vi Preface. 



the present century, and which has not even at the pres- 

 ent day altogether lost its attraction ; for ' Obermann ' 

 is still read by persons of culture, though the mental 

 condition which De Se"nancour painted in that work is 

 .much rarer in these days than it was in the days of 

 Rene" and Childe Harold. The fictitious personage who 

 tells what there is of story^n 'The Sylvan Year' is, 

 however, a conception quite distinct from the dissatis- 

 fied hero of De Se*nancour, and is intended to leave a 

 very different impression upon the reader. The domi- 

 nant note of ' Obermann ' is ennui; the ennui of a char- 

 acter capable of long, indefinite suffering, but not capa- 

 ble of passing out of such suffering by the discipline of 

 active sight and thought. The following narrative, so 

 far as it paints the character of the imaginary narrator, 

 is intended rather to exhibit the value of external nature 

 as a refreshment to a spirit which, though it has suffered 

 greatly, has still strength enough to take a hearty and 

 healthy interest in everything that comes within the 

 circle of its observation. 



