george sand-第31章

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and　people　in　the　theatrical　world。　　How　can　we　doubt　its　veracity！

At　any　rate；　the　general　idea　that　George　Sand　had　of　the　artist　was　exactly　the　idea　adopted　by　romanticism。　　We　all　know　what　a　being　set　apart　and　free　from　all　social　and　moral　laws；　what　a　〃monster〃　romanticism　made　of　the　artist。　　It　is　one　of　its　dogmas　that　the　necessities　of　art　are　incompatible　with　the　conditions　of　a　regular　life。　　An　artist；　for　instance；　cannot　be　_bourgeois_；　as　he　is　the　exact　opposite。　　We　have　Kean's　speech　in　Dumas'　drama；　entitled　_Kean；　or　Disorder　and　Genius。_

〃An　actor；〃　he　says；　〃must　know　all　the　passions；　so　that　he　may　express　them　as　he　should。　　I　study　them　in　myself。〃　　And　then　he　adds：　　〃That　is　what　you　call；　orderly！　　And　what　is　to　become　of　genius　while　I　am　being　orderly？〃

All　this　is　absurd。　　The　artist　is　not　the　man　who　has　felt　the　most；　but　the　man　best　gifted　for　imagining　the　various　states　of　mind　and　feeling　and　for　expressing　them。　　We　know；　too；　that　an　irregular　life　is　neither　the　origin　nor　the　stamp　of　extraordinary　intellectual　worth。　　All　the　cripples　of　Bohemian　life　prove　to　us　that　genius　is　not　the　outcome　of　that　kind　of　life；　but　that；　on　the　contrary；　such　life　is　apt　to　paralyze　talent。　　It　is　very　convenient；　though；　for　the　artist　and　for　every　other　variety　of　〃superior　beings〃　to　make　themselves　believe　that　ordinary　morals　are　not　for　them。　　The　best　argument　we　can　have　against　this　theory　is　the　case　of　George　Sand。　　The　artist；　in　her　case；　was　eminently　a　very　regular　and　hard…working　_bourgeois_　woman。


The　art　in　which　George　Sand　gave　evidence　of　the　surest　taste　was　music。　　That　is　worthy　of　notice。　　In　one　of　her　_Lettres　d'un　voyageur_；　she　celebrates　Liszt　attacking　the　_Dies　irae_　on　the　Fribourg　organ。　　She　devotes　another　letter　to　the　praise　of　Meyer…beer。　She　has　analyzed　the　different　forms　of　musical　emotion　in　several　of　her　books。　　One　of　the　ideas　dear　to　romanticism　was　that　of　the　union　and　fusion　of　all　the　arts。　　The　writer　can；　and　in　a　certain　way　he　ought；　to　produce　with　words　the　same　effects　that　the　painter　does　with　colours　and　the　sculptor　with　lines。　　We　all　know　how　much　literature　romantic　painters　and　sculptors　have　put　into　their　art。　　The　romantic　writers　were　less　inclined　to　accord　the　same　welcome　to　music　as　to　the　plastic　arts。　　Theophile　Gautier　is　said　to　have　exclaimed　that　music　was　〃the　most　disagreeable　and　the　dearest　of　all　the　arts。〃　　Neither　Lamartine；　Hugo；　nor　any　other　of　the　great　writers　of　that　period　was　influenced　by　music。　　Musset　was　the　first　one　to　be　impassioned　by　it；　and　this　may　have　been　as　much　through　his　dandyism　as　from　conviction。



_Fille　de　la　douleur；　Harmonie；　Harmonie；

Langue　que　fiour　l'amour　invents　le　ginie；

Qui　nous　viens　d'Italie；　et　qui　lui　vins　des　cieux；

Douce　langue　du　coeur；　la　seule　ou　la　pensiee；

Cette　vierge　craintive　et　d'une　ombre　ofensie；

Passe　en　gardant　son　voile　et　sans　craindre　les　eux；

Qui　sait　ce　qu'un　enfant　peut　entendre　et　peut　dire

Dans　tes　soupirs　divins　nes　de　l'air　qu'il　respire；

Tristes　comme　son　coeur　et　doux　comme　sa　voix？_

George　Sand；　who　agreed　with　Musset；　claimed　for　〃the　most　beautiful　of　all　the　arts；〃　the　honour　of　being　able　to　paint　〃all　the　shades　of　sentiment　and　all　the　phases　of　passion。〃　　〃Music；〃　she　says；　〃can　express　everything。　　For　describing　scenes　of　nature　it　has　ideal　colours　and　lines；　neither　exact　nor　yet　too　minute；　but　which　are　all　the　more　vaguely　and　delightfully　poetical。〃＇31＇


＇31＇　Eleventh　_Lettre　d'un　voyageur_：　　To　Giacomo　Meyerbeer。


As　examples　of　music　in　literature　we　have　George　Sand's　phrase；　more　lyrical　and　musical　than　picturesque。　　We　have；　too；　the　gentle；　soothing　strophes　of　Sully　Prudhomme　and　the　vague　melody　of　the　Verlaine　songs：　　〃_De　la　musique　avant　toute　chose_。〃　　It　would　be　absurd　to　exaggerate　the　influence　exercised　by　George　Sand；　and　to　attribute　to　her　an　importance　which　does　not　belong　to　her；　over　poetical　evolution。　　It　is　only　fair　to　say；　though；　that　music；　which　was　looked　upon　suspiciously　for　so　long　a　time　by　classical　writers　of　sane　and　sure　taste；　has　completely　invaded　our　present　society；　so　that　we　are　becoming　more　and　more　imbued　with　it。　　George　Sand's　predilection　for　modern　art　is　another　feature　which　makes　her　one　of　us；　showing　that　her　tendencies　were　very　marked　for　things　of　the　present　day。




VII

THE　HUMANITARIAN　DREAM

PIERRE　LEROUXSOCIALISTIC　NOVELS


Hitherto　we　have　seen　George　Sand　put　into　her　work　her　sufferings；　her　protests　as　a　woman；　and　her　dreams　as　an　artist。　　But　the　nineteenth…century　writer　did　not　confine　his　ambitions　to　this　modest　task。　　He　belonged　to　a　corporation　which　counted　among　its　members　Voltaire　and　Rousseau。　　The　eighteenth…century　philosophers　had　changed　the　object　of　literature。　　Instead　of　an　instrument　of　analysis；　they　had　made　of　it　a　weapon　for　combat；　an　incomparable　weapon　for　attacking　institutions　and　for　overthrowing　governments。　　The　fact　is；　that　from　the　time　of　the　Restoration　we　shall　scarcely　meet　with　a　single　writer；　from　the　philosopher　to　the　vaudevillist；　and　from　the　professor　to　the　song…maker；　who　did　not　wish　to　act　as　a　torch　on　the　path　of　humanity。　　Poets　make　revolutions；　and　show　Plato　how　wrong　he　was　in　driving　them　away　from　his　Republic。　　Sophocles　was　appointed　a　general　at　Athens　for　having　written　a　good　tragedy；　and　so　novelists；　dramatists；　critics　and　makers　of　puns　devoted　themselves　to　making　laws。　　George　Sand　was　too　much　a　woman　of　her　times　to　keep　aloof　from　such　a　movement。　　We　shall　now　have　to　study　her　in　her　socialistic　_role_。

We　can　easily　imagine　on　what　side　her　sympathies　were。　　She　had　always　been　battling　with　institutions；　and　it　seemed　to　her　that　institutions　were　undoubtedly　in　the　wrong。　　She　had　proved　that　there　was　a　great　deal　of　suffering　in　the　world；　and　as　human　nature　is　good　at　bottom；　she　decided　that　society　was　all　wrong。　　She　was　a　novelist；　and　she　therefore　considered　that　the　most　satisfactory　solutions　are　those　in　which　imagination　and　feeling　play　a　great　part。　　She　also　considered　that　the　best　politics　are　those　which　are　the　most　like　a　novel。　　We　must　now　follow　her；　step　by　step；　along　the　various　roads　leading　to　Utopia。　　The　truth　is；　that　in　that　great　manufactory　of　systems　and　that　storehouse　of　panaceas　which　the　France　of　Louis…Philippe　had　become；　the　only　difficulty　was　to　choose　between　them　all。

The　first；　in　date；　of　the　new　gospels　was　that　of　the　Saint…Simonians。　When　George　Sand　arrived　in　Paris；　Saint…Simonism　was　one　of　the　curiosities　offered　to　astonished　provincials。　　It　was　a　parody　of　religion；　but　it　was　organized　in　a　church　with　a　Father　in　two　persons；　Bazard　and　Enfantin。　　The　service　took　place　in　a　_bouis…bouis_。　The　costume　worn　consisted　of　white　trousers；　a　red　waistcoat　and　a　blue　tunic。　　On　the　days　when　the　Father　came　down　from　the　heights　of　Menilmontant　with　his　children；　there　was　great　diversion　for　the　people　in　the　street。　　An　important　thing　was　lacking　in　the　organization　of　the　Saint…Simonians。　In　order　to　complete　the　〃sacerdotal　couple；〃　a　woman　was　needed　to　take　her　place　next　the　Father。　　A　Mother　was　asked　for　over　and　over　again。　　It　was　said　that　she　would　soon　appear；　but　she　was　never　forthcoming。　　Saint…Simon　had　tried　to　tempt　Madame　de　Stael。

〃I　am　an　extraordinary　man；〃　he　said　to　her；　〃and　you　are　just　as　extraordinary　as　a　woman。　　You　and　I　together　would　have　a　still　more　extraordinary　child。〃　　Madame　de　Stael　evidently　did　not　care　to　take　part　in　the　manufacture　of　this　prodigy。　　When　George　Sand's　first　novels　appeared；　the　Saint…Simonians　were　full　of　hope。　　This　was　the　woman　they　had　been　waiting　for；　the　free　woman；　who　having　meditated　on　the　lot　of　her　sisters　would　formulate　the　Declaration　of　the　rights　and　duties　of　woman。　　Adolphe　Gueroult　was　sent　to　her。　　He　was　the　editor　of　the　_Opinion　nationale_。　　George　Sand　had　a　great　fund　of　common　sense；　though；　and　once　more　the　little　society　awaited　the　Mother　in　vain。　　It　was　finally　decided　that　she　should　be　sought　for　in　the　East。　　A　mission　was　organized；　and