272 
NOV 
peculiarity of feature as renders it rather an individual 
than a general picture. But the ltrongeft and molt un¬ 
doubted obje&ion to novels, arifes from the effects which 
the perulal of them produce's on the mental faculties and 
the literary talle : during it the mind is nearly paffive ; a 
lounging, delultory, habit of reading, is acquired ; fo 
that, when works are to be perufed which require clofe 
and regular attention, and a judgment conltantly on the 
alert, to follow and comprehend the author’s obferva- 
tions and arguments, the mind is found unequal to the 
tafk. The literary tafte wiil fuffer equally, except the 
reading be confined to a very few felect novels. Unlefs, 
therefore, the habits of clofe, aCtive, and vigorous, atten¬ 
tion, are of a very powerful and predominating nature, 
and the tafte has been modelled to correctnefs and purity, 
by longand regulardifcipline, novels ought to be avoided. 
Where thefe preparatives exift, their perufal cannot do 
harm: it will intereft, if it does not inftruCfc; it will ne¬ 
ver be indulged in to an improper extent; and it will re- 
ftore th.e mind to more lober and ufefui ftudies with 
greater relifli and renewed frefhnefs. 
NOV'EL DISSE'ISIN. See Assise, vol. ii. p. 286. 
'NOVEL'DA, a town of Spain, in the province of Va¬ 
lencia: fifteen miles weft of Alicant. 
NOV'ELISM, f. [from novel.] Innovation.—The other 
three pofitions are difciplinarian in the prefentway oi no- 
vellifm. Sir E. Deering's Speeches. 
NOV'ELIST, /! [from novel.'] Innovator; afiertor of 
novelty. In this fenfe the word was alfo written noveller. 
—Telelius, who hath renewed the philofophy of Parme¬ 
nides, is the beft of novelijls. Bacon's Nat. Hijl. —The fa¬ 
thers of this fynod were not fchifmatical, or noveli/is, in 
the matter of the fabbath. White. —They ought to keep 
that day, which thefe novellers teach us to contemn. Bp. 
Hall's Remains. 
Ariftotle rofe, 
Who nature's fecrets to the world did teach, 
Yet that great foul our novelijls impeach. Denham. 
A writer of news. Not now in nfe. —My contemporaries, 
the novelijls, have, for the better fpinning-out paragraphs, 
and working down to the end of their columns, a moft 
happy art in faying and unfaying, giving hints of intelli¬ 
gence, and .interpretations of indifferent aCtions, to the 
great difturbance of the brains of ordinary readers. Taller , 
ft 0 178.—A writer of novels, or tales. A modern vfage of 
the word. —The beft ftories of the early and original Italian 
novelifts, appeared in an Englifh d ref's, before the clofe of 
the reign of Elizabeth. Warton's Hijl. E. P. —Our novelijls, 
like Sam Foote in his farces, often touch upon real cha¬ 
racters. Pegg's Anonym. 
To NOV'ELIZE, v. a. To innovate ; to change by in¬ 
troducing novelties.—The novelizing fpirit of man lives 
by variety, and the new faces of things. Broivn's Chr. 
Mor. —The Holy Scriptures fliould be interpreted not by 
novelizing humourifts, but by the primitive fathers and 
councils. Arnway's Tablet of Mod. 1661. 
NOVEL'LA>_/i in botany. See Cordia and Hibiscus. 
NOVEL'LzE. Thofe conftitutions of the civil law, 
which were made after the publication of the Theodofian 
code, were called Novellas by the emperors wdio ordained 
them; but fome writers call the Julian edition only by 
that name. See Novel, p. 267. 
NOVELLA'RA. See Novallera. 
NOV'ELNESS, f. The ftate of being new ; novelty. 
NOV'ELTY, f. [ nouveltc , old Fr.] Newnefs; ftate of 
being unknown to former times.—They which do that 
wdiich men of account did before them, are, although 
they do amifs, yet the lefs faulty, becaufe they are not the 
authors of harm ; and, doing well, their addons are freed 
from prejudice or novelty. Hooker. — Frefhnefs; recent- 
nefs; newnefs with refpect to a particular perfon.— No¬ 
velty is only in requefl; and it is dangerous to be aged in 
any kind of courfe. Shahrfpcare's Meaf. for Metf. —As re¬ 
ligion entertains our (peculations with great objects, fo 
NOV 
it entertains them with new; and novelti/ is the great pa¬ 
rent of pleafure; upon which account it is, that men are 
fo much pleaded wit!) variety. South. 
Of all the circumftances that raife emotions, not ex¬ 
cepting beauty, nor even greatnefs, fays lord Karnes, no¬ 
velty hath the moft powerful influence. A new objeft 
produces inftantaneoujly an emotion termed wonder, which 
totally occupies the mind, and for a time excludes all 
other objeds. Converfation among the vulgar never is 
more interefting than when it turns upon ft range objects 
and extraordinary events. Men tear tbemfelves from 
their native country in fearch of tilings rare and new; 
and novelty converts into a pleafure the fatigues, and even 
perils, of travelling. To what caufe fnall weaferibe thefe 
lingular appearances ? To curioiity undoubtedly ; a prin¬ 
ciple implanted in human nature fora purpofe extremely 
beneficial, that of acquiring knowledge ; and the emo¬ 
tion of wonder, railed by new and ftrange objeds, inflames 
our curiofity to know more of fuch objects. This emo¬ 
tion is different from admiration : novelty, wherever found, 
whether in a quality or aCtion, is the caufe of wonder; 
admiration is direded to the perfon who performs any 
thing wonderful. 
The defire of novelty is introduced by the flatnefs or 
infipidity of uniform imoreffions or vibrations long con¬ 
tinued. Change and variety are neceffary to the enjoy¬ 
ment of pleafure, and muft therefore powerfully operate 
on the taftes and fafliions of mankind. By an inceflant 
third: for novelty, a corrupt tafte in writing, elocution, 
painting, and fculpture, has been introduced; and it is 
eflential to trace its operation, in order to guard againft 
the follies of fafhion, and to preferve what Mr. Knight 
calls “ a juft feeling and a diferiminsting ta 6 l," in fpite 
of the caprices of the age in which we live. Mr. Knight’s 
view of this fubject iscorred and important:- “Though 
the paflion for novelty has been the principal means of 
corrupting tafte, it has alfo been'a principal means of po- 
lilhing and perfecting it ; for, imitation being in itfelf 
pleafing, men are always delighted with the beft lpeci- 
mens which they have feen of it, be they ever fo bad ; 
and it is merely the defire of fomething new, and not any 
pre-conccived idea of fomething better, that urges them 
on to feek for improvement. As long as this reftlefs de¬ 
fire of novelty can reltrain itfelf, in imitative art, to the 
imitation of real genuine nature, it will only tend to real 
improvement, and limit its gratifications to varieties of 
perfection, and degrees of refinement; but, when it calls 
upon invention to ufurp the place of imitation, or fub- 
ftitute to genuine or merely embellifhed nature, nature 
fophifticated and corrupted by artificial habits, it imme¬ 
diately produces vice, and extravagance of manner.” 
In every fpecies of creatures, (fays the Spectator,) thofe 
who have been leaft time in the world appear beft pleafed 
with their condition ; for, befides that to a new-comer 
the world hath a fieflir.efs on it that ftrikes the fenfe after 
a moft agreeable manner, being itfelf unattended with 
any great variety of enjoyments, excites a fenfation of 
pleafure. But, as age advances, every thing feems to 
wither, the fenfes are difgufted with their old entertain¬ 
ments, and exiftence turns fiat and infipid. We may fee 
this exemplified in mankind : the child, let him be free 
from pain, and gratified in his change of toys, is diverted 
with the fmalleft trifle. Nothing difturbs the mirth of 
the boy, but a little punifhment or confinement. The 
youth muft have more violent pleafures to employ his 
time ; the man loves the hurry of an aCtive life, devoted 
to the purfuits of U'ealth or ambition ; and, laftly, old 
age, having loft its capacity for thefe avocations, becomes 
its own unfupportable burden. This variety may in part 
be accounted for by the vivacity and decay of the facul¬ 
ties ; but I believe is chiefly owing to this, that the longer 
we have been in poffeffion of being, the lefs fenfible is the 
guft we have of it, and the more it requires of adventi¬ 
tious amufements to relieve us from thelatiety and weari- 
nefs it brings along with it. 
4 Novelty 
