Handbook of Universal Literature, From the Best and Latest Authorities Part 18

In the department of fable may be mentioned Roberti (1719-1786), Pa.s.seroni, Pignotti (1739-1812), and Clasio (1754-1825), distinguished for invention, purity, and simplicity of style.

7. ROMANCES.--Though the tales of Boccaccio and the story tellers of the sixteenth century paved the way to the romances of the present time, it was only at a late period that the Italians gave their attention to this kind of composition. In the eighteenth century we find only two specimens of romance, "The Congress of Citera," by Algarotti, of which Voltaire said that it was written with a feather drawn from the wings of love; and the "Roman Nights," by Alexander Verri (1741-1816). In his romance he introduces the shades of celebrated Romans, particularly of Cicero, and an ingenious comparison of ancient and modern inst.i.tutions is made. The style is picturesque and poetical, though somewhat florid.

This kind of composition has found more favor in the nineteenth century.

First among the writers of this age is Manzoni, whose "Betrothed" is a model of romantic literature. The variety, originality, and truthfulness of the characters, the perfect knowledge of the human heart it displays, the simplicity and vivacity of its style, form the princ.i.p.al merits of this work. The "Marco Visconti" of Grossi is distinguished for its pathos and for the purity and elegance of its style.

The "Ettore Fieramosca" of Ma.s.simo d'Azeglio is distinguished from the works already spoken of by its martial and national spirit. His "Nicol de Lapi," though full of beauties, partakes in some degree of the faults common to the French school. After these, the "Margherita Pusterla" of Cantil, the "Luisa Strozzi" of Rosini, the "Lamberto Malatesta" of Rovani, the "Angiola Maria" of Carcano, are the best historical romances of Italian literature. Both in an artistic and moral point of view, they far excel those of Guerrazzi, which represent the French school of George Sand in Italy, and whose "Battle of Benevento," "Isabella Orsini," "Siege of Florence," and "Beatrice Cenci," while they are written in pure language and abound in minor beauties, are exaggerated in their characters, bombastic and declamatory in style, and overloaded in description.

The "Last Letters of Jacopo Ortis," by Foscolo, belongs to that kind of romance which is called sentimental. Overcome by the calamities of his country, with his soul full of fiery pa.s.sion and sad disappointment, Foscolo wrote this romance, the protest of his heart against evils which he could not heal.

8. HISTORY.--Among the most prominent of the numerous historians of this period, a few only can be named. Muratori (1672-1750), for his vast erudition and profound criticism, has no rivals. He made the most accurate and extensive researches and discoveries relating to the history of Italy from the fifth to the sixteenth century, which he published in twenty- seven folio volumes; the most valuable collection of historical doc.u.ments which ever appeared in Italy. He wrote, also, a work on "Italian Antiquities," ill.u.s.trating the history of the Middle Ages through ancient monuments, and the "Annals of Italy," a history of the country from the beginning of the Christian era to his own age. Though its style is somewhat defective, the richness and abundance of its erudition, its clearness, and arrangement, impart to this work great value and interest.

Maffei, already spoken of as the first reformer of Italian tragedy, surpa.s.sed Muratori in the purity of his style, and was only second to him in the extent and variety of his erudition. He wrote several works on the antiquities and monuments of Italy.

Bianchini (1662-1729), a celebrated architect and scholar, wrote a "Universal History," which, though not complete, is characterized as a work of great genius. It is founded exclusively on the interpretations of ancient monuments in marble and metal.

Vico (1670-1744), the founder of the philosophy of history, embraced with his comprehensive mind the history of all nations, and from the darkness of centuries he created the science of humanity, which he called "Scienza Nuova." Vico does not propose to ill.u.s.trate any special historical epoch, but follows the general movement of mankind in the most remote and obscure times, and establishes the rules which must guide us in interpreting ancient historians. By gathering from different epochs, remote from each other, the songs, symbols, monuments, laws, etymologies, and religious and philosophical doctrines,--in a word, the infinite elements which form the life of mankind,--he establishes the unity of human history. The "Scienza Nuova" is one of the great monuments of human genius, and it has inspired many works on the philosophy of history, especially among the Germans, such as those of Hegel, Niebuhr, and others.

Giannone (1676-1748) is the author of a "Civil History of the Kingdom of Naples," a work full of juridical science as well as of historical interest. Having attacked with much violence the encroachments of the Church of Rome on the rights of the state, he became the victim of a persecution which ended in his death in the fortress of Turin. Giannone, in his history, gave the first example in modern times of that intrepidity and courage which belong to the true historian.

Botta (1766-1837) is among the first historians of the present age. He was a physician and a scholar, and devoted to the freedom of his country. He filled important political offices in Piedmont, under the administration of the French government. In 1809 he published, in Paris, his "History of the American Revolution," a work held in high estimation both in this country and in Italy. In the political changes which followed the fall of Napoleon, Botta suffered many pecuniary trials, and was even obliged to sell, by weight, to a druggist, the entire edition of his history, in order to pay for medicines for his sick wife. Meanwhile, he wrote a history of Italy, from 1789 to 1814, which was received with great enthusiasm through Italy, and for which the Academy della Crusca, in 1830, granted to him a pecuniary reward. This was followed by the "History of Italy," in continuation of Guicciardini, from the fall of the Florentine Republic to 1789, a gigantic work, with which he closed his historical career. The histories of Botta are distinguished by clearness of narrative, vividness and beauty of description, by the prominence he gives to the moral aspect of events and characters, and by purity, richness, and variety of style.

Colletta (1775-1831) was born in Naples; under the government of Murat he rose to the rank of general, and fell with his patron. His "History of the Kingdom of Naples," from 1734 to 1825, is modeled after the annals of Tacitus. The style is simple, clear, and concise, the subject is treated without digressions or episodes; it is conceived in a partial spirit, and is a eulogium of the administration of Joachim; but no writer can rival Colletta in his descriptions of strategic movements, of sieges and battles.

Balbo (1789-1853) was born in Turin; during the administration of Napoleon he filled many important political offices, and afterwards entered upon a military career. Devoted to the freedom of his country, he strove to promote the progress of Italian independence. In 1847 he published the "Hopes of Italy," the first political work that had appeared in the peninsula since the restoration of 1814; it was the spark which kindled the movements of 1848. In the events of that and of the succeeding year, he ranked among the most prominent leaders of the national party. His historical works are a "Life of Dante," considered the best on the subject; "Historical Contemplations," in which he developed the history of mankind from a philosophical point of view; and "The Compendium of the History of Italy," which embraces in a synthetic form all the history of the country from the earliest times to 1814. His style is pure, clear, and sometimes eloquent, though often concise and abrupt.

Cantu, a living historian, has written a universal history, in which he attempts the philosophical style. Though vivid in his narratives, descriptions, and details, he is often incorrect in Ms statements, and rash in his judgments; his work, though professing liberal views, is essentially conservative in its tendency. The same faults may be discovered in his more recent "History of the Italians."

Tiraboschi (1731-1794) is the great historian of Italian literature; his work is biographical and critical, and is the most extensive literary history of Italy. His style is simple and elegant, and his criticism profound; but he gives greater prominence to the biographies of writers than to the consideration of their works. This history was continued by Corniani (1742-1813), and afterwards by Ugoni (1784-1855).

9. AESTHETICS, CRITICISM, PHILOLOGY, AND PHILOSOPHY.--Italian literature is comparatively deficient in aesthetics, the science of the beautiful.

The treatise of Gioberti on the "Beautiful," the last work which has appeared on this subject, is distinguished for its profound doctrines and brilliant style. Philology and criticism first began to flourish at the close of the seventeenth century, and are well represented at the present time. The revival of letters was greatly promoted by the criticism of Gravina (1664-1718), one of the most celebrated jurisconsults and scholars of his age, who, through his work, "The Poetical Reason," greatly contributed to the reform of taste. Zeno, Maffei, and Muratori also distinguished themselves in the art of criticism, and by their works aided in overthrowing the school of Marini. At a later date, Gaspar Gozzi, through his "Observer," a periodical publication modeled after the "Spectator" of Addison, undertook to correct the literary taste of the country; for its invention, pungent wit, and satire, and the purity and correctness of its style, it is considered one of the best compositions of this kind. Baretti (1716-1789) propagated in England the taste for Italian literature, and at the same time published his "Literary Scourge," a criticism of the ancient and modern writers of Italy. His style, though always pure, is often caustic. He wrote several books in the English language, one of which is in defense of Shakspeare against Voltaire.

Cesarotti (1730-1808), though eminent as a critic, introduced into the Italian language some innovations, which contributed to its corruption; while the nice judgment, good taste, and pure style of Parini place him at the head of this department. In the latter part of this period we find, in the criticisms of Monti, vigorous logic and a splendid and attractive style. Foscolo is distinguished for his ac.u.men and pungent wit. The works of Perticari (1779-1822) are written with extreme polish, erudition, judgment, and dignity. In Leopardi, philosophical ac.u.men equals the elegance of his style. Giordani (d. 1848), as a critic and an epigraphist, deserves notice for his fine judgment and pure taste, as do Tommaseo and Cattaneo, who are both epigrammatic, witty, and pungent.

The golden age of philology dates from the time of Lorenzo de' Medici to the seventeenth century. It then declined until the eighteenth, but revived in the works of Maffei, Muratori, Zeno, and others. In the same century this study was greatly promoted by Foscolo, Monti, and Cesari (1760-1828), who, among other philological works, published a new edition of the Dictionary della Crusca, revised and augmented. Of the modern writers on philology, Gherardini, Tommaseo, and Ascoli are the most prominent.

The revival of philosophy in Italy dates from the age of Galileo, when the authority of the Peripatetics was overthrown, and a new method introduced into scientific researches. From that time to the present, this science has been represented by opposite schools, the one characterized by sensualism and the other by rationalism. The experimental method of Galileo paved the way to the first, which holds that experience is the only source of knowledge, a doctrine which gained ground in the seventeenth century, became universally accepted in the eighteenth, through the influence of Locke and Condillac, and continued to prevail during the first part of the nineteenth. Gioja (1767-1829), and Romagnosi (1761-1835) are the greatest representatives of this system, in the last part of this period. But while the former developed sensualism in philosophy and economy, the latter applied it to political science and jurisprudence. The numerous Works of Gioja are distinguished for their practical value and clearness of style, though they lack eloquence and purity; those of Romagnosi are more abstract, and couched in obscure arid often incorrect language, but they are monuments of vast erudition, acute and profound judgment, and powerful dialectics.

Galluppi (1773-1846), though unable to extricate himself entirely from the sensualistic school, attempted the reform of philosophy, which resulted in a movement in Italy similar to that produced by Reid and Dugald Stewart in Scotland.

While sensualism was gaining ground in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, rationalism, having its roots in the Platonic system which had prevailed in the fifteenth and sixteenth, was remodeled under the influence of Descartes, Leibnitz, and Wolf, and opposed to the invading tendencies of its antagonist. From causes to be found in the spirit of the age and the political condition of the country, this system was unable to take the place to which it was ent.i.tled, though it succeeded in purifying sensualism from its more dangerous consequences, and infusing into it some of its own elements. But the overthrow of that system was completed only by the works of Rosmini and Gioberti. Rosmini (1795-1855) gave a new impulse to metaphysical researches, and created a new era in the history of Italian philosophy. His numerous works embrace all philosophical knowledge in its unity and universality, founded on a new basis, and developed with deep, broad, and original views. His philosophy, both inductive and deductive, rests on experimental method, reaches the highest problems of ideology and ontology, and infuses new life into all departments of science. This philosophical progress was greatly aided by Gioberti (1801-1851), whose life, however, was more particularly devoted to political pursuits. His work on "The Regeneration of Italy" contains his latest and soundest views on Italian nationality. Another distinguished philosophical and political writer is Mamiani, whose work on "The Rights of Nations" deserves the attention of all students of history and political science. As a statesman, he belongs to the National party, of which Count Cavour (1810-1861), himself an eminent writer on political economy, was the great representative, and to whose commanding influence is to be attributed the rapid progress which the Italian nation was making towards unity and independence at the time of his death.

FROM 1860 TO 1885.

During the last twenty-five years the rapid progress of political events in Italy seems to have absorbed the energies of the people, who have made little advance in literature. For the first time since the fall of the Roman empire the country has become a united kingdom, and in the national adjustment to the new conditions, and in the material and industrial development which has followed, the new literature has not yet, to any great extent, found voice. Yet this period of national formation and consolidation, however, has not been without its poets, among whom a few may be here named. Aleardo Aleardi (d. 1882) is one of the finest poetical geniuses that Italy has produced within the last century, but his writings show the ill effects of a poet sacrificing his art to a political cause, and when the patriot has ceased to declaim the poet ceases to sing. Prati (1815-1884), on the other hand, in his writings exemplifies the evil of a poet refusing to take part in the grand movement of his nation. He severs himself from all present interests and finds his subjects in sources which have no interest for his contemporaries. He has great metrical facility and his lyrics are highly praised. Carducci, like Aleardi, is a poet who has written on political subjects; he belongs to the cla.s.s of closet democrats. His poems display a remarkable talent for the picturesque, forcible, and epigrammatic. The poems of Zanella are nearly all on scientific subjects connected with human feeling, and ent.i.tle him to a distinguished place among the refined poets of his country. A poet of greater promise than those already spoken of is Arnaboldi, who has the endowment requisite to become the first Italian poet of a new school, but who endangers his position by devoting his verse to utilitarian purposes.

The tendency of the younger poets is to realism and to representing its most materialistic features as beautiful. Against this current of the new poetry Alessandro Rizzi, Guerzoni, and others have uttered a strong protest in poetry and prose.

Among historians, Capponi is the author of a history of Florence; Zini has continued Farina's history of Italy; Bartoli, Settembrini, and De Sanctis have written histories of Italian literature; Villari is the author of able works on the life of Machiavelli and of Savonarola, and Berti has written the life of Giordano Bruno. In criticism philosophic, historical, and literary, Fiorentino, De Sanctis, Ma.s.sarani, and Trezza are distinguished. Barili, Farina, Bersezio, and Giovagnoli are writers of fiction, and Cossa, Ferrari, and Giacosa are the authors of many dramatic works. The charming books of travel by De Amicis are extensively translated and very popular.

FRENCH LITERATURE.

INTRODUCTION.--1. French Literature and its Divisions.--2. The Language.

PERIOD FIRST.--1. The Troubadours.--2. The Trouveres French Literature in the Fifteenth Century.--4. The Mysteries and Moralities: Charles of Orleans, Villon, Ville-Hardouin, Joinville, Froissart, Philippe de Commines.

PERIOD SECOND.--1. The Renaissance and the Reformation: Marguerite de Valois, Marot, Rabelais, Calvin, Montaigne, Charron and others.--2. Light Literature: Ronsard Jodelle, Hardy, Malherbe, Scarron, Madame de Rambouillet, and others.--3. The French Academy.--4. The Drama: Corneille.--5. Philosophy: Descartes, Pascal; Port Royal.--6. The Rise of the Golden Age of French Literature: Louis XIV.--7. Tragedy: Racine.--8.

Comedy: Moliere.--9. Fables, Satires, Mock-Heroic, and other Poetry: La Fontaine, Boileau.--10. Eloquence of the Pulpit and of the Bar: Bourdaloue, Bossuet, Ma.s.sillon, Flechier, Le Maitre, D'Aguesseau, and others.--11. Moral Philosophy: Rochefoucault La Bruyere, Nicole.--12.

History and Memoirs: Mezeray, Fleury, Rollin, Brantome the Duke of Sully, Cardinal de Retz.--13. Romance and Letter Writing: Fenelon, Madame de Sevigne.

PERIOD THIRD.--1. The Dawn of Skepticism: Bayle, J. B. Rousseau, Fontenelle, Lamotte.--2. Progress of Skepticism: Montesquieu, Voltaire.

--3. French Literature during the Revolution: D'Holbach, D'Alembert, Diderot, J. J. Rousseau, Buffon, Beaumarchais, St. Pierre, and others.--4.

French Literature under the Empire: Madame de Stael, Chateaubriand, Royer- Collard, Ronald, De Maistre.--5. French Literature from the Age of the Restoration to the Present Time. History: Thierry, Sismondi, Thiers, Mignet, Martin, Michelet, and others. Poetry and the Drama; Rise of the Romantic School: Beranger, Lamartine, Victor Hugo, and others; Les Parna.s.siens. Fiction: Hugo, Gautier, Dumas, Merimee, Balzac, Sand, Sandeau and others. Criticism: Sainte-Beuve, Taine, and others. Miscellaneous.

INTRODUCTION.

1. FRENCH LITERATURE AND ITS DIVISIONS.--Towards the middle of the fifth century the Franks commenced their invasions of Gaul, which ended in the conquest of the country, and the establishment of the French monarchy under Clovis. The period from Clovis to Charlemagne (487-768) is the most obscure of the Dark Ages. The princ.i.p.al writers, whose names have been preserved, are St. Remy, the archbishop of Rheims (d. 535), distinguished for his eloquence, and Gregory of Tours (d. 595), whose contemporary history is valuable for the good faith in which it is written, in spite of the ignorance and credulity which it displays. The genius of Charlemagne (r. 768-814) gave a new impulse to learning. By his liberality he attracted the most distinguished scholars to his court, among others Alcuin, from England, whom he chose for his instructor; he established schools of theology and science, and appointed the most learned professors to preside over them. But in the century succeeding his death the country relapsed into barbarism.

In the south of France, Provence early became an independent kingdom, and consolidating its language, laws, and manners, at the close of the eleventh century it gave birth to the literature of the Troubadours; while in the north, the language and literature of the Trouveres, which were the germs of the national literature of France, were not developed until a century later.

In the schools established by Charlemagne for the education of the clergy, the scholastic philosophy originated, which prevailed throughout Europe in the Middle Ages. The most distinguished schoolmen or scholastics in France during this period are Roscellinus (fl. 1092), the originator of the controversy between the Nominalists and Realists, which occupied so prominent a place in the philosophy of the time; Abelard (1079-1142), equally celebrated for his learning, and for his unfortunate love for Helose; St. Bernard (1091-1153), one of the most influential ecclesiastics of the Middle Ages; and Thomas Aquinas (1227-1274) and Bonaventure (1221-1274), Italians who taught theology and philosophy at Paris, and who powerfully influenced the intellect of the age.

Beginning with the Middle Ages, the literary history of France may be divided into three periods. The first period extends from 1000 to 1500, and includes the literature of the Troubadours, the Trouveres, and of the fifteenth century.

The second period extends from 1500 to 1700, and includes the revival of the study of cla.s.sical literature, or the Renaissance, and the golden age of French literature under Louis XIV.

The third period, extending from 1700 to 1885, comprises the age of skepticism introduced into French literature by Voltaire, the Encyclopaedists and others, the Revolutionary era, the literature of the Empire and of the Restoration, of the Second Empire, and of the present time.

2. THE LANGUAGE.--After the conquest of Gaul by Julius Caesar, Latin became the predominant language of the country; but on the overthrow of the Western Empire it was corrupted by the intermixture of elements derived from the northern invaders of the country, and from the general ignorance and barbarism of the times. At length a distinction was drawn between the language of the Gauls who called themselves Romans, and that of the Latin writers; and the _Romance_ language arose from the former, while the Latin was perpetuated by the latter. At the commencement of the second race of monarchs, German was the language of Charlemagne and his court, Latin was the written language, and the Romance, still in a state of barbarism, was the dialect of the people. The subjects of Charlemagne were composed of two different races, the Germans, inhabiting along and beyond the Rhine, and the Wallons, who called themselves Romans. The name of _Welsch_ or _Wallons_, given them by the Germans, was the same as _Galli_, which they had received from the Latins, and as _Keltai_ or Celts, which they themselves acknowledged. The language which they spoke was called after them the _Romance-Wallon_, or rustic Romance, which was at first very much the same throughout France, except that as it extended southward the Latin prevailed, and in the north the German was more perceptible. These differences increased, and the languages rapidly grew more dissimilar. The people of the south called themselves _Romans- provencaux_, while the northern tribes added to the name of Romans, which they had a.s.sumed, that of _Wallons_, which they had received from the neighboring people. The Provencal was called the _Langue d'oc_, and the Wallon the _Langue d'oui_, from the affirmative word in each language, as the Italian was then called the _Langue de si_, and the German the _Langue de ya_.

The invasion of the Normans, in the tenth century, supplied new elements to the Romance Wallon. They adopted it as their language, and stamped upon it the impress of their own genius. It thus became Norman-French. In 1066, William the Conqueror introduced it into England, and enforced its use among his new subjects by rigorous laws; thus the popular French became there the language of the court and of the educated cla.s.ses, while it was still the vulgar dialect in France.

From the beginning of the twelfth century, the two dialects were known as the _Provencal_ and the _French_. The former, though much changed, is still the dialect of the common people in Provence, Languedoc, Catalonia, Valencia, Majorca, and Minorca. In the thirteenth century, the northern French dialect gained the ascendency, chiefly in consequence of Paris becoming the centre of refinement and literature for all France. The _Langue d'oui_ was, from its origin, deficient in that rhythm which exists in the Italian and Spanish languages. It was formed rather by an abbreviation than by a harmonious transformation of the Latin, and the metrical character of the language was gradually lost. The French became thus more accustomed to rhetorical measure than to poetical forms, and the language led them rather to eloquence than poetry. Francis I. established a professors.h.i.+p of the French language at Paris, and banished Latin from the public doc.u.ments and courts of justice. The Academy, established by Cardinal Richelieu (1635), put an end to the arbitrary power of usage, and fixed the standard of pure French, though at the same time it restricted the power of genius over the language. Nothing was approved by the Academy unless it was received at court, and nothing was tolerated by the public that had not been sanctioned by the Academy. The language now acquired the most admirable precision, and thus recommended itself not only as the language of science and diplomacy, but of society, capable of conveying the most discriminating observations on character and manners, and the most delicate expressions of civility which involve no obligation. Hence its adoption as the court language in so many European countries. Among the dictionaries of the French language, that of the Academy holds the first rank.

PERIOD FIRST.

PROVENcAL AND FRENCH LITERATURES IN THE MIDDLE AGES (1000-1500).

1. THE TROUBADOURS.--When, in the tenth century, the nations of the south of Europe attempted to give consistency to the rude dialects which had been produced by the mixture of the Latin with the northern tongues, the Provencal, or _Langue d'oc_, was the first to come to perfection. The study of this language became the favorite recreation of the higher cla.s.ses during the tenth and eleventh centuries, and poetry the elegant occupation of those whose time was not spent in the ruder pastimes of the field. Thousands of poets, who were called troubadours (from _trobar_, to find or invent), flourished in this new language almost contemporaneously, and spread their reputation from the extremity of Spain to that of Italy.

All at once, however, this ephemeral reputation vanished. The voice of the troubadours was silent, the Provencal was abandoned and sank into a mere dialect, and after a brilliant existence of three centuries (950-1250), its productions were ranked among those of the dead languages. The high reputation of the Provencal poets, and the rapid decline of their language, are two phenomena equally striking in the history of human culture. This literature, which gave models to other nations, yet among its crowds of agreeable poems did not produce a single masterpiece destined to immortality, was entirely the offspring of the age, and not of individuals. It reveals to us the sentiments and imagination of modern nations in their infancy; it exhibits what was common to all and pervaded all, and not what genius superior to the age enabled a single individual to accomplish.

Southern France, having been the inheritance of several of the successors of Charlemagne, was elevated to the rank of an independent kingdom in 879, by Bozon, and under his sovereignty, and that of his successors for 213 years, it enjoyed a paternal government. The accession of the Count of Barcelona to the crown, in 1092, introduced into Provence the spirit both of liberty and chivalry, and a taste for elegance and the arts, with all the sciences of the Arabians. The union of these n.o.ble sentiments added brilliancy to that poetical spirit which shone out at once over Provence and all the south of Europe, like an electric flash in the midst of profound darkness, illuminating all things with the splendor of its flame.

At the same time with Provencal poetry, chivalry had its rise; it was, in a manner, the soul of the new literature, and gave to it a character different from anything in antiquity. Love, in this age, while it was not more tender and pa.s.sionate than among the Greeks and Romans, was more respectful, and women were regarded with something of that religious veneration which the Germans evinced towards their prophetesses. To this was added that pa.s.sionate ardor of feeling peculiar to the people of the South, the expression of which was borrowed from the Arabians. But although among individuals love preserved this pure and religious character, the license engendered by the feudal system, and the disorders of the time, produced a universal corruption of manners which found expression in the literature of the age. Neither the _sirventes_ nor the _chanzos_ of the troubadours, nor the _fabliaux_ of the trouveres, nor the romances of chivalry, can be read without a blush. On every page the grossness of the language is only equaled by the shameful depravity of the characters and the immorality of the incidents. In the south of France, more particularly, an extreme laxity of manners prevailed among the n.o.bility. Gallantry seems to have been the sole object of existence.