The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1896-11-05
IDEAS for dWo1nen.

pleasant evening than the woman who
is a good ~elocut;onist. Even good music
is not better for the purpose. In fact,
Wagner and Mozart may fall quite fat
upon the guest who is without a musical
ear, while every one in the room will I'M
derstand a fine bit of prose or poetry well
recited.
To be a good elocutionists is within the
power of all. If possible. it is well to be-
gin with a good teacher. Much more can
be accomplished In this way in a much
shorter space; but. nevertheless, private
work is the p~rincipa, means of acquiring
the art. even If a teacher is employed;
may be arrived at if careful study Is put
into it.
The first thing to be done in beginning
the thing alone, is to select The piece TO
be recited and to study 1t from the very
foundation. h must realize its possible
ties. No line must contain for her an
~obscurity. She should practice each SEN
tence again and again. until it seems that
the whole meaning is rehearsed in the
most vivid manner.
In self-taught e~locution, the speaker
should look well to her gestures. These
form one most important and difficult
part of the study, and one which, when
oyerdone, as it often is, will spoil the en-
tire good effect. Wild gesticulation,
wringing of the hands, starting back and
forth in agony, kneeling IN s~upplication.
and all that kin of thing, is long since
Departed. 1t is no longer seen upon the
stage, except where the gallery gods
a re a rnoolod r. A. 49, 1-.- 49,. a. A..
apt to excite more amusement than my
thing else. The amateur, in fact, should
use a few gestures as possible, n these
should be graceful. strong and well
Judged. They should come from the shout
der and not from the elbow.
80
The face counts for much, more than
beginners are usually aware. To have
the face as firmly set as your grandsire,
cut in ~alabaster, at a moment when the
feeling should run most high is a thor
ough mistake. The expression of the fea-
lures must be studied well before a mirror
to avoid either extreme. Much depends
upon the eye. The direction of this or
gan must be well studied. 1t Is capable
of holding an audience to the theme of
the story, If well understood.
About measuring for the pitch of the
voice: Get a friend to help you. Let her
sit in a distant portion of the room and pro-
nounce upon your voice from that point.
Have her change her seat from time to
time, SO that the sound both far-away and
in proximity may be we'll judged. Be sure
that the final c~onsonants are sufficiently
accentuated to prevent blurring. This is
q most important feature
As the study of elocution proceeds many
little items of knowledge which are only
gained by work viii sugges themselves.
The position of the speaker to the hear
er is ak of great Importance. If prac-
ticable. the light should shine upon the
face of the speaker and the background
be kept sombre.
Be sure that the position taken in speak
ing is easy. ~unstooped and free from any
hint of awkwardness. A good suggestion
is to advance one foot slightly. Rest se-
curely pom one foot n potse by the
other in such a way that by movements
OF an ankle moving, bending forward or
back is easily accomplished.
With regard to selecting the recitation
much good, common sense can adyanta-
geously be brought into play. The time
honored '~'schoolboy" pieces should be
avoided. Everyone is weary of these, and
there are plenty of excellent things both
prose and poetry occurring in the maya
zines and novels of the day for the pur-
pose. There is absolutely no excuse for
.Curfew Shall Not Ring Tonight" THE
Psalm Of Life" and so on. These are real
instruments Of torture to many people.
80
1t is a mistake to confine ones self to
poetry. Little farcical bits of dialogue are
always enjoyed and present great oppor-
tunities for character portraiture. And
strong. rich prose taken from novels and
is a good idea when two selections ars
given within the same evening to follow
the tragic or pathetic one by a f~arcical
idea. This to relieve the minds of the au-
dience from the strain of the more serious
reading and to take away the sombre ef-
feet. REGULATIONS will form a delightful
way of studying the current literature of
the day, and If there are books to be read
aloud by the evening lamp the trained
voice will prove a treasure trove, indeed,
while the unframed organ of vocalization
is more often a penance than a pleasure.
For young girls approaching the en-
rancs into society ~eIocution is an ex-
cellent study. 1t teaches simple and
natural gestures. a graceful position in
standing, and it cultivates the richness
and sweetness of the speaking voice, a
quality which. as THE Press has fire.
quently printed out. is not the strong
card of the American women.
Foreigners claim, that American women
do not understand the voice in anything
but its volume: that we think speaking
at the highest possible pitch and speak
ing well are exactly synonymous. and in
many cases this is painfully true.
For the woman who has a little time
upon her hands there could be no better
suggestion than. the study of elocu-
ton: II possible. with a good teacher.
If this is impractieable, then alone.
Taken in hand with patience and appre-
citation. the study is sure to prove q
real success.
Unless one has heard 1t tried one
can't imagine the difference in the
same sentence spoken by an u~ncultivated
voice and then by a trainante voice.
Every woman can and should keep her
ladyhood with her always-wherever
she is. whatever she does, 1t matters