Изображения страниц
PDF
EPUB

The latter, The Provoked Husband,' (which was the joint production of Vanburgh and Cibber) is, perhaps, on the whole, the best comedy in the English language. It is liable, indeed, to one critical objection, of having a double plot; as the incidents of the Wronghead family, and those of Lord Townley's, are separate, and independent of each other. But this irregularity is compensated by the natural characters, the fine painting, and the happy strokes of humour with which it abounds. We are, indeed, surprised to find so unexceptionable a comedy proceeding from two such loose authors; for, in its general strain, it is calculated to expose licentiousness and folly; and would do honour to any stage.

Sir John Vanburgh has spirit, wit and ease; but he is, to the last degree, gross and indelicate. He is one of the most immoral of all our comedians. His 'Provoked Wife' is full of such indecent sentiments and allusions, as ought to explode it out of all reputable society. His 'Relapse' is equally censurable; and these are his only two considerable pieces. Congreve is, unquestionably a writer of genius. He is lively, witty, and sparkling; full of character, and full of action. His chief fault as a comic writer is, that he overflows with wit. It is often introduced unseasonably; and, almost every where, there is too great a proportion of it for natural well-bred conversation.* Farquhar is a light and gay writer; less correct and less sparkling than Congreve; but he has more ease; and, perhaps fully as great a share of the vis comica. The two best and least exceptionable of his plays, are the 'Recruiting Officer,' and the 'Beaux Stratagem.' I say, the least exceptionable; for, in general, the tendency of both Congreve and Farquhar's plays is immoral. Throughout them all, the rake, the loose intrigue, and the life of licentiousness, are the objects continually held up to view; as if the assemblies of a great and polished nation could be amused with none but vicious objects. The indelicacy of these writers, in the female characters which they introduce, is particularly remarkable. Noth ing can be more awkward than their representations of a woman of virtue and honour. Indeed, there are hardly any female characters in their plays except two women of loose principles; or, women of affected manners, when they attempt to draw a character of virtue.

The censure which I have now passed upon these celebrated comedians, is far from being overstrained or severe. Accustomed to the indelicacy of our own comedy, and amused with the wit and humour of it, its immorality too easily escapes our observation. But all foreigners, the French especially, who are accustomed to a better regulated, and more decent stage, speak of it with surprise and astonishment. Voltaire, who is, assuredly, none of the most austere moralists, plumes himself not a little upon the superior bien

* Dr. Johnson says of him, in his life, that his personages are a kind of intel lectual gladiators; every sentence is to ward, or to strike; the contest of smartness is never intermitted; his wit is a meteor, playing to and fro, with alternate

corruscations.'

seance of the French theatre; and says, that the language of English comedy is the language of debauchery, not of politeness. M. Moralt, in his letters upon the French and English nations, ascribes the corruption of manners in London to comedy, as its chief cause. Their comedy, he says, is like that of no other country; it is the school in which the youth of both sexes familiarise themselves with vice, which is never represented there as vice, but as mere gaiety. As for comedies, says the ingenious M. Diderot, in his observations upon dramatic poetry, the English have none; they have, in their place, satires, full, indeed, of gaiety and force, but without morals, and without taste; sans mœurs, et sans gout. There is no wonder, therefore, that Lord Kaims, in his Elements of Criticism, should have expressed himself upon this subject, of the indelicacy of English comedy, in terms much stronger than any that I have used; concluding his invective against it in these words: How odious ought those writers to be, who thus spread infection through their native country; employing the talents which they have received from their Maker most traitorously against himself, by endeavouring to corrupt and disfigure his creatures. If the comedies of Congreve did not rack him with remorse, in his last moments, he must have been lost to all sense of virtue." Vol. II. 479.

I am happy, however, to have it in my power to observe, that of late years, a sensible reformation has begun to take place in English comedy. We have, at last, become ashamed of making our public entertainments rest wholly upon profligate characters and scenes; and our later comedies, of any reputation, are much purified from the licentiousness of former times. If they have not the spirit, the ease, and the wit of Congreve and Farquhar, in which respect they must be confessed to be somewhat deficient; this praise, however, they justly merit, of being innocent and moral.

For this reformation, we are, questionless, much indebted to the French theatre, which has not only been, at all times, more chaste and inoffensive than ours, but has, within these few years, produced a species of comedy, of still a graver turn than any that I have yet mentioned. This which is called the serious, or tender comedy, and was termed by its opposers, La Comedia Larmoyante, is not altogether a modern invention. Several of Terence's plays, as the Andria, in particular, partake of this character; and as we know that Terence copied Menander, we have sufficient reason to believe that his comedies, also, were of the same kind. The nature of this composition does not by any means exclude gaiety and ridicule; but it lays the chief stress upon tender and interesting situations; it aims at being sentimental, and touching the heart by means of the capital incidents; it makes our pleasure arise, not so much from the laughter which it excites, as from the tears of affection and joy which it draws forth.

In English, Steele's Conscious Lovers is a comedy which approaches to this character, and it has always been favourably received by the public. In French, there are several dramatic compositions of this kind, which possess considerable merit and reputation:

such as the 'Melanide,' and 'Prejugé à la Mode,' of La Chaussée; the Père de Famille,' of Diderot; the 'Cénie,' of Mad. Graffigny; and the 'Nanine,' and 'L'Enfant Prodigue,' of Voltaire.

When this form of comedy first appeared in France, it excited a great controversy among the critics. It was objected to, as a dangerous and unjustifiable innovation in composition. It is not comedy, said they, for it is not founded on laughter and ridicule. It is not tragedy, for it does not involve us in sorrow. By what name then can it be called? or what pretensions hath it to be comprehended under dramatic writing? But this was trifling, in the most egregious manner, with critical names and distinctions, as if these had invariably fixed the essence, and ascertained the limits, of every sort of composition. Assuredly, it is not necessary that all comedies should be formed on one precise model. Some may be entirely light and gay; others may incline more to the serious; some may partake of both; and all of them, properly executed, may furnish agreeable and useful entertainment to the public, by suiting the different tastes of men.* Serious and tender comedy has no title to claim to itself the possession of the stage, to the exclusion of ridicule and gaiety. But when it retains only its proper place, without usurping the province of any other; when it is carried on with resemblance to real life, and without introducing romantic and unnatural situations, it may certainly prove both an interesting and an agreeable species of dramatic writing. If it become insipid and drawling, this must be imputed to the fault of the author, not to the nature of the composition, which may admit much liveliness and vivacity.

In general, whatever form comedy assumes whether gay or serious, it may always be esteemed a mark of society advancing in true politeness, when those theatrical exhibitions, which are designed for public amusement, are cleared from indelicate sentiment, or immoral tendency. Though the licentious buffoonery of Aristophanes amused the Greeks for a while, they advanced by degrees to a chaster and juster taste; and the like progress of refinement may be concluded to take place among us, when the public receive with favour, dramatic compositions of such a strain and spirit as entertained the Greeks and Romans, in the days of Menander and Terence.

Il y a beaucoup de très bonnes pièces, où il ne regne que de la gayeté: d'antres toutes sérieuses; d'autres melangèes; d'autres, où l'attendrissement va jusaux larmes. Il ne faut donner exclusion à aucune genre ; & si l'on me demandoit, quel genre est le meilleur? Je répondrois, celui qui est le mieux traitè,'

VOLTAIRE.

INDEX.

Accents, thrown farther back from the ter-
mination in the English than in any
other language, 99. Seldom more than
one in English words, 368. Govern the
measure of English verse, 430.
Achilles, his character in the Iliad exami-
ned, 485.

Action, much used to assist language in an
imperfect state, 63, and by ancient ora-
tors and players, 64. Fundamental rule
of propriety in, 374. Caution with res-
pect to, 376. In epic poetry, the requis-
ites of, 474.

Acts, the division of a play into five, and
arbitrary limitation, 513. These pauses
in representation ought to fall proper-
ly, 514.

Adam, his character in Milton's Paradise
Lost, 504.

Addison, general view of his Essay on the
Pleasures of the Imagination, 31. His
invocation of the muse in his Campaign
censured, 48. Blemishes in his style,
115, 116, 124. Ease and perspicuity of,
127, 128, 180. His beautiful description
of light and colours, 155. Instance of
his use of metaphor, 165. Improper

use of similies, 184. His general char-
acter as a writer, 208. Character of
the spectators, 216. Critical examina-
tion of some of those papers, 216. Re-
marks on his criticism of Tasso's Amin-
ta, 441, nole. His tragedy of Cato cri-
tically examined, 511, 518, 522, 524.
Adjectives, common to all languages, 88.
How they came to be classed with nouns,

ibid.

Adverbs, their nature and use defined, 93.
Importance of their position in a sen-
tence illustrated, 115.

Eneid of Virgil, critical examination of
that poem, 489. The subject, ibid. Ac-
tion, 490. Is deficient in characters,
ibid. Distribution and management of
the subject, ibid. Abounds with awful
and tender scenes, 491. The descent
of Æneas into hell, 492. The poem left
unfinished by Virgil, 493.

Eschines, a comparison between him and
Demosthenes, 272.

Eschylus, his character as a tragic wri-
ter, 526.

Etna, remarks on Virgil's description of
that mountain, 46. And on that by Sir
Richard Blackmore, ibid.
Affectation, the disadvantages of, in public
speaking, 376.

Ages, four, peculiarly fruitful in learned
men, pointed out, 388.

69.

[ocr errors]

Akenside, his comparison between sublimi-
ty in natural and moral objects, 36, nole
Instance of his happy allusion to figures,
155. Characters of his Pleasures of the
Imagination, 449.

Alphabet of letters, the consideration which
led to the invention of, 76. Remote
obscurity of this invention, ibid. The
alphabets of different nations derived
from one common source, 77.
Allegory, explained, 168. Anciently a
favourite method of conveying instruc-
tions, 169. Allegorical personages im-
proper agents in epic poetry, 172, 250.
Ambiguity in style, from whence it pro-
ceeds, 114.

Amplification in speech, what, 191. Its

principal instrument, ibid.

American languages, the figurative style
of, 67, 152.

Anagnorisis, in ancient tragedy explain-
ed, 515.

Annals and history, the distinction be-
tween, 408.

Ancients and moderns distinguished, S88.
The merits of ancient writers are now
finally ascertained, 389. The progress
of knowledge favourable to the moderns,
in forming a comparision between them,
390. In philosophy and history, ibid.
The efforts of genius greater among the
ancients, 391. A mediocrity of genius
now more diffused, 392.

Antithesis, in language explained, 188.
The too frequent use of, censured, ibid.
Apostrophe, the nature of this figure ex-
plained, 179. Find one from Cicero,
290, note.

Arabian Nights Entertainment, a charac
ter of those tales, 418.

Arabian poetry, its character, 425.
Arbuthnot, character of his epistolary writ-
ing, 416.

Architecture, sublimity in, whence it arises,
35. The sources of beauty in, 54.
Arguments, the proper management of in
a discourse, 353. Analytic and synthe-
tic methods, 354. Arrangement of,

$55. Are not to be too much multi-
plied, 357.

Ariosto, character of his Orlando Furioso,
419,498.

Aristotle, his rules for dramatic and epic
composition, whence derived, 27. His
definition of a sentence, 112. His ex-
tended sense of the term metaphor, 159.
Character of his style, 197, 201. His in-
stitutions of rhetoric, 270, S86. His de-
finition of tragedy considered, 507. His
observations or tragic characters,520.

[blocks in formation]

Armstrong, character of his Art of Preserv-Boileau, his character as a didactic poet,

ing Health, 449.

Art, works of, considered as a source of
beauty, 54.

Articles, in language, the use of, 81. Their
importance in the English language il-
lustrated, ibid.

Articulation, clearness of, necessary in
public speaking, 367.

Associations, academical, recommended,
884. Instructions for the regulation of,
385.

Athenians, ancient, character of, 266.
Eloquence of, ibid.

Atterbury, a more harmonious writer than
Tillotson, 142. Critical examination of
one of his sermons, 326. His exordium
to a 30th of January sermon, 345.
Altici and Asiani, parties at Rome, ac-
count of, 275.

Authors, petty, why no friends to criticism,
28. Why the most ancient afford the
most striking instances of sublimity, 39.
Must write with purity to gain esteem,
100, 101.

B.

Bacon, his observations on romances, 417.
Ballads, have great influence over the man-
ners of a people, 417. Were the first
vehicles of historical knowledge and in-
struction, 423.

Bar, the eloquence of defined, 263. Why
more confined than the pleadings before
ancient tribunals, 283. Distinction be-
tween the motives of pleading at the
bar, and speaking in popular assemblies,
299. In what respect ancient pleadings
differ from those of modern times, ibid.
Instructions for pleaders, 301, 350.
Bards, ancient, the first founders of law
and civilization, 424.

Barrow, Dr. character of his style, 199.
Character of his sermons, 325.
Beaumont and Fletcher, their characters as
dramatic poets, 540.

Beauty, the emotion raised by, distinguish-

ed from that of sublimity, 49. Is a term
of vague application, 50. Colours, ibid.
Figures, 51. Hogath's line of beauty
and line of grace considered, 51. The
human countenance, 58. Works of art,
ibid. The influence of fitness and de-
sign in our ideas of beauty, 54. Beauty
in literary composition, ibid. Novelty,
55. Imitation, ibid.
Bergerus, a German critic, writes a treatise
on the sublimity of Cæsar's Commenta.
ries, 38.

451.

Bolingbroke, instances of inaccuracy in
his style, 121, 132. A beautiful climax
from, 129. A beautiful metaphor from,
159. His general character as a politi
cian and philosopher, 160. His general
character as a writer, 211, 383.
Bombast, in writing described, 48.
Bossu, his definition of an epic poem, 470.

His account of the composition of the
Iliad, 471

Bossuet, M. instances of apostrophes to
personified objects, in his funeral ora-
tions, 179, note. Conclusion of his fune-
ral oration on the Prince of Conde, 364.
Britain, Great, not eminent for the study
of eloquence, 280. Compared with
France in this respect, 281.

Bruyere, his parallel between the elo-
quence of the pulpit and the bar, 313,

nole.

Buchanan, his character as an historian,

407.

Building, how rendered sublime, $5.

C.

Cadmus, account of his alphabet, 76.
Caesar's Commentaries, the style of charac-
terised, 38. Is considered by Bergerus
as a standard of sublime writing, ibid.
Instance of his happy talent in historical
painting, 404, note. His character of
Terence the dramatist, 536.

Cameons, critical examination of his Lusi-
ad, 499. Confused machinery of, ibid.
Campbell, Dr. his observations on English
particles, 87, note.

Carmel, Mount, metaphorical allusions to
in Hebrew poetry, 464.
Casmir, his character as a lyric poet, 446.
Catastrophe, the proper conduct of, in dra-

matic representations, 514.

Caudine Forks, Livy's happy description of
the disgrace of the Roman army there,
402.

Celtic language, its antiquity and charac
ter, 95. The remains of it where to be
found, ibid. Poetry its character, 424.
Characters, the dangers of labouring them
too much in historical works, 405. The
due requisites of in tragedy, 519.
Chinese language, character of, 64. And
writing, 74.
Chivalry, origin of, 418.

Chorus, ancient, described, 509. Was the
origin of tragedy, ibid. Inconveniences
of, ibid. How it might properly be intro-
duced on the modern theatre, 503.

« ПредыдущаяПродолжить »