They degrade and belittle him. Let
Stevenson speak for himself; the thought contained in the following
passage is found in a hundred places in his writings and dominated his
artistic life.
"The French have a romantic evasion for one employment, and call its
practitioners the Daughters of Joy. The artist is of the same
family, he is of the Sons of Joy, chose his trade to please himself,
gains his livelihood by pleasing others, and has parted with
something of the sterner dignity of men. The poor Daughter of Joy
carrying her smiles and her finery quite unregarded through the
crowd, makes a figure which it is impossible to recall without a
wounding pity. She is the type of the unsuccessful artist."
These are the doctrines and beliefs which, time out of mind, have
brought the arts into contempt. They are as injurious as they are false,
and they will checkmate the progress of any man or of any people that
believes them. They corrupt and menace not merely the fine arts, but
every other form of human expression in an equal degree.
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