New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1893-03-05

words? II was primarily the impulse Oh III
great thinkers from Plato himself TO Goe'he, 'he
in,pulse away from the concrete 10 the allure
ments OF pure thought from the dangers oil ,he
shore 10 the safety OF the Illimitable sea p"'
that IL is impossible to draw a hard ana las, 81
of conclusions from his philosophy, to cN'iac, 'o'
his Dorianized Mhcn!an:sin iorihhia Vi
tinality Is because it was never WHO'LL! D
,,od altar ALI Analvzing specifically the genius
Of Plato. Mr. Patcr observes Lac oopn'S'o'
tho Sonbisticu world around him; his MASTER
Socrates; the Pre-Socratlc PHILOSOPHERS the me-
chanIc influence. that Is to say OF P''' "'
prcscnt-oi course can Know nothihs DIT an "
the Platonc doctrine. except so Tar as We sec ~ "
wcll-ascertaincd contact with all tha' ou'' nv
adds and it. Is the crucial clause there Is a-eo
Plato himself In IL. Plato himself "'i'"
say a personality richly endowed with the qricK
symnath,e. the lively interest in all things, Which
make HIM Athcnian and unable TO renouhcc '"o
,,,.n;,, ;diosvnscrac,: the sound humanity, IN
short which no amount Of thcorlzlng cou" N r
from bcn. colorcd by Its environment II, ns
AthcIian eNibility Is typlilcd III ni'h ccnv rn.
kcrnly sensitive at every point nov h ,niH,; ;
universal understanding, the NlNiu' "S"'''''''o
touch in the Dialogues bear witness. ,hro.o
His words truly. i'll the lioi'triG ;d;,w and
WINGED and the Dialogues have huidiH ar"
variety Of movement. wealth oi %oior anu ,'
vitality drawn from sources Of vilni hciss uU ,n,
the livin. Objects of his study. when 'ha T Wr
in the fullest sense LIVING n,cla'" s Uort,;%ne
Iatcr lie is the legitimate precursor OF Mon''i1,,
AN interesting parallcl-in a certain s'nSc. hv
is that is to say. the inventor OF the ESSAY ~
yrtu, of his invention of the dialogue. tue in.!'i
,nticjpuIinc the torIirr in all the p"cn''arlIns
Of literary form. and steering midway Dc,"t ,bn
the poem which MT Ia,rr fnii" intnitons
may he passed and the formal trcatiS' WIN ~.
ambitious array of premise and cOncusioh ~
fine dialogue as Plato handled IT. lIst aS III Wv
IL
thcr, is permitted the dscur>ivc suggestive sum,
uant and not necessarily conclusive Treatment 49,
tLouoL, which is peculiarly Platoni" u II w
natural form. in word. which "a literature ~
tendencies" rather than Of conclusions Wpui'
take Again are reminded tna' VIII ,,rc ,
ha;.inc for his aim the disccrnmrnt OF Iure
truth absolute truth. could not accept any sn'n
formula as that which Mr.. Pa'rI quotes IRON
rssing. that the search Tor truth il '"irr
,hiu" for us than its poS-csslol q l"rinula sun
in favor in some divisions Of French iit"fa'lI''
Will, Inc could never accept this llcrarluan cra\
i'm DISGUISE his phosophv remained turn ",
mind MOI a system and his dialcciics pursue an
ideal not entirely removed in IFS phaS' oil IL
u.iycrces from the idcrl which tormcnt' me "
one plas" however, that the rr-mniah'' -
apparent Plato Is nothing II NOT hrai'hN' r I'.
an incentive to high thinking. 40 n" ha' D..
with Mr. Patcr and he will prove I" "V"fv
II is more than conceivable that Mr. Pdtcr's styi"
might be- rgardcd as precious by uSNmpa-
thctc readers: il is not "a style which II" VINO
inns may read Eat TO tn" student who IL pre-.
pared 10 follow it, plant movement ~ ~ u-rii
follows the evolution OF the thoughts wien u
cnvnnp., naticn,y cl, scy. ancctiouatclv IN.
hook; Which j. richer in scholarship than Mariu'
or thc Studies in the Renaissance ana "a
fascinating ~ her Of them will provo d"lght
and II generating power in the world OF ideas