Nothing of the sort; it is cold, correct, pretentious,
but decent. In the Revolution, during its most horrible periods,
when tragedy, as was said, ran the streets, what were the theatres
offering you? Scenes of humanity, of beneficence, of
sentimentality; in January, 1793, during the trial of Louis XVI.,
La Belle Fermiere, a rural and sentimental play; under the Empire,
the reign of glory and conquest, the drama was neither warlike nor
exultant; under the Restoration, a pacific government, the stage
was invaded by lancers, warriors, and military costumes; Thalia
wore epaulettes. The theatre is rarely the expression of society;
it is often the opposite."
Scribe was an exception to the rule thus laid down by him. The
Theatre de Madame is an exact painting of the manners, the ideas,
the language of the Parisian bourgeoisie in the reign of Charles
X. Villemain was right in saying to Scribe, on receiving him at
the Academy:--
"The secret of your success with the theatre lies in having
happily seized the spirit of your century and in making the sort
of comedies to which it is best adapted and which most resemble
it."
The world that the amiable and ingenious author excels in
representing, is that of finance and the middle classes; it is the
society of the Chaussee d'Antin, rather than that of the Faubourg
Saint Germain. His Gymnase repertory is of the Left Centre, the
juste milieu, nearer the National Guard than the royal guard.
Pages:
241
242
243
244
245
246
247
248
249
250
251
252
253
254
255
256
257
258
259
260
261
262
263
264
265