The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1870-10-24
THE NOVEMBER MAGAZINES.
"THE ATLANTIC"

JOsepn anu us f1lenu AL, Dhyhtu 1dyLoi'
''Four Months with Charles Dickens (ll)
''Murillo's Immaculate Conception, David
Gray Travelling Companions" %, H.
James, Jr.; 'The Intellectual Influence OF
Music, John S. Dwight; GA November Pas
toral, Bayard Taylor ''Mr Burlingame as
an Orator; f." Reviews and Literary Notices"
Miss Kate Field, who is nothing if not en-
thusiastic, bubbles over about Fechter to an
even greater extent than she did about Ris-
tori. In her lively and entertaining, if not
altogether convincing, paper entitled 'Fechter
rs Hamlet" she settles to her own satisfaction
the whole problem of Hamlet, over which the
critics have been puzzling their brains ever
since the play was written, by assuming that
Fechter's idea of the character is and must be
correct, and that if Shakespeare does not con-
form to it, so much the worse for Shakes
peare. We quote the following as specimen
of Miss Fields method of dealing with this
subject
The only lines that can be quoted against
Fechters theory are the few appertaining to
the Ghosts temperance.
ADO you not come your tardy son to chide,
That, lapsed in time and passion, let,go by
Tn important acting OF your dread command?
o, say !"
inquiries Hamlet.
"GkOst. Do not forget. This visitation
Is but to whet thy almost blunted purpose
Hamlet but repeats the self-accusation
prompted by over-sensibility as to the per-
foEmance of an awful duty.
''Ah, but what blunted purpose does the
Ghost come to whet ?" asks the reader. Sup
pose now this visitation be to whet Hamlet's
almost blunted purpose of speaking daggers,
but using none? The Ghost, unlike his
former self, says not one word about Clau-
dius. He straightway exhorts Hamlet to step
between his mother and her fighting soul!
Whereupon Hamlet's tone changes from vio-
lent denunciation to soft questioning, ''How
is il with you, lady?" One moment more and
the passion that made corpse of Polonius
might have wreaked vengeance on the guilty
Queen; for though Hamlet declares that he is
''neither splenitive nor rash," yet is there
something dangerous" in him, a something
that might have led him to strangle Laertes
had he lost entire self-control. That the
Queen believes her son capable of the deed
is seen at the opening of this scene, when
Hamlet says
"Come come, and sit you down you shall not bulge;
You go not, till set you up glass
Where you may see the inmost part Of you."
These are not desperate words, and yet the
Queen cries OUT
''what wilt thou do? Thou wilt not murder me /?
Help, help, how
Killing the Queen would not be impossible
to the Hamlet of Fechter, who is convinced
of her completely in his fathers murder.
40 Hamlet! speak no more:
Thou turnst mine eyes into my very Soul
And there see such black and grained spots
AS will not leave their tnct."
Mere marriage with brother-in-aw, even
after two months of widowhood hardly
admits of SO fearful q confession; and her
fear of being murdered by Hamlet leads
to the inference that she knows she deserves
the punishment. Further coloring for this
hypothesis may be obtained in Hamlet's
response to the Ghost:-
s'Do not look upon me;
Lest with this pteous action you convert
My stern effects; then what have to do
WI want true colors; tears perchance, for blood"
Surely this does not indicate absence of will
on Hamlets part; and as stage ghosts always
produce the effect they desire, the dead king
attained the purpose of his ''pale glaring."
Certainly he had no such fearful influence
over Hamlet during the first interview. Is
the object, then, the same? Indeed it would
seem not; and since l find Shakespeare so
ready to agree with Fechter, l doubt my
ability longer to withhold allegiance to this
startling innovation.
The critic may entertain one opinion of
Hamlet one day and another the next; he
may be very positive in some particulars and
not quite sure in others. He can leave q door
open by which his opinion may make a
dignifed exit, should an intellectual breeze
threaten to overthrow them; but the actor
enjoys no such privilege. He must tho
roughly understand his intentions before
being able to interpret them. He must feel
certain that, according to his light, his con-
ception is right, or he cannot render it with
force or send conviction to the hearts and
heads of his audience. The business of the
critic, therefore, in this matter of
''Hamlet," is not so much with the
conception of the character as with the
manner in which the actors concep-
ton is carried out. If it is consistent from
beginning to end, if it takes hold of you so
strongly as to prevent any escape from it, if
its great power absolutely bullies you out of
cherished theories, if its humanity makes you
look back upon previous "Hamlets" as so
many lay figures galvanized into spasmodiC
action, if it absorbs attention and creates O
positive sensation, then does the actor merit
critical enthusiasm for the critics business is
to appreciate, to appreciate is to estimate
Justly, and Just estimation calls for as much
delight at what is fine as disapprobation oi
what is false. Fechter produces all these
effects. He is great, not only in his origi
nality, but in his rendering, the greatness o.
which will do my poor best to show by pho
tographing his Hamlet in such details as arr
food for critics and actors.
The November number of The TechlOl0
aist presents an excellent variety of articles
ON practical and scientific subjects.
The Nursery for November is nicely illus
trated, and is filed with pleasant little storie
and verses suited to the capacity of youni
children.
THE AUTHOR OF JANE EYRE.