Principle in Art, Etc. — Key Ideas to Explore

Criticism as Intellectual Judgment

Patmore insists that criticism requires 'judicial qualification,' not merely a natural sensitiveness to beauty. He likens bad art to steam in a cylinder that collapses at the contact of cold water—true criticism, he claims, can collapse bad art 'at the contact of its breath.' This mechanistic metaphor underscores his belief that criticism is a rigorous, almost scientific discipline. He laments that the past half-century has produced floods of pseudo-criticism that expand our sensations rather than rebuke our ignorance. For Patmore, the enunciation of a single principle can 'almost at a blow' transform the artistic landscape. This opening essay sets the tone for the entire volume: a defense of principled, intellectual judgment over impressionistic appreciation.

Clough’s Character Over His Verse

In his essay on Arthur Hugh Clough, Patmore makes a striking concession: Clough’s writings 'teach no new truth,' yet they may 'inflame the love of truth.' Patmore attributes Clough’s posthumous reputation not to literary merit but to his personal character. He writes that Clough 'was personally far more impressive than his works,' and that 'the halo of this sanctity hangs... about all that he has done, and renders cold criticism of it almost impossible.' Patmore diagnoses Clough’s weakness as an excess of the 'impressionable and feminine element' over masculine intellectual power. The result, he argues, is a poetry of endless lamentation over problems that cannot sing. This section reveals Patmore’s willingness to separate the man from the work, and his preference for intellectual tenacity over emotional sincerity.

The Limits of Genius and the Negative Type

Patmore’s essay 'The Limitations of Genius' and his treatment of 'The Poetry of Negation' extend his critique of intellectual weakness. He dismisses Emerson as 'at his very best... only a brilliant metaphysical epigrammatist,' never approaching greatness. Clough, he notes, was 'curiously attracted' to Emerson, a fact that underscores Clough’s own lack of intellectual power. Patmore contrasts the negative type—those who can see no light where light is most necessary—with the believer who, like Richard Hooker, finds comfort in the longing to believe. For Patmore, the true poet must possess 'the tenacity of spirit which cleaves to and assimilates the truth when it is found.' This insistence on moral and intellectual commitment shapes his judgments throughout the collection.

Architectural Principles and the Unity of Art

The final essays turn to architecture, where Patmore applies the same principles of intellectual judgment. In 'Architectural Styles,' he summarizes views he had stated thirty years earlier in the Edinburgh Review, offering what he hopes will be 'an example of the kind of criticism' he advocates. He treats architecture as a test case for his broader theory: that art must be governed by principle, not by mere taste or fashion. The essay on 'Ideal and Material Greatness in Architecture' continues this theme, arguing that true greatness arises from the union of ideal conception and material execution. Patmore’s architectural criticism is less well-known than his literary essays, but it demonstrates the consistency of his method across different arts.

Patmore’s Principle in Art, Etc. rewards readers who share his appetite for rigorous, often combative criticism. His judgments are specific and grounded in a clear hierarchy of values: intellectual power over emotional susceptibility, principled judgment over impressionistic delight. Readers should approach these essays as a series of provocations rather than a systematic treatise. Patmore’s voice is distinctive—sometimes arrogant, often perceptive—and his willingness to rank and dismiss makes him a bracing companion for anyone interested in Victorian aesthetic debates.

Patmore’s insistence on moral integrity in art reminds me how rarely criticism feels like a quiet conviction rather than a performance. That same earnest, searching quality seems to inhabit The Altruist in Politics — Background and Themes, where principle wrestles with practice. I recall reading both in different seasons, each leaving a faint, lasting ache for coherence.