Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1842-09-30
TRANsCENDENTAIlsM.

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gives a clear and ineligible view Of the subject Of
which il treats. After short introduction, the
Author states briefly the principles Of this system
of philosophy, lie next remarks on the progress
il is making, and the obstacles it has TO encounter
He then shows how its principles are to be applied
in Criticism and Art and what influence they are
TO have on Government, Social Organization, and
Religion Amer this there is a chapter on Moral
Obligation and then comes the conclusion 10 the
work We would recommend it to those who are
DESTROYS of getting birds eye view of the Tran
scendchtal Philosophy, much talked Of at the
present day. The following extract is fair speci-
men of The style and spirit Of the work. and will
give the reader some idea Of lis merits
CRITICISM.
Those rules which regulate the original
composition Of works of Imagination or art,
or enable one to test their propriety, beauty
or perfection are the laws Of criticism 1t
is the science which teaches US to estimate
the creations of the mind, and pass Judge
mout on the pictures which man paints OF
what passes within him. Its end is to ena-
bic us to estimate the worth of poem, a
picture, a book, or any work Of art.
Most obviously it presupposes an intimate
knowledge Of the principles of human ma
ture. What is it that perccives the beauty
of pocml On what does this depend =
With what standard is it to be compared !
Whence do we derive our knowledge of this
standard How arc we to know when any
thing conforms TO it! These and thon-
sand similar questions are not answered with
breath. An Indian, like an animal, might
like or hate picture merely for its color /:
another more cultivated because it caused
in his mind pleasing or unpleasant associa-
tions another because he Judged it beau,-
inl or not. Thus there would be different
system One would take no note of what
others most esteemed. So we find several
systems saying tina, we derive our sense of
beauty from habit, association, judgement,
the study of nature.
The old were mere arbitrary, conven-
tional rules, founded in caprice. Works
were Judged and compared with other
works The Had or Kneid was the stand
ard for n poem: the Venus de Medici a
perfect form. But nothing was said to be
good or perfect in itself Every thing must
stand or fall, not by its actual, but by its
comparative merits. Such rules had no
foundation in nature. Many Of them were
rreconcilable with nature aud calculated
only to tramme and embarrass. But now
there is recognized a common, universal, nat
ural standard, which all men possess, by
which all can Judge. One tries not to write
like Homer or Dante, but to produce a
poem beautiful in itself Within himself
he fluids standard higher than any thing
yet produced, an idea of what such ought
to be. Thus there is one rule, uniform, not
arbitrary, but natural Perfection is but
conformity with what all seek
Formerly judgement was passed upon
parts whether they were formed according
to the most approved fashion thus the Chi
nese asked if the feet were small, the In
dian looked for rings in the nose. Or the
parts were Judged in relation TO the whole.
The whole was never taken together, and
the question put, whether it was good or
beautiful in itself Ii was easy to say, that
this correspondent with such model that
violated such dictum of this or that author,
that certain words were better suited TO de-
scribe slow motion, Others quick that GER
tain phrases or figures were better used in
description intended to be sublime, others
in one pathetic, some in one ridiculous -
these and all else in codes, of which these
may serve as examples, were easy enough.
And the end was attained. OF such mate
rails a system was framed. The mistake
lay in calling it the art of criticism. No
doubt, it was an art to Judge according TO
these artificial rules. But if criticism be
the art of Judging of works of art or imagi-
nation, whether they are perfect or faulty,
of pointing out their beauties or defects,
there was none of it in this method
Things most dull, nsipd and worthless,
might be Judged taultless, while the things
really most precious were rejected aliogeth-
err. Thus the question, was whether words.
sentences, ideas, acts or parts were arranged
according to certain established precedents
not what emotions were excited, whether the
poem kindled the fire in our breast. the
song spoke the language Of our hearts, the
picture bore resemblance to our imagininns.
and represented those glad dreams which
sometimes Hit through every soul-to give
form that shall wake the remembrance of
which bright vision is the perfection of art
1t could measure feet, scan lines, detect
false rhymes, say this exceeded the length
that had fewer acts than the rules allowed
this history was faulty because it agreed not
with such model, that biography good i'll
only stale parody on such another. To
gam favor with critics, you need only con-
form TO the literary fshion, in bearing and
dress-no matter for the man. One would
stop you in the midst of song that set the
soul ON fre to see-if it correspondent with
a certain canon of measure or length; in
stead OF following out the train Of thought
reused by noble sentiment, stay to remark
how likely one WOuld be IN (ael sucb 80, l.