There is a fine obfervation of the elder PLINY, which illuftrates the principle here infifted on. It is very remarkable, says he, that the laft works of celebrated artifts, which they left imperfect, are always the most prized, fuch as the IRIS of ARISTIDES, the TYNDARIDES of NICOMACHUS, the MEDEA of TIMOMACHUS, and the VENUS of APELLES. These are valued even above their finished productions: The broken lineaments of the piece, and the half formed idea of the painter are carefully Studied; and our very grief for that curious hand, which had been flopped by death, is an additional increase to our pleasure†.

These inftances (and many more might be collected) are fuf-ficient to afford us fome infight into the analogy of nature, and to fhow us, that the pleasure, which poets, orators, and muficians give us, by exciting grief, sorrow, indignation, compaffion, is not fo extraordinary nor paradoxical, as it may at firft fight appear. The force of imagination, the energy of expreffion, the power of numbers, the charms of imitation; all these are naturally, of themselves, delightful to the mind: And when the object presented lays alfo hold of fome affection, the pleasure still rifes upon us, by the converfion of this fubordinate movement into that which is predominant. The paffion, though, perhaps, naturally, and when excited by the fimple. appearance of a real object, it may be painful; yet is fo fmoothed, and foftened, and mollified, when raifed by the finer arts, that it affords the highest entertainment.

+Illud vero perquam rarum ac memoria dignum, etiam fuprema opera artifi cum, imperfectafque tabulas, ficut, IRIN ARISTIDIS, TYNDARIDAS NICOMACHI, MEDEAM IIM MACHI, & quam diximus VENEREM APELLIS, in majori admiratione. effe quam perfecta. Quippe in iis lineamenta reliqua, ipfæque cogitationes artificum. fpectantur, atque in lenocinio commendationis dolor eft manus, cum id ageret, extinctæ. Lib. xxxv. cap. 11. Kk 2

To

To confirm this reafoning, we may obferve, that if the movements of the imagination be not predominant above those of the paffion, a contrary effect follows; and the former, being now fubordinate, is converted into the latter, and still farther increases the pain and affliction of the fufferer.

Who could ever think of it as a good expedient for comforting an afflicted parent, to exaggerate, with all the force of oratory, the irreparable lofs, which he has met with by the death of a favourite child? The more power of imagination and expreffion you here employ, the more you increase his defpair and affliction.

The fhame, confufion, and terror of VERRES, no doubt, rose in proportion to the noble eloquence and vehemence of CICERO So alfo did his pain and uneafinefs. These former paffions were too ftrong for the pleafure arifing from the beauties of elocution; and operated, though from the fame principle, yet in a contrary manner, to the fympathy, compassion, and indignation of the audience.

Lord CLARENDON, when he approaches the catastrophe of the royal party, fuppofes, that his narration must then become infinitely disagreeable; and he hurries over the king's death, without giving us one circumftance of it. He confiders it as too horrid a scene to be contemplated with any fatisfaction, or even without the utmost pain and averfion. He himself, as well as the readers of that age, were too deeply concerned in the events, and felt a pain from subjects, which an historian and a reader of another age would regard as the most pathetic and moft interesting, and, by consequence, the most agreeable.

An

An action, reprefented in tragedy, may be too bloody and atrocious. It may excite fuch movements of horror as will not foften into pleasure; and the greateft energy of expreffion, beftowed on descriptions of that nature, ferves only to augment our uneafinefs. Such is that action, reprefented in the Ambitious Step-mother, where a venerable old man, raised to the height of fury and defpair, rushes against a pillar, and ftriking his head upon it, befmears it all over with mingled brains and gore. The ENGLISH theatre abounds too much with fuch images.

Even the common fentiments of compaffion require to be foftened by fome agreeable affection, in order to give a thorough fatisfaction to the audience. The mere fuffering of plaintive virtue, under the triumphant tyranny and oppreffion of vice, forms a difagreeable fpectacle, and is carefully avoided by all mafters of the drama. In order to dismiss the audience with intire fatisfaction and contentment, the virtue muft either convert itself into a noble courageous despair, or the vice receive its proper punishment.

Moft painters appear in this light to have been very unhappy in their fubjects. As they wrought much for churches and convents, they have chiefly reprefented fuch horrible fubje&s as crucifixions and martyrdoms, where nothing appears but tortures, wounds, executions, and paffive fuffering, without any action or affection. When they turned their pencil from this ghaftly mythology, they had recourfe commonly to OVID, whose fictions, though paffionate and agreeable, are scarce natural or probable enough for painting.

The fame inverfion of that principle, which is here infifted on, difplays itfelf in common life, as in the effects of oratory

and

and poetry. Raife fo the fubordinate paffion that it becomes the predominant, it fwallows up that affection, which it before nourished and increased. Too much jealoufy extinguishes love: Too much difficulty renders us indifferent: Too much fickness and infirmity disgusts a selfish and unkind parent.

What fo difagreeable as the difmal, gloomy, disastrous ftories, with which melancholy people entertain their companions? The uneafy paffion, being there raised alone, unaccompanied with any fpirit, genius, or eloquence, conveys a pure uneasiness, and is attended with nothing that can softem it into pleasure or fatisfaction.

ESSAY XXIII.

OF THE STANDARD OF TASTE.

ΤΗ

HE great variety of Taftes, as well as of opinions, which prevail in the world, is too obvious not to have fallen under every one's obfervation. Men of the most confined knowlege are able to remark a difference of taste in the narrow circle of their acquaintance, even where the perfons have been educated under the fame government, and have early imbibed the fame prejudices. But those who can enlarge their view to contemplate diftant nations and remote ages, are still more furprized at the great inconfiftence and contrariety. We are apt to call barbarous whatever departs widely from our own taste and apprehenfion: But foon find the epithet of reproach retorted on us. And the highest arrogance and self-conceit is at last startled, on obferving an equal affurance on all fides, and scruples, amidst such a contest of sentiments, to pronounce positively in its own favour.

As this variety of taste is obvious to the most careless enquirer; fo will it be found, on examination, to be ftill greater in reality than in appearance. The fentiments of men often differ with regard to beauty and deformity of all kinds, even while their general difcourfe is the fame. There are certain terms in every

language,