The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1908-04-16
Poper Read Before the Chautaaqua Circle.

TOLSTOY, the Russian Count,
literary essayist, novelist, ro-
mancer, expounder of novel
ideas in fragmentary religious
philosophy of his own creation and
teaching; the hater, condemner and
sentencer OF organized work in politics,
social economy and religion; the de-
nouncer of kings, emperors, presidents
and czar as heads and rulers of ma
tiOns, etc., ETC., has of late taken upon |
himself the severe task of crlticizing !
aud condemning the literary produc-
tions of such giants in the dramatic
art as Shakespeare and Ibsen. The
literary world stands aghast and as
founded, actually reeling as if bolt
of lightning from wrathful god had
struck it in an unsupported moment.
Aud the question rolls like harmon
iOus bundle Of waves from mind to
mind in every civilized country of the
globe: "Why, tell us why, does the en-
inent Russian nObleman and writer
pass nonchalantly his condemnation
and severe anathema upon the bril-
liant works of such men as Shake
speare and Ibsen?" AS for Ibsen, l
will leave him in the hands of his ene-
mics or his friends, as the case may be,
until another opportunity offers itself
to me to deal especially with his case,
It is TolstOy versus Shakespeare this
time.
1t has been said by some literary
men as an explanation, and meant to
serve at the same time as an excuse
for the count, that as he is not able to
read Shakespeare in the original lam
guage, English, namely, he has been
ted astray by faulty translatiOns and
lost the finest dramatic distinctions
contained in and conveyed by the rich
idiomatic English Shakespeare wrote
and had in part to create in order to
.clothe his most delicate and subtle
dramatic ideas and ideals in proper
form to be understood by his audiences
and his actors.
But this is simply an illusion, friend
ly to Tolstoy indeed, but not to the
truth in the case. Tolstoy is lin.
xuist, learned In Greek, Latin, French
and German-and he does know Eng
lish. He may not have taken very
great pains in learning this especial
Language philologically; as a matter OF
fact, l do not believe he ever has, fol
he hates everything English to Ger
tain extent in common with all true
Russians of the upper and middN
classes. They cannot forget, you see
certain events and happenings, darl
and dreary and bloody, and frightfu
to their country and their people, tina
the English nation represented by it
armies had leading part in.
But even if it is true, that Coun
Tolstoy is prevented from reading AM
studying Shakespeare in the origina
language, because he doesn't under
.etand it fully enough, that fact is n
excuse for his harsh and bitter denur
citation of such brilliant and illus
trious mind as Shakespeares, and tn
immortal literary and dramatically pei
feet children Of his great and deep an
human soul and heart, that he gave a
an inheritance to the passing geners
tions of the fleeting times. Tolsto
knows both German and French
perfection. And the most brilliar
and true to the text and originality {
ideas, of transiations of Shakespeal
can be found in,German and Frenc
Especially is this the case with tt
best French translations. The Frenc
language is flexible and rich enough
words and expressions to transubstal
tiate any idiomatic perplexities, eith'
in ideals or phrases found in the wri
ings of Shakespeare. By comparir
the French trsnslations with the Ge
man and both of these with the ori
inal according to the knowledge
may have of English, he should &C
tainly have been able to get as near
the truth as to the value of Shak
spears's writings as it is possible to g
for any conscientious student and i
erary critic.
No, the reason for Tolstoy's whol