The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-11-04
SHAW'SCESAR PLAYAND MAN
A DRAW 4TIC HODGEPODGE WIN
4 FINE CPNTRtL rice HE.
Thr MIghticSt Julius ~ u twentieth Gen.
fury Hamlet - Ana Chr AMI Drama
FORBES Robertson az liis Ilesi-"The
Shulamltc' and Miss lena Ashweil.

Shay, ;hat tine test 81 "A creative writer's
authenticity L. whether hc has his "
original system Of morality. Or rather
II is two of his sayings. for h. has repeated
the idea IN the preface to 'Ni~ very play
Of Cesar and Cleopatra. which Is the
pitcc DC rtS,sirpcc o' the present week. only
substituting the word philosophy for mo-
rality. Whether ur not this be true, II IL
certain thar Nj. Shaw has invented a neS
system Of fooling. ard this is a thing for
which We. the people. care a thousand
times more than for all the ~ stems Of
morality and philosophy ever perpetratssi.
IL was the formula Of the Shakespearian
clown - make his folly the stalking horse
~ his wisdom. MIR Shaw makes his phi
losophy the s~ta,>,ng horse Tor hts folly.
His airieet nothing he gives IA local hsol-
tation between a portentous introduction
and contentious notes, and then ciaps
on ii a high sounding philosoph'c name
With a vivscity and apparent conviction
worthy cf a patent medicine faker. he
argues that the true elixer IL 10 be had
only in his bottles. and that all others are
~hmpostars. Cesar and Cleopatra he
proclalms As better than Shakespeare
better as natural history Of the human
animal. he adds with effective modesty,
II not rs a drama.
In the printed page 1t Was possible 20
maintain in this sort Of thing the semblance
Of gravity. In England this semblance
Passed for the real thing The British
public. in its stolid determination not to be
toolei. has refused to accept the plays be-
cause they are not according to the labels
shaw puts on Internationally tooling itself
.-. - -, go, l,lf,,N,,- V,arfnrVNa nNo in
motley OF the present era One Of the
curiosities OF literature IL the voluminous
persistency with which London critics,
always excepting the solid William Archer.
have argued that this comedians gravity Is
a comedian's gravity. The moment. how
ever, a shaw play takes IN flesh and blood
in the playhouse before an apprehending
audience things become what they are.
And be il humbiy said To our credit that we
have taken SHAW At his true value. He is
not better than Shakespeare, or as goo-i as
any real dramatist. but he has invented a
new system Of nonsense. and 10 us it is a
better one than any which has preceded it.
for the simple reason thar It i ~ our own
temper snd time.
Two salient impressions remain Of Fortes
Robertson's production at the New Amster-
dam. One is ot a preposiercus medley Of
genres, ranging from f~arcical burhesque to
high tragedy, and the other is of a delight
as exhilaratiug a. it Is varied. with only
occasional intervals Of boredom.
What i the explanation Of - rsngc .
phenomenon? When shaw was shown a
hatch Of New York crit c:sms on one Of his
plays he descended TO the obvious truism
thar he could have written them better
himself. But the fact remains that he
has IA led as : gnally a. any II his critics
to Do nt out the prec So line at which he
ceases 10 hc the blower Of intellectual
bubbles and becomes serious. When James
Huneker's s~Iconoclasts- was published
Max Beerhohm fell upon Il " tn the horrid
accusat ON that in one place il asserted
Shaw's deadly earnestncss and in another
branded him mere je~tcr. Both state
ments are obviously true, Rut neither the
pump ng VT ri Ma Uor the cusmic bril-
,iancy Of James was able 70 throw light
on the prec 80 demsrcAt.on m. Least of all
ia the playwright himself able 10 draw
the lns. Coasc ously or unconsciousIy-
probably the lstter-the whole effect Of his
or cal acrobat - is 10 make the confu-
s.on ~ &c confounded. Nobody knows.
ms uluC1. uoWtNCI, - NNtNau- II
shaw had bad the power of self-criticism
generally found in complete genius he
would have spared Us the formless inep-
titudes Of IN : play and given us a complete
and harmonious fabric No one objects
80 s~hamelesSly gaggng the lines of JvhEs
Crsur Vt TO intellectually playing horse
With him That is the best thing Shaw
docs. But il he had known how little
serious he is As a philosopher and how very
serious A. an art 81 in nonsense. there
would have been no bloody murder on the
stage and no ted obs m~slodramstic plot
ting Folly Of the most irresponsible is
win brother TO wisdom. even to wisdom
with a sudusion II the high tragedy Of
thought. but II clashes fatally with the
drama 81 human passions.
One elsnen, in the play. however, main
tsins lite own integrity, and that Is this
Shaweslue CGar. 7 doubt whether any
or u. in the irs; night reports Of the per-
Torrance, had time To re0liEe how lovable.
vast and soltdly constructed a character
ne is. and with What tender divination
FORBES Robertson po1rays him. In moral
and spiritual fibre I've Is, IN the one side.
closely allied to HdnLf- cmphStically IL
y No, merely the fac; that Forbes Robertson
stnhodisS him which this. On the
other. and more prominent side, he Is allied
60 shaw ard the twentieth cntur These
are among a multitude Of reasons Why
he is not true TO the natural history a the
mighIieS, Julius, Of the energy. will and
practical scope ~ the COLOSSUS Il empire
there rs no adequate suggestion. No a it
mav be true. Is o hero to his valet. He may
EVER he. as shaw here make out, the occa-
slon for TOPICAL Jest But CTscr As pro-
Iagonis, Of the modern philosophical hums-
ity. ~ i~nstNreh by the gASenus. Shawcsqus
wind nag. thai = impossible.
Where this Ca Snr shine u in his polished
address A. mSn % the World, in his friendly.
humorous and intelligent lOquacity. his
half loyerlike Sympathy with h giviish
Clsaposra. his h0,t fathery concern for
her. His emotion upon hearing Of the
mcricr ct Pompey y a. finely conceived a.
Renslcss on seeing Ne skull d NoriCk.
and ,nstinc' with q deeper humanity. A.
the scene went ~ u Was marrei ny iaNtA-
Position Nth such foc'ine, hut while that
rgAI.vei tire hae aud deep sSM % the actor
&c could No, destroy u. w the eXccilence 81
th~ lncs in Themselves.
II = A. me proHhes n. f~orSeaance,
nr ClNm sn~y 'hat this CTtt- r@p~ 10 his