New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1881-06-12
ZOLA As 4 CRITIC.
n !Cchercr in lie TENNIS.

There can be no doubt that NJ. Zoa inst now
vieds a literary sccptrc and rrlyinr partv on the
consciousness of strength derived from success,
partly on tine completely of the public who battle
for his books, hc apes the COuqucrOr lie has
taken possession of province after province. After
the novel came the drama, aud now II Is the turn
of criticism. NJ IOas mode OF procedure 10y vlO-
lent sallies and Onslaughs Is known 30 all Already
six volumes of literary judgments have made Their
appearance. and every living being that is in the
habit of using a pen has now To pass before thus
terrible tribunal NJ. /ola thinks he has said
enough when he saws that genre. an author, or 4
book is tircsOne. They bore him, all he thinks
il necessary 10 remark IN order tO impose silence
evcrybody-and, ola truth. Il writer that ~ pro-
nounced " bore will find some difficulty IN prov
ing that he is anything else. VI. /0lI. however
commits the mistake of forgetting that every man
is somebody elsc's bore" and | myself am ac-
0uanted with people who find ma amusement what
ever in his books. Some of my friends, indeed have
never been able TO get To the end Of a single vol
unic. In this world must bc able 10 make al
lowances for differences of tastes and temperament,
in which consist the various characteristic points of
men. Iralh sra qnenque roiuPtds. Iouls NV, IS
stated to have been very fond Of bad smells. NJ.
lola himself also delights in things that are not
over savory; Nobody disputes hi- night to have
such tastes, hut should like some tolerance on
his part for Others whose noses are not constructed
Iers we have reached the very substance Of the
charm him, whilst To other persons they are dis
agrecaby repugnaut. Bcaudclairc, before him,
was member of this school of aesthetics rcb0ars,
and wrote, Les charmes de lhorrcur n'cnlyrcnt
0uc les forts a maxim adapted by ". lola. except
that he has substituted the dirty for the horrible.
His idea from literary point ol view is " La bette
humane lachcc tout cnticTc" IL only concerns VI.
lola hnsclf if lac takes pleasure III the discoveries
which his experience and sagaCity may make in the
depths of aniIualisn. let him, If hc pc.,scs. while
cutivating this species of literature. create I'M
wholesome appetitcs. and satisfy them. at one and
the saline time. Friends of good srIsc. good taste
and good manners may lament the fact, but lac
nevertheless merely acts with his undOubtcd rights.
We only beseech him not to expect everybody to
be as wise as he. and not to OycrWhclm with such
fcrociOus contempt the unlucky wirhts who still 10y
chance are actnatcd by pTcudlccs Of reason and
deccncv | believe myself prudc. One Of my
favorite authors is that very Shakespeare whose
dramas NJ. lola stupidity enough declares 10 be the
TRIUMPH of " la bette humane" The fact j. ! could
pardon VI. lola much ioolhar'lincss had lie only a
little Of the depth and poetry, or even the gaycty
and animation. of the masters he criticises NJ
lola has deprived literature both of form and sub
stance thought and talent. His only power Of
observation seems to he for external. material
things and his style strikes me as devoid of charm
or interest He produces the impression of writing
with a cows horn on slabs of lead. The attractions
of la bette humane for onr critic are so strong
that prediction for the bascness Of society be-
comes, in his eyes, the measure OF writer's value.
NJ. lola, who seems 90 have q considerable knOwl-
edge Of foreign languages and literature, informs
that neither England nor Germany now boast
drama or romance Whyf Because public opinion
in those countries does not tolerate descriptions Of
les chancres qui d6vorent fhUmanite" Litera-
ture, according TO NJ. lola must be pathological or
it will not exist at ALL Dickens, indeed, found
some favor in the eyes of our critic, who accords
him penetrating feeling, and intense " life" But
Dickens's fault of course is that women can read
him and admit that they have read him