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beauty, may become beautiful to us in consequence of the associations, which we attach to them. That is to say. when the objects are beheld, certain former pleasing feelings, peculiar to ourselves, are recalled.

The lustre of a spring morning, the radiance of a summer evening may of themselves excite in us a pleasing emotion; but, as our busy imagination, taking advantage of the images of delight, which are before us, is ever at work and constantly forming new images, there is, in combination with the original emotion of beauty, a superadded delight. And if in these instances, only a part of the beauty is to be ascribed to association, there are some others, where the whole is to be considered, as derived from that source.

Numerous instances can be given of the power of association, not only in heightening the actual charms of objects, but in spreading a sort of delegated lustre around those, that were entirely uninteresting before. Why does yon decaying house appear beautiful to me, which is indifferent to another? Why are the desolate fields around it clothed with delight, while others see in them nothing. that is pleasant? It is, because that house formerly detained me, as one of its inmates, at its fireside, and those fields were the scenes of many youthful sports. When! now behold them, after so long a time, the joyous emotions, which the remembrances of my early days call up within me, are, by the power of association, thrown around the objects, which are the cause of the remem brances.

§. 334. Further illustrations of associated feelings.

He, who travels through a well-cultivated country town, cannot but be pleased with the various objects which he beholds; the neat and comfortable dwellings: the meadows, that are peopled with flocks, and with her of cattle; the fields of grain, intermingled with reaches The whole scene is a beautif: thick and dark forest. one; the emotion we suppose to be partly original; a p son, on being restored to sight by couching for the cat

act, and having had no opportunity to form associations with it, would witness it, for the first time, with delight. But a greater part of the pleasure is owing to the associated feelings, which arise, on beholding such a scene; these dwellings are the abode of man; these fields are the place of his labours, and amply reward him for his toil; here are contentment, the interchange of heartfelt joys, and "ancient truth."

Those, who have travelled over places, that have been signalized by memorable events, will not suspect us of attributing too great a share of our emotions to association. It is true, that in a country so new as America, we are unable to point so frequently, as an European might do, to places, that have witnessed the gallantry and patriotism of ancient times. But there are some such consecrated spots. With whatever emotions the traveller may pass up the banks of the Hudson, he cannot but find his feelings much more deeply arrested at Stillwater and at Saratoga, the scenes of the memorable battles of Sept. 19, and Oct. 7, 1777, and of the surrender of Burgoyne, than at any other place. It was there, that brave men died; it was there, that an infant people threw defiance at a powerful enemy, and gave sanguinary proof of their determination to be free. A thousand recollections have gathered. upon such places, and the heart overflows with feeling at beholding them.

The powerful feeling, which here exists, whether we call it an emotion of beauty, or sublimity, or give it a name, expressive of some intermediate grade, is essentially the same, with that, which is caused in the bosom of the traveller, when he looks for the first time upon the hills of the city of Rome. There are other cities of greater extent, and washed by nobler rivers, than the one, which is before him; but upon no others has he ever gazed with such intensity of feeling. He beholds what was once the mistress of the world; he looks upon the ancient dwelling place of Brutus, of Cicero, and of the Cæsars. The imagination is it once peopled with whatever was noble in the charac ind great in the achievements of that extraordinary r

and there is a strength, a fulness of emotion, which, with out these stirring remembrances, would be very sensibly diminished.

§. 335. Instances of national associations.

The influence of association in rousing up, and in giving strength to particular classes of emotions, may be strikingly seen in some national instances.--Every country has its favourite tunes. These excite a much stronger feeling in the native inhabitants, than in strangers. The ef fect on the Swiss soldiers of the Ranz des Vaches, their national air, whenever they have happened to hear it in So great was foreign lands, has often been mentioned.

this effect, that it was found necessary in France, to forbid its being played in the Swiss corps in the employment of the French government. The powerful effect of this song cannot be supposed to be owing to any peculiar merits in the composition; but to the pleasing recollections, which it ever vividly brings up in the minds of the Swiss, of mountain life, of freedom, and domestic pleasures.

The English have a popular tune, called Belleisle March. Its popularity is said to have been owing to the circumstance, that it was played when the English army marched into Belleisle, and to its consequent association with remembrances of war and of conquest. And it will be found true of all national airs, that they have a charm for the natives of the country, in consequence of the recollections connected with them, which they do not possess for the inhabitants of other countries.

We have abundant illustrations of the same fact in respect to colours. The purple colour has acquired an expression or character of dignity, in consequence of having the been the common colour of the dress of kings; among Chinese, however, yellow is the most dignified colour, and evidently for no other reason, than because yellow is that, which is allotted to the royal family. In many countries black is expressive of gravity, and is used particularly seasons of distress and mourning; and white is a cheerful colour. But among the Chinese white is gloomy, because

it is the dress of mourners; and in Spain and among the Venetians black has a cheerful expression, in consequence of being worn by the great. So that the remark of Sir Joshua Reynolds has some foundation, that custom makes, in a certain sense, white black, and black white.

"It is custom alone, (says he,) determines our preference of the colour of the Europeans to that of the Ethiopians, and they, for the same reason, prefer their own colour to ours. I suppose no body will doubt, if one of their painters were to paint the goddess of beauty, but that he would represent her black, with thick lips, flat nose, and woolly hair; and it seems to me, he would act very unnaturally, if he did not." (The Idler, No. 82.)

§. 336. Of utility as an element of beauty.

Some theorists, among others Mr. Hume, have imagined, that they were able to discover the origin or foundation of all emotions of beauty in the perception of utility; understanding by the term a fitness or adaptation of the beautiful objects to some important purpose. We certain

ly contemplate this quality with a degree of complacency and approbation. Many objects, when their use or adaptation to some purpose became known to us, have at once been clothed with an interest, which they did not before possess. A share, therefore, of our emotions of beauty may be traced to this source. But when the perception of utility or fitness is proposed, as the ground and origin of all of them, the doctrine evidently cannot be sustained. If this principle hold universally, it is considered a fair inference from it by Mr. Burke, that the wedge-like snout of the swine, with its tough cartilage at the end, and the general make of its head, so well adapted to digging and rooting, are extremely beautiful; and that hedge-hogs and porcupines, which are so admirably secured against all assaults by their prickly hides, can justly be considered creatures of no small elegance.

On the theory, therefore, which proposes the perception of utility, as the true ground of all emotions of beauty, it is enough for us to say, that it goes too far. It does, in

deed, in connection with the laws of association, suggest a happy explanation of many pleasing emotions, but, by no means, of all. The inferences of Burke in opposition to it are not without foundation.

§. 337. Of proportion as a cause or element of beauty.

There are some, who imagine, they find the source of beauty in a certain symmetry and determinate proportion of parts. This idea has been particularly advocated by artists, who seem to have supposed, that the elements of beauty might not only be discovered, but even measured in the great models of statuary and painting. Mr. Burke has examined this opinion also; directing his inquiries to vegetables, the inferior animals, and man. He has shown, that, in all cases, there are no certain measures, on which the beautiful can justly be said to depend.

For instance, in the vegetable creation we find nothing more beautiful than flowers, but there is a very great variety in their shape, and in the disposition of the parts, which pertain to them. In the rose the stalk is slender, but the flower is large. The flower or blossom of the apple, on the other hand, is very small, but the tree large. Now if one of these be in proportion, the other wants it; and yet, by general consent, both the rose and the appleblossom possess beauty, and the bush of the one and the tree of the other allowedly present a very engaging appearance.If again we inquire in respect to man, and in respect to the inferior animal creation, we are brought to the same result, viz. that beauty does not depend upon a fixed relative size of the parts, that is, upon proportion.

Those, who deem it important to examine every thing, that has been advanced on the subject, and find time for such minuteness of inquiry, may meet with various other theories of more or less value, and probably none of them. however unphilosophical, without some worth.

§. 338. Differences of original susceptibility of this emotion. Supposing it to be true, that we possess an original susceptibility of emotions of beauty, independently of cus

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