New-York tribune., 1916-03-26
. SHAKESPEARE'S HUMANITY
Sir Herbert Tree Discusses 1t and Incidentally Draws
Comparison.
Comparison.

ira. Brutus, too-is he a hero? No.
Though noble in utterance, he is the
self-deceiving politician. There have
been many such, who, 10 gain their
ends. persuade themselves that their
means are honest; that they them
selves are sincere. Brutus kills Cgsar
for the good of the cause, from his
point of view. Antony revenges his
death for the good Of the cause, from
his Doiut of view Shakespeare re
mains the apologist OF both. Was
Cesar right? Was Brutus right? Was
Cassius right? Was Mark Antony
right? Where is Shakespeare's sym
pathy? Everywhere, nowhere, he holds
the scales Of justice. mysterious,
elusive, impartial, inscrutable, seeing
"with equal eye as God Of all, hero
perish or sparrow fall
Take Shylock. Most people appear
10 think that Shylock must either be
d demon or saviour lie is. in truth,
Il mixture of both-the man, the jew
But mark the serene impartiality
wherewith Shakespeare sits in Judg-
ment on the soul of Shylock! He pre-
sents in him the vices as well as the
virtues Of his race. Domesticity Is one
of the Hebraic virtues. The love of
his daughter commends him TO our
sympathies; anon his vengeful and
cruel nature commands our ceusure.
Ii is therefore ridiculous 10 present
Shylock as merely sympathetic char
6cter or course, the elimination of
suffering creates sympathy with any
man, and. while laughing at his pre-
tensions. we weep at his griefs. There
can be no doubt that at the time Shake
speare wrote "The Merchant Of Venice"
the Jews were not regarded with high
favor, and Shylock's first speech shows
him informed by the spirit of revenge.
! do not deny that Shylock had just
cause TO be angry, and IL has been said
that revenge is a primitive form of
justice. But just when We begin 10
think that Shylock IS becoming the
martyr-hero of the play Shakespeare,
the altruist, enters upon the scene and
gives US the immortal speech on the
quality of mercy, which, bursting the
walls Of the narrow court, breaches 20
humanity the eternal message of Chris
tian forgiveness. Here lis put in con-
summate fashion the tragedy of peO-
ple's oppression; then the whole an
cient Jewish wisdom is shattered, flung
down, thing outworn. rent TO pieces
by the mightier wisdom of the greatest
o. all the Jews.
Glance az Richard II. lie is as
many-sided as the other great crea-
tions of the poet. What IS 20 be said
of that strange mixture Of power and
feebleness, of nobility and apathy, of
courage and irresolution Of Incidence
and energy? The poet gives US the
clew 20 the enigma in his presentation
Of the character of this spOilt child
% 10 inf pV ffe har a.
enl ighteniny magic OF his genius than
does the historian by record OF dry
facts u may well be imagined that
the tragic figure of Richard served the
poet as a model for the development of
the character Of Hamlet, with whom
the ill-fated King has many points OF
resemblance. In both instances We have
the spectacle Of "a young prince thrown
into surrounding OF barbarism and
corruption, both incapable or Crap
pling with the stern facts OF life. ln
each case the ideaiist succumbs 20 the
materialist-the man Of action. Each
in his way laments the futillty OF his
existence. Hamlet on the immortality
of his soul, Richard on the divine
right Of Kings each seems 20 breathe
that sad and fantastic irony which is
so dominant note in the poets mind.
III ANf btBlNNlHb VI AHN lAeff N''N''
the two appellants come before him.
Richard exhibits that princely con-
fidenoe which had already enabled him
% quell the followers Of Wat Tyler
and 20 raise in his people those high
hopes for "A great future which were
never 70 be realized. Again, IN the
lists at Coventry, when he stops the
intended fight and there and then ban
ishcs both comhatants, he comes forth
as strong, quick and resourceful
statesman. But later, at the bedside
OF ms dying uncle, his bearing Is harsh
and unfeeling, completely overshadow-
! ing the good qualities he had shown
before. Furthern ore, on the return
Of Bolingbroke few months after
wards, when the unhappy king is de-
serted by his subjects. Shakespeaoe re-
vcals him In the throcs Of an exaggcr-
ated and oyer-indulgent self-pity. The
/ passionate, wayward artistic nature
I that before made him overbearing and
.mperious turns him now into an ef-
I Terminate and scf-compas siona'e orcA-
/ tufc. There are occasional rallies OF
| viz and spirit but the poet shows
! them as mere fickers flaming UP out