the miscellaneous writings and speeches-1-第31章

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h　at　least　equal　justice　to　speeches。　　They　must　be　read　with　the　temper　of　those　to　whom　they　were　addressed；　or　they　must　necessarily　appear　to　offend　against　the　laws　of　taste　and　reason；　as　the　finest　picture；　seen　in　a　light　different　from　that　for　which　it　was　designed；　will　appear　fit　only　for　a　sign。　　This　is　perpetually　forgotten　by　those　who　criticise　oratory。　　Because　they　are　reading　at　leisure；　pausing　at　every　line；　reconsidering　every　argument；　they　forget　that　the　hearers　were　hurried　from　point　to　point　too　rapidly　to　detect　the　fallacies　through　which　they　were　conducted；　that　they　had　no　time　to　disentangle　sophisms；　or　to　notice　slight　inaccuracies　of　expression；　that　elaborate　excellence；　either　of　reasoning　or　of　language；　would　have　been　absolutely　thrown　away。　　To　recur　to　the　analogy　of　the　sister　art；　these　connoisseurs　examine　a　panorama　through　a　microscope；　and　quarrel　with　a　scene…painter　because　he　does　not　give　to　his　work　the　exquisite　finish　of　Gerard　Dow。

Oratory　is　to　be　estimated　on　principles　different　from　those　which　are　applied　to　other　productions。　　Truth　is　the　object　of　philosophy　and　history。　　Truth　is　the　object　even　of　those　works　which　are　peculiarly　called　works　of　fiction；　but　which；　in　fact；　bear　the　same　relation　to　history　which　algebra　bears　to　arithmetic。　　The　merit　of　poetry；　in　its　wildest　forms；　still　consists　in　its　truth；truth　conveyed　to　the　understanding；　not　directly　by　the　words；　but　circuitously　by　means　of　imaginative　associations；　which　serve　as　its　conductors。　　The　object　of　oratory　alone　is　not　truth；　but　persuasion。　　The　admiration　of　the　multitude　does　not　make　Moore　a　greater　poet　than　Coleridge；　or　Beattie　a　greater　philosopher　than　Berkeley。　　But　the　criterion　of　eloquence　is　different。　　A　speaker　who　exhausts　the　whole　philosophy　of　a　question；　who　displays　every　grace　of　style；　yet　produces　no　effect　on　his　audience；　may　be　a　great　essayist；　a　great　statesman；　a　great　master　of　composition；　but　he　is　not　an　orator。　　If　he　miss　the　mark；　it　makes　no　difference　whether　he　have　taken　aim　too　high　or　too　low。

The　effect　of　the　great　freedom　of　the　press　in　England　has　been；　in　a　great　measure；　to　destroy　this　distinction；　and　to　leave　among　us　little　of　what　I　call　Oratory　Proper。　　Our　legislators；　our　candidates；　on　great　occasions　even　our　advocates；　address　themselves　less　to　the　audience　than　to　the　reporters。　　They　think　less　of　the　few　hearers　than　of　the　innumerable　readers。　At　Athens　the　case　was　different；　there　the　only　object　of　the　speaker　was　immediate　conviction　and　persuasion。　　He；　therefore；　who　would　justly　appreciate　the　merit　of　the　Grecian　orators　should　place　himself；　as　nearly　as　possible；　in　the　situation　of　their　auditors：　　he　should　divest　himself　of　his　modern　feelings　and　acquirements；　and　make　the　prejudices　and　interests　of　the　Athenian　citizen　his　own。　　He　who　studies　their　works　in　this　spirit　will　find　that　many　of　those　things　which；　to　an　English　reader；　appear　to　be　blemishes；the　frequent　violation　of　those　excellent　rules　of　evidence　by　which　our　courts　of　law　are　regulated；the　introduction　of　extraneous　matter；the　reference　to　considerations　of　political　expediency　in　judicial　investigations；the　assertions；　without　proof；the　passionate　entreaties；the　furious　invectives；are　really　proofs　of　the　prudence　and　address　of　the　speakers。　　He　must　not　dwell　maliciously　on　arguments　or　phrases；　but　acquiesce　in　his　first　impressions。　　It　requires　repeated　perusal　and　reflection　to　decide　rightly　on　any　other　portion　of　literature。　　But　with　respect　to　works　of　which　the　merit　depends　on　their　instantaneous　effect　the　most　hasty　judgment　is　likely　to　be　best。

The　history　of　eloquence　at　Athens　is　remarkable。　　From　a　very　early　period　great　speakers　had　flourished　there。　　Pisistratus　and　Themistocles　are　said　to　have　owed　much　of　their　influence　to　their　talents　for　debate。　　We　learn；　with　more　certainty；　that　Pericles　was　distinguished　by　extraordinary　oratorical　powers。　The　substance　of　some　of　his　speeches　is　transmitted　to　us　by　Thucydides；　and　that　excellent　writer　has　doubtless　faithfully　reported　the　general　line　of　his　arguments。　　But　the　manner；　which　in　oratory　is　of　at　least　as　much　consequence　as　the　matter；　was　of　no　importance　to　his　narration。　　It　is　evident　that　he　has　not　attempted　to　preserve　it。　　Throughout　his　work；　every　speech　on　every　subject；　whatever　may　have　been　the　character　of　the　dialect　of　the　speaker；　is　in　exactly　the　same　form。　　The　grave　king　of　Sparta；　the　furious　demagogue　of　Athens；　the　general　encouraging　his　army；　the　captive　supplicating　for　his　life；　all　are　represented　as　speakers　in　one　unvaried　style；…　…a　style　moreover　wholly　unfit　for　oratorical　purposes。　　His　mode　of　reasoning　is　singularly　elliptical；in　reality　most　consecutive；yet　in　appearance　often　incoherent。　　His　meaning；　in　itself　sufficiently　perplexing；　is　compressed　into　the　fewest　possible　words。　　His　great　fondness　for　antithetical　expression　has　not　a　little　conduced　to　this　effect。　　Every　one　must　have　observed　how　much　more　the　sense　is　condensed　in　the　verses　of　Pope　and　his　imitators；　who　never　ventured　to　continue　the　same　clause　from　couplet　to　couplet；　than　in　those　of　poets　who　allow　themselves　that　license。　　Every　artificial　division；　which　is　strongly　marked；　and　which　frequently　recurs；　has　the　same　tendency。　　The　natural　and　perspicuous　expression　which　spontaneously　rises　to　the　mind　will　often　refuse　to　accommodate　itself　to　such　a　form。　　It　is　necessary　either　to　expand　it　into　weakness；　or　to　compress　it　into　almost　impenetrable　density。　The　latter　is　generally　the　choice　of　an　able　man；　and　was　assuredly　the　choice　of　Thucydides。

It　is　scarcely　necessary　to　say　that　such　speeches　could　never　have　been　delivered。　　They　are　perhaps　among　the　most　difficult　passages　in　the　Greek　language；　and　would　probably　have　been　scarcely　more　intelligible　to　an　Athenian　auditor　than　to　a　modern　reader。　　Their　obscurity　was　acknowledged　by　Cicero；　who　was　as　intimate　with　the　literature　and　language　of　Greece　as　the　most　accomplished　of　its　natives；　and　who　seems　to　have　held　a　respectable　rank　among　the　Greek　authors。　　Their　difficulty　to　a　modern　reader　lies；　not　in　the　words；　but　in　the　reasoning。　　A　dictionary　is　of　far　less　use　in　studying　them　than　a　clear　head　and　a　close　attention　to　the　context。　　They　are　valuable　to　the　scholar　as　displaying；　beyond　almost　any　other　compositions；　the　powers　of　the　finest　of　languages：　　they　are　valuable　to　the　philosopher　as　illustrating　the　morals　and　manners　of　a　most　interesting　age：　　they　abound　in　just　thought　and　energetic　expression。　　But　they　do　not　enable　us　to　form　any　accurate　opinion　on　the　merits　of　the　early　Greek　orators。

Though　it　cannot　be　doubted　that；　before　the　Persian　wars；　Athens　had　produced　eminent　speakers；　yet　the　period　during　which　eloquence　most　flourished　among　her　citizens　was　by　no　means　that　of　her　greatest　power　and　glory。　　It　commenced　at　the　close　of　the　Peloponnesian　war。　　In　fact；　the　steps　by　which　Athenian　oratory　approached　to　its　finished　excellence　seem　to　have　been　almost　contemporaneous　with　those　by　which　the　Athenian　character　and　the　Athenian　empire　sunk　to　degradation。　　At　the　time　when　the　little　commonwealth　achieved　those　victories　which　twenty…　five　eventful　centuries　have　left　unequalled；　eloquence　was　in　its　infancy。　　The　deliverers　of　Greece　became　its　plunderers　and　oppressors。　　Unmeasured　exaction；　atrocious　vengeance；　the　madness　of　the　multitude；　the　tyranny　of　the　great；　filled　the　Cyclades　with　tears；　and　blood；　and　mourning。　　The　sword　unpeopled　whole　islands　in　a　day。　　The　plough　passed　over　the　ruins　of　famous　cities。　　The　imperial　republic　sent　forth　her　children　by　thousands　to　pine　in　the　quarries　of　Syracuse；　or　to　feed　the　vultures　of　Aegospotami。　　She　was　at　length　reduced　by　famine　and　slaughter　to　humble　herself　before　her　enemies；　and　to　purchase　existence　by　the　sacrifice　of　her　empire　and　her　laws。　During　these　disastrous　and　gloomy　years；　oratory　was　advancing　towards　its　highest　excellence。　　And　it　was　when　the　moral；　the　political；　and　the　military　character　of　the　people　was　most　utterly　deg