“The sentiments of men often differ with regard to beauty and deformity of all kinds, even while their discourse is the same” (212).
“The difference, it is said, is very wide between judgement and sentiment. All sentiment is right; because sentiment has a reference to nothing beyond itself, and is always real, wherever a man is conscious of it. But all determinations of the understanding are not right; because they have a reference to something beyond themselves, to wit, real matter of fact” (214).
“Among a thousand different opinions which different men may entertain of the same subject, there is one, and but one, that is just and true; and the only difficulty is to fix and ascertain it” (214).
“On the contrary, a thousand different sentiments, excited by the same object, are all right; because no sentiment represents what is really in the object” (214).
“it must be allowed, that there are certain qualities in objects, which are fitted by nature to produce those particular feelings” (216).
“Every work of art has also a certain end or purpose, for which it is calculated; and is to be deemed more or less perfect, as it is more or less fitted to attain this end. The object of eloquence is to persuade, of history to instruct, of poetry to please by means of the passions and the imagination” (219).