to the German Heine and the Frenchman Joubert as to
Wordsworth. Arnold further insists that Frenchmen should study English
literature for its serious ethical spirit, and that Englishmen would
be benefited by a study of the lightness, precision, and polished form
of French literature.

Arnold's object in all his criticism is to discover the best in both
prose and poetry, and his method of attaining this object is another
illustration of his scholarship and mental reach. He says in his
_Introduction to Ward's English Poets_:--

"Indeed, there can be no more useful help for discovering what
poetry belongs to the class of the truly excellent, and can
therefore do us most good, than to have always in one's mind lines
and expressions of the great masters, and to apply them as a
touchstone to other poetry."

When Arnold seeks to determine an author's true place in literature,
his keen critical eye seems to see at a glance all the world's great
writers, and to compare them with the man under discussion. In order
to ascertain Wordsworth's literary stature, for example, Arnold
measures the height of Wordsworth by that of Homer, of Dante, of
Shakespeare, and of Milton.

Another essential quality of the critical mind that Arnold possessed
is "sweet reasonableness." His judgments of men are marked by a
moderation of tune. His strong predilections are sometimes shown, but
they are more often restrained by a clear, honest intellect. Arnold's
calm, measured criticisms are not marred by such stout partisanship as
Macaulay shows for the Whigs, by the hero worship that Carlyle
expresses, or by the exaggerated praise and blame that Ruskin
sometimes bestows. On the other hand, Arnold loses what these men
gain; for while his intellect is less biased than theirs, it is also
less colored and less warmed by the glow of feeling.

The analytical quality of Arnold's mind shows the spirit of the age.
His subjects are minutely classified and defined. Facts seem to divide
naturally into brigades, regiments, and battalions of marching order.
His literary criticisms note subtleties of style, delicate shadings in
expression, and many technical excellences and errors that Carlyle
would have passed over unheeded. In addition to the _Essays in
Criticism,_ the other works of Arnold that possess his fine critical
dualities in highest degree are _On Translating Homer_ (1861) and _The
Study of Celtic Literature_ (1867).

General Characterist