158 THE STONES OF VENICE

Grotesque. And it is noble or inferior, first according to the tone of the minds which have produced it, and in proportion to their knowledge, wit, love of truth, and kindness; secondly, according to the degree of strength they have been able to give forth; but yet, however much we may find in it needing to be forgiven, always delightful so long as it is the work of good and ordinarily intelligent men. And its delightfulness ought mainly to consist in those very imperfections which mark it for work done in times of rest. It is not its own merit so much as the enjoyment of him who produced it, which is to be the source of the spectator’s pleasure; it is to the strength of his sympathy, not to the accuracy of his criticism, that it makes appeal; and no man can indeed be a lover of what is best in the higher walks of art who has not feeling and charity enough to join in¹ the rude sportiveness of hearts that have escaped out of prison, and to be thankful for the flowers which men have laid their burdens down to sow by the wayside.

§ 34. And consider what a vast amount of human work this right understanding of its meaning will make fruitful and admirable to us, which otherwise we could only have passed by with contempt. There is very little architecture in the world which is, in the full sense of the words, good and noble. A few pieces of Italian Gothic and Romanesque, a few scattered fragments of Gothic cathedrals, and perhaps two or three of Greek temples, are all that we possess approaching to an ideal of perfection. All the rest-Egyptian, Norman, Arabian, and most Gothic, and, which is very noticeable, for the most part all the mightiest²-depend for their power on some development of the grotesque spirit; but much more the inferior domestic architecture of the Middle Ages, and what similar conditions remain to this day in countries from which the life of art had not yet been banished

¹ [In his copy for revision, Ruskin substituted the words “join in” for the “rejoice with” of all editions hitherto.]

² [In the same copy Ruskin struck out the words “strongest and,” which appear in all editions hitherto before “mightiest.”]

[Version 0.04: March 2008]