New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1876-09-08
NEW PUBLICATIONS.
DANIEL DERoNDA.


HISTORY has been in respects an unusuai one III
koeong with the exceptional place in English letters
which she has won After having labored Tor years
unnoticed az translator of Strauss and writer Ior
The g'ostaiHster RevieD her novel OF Adan beu"
was surprise and sensation almost equal 10 tha1
of "Jane Eyre" Had she confined herself to novels
of English country life she would still have been
surc Of a permanent place in the literature OF tins
age: but tue deeper and uaYer studies, exacted by
the quality as well as the force of her intellect, LED
her into larger field and resulted in the loss OF
considerable portion of her audience. Her Komoa
is enc of the finest historical novels III olU
language vet it was publishers failure. It's s0Sie
was too pure its art too refined, its pictures 700
clearly and Faithfully drawn for the readers oi uel
former works. But the book lifted her instantly
into new Importance in the estimate of the small
class whose verdict is but another term for Iame
Instead of being discouraged by what seemed re-
verse of literary fortune she has stamped the rich
ness of her culture the breadth of her thought ana
the all-embracnR range Of her social and moral III
terests upon her subsequent novels, and has taUiy
won the place Of master who mas the night 10 select
his gifts Her readers at last. have ceased TO dc
tate OF solct they have learned to be grateful for
whatever they receive.
But two women before her-Madame dc StaSi and
George Sand-have so devoted themselves to me-
long study Ia all attainable departments OF knOwi-
oN'~No~ -
ismore feminine than the former more masculine
than the latter, resembles both in her interest in
ohvsca ethical and social science, yet in her style
as writer hardly reaches either the scnpturesque
symmetry Of the ore OF the warmth, color, and
fluent grace of the other.
It seems to us that none of George EhOt's former
novels so distinctly present the quality OF her intel
Iect, as Daniel Deronda." In 1t she has reached
both her clearesthight Of achievement and the bar
Il. =. l. l. t.,,a la. no IL l-
Management TO recognize the latter for they equally
mark the extent Of her development and the in
tensity of her aspiration. In reviewing the first
volume of the work we noticed her tendency to an
Awe as well as present, her characters. She eX-
plains, and comments upon, their words, movements
and changes of countenance: sometimes chapter
seems to open in some realm Of abstract phiosoph-
ical speculation, out of which the author slowly de-
seends to take up the thread of her story. Some
times these disquistions sound and admirably
stated that we are glad to come upon them; fire.
auently they strike unnecessary aud not par
tjcuarv important; and occasionally they are mere
Understanding platitudes Everybody knows for
example that the passion for gambling exercises
ercer mastery over the body than the sense of hun
ger; bat George Eliot expands this accepted fact
into the following:
The gambling appetite is more absolutely dominant
than bodily hunger which can be neutraiizod by an emo
tiOnal or intellectual exeilaton Dnt me passion t oe
watching chances-tDe
mind in actual or ina gnary play-hullfs the susceD
fibity TO other exctatlon In its final, mperous stage
the unjOyeus dissipation OF demons seeking III
version the burning mari of perdition.
The opening paragraph of Book VIII is another ex-
ample of the authors method Of stating truth
familiar, in some FORM to all readers, with an ex-
uberant scientific minGteness and precision. 1t Is
the manner of q zo0logist describing slight yara-
tion of species:
The varied transitions Of tone with which this speech
was delivered perfect 10 toe most aecoinpsned
eetress cogi nave IN au 49,, ms eHsf's
nature was one IN which al feeing-and az the more
when il tragic as well as rea-inmediatey became
matter Of conscious representation experience imme
diatcy passed into drama ami she acted hef o" emo
in princess the acting had rare perfecton OF phls
Taoy' sIt ess because of this double eonscionsnes
she fet-tlt is, her mind went throngh-au the more
had deep atmosphere the excitement spiritual
toxication which at once exalts and de'dens
The great masters of literature fall into this
mistake; yet it belongs to phase through which
they must inevitably pass. That proportion, which
is the first as it is the last law of Art, cannot be
- achieved through the native instinct of genius.
Alone 1t must be constantly aud assiduOusly stud
led and the processes of study seem at first TO be
part of itself The author must understand the reason
of his contrasts. his balances OF characters and
events every detail must have its purpose and JUS
tifcaton so that out of multitude of smaller har-
monies may spring the symmetry of the work. as a
trace of the raison Gere details: the author con-
ceals this feature as naturally he betrayed it at
earlier stage of his growth. GOethe's dramatic
poem Of Tasso is remarkable illustration of that
earlier stage and it indicates precisely the plane of
achievement which George Eliot has reached. In
fact. in spite Of the immense differences in form,
character action. and style, there is curious
generic resemblance between Tasso y and Daniel
DerOndaD
The plot of the work also falls short Of absolute
proportion IL really consists Of two histories that
of Gwendolen HaIleth and Daniel Deronda,
which arc interwoven-Or rather, constantly made
10 touch--with much skin, until toward tho close
of the work, when they separate completely.
Deronda ia a moral force ting upon Gwendolon:
he never meets her except in the attitude of
preacher: yet we are not entirely sure, at the close
that his influence is going to be permanent He,
moreover, in spite Of the wise strength and self
possession and liberal tolerance which make him
seem. at times, just little too much Of a model on
pedestal, sorey disappOints at the last. That
man, educated as an English gentleman at this day
flor the mention of the Prusso Austrian war OF 1866
gives us a hint of tho time), should immediately on
discovering that he is Jew by BIRTH resolve to de-
vote his whole life to the task of restoring pohti-
cal existence to my Ihis people, making them ma
ton again, giving them national center such as
The English have, though they, too, are scattered
over the face of the globe" sweeps away at breath
the impression of his wisdom and prudence which
we may have before received lie goes out Of the
story as an impractical dreamer. lie is agency
in Gwendolen's life, just as the Jew Mordecai
agency in his own, but he represents nothing unless
it be the neradcable instinct of blood. George