In spite of the poverty of original invention which forbids us to claim that American church music has in any way contributed to the evolution of the art, there is no epoch24 in this art’s history which possesses a more vital interest to the American churchman of the present day. We have found amid all the fluctuations25 of ecclesiastical music, mediaeval and modern, [392] Catholic and Protestant, one ever-recurring problem, which is no sooner apparently26 settled than new conditions arise which force it once more upon the attention of minister and layman27. The choice of a style of music which shall most completely answer the needs of worship as the conceptions and methods of public worship vary among different communities and in different epochs, and which at the same time shall not be unworthy of the claims of music as a fine art,—this is the historic dilemma29 which is still, as ever, a fruitful source of perplexity and discord30. The Catholic and Episcopal Churches are less disturbed by this spectre than their non-liturgic brethren. An authoritative31 ritual carries its laws over upon music also; tradition, thus fortified32, holds firm against innovation, and the liturgic and clerical conception of music gives a stability to musical usages which no aberrations33 of taste can quite unsettle. But in the non-liturgic churches of America one sees only a confusion of purposes, a lack of agreement, an absence of every shade of recognized authority. The only tradition is that of complete freedom of choice. There is no admitted standard of taste; the whole musical service is experimental, subject to the preferences, more or less capricious, of choir19-master or music committee. There is no system in the separate societies that may not be overthrown35 by a change of administration. The choir music is eclectic, drawn36 indiscriminately from Catholic, German, and English sources; or if it is of American composition it is merely an obvious imitation of one of these three. The congregational music ranges from [393] the German choral to the “Gospel song,” or it may, be an alternation of these two incongruous styles. The choir is sometimes a chorus, sometimes a solo quartet; the latter mainly forced to choose its material from “arrangements,” or from works written for chorus. Anon the choir is dismissed and the congregation, led by a precentor with voice or cornet, assumes the whole burden of the office of song. These conditions are sufficient to explain why a distinct school of American church music does not exist and never can exist. The great principle of self-determination in doctrine38 and ecclesiastical government, which has brought into existence such a multitude of sects39, may well be a necessity in a composite and democratic nation, but it is no less certainly a hindrance40 to the development of a uniform type of religious music.
There would be a much nearer approach to a reconcilement of all these differences, and the cause of church music would be in a far more promising41 condition, if there were a closer sympathy between the standard of music within the Church and that prevailing42 in educated society outside. There is certainly a diversity of purpose between church music and secular music, and corresponding distinctions must be preserved in respect to form and expression. A secularized style of church music means decadence43. But the vitality44 of ecclesiastical art has always seemed to depend upon retaining a conscious touch with the large art movements of the world, and church music has certainly never thrived when, in consequence of neglect or complacency, it has been suffered to become [394] inferior to its rival. In America there is no such stimulating45 interaction between the music of the Church and that of the concert hall and the social circle as there has been for centuries in Germany and England. The Church is not the leader in musical culture. We are rapidly becoming a musical nation. When one sees what is going on in the opera houses, concert halls, colleges, conservatories46, public schools, and private instruction rooms, contrasting the present situation with that of fifty years ago, the outcome can easily be predicted. But the music of the Church, in spite of gratifying efforts here and there, is not keeping pace with this progress, and the Church must inevitably47 suffer in certain very important interests if this gap is permitted continually to widen.
There are many causes for this state of affairs, some incidental and avoidable, others lying in the very nature of music itself and the special service which the Church requires of it. Perhaps the chief difficulty in the way of a high artistic48 development of religious music is the opinion, which prevails widely among the most devout49, that music when allied50 to worship must forego what seems the natural right of all art to produce pleasure as an end in itself, and that it must subordinate itself to the sacred text and employ its persuasive51 powers solely52 to enforce divine truth upon the heart,—meaning by divine truth some particular form of religious confession53. Whether this view is true or false, whenever it is consistently acted upon, it seems to me, music declines.
[395]
Now it is evident that music is less willing than any other art to assume this inferior station. Architecture serves a utilitarian54 purpose, the pleasure of the eye being supplementary55; painting and sculpture may easily become didactic or reduced to the secondary function of ornament56. But of all the arts music is the most sensuous57 (I use the word in its technical psychologic sense), direct, and penetrating58 in its operation. Music acts with such immediateness59 and intensity61 that it seems as though it were impossible for her to be anything but supreme62 when she puts forth63 all her energies. We may force her to be dull and commonplace, but that does not meet the difficulty. For it is the very beauty and glory of music which the Church wishes to use, but how shall this be prevented from asserting itself to such an extent that devotion is swept away upon the wings of nervous excitement? Let any one study his sensations when a trained choir pours over him a flood of rapturous harmony, and he will perhaps find it difficult to decide whether it is a devotional uplift or an aesthetic64 afflatus65 that has seized him. Is there actually any essential difference between his mental state at this moment and that, for instance, at the close of “Tristan und Isolde”? Any one who tries this experiment upon himself will know at once what is this problem of music in the Church which has puzzled pious men for centuries, and which has entered into every historic movement of church extension or reform.
[386]
A little clear thinking on this subject, it seems to me, will convince any one that music alone, in and of itself, never makes people religious. There is no such thing as religious music per se. When music in religious ceremony inspires a distinctly prayerful mood, it does so mainly through associations and accessories. And if this mood is not induced by other causes, music alone can never be relied upon to create it. Music, even the noblest and purest, is not always or necessarily an aid to devotion, and there may even be a snare66 in what seems at first a devoted67 ally. The analogy that exists between religious emotion and musical rapture68 is, after all, only an analogy; aesthetic delight, though it be the most refined, is not worship; the melting tenderness that often follows a sublime69 instrumental or choral strain is not contrition70. Those who speak of all good music as religious do not understand the meaning of the terms they use. For devotion is not a mere37 vague feeling of longing71 or transport. It must involve a positive recognition of an object of worship, a reaching up, not to something unknown or inaccessible72, but to a God who reveals himself to us, and whom we believe to be cognizant of the sincerity73 of the worship offered him; it must involve also a sense of humility74 before an almighty75 power, a penitence76 for sin, a desire for pardon and reconciliation77, a consciousness of need and dependence78, and an active exercise of faith and love. Into such convictions music may come, lending her aid to deepen them, to give them tangible79 expression, and to enhance the sense of joy and peace which may be their consequence; but to create them is beyond her power.
[397]
The office of music is not to suggest concrete images, or even to arouse definite namable sentiments, but rather to intensify80 ideas and feelings already existing, or to release the mind and put it into that sensitive, expectant state in which conceptions that appeal to the emotion may act unhampered. The more generalized function of music in the sanctuary81 is to take possession of the prepared and chastened mood which is the antecedent of worship, to separate it from other moods and reminiscences which are not in perfect accord with it, and to establish it in a more complete self-consciousness and a more permanent attitude. This antecedent sense of need and longing for divine communion cannot be aroused by music alone; the enjoyment82 of abstract musical beauty, however refined and elevating, is not worship, and a musical impression disconnected from any other cannot conduce to the spirit of prayer. It is only when the prayerful impulse already exists as a more or less conscious tendency of the mind, induced by a sense of love and duty, by the associations of the time and place, by the administration of the other portions of the service, or by any agencies which incline the heart of the believer in longing toward the Mercy Seat,—it is only in alliance with such an anticipatory83 state of mind and the causes that produce it that music fulfils its true office in public worship. It is not enough to depend upon the influence of the words to which the music is set, for they, being simultaneous with the music, do not have time or opportunity to act with full force upon the understanding; since the action of music upon the emotion is more immediate60 and vivid than that of words upon the intellect, the latter is often unregarded in the stress of musical excitement. However it may be in solo singing, it is [398] not possible or even desirable that the words of a chorus should be so distinct as to make the prime impression. Those who demand distinct articulation84, as though the religious effect of church song hung solely upon that, do not listen musically. At any rate they see but a little way into the problem, which is concerned not with the effect of words but of tones. The text and music reinforce each other when the words are known to the hearer before the singing begins, aiding thus to bring about the expectancy85 of which I have spoken, and producing that satisfaction which is felt when musical expression is perceived to be appropriate to its poetic86 subject.
The spirit of worship, therefore, must be aroused by favoring conditions and means auxiliary87 to music,—it is then the province of music to direct this spirit toward a more vivid consciousness of its end. The case is with music as Professor Shairp says it is with nature: “If nature is to be the symbol of something higher than itself, to convey intimations of him from whom both nature and the world proceed, man must come to the spectacle with the thought of God already in his heart. He will not get a religion out of the mere sight of nature. If beauty is to lead the soul upward, man must come to the contemplation of it with his moral convictions clear and firm, and with faith in these as connecting him directly with God. Neither morality nor religion will he get out of beauty taken by itself.”
[399]
The soundest writers on art maintain that art, taken abstractly, is neither moral nor immoral88. It occupies a sphere apart from that of religion or ethics89. It may lend its aid to make religious and moral ideas more persuasive; it may, through the touch of pure beauty, overbear material and prosaic90 interests and help to produce an atmosphere in which spiritual ideas may range without friction91, but the mind must first have been made morally sensitive by other than purely92 artistic means. It is the peculiar93 gift of music that it affords a speedier and more immediate means of fusion34 between ideas of sensuous beauty and those of devotional experience than any other of the art sisterhood. It is the indefiniteness of music as compared with painting and sculpture, the intensity of its action as compared with the beauty of architecture and decoration, which gives to it its peculiar power. To this searching force of music, its freedom from reminiscences of actual life or individual experience, is due the prominence94 that has been assigned to music in the observances of religion in all times and nations. Piety95 falls into the category of the most profound and absorbing of human emotions—together with such sentiments as patriotism96 and love of persons—which instinctively97 utter themselves not in prose but in poetry, not in ordinary unimpassioned speech, but in rhythmic98 tone. Music is the art most competent to enter into such an ardent99 and mobile state of mind. The ecstasy100 aroused in the lover of music by the magic of his art is more nearly analogous101 than any other producible by art to that mystic rapture described by religious enthusiasts102. Worship is disconnected from all the concerns of physical life; it raises the subject into a super-earthly region—it has for the moment nothing to do with [400] temporal activities; it is largely spontaneous and unreflective. The absorption of the mind in contemplation, the sense of inward peace which accompanies emancipation103 from the disturbances104 of ordinary life, those joyous105 stirrings of the soul when it seems to catch glimpses of eternal blessedness, have a striking resemblance to phases of musical satisfaction where the analytical106 faculties107 are not called into exercise. Hence the readiness with which music combines with these higher experiences. Music in its mystic, indefinable action seems to make the mood of prayer more active, to interpret it to itself, and by something that seems celestial108 in the harmony to make the mood deeper, stronger, more satisfying than it would be if shut up within the soul and deprived of this means of deliverance. Music also, by virtue109 of its universal and impersonal110 quality, furnishes the most efficient means of communication among all the individuals engaged in a common act; the separate personalities111 are, we might say, dissolved in the general tide of rapture symbolized112 by the music, and the common sentiment is again enhanced by the consciousness of sympathy between mind and mind to which the music testifies, and which it is so efficient to promote.
The substance of this whole discussion, therefore, is that those who have any dealing113 with music in the Church must take into account the inherent laws of musical effect. Music is not a representative art; it bears with it an order of impressions untranslatable into those of poetry or painting. To use Walter Pater’s phrase, “it presents no matter of sentiment [401] or thought separable from the special form in which it is conveyed to us.” It may, through its peculiar power of stimulating the sensibility and conveying ideas of beauty in the purest, most abstract guise114, help to make the mind receptive to serious impressions; but in order to excite a specifically religious feeling it must co?perate with other impressions which act more definitely upon the understanding. The words to which the music is sung, being submerged in the mind of a music-lover by the tide of enchanting115 sound, are not sufficient for this purpose unless they are known and dwelt upon in advance; and even then they too need reinforcement out of the environment in which the musical service is placed. The singing of the choir must be contrived116 and felt as a part of the office of prayer. The spirit and direction of the whole service for the day must be unified117; the music must be a vital and organic element in this unit. All parts of the service must be controlled by the desire for beauty and fitness. Music, however beautiful, loses something of its effect if its accompaniments are not in harmony with it. This desideratum is doubtless most easily attained118 in a liturgic service. One great advantage of an ancient and prescribed form is that its components119 work easily to a common impression, and in course of time the ritual tends to become venerable as well as dignified120 and beautiful. The non-liturgic method may without difficulty borrow this conception of harmony and elevation121, applying it so far as its own customs and rules of public worship allow. How this unity12 of action in the several factors of a non-liturgic [402] service may best be effected is outside the purpose of this book to discuss. The problem is not a difficult one when minister, choir leader, and church members are agreed upon the principle. In every church there are sanctities of time and place; there are common habits of mind induced by a common faith; there are historic traditions,—all contributing to a unity of feeling in the congregation. These may all be cultivated and enhanced by a skilfully122 contrived service, devised and moulded in recognition of the psychologic law that an art form acts with full power only when the mind is prepared by anticipation123 and congenial accessories.
This conclusion is, however, very far from being the end of the matter. The most devout intention will not make the church music effective for its ideal end if the aesthetic element is disregarded. There seems to be in many quarters a strange distrust of beauty and skill in musical performance, as if artistic qualities were in some way hostile to devotion. This distrust is a survival of the old Calvinistic fear of everything studied, formal, and externally beautiful in public worship. In other communities the church music is simply neglected, as one of the results of the excessive predominance given to the sermon in the development of Protestantism. It is often deemed sufficient, also, if the church musicians are devout men and women, in forgetfulness of the fact that a musical performance that is irritating to the nerves can never be a help to devotion. These enemies to artistic church music—hostility, indifference124, and ignorance—are especially injurious in a country where, as in America, the general [403] knowledge and taste in music are rapidly growing. Those churches which, for any reason whatever, keep their musical standard below the level of that which prevails in the educated society around them are not acting125 for their own advantage, materially or spiritually. President Faunce was right when he told one of the churches of his denomination126: “Your music must be kept noble and good. If your children hear Wagner and the other great masters in their schools, they will not be satisfied with ‘Pull for the shore’ in the church.” Those churches, for example, which rely mainly upon the “Gospel Songs” should soberly consider if it is profitable in the long run to maintain a standard of religious melody and verse far below that which prevails in secular music and literature. “The Church is the art school of the common man,” says Professor Riehl; and while it may be answered that it is not the business of the Church to teach art, yet the Church cannot afford to keep its spiritual culture out of harmony with the higher intellectual movements of the age. One whose taste is fed by the poetry of such masters as Milton and Tennyson, by the music of such as H?ndel and Beethoven, and whose appreciations127 are sharpened by the best examples of performance in the modern concert hall, cannot drop his taste and critical habit when he enters the church door. The same is true in a modified degree in respect to those who have had less educational advantages. It is a fallacy to assert that the masses of the people are responsive only to that which is trivial and sensational128. In any case, what shall be said of a church that is satisfied to leave its votaries129 upon the same intellectual and spiritual level upon which it finds them?
[404]
In all this discussion I have had in mind the steady and more normal work of the Church. Forms of song which, to the musician, lie outside the pale of art may have a legitimate130 place in seasons of special religious quickening. No one who is acquainted with the history of religious propagation in America will despise the revival131 hymn132, or deny the necessity of the part it has played. But these seasons of spiritual upheaval133 are temporary and exceptional; they are properly the beginning not the end of the Church’s effort. The revival hymn may be effective in soul-winning, it is inadequate134 when treated as an element in the larger task of spiritual development.
There is another reason for insistence135 upon beauty and perfection in all those features of public worship into which art enters—to a devout mind the most imperative136 of all reasons. This is so forcibly stated by the great Richard Hooker that it will be sufficient to quote his words and leave the matter there. Speaking of the value of noble architecture and adornment137 in connection with public acts of religion, he goes on to say: “We do thereby138 give unto God a testimony139 of our cheerful affection which thinketh nothing too dear to be bestowed140 about the furniture of his service; as also because it serveth to the world for a witness of his almightiness, whom we outwardly honor with the chiefest of outward things, as being of all things himself incomparably the greatest. To set forth the majesty141 of kings, his vicegerents in this world, the most gorgeous and rare [405] treasures which the world hath, are procured142. We think belike that he will accept what the meanest of them would disdain143.”[84]
In urging onward144 the effort after beauty and perfection in church music I have no wish to set up any single style as a model,—in fact, a style competent to serve as a universal model does not exist. There can be no general agreement, for varied145 conditions demand diverse methods. The Catholic music reformer points to the ancient Gregorian chant and the masterpieces of choral art of the sixteenth century as embodying146 the ideal which he wishes to assert. The Episcopalian has the Anglican chant and anthem147, noble and appropriate in themselves, and consecrated148 by the associations of three eventful centuries. But the only hereditary149 possession of the Congregationalists, Presbyterians, and other non-liturgic bodies is the crude psalmody of the early Calvinists and Puritans which, unlike the Lutheran choral, has none of the musical potencies150 out of which a church art can be developed. In these societies there is no common demand or opportunity which, in the absence of a common musical heritage, can call forth any new and distinctive form of ecclesiastical song. They must be borrowers and adapters, not creators. The problem of these churches is the application of existing forms to new conditions—directing the proved powers of music along still higher lines of service in the epoch of promise which is now opening before them.
[406]
In this era just upon us, in which new opportunities demand of the Church in America new methods throughout the whole range of its action, music will have a larger part to play than even heretofore. It is of great importance that her service should be employed intelligently. Both ministers and choir leaders should be aware of the nature of the problems which ecclesiastic4 music presents. They should know something of the experience of the Church in its historic dealings with this question, of the special qualities of the chief forms of church song which have so greatly figured in the past, and of the nature of the effect of music upon the mind both by itself alone and in collusion with other religious influences. How many ministers and choir-masters are well versed151 in these matters? What are the theological seminaries and musical conservatories doing to disseminate152 knowledge and conviction on this subject? In the seminaries lectures are given on liturgiology and hymnology; but what are hymns153 and liturgies154 without music? And how many candidates for the ministry155 are prepared to second the efforts of church musicians in musical improvement and reform? I am, of course, aware that in a few of the seminaries of the non-liturgic denominations156 work in this department of ecclesiology has been effectively begun. In the conservatories organ playing and singing, both solo and chorus, are taught, but usually from the technical side,—the adaptation of music to the spiritual demands of the Church is rarely considered. Every denomination needs a St. Cecilia Society to convince the churches of the spiritual quickening that lies in genuine church music and the mischief157 in the false, to arouse church members to an understanding of the injury that attends an obvious incongruity158 between the character of the music and the spirit of prayer which it is the purpose of the established offices of worship to create, and to show how all portions of the service may act in harmony.
[407]
The general growth in musical culture, which is so marked a feature of our time, should everywhere be made to contribute to the benefit of the Church. The teaching of music in the public schools should be a means of supplying the churches with efficient chorus singers. The Church must also offer larger inducements to musicians and musical students. Here we touch upon a most vital point. If the Church wants music that is worthy28 of her dignity, and which will help her to maintain the place she seeks to occupy in modern life, she must pay for it. The reason why so few students of talent are preparing themselves for work in the Church as organists and choir leaders is that the prospect159 of remuneration is too small to make this special study worth their while. The musical service of the Church is, therefore, in the vast majority of cases, in the hands either of amateurs or of musicians who are devoting themselves through the entire week to work which has nothing to do with the Church. A man who is trained wholly or chiefly as a pianist, and who gives his strength and time for six days to piano study and teaching, or a singer whose energy is mainly expended160 in private vocal161 instruction, can contribute little to the higher needs of Church music. It is not his fault; he must seek his income where he can find it. The service of the Church is a side issue, and receives the benefit which any cause must expect when it is given only the remnants of [408] interest and energy that are left over from a week’s hard labor162. There is a host of young musicians to whom church work is exceedingly attractive. Let the Church magnify the importance of its musical service, and raise its salaries in proportion, and an abundant measure of the rising musical talent and enthusiasm will be ready at its call.
The musical problem of the non-liturgic Church in America is, therefore, not one of creation, but of administration. Whatever the mission of the Church is to be in our national life, the opportunities of its music are not to be less than of old, but greater. It is evident that the notion of conviction of sin and sudden conversion163 is gradually losing the place which it formerly164 held in ecclesiastical theory, and is being supplemented, if not supplanted165, by the notion of spiritual nurture166. The Church is finding its permanent and comprehensive task in alliance with those forces that make for social regeneration; no longer to separate souls from the world and prepare them for a future state of existence, but to work to establish the kingdom of God here on earth; not denying the rights of the wholesome167 human instincts, but disciplining and refining them for fraternal service. In this broader sphere art, especially music, will be newly commissioned and her benign168 powers utilized169 with ever-increasing intelligence. The Church can never recover the old musical leadership which was wrested170 from her in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries by the opera, the choral society, and the concert system, but in the twentieth she will find means of co?perating with these institutions for the general welfare.
The council of Carthage in the fourth century laid this injunction upon church singers: “See that what thou singest with thy lips thou believest in thy heart; and what thou believest in thy heart thou dost exemplify in thy life.” This admonition can never lose its authority; back of true church music there must be faith. There comes, however, to supplement this ancient warning, the behest from modern culture that the music of the sanctuary shall adapt itself to the complex and changing conditions of modern life, and while it submits to the pure spirit of worship it shall grow continually in those qualities which make it worthy to be honored by the highest artistic taste. For among the venerable traditions of the Church, sanctioned by the wisdom of her rulers from the time of the fathers until now, is one which bids her cherish the genius of her children, and use the appliances of imagination and skill to add strength and grace to her habitations, beauty, dignity, and fitness to her ordinances171 of worship.
The End
点击
收听单词发音
收听单词发音 |
1
sketch
|
|
| n.草图；梗概；素描；v.素描；概述 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
2
persistent
|
|
| adj.坚持不懈的，执意的；持续的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
3
distinctive
|
|
| adj.特别的，有特色的，与众不同的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
4
ecclesiastic
|
|
| n.教士，基督教会；adj.神职者的，牧师的，教会的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
5
secular
|
|
| n.牧师，凡人；adj.世俗的，现世的，不朽的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
6
colonists
|
|
| n.殖民地开拓者，移民，殖民地居民( colonist的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
7
psalms
|
|
| n.赞美诗( psalm的名词复数 )；圣诗；圣歌；(中的) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
8
tunes
|
|
| n.曲调，曲子( tune的名词复数 )v.调音( tune的第三人称单数 )；调整；（给收音机、电视等）调谐；使协调 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
9
uncouth
|
|
| adj.无教养的，粗鲁的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
10
rigid
|
|
| adj.严格的，死板的；刚硬的，僵硬的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
11
hostility
|
|
| n.敌对，敌意；抵制［pl.］交战，战争 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
12
unity
|
|
| n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
13
grotesque
|
|
| adj.怪诞的，丑陋的；n.怪诞的图案，怪人（物） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
14
controversies
|
|
| 争论 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
15
pious
|
|
| adj.虔诚的；道貌岸然的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
16
acrid
|
|
| adj.辛辣的，尖刻的，刻薄的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
17
adherents
|
|
| n.支持者，拥护者( adherent的名词复数 )；党羽；徒子徒孙 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
18
choirs
|
|
| n.教堂的唱诗班( choir的名词复数 )；唱诗队；公开表演的合唱团；（教堂）唱经楼 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
19
choir
|
|
| n.唱诗班，唱诗班的席位，合唱团，舞蹈团；v.合唱 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
20
quaint
|
|
| adj.古雅的，离奇有趣的，奇怪的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
21
influx
|
|
| n.流入，注入 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
22
landmarks
|
|
| n.陆标( landmark的名词复数 )；目标；（标志重要阶段的）里程碑 ~ (in sth)；有历史意义的建筑物（或遗址） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
23
indigenous
|
|
| adj.土产的，土生土长的，本地的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
24
epoch
|
|
| n.(新)时代；历元 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
25
fluctuations
|
|
| 波动，涨落，起伏( fluctuation的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
26
apparently
|
|
| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
27
layman
|
|
| n.俗人，门外汉，凡人 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
28
worthy
|
|
| adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
29
dilemma
|
|
| n.困境，进退两难的局面 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
30
discord
|
|
| n.不和，意见不合，争论，（音乐）不和谐 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
31
authoritative
|
|
| adj.有权威的，可相信的；命令式的；官方的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
32
fortified
|
|
| adj. 加强的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
33
aberrations
|
|
| n.偏差( aberration的名词复数 )；差错；脱离常规；心理失常 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
34
fusion
|
|
| n.溶化；熔解；熔化状态，熔和；熔接 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
35
overthrown
|
|
| adj. 打翻的，推倒的，倾覆的 动词overthrow的过去分词 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
36
drawn
|
|
| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
37
mere
|
|
| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
38
doctrine
|
|
| n.教义；主义；学说 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
39
sects
|
|
| n.宗派，教派( sect的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
40
hindrance
|
|
| n.妨碍，障碍 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
41
promising
|
|
| adj.有希望的，有前途的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
42
prevailing
|
|
| adj.盛行的；占优势的；主要的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
43
decadence
|
|
| n.衰落，颓废 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
44
vitality
|
|
| n.活力，生命力，效力 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
45
stimulating
|
|
| adj.有启发性的，能激发人思考的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
46
conservatories
|
|
| n.（培植植物的）温室，暖房( conservatory的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
47
inevitably
|
|
| adv.不可避免地；必然发生地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
48
artistic
|
|
| adj.艺术(家)的，美术(家)的；善于艺术创作的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
49
devout
|
|
| adj.虔诚的，虔敬的，衷心的 (n.devoutness) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
50
allied
|
|
| adj.协约国的；同盟国的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
51
persuasive
|
|
| adj.有说服力的，能说得使人相信的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
52
solely
|
|
| adv.仅仅，唯一地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
53
confession
|
|
| n.自白，供认，承认 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
54
utilitarian
|
|
| adj.实用的，功利的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
55
supplementary
|
|
| adj.补充的，附加的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
56
ornament
|
|
| v.装饰，美化；n.装饰，装饰物 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
57
sensuous
|
|
| adj.激发美感的；感官的，感觉上的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
58
penetrating
|
|
| adj.（声音）响亮的，尖锐的adj.（气味）刺激的adj.（思想）敏锐的，有洞察力的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
59
immediateness
|
|
| 直接，立刻 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
60
immediate
|
|
| adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
61
intensity
|
|
| n.强烈，剧烈；强度；烈度 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
62
supreme
|
|
| adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
63
forth
|
|
| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
64
aesthetic
|
|
| adj.美学的，审美的，有美感 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
65
afflatus
|
|
| n.灵感，神感 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
66
snare
|
|
| n.陷阱，诱惑，圈套；（去除息肉或者肿瘤的）勒除器；响弦，小军鼓；vt.以陷阱捕获，诱惑 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
67
devoted
|
|
| adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
68
rapture
|
|
| n.狂喜；全神贯注；着迷；v.使狂喜 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
69
sublime
|
|
| adj.崇高的，伟大的；极度的，不顾后果的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
70
contrition
|
|
| n.悔罪，痛悔 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
71
longing
|
|
| n.（for）渴望 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
72
inaccessible
|
|
| adj.达不到的，难接近的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
73
sincerity
|
|
| n.真诚，诚意；真实 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
74
humility
|
|
| n.谦逊，谦恭 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
75
almighty
|
|
| adj.全能的，万能的；很大的，很强的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
76
penitence
|
|
| n.忏悔，赎罪；悔过 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
77
reconciliation
|
|
| n.和解，和谐，一致 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
78
dependence
|
|
| n.依靠，依赖；信任，信赖；隶属 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
79
tangible
|
|
| adj.有形的，可触摸的，确凿的，实际的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
80
intensify
|
|
| vt.加强；变强；加剧 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
81
sanctuary
|
|
| n.圣所，圣堂，寺庙；禁猎区，保护区 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
82
enjoyment
|
|
| n.乐趣；享有；享用 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
83
anticipatory
|
|
| adj.预想的，预期的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
84
articulation
|
|
| n.（清楚的）发音；清晰度，咬合 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
85
expectancy
|
|
| n.期望，预期，（根据概率统计求得）预期数额 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
86
poetic
|
|
| adj.富有诗意的，有诗人气质的，善于抒情的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
87
auxiliary
|
|
| adj.辅助的，备用的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
88
immoral
|
|
| adj.不道德的，淫荡的，荒淫的，有伤风化的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
89
ethics
|
|
| n.伦理学；伦理观，道德标准 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
90
prosaic
|
|
| adj.单调的，无趣的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
91
friction
|
|
| n.摩擦，摩擦力 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
92
purely
|
|
| adv.纯粹地，完全地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
93
peculiar
|
|
| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
94
prominence
|
|
| n.突出；显著；杰出；重要 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
95
piety
|
|
| n.虔诚，虔敬 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
96
patriotism
|
|
| n.爱国精神，爱国心，爱国主义 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
97
instinctively
|
|
| adv.本能地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
98
rhythmic
|
|
| adj.有节奏的，有韵律的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
99
ardent
|
|
| adj.热情的，热烈的，强烈的，烈性的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
100
ecstasy
|
|
| n.狂喜，心醉神怡，入迷 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
101
analogous
|
|
| adj.相似的；类似的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
102
enthusiasts
|
|
| n.热心人，热衷者( enthusiast的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
103
emancipation
|
|
| n.（从束缚、支配下）解放 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
104
disturbances
|
|
| n.骚乱( disturbance的名词复数 )；打扰；困扰；障碍 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
105
joyous
|
|
| adj.充满快乐的；令人高兴的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
106
analytical
|
|
| adj.分析的；用分析法的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
107
faculties
|
|
| n.能力( faculty的名词复数 )；全体教职员；技巧；院 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
108
celestial
|
|
| adj.天体的；天上的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
109
virtue
|
|
| n.德行，美德；贞操；优点；功效，效力 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
110
impersonal
|
|
| adj.无个人感情的，与个人无关的，非人称的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
111
personalities
|
|
| n. 诽谤，（对某人容貌、性格等所进行的）人身攻击； 人身攻击；人格, 个性, 名人( personality的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
112
symbolized
|
|
| v.象征，作为…的象征( symbolize的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
113
dealing
|
|
| n.经商方法，待人态度 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
114
guise
|
|
| n.外表，伪装的姿态 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
115
enchanting
|
|
| a.讨人喜欢的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
116
contrived
|
|
| adj.不自然的，做作的；虚构的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
117
unified
|
|
| (unify 的过去式和过去分词)； 统一的； 统一标准的； 一元化的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
118
attained
|
|
| （通常经过努力）实现( attain的过去式和过去分词 )； 达到； 获得； 达到（某年龄、水平、状况） | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
119
components
|
|
| （机器、设备等的）构成要素，零件，成分； 成分( component的名词复数 )； [物理化学]组分； [数学]分量； （混合物的）组成部分 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
120
dignified
|
|
| a.可敬的，高贵的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
121
elevation
|
|
| n.高度；海拔；高地；上升；提高 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
122
skilfully
|
|
| adv. (美skillfully)熟练地 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
123
anticipation
|
|
| n.预期，预料，期望 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
124
indifference
|
|
| n.不感兴趣，不关心，冷淡，不在乎 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
125
acting
|
|
| n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
126
denomination
|
|
| n.命名，取名，(度量衡、货币等的)单位 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
127
appreciations
|
|
| n.欣赏( appreciation的名词复数 )；感激；评定；（尤指土地或财产的）增值 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
128
sensational
|
|
| adj.使人感动的，非常好的，轰动的，耸人听闻的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
129
votaries
|
|
| n.信徒( votary的名词复数 )；追随者；（天主教）修士；修女 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
|
130
legitimate
|
|
| adj.合法的，合理的，合乎逻辑的；v.使合法 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
131
revival
|
|
| n.复兴，复苏，（精力、活力等的）重振 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
132
hymn
|
|
| n.赞美诗，圣歌，颂歌 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
133
upheaval
|
|
| n.胀起，(地壳)的隆起；剧变，动乱 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
134
inadequate
|
|
| adj.(for,to)不充足的，不适当的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
135
insistence
|
|
| n.坚持；强调；坚决主张 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
136
imperative
|
|
| n.命令，需要；规则；祈使语气；adj.强制的；紧急的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
137
adornment
|
|
| n.装饰；装饰品 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
138
thereby
|
|
| adv.因此，从而 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
139
testimony
|
|
| n.证词；见证，证明 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
140
bestowed
|
|
| 赠给，授予( bestow的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
141
majesty
|
|
| n.雄伟，壮丽，庄严，威严；最高权威，王权 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
142
procured
|
|
| v.（努力）取得， （设法）获得( procure的过去式和过去分词 )；拉皮条 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
143
disdain
|
|
| n.鄙视，轻视；v.轻视，鄙视，不屑 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
144
onward
|
|
| adj.向前的，前进的；adv.向前，前进，在先 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
145
varied
|
|
| adj.多样的，多变化的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
146
embodying
|
|
| v.表现( embody的现在分词 )；象征；包括；包含 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
147
anthem
|
|
| n.圣歌，赞美诗，颂歌 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
148
consecrated
|
|
| adj.神圣的，被视为神圣的v.把…奉为神圣，给…祝圣( consecrate的过去式和过去分词 )；奉献 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
149
hereditary
|
|
| adj.遗传的，遗传性的，可继承的，世袭的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
150
potencies
|
|
| n.威力( potency的名词复数 )；权力；效力；（男人的）性交能力 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
151
versed
|
|
| adj. 精通，熟练 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
152
disseminate
|
|
| v.散布；传播 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
153
hymns
|
|
| n.赞美诗，圣歌，颂歌( hymn的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
154
liturgies
|
|
| n.礼拜仪式( liturgy的名词复数 )；（英国国教的）祈祷书 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
155
ministry
|
|
| n.(政府的)部；牧师 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
156
denominations
|
|
| n.宗派( denomination的名词复数 )；教派；面额；名称 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
157
mischief
|
|
| n.损害，伤害，危害；恶作剧，捣蛋，胡闹 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
158
incongruity
|
|
| n.不协调，不一致 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
159
prospect
|
|
| n.前景，前途；景色，视野 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
160
expended
|
|
| v.花费( expend的过去式和过去分词 )；使用（钱等）做某事；用光；耗尽 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
161
vocal
|
|
| adj.直言不讳的；嗓音的；n.[pl.]声乐节目 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
162
labor
|
|
| n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
163
conversion
|
|
| n.转化，转换，转变 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
164
formerly
|
|
| adv.从前，以前 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
165
supplanted
|
|
| 把…排挤掉，取代( supplant的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
166
nurture
|
|
| n.养育，照顾，教育；滋养，营养品；vt.养育，给与营养物，教养，扶持 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
167
wholesome
|
|
| adj.适合；卫生的；有益健康的；显示身心健康的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
168
benign
|
|
| adj.善良的，慈祥的；良性的，无危险的 | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
169
utilized
|
|
| v.利用，使用( utilize的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
170
wrested
|
|
| （用力）拧( wrest的过去式和过去分词 )； 费力取得； （从…）攫取； （ 从… ） 强行取去… | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
|
171
ordinances
|
|
| n.条例，法令( ordinance的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句： |
|
|
|
| 欢迎访问英文小说网 |