Aesops Fables | Page 7

has to thank him for drawing
attention to the marvellous excellence of the Critique of Judgment,
generally neglected in favour of the Critiques of Pure Reason and of
Practical Judgment; Baumgarten for drawing the attention of the world
to his obscure name and for reprinting his Latin thesis in which the
word Aesthetic occurs for the first time; and Schleiermacher for the
tributes paid to his neglected genius in the History of Aesthetic. La
Critica, too, is full of generous appreciation of contemporaries by
Croce and by that profound thinker, Gentile.
But it is not only philosophers who have reason to be grateful to Croce
for his untiring zeal and diligence. Historians, economists, poets, actors,
and writers of fiction have been rescued from their undeserved limbo
by this valiant Red Cross knight, and now shine with due brilliance in
the circle of their peers. It must also be admitted that a large number of
false lights, popular will o' the wisps, have been ruthlessly extinguished
with the same breath. For instance, Karl Marx, the socialist theorist and
agitator, finds in Croce an exponent of his views, in so far as they are
based upon the truth, but where he blunders, his critic immediately
reveals the origin and nature of his mistakes. Croce's studies in
Economic are chiefly represented by his work, the title of which may
be translated "Historical Materialism and Marxist Economic."
To indicate the breadth and variety of Croce's work I will mention the
further monograph on the sixteenth century Neapolitan Pulcinella (the
original of our Punch), and the personage of the Neapolitan in comedy,
a monument of erudition and of acute and of lively dramatic criticism,
that would alone have occupied an ordinary man's activity for half a
lifetime. One must remember, however, that Croce's average working
day is of ten hours. His interest is concentrated on things of the mind,
and although he sits on several Royal Commissions, such as those of

the Archives of all Italy and of the monument to King Victor
Emmanuel, he has taken no university degree, and much dislikes any
affectation of academic superiority. He is ready to meet any one on
equal terms and try with them to get at the truth on any subject, be it
historical, literary, or philosophical. "Truth," he says, "is democratic,"
and I can testify that the search for it, in his company, is very
stimulating. As is well said by Prezzolini, "He has a new word for all."
There can be no doubt of the great value of Croce's work as an
educative influence, and if we are to judge of a philosophical system by
its action on others, then we must place the Philosophy of the Spirit
very high. It may be said with perfect truth that since the death of the
poet Carducci there has been no influence in Italy to compare with that
of Benedetto Croce.
His dislike of Academies and of all forms of prejudice runs parallel
with his breadth and sympathy with all forms of thought. His activity in
the present is only equalled by his reverence for the past. Naples he
loves with the blind love of the child for its parent, and he has been of
notable assistance to such Neapolitan talent as is manifested in the
works of Salvatore di Giacomo, whose best poems are written in the
dialect of Naples, or rather in a dialect of his own, which Croce had
difficulty in persuading the author always to retain. The original jet of
inspiration having been in dialect, it is clear that to amend this
inspiration at the suggestion of wiseacres at the Café would have been
to ruin it altogether.
Of the popularity that his system and teaching have already attained we
may judge by the fact that the Aesthetic[4], despite the difficulty of the
subject, is already in its third edition in Italy, where, owing to its
influence, philosophy sells better than fiction; while the French and
Germans, not to mention the Czechs, have long had translations of the
earlier editions. His Logic is on the point of appearing in its second
edition, and I have no doubt that the Philosophy of the Practical will
eventually equal these works in popularity. The importance and value
of Italian thought have been too long neglected in Great Britain. Where,
as in Benedetto Croce, we get the clarity of vision of the Latin, joined

to the thoroughness and erudition of the best German tradition, we have
a combination of rare power and effectiveness, which can by no means
be neglected.
The philosopher feels that he has a great mission, which is nothing less
than the leading back of thought to belief in the spirit, deserted by so
many for crude empiricism and positivism. His view of philosophy is