the scientific and sociologic interest begins to over-shadow, if not to
oust, the literary, poetic, and romantic interest. Darwin's _Origin of
Species_ was published in 1859; and its effect on thought became marked
within the next few years. In 1862, Herbert Spencer commenced to issue
his great encyclopaedic work, _Synthetic Philosophy_, still, we trust,
to be completed after more than thirty years of devoted toil. Darwin's
later books appeared about the same period, as did a large body of
scientific works in popular form by Huxley, Tyndall, Wallace, Lewes,
Lubbock, Tylor, and Clifford. It is only needful here to refer to such
scientific works as directly reacted on general literature. About the
same time the later speculations of Comte began to attract public
attention in England, and the _Positive Polity_ was translated in 1875.
Between the years 1860-1875, there grew up in England an absorbing
interest in Social Philosophy, and a conviction that the idea of
invariable law offered a solution of the progress of society.
Evolution as an idea was in the air, and it was applied to Man as much
as to Nature. It is no part of our present purpose to trace its growth
from the scientific aspect. It is enough to note how it acted and
reacted on general literature.
Poetry began to hover round the problem of Evolution. It wrapped it in
mystery, denounced it with fine indignation, and took it for the text
of some rather prosaic homilies. Criticism fell into the prevailing
theory: so did history, and even romance. Philosophy and Science are
not the best foster-mothers of Poetry and Romance. Philosophy and
Science grew more solemn than ever; and Poetry and Romance lost
something of their wilder fancy and their light heart. Literature grew
less spontaneous, more correct, more learned, and, it may be, more
absorbed in its practical purpose of modifying social life.
The old notion of literature being a business apart from affairs, of
men of letters being an order, of an absorption in books being ample
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