principles, touching dramatic art, which have been adopted, and which, owing to their recent introduction, have been hitherto misunderstood and perverted, but will in the end produce, it can scarcely be doubted, all the good effects that have resulted from them elsewhere.

Within these last two years, a young Jewess, Madlle. Rachel, who possesses, in high perfection, the art of declamation suited to the classical tragedy, has occasioned a partial revival of the old plays on the French stage. Through her extraordinary talent, a transient gleam of popularity has been thrown on the Bajazet, Andromaque, Phèdre, and Mithridate, of Racine, and on the Tancrède of Voltaire: but it is impossible for a single individual, however admirable her powers, to render these beautiful dramatic poems of the seventeenth century permanently acceptable. For a time, the public, attracted by the novelty of the attempt, and the graces of the actress, vouchsafed its applause; but modern feeling is clearly inimical to the classical style of drama, which never can be reproduced in France with any hope of success. It is altogether out of tune with the spirit of the age and country; and though a more excellent representative of tragedy than Madlle. Rachel has rarely appeared, yet her influence can be but slight and ephemeral. She may be regarded as a phenomenon of the day, but will make or leave no lasting impression in favor of the Aristotelian drama.

It is evident, from what we have observed on the subject, that the drama is at present the lowest department of French literature, and that, morally speaking, it is in a state of reprobation. Its decline we believe to be a consequence of its immorality. And this decline naturally produces increased public apathy, insomuch that the theatres, both in Paris and in the departments, are seldom well attended. An entire change in the tendency of the drama must take place, before any great amelioration can be expected. It is true that human crimes and passions have been at all times represented on the stage, but always under certain religious and moral sanctions, which render their delineation at once awful and instructive. But vice, in all its most hideous forms, is alone attempted to be depicted in the French drama, without any counteracting features to retrieve the character of the representation. Such a state of things cannot last; and now that Shakspeare is admitted as the greatest dramatic authority, there can be no question that, under his invigorating influence, the regeneration so devoutly wished is sure, although it may be slow.

CHAPTER TENTH.

POETRY.

Modern School of French Poetry.-Multitude of Ordinary Poets, especially in the South of France-their Low Station.-Horace's Precept.-Object of Poetry.Influence of Voltaire.-Delille.-Legouvé.-Chénédollé.-Millevoye.-De Fontanes.-André Chénier-his Tragical Death-Influence and Beauties of his Poems.-M. Alfred de Vigny-Character of his Poetry-his Motse-his Eloa-his Lyrical Strains.-M. de Lamartine-his First Poems-his Subsequent Career and Political Life-his Méditations Poétiques-his Harmonies Poétiques et Religieuses-Jocelyn-Subject and Character of that Poem-Tendencies of M. de Lamartine's Various Poems-Extraordinary Popularity of his Works-their Future Rank in Literature-Compared with Delille-M. de Lamartine's Voyage en Orient.-M. Victor Hugo-Instability of his Political Principles-Beneficial Tendency of his Poems-Les Orientales-Subject of those Poems-their Chief Beauty -Les Feuilles d'Automne-their Originality and Grandeur-The Chants du Crépuscule-The Poem entitled La Cloche-Les Voix Intérieures-Les Rayons et les Ombres.-De Béranger-Character of his Songs-their Tendency-their Rank in Literature-De Béranger's Retirement near Tours.-M. Casimir Delavigne's Messéniennes.-M. Sainte-Beuve.-M. Emile Deschamp.-M. Alfred de Musset. -Auguste Barbier---the lambes.-M. Theophile Gauthier.-The Academie Française and Royal Institute of France.--Object of the Present Work.---Conclusion.

We have now reached that branch of French literature of which a foreigner can seldom become a competent judge-Poetry. The poetry of the classic school-the poetry of Racine and Voltaire-owing to its regular, fettered, although elegant style, is not characterized by the same lofty strains or fervid inspirations as that of the great modern poets. The muses of MM. Alfred de Vigny, Victor Hugo, De Lamartine, and Béranger, have taken a flight in regions that before them were unknown to French poetry; they soar above all that preceded them, wafted on the pure lyric breeze-and the lyric is the only true province of poetry, because it is the very mirror and echo of the human soul.

We have already intimated our conviction that the present age is not favorable to poetry. This may seem inconsistent with the flattering terms we use in reference to the modern poets, and altogether groundless if we add, that France is, perhaps, of all countries, the greatest fabricator of verses. But we must explain our meaning. Verse-making is practised undoubtedly to

an unexampled extent among the youthful part of the French nation, and especially in the south. A baker at Nismes and a hairdresser at Agen, among others, have cultivated the art with considerable success. The baker, above all, who is called Reboul, has published many very elegant fragments, and proved himself one of the best imitators of M. de Lamartine's manner. The town of Toulouse, too, the Queen of the South, still retains the spirit of its ancient Troubadours; it is a city of poets and musicians. Notwithstanding all this, however, the pursuits that absorb the great majority of the nation are history, philosophy, politics, and industry. The verse-makers, as a class, belong to mediocrity, and their passion itself is but the ebullition of youthful fever; although it actuates so many in the spring of life, that the multitude of poetasters is innumerable. M. de Lamartine receives about a hundred poetical epistles every week. No doubt, many fine effusions of poetic genius might be found in the vast aggregate of poets and poems; but the prevailing taste being adverse, the public gives itself no concern, nor casts a single glance of inquiry and encouragement on any of them: they are all consigned to the same oblivion. It is owing solely to the surpassing excellence and capabilities of the six or seven great poets to whom France is indebted for the regeneration of its poetry, that they have at last been able to fix public attention, and to force, as it were, the admiration of their contemporaries. And yet it is doubtful, after all, whether they would have succeeded in gaining that applause, so richly deserved by their poetry, had they not already acquired great popularity and fame, either by their political principles or by their works as dramatists and novelists.

In regard to poetry, we would push to its full extent the severity of Horace's precept against mediocrity. We hold that nothing should be written in verse which is not super-excellent, and we shall therefore speak only of the higher portion of French poetry, and necessarily with great brevity; for our object in these dissertations has been to exhibit simply the spirit and tendencies of France in the nineteenth century, without overloading them with details, specimens, or extracts. In prose, anything may be said which is worth saying at all; in verse, only what is worth saying better than prose can say it. The elaborate and finished workmanship of poetry can only be worthily applied to the gems of fancy and thought; and of these that portion only whose effect is heightened by it. In our opinion, the origin and justification of all composition in verse spring from but two

OBJECT OF POETRY.-INFLUENCE OF VOLTAIRE.

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sources. In the first place, a thought or feeling requires verse for its adequate expression, so that it may flash on the mind with the rapidity and vividness of lightning; for the language of verse, with its inversions and elisions, is more condensed, its ideas and images can be pressed closer together, than is compatible with the rigid grammatical construction of prose. Secondly, it is an instinct of the human mind to give to thoughts an utterance impregnated with feelings. All sensitive emotions absorbing the whole frame tend to flow unobstructedly and equably, and seek instinctively a language that flows like themselves; hence man has ever tended to express all deep and sustained feelings in rhythmical language, and the deeper the feeling the more characteristic and decided the rhythm. On the other hand, we believe that the perfection of language, and the elasticity which can be imparted to prose, may offer another field to the expansiveness of feeling, and that poetical prose will finally obtain supremacy. Be this as it may, however, the rhythmic utterance seems to demand in preference short poems; for how can an intense feeling, expressed in metrical cadence, sustain itself very long at its highest elevation? Any bold attempts of the sort are rarely adventured in modern times; they have always failed hitherto in France, though it may perhaps be the fate of a future age to witness their success. But for our own part, we are clearly of opinion that such aspiring and prolonged efforts could be successful only in an era when the art of writing was unknown or forgotten, and versification was requisite as an indispensable aid to memory, or when animated by the supernatural genius of such master-spirits as Homer, Virgil, Dante, or Milton. Hence we conclude that in our epoch the suitable poetic form is either verse of a lyric, fragmentary nature, or poetic prose.

The influence of Voltaire, during the eighteenth century, banished from the realm of poetry the philosophy of passion as sung by Racine. In its stead he adopted the philosophy of reason, and proved its insufficiency as a poetic theme: for, however harmonious his versification, there is in all his poems a striking sterility of genuine melody and pathos. Admirable for the force of intellect they display, they rarely touch the heart or excite the sensibilities, being deficient alike in soul-stirring strains and in depth of feeling. In truth, Voltaire may be stated to have had no feeling his insensibility to the beauty and sublimity of the Christian faith was but one result of a nature essentially cold and material. Addicted to view all things through a cynical medium, he attained, by the aid of an ever-lively imagination, to

unrivalled perfection in wit and sarcasm, but never to a perception of the true elements of poetry, such as in our time have inspired several distinguished bards. He vainly endeavored to understand Shakspeare, but, unable to approach the heights of his genius, he denied its existence, and affected to despise as a barbarian the greatest of the moderns. Spernimus quæ assequi non

possumus.

Delille held, after Voltaire, the poetic sceptre of France. He is always elegant and graceful, but devoid of that kindling warmth and animation which marks the presence of the true poetic fire. His translations of Virgil and Milton are overloaded with a mass of meretricious ornament, under which the originals are almost stifled. His best work, although in the same monotonous tone, is the poem entitled L'Imagination.

During the reign of Napoleon, and at the era of the Restoration, poetry remained in comparative neglect. A few timid muses only ventured to expand their modest wings, and take a limited flight, amidst the political convulsions of those days. Legouvé has left a poem, which is even now admired by many, Le Mérite des Femmes. Chénédollé's Etudes Poétiques, and Esmenard's poem De la Navigation, are estimable productions. But the great favorite, and by far the most poetic artist of that period was Millevoye, whose sensitive, chaste, and melancholy muse seems as the aurora of the resplendent orb illumining our epoch-M. de Lamartine. La Chûte des Feuilles of Millevoye is one of those gems most highly prized by the lovers of poetry. M. de Fontanes was also a great literary name at the commencement of this century; he was honored as the poet of the empire. His works, however, have sunk into oblivion, and are read by He translated Pope's Essay on Man, gave a poor imitation of Gray's celebrated elegy, and made a wretched attempt at an epic poem under the title of Le Grèce Sauvée. M. de Fontanes was recalled from exile by Bonaparte, and loaded with favors; yet he proved, like many others, ungrateful to his benefactor. It was he who drew up the decree of expulsion pronounced by the senate against the man at whose feet they all had crouched.

none.

There is a poet whose career was cut short before the dawn of the present century, who may nevertheless be considered as belonging to this age by the influence he has exercised on contemporaries, and by the year in which his poems were first published. We mean André Chénier, whose works were only partially known until collected and given to the public in 1819.