New-York tribune., 1882-04-23
BITS or CRITICISM.

AN ENGLISH Critic or AMERICAN NOVELS
The usual fault OF American novels Is the presence u
an a Atmosphere OF smmerng Irritation. Every man =
NOR, or less interested in every Young woman. and
every young woman IS balancing tie mcrits Of eVeLI
man Probably a good many young persons 40
pass good deal Of their time IN this @ay but the ner
petna description of becomes little unpleasant Is
American novelist is altogether too much occupied WIN
young girls" they are alway called lie shows IN
young girls. IThe SATURDAY Review.
zoLAs MEImoDsIn ad NJ ZSIa zoEsn * edhasen, nd
writer with method ana & an a nn6 w'th"at
poetry; not without sense of beauty, Bat
ties In all his work You see tho " JOINS ahd knos
where the in. III part OF his method to
abstain from comment never 70 snow ths au.or PER
sonalty to nrn TO the reader ior sympathy ne
II as cold a yiyisectonist ut lecture HIS concep
on Of modern literature as science In disguise ma
much spoil the later work o. George Eliot III. Own
Enol Of the literature of the world appears 70 %
Rrranger whose work ls deaddc not deserve To o. a
cusse HIS lack OF humOr Is absolute, darkness thAs
OF success oil combined make several OF his stons
little better than special reporters description "A
things and people that should not be d''eii'ed-A
THE PoET AND TIE HCMoRTsT.- poei
looks through lower things upward; the hniD0isi as 49,
through higher tlings downward The poet mas hss"f io
ntellectuN sympathy; the humOrst, more ein.'lo
The poet IN his work deals with the lofuesi tnss ls,e
which hs vision attains; the nuruoris uses hs - -,ome
attainments illustrate what Is hunbiest Inc n6.
st includes the poet In HIS view the p0et Is S1
hui who can ridculo tho huooristf The poet !. Ia %
Iooc frenzy aims at gravity tie huinOrst esno'
smile even at the breaking OF hts own heart ohi, 20
few poets shakespeare Heinrioh leine, VINO else
been humOrists; the humOrist geAeraiy cahuo. ess
bimset 10 take himself seriously enough 10 Dc PS
The greatest poets have been humorfsts VINO oo a.
poetry from fancy from necessity; not men wno
but sing because they must" but who regafu a.
music as they everything else not AS absolute v
relative. and whose music IL for that reason
richer and more varied than that OK tho poet
poet OF necessity The Spectator.
CARLYLE AND THE "RABBLE RoUr."IAnos
Won may say OF the whole tone OF bis corrssPoeSs "A
that his chief and resolve, Expressed -, a
keep this rsbbe rout beneath bis feet rather
attain To any height OF intellectual moral N1to s1
be has discerned In any living contemporary; s.s,uS
bis love for irving, you never ind thought Phe'x
through Carlyles q mind that he Carlyle, might WIN
vantage emulate lrvings large and seneryus, "hsr.
and his eager spiritual faith Nor do you nna v G shst
orter any where uuess II BE- within his own fanny .i
Carlyle for single moment sets before MN 10 sn nnd
nobler than himself the elevation OF WHOM no -
Gladly aspire Indeed the thing which has stu, usa
cand remain 40 high minded as Carlyle on me s~
ccrtainy did and yet live constantly IN tno sssH
nhere of soornscorn certainly more or tfss or -.
"a we'll as eyaryone else, bot especially Tor ever
ms own clan excepted He spends all his snerg.c tfi
sort of vivid passion Of scorn wAs NOT Ok eS ns
aams In nave bee long In doing-that no aSeo,ss ia
snhIscts for his creative gsnus at all for canhos n
dssfructve fury you for creative worA, sariT
@ ma to us that Carlyle's vast waste OF powel Ia %
life " az greatly due " his giving up 80 large Srsds
~ hs mind aud heart ~ the task OF tearing ~ "a
The sdeauate oharacters and aiins when ~ i"'~
rchiy strewn around him.-trhs SPECTATOR