Pictorial Shakespeare, 1880-1890 - eTheses Repository - University ...

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for Haslet "th::t -ubtle chirm v;hioh the deep, r-hiloaophicol
intellect must ever find in the pure uncon;:ciov.n innocence and
wisdom of a guileless heart" (p.9)* The actress enjoyed a.
si^il;ir ascendancy in the eyes of "deep, philosophical" contemporaries;
after encounter with Oarlylo at the none of James
Anthony Proude in 1873» she wrote in her diary:
...he referred in glowing terms to mu Desdemona*
Anid much else, he said he had never felt the play
so deeply before. One phrase efspaclolly struck me -
11 It quite hurt ne to Dec the fair, delic'.te creature
so brutally used". Would that I coulr give an idea
of .ais tone and accent, ^ontle ;".ncl ti smulo' s, as if
a rufferine, living crreturn r;rs there brforo himKo
Tho heroine ,?trnds remote iro)\ the audience anO the other
dramatic characters, moving both to foelings of admiration,
and, more often,than not, pity.
'.illicja Archer reviewed the firrt edition of On Some of
Shakocpe.are * s__Feiaaler Char?cters in The TJaeatre, under ta>~ title
"Ophelia and Portia: A liable for Critics" (n.s.VI (July 18"5)
17-27). He suggested that an actor could only show one side of
a role r.t once, -corking "by selection rather i;Ii; .n "by comp.>ritive
r.nal,ycis of the rationalist critic - oacii essays as these had -
charm and a ccrtn.jn interest, but at best could 'contribute very
little tovvr'.rcLc a rational solution of critical -/roblenri" (p.18)
j-'.ltli-r.A.^h Hel'-n ',ucrl-i f s work had little to offer Archer, it did
exlii.ji-;; a rjejicit.vve ;'i-tictic torv^erariont v/hoco reflections, if
a little cl^-f-iRhionoj, had sone ^ffj.nity '/j.th the- egocentricity
of Aess-:;hi-t;ic.irjn. '?.l\c corporate identity of ohake; oo^re's
heroines v:rrr by no r^anr n for, TO "tori isi.-ue, and the continuing
existence of rictor r-.nd r.ct::-cr.B-centred tiie-.ti-o helped to -oerpetnr.to
it. It~ p.Tir>oal to r.nrvivinr "lonentf of rev: ivcici:.'.:-! in t;.o
fachior^^ble sensibility vvr-,c cvi'-'en-t;. To this 'i.lde* ^ connote to
:::ilcn Tcrr?,'r i?'. Poems (1881) foe".r vitness, as does Tiorian Crry f £i
a-p-.ircci.-.tion of Sybrl Vr.nc:
Light after ni^ht I ^o to cc-" Ler ^l--y» One
evonin.-; she irj Rosalind, t-nu ul^e next cvr-r.iii'_-
she ic Inorjei'1-. I -- i vc 3eon her :'io in the- ^lo^'n
of an Italian toinb, sucking the poicon from . LOT
iovcr*s lips. I have watche^ her v/fincloririj tlvrough
tho v'orc'ct" of Arden... I L.-VO ooe:?. hor in ev-ry age
and co!v'GU'!ie. Ordinary \/or.icn ^cvor aype.;! to ono's
imr:.ci:iotion. 'They -u^ li lited to tlioir centn.ry..,
/;u'b an ^Corossi How different --.n nc^r-usi' icf .'i-rryl
v'hy didn't you tell no tlirt thn only tAin/:, worth
loving is an -ctress?