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14
PierreDubois
musicandthenovelinlateGeorgiannovelsofsensibility,andinparticular
theplaceofsilence.
TheTheoryoftheSisterArts
andtheDependenceofMusiconWords
InhisPoetics,Aristotlearguedthattheaimofbothpoetsandpainterswas
toimitatemenandtheiractions.Followingsuit,Horacecomparedpoets
andpaintersinhisArsPoetica,coiningthephraseflutpicturapoesis,”which
meansflasispainting,soispoetry;”inotherwords,apaintingcouldbe
usedasmodelfromwhichapoemcouldbeimagined.BothAristotleand
Horaceprimarilyintendedtoshowthattheyascribedtopoetrytheroleof
animitation.ThiswashowevertoleadtothebroadertheoryoftheflSister
Arts”intheRenaissance,inwhichtheconceptwasasitwerereversed,since
itwasnowimpliedthatpaintingwassupposedtoresemblepoetry.Poetry
nowbecamethemodeltobeemulatedbythepainterandthusitacquired
asuperiorstatusamongthearts.Atthebeginningoftheeighteenthcentury,
thetheoryoftheSisterArtsstillprevailed.InhisessayOftheSisterArts
(1734),forinstance,thepoetHildebrandJacob(1693-1739)linkedallthearts
withoneanother,includingmusic,andmadetheminterdependent:
Ifitbeallow’dwithCicerothatallArtsarerelated,wemaysafelyconclude,
thatPoetry,Painting,andMusicarecloselyally’d.Fromthisnearresemblance
toeachothertheyhavebeencommonlycall’dtheSisterArts,whichisso
great,thatitisdificulttodiscourseuponeitherofthem,particularlyonthe
twoFirst,withoutamutualborrowingofImages,andTerms,insomuchthat
oneoftheseArtscannotwellbeexplain’d,withoutgivingsomeInsightinto
theotheratthesameTime.10
Jacobincludedmusicandsuggestedthateachartcouldgiveflsome
insightintotheother[s].”Forhim,thevariousartswerebaseduponthe
samefundamentalprinciples,namelyimitationandharmony.Paintingwas
supposedtoimitatepoetry,whichwassupposedtoimitatenature,asnature
containedthelawsofbeautyandharmony.Inreality,themainroleofthis
theoryasregardsmusicwastocontrolitbymakingissubservienttopoetry.
Unlikepoetry,musichasnoclear,specificmeaningandconsequentlyit
cannotprovidethesameinstruction.Itcouldthereforebestbeunderstood
asanaccompliceto,amereornamentoratranslationofpoetry.Inasongor
anopera,itisthewordssettomusicthatwilldeterminethewayinwhichthe
10HildebrandJacob.OftheSisterArts,anEssay.London1734,pp.3-4.
