It is to be
hoped that common sense, in the time to come, will prefer deciding
upon a work of Art rather by the impression it makes- by the effect it
produces- than by the time it took to impress the effect, or by the
amount of "sustained effort" which had been found necessary in
effecting the impression. The fact is, that perseverance is one
thing and genius quite another- nor can all the Quarterlies in
Christendom confound them. By and by, this proposition, with many
which I have been just urging, will be received as self-evident. In
the meantime, by being generally condemned as falsities, they will not
be essentially damaged as truths.
On the other hand, it is clear that a poem may be improperly
brief. Undue brevity degenerates into mere epigrammatism. A very short
poem, while now and then producing a brilliant or vivid, never
produces a profound or enduring effect. There must be the steady
pressing down of the stamp upon the wax. De Beranger has wrought
innumerable things, pungent and spirit-stirring, but in general they
have been too imponderous to stamp themselves deeply into the public
attention, and thus, as so many feathers of fancy, have been blown
aloft only to be whistled down the wind.
A remarkable instance of the effect of undue brevity in depressing a
poem, in keeping it out of the popular view, is afforded by the
following exquisite little Serenade-
I arise from dreams of thee
In the first sweet sleep of night,
When the winds are breathing low,
And the stars are shining bright.
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