The collected works of William Hazlitt, Vol. 07 (of 12)Hazlitt, William
General
The collected works of William Hazlitt, Vol. 07 (of 12)
Hazlitt, William
English essays -- 19th century
No more, than a person possessed of the general organ of sight must be
acquainted equally with all objects of sight, whether they have ever
fallen in his way, or whether he has studied them or not. But it is
according to all experience, that some persons are distinguished more by
memory, others more by judgment, others more by imagination, generally
speaking. That is, upon whatever subject they exercise their attention,
they show the same turn of mind or predominating faculty. Some people do
every thing from impulse. It is their character under all impressions
and in all studies and pursuits. Is there then an organ of impulse? An
organ of tune is intelligible, because it denotes a general faculty
exercised upon a particular class of impressions, _viz._ sounds. But
what is an organ of wit? It means nothing; for it denotes a faculty
without any specific objects: and yet _an organ_ means a faculty limited
to specific objects. Wit is the faculty of combining suddenly and
glancing over the whole range of art and nature; but an organ is shut up
in a particular cell of sensation, and sees nothing beyond itself.
‘One has a great memory of one kind,’ proceeds our author, ‘and a very
little memory of other things.’
Yes, partly from habit, but chiefly, I grant, from original character;
not because certain things strike upon a certain part of the brain, but
touch a certain quality or disposition of the mind. Thus, some remember
trifles, others things of importance. Some retain forms, others
feelings. Some have a memory of words, others of things. Some remember
what regards their own interests, others what is interesting in itself,
according to the bias and scope of their sensibility. All these results
depend evidently not on a particular local impression, but on a variety
of general causes combined in one common effect. Again: ‘a poet
possesses one kind of imagination in a high degree; but has he therefore
every kind of imagination, as that of inventing machines, of composing
music, &c.?’ Page 275.
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