LECTURE III.

"ON TASTE AND STYLE IN LITERATURE."

DELIVERED IN THE NATIONAL SCHOOL ROOM,

AS THE

INTRODUCTORY LECTURE OF A COURSE IN CONNECTION WITH THE DIOCESAN LIBRARY,

ON MONDAY EVENING, JAN. 3, 1853.

My purpose, in the present Lecture, will be to make a few observations on the faculty of Taste in general, under its definition, as it has been described to be "the power of receiving pleasure from the beauties of nature and of art:" and afterwards, I shall apply the subject more particularly to works of Literature. And I must at once expressly state that I put forward no claims myself to any deep acquaintance with the fine arts, nor to any originality of idea in anything I may say on this occasion. Where it suited my purpose, I have freely availed myself of the assistance of Blair and other writers on the same subjects; not however with any view of entering into any systematic or learned disquisitions; but simply wishing, in addressing a mixed audience, like the present, to furnish them with a few rules, which may be useful to them hereafter in forming their opinions of, and increasing their relish for, and pleasure to be derived from works of acknowledged excellence.

There is a common saying respecting Tastes, which has passed into a proverb, viz: "that there is no disputing about Tastes;"

that is, that one person has as much right to his Taste, and to consider it the most correct, as another has to his; and that therefore there are no means of settling the question between them. And this to a certain extent is true. The Tastes of men may differ very considerably as to their object, and yet none of them be wrong. One man relishes Poetry most; another takes pleasure in nothing but History. One prefers Comedy, another Tragedy. One admires the simple, another the ornamented style. In Architecture some prefer the Gothic, some the classical orders. In Painting some may delight most in the bold outlines and glowing colors of Rubens, others in the stateliness and high finish of a Vandyck. In Music some may prefer the simplicity and grandeur of Handel, others the ornate beauty of Mozart, or the elaborate science of Beethoven. Though all differ, yet all pitch upon some one beauty, which peculiarly suits their turn of mind; and therefore no one individual has a title to condemn the rest. It is not in matters of Taste, as in questions of mere reason, and of course specially in the exacter sciences, where there is but one conclusion that can be true, and all the rest are erroneous. Truth, which is the object of reason, is one; beauty, which is the object of Taste, is manifold. Taste, therefore, admits of latitude and diversity of objects; but it must, in each case, be in sufficient consistency with goodness and justness of Taste. And then comes the question, whether there is any standard of Taste; and, if there be, how it is to be applied? If Taste be a "power of receiving pleasure from the beauties of Nature and of Art," there must be degrees in the quality of Taste, according to the excellence of the subject matter; and that must be, in a certain degree, tested by reason; and I may say, by experience also, since a man may in ignorance admire at one time what increased experience will lead him to reject at another. And the works of Nature, which bear the impress of their Divine Original, are, in a certain measure, a guide by which to judge of works of art. But it requires experience to become a good judge. Some people, no doubt, have a certain exquisite innate perception of the beautiful; they possess, what is termed, a natural good Taste, which will manifest itself at all times. But this is not the case with the many. In the same way, we have heard of instances of

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persons who seem almost to have been born Mathematicians, but they are the rare exceptions; and we most of us require to have our Tastes formed by the exercise of reason and experience. Experience, which gives us the opportunity of comparing different specimens, and reason, which enables us to judge of the fitness and adaptation of the object under inspection for the end proposed, and the harmony of its several parts, which is one great element of beauty. And, moreover, there is a rule of perfection in the works of nature, which is manifested more and more to the observer, and which it is the business of art to aim at obtaining. Let us see how this operates in any different examples. To take a very simple one:-Many people are fond of flowers; they possess, perhaps, a Carnation plant, which bears an abundance of flowers of a large size, and striped in varied marks with red and white; they admire and cherish it. But some friend, it may be, a little more advanced in floriculture, will inform them that their favorite is but a poor specimen; that, though large and full of blossoms, it is not true; that its colors are all run, and its shape contrary to all rule. And this is a fact, which, bye and bye, when they have seen and marked more perfect specimens of the same flower, will at once approve itself to their own reason. And nature proves it too; for while by care and attention you may perpetuate the perfect specimen in its identity, the imperfect one is ever varying; no two flowers, perhaps, will resemble each other, and all will be false. By reason and experience then, an improved Taste is acquired, and you learn to judge more correctly of the Beautiful, and, to a certain extent, of, what we may even term, the True. All Tastes are, so to speak, progressive; they are formed and improved by that exercise of our reason, which we are enabled to call into play by enlarged acquaintance with the works of nature and of art. This is the case in Music, Painting, Architecture and Literature; and the same principle, which enables us to form a correct judgment in these departments of art, will influence us in other matters also, such as Dress, Equipages, Furniture, and general manners and conversation. We learn to appreciate things by a different rule, and require a certain propriety, a harmony (which simply means a fitting together) in all the parts to satisfy us. And where we

meet with these requisites we shall derive a depth and intensity of gratification, of which, in times past, we had no conception.

There is no doubt often an affectation of Taste, a pretence of admiring because it is considered the right thing to do so; while the individuals expressing such admiration, or affecting such Taste, may neither understand nor appreciate the works they are praising. But this is beside the present question. As there are some people, who, as I said, have a natural and intuitive correct Taste, so some others will always retain a false one; as there are some people who cannot distinguish colors, and others who perceive no difference between different tunes. I speak, however, of the general state of the case; that there is a certain standard of Taste, which, though not defined exactly, is yet a real one; and by experience we become fully conscious of it, appreciate it, and acknowledge its truth. Taste is progressive; and in general we always find, until cultivated and refined, that it rests with most satisfaction upon what is merely vast, or what is ornamented and showy; without reference to any rules of concinnity, harmony, fitness or propriety. Let us take one of the lowest specimens in connection with dress: viz., the passion for an accumulation of all the brightest and gaudiest colors, which is manifested so generally by negroes-and in a certain degree by many of a different class. So again with respect to Music, you will always find, that any people who know but little of music, receive but little satisfaction from any thing which has not, what is termed, a great deal of tune in it; and that they will listen with far more delight to a comic song set to some jingling notes, than to the finest pieces of Handel or Mozart. But this would not continue if they had sufficient experience to test their Taste; and nothing is more remarkable than the growth in England, specially in London, during the last few years, of a true Taste for the better styles of both vocal and instrumental Music; though the English are certainly not a people of musical genius, like the Germans and Italians. Besides many other places used for like purposes, in the great room at Exeter Hall, which will hold upwards of 3,000 people, with an orchestra for 500, Oratorios are performed all through the winter to such crowded audiences that every inch of standing room is filled; and

this not for the sake of any particular popular singer, but for the sake of the music itself. The Messiah of Handel, the creation of Haydn, the Elijah of Mendelssohn, a work confessedly so scientific that it requires to be heard often to be fitly appreciated, are the objects of their admiration. These concerts, though all classes are present, are for the most part attended by the neighbouring tradespeople and their families, who not long since would have been tempted out by nothing less exciting than an Ethiopian melody.

The same change, though at a slower rate, is being effected in the public taste in the department of Painting, by the greater facilities afforded for becoming acquainted with the works of the great masters in the National Gallery, Lord Ellesmere's and others, freely opened to the public. And it is not possible that any one, whose eye has been accustomed to delight in the richness of Rubens, or whose imagination has been excited by the inspiration of Raphael, can fail to see the justness of that Taste, which accords to them such an illustrious place in the Temple of Fame; and while deriving intense gratification from the contemplation of their works, he will turn with indifference from the gaudy canvass, which he perhaps had once fondly regarded as a masterpiece of art.

Good Taste will particularly require that there should be a certain harmony and propriety in all the parts of any work; not satisfied with any amount of ornament, which is not in place and keeping. Thus, however excellent may be the quavers and flourishes of any scientific singer, yet if they are intruded into the music of Handel, for instance, they will be so out of place, so out of keeping with his majestic simplicity, that they will utterly destroy its character and effect. Just as if in Architecture you were to erect a Portico, with Corinthian pillars, for a Temple of the severe simplicity of the Doric order; or what is still more incongruous, a highly ornamental Grecian porch for a Gothic church: as is the case in the great church of St. Mary's at Oxford. However such ornaments may be admired in themselves, they are out of place.

But to form a correct Taste in Music, Painting or Architecture, it is requisite that the best models should be studied. In Painting, the first thing which attracts the attention of the many, is the