MR. GOSSE ON POETRY AND NOVELS.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1593, 9 November 1912, Page 9

MR. GOSSE ON POETRY AND NOVELS.

;; Mr..Edmund Gosse; poet, essayist, and critic, has just completed his' sixty-third year. In', his time he has occupied a number of official posts, including those- of Assistant Librarian of the British MuTranslator to the Board ot Trade, ami Clark-Lecturer .on English Literature,at Trinity College,.Cambridge, where he succeeded the late Sir Leslie Stephen.. For many years he has been Chief. Libra; rian to-,the House of Lords; ,' ■-■'' His "bag'a'g'e- litteraire" is' not'nearly so largo.probably as it-would'have.been-had not. so. much rif his:.liuio,;beeh'; taken, up Vr departmental "work', .but for,aU.that'it is,considerable,;and;he.;has achieved a large measure''of success./ His poems and essays : in 'criticism-..hayo"not, probably'-had; '.a... very large sate—few, of the -works of our modern poets and critics have" that- his "Father ; and Soti,", .a' study- of ~two. temperaments.'''founded,on', actual experience,- and. bearing unmistakably the impress of lTuth, ; has.achieved such popular-, ity 'that fourteen:,thousand copied..havo been'.'dispased of. .--. - -'•••v,-i r '■'• '•' 1 A', representative -of .the.:.'.. Morning Post"- : talk'ed",with - Mr.>. Gosse recently -at his :hou'se,'which Vcommands"' extensive views:over: Regent's Park:'-.'.',.."T0", mo;"-,he says,-':"theWis.: ; no-place-like ;.Londoii, partly, perhaps because" I. was born. wituin:the: sound of Bow;Bells,;although'the. greater-part of my childhood'.was. spent inv ? th'e -West' Country. \ London is-not only full :of- interest, - but in-certain parts' full of'beauty;"' '-' ■ ••. "■'.''''."'.. i'^ ,' : ■ Mr. ; . Gbsse.yit is well-known, was the first to'introduce'' the dramatic works ,uf 1)1.. .Henrik': Ibsen to English readers;-if mot to English audiences., , For: all -that,. however, lie. is, iofc' inclined to say, much.'on -the'subject of theMrabia.,".' ",■'■'.■'";'..' "' ! "1 am hardly in sympathy,".' he'says,. "with the drama, of the, present day; ot course, with certain exceptions. -. .'ln'.fact,,, I -rarely' : visit' the theatre, although. I- did go the other night to see 'Hindle Wiikes/ which, I consider "in many ways a noteworthy., production. That, - - however; :: is-an exception;' l : For: myself, 'I may tell' you I "care' only, for a ; pices which maintains a. thesis of some sort or .other, what -people -usually;, call a prpb-lein'-play.': . -,;',-■ ,"• ~, .'. ■' l"Tne subject of poetry greatly interests me;..'l lovepo'fctryy'but l.am .bound to say. that-in my the best poetry has;all been written. The,ordinary natural forms- of; poetical' speech - I haye'.,.been. exhausted; 'As a' result, the'y'burig'pbet. who is familiar' with 'eveiy. possible, inodo of expression that;has been employed.by writers, in. :the~'past'"fee'ls""that-he is not allowed-to' nse>-sufficieiitly-natural and obvious expressions, .■ All .that' is left to •him, thereiore,'' is either to. be;very, violent or. very obscure,- -and I..am afraid thatthis difficulty:is not; a;.-mere passing one,-but ; 'will.inore and more'fatally affect: those 'people' who. write in.languages like Ruglisii arid French, which are worn and rubbed as it-were bf use, like:coins that have long been current. . ••■'■;.. •"In consequence, I anticipate, judging, of course, merely from-analogy,-,that the, poetry ° £ tne -future will be largely written in languages which have been subjected to less wear and tear,; languages which have not so extensive and ;coniphcated a.literature, and,in which simple things can still be" said without affecta-. tion.;' and ,without r repetition.: These ideas/ I. need hardly say, are extremely speculative, and they might .be' upset; at any moment -by.'.the uprising; of a. very great genius,, who-would triumph over difficulties that seem 'insurmountable, and present language in a'new'form; only, 1, for one, feel sure ; that every generation that goes by,-makes-tho:'chance.-of, such an event more and more difficult-to conceive. -An'enormous amount,of poetrymil continue no doubt to' be produced, much :of it excellent.'- up.to. a certain point, but'it will become more anymore difficult for the poet to;re'aea the highest degree-of effectiveness. ; '-; "In : these-latter days the number of readers is very large, but the public that really matters to an author of any character and/distinction is always small one. If- yori! take the literature that such iicopleread, you will, come to the conclusion that the :poets:have by far the most important part in-the discipline and training-of the- English mind, whereas the novelists-play a;very small -part-..in-deed. Of : course,'- there :are novels that are.literature,- that appeal-to the intellect of cultivated -people, but -, the, great mass of- novels, that have a temporary, success really represent''. no . expenditure ot mental .energy at a 11."... '.';-.