BEAUTY. 



383 



Beauty, rapid than that of the eagle, is considered as bcauti- 

 v ful, on account >( the delicacy of the object moved. 



It seems, then, to be clearly proved by Mr Alison, 

 that the beauty of material objects does not result 

 from any permanent qualities in the objects them- 

 selves, but from the expression of the objects, or, 

 "from their being the signs or expressions of such qua- 

 lities as are fitted by the constitution of our nature 

 to produce emotion." The expression that may be 

 said most generally to prevail in beautiful objects, 

 particularly those that are judged of by the eye, is 

 that of gentleness, delicacy, or tenderness, a quality 

 extremely well-suited to excite emotion blended with 

 affection, or that kind of love which, according to 

 our original definition, is the characteristic effect of 

 beauty. Along with this expression of delicacy, or 

 gentleness, there may, however, be combined the ex- 

 pression of some other valuable quality, which will 

 enhance the approbation and delight, with which we 

 contemplate objects merely beautiful ; and produce 

 an emotion of a more complicated and pleasing kind 

 than that which beauty alone excites. Thus beauty 

 may exist in combination with design, or a skilful com- 

 bination of parts, as in a poem, a painting, a musical 

 composition, or a machine ; and in consequence of 

 this combination, our approbation will be enhanced. 

 The beauty of design is a phrase or expression of 

 frequent occurrence, and shews the connection be- 

 tween the emotions which belong to the perception 

 of those several qualities. Another adventitious aid 

 to beauty is fitness, or the proper adaptation of means 

 to an end, subservient to which, and also to design, 

 is the beauty of proportion." In the forms of furni- 

 ture, of machines, and instruments in the different arts, 

 the greater part of their beauty arises from the con- 

 sideration of fitness ; nor is there any form which does 

 not become beautiful, in this sense, where it is found 

 to be perfectly adapted to its end. " A ship which 

 is well built, and which promises to sail well," say3 

 Mr Hogarth, " is called by sailors a beauty!" 

 *' There is nothing more common, in books of ana- 

 tomy, or natural history," says Mr Alison, " than 

 the term beauty applied, to many common, and many 

 disagreeable parts of the animal frame ; nor is there 

 any reader, who considers the subjects in the light of 

 their fitness alone, who does not feel the same emo- 

 tion with the writers. A physician talks even of a 

 beautiful theory of dropsies or fevers, a surgeon of a 

 beautiful instrument for operations, an anatomist of 

 a beautiful subject or preparation. These instances 

 are sufficient to shew, that even the objects which are 

 most destitute of natural beauty, become beautiful, 

 when they are regarded only in the light of their fit- 

 ness ; and that the reason why they do not always 

 appear beautiful to us, is that we in general leave 

 this quality out of our consideration." 



Lastly, beauty may be combined with utility, as it 

 actually is in almost all the productions of nature ; 

 and by this combination, the delight with which we 

 contemplate an object, is in the highest degree en- 

 hanced. On the superiority, in this respect, of the 

 works of nature over those of mere art, there is a fine 

 observation by Mr Hogarth. " Here, I think," 

 says that ingenious artist, will be the proper place 



to speak of a most curious difference between the Beauty- 

 living machines of nature in respect of fitness, and 

 such poor ones in comparison with them, as men are 

 only capable of making. A clock by the govern- 

 ment's order has been made by Mr Harrison, for the 

 keeping of true time at sea, which is, perhaps, one of 

 the most exquisite movements ever made. Happy 

 the ingenious contriver ! although the form of the 

 whole, or of every part of this curious machine, 

 should be ever so confused, or displeasingly shaped 

 to the eye, and although even its movements should 

 be disagreeable to look at, provided it answers the 

 end proposed : an ornamental composition was no 

 part of his scheme, otherwise than as a polish might 

 be necessary ; if ornaments are required to be added 

 to mend its shape, care must be taken that they an- 

 no obstruction to the movement itself, and the more 

 as they would be superfluous as to the main design. 

 But in Nature's machines, how wonderfully do we 

 see beauty and use go hand in hand ! Had a machine 

 for this purpose been Nature's work, the whole and 

 every individual part might have had exquisite beauty 

 of form, without danger of destroying the exquisite- 

 ness of its motion, even as if ornament had been 

 the sole aim; its movement, too, might have been 

 graceful, without one superfluous tittle added for 

 either of these lovely purposes." 



Thus have we endeavoured to ascertain the source 

 of the quality of beauty in the various classes of ob- 

 jects, whether we take the term in its more appro- 

 priate, or in its more vague and indeterminate sense, 

 that is, whether it denote a quality exciting a cer- 

 tain degree of affection and love, or a quality exciting 

 only complacency and mental approbation. In both 

 cases, we find beauty to arise, not so much from any 

 determinate properties of matter, as from the ex- 

 pression of the whole, and the emotion which it is 

 calculated to raise. Objects more strictly called 

 beautiful, are generally expressive of delicacy or ten- 

 derness ; and those which are called beautiful, from 

 analogy, and a certain relation to their objects, are 

 expressive of some valuable property, such as design, 

 fitness, proportion, or utility ; which may be called 

 beautiful, even when existing alone, but much more 

 so, when united with real beauty and grace. It re- 

 mains, before finishing the subject, that we say a few 

 words on the beautiful in human character, or on 

 what is properly termed intellectual and moral 

 beauty. 



There are many qualities of the mind which are 

 always considered as amiable, and excite affection in 

 those who contemplate them ; such are innocence, 

 condescension, humanity, natural affection, and the 

 whole train of the soft and gentle virtues. It is to 

 such qualities that the epithet of the beautiful in hu- 

 man character properly belongs ; and the analogy 

 between them and the properties in material objects 

 which are justly termed beautiful, is sufficiently ap- 

 parent, as both are expressive of delicacy or tender- 

 ness. There are, on the other hand, certain virtues 

 of the mind that raise admiration rather than affec- 

 tion ; and are therefore sublime rather than beauti- 

 ful; such as magnanimity, fortitude, self-command, 

 superiority to pain and labour, superiority to plea* 



