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Excerpt ​

Excerpt from The Gutenberg Webster's Unabridged Dictionary: Section A and B, by Project Gutenberg

  1. Nonessential; not necessary belonging; incidental; as, are accidental to a play.

Accidental chords (Mus.), those which contain one or more tones foreign to their proper harmony. -- Accidental colors (Opt.), colors depending on the hypersensibility of the retina of the eye for complementary colors. They are purely subjective sensations of color which often result from the contemplation of actually colored bodies. -- Accidental point (Persp.), the point in which a right line, drawn from the eye, parallel to a given right line, cuts the perspective plane; so called to distinguish it from the principal point, or point of view, where a line drawn from the eye perpendicular to the perspective plane meets this plane. -- Accidental lights (Paint.), secondary lights; effects of light other than ordinary daylight, such as the rays of the sun darting through a cloud, or between the leaves of trees; the effect of moonlight, candlelight, or burning bodies. Fairholt.

Syn. -- Casual; fortuitous; contingent; occasional; adventitious. -- Accidental, Incidental, Casual, Fortuitous, Contingent. We speak of a thing as accidental when it falls out as by chance, and not in the regular course of things; as, an accidental meeting, an accidental advantage, etc. We call a thing incidental when it falls, as it were, into some regular course of things, but is secondary, and forms no essential part thereof; as, an incremental remark, an incidental evil, an incidental benefit. We speak of a thing as casual, when it falls out or happens, as it were, by mere chance, without being prearranged or premeditated; as, a casual remark or encounter; a casual observer. An idea of the unimportant is attached to what is casual. Fortuitous is applied to what occurs without any known cause, and in opposition to what has been foreseen; as, a fortuitous concourse of atoms. We call a thing contingent when it is such that, considered in itself, it may or may not happen, but is dependent for its existence on something else; as, the time of my coming will be contingent on intelligence yet to be received.

Explanation ​

This excerpt from The Gutenberg Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary (a digitized version of Noah Webster’s 1913 unabridged dictionary) defines the term "accidental" in its various senses, both general and specialized (e.g., in music, optics, perspective, and painting). Below is a detailed breakdown of the text, focusing on its structure, themes, literary/rhetorical devices, and significance, with an emphasis on the excerpt itself rather than broader contextual analysis.

1. Structure and Organization ​

The entry follows a hierarchical, encyclopedic format typical of 19th/early 20th-century dictionaries:

  • Primary Definition: A concise, general meaning ("Nonessential; not necessarily belonging; incidental").
  • Specialized Sub-Definitions: Domain-specific uses in music, optics, perspective, and painting, each marked by parentheses (e.g., "(Mus.)", "(Opt.)").
  • Synonyms and Distinctions: A comparative analysis of "accidental" alongside related terms (casual, fortuitous, contingent, incidental, occasional, adventitious), clarifying nuanced differences.

This structure reflects the dictionary’s taxonomic impulse—to categorize knowledge systematically, mirroring Enlightenment-era ideals of order and classification.

2. Themes ​

While a dictionary entry may seem neutral, several implicit themes emerge:

A. Chance vs. Design ​

The core tension in the definitions is between randomness ("by chance") and structure ("regular course of things").

  • General Definition: "Accidental" implies something external to essence—e.g., "accidental to a play" suggests an element not intrinsic to the plot.
  • Specialized Uses:
    • Music: "Foreign tones" disrupt expected harmony (chance vs. compositional intent).
    • Optics: "Subjective sensations" arise from physiological quirks (perception vs. reality).
    • Perspective: The "accidental point" is a constructed artifact of geometric rules (artificial vs. "principal" viewpoint).
    • Painting: "Secondary lights" are unplanned effects (e.g., sunlight through leaves), contrasting with controlled daylight.

This theme aligns with philosophical debates of the era (e.g., determinism vs. free will, realism vs. idealism).

B. Subjectivity and Perception ​

Several definitions highlight how "accidental" phenomena depend on the observer:

  • Optics: Colors are "purely subjective," arising from the eye’s "hypersensibility."
  • Painting: "Accidental lights" (e.g., candlelight) are context-dependent, altering how a scene is perceived. This underscores the relativity of "accidents"—they exist in relation to a framework (e.g., harmony in music, perspective in art).

C. Hierarchy and Essence ​

The synonym section reinforces a hierarchy of necessity:

  • Accidental: Outside the "regular course" (least essential).
  • Incidental: Secondary but within a system.
  • Contingent: Dependent on external conditions.
  • Fortuitous: Lacking causation entirely. This reflects Aristotelian metaphysics, where "accidents" (non-essential properties) are distinct from "substance."

3. Literary and Rhetorical Devices ​

Though a dictionary entry, the text employs subtle rhetorical strategies:

A. Parallelism and Repetition ​

  • Syntactical Parallelism: The synonym section uses repetitive structures for clarity:

    "We speak of a thing as X when it Y..." (e.g., "We speak of a thing as accidental when it falls out as by chance...") This creates a rhythmic, didactic cadence, aiding memorization.

  • Lexical Repetition: Words like "falls," "course," "chance" recur, reinforcing the theme of unplanned occurrence.

B. Contrast and Juxtaposition ​

  • Binary Oppositions:
    • Accidental vs. Essential (general definition).
    • Subjective vs. Objective (optics: "purely subjective sensations").
    • Primary vs. Secondary (painting: "secondary lights").
  • Synonym Distinctions: The entry contrasts near-synonyms to sharpen meaning, e.g.:

    "Casual" implies unimportance; "fortuitous" implies lack of cause.

C. Technical Precision vs. Accessibility ​

  • Specialized Jargon: Terms like "perspective plane" (art) or "complementary colors" (optics) assume domain knowledge, yet the definitions remain concise.
  • Analogies: The painting example ("rays of the sun darting through a cloud") grounds abstraction in tangible imagery.

D. Authoritative Tone ​

  • Impersonal Voice: The use of "we" (e.g., "We speak of a thing as accidental...") creates a collective, objective authority, typical of encyclopedic writing.
  • Citations: The reference to Fairholt (a 19th-century art historian) lends scholarly credibility.

4. Significance of the Excerpt ​

A. Linguistic and Cultural Artifact ​

  • Historical Lexicography: The 1913 Webster’s captures usage from the late 19th/early 20th century, preserving terms like "adventitious" (now rare) and technical definitions (e.g., "accidental point" in perspective drawing, a technique central to Renaissance art).
  • Scientific and Artistic Cross-Pollination: The entry bridges disciplines, showing how "accidental" applies to music theory, physics, and visual art—a testament to the interconnectedness of knowledge in the era.

B. Philosophical Underpinnings ​

  • Metaphysics of Accidents: The distinction between essential and accidental properties echoes Aristotle’s Categories and medieval scholasticism, where "accidents" (e.g., color, size) are non-defining traits of a substance.
  • Epistemology: The optics definition ("purely subjective") anticipates 20th-century debates on perception (e.g., Gestalt psychology, phenomenology).

C. Literary and Aesthetic Implications ​

  • Modernist Resonance: The idea of accidental harmony (music) or unplanned light (painting) foreshadows modernist aesthetics, where chance (e.g., Dada, aleatory music) becomes a creative principle.
  • Narrative Theory: The phrase "accidental to a play" suggests extraneous elements in storytelling, a concept later explored in structuralist and post-structuralist criticism (e.g., Roland Barthes’ "supplementary" details).

D. Practical Utility ​

  • Pedagogical Tool: The synonym section serves as a mini-lesson in precision, teaching readers to distinguish subtle shades of meaning—a hallmark of rhetorical education.
  • Interdisciplinary Reference: For a 1913 reader, this entry would be a ** gateway to specialized fields**, offering concise explanations without requiring prior expertise.

5. Close Reading of Key Passages ​

A. General Definition ​

"Nonessential; not necessarily belonging; incidental; as, are accidental to a play."

  • "Not necessarily belonging": Implies contingency—something may or may not be present.
  • "Incidental": Introduces the idea of secondary status, later expanded in the synonym section.
  • Example ("to a play"): Suggests theatrical metaphor—life as a script, with "accidents" as unscripted moments.

B. Accidental Colors (Optics) ​

"colors depending on the hypersensibility of the retina... purely subjective sensations of color..."

  • "Hypersensibility": Medicalizes perception, framing it as a physiological quirk.
  • "Purely subjective": Emphasizes the observer’s role in creating meaning (proto-constructivist idea).
  • Implication: Reality is partially constructed by the perceiver.

C. Synonym Distinctions ​

"We speak of a thing as contingent when it is such that... it may or may not happen, but is dependent for its existence on something else..."

  • "May or may not": Introduces probability, contrasting with the certainty of essence.
  • "Dependent": Highlights relationality—contingency as a network of conditions.

6. Conclusion: Why This Matters ​

This excerpt is more than a dry definition—it’s a microcosm of intellectual history:

  • Epistemologically, it grapples with how we classify knowledge (essential vs. accidental).
  • Aesthetically, it reveals how chance and design interact in art and perception.
  • Linguistically, it demonstrates how dictionaries shape thought by defining boundaries between concepts.

For a modern reader, it also invites reflection on how language evolves: many of these distinctions (e.g., "fortuitous" vs. "accidental") have blurred in contemporary usage, but the entry preserves a moment of precision in the history of English. In an era of algorithmic dictionaries (e.g., Google Define), the craftsmanship of Webster’s—its nuance, cross-references, and interdisciplinary reach—stands out as a testament to the art of lexicography.