The Analysis of Beauty

William Hogarth

• Publisher: Dover Publications
• Year: 2015
• ISBN:
  9780486804767
• Topic: Art
• Subtopic: Art Theory & Criticism

English artist William Hogarth (1697–1764) is most famous for his satirical caricatures and moral paintings, the forerunners of cartoons. In this instructive volume, the august painter and engraver discusses and illustrates the use of serpentine lines in the expression of grace and beauty. Hogarth defines six qualities — fitness, variety, regularity, simplicity, intricacy, and quantity — and dramatizes their effective combination in images that employ S-shaped lines.
Originally published in 1753 with the subtitle, "Written with a View of Fixing the Fluctuating Ideas of Taste, " Hogarth's book addresses the general public, not just artists and connoisseurs. More than 30 striking black-and-white plates trace visual and formal applications of the serpentine line of beauty, portraying subjects as diverse as everyday objects, examples from nature, and classical sculpture and other works by the great masters. A revolutionary approach to art theory by an experienced painter, this historic book offers fascinating insights into ideals of beauty and aesthetics.

CHAPTER XVII

OF ACTION

To the amazing variety of forms made still infinitely more various in appearance by light, shade, and color, nature has added another way of increasing that variety, still more to enhance the value of all her compositions. This is accomplished by means of action; the fullest display of which is put into the power of the human species, and which is equally subject to the same principles with regard to the effects of beauty, or the reverse, as govern all the former compositions; as is partly seen in chapter XI on proportion. My business here shall be, in as concise a manner as possible, to particularize the application of these principles to the movement of the body and therewith finish this system of variety in forms and actions.

There is no one but would wish to have it in his power to be genteel and graceful in the carriage of his person, could it be attained with little trouble and expense of time. The usual methods relied on for this purpose among well-bred people, takes up a considerable part of their time: even those of the first rank have no other resource in these matters, than to dancing-masters, and fencing-masters: dancing and fencing are undoubtedly proper, and very necessary accomplishments; yet are they frequently very imperfect in bringing about the business of graceful deportment. For although the muscles of the body may attain a pliancy by these exercises, and the limbs, by the elegant movement in dancing, acquire a facility in moving gracefully, yet, for want of knowing the meaning of every grace, and whereon it depends, affectations and misapplications often follow.

Action is a sort of language which perhaps, one time or other, may come to be taught by a kind of grammar rules; but, at present, is only got by rote and imitation: and, contrary to most other copyings or imitations, people of rank and fortune generally excel their originals, the dancing-masters, in easy behavior and unaffected grace; as a sense of superiority makes them act without constraint; especially when their persons are well turned. If so, what can be more conducive to that freedom and necessary courage which make acquired grace seem easy and natural, than the being able to demonstrate when we are actually just and proper in the least movement we perform; whereas, for want of such certainty in the mind, if one of the most finished gentlemen at court were to appear as an actor on the public stage, he would find himself at a loss how to move properly, and be stiff, narrow, and awkward, in representing even his own character: the uncertainty of being right would naturally give him some of that restraint which the uneducated common people generally have when they appear before their betters.

It is known that bodies in motion always describe some line or other in the air, as the whirling round of a fire-brand apparently makes a circle, the waterfall part of a curve, the arrow and bullet, by the swiftness of their motions, nearly a straight line; waving lines are formed by the pleasing movement of a ship on the waves. Now in order to obtain a just idea of action, at the same time to be judiciously satisfied of being in the right in what we do, let us begin with imagining a line formed in the air by any supposed point at the end of a limb or part that is moved, or made by the whole part, or limb; or by the whole body together. And that thus much of movements may be conceived at once is evident, on the least recollection, for whoever has seen a fine Arabian war horse, unbacked and at liberty, and in a wanton trot, cannot but remember what a large waving line his rising, and at the same time pressing forward, cuts through the air; the equal continuation of which, is varied by his curveting from side to side; while his long mane and tail play about in serpentine movements.

After thus having formed the idea of all movements being as lines, it will not be difficult to conceive, that grace in action depends upon the same principles as have been shown to produce it in forms.

The next thing that offers itself to our consideration is the force of habit and custom in action; for a great deal depends thereon.

The peculiar movements of each person, as the gait in walking, are particularized in such lines as each part describes by the habits they have contracted. The nature and power of habit may be fully conceived by the following familiar instance, as the motions of one part of the body may serve to explain those of the whole.

Observe that whatever habit the fingers get in the use of the pen, you see exactly delineated to the eye by the shapes of the letters. Were the movements of every writer’s fingers to be precisely the same, one hand-writing would not be known from another, but as the fingers naturally fall into, or acquire different habits of moving, every handwriting is visibly different. Which movements must tally with the letters, though they are too quick and too small to be as perfectly traced by the eye; but this shows what nice differences are caused, and constantly retained, by habitual movements.

It may be remarked, that all useful habitual motions, such as are readiest to serve the necessary purposes of life, are those made up of plain lines, i. e. straight and circular lines, which most animals have in common with mankind, though not in so extensive a degree: the monkey from his make has it sufficiently in his power to be graceful, but as reason is required for this purpose, it would be impossible to bring him to move genteelly.

Though I have said that the ordinary actions of the body are performed in plain lines, I mean only comparatively so with those of studied movements in the serpentine-line, for as all our muscles are ever ready to act, when one part is moved, as a hand, or arm, by its proper movers, for raising up or drawing down, the adjacent muscles act in some degree in correspondence with them: therefore our most common movements are but seldom performed in such absolutely mean lines, as those of jointed dolls and puppets. A man must have a good deal of practice to be able to mimic such very straight or round motions, which being incompatible with the human form, are therefore ridiculous. Let it be observed that graceful movements in serpentine-lines, are used but occasionally, and rather at times of leisure, than constantly applied to every action we make. The whole business of life may be carried on without them, they being, properly speaking, only the ornamental part of gesture; and therefore not being naturally familiarized by necessity, must be acquired by precept or imitation, and reduced to habit by frequent repetitions. Precept is the means I should recommend as the most expeditious and effectual way. But before we proceed to the method I have to propose, for »the more ready and sure way of accustoming the limbs to a facility in the ornamental way of moving; I should observe, that quick time gives it spirit and vivacity, as slow time, gravity and solemnity; and further, that the latter of these allows the eye an opportunity of seeing the line of grace to advantage, as in the address of heroes on the stage, or in any solemn act of ceremony; and that although time in movement is reduced to certain rules for dancing, it is left more at large and at discretion for deportment.

We come now to offer an odd, but perhaps efficacious method of acquiring a habit of moving in the lines of grace and beauty.

Let any one chalk the line shown in figure 3, plate 31, on a flat surface, beginning at either end, and he will move his hand and arm in a beautiful direction, but if he chalks the same sort of line on an ogee-moulding of a foot or two in breadth, as the dotted line on figure 4, plate 31, his hand must move in that more beautiful direction, which is distinguished by the name of grace; and according to the quantity given to those lines, greatness will be added to grace, and the movement will be more or less noble.

Gentle movements of this sort thus understood, may be made at any time and anywhere, which, by frequent repetitions, will become so familiar to the parts so exercised, that on proper occasion they make them as it were of their own accord.

The pleasing effect of this manner of moving the hand, is seen when a fan is presented gracefully or genteelly to a lady, both in the hand moving forward and in its return; but care must be taken that the line of movement be but gentle, as No. 3, figure 1, plate 16, and not too S-like and twirling, as No. 7 in the same figure: which excess would be affected and ridiculous.

PLATE 31

Daily practising these movements with the hands and arms, as also with such other parts of the body as are capable of them, will in a short time render the whole person graceful and easy at pleasure.

As to the motions of the head; the awe most children are in before strangers, till they come to a certain age, is the cause of their dropping and drawing their chins down into their breasts, and looking under their foreheads, as if conscious of their weakness, or of something wrong about them. To prevent this awkward shyness, parents and tutors are continually teasing them to hold up their heads, which if they get them to do, it is with difficulty, and of course in so constrained a manner that it gives the children pain, so that they naturally take all opportunities of easing themselves by holding down their heads; which posture would be full as uneasy to them, were it not a relief from restraint: and there is another misfortune in holding down the head, that it is apt to make them bend too much in the back; when this happens to be the case, they then have recourse to steel-collars, and other iron machines; all which shack-lings are repugnant to nature, and may make the body grow crooked. This daily fatigue both to the children and the parents may be avoided, and an ugly habit prevented, at a proper age, by fastening a ribbon to a quantity of platted hair, or to the cap, so as it may be kept fast in its place, and the other end to the back of the coat, as figure 5, plate 31, of such a length as may prevent them drawing their chins into their necks; which ribbon will always leave the head at liberty to move in any direction but this awkward one they are so apt to fall into.

But till children arrive at a reasoning age, it will be difficult by any means to teach them more grace than what is natural to every well made child at liberty.

The grace of the upper parts of the body is most engaging, and sensible well made people in any station naturally have it in a great degree; therefore rules, unless they are simple and easily retained and practised, are of little use; but, rather are of disservice.

Holding the head erect is but occasionally right, a proper recline of it may be as graceful; but true elegance is mostly seen in the moving it from one position to another.

And this may be attained by a sensibility within yourself, though you have not a sight of what you do by looking in the glass, when with your head assisted by a sway of the body in order to give it more scope, you endeavor to make that very serpentine-line in the air, which the hands have been before taught to do by the help of the ogee-moulding: and I will venture to say, a few careful repetitions at first setting out will make this movement as easy to the head as to the hands and arms.

The most graceful bow is got by the head’s moving in this direction, as it goes downward and rises up again. Some awkward imitators of this elegant way of bowing, for want of knowing what they were about, have seemed to bow with wry necks. The low solemn bow to majesty should have but a very little twist, if any, as more becoming gravity and submission. The clownish nod in a sudden straight line is quite the reverse of these spoken of.

The most elegant and respectful courtesy has a gentle, or small degree of the above graceful bowing of the head as the person sinks, and rises, and retreats. If it should be said, that a fine courtesy consists in no more than in being erect in person at the time of sinking and rising; Madam Catherine in clock-work, or the dancing bears led about the streets for a show, must be allowed to make as good a courtesy as anybody.

It is necessary in bowing and courtesying to shun an exact sameness at all times; for however graceful it may be on some occasions, at other times it may seem formal and improper. Shakesspeare seems to have meant the above spoken of ornamental manner of bowing, in Enobarbus’s description of Cleopatra’s waiting women—

And made their bends adornings—Act 2.

Of Dancing. The minuet is allowed by the dancing-masters themselves to be the perfection of all dancing. I once heard an eminent dancing master say, that the minuet had been the study of his whole life, and that he had been indefatigable in the pursuit of its beauties, yet at last he could only say with Socrates, he knew nothing: adding, that I was happy in my profession as a painter, in that some bounds might be set to the study of it. No doubt, as the minuet contains in it a composed variety of as many movements in the serpentine-lines as can well be put together in distinct quantities, it is a fine composition of movements.

The ordinary undulating motion of the body in common walking—as may be plainly seen by t...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Note
• Preface
• Contents
• The Conception of Form
• I. Of Fitness
• II. Of Variety
• III. Of Uniformity, Regularity, or Symmetry
• IV. Of Simplicity, or Distinctness
• V. Of Intricacy
• VI. Of Ouantity
• VII. Of Lines
• VIII. Of what sort of Parts, and how Pleasing Forms are composed
• IX. Of Compositions with Waving Line
• X. Of Compositions with Serpentine Line
• XI. Of Proportion
• XII. Of Light and Shade, and the manner in which objects are explained to the eye by them
• XIII. Of Composition with regard to Light, Shade and Colors
• XIV. Of Coloring
• XV. Of the Face. In the highest Taste, and the reverse. As to Character and Expression. Of the manner in which the Lines of the Face alter from Infancy upwards, and show the different Ages
• XVI. Of Attitude
• XVII. Of Action. 1. A new method of acquiring an easy and graceful movement of the Hands and Arms. 2. Of the Head, etc. 3. Of Dancing, particularly the Minuet. 4. Of Country-dancing; and, lastly, of Stage-action