W.E.A. LITERARY CLASS

Evening Star, Issue 19274, 12 June 1926, Page 12

W.E.A. LITERARY CLASS

STUDY OF MAETERLINCK Last Tuesday evening there was a very large attendance of students in the Upper Oliver Room at the University. when Miss King continued the stuay of Maeterlinck. In her opening remarks she classed him as an idealistic philosopher, and dealt with his attitude to Nature, as shown in ‘The Life of the Bee ’ and ‘The Double Garden,’ In dealing with the mind of the mass of the people, the lecturer remarked that, despite the enormous amount of work accomplished by scientists and poets in explaining and noticing Nature, a_ comparatively few folks showed any interest in it. The two views, scientific and poetical, were then explained. The first noticed the shapes of_ things and their composition ,their affinities, and, in the case of animals, their habits and habitat-—also their modes of propagation, and so on. The poetic describes any natural thing just as it calls up in the mind images and emblems, flinging open the doors of tho imagination more fully to life and the mystery beyond it—“ from the outward form to the spirit that informs.” Coleridge, the poet, desclnred science to be the antithesis of poetry. This might be so when viewed from one aspect, hut tho lecturer was of tho opinion that poetry was of great use, in that it proceeded to a more searching examination of Nature than science. Maeterlinck was a combination of the scientific ' and poetical in his philosophy. _ He was no inside student of things in a darkened room. He loved the open road, and proceeded “ with his eye on the object,” as Wordsworth would say. Ho could not he hold to_ he just so accurate as Fabre. His philosophic reflections camo crowding in on him, as natural phenomena were unfolded before his eves. One of the best essays of Maeterlinck in the ‘Double Garden’ was on the death of tho little dog. Ho was a great lover of animals. Th® lecturer here remarked that animals were now, more than ever, coming into their own. This was proven by the evolution of the animal story. They were being credited with reasoning power, and not wholly governed by instinct. ‘ Tho Unknown Guest,’ another story in this book, showed in a remarkable degree that this was so in connection with some highly trained horses which were exhibited on the Continent some years ago. Some interesting details of what these horses did proved astonishing, and showed them to he possessed of more than instinct. Poets are distinguished by a great Wo of flowers. Bacon it was who held “that gardening is the purest of pleasures.” There was a profound pleasure awaiting those who loved flowers in the essays of Materlinck. , . , , Other features dealt with hy the lecturer were the very accurate account of the ‘Life of the Bee’ and other philosophic reflections thereon, particularly the one on ‘ Common Sense ’ and ‘ Mountain Paths,’ being an examination of certain philosophic and religions attitudes of his, notably those on universal religion, reincarnation, and karma. . ~ , , The lecture gave rise to cpme a lor, of thought and talk amongst the students. Next Tuesday the suhieet .or study is ‘Turgenev,’ the Russian writer. __