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own way, falls a-cursing again like the veriest Jingos would pause, did they but take the
drab or scullion Hamlet ever heard. precaution of indulging in a mild aperient
Here is a man, deprived on just cause of before recording their opinions.
47
NOTES
In Scenes iii., vi., and vii., Edmund, disgusted true Christian ; at the death of his beloved
beyond all meaure with Gloucester s infamies, mistresses he cries,
honourably and patriotically denounces him.
I was contracted to them both : all three
The other scenes depict the miseries which
Now marry in an instant
follow the foolish and the unjust ; and Nemesis
At the moment of death his great nature
falls upon the ill-minded Gloucester. Yet
(self-accusatory, as the finest so often are)
Shakespeare is so appreciative of the virtue of
asserts itself, and he forgives even the vilest of
compassion (for Shakespeare was, as I shall
the human race, I pant for life : some good
hope to prove one day, a Buddhist) that Corn-
I mean to do Despite of mine own nature.1
wall, the somewhat cruel instrument of eternal
Quickly send, Be brief in it, to the castle ; for
Justice, is killed by his servant. Regan avenges
my writ Is on the life Lear and on Cordelia.
her husband promptly, and I have little doubt
Nay, send in time. (ll. 245-249).
that this act of excessive courtesy towards a
And in that last supreme hour of agony he
man she did not love is the moral cause of her
claims Regan as his wife, as if by accident ; it
unhappy end.
is not the passionate assertion of a thing doubt-
I would not that we should not attempt to
ful, but the natural reference to a thing well
draw any opinions as to the author s design
known and indisputable.
from the conversation of the vulgar ; even had
And in the moment of his despair; confronted
we not Coriolanus to show us what he thought.
with the dead bodies of the splendid sisters, the
catafalque of all his hopes, he can exclaim in
spiritual triumph over material disaster the
IV.
victory of a true man s spirit over Fate
Yet Edmund was beloved.
Act IV. develops the plot and is little germane
to our matter, save that we catch a glimpse of
Edgar is left alive with Albany, alone of all
the unspeakably vile Cordelia, with no pity for
that crew; and if remorse could touch their
her father s serious condition (though no doubt
brutal and callous souls (for the degeneration
he deserved all he got, he was now harmless
of the weakling, well-meaning Albany, is a
and should have inspired compassion), hanging
minor tragedy), what hell could be more horrible
to him in the hope that he would no reverse
than the dragging out of a cancerous existence
his banishment and make her (after a bloody
in the bestial world of hate their hideous hearts
victory) sole heiress of great England.
had made, now, even for better men, for ever
And were any doubt left in our minds as to
dark and gloomy, robbed of the glory of the
who really was the hero of the play, the partizan- glowing Gonerial, the royal Regan, and only
ship of France should settle it. Shakespeare
partially redeemed by the absence of the harlot
has never any word but ridicule for the French;
Cordelia and the monster Lear.
never aught but praise of England and love for
V.
her : are we to suppose that in his best play he
is to stultify all his other work and insult the
It may possibly be objected by the censorious,
English for the benefit of the ridiculed and
by the effete parasites of a grim conventionalism,
hated Frenchmen ?
that I have proved too much. Even by con-
Moreover, Cordelia reckons without her
ventional standards Edmund, Goneril, and
host. The British bulldogs make short work of
Regan appear angels. Even on the moral
the invaders and rebels, doubtless with the con-
point, the sisters, instead of settling down to
nivance of the King of France, who, with great
an enlightened and by no means overcrowded
and praiseworthy acuteness, forsees that
polygamy, prefer to employ poison. This is
Cordelia will be hanged, thus liberating him
perhaps true, of Goneril at least; Regan is,
from his most filthy bargain : there is but
if one may distinguish between star and star,
one alarum, and the whole set of scoundrels
somewhat the finer character.
surrender. Note this well; it is not by brute
This criticism is perhaps true in part ; but I
force that the battle is won ; for even if we
will not insult the intelligence of my readers.
exonerate the King of France, we may easily
I will leave it to them to take the obvious step
believe that the moral strength of the sisters
and work backwards to the re-exaltion of
cowed the French.
Lear, Cordelia, Edgar and company, to the
This is the more evident, since in Act V.
heroic fields of their putty Elysium (putty, not
Shakespeare strikes his final blow at the
1
This may merely mean despite the fact that I am
absurdity of the duel, when Edmund is dis-
dying though I am almost too weak to speak. If
honestly slain by the beast Edgar. Yet the
so, the one phrase in the play which seems to refute
poet s faith is still strong : wound up as his
our theory is disposed of. Execution of such
muse is to tragedy, he retains in Edmund the
criminals would be a matter of routine at the period
sublime heroism, the simple honesty, of the
of the play.
48
THE SWORD OF SONG
Putney) in their newly-demonstated capacity as possibly jejune yet assuredly historic attempt
unnatural sons, daughters, fathers, and so on. to place of the first time William Shakespeare
But I leave it. I am content my work will on his proper pedastal as an early disciple of
have been well done if this trifling essay be Mr. George Bernard Shaw ; and by conse-
accepted as a just instalment towards a saner quence to carve myself a little niche in the same
criticism of our holiest writers, a juster appre- temple : the smallest contributions will be thank-
ciation of the glories of our greatest poet, a fully received.
NOTES TO ASCENSION DAY
1. I flung out of chapel.1 Browning, Xmas the metaphor, such elasticity having led Prof.
Eve, III. last line. Blümengarten to surmise them to be india-
3. Venus Bower and Osiris Tomb.2 rubber trees.
Crowley, Tannhaäuser. 27. Truth, that s the gold. 12 Two Poets
of Croisic, clii. 1, and elsewhere.
5. God.3 Hebrew, , Gen. iii. 5.
28. I, you, or Simpkin. 13 Inn Album,
5. gods.4 Hebrew, , Gen. iii. 5.
l. 143. Simpkin has nothing to do with the
The Revisers, seeing this most awkard
foaming grape of Eastern France.
juxtaposition, have gone yet one step lower
36. Aischulos.14 See Agamemnon (Brown-
and translated both words by God. In
ing s translation), Preface.
other passages, however, they have been
40. Aristobulus.15 May be scanned elsehow
compelled to disclose their own dishonesty and
by pedants. Cf. Swinburne s curious scansion
translate by gods.
rÐstOphns. But the scansion adopted here
For evidence of this the reader may look up
gives a more credible rhyme.
such passages as Ex. xviii. 11; Deut.
42. Batracomuomacia.16 Aristophanes Bat-
xxxii. 17; Ps. lxxxii. [in particular where the
rachoi.
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