Amherst 14, Wisconsin 14, Columbia 14-1/2, Colorado 15, Illinois 15,
Chicago 15; (_b_) Collegiate Degree: Harvard 17-1/2 "courses," Amherst
20 "courses," Wisconsin 120 "credits," Columbia 124 "points," Colorado
120 "hours of scholastic work," Chicago 36 "trimester majors." It is
certainly desirable that our colleges adopt some uniform system for
the notation of their courses. Johns Hopkins, at least, is specific in
explaining the relationship of its "125 points" to its "courses"; see
page 262 of the _University Register_, 1916.
[89] At Chicago exactly 1/4 or "at least 9 coherent and progressive
majors" must be taken in "one department or in a group of
departments." But Chicago also requires a secondary sequence of at
least 6 majors; Columbia requires three years of "sequential study--in
each of two departments." Illinois, "a major subject (20 hours)" and
"an allied minor subject (20 hours)."
[90] An excellent manner of procedure is that outlined by Professor
Terracher in his interesting article in the _Compte rendu du Congres
de Langue et de Litterature Francaise_, New York (Federation de
l'Alliance Francaise), 1913.
[91] From _Johns Hopkins University Circular_, No. 151.
[92] It will be noted that throughout the amount offered in Spanish
exceeds that in Italian. This is to be expected in view of the boom in
Spanish studies. Moreover, most colleges now allow two units of
entrance credit in Spanish, and 7 and 8 above, under Harvard, are half
courses. Columbia is, I believe, the only college accepting 2 units of
entrance credit in Italian; but I have not examined the catalogues of
all our colleges.
[93] Publications of the General Education Board, 3, 1916, page 13.
XXII
THE TEACHING OF GERMAN
=Our aim=
The mechanical achievements of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries
have obliterated geographical distances. The contact between nations,
intermittent in former ages, has become a continuous one. It is no
longer possible to ignore great cultural forces in foreign nations
even temporarily--we may repudiate or appreciate them, as we see fit,
but we should do so in a spirit of fairness and understanding, and not
in ignorance.
This, however, is not possible unless those who are to become leaders
of the people are intimately familiar with those treasure chests of
the nations that contain the true gems of racial spirit more
abundantly than even art or literature, history, law or religion,
stored up in the course of hundreds and thousands of years--the
nations' languages. It is the clear duty of the college to instill,
through the right way of teaching foreign languages, a cosmopolitan
spirit of this character into the growing minds of our young men and
women, after the secondary school has given them the first rudiments
of knowledge and cultural training.
According to one's point of view, there is as much to be said in favor
of the classical as the modern languages. Without doubt, their growing
neglect in our institutions of learning is deeply to be regretted;
however, its causes do not concern us here directly. The study of
modern languages is, relatively speaking, so manifestly in the
ascendency, that a return to the emphasis that was formerly laid upon
Latin and Greek is hardly imaginable. The choice between several
modern languages must very largely be determined by personal
preferences and purposes. So much, however, can safely be said, that
an intelligent reading knowledge of German and French is the least
that should be expected of a college graduate. For, while in theory
the humanistic importance of modern language study is the same for all
languages, it rises, in practice, proportionately with the cultural
level of the foreign nation--German and French obviously taking the
lead in this regard.
=Place of German in the college curriculum=
I am optimistic enough to assume it to be generally granted that the
study of a foreign language ought to be started early in life--say, at
the age of twelve. While hardly challenged in theory, this desirable
condition is far from being carried out in practice. Probably the time
will never come when colleges will be able to dispense with elementary
courses in modern foreign languages--not only for those who enter
without any linguistic preparation, but also, and perhaps
preeminently, for students who are taking up a second foreign language
in addition to the one (or two) started in the preparatory school.
Thus, the starting point of the modern language course in college is
easily fixed: it must begin at the very rudiments of the language. Nor
is it difficult to state, in general terms, the purpose of the most
advanced work of the undergraduate curriculum: it must consist in
adequate linguistic skill, literary knowledge and feeling, and
cultural understanding to such an extent that the college graduate who
has specialized in German may safely be intrusted with the teaching of
German in secondary schools. At least, this holds good for the
majority of institutions; a small number of colleges devote their
whole effort to cultural training, and some of the larger
institutions, particularly in the East, find it possible to postpone
most of the professional preparation to a period of graduate work. But
on the whole the average well-equipped college includes the training
of teachers as one end of its foreign-language work. Ordinarily, such
mastery of the subject as would prepare for teaching cannot be gained
within the four years' college course. Rather, it might be said to
require the average equivalent of something like six college years,
with the understanding that not much more than one fourth of the
student's time be devoted to German. This implies that only under
uncommonly favorable conditions should students be encouraged to
specialize in a foreign language that they begin on entering college.
=Organization of the German course=
Thus, the peculiar conditions of modern language instruction bring it
about that a discussion of its organization in college must deal with
a six years' course: elementary instruction must be offered to those
entering without any knowledge of German; courses of a sufficiently
advanced character must be provided for those who enter with three or
four years of high-school German; and there must be advanced work for
students who intend to make the study and teaching of German their
life's work.
In this six years' college course three divisions are clearly
distinguishable: an elementary division devoted to such linguistic
training as will enable a student to read with fair ease texts of
moderate difficulty; an intermediate group during which literary and
cultural appreciation should be developed, and an advanced group
intended for the professional preparation of prospective teachers of
German. These three divisions may be approximately equal, so that each
of them covers about two years, with four or five hours a week. For
graduation, all students should be required to present the equivalent
of the first period for two languages (either classical or modern),
one or both of which might with advantage be absolved in high school.
The second division should be required of all students for at least
one foreign language. Colleges of high standing may find it possible
to exceed these requirements; no college should remain below them.
The first or elementary division should, at least for one foreign
language, be finished before the student is admitted to the college.
All that can reasonably be expected from this part of the work is a
study of the elements of grammar, the development of a good
pronunciation, a fair working vocabulary, and some ability to read,
speak, understand, and write German.
The second group should include, in the main, reading courses to
introduce the student to what is best in German literature, but no
general theoretical study of the history of literature need be
contemplated. Besides, it must offer such work in speaking and writing
as will develop and establish more firmly the results gained in the
first two years, and an appropriate study of German history and
institutions. Each of the three aims might be given about one third of
the time available, but they may overlap to some extent. Thus, writing
and speaking can be connected with each of them, and historical
readings and reports may furnish a part of language practice.
The third group, intended for the training of teachers, must contain a
course in the method of modern language teaching (connected with
observation and practice), an advanced grammar course, and courses in
the phonetics and historical development of the German language. These
courses are indispensable for teachers, but will also be of advantage
to students not intending to teach.
=The elementary group=
The first group is frankly of high school character. It is best to
admit this fully and freely, and to teach these courses accordingly.
Through greater intensity of study (more home work and longer class
periods), the work of three or even four high school years may be
concentrated into two college years, but the method cannot differ
essentially. The way of learning a new language is the same, in
principle, for a child of twelve years and a man of fifty years; in
the latter case, there is merely the difficulty to be overcome that
older persons are less easily inclined to submit to that drill which
is necessary for the establishment of those new habits that constitute
_Sprachgefuehl_. It is a fallacy that the maturer mind of the college
student requires a more synthetic-deductive study of the language than
that of the high school student.
It is sad but true that many college teachers are more reactionary in
questions of method than the better class of high school teachers. The
claim that elementary work in college requires a method different from
that used in the high school is one symptom of this, and another
symptom of the same tendency is the motto of so many college teachers
that there is no "best method," and that a good teacher will secure
good results with any method. At the bottom of such phrases there is
usually not much more than indifference and unwillingness to look for
information on the real character of the method at which they are
generally aimed: the _direct method_. The regrettable superficiality
appearing in the frequent confusion of the "direct" with the "natural"
method is characteristic of this. I am, of course, willing to admit
that what nowadays is termed the "direct method" is not the best way
possible, but that it may and will be improved upon. However, it is
not one of many methods that, according to circumstances, might be
equally good, but it represents the application of the present results
of psychological and linguistic research to the teaching of languages
and distinctly deserves the preference over older ways.
The first demand of the direct method is the development not only of a
fair but of a perfect pronunciation--not so much as the independent
aim, but as an indispensable condition for the development of
_Sprachgefuehl_. It is immeasurably easier to obtain good pronunciation
from the start than to improve bad pronunciation by later efforts. In
the teaching of pronunciation a slight difference in the treatment of
children of twelve years and of college students might be granted:
young children are generally able to learn the sounds of a foreign
language by imitation; students of college age can hardly ever do this
well, and careful phonetic instruction is absolutely necessary with
them. Whoever wishes to keep aloof from phonetic _terms_ may do so;
but not to know or not to apply phonetic _principles_ is bad teaching
pure and simple. The use of phonetic _transcription_, however, is a
moot question. Its advantages are obvious enough: it insures a clear
consciousness of correct pronunciation; it takes up the difficulties
one by one: first pronunciation, then spelling; it safeguards greater
care in matters of pronunciation in general. The objections are
chiefly two: economy of time, and the fear of confusion between the
two ways of spelling. The writer admits that until a few years ago he
was skeptical as to the value of phonetic transcription in the
teaching of German. But the nearly general recognition of its value by
the foremost educators of European countries and the good results
achieved with it by teachers of French in this country caused him to
give it a trial, under conditions that afforded not more than an
average chance of success. The result was greatly beyond his
expectations. Neither he nor, as far as he knows, any of his
colleagues would contemplate abandoning phonetic script again. Without
wishing to be dogmatic, I believe that this at least can be asserted
with safety: on purely theoretical grounds, no teacher has a right to
condemn phonetic transcription; those who doubt its value should try
it before they judge.
In the writer's opinion it is best not to use any historical spelling
at all during the first six or eight weeks of college German. If the
confusing features of traditional orthography are eliminated during
this period, it will be found that there results not a loss, but an
actual _gain in time_ from the use of phonetic script. Nor does the
transition to common spelling cause any confusion. The less ado made
about it, the better. It is a fact of experience, that students who
have been trained in the use of phonetic script turn out to be better
spellers than those who have not--simply because this training has
made them more careful and has given them a clearer conception of the
discrepancy between sound and letter.
That elementary grammar should be taught inductively is true to an
extent, but often overstated. It is true for the more abstract
principles, such as the formation of the compound tenses, the
formation and the use of the passive voice, and so on. But attempts at
inductive teaching of concrete elements of mechanical memory, such as
the gender and plural of nouns, or the principal parts of strong
verbs, are a misunderstanding of the principles of induction. It goes
without saying that thorough drill is much more valuable than the most
explicit explanation. It holds good for college as well as for high
schools that there is but very little to "explain" about the grammar
of any language. Unnecessary explanations rather increase than remove
difficulties.
=The use of English=
The use of English is another debated question. As far as the teaching
of grammar is concerned, it is unessential. If inductive drill takes
the place of explanations and abstract rules, the question is very
largely eliminated from practical consideration. In those very rare
cases when theoretical discussions might seem desirable, it does not
make much difference whether a few minutes a week are devoted to
English or not. The question assumes greater importance when the
development of the vocabulary is considered. In this, there are three
fairly well-defined elements to be distinguished. The first
vocabulary, say, of the first two or three months should be developed
by concrete associations with objects and actions in the classroom;
the use of the vernacular has no justification whatever during that
time--not on account of any objection to an occasional English word or
phrase, but simply because there is no need of it, and every minute
devoted to German is a clear gain. After this, the vocabulary should
be further developed through the thorough practice of connected texts.
If they are well constructed, the context will explain a considerable
portion of the words occurring; those that are not made clear through
the context form the third division of the vocabulary and can without
hesitation be explained by English equivalents. In general, the
principle will go rather far that the use of an occasional English
_word_ is entirely harmless, but that English _sentences_ should as
much as possible be avoided in elementary work. Connected translation,
both from and into English, must absolutely be excluded from the first
year's work, for the chief purpose of this year is not only the study
of grammar and the development of an elementary vocabulary, but, even
more than that, the cultivation of the right _attitude_ toward
language study. Reading should be our chief aim, and speaking a means
to that end, but the student must be trained, from the very beginning,
to understand what he is reading rather through an intelligent grasp
of the contents than by fingering the dictionary. In this way he will
become accustomed to associating the German sentences _directly_ with
the thought expressed in them, instead of _indirectly_ through the
medium of his native tongue.
A great deal of misunderstanding is frequently involved in the
emphasis laid upon speaking. There can hardly be a more absurd
misinterpretation of the principles of the direct method than for
college teachers to try to "converse" with the students in German--to
have with them German chats about the weather, the games, the
political situation. This procedure is splendidly fit to develop in
the students a habit of guessing at random at what they hear and
read--a slovenly contentedness with an approximate understanding. Both
teacher and students should speak and hear German practically all the
time. But this should be distinctly in the service of reading and
grammar work, containing almost exclusively words and forms that the
student must _know_, not guess at.
At the end of the first year a college student ought to have mastered
the elements of grammar and possess good pronunciation and an active
vocabulary of about six hundred or eight hundred words. If the second
year is devoted to further drill on grammatical elements and to
careful reading, its result ought to be the ability to read authors of
average difficulty at a fair speed. During the first year all reading
material should be practiced so intensively that an average of a
little more than a page a week is not exceeded materially; but toward
the end of the second year a limit of six or eight pages an hour may
well be reached. By this time, translation into good English begins to
be a valuable factor in the achievement of conscious accuracy; but it
must under no circumstances be resorted to until the students have
clearly obtained the habitual attitude of direct association between
thought and sentence.
It is little short of a misfortune that there exists no adequate
German-German dictionary (such as La Rousse's French dictionary). It
would not be very difficult to write such a book, but until we
possess it the irritating use of German-English dictionaries and
vocabularies will be a necessary evil.
The hardest problem of the second year--and this is progressively true
of more advanced work--is the uneven preparation of the students. In
large colleges it will often be feasible to have as many sections as
possible at the same hour, distributing the students in accordance
with their preparation. Where this is not possible, special help for
poorly prepared students is generally indispensable.
=The literature group=
The literature group is as distinctly of college character as the
elementary group is admittedly high school work. It is here, in fact,
that the best ideals of the American college find the fullest
opportunity. This is true both for the teacher and for the student. In
the elementary group, pedagogical skill and a fair mastery of the
language are the chief prerequisites of a successful teacher. In the
second group, other qualities are of greater importance. While a
certain degree of pedagogical skill is just as necessary here as
there, it is now no longer a question of the systematic development of
habits, but of the ability to create sympathetic understanding,
idealism, depth of knowledge, and literary taste--in short, to strive
for humanistic education in the fullest sense of the word. This is
true not only for colleges with a professedly humanistic tendency; the
broadening and deepening influence of foreign language study is
nowhere needed more urgently than in technical and other professional
colleges.
Speaking and writing must no longer stand in the center of instruction
in the courses of the second group, but their importance should not be
underrated, as is done so frequently (it is a fact that students often
know less German at the end of the third year in college than at the
end of the second year). At least during the first year of this group,
a practice course in advanced grammar, connected with composition, is
absolutely necessary. The grammatical work should consist in review
and observation, supported by the study of a larger reference grammar
(e.g., chapters from Curme's grammar, to introduce the students to
the consistent use of this marvelous work). In composition, free
reproduction should still be the main thing, but independent themes
and translation from English into German--which would be distinctly
harmful in elementary work--are now valuable exercises in the study of
German style. It would be wholly wrong, however, to make linguistic
drill the Alpha and Omega of this part of the college course. The
preparatory years should have laid a sound basis, which during the
college work proper should not be allowed to disintegrate, but the
fact should not be lost sight of that the cultural aim must be
stressed most in the second group.
To reach this aim, a familiarity with the best works of German
literature is the foremost means. German literature affords a scant
choice of good and easy reading for the elementary stage: Storm,
Ebner-Eschenbach, Seidel, and Wildenbruch are justly favorites, but
absurdities like Baumbach's _Schwiegersohn_ are, unfortunately, still
found in the curriculum of many colleges. In contrast with the small
number of good elementary texts, there exists an abundance of
excellent material for the second group. Aside from the classical
poets, the novelists Keller, Meyer, Fontane, Raabe; the dramatists
Hebbel, Grillparzer, Kleist, Hauptmann; poems collected in the
_Balladenbuch_ or the _Ernte_ present an inexhaustible wealth, without
our having to resort to the literary rubbish of Benedix or Moser or
the sneering pretentiousness of Heine's _Harzreise_.
The details of organization will vary greatly for this group,
according to special conditions. But in general it may be said that
during the first year of this period about two hours a week should be
devoted to the continuation of systematic language practice as
outlined above, and three hours to the reading of German authors for
literary purposes. Nor should this consist in "reading" alone. Reading
as such should no longer present any difficulty, if the work of the
elementary group has been done well. Special courses should be devoted
to the study of the modern German novel, the drama, and the lyrics,
and to individual authors like those mentioned. In these detached
literature courses the principal endeavor must be to help the students
to understand and feel, not so much the linguistic side of the texts
read, as the soul of the author, and through him the soul of the
German nation. Reading must become more and more independent, the
major part of the time in class being devoted to the cultural and
aesthetic interpretation of what has been read at home. It is evident
that in this, the most important part of the German college work, all
depends upon the personality of the instructor: literary and human
understanding cannot be instilled into the student's mind by one who
does not possess them himself, together with a love for teaching and
the power to create enthusiasm.
All other requirements must be subordinate to this--even the
instructor's mastery of the language. No doubt, in theory it would be
most desirable that German be the exclusive language of instruction
throughout; but in literary courses practical considerations will so
often speak against this, that no sweeping answer to this question
seems possible. For the chief aim must not be overshadowed by any
other. If poor preparation on the part of the students or a deficient
command of the language on the part of the instructor makes it
doubtful whether the cultural aim can be attained, if German is the
language of instruction, English should be used unhesitatingly. This
implies that for this part of the work an instructor with a strong
personality and an artistic understanding, although lacking in
speaking knowledge, is far preferable to one who speaks German
fluently but cannot introduce his students to the greatness of German
literature and the spirit of the German people.
On the other hand, written reports in literary courses should always
be required to be in German; it is also a good plan to devote a few
minutes of each period to prepared oral reports, in German, on the
part of the individual students. Where systematic practice in the
colloquial use of the language is desirable for special reasons, a
conversation course may be established in addition to the main work,
but literary courses are not the place for starting conversational
practice with classes that have been neglected in this respect during
their preparatory work.
The second year of the literary group should offer a choice between
two directions of further literary development: about three hours of
each week should be devoted either to a course on the general history
of German literature, or to the intensive study of one of the greatest
factors in German literature--such as Goethe's _Faust_. In large
institutions both courses can probably be given side by side, the
students taking their choice according to their preference, but in
most colleges an alternation of two courses of this kind will be
preferable.
The method of instruction is determined by the students' preparation
and the teacher's personality, in literature courses more than
anything else. Obviously, lectures (in German, where circumstances
permit), extensive, systematic reading, written reports, and class
discussion are the dominating features of such courses.
Some knowledge of German history and institutions is an indispensable
adjunct of any serious work in German literature. Probably in all
colleges such instruction will be incumbent upon the German
departments, and it is rarely possible to combine it with the course
on the general history of German literature. Therefore, a special
course in German history and institutions should be offered during the
second year of the literature group.
=The professional group=
The work of this group may overlap that of the second group to a
considerable extent, in the sense that courses in both groups may be
taken at the same time. The professional preparation of a teacher of
German should include: a thorough knowledge of the structure of the
German language, an appreciative familiarity with German literature,
and a fair amount of specialized pedagogical training. The study of
literature cannot be different for prospective teachers from that for
all other types of college students, and, therefore, belongs to the
second group. But their knowledge of language structure, though not
necessarily of a specialistic philological character, must include a
more detailed knowledge of German grammar, a familiarity with
technical German phonetics, and at least an elementary insight into
the historical development of the language. In addition to suitable
courses in these three subjects, a pedagogical course, dealing with
the methods of modern language teaching, and connected with
observation and practice teaching, must be provided for. Where the
previous training has been neglected, a course in German conversation
may be added; but, generally speaking, this should no longer be
necessary with students in their fifth or sixth year of German
instruction. Wherever this need exists, the system of instruction is
at fault.
=Conclusion=
Incomplete though this brief outline must necessarily be, the writer
has attempted to touch upon the most important phases of the students'
development of linguistic, cultural, and, where demanded, professional
command of German. Little has so far been said concerning the college
teacher. The strong emphasis placed upon the direct method in this
article should not be misinterpreted as meaning that a fluent command
of the spoken language is a _conditio sine qua non_. Nothing could be
farther from the truth. First of all, the necessity of the exclusive
use of the direct method exists obviously only in the elementary
group. In this group, however, "conversation" in the generally
accepted sense of the word should not be attempted--it will do more
harm than good. The constant practice in speaking and hearing should
be so rigidly subservient to the interpretation and practice of the
texts being read and to grammatical drill, that only a minimum of
"speaking knowledge" on the part of the teacher is unavoidably
necessary; his pronunciation, of course, must be perfect. However
desirable it may be that a teacher should know intimately well the
language he is teaching in college, there are other requirements even
higher than this; they are, in the first group, energy, thoroughness,
and pedagogical skill, coupled with an intelligent understanding of
the basic principles of the direct method; in the second group,
literary appreciation and a sympathetic understanding of German
thought, history, and civilization; and, for the third group,
elementary philological training, theoretical as well as practical
acquaintance with the needs of the classroom, and a long and varied
experience in teaching. Rarely will all three qualifications be
combined in one person, nor are such fortunate combinations necessary
in most colleges. A wise distribution of courses among the members of
the department can in most cases be effected in such a way that each
teacher's talents are utilized in their proper places.
E. PROKOSCH
PART FIVE
THE ARTS
CHAPTER
XXIII THE TEACHING OF MUSIC
_Edward Dickinson_
XXIV THE TEACHING OF ART
_Holmes Smith_
XXIII
THE TEACHING OF MUSIC
=Music a comparatively recent addition to the college curriculum=
There is perhaps no more direct way of throwing a sort of flashlight
upon the musical activity in the colleges of America than the
statement that a volume of this kind, if prepared a dozen years ago,
would either have contained no chapter upon music, or, if music were
given a place at all, the argument would have been occupied with hopes
rather than achievements. Not that it would be literally true to say
that music was wholly a negligible quantity in the homes of higher
education until the twentieth century, but the seat assigned to it in
the few institutions where it was found was an obscure and lowly one,
and the influence radiating therefrom reached so small a fragment of
the academic community that no one who was not engaged in a careful,
sympathizing search could have been aware of its existence. It was
less than twenty years ago that a prominent musical journal printed
the very moderate statement that "the youth who is graduated at Yale,
Harvard, Johns Hopkins, Brown, Dartmouth, Bowdoin, Amherst, Cornell,
or Columbia has not even a smattering of music beyond the music of the
college glee and mandolin club; and of course to cultivate that is the
easiest road to musical perdition." One who looks at those
institutions now, and attempts to measure the power and reach of their
departments of music, will not deny the right to the satisfaction
which their directors--men of national influence--must feel, and would
almost expect them to echo the words of ancient Simeon. The contrast
is indeed extraordinary, and, I believe, unparalleled. The work of
these men, and of others who could be named with them, has not been
merely development, but might even be called creation. Any one who
attempts to keep track of the growth of musical education in our
colleges, universities, and also in the secondary schools of the
present day, will find that the bare statistics of this increase, to
say nothing of a study of the problems involved, will engage much more
than his hours of leisure. Music, which not long ago held tolerance
only as an outside interest, confined to the sphere of influence of
the glee club and the chapel choir, is now, in hundreds of educational
institutions, accorded the privileges due to those arts and sciences
whose function in historic civilization, and potency in scholarly
discipline and liberal culture, give them domicile by obvious and
inalienable right.
=History of the subject of music in the American college curriculum=
The first university professorships in music were founded at Harvard
in 1876, and at the University of Pennsylvania at about the same time.
Vassar College established musical courses in 1867, Oberlin in 1869.
Harvard took the lead in granting credit for certain courses in music
toward the degree of A.B. in 1870.[94] Progress thereafter for many
years was slow; but in 1907 investigation showed that "approximately
one half the colleges in the country recognize the value of instruction
in music sufficiently to grant credit in this subject."[95] Since this
date college after college and university after university have fallen
into line, only a few resisting the current that sets toward the
universal acceptance of music as a legitimate and necessary element in
higher education. The problem with the musical educators of the
country is no longer how to crowd their subject into the college
preserve, but how to organize its forces there, how to develop its
methods on a basis of scholarly efficiency, how to harmonize its
courses with the ideals of the old established departments, and now,
last of all, how to bring the universities and colleges into
cooperation with the rapid extension of musical practice, education,
and taste which has, in recent days, become a conspicuous factor in
our national progress.
=Changing social ideals responsible for the new attitude toward the
study of music in colleges=
An investigation into the causes of this great change would be fully
as interesting as a critical examination of its results. The limits of
this chapter require that consideration be given to the present and
future of this movement rather than to its past; but it is especially
instructive, I think, to those who are called upon to deal practically
with it, to observe that the welcome now accorded to music in our
higher institutions of learning is due to changes in both the college
and its environment. In view of the constitution and relationships of
our higher schools (unlike those of the universities of Europe), any
alteration in the ideals, the practical activities, and the living
conditions of the people of the democracy will sooner or later affect
those institutions whose aim is fundamentally to equip young men and
women for social leadership. It is unnecessary to remind the readers
of such a book as this of the marked enlargement of the interests of
the intelligent people of America in recent years, or of the prominent
place which aesthetic considerations hold among these interests. The
ancient thinker, to whom nothing of human concern was alien, would
find the type he represented enormously increased in these latter
days. The passion for the release of all the latent energies and the
acquisition of every material good, which characterizes the American
people to a degree hitherto unknown in the world since the outburst of
the Renaissance, issues, as in the Renaissance, in an enormous
multiplication of the machinery by which the enjoyment of life and its
outward embellishment are promoted. But more than this and far
better--the eager pursuit of the means for enhancing physical and
mental gratification has coincided with a growing desire for the
general welfare;--hence the aesthetic movement of recent years, and the
zeal for social betterment which excludes no section or class or
occupation, tend to unite, and at the same time to work inward and
develop a type of character which seeks joy not only in beauty but
also in the desire to give beauty a home in the low as well as in the
high places. Whatever may be one's view of the final value of the
recent American productions in literature and the fine arts, the
social, democratic tendency in them is unmistakable. The company of
enthusiastic men and women who are preaching the gospel of beauty as a
common human birthright is neither small nor feeble. The fine arts are
emerging from the studios, professional schools, and coteries; they
are no longer conceived as the special prerogative of privileged
classes; not even is the creation of masterpieces as objects of
national pride the pervading motive;--but they are seen to be
potential factors in national education, ministering to the happiness
and mental and moral health of the community at large. It was
impossible that the most enlightened directors of our colleges,
universities, and public schools should not perceive the nature and
possibilities of this movement, hasten to ally themselves with it, and
in many cases assume a leadership in it to which their position and
advantages entitled them.
=The educative function of music=
The commanding claims which the arts of design, music, and the drama
are asserting for an organized share in the higher education is also,
I think, a consequence of the change that has come about in recent
years in the constitution of the curriculum, the methods of
instruction, the personnel of the student body, the multiplication of
their sanctioned activities, and especially in the attitude of the
undergraduates toward the traditional idea of scholarship. The old
college was a place where strict, inherited conceptions of scholarship
and mental discipline were piously maintained. The curriculum rested
for its main support upon a basis of the classics and mathematics,
which imparted a classic and mathematical rigidity to the whole
structure. The professor was an oracle, backed by oracular textbooks;
the student's activity was restricted by a traditional association of
learning with self-restraint and outward severity of life. The
revolutionary change came with the marvelous development of the
natural sciences, compelling radical readjustments of thought both
within and without the college, the quickening of the social life
about the campus, and the sharp division of interest, together with a
multiplication of courses which made the elective system inevitable.
The consequence was, as President Wilson states it, that a
"disintegration was brought about which destroyed the old college with
its fixed disciplines and ordered life, and gave us our present
problem of reorganization and recovery. It centered in the break-up of
the old curriculum and the introduction of the principle that the
student was to select his own studies from a great variety of courses.
But the change could not, in the nature of things, stop with the plan
of study. It held in its heart a tremendous implication;--the
implication of full manhood on the part of the pupil, and all the
untrammeled choice of manhood. The pupil who was mature and
well-informed enough to study what he chose, was also by necessary
implication mature enough to be left free to _do_ what he pleased, to
choose his own associations and ways of life outside the curriculum
without restraint or suggestion; and the varied, absorbing life of our
day sprang up as the natural offspring of the free election of
studies."[96]
=The development of emotions as well as the intellect a vital concern
of the college curriculum=
Into an academic life so constituted, art, music, and the drama must
perforce make their way by virtue of their appeal to those instincts,
always latent, which were now set in action. Those agencies by which
the emotional life has always been expressed and stimulated found a
welcome prepared for them in the hearts of college youths, stirred
with new zests and a more lively self-consciousness. But for a time
they met resistance in the supremacy of the exact sciences,
erroneously set in opposition to the forces which move the emotions
and the imagination, and the stern grip, still jealously maintained,
of the old conception of "mental discipline" and the communication of
information as the prime purpose of college teaching. The relaxation
came with the recognition of aesthetic pursuits as "outside interests,"
and organization and endowment soon followed. But a college art museum
logically involves lectures upon art, a theater an authoritative
regulation of the things offered therein, a concert hall and concert
courses instruction in the history and appreciation of music. And so,
with surprising celerity, the colleges began to readjust their schemes
to admit those agencies that act upon the emotion as well as the
understanding, and the problem how to bring aesthetic culture into a
working union with the traditional aims and the larger social
opportunities of the college faced the college educator, and disturbed
his repose with its peremptory insistence upon a practical solution.
=Problems in teaching of music in the college=
Although the question of purpose, method, and adaptation presents
general difficulties of similar character in respect to the college
administration of all the fine arts, music is undoubtedly the most
embarrassing item in the list. In this department of our colleges
there is no common conviction as to methods, no standardized system;
but rather a bewildering disagreement in regard to the subjects to be
taught, the extent and nature of their recognition, the character of
the response to be expected of the student mind, and the kind of gauge
by which that response shall be measured by teachers, deans, and
registrars. In the matter of literature and the arts of design, where
there is likewise an implicit intention of enriching aesthetic
appreciation, an agreement is more easily reached, by reason of their
closer relationship to outer life, to action, and the more familiar
processes of thought. Few would maintain that the purpose of college
courses in English literature is to train professional novelists and
poets; the college leaves to the special art schools and to private
studios the development of painters, sculptors, and architects. What
remains to the college is reasonably clear. But in music, on the
contrary, the function of the college is by no means so evident as to
induce anything like general agreement. Should the musical courses be
exclusively cultural, or should they be so shaped as to provide
training for professional work in composition or performance? Should
they be "practical" (that is, playing and singing), or simply
theoretical (harmony, counterpoint, etc.), or entirely confined to
musical history and appreciation? Should credits leading to the A.B.
degree be given for musical work, and if so, ought they to include
performance, or only theory and composition? Should musical degrees be
granted, and if so, for what measure of knowledge or proficiency? One
or two Western colleges give credit for work done under the direction
of private teachers in no way connected with the institution:--is this
procedure to be commended, and if so, under what safeguards? Should a
college maintain a musical "conservatory" working under a separate
administrative and financial system, many or all of whose teachers are
not college graduates; or should its musical department be necessarily
an organic part of the college of arts and sciences, exactly like the
department of Latin or chemistry? If the former, as is the case with
many Western institutions, to what extent should the work in the music
school be supervised by the college president and general faculty;
under what limitations may candidates for the A.B. degree be allowed
to take accredited work in the music school? What should be the
relation of the college to the university in respect to the musical
courses? Is it possible to establish a systematic progress from step
to step similar to that which exists in many of the old established
lines? What should be the relation between the college and the
secondary schools? Should the effort be to establish a continuity of
study and promotion, such as that which exists in such subjects as
Latin and mathematics? Should the college give entrance credits for
musical work? If so, should it be on examination or certificate, for
practical or theoretical work, or both? Should the courses in the
history and appreciation of music be thrown open to all students, or
only to those who have some preliminary technical knowledge?
These are some of the questions that face a college governing board
when music is under discussion--questions that are dealt with on
widely divergent principles by colleges of equal rank. Some
institutions in the West permit to music a freedom and variety in
respect to grades, subjects, and methods which they allow to no other
subject. The University of Kansas undertakes musical extension work
throughout the state. Brown University restricts its musical
instruction to lecture courses on the history and appreciation of
music. Between these extremes there is every diversity of opinion and
procedure that can be conceived. The problem, as I have said, is
twofold, and so long as disagreement exists as to the object of
collegiate musical work, there can be no uniformity in administration.
In a university the problem is or should be somewhat more simple, just
as there is a more general accord concerning the precise object of
university training. In place of the confusion of views in regard to
ideals and systems and methods which exist in the present-day college,
we find in the university a calmness of conviction touching essentials
that results from the comparative simplicity of its functions and
aims. A conspicuous tendency in our universities is toward
specialization; their spirit and methods are largely derived from the
professional and graduate schools which give them their tone and
prestige. They look toward research and the advancement of learning as
their particular _raison d'etre_, and also toward the practical
application of knowledge to actual life and the disciplining of
special faculties for definite vocational ends.[97] Since our
universities, unlike those of Europe, consist of a union of graduate
and undergraduate departments, any single problem, like that of music,
is simplified by the opportunity afforded by the direct passage from
undergraduate to graduate work, and the greater encouragement to
specialization in the earlier courses. A graduate school which admits
music will naturally do so on a vocational basis, and the question is
not of the aim to be sought, but the much easier one of the means of
its attainment, since there is no more of a puzzle in teaching an
embryo composer or music teacher than there is in teaching an
incipient physician or engineer.
It seems to me that the opportunity before the university has been
stated in a very clear and suggestive manner by Professor Albert A.
Stanley of the University of Michigan: "If in the future the line of
demarcation between the college and the university shall cease to be
as sinuous and shadowy as at present, the university will offer
well-defined courses in research, in creative work, possibly in
interpretation--by which I do not mean criticism, but rather that
which is criticized. [Professor Stanley evidently refers to musical
performance.] The college courses will then be so broadened that the
preparatory work will of necessity be relegated to the secondary
schools. This will impose on the colleges and universities still
another duty--the fitting of competent teachers. Logically music will
then be placed on the list of entrance studies, and the circle will be
complete. The fitting of teachers who can satisfy the conditions of
such work as will then be demanded will be by no means the least
function of the higher institutions. There will be more and more
demand for the broadly trained teacher, and there will be an even
greater demand for the specialist. By this I mean the specialist who
has been developed in a normal manner, and who appreciates the greater
relations of knowledge and life."[98]
=Problems in teaching of music in secondary schools are intelligently
attacked=
There is no question that the future of music in the colleges will
greatly depend upon the developments in the secondary schools. If the
time ever comes when the administrators of our public school system
accept and act upon the assertion of Dr. Claxton, United States
Commissioner of Education, that "after the beginnings of reading,
writing, and mathematics music has greater practical value than any
other subject taught in the schools," the college will find its
determination of musical courses an easier matter than it is now.
Students will in that event come prepared to take advantage of the
more advanced instruction offered by the college, as they do at
present in the standard subjects, and the musical pathway through the
college, and then through the university, will be direct and
unimpeded. Although such a prospect may seem to many only a roseate
dream, it is a safer prophecy than it would have appeared a half-dozen
years ago. The number of grammar and high schools is rapidly
increasing in which the pupils are given solid instruction in chorus
singing, ensemble playing, musical theory, and the history and
appreciation of music; and in many places pupils are also permitted to
carry on private study in vocal and instrumental music at the hands of
approved teachers, and school credit given therefor. So apparent is
the need of this latter privilege, and so full of fine possibilities,
that the question of licensing private teachers with a view to an
official recognition of the fittest has begun to receive the attention
of state associations and legislatures. It is impossible that the
colleges should remain indifferent to these tendencies in the
preparatory schools, for their duty and their advantage are found in
cooperating with them. The opportunity has been most clearly seen by
those colleges which have established departments for the training of
supervisors of public school music. Such service comes eminently
within the role of the college, for a disciplined understanding, a
liberal culture, an acquaintance with subjects once unrecognized as
related to music teaching, are coming to be demanded in the music
supervisor. The day of the old country-school singing master
transferred to the public school is past; the day of the trained
supervisor, who measures up to the intellectual stature of his
colleagues, is at hand. So clearly is this perceived that college
courses in public school music, which at first occupied one year at
the most, are being extended to two years and three years, and in at
least one or two instances occupying four years. And the benefit is
not confined to the schoolroom, for an educated man, conscious of his
peculiar powers, will see and use opportunities afforded him not
merely as a salaried preceptor but also as a citizen.
=Vital function of music in college curriculum is emotional and aesthetic=
To revert to the difficulties which the college faces in adjusting
musical courses to the general scheme of academic instruction: it is
clear that these difficulties lie partly in the very nature of musical
art. For music is not only an art but a science. It is the product of
constructive ingenuity as well as of "inspiration"; its technique is
of exquisite refinement and appalling difficulty; it appeals to the
intellect as well as to the emotion. And yet the intellectual element
is but tributary, and if the consciousness willfully shuts its gates
against the tide of rapture rushing to flood the sense and the
emotion, then in reality music is not, for its spirit is dead. What
shall be done with an agency so fierce and absorbing as this? Can it
be tamed and fettered by the old conceptions of mental discipline and
scholastic routine? Only by falsifying its nature and denying its
essential appeal. Some colleges attempt so to evade the difficulty,
and lend favor, so far at least as credit is concerned, only to the
theoretical studies in which the training is as severe, and almost as
unimaginative, as it is in mathematics. But to many this appears too
much like a reversion to the viewpoint of the mediaeval convent schools
which classed music in the _quadrivium_ along with arithmetic,
geometry, and astronomy. Neither the creative power nor the aesthetic
receptivity is considered in such courses as these, and the spirit of
music revolts against this confinement and gives its pedantic jailers
no peace.
=The practical course as disciplinary as the theoretical=
Shall practical courses in playing and singing be accepted? Now the
objection arises that any proficiency with which a student--at least a
talented one--would be satisfied, entails hours each day of purely
technical practice, involving little of the kind of mental activity
that is presupposed in the tradition of college training. Those
institutions that have no practical courses are logical, at all
events, and seem to follow the line of least resistance. But the
opposition against the purely theoretical side of musical culture will
not down, and the "practical" element makes steady headway as the
truth shines more dearly upon the administrative mind that musical
performance is not a matter of mechanical technique alone, but of
scholarship, imaginative insight, keen emotional reaction, and
interpretation which involves a sympathetic understanding of the
creative mind. The objection to practical exercise dwindles as the
conception of its nature and goal enlarges.
=Lack of college-trained teachers adds to difficulty of recognizing
music as a college subject=
Another hindrance presents itself--not so inherent in the nature of
the case as those just mentioned--and that is the lack of teachers of
music whose educational equipment corresponds in all particulars to
the standard which the colleges have always maintained as a condition
of election to their corps of instructors. That one who is not a
college graduate should be appointed to a professorship or
instructorship in a college or university might seem to a college man
of the old school very near an absurdity. Yet as matters now stand it
would be impossible to fill the collegiate musical departments with
holders of the A.B. degree. The large and increasing number of college
graduates who are entering the musical profession, especially with a
view to finding a home in higher educational institutions, is an
encouraging phase of present tendencies, and seems to hold out an
assurance that this aspect of the college dilemma will eventually
disappear.[99] It is possible, however, that the colleges may be
willing to agree to a compromise, making a distinction between the
teachers of the history and criticism of music and those engaged in
the departments of musical theory and performance. Certainly no man
should be given a college position who is not in sympathy with the
largest purposes of the institution and able to contribute to their
realization; but it must be remembered that broad intelligence and
elevated character are to be found outside the ranks of college
alumni, and are not guaranteed by a college diploma.
=Teaching of the history and appreciation of music=
Amid the jangle of conflicting opinions in regard to courses and
methods and credits and degrees, etc., etc., one subject enjoys the
distinction of unanimous consent, and that is the history and
appreciation of music. This department may stand alone, as it does at
Brown University, or it may supplement theoretical and practical
courses; but there seems to be a universal conviction that if the
colleges accept music in any guise, they must use it as a means of
enlarging comprehension and taste on the part of their young people,
and of bringing them to sympathetic acceptance of its finest
manifestations. It seems incredible that a college should employ
literature and the fine arts except with the fixed intention of
bringing them to bear upon the mind of youth according to the purpose
of those who made them what they are in the spiritual development of
humanity. Even from the most rigid theoretical and technical drill the
cultural aim must not be excluded if the college would be true to
itself; how much more urgent is the duty of providing courses in which
the larger vision of art, with the resultant spiritual quickening, is
the prime intention! President Nicholas Murray Butler, in his address
of welcome to the Music Teachers' National Association at their
meeting in New York in 1907, struck a note that must find response in
the minds of all who are called upon to deal officially with this
question, when he recognized as a department of music worthy of the
college dignity "one which is not to deal merely with the technique of
musical expression or musical processes, but one which is to interpret
the underlying principles of musical art and the various sciences on
which it rests, and to set out and to illustrate to men and women who
are seeking education what those principles signify, how they may be
brought helpfully and inspiringly into intellectual life, and what
part they should play in the public consciousness of a cultivated and
civilized nation."
=Emphasis on appreciation rather than technique=
The first step in understanding the part which the principles of
music should play in the consciousness of a civilized nation is to
learn the part they have played in history. A survey of this history
shows that all the phenomena of musical development, even those
apparently transient and superficial, testify to a necessity of human
nature, an unappeasable thirst for self-expression. In view of the
relationship of musical art to the individual and the collective need,
it is plain that musical history and musical appreciation must be
taught together as a supplementary phase of one great theme. And,
furthermore, this phase is one that is not only necessary in a
complete scheme of musical culture, but is also one that is conveyed
in a language which all can understand. It is significant of the broad
democratic outlook of our American institutions of learning, in
contrast to the universities of Europe, that the needs of the
unprepared students are considered as well as the benefit of those who
have had musical preparation, and the mysteries of musical art are
submitted to all who desire initiation. Too much emphasis cannot be
laid upon this wise and generous attitude toward the fine arts which
is maturing in our American colleges; by which they demonstrate their
belief in the power of adaptation of all manifestations of beauty to
the condition of every one of intelligence, however slight the
experience or limited the talent. There are, unquestionably, certain
puzzling difficulties in imparting an understanding of musical
structure and principles to those who have not even a preliminary
smattering of the musical speech, but the experiment has gone far
enough to prove that music, with all its abstruseness, complexity, and
remoteness from the world of ordinary experience, has still a message
so direct, so penetrating, so human and humanizing, that no one can be
wholly indifferent to its eloquence when it comes through the ministry
of a qualified interpreter.
=The properly trained college teacher of music=
A qualified interpreter!--yes, there's the rub. Only a few years ago
men competent to teach the history and philosophy of music in a manner
which a college or university could consistently tolerate, were almost
non-existent, and even today many colleges are out of sheer necessity
giving over this department to men of very scanty qualifications. Few
men have faith enough to prepare for work that is not yet in sight.
Then with the sudden breaking out of musical history and appreciation
courses all over the country, the demand appeared instantly far in
excess of the supply. The few men who had prepared themselves for
scholarly critical work were, as a rule, in the employ of daily
newspapers, and the colleges were compelled to delegate the historical
and interpretative lectures to those whose training had been almost
wholly in other lines of musical interest. No reputable college would
think for a moment of offering chairs of political science, or general
history, or English literature to men with so meager an equipment.
There is no doubt that the disfavor with which the musical courses are
still regarded by professors of the old school is largely due to the
feeling that their musical colleagues as a rule have undergone an
education so narrow and special that it keeps them apart from the full
life of the institution. That this is the tendency of an education
that is exclusively special, no one can deny. It is equally undeniable
that such an education is quite inadequate in the case of one who
assumes to teach the history and appreciation of music. This subject,
by reason of the multifarious relations between music and individual
and social life, demands not only a complete technical knowledge, but
also a familiarity with languages, general history, literature, and
art not less than that required by any other subject that could be
mentioned. The suggestion by a French critic that a lecturer on art
must be an artist, a historian, a philosopher, and a poet, applies
with equal relevance to a lecturer on music.
It is only fair to the musical profession to say that its members are
as eager to meet these requirements as the colleges are to make them.
If music still holds an inferior place in many colleges, both in fact
and in esteem, the fault lies in no small measure in the ignorance on
the part of trustees, presidents, and faculties of the nature of
music, its demands, its social values, and its mission in the
development of civilization. With the enlightenment of the powers
that control the college machinery, encouragement will be given to men
of liberal culture and scholarly habit to prepare themselves directly
for college work. The hundreds of college graduates now in the musical
profession will be followed by other hundreds still more amply
equipped as critics and expounders. The natural place for the majority
of them, I maintain, is not in the private studio or newspaper office,
but in the college and university classroom.
There is no reason in the nature of things why our colleges and
universities should not also be the centers of a concentrated and
intensive activity, directed upon research and philosophic
generalization in the things of music as in other fields of inquiry.
For this they must provide libraries, endowments, and fellowships.
Such works as Mr. Elson's _History of American Music_, Mr. Krehbiel's
_Afro-American Folksongs_, and Mr. Kelly's _Chopin as a Composer_
should properly emanate from the organized institutions of learning
which are able to give leisure and facility to men of scholarly
ambition. The French musical historian, Jules Combarieu, enumerates as
the domains constantly open to musical scholarship: acoustics,
physiology, mathematics, psychology, aesthetics, history, philology,
palaeography, and sociology.[100] Every one of these topics has already
an indispensable place in the college and university system--it is for
trained scholarship to draw from them the contributions that will
relate music explicitly to the active life of the intellect.
But not for the intellect only. Here the colleges are still in danger
of error, due to their long-confirmed emphasis upon concepts,
demonstrations, scientific methods, and "positive" results, to the
neglect of the imagination, the emotions, the intuitions, and the
things spiritually discerned. "The sovereign of the arts," says Edmund
Clarence Stedman, "is the imagination, by whose aid man makes every
leap forward; and emotion is its twin, through which come all fine
experiences, and all great deeds are achieved. Youth demands its share
in every study that can engender a power or a delight. Universities
must enhance the use, the joy, the worth of existence. They are
institutions both human and humane."[101]
=The test of effective teaching of music in the college: Does it enrich
the life of the student through the inculcation of an aesthetic interest?=
Institutions which exclude the agencies which act directly to enhance
"the joy and the worth of existence" are universities only in name.
Equally imperfect are they if, while nominally accepting these
agencies, they recognize only those elements in them which are
susceptible to scientific analysis, whose effects upon the student can
be tested by examinations and be marked and graded--elements which are
only means, and not final ends. The college forever needs the
humanizing, socializing power of music, the drama, the arts of design,
and it must use them not as confined to the classroom or to any single
section of the institution, but as the effluence of spiritual life,
permeating and invigorating the whole. In the mental life of the
college there have always ruled investigation, comparison, analysis,
and the temper fostered is that of reflection and didacticism. Into
this world of deliberation, routine, mechanical calculation, there has
come the warm breath of music, art, and poetry, stirring a new fire of
rapture amid the embers of speculation. The instincts of youth spring
to inhale it; youth feels affiliation with it, for art and poesy, like
nature, are ever self-renewing and never grow old. It works to unify
the life of the college whose tendency is to divide into sealed
compartments of special intellectual interests. It introduces a life
that all may share, because men divide when led by their intellects,
they unite when led by their emotions. Among the fine arts music is
perhaps supreme in its power to refine the sense of beauty, to soften
the heart at the touch of high thought and tender sentiment, to bring
the individual soul into sympathy with the over-soul of humanity. It
is this that gives music its supreme claim to an honored place in the
halls of learning, as it is its crowning glory.
The whole argument, then, is reduced to this: that with all the
scientific aspects of the art with respect to material, structure,
psychological action, historical origins and developments and
relations, of which the college, as an institution of exact learning,
may take cognizance, music must be accepted and taught just because it
is beautiful and promotes the joy of life, and the development of the
higher sense of beauty and the spiritual quickening that issues
therefrom must be the final reason for its use. At the same time it
must be so cultivated and taught that it will unite its forces for a
common end with all those factors which, within the college and
without the college, are now working with an energy never known before
in American history for a social life animated by a zeal for ideal
rather than material ends, and inspired by nobler visions of the true
meaning of national progress.
Among the worthy functions of our colleges there is none more needful
than that of inspiring ardent young crusaders who shall go forth to
contend against the hosts of mediocrity, ugliness, and vulgarity. One
encouragement to this warfare is in the fact that these hosts,
although legion, are dull as well as gross, and may easily be
bewildered and put to rout by the organized assaults of the children
of light. So may it be said of our institutions of culture, as Matthew
Arnold said of Oxford, that they "keep ever calling us nearer to the
true goal of all of us, to the ideal, to perfection--to beauty, in a
word, which is only truth seen from another side."
EDWARD DICKINSON
_Oberlin College_
Footnotes:
[94] Arthur L. Manchester: "Music Education in the United States;
Schools and Departments of Music." United States Bureau of Education
Bulletin, 1908, No. 4.
[95] Papers and Proceedings of the Music Teachers' National
Association, 1907; report by Leonard B. McWhood.
[96] _The Spirit of Learning_, Woodrow Wilson: in _Representative Phi
Beta Kappa Orations_, edited by Northup, Lane and Schwab. Boston,
Houghton Mifflin Company, 1915.
[97] I wish to safeguard this statement by saying that I have in mind
not the more conservative universities of the East, but the state
institutions of the Middle and Western commonwealths. In speaking of
universities as compared with colleges I am also considering the
graduate and professional departments. It is difficult to make general
assertions, on such a subject that do not meet with exceptions.
[98] Papers and Proceedings of the Music Teachers' National
Association, 1906.
[99] There is an interesting statistical article on the college
graduate in the musical profession by W. J. Baltzell in the _Musical
Quarterly_, October, 1915.
[100] _Music; its Laws and Evolution_: Introduction. Translation in
Appleton's International Scientific Series.
[101] _The Nature and Elements of Poetry_, page 5.
XXIV
THE TEACHING OF ART
=Art instruction defined=
In this chapter an attempt is made to set forth the aims, content, and
methods of art instruction in the college. In this discussion the word
"college" will be regarded in the usual sense of the College of
Liberal Arts, and art instruction as one of the courses which lead to
the degree of bachelor of arts.
There is no term that is used more freely and with less precision than
the word "art." In some usages it is given a very broad and
comprehensive meaning, in others a very narrow and exclusive one. The
term is sometimes applied to a human activity, at other times to the
products of but a small part of that activity--for example, paintings
and statuary.
In this chapter the term will be used in accordance with the
definition evolved by Tolstoi, who says: "Art is a human activity,
consisting in this, that one man consciously, by means of external
signs, hands on to others feelings he has lived through, and that
other people are affected by these feelings, and also experience
them."[102] The external signs by which the feelings are handed on are
movements, as in dancing and pantomime; lines, masses, colors, as in
architecture, painting and sculpture; sounds, as in music; or forms
expressed in words, as in poetry and other forms of literature. The
external signs with which art instruction in the college deals are
lines, masses, and colors. This discussion, therefore, treats of
instruction in the formative or visual arts, which include
architecture, painting, sculpture, decoration, and the various crafts,
in so far as they come within the meaning of the definition given
above.
=Instruction in art should be an integral part of a liberal education=
Concerning the nature of art and the purpose of art instruction in the
college, there is so much misunderstanding that it will be well to
make an attempt at clarification. Art is too commonly regarded as a
luxury--a superfluity that may serve to occupy the leisure of the
well-to-do--a kind of embroidery upon the edge of life that may be
affixed or discarded at will. Whereas, art is a factor that is
fundamental in human life and development, a factor that has entered
into the being of the race from the dawn of reason. Its products,
which antedate written history by thousands of years, form the most
reliable source of information we possess of the habits and thoughts
of prehistoric man. It has been the medium of expression of many of
the choicest products of human thought throughout the ages. These
products have been embodied in forms other than that of writing. Its
functions are limited neither to the citizen, the community, nor the
country; they extend beyond national bounds to the world at large. Art
belongs to the brotherhood of man. It is no respecter of
nationalities. It is obvious that in a general college course, a study
of the religious, social, and political factors in civilization that
does not include art among these factors is incomplete.
The question under discussion concerns the teaching of art to the
candidate for the bachelor of arts degree, and this question will be
solely kept in view. Since, however, graduates in science,
engineering, law, medicine, etc., are not exempt from the needs of
artistic culture, they too should have at least an effective minimum
of art instruction.
=Art a social activity=
Art is recognized as a social activity. It enters largely into such
practical and utilitarian problems of the community as town planning
and other forms of civic improvement. As workers in such activities,
college graduates are frequently called to serve on boards of
directors and committees which have such work in charge. To most of
such persons, education in art comes as a post-collegiate activity.
Surely the interests of the community would be promoted if the men and
women into whose hands these interests are committed had had some
formal instruction in art during their college years.
If by practical education we mean training which prepares the
individual for living, then the study of an activity that so pervades
human life should be included in the curriculum of even a so-called
practical college course. Art education has a more important function
than to promote the love of the beautiful, to purify and elevate
public taste, to awaken intellectual and spiritual desires, to create
a permanent means of investing leisure. Important as all these
purposes are, they are merely a part of a larger one--that of
revealing to the student the relationship of art to living.
=Flexibility of art expression determines flexibility of art instruction=
Art expression has the quality of utmost flexibility. This flexibility
appears also in art instruction, and it is for this reason that in no
two institutions of higher learning is the problem of art instruction
attacked in the same way. There is, consequently, a great diversity in
the types of art courses, even in the college.
The flexibility of art instruction is both advantageous and
embarrassing. It is an advantage in that it can be adapted to almost
any requirement. It can be applied to the occupations of the
kindergarten, or it can be made an intensive study suitable for the
graduate school. But this very breadth is also a source of weakness in
that it tends to divert the attention from that precision of purpose
which all formal instruction should have, however elementary or
advanced. It is apt to be too scattering in its aims. It is not easy
to determine exact values either in the subject studied or in the
accomplishment of the student. Estimates in art are, and should be,
largely a matter of personal taste and opinion. They are not
infrequently colored by prejudice, especially where the judgment of
producing artists is invoked. This, again, is as it should be. An
artist who assumes toward all works of art a catholic attitude,
weakens that intensity of view and of purpose which animates his
enthusiasm. It can easily be understood that to a larger extent than
in other subjects the nature and scope of art instruction depends upon
the personality of the instructor.
=Values of art instruction=
The flexibility to which we have adverted adapts art instruction to
diverse educational aims.
In that it can be made to conduce to accurate observation of artistic
manifestations, and to logical deduction therefrom, it may be given a
disciplinary purpose. In its highest development, to which only the
specially gifted can attain, the ability to observe accurately and to
deduce logically demands the most exacting training of the eye, of the
visual memory, and of the judgment. As an example of the exercise of
this sort of discipline we may cite Professor Waldstein's recognition
of a marble fragment in the form of a head in the Louvre as belonging
to a metope of the Parthenon. When, after Professor Waldstein's
suggestion of the probable connection, a plaster cast of the head was
taken to the British Museum and placed upon the headless figure of one
of the metopes, the surfaces of fracture were found to correspond.[103]
The most useful application of this ability lies in the correct
attribution of works of art to their proper schools and authorship.
Signor Morelli in his method of identification used a system that is
almost mechanical, yet the evidence supplied by concurrence or
discrepancy of form in the delineation of anatomical details was
supplemented by a highly cultivated sense for style, for
craftsmanship, and for color as well as by an extensive historical
knowledge.
In that art instruction cultivates taste and the appreciation of works
of art, it has a cultural purpose. By many persons it is assumed that
this is its sole value.
In that it serves to illuminate the study of the progress of
civilization, it has an informative purpose.
In that it enables the technical student to correlate his work with
that of past and present workers, it aids in the preparation for
professional studies.
=Difference between technical and lay courses in art one of emphasis=
Art has been defined as "the harmonic expression of the emotions."[104]
Accepting this definition as a modified condensation of Tolstoi's
definition, it is clear that in a work of art two separate personalities
are involved--that which makes the expression, and the other to whom
the expression is addressed; thus, there are artists on the one hand,
and the public on the other. Since we shall have to speak of two
distinct classes of students,--namely, those who are in training as
future artists (as architects, painters, sculptors, designers, etc.),
and those who are taking courses in the understanding or appreciation
of art,--it will be convenient in this discussion to refer to the
former as art students and to the latter as lay students.
Formal art instruction has been offered by colleges to both these
groups. It is evident that for the training of the art student
emphasis must be placed upon the technique of creative work, whereas
for the lay student emphasis must be placed upon the study of the
theory and the history of art. It would seem, however, that these two
methods are not mutually exclusive; nor should they be, for the art
student would surely gain by a study of the principles of art and its
history, while the lay student would profit by a certain amount of
practice directed by an observance of the principles.
Mr. Duncan Phillips, in an article entitled "What Instruction in Art
Should the College A.B. Course Offer to the Future Writer on Art?"
proposes a hypothetical course in which "the ultimate intention would
be to awaken the aesthetic sensibilities of the youthful mind, to
encourage the emergence of the artists and art critics, and the
establishment of a residue of well-instructed appreciators."[105]
This proposal assumes the desirability of the completion of a general
course designed for college students, before beginning the special
courses designed for those individuals whose aptitudes seem to fit
them for successful careers as artists on the one hand, or as
successful writers on art, or art instructors on the other.
In this place the question of professional training will not be
discussed. The courses under consideration are designed to serve the
group of lay students from which specialists may, from time to time,
emerge. It is of the utmost importance that provision for the further
training of such specialists should be made in the college, in the
postgraduate school, or in an allied professional school of art.
In view of the great diversity in the treatment of the subject in
different colleges, it will be impossible to present a series of
courses that might, under other conditions, be representative of a
general practice throughout the country. On the other hand, the
attempt to make an epitome of the various methods in use at the more
important colleges would result in the presentation of a succession of
unrelated statements drawn from catalogues which would be hardly less
exasperating to the reader than it would be for him to follow,
successively, the outlines as presented in the catalogues themselves.
Various summaries of these outlines have been made, and to these the
reader is referred.[106]
=A general course of study--Must be adjusted to local conditions=
An attempt is here made to set forth a programme which is offered as a
suggestion, upon which actual courses may be based, with such
modifications as are demanded by local conditions, the number and
personal training of the teaching staff, and the physical equipment
available.
The task before the college art instructor is to cultivate the lay
student's understanding and appreciation of the works of art and to
develop an ardent enthusiasm for his subject, tempered by good taste.
This understanding will be based upon a workable body of principles
which the student can use in making his artistic estimates and
choices. Such a body of principles will constitute his theory of art.
=Two methods of presenting art instruction to lay students=
Art instruction for lay students may be presented in two ways:
1. By the study of theory supplemented by the experimental application
of theory to practice, as by drawing, design, etc.
2. By the study of theory supplemented by an application of theory to
the analysis and estimation of works of art as they are presented in a
systematic study of the history of art.
Consider now the relation of practice and history to theory:
First as to practice: Art instructors are divided into three camps on
the question of giving to the lay student instruction in practice: (1)
Those who believe that not only is practice unnecessary in the study
of theory, but actually harmful; (2) those who believe that practice
will aid in a study of the theory of art; (3) Those who believe that
practice is indispensable and who would, therefore, require that all
students supplement their study of the theory of art by practice. As
may be surmised, by far the largest number of advocates is found in
the middle division.
One form of practice is Representation. In this form the student
begins by drawing in freehand very simple objects either in outline or
mass, and proceeds through more advanced exercises in drawing from
still life, to drawing and painting of landscape and the human figure.
With the addition of supplementary studies, such as anatomy,
perspective, modeling, composition, craft work, theory, history, etc.,
this would be, broadly speaking, the method followed in schools of
art, where courses, occupying from two to four or five years, are
given, intended primarily for those who expect to make some sort of
creative art their vocation.
It is this kind of work which opponents to practice for the lay
student have in mind. They claim that only by long and severe
training can he produce such works as will give satisfaction to him or
to others who examine his handiwork. They contend that the
understanding of works of art is not dependent upon ability to produce
a poor example. They offer many amusing analogies as arguments against
practice courses for lay students. They maintain that the proof of the
pudding is in the eating, rather than in the making; that to enjoy
music one need not practice five-finger exercises; that other
creatures than domestic fowls are capable of judging of the quality of
eggs; that to appreciate the beauty of a tapestry it is not necessary
to examine the reverse side. It will perhaps be sufficient, for the
present, to point out that in so far as such alleged analogies can be
submitted for arguments, they are equally applicable to laboratory
courses in any subject which is studied with a non-professional or
non-vocational purpose.
It is true, however, that such a course as that outlined above demands
a large amount of time, compared with the results attained; and while
successful courses in Representation are offered in certain colleges,
the great mass of college students, who cannot hope to acquire a high
degree of skill, would hesitate to devote a large part of their
training to technical work, even if college faculties were willing to
grant considerable proportions of credit for it toward the bachelor of
arts degree.
=Relative value of freehand drawing and design=
It will be understood by the reader that the value of elementary
freehand drawing as a means of discipline or as an aid to the
technical student is not under discussion. The value of drawing as a
fundamental language for such purposes is universally admitted. The
questions are these: Can some form of practice in art be used to aid
in the understanding of the principles of art? Is representative
drawing the only form of practice available for the lay student who
undertakes the study of art? Fortunately, the advocates of practice
can offer an alternative; namely Design. Mr. Arthur Dow distinguishes
between the Drawing method (Representation) and the Design method by
calling the former _Analytical_ and the latter _Synthetical_. In an
article on "Archaism in Art Teaching"[107] he says: "I wish to show
that the traditional 'drawing method' of teaching art is too weak to
meet the new art criticism and new demands, or to connect with
vocational and industrial education in an effective way; but that the
'Design method' is broad and strong enough to do all of these things."
"The drawing method," he continues, "is analytic, dealing with the
small, the details, the _application_ of art; the design method is
synthetic, dealing with wholes, unities, principles of art."
Mr. Dow carries his exposition into the application of the Design
method to vocational work, but it can be used with equal effect in
supplementing the lay student's study of art.
But the questions immediately arise: Is not a preparation as long and
arduous required to make a designer as to make a painter or a
sculptor? And is not the half-baked designer in as sorry a plight as
the half-baked artist of any kind? The answer to both is simple: The
lay student is not in any degree a painter or a sculptor or a
designer, neither is he in training for any of these professions. The
advantage of the Design method is, that with no skill whatsoever in
drawing, the beginner in the study of art can apply to his own efforts
the same principles of design which have from time immemorial entered
into the creation of great works of art. The college freshman planning
a surface design with the aid of "squared" paper is applying the same
principles that guided the hand of Michelangelo as it swept across the
ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.
Such principles as symmetry, balance, rhythm, emphasis, harmony in
form, mass, value, and color can be inculcated by solving the simplest
as well as the most complicated problems. A graded series of exercises
can be undertaken by the student that will, with a comparatively small
amount of manual skill carry him a considerable distance in the
understanding of the principles of design upon which all creative art
rests. Another advantage is that, in the process, considerable skill
in freehand drawing also can be acquired. But this advantage is merely
incidental.
The greatest value lies in the fact that the Design method offers to
the student an excellent means of self-expression. The student,
through no fault of his, is too prone to absorb and too little
inclined to yield of the fruits of his knowledge. Herein lies a
partial remedy for the tendency of college students to make
receptacles of their minds into which knowledge is poured through the
ear by listening to lectures, or through the eye by reading. Herein is
a means of overcoming mental inertia, for, certainly, the solution of
a problem in design calls for thought--the amount of mental exertion
being commensurate with the difficulty of the problem. In this, the
Design method is superior to the Representation method, though it
would be an error to assume that freehand drawing is chiefly a manual
operation. Such an error is entertained by those only who never have
learned to draw. Another considerable value lies in the fact that even
if the lay student of design should in later life never set hand to
paper,--as he probably will not, any more than he who has taken
courses in drawing and painting will ever attempt to paint a
picture,--yet he has come into practical contact with the leading
principles of art, and has gained a knowledge that can be applied not
merely to the discriminating understanding of the artistic qualities
of the exhibits in art museums or in private galleries, but to the art
of every day. It can be applied to the estimating of the artistic
value of a poster, a book cover, or a title page; to the choosing of
wall paper; to the arranging of the furniture in a room; to the laying
out of a garden; to intelligent cooperation in the designing of a
house or in replanning, on paper at least, the street system of a
city; or to the selecting of a design for a public memorial. It is not
to be assumed that in thus exercising a cultivated taste he would
always make conscious application of the principles of design in
making his estimates. These would have so entered into his habit of
thought that he would unconsciously make what Mr. Dow calls "fine
choices."
The educational value of the Design method is almost universally
recognized in the art departments of our public schools and in our art
schools, and it is probable that when its aims and methods are better
understood by our college faculties, its disciplinary, cultural, and
informative value will be more widely recognized in the college of
liberal arts, and that it will take equal rank with theme and report
writing as a means of cultivating a taste for literature, with the
practice of harmony and counterpoint as a means of appreciating music,
and with laboratory work in acquiring knowledge of a science.
=Art history as a means of inculcating principles of art=
Next, consider art history as a means of inculcating the principles of
art. It is evident that the emotions or feelings of the artist and the
methods he employs to express them may be studied in such masterpieces
as the _Hermes_ of Praxiteles and the _Lincoln_ of St. Gaudens. In
either he may observe the application of the principles of balance,
mass, repose, harmony, and the analysis of character. In either he may
study the technique which involves the material of the statues, the
tools employed, and the manner of working.
There is, however, great advantage in considering such examples in
their place in the evolution of art, and their significance in their
relation to the social and political development of the human race--in
other words, in studying systematically the history and development of
art.
Instruction in history of art is not without its pitfalls. It is too
apt to lapse into a mere listing of names and dates of artists and
their work, with the introduction of interesting biographical details
and some discussion limited to the subjects treated in selected
examples. It is often too much concerned with _who_, _when_, and
_where_ and not sufficiently with _why_ and _how_. A person may
possess a large fund of the facts of art history and yet have but
little understanding or appreciation of the aims and underlying
principles of art production. It should never be forgotten that for
the college student the history of art is merely a convenient scheme
or system upon which to base discussions of the principles of art as
involved in the works themselves, an outline for the study of the
artistic affiliations of any artist with the great company of his
antecedents, his contemporaries, and his successors. The instructor
should never regard practice or history as ends in themselves, but as
means to the development of the understanding.
=Years in which art courses should be offered=
In some colleges only the more advanced students are permitted to take
art courses. It does not seem wise thus to limit the years in which
courses may be taken. An elementary course should be offered in the
freshman year, while other courses of increasing difficulty should be
offered in each of the succeeding years. The greatest variety is seen
in the colleges throughout the country in the amount of art taught,
and the amount of credit given toward the A.B. degree. When the
subject is elected as a "minor," it should be one-tenth to one-eighth
of all the work undertaken by a candidate for the bachelor's degree;
while a "major" elective usually should cover from one-fifth to
one-fourth of all the work of a candidate for the same degree. Some
zealous advocates maintain that a certain amount of art training
should be required for graduation. Valuable as art training would be
to every graduate, it does not seem wise to make art a required
subject in the curriculum. To compel men and women to study art
against their will would destroy much of the charm of the subject both
for the teacher and the student. Unless the subject is pursued with
enthusiasm by both, it loses its value.
=Organization and content of courses in art=
The courses suggested are as follows:
_Course I_ (_Freshman year_). Introduction to the study of art. A
study of the various forms of artistic expression, together with the
principles which govern those forms. The study would be carried on (1)
by means of lectures, (2) by discussions led by the instructor and
carried on by members of the class, (3) by laboratory or studio
practice in the application of the principles of art expression to
graded problems in design, (4) by collateral reading, (5) by the
occasional writing of themes and reports, (6) by excursions to art
collections (public and private), artists' studios, and craft shops.
Some of the topics for lectures and discussion would be: Primitive art
and the factors which control its rise and development; principles of
harmony; design in the various arts; an outline study of historic
ornament; composition in architecture, painting, and sculpture;
concept in art, with a study of examples drawn from the master works
of all ages; processes in the artistic crafts; application of the
principles of design to room decoration.
The studio or laboratory work would include: Application of the
principles of design; spacing of lines and spots; borders and all-over
designs achieved by repetition of various units; studies in symmetry
and balance; color study, including hue, value, intensity; exercises
in color harmony; problems in form and proportions, decoration of
given geometrical areas; applications to practical uses; studies in
form and color from still life; use of charcoal, brush, pastel, water
color; simple exercises in pictorial composition; problems in
simplification necessitated by technique; application of principles of
design to room decoration. (This course would be prerequisite for all
subsequent courses in practice.)
_Course II_ (_Sophomore year_). A general course in the history of
art. A consideration of the development of the arts of architecture,
sculpture, and painting from prehistoric periods to recent times. In
this course emphasis would be laid upon the periods of higher
attainments in artistic expression, and the discussions would be
directed toward the qualities of great masterpieces rather than toward
those of the multitude of lesser works.
The work would be carried on (1) by means of lectures; (2) by
discussions led by the instructor and carried on by members of the
class; (3) by collateral reading; (4) by study of original works of
art, photographs, and other forms of reproduction; (5) by the writing
of themes and reports; (6) by visits to art galleries and artists'
studios. (This course would be prerequisite for subsequent courses in
history, etc.)
Following these two general courses there should be two groups of
courses: _Group A, Practice courses_; _Group B, History courses_.
Candidates for the A.B. degree who expect to take postgraduate work in
creative art or in the teaching of creative art would elect chiefly
from Group A. Lay students who are candidates for the A.B. degree and
who expect to make writing or criticism in art, or teaching of art to
lay students, or art museum work their vocation, would elect chiefly
from Group B; as would, also, those composing the greater number, who
study art as one means of acquiring general culture.
In the following lists of courses the grade of each course is
indicated by a roman numeral placed after the title of the course, the
indications being as follows:
I. Elementary (primarily for freshmen and sophomores).
II. Intermediate (primarily for sophomores and juniors).
III. Advanced (primarily for juniors and seniors).
IV. Graduate (primarily for seniors and graduates).
Beyond these indications no attempt is here made to prescribe the
subdivisions of the courses, nor the number of hours per week, nor the
number of weeks per year in each course.
GROUP A: PRACTICE COURSES
A1 _Freehand Drawing._ (I) Drawing in charcoal and pencil from simple
objects, plaster casts, still life, etc. Elements of perspective with
elementary problems.
A2 _Freehand Drawing_ (_continued_). (II) Drawing in charcoal, pencil,
pen and ink, brush (monochrome in water color) from plaster casts,
still life and the costumed figure. Out-of-door sketching.
A3 _Color_ (Water Color or Oil Color). (II) Drawing in color from
still life and the costumed figure. Out-of-door sketching.
A4 _Modeling._ (III) Modeling in clay from casts of antique sculpture
and of architectural ornament as an aid to the study of form and
proportion.
A5 _Advanced Design._ (III) Theory and practice. (Continuation of
Course I. Introduction to the study of art.)
A6, A7, ... etc. _Advanced Courses in Drawing, Painting, Modeling, and
Applied Design_ (IV) selected from the following: Studies in various
media from life. Composition. Illustration. Portrait work. Practical
work in pottery, bookbinding, enameling, metal work, interior
decoration, wood carving, engraving, etching. These courses would be
supplemented by lectures on the theory and principles of art. Topics
of such lectures would be: Theory of Design, Composition, Technique of
the Various Arts, Artistic Anatomy, Perspective, Shades and Shadows,
etc.
GROUP B: HISTORY COURSES
B1_ History of Ancient Art._ (II)
B2 _History of Roman and Medieval Art._ (II)
B3 _History of Renaissance Art in Italy._ (III)
B4 _History of Modern Art._ (III) History of art in Western Europe
during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.
B5, B6, ... etc. _History of Special Periods; Consideration of Special
Forms of Art, and of Great Masters in Art_ (IV) selected from the
following: Art of Primitive Greece, Greek Sculpture, Greek Vases,
Early Christian and Byzantine Architecture, History of Mosaic;
Medieval Illumination; Sienese Painters of the Thirteenth and
Fourteenth Centuries; Florentine Painting; Domestic Architecture of
Various Countries; Leonardo da Vinci and His Works; Art of the
Netherlands; History of Mural Painting; History and Principles of
Engraving; Prints and Their Makers; Chinese and Japanese Art; Colonial
Architecture in America; Painting and Sculpture in America, etc., etc.
=Teaching equipment for college courses in art=
No attempt will here be made to comment upon the general furnishing
and equipment of lecture rooms, laboratories, and studios.
Nevertheless, some reference to the special teaching equipment is
necessary for the further consideration of the methods of teaching.
Illustrations are of the greatest importance in the study of art. The
best illustrations are original works of art. For manifest reasons
these are not usually available in the classroom, and the teacher is
dependent upon facsimiles and other reproductions. These take the form
of copies, replicas, casts, models, photographs, stereopticon slides,
prints in black and white and in color, including the ubiquitous
picture postal card.
The collections of public art museums and of private galleries are of
great value for illustrative purposes; but of still greater value to
the student is the departmental museum, with which, unfortunately, but
few colleges are equipped. Some colleges have been saddled by
well-meaning donors with collections of various kinds of works of art
which are but ill related to the instruction given in the department
of art. The collections of the college museum need not be large but
they should be selected especially with their instructional purpose in
view. The problems of expense debars most colleges from establishing
museums of art; but with a modest annual appropriation a working
collection can be gradually gathered together. A collection which is
the result of gradual growth and of careful consideration will usually
be of greater instructional value than one which is acquired at one
time.
An institution which owns a few original works of painting, sculpture,
and the crafts of representative masters is indeed fortunate, but even
institutions whose expenditures for this purpose are slight may
possess at least a few original lithographs, engravings, etchings,
etc., in its collection of prints.
Fortunately, there are means whereby some of the unobtainable
originals of the great public museums and private collections of the
world may be represented in the college museums by adequate
reproductions. The methods of casting in plaster of Paris, in bronze
and other materials; of producing squeezes in papier mache; and of
reproducing by the galvano-plastic process, are used for making
facsimiles of statues, vases, terra cottas, carved ivories,
inscriptions and other forms of incised work, gems, coins, etc., at a
cost which, when compared with that of originals, is trivial.[108]
Paintings, drawings, engravings, etc., are often admirably reproduced
by various photographic and printing processes in color or black and
white.
Generally speaking, the most valuable adjunct of the college art
museum or of the college art library is the collection of photographs
properly classified and filed for ready reference by the instructor or
student.
A specially designed museum building would present opportunities for
service that would extend beyond the walls of the art department, but
if such a building is not available, a single well-lighted room
furnished with suitable cabinets and wall cases, and with ample wall
space for the display of paintings, prints, charts, etc., would be of
great service.
A departmental library of carefully chosen books on the theory,
history, and the practice of the various arts, together with current
and bound numbers of the best art periodicals of America and of
foreign countries, is indispensable.
=Methods of teaching=
Methods will naturally depend somewhat upon the size of the class. In
large classes--of, say, more than forty--the lecture method,
supplemented by section meetings and conferences, would usually be
followed. In the following discussion it is assumed that the classes
will not exceed forty.
Under the head of Methods of Teaching are here included: Work in Class
and Work outside of Class.
The work in class consists of lectures; discussions by the members of
the class; laboratory or studio work; excursions. There is no worse
method than that of exclusive lecturing by the instructor. If the
methods employed do not induce the student to do his own thinking,
they have but little value. Much of the instructor's time will be
occupied in devising methods by which the students themselves will
contribute to their own and their fellows' advancement.
Discussions led by the instructor and carried on by the members of the
class should be frequent. From time to time a separate division of a
general topic should be assigned to each member of the class, who will
prepare himself to present his part of the topic before the class
either by reading a paper or otherwise. Discussions by the members of
the class, concluded by the instructor, should generally follow this
presentation. Topics for investigation, study, and discussion should
be so selected as to require the students to make application of their
study to their daily life and environment. In this way their critical
interest in the design of public and private buildings, of monuments,
and of the innumerable art productions which they see about them would
be stimulated.
For the purpose of illustrating lectures and aiding in discussions,
prints and photographs may be shown either directly or through the
medium of the reflectoscope. Or, they may be transferred to lantern
slides and shown by means of the stereopticon. To a limited extent the
Lumiere color process has been used in preparing slides.
The methods of laboratory and studio work have already been briefly
treated under the head of Courses of Instruction, and hardly need to
be further amplified here.
It has already been stated that original works of art are the best
illustrations, and that these are but rarely available within the
walls of the college. Instructors in institutions which are situated
within or near to large centers of population can usually supply this
deficiency by arranging visits to museums and other places where works
of art are preserved and exhibited; and to artists' studios and to
workshops where works of art are produced. Instructors in institutions
which are not so situated may supply the deficiency, in some measure,
by arranging for temporary exhibitions in the museum or other rooms of
the department. Rotary exhibitions of paintings, prints, craftwork,
sculpture, designs, examples of students' work, etc., may be arranged
whereby groups of institutions within convenient distances from each
other may share the benefits offered by such exhibitions, as well as
the expense of assemblage, transportation, and insurance. In arranging
for such temporary exhibitions it is essential that only works of the
highest quality, of their kind, should be selected.
Selections can best be made personally by the instructor or by capable
and trustworthy agents who are thoroughly informed as to the purpose
of the exhibition and as to the needs of the institutions forming the
circuits. Such rotary exhibitions possess a wider usefulness than that
of serving as illustrative material for the college department of art:
they serve also as an artistic stimulus to the members of the college
at large, and to the community in which the college is situated.[109]
The work of students outside of class has already been mentioned. It
consists of collateral reading, the study of prints and photographs,
and the preparation of written themes and reports. Notwithstanding the
lavish production of books relating to art, there are but very few
that are suitable for use as college textbooks. The instructor will
usually assign collateral reading from various authors.
=Testing results of art instruction=
In attempting to measure the success or failure of the work, the
teacher must ask himself, What do our college graduates who have taken
art courses possess that is lacking in those who have not taken such
courses?
The immediate test of the results of the work is in the attitude of
mind of the students. Do they think differently about works of art
from what they did before entering the courses? Is there a change in
their habit of thought? Have they done no more than accept the lessons
they have been taught, or have they so absorbed them and made them
their own that they are capable of self-expression in making their
estimates of works of art? These questions may be answered by the
result of the written examination and by the oral quiz.
It must be confessed that the chief purpose of art instruction in the
college is to supply a lack in our national and private life. Citizens
of the older communities of Europe pass their lives among the
accumulated art treasures of past ages. The mere daily contact with
such forms of beauty engenders a taste for them. Partly through our
Puritan origin, partly through our preoccupation with the development
of the material resources of our country, we, as a people, have failed
to cultivate some of the imponderable things of the spirit. So far as
we have had to do with its creation, our environment in town and
village is generally lacking in artistic charm.
The study by lay students of the art of the past has one chief object;
namely, to train them to understand the works of the masters in order
that they may discriminate between what is beautiful and what is
meretricious in the art of the present day; to learn the lessons of
art from the monoliths of Egypt, the tawny marbles of ancient Greece,
the balanced thrusts of the Gothic cathedral, the gracious and
reverent harmonies of the primitives, the delicate handicrafts of the
Orient, the splendors of the Renaissance, the vibrant colors of the
latest phase of impressionism, and to apply these lessons in the
search for hidden elements of beauty in nature and art in their own
country and in their own lives and surroundings.
Believing, as he does, in the value of artistic culture, it becomes
the duty of the college art instructor to teach with enthusiasm
unmarred by prejudice; to cultivate in the minds of his students a
catholic receptivity to all that is sincere in artistic expression; to
open up avenues of thought in the minds of those whose lives would
otherwise be barren of artistic sympathy; to cull the best from the
experience of the past, and, by its help, to impart to his hearers
some of his own enthusiasm; for their lives cannot fail to touch at
some point the borderlands of the magic realm of art.
HOLMES SMITH
_Washington University_
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Footnotes:
[102] Tolstoi, L. N., _What Is Art?_ Thomas Y. Crowell Company, 1899.