Astonishing as it may appear, there are men who can deliver
extemporaneously, not only excellent orations and discourses, but also
beautiful poems, tragedies and comedies. Exhibitions of this kind have
been so frequent, that no deception can possibly exist. You may even
specify the measure in which you desire the poetical production, and
the verses, as if inspired, will flow from the lips of the
_improvvisatore_, with ease, elegance, and beauty. When I was in Paris,
Sgricci extemporized several tragedies in Italian.[1] Eugene Pradel
delivered a poem on Columbus, and proposed to extemporize tragedies and
operas in French. Manuel could at any time speak appropriately and
eloquently without preparation. The number of _improvvisatori_ is very
great, and I might enumerate, if necessary, many of these distinguished
men. Italy boasts of the names of several ladies who have acquired fame
by their poetical extempore compositions, among whom I may mention the
Bandettini, the Mazei and the Corilla. This fact being admitted, two
questions arise--1st. Is it possible to acquire this wonderful talent?
2nd. What are the means to be employed in order to succeed in speaking
extemporaneously?
To the first question, I answer affirmatively.--The talent of speaking
extempore is always an acquired one: all good _improvvisatori_ have
followed a course of mental exercises. Illustrious men at first uttered
a few words with stammering tongues, then spoke hesitatingly--and by
proper combinations of their intellectual faculties, became the
extraordinary _improvvisatori_, who excite wonder and admiration.
Experience shows the truth of this assertion.
The second question is, what are the means to be employed in order to
succeed in speaking extempore? They are numerous, and they must be
pursued with that enthusiasm and perseverance, without which, a man can
never reach the temple of fame: for he who feels the noble ambition of
distinguishing himself from the crowd which surrounds him--he who
wishes to leave traces of his passage on earth, and to raise a monument
which ages shall not destroy--must be moved by an energetic spirit, and
have the moral courage to banish mental indolence from his bosom--to
shake off that apathy so fatal to intellectual improvement, and to
imbibe that love of immortality, which will carry him triumphantly
through his career. He will bear in mind meanwhile, that
"Aucun chemin de fleurs ne conduit à la gloire,"
and deeply impressed with this important truth, will display the energy
necessary to overcome all difficulties. I will not say that it is
easy--that it requires but little labor to become a good extempore
speaker. Still less will I advance the false opinion, that some men are
naturally so. You will perceive by what follows, that I am far from
believing it. What are the preliminary acquirements of a good
_improvvisatore_? He must embrace the whole circle of human knowledge.
He must know the fundamental principles of nearly all the arts and
sciences, (I do not mean by this, that it is necessary he should
possess the details connected with them--that is above human
strength)--he must be acquainted with all the revolutions in which
human genius has been displayed--he must be familiar with all important
discoveries, and with the deeds of great men, in all ages and
countries. He must be a cosmopolite, that is to say, he must be
acquainted with the customs and manners of every nation--and it is
necessary he should put aside his prejudices, in order to understand
the peculiarities which characterize the members of the great human
family. The wonders of nature must be impressed on his mind, and above
all, he must have read and meditated upon the works of the classical
writers of all nations, and know perfectly the beauties and genius of
his own language.
These are the materials of the _improvvisatore_,--but these
acquirements, extensive as they are, will not give him the power of
extemporizing. How often do we see men endowed with profound
wisdom,--vast experience and learning,--unable to express and convey to
others the result of their long meditations! The reason of this is
obvious. How could the man who devotes the whole of his time to the
acquisition of sciences, expect to express himself well, if he neglects
to study the only art which can teach him the means of speaking
fluently and extempore?
When a man has learned the arts and sciences of which I have
spoken--when he has examined the political, religious and philosophical
opinions which have governed the world from the remotest ages--he sees
that the number of original ideas is not as great as one might
suppose--he perceives that all mental faculties are connected--and that
there is a chain which unites all thoughts--that they proceed from each
other--that an idea must spring from a cause which gives rise to it.
Thus he studies the laws of reasoning--thus by practice he learns to
fix his attention on his sensations, and sometimes a single sensation,
when properly analyzed, presents him the substance of a whole
discourse: for a good discourse is nothing more than _a series of
judgments_ logically deduced from each other,--_it is a chain of ideas
connected by a close analogy_. By training his mind to logical
deductions, he acquires by degrees, the facility of combining ideas;
and, guided by analogy, he reasons correctly without effort. Reasoning
is learned like languages. At first, we hesitate in placing the words
of a foreign tongue--we are obliged to recollect the rule which is to
guide us in every part of speech; but when thoroughly versed in the
genius of the language, we speak it fluently, without thinking about
the arrangement of words. So it is with reasoning. A man who is equally
versed in several languages, may express his ideas without knowing at
the moment, in what idiom he imbodies his thoughts. A man who has
trained his mind logically, reasons well, without thinking about the
principles which guide him. It is well known that men have many ideas
in common, and very often an author becomes popular and illustrious,
only because he expresses with great superiority and beauty, that which
every body thinks and feels. This is the very foundation of poetry and
eloquence. It is this art which is called _nature_, and which gives
immortality to literary productions. The work which does not awake our
sympathy--which is not in harmony with the feelings of our nature--and
which is not expressed in words best suited to its subject, can never
acquire fame for its author. Hence the importance of the
_improvvisatore's_ studying mankind--hence the necessity of learning to
imbody his ideas in appropriate language.--As each _passion_ has its
peculiar expression and style, the _improvvisatore_ must engrave on his
mind, the _association_ of suitable expressions for every _feeling_;
so, that every time he experiences or brings back to his memory a
_sensation_, a _passion_, or an _idea_, he may also, simultaneously
recall the words best suited to express them. He must acquire the
faculty of bringing before his mind, all the scenes of nature--and the
passions which spring from the heart of man; and, at the same time,
possess language to convey them with eloquence. His imagination must be
active, impetuous, or overwhelming, according to the objects which he
intends to describe. The mind of the _improvvisatore_ must be exercised
to employ every style: the simple--the flowery--the majestic--the
pathetic--the sublime--to combine ideas with the rapidity of
lightning;--in a word, he must know all the springs of the human heart,
in order to move it at his will, as if by enchantment.
Although it may seem paradoxical, it is seldom for want of ideas, that
a man fails in being eloquent. Thought is always ready--always
instantaneous. Learn to extemporize its expression. Where is the man
who surrounded by an indignant people, breaking the chains of
despotism, and defending their sacred rights with courage and
patriotism--where is the man, I say, who, at the sight of such a
spectacle, could remain unmoved? Where is the man who could not be
eloquent, were his mind provided with expressions worthy of his
thoughts? Where is the man who can be thoughtless at the view of a
vessel beaten by the tempestuous billows in the midst of the
ocean--when he perceives this frail nautic dwelling at war with
infuriated storms--when on a sudden he sees the long agitated ship
breaking asunder, and every human being which she contains scattered
and struggling against death? In this frightful scene, where darting
lightnings are shedding their vacillating light on the ghastly faces of
expiring victims, and when the last beam of earthly hope is to be
buried with them in the bosom of the deep,--can that spectator be
unconcerned? No. His very soul shudders--his limbs are trembling, and
his eyes filled with tears. Are not these feelings impressed in the
bosom of every human being? If the witness of such a shipwreck could
imbody faithfully in language his sensations at the moment he
experiences them, could he fail to excite our sympathy? No--no--a man
who has ready expressions to convey his thoughts and feelings will
always be eloquent. I need not mention Demosthenes and Cicero, Æschines
and Hortensius, Isocrates, Lysias, Pericles, and a crowd of sophists
who displayed, in former ages, great skill in the art of speaking.
Their writings have been the mental food for those who studied
antiquity. In modern times, lord Chatham, Fox, Pitt, Burke, Sheridan,
Canning, have shone in the British House of Commons, and their fame is
familiar to every American scholar. I will only name some of those
illustrious men who displayed splendid abilities in the different
political assemblies of France. Who has not heard of the astonishing
oratorical powers of Mirabeau, Maury, Barnave and Vergniaud the pride
of the Gironde? Manuel, Foy, Benjamin Constant, Lamarque, and several
others have of late added a new lustre to French eloquence. All these
eminent orators were distinguished for their improvisations. My
intention now is not to discuss their peculiar merit as men of genius
and extempore speakers; I merely quote them as models. I must not omit
mentioning three orators now wandering in exile, after having displayed
in their native land all the magic of eloquence, in order to restore
liberty to their enslaved country. Though the efforts of Galiano,
Argüelles and Martinez de la Rosa were not crowned with success, they
will ever be the pride of Spain. These gifted patriots, struggling
against adversity and preserving their noble independence, deserve the
admiration of mankind.[2]
In concluding, I may say that the power of combining just and useful
ideas, and expressing them extemporaneously in an appropriate
language--the knowledge of man and of every thing which concerns him--a
strong and well modulated voice, and dignified gestures, constitute
what is called a _good improvvisatore_. Few succeed in all the
multifarious qualifications of an extempore speaker--few are led by
this unabated enthusiastic spirit resolved to meet and triumph over
difficulties. This disposition of mind, however, must exist--for in
mental contention as in war,
"A vaincre sans péril on triomphe sans gloire."
And every one that has witnessed the wonders of this art, will grant
that if there be a talent by which the powers of man are exhibited in
all their sublimity, it is undoubtedly that of the accomplished
_improvvisatore_.