Again, there are many colours which .derive ex pression from some analogy between them and ca., tain affections of the mind; on which account, they obtain the names of soft. or strong, mild or bold, gay or gloomy, cheerful or solemn, &c. And, last ly, 'there are many.colours which acquire character merely from accidental association. Thus 'purple has acquired a character of dignity, from its acci dental connection with the dress of kings. Black, in this country, indicates gravity; .and scarlet is con nected with military ideas. In other countries, the same colours are expressive of very different charac ters, because of different associations. Thus in Chi na, white isgloomy, because the colour allotted to mourning ; and yellow is the most dignified colour, because it is that allotted to the royal family. In ' Spain and Venice, on the contrary, black is a lively colour, because is this that distinguishes the dress of the great. All this serves very plainly to spew, that the character of colour depends more upon the qualities with which it is associated, than upon any thing inherent in its own nature.
That the beauty of colour is to be ascribed to ex pression, farther appears from this, .that those co lours which, in general, we call beautiful, cease to be so when associated with mean ideas ; and that the most indifferent colours become beautiful, in Conse quence of dignified associations. The colours which distinguish the dress of the common people are never considered as beautiful, although often the most brilliant of the rainbow; while those which are worn by the gay and the fashionable, become immediately pleasing, whatever may be the disagreeable associa tions with which they are more directly connected. " A plain man," says Mr Alison, " would scarcely believe, that the colours of a glass bottle, of a dead leaf, ,of clay, &c. could ever be beautiful; yet with in these few years, not only these, hut some much more unpleasant colours that might be mentioned, have been fashionable and admired. As soon, .how over, as the fashion changes, as soon as they whose rank or accomplishments give this fictitious value to the colours they wear, think proper to desert them, so soon the beauty of the colour is at an (Es say ii. ch. ii. sect. 2.) In the same manner, the co lours of common implements, or pieces of furniture, are never admired ; while those of mahogany, cedar, sattin-wood, &c. although far from ,naturally plea sing, are, on account of the costliness of the plate rials, preferred by .us to the most brilliant colours with which these valuable woods could be painted.
We come now to the beauty offornis, the most difficult branch of the subject, and that on which Mr Alison has exhibited the greatest portion of ori ginality and ingenuity. It. seems to have been im plicitly assumed by all preceding inquirers into the characteristics of beauty, that some forms were es sentially, and, by .thei• very nature, more beautiful than others ; hence the ideal line of beauty and of grace,—the serpentine, and gradually curling outline of Mr Hogarth and his followers. Mr Alison seems completely to have proved, that forms are beautiful, solely in consequence of association, and of the qua lities of which they are expressive ; that all forms are beautiful which are expressive of delicacy or ten derness; that the angular form, ,when it has this expression, is reckoned as beautiful as the curvili near ; and that the curvilinear, when. it is deprived
of this expression, ceases any longer to be beautiful.
The cause of the general prejudice in favour of the winding line, as constituting the line of beauty, is thus satisfactorily explained by Mr Ali son: " The greater part of those bodies in nature, which possess hardness, strength, or durability, are distinguished by angular forms. The greater part of those bodies, on the contrary, which possess weakness, fragility, or delicacy, are .distinguished by winding or curvilinear forms. In the mineral kingdom, all rocks, stones, and metals, the hardest and most durable bodies we know, assume universal ly angular forms. In the vegetable kingdom, all strong and durable plants are in general ed by similar forms. The feebler and more delicate race of vegetables, on the contrary, are mostly tinguished by winding forms. In the animal king dom, in the same manner, strong and powerful ani mals are generally characterised by angular forms : feeble and ,delicate animals, by forms of contrary kind. Ise of this very general tion in nature, these different forms become expres give to us of the different qualities of and delicacy. In all those bodies which haye,a progress, or which grow and decay within our own observa tion, the same character of form is observable. In the vegetable kingdom, the infancy or youth aplants is in general distinguished ,by winding forms. The infancy and yonth,of animals is, in the same manner, distinguished by winding or serpentine forms. Their • • • • mature and perfect age, by forms more direct and angular. In consequence of this connection, forms of the first kind become in such cases expressiye to us of infancy, and tenderness, and ,delicacy ; and those of the second kind of maturity, and strength, ?Rid ,vigour. Besides these very obvions associa ions, it is also to be obseryed, that, from the ,sense of touch, angular forms are expressive to us of rongline„ss, sharpness, harshness; winding forms, op the contrary, of softness, smoothness, delicacy, and and this connection is so permanent, that immediately infer the existence of these ,qualities when .the bodies are only perceived by the eye. There is a very strong analogy between ties as are perceived by the sense of touch, and certain qualities of mind, as in all languages such are expressed by terms drawn from the perceptions of the external sense. Such forms, therefore, when presented to the eye, not only lead us to infer those material qualities which are perceived by the sense of touch, but, along with these, to infer also those qualities.of mind, which, from analogy, are signified by such ,qualities of .matter ; and to feel frdm them some degree of that emotion which these dispositions of mind themselves are fitted to produce." Essay ii. ch. iv. sect. 1. part g.