NOTES ON THE INTRIGUES OF A DAY. IT is the characteristic of the German drama to repre sent vice as the offspring of the head. This great theoretical error may be traced to the metaphysical notions of the literary students in that country; it is, indeed, the philosophical error of all men, who indulge themselves in contemplative retirement rather than take an active part and interest in the proceedings of the world. The modern French have practically adopted a different theory: they seem to regard the distinction between vice and virtue as consisting in the feelings, which the appearance of actions excites in the mind of the disinterested spectator: they imagine, that whatever is grand, must therefore be morally good, and whatever is mean, must in like manner be morally bad. The consequence of this is, that many of those things, which are of the highest importance to society, have lost their value with them, and many actions of the most mischievous tendency, by seeming to be ridiculous, are considered only as venial. But the source of vice is in the heart, the desires of which instigate the volitions of the head, and the bad often do ill before they are aware of the character of their actions. Nor does the distinction between vice and virtue consist in sympathy or antipathy, but in something totally independent, not only of the sentiment of the witnesses, but of the commonality' of mankind. Vice is too dangerous ever to be ridiculous, and the actions of vicious men can never be fit subjects for comic representation. However much the human heart may in itself be prone to evil, the judgment partakes of the superior nature of the soul, and is always disgusted with the acts of vice in others. We have been led to make these general observations by the perusal of this Comedy, which we are informed was originally written in French, and translated under the superintendance of the author, in order to be represented on the English stage. As a translation, it has much of the freedom and cheerful expression of an original work, but the habits of thinking, given to the characters, are decidedly foreign, and had we not been told that it was actually the production of a foreigner, we should have thought that it must have proceeded from a mind very singularly constituted. Tragedy, which is chiefly founded on the effects of the passions, may admit of actions, incidents, and reflections, common to mankind; but Comedy, which, as in the present case, is founded on peculiarities of manner, does not always admit of the same universality. "THE INTRIGUES OF A DAY" is professedly an exhibition of English manners, and yet throughout the whole piece, no one appears to have that constant remembrance of the law, which is the great national peculiarity of mind in the English. The play opens with two persons in the act of committing what every Englishman, who reads the newspapers, knows to be a capital offence, and although swindling and imposture in a variety of forms appear in the piece, not one of the delinquents seems to dread any legal consequence by discovery, and yet they are all represented as very clever and knowing persons. We are aware that similar incongruities have become very common on the stage, but we believe they are always thought objectionable, except in Farce, and even then they require to be very adroitly managed, and to have more the appearance of tricks than offences. But with this fundamental objection to the alleged nationality of the characters, this Comedy is, in our opinion, a respectable composition, and those who may, object to the theoretical error of the author, in representing public crimes as only ridiculous, should remember that "THE STRANGER," which absolutely insulted the common feelings of every well-regulated mind, was brought out with all advantages that could recommend it to popularity. Had the scene of "THE INTRIGUES OF A DAY" been laid in any other country than England, we should not have hesitated to class it with the best of the new comedies, which of late years have been performed in either of the London theatres. The arrangement is ingenious, and many of the incidents are calculated to produce a true comic effect. Some of the characters may be a little too highly caricatured, but we think the public will not hesitate to allow, that they are less extravagant, and more natural, than many that are exhibited with success, and seen with good humor. END OF NO I. |