevented the ,germans from developing sooner as ,germans4 ,and now let us look at the work of ,german poets and prose-writers of recognized ability4 ,with what care and what devotion did they not follow in their labors an enlightened conviction6 ,it is1 for example1 not saying too much1 when we maintain that a capable and industrious literary critic1 through a comparison of all the editions of our ,wieland1--a man of whom we may proudly boast in spite of the snarling of all our literary parasites1--could develop the whole theory of good taste simply from the successive corrections of this author1 who has so indefatigably worked toward his own improvement4 ,we hope that every librarian will take pains to have such a collection made1 while it is still possible1 and then the next century will know how to make grateful use of it4 ,in the future we may perhaps be bold enough to lay before the public a history of the development of our foremost writers1 as it is shown in their works4 ,we do not expect any confessions1 but if they would only themselves impart to us1 as far as they see fit1 those facts which contributed most to their development1 and those which stood most in the way of it1 the influence of the good they have done would become still more far-reaching4 ,for if we consider what superficial critics take least notice of1--the good fortune which young men of talent enjoy nowadays in being able to develop earlier1 and to attain sooner a pure style appropriate to the subject at hand1--to whom do they owe it but to their predecessors in the last half of this century1 each of whom in his own way has trained himself with unceasing endeavor amidst all sorts of hindrances8 ,through this circumstance a sort of invisible school has sprung up1 and the young man who now enters it gets into a much larger and brighter circle than the earlier author1 who had to roam through it first himself in the faint light of dawn1 in order to help widen it gradually and as it were only by chance4 ,the pseudo-critic1 who would light the way for us with his little lamp1 comes much too late2 the day has dawned1 and we shall not close our shutters again4 ,men do not give vent to their ill humor in good society2 and he must be in a very bad humor1 who at this present moment1 when almost everybody writes well1 denies that ,germany has writers of the first order4 ,one does not need to go far to find an agreeable novel1 a clever sketch1 a clearly written essay on this or that subject4 ,what proof do not our critical papers1 journals1 and compends furnish of a uniformly good style8 ,the ,germans show a more and more thorough mastery of facts1 and the arrangement of the material steadily gains in clearness4 ,a dignified philosophy1 in spite of all the opposition of wavering opinions1 makes them more and more acquainted with their intellectual powers1 and facilitates the use of them4 ,the numerous examples of style1 the preliminary labors and endeavors of so many men1 enable a young man now sooner to present with clearness and grace and in an appropriate manner what he has received from without and developed within himself4 ,thus a healthy and fair-minded ,german sees the writers of his nation at a fair stage of development1 and is convinced that the public1 too1 will not let itself be misled by an ill-humored criticaster4 ,such a one ought to be barred from society1 from which every one should be excluded whose destructive work might only make productive writers disheartened1 the sympathetic public listless1 and the onlookers distrustful and indifferent4 ,,footnotes3 #e ,reply to a critic who complained of 8the poverty of the ,germans in great classical prose works10 and indiscriminately attacked all the writers of the time4 ,,goethe',s ,,theory ,,of ,a ,,world ,,literature ,i 7#ahbg7 ,everywhere we hear and read of the progress of the human race1 of the broader view of international and human relations4 ,since it is not my office here to define or qualify these broad generalities1 ,i shall merely acquaint my friends with my conviction that there is being formed a universal world-literature1 in which an honorable rle is reserved for us ,germans4 ,all the nations review our work2 they praise1 censure1 accept1 and reject1 imitate and misrepresent us1 open or close their hearts to us4 ,all this we must accept with equanimity1 since this attitude1 taken as a whole1 is of great value to us4 ,we experience the same thing from our own countrymen1 and why should the nations agree among themselves if fellow-citizens do not understand how to unite and coperate with each other8 ,in a literary sense we have a good start of the other nations2 they will always be learning to prize us more1 even if they only show it by borrowing from us without thanks1 and making use of us without giving recognition of the fact4 ,as the military and physical strength of a nation develops from its internal unity and cohesion1 so must its sthetic and ethical strength grow gradually from a similar unanimity of feeling and ideas4 ,this1 however1 can only be accomplished with time4 ,i look back as a coperator in this work over many years and reflect how a ,german literature has been brought together out of heterogeneous1 if not conflicting1 elements1--a literature which for that reason is only peculiarly one in the sense that it is composed in one language1--which1 however1 out of a variety of wholly different talents and abilities1 minds and actions1 criticisms and undertakings1 gradually draws out to the light of day the true inner soul of a people4 ,,ii 7#ahbg7 ,my sanguine suggestion that our present active epoch with its increasing communication between the nations might soon hope for a world-literature has been taken up by chance by our neighbors of the west1 who indeed can accomplish great things in this same direction4 ,they express themselves on the subject in the following manner3 ,le ,globe1 ,tome ,v41 ,no4 #ia4 8,every nation indeed1 when its turn comes1 feels that tension which1 like the attractive power of physical bodies1 draws one towards the other1 and eventually will unite in one universal sympathy all the races of which humanity consists4 ,the endeavor of scholars to understand one another and compare one another's work is by no means new2 the ,latin language in former times has provided an admirable vehicle for this purpose4 ,but however they labored and strove1 the barriers by which peoples were separated began to divide them also1 and hurt their intellectual intercourse4 ,the instrument of which they made use could only satisfy a certain range and course of ideas1 so that they touched each other only through the intellect1 instead of directly through the feelings and through poetry4 ,travel1 the study of languages1 periodical literature1 have taken the place of that universal language1 and establish many intimate and harmonious relations which it could never cultivate4 ,even the nations that devote themselves chiefly to trade and industry are most concerned with this exchange of ideas4 ,england1 whose home activity is so tremendous1 whose life is so busy1 that it seems as if it would be able to study nothing but itself1 at the present time is showing a symptom of this need and desire to broaden its connection with the outside world and widen its horizon4 ,its ,reviews1 with which we are already familiar1 are not enough for them2 two new periodicals1 devoted especially to foreign literature1 and coperating together towards that end1 are to appear regularly40 ,of the first of these ,english journals1 ,the ,foreign ,quarterly ,review1 there are already two volumes in our hands2 the third we expect directly1 and we shall in the course of these pages often refer to the views of important men who are giving proof1 with so much insight and industry1 of their interest in foreign literature4 ,but first of all we must confess that it made us smile to see1 at the end of the old year1 more than thirty literary almanacs 7,taschenbcher71 already noticed in an ,english journal1--not indeed reviewed1 but at least referred to with some characteristic comments4 ,it is pleasant that our productions of this sort meet with approval and find a market over there1 since we are also obliged to buy their similar works for good money4 ,little by little we shall discover1 ,i suppose1 whether the balance of this trade turns out to our advantage4 ,but these trivial considerations must give place to more serious ones4 ,left to itself every literature will exhaust its vitality1 if it is not refreshed by the interest and contributions of a foreign one4 ,what naturalist does not take pleasure in the wonderful things that he sees produced by reflection in a mirror8 ,now what a mirror in the field of ideas and morals means1 every one has experienced in himself1 and once his attention is aroused1 he will understand how much of his education he owes to it4 ,,iii 7#ahbh7 ,the ,edinburgh ,review1 as well as the current ,foreign and ,foreign ,quarterly ,reviews1 we can only mention briefly here4 ,these journals1 as they win an ever wider public1 will contribute in the most effective way towards that universal world-literature for which we are hoping4 ,only1 we repeat1 the idea is not that the nations shall think alike1 but that they shall learn how to understand each other1 and1 if they do not care to love one another1 at least that they will learn to tolerate one another4 ,several societies now exist for the purpose of making the ,british ,isles acquainted with the continent1 and are working effectively and with a practical unanimity of opinion4 ,we continentals can learn from them the intellectual background of the time across the channel1 what they are thinking and what their judgments about things are4 ,on the whole1 we acknowledge gladly that they go about the work with intense seriousness1 with industry and tolerance and general good-will4 ,the result for us will be that we shall be compelled to think again of our own recent literature1 which we have in some measure already put to one side1 and to consider and examine it anew4 ,especially worthy of notice is their profitable method of starting with any considerable author1 and going over the whole field in which he worked4 ,the methods and manner of these critics deserve our consideration in many ways4 ,although varying on many points1 yet there is an agreement in criticism upon the main issues1 which seems to indicate1 if not a coterie1 yet a number of contemporary critics who have come to a similar attitude and point of view4 ,worthy of our admiration are the honest and sincere application1 the careful labors1 which they devote to surveying our complex artistic and literary world1 and to looking over it with a just and fair attitude and vision4 ,we shall hope often to be able to return to them and their work4 ,,iv 7#ahbi7 ,,more ,,about ,a ,,world ,,literature ,the ,difficulties ,if a world-literature1 such as is inevitable with the ever-increasing facility of communication1 is to be formed in the near future1 we must expect from it nothing more and nothing different from what it can and does accomplish4 ,the wide world1 extensive as it is1 is only an expanded fatherland1 and will1 if looked at aright1 be able to give us no more than what our home soil can endow us with also4 ,what pleases the crowd spreads itself over a limitless field1 and1 as we already see1 meets approval in all countries and regions4 ,the serious and intellectual meets with less success1 but those who are devoted to higher and more profitable things will learn to know each other more quickly and more intimately4 ,for there are everywhere in the world such men1 to whom the truth and the progress of humanity are of interest and concern4 ,but the road which they pursue1 the pace which they keep1 is not to everybody's liking2 the particularly aggressive wish to advance faster1 and so turn aside1 and prevent the furthering of that which they could promote4 ,the serious-minded must therefore form a quiet1 almost secret1 company1 since it would be futile to set themselves against the current of the day2 rather must they manfully strive to maintain their position till the flood has past4 ,their principal consolation1 and indeed encouragement1 such men must find in the fact that truth is serviceable4 ,if they can discover this relation1 and exhibit its meaning and influence in a vital way1 they will not fail to produce a powerful effect1 indeed one that will extend over a range of years4 ,the ,encouragements ,since it is often profitable to present to the reader not one's bald thought1 but rather to awaken and stimulate his own thinking1 it may be useful to recall the above observation which ,i had occasion to write down some time ago4 ,the question whether this or that occupation to which a man devotes himself is useful recurs often enough in the course of time1 and must come before us especially at this time when it is no longer permitted to any one to live quietly according to his tastes1 satisfied1 moderate1 and without demands upon him4 ,the external world is so importunate and exciting that each one of us is threatened with being carried away in the whirlpool4 ,in order to satisfy his own needs1 each one sees himself compelled to attend almost instantaneously to the requirements of others2 and the question naturally arises whether he has any skill or readiness to satisfy these pressing duties4 ,there seems to be nothing left to us to say than that only the purest and strictest egoism can save us2 but this must be a self-conscious resolution1 thoroughly felt and calmly expressed4 ,let each one ask himself for what he is best fitted1 and let him cultivate this most ardently and wisely in himself and for himself2 let him consider himself successively as apprentice1 as journeyman1 as older journeyman1 and finally1 but with the greatest of circumspection1 as master4 ,if he can1 with discriminating modesty1 increase his demands on the external world only with the growth of his own capabilities1 thus insinuating himself into the world's good graces by being useful1 then he will attain his purpose step by step1 and if he succeeds in reaching the highest level1 will be able to influence men and things with ease4 ,life1 if he studies it closely1 will teach him the opportunities and the hindrances which present or intrude themselves upon him2 but this much the man of practical wisdom will always have before his eyes3--,to tire oneself out for the sake of the favor of to-day brings no profit for to-morrow or after4 ,other ,considerations ,every nation has peculiarities by which it is distinguished from the others1 and it is by these distinguishing traits that nations are also attracted to and repelled from one another4 ,the external expressions of these inner idiosyncrasies appear to the others in most cases strikingly disagreeable1 or1 if endurable1 merely amusing4 ,this is why1 too1 we always respect a nation less than it deserves4 ,the inner traits1 on the other hand1 are not known or recognized1 by foreigners or even by the nation itself2 for the inner nature of a whole nation1 as well as the individual man1 works all unconsciously4 ,at the end we wonder1 we are astounded1 at what appears4 ,these secrets ,i do not pretend to know1 much less to have the cleverness to express them if ,i did4 ,only this much will ,i say1--that1 so far as my insight goes1 the characteristic intellectual and spiritual activity of the ,french is now at its height again1 and for that reason will exercise soon again a great influence on the civilized world4 ,i would gladly say more1 but it leads too far2 one has to be so detailed in order to be understood1 and to make acceptable what one has to say4 99 99 99 99 99 ,it was not merely permissible but highly admirable that a society of ,germans was formed for the special purpose of studying ,german poetry2 since these persons1 as cultured men acquainted with the other fields of ,german literature and politics both generally and in detail1 were well qualified to select and judge works of belles-lettres and use them as a basis for intellectual1 as well as pleasurable and stimulating1 conversation4 ,some one may say that the best literature of a nation cannot be discovered or recognized1 unless one brings home to one's mind the whole complex of its circumstances and social conditions4 ,something of all this can be obtained from the papers1 which give us enough detailed information of public affairs4 ,but this is not enough2 we must add to it what foreigners in their critical journals and reviews are accustomed to say about themselves and about other nations1 particularly the ,germans1--their ideas and opinions1 their interest in and reception of our productions4 ,if one wishes1 for instance1 to acquaint oneself with modern ,french literature1 one should study the lectures which have been given for the last two years and are now appearing in print1--lectures such as ,guizot's ,cours d'histoire moderne1 ,villemain's ,cours de littrature franaise1 and ,cousin's ,cours de l'histoire de la philosophie4 ,the significance they have both at home and for us comes out thus in the clearest fashion4 ,still more effective and interesting are perhaps the frequent numbers and volumes of ,le ,globe1 ,la ,revue franaise1 and the daily1 ,le ,temps4 ,none of these can be spared1 if we are to keep vividly before our eyes both sides of these great movements in ,france and all the subsidiary currents that spring from them4 99 99 99 99 99 ,french poetry1 like ,french literature1 is not distinct in spirit from the life and passions of the nation as a whole4 ,in recent times it appears naturally always as the 8,opposition10 and summons every genius to make the most of his talent in resisting the 8powers that be10 which since they are endowed with force do not need to be intellectual or spiritual4 ,if we follow this verse1 which reveals so much1 we see deep down into the soul of the nation1 and from the way in which they judge us1 more or less favorably1 we can at the same time learn to judge ourselves4 ,and it can do no harm to have some one make us think about ourselves4 ,whoever follows the course proposed above will very quickly become completely informed of all public affairs and semi-public affairs4 ,in our present admirably managed book-trade it is possible to obtain books speedily1 instead of waiting1 as has often been my experience1 until the author takes occasion to send his work as a gift1 so that ,i have often read the book long before ,i received it from him4 ,from all this it is evident that it is no light task to keep in touch with all the literature of the present day4 ,of the ,english1 as well as the ,italian1 ,i shall have to speak again more particularly1 for there is much more to be said4 ,v 7#ahcj7 ,there has been talk for some time of a general world-literature1 and indeed not without justice4 ,for the nations1 after they had been shaken into confusion and mutual conflict by the terrible wars1 could not return to their settled and independent life again without noticing that they had learned many foreign ideas and ways1 which they had unconsciously adopted1 and had come to feel here and there previously unrecognized spiritual and intellectual needs4 ,out of this arose the feeling of neighborly relations1 and1 instead of shutting themselves up as before1 they gradually came to desire the adoption of some sort of more or less free spiritual intercourse4 ,this movement1 it is true1 has lasted only a short time1 but still long enough to start considerable speculation1 and to acquire from it1 as one must always from any kind of foreign trade1 both profit and enjoyment4 ,,on ,,epic ,,and ,,dramatic ,,poetry#f 7#agig7 ,the epic and the dramatic writer are both subject to the universal poetic laws1 especially the law of unity and the law of progressive development4 ,furthermore they both deal with similar subjects and both can use a great variety of motives4 ,the essential difference consists in this1 that an epic poet narrates an event as completely past1 while the dramatist presents it as completely present4 ,if one wished to develop in detail from the nature of man these laws which both have to follow1 one would continually have to keep before his mind a rhapsodist and an actor1 each in the character of a poet1 the former surrounded by a circle of listeners quietly following with rapt attention1 the latter by an impatient throng who have come simply to see and to hear4 ,it would then not be difficult to deduce what is most advantageous to either of these two forms of poetry1 what subjects either will choose preminently1 nor what motives either will make use of most frequently2 as ,i remarked in the beginning1 neither can lay claim to any one thing exclusively4 ,the subject of the epic as well as of tragedy should be based on the purely human1 it should be vital1 and it should make an appeal to one's feelings4 ,the best effect is produced when the characters stand upon a certain plane of cultural advancement1 so that their actions are purely the expression of their personality and are not influenced by moral1 political or mechanical considerations4 ,the myths of the heroic times were especially useful to the poets on these grounds4 ,the epic poem represents more especially action restricted to individuals2 tragedy1 suffering restricted to individuals4 ,the epic poem represents man as an external agent1 engaged in battles1 journeys1 in fact in every possible kind of undertaking1 and so demands a certain elaborateness of treatment4 ,tragedy1 on the other hand1 represents man as an internal agent1 and the action1 therefore1 requires but little space in a genuine tragedy4 ,there are five kinds of motives3 7#a7 ,progressive1 which advance the action4 ,these the drama uses preminently4 7#b7 ,retrogressive1 which draw the action away from its goal4 ,these the epic poem uses almost exclusively4 7#c7 ,retarding1 which delay the progress of the action or lengthen its course4 ,both epic and tragic poetry use these to very great advantage4 7#d7 ,retrospective1 which introduce into the poem events which happened before the time of the poem4 7#e7 ,prospective1 which anticipate what will happen after the time of the poem4 ,the epic as well as the dramatic poet uses the last two kinds of motives to make his poem complete4 ,the worlds which are to be represented are common to both1 namely3-- 7#a7 ,the physical world1 which consists first of all of the immediate world to which the persons represented belong and which surrounds them4 ,in it the dramatist limits himself mostly to one locality1 while the epic poet moves about with greater freedom and in a larger sphere4 ,secondly1 the physical world1 containing the more remote world in which all of nature is included4 ,this world the epic poet1 who appeals exclusively to the imagination1 makes more intelligible through the use of similes and metaphors1 which figures of speech are employed more sparingly by the dramatist4 7#b7 ,the moral world1 which is absolutely common to both1 and1 whether normal or pathological1 is best represented in its simplicity4 7#c7 ,the world of fancies1 forebodings1 apparitions1 chance and fate4 ,this is available to both1 only it must of course be approximated to the world of the senses4 ,in this world there arises a special difficulty for us moderns1 because we cannot easily find substitutes for the fabulous creatures1 gods1 soothsayers and oracles of the ancients1 however much we may desire to4 ,if we consider the manner of treatment as a whole1 we shall find the rhapsodist1 who recites what is completely past1 appearing as a wise man1 with calm deliberation surveying the events4 ,it will be the purpose of his recital to get his hearers into an even frame of mind1 so that they will listen to him long and willingly4 ,he will divide the interest evenly1 because it is impossible for him to counteract quickly a too vivid impression4 ,he will1 according to his pleasure1 go back in point of time or anticipate what is to come4 ,we may follow him everywhere1 for he makes his appeal only to the imagination1 which originates its own images and which is to a certain extent indifferent as to which images are called up4 ,the rhapsodist as a higher being ought not to appear himself in his poem2 he would read best of all behind a curtain1 so that we may separate everything personal from his work1 and may believe we are hearing only the voice of the ,muses4 ,the actor represents the very reverse of this4 ,he presents himself as a definite individuality4 ,it is his desire to have us take interest exclusively in him and in his immediate surroundings1 so that we may feel with him the sufferings of his soul and of his body1 may share his embarrassments and forget ourselves in him4 ,to be sure he1 too1 will proceed by degrees1 but he can risk far more vivid effects1 because by his actual presence before the eyes of the audience he can neutralize a stronger impression even by a weaker one4 ,the senses of spectators and listeners must be constantly stimulated4 ,they must not rise to a contemplative frame of mind1 but must follow eagerly2 their imagination must be completely suppressed2 no demands must be made upon it2 and even what is narrated must be vividly brought before their vision1 as it were1 in terms of action4 ,,footnotes3 #f ,by ,goethe and ,schiller4 ,,supplement ,,to ,,aristotle',s ,,poetics#g 7#ahbg7 ,every one who has concerned himself at all about the theory of poetic art--and of tragedy in particular--will remember a passage in ,aristotle which has caused the commentators much difficulty1 without their ever having been able to convince themselves wholly of its meaning4 ,in his definition of tragedy this great writer seems to demand of it that1 through the representation of stirring deeds and events1 which should arouse pity and fear1 the soul of the spectator should be purified of these passions4 ,my thoughts and convictions in regard to this passage ,i can best impart by a translation of it3-- 8,tragedy is the imitation of a significant and complete action1 which has a certain extension in time and is portrayed in beautiful language by separate individuals1 each of whom plays a rle1 instead of having all represented by one person as in the narration of a story or epic4 ,after a course of events arousing pity and fear1 the action closes with the equilibration of these passions40 ,in the foregoing translation1 ,i believe ,i have made this hitherto dubious passage clear2 it will only be necessary to add the following remarks3 ,could ,aristotle1 notwithstanding his always objective manner1--as1 for instance1 here1 where he seems to be speaking exclusively of the technique of tragedy1--be really thinking of the effect1 indeed the distant effect1 upon the spectator8 ,by no means6 ,he speaks clearly and definitely3 ,when the course of action is one arousing pity and fear1 the tragedy must close on the stage with an equilibration1 a reconciliation1 of these emotions4 ,by 8catharsis10 he understands this reconciling culmination1 which is demanded of all drama1 indeed of all poetical works4 ,this occurs in the tragedy through a kind of human sacrifice1 whether it be rigidly worked out with the death of the victim1 or1 under the influence of a favoring divinity1 be satisfied by a substitute1 as in the case of ,abraham and ,agamemnon4 ,but this reconciliation1 this release1 is necessary at the end if the tragedy is to be a perfect work of art4 ,this release1 on the other hand1 when effected through a favorable or desirable outcome1 rather makes the work resemble an intermediate species of art1 as in the return of ,alcestis4 ,in comedy1 on the contrary1 for the clearing up of all complications1 which in themselves are of little significance from the point of view of arousing fear and hope1 a marriage is usually introduced2 and this1 even if it does not end life completely1 does make in it an important and serious break4 ,nobody wants to die1 everybody to marry2 and in this lies the half-jocose1 half-serious difference between tragedy and comedy in practical sthetics4 ,we shall perceive further that the ,greeks did make use of their 8trilogy0 for such a purpose2 for there is no loftier 8catharsis0 than the dipus of ,kolonus1 where a half-guilty delinquent1--a man who1 through a demonic strain in his nature1 through the sombre vehemence as well as greatness of his character1 and through a headstrong course of action1 puts himself at the mercy of the ever-inscrutable1 unalterable powers1--plunges himself and his family into the deepest1 irreparable misery1 and yet finally1 after having made atonement and reparation1 is raised to the company of the gods1 as the auspicious protecting spirit of a region1 revered with special sacrifices and services4 ,here we find the principle of the great master1 that the hero of a tragedy must be regarded and represented neither as wholly guilty nor as wholly innocent4 ,in the first case the catharsis would merely result from the nature of the story1 and the murdered wretch would appear only to have escaped the common justice which would have fallen upon him anyway by law4 ,in the second case1 it is not feasible either2 for then there would seem to fall on human power or fate the weight of an all too heavy burden of injustice4 ,but on this subject ,i do not wish to wax polemical1 any more than on any other2 ,i have only to point out here how up to the present time people have been inclined to put up with a dubious interpretation of this passage4 ,aristotle had said in the ,politics that music could be made use of in education for ethical purposes1 since by means of the sacred melodies the minds of those raised to frenzy by the orgies were quieted and soothed again2 thus he thought other emotions and passions could be calmed and equilibrated4 ,that the argument here is from analogous cases we cannot deny2 yet we think they are not identical4 ,the effect of music depends on its particular character1 as ,handel has worked out in his 8,alexander's ,feast10 and as we can see evidenced at every ball1 where perhaps after a chaste and dignified polonaise1 a waltz is played and whirls the whole company of young people away in a bacchic frenzy4 ,for music1 like all the arts1 has little power directly to influence morality1 and it is always wrong to demand such results from them4 ,philosophy and ,religion alone can accomplish this4 ,if piety and duty must be stimulated1 the arts can only casually effect this stimulation4 ,what they can accomplish1 however1 is a softening of crude manners and morals2 yet even this may1 on the other hand1 soon degenerate into effeminacy4 ,whoever is on the path of a truly moral and spiritual self-cultivation1 will feel and acknowledge that tragedy and tragic romance do not quiet and satisfy the mind1 but rather tend to unsettle the emotions and what we call the heart1 and induce a vague1 unquiet mood4 ,youth is apt to love this mood and is for that reason passionately devoted to such productions4 ,we now return to our original point1 and repeat3 ,aristotle speaks of the technique of tragedy1 in the sense that the poet1 making it the object of his attention1 contrives to create something pleasing to eye and ear in a course of a completed action4 ,if the poet has fulfilled this purpose and his duty on his side1 tying together his knots of meaning and unraveling them again1 the same process will pass before the mind of the spectator2 the complications will perplex him1 the solution enlighten him1 but he will not go home any the better for it all4 ,he will be inclined perhaps1 if he is given to reflection1 to be amazed at the state of mind in which he finds himself at home again--just as frivolous1 as obstinate1 as zealous1 as weak1 as tender or as cynical as he was when he went out4 ,on this point we believe we have said all we can until a further working out of the whole subject makes it possible to understand it more clearly4 ,,footnotes3 #g 8,i have just re-read the ,poetics of ,aristotle with the greatest pleasure2 intelligence in its highest manifestation is a fine thing4 ,it is really remarkable how ,aristotle limits himself entirely to experience1 and so appears1 if perhaps somewhat material1 for the most part all the more solid4 ,it was also stimulating to me to see with what liberality he always shields the poet against the fault-finders and the hypercritical1 how he always insists on essentials1 and in everything else is so lax that in more than one place ,i was simply amazed4 ,it is this that makes his whole view of poetry1 and especially of his favorite forms1 so vivifying that ,i shall soon take up the book again1 especially in regard to some important passages which are not quite clear and the meaning of which ,i wish to investigate further40--,goethe to ,schiller1 ,april #bh1 #agig4 ,,on ,,the ,,german ,,theatre 7#ahae7 ,now that the ,german stage1 as one of our best national institutions1 is emerging from an unfortunate narrowness and seclusion into freedom and vitality1 wise directors are exerting themselves to produce an effect on a wide public1 and not to confine themselves1 however earnestly1 to any single institution4 ,poets1 actors1 managers1 and public will come to a better and better' mutual understanding1 but in the gratification of the moment they must not forget what their predecessors accomplished4 ,only upon a repertory which includes older plays can a national theatre be founded4 ,i hope that the following words will have a favorable reception1 so that the author's courage will be stimulated and he will come forward from time to time with similar suggestions4 ,a ,plan of ,schiller's1 and ,what ,came of ,it ,when the lamented ,schiller1 through the influence of the court1 the solicitations of society1 and the inclinations of his friends1 was moved to change his place of residence from ,jena to ,weimar1 and to renounce that seclusion in which until then he had wrapt himself1 he had the theatre at ,weimar particularly in his mind1 and he decided to devote his attention carefully and closely to the productions there4 ,and such a narrowing of his field the poet needed1 for his extraordinary genius from his youth up had sought the heights and the depths4 ,the power of his imagination1 his poetical activity1 had led him over a great range2 but in spite of the ardor with which his mind traversed this broad range1 with further experience it could not escape his clear insight that these qualities must necessarily lead him astray in the field of the theatre4 ,at ,jena his friends had been witness to the perseverance and resolute determination with which he occupied himself with 8,wallenstein40 ,this subject1 which kept expanding at the hands of his genius1 was worked out1 knit together1 revised1 in numerous ways1 until he saw at last that it would be necessary to divide the piece into three parts1 as was thereupon done4 ,and afterwards he did not cease to make alterations1 in order that the principal scenes might acquire all the effect that was possible4 ,the result was1 however1 that the ,death of ,wallenstein was given oftener on all stages than the ,camp and the ,piccolomini4 ,don ,carlos had been condensed still earlier for the stage2 and whoever will compare this play1 as it is produced1 with the earlier printed edition1 will recognize the same laborious changes4 ,for though ,schiller in sketching out the plan of his work felt bound by no limitations1 in a later revision for theatrical purposes he had the courage1 as a result of his convictions1 to adapt it stringently1 yes even mercilessly1 to the practical exigencies of the situation4 ,these meant a definite limitation of time2 all the principal scenes had to pass before the eyes of the audience in a certain period of time4 ,all the other scenes he omitted1 and yet he could never really confine himself to the space of three hours4 ,the ,robbers1 ,intrigue and ,love1 ,fiesco1 productions of an aggressive youthful impatience and indignation at a severe and confining training1 had to undergo many alterations for the stage-production which was eagerly demanded by the public and especially the young men4 ,about them all he would speculate whether it was not possible to assimilate them to a more refined taste1 a taste such as he had trained himself since to feel4 ,on this point he was accustomed to take long and detailed counsel with himself1 in long sleepless nights1 and sometimes on pleasant evenings in talks with his friends4 ,could these discussions and suggestions have been preserved by a shorthand writer1 we should have possessed a noteworthy contribution to productive criticism4 ,but even more valuable will discerning readers find ,schiller's own remarks about the projected and indeed commenced 8,demetrius10 which fine example of penetrating and critical creative ability is preserved for us in the supplement to his works4 ,the three plays mentioned above1 however1 we decided not to touch1 for what is offensive in them is too closely bound up with their contents and form2 and we had to trust to fortune in transmitting them to posterity just as they had sprung from a powerful and bizarre genius4 ,schiller1 finely matured1 had not attended many performances1 when his active mind1 considering the situation and taking a comprehensive view of things1 got the idea that what had been done to his own works could be done in the case of other men's4 ,so he drew up a plan whereby the work of earlier playwrights might be preserved for the ,german theatre1 without prejudice to contemporary writers1--the accepted material1 the contents of the works chosen1 to be adapted to a form which should be partly determined by the requirements of the stage and partly by the ideas and spirit of the present time4 ,for these reasons he decided to devote the hours which were left him from his own work to constructing plans1 in company with congenial friends1 whereby plays which had a significance for our age might be revised1 and a true ,german ,theatre founded1--not only for the benefit of the reader1 who would come to know famous plays from a new standpoint1 but also for the benefit of the numerous theatres of ,germany1 which would be given the opportunity of strengthening their repertories by laying a solid foundation of older works under the ephemeral productions of the day4 ,in order then to found the ,german ,theatre on true ,german soil1 it was ,schiller's intention to revise ,klopstock's ,hermanns ,schlacht4 ,the play was taken up1 but the first consideration of it produced much doubt in his mind4 ,schiller's judgment was in general very liberal1 but at the same time independent and critical4 ,the ideal demands which ,schiller according to his nature was obliged to make were not satisfied1 and the piece was soon laid aside4 ,present-day criticism requires no hints in order to discover the grounds for the decision4 ,towards ,lessing's work ,schiller had a singular attitude4 ,he did not care particularly for it1--indeed1 ,emilia ,galotti was repugnant to him4 ,yet this tragedy as well as ,minna von ,barnhelm was accepted in the repertory4 ,he then devoted himself to ,nathan der ,weise1 and in this revision1 in which he was glad to have the coperation of discerning friends1 the piece is played to this day1 and it will be retained on the boards1 because able actors will always be found who feel themselves equal to the rle of ,nathan4 ,and may the ,german public remember always that it is called not only to witness this well-known piece1 so excellently staged1 but also to hear it and to understand it6 ,may there never come a time when the divine spirit of toleration and forbearance contained in it will cease to be sacred to the nation4 ,the presence of the distinguished ,iffland in #agif gave occasion for the shortening of ,egmont to the form in which it is now given here and in several places at present4 ,that ,schiller rather mutilated it in his revision is indicated by a comparison of the following scenes with the printed play itself4 ,the public was annoyed at the omission of the ,princess1 for instance2 yet there is in ,schiller's work such a consistency that no one has dared to attempt to alter the piece for fear that other errors and misadjustments might creep into its present form4 ,egmont 7,first ,act7 ,in an open square1 cross-bow shooters4 ,one of ,egmont's men is being elevated to the post of captain1 through his skill in shooting1 and his health and that of the lord are being drunk2 public affairs are discussed1 and the characters of distinguished persons4 ,the disposition of the people begins to show itself4 ,other citizens come in2 unrest is revealed4 ,a lawyer joins them1 and begins to discuss the liberties of the people4 ,dissent and quarrels follow4 ,egmont enters1 quiets his men1 and threatens the trouble-maker4 ,he exhibits himself as an honored and popular prince4 7,second ,act7 ,egmont and his private secretary1 through whose discourse one catches a glimpse of the liberal1 independent1 audacious spirit of the hero4 ,orange attempts to inculcate caution into his friend1 and since word has come of the arrival of the ,duke of ,alva1 tries to persuade him to flee2 but all in vain4 7,third ,act7 ,the citizens in fear of the impending danger2 the lawyer foretells ,egmont's fate2 the ,spanish watch enters1 and the people scatter4 ,in a room in one of the houses we find ,klaerchen thinking of her love for ,egmont4 ,she seeks to spurn the affection of her lover ,brackenburg1 then proceeds with mingled pleasure and dread to think of her relations with ,egmont2 he enters1 and all is joy and happiness4 7,fourth ,act7 ,the ,palace4 ,alva's character becomes evident through his measures2 ,ferdinand1 his natural son1 who is attracted by the personality of ,egmont1 is ordered to take him prisoner1 in order that he himself may become accustomed to tyranny4 ,egmont and ,alva in conversation2 the former frank and open1 the latter reserved and at the same time tries to irritate ,egmont4 ,the latter is arrested4 ,brackenburg on the street2 twilight4 ,klaerchen wishes to incite the citizens to liberate ,egmont1 but they withdraw in alarm2 ,brackenburg1 alone with ,klaerchen1 attempts to calm her1 but in vain4 7,fifth ,act7 ,klaerchen alone in a room4 ,brackenburg brings the news of preparations for ,egmont's execution4 ,klaerchen takes poison1 ,brackenburg rushes away1 the lamp goes out1 signifying that ,klaerchen has passed away4 ,the prison1 ,egmont alone4 ,the sentence of death is announced to him4 ,scene with ,ferdinand1 his young friend4 ,egmont1 alone1 falls asleep4 ,vision of ,klaerchen in the background4 ,he is waked by drums1 and follows the watch1 almost with the air of the commander himself4 ,concerning the last appearance of ,klaerchen1 opinions are divided2 ,schiller was opposed to it1 the author in favor of it2 the public will not allow it to be omitted4 99 99 99 99 99 ,since the present discussion does not attempt to deal with plays chronologically but with reference to other considerations1 and particularly from the standpoint of author and adapter1 ,i shall turn next to ,stella1 which also owes its appearance in the theatre to ,schiller4 ,since the action of the piece is unimpassioned and smooth1 he left it substantially unchanged1 only shortening the dialogue here and there1 especially when it seemed to be passing from the dramatic to the idyllic and elegiac4 ,for just as there may be too many incidents in a piece1 so there may be too great an expression of feeling4 ,so ,schiller resisted the enticements of many charming passages and struck them relentlessly out4 ,well-staged1 the piece was presented on ,january #ae1 #ahjf1 for the first time1 and repeated4 ,it soon became evident that1 according to our customs1 which are founded strictly on monogamy1 the relation of a man to two wives1 especially as it appeared in this play1 was not to be reconciled1 and for that reason was only fit material for tragedy4 ,for that reason the attempt of the intelligent ,cecilie to harmonize the incongruities proved futile4 ,the piece took a tragic turn1 and ended in a way that satisfied the emotions and elevated the feelings4 ,at present the piece is quite competently acted1 and consequently receives the most unqualified applause4 ,but a sweeping assurance of this kind can hardly be of practical utility to the playhouses which intend to put on the piece2 and ,i therefore add in detail some further and necessary considerations4 ,the rle of ,fernando every actor1 not too young1 will be glad to undertake1 actors1 that is1 who are fitted to heroic or lovers' rles1 and they will try to express with all the emotion and effect possible1 the impassioned dilemma in which they are placed4 ,the allotment of the feminine rles is more difficult4 ,there are five of them1--carefully differentiated and contrasted characters4 ,the actress who undertakes the rle of ,stella must depict to us not only her indestructible affection1 her passionate love1 her glowing enthusiasm1 but must also make us share her feeling1 and carry us along with her4 ,cecilie1 who at first appears weak and repressed1 must soon leave this all behind her1 and appear before us as a high-spirited heroine of courage and intelligence4 ,lucia represents a person who in the midst of an easy and comfortable life has cultivated her talents independently1 does not feel the outer pressures which force themselves upon her1 but rather casts them off4 ,not a trace of priggishness or conceit should appear4 ,the postmistress is no quarrelsome old woman1 but a young1 cheerful1 active widow1 who would like to marry again only in order to be better obeyed4 ,ann1 if possible1 should be acted by a little child4 ,in the mouth of a child1 if she speaks clearly1 the decisiveness of what she has to say sounds extremely well4 ,if the proper contrasts and shading are given to all these characters1 this tragedy will not miss its effect4 ,the first act1 which portrays external life1 should be mastered with extraordinary care and thoroughness1 and even the unimportant incidents ought to betray a certain artistic fitness4 ,the sounding of the posthorn twice1 for instance1 produces an agreeable and even artistic effect4 ,the steward also should not be impersonated by a mediocre but by an excellent actor1 who will play the rle of the kindly old man called to a lover's aid4 ,if one considers the incredible advantage which the composer has in being able to indicate in his score all his wishes and intentions by a thousand words and signs1 one will pardon the dramatic poet also if he seeks to enjoin upon the directors and managers what he holds indispensable for the success of his work4 ,die ,laune des ,verliebten was produced at the theatre in ,march1 #ahje1 just when this little piece was forty years old4 ,in it everything depends on the rle of ,egle4 ,if a versatile actress can be found who expresses the character perfectly1 then the piece is safe1 and is witnessed with pleasure4 ,one of our most agreeable and charming actresses1 who was going to ,breslau1 took it to the theatre there4 ,an ingenious writer made use of the idea of the character and composed several pieces with this motive for the actress4 ,stella is also at present well received in ,berlin4 ,here ,i venture to make an observation which seems to me worth careful consideration on the part of stage-managers4 ,if one tries to discover just why certain pieces1 to which some worth is not to be denied1 either are never produced or else1 even when they make a good impression for a time1 yet little by little disappear from the boards1 one will find that the cause lies neither with the piece nor with the public1 but that the necessary actors are lacking4 ,for this reason it is advisable that pieces should not be laid entirely aside or dropped from the repertory4 ,rather let them be kept constantly in mind1 even if there is no opportunity to give them for years4 ,then when the time comes that the rles can be adequately filled again1 one does not lose the chance of making an excellent impression4 ,thus1 for instance1 the ,german theatre would experience a great change if a figure like the famous ,seylerin should appear1 with a genuine dramatic talent trained according to our modern requirements4 ,speedily would ,medea1 ,semiramis1 ,agrippina and other heroines1 which we think of as so colossal1 be resurrected from the grave2 other rles besides would be transformed4 ,think only of such a figure as ,orsina1 and ,emilia ,galotti is quite another play2 the ,prince is exonerated as soon as one realizes that so powerful and imperious a person is the encumbrance upon his shoulders4 ,we turn now to the ,mitschuldigen4 ,that it has a certain dramatic value may be inferred from the fact that1 at a time when all ,german actors seemed afraid of rhythm and rhyme1 it was turned into prose and produced at the theatre1 where it could not maintain itself because a principal feature1 the poetic rhythm and the rhyme1 was lacking4 ,but now1 when the actors are more skilled in both1 this attempt could be made4 ,some of its crudities were removed1 some archaic touches modernized1 and thus it continues to hold the boards still if the cast is good4 ,it was put on at the same time as ,die ,laune des ,verliebten1 in ,march1 #ahje4 ,schiller made many suggestions for the production1 but he did not live to see the ,raetsel produced in ,september of the same year4 ,this had a great success1 but the author desired to remain anonymous for a long time4 ,afterwards1 however1 he published a sequel1 and the two pieces help to support each other4 ,let us not hesitate in the ,german theatre1 where there appears so much variety besides1 to place side by side pieces of similar motive and atmosphere1 in order that we may at least give a certain breadth to the different departments of dramatic production4 ,iphigenia1 not without some abbreviation1 was put on the ,weimar stage as early as #ahjb2 ,tasso first in #ahjg after a long and quiet preparation4 ,both plays continue to hold the boards1 with the support of actors and actresses who are exceptionally excellent and well adapted to the rles4 ,finally we shall mention ,goetz von ,berlichingen1 which was produced for the first time in ,september1 #ahjd4 ,although ,schiller himself would not undertake this new revision1 he coperated in every possible way1 and was able by his bold resolution to facilitate for the author many a point of revision2 from the beginning to the final production he was most influential and effective both in word and deed4 ,since it is produced at few theatres1 it may be worth while to relate here briefly the action of the piece1 and to point out in general the principles according to which this revision was made4 ,goetz von ,berlichingen 7,first ,act7 ,by the insults which are accorded his servants by some peasants in the inn at ,bamberg1 we learn of the hostility between ,goetz and the ,bishop4 ,some horsemen in the service of this knight enter and relate that ,weislingen1 the ,bishop's right-hand man1 is in the neighborhood4 ,they hurry away to notify their master4 ,goetz appears in front of a hut in the woods1 alert and listening4 ,a stable-boy1 ,george1 declares himself a future hero4 ,brother ,martin expresses envy of the soldiers1 husband1 and father4 ,the servants come in with the news1 ,goetz hastens away1 and the boy is quieted by the present of a saint's picture4 ,at ,jaxthausen1 ,goetz's castle1 we find his wife1 sister and son4 ,the former exhibits herself as a capable noblewoman1 the latter as a tender-hearted woman1 the son as rather effeminate4 ,faud brings word that ,weislingen is captured and ,goetz is bringing him in4 ,the women go out2 the two knights enter2 by ,goetz's frank demeanor and the narration of old stories1 ,weislingen's heart is touched4 ,maria and ,karl come in2 the child invites them to sit down at table1 ,maria asks them to be friends4 ,the knights give each other their hands1 ,maria stands between them4 7,second ,act7 ,maria and ,weislingen enter4 ,they have become lovers4 ,goetz and ,elizabeth appear2 they are all busy with hopes and plans4 ,weislingen is happy in his new situation4 ,franz1 ,weislingen's lad1 comes from ,bamberg and awakes old memories2 he also draws a picture of the dangerous ,adelaide of ,walldorf4 ,his passion for this lady is not to be mistaken1 and we begin to fear that he will carry away his master with him4 ,hans von ,selbitz comes in1 representing himself to the ,lady ,elizabeth as a merry knight-errant4 ,goetz gives him welcome4 ,the news that merchants from ,nuremberg are passing by to the fair is brought in2 they go out4 ,in the forest we find the merchants from ,nuremberg2 they are fallen upon and robbed4 ,through ,george1 ,goetz learns that ,weislingen has left him4 ,goetz is inclined to work off his chagrin on the captured merchants1 but he is moved to give back a jewel-box which a lover is taking to his mistress2 for ,goetz thinks with sadness how he must break the news to his sister of the loss of her betrothed4 7,third ,act7 ,two merchants appear in the pleasure-gardens at ,augsburg4 ,maximilian1 vexed1 refuses to see them4 ,weislingen encourages them1 and makes use of the opportunity to influence the ,emperor against ,goetz and other unruly knights4 ,here the relations between ,weislingen and his wife ,adelaide develop2 she compels him unconditionally to promote her ambitions4 ,the growing passion of ,franz for her1 the wanton arts used to seduce him1 become apparent4 ,we now return to ,jaxthausen4 ,sickingen woos ,maria4 ,selbitz brings the news that ,goetz is declared an outlaw4 ,they seize weapons4 ,lerse is announced2 ,goetz receives him joyfully4 ,we are now on a mountain2 wide view1 ruined tower1 castle and rocks4 ,a gipsy family is here seeking protection from the dangers of the military campaign and the unrest of the country4 ,they serve to give coherence to the following scenes4 ,the captain of the ,imperial troops enters1 gives his orders1 makes himself comfortable4 ,the gipsies cajole him4 ,george comes suddenly upon the summit2 ,selbitz is brought in wounded1 having been attacked by servants of the ,emperor1 and rescued by ,lerse4 ,he is visited by ,goetz4 7,fourth ,act7 ,jaxthausen4 ,maria and ,sickingen1 with them the victorious ,goetz4 ,he is afraid that he will be surrounded4 ,maria and ,sickingen are married2 ,goetz persuades them to leave the castle4 ,summons1 a siege1 brave resistance1 the family table once more2 ,lerse brings news of a capitulation2 treachery4 ,weislingen's and ,adelaide's dwelling in ,augsburg4 ,night4 ,adelaide's masked ball4 ,it is noticeable that the ,archduke is her centre of interest at this occasion2 but she is able to silence the jealous ,franz and use him for her purposes4 ,tavern at ,heilbronn4 ,the ,town ,hall there4 ,goetz's daring and boldness4 ,sickingen releases him4 ,the familiar scenes are left in4 7,fifth ,act7 ,a wood4 ,goetz and ,george lying in wait for a wild animal4 ,it is painfully evident out here that ,goetz cannot cross his boundaries4 ,we realize the mischief of the peasant war4 ,the monster advances2 ,max ,stumpf1 whom they have dragged along with them as a guide and leader1 decides to leave them and the position4 ,goetz1 half persuaded1 half compelled1 yields1 announces himself as their captain for four weeks and breaks his ban4 ,the peasants are divided in spirit1 and the devil is loose4 ,weislingen appears at the head of knights and soldiers against the rebels1 in order especially to capture ,goetz1 and thus free himself from the hateful feeling of inferiority4 ,relations with his wife are very strained2 ,franz's overwhelming passion becomes more and more evident4 ,goetz and ,george in the painful situation of being associated and implicated with rebels4 ,a secret judgment is issued against him4 ,goetz flees to the gipsies and is captured by the ,imperial troops4 ,adelaide's palace4 ,the adventuress parts with the happy youth1 after she has prevailed upon him to bring poison to her husband4 ,an apparition appears2 a powerful scene follows4 ,from these dismal surroundings1 we pass to a bright spring garden4 ,maria is sleeping in a bower of flowers4 ,lerse comes to her1 and rouses her to beg ,weislingen for her brother's life4 ,weislingen's palace4 ,the dying man1 with ,maria and ,franz4 ,goetz's sentence to death is revoked1 and we leave the dying hero in the prison garden4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the principles of the earlier revisions were again applied in this case4 ,the number of scene-changes was lessened1 securing more opportunity for the development of the characters1 the action was condensed1 and1 though with many sacrifices1 the play finally approximated genuine dramatic form4 ,why it has not in this form spread more widely on the ,german stage will be eventually understood1 ,i presume1 since critics are not disinclined to give accounts of the reception on the stage of the plays of the various ,german authors1 the treatment they receive and the length of time their pieces last4 ,if these remarks are favorably received1 we shall probably discuss next the introduction of foreign plays1 such as has already taken place at the ,weimar ,theatre4 ,this includes ,greek and ,french1 ,english1 ,italian and ,spanish plays1 besides the comedies of ,terence and ,plautus1 in which masks are made use of4 ,most necessary would it be perhaps to discuss ,shakespeare and combat the prejudice that the works of this extraordinary writer should be given in the ,german ,theatre in their complete length and breadth4 ,this false idea has meant the suppression of the older revisions of ,schroeder1 and prevented others from prospering4 ,it must be emphatically insisted1 and with solid reason1 that in this case as in so many others the reader must be distinguished from and part company with the spectator2 each has his rights1 and neither should be permitted to injure the other's4 ,,ludwig ,,tieck',s ,,dramaturgic ,,fragments 7#ahbf7 ,my mind has been stimulated in many ways by this noteworthy book4 ,as a dramatic poet1 as a writer who by extensive travels and by personal observation and study of foreign theatres has qualified himself as a critic of insight and knowledge in connection with our native theatre1 and as one who by scholarly study has fitted himself to be a historian of past and present times1 the author has an assured position with the ,german public1 which is here especially evident and notable4 ,in him1 criticism rests upon pleasure1 pleasure upon knowledge1 and these criteria1 which are usually thought of as distinct1 are here fused into a satisfying whole4 ,his reverence for ,kleist is highly praiseworthy4 ,as far as ,i am personally concerned1 in spite of the sincerest desire to appreciate him justly1 ,kleist always arouses in me horror and aversion1 as of a body intended by nature to be beautiful1 but seized by an incurable illness4 ,tieck is the very reverse2 he dwells rather upon the good that has been left by nature2 the deformity he puts aside1 excusing much more than he blames4 ,for1 after all1 this man of genius deserves only our pity2 on this point we do reach agreement4 ,i also agree with him willingly when1 as champion for the unity1 indivisibility and inviolability of ,shakespeare's plays1 he wants to have them put on the stage without revision or modification from beginning to end4 ,when ten years ago ,i was of the contrary opinion1 and made more than one attempt to select only the particularly effective parts of ,shakespeare's plays1 rejecting the disturbing and the diffuse1 ,i was quite right1 as director of the theatre1 in doing so4 ,for ,i had had experience in tormenting myself and the actors for the space of a month1 and of finally putting on a production which indeed entertained and aroused admiration1 but which on account of conditions hardly possible to fulfil more than once1 could not maintain its place in the repertory4 ,still ,i am perfectly willing that such attempts should here and there be made1 for1 on the whole1 failure does no harm4 ,since men are not to get rid of longing and aspiration1 it is salutary for them to direct their unsatisfied idealism towards some definite object1 to work1 for instance1 towards depicting a mighty though vanished past seriously and worthily in the present4 ,now actors as well as poets and readers have the opportunity to study and see ,shakespeare1 and1 through their endeavors to attain the unattainable1 disclose the true inner capabilities and potentialities of their own nature4 ,though in these respects ,i completely approve of the valuable efforts of my old co-worker1 ,i must confess that ,i differ from him in some of his utterances2 as1 for instance1 that 8,lady ,macbeth is a tender1 loving soul1 and as such should be played40 ,i do not consider such remarks to be really the author's opinion1 but rather paradoxes1 which in view of the weighty authority of our author can only work great harm4 ,it is in the nature of the case1 and ,tieck himself has presented significant illustrations of the fact1 that an actor who does not feel himself to be quite in agreement with the conventional portrayal1 may in clever fashion modify and adjust it to himself and his own nature1 and fit the new interpretation so well as to provide1 as it were1 a new and brilliant creation1 and indemnify us for the clever fiction with unexpected and delightful new grounds of comparison and contrast4 ,this we must admit as valid2 but we cannot approve the case where the theorist makes certain intimations to the actor1 whereby the latter is led astray to portray the rle in a new manner and style against the obvious intention of the poet4 ,from many viewpoints such an undertaking is questionable4 ,the public is looking for authority always2 and it is right4 ,for do we not act similarly in taking counsel in joy and sorrow with those who are well versed in the wisdom of art and of life8 ,whoever then has acquired any legitimate authority in any field should strive1 by continual assiduity in holding close to the line of the true and the right1 to preserve that authority in inviolable sanctity4 ,an important paper is ,tieck's explanation of the ,piccolomini and the ,wallenstein4 ,i saw these plays develop from beginning to end1 and ,i am filled with admiration at the degree of penetration which he shows in treating a work which1 although one of the most excellent not only on the ,german stage but on all stages1 yet in itself is unequal1 and for that reason often fails to satisfy the critic1 although the crowd1 which does not take the separate parts with such strictness1 is necessarily charmed with it as a whole4 ,most of the places where ,tieck finds something to criticize1 ,i find reason to consider as pathological4 ,if ,schiller had not been suffering from a long wasting disease1 which finally killed him1 the whole thing would have been different4 ,our correspondence1 which relates in the clearest way the circumstances under which ,wallenstein was written1 will stimulate thoughtful people to much profitable reflection1 and persuade them to think ever more seriously how closely our sthetics is connected with physiology1 pathology1 and physics3 in this way they may realize the light which these sciences throw upon the conditions to which individuals as well as whole nations1 the most extensive world-epochs as well as daily affairs1 are subjected4 ,,on ,,didactic ,,poetry 7#ahbg7 ,didactic poetry is not a distinct poetic style or genre in the same sense as the lyric1 epic1 and dramatic4 ,every one will understand this who recognizes that the latter differ in form1 and therefore didactic poetry1 which derives its name from its content1 cannot be put in the same category4 ,all poetry should be instructive1 but unobviously so4 ,it should draw the attention of a reader to the idea which is of value to be imparted2 but he himself must draw the lesson out of it1 as he does out of life4 ,didactic or schoolmasterly poetry is a hybrid between poetry and rhetoric4 ,for that reason1 as it approximates now one and now the other1 it is able to possess more or less of poetic value4 ,but1 like descriptive and satirical poetry1 it is always a secondary and subordinate species1 which in a true sthetic is always placed between the art of poetry and the art of speech4 ,the intrinsic worth of didactic poetry1 that is to say1 of an edifying art-work1 written with charm and vigor1 and graced with rhythm and melody and the ornament of imaginative power1 is for that reason in no way lessened4 ,from the rhymed chronicles1 from the verse-maxims of the old pedagogues1 down to the best of this class1 all have their value1 considered in their place and taken at their proper worth4 ,if one examines the matter closely and without prejudice1 it strikes one that didactic poetry is valuable for the sake of its popular appeal4 ,even the most talented poet should feel himself honored to have treated in this style a chapter of useful knowledge4 ,the ,english have some highly praiseworthy examples of this style4 ,with jest and seriousness they curry favor with the crowd1 and then discuss in explanatory notes whatever the reader must know in order to understand the poem4 ,the teacher in the field of sthetics1 ethics1 or history has a fine chance to systematize and clarify this chapter and acquaint his students with the merit of the best works of this kind1 not according to the utility of their contents1 but with reference to the greater or less degree of their poetical value4 ,this subject should properly be quite omitted from a course on sthetics1 but for the sake of those who have studied poetry and rhetoric1 it might be presented in special lectures1 perhaps public4 ,here a true comprehension1 as everywhere1 will prove of great advantage to practice2 for many people will grasp the difficulty of weaving together a piece out of knowledge and imagination1 of binding two opposed elements together into a living bodily whole4 ,the lecturer should reveal the means by which this reconciliation can be made1 and his auditors1 thereby guarded against mistakes1 might each attempt in his own way to produce a similar effect4 ,among the many ways and means of effecting such a fusion1 good humor is the most certain1 and could also be considered the most suitable1 were pure humor not so rare4 ,no more singular undertaking could easily be thought of than to turn the geology of a district into a didactic1 and indeed highly imaginative1 poem2 yet this is what a member of the ,geological ,society of ,london has done1 in an attempt to popularize in this way a subject1 and promote a study usually insufferable to the thought of travelers4 ,,superstition ,,and ,,poetry 7#ahbc7 ,superstition is the poetry of life2 both build an imaginary world1 and between the things of the actual1 palpable world they anticipate the most marvelous connections4 ,sympathy and antipathy govern everywhere4 ,poetry is ever freeing itself from such fetters as it arbitrarily imposes upon itself2 superstition1 on the contrary1 can be compared to the magic cords which draw together ever the tighter1 the more one struggles against them4 ,the time of greatest enlightenment is not secure from it2 let it strike an uncultured century or epoch1 and the clouded mind of poor humanity begins to strive after the impossible1 to endeavor to have intercourse with and influence the supernatural1 the far-distant1 the future4 ,a numerous world of marvels it constructs for itself1 surrounded with a circle of darkness and gloom4 ,such clouds hang over whole centuries1 and grow thicker and thicker4 ,the imagination broods over a waste of sensuality2 reason seems to have turned back like ,astra to its divine origin2 wisdom is in despair1 since she has no means of successfully asserting her rights4 ,superstition does not harm the poet1 for he knows how to make its half-truths1 to which he gives only a literary validity1 count in manifold ways for good4 ,,the ,,methods ,,of ,,french ,,criticism ,i 7#ahag7 ,a wealth of terms for unfavorable criticism3-- ,a4 abandonne1 absurde1 arrogance1 astuce4 ,b4 bafou1 bte1 btise1 bouffissure1 bouquin1 bourgeois1 boursouflure1 boutade1 bris1 brutalit4 ,c4 cabale1 cagot1 canaille1 carcan1 clique1 contraire1 crature4 ,d4 dclamatoire1 dcri1 dgot1 dnigrement1 dpourvu1 dpray1 dsobligeant1 dtestable1 diabolique1 dur4 ,e4 choppe1 enflure1 engouement1 ennui1 ennuyeux1 norme1 entortill1 phmres1 pluch1 espce1 tourneau4 ,f4 factice1 fadaise1 faible1 fainant1 fan1 fastidieux1 fatigant1 fatuit1 faux1 forc1 fou1 fourr1 friperie1 frivole1 furieux4 ,g4 gte1 gauchement1 gaucher1 grimace1 grossier1 grossirement4 ,h4 haillons1 honntement1 honte1 horreur4 ,i4 imbcile1 impertinence1 impertinent1 impuissant1 incorrection1 indcis1 indtermin1 indiffrence1 indignits1 ingalit1 ingurissable1 insipide1 insipidit1 insoutenable1 intolrant1 jouets1 irrflchi4 ,l4 laquais1 lger1 lsine1 louche1 lourd4 ,m4 maladresse1 manque1 maroud1 mauvais1 mdiocre1 mpris1 mprise1 mignardise1 mordant4 ,n4 nglig1 ngligence1 noirceur1 non-soin4 ,o4 odieux4 ,p4 passable1 pauvret1 pnible1 petites-maisons1 peupropre1 pie-griche1 pitoyable1 plat1 platitude1 pompeux1 prcieux1 purilits4 ,r4 rapsodie1 ratatin1 rebattu1 rchauff1 redondance1 rtrci1 rvoltant1 ridicule1 roquet4 ,s4 sans succs1 sifflets1 singerie1 somnifre1 soporifique1 sottise1 subalterne4 ,t4 terrass1 tombe1 trane1 travers1 triste4 ,v4 vague1 vex1 vide1 vieillerie1 volumineux4 ,a scanty store for praise3-- ,a4 anim1 applaudie4 ,b4 brillant4 ,c4 charmant1 correct4 ,e4 esprit4 ,f4 facile1 finesse4 ,g4 got1 grce1 gracieux1 grave4 ,i4 invention1 justesse4 ,l4 lger1 lgret1 libre4 ,n4 nombreux4 ,p4 piquant1 prodigieux1 pur4 ,r4 raisonnable4 ,s4 spirituel4 ,v4 verve4 8,words are the image of the soul2 yet not an image1 but rather a shadow6 ,expressing roughly1 and signifying gently1 all that we have1 all that we have had in our experience6 ,what was1--where has it gone8 and what is that which is with us now8 ,ah6 we speak6 ,swiftly we catch and seize the gifts of life as they fleet by us40 99 99 99 99 99 ,the insight and character of a man express themselves most clearly in his judgments4 ,in what he rejects1 and what he accepts1 he confesses to what is alien to him and what he has need of2 and so each year designates unconsciously its present spiritual state1 the compass of its past life4 ,thus is it also with nations2 their praise and censure must always be strictly consonant to their situation4 ,we possessed ,greek and ,roman terminology of this sort2 the foregoing would give an occasion for examining recent criticism4 ,like the individual man1 the nation rests on traditional ideas1 foreign more often than native1 both inherited and original4 ,but only in so far as a people has a native literature can it judge and understand the past as it does the present4 ,the ,englishman clings earnestly and stubbornly to classic antiquity1 and will not be convinced that the ,orient has produced poets1 unless he can be shown parallel passages from ,horace4 ,what advantages1 on the other hand1 ,shakespeare's independent genius has brought to the nation can hardly be expressed4 ,the ,french by the introduction of badly understood classical principles and an over-nice sense of form so constrained their poetry that it must finally quite disappear1 since it could not become more similar to prose4 ,the ,german was on the right road and will find it again1 as soon as he gives up the unhappy attempt to rank the ,nibelungen with the ,iliad4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the favorable opinion which an excellent foreign writer has concerning us ,germans may be appropriately related here4 ,the ,privy ,councilor of the ,russian ,empire1 ,count ,uvaroff1 speaks thus in our honor1 in a preface addressed to an old friend and partner1 and contained in his valuable work on ,nonnus of ,panopolis1 the ,poet 7,st4 ,petersburg1 #ahag73 8,the renaissance of archology belongs to the ,germans4 ,other peoples may have contributed preparatory work1 but if the more advanced philological studies are ever developed to a complete whole1 such a palingenesis or regeneration could only take place in ,germany4 ,for this reason1 certain new views can hardly be expressed in any other language1 and on that account ,i have written in ,german4 ,i hope we have now given up the perverse notion of the political preminence of this or that language4 ,it is time that every one1 unconcerned about the instrument itself1 should select the language which fits most closely the circle of ideas in which his thought is moving40 ,here speaks an able1 talented1 intellectual man1 whose mind is above the petty limitations of a cold literary patriotism1 and who1 like a master of musical art1 draws the stops of his well-equipped organ which express the thought and feeling of each moment4 ,would that all cultivated ,germans would take thankfully to heart these excellent and instructive words of his1 and that intellectual youths would be inspired to make themselves proficient in several languages1 as optional instruments of life6 ,,ii 7#ahbj7 ,in my article on 8,urteilsworte franzsischer ,kritiker10 a large number of unfavorable epithets used by ,french critics were set off against a scanty number of favorable words4 ,in connection with this1 the ,vrai ,liberal of ,february #d1 #ahai1 lodges a complaint against me and accuses me of an injustice towards the ,french nation4 ,it does this with so much civility and charm as to make me ashamed of myself1 were it not for the fact that behind my presentation of those words there lay a secret1 which ,i hasten to reveal to it and to my readers at this time4 ,i admit without hesitation that the ,brussels correspondent of the ,vrai ,liberal is quite right when he points out how among the words of censure which ,i gave there appear many peculiar ones which one would not exactly expect2 and in addition1 that in the list of favorable words1 several are lacking which ought to occur to every one4 ,in order to explain this1 and make the story clearer1 ,i shall relate how ,i was induced to make this particular list4 ,when ,herr von ,grimm forty years ago achieved an honorable entrance into ,parisian society1 at that time extraordinarily talented and intellectual1 and was recognized practically as a member of this distinguished company1 he decided to send a written bulletin of literary and other interesting matters to princely personages and wealthy people in ,germany1 in order to entertain them1 for a considerable remuneration1 with the characteristic life of ,paris circles1 in regard to which they were curious in the outside world1 because they could well consider ,paris as the centre of the cultured world4 ,these letters were to contain not merely news2 but the best works of ,diderot1 ,the ,nun1 ,jacques the ,fatalist1 etc41 were by degrees inserted in such small portions that curiosity1 attention1 and eagerness were kept alive from number to number4 ,through the favor of distinguished patrons ,i was permitted to peruse these bulletins regularly1 and ,i did not neglect to study them with great deliberation and ardor4 ,now1 if ,i may be permitted to say it to my credit1 ,i always cheerfully recognized the superiority of the writers and their works1 treasured and admired them1 and also thankfully profited by them4 ,for this reason ,i was soon struck in this correspondence of ,grimm's with the fact that in the stories1 anecdotes1 delineation of character1 description1 criticism1 one noticed more of censure than of praise1 more derogatory than laudatory terminology4 ,one day in good humor1 for my own consideration and edification1 ,i began to take down the complete expressions1 and later1 half in jest and half in earnest1 to split them up and arrange them alphabetically2 and thus they remained on my desk for many years4 ,when finally the correspondence of ,grimm was published1 ,i read it as the document of a past age1 but with care1 and soon came upon many an expression which ,i had noticed before2 and ,i was convinced anew that the censure by far exceeded the praise4 ,then ,i hunted up the earlier work of mine and had it printed1 for the sake of intellectual edification1 which did not fail me4 ,at the moment ,i was not able to give further attention to the matter2 and it is therefore not unlikely that in so voluminous a work many a word of praise and blame that has escaped me may be found4 ,but in order that this reproach1 which appeared to concern a whole nation1 may not be left clinging to a single author1 ,i shall reserve the privilege of discussing this important literary topic on more general lines in the near future4 ,,on ,,criticism 7#ahba-bd7 ,i ,criticism is either destructive or constructive4 ,the former is very easy2 for one need only set up some imaginary standard1 some model or other1 however foolish this may be1 and then boldly assert that the work of art under consideration does not measure up to that standard1 and therefore is of no value4 ,that settles the matter1 and one can without any more ado declare that the poet has not come up to one's requirements4 ,in this way the critic frees himself of all obligations of gratitude toward the artist4 ,constructive criticism is much harder4 ,it asks3 ,what did the author set out to do8 ,was his plan reasonable and sensible1 and how far did he succeed in carrying it out8 ,if these questions are answered with discernment and sympathy1 we may be of real assistance to the author in his later works1 for even in his first attempts he has undoubtedly taken certain preliminary steps which approach the level of our criticism4 ,perhaps we should call attention to another point which is altogether too frequently overlooked1 namely1 that the critic must judge a work of art more for the sake of the author than of the public4 ,every day we see how1 without the least regard for the opinions of reviewers1 some drama or novel is received by men and women in the most divers individual ways1 is praised1 found fault with1 given or refused a place in the heart1 merely as it happens to appeal to the personal idiosyncrasy of each reader4 ,,ii ,criticism is a practice of the ,moderns4 ,what does this mean8 ,just this3 ,if you read a book and let it work upon you1 and yield yourself up entirely to its influence1 then1 and only then1 will you arrive at a correct judgment of it4 ,,iii ,some of my admiring readers have told me for a long time that instead of expressing a judgment on books1 ,i describe the influence which they have had on me4 ,and at bottom this is the way all readers criticize1 even if they do not communicate an opinion or formulate ideas about it to the public4 ,the scholar finds nothing new in a book1 and therefore cannot praise it1 while the young student1 eager for knowledge1 finds that knowledge increased1 and a stimulus given to his culture4 ,the one is stirred1 while the other remains cold4 ,this explains why the reception of books is so varied4 ,,iv ,i am more and more convinced that whenever one has to express an opinion on the actions or on the writings of others1 unless this be done from a certain one-sided enthusiasm1 or from a loving interest in the person and the work1 the result is hardly worth considering4 ,sympathy and enjoyment in what we see are in fact the only reality2 and from such reality1 reality as a natural product follows4 ,all else is vanity4 ,,on ,,shakespeare ,,wilhelm ,,meister',s ,,critique ,,of ,,hamlet 7#agie7 ,wilhelm had scarcely read one or two of ,shakespeare's plays1 till their effect on him became so strong that he could go no farther4 ,his whole soul was in commotion4 ,he sought an opportunity to speak with ,jarno2 to whom1 on meeting with him1 he expressed his boundless gratitude for such delicious entertainment4 8,i clearly enough foresaw10 said ,jarno1 8that you would not remain insensible to the charms of the most extraordinary and most admirable of all writers40 8,yes10 exclaimed our friend1 8,i cannot recollect that any book1 any man1 any incident of my life1 has produced such important effects on me1 as the precious works to which by your kindness ,i have been directed4 ,they seem as if they were performances of some celestial genius1 descending among men1 to make them1 by the mildest instructions1 acquainted with themselves4 ,they are no fictions6 ,you would think1 while reading them1 you stood before the unclosed awful ,books of ,fate1 while the whirlwind of most impassioned life was howling through the leaves1 and tossing them fiercely to and fro4 ,the strength and tenderness1 the power and peacefulness1 of this man1 have so astonished and transported me1 that ,i long vehemently for the time when ,i shall have it in my power to read farther40 8,bravo60 said ,jarno1 holding out his hand1 and squeezing our friend's4 8,this is as it should be6 ,and the consequences1 which ,i hope for1 will likewise surely follow40 8,i wish10 said ,wilhelm1 8,i could but disclose to you all that is going on within me even now4 ,all the anticipations ,i ever had regarding man and his destiny1 which have accompanied me from youth upwards1 often unobserved by myself1 ,i find developed and fulfilled in ,shakespeare's writings4 ,it seems as if he cleared up every one of our enigmas to us1 though we cannot say1 ,here or there is the word of solution4 ,his men appear like natural men1 and yet they are not4 ,these1 the most mysterious and complex productions of creation1 here act before us as if they were watches1 whose dial plates and cases were of crystal1 which pointed out1 according to their use1 the course of the hours and minutes2 while1 at the same time1 you could discern the combination of wheels and springs that turned them4 ,the few glances ,i have cast over ,shakespeare's world incite me1 more than anything beside1 to quicken my footsteps forward into the actual world1 to mingle in the flood of destinies that is suspended over it1 and at length1 if ,i shall prosper1 to draw a few cups from the great ocean of true nature1 and to distribute them from off the stage among the thirsting people of my native land40444 99 99 99 99 99 ,seeing the company so favorably disposed1 ,wilhelm now hoped he might further have it in his power to converse with them on the poetic merit of the plays which might come before them4 8,it is not enough10 said he next day1 when they were all again assembled1 8for the actor merely to glance over a dramatic work1 to judge of it by his first impression1 and thus1 without investigation1 to declare his satisfaction or dissatisfaction with it4 ,such things may be allowed in a spectator1 whose purpose it is rather to be entertained and moved than formally to criticize4 ,but the actor1 on the other hand1 should be prepared to give a reason for his praise or censure2 and how shall he do this1 if he have not taught himself to penetrate the sense1 the views1 the feelings of his author8 ,a common error is to form a judgment of a drama from a single part in it1 and to look upon this part itself in an isolated point of view1 not in its connection with the whole4 ,i have noticed this within a few days so clearly in my own conduct that ,i will give you the account as an example1 if you please to hear me patiently4 8,you all know ,shakespeare's incomparable ,hamlet2 our public reading of it at the castle yielded every one of us the greatest satisfaction4 ,on that occasion we proposed to act the play2 and ,i1 not knowing what ,i undertook1 engaged to play the prince's part4 ,this ,i conceived that ,i was studying1 while ,i began to get by heart the strongest passages1 the soliloquies1 and those scenes in which force of soul1 vehemence and elevation of feeling have the freest scope1 where the agitated heart is allowed to display itself with touching expressiveness4 8,i further conceived that ,i was penetrating quite into the spirit of the character1 while ,i endeavored1 as it were1 to take upon myself the load of deep melancholy under which my prototype was laboring1 and in this humor to pursue him through the strange labyrinths of his caprices and his singularities4 ,thus learning1 thus practising1 ,i doubted not but ,i should by and bye become one person with my hero4 8,but the farther ,i advanced1 the more difficult did it become for me to form any image of the whole1 in its general bearings2 till at last it seemed as if impossible4 ,i next went through the entire piece1 without interruption2 but here1 too1 ,i found much that ,i could not away with4 ,at one time the characters1 at another time the manner of displaying them1 seemed inconsistent2 and ,i almost despaired of finding any general tint1 in which ,i might present my whole part with all its shadings and variations4 ,in such devious paths ,i toiled1 and wandered long in vain2 till at length a hope arose that ,i might reach my aim in quite a new way4 8,i set about investigating every trace of ,hamlet's character1 as it had shown itself before his father's death2 ,i endeavored to distinguish what in it was independent of this mournful event1 independent of the terrible events that followed2 and what most probably the young man would have been had no such thing occurred4 8,soft1 and from a noble stem1 this royal flower had sprung up under the immediate influences of majesty3 the idea of moral rectitude with that of princely elevation1 the feeling of the good and dignified with the consciousness of high birth1 had in him been unfolded simultaneously4 ,he was a prince1 by birth a prince2 and he wished to reign1 only that good men might be good without obstruction4 ,pleasing in form1 polished by nature1 courteous from the heart1 he was meant to be the pattern of youth and the joy of the world4 8,without any prominent passion1 his love for ,ophelia was a still presentiment of sweet wants4 ,his zeal in knightly accomplishments was not entirely his own3 it needed to be quickened and inflamed by praise bestowed on others for excelling in them4 ,pure in sentiment1 he knew the honorable-minded1 and could prize the rest which an upright spirit tastes on the bosom of a friend4 ,to a certain degree he had learned to discern and value the good and the beautiful in arts and sciences2 the mean1 the vulgar1 was offensive to him2 and1 if hatred could take root in his tender soul1 it was only so far as to make him properly despise the false and changeful insects of a court1 and play with them in easy scorn4 ,he was calm in his temper1 artless in his conduct1 neither pleased with idleness1 nor too violently eager for employment4 ,the routine of a university he seemed to continue when at court4 ,he possessed more mirth of humor than of heart3 he was a good companion1 pliant1 courteous1 discreet1 and able to forget and forgive an injury1 yet never able to unite himself with those who overstepped the limits of the right1 the good1 and the becoming4 8,when we read the piece again1 you shall judge whether ,i am yet on the proper track4 ,i hope at least to bring forward passages that shall support my opinion in its main points40 ,this delineation was received with warm approval2 the company imagined they foresaw that ,hamlet's manner of proceeding might now be very satisfactorily explained2 they applauded this method of penetrating into the spirit of a writer4 ,each of them proposed to himself to take up some piece1 and study it on these principles1 and so unfold the author's meaning4444 ,loving ,shakespeare as our friend did1 he failed not to lead round the conversation to the merits of that dramatist4 ,expressing1 as he entertained1 the liveliest hopes of the new epoch which these exquisite productions must form in ,germany1 he erelong introduced his ,hamlet1 which play had busied him so much of late4 ,serlo declared that he would long ago have represented the play had it at all been possible1 and that he himself would willingly engage to act ,polonius4 ,he added1 with a smile1 8,an ,ophelia1 too1 will certainly turn up1 if we had but a ,prince40 ,wilhelm did not notice that ,aurelia seemed a little hurt at her brother's sarcasm4 ,our friend was in his proper vein1 becoming copious and didactic1 expounding how he would have ,hamlet played4 ,he circumstantially delivered to his hearers the opinions we before saw him busied with2 taking all the trouble possible to make his notion of the matter acceptable1 skeptical as ,serlo showed himself regarding it4 8,well1 then10 said the latter finally1 8suppose we grant you all this1 what will you explain by it80 8,much1 everything10 said ,wilhelm4 8,conceive a prince such as ,i have painted him1 and that his father suddenly dies4 ,ambition and the love of rule are not the passions that inspire him4 ,as a king's son1 he would have been contented2 but now he is first constrained to consider the difference which separates a sovereign from a subject4 ,the crown was not hereditary2 yet his father's longer possession of it would have strengthened the pretensions of an only son1 and secured his hopes of succession4 ,in place of this1 he now beholds himself excluded by his uncle1 in spite of specious promises1 most probably forever4 ,he is now poor in goods and favor1 and a stranger in the scene which from youth he had looked upon as his inheritance4 ,his temper here assumes its first mournful tinge4 ,he feels that now he is not more1 that he is less than a private nobleman2 he offers himself as the servant of every one2 he is not courteous and condescending1 he is needy and degraded4 8,his past condition he remembers as a vanished dream4 ,it is in vain that his uncle strives to cheer him1 to present his situation in another point of view4 ,the feeling of his nothingness will not leave him4 8,the second stroke that came upon him wounded deeper1 bowed still more4 ,it was the marriage of his mother4 ,the faithful1 tender son had yet a mother1 when his father passed away4 ,he hoped in the company of his surviving noble-minded parent1 to reverence the heroic form of the departed3 but his mother1 too1 he loses2 and it is something worse than death that robs him of her4 ,the trustful image1 which a good child loves to form of its parents1 is gone4 ,with the dead there is no help1 on the living no hold4 ,moreover1 she is a woman2 and her name is ,frailty1 like that of all her sex4 8,now only does he feel completely bowed down1 now only orphaned2 and no happiness of life can repay what he has lost4 ,not reflective or sorrowful by nature1 reflection and sorrow have become for him a heavy obligation4 ,it is thus that we see him first enter on the scene4 ,i do not think that ,i have mixed aught foreign with the play1 or overcharged a single feature of it40 ,serlo looked at his sister1 and said3 8,did ,i give thee a false picture of our friend8 ,he begins well3 he has still many things to tell us1 many to persuade us of40 ,wilhelm asseverated loudly that he meant not to persuade1 but to convince2 he begged for another moment's patience4 8,figure to yourselves this youth10 cried he1 8this son of princes2 conceive him vividly1 bring his state before your eyes and then observe him when he learns that his father's spirit walks2 stand by him in the terrors of the night1 when even the venerable ghost appears before him4 ,he is seized with boundless horror2 he speaks to the mysterious form2 he sees it beckon him2 he follows and hears4 ,the fearful accusation of his uncle rings in his ears1 the summons to revenge1 and the piercing1 oft-repeated prayer1 ,remember me6 8,and1 when the ghost has vanished1 who is it that stands before us8 ,a young hero panting for vengeance8 ,a prince by birth1 rejoicing to be called to punish the usurper of his crown8 ,no6 trouble and astonishment take hold of the solitary young man3 he grows bitter against smiling villains1 swears that he will not forget the spirit1 and concludes with the significant ejaculation1-- 8#8,the time is out of joint3 ,o cursed spite1 ,that ever ,i was born to set it right6' 8,in these words1 ,i imagine1 will be found the key to ,hamlet's whole procedure4 ,to me it is clear that ,shakespeare meant1 in the present case1 to represent the effects of a great action laid upon a soul unfit for the performance of it4 ,in this view the whole play seems to me to be composed4 ,there is an oak-tree planted in a costly jar1 which should have borne only pleasant flowers in its bosom3 the roots expand1 the jar is shivered4 8,a lovely1 pure1 noble1 and most moral nature1 without the strength of nerve which forms a hero1 sinks beneath a burden it cannot bear and must not cast away4 ,all duties are holy for him3 the present is too hard4 ,impossibilities have been required of him1--not in themselves impossibilities1 but such for him4 ,he winds and turns1 and torments himself2 he advances and recoils2 is ever put in mind1 ever puts himself in mind1 at last does all but lose his purpose from his thoughts1 yet still without recovering his peace of mind40 ,several people entering interrupted the discussion4 ,they were musical dilettanti1 who commonly assembled at ,serlo's once a week1 and formed a little concert4 ,serlo himself loved music much3 he used to maintain that a player without taste for it never could attain a distinct conception and feeling of the scenic art4 8,as a man performs10 he would observe1 8with far more ease and dignity when his gestures are accompanied and guided by a tune2 so the player ought1 in idea as it were1 to set to music even his prose parts1 that he may not monotonously slight them over in his individual style1 but treat them in suitable alternation by time and measure40 ,aurelia seemed to give but little heed to what was passing3 at last she conducted ,wilhelm to another room2 and going to the window1 and looking out at the starry sky1 she said to him1 8,you have more to tell us about ,hamlet3 ,i will not hurry you1--my brother must hear it as well as ,i2 but let me beg to know your thoughts about ,ophelia40 8,of her there cannot much be said10 he answered2 8for a few master-strokes complete her character4 ,the whole being of ,ophelia floats in sweet and ripe sensation4 ,kindness for the prince1 to whose hand she may aspire1 flows so spontaneously1 her tender heart obeys its impulses so unresistingly1 that both father and brother are afraid3 both give her warning harshly and directly4 ,decorum1 like the thin lawn upon her bosom1 cannot hide the soft1 still movements of her heart3 it1 on the contrary1 betrays them4 ,her fancy is smit2 her silent modesty breathes amiable desire2 and if the friendly goddess ,opportunity should shake the tree1 its fruit would fall40 8,and then10 said ,aurelia1 8when she beholds herself forsaken1 cast away1 despised2 when all is inverted in the soul of her crazed lover1 and the highest changes to the lowest1 and1 instead of the sweet cup of love1 he offers her the bitter' cup of woe--0 8,her heart breaks10 cried ,wilhelm2 8the whole structure of her being is loosened from its joinings3 her father's death strikes fiercely against it1 and the fair edifice altogether crumbles into fragments40 ,serlo1 this moment entering1 inquired about his sister1 and1 looking in the book which our friend had hold of1 cried1 8,so you are again at ,hamlet8 ,very good6 ,many doubts have arisen in me1 which seem not a little to impair the canonical aspect of the play as you would have it viewed4 ,the ,english themselves have admitted that its chief interest concludes with the third act2 the last two lagging sorrily on1 and scarcely uniting with the rest3 and certainly about the end it seems to stand stock-still40 8,it is very possible10 said ,wilhelm1 8that some individuals of a nation1 which has so many masterpieces to feel proud of1 may be led by prejudice and narrowness of mind to form false judgments2 but this cannot hinder us from looking with our own eyes1 and doing justice where we see it due4 ,i am very far from censuring the plan of ,hamlet3 on the other hand1 ,i believe there never was a grander one invented2 nay1 it is not invented1 it is real40 8,how do you demonstrate that80 inquired ,serlo4 8,i will not demonstrate anything10 said ,wilhelm2 8,i will merely show you what my own conceptions of it are40 ,aurelia raised herself from her cushion1 leaned upon her hand1 and looked at ,wilhelm1 who1 with the firmest assurance that he was in the right1 went on as follows3 8,it pleases us1 it flatters us1 to see a hero acting on his own strength1 loving and hating at the bidding of his heart1 undertaking and completing casting every obstacle aside1 and attaining some great end4 ,poets and historians would willingly persuade us that so proud a lot may fall to man4 ,in ,hamlet we are taught another lesson2 the hero is without a plan1 but the play is full of plan4 ,here we have no villain punished on some self-conceived and rigidly accomplished scheme of vengeance4 ,a horrid deed is done2 it rolls along with all its consequences1 dragging with it even the guiltless3 the guilty perpetrator would1 as it seems1 evade the abyss made ready for him2 yet he plunges in1 at the very point by which he thinks he shall escape and happily complete his course4 8,for it is the property of crime to extend its mischief over innocence1 as it is of virtue to extend its blessings over many that deserve them not2 while frequently the author of the one or the other is not punished or rewarded at all4 ,here in this play of ours1 how strange6 ,the ,pit of darkness sends its spirit and demands revenge3 in vain6 ,all circumstances tend one way1 and hurry to revenge3 in vain6 ,neither earthly nor infernal thing may bring about what is reserved for ,fate alone4 ,the hour of judgment comes2 the wicked falls with the good2 one race is mowed away1 that another may spring up40 ,after a pause1 in which they looked at one another1 ,serlo said1 8,you pay no great compliment to ,providence1 in thus exalting ,shakespeare2 and besides1 it appears to me1 that for the honor of your poet1 as others for the honor of ,providence1 you ascribe to him an object and a plan such as he himself has never thought of40 8,let me also put a question10 said ,aurelia4 8,i have looked at ,ophelia's part again3 ,i am contented with it1 and confident that1 under certain circumstances1 ,i could play it4 ,but tell me1 should not the poet have furnished the insane maiden with another sort of songs8 ,could not some fragments out of melancholy ballads be selected for this purpose8 ,why put double meanings and lascivious insipidities in the mouth of this noble-minded girl80 8,dear friend10 said ,wilhelm1 8even here ,i cannot yield you one iota4 ,in these singularities1 in this apparent impropriety1 a deep sense is hid4 ,do we not understand from the very first what the mind of the good1 soft-hearted girl was busied with8 ,silently she lived within herself1 yet she scarce concealed her wishes1 her longing3 and how often may she have attempted1 like an unskilful nurse1 to lull her senses to repose with songs which only kept them more awake8 ,but at last1 when her self-command is altogether gone1 when the secrets of her heart are hovering on her tongue1 that tongue betrays her2 and in the innocence of insanity she solaces herself1 unmindful of king or queen1 with the echo of her loose and well-beloved songs1--#8,tomorrow is ,saint ,valentine's ,day1' and #8,by ,gis and by ,saint ,charity4' 4440 99 99 99 99 99 8,i must admit your picture of ,ophelia to be just10 continued she2 8,i cannot now misunderstand the object of the poet3 ,i must pity2 though1 as you paint her1 ,i shall rather pity her than sympathize with her4 ,but allow me here to offer a remark1 which in these few days you have frequently suggested to me4 ,i observe with admiration the correct1 keen1 penetrating glance with which you judge of poetry1 especially dramatic poetry3 the deepest abysses of invention are not hidden from you1 the finest touches of representation cannot escape you4 ,without ever having viewed the objects in nature1 you recognize the truth of their images3 there seems1 as it were1 a presentiment of all the universe to lie in you1 which by the harmonious touch of poetry is awakened and unfolded4 ,for in truth10 continued she1 8from without1 you receive not much3 ,i have scarcely seen a person that so little knew1 so totally misknew1 the people he lived with1 as you do4 ,allow me to say it3 in hearing you expound the mysteries of ,shakespeare1 one would think you had just descended from a synod of the gods1 and had listened there while they were taking counsel how to form men2 in seeing you transact with your fellows1 ,i could imagine you to be the first large-born child of the ,creation1 standing agape1 and gazing with strange wonderment and edifying good nature at lions and apes and sheep and elephants1 and true-heartedly addressing them as your equals1 simply because they were there1 and in motion like yourself40 8,the feeling of my ignorance in this respect10 said ,wilhelm1 8often gives me pain2 and ,i should thank you1 worthy friend1 if you would help me to get a little better insight into life4 ,from youth1 ,i have been accustomed to direct the eyes of my spirit inwards rather than outwards2 and hence it is very natural that1 to a certain extent1 ,i should be acquainted with man1 while of men ,i have not the smallest knowledge44440 99 99 99 99 99 ,one of the conditions under which our friend had gone upon the stage was not acceded to by ,serlo without some limitations4 ,wilhelm had required that ,hamlet should be played entire and unmutilated3 the other had agreed to this strange stipulation1 in so far as it was possible4 ,on this point they had many a contest2 for as to what was possible or not possible1 and what parts of the piece could be omitted without mutilating it1 the two were of very different opinions4 ,wilhelm was still in that happy season when one cannot understand how1 in the woman one loves1 in the writer one honors1 there should be anything defective4 ,the feeling they excite in us is so entire1 so accordant with itself1 that we cannot help attributing the same perfect harmony to the objects themselves4 ,serlo again was willing to discriminate1 perhaps too willing3 his acute understanding could usually discern in any work of art nothing but a more or less imperfect whole4 ,he thought that1 as pieces usually stood1 there was little reason to be chary about meddling with them2 that of course ,shakespeare1 and particularly ,hamlet1 would need to suffer much curtailment4 ,but1 when ,serlo talked of separating the wheat from the chaff1 ,wilhelm would not hear of it4 8,it is not chaff and wheat together10 said he3 8it is a trunk with boughs1 twigs1 leaves1 buds1 blossoms1 and fruit4 ,is not the one there with the others1 and by means of them80 ,to which ,serlo would reply that people did not bring a whole tree upon the table2 that the artist was required to present his guests with silver apples in platters of silver4 ,they exhausted their invention in similitudes1 and their opinions seemed still farther to diverge4 ,our friend was on the borders of despair when on one occasion1 after much debating1 ,serlo counseled him to take the simple plan1--to make a brief resolution1 to grasp his pen1 to peruse the tragedy2 dashing out whatever would not answer1 compressing several personages into one3 and if he was not skilled in such proceedings1 or had not heart enough for going through with them1 he might leave the task to him1 the manager1 who would engage to make short work with it4 8,that is not our bargain10 answered ,wilhelm4 8,how can you1 with all your taste1 show so much levity80 8,my friend10 cried ,serlo1 8you yourself will erelong feel it and show it4 ,i know too well how shocking such a mode of treating works is3 perhaps it never was allowed on any theatre till now4 ,but where1 indeed1 was ever one so slighted as ours8 ,authors force us on this wretched clipping system1 and the public tolerates it4 ,how many pieces have we1 pray1 which do not overstep the measure of our numbers1 of our decorations and theatrical machinery1 of the proper time1 of the fit alternation of dialogue1 and the physical strength of the actor8 ,and yet we are to play1 and play1 and constantly give novelties4 ,ought we not to profit by our privilege1 then1 since we accomplish just as much by mutilated works as by entire ones8 ,it is the public itself that grants the privilege4 ,few ,germans1 perhaps few men of any modern nation1 have a proper sense of an sthetic whole3--they praise and blame by passages2 they are charmed by passages2 and who has greater reason to rejoice at this than actors1 since the stage is ever but a patched and piece-work matter80 8,is60 cried ,wilhelm2 8but must it ever be so8 ,must everything that is continue8 ,convince me not that you are right1 for no power on earth should force me to abide by any contract which ,i had concluded with the grossest misconceptions40 ,serlo gave a merry turn to the business1 and persuaded him to review once more the many conversations they had had together about ,hamlet1 and himself to invent some means of properly reforming the piece4 ,after a few days1 which he had spent alone1 our friend returned with a cheerful look4 8,i am much mistaken10 cried he1 8if ,i have not now discovered how the whole is to be managed3 nay1 ,i am convinced that ,shakespeare himself would have arranged it so1 had not his mind been too exclusively directed to the ruling interest1 and perhaps misled by the novels which furnished him with his materials40 8,let us hear10 said ,serlo1 placing himself with an air of solemnity upon the sofa3 8,i will listen calmly1 but judge with rigor40 8,i am not afraid of you10 said ,wilhelm2 8only hear me4 ,in the composition of this play1 after the most accurate investigation and the most mature reflection1 ,i distinguish two classes of objects4 ,the first are the grand internal relations of the persons and events1 the powerful effects which arise from the characters and proceedings of the main figures3 these1 ,i hold1 are individually excellent2 and the order in which they are presented cannot be improved4 ,no kind of interference must be suffered to destroy them1 or even essentially to change their form4 ,these are the things which stamp themselves deep into the soul1 which all men long to see1 which no one dares to meddle with4 ,accordingly1 ,i understand1 they have almost wholly been retained in all our ,german theatres4 ,but our countrymen have erred1 in my opinion1 with regard to the second class of objects1 which may be observed in this tragedy3 ,i allude to the external relations of the persons1 whereby they are brought from place to place1 or combined in various ways1 by certain accidental incidents4 ,these they have looked upon as very unimportant2 have spoken of them only in passing1 or left them out altogether4 ,now1 indeed1 it must be owned1 these threads are slack and slender2 yet they run through the entire piece1 and bind together much that would otherwise fall asunder1 and does actually fall asunder1 when you cut them off1 and imagine you have done enough and more1 if you have left the ends hanging4 8,among these external relations ,i include the disturbances in ,norway1 the war with young ,fortinbras1 the embassy to his uncle1 the settling of that feud1 the march of young ,fortinbras to ,poland1 and his coming back at the end2 of the same sort are ,horatio's return from ,wittenberg1 ,hamlet's wish to go thither1 the journey of ,laertes to ,france1 his return1 the despatch of ,hamlet into ,england1 his capture by pirates1 the death of the two courtiers by the letter which they carried4 ,all these circumstances and events would be very fit for expanding and lengthening a novel2 but here they injure exceedingly the unity of the piece1 particularly as the hero has no plan1 and are1 in consequence1 entirely out of place40 8,for once in the right60 cried ,serlo4 8,do not interrupt me10 answered ,wilhelm2 8perhaps you will not always think me right4 ,these errors are like temporary props of an edifice3 they must not be removed till we have built a firm wall in their stead4 ,my project1 therefore1 is not at all to change those first-mentioned grand situations1 or at least as much as possible to spare them1 both collectively and individually2 but with respect to these external1 single1 dissipated1 and dissipating motives1 to cast them all at once away1 and substitute a solitary one instead of them40 8,and this80 inquired ,serlo1 springing up from his recumbent posture4 8,it lies in the piece itself10 answered ,wilhelm1 8only ,i employ it rightly4 ,there are disturbances in ,norway4 ,you shall hear my plan1 and try it4 8,after the death of ,hamlet's father1 the ,norwegians1 lately conquered1 grow unruly4 ,the viceroy of that country sends his son1 ,horatio1 an old school-friend of ,hamlet's1 and distinguished above every other for his bravery and prudence1 to ,denmark1 to press forward the equipment of the fleet1 which1 under the new luxurious king1 proceeds but slowly4 ,horatio has known the former king1 having fought in his battles1 having even stood in favor with him1--a circumstance by which the first ghost-scene will be nothing injured4 ,the new sovereign gives ,horatio audience and sends ,laertes into ,norway with intelligence that the fleet will soon arrive2 whilst ,horatio is commissioned to accelerate the preparation of it3 and the ,queen1 on the other hand1 will not consent that ,hamlet1 as he wishes1 should go to sea along with him40 8,heaven be praised60 cried ,serlo2 8we shall now get rid of ,wittenberg and the university1 which was always a sorry piece of business4 ,i think your idea extremely good2 for1 except these two distant objects1 ,norway and the fleet1 the spectator will not be required to fancy anything3 the rest he will see2 the rest takes place before him2 whereas his imagination1 on the other plan1 was hunted over all the world40 8,you easily perceive10 said ,wilhelm1 8how ,i shall contrive to keep the other parts together4 ,when ,hamlet tells ,horatio of his uncle's crime1 ,horatio counsels him to go to ,norway in his company1 to secure the affections of the army1 and return in warlike force4 ,hamlet also is becoming dangerous to the ,king and ,queen2 they find no readier method of deliverance than to send him in the fleet1 with ,rosencrantz and ,guildenstern to be spies upon him2 and1 as ,laertes in the meantime comes from ,france1 they determine that this youth1 exasperated even to murder1 shall go after him4 ,unfavorable winds detain the fleet3 ,hamlet returns2 for his wandering through the churchyard1 perhaps some lucky motive may be thought of2 his meeting with ,laertes in ,ophelia's grave is a grand moment1 which we must not part with4 ,after this1 the ,king resolves that it is better to get quit of ,hamlet on the spot3 the festival of his departure1 the pretended reconcilement with ,laertes1 are now solemnized2 on which occasion knightly sports are held1 and ,laertes fights with ,hamlet4 ,without the four corpses1 ,i cannot end the play3 no one must survive4 ,the right of popular election now again comes in force2 and ,hamlet1 while dying1 gives his vote to ,horatio40 8,quick6 quick60 said ,serlo1 8sit down and work the play3 your plan has my entire approbation2 only let not your zeal evaporate40 99 99 99 99 99 ,wilhelm had already been for some time busied with translating ,hamlet2 making use1 as he labored1 of ,wieland's spirited performance1 through which he had first become acquainted with ,shakespeare4 ,what had been omitted in ,wieland's work he replaced1 and had secured a complete version1 at the very time when ,serlo and he were pretty well agreed about the way of treating it4 ,he now began1 according to his plan1 to cut out and insert1 to separate and unite1 to alter1 and often to restore2 for1 satisfied as he was with his own conception1 it still appeared to him as if1 in executing it1 he were but spoiling the original4 ,when all was finished1 he read his work to ,serlo and the rest4 ,they declared themselves exceedingly contented with it3 ,serlo1 in particular1 made many flattering observations4 8,you have felt very justly10 said he1 among other things1 8that some external circumstances must accompany this play1 but that they must be simpler than those which the great poet has employed4 ,what takes place without the theatre1 what the spectator does not see but must imagine1 is like a background1 in front of which the acting figures move4 ,your large and simple prospect of the fleet and ,norway will do much to improve the play3 if this were altogether taken from it1 we should have but a family scene remaining2 and the great idea that here a kingly house1 by internal crimes and incongruities1 goes down to ruin1 would not be presented with its proper dignity4 ,but if the former background were left standing1 so manifold1 so fluctuating and confused1 it would hurt the impression of the figures40 ,wilhelm again took ,shakespeare's part2 alleging that he wrote for islanders1 for ,englishmen1 who generally in the distance were accustomed to see little else than ships and voyages1 the coast of ,france and privateers2 and thus what perplexed and distracted others was to them quite natural4 ,serlo assented2 and both were of opinion that1 as the play was now to be produced upon the ,german stage1 this more serious and simple background was the best adapted for the ,german mind4 ,the parts had been distributed before3 ,serlo undertook ,polonius2 ,aurelia1 ,ophelia2 ,laertes was already designated by his name2 a young1 thick-set1 jolly newcomer was to be ,horatio2 the ,king and ,ghost alone occasioned some perplexity1 for both of these no one but ,old ,boisterous remaining4 ,serlo proposed to make the ,pedant1 ,king2 but against this our friend protested in the strongest terms4 ,they could resolve on nothing4 ,wilhelm had also allowed both ,rosencrantz and ,guildenstern to continue in his play4 8,why not compress them into one80 said ,serlo4 8,this abbreviation will not cost you much40 8,heaven keep me from all such curtailments60 answered ,wilhelm2 8they destroy at once the sense and the effect4 ,what these two persons are and do it is impossible to represent by one4 ,in such small matters we discover ,shakespeare's greatness4 ,these soft approaches1 this smirking and bowing1 this assenting1 wheedling1 flattering1 this whisking agility1 this wagging of the tail1 this allness and emptiness1 this legal knavery1 this ineptitude and insipidity1--how can they be expressed by a single man8 ,there ought to be at least a dozen of these people1 if they could be had2 for it is only in society that they are anything2 they are society itself2 and ,shakespeare showed no little wisdom and discernment in bringing in a pair of them4 ,besides1 ,i need them as a couple that may be contrasted with the single1 noble1 excellent ,horatio44440 99 99 99 99 99 ,though in this remolding of ,hamlet many characters had been cut off1 a sufficient number of them still remained1--a number which the company was scarcely adequate to meet4 8,if this is the way of it10 said ,serlo1 8our prompter himself must issue from his den1 and mount the stage1 and become a personage like one of us44440 99 99 99 99 99 8,the very man60 exclaimed our friend1 8the very man6 ,what a fortunate discovery6 ,we have now the proper hand for delivering the passage of #8,the rugged ,pyrrhus4'0 8,one requires your eagerness10 said ,serlo1 8before he can employ every object in the use it was meant for40 8,in truth10 said ,wilhelm1 8,i was very much afraid we should be obliged to leave this passage out3 the omission would have lamed the whole play40 8,well6 ,that is what ,i cannot understand10 observed ,aurelia4 8,i hope you will erelong be of my opinion10 answered ,wilhelm4 8,shakespeare has introduced these traveling players with a double purpose4 ,the person who recites the death of ,priam with such feeling1 in the first place1 makes a deep impression on the prince himself2 he sharpens the conscience of the wavering youth3 and1 accordingly1 this scene becomes a prelude to that other1 where1 in the second place1 the little play produces such effect upon the ,king4 ,hamlet sees himself reproved and put to shame by the player1 who feels so deep a sympathy in foreign and fictitious woes2 and the thought of making an experiment upon the conscience of his stepfather is in consequence suggested to him4 ,what a royal monologue is that which ends the second act6 ,how charming it will be to speak it60 8#8,oh1 what a rogue and peasant slave am ,i6 ,is it not monstrous that this player here1 ,but in a fiction1 in a dream of passion1 ,could force his soul so to his own conceit1 ,that1 from her working1 all his visage wann'd2 ,tears in his eyes1 distraction in's aspect1 ,a broken voice1 and his whole function suiting ,with forms to his conceit8 and all for nothing6 ,for ,hecuba6 ,what's ,hecuba to him1 or he to ,hecuba1 ,that he should weep for her8'0 444 ,in particular1 one evening1 the manager was very merry in speaking of the part of ,polonius1 and how he meant to take it up4 8,i engage10 said he1 8on this occasion1 to present a very meritorious person in his best aspect4 ,the repose and security of this old gentleman1 his emptiness and his significance1 his exterior gracefulness and interior meanness1 his frankness and sycophancy1 his sincere roguery and deceitful truth1 ,i will introduce with all due elegance in their fit proportions4 ,this respectable1 gray-haired1 enduring1 time-serving half-knave1 ,i will represent in the most courtly style3 the occasional roughness and coarseness of our author's strokes will further me here4 ,i will speak like a book when ,i am prepared beforehand1 and like an ass when ,i utter the overflowings of my heart4 ,i will be insipid and absurd enough to chime in with every one1 and acute enough never to observe when people make a mock of me4 ,i have seldom taken up a part with so much zeal and roguishness40 8,could ,i but hope as much from mine60 exclaimed ,aurelia4 8,i have neither youth nor softness enough to be at home in this character4 ,one thing alone ,i am too sure of1--the feeling that turns ,ophelia's brain1 ,i shall not want40 8,we must not take the matter up so strictly10 said our friend4 8,for my share1 ,i am certain that the wish to act the character of ,hamlet has led me exceedingly astray throughout my study of the play4 ,and now1 the more ,i look into the part1 the more clearly do ,i see that1 in my whole form and physiognomy1 there is not one feature such as ,shakespeare meant for ,hamlet4 ,when ,i consider with what nicety the various circumstances are adapted to each other1 ,i can scarcely hope to produce even a tolerable effect40 8,you are entering on your new career with becoming conscientiousness10 said ,serlo4 8,the actor fits himself to his part as he can1 and the part to him as it must4 ,but how has ,shakespeare drawn his ,hamlet8 ,is he so utterly unlike you80 8,in the first place10 answered ,wilhelm1 8he is fair-haired40 8,that ,i call far-fetched10 observed ,aurelia4 8,how do you infer that80 8,as a ,dane1 as a ,northman1 he is fair-haired and blue-eyed by descent40 8,and you think ,shakespeare had this in view80 8,i do not find it specially expressed2 but1 by comparison of passages1 ,i think it incontestable4 ,the fencing tires him2 the sweat is running from his brow2 and the ,queen remarks1 #8,he's fat1 and scant of breath4' ,can you conceive him to be otherwise than plump and fair-haired8 ,brown-complexioned people1 in their youth1 are seldom plump4 ,and does not his wavering melancholy1 his soft lamenting1 his irresolute activity1 accord with such a figure8 ,from a dark-haired young man1 you would look for more decision and impetuosity40 8,you are spoiling my imagination10 cried ,aurelia2 8away with your fat ,hamlets6 ,do not set your well-fed prince before us6 ,give us rather any succedancum that will move us1 will delight us4 ,the intention of the author is of less importance to us than our own enjoyment1 and we need a charm that is adapted for us40 99 99 99 99 99 ,one evening a dispute arose among our friends about the novel and the drama1 and which of them deserved the preference4 ,serlo said it was a fruitless and misunderstood debate3 both might be superior in their kinds1 only each must keep within the limits proper to it4 8,about their limits and their kinds10 said ,wilhelm1 8,i confess myself not altogether clear40 8,who is so80 said the other2 8and yet perhaps it were worth while to come a little closer to the business40 ,they conversed together long upon the matter2 and1 in fine1 the following was nearly the result of their discussion3-- 8,in the novel as well as in the drama1 it is human nature and human action that we see4 ,the difference between these sorts of fiction lies not merely in their outward form1--not merely in the circumstance that the personages of the one are made to speak1 while those of the other have commonly their history narrated4 ,unfortunately many dramas are but novels which proceed by dialogue2 and it would not be impossible to write a drama in the shape of letters4 8,but1 in the novel1 it is chiefly sentiments and events that are exhibited2 in the drama1 it is characters and deeds4 ,the novel must go slowly forward2 and the sentiments of the hero1 by some means or another1 must restrain the tendency of the whole to unfold itself and to conclude4 ,the drama1 on the other hand1 must hasten2 and the character of the hero must press forward to the end3 it does not restrain1 but is restrained4 ,the novel-hero must be suffering1--at least he must not in a high degree be active2 in the dramatic one1 we look for activity and deeds4 ,grandison1 ,clarissa1 ,pamela1 the ,vicar of ,wakefield1 ,tom ,jones himself1 are1 if not suffering1 at least retarding1 personages2 and the incidents are all in some sort modeled by their sentiments4 ,in the drama the hero models nothing by himself2 all things withstand him2 and he clears and casts away the hindrances from off his path1 or else sinks under them40 ,our friends were also of opinion that1 in the novel1 some degree of scope may be allowed to ,chance1 but that it must always be led and guided by the sentiments of the personages2 on the other hand1 that ,fate1 which1 by means of outward1 unconnected circumstances1 proceeds to an unforeseen catastrophe1 can have place only in the drama2 that ,chance may produce pathetic situations1 but never tragic ones2 ,fate1 on the other hand1 ought always to be terrible1--and is1 in the highest sense1 tragic1 when it brings into a ruinous concatenation the guilty man and the guiltless that was unconcerned with him4 ,these considerations led them back to the play of ,hamlet1 and the peculiarities of its composition4 ,the hero in this case1 it was observed1 is endowed more properly with sentiments than with a character3 it is events alone that push him on1 and accordingly the play has in some measure the expansion of a novel4 ,but as it is ,fate that draws the plan1 as the story issues from a deed of terror1 the work is tragic in the highest sense1 and admits of no other than a tragic end4444 99 99 99 99 99 ,the necessary preparations for scenery and dresses1 and whatever else was requisite1 were now proceeding4 ,in regard to certain scenes and passages1 our friend had whims of his own1 which ,serlo humored1 partly in consideration of their bargain1 partly from conviction1 and because he hoped by these civilities to gain ,wilhelm1 and to lead him according to his own purposes the more implicitly in time to come4 ,thus1 for example1 the ,king and ,queen were1 at the first audience1 to appear sitting on the throne1 with the courtiers at the sides1 and ,hamlet standing undistinguished in the crowd4 8,hamlet10 said he1 8must keep himself quiet2 his sable dress will sufficiently point him out4 ,he should rather shun remark than seek it4 ,not till the audience is ended1 and the ,king speaks with him as with a son1 should he advance1 and allow the scene to take its course40 ,a formidable obstacle remained1 in regard to the two pictures which ,hamlet so passionately refers to in the scene with his mother4 8,we ought10 said ,wilhelm1 8to have both of them visible1 at full length1 in the bottom of the chamber1 near the main door2 and the former king must be clad in armor1 like the ,ghost1 and hang at the side where it enters4 ,i could wish that the figure held its right hand in a commanding attitude1 were somewhat turned away1 and1 as it were1 looked over its shoulder1 that so it might perfectly resemble the ,ghost at the moment when he issues from the door4 ,it will produce a great effect when at this instant ,hamlet looks upon the ,ghost1 and the ,queen upon the picture4 ,the stepfather may be painted in royal ornaments1 but not so striking40 ,there were several other points of this sort1 about which we shall1 perhaps1 elsewhere have opportunity to speak4 8,are you1 then1 inexorably bent on ,hamlet's dying at the end80 inquired ,serlo4 8,how can ,i keep him alive10 said ,wilhelm1 8when the whole play is pressing him to death8 ,we have already talked at large on that matter40 8,but the public wishes him to live40 8,i will show the public any other complaisance2 but1 as to this1 ,i cannot4 ,we often wish that some gallant1 useful man1 who is dying of a chronic disease1 might yet live longer4 ,the family weep1 and conjure the physician2 but he cannot stay him3 and no more than this physician can withstand the necessity of nature1 can we give law to an acknowledged necessity of art4 ,it is a false compliance with the multitude1 to raise in them emotions which they wish1 when these are not emotions which they ought1 to feel40 8,whoever pays the cash10 said ,serlo1 8may require the ware according to his liking40 8,doubtless1 in some degree10 replied our friend2 8but a great public should be reverenced1 not used as children are when peddlers wish to hook the money from them4 ,by presenting excellence to the people1 you should gradually excite in them a taste and feeling for the excellent2 and they will pay their money with double satisfaction when reason itself has nothing to object against this outlay4 ,the public you may flatter1 as you do a well-beloved child1 to better1 to enlighten it2 not as you do a pampered child of quality1 to perpetuate the error you profit from40 ,in this manner various other topics were discussed relating to the question1 ,what might still be changed in the play1 and what must of necessity remain untouched8 ,we shall not enter farther on those points at present2 but1 perhaps1 at some future time we may submit this altered ,hamlet itself to such of our readers as feel any interest in the subject4 ,,shakespeare ,,ad ,,infinitum 7#ahac-af7 ,there has already been so much said about ,shakespeare that it would seem as if there was nothing left to say2 and yet it is the characteristic of genius ever to be stimulating other men's genius4 ,in the present case ,i wish to consider ,shakespeare from more than one point of view1--first as a poet in general1 then in comparison with the classic and modern writers1 and finally as a writer of poetic drama4 ,i shall attempt to work out what the imitation of his art has meant to us1 and what it can mean in the future4 ,i shall express my agreement with what has been written by reiterating it1 and express my dissent briefly and positively1 without involving myself in conflict and contradiction4 ,i proceed to the first topic4 ,i4 ,shakespeare as ,poet in ,general ,the highest achievement possible to a man is the full consciousness of his own feelings and thoughts1 for this gives him the means of knowing intimately the hearts of others4 ,now there are men who are born with a natural talent for this and who cultivate it by experience towards practical ends4 ,from this talent springs the ability to profit in a higher sense by the world and its opportunities4 ,now the poet is born with the same talent1 only he cultivates it not for his immediate worldly purposes but for a loftier spiritual and universal purpose4 ,if we call ,shakespeare one of the greatest poets1 we mean that few have perceived the world as accurately as he1 that few who have expressed their inner contemplation of it have given the reader deeper insight into its meaning and consciousness4 ,it becomes for us completely transparent3 we find ourselves at once in the most intimate touch with virtue and vice1 greatness and meanness1 nobility and infamy1 and all this through the simplest of means4 ,if we ask what these means are1 it seems as if they were directed towards our visual apprehension4 ,but we are mistaken2 ,shakespeare's works are not for the physical vision4 ,i shall attempt to explain what ,i mean4 ,the eye1 the most facile of our organs of receptivity1 may well be called the clearest of the senses2 but the inner sense is still clearer1 and to it by means of words belongs the most sensitive and clear receptivity4 ,this is particularly obvious when what we apprehend with the eye seems alien and unimpressive considered in and for itself4 ,but ,shakespeare speaks always to our inner sense4 ,through this1 the picture-world of imagination becomes animated1 and a complete effect results1 of which we can give no reckoning4 ,precisely here lies the ground for the illusion that everything is taking place before our eyes4 ,but if we study the works of ,shakespeare enough1 we find that they contain much more of spiritual truth than of spectacular action4 ,he makes happen what can easily be conceived by the imagination1 indeed what can be better imagined than seen4 ,hamlet's ghost1 ,macbeth's witches1 many fearful incidents1 get their value only through the power of the imagination1 and many of the minor scenes get their force from the same source4 ,in reading1 all these things pass easily through our minds1 and seem quite appropriate1 whereas in representation on the stage they would strike us unfavorably and appear not only unpleasant but even disgusting4 ,shakespeare gets his effect by means of the living word1 and it is for this reason that one should hear him read1 for then the attention is not distracted either by a too adequate or a too inadequate stage-setting4 ,there is no higher or purer pleasure than to sit with closed eyes and hear a naturally expressive voice recite1 not declaim1 a play of ,shakespeare's4 ,according to the delineation of the characters we can picture to ourselves certain forms1 but more particularly are we able by the succession of words and phrases to learn what is passing in their souls2 the characters seem to have agreed to leave us in the dark1 in doubt1 about nothing4 ,to that end conspire heroes and lackeys1 gentlemen and slaves1 kings and heralds2 indeed even the subordinate characters are often more expressive in this way than the leading figures4 ,everything which in an affair of great importance breathes only secretly through the air1 or lies hidden in the hearts of men1 is here openly expressed4 ,what the soul anxiously conceals and represses is here brought freely and abundantly to the light4 ,we experience the truth of life1--how1 we do not know6 ,shakespeare associates himself with the ,world-,spirit2 like it1 he explores the world2 from neither is anything hidden4 ,but whereas it is the business of the ,world-,spirit to keep its secrets both before and after the event1 it is the work of the poet to tell them1 and take us into his confidence before the event or in the very action itself4 ,the depraved man of power1 the well-intentioned dullard1 the passionate lover1 the quiet scholar1 all carry their heart in their hand1 often contrary to verisimilitude4 ,every one is candid and loquacious4 ,it is enough that the secret must out1 and even the stones would publish it4 ,the inanimate insists upon speaking2 the elements1 the phenomena of sky1 earth and sea1 thunder and lightning1 wild animals1 lift their voice1 often apparently symbolically1 but all joining in the revelation4 ,the whole civilized world too brings its treasures to ,shakespeare2 ,art and ,science1 ,commerce and ,industry1 all bear him their gifts4 ,shakespeare's poems are a great animated fair2 and it is to his own country that he owes his riches4 ,for back of him is ,england1 the sea-encircled and mist-covered country1 whose enterprise reaches all the parts of the earth4 ,the poet lives at a noble and important epoch1 and presents all its glory and its deficiencies with great vivacity2 indeed1 he would hardly produce such an effect upon us were it not just his own life-epoch that he was representing4 ,no one despised the outer costume of men more than he2 but he understood well the inner man1 and here all are similar4 ,it is said that he has delineated the ,romans with wonderful skill4 ,i cannot see it4 ,they are ,englishmen to the bone2 but they are human1 thoroughly human1 and thus the ,roman toga presumably fits them4 ,when one takes this into consideration1 one finds his anachronisms entirely admirable2 indeed1 it is just his neglect of the outer form that makes his works so vital4 ,enough of these slight words1 which cannot begin to sound the praises of ,shakespeare4 ,his friends and worshipers will have to add many a word to them4 ,but one more remark3--it would be hard to find a poet each of whose works was more thoroughly pervaded by a definite and effective idea than his4 ,thus ,coriolanus is permeated by the idea of anger at the refusal of the lower classes to recognize the superiority of their betters4 ,in ,julius ,csar everything hinges on the idea that the upper classes are not willing to see the highest place in the ,state occupied1 since they wrongly imagine that they are able to act together4 ,antony and ,cleopatra expresses with a thousand tongues the idea that pleasure and action are ever incompatible4 ,and so one will ever find1 in searching his works1 new cause for astonishment and admiration4 ,,ii4 ,shakespeare ,compared with the ,ancients and the ,moderns ,the interests which vitalize ,shakespeare's great genius are interests which centre in this world4 ,for if prophecy and madness1 dreams1 omens1 portents1 fairies and gnomes1 ghosts1 imps1 and conjurers introduce a magical element which so beautifully pervades his poems1 yet these figures are in no way the basic elements of his works1 but rest on a broad basis of the truth and fidelity of life1 so that everything that comes from his pen seems to us genuine and sound4 ,it has already been suggested that he belongs not so much to the poets of the modern era1 which has been called 8romantic10 but much more to the 8naturalistic0 school1 since his work is permeated with the reality of the present1 and scarcely touches the emotions of unsatisfied desire1 except at his highest points4 ,disregarding this1 however1 he is1 from a closer point of view1 a decidedly modern poet1 separated from the ancients by an enormous gulf1 not perhaps with regard to his outer form1 which is here beside our point1 but with regard to his inner and most profound spirit4 ,here let me say that it is not my idea to use the following terminology as exhaustive or exclusive2 it is an attempt not so much to add another new antithesis to those already recognized1 as to indicate that it is already contained in these4 ,these are the antitheses3-- ,ancient ,modern ,natural ,sentimental ,pagan ,christian ,classic ,romantic ,realistic ,idealistic ,necessity ,freedom ,duty 7sollen7 ,will 7wollen7#h ,the greatest ills to which men are exposed1 as well as the most numerous1 arise from a certain inner conflict between duty and will1 as well as between duty and its accomplishment1 and desire and its accomplishment2 and it is these conflicts which bring us so often into trouble in the course of our lives4 ,little difficulties1 springing from a slight error which1 though taking us by surprise1 can be solved easily1 give the clue to situations of comedy4 ,the great difficulties1 on the other hand1 unresolved and unresolvable1 give us tragedy4 ,predominating in the old poems is the conflict between duty and performance1 in the new between desire and accomplishment4 ,let us put this decided divergency among the other antitheses and see if it does not prove suggestive4 ,in both epochs1 ,i have said1 there predominates now this side1 now that2 but since duty and desire are not radically separated in men's characters1 both will be found together1 even if one prevails and the other is subordinate4 ,duty is imposed upon men2 8must0 is a bitter pill4 ,the ,will man imposes upon himself2 man's will is his kingdom of heaven4 ,a long-continued obligation is burdensome1 the inability to perform it even terrible2 but a constant will is pleasurable1 and with a firm will men can console themselves for their inability to accomplish their desire4 ,let us consider a game of cards as a kind of poem2 it consists of both those elements4 ,the form of the game1 bound up with chance1 plays here the rle of necessity1 just as the ancients knew it under the form of ,fate2 the will1 bound up with the skill of the player1 works in the other direction4 ,in this sense ,i might call whist 8classic40 ,the form of play limits the operation of chance1 and even of the will itself4 ,i have to play1 in company with definite partners and opponents1 with the cards which come into my hand1 make the best of a long series of chance plays1 without being able to control or parry them4 ,in ,ombre and similar games1 the contrary is the case4 ,here are many openings left for skill and daring4 ,i can disavow the cards that fall to my hand1 make them count in different ways1 half or completely discard them1 get help by luck1 and in the play get the best advantage out of the worst cards4 ,thus this kind of game resembles perfectly the modern mode of thought and literature4 ,ancient tragedy was based on unescapable necessity1 which was only sharpened and accelerated by an opposing will4 ,here is the seat of all that is fearful in the oracles1 the region in which dipus lords it over all4 ,less tragic appears necessity in the guise of duty in the 8,antigone02 and in how many forms does it not appear6 ,but all necessity is despotic1 whether it belong to the realm of ,reason1 like custom and civil law1 or to ,nature1 like the laws of ,becoming1 and ,growing and ,passing-away1 of ,life and of ,death4 ,before all these we tremble1 without realizing that it is the good of the whole that is aimed at4 ,the will1 on the contrary1 is free1 appears free1 and is advantageous to the individual4 ,thus the will is a flatterer1 and takes possession of men as soon as they learn to recognize it4 ,it is the god of the modern world4 ,dedicated to it1 we are afraid of opposing doctrines1 and here lies the crux of that eternal division which separates our art and thought from the ancients4 ,through the motive of ,necessity1 tragedy became mighty and strong2 through the motive of ,will1 weak and feeble4 ,out of the latter arose the so-called ,drama1 in which dread ,necessity is overcome and dissolved through the ,will4 ,but just because this comes to the aid of our weakness we feel moved when1 after painful tension1 we are at last a little encouraged and consoled4 ,as ,i turn now1 after these preliminaries1 to ,shakespeare1 ,i must express the hope that the reader himself will make the proper comparisons and applications4 ,it is ,shakespeare's unique distinction that he has combined in such remarkable fashion the old and the new4 ,in his plays ,will and ,necessity struggle to maintain an equilibrium2 both contend powerfully1 yet always so that ,will remains at a disadvantage4 ,no one has shown perhaps better than he the connection between ,necessity and ,will in the individual character4 ,the person1 considered as a character1 is under a certain necessity2 he is constrained1 appointed to a certain particular line of action2 but as a human being he has a will1 which is unconfined and universal in its demands4 ,thus arises an inner conflict1 and ,shakespeare is superior to all other writers in the significance with which he endows this4 ,but now an outer conflict may arise1 and the individual through it may become so aroused that an insufficient will is raised through circumstance to the level of irremissible necessity4 ,these motives ,i have referred to earlier in the case of ,hamlet2 but the motive is repeated constantly in ,shakespeare1--,hamlet through the agency of the ghost2 ,macbeth through the witches1 ,hecate1 and his wife2 ,brutus through his friends gets into a dilemma and situation to which they were not equal2 even in ,coriolanus the same motive is found4 ,this ,will1 which reaches beyond the power of the individual1 is decidedly modern4 ,but since in ,shakespeare it does not spring from within1 but is developed through external circumstance1 it becomes a sort of ,necessity1 and approaches the classical motive4 ,for all the heroes of ancient poetry willed only what was possible to men1 and from this arose that beautiful balance between ,necessity1 ,will1 and ,accomplishment4 ,still their ,necessity is a little too severe for it really to be able to please us1 even though we may wonder at and admire it4 ,a ,necessity which more or less1 or even completely1 excludes human freedom does not chime with our views any longer4 ,it is true that ,shakespeare in his own way has approximated this1 but in making this ,necessity a moral necessity he has1 to our pleasure and astonishment1 united the spirit of the ancient and the modern worlds4 ,if we are to learn anything from him1 here is the point where we must study in his school4 ,instead of singing the praises of our ,romanticism so exclusively1 and sticking to it so uncritically1--our ,romanticism1 which need not be chidden or rejected1--and thus mistaking and obscuring its strong1 solid practical aspect1 we should rather attempt to make this great fusion between the old and the new1 even though it does seem inconsistent and paradoxical2 and all the more should we make the attempt1 because a great and unique master1 whom we value most highly1 and1 often without knowing why1 give homage to above all others1 has already most effectively accomplished this miracle4 ,to be sure1 he had the advantage of living in a true time of harvest1 and of working in a vigorous ,protestant country1 where the madness of bigotry was silent for a time1 so that freedom was given to a true child of nature1 such as ,shakespeare was1 to develop religiously his own pure inner nature1 without reference to any established religion4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the preceding words were written in the summer of #ahac2 ,i ask that the reader will not now find fault with me1 but simply recall what was said above1--that this is merely an individual attempt to show how different poetic geniuses have tried to reconcile and resolve that tremendous antithesis which has appeared in their works in so many forms4 ,to say more would be superfluous1 since interest has been centred in this question for the past few years1 and excellent explanations have been given us4 ,above all ,i wish to mention ,blmner's highly valuable treatise1 ,on the ,idea of ,fate in the ,tragedies of schylus1 and the excellent criticism of it in the supplement of the ,jenaische ,literaturzeitung4 ,therefore1 ,i come without further comment to my third point1 which relates immediately to the ,german theatre and to ,schiller's efforts to establish it for the future4 ,,iii4 ,shakespeare as ,playwright ,when lovers of art wish to enjoy any work1 they contemplate and delight in it as a whole1 that is1 they try to feel and apprehend the unity which the artist can bring to them4 ,whoever1 on the other hand1 wishes to judge such works theoretically1 to assert some judgment about them1 or instruct some one about them1 must use his discriminating and analytic faculty4 ,this we attempted to carry out when we discussed ,shakespeare1 first1 as poet in general1 and then compared him with the ancient and modern poets4 ,now we intend to close the matter by considering him as a playwright1 or poet of the theatre4 ,shakespeare's fame and excellence belong to the history of poetry2 but it is an injustice towards all playwrights of earlier and more recent times to give him his entire merit in the annals of the theatre4 ,a universally recognized talent may make of its capacities some use which is problematical4 ,not everything which the great do is done in the best fashion4 ,so ,shakespeare belongs by necessity in the annals of poetry2 in the annals of the theatre he appears only by accident4 ,since we can honor him so unreservedly in the first case1 it behooves us in the second to explain the conditions to which he had to accommodate himself1 but not therefore to extol these conditions as either admirable or worthy of imitation4 ,we must distinguish closely-related poetic genres1 however often they may be confused and merged together in actual treatment1--epic1 dialogue1 drama1 play4 ,epic requires the verbal delivery to the crowd through the mouth of an individual2 dialogue1 conversation in a narrow circle1 where the crowd may eventually listen2 drama1 conversation bound up with action1 even if enacted only before the imagination2 play1 all three together1 in so far as they appeal to the sense of vision1 and can be embodied under certain conditions of personal presence and stage-setting4 ,shakespeare's works are in this sense highly dramatic2 by his treatment1 his revelation of the inner life1 he wins the reader2 the theatrical demands appear to him unimportant1 and so he takes it easy1 and we1 spiritually speaking1 take it easy with him4 ,we pass with him from place to place2 our power of imagination provides all the episodes which he omits4 ,we even feel grateful to him for arousing our imagination in so profitable a way4 ,since he exhibits everything in dramatic form1 he renders easy the working of our imaginations2 for with the 8stage that signifies the world10 we are more familiar than with the world itself1 and we can read and hear the most phantastic things1 and still imagine that they might pass before our eyes on the stage4 ,this accounts for the frequently bungling dramatizations of favorite novels4 ,strictly speaking1 nothing is theatrical except what is immediately symbolical to the eye3 an important action1 that is1 which signifies a still more important one4 ,that ,shakespeare knew how to attain this summit1 that moment witnesses where the son and heir in ,henry ,,iv takes the crown from the side of the slumbering king1 who lies sick unto death1--takes the crown and marches proudly away with it4 ,but these are only moments1 scattered jewels1 separated by much that is untheatrical4 ,shakespeare's whole method finds in the stage itself something unwieldy and hostile4 ,his great talent is that of a universal interpreter1 or 8epitomizer0 7,epitomator71 and since the poet in essence appears as universal interpreter of ,nature1 so we must recognize ,shakespeare's great genius as lying in this realm2 it would be only falsehood--and in no sense is this to his dishonor--were we to say that the stage was a worthy field for his genius4 ,these limitations of the stage1 however1 have forced upon him certain limitations of his own4 ,but he does not1 like other poets1 pick out disconnected materials for his separate works1 but puts an idea at the centre1 and to it relates the world and the universe4 ,as he works over and boils down ancient and modern history1 he can often make use of the material of old chronicles2 indeed1 he often adapts them word for word4 ,with romances he does not deal so conscientiously1 as ,hamlet shows us4 ,romeo and ,juliet is truer to the original2 still he almost destroys the tragic content of it by his two comic characters1 ,mercutio and the old nurse1 played apparently by two favorite actors1 the nurse perhaps originally by a male performer4 ,if one examines the construction of the piece carefully1 however1 one notices that these two figures1 and what surrounds them1 come in only as farcical interludes1 and must be as unbearable to the minds of the lovers on the stage as they are to us4 ,but ,shakespeare appears most remarkable when he revises and pieces together already existing plays4 ,in ,king ,john and ,lear we can make this comparison1 for the older plays are extant4 ,but in these cases1 too1 he turns out to be more of a poet than playwright4 ,in closing1 let us proceed to the solution of the riddle4 ,the primitiveness of the ,english stage has been brought to our attention by scholars4 ,there is no trace in it of that striving after realism1 which we have developed with the improvement of machinery and the art of perspective and costuming1 and from which we should find it hard to turn back to that childlike beginning of the stage1--a scaffolding1 where one saw little1 where everything was signified1 where the audience was content to assume a royal chamber behind a green curtain2 and the trumpeter1 who always blew his trumpet at a certain place1 and all the rest of it4 ,who would be content to-day to put up with such a stage8 ,but amid such surroundings1 ,shakespeare's plays were highly interesting stories1 only told by several persons1 who1 in order to make somewhat more of an impression1 had put on masks1 and1 when it was necessary1 moved back and forth1 entered and left the stage2 but left to the spectator nevertheless the task of imagining at his pleasure ,paradise and palaces on the empty stage4 ,how else then did ,schroeder acquire the great distinction of bringing ,shakespeare's plays to the ,german stage1 except by the fact that he was the 8epitomizer0 of the 8epitomizer06 ,schroeder confined himself exclusively to effect2 everything else he discarded1 even many necessary things1 if they seemed to injure the effect which he wanted to produce on his country and his time4 ,thus by the omission1 for instance1 of the first scenes of ,king ,lear1 he annulled the character of the play4 ,and he was right1 for in this scene ,lear seems so absurd that we are not able1 in what follows1 to ascribe to his daughters the entire guilt4 ,we are sorry for the old man1 but we do not feel real pity for him2 and it is pity that ,schroeder wishes to arouse1 as well as abhorrence for the daughters1 who are indeed unnatural1 but not wholly blameworthy4 ,in the old play1 which ,shakespeare revised1 this scene produces in the course of the action the loveliest effect4 ,lear flees to ,france2 the daughters and the stepson1 from romantic caprice1 make a pilgrimage over the sea1 and meet the old man1 who does not recognize them4 ,here everything is sweet1 where ,shakespeare's loftier tragic genius has embittered us4 ,a comparison of these plays will give the thoughtful reader ever fresh pleasure4 ,many years ago the superstition crept into ,germany that ,shakespeare must be given literally word for word1 even if actors and audience were murdered in the process4 ,the attempts1 occasioned by an excellent and exact translation1 were nowhere successful1 of which fact the painstaking and repeated endeavors of the stage at ,weimar are the best witness4 ,if we wish to see a ,shakespearean play1 we must take up again ,schroeder's version2 but the notion that in the staging of ,shakespeare not an iota may be omitted1 senseless as it is1 one hears constantly repeated4 ,if the defenders of this opinion maintain the upper hand1 in a few years ,shakespeare will be quite driven from the stage1 which for that matter would be no great misfortune2 for then the reader1 whether he be solitary or sociable1 will be able to get so much the purer pleasure out of him4 ,they have1 however1 with the idea of making an attempt along the lines of which we have spoken in detail above1 revised ,romeo and ,juliet for the theatre at ,weimar4 ,the principles according to which this was done we shall develop before long1 and it will perhaps become apparent why this version1 whose staging is by no means difficult1 although it must be handled artistically and carefully1 did not take on the ,german stage4 ,attempts of a similar kind are going on1 and perhaps something is preparing for the future1 for frequent endeavors do not always show immediate effects4 ,,footnotes3 #h 8,goethe1 in a thoughtful essay1 ,shakespeare und kein ,ende1 written many years later than his famous criticism of ,hamlet in ,wilhelm ,meister1 says that the distinction between the two ancient and modern drama is the difference between sollen and wollen1 that is1 between must and would4 ,he means that in the ,greek drama the catastrophe is foreordained by an inexorable ,destiny1 while the element of free will1 and consequently choice1 is the very axis of the modern4 ,the definition is conveniently portable1 but it has its limitations4 ,goethe's attention was too exclusively fixed on the fate tragedies of the ,greeks1 and upon ,shakespeare among the moderns4 ,in the ,spanish drama1 for example1 custom1 loyalty1 honor1 and religion are as imperative and as inevitable as doom4 ,in the ,antigone1 on the other hand1 the crisis lies in the character of the protagonist40--,james ,russell ,lowell1 ,shakespeare ,once ,more4 ,,first ,,edition ,,of ,,hamlet 7#ahbg7 ,the ,first ,edition of the ,tragedy of ,hamlet1 by ,william ,shakespeare1 ,london1 #afjc4 ,reprinted by ,fleischer1 ,leipzig1 #ahbe4 ,in this book ,shakespeare's devoted admirers receive a valuable present4 ,the first unbiased reading has given me a wonderful impression4 ,it was the old familiar masterpiece again1 its action and movement in no way altered1 but the most powerful and effective principal passages left untouched1 just as they came from the original hand of the genius4 ,the play was exceedingly easy and delightful to read4 ,one thought one's self in a wholly familiar world1 and yet felt something peculiar which could not be expressed1 and this induced one to give the play a closer consideration1 and indeed a stricter comparison with the old4 ,hence these few random remarks4 ,first of all1 it was noticeable that there was no locality given1 nor was there information about the stage-setting1 and just as little about the division of the acts and scenes4 ,all this was represented by 8,enter0 and 8,exit40 ,the imagination was allowed free play4 ,one saw again in his mind's eye the old primitive ,english stage4 ,the action took its impetuous course of life and passion1 and one did not take the time to think of such things as places4 ,in the more recent familiar revision we find the division into acts and scenes1 and locality and stage-setting are given4 ,whether these are by him or by later stage-managers1 we leave undecided here4 ,the ,polonius of the second revision is called ,corambis in the first1 and the rle appears through this little circumstance to take on another character4 ,the unimportant supernumerary rles were first designated merely by numbers1 but here we find them endowed with honor and significance through being given names4 ,we are thus reminded of ,schiller1 who in ,wilhelm ,tell gave names to his peasant women and some words to speak1 so that they became more acceptable rles4 ,the poet does the same here with guards and courtiers4 ,if in the first edition we find a loosely written syllabication1 in the later one we find it better controlled1 though always without pedantry4 ,rhythmic passages are divided into five-foot iambics1 though half and quarter verses are not avoided4 ,so much for the external expression4 ,a comparison of the inner connections and relations will be of profit to any admirer who gives the work an individual study4 ,here are only a few suggestions4 ,passages1 which in the first version are only lightly sketched by the hand of genius1 we find more deliberately executed1 and in a way that we have to approve and admire as necessary4 ,we come1 too1 upon pleasing amplifications1 which may not be absolutely necessary1 but which are highly welcome4 ,here and there we find hardly perceptible yet vivid aspersions1 connective passages1 even important transpositions to make a highly effective speech1--everything done with a master-hand1 with intelligence and feeling1 everything thrilling our emotions and clarifying our insight4 ,everywhere in the first version we admire that sureness of touch which1 without lengthy reflection1 seems rather as if it had been poured out spontaneously1 a vivifying and illuminating discovery4 ,and whatever excellences the poet may have given to his later work1 whatever deviations he employed1 at least we find nowhere any important omission or alteration4 ,only here and there some rather coarse and nave expressions are expunged4 ,in closing we shall mention1 however1 a noticeable difference which concerns the costume of the ,ghost4 ,his first appearance1 as we know1 is in armor2 he is armed from head to foot2 his face is pale and sad1 his glance wan and yet austere4 ,in this guise he appears on the terrace1 where the castle guard is marching up and down1 and where he himself may often have drawn up his warriors4 ,in the closet of the ,queen1 on the other hand1 we find mother and son in the familiar dialogue1 and finally these words3-- 8,queen4 ,hamlet1 you break my heart4 ,hamlet4 ,o throw the worser part away and keep the better40 ,but then follows3 8,enter the ,ghost in his night-gowne40 ,who1 on first hearing this1 does not find it for a moment incongruous8 ,and yet if we grasp it1 if we think it over1 we shall find it right and proper4 ,he should--indeed he must--appear first in armor1 when he is entering the place where he has rallied his warriors1 where he has encouraged them to noble deeds4 ,and now we begin to be less confident of our conviction that it was suitable to see him enter the private closet of the queen in armor1 too4 ,how much more private1 homelike1 terrible1 is his entrance here in the form in which he used to appear--in his house apparel1 his night robe1 harmless and unarmed--a guise which in itself stigmatizes in the most piteous way the treachery which befell him4 ,let the intelligent reader1 as he may1 picture this to himself4 ,let the stage-manager1 convinced of this effect1 produce it in this way1 if ,shakespeare is to be staged in his integrity4 ,it is worth noting that the commentator ,steevens has already criticized this scene4 ,when ,hamlet says3-- 8,my father in his habit as he lived60 this discerning critic adds this note3--8,if the poet means by this expression that the father is appearing in his own house costume1 he has either forgotten that at the beginning he introduced him in armor1 or else it must be his intention in this latter appearance to alter his attire4 ,hamlet's father1 just as a warrior prince might do1 does not always remain in armor1 or sleep1 as they tell of ,king ,haakon1 of ,norway1 with his battle-ax in his hand40 ,if we had been clever enough1 we should have already thought of ,hamlet's first utterance in this scene1 when he sees the ,ghost3--8,what would your gracious figure80 ,for we have not words enough to express all that the ,english mean by the word 8gracious10--everything that is kind and gentle1 friendly and benign1 tender1 and attractive1 is fused in that word4 ,certainly it is no term for a hero in armor4 ,these doubts are happily now dispelled by the reprinting of the first edition4 ,we are convinced anew that ,shakespeare1 like the ,universe1 is always offering us new aspects1 and still remains1 at the end of it all1 lofty and inaccessible4 ,for all our powers are not competent to do justice to his words1 much less his genius4 ,,troilus ,,and ,,cressida 7#ahbd7 ,a comparison of the ,iliad with ,troilus and ,cressida leads to similar conclusions3 here1 too1 there is neither parody nor travesty1 but1 as in the case of the eagle and the owl two subjects taken from nature were put in striking contrast with each other1 so here are contrasted the intellectual fibre of two epochs4 ,the ,greek poem is in the grand style1 self-restrained and self-sufficient1 using only the essential1 and1 in description and simile1 disdaining all ornament1--basing itself on noble myths and tradition4 ,the ,english classic1 on the other hand1 one might consider a happy transposition and translation of the other great work into the romantic-dramatic style4 ,in this connection we should not forget1 however1 that this piece1 like many another1 is based on second-hand narratives1 already rendered into prose1 and only half-poetical4 ,yet it is also quite original1 as much so as if the ancient piece had never been at all2 for it requires just as profound a sincerity1 just as decided a talent1 to depict for us similar personalities and characters with so light a touch and so lucid a meaning1 and represent them for a later age with all the human traits of that age1 which thus sees itself reflected in the guise of the ancient story4 ,,on ,,other ,,writers ,,goethe ,,as ,a ,,young ,,reviewer 7#aggb7 ,i ,lyrical ,poems1 by ,j4 ,c4 ,blum4 ,berlin1 #aggb ,we no longer feel certain whether it is wise for young poets to read the ancients early4 ,our unimaginative mode of life stifles genius1 unless the singers of freer times kindle it and open to it an atmosphere at least ideally more free2 but these very singers also breathe into the soul so exotic a spirit that the very best poet1 with the most fortunate genius1 can soon merely support himself in his flight through his imagination1 and can no longer give expression to that glowing inspiration which alone makes true poetry4 ,why are the poems of the old skalds1 of the ,celts and the old ,greeks1 even of the ,orientals1 so strong1 so fiery1 so great8 ,nature drives them to singing as it does the bird in the air4 ,as for us 7for we cannot deceive ourselves7 we are driven to the lyre by an artificial and stimulated feeling1 which we owe to our admiration for the ancients1 and to our delight in them2 and for this reason our best songs1 with few exceptions1 are merely imitative copies4 ,these remarks have been suggested by the lyrical poems of ,herr ,blum4 ,this poet is certainly not without talent1 and yet how seldom does he seem to be able to stand on his own feet when his ,horace is not before his eyes4 ,the latter illumines the way for him1 like ,hero's torch2 the moment he must go alone1 he sinks4 ,space does not permit us to prove our point here1 but we ask every reader who knows his ,horace whether the poet does not grow tired and cold whenever ,horace and ,king ,david do not lend him thoughts1 feelings1 expressions1 situations1 and in the case of the former even his mythology1 all of which1 we must feel1 are seldom used except when the imagination creates with a cold heart4 ,the well-known ,horatian dialogue1 ,donec gratus eram1 ,kleist has translated much better2 but the 8,lamentation of ,david and ,jonathan0 we have never seen better versified than here4 ,we wish the writer an unspoilt maiden1 days of complete leisure1 and the pure spirit of poetry without the spirit of mere authorship4 ,the very best of poets degenerates when in composing he thinks of the public1 and is filled with a yearning for fame1 especially newspaper fame1 rather than completely absorbed by his subject4 ,,ii ,cymbelline1 a ,tragedy1 ,based on a ,shakespearian ,theme by ,j4 ,g4 ,sulzer4 ,danzig1 #aggb4 ,the author1 obliged by a severe illness to avoid all fatiguing work1--so we are informed in the ,preface1--amused himself with the study of ,shakespeare's works4 ,we could have told him in advance that this was no reading for a convalescent2 whoever wishes to share in the life that glows through ,shakespeare's plays must himself be sound in body and mind4 ,at all events1 our author1 moved by a cool1 weak1 critical modesty1 regretted that so many 8incongruits0 should mar the 8many just sentiments0 and 8some beauties0 7as the eminent ,dr4 ,johnson likewise remarks7 that are to be found in this play4 ,so he resolved to separate the dross from the gold 7that is vox populi critici in regard to ,shakespeare since time immemorial71 and to attempt nothing less than this3 what ,sophocles would approximately have done if he had tried to make a play out of the same material4 ,so he travestied--no1 not travestied1 for then something of the appearance of the original would remain--parodied--no1 not that either1 for then something could be guessed by the very contrast--what then8 what word will express the poverty that is here1 compared with the infinite riches of ,shakespeare6 ,shakespeare1 who felt the spirit of several centuries in his breast1 through whose soul the life of whole centuries was stirring6--and here--comedians in silk and buckram1 and daubed scene-painting6 ,the scene a wood2 in front a thick copse1 through which one enters a grotto2 in the background a large pasteboard rock1 on which ladies and gentlemen sit1 lie1 are stabbed1 etc4 ,that is the way ,sophocles would have handled this theme6 ,it is bad enough to take ,shakespeare's play1 whose very essence is the life of history1 and reduce it to the ,sophoclean unity which aims merely at presenting action2 but to model it on the 8,treatise on ,tragedy0 in the first part of the old ,leipziger ,bibliothek6#i ,we are certain that every one1 not merely readers of ,shakespeare1 will cast it aside with contempt4 ,,footnotes3 #i ,by ,nicolai4 ,,byron',s ,,manfred 7#ahbj7 ,to me ,byron's tragedy of ,manfred was a wonderful phenomenon1 touching me closely4 ,this singular but highly gifted poet has absorbed my own ,faust into himself1 and1 like a hypochondriac1 drawn from it the strangest sort of nourishment4 ,those motives and ideas which suited his purposes he has made use of1 but in his own original way1 so that everything seems different2 and for this reason ,i cannot wonder enough at his genius4 ,this transformation affects the whole so intimately that highly interesting lectures could be given on the similarity and dissimilarity which his work bears to his pattern2 but ,i do not deny that in the long run the dull glow of a boundless and profound despair becomes irksome to us4 ,yet in the dissatisfaction which one feels there are always interwoven both admiration and respect4 ,thus we find in this tragedy quite uniquely the very quintessence of the feelings and passions of a remarkable genius1 but a genius doomed from birth to suffering and anguish4 ,the details of his life and the characteristics of his poetry hardly permit of a just and fair criticism4 ,he has often enough confessed his anguish2 he has repeatedly presented it in his verse1 and it is difficult for any one not to feel real pity for the unbearable pain which he is forever working and gnawing over in his heart4 ,there are two women whose shadows follow him unceasingly1 and who play a large rle in his best-known works2 one appears under the name ,astarte1 the other1 without form or presence1 simply as ,a ,voice4 ,the following story is told of the tragic adventure which was his experience with the first4 ,as a young1 daring and highly attractive youth he won the love of a ,florentine lady2 her husband discovered it and murdered her4 ,but the murderer was found dead that same night in the street1 and there was nothing to throw suspicion upon a single soul4 ,lord ,byron left ,florence1 but these apparitions haunted him throughout his whole life4 ,this romantic event appears in his poems in countless allusions1 as for example where he1 probably brooding over his own tragedy1 applies the sad story of the king of ,sparta to his own case4 ,the story is as follows3 ,pausanias1 the ,lacedmonian general1 having won fame in the important victory at ,plata1 later through arrogance1 stubbornness1 and cruel treatment1 loses the affection of the ,greeks1 and1 on account of a secret understanding with the enemy1 loses also the confidence of his countrymen4 ,he thus brings blood-guiltiness upon his head1 which pursues him to a miserable end4 ,for while in command of the fleet of the ,greek allies in the ,black ,sea1 he falls violently in love with a girl of ,byzantium4 ,after a long struggle he wins her from her parents2 she is to be brought to him in the night4 ,filled with shame1 she requests the servants to put out the light2 this is done1 but groping about in the room1 she knocks over the lamp-stand4 ,pausanias awakes suddenly from sleep1 suspects murder1 seizes his sword and kills his beloved4 ,the horrible vision of this scene never leaves him afterwards1 its shadow pursues him unceasingly1 so that he appeals in vain to the gods and to necromancers for aid and absolution4 ,what a sick heart the poet must have who would seek out such a story from the ancient world1 appropriate it to himself1 and burden himself with its tragic image6 ,this will explain the following monologue1 so laden with gloom and the despair of life2 we recommend it to all lovers of declamation for serious practice4 ,hamlet's monologue is here intensified4 ,it will take considerable art especially to pick out the interpolations and yet keep the connection and the flow and smoothness of the whole4 ,besides it will be discovered that a certain vehement1 even eccentric1 expression is needed in order to do justice to the intention of the poet4#aj ,,footnotes3 #aj ,the quotation which follows here1 translated by ,goethe into ,german1 is ,manfred's speech at the end of act #b1 scene #b1 beginning3 8,we are the fools of ,time and ,terror6 ,days ,steal on us1 and steal from us2 yet we live1 ,loathing our life1 and dreading still to die40 ,,byron',s ,,don ,,juan#aa 7#ahba7 ,in hesitating some time ago to insert a passage from ,manzoni's ,count ,carmagnola1 a piece which is perhaps translatable1 and in the present instance making the daring attempt to take up and discuss the untranslatable ,don ,juan1 it may seem as if we are guilty of an inconsistency4 ,we shall therefore point out the difference between the two cases4 ,manzoni is as yet but little known among us1 and it is better that people should learn to know his merits first in their complete fullness1 as they are presented only in the original2 after that1 a translation by one of our young poets would be decidedly in order4 ,with ,lord ,byron's talent1 on the other hand1 we are sufficiently acquainted1 and can neither help nor injure him by translation1 for the originals are in the hands of all cultivated people4 ,yet such an attempt1 even if it were attempting the impossible1 will always have a certain value4 ,for if a false reflection does not exactly give back the original picture to us1 yet it makes us attentive at least to the mirror itself and to its more or less perceptible defects4 ,don ,juan is a work of infinite genius1 misanthropical with the bitterest inhumanity1 yet sympathetic with the deepest intensity of tender feeling4 ,and since we now know the author and esteem him1 and do not wish him to be otherwise than he is1 we enjoy thankfully what he dares with overgreat independence1 indeed insolence1 to bring before us4 ,the technical treatment of the verse is quite in accord with the singular1 reckless1 unsparing content4 ,the poet spares his language as little as he does his men1 and as we examine it more closely we discover indeed that ,english poetry has a cultivated comic language which we ,germans wholly lack4 ,the comic in ,german lies preminently in the idea1 less in the treatment or style4 ,we admire ,lichtenberg's abounding wealth2 he has at his command a whole world of knowledge and relations to mix like a pack of cards and deal them out roguishly at pleasure4 ,with ,blumauer too1 whose compositions in verse certainly possess the comic spirit1 it is especially the sharp contrast between old and new1 aristocrats and common people1 the noble and the mean1 that delights us4 ,if we examine further we find that the ,german1 in order to be amusing1 steps back several centuries and has the luck to be peculiarly ingenuous and engaging only in doggerel rhyme4 ,in translating ,don ,juan there are many useful things to be learned from the ,englishman4 ,there is only one joke which we cannot imitate from him1--one that gets its effect by a singular and dubious accent in words which look quite differently on paper4 ,the ,english linguist may judge how far the poet in this case has wantonly exceeded the proper limits4 ,it is only by chance that the verses inserted here happened to be translated1 and they are now published not as a pattern but for their suggestiveness4 ,all our talented translators ought to try their skill at least partly upon them2 they will have to permit assonances and imperfect rhymes and who knows what besides4 ,a certain laconic treatment will also be necessary1 in order to give the full quality and significance of this audacious mischievousness4 ,only when something has been accomplished along these lines1 can we discuss the subject further4 ,possibly we may be reproached for spreading in translation such writings as these through ,germany1 thus making an honest1 peaceful1 decorous nation acquainted with the most immoral works that the art of poetry ever produced4 ,but according to our way of thinking1 these attempts at translation should not be intended for the press1 but may serve as excellent practice for talented brains4 ,our poets may then discreetly apply and cultivate what they acquire in this way1 for the pleasure and delight of their countrymen4 ,no particular injury to morality is to be feared from the publication of such poems1 since poets and authors would have to cast aside all restraint to be more corrupting than the papers of the present day4 ,,footnotes3 #aa ,this paper is preceded by a translation into ,german verse of the first five stanzas of ,don ,juan4 ,,calderon',s ,,daughter ,,of ,,the ,,air 7#ahbb7 8,de nugis hominum seria veritas ,uno volvitur assere40 ,certainly if any course of human follies1 presented in lofty style1 is to be put upon the stage1 then this drama should carry off the prize4 ,we often allow ourselves to be charmed by the merits of a work of art1 to the extent that the last good thing which has come before us we consider and discuss as the greatest we have ever seen4 ,still this does no harm1 for we study such a work then con amore and all the more closely1 and seek to discover its merits1 in order that our judgment may be justified4 ,for this reason ,i do not hesitate to acknowledge that in the ,daughter of the ,air ,i admire more than ever ,calderon's great talent1 his lofty genius and clear insight4 ,we should not fail to recognize that the subject is superior to his other plays1 in that the story is based on motives purely human1 and there is no more of the supernatural element than is necessary for the extraordinary and the exceptional in human affairs to develop and proceed in natural fashion4 ,only the beginning and the end are marvelous2 everything else proceeds in a natural course4 ,what there is to say of this play is true of all the plays by this poet4 ,he gives us in no way a real view of nature2 he is rather theatrical throughout1 even stagey4 ,of what we call illusion1 especially such as touches the feelings1 we find not a trace4 ,the design is clear to one's mind1 the scenes follow of necessity1 in a kind of ballet-order1 pleasing and artistic in its way1 and suggest the technique of our latest comic opera4 ,the inner leading motives are always the same1--conflict of duty1 passion1 conditions derived from the antithesis of the characters and the existing relations4 ,the main action proceeds in a poetic and dignified manner2 the minor scenes1 which have an elegant movement1 in the style of the minuet1 are rhetorical1 dialectical1 sophisticated4 ,all the types of humanity are exhausted2 there is not missing even the fool1 whose simple mind makes havoc of deception whenever a pretense is made of sympathy and kindness4 ,now we must admit on reflection that human situations and emotions cannot be put on the stage in their primitive realism1 but must be worked up1 touched up1 idealized4 ,and thus we find them in this case1 too2 the poet however stands on the threshold of over-refinement1 he gives us a quintessence of humanity4 ,shakespeare on the contrary gives us the rich ripe grape from the vine4 ,according to our taste we can enjoy the single berries1 press them out and taste or sip the juice or the fermented wine--however we treat them we are refreshed4 ,with ,calderon1 on the other hand1 nothing is left to the choice or taste of the spectator2 we receive from him the spirits already drawn off and distilled1 seasoned with many spices1 or flavored with sweets2 we must accept the beverage as it is1 as a delicious and palatable stimulant1 or else refuse it4 ,but the reason for our giving the ,daughter of the ,air so high a place has already been suggested2 it is favored by its excellent subject-matter4 ,for we object to seeing a noble and free man1 as in several of ,calderon's plays1 indulging in dark error and lending his reason to indiscretions and folly2 here we have a quarrel with the poet himself1 since his material offends us1 whereas his manner charms4 ,this is the case in ,the ,devotion of the ,cross and in ,daybreak in ,copacabana4 ,in this connection we may say in print what we have often expressed privately1 that we must regard it as one of the greatest advantages of life that ,shakespeare enjoyed1 that he was born and brought up as a ,protestant4 ,he appears always as a human being1 with a complete faith and confidence in human values and affairs3 error and superstition he feels to be beneath him1 and only toys with them1 compelling the supernatural to serve his purposes4 ,tragic ghosts1 droll goblins he summons to his ends1 in which everything is clarified and cleansed of superstition1 so that the poet never feels the dilemma of being compelled to deify the absurd1 the saddest downfall which mankind1 conscious of possessing reason1 can experience4 ,returning to the ,daughter of the ,air1 this question suggests itself3 ,if we are now enabled to transport ourselves to so remote an atmosphere1 without knowing the locality or understanding the language1 to enter familiarly into a foreign literature without previous historical research1 and to bring home to ourselves in one example the quality and flavor of a certain age1 the mind and genius of a people--to whom do we owe thanks for all this8 ,evidently to the translator1 who all his life and with laborious industry has thus utilized his talent to our benefit4 ,our warmest thanks1 therefore1 we present to ,dr4 ,gries2 he has given us a gift whose value is overwhelming1 a gift in considering which we gladly refrain from all comparisons1 because it delights us by its clearness1 wins us by its charm1 and by the complete harmony of all its parts convinces us that nothing in it could or should have been different4 ,such excellence older readers are likely to prize more highly1 for they like to enjoy in comfort a perfectly adequate presentation2 younger men1 on the contrary1 actively engaged in work1 coperating and struggling1 do not always acknowledge merit which they themselves hope to emulate4 ,all honor then to the translator1 who concentrated his energies on a single point1 and went ahead in a single direction1 so that we could enjoy in a thousand different ways6 ,,moli,,re',s ,,misanthrope 7#ahbh7 ,histoire de la ,vie et des ,ouvrages de ,molire1 par ,j4 ,taschereau4 ,paris1 #ahbh4 ,this work deserves to be read carefully by all true lovers of literature1 because it gives us new insight into the qualities and individuality of a great man4 ,it will also be welcome to his devoted admirers1 although they hardly need this in order to treasure him highly2 to the attentive reader he has revealed himself sufficiently in his works4 ,examine the ,misanthrope carefully and ask yourself whether a poet has ever represented his inner spirit more completely or more admirably4 ,we can well call the content and treatment of this play 8tragic40 ,such an impression at least it has always left with us1 because that mood is brought before our mind's eye which often in itself brings us to despair1 and seems as if it would make the world unbearable4 ,here is represented the type of man who despite great cultivation has yet remained natural1 and who with himself1 as well as others1 would like only too well to express himself with complete truth and sincerity4 ,but we see him in conflict with the social world1 where one cannot move without dissimulation and shallowness4 ,in contrast to such a type ,timon is merely a comic character4 ,i wish that a talented poet would depict such a visionary who was always deceiving himself as to the world1 and then was greatly put out with it1 as if it had deceived him4 ,,old ,,german ,,folksongs 7#ahjf7 ,des ,knaben ,wunderhorn4 ,old ,german ,songs1 edited by ,achim von ,arnim and ,klemens ,brentano4 ,heidelberg1 #ahjf4 ,we are decidedly of the opinion that for the present criticism should not concern itself with this collection4 ,the editors have collected and arranged this volume with such love and diligence1 such good taste and delicacy of feeling1 that their countrymen should first of all show their gratitude for this loving care by their good-will1 their interest1 and their sympathetic appreciation4 ,this little book ought to be found in every home in which lively and healthy people dwell1--at the window1 under the mirror1 or wherever else songbooks and cookbooks are usually found1 so that it may be opened in any happy or unhappy mood1 and one may always find something which strikes a similar or a new chord1 even though one must perhaps turn over a few pages4 ,but the most fitting place for this volume would be upon the piano of a lover or a master of music1 so that full justice might be done the songs by setting them to old familiar tunes1 or suitable tunes might be adapted to them1 or1 ,god willing1 new and striking melodies might be composed through their inspiration4 ,if these songs were then borne from ear to ear1 from mouth to mouth1 clothed in their own melodious harmony1 if they gradually returned regenerated and enhanced in beauty to the people from whom they1 so to speak1 have in part sprung1 then we might truly say that the little book had fulfilled its mission1 and could now be lost again in its written or printed form1 because it had become part and parcel of the life and culture of the nation4 ,but since in our modern times1 especially in ,germany1 nothing seems to exist or to have any effect unless it is written about again and again1 adjudged and made a bone of contention1 a few remarks may not improperly be introduced here about this collection1--a few observations which may not enhance our enjoyment of the book1 but at least will not impair or destroy it4 ,what may at the outset be said unreservedly in praise of the collection is that it is thoroughly varied and characteristic4 ,it contains more than two hundred poems of the last three centuries1 all of them differing so much from one another in sense1 conception1 sound1 and manner that the same criticism cannot apply to any two of them4 ,we shall therefore assume the agreeable task of characterizing some of them in order as the inspiration of the moment may prompt us3 ,the ,wunderhorn4 ,fairy-like1 childlike1 pleasing4 ,the ,sultan's ,little ,daughter4 ,tender ,christian feeling1 charming4 ,tell and ,his ,child4 ,honest and solid4 ,grandmother ,snake-cook4 ,deep1 enigmatic1 dramatic1 admirably handled4 ,isaiah's ,face4 ,barbaric grandeur4 ,fire ,incantation4 ,appropriate and true to the spirit of the brigand4 ,poor ,schwartenhals4 ,roguish1 whimsical1 jolly4 ,death and the ,maiden4 ,after the manner of the ,dance of ,death2 like a woodcut2 admirable4 ,nocturnal ,musicians4 ,droll1 extravagant1 inimitable4 ,the ,stubborn ,bride4 ,humorous1 somewhat grotesque4 ,cloister-shy4 ,capriciously confused1 yet to the purpose4 ,the ,braggart ,knight4 ,very good in the realistic-romantic manner4 ,the ,black-brown ,witch4 ,rather confused in transmission1 but the theme of inestimable value4 ,love ,without ,caste4 ,romantic twilight4 ,the ,hospitality of ,winter4 ,written with a great deal of elegance4 ,the ,high-born ,maiden4 ,christian pedantry1 but not wholly unpoetical4 ,love ,spins no ,silk4 ,charmingly confused and therefore rousing the imagination4 ,the ,faith of an ,hussar4 ,swiftness and lightness expressed in a wonderful way4 ,the ,ratcatcher of ,hameln4 ,tends toward the manner of the ballad-monger1 but not coarse4 ,tuck ,your ,dress1 ,gretlein4 ,after the manner of vagabond poets2 unexpectedly epigrammatic4 ,the ,song of the ,ring4 ,romantic tenderness4 ,the ,knight and the ,maiden4 ,romantic twilight2 powerful4 ,harvest ,song4 ,a ,catholic funeral hymn2 good enough to be ,protestant6 ,a ,surfeit of ,learning4 ,a gallant piece2 but the pedant cannot get rid of his learning4 ,the ,fight at ,murten4 ,realistic1 probably modernized4 ,the ,haste of ,time in ,god4 ,christian1 somewhat too historical1 but quite suited to its subject1 and very good4 ,reveille4 ,priceless for any one who has the imagination to understand it4 ,drought4 ,thought1 feeling1 presentation everywhere right4 ,the ,drummer ,boy4 ,lively presentation of a distressing incident4 ,a poem which the discriminating will find it difficult to match4 ,should and ,must4 ,perfect in plan1 although here in a dismembered and curiously restored condition4 ,a ,friendly ,service4 ,german romanticism1 pious and pleasing4 ,cradle ,song4 ,rhyming nonsense1 perfectly suited to put one to sleep4 ,miller's ,farewell4 ,to one who can grasp the situation1 a priceless thing2 but the first stanza requires an emendation4 ,abbot ,neidhard and ,his ,monks4 ,a prank of ,till ,eulenspiegel of the very best sort1 and very well told4 ,the ,horrible ,marriage4 ,an extraordinary case2 in the ballad-monger's manner1 but admirably handled4 ,the ,excellent ,comrade4 ,nonsense2 but happy the man who can sing it agreeably6 ,unrequited ,love4 ,very good1 but tending toward a rather ,philistine prose4 ,the ,little ,tree4 ,full of longing and playfulness1 yet full of fervor4 ,msalliance4 ,excellent enigmatic fable1 but a clearer treatment might have been more pleasing to the reader4 ,with these impromptu characterizations--for how could they be other than impromptu8--we do not intend to anticipate the judgment of any readers of the book1 and least of all those readers who by their own lyric enjoyment and the appreciation of a sympathetic heart can get more from the poems themselves than any brief characterizations like ours can ever give them4 ,we should like1 however1 in conclusion to say something about the value of the collection as a whole4 ,we have been accustomed for years to give the name of 8folksongs0 to this species of poetry1 not because it is really composed by the people or for the people1 but because it embraces in itself something so vigorous and wholesome that the healthy stock of the nation understands it1 remembers it1 appropriates it1 and at times propagates it4 ,poetry of this kind is as true poetry as can possibly exist4 ,it has an incredible charm even for us who stand on a higher plane of culture1 just as the sight of young people and the memory of one's own youth have for old age4 ,art in them is in conflict with nature2 and it is because of their gradual development1 their mutual influence1 and their striving for form that these songs seem to seek a further perfection when they have already reached their goal4 ,true poetic genius1 wherever it appears1 is perfect in itself3 no matter what imperfections of language1 of external technique1 or anything else1 stand in its way1 it possesses the higher inner form which ultimately has everything at its command1 and often in an obscure and imperfect medium produces a more striking effect than it can later produce in a more perfect medium4 ,the vivid poetic perception of a limited state or condition gives to what is purely individual a universal significance1 finite to be sure1 but after all limitless and unrestricted1 so that within a small compass we fancy we see the whole world4 ,the promptings of a profound intuition urge the poet to a significant brevity2 and what would seem in prose unpardonably topsy-turvy is to the true poetic sense a necessity and a virtue2 even a solecism1 if it appeals seriously to our whole imagination1 stimulates it to a surprisingly high degree of enjoyment4 ,in characterizing the individual poems we avoided the kind of formal classification which may more readily be made in the future when several authentic and typical examples of every kind have been collected4 ,but we cannot conceal our own preference for those songs in which lyric1 dramatic1 and epic treatment is interwoven in such a way that a problem1 at first shrouded in mystery1 is finally solved skilfully1 or even1 if you will1 epigrammatically4 ,the well-known ballad1 8,why dois your brand sae drop wi' bluid1 ,edward1 ,edward80 is1 especially in the original1 the most perfect example of this species of poetry4 ,we hope that the editors will be encouraged to publish in the near future another volume of poems from the rich store collected by them as well as from those already printed4 ,we trust that when they do this they will guard themselves carefully against the sing-song of the ,minnesingers1 the blatant coarseness and the platitudes of the ,mastersingers1 as well as against everything monkish and pedantic4 ,if they should collect a second volume of these ,german songs1 they might also be asked to select songs of the same kind from foreign nations and to give them in the original and in translations that are either already extant or may be made by them for this special purpose4 ,the most of these1 to be sure1 will be from the ,english1 fewer from the ,french1 some of a different type from the ,spanish1 and almost none from the ,italian4 ,if from the outset we have doubted the competence of criticism1 even in its highest sense1 to judge this work1 we have all the more reason to ignore that kind of research which attempts to separate the songs that are genuine from those that have been more or less restored4 ,the editors1 so far as it is possible in these later times1 have caught the spirit of their task1 and we ought to be grateful to them even for those poems which have been oddly restored or made up of heterogeneous parts or are absolutely spurious4 ,who does not know what a song has to undergo when it has been for some time in the mouth of the people1 and not merely uneducated people either8 ,why should he who finally writes it down and inserts it in a collection with other poems not have a certain personal right to it8 ,we do not possess any poetic or sacred book of earlier times which has not depended for its final form on the skill or whim of him who first wrote it down or some later copyist4 ,if we accept the printed collection lying before us from this point of view1 and with a grateful and kindly spirit1 we may charge the editors all the more earnestly to keep their poetic archives pure1 lofty1 and in good order4 ,it serves no purpose to print everything2 but they will place the whole nation in their debt if they contribute toward that thorough1 faithful1 and intelligent history of our poetry and our poetic culture which from now on must be the ultimate goal of scholars4 ,,folksongs ,,again ,,commended 7#ahbc7 ,my old love for original folksongs has not lessened1 but has rather been increased by receiving valuable communications from many quarters4 ,in particular1 ,i have received from the ,east1 some separately1 and some in collections1 such songs of many different peoples2 they extend from ,olympus to the ,baltic ,sea1 and from that line towards the northeast4 ,my hesitation in publishing any of them is due partly to the fact that many varied interests have drawn me here and there and so prevented me1 but also more particularly to the following circumstance4 ,all true national poems have a small circle of ideas1 to which they are always limited1 and in which they revolve4 ,for that reason they become monotonous in mass1 because they express one and the same limited situation4 ,examine the six modern ,greek songs inserted above2 every one will admire the powerful contrast between the virile freedom of spirit in the wilderness and a government1 orderly indeed1 but still barbaric and of insufficient power4 ,a dozen or more would be sufficient to exhibit this refractory character in them1 and show us repetitions such as we find in our own folksongs1 where we often come upon more or less happy variations of the same theme1 as well as mixed and heterogeneous fragments4 ,it is remarkable1 nevertheless1 how much the individual peoples mentioned above differ among themselves in their songs2 this characteristic we shall not discuss abstractly1 but will rather develop by means of examples from time to time in the ensuing numbers4 ,since contributions for this purpose will be highly welcome from all quarters1 we request the friend who showed us at ,wiesbaden in the summer of #ahae some ,greek songs in the original and in a very happy translation1 promising to send us soon a copy which never however appeared1 to get in touch with us again and cooperate with us in this praiseworthy undertaking4 ,,laurence ,,sterne 7#ahbg7 ,in the swift progress of literary1 as of human1 culture it happens commonly that we forget the person to whom we owe the first stimulus1 the original influence4 ,what is1 and what flourishes here and now1 we believe had to be so and had to happen so4 ,but in this we are wrong1 for we lose sight of those who guided us to the right path4 ,from this point of view ,i call attention to a man who first gave the stimulus to the great epoch in the second half of the last century1 an epoch of clearer human knowledge1 nobler toleration1 gentler humanity4 ,of this man1 to whom ,i owe so much1 ,i am often reminded1 especially when the talk is of truth and error1 which fluctuate here and there among mankind4 ,a third word may be added of gentler meaning1 that is1 8singularity0 7,eigenheit71 for there are certain human phenomena which can be best expressed by this term4 ,viewed externally they are erroneous1 but from within full of truth1 and rightly considered1 of the highest psychological importance4 ,they are those qualities which constitute the individual2 the universal is thereby specified1 and in the most peculiar of them there always shines some intelligence1 reason1 and good-will which charms us and fetters us4 ,from this standpoint1 8,yorick0 ,sterne1 revealing in the tenderest way the human in men1 has called these 8singularities10 in so far as they express themselves in action1 8ruling passions40 ,for certainly they are what drive men in a certain direction1 push them along on a consistent track1 and without requiring reflection1 conviction1 purpose or strength of will1 keep them continually in life and motion4 ,it is immediately apparent how closely related habit is to them2 for it promotes that convenience in which our idiosyncrasies love to saunter undisturbed4 ,,the ,,english ,,reviewers 7#ahba7 ,english critics1 as we have come to know them from their various ,reviews1 deserve a great deal of respect4 ,their acquaintance not only with their own literature1 but also with that of other countries1 is most gratifying2 the seriousness and the thoroughness with which they go to work arouse our admiration1 and we are glad to confess that much may be learned from them4 ,moreover1 we find ourselves very favorably impressed by the attitude these men take toward their calling as critics and the respect which they have for the intelligence of the public1--a public1 to be sure1 which is very attentive to all things written and spoken1 but is probably hard to satisfy1 and ever disposed to contradict and argue4 ,no matter how thorough and comprehensive the presentation of a case by an attorney before a body of judges or by a speaker before a provincial diet may be1 some opponent will very soon come to the fore with forcible arguments2 the attentive and critical hearers will themselves be divided1 and many an important matter is often decided by a very small majority4 ,such a spirit of opposition1 even though passive1 we occasionally assume toward critics1 both at home and abroad1 whose knowledge of facts we by no means deny and whose premises we often grant1 but whose conclusions nevertheless we do not share4 ,still we must be especially forbearing to the ,english when they appear harsh and unjust toward foreign productions2 for those who count ,shakespeare among their forebears may well allow themselves to be carried away by their pride of ancestry4 ,,german ,,literature ,,in ,,goethe',s ,,youth 7#ahaa-ad7 ,so much has been written about the condition of ,german literature at that time1#ab and to such good purpose1 that every one who takes any interest in it can obtain full information2 the opinions with regard to it1 too1 are fairly unanimous2 so that anything ,i say about it here1 in my fragmentary and desultory fashion1 is not so much an analysis of its characteristics as of its relation to me4 ,i will therefore first speak of those branches which especially react upon the public1 those two hereditary foes of all easy-going life1 and of all cheerful1 self-sufficient1 living poetry3--,i mean1 satire and criticism4 ,in quiet times every one desires to live after his own fashion2 the citizen wishes to carry on his trade or his business1 and then enjoy himself2 so1 too1 the author likes to produce something1 see his work published1 and1 in the consciousness of having done something good and useful1 looks1 if not for remuneration1 at any rate for praise4 ,from this state of tranquillity the citizen is roused by the satirist1 the author by the critic1 and so it comes that peaceful society is rudely disturbed4 ,the literary epoch in which ,i was born developed out of the preceding one by opposition4 ,germany1 so long inundated by foreign people1 pervaded by other nations1 employing foreign languages in learned and diplomatic transactions1 could not possibly cultivate her own4 ,together with so many new ideas1 innumerable strange words were obtruded necessarily and unnecessarily upon her1 and even for objects already known people were induced to make use of foreign expressions and turns of language4 ,the ,germans1 brutalized by nearly two centuries of misery and confusion1 took lessons from the ,french in manners and from the ,latins in the art of expression4 ,this art ought to have been cultivated in ,german1 since the use of ,french and ,latin idioms1 and their partial translation into ,german1 made both their social and business style ridiculous4 ,besides this1 they recklessly adopted figures of speech belonging to the southern languages1 and employed them most extravagantly4 ,in the same way the stately ceremoniousness of prince-like ,roman citizens had been transferred to the educated circles in ,german provincial towns4 ,as a result1 they nowhere felt themselves at home1 least of all in their own houses4 ,but in this epoch works of genius had already appeared1 and the ,german independence of mind and enjoyment of life began to assert themselves4 ,this cheerful spirit1 combined with an honest sincerity1 led to the demand for purity and naturalness in writing1 without the intermixture of foreign words1 and in accordance with the dictates of plain common sense4 ,by these praiseworthy endeavors1 however1 the flood-gates were thrown open to a prolix national insipidity1 nay1 the dam was broken down1 and an inundation was bound to follow4 ,however1 a stiff pedantry continued for some time to hold sway in the four learned professions1 and eventually1 at a much later date1 fled for refuge first to one and then to another4 ,men of parts1 children of nature looking freely about them1 had therefore two objects on which they could exercise their faculties1 against which they could direct their energies1 and1 as the matter was of no great importance1 vent their mischievousness2 these were1 on the one hand1 a language disfigured by foreign words1 forms1 and turns of speech2 and on the other1 the worthlessness of such writings as had been careful to avoid those faults2 but it never occurred to any one that each evil was being combated by fostering the other4 ,liscow1 a daring young man1 first ventured to attack by name a shallow1 silly writer1 whose foolish behavior soon gave him an opportunity for yet more drastic treatment4 ,he then sought other subjects1 invariably directing his satire against particular objects and persons1 whom he despised and sought to render despicable2 indeed1 he pursued them with passionate hatred4 ,but his career was short2 for he died early1 and was remembered only as a restless1 irregular youth4 ,the talent and character shown in what he did1 in spite of the smallness of his production1 may well have seemed valuable to his countrymen3 for the ,germans have always shown a peculiar piety towards the promise of genius prematurely cut off4 ,suffice it to say that in our early youth ,liscow was praised and commended to us as an excellent satirist1 who might justly claim preference even before the universally beloved ,rabener4 ,but we did not gain much from him2 for the only thing we discovered from his works was that he considered the absurd absurd1 and this seemed to us a matter of course4 ,rabener1 well educated1 grown up under good school discipline1 of a cheerful and by no means passionate or malicious disposition1 turned to general satire4 ,his censure of so-called vices and follies is the outcome of clear-sighted and unimpassioned common sense1 and of a definite moral conception as to what the world ought to be4 ,his denunciation of faults and failings is harmless and cheerful2 and in order to excuse even the slight daring of his writings1 he assumes that the attempt to improve fools by ridicule is not in vain4 ,rabener's personal character was such as we do not often meet4 ,a thorough and strict man of business1 he did his duty1 and so gained the good opinion of his fellow-townsmen and the confidence of his superiors2 at the same time1 by way of relaxation1 he indulged in a genial contempt for all that immediately surrounded him4 ,learned pedants1 vain youngsters1 every sort of narrowness and conceit1 he made fun of rather than satirized1 and even his satire expressed no scorn4 ,just in the same way he jested about his own condition1 his unhappiness1 his life1 and his death4 ,there is little of the sthetic in the manner in which this writer treats his subjects4 ,in external form he is indeed varied enough1 but throughout he makes too much use of direct irony1 that is1 in praising the blameworthy and blaming the praiseworthy1 whereas this rhetorical device should be adopted extremely sparingly2 for1 in the long run1 it becomes annoying to the clear-sighted1 perplexes the foolish1 but appeals1 it is true1 to the great majority1 who without special intellectual effort imagine themselves cleverer than other people4 ,but all that he presents to us1 whatever its form1 bears witness to his rectitude1 cheerfulness1 and equanimity1 so that we are always favorably impressed4 ,the unbounded admiration of his own times was a consequence of these moral excellencies4 ,it was natural that people should try to discover originals for his general descriptions and should succeed2 and consequently he was attacked on this score by certain individuals3 his over-long apologies denying that his satire was personal1 prove the annoyance to which he was subjected4 ,some of his letters do honor to him both as a man and an author4 ,the confidential epistle in which he describes the siege of ,dresden and the loss of his house1 his effects1 his writings1 and his wigs1 without having his equanimity in the least shaken or his cheerfulness clouded1 is most estimable1 although his contemporaries and fellow-citizens could not forgive him his happy temperament4 ,the letter in which he speaks of the decay of his strength and of his approaching death is in the highest degree worthy of respect1 and ,rabener deserves to be honored as a saint by all happy sensible people1 who cheerfully accept their earthly lot4 ,i tear myself away from him reluctantly1 and merely add this remark3 his satire refers throughout to the middle classes2 he lets us see here and there that he is also acquainted with the upper classes1 but does not hold it advisable to discuss them4 ,it may be said that he had no successor2 it would be impossible to point to any one at all equal1 or even similar to him4 ,let us turn to criticism2 and first of all to the theoretic attempts4 ,it is not going too far to say that idealism had at that time fled from the world to religion2 it was hardly discoverable even in ethics2 of a supreme principle in art no one had a notion4 ,they put ,gottsched's ,critical ,art of ,poetry into our hands2 it was useful and instructive enough1 for it gave us historical information about the various kinds of poetry1 as well as about rhythm and its different movements2 poetic genius was taken for granted6 ,but besides this the poet was to have education1 and even learning1 he should possess taste1 and other things of the same nature4 ,finally1 we were referred to ,horace's ,art of ,poetry2 we gazed at single golden maxims of this invaluable work with veneration1 but did not know in the least what to do with it as a whole1 or how to use it4 ,the ,swiss came to the front as ,gottsched's antagonists2 hence they must intend to do something different1 to accomplish something better3 accordingly we heard that they were1 in fact1 superior4 ,breitinger's ,critical ,art of ,poetry was now studied4 ,here we entered a wider field1 or1 properly speaking1 only a greater labyrinth1 which was the more wearisome1 as an able man in whom we had confidence drove us about in it4 ,let a brief review justify these words4 ,as yet no one had been able to discover the essential principle of poetry2 it was too spiritual and too evanescent4 ,painting1 an art which one could keep within sight1 and follow step by step with the external senses1 seemed more adapted to such an end2 the ,english and ,french had already theorized about the arts of painting and sculpture1 and it was thought possible to explain the nature of poetry by drawing a comparison from these arts4 ,painting presented images to the eyes1 poetry to the imagination2 poetical images1 therefore1 were the first thing to be taken into consideration4 ,similes came first1 then descriptions and whatever it was possible to represent to the external senses came under discussion4 ,images1 then6 ,but whence should these images be taken except from nature8 ,the painter obviously imitated nature2 why not the poet also8 ,but nature1 just as she is1 cannot be imitated3 she contains so much that is insignificant and unsuitable1 that a selection must be made2 but what determines the choice8 what is important must be selected2 but what is important8 ,the answer to this question the ,swiss probably took a long time to consider3 for they arrived at an idea which is indeed strange1 but pretty1 even amusing2 for they said what is new is always most important3 and after they had considered this for a while1 they discovered that the marvelous is always newer than anything else4 ,apparently they now had the essentials of poetry before them1 but it had further to be taken into consideration that the marvelous may be barren and without human interest4 ,this human interest which is indispensable must be moral1 and would then obviously tend to the improvement of man2 hence that poem would fulfil its ultimate aim which in addition to its merits possessed utility4 ,it was the fulfilment of all these demands which constituted the test they wished to apply to the various kinds of poetry1 and that species which imitated nature1 and furthermore was marvelous1 and at the same time moral in purpose and effect1 they placed first and highest4 ,and after much deliberation this great preminence was finally ascribed1 with the utmost conviction1 to sop's fables6 ,strange as such a deduction may now appear1 it had the most decided influence on the best minds4 ,that ,gellert and subsequently ,lichtwer devoted themselves to this department of literature1 that even ,lessing attempted to do work in it1 that so many others applied their talents to it1 speaks for the faith they put in this species of poetry4 ,theory and practice always act upon each other2 one can see from men's works what opinions they hold2 and1 from their opinions1 it is possible to predict what they will do4 ,yet we must not dismiss our ,swiss theory without doing it justice4 ,bodmer1 with all the pains he took1 remained in theory and practice a child all his life4 ,breitinger was an able1 learned1 sagacious man1 who1 after making a careful survey1 recognized all the requirements to be fulfilled by a poem2 in fact1 it can be shown that he was dimly conscious of the deficiencies of his method4 ,noteworthy1 for instance1 is his query1 whether a certain descriptive poem by ,knig1 on the ,review ,camp of ,augustus the ,second1 is properly speaking a poem2 and the answer to it displays good sense4 ,but it may serve for his complete justification that1 after starting on a wrong track and nearly completing his circle1 he yet discovers the main issue1 and at the end of his book1 as a kind of supplement1 feels it incumbent on him to urge the representation of manners1 character1 passions1 in short the inner man--which surely constitutes the chief theme of poetry4 ,it may well be imagined into what perplexity young minds were thrown by such maxims torn from their contexts1 half-understood laws1 and random dogmas4 ,we clung to examples1 and there1 too1 were no better off3 the foreign as well as the classical ones were too remote from us2 behind the best native ones always lurked a distinct individuality1 the good points of which we could not arrogate to ourselves1 and into the faults of which we could not but be afraid of falling4 ,for any one conscious of productive power it was a desperate condition4 ,when one considers carefully what was wanting in ,german poetry1 it was a significant theme1 especially of national import2 there was never any lack of gifted writers4 ,it is only necessary to mention ,gnther1 who may be called a poet in the full sense of the word4 ,a decided genius1 endowed with sensuousness1 imagination1 memory1 the gifts of conception and representation1 productive in the highest degree1 possessing rhythmic fluency1 ingenious1 witty1 and at the same time well-informed2--he possessed1 in short1 all the requisites for creating by his poetry a second life out of the actual commonplace life around him4 ,we admire the great facility with which1 in his occasional poems1 he ennobles all situations by appealing to the emotions1 and embellishes them with suitable sentiments1 images1 and historical and fabulous traditions4 ,the roughness and wildness in them belong to his time1 his mode of life1 and especially to his character1 or1 if you will1 his want of character4 ,he did not know how to curb himself1 and so his life1 like his poetry1 proved ineffectual4 ,by his vacillating conduct1 ,gnther had trifled away the good fortune of being appointed at the ,court of ,augustus the ,second1 where1 with their love of magnificence1 they desired to find a laureate who would impart warmth and grace to their festivities1 and immortalize a transitory pomp4 ,von ,knig was more self-controlled and more fortunate2 he filled this post with dignity and success4 ,in all sovereign states the material for poetry begins with the highest social ranks1 and the ,review ,camp at ,mhlberg was1 perhaps1 the first worthy subject of provincial1 if not of national importance which presented itself to a poet4 ,two kings saluting one another in the presence of a great host1 their whole court and military state around them1 well-appointed troops1 a sham-fight1 ftes of all kinds1--here was plenty to captivate the senses1 and matter enough and to spare for descriptive poetry4 ,this subject1 indeed1 suffered from an inner defect1 in that it was only pomp and show1 from which no real action could result4 ,none except the very highest were involved1 and even if this had not been the case1 the poet could not render any one conspicuous lest he should offend the others4 ,he had to consult the ,court and ,state ,calendar1 and the delineation of the persons was therefore not particularly exciting2 nay1 even his contemporaries reproached him with having described the horses better than the men4 ,but should not the fact that he showed his art as soon as a fitting subject presented itself redound to his credit8 ,the main difficulty1 too1 seems soon to have become apparent to him--for the poem never advanced beyond the first canto4 ,as a result of discussions1 examples1 and my own reflection1 ,i came to see that the first step towards escape from the wishy-washy1 long-winded1 empty epoch could be taken only by definiteness1 precision1 and brevity4 ,in the style which had hitherto prevailed1 it was impossible to distinguish the commonplace from what was better1 since a uniform insipidity prevailed on all hands4 ,authors had already tried to escape from this widespread disease1 with more or less success4 ,haller and ,ramler were inclined to compression by nature2 ,lessing and ,wieland were led to it by reflection4 ,the former became by degrees quite epigrammatic in his poems1 terse in ,minna1 laconic in ,emilia ,galotti1--it was not till later that he returned to that serene navet which becomes him so well in ,nathan4 ,wieland1 who had been occasionally prolix in ,agathon1 ,don ,sylvio1 and the ,comic ,tales1 became wonderfully condensed and precise1 as well as exceedingly graceful1 in ,musarion and ,idris4 ,klopstock1 in the first cantos of the ,messiah1 is not without diffuseness2 in his ,odes and other minor poems he appears concise1 as also in his tragedies4 ,by his emulation of the ancients1 especially ,tacitus1 he was constantly forced into narrower limits1 so that at last he became obscure and unpleasing4 ,gerstenberg1 a rare but eccentric genius1 also concentrated his powers2 one feels his merit1 but on the whole he gives little pleasure4 ,gleim1 by nature diffuse and easy-going1 was scarcely once concise in his war-songs4 ,ramler was properly more of a critic than a poet4 ,he began to collect what the ,germans had accomplished in lyric poetry4 ,he discovered that scarcely one poem entirely satisfied him2 he was obliged to omit1 rearrange1 and alter1 so that the things might assume some sort of form4 ,by this means he made himself almost as many enemies as there are poets and amateurs1 since every one1 properly speaking1 recognizes himself only in his defects2 and the public takes greater interest in a faulty individuality than in what is produced or amended in accordance with a universal law of taste4 ,rhythm was still in its cradle1 and no one knew of a method to shorten its childhood4 ,poetical prose was gaining ground4 ,gessner and ,klopstock found many imitators2 others1 again1 still put in a plea for metre1 and translated this prose into intelligible rhythms4 ,but even these emended versions gave nobody satisfaction2 for they were obliged to omit and add1 and the prose original always passed for the better of the two4 ,but in all these attempts1 the greater the conciseness aimed at1 the more possible is it to criticize them1 since whatever is significant when presented in a condensed form1 in the end admits of definite comparison4 ,another result was the simultaneous appearance of a number of truly poetical forms2 for while attempting to reproduce solely whatever was essential in any one subject1 it was necessary to do justice to every subject chosen for treatment1 and hence1 though none did it consciously1 the modes of representation were multiplied2 though some were grotesque enough1 and many an experiment proved unsuccessful4 ,without question1 ,wieland possessed the finest natural gifts of all4 ,he had developed early in those ideal regions in which youth loves to linger2 but when so-called experience1 contact with the world and women1 spoilt his delight in those realms1 he turned to the actual1 and derived pleasure for himself and others from the conflict between the two worlds1 where1 in light encounters1 half in earnest1 half in jest1 his talent found fullest scope4 ,how many of his brilliant productions appeared during my student days6 ,musarion had the greatest effect upon me1 and ,i can yet remember the place and the very spot where ,i looked at the first proof-sheet1 which ,oeser showed me4 ,it was here that ,i seemed to see antiquity living anew before me4 ,everything that is plastic in ,wieland's genius showed itself here in the highest perfection2 and since the ,timon-like hero ,phanias1 after being condemned to unhappy abstinence1 is finally reconciled to his mistress and to the world1 we may be content to live through the misanthropic epoch with him4 ,for the rest1 we were not sorry to recognize in these works a cheerful aversion to exalted sentiments1 which are apt to be wrongly applied to life1 and then frequently fall under the suspicion of fanaticism4 ,we pardoned the author for pursuing with ridicule what we held to be true and venerable1 the more readily1 as he thereby showed that he was unable to disregard it4 ,what a miserable reception was accorded such efforts by the criticism of the time may be seen from the first volumes of the ,universal ,german ,library4 ,honorable mention is made there of the ,comic ,tales1 but there is no trace of any insight into the character of the literary species4 ,the reviewer1 like every one at that time1 had formed his taste on examples4 ,he never takes into consideration that in criticizing such parodistical works1 it is necessary first of all to have the noble1 beautiful original before one's eyes1 in order to see whether the parodist has really discovered in it a weak and comical side1 whether he has borrowed anything from it1 or whether1 under the pretense of imitation1 he has given us an excellent invention of his own4 ,of all this there is not a word1 but isolated passages in the poems are praised or blamed4 ,the reviewer1 as he himself confesses1 has marked so much that pleased him1 that he cannot quote it all in print4 ,when they go so far as to greet the exceedingly meritorious translation of ,shakespeare with the exclamation3 8,by rights1 a man like ,shakespeare should not have been translated at all60 it will be understood1 without further remark1 how immeasurably the ,universal ,german ,library was behindhand in matters of taste1 and that young people1 animated by true feelings1 had to look about them for other guiding stars4 ,the subject-matter which in this manner more or less determined the form was sought by the ,germans in the most varied quarters4 ,they had handled few national subjects1 or none at all4 ,schlegel's ,hermann only pointed the way4 ,the idyllic tendency had immense vogue4 ,the want of distinctive character in ,gessner1 with all his gracefulness and childlike sincerity1 made every one think himself capable of the like4 ,in the same manner1 those poems which were intended to portray a foreign nationality were founded merely on a common humanity1 as1 for instance1 the ,jewish ,pastoral ,poems1 all those on patriarchal subjects1 and any others based on the ,old ,testament4 ,bodmer's ,noachide was a perfect type of the watery deluge that swelled high around the ,german ,parnassus1 and abated but slowly4 ,anacreontic dallyings likewise made it possible for numberless mediocre writers to meander aimlessly in a vague prolixity4 ,the precision of ,horace compelled the ,germans1 though but slowly1 to conform to him4 ,neither did the burlesques1 modeled1 for the most part1 on ,pope's ,rape of the ,lock1 succeed in inaugurating better times4 ,yet ,i must here mention a delusion1 which was taken as seriously as it appears ridiculous on closer inspection4 ,the ,germans had now an adequate historical knowledge of all the kinds of poetry in which the various nations had excelled4 ,this assignment of poetry to its respective pigeon-holes--a process in reality fatal to its true spirit--had been accomplished with approximate completeness by ,gottsched in his ,critical ,art of ,poetry1 and at the same time he had shown that in all the divisions were to be found excellent works by ,german poets4 ,and so it went on4 ,every year the collection became more considerable1 but every year one work ousted some other from the place in which it had hitherto shone4 ,we now possessed1 if not ,homers1 yet ,virgils and ,miltons2 if not a ,pindar1 yet a ,horace2 of ,theocrituses there was no lack2 and thus they soothed themselves by comparisons from abroad1 whilst the mass of poetical works constantly increased1 so that at last it was possible to make comparisons at home4 ,with the cultivation of the ,german language and style in every department1 the power of criticism also increased2 but while the reviews then published of works upon religious and ethical as well as medical subjects were admirable1 the critiques of poems1 and of whatever else relates to belles lettres1 will be found1 if not pitiful1 at least very feeble4 ,this holds good of the ,literary ,epistles and the ,universal ,german ,library1 as well as of the ,library of ,belles ,lettres1 and might easily be verified by notable instances4 ,however great the confusion of these varied efforts1 the only thing to be done by any one who contemplated producing anything original1 and was not content to take the words and phrases out of the mouths of his predecessors1 was to search unremittingly for some subject-matter for treatment4 ,here1 too1 we were greatly misled4 ,people were constantly repeating a saying of ,kleist's1 who had replied playfully1 with humor and truth1 to those who took him to task on account of his frequently lonely walks3 8that he was not idle at such times--he was hunting for images40 ,this simile was very suitable for a nobleman and soldier1 for in it he contrasted himself with men of his own rank1 who never missed an opportunity of going out1 with their guns on their shoulders1 to shoot hares and partridges4 ,accordingly we find in ,kleist's poems many such individual images1 happily seized1 although not always happily elaborated1 which remind us pleasantly of nature4 ,but now we1 too1 were admonished quite seriously to go out hunting for images1 and in the end to some slight purpose1 although ,apel's ,garden1 the ,cake ,gardens1 the ,rosental1 ,gohlis1 ,raschwitz and ,konnewitz1 were the oddest ground in which to beat up poetical game4 ,and yet ,i was often induced from this motive to contrive that my walk should be solitary4 ,but few either beautiful or sublime objects met the eye of the beholder1 and in the truly splendid ,rosental the gnats in summer made all gentle thoughts impossible1 so by dint of unwearied1 persevering endeavor1 ,i became extremely attentive to the small life of nature 7,i should like to use this word after the analogy of 8still life074 ,since the charming little incidents to be observed within this circle are but unimportant in themselves1 ,i accustomed myself to see in them a significance1 tending now towards the symbolical and now towards the allegorical1 according as intuition1 feeling1 or reflection predominated4 ,whilst ,i was playing the part of shepherd on the ,pleisse1 and was childishly absorbed in such tender subjects1 always choosing such only as ,i could easily recapture and lock in my heart1 greater and more important themes had long before been provided for ,german poets4 ,it was ,frederick the ,great and the events of the ,seven ,years' ,war which first gave to ,german literature a real and noble vitality4 ,all national poetry cannot fail to be insipid1 or inevitably becomes so1 if it is not based on the man who stands first among men1 upon the experiences which come to the nations and their leaders1 when both stand together as one man4 ,kings should be represented in the midst of warfare and danger1 for there they are made to appear the highest1 just because the fate of the lowest depends upon them and is shared by them4 ,in this way they become far more interesting than the gods themselves1 who1 when they have decided the destinies of men1 do not share them4 ,in this sense every nation that wishes to count for anything ought to possess an epic1 though not necessarily in the form of an epic poem4 ,the war-songs first sung by ,gleim deserve their high place in ,german poetry1 because they were the outcome of and contemporary with the events they celebrate2 and furthermore1 because the felicitous form1 suggestive of a combatant's utterance in the thick of the fray1 impresses us with its absolute effectiveness4 ,ramler sings in different but dignified strains the exploits of his king4 ,all his poems are thoughtful1 and fill our minds with great and elevating subjects1 and on that account alone possess an indestructible value4 ,for the significance of the subject treated of is the ,alpha and ,omega of art4 ,of course1 no one will deny that genius1 or cultivated artistic talent1 can by its method of treatment make anything out of anything1 and render the most refractory subject amenable4 ,but on close inspection the result is rather an artistic feat than a work of art1 which latter should be based on a fitting subject1 so that in the end the skill1 the care1 the diligence of the artist's treatment only brings out the dignity of the subject in greater attractiveness and splendor4 ,prussians1 and with them ,protestant ,germany1 therefore gained a treasure-trove for their literature1 which was lacking to the other party1 who have not been able to repair the deficiency by subsequent efforts4 ,in the high idea which they cherished of their ,king1 the ,prussian writers first found inspiration1 and fostered it all the more zealously because he in whose name they did everything would have nothing whatever to say to them4 ,french civilization had been widely introduced into ,prussia at an earlier date by the ,french colony1 and again later by the ,king's preference for ,french culture and ,french financial methods4 ,the effect of this ,french influence was to rouse the ,germans to antagonism and resistance--a result decidedly beneficial in its operation4 ,equally fortunate for the development of literature was ,frederick's antipathy to ,german4 ,they did everything to attract the ,king's attention1 not indeed to be honored1 but only to be noticed by him2 yet they did it in ,german fashion1 from inner conviction2 they did what they held to be right1 and desired and wished that the ,king should recognize and prize this as right4 ,that did not and could not happen2 for how can it be expected that a king1 who wishes to live and enjoy himself intellectually1 should waste his years waiting to see what he thinks barbarous developed and rendered enjoyable too late8 ,in matters of trade and manufacture1 it is true1 he pressed upon himself1 but especially upon his people1 very mediocre substitutes instead of excellent foreign wares2 but in this department of life everything is perfected more rapidly1 and it does not take a man's life-time to bring such things to maturity4 ,but ,i must here1 first of all1 make honorable mention of one work1 the most genuine product of the ,seven ,years' ,war1 altogether ,north ,german in its national sentiment2 it is the first dramatic work founded upon important events of specific contemporary value1 and therefore produced an incalculable effect--,minna von ,barnhelm4 ,lessing1 who1 unlike ,klopstock and ,gleim1 was fond of laying aside his personal dignity1 because he was confident that he could resume it at any moment1 delighted in a dissipated1 worldly life and the society of taverns1 as he always needed some strong external excitement to counterbalance his exuberant intellectual activity2 and for this reason also he had joined the suite of ,general ,tauentzien4 ,it is easy to see how this drama was generated betwixt war and peace1 hatred and affection4 ,it was this production which successfully opened to the literary and middle-class world1 in which poetic art had hitherto moved1 a view into a higher1 more significant world4 ,the hostile relations in which ,prussians and ,saxons had stood towards each other during this war1 could not be removed by its termination4 ,the ,saxon now felt for the first time the whole bitterness of the wounds which the upstart ,prussian had inflicted upon him4 ,political peace could not immediately restablish a peace between their hearts4 ,but the establishment of this peace was represented symbolically in ,lessing's drama4 ,the grace and amiability of the ,saxon ladies conquer the worth1 the dignity1 and the stubbornness of the ,prussians1 and1 in the principal as well as in the subordinate characters1 a happy union of bizarre and contradictory elements is artistically represented4 ,if ,i have caused my readers some bewilderment by these cursory and desultory remarks on ,german literature1 ,i have succeeded in giving them a conception of the chaotic condition of my poor brain at a time when1 in the conflict of two epochs so important for the national literature1 so much that was new crowded in upon me before ,i could come to terms with the old1 so much that was old still maintained its hold upon me1 though ,i already believed ,i might with good reason renounce it altogether4 ,,footnotes3 #ab ,about #agfe-fh4 ,,extracts ,,from ,,goethe',s ,,conversations ,,with ,,eckermann ,,extracts ,,from ,,the ,,conversations ,,with ,,eckermann 7#ahbb-cb7 ,the ,universality of ,poetry ,within the last few days ,i have read many and various things2 especially a ,chinese novel1 which occupies me still1 and seems to me very remarkable4 ,the ,chinese think1 act1 and feel almost exactly like ourselves2 and we soon find that we are perfectly like them1 excepting that all they do is more clear1 more pure and decorous than with us4 ,with them all is orderly1 simple1 without great passion or poetic flight2 and there is a strong resemblance to my ,hermann and ,dorothea1 as well as to the ,english novels of ,richardson4 ,they differ from us1 however1 inasmuch as with them external nature is always associated with human figures4 ,you always hear the goldfish splashing in the pond1 the birds are always singing on the bough1 the day is always serene and sunny1 the night is always clear4 ,there is much talk about the moon1 but it does not alter the landscape1 its light is conceived to be as bright as day itself2 and the interior of the houses is as neat and elegant as their pictures4 ,for instance1 8,i heard the lovely girls laughing1 and when ,i got a sight of them1 they were sitting on cane chairs40 ,there you have1 at once1 the prettiest situation2 for cane chairs are necessarily associated with the greatest lightness and elegance4 ,then there is an infinite number of legends which are constantly introduced into the narrative1 and are applied almost like proverbs2 as1 for instance1 one of a girl1 who was so light and graceful on her feet that she could balance herself on a flower without breaking it2 and then another1 of a young man so virtuous and brave that in his thirtieth year he had the honor to talk with the ,emperor2 then there is another of two lovers who showed such great purity during a long acquaintance that when they were on one occasion obliged to pass the night in the same chamber1 they occupied the time with conversation1 and did not approach one another4 ,and in the same way1 there are innumerable other legends1 all turning upon what is moral and proper4 ,it is by this severe moderation in everything that the ,chinese ,empire has sustained itself for thousands of years1 and will endure hereafter4 ,i am more and more convinced that poetry is the universal possession of mankind1 revealing itself everywhere1 and at all times1 in hundreds and hundreds of men4 ,one makes it a little better than another1 and swims on the surface a little longer than another--that is all4 ,herr von ,matthisson must not think he is the man1 nor must ,i think that ,i am the man2 but each must say to himself that the gift of poetry is by no means so very rare1 and that nobody need think very much of himself because he has written a good poem4 ,but1 really1 we ,germans are very likely to fall too easily into this pedantic conceit1 when we do not look beyond the narrow circle which surrounds us4 ,i therefore like to look about me in foreign nations1 and advise every one to do the same4 ,national literature is now rather an unmeaning term2 the epoch of ,world ,literature is at hand1 and every one must strive to hasten its approach4 ,but1 while we thus value what is foreign1 we must not bind ourselves to anything in particular1 and regard it as a model4 ,we must not give this value to the ,chinese1 or the ,servian1 or ,calderon1 or the ,nibelungen2 but if we really want a pattern1 we must always return to the ancient ,greeks1 in whose works the beauty of mankind is constantly represented4 ,all the rest we must look at only historically1 appropriating to ourselves what is good1 so far as it goes4 ,poetry and ,patriotism#ac ,to write military songs1 and sit in a room6 ,that would have suited me6 ,to have written them in the bivouac1 when the horses at the enemy's outposts are heard neighing at night1 would have been well enough2 however1 that was not my life and not my business1 but that of ,theodor ,krner4 ,his war-songs suit him perfectly4 ,but to me1 who am not of a warlike nature1 and who have no warlike sense1 war-songs would have been a mask which would have fitted my face very badly4 ,i have never affected anything in my poetry4 ,i have never uttered anything which ,i have not experienced1 and which has not urged me to production4 ,i have only composed love-songs when ,i have loved4 ,how could ,i write songs of hatred without hating6 ,and1 between ourselves1 ,i did not hate the ,french1 although ,i thanked ,god that we were free from them4 ,how could ,i1 to whom culture and barbarism are alone of importance1 hate a nation which is among the most cultivated of the earth1 and to which ,i owe so great a part of my own culture8 ,altogether1 national hatred is something peculiar4 ,you will always find it strongest and most violent where there is the lowest degree of culture4 ,but there is a degree where it vanishes altogether1 and where one stands to a certain extent above nations1 and feels the weal or woe of a neighboring people1 as if it had happened to one's own4 ,this degree of culture was conformable to my nature1 and ,i had become strengthened in it long before ,i had reached my sixtieth year4 99 99 99 99 99 ,it is better for us moderns to say with ,napoleon1 8,politics are ,destiny40 ,but let us beware of saying1 with our latest literati1 that politics are poetry1 or a suitable subject for the poet4 ,the ,english poet ,thomson wrote a very good poem on the ,seasons1 but a very bad one on ,liberty1 and that not from want of poetry in the poet1 but from want of poetry in the subject4 ,if a poet would work politically1 he must give himself up to a party2 and so soon as he does that he is lost as a poet2 he must bid farewell to his free spirit1 his unbiased view1 and draw over his ears the cap of bigotry and blind hatred4 ,the poet1 as a man and citizen1 will love his native land2 but the native land of his poetic powers and poetic action is the good1 noble1 and beautiful1 which is confined to no particular province or country1 and which he seizes upon and forms wherever he finds it4 ,therein is he like the eagle1 who hovers with free gaze over whole countries1 and to whom it is of no consequence whether the hare on which he pounces is running in ,prussia or in ,saxony4 ,and1 then1 what is meant by love of one's country8 what is meant by patriotic deeds8 ,if the poet has employed a life in battling with pernicious prejudices1 in setting aside narrow views1 in enlightening the minds1 purifying the tastes1 ennobling the feelings and thoughts of his countrymen1 what better could he have done8 how could he have acted more patriotically8 ,poetry and ,history ,manzoni wants nothing except to know what a good poet he is1 and what rights belong to him as such4 ,he has too much respect for history1 and on this account always adds explanations to his pieces1 in which he shows how faithful he has been to detail4 ,now1 though his facts may be historical1 his characters are not so1 any more than my ,thoas and ,iphigenia4 ,no poet has ever known the historical characters which he has painted2 if he had1 he could scarcely have made use of them4 ,the poet must know what effects he wishes to produce1 and regulate the nature of his characters accordingly4 ,if ,i had tried to make ,egmont as history represents him1 the father of a dozen children1 his light-minded proceedings would have appeared very absurd4 ,i needed an ,egmont more in harmony with his own actions and my poetic views2 and this is1 as ,clara says1 my ,egmont4 ,what would be the use of poets1 if they only repeated the record of the historian8 ,the poet must go further1 and give us1 if possible1 something higher and better4 ,all the characters of ,sophocles bear something of that great poet's lofty soul2 and it is the same with the characters of ,shakespeare4 ,this is as it ought to be4 ,nay1 ,shakespeare goes farther1 and makes his ,romans ,englishmen2 and there1 too1 he is right2 for otherwise his nation would not have understood him4 ,here again the ,greeks were so great that they regarded fidelity to historic facts less than the treatment of them by the poet4 ,we have a fine example in ,philoctetes1 which subject has been treated by all three of the great tragic poets1 and lastly and best by ,sophocles4 ,this poet's excellent play has1 fortunately1 come down to us entire1 while of the ,philoctetes of schylus and ,euripides only fragments have been found1 although sufficient to show how they have managed the subject4 ,if time permitted1 ,i would restore these pieces1 as ,i did the ,pheton of ,euripides2 it would be to me no unpleasant or useless task4 ,in this subject the problem was very simple1 namely1 to bring ,philoctetes1 with his bow1 from the island of ,lemnos4 ,but the manner of doing this was the business of the poet1 and here each could show the power of his invention1 and one could excel another4 ,ulysses must fetch him2 but shall he be recognized by ,philoctetes or not8 and if not1 how shall he be disguised8 ,shall ,ulysses go alone1 or shall he have companions1 and who shall they be8 ,in schylus the companion is unknown2 in ,euripides1 it is ,diomed2 in ,sophocles1 the son of ,achilles4 ,then1 in what situation is ,philoctetes to be found8 ,shall the island be inhabited or not8 and1 if inhabited1 shall any sympathetic soul have taken compassion on him or not8 ,and so with a hundred other things1 which are all at the discretion of the poet1 and in the selection and omission of which one may show his superiority in wisdom to another4 ,this is the important point1 and the poets of to-day should do like the ancients4 ,they should not be always asking whether a subject has been used before1 and look to south and north for unheard-of adventures1 which are often barbarous enough1 and merely make an impression as incidents4 ,but to make something of a simple subject by a masterly treatment requires intellect and great talent1 and these we do not find4 ,originality ,the ,germans cannot cease to be ,philistines4 ,they are now squabbling about some distichs1 which are printed both in ,schiller's works and mine1 and fancy it is important to ascertain which really belong to ,schiller and which to me2 as if anything could be gained by such investigation--as if the existence of such things were not enough4 ,friends like ,schiller and myself1 intimate for years1 with the same interests1 in habits of daily intercourse1 and under reciprocal obligations1 live so completely in one another that it is hardly possible to decide to which of the two the particular thoughts belong4 ,we have made many distichs together2 sometimes ,i gave the thought1 and ,schiller made the verse2 sometimes the contrary was the case2 sometimes he made one line1 and ,i the other4 ,what matters the mine and thine8 ,one must be a thorough ,philistine1 indeed1 to attach the slightest importance to the solution of such questions4 ,we are indeed born with faculties2 but we owe our development to a thousand influences of the great world1 from which we appropriate to ourselves what we can1 and what is suitable to us4 ,i owe much to the ,greeks and ,french2 ,i am infinitely indebted to ,shakespeare1 ,sterne1 and ,goldsmith2 but in saying this ,i do not exhaust the sources of my culture2 that would be an endless as well as an unnecessary task4 ,we might as well question a strong man about the oxen1 sheep1 and swine which he has eaten1 and which have given him strength4 ,what is important is to have a soul which loves truth1 and receives it wherever it finds it4 ,besides1 the world is now so old1 so many eminent men have lived and thought for thousands of years1 that there is little new to be discovered or expressed4 ,even my theory of colors is not entirely new4 ,plato1 ,leonardo da ,vinci1 and many other excellent men1 have before me found and expressed the same thing in a detached form3 my merit is that ,i have found it also1 that ,i have said it again1 and that ,i have striven to bring the truth once more into a confused world4 ,the truth must be repeated over and over again1 because error is repeatedly preached among us1 not only by individuals1 but by the masses4 ,in periodicals and cyclopedias1 in schools and universities1 everywhere1 in fact1 error prevails1 and is quite easy in the feeling that it has a decided majority on its side4 99 99 99 99 99 ,people are always talking about originality2 but what do they mean8 ,as soon as we are born1 the world begins to work upon us1 and this goes on to the end4 ,and1 after all1 what can we call our own except energy1 strength1 and will8 ,if ,i could give an account of all that ,i owe to great predecessors and contemporaries1 there would be but a small balance in my favor4 ,however1 the time of life in which we are subjected to a new and important personal influence is1 by no means1 a matter of indifference4 ,that ,lessing1 ,winckelmann1 and ,kant were older than ,i1 and that the first two acted upon my youth1 the latter on my advanced age1--this circumstance was for me very important4 ,again1 that ,schiller was so much younger than ,i1 and engaged in his freshest strivings just as ,i began to be weary of the world--just1 too1 as the brothers von ,humboldt and ,schlegel were beginning their career under my eye--was of the greatest importance4 ,i derived from it unspeakable advantages4 ,what seduces young people is this4 ,we live in a time in which so much culture is diffused that it has communicated itself1 as it were1 to the atmosphere which a young man breathes4 ,poetical and philosophic thoughts live and move within him1 he has sucked them in with his very breath1 but he thinks they are his own property1 and utters them as such4 ,but after he has restored to the time what he has received from it1 he remains poor4 ,he is like a fountain which plays for a while with the water with which it is supplied1 but which ceases to flow as soon as the liquid treasure is exhausted4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the critic of ,le ,temps has not been so wise4 ,he presumes to point out to the poet the way he should go4 ,this is a great fault2 for one cannot thus make him better4 ,after all1 there is nothing more foolish than to say to a poet3 8,you should have done this in this way--and that in that40 ,i speak from long experience4 ,one can never make anything of a poet but what nature has intended him to be4 ,if you force him to be another1 you will destroy him4 ,now1 the gentlemen of the ,globe1 as ,i said before1 act very wisely4 ,they print a long list of all the commonplaces which ,m4 ,arnault has picked up from every hole and corner2 and by doing this they very cleverly point out the rock which the author has to avoid in future4 ,it is almost impossible1 in the present day1 to find a situation which is thoroughly new4 ,it is merely the manner of looking at it1 and the art of treating and representing it1 which can be new1 and one must be the more cautious of every imitation4 ,personality in ,art ,you have before you the works of very fair talents1 who have learned something1 and have acquired no little taste and art4 ,still1 something is wanting in all these pictures--the ,manly4 ,take notice of this word1 and underscore it4 ,the pictures lack a certain urgent power1 which in former ages was generally expressed1 but in which the present age is deficient1 and that with respect not only to painting1 but to all the other arts4 ,we have a more weakly race1 of which we cannot say whether it is so by its origin1 or by a more weakly training and diet4 ,personality is everything in art and poetry2 nevertheless1 there are many weak personages among the modern critics who do not admit this1 but look upon a great personality in a work of poetry or art merely as a kind of trifling appendage4 ,however1 to feel and respect a great personality one must be something oneself4 ,all those who denied the sublime to ,euripides were either poor wretches incapable of comprehending such sublimity1 or shameless charlatans1 who1 by their presumption1 wished to make more of themselves1 and really did make more of themselves than they were4 ,the ,subject-,matter of ,poetry ,the world is so great and rich1 and life so full of variety1 that you can never want occasions for poems4 ,but they must all be occasional poems2 that is to say1 reality must give both impulse and material for their production4 ,a particular case becomes universal and poetic by the very circumstance that it is treated by a poet4 ,all my poems are occasional poems1 suggested by real life1 and having therein a firm foundation4 ,i attach no value to poems snatched out of the air4 ,let no one say that reality wants poetical interest2 for in this the poet proves his vocation1 that he has the art to win from a common subject an interesting side4 ,reality must give the motive1 the points to be expressed1 the kernel1 as ,i may say2 but to work out of it a beautiful1 animated whole1 belongs to the poet4 ,you know ,frnstein1 called the ,poet of ,nature2 he has written the prettiest poem possible on the cultivation of hops4 ,i have now proposed to him to make songs for the different crafts of working-men1 particularly a weaver's song1 and ,i am sure he will do it well1 for he has lived among such people from his youth2 he understands the subjects thoroughly1 and is therefore master of his material4 ,that is exactly the advantage of small works2 you need only choose those subjects of which you are master4 ,with a great poem1 this cannot be3 no part can be evaded2 all which belongs to the animation of the whole1 and is interwoven into the plan1 must be represented with precision4 ,in youth1 however1 the knowledge of things is only one-sided4 ,a great work requires many-sidedness1 and on that rock the young author splits4 99 99 99 99 99 ,i especially warn you against great inventions of your own2 for then you would try to give a view of things1 and for that purpose youth is seldom ripe4 ,further1 character and views detach themselves as sides from the poet's mind1 and deprive him of the fullness requisite for future productions4 ,and1 finally1 how much time is lost in invention1 internal arrangement1 and combination1 for which nobody thanks us1 even supposing our work is happily accomplished4 ,with a given material1 on the other hand1 all goes easier and better4 ,facts and characters being provided1 the poet has only the task of animating the whole4 ,he preserves his own fullness1 for he needs to part with but little of himself1 and there is much less loss of time and energy1 since he has only the trouble of execution4 ,indeed1 ,i would advise the choice of subjects which have been worked before4 ,how many ,iphigenias have been written6 yet they are all different1 for each writer considers and arranges the subject differently2 namely1 after his own fashion4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the majority of our young poets have no fault but this1 that their subjectivity is not important1 and that they cannot find matter in the objective4 ,at best1 they only find a material which is similar to themselves1 which corresponds to their own subjectivity2 but as for taking the material on its own account2 merely because it is poetical1 even when it is repugnant to their subjectivity1 such a thing is never thought of4 99 99 99 99 99 ,our ,german stheticians are always talking about poetical and unpoetical objects2 and1 in one respect1 they are not quite wrong2 yet1 at bottom1 no real object is unpoetical1 if the poet knows how to use it properly4 ,the ,influence of ,environment ,if a talent is to be speedily and happily developed1 the great point is that a great deal of intellect and sound culture should be current in a nation4 ,we admire the tragedies of the ancient ,greeks2 but1 to take a correct view of the case1 we ought rather to admire the period and the nation in which their production was possible than the individual authors2 for though these pieces differ a little from each other1 and one of these poets appears somewhat greater and more finished than the other1 still1 taking all things together1 only one decided character runs through the whole4 ,this is the character of grandeur1 fitness1 soundness1 human perfection1 elevated wisdom1 sublime thought1 clear1 concrete vision1 and whatever other qualities one might enumerate4 ,but when we find all these qualities1 not only in the dramatic works that have come down to us1 but also in lyrical and epic works1 in the philosophers1 the orators1 and the historians1 and in an equally high degree in the works of plastic art that have come down to us1 we must feel convinced that such qualities did not merely belong to individuals1 but were the current property of the nation and the whole period4 ,now1 take up ,burns4 ,how is he great1 except through the circumstance that the old songs of his predecessors lived in the mouth of the people1--that they were1 so to speak1 sung at his cradle2 that1 as a boy1 he grew up amongst them1 and the high excellence of these models so pervaded him that he had therein a living basis on which he could proceed further8 ,again1 why is he great1 but from this1 that his own songs at once found susceptible ears amongst his compatriots2 that1 sung by reapers and sheaf-binders1 they at once greeted him in the field2 and that his boon-companions sang them to welcome him at the alehouse8 ,something was certainly to be done in this way4 ,on the other hand1 what a pitiful figure is made by us ,germans6 ,of our old songs--no less important than those of ,scotland--how many lived among the people in the days of my youth8 ,herder and his successors first began to collect them and rescue them from oblivion2 then they were at least printed in the libraries4 ,then1 more lately1 what songs have not ,brger and ,voss composed6 ,who can say that they are more insignificant or less popular than those of the excellent ,burns8 but which of them so lives among us that it greets us from the mouth of the people8--they are written and printed1 and they remain in the libraries1 quite in accordance with the general fate of ,german poets4 ,of my own songs1 how many live8 ,perhaps one or another of them may be sung by a pretty girl at the piano2 but among the people1 properly so called1 they have no sound4 ,with what sensations must ,i remember the time when passages from ,tasso were sung to me by ,italian fishermen6 ,we ,germans are of yesterday4 ,we have indeed been properly cultivated for a century2 but a few centuries more must still elapse before so much mind and elevated culture will become universal amongst our people that they will appreciate beauty like the ,greeks1 that they will be inspired by a beautiful song1 and that it will be said of them 8it is long since they were barbarians40 ,culture and ,morals ,the audacity and grandeur of ,byron must certainly tend towards ,culture4 ,we should take care not to be always looking for it in only what is decidedly pure and moral4 ,everything that is great promotes cultivation as soon as we are aware of it4 ,classic and ,romantic ,a new expression occurs to me which does not ill define the state of the case4 ,i call the classic healthy1 the romantic sickly4 ,in this sense1 the ,nibelungenlied is as classic as the ,iliad1 for both are vigorous and healthy4 ,most modern productions are romantic1 not because they are new1 but because they are weak1 morbid1 and sickly2 and the antique is classic1 not because it is old1 but because it is strong1 fresh1 joyous1 and healthy4 ,if we distinguish 8classic0 and 8romantic0 by these qualities1 it will be easy to see our way clearly4 99 99 99 99 99 ,this is a pathological work2 a superfluity of sap is bestowed on some parts which do not require it1 and drawn out of those which stand in need of it4 ,the subject was good1 but the scenes which ,i expected were not there2 while others1 which ,i did not expect1 were elaborated with assiduity and love4 ,this is what ,i call pathological1 or 8romantic10 if you would rather speak according to our new theory4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the ,french now begin to think justly of these matters4 ,both classic and romantic1 say they1 are equally good4 ,the only point is to use these forms with judgment1 and to be capable of excellence4 ,you can be absurd in both1 and then one is as worthless as the other4 ,this1 ,i think1 is rational enough1 and may content us for a while4 99 99 99 99 99 ,the idea of the distinction between classical and romantic poetry1 which is now spread over the whole world1 and occasions so many quarrels and divisions1 came originally from ,schiller and myself4 ,i laid down the maxim of objective treatment in poetry1 and would allow no other2 but ,schiller1 who worked quite in the subjective way1 deemed his own fashion the right one1 and to defend himself against me1 wrote the treatise upon ,nave and ,sentimental ,poetry4 ,he proved to me that ,i myself1 against my will1 was romantic1 and that my ,iphigenia1 through the predominance of sentiment1 was by no means so classical and so much in the antique spirit as some people supposed4 ,the ,schlegels took up this idea1 and carried it further1 so that it has now been diffused over the whole world2 and every one talks about classicism and romanticism--of which nobody thought fifty years ago4 ,taste ,this is the way to cultivate what we call taste4 ,taste is only to be educated by contemplation1 not of the tolerably good1 but of the truly excellent4 ,i therefore show you only the best works2 and when you are grounded in these1 you will have a standard for the rest1 which you will know how to value1 without overrating them4 ,and ,i show you the best in each class1 that you may perceive that no class is to be despised1 but that each gives delight when a man of genius attains its highest point4 ,for instance1 this piece1 by a ,french artist1 is galant1 to a degree which you see nowhere else1 and is therefore a model in its way4 ,style ,on the whole1 philosophical speculation is injurious to the ,germans1 as it tends to make their style abstract1 difficult1 and obscure4 ,the stronger their attachment to certain philosophical schools1 the worse they write4 ,those ,germans who1 as men of business and actual life1 confine themselves to the practical1 write the best4 ,schiller's style is most noble and impressive whenever he leaves off philosophizing1 as ,i observe every day in his highly interesting letters1 with which ,i am now busy4 ,there are also among the ,german women talented beings who write a really excellent style1 and1 indeed1 in that respect surpass many of our celebrated male writers4 ,the ,english almost always write well1 being born orators and practical men1 with a tendency to the real4 ,the ,french1 in their style1 remain true to their general character4 ,they are of a social nature1 and therefore never forget the public whom they address2 they strive to be clear2 that they may convince their reader--agreeable1 that they may please him4 ,altogether1 the style of a writer is a faithful representative of his mind2 therefore1 if any man wishes to write a clear style1 let him first be clear in his thoughts3 and if any would write in a noble style1 let him first possess a noble soul4 ,intellect and ,imagination ,i wonder what the ,german critics will say of this poetic inconsistency4 ,will they have freedom and boldness enough to get over this8 ,intellect will stand in the way of the ,french2 they will not consider that the imagination has its own laws1 to which the intellect cannot1 and should not1 penetrate4 ,if imagination did not originate things which must ever be problems to the intellect1 there would be but little for the imagination to do4 ,it is this which separates poetry from prose2 and it is in the latter that the intellect always is1 and always should be1 at home4 ,definition of ,poetry ,what need of much definition8 ,lively feeling of situations1 and power to express them1 make the poet4 ,definition of ,beauty ,i cannot help laughing at the stheticians1 who torment themselves in endeavoring1 by some abstract words1 to reduce to a conception that inexpressible thing to which we give the name of beauty4 ,beauty is a primeval phenomenon1 which itself never makes its appearance1 but the reflection of which is visible in a thousand different utterances of the creative mind1 and is as various as nature herself4 ,architecture and ,music ,i have found a paper of mine among some others1 in which ,i call architecture 8petrified music40#ad ,really there is something in this2 the tone of mind produced by architecture approaches the effect of music4 ,primitive ,poetry ,from these old ,german gloomy times we can obtain as little as from the ,servian songs1 and similar barbaric popular poetry4 ,we can read it and be interested about it for a while1 but merely to cast it aside1 and let it lie behind us4 ,generally speaking1 a man is quite sufficiently saddened by his own passions and destiny1 and need not make himself more so by the darkness of a barbaric past4 ,he needs enlightening and cheering influences1 and should therefore turn to those eras in art and literature1 during which remarkable men obtained perfect culture1 so that they were satisfied with themselves1 and able to impart to others the blessings of their culture4 ,weltliteratur ,we ,germans are weakest in the sthetic department1 and may wait long before we meet such a man as ,carlyle4 ,it is pleasant to see that intercourse is now so close between the ,french1 ,english1 and ,germans1 that we shall be able to correct one another4 ,this is the greatest use of a ,world ,literature1 which will show itself more and more4 ,carlyle has written a life of ,schiller1 and judged him as it would be difficult for a ,german to judge him4 ,on the other hand1 we are clear about ,shakespeare and ,byron1 and can1 perhaps1 appreciate their merits better than the ,english themselves4 ,french ,critics ,i am now really curious to know what the gentlemen of the ,globe will say of this novel4 ,they are clever enough to perceive its excellencies2 and the whole tendency of the work is so much grist to the mill of these liberals1 although ,manzoni has shown himself very moderate4 ,nevertheless1 the ,french seldom receive a work with such pure kindliness as we2 they cannot readily adapt themselves to the author's point of view1 but1 even in the best1 always find something which is not to their mind1 and which the author should have done otherwise4 99 99 99 99 99 ,what men these writers in the ,globe are6 ,one has scarcely a notion how much greater and more remarkable they become every day1 and how much1 as it were1 they are imbued with one spirit4 ,such a paper would be utterly impossible in ,germany4 ,we are mere individuals2 harmony and concert are not to be thought of2 each has the opinions of his province1 his city1 and his own idiosyncrasy2 and it will be a long while before we have attained an universal culture4 ,the ,construction of a ,good ,play ,when a piece makes a deep impression on us in reading1 we think that it will do the same on the stage1 and that such a result can be obtained with little trouble4 ,but this is by no means the case4 ,a piece that is not originally1 by the intent and skill of the poet1 written for the boards1 will not succeed2 but whatever is done to it will always remain something unmanageable4 ,what trouble have ,i taken with my ,goetz von ,berlichingen6 ,yet it will not quite do as an acting play2 it is too long2 and ,i have been forced to divide it into two parts1 of which the last is indeed theatrically effective1 while the first is to be looked upon as a mere introduction4 ,if the first part were given only once as an introduction1 and then the second repeatedly1 it might succeed4 ,it is the same with ,wallenstein2 the ,piccolomini does not bear repetition1 but ,wallenstein's ,death is always seen with delight4 ,the construction of a play must be symbolical2 that is to say1 each incident must be significant in itself1 and lead to another still more important4 ,the ,tartuffe of ,molire is1 in this respect1 a great example4 ,only think what an introduction is the first scene6 ,from the very beginning everything is highly significant1 and leads us to expect something still more important which is to come4 ,the beginning of ,lessing's ,minna von ,barnhelm is also admirable2 but that of ,tartuffe is absolutely unique3 it is the greatest and best thing that exists of the kind4 ,in ,calderon you find the same perfect adaptation to the theatre4 ,his pieces are throughout fit for the boards2 there is not a touch in them which is not directed towards the required effect4 ,calderon is a genius who had also the finest understanding4 ,shakespeare wrote his plays direct from his own nature4 ,then1 too1 his age and the existing arrangements of the stage made no demands upon him2 people were forced to put up with whatever he gave them4 ,but if ,shakespeare had written for the court of ,madrid1 or for the theatre of ,louis ,,xiv1 he would probably have adapted himself to a severer theatrical form4 ,this1 however1 is by no means to be regretted1 for what ,shakespeare has lost as a theatrical poet he has gained as a poet in general4 ,shakespeare is a great psychologist1 and we learn from his pieces what really moves the hearts of men4 ,dramatic ,unities ,he ,byron understood the purpose of this law no better than the rest of the world4 ,comprehensibility das ,fassliche is the purpose1 and the three unities are only so far good as they conduce to this end4 ,if the observance of them hinders the comprehension of a work1 it is foolish to treat them as laws1 and to try to observe them4 ,even the ,greeks1 from whom the rule was taken1 did not always follow it4 ,in the ,phaethon of ,euripides1 and in other pieces1 there is a change of place1 and it is obvious that good representation of their subject was with them more important than blind obedience to law1 which1 in itself1 is of no great consequence4 ,the pieces of ,shakespeare deviate1 as far as possible1 from the unities of time and place2 but they are comprehensible--nothing more so--and on this account the ,greeks would have found no fault in them4 ,the ,french poets have endeavored to follow most rigidly the laws of the three unities1 but they sin against comprehensibility1 inasmuch as they solve a dramatic law1 not dramatically1 but by narration4 ,the ,theatre ,any one who is sufficiently young1 and who is not quite spoiled1 could not easily find any place that would suit him so well as a theatre4 ,no one asks you any questions3 you need not open your mouth unless you choose2 on the contrary1 you sit quite at your ease like a king1 and let everything pass before you1 and recreate your mind and senses to your heart's content4 ,there is poetry1 there is painting1 there are singing and music1 there is acting1 and what not besides4 ,when all these arts1 and the charm of youth and beauty heightened to an important degree1 work in concert on the same evening1 it is a bouquet to which no other can compare4 ,but even when part is bad and part is good1 it is still better than looking out of the window1 or playing a game of whist in a close party amid the smoke of cigars4 ,acting ,it is a great error to think that an indifferent piece may be played by indifferent actors4 ,a second or third rate play can be incredibly improved by the employment of first-rate talents1 and be made something really good4 ,but if a second or third rate play be performed by second or third rate actors1 no one can wonder if it is utterly ineffective4 ,second-rate actors are excellent in great plays4 ,they have the same effect that the figures in half shade have in a picture2 they serve admirably to show off more powerfully those which have the full light4 ,dramatic ,situations ,gozzi maintained that there are only thirty-six tragical situations4 ,schiller took the greatest pains to find more1 but he did not find even so many as ,gozzi4 ,management of the ,theatre ,the ,grand ,duke disclosed to me his opinion that a theatre need not be of architectural magnificence1 which could not be contradicted4 ,he further said that it was after all but a house for the purpose of getting money4 ,this view appears at first sight rather material2 but rightly considered1 it is not without a higher purport4 ,for if a theatre is not only to pay its expenses1 but is1 besides1 to make and save money1 everything about it must be excellent4 ,it must have the best management at its head2 the actors must be of the best2 and good pieces must continually be performed1 that the attractive power required to draw a full house every evening may never cease4 ,but that is saying a great deal in a few words--almost what is impossible4 ,even ,shakespeare and ,molire had no other view4 ,both of them wished1 above all things1 to make money out of their theatres4 ,in order to attain this1 their principal aim1 they necessarily strove that everything should be as good as possible1 and that1 besides good old plays1 there should be some worthy novelty to please and attract4 ,nothing is more dangerous to the well-being of a theatre than when the director is so placed that a greater or less receipt at the treasury does not affect him personally1 and he can live on in careless security1 knowing that1 however the receipts at the treasury may fail in the course of the year1 at the end of that time he will be able to indemnify himself from another source4 ,it is a property of human nature soon to relax when not impelled by personal advantage or disadvantage4 ,menander ,i know no one1 after ,sophocles1 whom ,i love so well4 ,he is thoroughly pure1 noble1 great1 and cheerful1 and his grace is inimitable4 ,it is certainly to be lamented that we possess so little of him1 but that little is invaluable1 and highly instructive to gifted men4 ,calderon ,the great point is that he from whom we would learn should be congenial to our nature4 ,now1 ,calderon1 for instance1 great as he is1 and much as ,i admire him1 has exerted no influence over me for good or for ill4 ,but he would have been dangerous to ,schiller--he would have led him astray2 and hence it is fortunate that ,calderon was not generally known in ,germany till after ,schiller's death4 ,calderon is infinitely great in the technical and theatrical2 ,schiller1 on the contrary1 far more sound1 earnest1 and great in his intention1 and it would have been a pity if he had lost any of these virtues1 without1 after all1 attaining the greatness of ,calderon in other respects4 ,molire ,molire is so great that one is astonished anew every time one reads him4 ,he is a man by himself--his pieces border on tragedy2 they are apprehensive2 and no one has the courage to imitate them4 ,his ,miser1 where the vice destroys all the natural piety between father and son1 is especially great1 and in a high sense tragic4 ,but when1 in a ,german paraphrase1 the son is changed into a relation1 the whole is weakened1 and loses its significance4 ,they feared to show the vice in its true nature1 as he did2 but what is tragic there1 or indeed anywhere1 except what is intolerable8 ,i read some pieces of ,molire's every year1 just as1 from time to time1 ,i contemplate the engravings after the great ,italian masters4 ,for we little men are not able to retain the greatness of such things within ourselves2 we must therefore return to them from time to time1 and renew our impressions4 99 99 99 99 99 ,if we1 for our modern purposes1 wish to learn how to conduct ourselves upon the theatre1 ,molire is the man to whom we should apply4 ,do you know his ,malade ,imaginaire8 ,there is a scene in it which1 as often as ,i read the piece1 appears to me the symbol of a perfect knowledge of the boards4 ,i mean the scene where the 8malade imaginaire0 asks his little daughter ,louison if there has not been a young man in the chamber of her eldest sister4 ,now1 any other who did not understand his craft so well would have let the little ,louison plainly tell the fact at once1 and there would have been the end of the matter4 ,but what various motives for delay are introduced by ,molire into this examination1 for the sake of life and effect4 ,he first makes the little ,louison act as if she did not understand her father2 then she denies that she knows anything2 then1 threatened with the rod1 she falls down as if dead2 then1 when her father bursts out in despair1 she springs up from her feigned swoon with roguish hilarity1 and at last1 little by little1 she confesses all4 ,my explanation can only give you a very meagre notion of the animation of the scene2 but read this scene yourself till you become thoroughly impressed with its theatrical worth1 and you will confess that there is more practical instruction contained in it than in all the theories in the world4 ,i have known and loved ,molire from my youth1 and have learned from him during my whole life4 ,i never fail to read some of his plays every year1 that ,i may keep up a constant intercourse with what is excellent4 ,it is not merely the perfectly artistic treatment which delights me2 but particularly the amiable nature1 the highly-formed mind1 of the poet4 ,there is in him a grace and a feeling for the decorous1 and a tone of good society1 which his innate beautiful nature could only attain by daily intercourse with the most eminent men of his age4 ,of ,menander1 ,i only know the few fragments2 but these give me so high an idea of him that ,i look upon this great ,greek as the only man who could be compared to ,molire4 ,shakespeare ,we cannot talk about ,shakespeare2 everything is inadequate4 ,i have touched upon the subject in my ,wilhelm ,meister1 but that is not saying much4 ,he is not a theatrical poet2 he never thought of the stage2 it was far too narrow for his great mind3 nay1 the whole visible world was too narrow4 ,he is even too rich and too powerful4 ,a productive nature ought not to read more than one of his dramas in a year if it would not be wrecked entirely4 ,i did well to get rid of him by writing ,goetz and ,egmont1 and ,byron did well by not having too much respect and admiration for him1 but going his own way4 ,how many excellent ,germans have been ruined by him and ,calderon6 ,shakespeare gives us golden apples in silver dishes4 ,we get1 indeed1 the silver dishes by studying his works2 but1 unfortunately1 we have only potatoes to put into them4 99 99 99 99 99 ,macbeth is ,shakespeare's best acting play1 the one in which he shows most understanding with respect to the stage4 ,but would you see his mind unfettered1 read ,troilus and ,cressida1 where he treats the materials of the ,iliad in his own fashion4 ,a4 ,w4 ,schlegel's ,lectures on ,dramatic ,art and ,literature ,it is not to be denied that ,schlegel knows a great deal1 and one is almost terrified at his extraordinary attainments and his extensive reading4 ,but this is not enough4 ,learning in itself does not constitute judgment4 ,his criticism is completely one-sided1 because in all theatrical pieces he merely regards the skeleton of the plot and arrangement1 and only points out small points of resemblance to great predecessors1 without troubling himself in the least as to what the author brings forward of graceful life and the culture of a high soul4 ,but of what use are all the arts of genius1 if we do not find in a theatrical piece an amiable or great personality of the author8 ,this alone influences the cultivation of the people4 ,i look upon the manner in which ,schlegel has treated the ,french drama as a sort of recipe for the formation of a bad critic1 who is wanting in every organ for the veneration of excellence1 and who passes over an able personality and a great character as if they were chaff and stubble4 ,the ,french ,romanticists ,extremes are never to be avoided in any revolution4 ,in a political one nothing is generally desired in the beginning but the abolition of abuses2 but before people are aware1 they are deep in bloodshed and horror4 ,thus the ,french1 in their present literary revolution1 desired nothing at first but a freer form2 however1 they will not stop there1 but will reject the traditional contents together with the form4 ,they begin to declare the representation of noble sentiments and deeds as tedious1 and attempt to treat of all sorts of abominations4 ,instead of the beautiful subjects from ,grecian mythology1 there are devils1 witches1 and vampires1 and the lofty heroes of antiquity must give place to jugglers and galley slaves4 ,this is piquant6 ,this is effective6 ,but after the public has once tasted this highly seasoned food1 and has become accustomed to it1 it will always long for more1 and that stronger4 ,a young man of talent1 who would produce an effect and be acknowledged1 and who is great enough to go his own way1 must accommodate himself to the taste of the day--nay1 must seek to outdo his predecessors in the horrible and frightful4 ,but in this chase after outward means of effect1 all profound study1 and all gradual and thorough development of the talent and the man from within1 is entirely neglected4 ,and this is the greatest injury which can befall a talent1 although literature in general will gain by this tendency of the moment4 ,the extremes and excrescences which ,i have described will gradually disappear2 but this great advantage will finally remain--besides a freer form1 richer and more diversified subjects will have been attained1 and no object of the broadest world and the most manifold life will be any longer excluded as unpoetical4 ,i compare the present literary epoch to a state of violent fever1 which is not in itself good and desirable1 but of which improved health is the happy consequence4 ,that abomination which now often constitutes the whole subject of a poetical work will in future only appear as a useful expedient2 aye1 the pure and the noble1 which is now abandoned for the moment1 will soon be resought with additional ardor4 ,mrime has treated these things very differently from his fellow-authors4 ,these poems1 it is true1 are not deficient in various horrible motifs1 such as churchyards1 nocturnal crossroads1 ghosts and vampires2 but the repulsive themes do not touch the intrinsic merit of the poet4 ,on the contrary1 he treats them from a certain objective distance1 and1 as it were1 with irony4 ,he goes to work with them like an artist1 to whom it is an amusement to try anything of the sort4 ,he has1 as ,i have said before1 quite renounced himself1 nay1 he has even renounced the ,frenchman1 and that to such a degree that at first these poems of ,guzla were deemed real ,illyrian popular poems1 and thus little was wanting for the success of the imposition he had intended4 ,mrime1 to be sure1 is a splendid fellow6 ,indeed1 more power and genius are generally required for the objective treatment of a subject than is supposed4 ,so ,lord ,byron1 also1 notwithstanding his predominant personality1 has sometimes had the power of renouncing himself altogether1 as may be seen in some of his dramatic pieces1 particularly in his ,marino ,faliero4 ,in this piece one quite forgets that ,lord ,byron1 or even an ,englishman1 wrote it4 ,we live entirely in ,venice1 and entirely in the time in which the action takes place4 ,the personages speak quite from themselves1 and from their own condition1 without having any of the subjective feelings1 thoughts1 and opinions of the poet4 ,that is as it should be4 ,of our young ,french romantic writers of the exaggerating sort1 one cannot say as much4 ,what ,i have read of them--poems1 novels1 dramatic works--have all borne the personal coloring of the author1 and none of them ever make me forget that a ,parisian--that a ,frenchman--wrote them4 ,even in the treatment of foreign subjects one still remains in ,france and ,paris1 quite absorbed in all the wishes1 necessities1 conflicts1 and fermentations of the present day4 ,victor ,hugo ,he has a fine talent1 but quite entangled in the unhappy romantic tendency of his time1 by which he is seduced to represent1 together with what is beautiful1 also that which is most insupportable and hideous4 ,i have lately been reading his ,notre ,dame de ,paris1 and required no little patience to support the horror with which this reading has inspired me4 ,it is the most abominable book that ever was written6 ,besides1 one is not even indemnified for the torture one has to endure by the pleasure one might receive from a truthful representation of human nature or human character4 ,his book is1 on the contrary1 utterly destitute of nature and truth6 ,the so-called characters whom he brings forward are not human beings with living flesh and blood1 but miserable wooden puppets1 which he deals with as he pleases1 and which he causes to make all sorts of contortions and grimaces just as he needs them for his desired effects4 ,but what an age it must be which not only renders such a book possible and calls it into existence1 but even finds it endurable and delightful4 ,the 8,idea0 of ,goethe's ,tasso and ,faust ,idea6 as if ,i knew anything about it4 ,i had the life of ,tasso1 ,i had my own life2 and whilst ,i brought together two odd figures with their peculiarities1 the image of ,tasso arose in my mind1 to which ,i opposed1 as a prosaic contrast1 that of ,antonio1 for whom also ,i did not lack models4 ,the further particulars of court life and love affairs were at ,weimar as they were in ,ferrara2 and ,i can truly say of my production1 it is bone of my bone1 and flesh of my flesh4 ,the ,germans are1 certainly1 strange people4 ,by their deep thoughts and ideas1 which they seek in everything and fix upon everything1 they make life much more burdensome than is necessary4 ,only have the courage to give yourself up to your impressions1 allow yourself to be delighted1 moved1 elevated1 nay1 instructed and inspired for something great2 but do not imagine all is vanity1 if it is not abstract thought and idea4 ,then they come and ask what idea ,i meant to embody in my ,faust4 ,as if ,i knew myself and could inform them4 ,from heaven1 through the world1 to hell1 would indeed be something2 but this is no idea1 only a course of action4 ,and further1 that the devil loses the wager1 and that a man1 continually struggling from difficult errors towards something better1 should be redeemed1 is an effective1 and to many1 a good enlightening thought2 but it is no idea which lies at the foundation of the whole and of every individual scene4 ,it would have been a fine thing1 indeed1 if ,i had strung so rich1 varied1 and highly diversified a life as ,i have brought to view in ,faust upon the slender string of one pervading idea4 ,it was1 on the whole1 not in my line1 as a poet1 to strive to embody anything abstract4 ,i received in my mind impressions1 and those of a sensuous1 animated1 charming1 varied1 hundredfold kind1 just as a lively imagination presented them2 and ,i had1 as a poet1 nothing more to do than artistically to round off and elaborate such views and impressions1 and by means of a lively representation so to bring them forward that others might receive the same impression in hearing or reading my representation of them4 ,if ,i however wished1 as a poet1 to represent any idea1 ,i did it in short poems1 where a decided unity could prevail1 as1 for instance1 in the ,metamorphosis of ,animals1 that of ,plants1 the poem ,legacy1 and many others4 ,the only production of greater extent1 in which ,i am conscious of having labored to set forth a pervading idea1 is probably my ,elective ,affinities4 ,this novel has thus become comprehensible to the intellect2 but ,i will not say that it is therefore better4 ,i am rather of the opinion that the more incommensurable1 and the more incomprehensible to the intellect1 a poetic production is1 so much the better it is4 ,schiller ,yes1 everything else about him was proud and majestic1 only the eyes were soft4 ,and his talent was like his outward form4 ,he seized boldly on a great subject1 and turned it this way and that1 and handled it this way and that4 ,but he saw his object1 as it were1 only from the outside2 a quiet development from within was not his province4 ,his talent was desultory4 ,thus he was never decided--could never have done4 ,he often changed a part just before a rehearsal4 ,and1 as he went so boldly to work1 he did not take sufficient pains about motives4 ,i recollect what trouble ,i had with him when he wanted to make ,gessler1 in ,tell1 abruptly break an apple from the tree1 and have it shot from the boy's head4 ,this was quite against my nature1 and ,i urged him to give at least some motive to this barbarity1 by making the boy boast to ,gessler of his father's dexterity1 and say that he could shoot an apple from a tree at a hundred paces4 ,schiller1 at first1 would have nothing of the sort3 but at last he yielded to my arguments and intentions1 and did as ,i advised him4 ,i1 on the other hand1 by too great attention to motives1 kept my pieces from the theatre4 ,my ,eugenie is nothing but a chain of motives1 and this cannot succeed on the stage4 ,schiller's genius was really made for the theatre4 ,with every piece he progressed1 and became more finished2 but1 strange to say1 a certain love for the horrible adhered to him from the time of the ,robbers1 which never quite left him even in his prime4 ,i still recollect perfectly well that in the prison scene in my ,egmont1 where the sentence is read to him1 ,schiller would have made ,alva appear in the background1 masked and muffled in a cloak1 enjoying the effect which the sentence would produce on ,egmont4 ,thus ,alva was to show himself insatiable in revenge and malice4 ,i1 however1 protested1 and prevented the apparition4 ,he was a singular1 great man4 ,every week he became different and more finished2 each time that ,i saw him he seemed to me to have advanced in learning and judgment4 ,his letters are the fairest memorials of him which ,i possess1 and they are also among the most excellent of his writings4 ,edinburgh ,review ,it is a pleasure to me to see the elevation and excellence to which the ,english critics now rise4 ,there is not a trace of their former pedantry1 but its place is occupied by great qualities4 ,in the last article--the one on ,german literature--you will find the following remark3--8,there are some poets who have a tendency always to occupy themselves with things which another likes to drive from his mind40 ,what say you to this8 ,there we know at once where we are1 and how we have to classify a great number of our most modern literati4 ,byron ,lord ,byron is to be regarded as a man1 as an ,englishman1 and as a great genius4 ,his good qualities belong chiefly to the man1 his bad to the ,englishman and the peer1 his talent is incommensurable4 ,all ,englishmen1 as such1 are without reflection1 properly so called2 distractions and party spirit will not permit them to perfect themselves in quiet4 ,but they are great as practical men4 ,thus ,lord ,byron could never attain reflection concerning himself1 and on this account his maxims in general are not successful1 as is shown by his creed1 8much money and no authority10 for much money always paralyzes authority4 ,but where he creates he always succeeds2 and we may truly say that with him inspiration supplies the place of reflection4 ,something within him ever drove him to poetry1 and then everything that came from the man1 especially from his heart1 was excellent4 ,he produced his best things1 as women do pretty children1 without thinking about it or knowing how it was done4 ,he is a great talent1 a born talent1 and ,i never saw the true poetical power greater in any man than in him4 ,in the apprehension of external objects1 and a clear penetration into past situations1 he is quite as great as ,shakespeare4 ,but as a pure individuality1 ,shakespeare is his superior4 ,this was felt by ,byron1 and on this account he does not say much of ,shakespeare1 although he knows whole passages by heart4 ,he would willingly have denied him altogether2 for ,shakespeare's serenity is in his way1 and he feels that he is no match for it4 ,pope he does not deny1 for he had no cause to fear him4 ,on the contrary1 he mentions him1 and shows him respect when he can1 for he knows well enough that ,pope is a mere foil to himself4 ,his high rank as an ,english peer was very injurious to ,byron2 for every talent is oppressed by the outer world1--how much more1 then1 when there is such high birth and so great a fortune4 ,a certain middle rank is much more favorable to talent1 on which account we find all great artists and poets in the middle classes4 ,byron's predilection for the unbounded could not have been nearly so dangerous with more humble birth and smaller means4 ,but as it was1 he was able to put every fancy into practice1 and this involved him in innumerable scrapes4 ,besides1 how could one of such high rank be inspired with awe and respect by any rank whatever8 ,he expressed whatever he felt1 and this brought him into ceaseless conflict with the world4 99 99 99 99 99 ,moreover1 his perpetual negation and fault-finding is injurious even to his excellent works4 ,for not only does the discontent of the poet infect the reader1 but the end of all opposition is negation2 and negation is nothing4 ,if ,i call bad bad1 what do ,i gain8 ,but if ,i call good bad1 ,i do a great deal of mischief4 ,he who will work aright must never rail1 must not trouble himself at all about what is ill done1 but only strive to do well himself4 ,for the great point is not to pull down1 but to build up1 and in this humanity finds pure joy4 99 99 99 99 99 ,i could not make use of any man as the representative of the modern poetical era except him1 who undoubtedly is to be regarded as the greatest genius of our century4 ,byron is neither antique nor romantic1 but like the present day itself4 ,this was the sort of man ,i required4 ,then he suited me on account of his unsatisfied nature and his warlike tendency1 which led to his death at ,missolonghi4 99 99 99 99 99 ,lord ,byron is only great as a poet2 as soon as he reflects1 he is a child4 ,scott ,walter ,scott's ,fair ,maid of ,perth is excellent1 is it not8 ,there is finish6 there is a hand6 ,what a firm foundation for the whole1 and in particular not a touch which does not lead to the goal6 ,then1 what details of dialogue and description1 both of which are excellent4 ,his scenes and situations are like pictures by ,teniers2 in the arrangement they show the summit of art1 the individual figures have a speaking truth1 and the execution is extended with artistic love to the minutest details1 so that not a stroke is lost4 ,you find everywhere in ,walter ,scott a remarkable security and thoroughness in his delineation1 which proceeds from his comprehensive knowledge of the real world1 obtained by life-long studies and observations1 and a daily discussion of the most important relations4 ,then come his great talent and his comprehensive nature4 ,you remember the ,english critic who compares the poets to the voices of singers1 of which some can command only a few fine tones1 while others have the whole compass1 from the highest to the lowest1 completely in their power4 ,walter ,scott is one of this last sort4 ,in the ,fair ,maid of ,perth you will not find a single weak passage to make you feel as if his knowledge and talent were insufficient4 ,he is equal to his subject in every direction in which it takes him2 the king1 the royal brother1 the prince1 the head of the clergy1 the nobles1 the magistracy1 the citizens and mechanics1 the ,highlanders1 are all drawn with the same sure hand1 and hit off with equal truth4 ,the passage where the prince1 sitting on horseback1 makes the pretty minstrel girl step upon his foot1 that he may raise her up for a kiss1 is in the boldest ,english style4 ,but you ladies are wrong always to take sides4 ,usually1 you read a book to find nutrition for the heart1 to find a hero whom you could love4 ,this is not the way to read2 the great point is not whether this or that character pleases1 but whether the whole book pleases4 ,but1 when you have finished the ,fair ,maid of ,perth1 you must at once read ,waverley1 which is written from quite a different point of view1 but which may1 without hesitation1 be set beside the best works that have ever been written in this world4 ,we see that it is the same man who wrote the ,fair ,maid of ,perth1 but that he has yet to gain the favor of the public1 and therefore collects his forces so that he may not give a touch that is short of excellence4 ,the ,fair ,maid of ,perth1 on the other hand1 is from a freer pen2 the author is now sure of his public1 and he proceeds more at liberty4 ,after reading ,waverley1 you will understand why ,walter ,scott still designates himself the author of that work2 for there he showed what he could do1 and he has never since written anything to surpass1 or even equal1 that first published novel4 99 99 99 99 99 ,walter ,scott is a great genius2 he has not his equal2 and we need not wonder at the extraordinary effect he produces on the whole reading world4 ,he gives me much to think of2 and ,i discover in him a wholly new art1 with laws of its own4 99 99 99 99 99 ,we read far too many poor things1 thus losing time1 and gaining nothing4 ,we should only read what we admire1 as ,i did in my youth1 and as ,i now experience with ,sir ,walter ,scott4 ,i have just begun ,rob ,roy1 and will read his best novels in succession4 ,all is great--material1 import1 characters1 execution2 and then what infinite diligence in the preparatory studies6 what truth of detail in the execution6 ,we see1 too1 what ,english history is2 and what a thing it is when such an inheritance falls to the lot of a clever poet4 ,our ,german history1 in five volumes1 is1 on the other hand1 sheer poverty4 99 99 99 99 99 ,it is a peculiarity of ,walter ,scott's that his great talent in representing details often leads him into faults4 ,thus1 in ,ivanhoe1 there is a scene where they are seated at a table in a castle-hall at night1 and a stranger enters4 ,now1 he is quite right in describing the stranger's appearance and dress1 but it is a fault that he goes to the length of describing his feet1 shoes1 and stockings4 ,when we sit down in the evening1 and some one comes in1 we see only the upper part of his body4 ,if ,i describe the feet1 daylight enters at once1 and the scene loses its nocturnal character4 ,,footnotes3 #ac ,goethe had been reproached 8for not taking up arms in the ,german ,war of ,liberation1 or at least coperating as a poet40 #ad 8,architecture is music in space1 as it were a frozen music40--,schelling's ,philosophie der ,kunst4 ,,appendix ,i4 ,on the ,selection and ,translation of the ,essays in this ,volume4 ,,ii4 ,on the ,chronology of ,goethe's ,critical ,studies4 ,,appendix ,i4 ,on the ,selection and ,translation of the ,essays in this ,volume ,this book was first suggested to me in #aiji1 and was virtually completed seven or eight years ago2 but the manuscript was mislaid among some old papers1 and when it was recovered the ,european ,war was at its height4 ,never again1 it then seemed1 could ,i regard my work with the same disinterested temper in which it was begun1 for what was recovered was no longer a manuscript but a ghost1 no longer a book but a strange spirit returned from an all too irrecoverable past4 ,when ,i re-read these words from the lips of one who had spent his life 8with spirits god-like mild10 and related them to our new and altered world1 ,i understood once more how man forever fashions history to his own meaning1 and how it has no life except such as is given to it by his creative mind4 ,every word ,i now read assumed a new and heightened significance1 a more intimate relation with life2 and every word was a call to sympathy and understanding1--the word of a man who had withheld all hate from enemy ,france1 had praised ,england and its literature1 had analyzed the defects of his own countrymen1 and had made constant denial of the compatibility of poetry and partisanship4 ,how could ,i approach work of this kind in the spirit of the fiery national partisan1 not to mention that of the mere dryasdust scholar1 when every word ,goethe uttered shed light and meaning on the warm life about me1 and every accent of his voice taught a high forebearance8 ,so when on sick-leave from my regiment at the very end of #aiag1 to while away the tediousness of convalescence1 ,i played once more with the work begun in the old days when ,i was still able to live in 8the wise man's only country1 ,life02 and before ,i sailed for ,france1 leaving behind me the manuscript as it here stands1 ,i determined that if it were ever published1 ,i should add nothing in the form of preface1 introduction1 or critical apparatus1 but allow ,goethe to speak for himself to such hearts as could hear and understand him4 ,some readers may find a key to that understanding if they begin with the famous passage on 8,poetry and ,patriotism0 on page #bea4 ,no adequate estimate of ,goethe's critical work has yet been achieved2 and the sensible but unilluminating chapter on this subject in the late ,calvin ,thomas's ,goethe is not much more disappointing than the more extended studies in ,german of ,oskar ,walzel and ,wilhelm ,bode4 ,for a complete estimate of ,goethe as a critic we should have to ransack all his essays and reviews1 his novels and poems1 his autobiography and his journals1 his letters and conversations1 for in all of them he has scattered judgments on books and thoughts on the theory of art4 ,it would almost seem as if his reputation as a critic rests more securely on these casual utterances than on his formal essays and studies4 ,there more than elsewhere ,sainte-,beuve and ,matthew ,arnold recognized 8the supreme critic02 there above all we find that mellow wisdom which we have come to associate with ,goethe's name4 ,in this little volume1 however1 we have most of ,goethe's successive moods represented by some characteristic utterance1--the young reviewer1 the lover of ,shakespeare and ,gothic art1 rebelling against schools and rules but most of all against dullness and formality2 the contributor to ,wieland's ,german ,mercury1 the collaborator of ,schiller in the ,horen and in an exchange of letters of incomparable interest1 after the life of ,weimar and the journey to ,italy had mellowed his talents2 the student of art and sthetics in the ,propylen1 championing the antique spirit and voicing a protest against the excesses of romanticism2 the more thoughtful but still sympathetic student of ,shakespeare1 enthusiastic in ,wilhelm ,meister1 more temperate in ,shakespeare ad ,infinitum2 the mature reviewer1 welcoming the publication of old ,german and foreign folksongs1 and hailing in turn ,byron1 ,manzoni1 ,carlyle1 ,niebuhr1 and all the young ,french and ,german writers of his day2 and finally1 the literary dictator in his old age1 as shown in the careless and incessant wisdom of his recorded conversation4 ,we have here1 it is true1 a very small part of his extraordinary output1 but quite enough to form a just judgment of his place among the great critics4 ,in a career so extended and a mind so active and all-embracing we must expect to find inconsistencies and errors of judgment4 ,some of the ideas in this volume have only an historical interest2 a perverse mind might indeed garner from it an anthology of critical errors4 ,it was not these which won for him from so many the title of 8supreme critic10 but rather the sanity1 insight1 and impartiality of his mind and his extraordinary gift for foreseeing the direction of critical thought4 ,all of the selections in ,part ,i1 except the essay on 8,german ,architecture10 have been taken from ,goethe's ,essays on ,art1 translated by ,s4 ,g4 ,ward 7,boston1 #ahde74 ,wilhelm ,meister's critique of ,hamlet has been excerpted from ,carlyle's rendering of ,wilhelm ,meister's ,lehrjahre4 ,the version of ,john ,oxenford has been used for the selections from the ,conversations with ,eckermann1 and ,oxenford's version1 as revised by ,miss ,m4 ,s4 ,smith1 for the selection from ,goethe's ,autobiography4 ,the remaining essays were translated by the late ,randolph ,s4 ,bourne1 by ,professor ,f4 ,w4 ,j4 ,heuser1 and by myself4 ,i am indebted to ,mr4 ,bourne for translating the following essays3 8,on ,german ,architecture10 8,shakespeare ad ,infinitum10 8,the ,first ,edition of ,hamlet10 8,troilus and ,cressida10 8,the ,methods of ,french ,criticism10 8,supplement to ,aristotle's ,poetics10 8,tieck's ,dramaturgic ,fragments10 8,on the ,german ,theatre10 8,didactic ,poetry10 8,superstition and ,poetry10 8,the ,theory of a ,world ,literature10 8,byron's ,manfred10 8,byron's ,don ,juan10 8,calderon's ,daughter of the ,air10 8,molire's ,misanthrope10 8,folksongs again ,commended10 and 8,laurence ,sterne40 ,professor ,heuser has translated the following3 8,the ,production of a ,national ,classic10 8,epic and ,dramatic ,poetry10 and 8,english ,reviewers40 ,i have made material changes and corrections in almost all the translations1 but on the whole each translator should be held responsible for the accuracy and style of his own work4 ,for the selection and arrangement of the material1 and for the titles given to some of the excerpts1 ,i am alone responsible4 ,some of ,goethe's judgments on books1 and his maxims on life and art1 have already appeared in volumes of selections in ,english translation2 but no other work in any language1 so far as ,i am aware1 attempts to include in a single volume the whole range of ,goethe's critical and sthetic studies4 ,some of the selections have never before appeared in ,english4 ,j4 ,e4 ,s4 ,,troutbeck1 ,may1 #aiai4 ,since the above was written1 ,i have become greatly indebted to ,lord ,haldane for contributing the ,foreword1 and especially to ,professor ,friedrich ,bruns for reading the proofsheets and revising some of the translations4 ,miss ,l4 ,bonino has prepared the ,index4 ,j4 ,e4 ,s4 ,,new ,,york1 ,september1 #aiba4 ,,ii4 ,on the ,chronology of ,goethe's ,critical ,studies ,the following chronology of ,goethe's critical activity is intended chiefly to indicate the original sources of the selections in the present volume4 #aggb-gc4 ,reviews in the ,frankfurter gelehrten ,anzeigen3 ,goethe as a ,young ,reviewer 7reviews of ,blum's ,lyrische ,gedichte1 and ,sulzer's ,cymbelline1 ein ,trauerspiel1 nach einem von ,shakespeare erfundnen ,stoffe1 both translated in full74 #aggc4 ,von deutscher ,baukunst3 ,on ,german ,architecture 7complete translation74 #aghh sq4 ,articles in ,wieland's ,teutscher ,merkur3 ,simple ,imitation of ,nature1 ,manner1 ,style 7ber ,italien3 ,einfache ,nachahmung der ,natur1 ,manier1 ,stil1 complete translation74 #agid-ahje4 ,correspondence of ,goethe and ,schiller3 ,epic and ,dramatic ,poetry 7complete translation72 also footnote on page #ajd4 #agie-if4 ,wilhelm ,meister's ,lehrjahre3 ,wilhelm ,meister's ,critique of ,hamlet4 #agie-ig4 ,articles in ,die ,horen3 ,the ,production of a ,national ,classic 7,literarischer ,sansculottismus1 complete translation except for four introductory paragraphs74 #agih-ahjj4 ,articles in ,die ,propylen3 ,introduction to the ,propyla4 ,on ,laocoon 7complete translation74 ,on ,truth and ,probability in ,works of ,art 7complete translation74 ,the ,collector and his ,friends4 ,notes on ,dillettantism4 7,by ,goethe and ,schiller74 #ahjd sq4 ,reviews in the ,jenaische ,allgemeine ,literaturzeitung3 ,old ,german ,folksongs 7review of ,des ,knaben ,wunderhorn1 translated in full except that only a few of ,goethe's characterizations of individual poems are included74 #ahaa-ad4 ,dichtung und ,wahrheit 7,autobiography73 ,german ,literature in ,goethe's ,youth 7selected passages from part ii1 book #g72 also footnote on page #ad 7from part ii1 book #aj74 #ahae sq4 ,articles in the ,morgenblatt fr gebildete ,stnde3 ,shakespeare ad ,infinitum1 parts i-ii1 written #ahac 7,shakespeare und kein ,ende1 complete translation74 ,on the ,german ,theatre 7complete translation74 #ahaf-cb4 ,articles in ber ,kunst und ,alterthum3 ,ancient and ,modern4 ,the ,theory of a ,world ,literature1 part i 7review of ,duval's ,le ,tasse71 part ii 7,bezge nach ,aussen1 complete translation71 part iii 7,edinburgh ,reviews71 part v 7review of ,carlyle's ,leben ,schillers74 ,supplement to ,aristotle's ,poetics 7complete translation74 ,on ,didactic ,poetry 7complete translation74 ,superstition and ,poetry 7,justus ,mser74 ,the ,methods of ,french ,critics 7,urteilsworte franzsischer ,kritiker1 complete translation74 ,on ,criticism1 #a 7review of ,manzoni's ,carmagnola71 #c 7review of ,rochlitz's ,fr ,freunde der ,tonkunst74 ,the ,first ,edition of ,hamlet 7complete translation74 ,byron's ,manfred 7complete translation74 ,byron's ,don ,juan 7complete translation74 ,calderon's ,daughter of the ,air 7complete translation74 ,molire's ,misanthrope 7review of ,taschereau's ,histoire de la ,vie et des ,ouvrages de ,molire1 complete translation74 ,shakespeare ad ,infinitum1 part iii1 written #ahaf1 published #ahbf 7complete translation74 ,folksongs again ,commended 7complete translation74 ,laurence ,sterne 7complete translation74 ,the ,english ,reviewers 7review of ,manzoni's ,carmagnola74 #ahbb-cb4 ,gesprche mit ,goethe in den letzten ,jahren seines ,lebens1 by ,j4 ,p4 ,eckermann 7published #ahcf-dh73 ,extracts from ,goethe's ,conversations with ,eckermann4 ,posthumous ,works 7,nachgelassene ,werke1 #ahcc73 ,tieck's ,dramaturgic ,fragments 7complete translation74 ,troilus and ,cressida 7ber die ,parodie bei den ,alten74 ,,index ,,index ,anacreon1 #bci4 ,aristotle1 #ajd sq4 ,arnault1 ,antoine ,vincent1 #beh4 ,arnim1 ,achim von1 #bac sq4 ,blmner1 ,heinrich1 #ahd4 ,blum1 ,j4 ,c41 #aii sq4 ,blumauer1 ,alois1 #bjf4 ,bodmer1 ,johann ,jakob1 #bcc1 #bci4 ,breitinger1 ,johann ,jakob1 #bca1 #bcc4 ,brentano1 ,clemens1 #bac sq4 ,brger1 ,gottfried ,august1 #gd1 #bfb4 ,burns1 ,robert1 #bfb4 ,byron1 #bjb sq41 #bfc1 #bfh1 #bgj1 #bgf1 #bgi1 #bhc sq4 ,calderon1 #bjh sq41 #bea1 #bfi1 #bgc1 #bgf4 ,carlyle1 ,thomas1 #bfg sq41 #bic4 ,characteristic art1 #aa1 #cg4 ,chinese literature1 #bdi4 ,chodowiecki1 ,daniel ,nicolaus1 #fg4 ,claudius1 ,matthias1 #gd4 ,cousin1 ,victor1 #ig4 ,criticism1 theory of1 #acd1 #adj1 #bbd1 #bcj1 #bgf1 #bhc4 ,diderot1 ,denys1 #ach4 ,drama1 and ,theatre1 #ej1 #ge1 #gi1 #ajj1 #ajd1 #aji1 #abf1 #aeh1 #agj1 #agi1 #ahd1 #aij1 #bfh sq4 ,drer1 ,albrecht1 #ac4 ,erwin von ,steinbach1 #c1 #g1 #aj1 #ab4 ,fabroni1 ,angelo1 #dj4 ,folksongs1 #bac1 #bbj1 #bfg4 ,frederick the ,great1 #bda4 ,frnstein1 ,anton1 #bei4 ,gellert1 ,christian ,frchtegott1 #bcb4 ,gessner1 ,salomon1 #gd1 #bci4 ,gleim1 ,johann ,wilhelm ,ludwig1 #bcf1 #bdb1 #bdd4 ,goldsmith1 ,oliver1 #bef4 ,gottsched1 ,johann ,christoph1 #bcj sq41 #bci sq4 ,gozzi1 ,count ,carlo1 #bgb4 ,gries1 ,johann ,dietrich1 #baj4 ,grimm1 ,friedrich ,melchior1 ,baron von1 #ach sq4 ,guizot1 ,franois ,pierre ,guillaume1 #ig4 ,gnther1 ,johann ,christian1 #bcd4 ,haller1 ,albrecht von1 #bce4 ,hamann1 ,johann ,georg1 #ad4 ,handel1 ,georg ,friedrich1 #ajg4 ,herder1 ,johann ,gottfried von1 #ad1 #bfb4 ,hirt1 ,alois1 #cf4 ,homer1 #aj1 #bdj4 ,horace1 #acf1 #aii sq41 #bca1 #bci sq4 ,hugo1 ,victor1 #bgi sq4 ,humboldt1 ,karl ,wilhelm1 ,baron von1 #beg4 ,huysum1 ,jan van1 #fb4 ,iffland1 ,august ,wilhelm1 #aac4 ,johnson1 ,samuel1 #bja4 ,kant1 ,immanuel1 #beg4 ,kleist1 ,ewald ,christian von1 #bdj sq4 ,kleist1 ,heinrich von1 #abf4 ,klopstock1 ,friedrich ,gottlieb1 #gd1 #aab1 #bcf1 #bdd4 ,knig1 ,johann ,ulrich von1 #bcc sq4 ,krner1 ,theodor1 #bea4 ,laocoon1 #bb1 #bd sq41 #cc sq41 #ci1 #db4 ,laugier1 ,marc ,antoine1 #ad4 ,leonardo da ,vinci1 #fh1 #bef4 ,lessing1 #ch1 #aab1 #bcb1 #bcf1 #bdd1 #beg1 #bfi4 ,lichtenberg1 ,georg ,christoph1 #bjf4 ,lichtwer1 ,m4 ,g41 #bcb4 ,liscow1 ,christian ,ludwig1 #bbh4 ,lowell1 ,james ,russell1 #agi4 ,mannerists1 #cf1 #fd1 #fg4 ,manzoni1 ,alessandro1 #bje1 #bec1 #bfh4 ,matthisson1 ,friedrich von1 #bej4 ,menander1 #bge4 ,mrime1 ,prosper1 #bgh sq4 ,michelangelo1 #fh4 ,milton1 #bdj4 ,molire1 #bab1 #bfi1 #bgb sq4 ,napoleon1 #beb4 ,nicolai1 ,christoph ,friedrich1 #bja4 ,niebuhr1 ,b4 ,g41 #bic4 ,novel1 the1 #agj4 ,oeser1 ,adam ,friedrich1 #bcg4 ,originality1 #bee4 ,perugino1 #fh4 ,pindar1 #bdj4 ,plato1 #bef4 ,pope1 ,alexander1 #bci1 #bhd4 ,rabener1 ,gottlieb ,wilhelm1 #bbh sq4 ,ramler1 ,karl ,wilhelm1 #bce sq41 #bdb4 ,raphael1 #fh4 ,richardson1 ,samuel1 #bdi4 ,romanticism1 #agi1 #bfc1 #bgg4 ,rubens1 #fi4 ,ruysch1 ,rachel1 #fb4 ,schelling1 ,friedrich ,wilhelm ,joseph von1 #bfg4 ,schiller1 #ch1 #ajj1 #ajd1 #aji sq41 #aae sq41 #aai sq41 #abi1 #ahd1 #aia1 #bee1 #beg1 #bfd sq41 #bfh1 #bgb sq41 #bhb sq41 #bib4 ,schlegel1 ,august ,wilhelm von1 #beg1 #bfi1 #bgf sq4 ,schlegel1 ,friedrich von1 #beg1 #bfi4 ,schlegel1 ,johann ,elias1 #bci4 ,schroeder1 ,friedrich ,ludwig1 #abd1 #ahh sq4 ,schubarth1 ,karl ,ernst1 #fe4 ,scott1 ,sir ,walter1 #bhf sq4 ,seylerin 7i4e41 ,sophie ,friedrike ,seyler71 #aah4 ,shakespeare1 #fe sq41 #abd1 #abg1 #acf1 #ade sq41 #aga sq41 #aha sq41 #bjj sq41 #bjd1 #bji sq41 #bbe1 #bch1 #bed1 #bef1 #bfh sq41 #bgb1 #bge1 #bhd4 ,steevens1 ,george1 #aic4 ,sterne1 ,laurence1 #bbb1 #bef4 ,style1 #fa1 #bfe4 ,sulzer1 ,j4 ,g41 #bjj sq4 ,taschereau1 ,j41 #bab4 ,theatre1 see ,drama4 ,thomson1 ,james1 #beb4 ,tieck1 ,ludwig1 #abf sq4 ,uvaroff1 ,count1 #acg4 ,villemain1 ,abel ,franois1 #ig4 ,virgil1 #cd sq41 #bdj4 ,voss1 ,johann ,heinrich1 #bfb4 ,wieland1 ,christoph ,martin1 #gd1 #hf1 #afd1 #bcf sq41 #bib4 ,winckelmann1 ,johann ,joachim1 #ch1 #beg4 ,world ,literature1 #hi sq41 #bfg4 99 99 99 99 99 ,transcriber's note ,italics in chapter headings and spelling of title of works were standardized4 ,hyphenation was standardized where appropriate4 ,page number references in the index are as published in the original publication and have not been checked for accuracy in this e,book4 ,spelling was retained as in the original except for the following changes3 ,page vii3 8,tieck's ,dramaturgic0 8,ludwig ,tieck's ,dramaturgic0 ,page viii3 8,subject-matter of ,poetry0 8,subject-,matter of ,poetry0 ,page #cf3 8with my possessessions0 8with my possessions0 ,page #hi3 8its aesthetic and ethical0 8its sthetic and ethical0 ,page #aff3 8,these s approaches0 8,these soft approaches0 ,page #bjj3 8,cymbelline1 a ,trageay0 8,cymbelline1 a ,tragedy0 ,page #bjg3 8art of poety ever0 8art of poetry ever0 ,page #bdd3 8and the stubborness0 8and the stubbornness0 ,page #bee3 8made many distiches0 8made many distichs0 ,page #bia3 8of the compatability0 8of the compatibility0 ,page #bib3 8elsewhere ,sainte-,beauve0 8elsewhere ,sainte-,beuve0 ,page #big3 87complete translalation0 87complete translation0