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tomary or vulgar, constitutes the fublime; yet nothing is in reality more falfe. In genuine inftances of fublime writing nothing of this kind appears. "God faid, "let there be light; and there was light." This is striking and fublime; but put it into what is commonly called the sublime style; "The Sovereign Arbiter of na"ture by the potent energy of a fingle word commanded "the light to exift ;" and, as Boileau juftly obferved, the style is indeed raised, but the thought is degraded. In general it may be observed, that the fublime lies in the thought, not in the expreffion; and, when the thought is really noble, it will generally clothe itself in a native majesty of language.

The faults, oppofite to the fublime, are principally two, the Frigid and the Bombaft. The Frigid confists in degrading an object or fentiment, which is fublime in itself, by a mean conception of it; or by a weak, low, or puerile defcription of it. This betrays entire abfence, or at least extreme poverty of genius. The Bombast lies in forcing a common or trivial object out of its rank, and in laboring to raise it into the fublime; or in attempting to exalt a fublime object beyond all natural bounds.

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BEAUTY AND OTHER PLEASURES OF TASTE.

BEAUTY

Y next to Sublimity affords the highest pleasure to the imagination. The emotion, which it raifes, is easily distinguished from that of fublimity. It is of a calmer kind; more gentle and foothing; does not elevate the mind fo much, but produces a pleasing serenity. Sublimity excites a feeling, too violent to be lafting; the pleafure, proceeding from Beauty, admits longer duration. It extends alfo to a much greater variety of objects, than fublimity; to a variety indeed fo great, that the fenfations, which beautiful objects excite, differ exceedingly, not in degree only, but also in kind, from each other. Hence no word is used in a more undetermined fignification, than Beauty. It is applied to almost every external object, which pleases the eye or the ear; to many of the graces of writing; to feveral difpofitions of the mind; nay, to fome objects of abstract science. We fpeak frequently of a beautiful tree or flower; a beautiful poem; a beautiful character; and a beautiful theorem in mathematics.

Color feems to afford the fimplest instance of Beauty. Affociation of ideas, it is probable, has fome influence on the pleasure, which we receive from colors. Green, for example, may appear more beautiful from being connected in our ideas with rural feenes and profpe&ts; white with innocence; blue with the ferenity of the fky. Independently of affociations of this fort all, that wo

can farther observe respecting colors, is that thofe, chofen for Beauty, are commonly delicate rather, than glaring. Such are the feathers of feveral kinds of birds, the leaves of flowers, and the fine variation of colors, fhown by the sky at the rifing and fitting of the fun.

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Figure opens to us forms of Beauty more complex and diverfified. Regularity firft offers itself, as a fource of Beauty. By a regular figure is meant one, which we perceive to be formed according to fome certain rule, and not left arbitrary or loofe in the conftruction of its parts. Thus a circle, a fquare, a triangle, or a hexagon, gives pleasure to the eye by its regularity, as a beautiful figure; yet a certain graceful variety is found to be a much more powerful principle of Beauty. Regularity feems to appear beautiful to us chiefly, if not entirely, on account of its fuggefting the ideas of fitness, propriety, and use, which have always a more intimate connection with orderly and proportioned forms, than with those, which appear not constructed according to any certain rule. Nature, who is the moft graceful artist, hath in all her ornamental works purfued variety with an apparent neglect of regularity. Cabinets, doors, and windows are made after a regular form, in cubes and parallelograms, with exact proproportion of parts; and thus formed they please the eye for this juft reafon, that, being works of ufe, they are by fuch figures better adapted to the ends, for which they were defigned. But plants, flowers, and leaves are full of variety and diverfity. A ftraight canal

is an infipid figure, when compared with the meanders of a river. Cones and pyramids have their degree of beauty; but trees, growing in their natural wildness, have infinitely more beauty, than when trimmed into pyramids and cones. The appartments of a house must be difpofed with regularity for the convenience of its inhabitants; but a garden, which is intended merely for beauty, would be extremely difgufting, if it had as much uniformity and order, as a dwelling houfe.

Motion affords another fource of Beauty, diftin& from figure. Motion of itself is pleasing; and bodies. in motion are," cæteris paribus," univerfally preferred. to thofe at reft. Only gentle motion however belongs. to the Beautiful; for, when it is fwift, or very powerful; fuch, as that of a torrent, it partakes of the fublime.. The motion of a bird gliding through the air is exquifitely beautiful; but the swiftness, with which lightning darts through the sky, is magnificent and aftonishing. Here it is neceffary to obferve, that the fenfations of fublime and beautiful are not always diftinguished by very diftant boundaries; but are capable in many inftances of approaching toward each other. Thus a gently running ftream is one of the most beautiful objects in nature; but, as it fwells gradually into a great river, the beautiful by degrees is loft in the fublime. - A young tree is a beautiful object; a fpreading antient oak. is a venerable and fublime one.. To return, however, to the beauty of motion, it will be found to hold very gen erally, that motion in a straight line is not fo beautiful,

as in a waving direction; and motion upward is commonly more pleasing, than motion downward. The eafy, curling motion of flame and smoke is an object fingularly agreeable. Hogarth obferves very ingeniously, that all the common and necessary motions for the bufinefs of life are performed in ftraight or plain lines; but that all the graceful and ornamental movements are made in curve lines; an observation, worthy of the attention of thofe, who ftudy the grace of gefture and action.

Color, figure, and motion, though feparate principles of Beauty, yet in many beautiful objects meet together, and thereby render the beauty greater and more complex. Thus in flowers, trees, and animals we are entertained at once with the delicacy of the color, with the gracefulness of the figure, and fometimes alfo with the motion of the object. The most complete affemblage of beautiful objects, which can be found, is prefented by a rich natural landscape, where there is a fufficient variety of objects; fields in verdure, scattered trees and flowers, running water, and animals grazing. If to these be added fome of the productions of art, fuitable to fuch a scene; as a bridge with arches over a river, smoke rifing from cottages in the midst of trees, and a diftant view of a fine building feen by the rifing fun; we then enjoy in the highest perfection that gay, cheerful, and placid fenfation, which characterizes Beauty.

The beauty of the human countenance is more com

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