Nor are these always plays of a
low class. It is only by a somewhat artificial process of abstraction
that we can formulate a theme for _As You Like It_, for _The Way of the
World_, or for _Hedda Gabler_.
The question now arises: ought a theme, in its abstract form, to be the
first germ of a play? Ought the dramatist to say, "Go to, I will write a
play on temperance, or on woman's suffrage, or on capital and labour,"
and then cast about for a story to illustrate his theme? This is a
possible, but not a promising, method of procedure. A story made to the
order of a moral concept is always apt to advertise its origin, to the
detriment of its illusive quality. If a play is to be a moral apologue
at all, it is well to say so frankly--probably in the title--and aim,
not at verisimilitude, but at neatness and appositeness in the working
out of the fable. The French _proverbe_ proceeds on this principle, and
is often very witty and charming.[1] A good example in English is _A
Pair of Spectacles_, by Mr.
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