A Full Enquiry Into The Nature Of The Pastoral (1717) Part 5

A Sublime Image always dilate's and widen's the Mind, and put's it upon the Stretch. It comprehends somewhat almost too big for it's Reach; and where the Mind is most stretch'd, the Image is most Sublime; if we consider no foreign a.s.sistances. As _Homer_ say's, _The Horses of the G.o.ds, sprung as far at every Stride, as a Man can see who sit's upon the Sea-sh.o.r.e_. But foreign a.s.sistances, as a figurative Turn, &c. may raise a pa.s.sage to an equal degree of Sublimity, which yet does not so largely dilate the Mind; as this of _Shakespear_'s is more Sublime than that of _Homer_'s.

--_Heaven_'s Cherubs, _hors'd Upon the sightless_ Curriers _of the Air, Shall blow the horrid Deed in every Eye_.

_Macbeth_. Act. 1. Scen. 7

The not having a perfect Idea of the Sentiment, make's us conceive something the greater of it.

A Sublime Thought always gives us a greater and more n.o.ble Conception of either the Person speaking; the Person spoken of; or, the Thing spoken of. I need not instance; but if you apply this to any of the Thoughts of _Homer_, or _Shakespear_, generally call'd Sublime, you'll find it will always square.

Here let me make one Observation: That you may never be mistaken in judging of a Sublime Pa.s.sage, _Cubbin_, take notice; that there are some Thoughts so much imaged in the Turn that is given to 'em, by the figurative Expression, that they lose the name of Thoughts, and commence Images. I will mention one out of _Shakespear_, (who uses this Method the most of any Author, and 'tis almost the only thing that raises his Language) I will mention it, because, being in it self a low and common Sentiment, he has made it the most Sublime, I think, of any he has.

_Macbeth_'s Lady say's, before the Murther of the King.

--_Come, thick Night.

And pall thee in the dunnest Smoak of h.e.l.l, That my keen Knife see not the Wound it makes Nor Heav'n peep thro' the Blanket of the Dark, To cry, Hold! Hold!_

_Macbeth_ Act. 1. Scen. 5.

But I run the Digression too far.

CHAP. II.

_Of the Images. And which are proper for Pastoral, which not_.

Let us proceed to consider what Images will shine most in PASTORAL. And here I shall not consider all kinds of Images, both good and vicious, but only those which are in their own nature good; and among those show which may, and which may not, be introduc'd into Pastoral.

Of Images, in their own Nature good, only the BEAUTIFUL, and the [A]GLOOMY are, properly speaking, fit for Pastoral. The Uncommon, the Terrible, and the Sublime, being improper.

[Footnote A: _The Division of the Images and Thoughts is made, and the nature of the_ GLOOMY _consider'd, in the Critical Preface to the Second Part of our Pastorals_.]

If any other kinds of Images are introduced, they must be artfully qualify'd, or else be faulty; the Methods to be used in so qualifying them, are too numerous to recount. But give me leave to put down one, which relates to the Language.

Suppose you was to describe some LOVELADS and La.s.sES roving a little by the Sea-sh.o.r.e in a guilded Boat; when, on a sudden, the Wind arises, drives 'em into the middle of the Main at once, and dashes the _Gondola_ on a Rock. Might you not describe such a boistrous Circ.u.mstance in an easy and Pastoral manner.

_Sore raven the fell Sea (Oh sorry Sight!) And strait (most wofull Word) the Boat doth split_.

But these are things which are better left to the Writer's own Genius, than to Rule and Criticism.

As to the gloomy Images, I shall only caution the Pastoral Writer, that they must be of a very different Nature from those in Epick Poetry or Tragedy: That is, the gloomy must not be so strong; but the Images must rather contain a pleasing Amus.e.m.e.nt. And that they'll do, if they are drawn from the Country: As _Fairies_; _Will-o'-Wisps_; _the Evening_; _falling Stars_; and the like, will all furnish Images exactly agreeable to Pastoral.

Having made this Observation on the _Gloomy Images_, let us now proceed to the Consideration of the Beautiful, which will detain us somewhat longer.

SECT. 2.

_Of Beautiful Images. And of those; which are more, which less fine_.

In my usual way of considering Beautiful Images; for the greater Clearness, I rank 'em into three several Cla.s.ses. This division I do not desire to impose on any one else; but the mentioning it, cannot be amiss.

Of the three sorts or kinds of Beautiful Images, the first, and least delightful is, where only a simple Image is exhibited to the Reader's Mind. As of a Fair Shepherdess.

The second Sort is, where there is the Addition of the Scene; as suppose we give the Picture of the fair Shepherdess, sitting on the Banks of a pleasant streamlet.

The third, and finest kind of Beautiful Images is, where the Picture contain's a still further Addition of action. As, the Image of a fair Shepherdess, on the Banks of a pleasant Stream asleep, and her innocent Lover harmlessly smoothing her Cloaths as flutter'd by the Wind. And the most beautiful Image in Phillips, or I think any Pastoral-Writer, is of this Nature.

_Once_ Delia _lay, on easy Moss reclin'd; Her lovely Limbs half bare, and rude the Wind.

I smooth'd her Coats, and stole a silent Kiss; Condemn me, Shepherds, if I did amiss_.

_Past_. 5.

The last Line contains a Pastoral Thought, of the best Sort; as the three first a Pastoral Image.

The middle of this last Pastoral is full of beautiful Images, and has therefore proved so Entertaining to all Readers, that I wonder Mr.

Phillips would not give us the Beautiful in his four first Pieces also.

Of all the Persons who have written in the English Language, no one ever had a Mind so well form'd by Nature for Pleasurable Writing, as Spencer.

Yet as he wrote his Pastorals when very Young, this does not appear so much from them, as from his Fairy Queen; thro' which, (like Ovid, in his Metamorphoses) he has perpetually recourse to Pastoral. Especially in his Second Book; in which there are more pleasurable Pastoral Images in every eight Lines, than in all his Pastorals. We have Knights basking in the Sun by a pleasant Stream, rambling among the Shepherdesses, entering delightful Groves surrounded with Trees, or the like, almost in every Stanza; but thro' all his Pastorals, we have not half a dozen beautiful Images. 'Tis therefore the Pastoral Language that support's 'em, which he took excessive pains about.

CHAP. III.

_Of Pastoral Descriptions. And what Authors have the finest_.

Of Images are form'd Descriptions, as by a Combination of Thoughts a Speech is composed. And a Description is good or bad, chiefly as the Images or Circ.u.mstances are judiciously, or otherwise, chosen; and artfully put together.

As to the putting them together, I shall only observe, that in Descriptions of the Heat of Love, not in Pastoral, but in such Pieces as Sapho's, or the like, the Circ.u.mstances should be couch'd extreamly close; in Epick Poetry the Circ.u.mstances should be somewhat less closely heap'd together; and that Pastoral requires 'em the most diffuse of any; being of a Nature extreamly calm and sedate.

Hence we may learn what Length Pastoral will admit of in it's Descriptions. And certain it is, that as we are easily wearied by a cold Speech, so are we by a cold Description, unless very concise.

But as those Poets whose Minds have delighted in Pastoral Images have always been Men of Pleasurable Fancies, and who never would bring their Minds under the Regulation of Art; all who have touch'd Pastoral the finest have egregiously offended in this Particular. The only Writers, I think, who have ever had Genius's form'd for Pastoral Images, are _Ovid_ and _Spencer_; which appear's from the _Metamorphoses_ of the first, and the _Fairy-Queen_ of the latter. As for _Theocritus_, he seem's to me to be better in the Pastoral Thought than Image; and as I rank together _Ovid_ and _Spencer_, so I put _Theocritus_ in the same Cla.s.s with _Otway_. And I think any one of these Four, if he had form'd his Mind aright by Art, (that is, had either thoroughly understood Criticism in all it's Branches, or else never vitiated his natural Genius by any Learning) was capable of giving the World a perfect Sett of Pastorals.

The former two would have run most upon beautiful Images, and the latter two upon Agreeable Thoughts.

I need not instance in the tedious Descriptions of _Theocritus_, _Ovid_ and _Spencer_. But certainly, if long Descriptions are faulty in Epick Poetry, as they prevent the Curiosity of the Reader, and leave him nothing to invent, or to imploy his own Mind upon, they are in Pastoral much more disagreeable. Tho' if any thing would excuse a long Description, there is in _Ovid_ and _Spencer_, that inimitable Delightfulness, which would make 'em pa.s.s. Virgil has no Descriptions in his Pastorals so long as Spencer, and Heavens deliver us if he had; for as 'tis, I can better read the longest of _Spencer_'s, than the shortest of his, in his Pastorals.

SECT. 2.

_The proper Length for Descriptions adjusted, from several Considerations_.

What I have laid down seem's in its self plain and evident; but because _Rapin_, and some other Criticks, famous for the Niceness of their Judgments, have made it a considerable Question, and at last own'd themselves unable to decide it, I shall further consider the Matter.

'Tis best, I think, only just to exhibit the Picture of an Object to the Reader's Mind; for if 'tis rightly set and well given, he will himself supply the minute Particulars better to please himself than any Poet can do; as no different Fancies are equally delighted with one and the same thing, the Poet in an extended Description must needs. .h.i.t upon many Circ.u.mstances not pleasant to every Fancy; even tho' he touches all the best Particulars. But if the Poet only set's the Image in the finest Light, by enumerating two or three Circ.u.mstances, the Reader's Mind in that very instant it sees the Image or Picture, fill's up all the Omissions with such Particulars, as are most suitable to it's own single Fancy. Which farther conceives something beyond, and something out of the way, if all is not told. Whereas descending to Particulars cool's the Mind, which in those Cases ever finds less than it expected.