MATHEW ARNOLD

The Function of Criticism at the Present Time


Still, in full measure, the sense of creative activity belongs only to genuine creation; in literature we must never forget that. But what true man of letters ever can forget it? It is no such common matter for a gifted nature to come into possession of a current of true and living ideas, and to produce amidst the inspiration of them, that we are likely to underrate it. The epochs of Æschylus and Shakespeare make us feel their preëminence. In an epoch like those is, no doubt, the true life of literature; there is the promised land, towards which criticism can only beckon. That promised land it will not be ours to enter, and we shall die in the wilderness: but to have desired to enter it, to have saluted it from afar, is already, perhaps, the best distinction among contemporaries; it will certainly be the best title to esteem with posterity.

Alina Roxana Fati (Chirila)

Mathew Arnold
 

Functia criticii in prezent

Sensul activitatii creatoare inca apartine, in mare masura, doar creatiei originale; acest aspect nu trebuie uitat niciodata in literatura. Dar ce umanist convins poate uita acest lucru? Nu este ceva obisnuit ca o natura inzestrata sa stapaneasca un curent de idei adevarate si vii, si sa produca, inspirat fiind de acestea, ceva ce este posibil sa subestimam. Epocile lui Eschil si Shakespeare ne fac sa le simtim superioritatea. Adevarata viata a literaturii se afla cu siguranta intr-o astfel de epoca; acolo se afla taramul promis, spre care critica poate doar sa faca cu mana. Noi nu vom putea patrunde in acel taram promis, si vom sfarsi in salbaticie: dar simpla dorinta de a-l patrunde, de a-l saluta de la distanta, este probabil cea mai inalta distinctie printre contemporani; va fi cu siguranta cel mai bun titlu de pretuit de catre posteritate.