U N I 



U N I 



The two impoflible cxpreffions of the \/ \ may be thus 

 found : let x = i, then x'^ = i, or k' — I = o, and x— \ 

 = o. Divide k' — . i by j? — i, the quotient is «x + .v + 

 1 = 0, orx« + K= — I. Refolve this quadratic equa- 



'3 



■ 4» 



tion, by adding \ to both fides. Then ;« x + a- + 5 : 

 and extrafting the fquare root, K + i= y — | = 



V 



Therefore x =: 



- I + ^/ 



+ ^/-f = 



» ± A^ - 3 



That is, 



, and X ^ 



— I 



:iL__i. Sec Mac. 



laiirin's Algebra, p. 128. 226. 



Unity, among Divina. The Romanifts, and the re- 

 formed, iifpute, whether or not the church be one fingle 

 body, all the members of which are joined together, either 

 reaHy, or in inclination ; fo that whatever does not apper- 

 tain to that body, is no part of the church ; which is what 

 they call the unity of the church ; and which the Romanifts 

 maintain to be reftrained to one fingle fociety, or one com- 

 munion, under one vifible head ; and out of which the Pro- 

 teftants are excluded. Thcfe laft, on the contrary, hold, 

 that the unity of the church may Hill fubfift, without the 

 members being united under any one vifible head ; it being 

 fufficient, that all Chriflians be united by the bonds of mu- 

 tual love and charity ; and that they be agreed in the funda- 

 mental points of religion. 



All the difficulty is, to fix what thofe fundamentals are ; 

 fome inclining to make the door of the church wider than 

 others. See Ukiformity. 



Unity, in Poetry. In the drama there are three unities 

 to be obferved ; the unity of adlon, that of time, and that 

 of place. 



In the epic poem, the great and almoft only unity is that 

 of the aftion. Some regard, indeed, ought to be had to 

 that of time : but that of place there is no room for. The 

 unity of charafter is not reckoned among the unities. 



The unity of the dramatic aftion confifts in the unity of 

 the intrigue in comedy, and that of the danger in tragedy ; 

 and this not only in the plan of the fable, but alfo in the 

 fable extended and filled with epifodes. 



The epifodes are to be worked in, without corrupting 

 the imity, or forming a double aftion ; and the feveral 

 members are to be fo connefted together, as to be con- 

 fiftent with that continuity of aAion fo neceffary to the 

 body ; and which Horace prefcribes, when he fays, " fit 

 quodvis fimplex duntaxat et unum." 



The unity of the epic aftion, M. Dacier obferves, does 

 not con fill in the unity of the hero, or in the unity of his 

 charafter and manners ; though thofe be circumftances ne- 

 ceffary to it. The unity of aflion requires, that there be 

 but one principal aftion, of which all the reft are to be in- 

 cidents, or dependencies. 



F. BofFu afligns three things requifite to it : the firft, 

 that no epifode be ufed, but what is fetched from the plan 

 and ground of the aftion, and which is a natural member 

 of that body : the fecond, that thefe epifodes and members 

 be well connefted with each other : the third is, not to finilh 

 any epifode, fo as it may appear a whole aftion ; but to let 

 each be always feen in its quality of member of the body, 

 and an unfiniihed oart. 



The fame excellent critic examines the jEncid, Iliad, and 

 Odyfley, with refpeft to thefe rules, and finds them ftriftly 

 obferved. Indeed, it was from the conduft of thofe divine 

 poems, that he took the hint of the rules therafelves. In- 



ftances in which thefe rules are all neglefted, ue gives us in 

 Statius's Thebaid. 



To the unity of time, it is required, in the drama, that 

 the aftion be included in the fpace of a day. Ariftotle fays 

 exprefsly, it muft not exceed the time the fun employs in 

 making one revolution, which is a natural day, under pain 

 of irregularity : fome critics will even have it included in 

 the fpace of twelve hours, or an artificial day. 



Indeed, the ancient tragic poets fometimes difpenfed with 

 this rule ; and many of the modern Englifli ones difallow 

 it : and \ery few of them praftife it. 



In the epic poem, the unity of time is ftill lefs eftablifhed. 

 In effeft, there is no fixing the time of its duration ; in re- 

 gard, the warmer and more violent the aftion is, the lefs 

 muft be its continuance ; whence it is, that the Iliad, re- - 

 prefenting the anger of Achilles, only contains forty-feven 

 days at moft ; whereas the aftion of the OdyfTey holds 

 eight years and a half, and that of the jEneid almoft feven 

 years. 



But the length of the poem Ariftotle gives us a rule for ; 

 which is, that it be fuch as that it may be read over in one 

 day : pretending, that if it exceeds that compafs, the ima- 

 gination will be bewildered in it, and that one cannot fee 

 the end, without having loft the idea of the beginning. 



As to the unity of place and fcene, neither Horace nor 

 Ariftotle give us any rules relating to them. It were to be 

 wifhed, indeed, that what is prefented to the audience on 

 the fame ftage, whicli is never ftiifted, might be fuppofed 

 to have pafted in the fame houfe, and the fame apartment. 

 But as fuch a conftraint would cramp the poet too much ; 

 and as fuch an uniformity would fuit very ill with abundance 

 of fubjefts ; it has been agreed, that what paffes any where 

 in the fame town or city, (hall be allowed for unity of 

 place. At leatt, if two different places be unavoidable ; 

 yet the place is never to be changed in the fame aft. 



Shakfpeare, it is well known, paid no regard to the 

 unities of time and place. On this fubjeft Dr. Johnfon 

 obferves, in the preface to his edition of Shakfpeare's plays, 

 that perhaps a nearer view of the principles on which they 

 ftand will diminilTi their value, and withdraw from them the 

 veneration which, from the time of Corneille, they have 

 very generally received, by difcovering that they have given 

 more trouble to the poet than pleafure to the auditor. 



As nothing is efTential to the fable but unity of aftion, 

 and as the unities of time and place arife evidently from 

 falfe afiumptions, and by circumfcribing the extent of the 

 drama, lefiens its variety, Dr. Johnfon does not think we 

 need much lament their not being known or not obferved 

 by Shakfpeare. 



He adds, as the refult of his enquiries, that the unities 

 of time and place are not eflential to a juft drama ; that 

 though they may fometimes conduce to pleafure, they are 

 always to be facrificed to the nobler beauties of variety and 

 inftruftion ; and that a play written with nice obfervations 

 of critical rules, is to be contemplated as an elaborate 

 curiofity, as the produft of fuperlluous and oftentatious 

 art, by which is Ihewn rather what is poilible than what is 

 neceffary. 



He that, without diminution of any other excellence, 

 fhall preferve all the unities unbroken, deferves the like ap- 

 plaufe with the architeft, who fhall difplay all the orders of 

 architefture in a citadel, without any deduftion from its 

 ftrength ; but the pnncipal beauty of a citadel is to exclude 

 the enemy ; and the greateft graces of a play are to copy 

 nature and inftruft life. 



Unity of Poffeffon, in Laiu, fignifies a joint pofTeflion 

 of two riglits, by feveral titles. 



Thus, 



