The Washington times., 1903-01-11

. Ghosts" in "Hedda Gabler," in Little
Eyolf, in John Gabriel Borkman." and
finally in When We, Dead. Awaken" we
everywhere meet with men and women
who suffer OF are more or less Of q
failure as a consequence Of fatal mis-
take in this respect. But nowhere is
to be found in his works a person who
dimsily leaves his first true choice for
The sake Of another, or sacrifices the
one beloved without reaping a sad har-
vest In fact. know of no other author
who has so earnestly and persistently
held out an admouition to the young
to heed Schiller's famous words;
Drum pruefe wer SIGH cuig bindet
oh SIGH das Herr. HeTZen fndct;
Der VAIN is kurz, die Reu list lang.
IWho for Eternity are joined
should see il heart Its heart do find,
Illusion 5 brief. repentance long-l
Advocates Marriage Ardently.
/ This lesson, if sound and trde. needs.
/ TO be taught even at this late date, says
fIbsen. This is best proved ry the fact
that the rule is constantly violated in
many European lands, and, If / am not
misiuformed, once in a while even IN this
/ country, and that shining lights, like
/ Lord Beaconsfeld, expressly advised &C
. ton on the opposite principles, while an
+ old man like Lord ToIstoy seems to agree
/ with Christian asceticism regarding the
strong natural affection between men
ard women as outright sin. and others,
like Bjornstjerne Bjornson of late. seem
/ to belittIe its Importance in the life of
/ the race as apt to stand in the way o.
energetic peaceful exertion.
/ But TO Henrik Tbsen nothing can be
more repeUant than this bIoodless old
man theory. and the social reformer
wakes warm and seems to say:
with all sails on top make for the
/ beckoning goal; a society consisting Of
! free, courageous. tolerant, unprejudlced
men and women. living on an economi-
cal plan that Will make it unnecessary
+ for anybody to disregard the voice of
/ his heart, if only he has the power to
/ stir up a return of his affection; a so
ciety IN which victory does not go to
/ him or to her that can foot I'D the
largest account in bank. but to the
one who represents the highest type and
conquers by means of his or her per
sOnaI superiority
/ Not Merely an Individualist.
/ It has been said that to Ibsen the in
dividuaI is everything, society nothing,
and that his ethics is consequently dan
/ gerous to the interests OF the state But
/ Ibsen'g individualism does not involve
la plea for mere greedy seIf-asserdon
without regard to its intrinsic value. As
everybody knows who has studied his
/ Brand" and Per Gynt, it is Tar from
+ him TO believe that human nature Is per
feet. and that man should be let free to
follow the promptings of his own in
stiucts and his own sweet will
/ The chief task allotted TO any man, ac-
cordiug TO him. is 10 realize his better
( self; to reach the highest possible deveI-
opment Of his gifts and faculties. in so
lar IS they are not BY all codes OF NOR
/ ais judged TO be unhealthy and destruc-
tive. 10 become a harmonious, self
poised being Then a certain amount
. OF happiness seems bound TO fall in his
+ lot.
+ Consequently a society that helps to
#create such individuals is a good society;
while II is poor one and IN need Of re-
form II it does not conform to that
( standard And Ibsen produced his
/ camera and took snapshots of the men
/ and women ne found around him anu
/ his fertile brain set about to anaIyZe the
+ pictures taken, and get some typical face
out of them. or some typical destiny.
! When he held up the condensed result
/ 70 has contemporaries, one OF the first
/ things that struck everybody was the
/ unfortunate conditions under which the
/ weaker sex still iabored in the latter
I half or the nineteenth century, at least
over in the Old World
Has Developed New Opinions.
! But Ibsen has lived many years since
! he wrote his Dolls House" and
! Ghosts" and many kinds OF characters
/ and desunies have since fallen in the
/ way OF his always observant camera.
/ and his brooding mind has grappled with
them, eager to find the solution Of the
riddles OF life. and in his last play.
/ When We, Dead, Awaken" he has Ger
tainly given some very plain hints that
the emancipation movement has to
some extent disappointed him. and that
in the closing years of his life he is
/ inclined 10 doubt that true happiness
or fun mental and moral growth can be
attained by woman outside of the sphere
of loving wifehOod and motherhood.
Ibsen's Ethics Epitomized.
To sum up this very incomplete out
line, I am confident that Ibsen's ethics
VIII stand the most close inspection by
an enlightened and farseeing mind. It is
a moral theory founded on an almost
childish belief in the capabnity of hui
manity 10 reach goal, where some sort
[ Of happiness, Of physical, intellectual.
and moral excelIency, is attainable by al
most everybody. His highest ambition
/ has evidently been 70 be one of the
/ mighty forces in this grand evolution.
and he has all his life, Ike another Jack
/ the Giant Killer, been fighting with su
Perstition and prejudice in order to plan
/ the way for the third kingdom" al
ready dimly sketched in his Emperor
and Galilean," the land OF healthy ex-
eTtion. OF true brotherhood. of ioy. Of
( life and Of love
/ As regards Ghosts" the play that
called forth the criticism Of The Times
and NY following brief protest, I rather
/ think it was unfortunate that this most
/ risky and debated play Of Ibsen should
/ be given here before so many of his