Un désir indténiable à mon temps est de séparer comme
en vue d'attributions différentes le double état de la
parole, brut ou immédiat ici, là essentiel.--MALLARMÉ

Sentir avec génie, et être incapable d'exprimer, paraît
aussi incompatible que d'exprimer avec force ce qu'on
ne sent pas.--SÉNANCOUR

1. The field of language defined. 2. Edgar Allan Poe and the 'emotive' theories.
3. Partial revolts from the 'symbolic' theory. 4. Mallarmé and the 'music' of
poetry. 5. 'Musicality', the symbolists, and Wagner. 6. The symbolist approach
to form. 7. The disruption of forms. 8. Vers libre. 9. The lyric drama; transition
to chapter V.

IT is possible to hold one of two views concerning language, in the
philosophy of art: on the one hand, that whatever its nature may
be, it cannot materially affect the remainder of aesthetic theory;
or on the other hand, that it occupies a position of central importance,
and cannot be wrongly or carelessly determined without bringing
distortion, paradox, and falsehood into every adjoining part of the
field of study.

For the first view, the way we normally think of language will be
adequate: that is to say, it will be claimed that we all know what
it is; namely, a way to communicate what is in our minds to other
people, making use of words arranged according to the laws of
grammar, with meanings assigned by convention. In such a language,
the units, the words, out of which it is made, will be symbols--that
is to say, signs of reference arrived at by agreement between the two
parties to the communication. ¹ Within this general definition, the
theory will discern two specific types of symbolic language: the one

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