"New to your eyes, and shifting every hour, The difordered state of mind to which these obfervations refer is the more interesting, that it is chiefly incident to men of uncommon fenfibility and genius. It has been often remarked, that there is a connection between genius and melancholy; and there is one sense of the word melancholy, in which the remark is undoubtedly true; a fenfe which it may be difficult to define, but in which it implies nothing either gloomy or malevolent.† This, I think, is not only confirmed by facts, but may be inferred from fome principles which were formerly ftated on the subject of invention; for as the dif pofition now alluded to has a tendency to retard the current of thought, and to collect the attention. of the mind, it is peculiarly favorable to the discovery of those profound conclufions which refult from an accurate examination of the lefs obvious relations er. among our ideas. From the fame principles too, may be traced fome of the effects which fituation and early education produce on the intellectual charactAmong the natives of wild and folitary countries we may expect to meet with fublime exertions of poetical imagination and of philofophical research; while thofe men whose attention has been diffipated from infancy amidst the bustle of the world, and whose current of thought has been trained to yield * Armstrong. † Δια τι παντες όσοι πεξιττοι γεγονασιν ανδρες, η κατα φιλοσοφίαν, κ πολιτικήν, η ποιναιν, η τέχνας, φαίνονται μελαγχολικοι οντες. ARISTOT, Problem. sect. xxx. and accommodate itself, every moment, to the rapid fucceffion of trifles, which diverfify fashionable life, acquire, without any effort on their part, the intellectual habits which are favorable to gaiety, vivacity, and wit. When a man, under the habitual influence of a warm imagination, is obliged to mingle occafionally in the scenes of real business, he is perpetually in danger of being mifled by his own enthusiasm.What we call good sense in the conduct of life, confifts chiefly in that temper of mind which enables its poffeffor to view, at all times, with perfect coolness and accuracy, all the various circumftances of his fituation; fo that each of them may produce its due impreffion on him, without any exaggeration arifing from his own peculiar habits. But to a man of an ill-regulated imagination, external circumftances only ferve as hints to excite his own thoughts, and the conduct he purfues has, in general, far lefs reference to his real fituation, than to fome imaginary one, in which he conceives himself to be placed in confequence of which, while he appears to himself to be acting with the moft perfect wifdom and confiftency, he may frequently exhibit to others all the appearances of folly. Such, pretty nearly, feems to be the idea which the Author of the "Reflections on the Character and Writings of Rouffeau," has formed of that extraordinary man. "His faculties," we are told," were flow in their operation, but his "heart was ardent it was in confequence of his "own meditations, that he became impaffioned: he "discovered no fudden emotions, but all his feelings 86 : grew upon reflection. It has, perhaps, happened "to him to fall in love gradually with a woman, by "dwelling on the idea of her during her abfence. "Sometimes he would part with you with all his * Madame de STALL, 66 66 "former affections; but if an expreffion had escaped you, which might bear an unfavorable conftruc❝tion, he would recollect it, examine it, exaggerate "it, perhaps dwell upon it for a month, and con"clude by a total breach with you. Hence it was, "that there was fcarce a poffibility of undeceiving "him; for the light which broke in upon him at once was not fufficient to efface the wrong impreffions which had taken place fo gradually in his "mind. It was extremely difficult, too, to contin"ue long on an intimate footing with him. A word, "a gesture, furnished him with matter of profound "meditation: he connected the moft trifling cir"cumftances like fo many mathematical propofitions, "and conceived his conclufions to be fupported by 66 the evidence of demonftration. I believe," continues this ingenious writer," that imagination was "the ftrongest of his faculties, and that it had almoft "abforbed all the reft. He dreamed rather than ex*ifted, and the events of his life might be faid, 66 more properly, to have paffed in his mind, than "without him: a mode of being, one should have "thought, that ought to have fecured him from "diftruft, as it prevented him from abfervation; "but the truth was, it did not hinder him from attempting to obferve; it only rendered his obfer"vations erroneous That his foul was tender, no "one can doubt, after having read his works; but ← his imagination fometimes interpofed between his "affections, and deftroyed their influence: he ap 66 66 peared fometimes void of fenfibility; but it was "because he did not perceive objects fuch as they "were. Had he feen them with our eyes, his "heart would have been more affected than ours." In this very striking defcription we fee the melancholy picture of fenfibility and genius approaching to infanity. It is a cafe, probably, that but rarely occurs, in the extent here defcribed: but, I believe, there is no man who has lived much in the world, who will not trace many resembling features to it, in the circle of his own acquaintances: perhaps there are few, who have not been occafionally conscious of fome resemblance to it in themfelves. To thefe obfervations we may add, that by an exceffive indulgence in the pleasures of imagination, the taste may acquire a faftidious refinement unfuitable to the present fituation of human nature; and thofe intellectual and moral habits, which ought to be formed by actual experience of the world, may be gradually fo accommodated to the dreams of poetry and romance, as to difqualify us for the scenes in which we are deftined to act. Such a diftempered state of the mind is an endles fource of error; more particularly when we are placed in thofe critical fituations, in which our conduct determines our future happiness or mifery; and which, on account of this extenfive influence on human life, form the principal ground-work of fictitious compofition. The effect of novels, in misleading the paffions of youth, with refpect to the most interesting and important of all relations, is one of the many inftances of the inconveniences refulting from an ill-regulated imagination. The paffion of love has been, in every age, the favorite fubject of the poets, and has given birth to the finest productions of human genius. Thefe are the natural delight of the young and fufceptible, long before the influence of the paffions is felt; and from thefe a romantic mind forms to itself an ideal model of beauty and perfection, and becomes enamoured with its own creation. On a heart which has been long accustomed to be thus warmed by the imagination, the excellencies of real characters make but a flight impreffion: and, accordingly, it will be found, that men of a romantic turn, unless when under the influence of violent paffions, are seldom attached to a particular object. Where, indeed, fuch a turn is united with a warmth of temperament, the effects are different; but they are equally fatal to happiness. As the diftinctions which exift among real characters are confounded by falfe and exaggerated conceptions of ideal perfection, the choice is directed to fome object by caprice and accident; a flight resemblance is mistaken for an exact coincidence; and the defcriptions of the poet and novelift are applied literally to an individual, who perhaps falls fhort of the common ftandard of excellence. "I am certain," fays the Author laft quoted, in her account of the character of Rouffeau," that he never formed an attach"ment which was not founded on caprice. It was "illufions alone that could captivate his paffions; " and it was neceffary for him always to accomplish his miftrefs from his own fancy. I am certain al"fo," he adds, "that the woman whom he loved the moft, and perhaps the only woman whom he "loved conftantly, was his own Julie." In the cafe of this particular paffion, the effects of a romantic imagination are obvious to the most carelefs obferver; and they have often led moralifts to regret, that a temper of mind fo dangerous to hấppiness should have received fo much encouragement from fome writers of our own age, who might have employed their genius to better purpofes. These, however, are not the only effects which fuch habits of study have on the character. Some others, which are not fo apparent at first view, have a tendency, not only to mislead us where our own happiness is at stake, but to defeat the operation of those active principles which were intended to unite us to fociety. The manner in which imagination influences the mind, in the inftances which I allude to at present, is curious, and deferves a more particular explanation. KK k |