produced by the fenfe and found go natu rally into union; and at the fame time are felt to be concordant or harmonious. Dif

fimilar emotions, on the other hand, forced into union by caufes intimately connected, not only obfcure each other, but are alfo unpleasant by discordance. From these principles it is eafy to fay what fort of poe+ tical compofitions are fitted for mufic. It is evident that no poem expreffing the fentiments of any disagreeable paffion is proper. The pain a man feels who is actuated with malice or unjust revenge, difqualifies him for relifhing mufic or any thing that is entertaining. And fuppofing him difpofed, against nature, to vent his fentiments in mufic, the mixture would be unpleafant; for these paffions raise difgust and averfion in the audience *, a tone of mind oppofite to every emotion that mufic can infpire. A man feized with remorse cannot bear mufic, because every fort of it must be difcordant with his tone of mind; and when these by an unfkilful artist are forced into

*See part 2. of the prefent chapter, toward the close.

union,

union, the mixture is unpleasant to the au dience.

In general, mufic never can have a good effect in conjunction with any compo fition expreffive of malice, envy, peevish-> nefs, or any other diffocial paffion. The pleasure of mufic, on the other hand, is fi milar to all pleafant emotions; and mufic is finely qualified for every fong where fuch emotions are expreffed. Mufic particularly in a chearful tone, is concordant in the highest degree with every emotion in the fame tone; and hence our tafte for chear ful airs expreffive of mirth and jollity. Mu fic is peculiarly well qualified for accompanying every fympathetic emotion. Sympathe tic joy affociates finely with chearful mufic, and fympathetic pain not lefs finely with mufic that is tender and melancholy. All the different emotions of love, viz. tendernefs, concern, anxiety, pain of abfence, hope, fear, &c. accord delightfully with mufic. A perfon in love, even when unkindly treated, is foothed by music. The tenderness of love ftill prevailing, accords with a melancholy ftrain.

This

bwa is bis

LAN

is finely exemplified by Shakespear in the fourth act of Othello, where Defdemona calls for a fong expreffive of her diftrefs. Wonderful is the delicacy of that writer's tafte, which fails him not even in the most refined emotions of human nature. Melancholy mufic again is fuitable to flight grief, which requires or admits confolation. But deep grief, which refufes all confolation, rejects for that reafon even melancholy mufic. For a different reafon, mufic is improper for accompanying pleasant emotions of the more important kind. These totally ingrofs the mind, and leave no place for mufic or any fort of amusement. In a perilous enterprise to dethrone a tyrant, mufic would be impertinent, even where hope prevails, and the profpect of fuccefs is great. Alexander attacking the Indian town and mounting the wall, had certainly no impulfe to exert his prowess in a fong. It is true, that not the leaft regard is paid to these rules either in the French or Italian opera; and the attachment we have to these compofitions, may at firft fight be confidered as a proof that the foregoing doctrine cannot be founded on human nature. But the

gene

ral

ral tafte for operas is at bottom no authority against me. In our operas the paffions are so imperfectly expreffed, as to leave the mind free for relishing music of any fort indifferently. It cannot be disguised, that the pleasure of an opera is derived chiefly from the mufic, and fcarce at all from the fentiments. A happy coincidence of emotions raised by the fong and by the mufic, is extremely rare; and I venture to affirm, that there is no example of it unless where the emotion raised by the former is pleafant as well as that raised by the latter.

The fubject we have run through, appears not a little entertaining. It is extremely curious to obferve, in many instances, a plurality of caufes producing in conjunction a great pleafure: in other inftances, not lefs frequent, no conjunction, but each cause acting in oppofition. To enter bluntly upon a fubject of fuch intricacy, might gravel an acute philofopher; and yet by taking matters in a train, the intricacy vanifheth.

Next in order, according to the method propofed, come external effects. And this leads to paffions in particular, which invol

ving defire are the causes of action. Two coexiftent paffions that have the fame tendency, must be fimilar. They accordingly readily unite, and in conjunction have double force; which must hold whether the two paffions have the fame or different caufes. This is verified by experience; from which we learn, that different paffions having the fame end in view, impel the mind to action with united force. The mind receives not impulfes alternately from these paffions, but one strong impulfe from the whole in conjunction. And indeed it is not eafy to conceive what should bar the union of paffions that have all of them the fame tendency.

Two paffions having oppofite tendencies, may proceed from the fame object or caufe confidered in different lights. Thus a mistress may at once be the object both of love and refentment. Her beauty inflames the paffion of love: her cruelty or inconftancy causes refentment. When two fuch paffions coexift in the fame breaft, the oppofition of their aim prevents any fort of union. They are not felt otherwife than in fucceffion, And

Y 2