The last book Ludwig Wittgenstein read --- the book he read as he lay dying --- was 'Black Beauty.' I have always wondered why. Wittgenstein was arguably the greatest philosopher of the 20th Century. Although he wrote "Everything that can be said can be said clearly," his linguistic analysis is brainsplittingly difficult. By all accounts, doing philosophy was torment for him. Why, of all the books he knew, would he turn in his final days to a book we think of as a novel for children?
I want to know the answer, so I re-read 'Black Beauty' every decade or so. And this time, as I reach my dotage, I think I see what the lure was for Wittgenstein --- 'Black Beauty' is not a book about a horse for kids, it's a parable for us all.
Before I urge you to buy this book not only for your kids, but for yourself, let met tell you about Anna Sewell. As a child in the l800s, Seward injured her leg and was an invalid for life. Because she lived with her mother in London, she had more reasons than most to use horse-drawn carriages. There were as many as l0,000 hansom cabs in London at that time; many of the horses were badly treated.
'Black Beauty' was Sewell's only book. She wrote it in the last few years of her life, when she was so weak she had to dictate it to her mother. But she was as clear a thinker as she was a storyteller. Her aim in writing ''Black Beauty,' she said, was to "induce kindness, sympathy and an understanding of the treatment of horses.” She succeeded admirably; 'Black Beauty' was an instant hit, and, it is said, is "the sixth best seller in the English language." (The DVD of the 1994 movie is said to be absolutely amazing; I include a link to it as well.) Sewell died a few months after it was published. I would say her life was complete.
And I would say that Black Beauty's life is complete as well. As he tells the story --- remember, the horse is the narrator --- animals are just people in other forms. They think, feel, speak. And their personalities are a sophisticated combination of temperament and circumstance.
The real subject of 'Black Beauty,' I would suggest, is time --- and how it brings change. 'Black Beauty' is one of six young colts, but he has great luck in his youth; his mother is a good teacher and his master is kind. He learns not to be afraid of trains, to be a good partner to another horse as they pull a carriage.
Black Beauty offers occasional advice: "If people knew what a comfort to horses a light hand is, and how it keeps a good mouth and a good temper, they surely would not chuck, and drag, and pull at the rein as they often do." Just the sort of reminder you might be tempted to leave --- anonymously --- on the desk of a heavy-handed, meddling, micro-managing boss, don't you think?
Black Beauty has speed, and in an emergency, he can get a messenger to a doctor fast enough to save his mistress's life. He has great instincts, and refuses to cross a rotting bridge, saving more lives. He is loved and thanked, fed well and expertly cared for; his lot could not be better.
But three years of happiness are all Black Beauty has, for his owner must move to a better climate and his horses must be sold. Misuse leads to injury, and, level by level, Black Beauty leaves the world of country privilege for the city life. But it is not so bad; his master is kindness incarnate. Among Jerry's beliefs: "If we see cruelty or wrong that we have the power to stop, and we do nothing, we make ourselves sharers in the guilt." (Gee, see any implications there?)
Seeing is believing? The horse knows better: 'Feeling is believing.' And as he falls to the lowest rung, he comes to learn what real cruelty is like. Oh, but this is a Victorian story --- it must end well. And it does. The circle is completed. In his old age, Black Beauty is returned to his rightful prominence. "My troubles are over." Before he is quite awake, he often finds himself dreaming of his first home....
Yes, I think I understand why Wittgenstein read 'Black Beauty' at the end. It's a picture of an orderly world, and good that has power over evil. It's a world anyone would want to live in. And, with this book in hand for a few hours, anyone can.
