Critical Miscellanies (Vol 2 of 3), Essay 1: Vauvenargues

The essay surveys the life and thought of the French moralist Vauvenargues, situating him against Pascal and eighteenth-century critics, tracing his birth, education, Parisian career and friendship with Voltaire, and exploring his religious sensibility, reserve, and aphoristic genius. It analyses his judgments of dramatists, compares him to English moralists, and outlines his conception of character and will, emphasizing spontaneous feeling as counterpoint to ascetic and pessimistic doctrines. The piece considers his style through examples, argues for character as the measure of greatness, and notes how personal delicacy and physiognomy reflect his moral tone.