The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1899-05-14

give in some concrete form an expression
Of bhe thought which appeals 10 our I'M
agination and to our love of the beautiful
Not ono OF these kindred subjects Is so
mindless in it's expression of human life
as literature, architecture can express but
few of the vague sentiments of life; sculp
tuIe Is wider in its scope but II Is in
adequate to many phases of life; painting
presents a wider range, but Imagination
embodied In language Clterature) knows
no restraints, Literature can give In its
expressive words, the solldty and gran
deur of sculpture. the beauty and color Of
painting, the rhythm and movement of
music. Let this illustration suggest my
meaning. ! imagine you are looking at a
beautiful painting OF ships sailing out to
sea The lights and shades hold you SPELL
bound and the effect is quiet and peaceful
Now listen TO these lines from Merchant
OF Venice"
Your mind is tossing on the ocean,
There, where your argosies with portly sail
DO overpeer the petty traffickers
That ourtsy TO them, do them reverence
AS they fly by them with their woven
wings.
What vividness of Imagination do these
words add TO Ihe picture-how suggestive
the "portly' SAIL the gallant ship "oer
/ peering' the petty trafrickers;" the little
| boats curt sying and bowling In the waves
OF the lordly vessel Not only do ws get
the actual characterization of these boats,
one so grandly proud, the other so child
| ishly gay, but we see them moving on
/ with woven wings" No wonder literature
/ is ranked among the fine arts and ranked
at the highest standard. Literature. as q
fine art appeals to the feelings, these react
/ upon our intellectual faculties and these
/ in turn transmit this exaltation OF the soul
to the Will.
8, Fundamental laws for the study Of
literature.
Ideal content IN terms OF human life pic
lures the individual. The ideal must be
presented as real, in concrete form; the
poet must choose some person, object oil
scene to express mis- idealized conception
I Literature Is filled with stories because the
love for them Is innate with the human
/ race-man Is interested in man; but the
I subject OF the story must be of human in
/ terest, not limited to time or place. The
! first step IN studying piece OF literature
| is understanding the story, seeing the pie
/ ture. Some readers, even OF our beat nov
/ els, dramas and poems, never pass beyond
the delight OF the story element (the first
step to the second.
Seeing the significance OF the poem, ar
irving at the theme.--In poems picturing
I heroism love and fidelity we see individual
1 acts OF courage and loyalty, but they typi-
/ fy the universal ideallzed life OF humanity
! The theme Of literature expresses some
universal truth OF life in the picture OF
some individual. The beauty Of Enoch Ar
den is not in the mere story; the charm OF
I Evangeline is not in the wanderings OF tina.
faithful girl, but each poem appeals 10 oui
human interest TO our love OF the heroic
the faithful
Many poems have a meaning not appar.
ent on the upper surface, but underneath
is a far deeper more serious meaning
Tennyson's Lady OF shalott is a weird
vague poem, until we can understand e:
4 allegory. Dr. Iekyl and Mr.. Hyde Is mo-
simply gruesome. uncanny tale OF wild
Imagination, but II shows plainly how dua
is our nature-half demon, half angel Tn,
charm OF symbollstic poetry depends upor
the interpretation-the significance 81 thu
theme: Dantes Divine Comedy, spenser't
Faerie Queen and Shellys Prometheus I'm.
bound are senseless until we understand
their significance.
Y The third step IL noting the fitness o.
the individual picture to body forth tht
universal, human interest. The thought o.