,,human ,,traits  ,,and ,,their         
,,social ,,significance   ,,by  ,,irwin 
,,edman1 ,ph4,d4  ,,instructor ,,in     
,,philosophy1 ,,columbia ,,university   
,,boston  ,,new ,,york  ,,chicago       
,,houghton ,,mifflin ,,company  ,,the   
,,riverside ,,press ,,cambridge         
,,foreword  ,this book was written1     
originally and primarily1 for use in a  
course entitled ,introduction to        
,contemporary ,civilization1 required of
 all ,freshmen in ,columbia ,college4   
,it is an attempt to give a bird's-eye  
view of the processes of human nature1  
from man's simple inborn impulses and   
needs to the most complete fulfillment  
of these in the deliberate activities of
 religion1 art1 science1 and morals4 ,it
 is hoped that the book may give to the 
student and general reader a knowledge  
of the fundamentals of human nature and 
a sense of the possibilities and limits 
these give to human enterprise4  ,part  
,i consists of an analysis of the types 
of behavior1 a survey of individual     

traits and their significance in social 
life1 a brief consideration of the      
nature and development of the self1     
individual differences1 language and    
communication1 racial and cultural      
continuity4 ,those fruits of            
psychological inquiry have been stressed
 which bear most strikingly on the      
relations of men in our present-day     
social and economic organization4 ,in   
consequence1 there has been a deliberate
 exclusion of purely technical or       
controversial material1 however         
interesting4 ,the psychological analysis
 is in general based upon the results of
 the objective inquiries into human     
behavior which have been so fruitfully  
conducted in the last twenty-five years 
by ,thorndike and ,woodworth4 ,to the   
work of the first-mentioned1 the author 
is particularly indebted4  ,part ,,ii is
 a brief analysis1 chiefly psychological
 in character1 of the four great        
activities of the human mind and        
imagination--religion1 art1 science1 and

 morals4 ,these are discussed as normal 
though complex activities developed1    
through the process of reflection1 in   
the fulfillment of man's inborn impulses
 and needs4 ,thus descriptively to treat
 these spiritual enterprises implies on 
the part of the author a naturalistic   
viewpoint whose main outlines have been 
fixed for this generation by ,james1    
,santayana1 and ,dewey4 ,to the         
last-named the writer wishes to express 
the very special obligation that a pupil
 owes to a great teacher4  ,the book as 
a whole1 so far as can be judged from   
the experience the author and others    
have had in using it during the past    
year as a text at ,columbia1 should fit 
well into any general course in social  
psychology4 ,it has been increasingly   
realized that the student's             
understanding of contemporary problems  
of government and industry is immensely 
clarified by a knowledge of the human   
factors which they involve4 ,this volume
 supplies a brief account of the        

essential facts of human behavior with  
especial emphasis on their social       
consequences4 ,part ,i may be           
independently used1 as it has been with 
success1 in a general course in social  
psychology4 ,part ,,ii1 the ,career of  
,reason1 presents material which many   
instructors find it highly desirable to 
use in introductory philosophy courses1 
but for which no elementary texts are   
available4 ,the usual textbooks deal    
with the more metaphysical problems to  
the exclusion of religion1 art1 morals1 
and science1 humanly the most           
interesting and significant of          
philosophical problems4 ,where1 as in   
many colleges1 the introductory         
philosophy course is preceded by a      
course in psychology1 the arrangement of
 the volume should prove particularly   
well suited4  ,the illustrative material
 has been drawn1 possibly to an unusual 
extent1 from literature4 ,the latter    
seems to give the student in the vivid  
reality of specific situations facts    

which the psychologist is condemned1    
from the necessities of scientific      
method1 to discuss in the abstract4     
,the book follows more or less closely  
that part of the syllabus for the course
 in ,contemporary ,civilization1 which  
is called ,the ,world of ,human ,nature1
 which section of the outline was       
chiefly the joint product of            
collaboration by ,professor ,john ,j4   
,coss and the author4 ,to the former the
 author wishes to express his large     
indebtedness4 ,also to ,miss ,edith ,g4 
,taber1 for her careful and valuable    
editing of the manuscript in preparation
 for the printer1 he desires to convey  
his deep appreciation4  ,i4 ,e4         
,columbia ,university1 ,june #aibj4     
,,contents   ,,introduction  ,,human    
,,traits ,,and ,,civilization   ,,part  
,i--,,social ,,psychology  ,,chapter ,i 
,,types ,,of ,,human ,,behavior  ,the   
human animal--,the number and variety of
 man's instincts--,learning in animals  
and men--,the prolonged period of       

infancy--,consciousness of self and     
reaction to ideas--,human beings alone  
possess language--,man the only maker   
and user of tools4  ,,chapter ,,ii      
,,types ,,of ,,human ,,behavior ,,and   
,,their ,,social                        
,,significance--,,instinct1 ,,habit1    
,,and ,,emotion  ,instinctive           
behavior--,the necessity for the control
 of instinct--,habitual behavior--,the  
mechanism of habit--,the acquisition of 
new modes of response--,trial and error 
and deliberate learning--,some          
conditions of habit-formation--,drill   
versus attentive repetition in          
learning--,learning affected by age1    
fatigue1 and health--,habit as a        
time-saver--,habit as a stabilizer of   
action--,disserviceable habits in the   
individual--,social inertia--,the       
importance of the learning habit--,the  
specificity of habits--,the conscious   
transference of habits--,emotion4       
,,chapter ,,iii  ,,reflection  ,instinct
 and habit versus reflection--,the      

origin and nature of                    
reflection--,illustration of the        
reflective process--,reflection as the  
modifier of instinct--,reflective       
behavior modifies habit--,the limits of 
reflection as a modifier of instinct and
 habit--,how instincts and habits impair
 the processes of reflection--,the value
 of reflection for life--,the social    
importance of reflective                
behavior--,reflection removed from      
immediate application3 science--,the    
practical aspect of science--,the       
creation of beautiful objects and the   
expression of ideas and feelings in     
beautiful form4  ,,chapter ,,iv  ,,the  
,,basic ,,human ,,activities  ,food1    
shelter1 and sex--,physical             
activity--,mental activity--,quiescence3
 fatigue--,nervous and mental fatigue4  
,,chapter ,v  ,,the ,,social ,,nature   
,,of ,,man  ,man as a social            
being--,gregariousness--,gregariousness 
important for social                    
solidarity--,gregariousness may hinder  

the solidarity of large                 
groups--,gregariousness in              
belief--,gregariousness in habits of    
action--,the effect of gregariousness on
 innovation--,sympathy 7a specialization
 of gregariousness7--,praise and        
blame--,praise and blame modify         
habit--,desire for praise may lead to   
the profession rather than the practice 
of virtue--,the social effectiveness of 
praise and blame--,social estimates and 
standards of conduct--,importance of    
relating praise and blame to socially   
important conduct--,education as the    
agency of social control--,social       
activity and the social motive4         
,,chapter ,,vi  ,,crucial ,,traits ,,in 
,,social ,,life  ,the interpenetration  
of human traits--,the fighting          
instinct--,pugnacity a menace when      
uncontrolled--,pugnacity as a beneficent
 social force--,the submissive          
instinct--,men display qualities of     
leadership--,man pities and protects    
weak and suffering things--,fear--,love 

and hate--,love--,hate4  ,,chapter ,,vii
  ,,the ,,demand ,,for ,,privacy ,,and  
,,individuality  ,privacy and           
solitude--,satisfaction in personal     
possession3 the acquisitive             
instinct--,individuality in opinion and 
belief--,the social importance of       
individuality in opinion4  ,,chapter    
,,viii  ,,the ,,development ,,of ,,the  
,,self  ,origin and development of a    
sense of personal selfhood--,the social 
self--,character and will--,the         
enhancement of the self--,egoism versus 
altruism--,self-satisfaction and        
dissatisfaction--,the contrast between  
the self and others--,types of          
self--,self-display or                  
boldness--,self-sufficient modesty--,the
 positive and flexible self--,dogmatism 
and self-assertion--,enthusiasm--,the   
negative self--,eccentrics--,the active 
and the contemplative--,emotions aroused
 in the maintenance of the self--,the   
individuality of groups4  ,,chapter ,,ix
  ,,individual ,,differences  ,the      

meaning of individual                   
differences--,causes of individual      
differences--,the influence of sex--,the
 influence of race--,the influence of   
immediate ancestry or family--,the      
influence of the                        
environment--,individual                
differences--,democracy and education4  
,,chapter ,x  ,,language ,,and          
,,communication  ,language as a social  
habit--,language and mental life--,the  
instability of language--,changes in    
meaning--,uniformities in               
language--,standardization of           
language--,counter-tendencies toward    
differentiation--,language as emotional 
and logical--,language and logic4       
,,chapter ,,xi  ,,racial ,,and          
,,cultural ,,continuity  ,restriction of
 population--,cultural                  
continuity--,uncritical veneration of   
the past--,romantic idealization of the 
past--,change synonymous with           
evil--,order versus change--,personal or
 class opposition to change--,uncritical

 disparagement--,critical examination of
 the past--,limitations of the          
past--,education as the transmitter of  
the past4   ,,part ,,ii--,,the ,,career 
,,of ,,reason  ,,introduction  ,,chapter
 ,,xii  ,,religion ,,and ,,the          
,,religious ,,experience  ,the religious
 experience--,the reality of the        
unseen--,experiences which frequently   
find religious expression--,need and    
impotence--,fear and awe--,regret1      
remorse3 repentance and penance--,joy   
and enthusiasm3 festivals and           
thanksgivings--,theology--,the          
description of the divine--,the divine  
as the human ideal--,the religious      
experience1 theology and                
science--,mechanistic science and       
theology--,religion and science--,the   
church as a social institution--,the    
social consequences of institutionalized
 religion--,intolerance and             
inquisition--,quietism and consolation3 
other-worldliness4  ,,chapter ,,xiii    
,,art ,,and ,,the ,,sthetic ,,experience

  ,art versus nature--,the emergence of 
the fine arts--,the sthetic             
experience--,appreciation versus        
action--,sense                          
satisfaction--,form--,expression--,art  
as vicarious experience--,art and       
sthetic experience in the social        
order--,art as an industry--,art and    
morals4  ,,chapter ,,xiv  ,,science     
,,and ,,scientific ,,method  ,what      
science is--,science as                 
explanation--,science and a world       
view--,the sthetic value of             
science--,the danger of pure            
science--,practical or applied          
science--,analysis of scientific        
procedure--,science and common          
sense--,curiosity and scientific        
inquiry--,thinking begins with a        
problem--,the quality of thinking3      
suggestion--,classification--,experiment
al variation of                         
conditions--,generalizations1 their     
elaboration and testing--,the           
quantitative basis of scientific        

procedure--,statistics and              
probability--,science as an instrument  
of human progress4  ,,chapter ,,xv      
,,morals ,,and ,,moral ,,valuation  ,the
 pre-conditions of morality3 instinct1  
impulse1 and desire--,the conflict of   
interests between men and groups--,the  
levels of moral action3 custom2 the     
establishment of folkways--,morality as 
conformity to the established--,the     
values of customary morality--,the      
defects of customary morality--,custom  
and progress--,origin and nature of     
reflective morality--,reflective        
reconstruction of moral standards--,the 
values of reflective                    
morality--,reflection transforms customs
 into principles--,reflective action    
genuinely moral--,reflection sets up    
ideal standards--,the defects of        
reflective morality--,the inadequacy of 
theory in moral life--,the danger of    
intellectualism in morals--,types of    
moral theory--,absolutism--,relativistic
 or teleological                        

morality--,utilitarianism--,moral       
knowledge--,intuitionalism--,empiricism-
-,ethics and life--,morality and human  
nature--,morals1 law1 and education4    
,,index     ,,introduction  ,,human     
,,traits ,,and ,,civilization4          
,throughout the long enterprise of      
civilization in which mankind have more 
or less consciously changed the world   
they found into one more in conformity  
with their desires1 two factors have    
remained constant3 7#a7 the physical    
order of the universe1 which we commonly
 call ,nature1 and 7#b7 the native      
biological equipment of man1 commonly   
known as human nature4 ,both of these1  
we are almost unanimously assured by    
modern science1 have remained           
essentially the same from the dawn of   
history to the present4 ,they are the   
raw material out of which is built up   
the vast complex of government1         
industry1 science1 art--all that we call
 civilization4 ,in a very genuine sense1
 there is nothing new under the sun4    

,matter and men remain the same4  ,but  
while this fundamental material is      
constant1 it may be given various forms2
 and both ,nature itself and the nature 
of man may1 with increasing knowledge1  
be increasingly controlled in man's own 
interests4 ,the railroad1 the wireless1 
and the aeroplane are striking and      
familiar testimonies to the efficacy of 
man's informed mastery of the world into
 which he is born4 ,in the field of     
physical science1 man has1 in the short 
period of three centuries since ,francis
 ,bacon sounded the trumpet call to the 
study of ,nature and ,newton discovered 
the laws of motion1 magnificently       
attained and appreciated the power to   
know exactly what the facts of ,nature  
are1 what consequences follow from them1
 and how they may be applied to enlarge 
the boundaries of the empire of man4    
,in his control of human nature1 which  
is in its outlines as fixed and constant
 as the laws that govern the movements  
of the stars1 man has been much less    

conscious and deliberate1 and more      
frequently moved by passion and         
ignorance than by reason and knowledge4 
,nevertheless1 custom and law1 the      
court1 the school1 and the market have  
similarly been man's ways of utilizing  
the original equipment of impulse and   
desire which ,nature has given him4 ,it 
is hard to believe1 but as certain as it
 is incredible1 that the modern         
professional and businessman1 moving    
freely amid the diverse contacts and    
complexities pictured in any casual     
newspaper1 in a world of factories and  
parliaments and aeroplanes1 is by nature
 no different from the superstitious    
savage hunting precarious food1 living  
in caves1 and finding every stranger an 
enemy4 ,the difference between the      
civilization of an ,american city and   
that of the barbarian tribes of ,western
 ,europe thousands of years ago is an   
accurate index of the extent to which   
man has succeeded in redirecting and    
controlling that fundamental human      

nature which has in its essential       
structure remained the same through     
history4  ,man's ways of association and
 coperation1 for the most part1 have not
 been deliberately developed1 since men 
lived and had to live together long     
before a science of human relations     
could have been dreamed of4 ,only to-day
 are we beginning to have an inkling of 
the fundamental facts of human nature4  
,but it has become increasingly plain   
that progress depends not merely on     
increasing our knowledge and application
 of the laws which govern man's physical
 environment4 ,machinery1 factories1 and
 automatic reapers are1 after all1 only 
instruments for man's welfare4 ,if man  
is ever to attain the happiness and     
rationality of which philosophers and   
reformers have continually been         
dreaming1 there must also be an         
understanding of the laws which govern  
man himself1 laws quite as constant as  
those of physics and chemistry4         
,education and political organization1  

the college and the legislature1 however
 remote they may seem from the random   
impulses to cry and clutch at random    
objects with which a baby comes into the
 world1 must start from just such       
materials as these4 ,the same impulse   
which prompts a five-year-old to put    
blocks into a symmetrical arrangement is
 the stuff out of which architects or   
great executives are made4 ,patriotism  
and public spirit find their roots back 
in the same unlearned impulses which    
make a baby smile back when smiled at1  
and makes it1 when a little older1 cry  
if left too long alone or in a strange  
place4 ,all the native biological       
impulses1 which are almost literally our
 birthright1 may1 when understood1 be   
modified through education1 public      
opinion1 and law1 and directed in the   
interests of human ideals4  ,it is the  
aim of this book to indicate some of    
these more outstanding human traits1 and
 the factors which must be taken into   
account if they are to be controlled in 

the interests of human welfare4 ,it is  
too often forgotten that the problems   
which are to be dealt with in the world 
of politics1 of business1 of law1 and   
education1 are much complicated by the  
fact that human beings are so           
constituted that given certain          
situations1 they will do certain things 
in certain inevitable ways4 ,these      
problems are much clarified by knowing  
what these fundamental ways of men are4 
,,human ,,traits ,,and ,,their ,,social 
,,significance   ,,part ,i   ,,chapter  
,i  ,,types ,,of ,,human ,,behavior     
,,the ,,human ,,animal4 ,any attempt to 
understand what the nature of man is1   
apart from its training and education   
during the life of the individual1 must 
start with the realization that man is a
 human animal4 ,as a human being he is  
strikingly set off by his upright       
posture and his large and flexible hand4
 ,but chiefly he is distinguished by his
 plastic brain1 upon which depends his  
capacity to perform the complex mental  

activities--from administering a        
railroad to solving problems in         
calculus--which constitute man's        
outstanding and exclusive               
characteristic4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,the   
thinking process is discussed in detail 
in chapters ,,iii and ,,xiv4  ,but in   
his structure and functions man bears1  
as is now well known1 a marked          
resemblance to the lower animals4 ,his  
respiratory and digestive organs1 for   
example1 may be duplicated as far down  
in the animal scale as birds and        
chickens4#b ,man's whole physical       
apparatus and mode of life1 save in     
complexity and refinement of operations1
 are the same as those of any of the    
higher mammals4 ,but more important for 
the student of human behavior1 man's    
mental life--that is1 his way of        
responding to and dealing with his      
environment--is in large part identical 
with that of the lower animals1         
especially of the most highly developed 
vertebrates1 such as the monkey4 ,they  

have1 up to a certain point1 precisely  
the same equipment for adjusting        
themselves to the conditions of life4   
,apart from education1 both man and     
animal are endowed with a set of more or
 less fixed tendencies to respond in    
specific ways to specific stimuli4      
,these inborn or congenital tendencies  
are generally known as reflexes or      
instincts4#a ,these are unlearned ways1 
exhibited by both human and animal      
organisms1 of responding promptly and   
precisely1 and in a comparatively       
changeless manner to a given stimulus   
from the environment4 ,these tendencies 
to act1 while they may be1 and most     
frequently are of advantage to the      
organism1 are not conscious or acquired4
 ,they are irresistible impulses to do  
just such-and-such particular things in 
such-and-such particular ways when      
confronted with just such-and-such      
particular situations4 ,in the          
well-known words of ,james3  ,footnote  
#b3 ,with certain modifications         

accounted for in their historical       
descent with modification from a common 
ancestor4 ,see ,scott3 ,theory of       
,evolution4  ,footnote #a3 ,the         
difference between the two is largely   
one of complexity4 ,by a reflex is meant
 a very simple and comparatively rigid  
response2 by an instinct a series of    
reflexes such that when the first is set
 off1 the remainder are set off in a    
regularly determinate succession4  ,the 
cat runs after the mouse1 runs or shows 
fight before the dog1 avoids falling    
from walls and trees1 shuns fire and    
water1 etc41 not because he has any     
notion either of life or death1 or of   
self-preservation4 ,he has probably     
attained to no one of these conceptions 
in such a way as to react definitely    
upon it4 ,he acts in each case          
separately1 and simply because he cannot
 help it2 being so framed that when that
 particular running thing called a mouse
 appears in his field of vision he must 
pursue2 that when that particular       

barking and obstreperous thing called a 
dog appears there he must retire1 if at 
a distance1 and scratch if close by2    
that he must withdraw his feet from     
water1 and his face from flame4#b       
,footnote #b3 ,james3 ,psychology1 vol4 
,,ii1 p4 #chd4  ,similarly1 the baby's  
reaching for random objects1 and sucking
 them when seized1 its turning its head 
aside1 when it has had enough food1 its 
crying when alone and hungry1 are not1  
for the most part1 deliberate methods   
invented by the infant to maintain its  
own welfare1 but are almost as automatic
 as the number of sounds omitted by the 
cuckoo clock at midnight4  ,why do men  
always lie down1 when they can1 on soft 
beds rather than on hard floors8 ,why do
 they sit round the stove on a cold day8
 444 ,why does the maiden interest the  
youth so that everything about her seems
 more important and significant than    
anything else in the world8 ,nothing    
more can be said than that these are    
human ways1 and that every creature     

likes its own ways1 and takes to the    
following of them as a matter of        
course4444 ,not one man in a billion1   
when taking his dinner1 thinks of       
utility4 ,he eats because the food      
tastes good1 and makes him want more4   
,if you ask him why he should want to   
eat more of what tastes like that1      
instead of revering you as a            
philosopher1 he will probably laugh at  
you for a fool4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,james3
 ,psychology1 vol4 ,,ii1 p4 #chf4       
,these inborn tendencies to act vary in 
complexity from the withdrawing of a    
hand from a hot stove or the jerking of 
the knee when touched in a particular   
spot to startlingly involved trains of  
action to be found in the behavior of   
certain of the lower animals4 ,bergson  
cites the case of a species of wasp     
which with a skill1 unconscious though  
it be1 resembling that of the expert    
surgeon1 paralyzes a caterpillar without
 killing it1 and carries it home for    
food for its young4#b ,there are again  

many cases of insects which invariably  
lay their eggs in the only places where 
the grubs1 when hatched1 will find the  
food they need and can eat1 or where the
 larv will be able to attach themselves 
as parasites to some host in a way that 
is necessary to their survival4#c ,in   
many instances these complicated trains 
of action are performed by the animal in
 a situation absolutely strange to it1  
without its ever having seen the act    
performed before1 having been born      
frequently after its parents had died1  
and itself destined to die long before  
its grubs will have hatched4  ,footnote 
#b3 ,bergson3 ,creative ,evolution1 p4  
#agb4  ,footnote #c3 ,mc,dougall3       
,social ,psychology1 p4 #bd4 7,except   
where otherwise noted1 all references   
are to the fourth edition47  ,,the      
,,number ,,and ,,variety ,,of ,,man',s  
,,instincts4 ,various attempts have been
 made1 notably by such men as ,james1   
,mc,dougall1 and ,thorndike1 to         
enumerate and classify the tendencies   

with which man is at birth endowed1 or  
which1 like the sex instinct1 make their
 appearance at a certain stage in       
biological growth1 regardless of the    
particular training to which the        
individual has been subjected4 ,earlier 
classifications were inclined to speak  
of instincts as very general and as half
 consciously purposeful in character4   
,thus it is still popularly customary to
 speak of the instinct of               
self-preservation1 the instinct of      
hunger1 and the parental instinct4 ,the 
tendency of present-day psychology is to
 note just what responses take place in 
given specific situations4 ,as a result 
of such observation1 particularly by    
such biologists as ,watson and          
,jennings1#a instincts have come to be  
regarded not as general and purposive   
but as specific and automatic4 ,thus it 
is no instinct of self-preservation that
 drives the child to blink its eyes at a
 blinding flash of light2 it is solely  
and simply the very direct and immediate

 tendency to blink its eyes in just that
 way whenever such a phenomenon occurs4 
,it is no deliberate intent to inhale   
the oxygen necessary to the sustenance  
of life that causes us to breathe4 ,no  
more is it a conscious plan to provide  
the organism with nourishment that      
prompts us to eat our breakfast in the  
morning2 it is simply the immediate and 
irresistible enticement of food after a 
night's fast4 ,not a deliberate motive  
of maternity prompts the mother to      
caress and care for her baby1 but an    
inevitable and almost invincible        
tendency to cuddle it when it cries1    
smile when it smiles1 fondle it and coo 
to it in turn4  ,footnote #a3 ,watson3  
,behavior4 ,h4 ,s4 ,jennings3 ,behavior 
of the ,lower ,organisms4  ,in the last 
few years1 as a result of the           
observation of animals under laboratory 
conditions1 there has been increasing   
evidence of a large number of specific  
tendencies to act in specific ways1 in  
response to specific given stimuli4 ,as 

no stimuli are ever quite alike1 and no 
animal organism is ever in exactly the  
same physico-chemical condition at two  
different times1 there are slight but   
negligible differences in response4     
,allowing for these1 animals may be said
 to be equipped with a wide variety of  
tendencies to do precisely the same     
things under recurrent identical        
circumstances4 ,the aim of the          
experimental psychologist is to discover
 just what actions occur when an animal 
is placed in any given circumstances1   
precisely as the chemist notes what     
reaction occurs when two chemicals are  
combined4  ,while experiments with the  
human infant are more difficult and rare
 7and while it is among infants alone   
among humans that original tendencies   
can be observed free from the           
modifications to which they are so soon 
subjected by training and environment7  
careful observers find in the human     
animal also a great number of these     
specific ways of acting4 ,just which of 

the large number of observed universal  
modes of behavior are original and      
unlearned1 is a matter still in         
controversy among psychologists4 ,there 
is practically complete agreement among 
them1 however1 with respect to such     
comparatively simple acts as grasping1  
reaching1 putting things in the mouth1  
creeping1 standing and walking1 and the 
making of sounds more or less           
articulate4 ,most psychologists         
recognize even such highly complicated  
tendencies as man's restlessness in the 
absence of other people1 his tendency to
 attract their attention when present1  
to be at once pitying and pugnacious1   
greedy and sympathetic1 to take and to  
follow a lead4  ,in general1 it may be  
said that man possesses not fewer       
instincts than animals1 but more4 ,his  
superiority consists in the fact that he
 has at once more tendencies to respond1
 and that in him these tendencies are   
more flexible and more susceptible of   
modification than those of animals4 ,a  

chicken has at the start the advantage  
over the human2 it can at first do more 
things and do them better4 ,but it is   
the human baby who1 though it cannot    
find food for itself at the start1 can  
eventually be taught to distinguish     
between the nutritive values of food1   
secure food from remote sources1 and    
make palatable food from materials which
 when raw are inedible4  ,an inventory  
and classification of man's original    
tendencies is made more difficult       
precisely because these are so easily   
modifiable and are1 even in earliest    
childhood1 seldom seen in their original
 and simple form4  ,at any given time a 
human being is being acted upon by a    
wide variety of competing and           
contemporaneous stimuli4 ,in walking    
down a street with a friend1 for        
example1 one may be attracted by the    
array of bright colors1 of flowers1     
jewelry and clothing in the shop        
windows1 blink one's eyes in the glare  
of the sun1 feel a satisfaction in the  

presence of other people and a          
loneliness for a particular friend1     
dodge before a passing automobile1 be   
envious of its occupant1 and smile      
benevolently at a passing child4 ,it    
would be difficult in so complex and so 
characteristically familiar a situation 
to pick out completely and precisely the
 original human tendencies at work1 and 
trace out all the modifications to which
 they have been subjected in the course 
of individual experience4 ,for even     
single responses in the adult are not   
the same in quality or scope as they    
were to start with4 ,even the simplest  
stimuli of taste and of sound are       
different to the adult from what they   
are to the child4 ,what for the adult is
 a printed page full of significance is 
for the baby a blur1 or at most chaotic 
black marks on white paper4  ,but while 
it is difficult to disentangle out of   
even a simple1 everyday occurrence the  
original unlearned human impulses at    
work1 experimentation on both humans and

 animals seems clearly to establish that
 in the same organism the same situation
 will always produce the same response4 
,it also seems clear that in man these  
native unlearned responses to given     
stimuli are unusually numerous and      
unusually controllable4 ,upon the       
possibility of the ready modification of
 these original elements in man's       
behavior his whole education and social 
life depend4  ,,learning ,,in ,,animals 
,,and ,,men4 ,men and animals are alike 
not only in that they have in common a  
large number of tendencies to respond in
 definite ways to definite stimuli1 but 
that these responses may be modified1   
some strengthened through use1 and      
others weakened or altogether discarded 
through disuse4 ,in both also the       
survival and strengthening of some      
native tendencies1 the weakening and    
even the complete elimination of others1
 depends primarily upon the satisfaction
 which flows from their practice4  ,it  
must be remembered that any situation1  

while it calls forth on the part of the 
organism a characteristic response1 may 
also call out others1 especially if the 
first response made fails to secure     
satisfaction1 or if it places the animal
 in a positively annoying situation4    
,there are certain situations--being fed
 when hungry1 resting when weary1       
etc4--which are immediate and original  
satisfiers2 there are others such as    
bitter tastes1 being looked at with     
scorn by others1 etc41 which are natural
 annoyers4 ,the first type the animal   
will try various means of attaining2 the
 second1 various means of avoiding4     
,through trial and error1 through going 
through every response it can make to a 
given situation1 the animal or human    
hits upon some response which will      
secure for it satisfaction or rid it of 
a positive annoyance4 ,once this        
successful response is hit upon1 it     
tends to be retained and becomes        
habitual in that situation1 while other 
random responses are eliminated4  ,as   

will be pointed out in the following1   
man has developed in the process of     
reflection a much more effective and    
subtle mode of attaining desirable      
results1 but a large part of human      
acquisition of skill1 whether at the    
typewriter1 the piano1 the tennis court1
 or in dealing with other people1 is    
still a matter of making every random   
response that the situation provokes    
until the appropriate and effective one 
is hit upon1 and making this latter     
response more immediately upon repeated 
experiences in the same situation4 ,once
 this effective response becomes        
habitual it is just as automatic in     
character as if it had been made        
immediately the first time1 and it is   
almost impossible without knowledge of  
the animal's or the human's earlier     
modes of response to detect the         
difference between an acquired response 
and one that is inborn4  ,this process  
of trial and error is perhaps best      
illustrated in the behavior of the lower

 animals where careful experiments have 
been conducted for the purpose of       
tracing the process of learning4 ,in the
 classic cases reported by ,thorndike   
and ,watson1 when chickens1 rats1 and   
cats were placed in situations where the
 first response failed to bring         
satisfaction1 their behavior was in each
 case marked by the following features4 
,at the first trial the animals in every
 case performed a wide variety of acts  
useless to secure the satisfaction they 
were instinctively seeking1 whether it  
was food in a box1 or freedom from      
confinement in a cage4 ,upon repeated   
trials the act appropriate to securing  
satisfaction was performed with         
increasing elimination of useless acts1 
and consequent decrease of the time     
required to perform the act requisite to
 secure food1 or freedom1 or both1 as   
the case might be4 ,one of ,thorndike's 
famous cat experiments is best told in  
his own report3  ,if we take a box      
twenty by fifteen by twelve inches1     

replace its cover and front side by bars
 an inch apart1 and make in this front  
side a door arranged so as to fall open 
when a wooden button inside is turned   
from a vertical to a horizontal         
position1 we shall have means to observe
 such learning by trial and error4 ,a   
kitten1 three to six months old1 if put 
in this box when hungry1 a bit of fish  
being left outside1 reacts as follows3  
,it tries to squeeze through between the
 bars1 claws at the bars1 and at loose  
things in and out of the box1 stretches 
its paws out between the bars1 and bites
 at its confining walls4 ,some one of   
all these promiscuous clawings1         
squeezings1 and bitings turns round the 
wooden button1 and the kitten gains     
freedom and food4 ,by repeating the     
experience again and again the animal   
gradually comes to omit all the useless 
clawings1 and the like1 and to manifest 
only the particular impulse 7e4g41 to   
claw hard at the top of the button with 
the paw or to push against one side of  

it with the nose7 which has resulted    
successfully4 ,it turns the button      
around without delay whenever put in the
 box4 ,it has formed an association     
between the situation confined in a box 
with a certain appearance and the       
response of clawing at a certain part of
 that box in a certain definite way4    
,popularly speaking1 it has learned to  
open a door by pressing a button4 ,to   
the uninitiated observer the behavior of
 the six kittens that thus freed        
themselves from such a box would seem   
wonderful and quite unlike their        
ordinary accomplishments of finding     
their way to their food or beds4444 ,a  
certain situation arouses1 by virtue of 
accident or more often instinctive      
equipment1 certain responses4 ,one of   
these happens to be an act appropriate  
to secure freedom4 ,it is stamped in in 
connection with that situation4#a       
,footnote #a3 ,thorndike3 ,educational  
,psychology1 ,briefer ,course4 p4 #abi4 
,perhaps the most significant factor to 

be noted in this1 and in similar cases1 
is that the successful response to a    
baffling situation is acquired1 and that
 this acquisition remains a more or less
 permanent possession of the human or   
animal organism4 ,particularly important
 for the problem and practice of        
education is the mechanism by which     
these learned modes of behavior are     
acquired4 ,for1 to attain skill1        
knowledge1 intellect1 character1 is to  
attain certain determinate habits of    
action1 certain recurrent and stable    
ways of responding to a situation4 ,the 
reason why the cat in the box ceased to 
perform the hundred and one random acts 
of clawing and biting1 and after a      
number of trials got down to the        
immediately necessary business of       
turning the button was because it had   
learned that one thing only1 out of the 
multitude of things it could do1 would  
enable it to get out of the box and get 
its food4 ,to say that it learned this  
is not to say that it consciously       

realized it2 it means simply that when  
placed in such a situation again after  
having been placed in it a sufficient   
number of times1 it will be set off to  
the turning of the button which gets it 
food1 instead of biting bars and clawing
 at random--actions which merely serve  
further to frustrate its hunger4 ,the   
animal has not consciously learned1 but 
its nervous system has been mechanically
 directed4  ,a large part of the        
education of humans as well as of       
animals consists precisely in the       
modification of our original responses  
to situations by a trial-and-error      
discovery of ways of attaining          
satisfactory and avoiding annoying      
situations4 ,both animals and humans1   
when they have several times performed a
 certain act that brings satisfaction1  
tend1 on the recurrence of a similar    
situation1 to repeat that action        
immediately and to eliminate with       
successive repetitions almost all the   
other responses which are possible1 but 

which are ineffective in the attainment 
of some specific satisfaction4 ,the     
whole training imposed by civilization  
on the individual is based ultimately on
 this fundamental fact that human beings
 can be taught to modify their behavior1
 to change their original response to a 
situation in the light of the           
consequences that follow it4 ,this means
 that while man's nature remains on the 
whole constant1 its operations may be   
indefinitely varied by the results which
 follow the operation of any given      
instinct4 ,the child has its original   
tendency to reach toward bright objects 
checked by the experience of putting its
 hand in the flame4 ,later his tendency 
to take all the food within reach may be
 checked by the looks of scorn which    
follow that manifestation of man's      
original greed1 or the punishment and   
privation which are correlated with it4 
,through experience with punishment and 
reward1 humans may be taught to do      
precisely the opposite of what would    

have been their original impulse in any 
given situation1 just as the monkey     
reported by one experimenter may be     
taught to go to the top of his cage     
whenever a banana has been placed at the
 bottom4  ,,the ,,prolonged ,,period    
,,of ,,infancy4 ,probably the most      
significant and unique fact of human    
behavior is the period of prolonged     
infancy which is characteristic of human
 beings alone4 ,fiske and ,butler in    
particular have stressed the importance 
of this human trait4 ,in the lower      
animals the period of infancy--that is1 
the period during which the young are   
dependent upon their parents for food1  
care1 and training--is very short1      
extending even in the highest form of   
ape to not more than three months4 ,this
 would appear1 at first blush1 to be a  
great advantage possessed by the lower  
animals4 ,they come into the world      
equipped with a variety of tendencies to
 act which1 within a week1 or1 as in the
 case of chickens1 almost immediately   

after birth1 are perfectly adapted to   
secure for them food1 shelter1 and      
protection4 ,they are mechanisms from   
the beginning perfectly adjusted to     
their environment4  ,the human infant1  
while it is born with a greater number  
of instinctive activities than other    
animals1 is able to make little use of  
them just as they stand4 ,for years     
after birth it is helplessly dependent  
on others to supply its most elementary 
needs4 ,it must be fed1 carried1 and    
sheltered2 it cannot by itself even     
reach for an object1 and it cannot for  
nearly two years after birth            
specifically communicate its wants to   
other people4 ,but this comparatively   
long helplessness of the human infant is
 perhaps the chief source of human      
progress4  ,the human baby1 because it  
can do so little at the start1 because  
it has so many tendencies to act and has
 them all so plastic1 undeveloped1 and  
modifiable1 has to a unique degree the  
capacity to learn4 ,this means that it  

can profit by the experience of others  
and adjust itself to a great variety and
 complexity of situations4 ,the chicken 
or the bird can do a limited number of  
things perfectly1 but it is as if it had
 a number of special keys opening       
special locks4 ,the power of modifying  
these instinctive adjustments1 the      
capacity of learning1 is like being put 
in possession of a pass-key4 ,as        
,professor ,dewey puts it1 ,an original 
specialized power of adjustment secures 
immediate efficiency1 but1 like a       
railway ticket1 it is good for one route
 only4 ,a being who1 in order to use his
 eyes1 ears1 hands1 and legs1 has to    
experiment in making varied combinations
 of their reactions1 achieves a control 
that is flexible and varied4#a          
,footnote #a3 ,dewey2 ,democracy and    
,education1 p4 #ec4  ,the more complex  
the environment is in which the         
individual must live1 the longer is the 
period of infancy needed in which the   
necessary habits and capacities may be  

acquired4 ,in the human being the period
 of infancy extends in a literal sense  
through the first five years of the     
individual's life4 ,but in civilized    
societies it extends factually much     
longer4 ,by the end of the first five   
years the child's physical infancy is   
over4 ,it can take care of itself so far
 as actually feeding itself1 moving     
about1 and communicating with others is 
concerned4 ,but so complex are the      
habits to which it must become          
accustomed in our civilization that it  
is dependent for a much longer period4  
,the whole duration of the child's      
education is a prolongation of the      
period of infancy4 ,in most civilized   
countries1 until at least the age of    
twelve1 the child is literally dependent
 on its parents4 ,and with every advance
 in civilization has come a lengthening 
in the period of education1 or learning4
  ,intellectually1 the period of infancy
 might be said not really to be over    
before the age of twenty-five1 by which 

time habits of mind have become fairly  
well fixed4 ,the brain and the nervous  
system remain fairly plastic up to that 
time1 and if inquiry and learning have  
themselves become habitual1 plasticity  
may last even longer4 ,in the cases of  
the greatest intellects1 of a ,darwin1  
or a ,newton1 one might almost say the  
period of infancy lasts to old age4 ,to 
be still learning at sixty is to be     
still a child in the best sense of the  
word4 ,it is still to be open rather    
than rigid1 still to be profiting by    
experience4  ,the great social          
advantages of the prolonged period of   
infancy lie in the fact that there is a 
unique opportunity both for the         
acquisition by individuals and for the  
imposition on the part of society of a  
large number of habits of great social  
value4 ,the human being1 born into a    
world where there are many things to be 
learned both of natural law and human   
relations1 is1 as it were1 fortunately  
born ignorant4 ,he has instincts which  

are pliable enough to be modified into  
habits1 and in consequence socially     
useful habits can be deliberately       
inculcated in the immature members of a 
society by their elders4 ,the whole     
process of education is a utilization of
 man's prolonged period of infancy1 for 
the deliberate acquisition of habits4   
,this is all the more important since   
only by such habit formation during the 
long period of human infancy can the    
achievements of civilization be handed  
down from generation to generation4     
,art1 science1 industrial methods1      
social customs1 these are not inherited 
by the individual as are the instincts  
of sex1 pugnacity1 etc4 ,they are       
preserved only because they can be      
taught as habits to those beings who    
come into the world with a plastic      
equipment of instincts which lend       
themselves for a long time to           
modification4  ,,consciousness ,,of     
,,self ,,and ,,reaction ,,to ,,ideas4 ,a
 significant difference between the     

actions of human beings and those of    
animals is that human beings are        
conscious of themselves as agents4 ,they
 may be said not only to be the only    
creatures who know what they are doing1 
but the only ones who realize their     
individuality in doing it4 ,dogs and    
cats are not1 so far as we can draw     
inferences from extended observation of 
even their most complex actions1        
conscious of themselves4 ,it is not very
 long1 however1 before the human animal 
begins to set itself off against the    
remainder of the universe1 to discover  
that it is something different from the 
chairs1 tables1 and surrounding people  
and faces that at first constitute for  
it only a blooming1 buzzing confusion4  
,a human being performs actions with a  
feeling of awareness2 he is conscious of
 himself4 ,this consciousness of self   
7see chapters ,,vii and ,,viii7 becomes 
more acute as the individual grows      
older4 ,it has consequences of the      
gravest character in social1 political1 

and economic life4 ,it is a large factor
 at once in such different qualities of 
character as ambition1 friendship1      
humility1 and self-sacrifice1 and is    
responsible in large measure for        
whatever truth there is in the          
familiarly spoken-of conflict between   
the individual and society4  ,human     
beings are1 furthermore1 susceptible to 
a unique stimulation to action1 namely1 
ideas4 ,animals respond to things only1 
that is1 to things in gross3  ,it may be
 questioned whether a dog sees a rainbow
 any more than he apprehends the        
political constitution of the country in
 which he lives4 ,the same principle    
applies to the kennel in which he sleeps
 and the meat that he eats4 ,when he is 
sleepy1 he goes to the kennel2 when he  
is hungry1 he is excited by the smell   
and color of meat2 beyond this1 in what 
sense does he see an object8 ,certainly 
he does not see a house--i4e41 a thing  
with all the properties and relations of
 a permanent residence1 unless he is    

capable of making what is present a     
uniform sign of what is absent--unless  
he is capable of thought4#a  ,footnote  
#a3 ,dewey3 ,how ,we ,think1 p4 #ag4    
,human beings can respond to objects as 
signs of other things1 and1 what is     
perhaps more important1 can abstract    
from those gross total objects certain  
qualities1 features1 elements1 which are
 universally associated with certain    
consequences4 ,they can respond to the  
meaning or bearing of an object2 they   
can respond to ideas4  ,to respond to   
ideas means to respond to significant   
similarities in objects and also to     
significant differences4 ,it means to   
note certain qualities that objects have
 in common1 and to classify these common
 qualities and their consequences in the
 behavior of objects4 ,to note          
similarities and differences in the     
behavior of objects is to enable        
individuals to act in the light of the  
future4 ,the printing on this page would
 be to a dog or to a baby merely a blur4

 ,to the reader the black imprints are  
signs or symbols4 ,to the animal a red  
lantern is a haze of light2 to a        
locomotive engineer it is a sign to     
halt4 ,to respond to ideas is thus to   
act in the light of a future4 ,it makes 
possible acting in the light of the     
consequences that can be foreseen4      
,present objects or features of objects 
are responded to as signs of future or  
absent opportunities or dangers4 ,every 
time we read a letter1 or act in        
response to something somebody has told 
us1 we are responding not to physical   
stimuli as such1 but to those stimuli as
 signs of other things4  ,,human        
,,beings ,,alone ,,possess ,,language4  
,the value of the period of infancy in  
the acquisition of habits and the unique
 ability of human beings to respond to  
ideas is inseparably connected with the 
fact that man alone possesses a         
language1 both oral and written4 ,that  
is to say1 men alone have an instrument 
whereby to communicate to each other    

feelings1 attitudes1 ideas1 information4
 ,to a very limited degree1 of course1  
animals have vocal and gesture habits2  
specific cries of hunger1 of sex desire1
 or distress4 ,but they cannot1 with    
their limited number of vocal           
mechanisms1 possibly develop language   
habits1 develop a system of sounds      
associated with definite actions and    
capable of controlling actions4 ,only   
human beings can produce even the       
simplest system of written symbols1 by  
which visual stimuli become symbols of  
actions1 objects1 emotions1 or ideas4   
,biologists--in particular the          
experimentalist1 ,watson--find1 in the  
capacity for language1 man's most       
important distinction from the brute4   
,language may be said1 in fact1 to be   
the most indispensable instrument of    
civilization4 ,it is the means whereby  
the whole life of the past has been     
handed to us in the present4 ,it is the 
means whereby we in turn record1        
preserve1 and transmit our science1 our 

industrial methods1 our laws1 our       
customs4 ,if human relations were       
possible at all without a language1 they
 would have to begin anew1 without any  
cultural inheritance1 in each           
generation4 ,education1 the transmitter 
of the achievements of the mature       
generation to the one maturing1 is      
dependent on this unique human capacity 
to make seen marks and heard sounds     
stand for other things4 ,the extent to  
which civilization may advance is       
contingent upon the development of      
adequate language habits4 ,and human    
beings have perfected a language        
sufficiently complicated to communicate 
in precise and permanent form their     
discoveries of the complex relations    
between things and between men4  ,,man  
,,the ,,only ,,maker ,,and ,,user ,,of  
,,tools4 ,one of the most important ways
 in which man is distinguished from the 
lower animals is in his manufacture and 
use of tools4 ,so far as we know the    
ability to manufacture and understand   

the use of tools is possessed by man    
alone4 ,monkeys may be taught a few     
simple operations with tools1 such as   
cracking nuts with a stone1 but usually 
they merely mimic a man4#a ,man's       
uniqueness as the exclusive maker and   
user of tools is made possible by two   
things4 ,the first is his hand1 which   
with its four fingers and a thumb1 as   
contrasted with the monkey's five       
fingers1 enables him to pick up objects4
 ,the second is his capacity for        
reflection1 presently to be discussed1  
which enables him to foresee the        
consequences of the things he does4     
,footnote #a3 ,mills3 ,the ,realities of
 ,modern ,science1 p4 #a4  ,the use of  
tools of increasing refinement and      
complexity is the chief method by which 
man has progressed from the life of the 
cave man to the complicated industrial  
civilization of to-day4 ,bergson writes 
in this connection3  ,as regards human  
intelligence1 it has not been           
sufficiently noted that mechanical      

invention has been from the first its   
essential feature1 that even to-day our 
social life gravitates around the       
manufacture and use of artificial       
instruments1 that the inventions which  
strew the road of progress have also    
traced its direction4 ,this we hardly   
realize1 because it takes us longer to  
change ourselves than to change our     
tools4 ,our individual and even social  
habits survive a good while the         
circumstances for which they were made1 
so that the ultimate effects of an      
invention are not observed until its    
novelty is already out of sight4 ,a     
century has elapsed since the invention 
of the steam engine1 and we are only    
just beginning to feel the depths of the
 shock it gave us4 ,but the revolution  
it has effected in industry has         
nevertheless upset human relations      
altogether4 ,new ideas are arising1 new 
feelings are on the way to flower4 ,in  
thousands of years1 when1 seen from the 
distance1 only the broad lines of the   

present age will still be visible1 our  
wars and our revolutions will count for 
little1 even supposing they are         
remembered at all2 but the steam engine 
and the procession of inventions that   
accompanied it1 will perhaps be spoken  
of as we speak of the bronze or of the  
chipped stone of prehistoric times3 it  
will serve to define an age4 ,if we     
could rid ourselves of all pride1 if1 to
 define our species1 we kept strictly to
 what the historic and the prehistoric  
periods show us to be the constant      
characteristic of man and of            
intelligence1 we should not say ,homo   
sapiens1 but ,homo faber4#a  ,footnote  
#a3 ,bergson3 ,creative ,evolution1 pp4 
#ach-ci4  ,man's intelligence1 it has so
 often been said1 enables him to control
 ,nature1 but his intelligence in the   
control of natural resources is         
dependent for effectiveness on adequate 
material instruments4 ,one may          
subscribe1 though with qualification1 to
 ,bergson's further statement1 that     

intelligence1 considered in what seems  
to be its original feature1 is the      
faculty of manufacturing artificial     
objects1 especially tools to make tools1
 and of indefinitely varying the        
manufacture4  ,anthropologists          
distinguish the prehistoric epochs1 by  
such terms as the ,stone1 ,copper or    
,bronze1 and ,iron ,ages1 meaning       
thereby to indicate what progress man   
had made in the utilization of the      
natural resources about him4 ,we date   
the remote periods of mankind chiefly by
 the mementos we have of the kinds of   
tools they used and the methods they had
 developed in the control of their      
environment4 ,the knowledge of how to   
start and maintain a fire has been set  
down as the practical beginning of      
civilization4 ,certainly next in        
importance was the invention of the     
simplest tools4 ,there came in          
succession1 though ons apart1 the use of
 chipped stone implements1 bronze or    
copper instruments1 and instruments made

 of iron4 ,in the ancient world we find 
the invention of such simple machines as
 the pulley1 the use of rope1 and the   
inclined plane4  ,without tracing the   
history of invention1 it will suffice   
for our purpose to point out that       
agriculture and industry1 men's modes of
 exploiting ,nature1 are dependent      
intimately on the effectiveness of the  
tools at their disposal4 ,it is a far   
cry from the flint hatchet to the       
,mc,cormick reaper and the modern steel 
works1 but these are two ends of the    
same process1 that process which        
distinguishes man from all other        
animals1 and makes human civilization   
possible3 that is1 the use and the      
manufacture of tools4     ,,chapter ,,ii
  ,,types ,,of ,,human ,,behavior ,,and 
,,their ,,social                        
,,significance--,,instinct1 ,,habit1    
,,and ,,emotion  ,,instinctive          
,,behavior4 ,we have already noted the  
fact that both men and animals are      
equipped with a wide variety of         

unlearned responses to given stimuli4   
,in the case of human beings1 this      
original equipment varies from such a   
specific reaction as pulling away the   
hand when it is pinched or burned1 to   
such general innate tendencies as those 
of herding or playing with other people4
 ,in a later stage of this discussion we
 shall examine the more important of    
these primary modes of behavior4 ,at    
this point our chief concern is with    
certain general considerations that     
apply to them all4  ,the equipment of   
instincts with which a human being is at
 birth endowed must be considered in two
 ways4 ,it consists1 in the first place1
 of definite and unlearned mechanisms of
 behavior1 fixed original responses to  
given stimuli4 ,these are1 at the same  
time1 the original driving forces of    
action4 ,an instinct is at once an      
unlearned mechanism for making a        
response and an unlearned tendency to   
make it4 ,that is1 given certain        
situations1 human beings do not simply  

utilize inborn reactions1 but exhibit   
inborn drives or desires to make those  
reactions4 ,there is thus an identity in
 man's native endowment between what he 
can do and what he wants to do4         
,instincts must thus be regarded as both
 native capacities and native desires4  
,instincts define1 therefore1 not only  
what men can do1 but what they want to  
do4 ,they are at once the primary       
instruments and the primary provocatives
 to action4 ,as we shall presently see  
in some detail1 human beings may acquire
 mechanisms of behavior with which they 
are not at birth endowed4 ,these        
acquired mechanisms of response are     
called habits4 ,and with the acquisition
 of new responses1 new motives or       
tendencies to action are established4   
,having learned how to do a certain     
thing1 individuals at the same time     
learn to want to do it4 ,but just as all
 acquired mechanisms of behavior are    
modifications of some original          
instinctive response1 so all desires1   

interests1 and ideals are derivatives of
 such original impulses as fear1        
curiosity1 self-assertion1 and sex4 ,all
 human motives can be traced back to    
these primary inborn impulses to make   
these primary inborn responses4#a       
,footnote #a3 ,the clearest statement of
 the status of instincts as both        
mechanisms of action and drives to      
action has been made by ,professor      
,woodworth in his ,dynamic ,psychology4 
,no one else1 to the best of the        
author's knowledge1 has made the        
distinction with the same clarity and   
emphasis1 though it has been suggested  
in the work of ,thorndike and           
,mc,dougall4 ,in ,mc,dougall's          
definition of an instinct he recognizes 
both the responsive self and the        
tendency to make the response4 ,an      
instinct is1 for him1 an inherited      
disposition which determines its        
possessor1 in respect to any object1 to 
act in regard to it in a particular     
manner1 or at least to experience an    

impulse to such action4  ,,the          
,,necessity ,,for ,,the ,,control ,,of  
,,instinct4 ,the human being's original 
equipment of impulses and needs         
constitutes at once an opportunity and a
 problem4 ,instincts are the natural    
resources of human behavior1 the raw    
materials of action1 feeling1 and       
thought4 ,all behavior1 whether it be   
the making of mud pies or of            
metaphysical systems1 is an expression1 
however complicated and indirect1 of    
some of the elements of the native      
endowments of human beings4 ,instinctive
 tendencies are1 as we have seen1 the   
primary motives and the indispensable   
instruments of action4 ,without them    
there could be no such thing as human   
purpose or preference2 without their    
utilization in some form no human       
purpose or preference could be          
fulfilled4 ,but like other natural      
resources1 men's original tendencies    
must be controlled and redirected1 if   
they are to be fruitfully utilized in   

the interests of human welfare4  ,there 
are a number of conditions that make    
imperative the control of native        
tendencies4 ,the first of these is      
intrinsic to the organization of        
instincts themselves4 ,human beings are 
born with a plurality of desires1 and   
happiness consists in an equilibrium of 
satisfactions4 ,but impulses are        
stimulated at random and collide with   
one another4 ,often one impulse1 be it  
that of curiosity or pugnacity or sex1  
can be indulged only at the expense or  
frustration of many others just as      
natural1 normal1 and inevitable4 ,there 
is a certain school of philosophical    
radicals who call us back to ,nature1 to
 a life of unconsidered impulse4 ,they  
paint the rapturous and passionate      
moments in which strong human impulses  
receive satisfaction without exhibiting 
the disease and disorganization of which
 these indulgences are so often the     
direct antecedents4 ,a life is a        
long-time enterprise and it contains a  

diversity of desires4 ,if all of these  
are to receive any measure of           
fulfillment there must be compromise and
 adjustment between them2 they must all 
be subjected to some measure of control4
  ,a second cause for the control of    
instinct lies in the fact that people   
live and have to live together4 ,the    
close association which is so           
characteristic of human life is1 as we  
shall see1 partly attributable to a     
specific gregarious instinct1 partly to 
the increasing need for coperation which
 marks the increasing complexity of     
civilization4 ,but whatever be its      
causes1 group association makes it      
necessary that men regulate their       
impulses and actions with reference to  
one another4 ,endowed as human beings   
are with more or less identical sets of 
original native desires1 the desires of 
one cannot be freely fulfilled without  
frequently coming into conflict with the
 similar desires of others4 ,compromise 
and adjustment must be brought about by 

some intelligent modification both of   
action and desire4 ,the child's         
curiosity1 the acquisitiveness or sex   
desire or self-assertiveness of the     
adult must be checked and modified in   
the interests of the group among which  
the individual lives4 ,one may take a   
simple illustration from the everyday   
life of a large city4 ,there is1 for    
most individuals1 an intrinsic          
satisfaction in fast and free movement4 
,but that desire1 exhibited in an       
automobile on a crowded thoroughfare1   
will interfere with just as normal1     
natural1 and inevitable desires on the  
part of other motorists and pedestrians4
  ,still another imperative reason for  
the control of our instinctive equipment
 lies in the fact that instincts as such
 are inadequate to adjust either the    
individual or the group to contemporary 
conditions4 ,they were developed in the 
process of evolution as useful methods  
for enabling the human animal to cope   
with a radically different and          

incomparably simpler environment4 ,while
 the problems and processes of his life 
and environment have grown more complex1
 man's inborn equipment for controlling 
the world he lives in has1 through the  
long history of civilization1 remained  
practically unchanged4 ,but as his      
equipment of mechanisms for reacting to 
situations is the same as that of his   
prehistoric ancestors1 so are his basic 
desires4 ,and the satisfaction of man's 
primary impulses is less and less       
attainable through the simple1          
unmodified operation of the mechanisms  
of response with which they are         
associated4 ,in the satisfaction of the 
desire for food1 for example1 which     
remains the same as it was under        
primitive forest conditions1 much more  
complex trains of behavior are required 
than are provided by man's native       
equipment4 ,to satisfy the hunger of the
 contemporary citizens of ,new ,york or 
,london requires the transformation of  
capricious instinctive responses into   

systematic and controlled processes of  
habit and thought4 ,the elaborate       
systems of agriculture1 transportation1 
and exchange which are necessary in the 
satisfaction of the simplest wants of   
men in civilization could never be      
initiated or carried on if we depended  
on the instincts with which we are born4
  ,there are thus seen to be at least   
three distinct reasons why our native   
endowment of capacities and desires     
needs control and direction4 ,in the    
life of the individual1 instinctive     
desires must be adjusted to one another 
in order that their harmonious          
fulfillment may be made possible4 ,the  
desires and native reactions of         
individuals must be checked and modified
 if individuals are to live successfully
 and amiably in group association1 in   
which they must1 in any case1 live4     
,and1 finally1 so vastly complicated    
have become the physical and the social 
machinery of civilized life that it is  
literally impossible to depend on       

instincts to adjust us to an environment
 far different from that to which they  
were in the process of evolution        
adapted4 ,in the light of these         
conditions men have found that if they  
are to live happily and fruitfully      
together1 certain original tendencies   
must be stimulated and developed1 others
 weakened1 redirected1 and modified1 and
 still others1 within limits possibly1  
altogether repressed4 ,individuals      
display at once curiosity and fear1 pity
 and pugnacity1 acquisitiveness and     
sympathy4 ,some of these it has been    
found useful to allow free play2 others1
 even if moderately indulged1 may bring 
injury to the individual and the group  
in which his own life is involved4      
,education1 public opinion1 and law are 
more or less deliberate methods society 
has provided for the stimulation and    
repression of specific instinctive      
tendencies4 ,curiosity and sympathy are 
valued and encouraged because they      
contribute1 respectively1 to science and

 to coperation2 pugnacity and           
acquisitiveness must be kept in check if
 people are not simply to live1 but to  
live together happily4  ,but the        
substitution of control for caprice in  
the living-out of our native            
possibilities is as difficult as it is  
imperative4 ,as already noted1 instincts
 are imperious driving forces as well as
 mechanisms4 ,while we can modify and   
redirect our native tendencies of fear1 
curiosity1 pugnacity1 and the like1 they
 remain as strong currents of human     
behavior4 ,they can be turned into new  
channels2 they cannot simply be blocked4
 ,indeed1 in some cases1 it is clearly  
the social environment that needs to be 
modified rather than human behavior4    
,though it be juvenile delinquency for a
 boy to play baseball on a crowded      
street1 it is not because there is      
intrinsically anything unwholesome or   
harmful in play4 ,what is clearly       
demanded is not a crushing of the play  
instinct1 but better facilities for its 

expression4 ,a boy's native sociability 
and gift for leadership may make him1   
for want of a better opportunity1 a     
gangster4 ,but to cut off those impulses
 altogether would be to cut off the     
sources of good citizenship4 ,the       
settlement clubs or the ,boy ,scout     
organizations in our large cities are   
instances of what may be accomplished in
 the way of providing a social          
environment in which native desires can 
be freely and fruitfully fulfilled4     
,social conditions can thus be modified 
so as to give satisfaction to a larger  
proportion of natural desires4 ,on the  
other hand1 civilization in the         
twentieth century remains so divergent  
from the mode of life to which man's    
inborn nature adapts him that the       
thwarting of instincts becomes          
inevitable4 ,impulses1 in the first     
place1 arise capriciously1 and one of   
the conditions of our highly organized  
life is regularity and canalization of  
action4 ,our businesses and professions 

cannot be conducted on the spontaneous  
promptings of instinct4 ,the engineer1  
the factory worker1 the business man1   
cannot allow themselves to follow out   
whatever casual desire occurs to them   
whenever it occurs4 ,stability and      
regularity of procedure1 demanded in    
most professions1 are incompatible with 
random impulsive behavior4 ,to          
facilitate the effectiveness of certain 
industries1 for example1 it may be      
necessary to check impulses that        
commonly receive adequate satisfaction4 
,thus it may be essential to enforce    
silence1 as in the case of telephone    
operators or motormen1 simply because of
 the demands of the industry1 not       
because there is anything intrinsically 
deserving of repression in the impulse  
to talk4  ,again1 the mere fact that a  
man lives in a group subjects him to a  
thousand restraints and restrictions of 
public opinion and law4 ,a child may    
come to restrain his curiosity when he  
finds it condemned as inquisitiveness4  

,we cannot1 when we will1 vent our      
pugnacity on those who have provoked it2
 we cannot be ruthlessly self-assertive 
in a group2 or gratify our native       
acquisitiveness by appropriating        
anything and everything within our      
reach4  ,but because there are all these
 social forces making for the repression
 of instincts1 it does not mean that    
these latter therefore disappear4 ,if   
any one of them is unduly repressed1 it 
does not simply vanish as a driving     
force in human behavior4 ,it will make  
its enduring presence felt in roundabout
 ways1 or in sudden extreme and violent 
outbursts4 ,or1 if it cannot find even  
such sporadic or fruitive fulfillments1 
a balked disposition will leave the     
individual with an uneasiness and       
irritation that may range from mere     
pique to serious forms of morbidity and 
hysteria4 ,a man may for eight or ten   
hours be kept repeating the same        
operation at a machine in a factory4 ,he
 may thereby repress those native       

desires for companionship and for       
variety of reaction which constitute his
 biological inheritance4 ,but too often 
postponed satisfaction takes the violent
 form of lurid1 over-exciting amusements
 and dissipation4 ,the suppression of   
the sex instinct not infrequently       
results in a morbid pruriency in matters
 of sex1 a distortion of all other      
interests and activities by a           
preoccupation with the frustrated sex   
motive4 ,assaults and lynchings1 and the
 whole calendar of crimes of violence   
with which our criminal courts are      
crowded1 are frequent evidence of the   
incompleteness with which man's strong  
primary instincts have been suppressed  
by the niceties of civilization4 ,the   
phenomenal outburst of collective       
vivacity and exuberance which marked the
 reported signing of the armistice at   
the close of the ,great ,war was a      
striking instance of those immense      
primitive energies which the control and
 discipline of civilization cannot      

altogether repress4  ,there has been1   
furthermore1 a great deal of evidence   
adduced in recent years by students of  
abnormal psychology concerning the      
results of the frustration of native    
desires4 ,when the individual is balked 
in respect to particular impulses or    
desires1 these may take furtive and     
obscure fulfillments2 they may play     
serious though obscure and unnoticed    
havoc with a man's whole mental life4   
,unfulfilled desires may give rise to   
various forms of complex1 distortions of
 thought1 action1 and emotion of which  
the individual himself may be unaware4  
,they may make a man unduly sensitive1  
or fearful1 or pugnacious4 ,he may1 for 
example1 cover up a sense of            
mortification at failure by an          
unwarranted degree of bluster and brag4 
,a particular baffling of desire may be 
compensated by a bitterness against the 
whole universe or by a melancholy of    
whose origin the victim may be quite    
unconscious4 ,these maladjustments      

between an individual's desires and his 
satisfactions are certainly responsible 
for a considerable degree of that       
irritation and neurasthenia which are so
 frequently observable in normal        
individuals4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,while the
 evidence in this field has been taken  
largely from extremely pathological     
cases1 the distortions and perversions  
of mental behavior1 noticeable in such  
cases1 are simply extreme forms of the  
type of distortion that takes place in  
the case of normal individuals whose    
desires are seriously frustrated4 ,see  
the very clear statement on the subject 
of repressions and conflicts in ,r4 ,b4 
,hart's ,psychology of ,insanity4  ,the 
facts enumerated above should make it   
clear why it is difficult to modify1    
much less completely to overcome1 these 
strong original drives to action4 ,they 
serve to emphasize the fact that by     
control of instinctive responses is not 
meant their suppression4 ,for just as   
instinctive tendencies are our basic    

instruments of action1 so instinctive   
desires are our basic ingredients of    
happiness4 ,just as all we can do is    
limited by the mechanisms with which we 
are endowed1 so what we want is         
ultimately determined by the native     
desires with which we are born4 ,the    
control of action and of desire is      
justified in so far as such control will
 the more surely promote a harmonious   
satisfaction of all our desires4 ,a     
society whose arrangements are such that
 instincts are1 on the whole1 being     
repressed rather than stimulated and    
satisfied1 is frustrating happiness     
rather than promoting it4 ,at the very  
least1 a life whose natural impulses are
 not being fulfilled is a life of       
boredom4 ,the ennui which is so often   
and so conspicuously associated with the
 routine and desolate gayeties of       
society1 the listlessness of those bored
 with their work or their play1 or both1
 are symptoms of social conditions where
 the native endowments of man are       

handicaps rather than assets1 dead      
weights rather than motive forces4 ,it  
means that society is working against   
rather than with the grain4 ,discontent1
 ranging from mere pique and            
irritability to overt violence1 is the  
penalty that is likely to be paid by a  
society the majority of whose members   
are chronically prevented from          
satisfying their normal human desires4  
,no one who has seen whole lives        
immeasurably brightened by the          
satisfaction of a suitable employment1  
or melancholy and irritability removed  
by companionship and stimulating        
surroundings1 can fail to realize how   
important it is to happiness that human 
instincts be given generous opportunity 
for fulfillment4  ,one may say1 indeed1 
that the evils of too complete          
repression of individual impulses are   
more than that they produce nervous     
strain1 dissatisfaction1 and1 not       
infrequently1 crime4 ,happiness1 as     
,aristotle long ago pointed out1 is a   

complete living-out of all a man's      
possibilities4 ,it is most in evidence  
when people are1 as we say1 doing what  
they like to do4 ,and people like to do 
that which they are prompted to do by   
the nature which is their inheritance4  
,freshness1 originality1 and spontaneity
 are perhaps particularly valued in our 
own civilization because of the multiple
 restraints of business and professional
 occupations4 ,even under the most      
perfect social arrangements there will  
always exist among men conflicts of     
desire4 ,their control over their       
environment will1 of necessity1 be      
imperfect1 as will their mastery of     
their own passions and their clear      
adjustment to one another4 ,that        
complete agreement between man's desires
 and the environment in which alone they
 can find their satisfaction remains at 
best an ideal4 ,but it is an ideal which
 indicates clearly the function of      
control4 ,this is obviously not to crush
 native desires1 but to organize their  

harmonious fulfillment4 ,where men have 
an opportunity to utilize their native  
gifts they will be satisfied and        
interested2 where native capacities and 
desires are continually balked1 men will
 be discontented though well-regimented 
machines4  ,,habitual ,,behavior4       
,except for purposes of analysis1 life  
on the purely instinctive level may be  
said scarcely to exist in contemporary  
society1 or for that matter1 since the  
beginnings of recorded history4 ,as has 
been already pointed out1 while men are 
born with an even wider variety of      
tendencies to act than animals1 these   
are much more plastic and modifiable1   
more susceptible of training1 and much  
more in need of it than those of the    
sub-human forms4 ,even among animals    
under conditions of domestication1      
instinct tends largely to be replaced by
 habitual or acquired modes of behavior4
 ,the human being1 born with a nervous  
system and a brain in extremely unformed
 and plastic condition1 is so           

susceptible to every influence current  
in his environment that most of his     
actions within a few years after birth  
are1 when they are not the result of    
deliberate reflection1 secondary or     
habitual rather than genuinely          
instinctive4 ,that is1 few of the       
simplest actions of human beings are not
 in some degree modified by experience4 
,they may appear just as automatic and  
immediate as if they were instinctive1  
and indeed they are1 but they are       
learned ways rather than the unlearned  
ways man has as his possession at birth4
  ,,the ,,mechanism ,,of ,,habit4 ,the  
implications of habitual behavior can   
better be understood after a brief      
analysis of the mechanism of such       
action4 ,an instinct has been defined as
 a tendency to act in a given way in    
response to a given stimulus4 ,what     
happens when a stimulus prompts the     
organism to respond in a given way1 is  
that some sensory nerve1 whether of     
taste or touch or sound1 sight1 smell1  

or muscular sensitivity1 receives a     
stimulus which passes through the spinal
 cord to a motor nerve through which    
some muscle is innervated and a response
 made4 ,in the simplest type of reflex  
action1 such as the winking of an eye in
 a blinding light1 or the withdrawing of
 a hand from flame1 such is the         
physiology of the process4 ,but where an
 immediate adjustment cannot be made by 
an instinctive response1 where          
satisfaction is not secured by the      
passage of a sensory stimulus to an     
immediate motor response1 the nervous   
impulse is1 as it were1 deflected to the
 brain area1 auditory1 visual1 or       
whatever it may be1 which is associated 
with that particular type of sensation4 
,the path to the brain area is far from 
simple2 the nervous impulse1 which might
 be compared to an electric current1    
must pass through many nerve junctions  
known as synapses1 at which points there
 is some not completely understood      
chemical resistance offered to the      

passage of the nerve current4 ,on       
passing through the network of nerves in
 the brain area1 the current passes back
 again through a complicated maze of    
connections to a motor nerve which      
insures a muscular response4 ,the first 
time a stimulus passes through this     
network the resistance offered at the   
nerve junction or synapse is very high2 
at succeeding repetitions of the        
stimulus the resistance is reduced1 the 
nerve current passes more rapidly and   
fluently over the paths it has already  
traveled1 and the action resulting      
becomes as direct and automatic as if it
 were an original reflex action4#a      
,footnote #a3 ,see ,mc,dougall3         
,physiological ,psychology4  ,,the      
,,acquisition ,,of ,,new ,,modes ,,of   
,,response4 ,expressed in less technical
 language this means simply that human  
beings can learn by experience1 and that
 they tend to repeat actions they have  
once learned4 ,where an animal is       
perfectly adjusted to its environment1  

all stimuli issue in immediate and      
nicely adjusted responses4 ,this happens
 only where the environment is very     
simple and stable1 and where in         
consequence no complexity of structure  
or action is necessary4 ,in the clam and
 the oyster1 and in some of the lower   
vertebrates1 perhaps1 instinctive       
activity is almost exclusively present4 
,but in the case of man1 so complicated 
are the situations to which he is       
exposed that random instinctive         
responses will not solve his problems4  
,he must1 as with his highly modifiable 
nervous system he can1 acquire new modes
 of response which will1 in the         
complexity of new situations serve as   
effectively as his original tendencies  
to act would serve him in a simpler and 
stabler environment4 ,a human being in a
 modern city cannot live by instinct    
alone2 he must acquire an enormous      
number of habits to meet the variety of 
complex situations he meets in daily    
life4 ,a monkey exists with fairly fixed

 native tendencies to act4 ,but         
civilization could never have developed 
if in man new ways could not be acquired
 to meet new situations1 and if these   
new ways could not be retained and made 
habitual in the individual and the race4
  ,,trial ,,and ,,error ,,and           
,,deliberate ,,learning4 ,whenever1 as  
happens a large number of times daily in
 the life of the average man1 old ways  
of response1 inborn or formerly         
acquired1 are inadequate to meet a new  
situation1 there are two methods of     
acquiring a new and more adequate       
response4 ,one is the method of trial   
and error1 already discussed1 whereby   
animals and humans try every possible   
instinctive response to a situation     
until one brings satisfaction and is    
retained as a habitual reaction when    
that situation recurs4 ,the other is a  
delay in response1 during which delay   
reflection1 a consideration of possible 
alternatives1 and a conscious decision1 
take place4 ,the technique of this      

latter process will be discussed more   
specifically in the next chapter4       
,whether acquired by trial and error1 or
 through reflection1 learned acts are1  
the first time they are performed1      
frequently imperfect1 only partly       
effective1 and performed with some      
difficulty4 ,with successive repetitions
 their performance becomes more rapid1  
more immediate1 and more adjusted to the
 specific situation to be met4 ,and as  
they become more familiar responses to  
familiar stimuli they cease to be       
conscious at all4 ,they are performed   
with almost as little difficulty or     
attention as normal breathing4  ,,some  
,,conditions ,,of ,,habit-,,formation4  
,the acquisition of habits is so        
important in the education of human     
beings that the conditions under which  
they can be acquired and made           
permanently effective have been closely 
studied4 ,from experiments certain      
fundamental conclusions stand out4 ,a   
habit is acquired by repetition1 and the

 curves of learning show certain        
recurrent features4 ,in the first few   
repetitions of an acquired activity1    
there is progress in the rapidity1      
effectiveness1 and accuracy with which  
the response is made4 ,there is1 up to a
 certain point1 an almost vertical rise 
in the learning curve4 ,after varying   
numbers of repetitions1 depending       
somewhat on the particular individual1  
there occur what are known as plateaux1 
during which no progress in speed or    
accuracy of response is to be observed4 
,in experiments with the learning of    
typewriting1 for example1 it has been   
found that the beginner makes rapid     
progress up to the point1 say1 where he 
can write fifty words a minute without  
error2 there is a long interval not     
infrequently before he can raise his    
efficiency to the point of writing      
seventy words a minute correctly4       
,analogous conditions have been observed
 in the speed with which the sending and
 receiving of telegraphic messages is   

learned4 ,these plateaux of learning are
 sometimes to be accounted for by       
muscular fatigue4 ,frequently there is  
actual progress in learning during these
 apparent intervals of marking time4    
,some of the less observable features of
 skill in performance which only later  
become overt in speed and accuracy are  
being attained during these seemingly   
profitless and discouraging intervals4  
,not infrequently in the acquisition of 
skill in the playing of tennis or the   
piano1 or in the solution of            
mathematical problems1 a decided gain in
 skill and speed comes after what seems 
to be not only lack of progress but     
decided backsliding4#a ,it is this which
 led ,william ,james to quote with      
approval the aphorism that one learns to
 skate in summer and swim in winter4    
,,drill ,,versus ,,attentive            
,,repetition ,,in ,,learning4 ,the      
rapidity with which habits may be       
acquired and the permanency with which  
they may be retained depend on other    

factors than simply that of repetition4 
,mere mechanical drill is effective in  
the acquisition of simple mechanical    
habits4 ,the most attentive appreciation
 of the proper things to be done in     
playing tennis or the piano will not by 
itself make one an expert in those      
activities4 ,the effective responses    
must actually be performed in order that
 the appropriate connections within the 
nervous system may be made1 and may     
become habitual4 ,a habit is            
physiologically nothing but a certain   
set or direction given to paths in the  
nervous system4 ,these paths become     
fixed1 embedded1 and ingrained only when
 nerve currents pass over them time and 
time again4  ,footnote #a3 ,see ,ladd   
and ,woodworth3 ,physiological          
,psychology1 pp4 #edb-ib4  ,mere        
repetition1 on the other hand1 will not 
suffice in the acquisition of complex   
habits of action4 ,the learning of these
 requires a deliberate noting and       
appreciation of the significant factors 

in the performance of an activity1 and  
the consciously chosen repetition of    
these in succeeding instances until the 
habit is well fixed4 ,one reason why    
animals cannot be taught so wide a      
variety of complex habits as can the    
human being is that they cannot keep    
their attention fixed on successive     
repetitions1 and that in learning they  
literally do not know what they are     
doing4 ,they cannot1 as can humans1     
break up the activity which they are in 
process of learning into its significant
 factors1 and attend to these in        
successive repetitions4 ,the superiority
 of deliberate learning over the brute  
method of trial and error consists      
precisely in that the deliberate and    
attentive learner can pick out the      
important steps of any process1 and     
learn rapidly to eliminate random and   
useless features of his early           
performances without waiting to have the
 right way knocked into him by          
experience4 ,he will short-circuit the  

process of learning by choosing         
appropriate responses in advance1 noting
 how they may be made more effective and
 discovering methods for making them so1
 and for eliminating useless1 random1   
and ineffective acts4 ,what we call the 
capacity to learn is evident in marked  
degree where there is alert attention to
 the steps of the process in successive 
repetitions4 ,the truth in the assertion
 that an intelligent man will shortly   
outclass the merely automatically       
skillful in any occupation or profession
 requiring training1 lies not in any    
mysterious faculty1 but in the          
peculiarly valuable habit of attending  
with discriminating interest to any     
process1 and learning it thereby with   
vastly more economical rapidity4 ,genius
 may be more than what one writer       
described it1 a painstaking attention to
 detail2 but a painstaking attention to 
the meaning and bearing of details it   
most decidedly is4  ,,learning          
,,affected ,,by ,,age1 ,,fatigue1 ,,and 

,,health4 ,there are certain conditions 
not altogether within the control of the
 individual which affect the rapidity   
with which habits are acquired4 ,one of 
the most important of these is fatigue4 
,connections among the fibers that go to
 make up the nervous system cannot be   
made with ease and rapidity when the    
organism is fatigued4 ,at such times    
there seems to be an unusually high     
resistance at the synapses or nerve     
junctions 7where there is a lowering of 
resistance to the passage of a nerve    
current when habits are easily formed74 
,after a certain point of fatigue1      
whether in the acquisition of motor     
habits or the memorizing of information1
 in which the process is much the same1 
the rate of learning is much slower and 
the degree of accuracy much less4 ,the  
length of time through which habits are 
retained when acquired during a state of
 fatigue is also much less than under a 
more healthy and resilient condition of 
the organism4  ,the point of fatigue    

varies among different individuals and  
in consequence the conditions of        
habit-formation vary4 ,but some         
conditions remain constant4 ,for        
instance1 in experiments with memory    
tests 7memory being a form of habit in  
the nervous system71 material memorized 
in the morning seems to be most rapidly 
acquired and most permanently retained4 
,the age and health of the individual   
also are important factors in the       
capacity to learn1 or habit-formation4  
,conditions during disease are similar  
to those obtaining during fatigue1 only 
to a more acute degree4 ,the toxins and 
poisons in the nervous system at such   
times operate to prevent the formation  
of new habits and the breaking of old   
ones4 ,for while the synapses 7nerve    
junctions7 may offer high resistance to 
the passage of a new stimulus1 they will
 lend themselves more and more readily  
to the passage of stimuli by which they 
have already been traversed4  ,that the 
age of the individual should make a vast

 difference in the capacity to acquire  
new habits and to modify old ones is    
obvious from the physiology of habit    
already described4 ,when the brain and  
nervous system are both young1 there are
 few neural connections established1 and
 the organism is plastic to all stimuli4
 ,as the individual grows older1        
connections once made tend to be        
repeated and to be1 as it were1         
unconsciously preferred by the nervous  
system4 ,the capacity to form habits is 
most pronounced in the young child in   
whose nervous structure no one action   
rather than another has yet had a chance
 to be ingrained4 ,the more connections 
that are made1 the more habits that are 
acquired1 the less1 in a sense1 can be  
made4 ,for the organism will tend to    
repeat those actions to which it has    
previously been stimulated1 and the more
 frequently it repeats them the more    
frequently it will tend to4 ,so that1 as
 ,william ,james pointed out1 by        
twenty-five we are almost literally     

bundles of habits4 ,when the majority of
 acts of life have become routine and   
fixed1 it is almost impossible to       
acquire new ways of acting1 since the   
acquisition of new habits seriously     
interferes with the old1 and old habits 
physiologically stay put4  ,,habit ,,as 
,a ,,time-,,saver4 ,this fact1 that     
habits can be acquired most easily early
 in life1 and that those early acquired 
become so fixed that they are almost    
inescapable1 is of supreme importance to
 the individual and society4 ,it is in  
one sense a great advantage2 it is an   
enormous saver of time4 ,in the famous  
words of ,james3#a  ,the great thing1   
then1 in all education1 is to make our  
nervous system our ally instead of our  
enemy4 ,it is to fund and capitalize our
 acquisitions1 and live at ease upon the
 interest of the fund4 ,for this we must
 make automatic and habitual1 as early  
as possible1 as many useful actions as  
we can1 and guard against the growing   
into ways that are likely to be         

disadvantageous to us1 as we would guard
 against the plague4 ,the more of the   
details of our daily life we can hand   
over to the effortless custody of       
automatism1 the more our higher powers  
of mind will be set free for their own  
proper work4 ,there is no more miserable
 human being than one in whom nothing is
 habitual but indecision1 and for whom  
the lighting of every cigar1 the        
drinking of every cup1 the time of      
rising and going to bed every day1 and  
the beginning of every bit of work1 are 
subjects of express volitional          
deliberation4 ,full half the time of    
such a man goes to the deciding1 or     
regretting1 of matters which ought to be
 so ingrained in him as practically not 
to exist for his consciousness at all4  
,if there be such daily duties not yet  
ingrained in any one of my readers1 let 
him begin this very hour to set the     
matter right4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,james3  
,psychology1 vol4 ,i1 p4 #abb4  ,the    
ideal of efficiency is the ideal of     

having the effective thing habitually   
done with as little effort and          
difficulty as possible4 ,this in the    
case of human beings is1 as ,james      
points out1 attained when good habits   
are early acquired and when as large a  
proportion as possible of purely routine
 activity is made effortless and below  
the level of consciousness4 ,to do as   
many things as possible without thinking
 is to free thinking for new situations4
 ,our experiences would be very         
restricted indeed if we could not reduce
 a large portion of the things we do to 
the mechanics of habit4 ,walking1       
eating1 these1 though partly            
instinctive1 were once problems         
requiring thought1 effort1 and          
attention4 ,if we had to spend all our  
lives learning to dress and undress1 to 
find our way about our own house or     
city1 to spell and to pronounce         
correctly1 it is clear how little       
variety and diversity we should ever    
attain in our lives4 ,by the time we are

 twenty these fundamental habits are so 
firmly fixed in us that1 for better or  
for worse1 they are ours for life1 and  
we are free to give our attention to    
other things4 ,again in the words of    
,james3  ,we all of us have a definite  
routine manner of performing certain    
daily offices connected with the toilet1
 with the opening and shutting of       
familiar cupboards1 and the like4 ,our  
lower centers know the order of these   
movements1 and show their knowledge by  
their surprise if the objects are       
altered so as to oblige the movement to 
be made in a different way4 ,but our    
higher thought centers know hardly      
anything about the matter4 ,few men can 
tell off-hand which sock1 shoe1 or      
trousers-leg they put on first4 ,they   
must first mentally rehearse the act2   
and even that is often insufficient--the
 act must be performed4 ,so of the      
questions1 ,which valve of my double    
door opens first8 ,which way does my    
door swing8 etc4 ,i cannot tell the     

answer2 yet my hand never makes a       
mistake4 ,no one can describe the order 
in which he brushes his hair or teeth2  
yet it is likely that the order is a    
pretty fixed one in all of us4#a        
,footnote #a3 ,james3 loc4 cit41 vol4   
,i1 p4 #aae4  ,,habit ,,as ,a           
,,stabilizer ,,of ,,action4 ,habit not  
only thus saves time1 but stabilizes    
action1 and where the habits acquired   
are effective ones1 this is invaluable4 
,habits of prompt performance of certain
 daily duties on the part of the        
individual are a distinct benefit both  
to him and to others1 as certain        
customary efficient office practices1   
when they are really habitual1 immensely
 facilitate the operation of a business4
 ,on a larger scale habit is society's  
most precious conservative agent4       
,individuals not only develop personal  
habits of dress1 speech1 etc41 but      
become habituated to social             
institutions1 to certain occupations1 to
 the prestige attaching to some types of

 action and the punishment correlated   
with others4 ,education in the broadest 
sense is simply the acquisition of those
 habits which adapt an individual to his
 social environment4 ,it is the         
instrument society uses to hand down the
 habits of thinking1 feeling1 and action
 which characterize a civilization4     
,society is protected from murder1      
theft1 and pillage by law and the       
police1 but it is even better protected 
by the fact that living together        
peacefully and coperatively is for most 
adults habitual4 ,in a positive sense   
the multifarious occupations and        
professions of a great modern city are  
carried on from day to day in all their 
accustomed detail1 not because the      
lawyers1 the business men1 the teachers1
 who practice them continuously reason  
them out1 nor from continuous           
instinctive promptings4 ,they are       
striking testimony to the influence of  
habit4 ,as a recent ,english writer puts
 it3  ,the population of ,london would  

be starved in a week if the flywheel of 
habit were removed1 if no signalman or  
clerk or policeman ever did anything    
which was not suggested by a first-hand 
impulse1 or if no one were more honest  
or punctual or industrious than he was  
led to be by his conscious love1 on that
 particular day1 for his master or for  
his work1 or by his religion1 or by a   
conviction of danger from the criminal  
law4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,graham ,wallas3  
,great ,society1 p4 #gd4  ,from         
etiquette and social distinction1 from  
formalities of conversation and         
correspondence1 of greeting and         
farewell1 of condolence and             
congratulation to the most important    
customs of the country1 with respect to 
marriage1 property1 and the like1 ways  
of acting are maintained by the         
mechanism of habit rather than by       
arbitrary law or equally arbitrary      
instinctive caprice4  ,,disserviceable  
,,habits ,,in ,,the ,,individual4       
,habitual behavior which can become so  

completely controlling in the lives of  
so many people is not without its       
dangers4 ,the nervous system is         
originally neutral1 and can be involved 
on the side either of good or evil4 ,a  
human born with a plastic brain and     
nervous system must acquire habits1 but 
that he will acquire good habits 7that  
is1 habits serviceable to his own       
happiness and to that of his fellows7 is
 not guaranteed by nature4 ,habits are  
indeed more notorious than famous1 and  
examples are more frequently chosen from
 evil ones than from good4 ,promptness  
in the performance of one's professional
 or domestic duties1 care in speech1 in 
dress and in demeanor1 are1 once they   
are acquired1 permanent assets4 ,but if 
these fail to be developed1 dishonesty  
or superficiality1 slovenliness in dress
 and speech1 and surliness in manner1   
may and do become equally habitual4 ,the
 significance of this has been          
eloquently stated at the close of       
,james's famous discussion3  ,the hell  

to be endured hereafter1 of which       
theology tells1 is no worse than the    
hell we make for ourselves in this world
 by habitually fashioning our characters
 in the wrong way4 ,could the young but 
realize how soon they will become mere  
walking bundles of habits1 they would   
give more heed to their conduct while in
 the plastic state4 ,we are spinning our
 own fates1 good or evil1 and never to  
be undone4 ,every smallest stroke of    
virtue or of vice leaves its            
never-so-little scar4 ,the drunken ,rip 
,van ,winkle1 in ,jefferson's play1     
excuses himself for every fresh         
dereliction by saying1 ,i won't count   
this time6 ,well1 he may not count it1  
and a kind ,heaven may not count it1 but
 it is being counted none the less4     
,down among his nerve cells and fibres1 
the molecules are counting it1          
registering and storing it up to be used
 against him when the next temptation   
comes4 ,nothing we ever do is1 in strict
 scientific literalness1 wiped out4#a   

,footnote #a3 ,james3 loc4 cit41 vol4   
,i1 p4 #abg4  ,,social ,,inertia4 ,if   
the acquisition of bad1 that is1        
disserviceable habits1 is disastrous to 
the individual1 it is in some respects  
even worse in the group4 ,the inertia of
 the nervous system1 the tendency to go 
on repeating connections that have once 
been made is one of the strongest       
obstacles to change1 however desirable4 
,it is not only that habits of action   
have been established1 but that with    
them go deep-seated habits of thought   
and feeling4 ,the repression of people's
 accustomed ways of doing things may    
bring with it a sense of frustration    
almost as complete and painful as if    
these obstructed activities were        
instinctive4 ,this is not true merely in
 the melodramatic instances of drug     
addicts and drunkards4 ,it is true in   
the case of social habits which have    
become established in a large group4    
,any ,utopian that dreams of            
revolutionizing society overnight fails 

to take into account the enormous       
control of habits over groups which have
 acquired them1 and the powerful        
emotions1 amounting sometimes to        
passion1 which are aroused by their     
frustration4  ,,the ,,importance ,,of   
,,the ,,learning ,,habit4 ,that habit is
 at once the conserver and the petrifier
 of society has long been recognized by 
social philosophers4 ,there is one      
habit1 however1 the acquisition of which
 is itself a preventive of the complete 
domination of the individual or the     
group by hard and fast routine4 ,this is
 the habit of learning1 which is        
necessary to the acquisition of any     
habits at all4 ,man in learning new     
habits1 learns to learn4 ,this ability  
to learn is1 of course1 correlated with 
a plasticity of brain and nerve fiber   
which is most present in early youth4   
,the disappearance of this capacity is  
hastened by the pressure which forces   
individuals in their business and       
professional life to cling fast to      

certain habits which are prized and     
rewarded by the group4 ,a sedulous      
cultivation on the part of the          
individual of the habit of open-minded  
inquiry1 of the habit of learning1 and  
the encouragement of this tendency by   
the group are the only antidotes that   
can be provided against this marked     
physiological tendency to fossilization 
and the frequent social tendencies in   
the same direction4  ,whether habits    
shall master us1 or whether we shall be 
their masters1 depends also on the      
method by which they were acquired4 ,if 
they were learned merely through        
mechanical drill1 they will be fixed and
 rigid4 ,if they were learned           
deliberately to meet new situations1    
they will not be retained when the      
conditions they were acquired to meet   
are utterly changed4  ,,the             
,,specificity ,,of ,,habits4 ,one       
important consideration1 finally1 that  
must be brought to consideration is that
 habits are1 like instincts1 specific4  

,they are not general open sesames      
which1 learned in one situation1 will   
apply with indiscriminate miraculousness
 to a variety of others4 ,just as an    
instinct is a definite response to a    
definite stimulus1 so is a habit4 ,the  
chief and almost only observable        
difference is that the former is        
unlearned1 while the latter is learned  
or acquired4  ,but while habits are     
specific1 they are within limits        
transferable4 ,such is the case when a  
situation which calls out a certain     
habitual response is paralleled in      
significant points by another4 ,thus the
 situation1                             
one's-room-at-home-cluttered-up-with-a-m
iscellany-of-books-papers-tennis-apparat
us-and-clothing1 has sufficiently       
similar significant points to the       
situation1                              
one's-office-littered-with-documents-old
-letters-manuscripts-blueprints-and-proo
fs1 to call forth1 if the habit has been
 established in one case1 the identical 

response of tidying up in the other4    
,but unless there are marked points of  
similarity between two different sets of
 circumstances1 specific habits remain  
specific and non-transferable4 ,there is
 in the laws of habit no guarantee that 
an industrious application to the       
batting averages of the major league on 
the part of an alert twelve-year-old    
will provoke the same assiduous         
assimilation of the facts of the        
,american ,revolution2 that a boy who   
works hard at his chemistry will work   
equally hard at his ,english1 or that   
one who is careful about his manners and
 pronunciation in school will display   
the slightest heed to them among his    
companions on the ball-field4 ,one of   
the most cogent arguments against the   
stereotyped teaching of ,latin and      
,greek has been the serious doubt       
psychologists have held as to whether   
four years' training in ,latin syntax   
will develop in the student general     
mental habits which will be applicable  

or useful outside the ,latin classroom4 
,the older faculty psychologists        
presumed that different subjects trained
 various so-called faculties of memory1 
imagination1 and intellect4 ,it has now 
become clear on experimental evidence   
that in education we are training no    
isolated faculties1 but are training the
 individual to certain specific habits4 
,the more widely applicable the habits  
are1 obviously the more valuable or     
dangerous will they be in the conduct of
 life4 ,but when habits do become       
general1 such as a habit of promptness1 
honesty1 and regularity1 not in one     
situation but in general1 it is because 
they are something more than habits in  
the strict physiological sense4 ,they   
are intellectual as well as merely motor
 in character2 they are deliberate and  
conscious methods rather than mechanical
 rules of thumb4 ,habits that have been 
drilled into an individual will appear  
only when the situation very closely    
approximates the one in which the drill 

has been performed4 ,the cat that has   
learned to get out of a certain type of 
cage by pressing a button will be       
utterly at a loss if the familiar       
features of the cage are changed4 ,the  
intelligent human will detect and take  
pains to detect among the minor         
differences of the situation some       
significant fact which he has met in    
another setting1 and he will apply a    
habit useful in this new situation      
despite the slightly changed            
accompanying circumstances4 ,the man who
 can drive an automobile with reflective
 appreciation of the processes involved1
 who knows1 as we say1 what he is doing1
 will not long be baffled by a car with 
a slightly different arrangement of     
levers and steering-gear1 nor be        
completely frustrated when the car for  
some reason fails to move4 ,as happened 
in many notable instances during the    
,world ,war1 trained executives were not
 long at a loss when they shifted from  
the management of a steel plant to a    

shipyard1 or from large-scale mining    
operations in ,montana to large-scale   
relief work in ,belgium4  ,,the         
,,conscious ,,transference ,,of         
,,habits4 ,when habits are consciously  
acquired1 they may be consciously       
transferred with modifications to       
situations slightly different from those
 in which they were first learned4      
,merely mechanical habits are a         
hindrance in any save the most          
mechanical work4 ,an alert and conscious
 method of learning1 which means the    
development of habits as methods of     
control1 will enable the individual to  
modify habits acquired in slightly      
different circumstances to new          
situations where the major conditions   
remain the same4 ,to be merely habitual 
is to be at best an efficient machine1  
utterly unable to do anything except to 
run along certain grooves1 to respond   
like an animal trained to certain       
tricks4 ,it means1 moreover1 a loss of  
richness in experience4 ,when a         

profession becomes routinated it becomes
 meaningless2 a mere making of the      
wheels go round4 ,the spirit of alert   
and conscious inquiry must be maintained
 if life is not to become a mere        
repeated monotony4  ,an alert and       
conscious adjustment of habits to a     
changing environment constitutes        
intelligence4 ,the technique of this    
adjustment is the technique of thinking 
or of reflective behavior1 which we     
shall examine in more detail in the     
following chapter4  ,,emotion4 ,all     
human action1 whether on the plane of   
instinct1 habit1 or reflection1 is1 to a
 lesser or greater degree1 accompanied  
by emotion4 ,while there is considerable
 controversy among psychologists as to  
the precise nature of emotion1 and the  
precise conditions of its causation1 its
 general features and significance are  
fairly clear4 ,emotion may be most      
generally defined as an awareness or    
consciousness on the part of the        
individual of his experiences1 both     

those in which he is the actor and those
 in which he is being passively acted   
upon4 ,this awareness or consciousness  
is not detached intellectual perception1
 but is accompanied by1 as it is by some
 held to be merely the consciousness of1
 certain specific bodily disturbances4  
,thus the emotions of fear and grief are
 not cold and abstract perceptions of   
situations that belong in the classes   
dangerous or deplorable1 respectively4  
,the awareness of these situations by   
the individual is intimately and        
invariably connected with certain       
outward bodily manifestations and       
certain inner organic disturbances4     
,fear1 rage1 pity1 and the like are not 
unimpassioned judgments1 but highly     
charged physical changes4 ,so close1    
indeed1 is the connection between       
specific bodily conditions and the      
subjective or inner consciousness that  
we call emotion1 that ,james and ,lange 
simultaneously came to the conclusion   
that emotions are nothing more nor less 

than the blending of the complex organic
 changes that occur in any given        
emotional state4 ,thus ,james3  ,what   
kind of an emotion of fear would be left
 if the feeling neither of quickened    
heart-beats nor of shallow breathing1   
neither of trembling lips nor of        
weakened limbs1 neither of goose-flesh  
nor of visceral stirrings1 were present1
 it is impossible for me to think4 ,can 
anyone fancy the state of rage1 and     
picture no ebullition in the chest1 no  
flushing of the face1 no dilation of the
 nostrils1 no clenching of the teeth1 no
 impulse to vigorous action1 but in     
their stead limp muscles1 calm          
breathing1 and a placid face8 ,the      
present writer1 for one1 certainly      
cannot4 ,the rage is as completely      
evaporated as the sensations of its     
so-called manifestations1 and the only  
thing that can possibly be supposed to  
take its place is some cold blooded and 
dispassionate judicial sentence1        
confined entirely to the intellectual   

realm1 to the effect that a certain     
person or persons merit chastisement for
 their sins4 ,in like manner of grief2  
what would it be without its tears1 its 
sobs1 its suffocation of the heart1 its 
pang in the breast-bone8 ,a feelingless 
cognition that certain circumstances are
 deplorable1 and nothing more4#a        
,footnote #a3 ,james3 ,psychology1 vol4 
,,ii1 p4 #deb4  ,indeed1 so completely  
did ,james think the emotions were      
explicable as the inner feeling of the  
complex organic sensations which go to  
make up each of them that he did not    
think it misleading to say we feel sorry
 because we cry1 angry because we       
strike1 afraid because we tremble2 we do
 not cry1 strike1 or tremble because we 
are sorry1 angry1 or fearful1 as the    
case may be4  ,whether or not emotions  
are completely to be explained as the   
inner or subjective aspect of the       
complex of organic disturbances which   
accompany fear1 rage1 and the like1 and 
which are caused immediately by the     

perception of the appropriate objects of
 these emotions1 it is certainly true   
that emotional awareness and bodily     
disturbances are very closely           
connected4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,recent     
experiments by ,dr4 ,cannon at ,harvard 
have shown the specific bodily          
disturbances which accompany anger1     
fear1 etc4 ,in particular1 ,dr4 ,cannon1
 and others1 have noted that in the     
emotional conditions of fear and anger  
the glands1 located near the kidneys1   
discharge a fluid into the blood stream1
 which fluid stimulates the heart to    
activity1 constricts the blood vessels  
of the internal organs1 causes the liver
 to pour out into the blood its stores  
of sugar1 and affects in one way or     
another all the organs of the body4 ,the
 general effect is to put the body into 
a state of preparedness for the         
activities connected with the emotion1  
whether flight in the case of fear1     
attack as in the case of anger4 ,this   
has led ,professor ,woodworth to define 

emotion as1 at least in part1 the way   
the body feels when it is prepared for a
 certain reaction4 ,see the latter's    
,dynamic ,psychology1 pp4 #ea-ei4       
,various attempts have been made to     
classify the emotions which are1 in     
ordinary experience1 infinitely subtle  
and complex4 ,the subtlety and variety  
of emotion ,james explains as the result
 of the subtle and imperceptible        
differences in the complex of sensations
 which occur in any given situation4 ,in
 general1 it has been recognized that   
the emotions are very closely connected 
with the primary tendencies of man4     
,mc,dougall1 for example1 says that each
 of the great primary impulses is       
accompanied by an emotion4 ,indeed1     
,mc,dougall considers1 as earlier noted1
 that the emotion is the affective or   
conscious aspect of an instinct which1  
at the same time1 has a perceptual and  
impulsive aspect2 that1 in the case of  
fear1 the perceptual aspect is the      
instinctive mechanism for recognizing   

objects of danger1 the impulsive aspect 
is the tendency toward flight1 and the  
affective aspect is the inner feeling or
 awareness of fear4 ,thus1 for          
,mc,dougall1 the tender emotion is the  
emotional aspect of the instinct of     
pity1 anger of the instinct of          
pugnacity1 which is1 as an impulse1 the 
tendency to strike and destroy4  ,as a  
matter of fact1 as ,mc,dougall himself  
admits1 emotions are seldom experienced 
in unmixed forms1 and it is very        
difficult to reduce the infinite variety
 of emotional experiences to any primary
 forms4 ,one may well agree with ,james 
that subdivisions in the psychological  
demarcation of the emotions are to a    
great extent either fictitious or       
unimportant1 and 444 pretenses to       
accuracy1 a sham4 ,in general1 one may  
say that emotions are closely connected 
with the native tendencies of human     
beings and are aroused by both their    
fulfillment1 their conflict1 and their  
frustration4 ,the variety of emotions   

results from the fact that no single one
 of our instincts is stimulated at a    
time1 and that the peculiar specific    
quality of each emotional experience is 
due to the specific point of conflict1  
fulfillment1 or frustration in each     
particular case4 ,it may be further     
noted that those emotions are1 in       
general1 pleasantly toned which         
accompany the fulfillment or the        
approach to the fulfillment of a native 
disposition2 and those are unpleasantly 
toned which accompany their frustration 
or conflict4 ,the depth and intensity of
 the emotional disturbance seem to      
depend on the degree and extent to which
 strong instinctive or habitual impulses
 have become involved4 ,for as habits of
 action may be acquired1 so also may    
emotions become associated habitually   
with them4 ,the emotional disturbances  
connected with the fulfillment1         
frustration1 and conflict of habits may 
be just as intense as those connected   
with similar phenomena in the case of   

instincts4  ,in one sense these         
emotional disturbances impede action1   
certainly action on the reflective      
level4 ,it is the capacity and function 
of reflection to solve and adjust       
precisely those conflicts of competing  
impulses during which emotional         
disturbances occur4 ,but the reflective 
process is confused and distorted in    
conflicts of native or habitual desires 
by these emotional disturbances which   
accompany them4 ,it is proverbially     
difficult to think straight when angry2 
the surgeon in performing an operation  
must not be moved by pity or fear2 and  
love is notoriously blind4 ,the facts   
with which reflection must deal are     
presented in distorted and exaggerated  
form under the stress of competing      
impulses4 ,stimuli become loaded with   
emotional associations4 ,they are       
glaring and conspicuous on the basis of 
their emotional urgency rather than on  
the ground of their logical             
significance4 ,the paralysis or complete

 disorganization of action which occurs 
in extreme cases of hysteria takes place
 to some extent in all less extreme     
instances of emotional disturbances4    
,emotions1 on the other hand1 serve to  
sustain1 and1 in their less violent     
form1 to facilitate action4 ,it has     
already been noted that the organic     
disturbances which are so conspicuous a 
feature of emotion are extremely        
important in preparing the body for the 
overt actions in which these emotions   
always tend to issue4 ,and it is        
unquestionable that emotions1 though in 
more or less obscure ways1 call up      
reserves of energy in the service of the
 activity in connection with which the  
emotion has been aroused4 ,while very   
violent emotions1 as in the case of     
extreme anger or fear or pity1 confuse1 
disorganize1 and even paralyze action1  
in more moderate form they rather serve 
to stimulate and reinforce it4 ,emotions
 are1 in many cases1 merely the inner or
 subjective awareness of one of these   

great driving forces1 or a complex of   
them4 ,anger1 pity1 and fear1 in their  
less extreme forms1 pour floods of      
energy into the activities in which they
 take overt expression4 ,it needs no    
special knowledge to recognize the fact 
that the normal interests and           
enterprises of life are quickened and   
sustained when some great emotional     
drive can be roused in their support4   
,ambition1 loyalty1 love1 or hate may   
stir men to and sustain them in long and
 difficult enterprises which they would 
neither undertake nor continue were     
these motive forces removed4 ,the       
soldier does not fight persistently and 
well wholly1 or often even in part1     
because he has thought out the situation
 and found the cause of his country to  
be just4 ,he is stirred and sustained by
 the energies which the emotional       
complex called patriotism has roused and
 concentrated toward action4 ,a         
scientist performing long and difficult 
researches1 a father sacrificing rest   

and comfort that his children may be    
well provided for1 a boy working to pay 
his way through college1 are all        
persisting in courses of action1 because
 of the driving power which the         
emotions1 more or less mixed1 of        
curiosity1 or tenderness1 or            
self-assertion have released4  ,but just
 as the original nature with which man  
is born is modifiable1 so are his       
emotional reactions4 ,each individual's 
emotional reactions are peculiar and    
specific1 because of the particular     
contacts to which they have been        
exposed1 and the organization of        
instincts and habits which have come to 
be their more or less fixed character4  
,any emotional experience consists of an
 intermingling of many and diverse      
feelings4 ,and these particular         
complexes of emotions become for each   
individual organized about particular   
persons or objects or situations4 ,the  
emotional reactions of an individual    
are1 indeed1 accurately symptomatic of  

the character of the individual and the 
culture of his time4 ,they are aroused1 
it goes without saying1 on very         
different occasions and by very         
different objects1 among different men  
and different groups4 ,in the sixteenth 
century pious persons could watch       
heretics being burned in oil with a     
sense of deep religious exaltation4     
,certain ,fijian tribes slaughter their 
aged parents with the most tender filial
 devotion4 ,in certain savage           
communities1 to eat in public arouses on
 the part of the individual a sense of  
acute shame4  ,since those emotions are1
 on the whole1 pleasantly toned which   
accompany the fulfillment of instinctive
 and habitual impulses1 and those       
unpleasantly toned which accompany their
 frustration1 it becomes1 as ,aristotle 
pointed out1 of the most serious        
importance early to habituate men to the
 performance of socially useful actions4
 ,if good or useful actions are early   
made habitual1 their performance will   

bring pleasure1 and will thereby be     
better insured than by any amount of    
preaching or punishment4 ,if the actions
 which the group approves are not early 
made habitual in the younger members of 
the group1 they will not be enforced    
either through logic or electrocution4  
,it is not enough to give people reasons
 for doing good1 they will only do it   
consistently if the opposite arouses in 
them more or less abhorrence4 ,people   
learn to modify their actions on the    
basis of the pleasure or pain they find 
in their performance1 and the pleasure  
or pain they will experience depends on 
the actions to which they are habituated
 and the emotions which have come to be 
their characteristic accompaniments4    
,,chapter ,,iii  ,,reflection4          
,,instinct ,,and ,,habit ,,versus       
,,reflection4 ,in the two types of      
behavior already discussed1 man is1 as  
it were1 pushed from behind4 ,in the    
case of instinct he performs an action  
simply because he must perform it4      

,willy-nilly he withdraws his hand from 
fire1 eats when hungry1 and sleeps when 
tired4 ,in the case of habits1 once they
 are acquired1 he is also largely       
dominated by circumstances beyond his   
own control4 ,the bottle is to the      
confirmed drunkard almost an            
irresistible command to drink1 the alarm
 clock to one accustomed to it an       
equally imperative and                  
not-to-be-disregarded order to arise4   
,the story of the old veteran who was   
carrying home his dinner and who dropped
 his hands to his side and his dinner to
 the gutter when a practical joker      
called ,attention2 the pathetic plight  
of the superannuated business man who is
 totally at a loss away from his        
familiar duties1 are often quoted       
illustrations of how completely habit   
may determine a man's actions4  ,but    
while in a large portion of our daily   
duties we are thus at the beck and call 
of the instincts which are our          
inheritance and the habits which we have

 acquired1 we may also control our      
actions4 ,instead of performing actions 
as immediate and automatic responses to 
accustomed stimuli1 we may determine our
 actions1 single or consecutive1 in the 
light of absent and future results4 ,to 
act thus is to act reflectively1 and to 
act reflectively is the only escape from
 random acts prompted by instinct and   
routine ones prompted by habit4  ,to act
 reflectively is to delay response to an
 instinctive or habitual stimulus until 
the various possibilities of action and 
the results associated with each have   
been considered4 ,an action performed   
instinctively or habitually is          
automatic2 it is performed not on the   
basis of what will be the result1 but   
simply as an immediate response to a    
present stimulus4 ,but an act 7or a     
series of acts7 reflectively performed  
is performed in the light of the results
 that are prophetically associated with 
them4 ,in the case of instinct and      
habit1 the individual almost literally  

does not know what he is about4 ,in     
reflective activity he does know1 and   
the more thorough the reflective        
process1 the more thorough and precise  
is his knowledge4 ,he performs actions  
because they will achieve certain       
results1 and he is conscious of that    
causal connection1 both before the      
action is performed when he perceives   
the results imaginatively1 and after it 
is performed when he sees them in fact4 
,,the ,,origin ,,and ,,nature ,,of      
,,reflection4 ,reflection1 it must be   
noted in the first place1 is not a      
thing1 but a process4 ,it is a process  
whereby human beings adjust themselves  
to a continuously changing environment4 
,our instincts and habits suffice to    
adapt us to that large number of        
recurrent similar situations of which   
our experience in no small measure      
exists4 ,in such cases the habitual     
response will bring the usual           
satisfaction4 ,walking1 dressing1       
getting to familiar places1 finding the 

electric button in well-known rooms1    
opening often-opened combinations--these
 operations are all adequately          
accomplished by the fixed mechanisms of 
habit4 ,but we meet as frequently with  
novel situations where the accustomed or
 instinctive reactions will not bring   
the desired satisfaction4 ,one response 
or a number of responses will not adjust
 the individual satisfactorily to       
external conditions2 or there may be a  
conflict between a number of impulses   
all clamoring for satisfaction at once4 
,reflection thus begins either in a     
maladjustment between the individual and
 his environment or in a conflict of    
impulses within the same person4  ,where
 such a maladjustment occurs1 the       
uneasiness1 discomfort1 and frustration 
of action may be removed in one of two  
ways4 ,adjustment may be achieved1 as we
 have already seen1 through physical    
trial and error1 through a hit-and-miss 
experimentation with every possible     
response until the appropriate one is   

made4 ,this is the only way in which    
animals can learn to modify their       
instinctive tendencies into habits more 
adequate to their conditions4 ,the more 
economical and effective process1 one   
peculiar to human beings1 is that of    
reflection4 ,to think or to reflect     
means to postpone response to a given   
problematic situation until the possible
 consequences of the possible responses 
have been mentally traced out4 ,instead 
of actually making every response that  
occurs to us1 we make all of them       
imaginatively4 ,instead of consuming    
time and energy in physical trial and   
error1 we go through the process of     
mental trial and error4 ,we make no     
response at all in action until we have 
surveyed all the possibilities of action
 and their possible consequences4 ,and  
when we do make a response we make it on
 the basis of those foreseen            
consequences4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,the     
possibilities of response that do occur 
to us are1 on the whole1 determined by  

past training and native differences in 
temperament4 ,but part of the process of
 reflection is1 as we shall see in the  
chapter on ,science and ,scientific     
,method1 concerned with deliberately    
enlarging the field of possible         
responses in the solution of a given    
problem4  ,in other words1 the situation
 is analyzed4 ,what is the end or       
adjustment sought1 what are the possible
 responses1 and how far is each of them 
suited as a means to achieving the      
satisfaction sought8 ,instead of going  
through every random course of action   
that suggests itself1 each one is       
dramatically rehearsed4 ,finally1 that  
response is made which gives most       
promise in terms of its prophesied      
consequences of adjusting us to our     
situation4  ,,illustration ,,of ,,the   
,,reflective ,,process4 ,a student may1 
for example1 be seated at his study1    
preparing for an examination4 ,a friend 
enters and suggests going for a walk or 
to the theater4 ,if the student were to 

follow this first immediate impulse he  
would1 before he realized it1 be off for
 an evening's entertainment4 ,but       
instead of responding immediately1      
dropping his books1 reaching for his    
hat1 opening the door1 and ringing for  
the elevator 7a series of habitual acts 
initiated by the instinctive desire for 
rest1 variety1 and companionship71 he   
may rehearse in imagination the various 
possibilities of action4 ,in general    
terms1 what happens is simply this3#a   
,footnote #a3 ,the technique of         
reflection will be discussed in detail  
in the chapter on ,science and          
,scientific ,method4  ,on the one hand1 
the gregarious instinct1 the desire for 
rest1 native curiosity1 and an acquired 
interest in drama may prompt him        
strongly to go to the theater4 ,on the  
other hand1 the habits of industry1     
ambition1 self-assertion1 and studying  
in the evening urge him to stay at home 
and study4 ,the first course of action  
may1 for the moment1 be immediately     

attractive and stimulating4 ,but instead
 of responding to either immediately1   
the student rehearses dramatically the  
possibilities associated with each4 ,on 
the one hand are the immediate          
satisfactions of rest1 amusement1 and   
companionship4 ,but as further          
consequences of the impulse to go out to
 the theater are seen--or1 rather1 are  
foreseen--failure in the examination1   
the loss of a scholarship1 pain to one's
 family or friends1 and chagrin at the  
frustration of one's deepest and most   
permanent ideals4 ,the second course of 
action1 to stay at home and study1      
though it is seen to have connected with
 it certain immediate privations1 is    
foreseen to involve the further         
consequences of passing the examination1
 keeping one's scholarship1 and         
maintaining certain personal or         
intellectual standards one has set one's
 self4 ,even if the student decides to  
follow the first course of action to    
which an immediate impulse has prompted 

him1 his act is different in quality    
from what it would have been if he had  
not reflected at all4 ,the student goes 
out fully aware of the consequences of  
what he is doing2 he goes for the       
immediate pleasure and in spite of the  
possible failure in the examination4    
,the very heart of reflective behavior  
is thus seen to lie in the fact that    
present stimuli are reacted to1 not for 
what they are as immediate stimuli1 but 
for what they signify1 portend1 imply1  
in the way of consequences or results4  
,and a response made upon reflection is 
made on the basis of these imaginatively
 realized consequences4 ,we connect what
 we do with the results that flow from  
the doing1 and control our action in the
 light of that prophetically realized   
connection4  ,the process is obviously  
not always so simple as that described  
in the above illustration4 ,in the first
 place1 more than two courses of action 
may suggest themselves4 ,and the        
consequences of any one of them may be  

far more complex and far more obscure   
than any suggested in the above4 ,for an
 individual to be able to decide a      
problem on the basis of consequences    
imaginatively foreseen1 it is often     
necessary to institute a very elaborate 
system of connecting links between an   
immediately suggested course of action  
and its not at all obvious results4     
,thinking a thing out involves precisely
 this introduction of connecting links1 
or middle terms1 between what is        
immediately given or suggested and what 
necessarily1 though by no means         
obviously1 follows4 ,this is illustrated
 in the case of any more or less        
theoretical problem and its solution4   
,to perceive1 for example1 the          
connection between atmospheric pressure 
and the rise of water in a suction pump 
involves the introduction of connecting 
links in the form of the general law of 
gravitation1 of which atmospheric       
pressure is a special case4  ,but the   
same is true of practical problems4 ,a  

young man may be trying to decide       
whether or not to take a nomination to  
the training course at ,west ,point4 ,he
 may be attracted by the four years'    
training1 and highly value the results  
of it4 ,he may think1 however1 that the 
training involves an obligation to serve
 in the army2 it may mean1 for a long   
time1 service in some remote army post4 
,his decision may be determined by this 
last consideration1 which required a    
series of intermediate linking ideas to 
bring to light4  ,the technique of      
scientific or expert thinking is1 in    
large part1 concerned with devices for  
enabling the thinker more securely to   
trace the obscure and remote connections
 between actions and their consequences1
 between causes and effects4 ,but1      
whether simple or complex1 the essential
 feature of reflective activity is that 
it is action performed in the light of  
consequences foreseen in imagination4   
,physical stimuli are not responded to  
immediately with physical action4 ,they 

are responded to as symbols1 signs1 or  
portents2 they are taken as symptoms of 
the results that would follow if they   
were acted upon4 ,that is1 they are1    
until decision is made1 reacted to      
imaginatively4 ,when an actual response 
is finally made1 it is made on the basis
 of the results that have been more or  
less accurately and directly anticipated
 in imagination4  ,,reflection ,,as     
,,the ,,modifier ,,of ,,instinct4       
,reflection is primarily a revealer of  
consequences4 ,instead of yielding to   
the first impulse that occurs to him1   
the thinking man considers where that   
impulse1 if followed out1 will lead4    
,and since man is moved by more than one
 impulse at a time1 reflection traces   
the consequences of each1 and determines
 action on the basis of the relative    
satisfactions it can prophesy after     
careful inquiry into the situation4 ,to 
reflect is primarily to query a         
stimulus1 to find out what it means in  
terms of its consequences4 ,the more    

alert1 persistent1 and careful this     
inquiry1 the more will instinctive      
tendencies be checked and modified and  
adjusted to new situations4  ,in the    
discussion of the acquisition of habits1
 it was pointed out that useful habits  
may be acquired most rapidly by an      
analysis of them into their significant 
features4 ,the speed with which random  
instinctive actions are modified into a 
series of useful habitual ones depends  
intimately upon how clear and detailed  
is the individual's appreciation of the 
results to be achieved by one action    
rather than another4 ,a large part of   
learning even among humans is doubtless 
trial and error1 random hit-or-miss     
attempts1 until after successive        
repetitions1 a successful response is   
made and retained4 ,but human learning  
and habit-formation are so much more    
various and fruitful than those of      
animals precisely because human beings  
can check and modify instinctive        
responses in the light of consequences  

which they can foresee4 ,these foreseen 
consequences are1 of course1 derived    
from previous experience2 that is1 they 
are remembered4 ,but reflection         
short-circuits the process4 ,the more   
deliberate and reflective the process of
 learning1 the more the individual notes
 the connections between the things he  
does and the results he gets1 the fewer 
repetitions will he need in order       
effectively to modify his instinctive   
behavior into useful habits4 ,he will   
anticipate results2 he will experience  
them in imagination4 ,he will not need  
to make every wrong move in paddling a  
canoe until he finally hits upon the    
right one4 ,he will not need to alienate
 all his clients before learning to deal
 with them successfully4 ,in any given  
set of circumstances he will form the   
effective habits rapidly4 ,he will      
calculate1 figure out1 find out in      
advance4 ,to keep one's temper under    
provocation1 to refrain from eating     
delicious and indigestible foods1 to    

keep at work when one would like to     
play1 and sometimes to play when one is 
engrossed in work1 are familiar         
instances of how our first impulses     
become checked1 restrained1 or modified 
in the light of the results we have     
discovered to be associated with them4  
,,reflective ,,behavior ,,modifies      
,,habit4 ,the same conscious breaking-up
 of a new type of action into its       
significant features1 the same          
connection of a given action with a     
given result which makes the intelligent
 learner so much more quickly acquire   
effective new habits than the one who is
 mechanically drilled1 leads also to a  
continuous criticism of habits1 and     
their discontinuance when they are no   
longer adequate4 ,reflection1 if it is  
itself a habit1 is the most valuable one
 of all4 ,it is an important            
counterpoise to the hardening and       
fossilization which repeated habitual   
actions bring about in the nervous      
system4  ,in acting reflectively we     

subject our accustomed ways to          
deliberate analysis1 however immediately
 persuasive these may have become1 and  
deliberately institute new habits in the
 light of the more desirable            
consequences they will bring4 ,habits   
come to be regarded not as final or as  
good in themselves1 but as methods of   
accomplishing good4 ,if they fail to    
bring genuine satisfaction1 reflection  
can indicate wherein they are           
inadequate1 wherein they may be changed1
 and whether they should be altogether  
discarded4  ,reflection thus makes      
conduct conscious2 it is not the        
substitute for instinct and habit2 it is
 the guide and controller of both4 ,when
 we act thoughtfully and intelligently1 
we are doing things not because we have 
done them that way in the past1 or      
because it is the first response that   
occurs to us1 but because1 in the light 
of analysis1 that way will bring about  
the most desirable results4  ,,the      
,,limits ,,of ,,reflection ,,as ,a      

,,modifier ,,of ,,instinct ,,and        
,,habit4 ,while our impulses and habits 
may be subjected to the criticism of    
reflection in the light of the          
consequences which it can forecast1     
reflection is itself seriously limited  
by our original impulses and our        
acquired habitual ones4 ,on reflection1 
we may not follow our first impulse1 but
 to act at all is to act on some        
original or acquired impulse or a       
combination of them4 ,which original    
tendency we shall follow reflection can 
tell us2 it cannot tell us to follow    
none4 ,in the illustration already used1
 the student may upon reflection study  
rather than go out4 ,but the roots of   
his studying will also lie back in the  
instincts and habits which are1 for     
better or for worse1 his only equipment 
for action4 ,they will lie back in the  
tendencies to be curious1 to gain the   
praise of other people and to be a      
leader among them1 in the habits of     
knowing work thoroughly1 of studying in 

the evening1 of maintaining a           
scholarship average to which he has been
 accustomed4 ,reflection may weigh the  
relative persuasions of various         
impulses2 it cannot ignore them4 ,we may
 think in order to attain our desires1  
and may1 through reflection1 learn to   
change them2 we cannot abolish them4    
,whether we are curious about our       
neighbors' business or about the        
movements of the stars and the possible 
reactions of a strange chemical element1
 depends on our previous training and   
the extent to which inquiry itself has  
become a fixed and persistent habit4    
,but in any case we are curious4        
,whether we fight in street brawls or in
 campaigns against tuberculosis1 we are 
still1 as it were1 born fighters4       
,similarly1 in the case of habit1 we may
 upon reflection discover that our      
habits of walking1 writing1 or speech   
are bad2 that we ought not to smoke1 or 
drink1 or waste time4 ,we may come1     
through reflection1 to realize with the 

utmost clarity the advantages to        
ourselves of acquiring the habits of    
going to bed early1 saving money1       
keeping our papers in order1 and        
persisting at work amid distractions4   
,but the bad habits and the good are    
already fixed in our nervous system1 and
 in physiology also possession is nine  
tenths of the law4 ,we may intend to    
change1 but by taking thought alone we  
cannot add a cubit to our stature4      
,reflection can do no more than point   
the way we should go4 ,for unless the   
wrong actions are systematically and    
repeatedly refrained from1 and the      
proper ones made habitual1 thinking     
remains merely an impotent summary of   
what can be done4 ,conduct is governed1 
it must be repeated1 by the             
satisfactions action can bring us1 and  
unless actions are made habitual they   
will not be performed with satisfaction4
  ,,how ,,instincts ,,and ,,habits      
,,impair ,,the ,,processes ,,of         
,,reflection4 ,it is as important as it 

is paradoxical that thinking is impaired
 in its efficiency by the instincts and 
habits in whose service it arises1 and  
whose conflicts and maladjustments it   
helps to resolve4 ,the situations of    
conflict or perplexity which provoke    
thinking are determined by the          
particular tendencies which1 by nature  
or training1 are brought into play in   
any given situation4 ,if we are         
committed by tradition or habitual      
allegiance to a protective tariff1 we   
will be concerned in our thinking with  
details1 what articles need protection  
and how much do they need2 the ultimate 
desirability of a protective tariff will
 not be a problem remotely occurring to 
us4 ,if we are by training committed to 
capital punishment1 we will be          
concerned1 if we think about it at all1 
with means and methods2 we will think   
about the relative merits of hanging or 
electrocution2 the ultimate             
justification or desirability of capital
 punishment will not be a problem or    

issue for us at all4 ,thus1 it may be   
said in a sense that our thinking is    
determined by what we do not think about
 as much as by what we do think about4  
,what we take for granted limits the    
field within which we will inquire or   
reflect at all4 ,but what we take for   
granted is1 on the whole1 settled by our
 habitual reactions4 ,and the more      
settled habitual convictions we have1   
the narrower becomes the field within   
which reflection takes place4 ,force of 
habit may leave us blind to many        
situations genuinely demanding solution4
 ,originality in thinking consists1 in  
part at least1 in an ability to see a   
problem where others1 through routine1  
see none4 ,apples have fallen on the    
heads of others than ,newton1 but a     
habit-ridden rustic will not be stirred 
by the falling of an apple to reflection
 on the problem of falling bodies4 ,the 
countryman may live all his life        
serenely oblivious to a thousand        
problems that would pique the curiosity 

and reflection of a botanist or         
geologist4 ,a man may go on for years   
accepting income on investments earned  
in very dubious ways without ever       
pausing to reflect on the sources or the
 justification of his wealth4#a         
,footnote #a3 ,according to the         
traditional anecdote1 when ,marie       
,antoinette was told that the people    
were clamoring because they could not   
get any bread1 the one problem that     
occurred to her was why they didn't eat 
cake4 ,from the habits and conditions of
 life to which she was accustomed1 there
 had never arisen a problem as to how to
 get food at all2 it was merely a       
problem of what kind of food to eat4    
,instincts and habits1 furthermore1     
limit the field of possible courses of  
action that suggest themselves4 ,we     
come1 through habit1 to be alive only to
 certain possibilities to the practical 
exclusion of all others4 ,thinking      
becomes fruitful and suggestive when it 
is freed from the limited number of     

suggestions that occur through force of 
habit4 ,but original thinking is rare   
precisely because habits do have such a 
compulsive power in determining the     
possibilities of action that suggest    
themselves to us4 ,the man who moves in 
a rut of habitual reactions will never  
think of possibilities that stare in the
 face a less habit-ridden thinker4      
,inventiveness1 originality1 creative   
intelligence1 whatever one chooses to   
call it1 consists1 in no small measure1 
in this ability to remain alive to a    
wide variety of stimuli1 to keep        
sensitive to all the possibilities that 
are in a situation1 instead of those    
only to which we are immediately        
prompted by instinct or habit4 ,the     
possibility of using the current of a   
river as power is not the first         
possibility that flowing water suggests4
  ,past training and individual         
differences in temperament not only     
limit the possibilities that do occur to
 us2 they seriously distort1 color1 and 

qualify those of which we become        
conscious4 ,we forecast differently and 
with differing degrees of accuracy the  
consequences of those possible courses  
of action which do occur to us according
 to the influence and stimulation which 
particular native traits and acquired   
impulses have in our conduct4 ,ideally1 
the consequences which we imaginatively 
forecast as following from a given      
course of action1 should tally with the 
consequences which genuinely follow from
 it4 ,but there is too often a sad      
discrepancy between the consequences as 
they are foreseen by the individual     
concerned and the genuine consequences  
that could be foreseen by any           
disinterested observer4 ,the discrepancy
 between the genuine and the imagined   
consequences of given ideas or          
suggestions is caused more than anything
 else by the hopes1 fears1 aversions1   
and preferences which1 by nature or     
training1 are controlling in a man's    
behavior4 ,facts are weighed differently

 according as one or another of these   
psychological influences is present4 ,we
 intend unconsciously to substitute a   
desired or expected consequence for the 
actual one2 we tend to be oblivious to  
consequences which we fear1 and quick to
 imagine those for which we hope4 ,on   
the day before an election the campaign 
managers on both sides1 in the glow and 
momentum of their activities1 are       
confident of the morrow's victory4 ,the 
opponent of prohibition saw nothing but 
drug fiends and revolution as its       
consequences2 its extreme advocates saw 
it as the salvation of mankind4  ,the   
causes of error in appraising the       
consequences of any given course of     
action are partly individual and partly 
social in character4 ,from ,francis     
,bacon down1 there have been various    
attempts to classify these factors in   
the distortion of the reflective        
process4 ,in connection with the        
particular human traits1 especially such
 as fear and gregariousness1 we shall   

have occasion to examine a few of these4
  ,it will suffice to point out here    
that the aim of reflective thinking is  
to discover the genuine consequences of 
things1 and to eliminate and discount   
those prejudices and preferences1 bred  
of early education and training1 which  
might impair our discovery of those     
consequences4 ,to the untrained1 those  
things look most significant which stir 
their impulses most strikingly4 ,the    
beggar's sores seem much more important 
and terrible than a gifted youngster    
deprived of education through poverty4  
,instinctively we shrink back from the  
sight of blood1 but instinct is no safe 
clue in helping us to distinguish       
between the poisons and the panaceas    
among the brightly colored bottles of   
chemicals ranged along a shelf4 ,the    
whole technique of scientific method as 
opposed to the shrewd but unreliable    
guesses of common sense is one of       
freeing us from the compulsions of      
random habitual impulses4 ,it           

substitutes for caprice the measuring of
 consequences1 the detailed knowing of  
what we are about4 ,that impartial      
judgment has its difficulties is clear  
from the simple fact alone that human   
beings start by being a bundle of       
instincts and soon grow into a bundle of
 habits4 ,to the extent to which they   
can control these they are masters of   
themselves4  ,,the ,,value ,,of         
,,reflection ,,for ,,life4 ,to many     
people there is something terrifying    
about the idea of controlling life by   
reason4 ,life 7they point out correctly7
 is a vital process of instincts which  
appear before thinking1 and which are   
often more powerful than reasoned       
judgments4 ,against advice to live      
consciously1 to be in control of        
ourselves1 to know what we are about1   
comes the call ,back to ,nature4 ,a life
 of reflection appears chilling and     
arbitrary4 ,because reflection so often 
reveals that impulses must be checked if
 disaster is not to result1 it has come 

to be associated with a metallic and    
,stoic repression4 ,to many a persuasive
 impulse we must1 after reflection1 say1
 ,no4 ,because of this a certain school 
of philosophers1 poets1 and radicals    
urges us to trust nature1 to follow our 
impulses1 which1 being natural1 must be 
right4  ,all of these rebels against    
reason make the mistake of supposing    
that the aim of reflective thinking is  
to quell instincts1 which1 with the best
 will in the world1 it cannot succeed in
 doing4 ,instincts are present and      
powerful4 ,in themselves they are       
neither worth encouraging1 nor ought    
they to be repressed4 ,the satisfaction 
of native desires is what we want4 ,the 
importance of reflective thinking is    
precisely that it helps us to secure    
those satisfactions4 ,to surrender to   
every random impulse or every habitual  
prompting is to have neither            
satisfaction nor freedom4 ,reflection   
might be compared to the traffic        
policeman at the junction of two crowded

 thoroughfares4 ,if everyone were to    
drive his car pell-mell through the     
rush1 if pedestrians1 street cars1 and  
automobiles were not to abide by the    
rules1 no one would get anywhere1 and   
the result would be perpetual accident  
and collision4 ,in thinking we simply   
control and direct our impulses in the  
light of the consequences we can        
foresee4 ,to thus guide and control     
action makes us genuinely free4  ,if a  
man's actions are not guided by         
thoughtful conclusions1 they are guided 
by inconsiderate impulse1 unbalanced    
appetite1 caprice1 or the circumstances 
of the moment4 ,to cultivate unhindered1
 unreflective external activity is to   
foster enslavement1 for it leaves the   
person at the mercy of appetite1 sense1 
and circumstance4#a  ,footnote #a3      
,dewey3 ,how ,we ,think1 p4 #fg4        
,instincts and habits are fixed         
responses2 being placed in such and such
 circumstances we must do such and such 
things4 ,only when we can vary our      

actions in the light of our own thinking
 are we masters of our environment      
rather than mechanically controlled by  
it4  ,,the ,,social ,,importance ,,of   
,,reflective ,,behavior4 ,reflection in 
the life of the individual insures that 
he will not become the slave of his own 
habits4 ,he will regard habits as       
methods to be followed when they produce
 good results1 to be discarded or       
modified when they do not4 ,but if habit
 in the life of the individual needs    
control lest it become dangerously      
controlling1 it needs it more           
conspicuously still in the life of the  
group4 ,unless the individuals that     
compose a society are alert and         
conscious of the bearings of their      
actions1 they will be completely and    
mechanically controlled by the customs  
to which they have been exposed in the  
early periods of their lives4 ,what an  
individual regards as right or wrong1   
what he will cherish or champion in     
industry1 government1 and art1 depends  

in large measure on his early education 
and training and on the opinions and    
beliefs of other people with whom he    
repeatedly comes in contact4 ,a society 
may be democratic in its political form 
and still autocratic in fact if the     
majority of its citizens are merely     
machines which can be set off to respond
 in certain determinate ways to         
customary stimuli of names1 leaders1 and
 party slogans4 ,a society becomes      
genuinely democratic1 precisely to the  
extent to which there is on the part of 
its citizens participation in the       
important decisions affecting all their 
lives4 ,but the participation will only 
be a formality if votes are decided and 
opinions formed on the basis of habit   
alone4  ,,reflection ,,removed ,,from   
,,immediate ,,application--,,science4   
,thus far thinking has been discussed in
 its more practical aspects4 ,and       
thinking is in its origins a very       
practical matter4 ,literally1 most      
people think when they have to1 and only

 when they have to4 ,given a problem1 a 
difficulty1 a maladjustment between the 
individual and his environment1 thinking
 occurs4 ,if every instinctive act      
brought satisfaction1 thinking would be 
much less necessary and much less       
frequently practiced4 ,this is          
illustrated in the performance of any   
act that once required attention and    
discrimination1 and has later become    
habitual4 ,we do not think how to walk1 
eat1 and spell familiar words1 how to   
find our way about familiar streets or  
even in familiar dark rooms4 ,we do     
think about where we shall spend our    
evenings or our summer1 which courses we
 shall choose at college1 which         
profession we shall enter4 ,where we are
 uneasy1 drawn by competing impulses1 we
 consider alternatives1 measure         
consequences1 and choose our course of  
action in the light of the results we   
can forecast4 ,but while a large        
proportion of reflective behavior is    
thus practical in its origins and its   

results1 it also occurs not infrequently
 where there is no immediate problem to 
be solved4 ,not all of men's energies   
are concerned in purely practical       
concerns4 ,and part of man's superfluous
 vitality is expended in disinterested  
and curious inquiry into problems whose 
solutions afford no immediate practical 
benefits1 but in the mere solving of    
which man finds satisfaction4  ,from the
 dawn of history1 when some man a little
 more curious than his fellows1 a little
 less absorbed in the hunting1 the      
food-getting1 and the fighting which    
were in those early days man's chief    
imperative business1 first began to     
observe the mysterious recurrences in   
the world about him1 the rising and     
setting of the sun1 the return of the   
seasons1 the movements of the tides and 
the stars1 there have been individuals  
born with a marked and sometimes a      
passionate desire to observe ,nature and
 to generalize their observations4 ,they
 have noted that1 given certain         

conditions1 certain results follow4     
,they observe that animals with given   
similarities of form and structure have 
certain identical ways of life1 that    
some substances are malleable and others
 not1 that dew appears at certain times 
in the day on certain objects and not on
 others4 ,they have generalized from    
these2 and we now call such             
generalizations law4 ,these             
generalizations when gathered into a    
system constitute a science4  ,the      
sciences started out with unconfirmed   
guesses based on not very accurate      
information4 ,as man's methods became   
more precise1 he controlled the         
conditions under which observations were
 made1 and the conditions under which   
generalizations were drawn from them4   
,the control of the conditions and      
methods of observation constitute what  
is known as induction in science4 ,to   
this phase of the reflective process    
belong all the instruments for precise  
observation which characterize the      

scientific laboratory4 ,the control of  
the methods by which generalizations or 
theories are built up from these facts  
is also part of the logic of induction1 
and includes all the canons and         
regulations for inductive inference4    
,but generalizations once made must be  
tested1 and the elaboration of these    
generalizations1 the analysis of them   
into their precise bearings1 constitute 
that part of the process of reasoning   
known as deduction4 ,the final          
verification is again inductive1 an     
experimental corroboration of theories  
by the facts already at hand and by     
facts additionally sought out and       
observed4  7,these processes will be    
discussed in detail in the chapter on   
,science and ,scientific ,method47      
,however complicated the process of     
inquiry may become1 the sciences remain 
essentially man's mode of satisfying his
 disinterested curiosity about the world
 in which he is living4 ,through the    
sciences man makes himself1 as has been 

so often said1 at home in the world4 ,he
 substitutes for the blooming1 buzzing  
confusion which is the world as he first
 knows it1 order1 system1 and law4      
,primitive man1 absurd as seems to us   
his belief in a world of magic1 of      
malicious demons and capricious gods1   
was trying to make sense out of the     
meaningless medley in which he seemed to
 find himself4 ,through science1 modern 
man is likewise trying to make sense out
 of his world4 ,the more apparently     
disconnected and incongruous facts that 
can be brought within the compass of    
simple and perfectly regular law1 the   
less threatening or capricious seems the
 world in which we live4 ,where         
everything that happens is part of a    
system1 we do not need1 like the savage 
trembling in a thunderstorm1 to be      
frightened at what will happen next4 ,it
 is like moving in familiar surroundings
 among familiar people4 ,not all that   
goes on may be pleasant1 but we can     
within limits predict what will happen1 

and are not puzzled and pained by       
continuous shocks and surprises4 ,we    
like order in the places in which we    
live1 in our homes1 in our cities1 in   
the universe4  ,the sciences satisfy us 
not only in that they bring order into  
what at first seems the chaos of our    
surroundings1 but in that they are      
themselves beautiful in their           
spaciousness and their simplicity4 ,we  
cannot pause here to consider the       
physiological facts which make us admire
 symmetry1 but it is fundamental in our 
appreciation of music1 poetry1 and the  
plastic arts4 ,from the sciences1       
likewise1 we derive the satisfaction of 
symmetry on a magnificent scale4 ,there 
is beauty as of a great symphony in the 
sweep and movement of the solar system4 
,there is a quiet and infinite splendor 
about the changeless and comparatively  
simple structure which physics1 in the  
broadest sense1 reveals beneath the     
seeming multiplicity and variety of     
things4 ,it is a desire for beauty as   

well as a thoroughgoing scientific      
passion which prompts men like ,poincar 
and ,karl ,pearson to seek for one law1 
one formula which1 like one clear chord 
to reach the ears of ,god1 expresses the
 whole universe4  ,,the ,,practical     
,,aspect ,,of ,,science4 ,but while the 
origins of science may lie in man's     
thirst for system1 simplicity1 and      
beauty in the world1 the tremendous     
advance of science has a more immediate 
and practical cause4 ,to understand the 
laws of ,nature means to have the power 
of prediction2 it means to know that1   
given certain circumstances1 certain    
others follow always and inevitably2 it 
means to discover causes--and their     
effects4 ,man having attained through   
patient inquiry this capacity to tell in
 advance1 may take advantage of it for  
his own good4 ,the whole of modern      
industry with its phenomenal control of 
natural powers and resources is         
testimony to the use which man has found
 for the facts and laws which he would  

never have found out save for the       
curiosity which was his endowment and   
the inquiry which he made his habit4    
,knowledge is power1 said ,francis      
,bacon1 and the three hundred years of  
science that have made possible the     
whole modern world of electric          
transportation1 air travel between two  
continents1 and instantaneous           
communication between remote parts of   
the world1 have proved the aphorism4    
,man since his origin has tried to      
control his environment for his own     
good4 ,the cave and the flint were his  
first rude attempts4 ,in science with   
its accurate observation of facts not   
apparent to the unaided eye1 and its    
discovery and demonstration of laws not 
found by casual and unsystematic common 
sense1 man has an incomparably more     
refined instrument1 and an incomparably 
more effective one4 ,thus1 paradoxically
 enough1 man's most disinterested and   
impartial activity is at the same time  
his most practical asset4  ,,the        

,,creation ,,of ,,beautiful ,,objects   
,,and ,,the ,,expression ,,of ,,ideas   
,,and ,,feelings ,,in ,,beautiful       
,,form4 ,most men spend most of their   
lives necessarily in practical activity4
 ,man's particular equipment of         
instincts survived in the struggle for  
existence precisely because they were   
practical1 because they did help the    
human creature to maintain his          
equilibrium in a half-friendly1         
half-hostile environment4 ,man acquires 
also1 as already has been pointed out1  
habits that are useful to him1 that     
bring him satisfactions not attainable  
through the random instinctive responses
 which are his at birth4 ,reflection1   
too1 is1 for the most part1 severely    
practical in its origins and its        
responsibilities4 ,it guides action into
 economical and useful channels4  ,most 
of man's actions are thus ways of       
modifying his environment for           
immediately practical purposes4 ,man has
 instincts and habits which enable him  

to live4 ,but in making those changes in
 the world which enable him to live     
better1 man1 as it were by accident1    
makes them beautifully4 ,pottery begins1
 for example1 as a practical art1 but   
the skilled potter cannot help spending 
a little excess vitality and habitual   
skill in adding a quite unnecessarily   
graceful curve1 a gratuitous decoration 
to the utilitarian vessel he is making4 
,in the words of ,santayana1 ,what had  
to be done was1 by imaginative races1   
done imaginatively2 what had to be      
spoken or made was spoken or made fitly1
 lovingly1 beautifully4444 ,the         
ceaseless experimentation and           
fermentation of ideas1 in breeding what 
it had a propensity to breed1 came      
sometimes on figments that gave it      
delightful pause4#a  ,footnote #a3      
,santayana3 ,reason in ,art1 p4 #af4    
,these accidental graces that man makes 
in the instinctive and habitual control 
to which he subjects his environment    
become the most cherished values of his 

experience4 ,men may first have come to 
speak poetry accidentally1 for language 
arose1 like other human habits1 as a    
thing of use4 ,but the charming and     
delightful expression of feelings and   
ideas came to be cherished in           
themselves1 so that what was first an   
accident in man's life1 may become a    
deliberate practice4 ,when this creation
 of beautiful objects1 or the beautiful 
expression of feelings or ideas is      
intentional1 we call it art4 ,in such   
intentional creation and cherishing of  
the beautiful man's life becomes        
enriched and emancipated4 ,he learns not
 only to live1 but to live beautifully4 
,in such activity men1 as has been      
recognized by social reformers from     
,plato to ,bertrand ,russell1 are       
genuinely happy1 and there alone find   
freedom4 ,for in the creation of beauty 
man is not performing actions because he
 must1 under the brutal compulsion of   
keeping alive4 ,he is acting simply     
because action is delightful both in the

 process and in the result4 ,whether in 
business1 politics1 or scholarship1 men 
are happy to the extent to which they   
have the sense of creation that is      
peculiarly the artist's4  ,the products 
of art1 moreover1 are not desirable     
because they bring other goods1 but     
because they themselves are             
intrinsically delightful4 ,men love to  
live in a world in which their marble   
has been made into statues1 in which    
their houses are things of beauty rather
 than merely places in which to live4   
,their lives are enriched by living in a
 society where the thoughts and emotions
 which they communicate to one another  
and which they must somehow express can 
be not infrequently expressed with      
nobility and music4 ,through science    
,nature becomes man's tool2 through art 
it can become a beautiful instrument to 
work with1 and a lovely thing in and for
 itself4     ,,chapter ,,iv  ,,the      
,,basic ,,human ,,activities  ,,food1   
,,shelter1 ,,and ,,sex4 ,thus far our   

analysis has been confined to the       
general types of human behavior4 ,we    
have found that all human activity is   
conditioned by a native equipment       
consisting of certain more or less      
specific tendencies to action1 and that 
these may be modified into acquired     
tendencies called habits4 ,we have found
 that through the processes of          
reflection1 through imaginative trial   
and error1 both of these may1 within    
limits1 be controlled4 ,we must now     
proceed to an inventory of those        
elements of our native equipment which  
have an especial significance in social 
life4  ,in the first place1 we must note
 the three great primary drives of human
 action1 the unlearned and native       
demands for food1 shelter1 and sex      
gratification4#a ,although the          
last-named does not display itself in   
human beings until a considerable degree
 of maturity has been attained there is 
indubitable evidence that it is an      
inborn and not an acquired reaction4    

,the practical utility of the first two 
is apparent2 they are the most essential
 features of the group of so-called     
self-preservative instincts1 among which
 may be grouped the natural tendency to 
recover one's equilibrium and the       
instinct of flight in the face of       
dangerous or threatening objects4 ,the  
utility of the sex instinct is racial   
rather than individual4 ,the instinctive
 satisfaction human beings find in sex  
gratification is the natural guarantee  
of the continuance of the race4         
,footnote #a3 ,the reader must be       
reminded that the simpler reflexes      
involved in the use of the heart1 lungs1
 intestines1 and all the internal       
organs1 must be classed as part of man's
 native equipment4 ,they differ from    
those reactions commonly classed as     
instincts in that they are simpler and  
stabler1 that in their normal           
functioning they never rise to          
consciousness1 and that they are almost 
completely beyond the individual's      

modification or control4  ,in a general 
survey of this nature it ,,is           
impossible1 as it is unnecessary1 to    
examine in detail the physiological     
elements of the demand for food and     
shelter4 ,it will suffice to point out  
that the first two are the ultimate     
biological bases of a large proportion  
of our economic activities4 ,they are   
primary1 not in the sense that they are 
constantly conscious motives to action1 
but that their fulfillment is           
prerequisite to the continuance of any  
of the other activities of the organism4
 ,agriculture and manufacture1 the      
complicated systems of credit and       
exchange which human beings have        
devised1 are1 for the most part1        
contrivances for the fulfillment of     
these fundamental demands4 ,with the    
complexity of civilization new demands1 
of course1 arise1 but these fundamental 
necessities are still the ultimate      
mainsprings of economic production4     
,the demand for sex gratification1      

because of its enormous driving force   
and the emotional disturbances connected
 with it1 offers a peculiarly acute     
instance of the difficulties brought    
about in the control of man's native    
endowment in his own best interest4     
,while the production of offspring is   
its chief biological utility1           
satisfaction of the sex instinct itself 
is stimulated in human beings quite     
apart from considerations of the        
desirability or undesirability of       
offspring4 ,since the sex instinct is at
 once so deep-rooted and intense a      
driving force in human action1 and its  
consequences of such crucial importance 
to both those directly involved and to  
the group as a whole1 societies have1   
through law and custom and tradition1   
built up elaborate codes for its        
control4 ,in civilized society the free 
operation of this instinct is checked in
 a thousand ways4 ,but1 as in the case  
of other primitive motives to action1   
the sex instinct1 obvious as are the    

disasters of disease and disorganization
 which follow as consequences of its    
uncontrolled indulgence1 cannot         
altogether be repressed4  ,it is        
generally recognized that in men and    
animals alike the sex impulse is apt to 
manifest itself in very vigorous and    
sustained efforts toward its natural    
end2 and that in ourselves it may       
determine very strong desires1 in the   
control of which all the organized      
forces of the developed personality1 all
 our moral sentiments and ideals1 and   
all the restraining influences of       
religion1 law1 custom and convention too
 often are confronted with a task beyond
 their strength4#a  ,footnote #a3       
,mc,dougall3 ,social ,psychology1 #aath 
ed41 pp4 #cii-djj4  ,there is           
considerable agreement among students of
 the subject that the emotional energies
 aroused in connection with the sex     
instinct may be drained off into other  
channels1 and serve to quicken and      
sustain both artistic creation and      

appreciation and social and religious   
enthusiasms of various kinds4 ,and the  
sex instinct1 as we shall find in our   
discussion of ,racial ,continuity 7see  
p4 #bdc7 is the basis of the family4    
,,physical ,,activity4 ,the difference  
between sticks and stones and living    
beings consists primarily in the fact   
that the latter are positively active2  
the former are passively acted upon4    
,the stone will stay put1 unless moved  
by some external agent1 but even the    
amoeba will do something to its         
environment4 ,it will stretch out       
pseudopodia to reach solid objects to   
which to cling2 it will attempt to      
return to these objects when dislodged2 
it will actively absorb food4 ,higher up
 in the animal scale1 ,rats run about1  
smell1 dig1 or gnaw1 without real       
reference to the business in hand4 ,in  
the same way ,jack 7a dog7 scrabbles and
 jumps1 the kitten wanders and picks1   
the otter slips about everywhere like   
ground lightning1 the elephant fumbles  

ceaselessly1 the monkey pulls things    
about4#b ,the most casual notice of the 
activities of a young child reveals a   
ceaseless display of exploring and      
testing activity4 ,objects are sucked1  
fingered and thumped2 drawn and pushed1 
handled and thrown4#c  ,footnote #b3    
,hobhouse3 ,mind in ,evolution1 p4 #aie4
  ,footnote #c ,dewey3 ,how ,we ,think1 
p4 #ca4  ,when vitality is at its height
 in the waking period of a young child1 
its environment is a succession of      
stimulations to activity4 ,man's innate 
tendency to fool is notorious1 a        
tendency particularly noticeable in     
children4 ,objects are responded to1 not
 as means to ends1 not with reference to
 their use1 but simply for the sheer    
satisfaction of manipulation4 ,facial   
expressions1 sounds1 gestures1 are made 
almost on any provocation2 they are the 
expressions of an abundant physiological
 uneasiness4 ,the two-year-old is a     
mechanism that simply must and will move
 about1 make all kinds of superfluous   

gestures and facial expressions1 and    
random sounds1 as it were1 just to get  
rid of its stored-up energy4 ,man's     
laziness and inertia are not            
infrequently commented on by moralists1 
but it is not laziness and inertia per  
se2 certainly in normal individuals in  
the temperate zone1 to do something most
 of their waking time is a natural      
tendency and one intrinsically pleasant 
to practice4 ,that the tendency to be   
active should vary in different         
individuals and at different times is1  
of course1 as important a fact as it is 
a familiar one4 ,some of the causes of  
this variation will be noted in the     
succeeding4  ,in adult life for casual  
and random activity is substituted      
activity directed by some end or purpose
 which determines the responses called  
into play4 ,professional and business1  
domestic and social enterprises and     
obligations take up most of the adult's 
energy4 ,the contrast between the play  
of the child and the work of the adult  

is that in the case of the former       
actions are done for their own sake2 and
 in the latter for some end4 ,the child1
 we say1 plays for the fun of the thing1
 the adult works for pay1 for           
professional success1 for power1        
reputation1 etc4  ,but even in the adult
 the desire for play powerfully         
persists4 ,not all the grown-up's energy
 is absorbed in his work1 and even some 
types of work1 like that of the poet or 
painter1 or the building-up of a great  
business organization1 may be           
intrinsically delightful and            
self-sufficient activity4 ,under the    
conditions of modern industry1 however1 
especially of machine production1       
much--in many cases1 most--of the       
activity by which an individual earns   
his living1 utilizes only some of his   
native tendencies to act1 while the     
working day does not1 under normal      
conditions1 absorb all his energy4      
,whatever vitality is not1 therefore1   
absorbed in necessary work goes into    

forms of purely gratuitous activity4    
,which form play shall take in the adult
 depends on the degree to which certain 
impulses are in him stronger than       
others1 either by native endowment or   
cultivation1 and which impulses have not
 been sufficiently utilized in him      
during the day's work4 ,a man musically 
gifted will find his recreation in some 
performance on a musical instrument1 let
 us say2 on the other hand1 if his work 
is music1 those impulses1 strong though 
they be1 that make him a musician1 will 
have been sufficiently exhausted in the 
day's work to make some other activity a
 more satisfactory recreation4  ,the    
relations between play and work can be  
better understood by a consideration of 
the physiological importance of variety 
in activity4 ,a certain regular         
recurrence of response may be pleasant1 
as in rowing or canoeing1 or in         
listening to the rhythms of poetry or   
music1 but a prolonged repetition of    
precisely the same stimulus or the same 

set of stimuli may make responses       
dissatisfying to the degree of pain4    
,ideal activity1 biologically1 would be 
one where every impulse was just        
sufficiently frequently called upon to  
make response easy1 fluent1 and         
satisfactory4  ,the reason work has     
traditionally come to be regarded as    
unpleasant and play as pleasant is not  
because the former is activity and the  
second is torpor4 ,leisure does not     
necessarily mean laziness4 ,many a      
vacation1 a camping party1 a walking    
expedition1 is literally more strenuous 
than the work an individual normally    
does4 ,but work means human energy      
expended for the sole purpose of        
accomplishing some end4 ,and an end     
involves the deliberate shutting-out of 
every impulse which does not contribute 
to its fulfillment4 ,a man weeding a    
garden may tire of the weeding long     
before he is really physically          
exhausted4 ,one response is being       
repeatedly made1 while at the same time 

a dozen other impulses are being        
stimulated4 ,when ,tom ,sawyer1 under   
the compulsion of his aunt1 is          
whitewashing a fence1 it is shortly no  
fun for him4 ,but he can make other boys
 pay him apple-cores and jackknives for 
the fun of wielding the brush4  ,what we
 call the feeling of boredom depends    
principally upon the too repeated       
stimulation of one set of activities to 
the exclusion of all others1 the        
continuous presence of a kind of        
stimulation to which we have been       
rendered unsusceptible1 as1 for example1
 bad popular music to a cultivated      
musical taste1 or intricate chamber     
music to an uncultivated one4 ,the      
feeling of boredom may become           
physiologically acute1 as in the case1  
so frequent in machine production1 of   
literally monotonous or one-operation   
jobs4 ,long hours of labor at acts      
calling out only one very simple        
response may have very serious effects4 
,in the first place1 in the work itself1

 since repetitions of one or one simple 
set of responses may impair speed and   
accuracy4 ,on the part of the worker1 it
 promotes varying degrees of            
stupefaction or irritation4 ,excesses of
 drink1 gambling1 and dissipation among 
factory populations are often traceable 
to this continual frustration of normal 
instincts during working hours1 followed
 by a violent search for stimulation and
 relaxation after work is over4 ,under  
conditions of machine production1 the   
responses which the worker must make are
 becoming increasingly simple and       
automatic4 ,hence the problem of        
bringing variety into work and something
 of the same vitality and spontaneity   
into industry that goes into play and   
art is becoming serious and urgent4#a   
,footnote #a3 ,see ,helen ,marot3       
,creative ,impulse in ,industry4        
,,mental ,,activity4 ,just as physical  
activity is a characteristic of all     
living beings1 so1 from almost earliest 
infancy of human beings1 is mental      

activity4 ,this does not mean that      
individuals from their babyhood are     
continually solving problems4           
,deliberation and reflection are simply 
the mature and disciplined control of   
what goes on during all of our waking   
hours--random play of the fancy1        
imagination4 ,we are not always         
controlling our thought1 but so long as 
we are awake something is1 as we say1   
passing through our heads4 ,everything  
that happens about us provokes some     
suggestion or idea4 ,day-dreaming1      
building of castles in the air1 that    
loose flux of casual and disconnected   
material that floats through our minds  
in relaxed moments1 are1 in this random 
sense1 thinking4 ,more of our waking    
life than we should care to admit1 even 
to ourselves1 is likely to be whiled    
away in this inconsequential trifling   
with idle fancy and unsubstantial       
hope4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,dewey3 ,how ,we 
,think1 p4 #b4  ,this play of the       
imagination is most uncontrolled and    

spontaneous in childhood1 which is often
 characteristically defined as the      
period of make-believe or fancy4 ,it is 
this capacity which enables the child to
 use chairs as locomotives1 sticks as   
rifles1 and wheelbarrows as automobiles4
 ,as we grow older we tend to discipline
 this vagrant dreaming1 and to draw only
 those suggestions from objects which   
tally with the workaday world we live   
in4 ,we stop playing with our           
imagination and put our minds to work4  
,but in adult life desire for the play  
of the mind1 like the desire for the    
play of the body1 persists4 ,the        
endeavor of education is not to crush   
but to control it4  ,imagination1 used  
here in the sense of random mental      
activity1 may be controlled in two ways1
 both significant for human welfare4    
,when it is controlled with reference to
 some emotional theme1 as in fiction1   
drama1 and poetry1 it has no reference  
necessarily to actual objects or events2
 it is concerned only with producing the

 effect of emotional congruity between  
incidents1 objects1 forms1 or sounds4 ,a
 great novel does not pretend to be a   
literal transcript of experience1 nor a 
portrait of an actual person4 ,when     
random mental activity is thus          
controlled1 it is imagination1 in the   
popular sense1 the sense in which poets1
 painters1 and dramatists are called    
imaginative artists4  ,imagination      
controlled with reference to facts      
produces genuine reflection and science4
 ,to put it in another way1 no matter   
how complicated thinking becomes1 no    
matter how suggestions are examined and 
regulated with reference to the facts at
 hand1 new ideas1 theories1 and         
hypotheses occur to the thinker         
precisely by this upshoot of            
irresponsible fancies and suggestions4  
,this free and fertile play of the      
imagination is what characterizes the   
original thinker more than any other    
single fact4 ,suggestions arise1 as it  
were1 willy-nilly1 depending on an      

individual's inheritance1 his past      
experience1 his social position1 all at 
the moment uncontrollable features of   
his situation4 ,we can1 through         
scientific method1 examine and regulate 
suggestions once they arise1 but their  
appearance is in a sense casual and     
unpredictable1 like the fancies in a    
daydream4 ,the greatest scientific      
discoveries have been made in a sudden  
flash of imagination1 as when to the    
mind of ,darwin1 after twenty years'    
painstaking collection of facts1 their  
explanation through the single          
encompassing formula of evolution       
occurs1 or when to the mind of ,newton  
the hypothesis of gravitation suddenly  
suggests itself4  ,the encouragement of 
a lively play of the mind over          
experience1 the stimulation of          
imagination or what ,bertrand ,russell  
calls the joy of mental adventure is    
thus one of the most important sources  
of art and science4 ,the arousing of    
imagination depends primarily on the    

inherited curiosity of man which varies 
from the random and restless exploring  
of the child to the careful and         
persistent investigation of the trained 
scientist4 ,the curiosity which prompts 
the child to experiment with objects in 
a hit-or-miss fashion is little more    
than the physiological overflow of      
action which has been noted above4      
,curiosity becomes more distinctively   
mental when it is social in character1  
when the child explores and experiments 
not by its own manipulations but by     
communication1 by asking questions of   
other people4  ,when the child learns   
that he can appeal to others to eke out 
his store of experiences1 so that1 if   
objects fail to respond interestingly to
 his experiments1 he may call upon      
persons to provide interesting material1
 a new epoch sets in4 ,what is that8    
,why8 become the unfailing signs of a   
child's presence4 ,at first this        
questioning is hardly more than a       
projection into social relations of the 

physical overflow which earlier kept the
 child pushing and pulling1 opening and 
shutting4 ,he asks in succession what   
holds up the house1 what holds up the   
soil that holds the house1 what holds up
 the earth that holds the soil2 but his 
questions are not evidence of any       
genuine consciousness of rational       
connections4 ,his why is not a demand   
for scientific explanation2 the motive  
behind it is simply eagerness for a     
larger acquaintance with the mysterious 
world in which he is placed4 ,the search
 is not for a law or principle1 but only
 for a bigger fact4444 ,but in the      
feeling1 however dim1 that the facts    
which directly meet the sense are not   
the whole story1 that there is more     
behind them and more to come from them1 
lies the germ of intellectual           
curiosity4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,dewey3 loc4
 cit41 p4 #cb4  ,curiosity passes thus  
from casual rudimentary inquiry into    
genuinely scientific investigation4 ,at 
first it is merely physical             

manipulation1 then merely disconnected  
questionings2 it becomes genuinely      
intellectual when it passes from        
inquisitiveness to inquiry4 ,to be      
inquisitive means merely to want to know
 facts rather than to solve problems4   
,to be scientifically inquiring is to   
seek on one's own account the           
significant relations between things4   
,but these earlier and more casual forms
 of curiosity are not to be despised4   
,if developed and controlled they lead  
to genuinely disinterested study of     
,nature and of men1 to the spirit and   
the methods of science4 ,that free play 
of imagination which was spoken of above
 as the chief source of original        
thinking and discovery is stimulated by 
an active hunting-out of new            
suggestions4 ,curiosity might also be   
defined as aggressive imagination1      
which1 frequent enough in children1     
remains among adults to a pronounced    
degree only in geniuses of art and      
science4 ,we may not agree with         

,bertrand ,russell that everything is   
done in education to kill it1 but the   
dogmatism and fixity of mind which so   
soon settle down on maturity1 the       
inability to be sensitive to new        
experiences1 these are discouragingly   
familiar phenomena clearly inimical to  
science and to progress4  ,an active    
imagination that finds new materials to 
play over is the basis of both science  
and art4 ,a skillful manipulation of its
 materials in words or sounds1 colors1  
or lines makes its result art4 ,their   
controlled examination and              
systematization makes them science4     
,,quiescence--,,fatigue4 ,that all life1
 animal and human1 is characterized by  
activity of a more or less persistent   
and positive kind has already been      
noted4 ,but in human beings1 as well as 
in animals1 activity displays a fatigue 
curve4 ,the repeated stimulation of     
certain muscles produces fatigue toxins 
which impair the efficiency of response 
and make further stimulation painful4   

,of the causes of this lessened         
functional efficiency we may quote from 
,miss ,goldmark's painstaking study3    
,during activity1 as will be shown      
later1 the products of chemical change  
increase4 ,a tired person is literally  
and actually a poisoned person--poisoned
 by his own waste products4 ,but so     
marvellously is the body constructed    
that1 like a running stream1 it purifies
 itself1 and during repose these toxic  
impurities are normally burned up by the
 oxygen brought by the blood1 excreted  
by the kidneys1 destroyed in the liver1 
or eliminated from the body through the 
lungs4 ,so rest repaires fatigue4#a     
,footnote #a3 ,goldmark1 ,j43 ,fatigue  
and ,efficiency1 p4 #ac4  ,in physical  
activity1 therefore1 periods of lessened
 activity or change of activity1 or     
nearly complete inactivity as in sleep1 
are not only desirable but necessary1 if
 efficiency is to be maintained4 ,the   
demand for rest is an imperative        
physiological demand4 ,the amount of    

recuperation demanded by the organism   
varies in different individuals1 but    
that there are certain limits of human  
productivity has been made increasingly 
clear by a careful study of the effects 
of fatigue upon output in industrial    
occupations4 ,repeatedly1 the shortening
 of working hours1 especially when they 
have previously numbered more than      
eight1 has been found to be correlated  
with an increase in efficiency4         
,likewise1 the provision of rest periods
 as in telephone-operating and the      
needle trades1 has in nearly every case 
increased the amount and quality of the 
work performed4 ,the human machine in   
order to be most effective cannot be    
pressed too hard4 ,a striking           
illustration was offered in ,england at 
the beginning of the war4 ,under        
pressure of war necessity1 the munition 
factories relaxed all restrictions on   
working hours and operated on a         
seven-day week4 ,the folly of this      
procedure was tersely summarized by the 

,british ,commission investigating      
industrial fatigue1 which reported3 ,it 
is almost a commonplace that seven days'
 labor produces six days' output4  ,in  
the study of industrial conditions1 the 
effects of prolonged and repeated       
fatigue upon output have not been the   
only features taken into consideration4 
,not only are there immediately         
observable effects in the decreased     
output of the worker1 but fatigue means1
 among other things1 general loss of    
control4 ,this has the effect of        
producing on the part of overworked     
factory hands dissipation and           
overstimulation in free time1 with a    
consequent permanent impairment of      
efficiency4#a ,both for the laborer     
himself and for the efficiency of the   
industrial system1 it has been          
increasingly recognized that limitation 
of working hours is imperatively        
demanded4 ,rest is as fundamental a need
 as food1 and its deprivation almost as 
serious in its effects4  ,footnote #a3  

,for a striking array of testimony on   
this point see ,goldmark3 loc4 cit41 pp4
 #bbj-ce4  ,,nervous ,,and ,,mental     
,,fatigue4 ,the conditions of nervous   
and mental fatigue have been less       
adequately studied than the types of    
purely physiological fatigue just       
discussed4 ,it is difficult in          
experiments to discount the effects of  
muscular fatigue1 and to discover how   
far there is really impairment of       
nervous tissue and functions4           
,experimental studies do show that      
nervous fatigue is an undoubted fact#b  
and that we cannot deny fatigue to the  
psychic centers#c which1 like any other 
part of the organism are subject to     
deterioration by fatigue toxins4 ,most  
students report1 however1 a higher      
degree of resistance to fatigue in the  
nerve fibers than in the muscles1 and a 
like high resistance to fatigue in the  
brain centers4#d  ,footnote #b3         
,frederick ,s4 ,lee3 ,physical ,exercise
 from the ,standpoint of ,physiology1   

,science1 ,n4,s41 vol4 ,,xxix1 no4 #gdd1
 p4 #ebe4  ,footnote #c3 ,lee3 ,fatigue4
 ,harvey ,lectures1 #aije-jf1 p4 #ahj4  
,footnote #d3 ,for a summary of nervous 
fatigue and extensive bibliography1 see 
,goldmark3 loc4 cit41 p4 #cb4  ,the     
conditions of mental fatigue1 however1  
can be by no means as simply described  
as those of physical fatigue4 ,elaborate
 experiments by ,professor ,thorndike   
and others tend to show that1 in the    
strictest sense of the term1 there is no
 such thing as mental fatigue4 ,that is1
 any mental function may be performed   
for several hours with the most         
negligible decrease in the efficiency of
 the results attained4 ,the subject of  
one experiment kept continuously for    
seven hours performing mental           
multiplications of four-place numbers by
 four-place numbers with scarcely any   
perceptible decrease in speed or        
accuracy in results4#a ,professor       
,thorndike draws from this and similar  
experiments the conclusion that it is   

practically impossible to impair the    
efficiency of any mental function as    
such4 ,what happens when we say our     
mental efficiency is being impaired is  
rather that we will not than that we    
cannot perform any given mental         
function4 ,the causes of loss of        
efficiency are rather competing         
impulses#b than fatigue in specific     
mental functions4 ,we are tired of the  
work1 not by it4 ,continuous mental work
 of any given kind1 writing a book1     
solving problems in calculus1           
translating ,french1 etc41 involves our 
being withheld from other activities1   
games1 music1 or companionship1 to which
 by force of habit or instinct1 we are  
diverted1 and diverted more acutely the 
more we remain at a fixed task4 ,that it
 is not mental fatigue so much as       
distraction that prevents us from       
persisting at work is evidenced in the  
longer time we can stick to work that   
really interests us than to tasks in    
which we have only a perfunctory or     

compulsory interest4 ,the college       
student who is too dead tired to stay up
 studying trigonometry will1 though in  
the same condition1 stay up studying    
football strategy1 rehearsing for a     
varsity show1 or getting out the next   
morning's edition of his college paper4 
,if each man did the mental work for    
which he was fit1 and which he enjoyed1 
men would work willingly much longer    
than they now do4#a99 ,the effects of   
mental fatigue are1 when analyzed1 due  
chiefly to the physically injurious     
effects that do1 but do not necessarily1
 accompany mental work4  ,footnote #a3  
,t4 ,arai3 ,mental ,fatigue4  ,footnote 
#b3 ,thorndike3 ,educational            
,psychology1 ,briefer ,course1 p4 #cbb4 
,footnote #a993 ,thorndike3 ,educational
 ,psychology1 ,briefer ,course1 p4 #cbf4
  ,proper air and light1 proper posture 
and physical exercise1 enough food and  
sleep1 and work whose purpose is        
rational1 whose difficulty is adapted to
 one's powers1 and whose rewards are    

just1 should be tried before recourse to
 the abandonment of work itself4 ,it is 
indeed doubtful if sheer rest is the    
appropriate remedy for a hundredth part 
of the injuries that result from mental 
work in our present irrational conduct  
of it4#b  ,footnote #b3 ,ibid41 p4 #cbh4
  ,the study of the conditions of mental
 work seems to reveal1 in brief1 that   
the conditions of fatigue are           
essentially physical in character4      
,given adequate physical conditions1 in 
particular guarding against eye-strain1 
over-excitement 7which means distraction
 from the work in hand71 and loss of    
sleep1 mental work is itself peculiarly 
unaffected by fatigue conditions4 ,the  
degree in which mental work can be      
persisted in depends1 therefore1 other  
things being equal1 on the individual's 
own interests1 the number and intensity 
of rival interests which persist during 
a given piece of mental work1 and the   
habits of mind with which the individual
 approaches his work4  ,the experimental

 demonstration that so-called mental    
fatigue is largely physical in its      
conditions has thus a dual significance4
 ,it indicates how arduous and          
persistent mental endeavor may be and   
how wide are the possibilities of       
intellectual accomplishment4 ,it is an  
important fact for human life that the  
brain is possibly the most tireless part
 of the human machine4 ,what seems to be
 mental fatigue can be materially       
reduced if the physical conditions under
 which studying1 writing1 and all other 
kinds of mental work are performed are  
carefully regulated4 ,another large part
 of what passes for mental fatigue will 
be removed if the individual becomes    
trained to a reflective appreciation of 
the end of his work4 ,a habit of alert  
and conscious attention1 if it is really
 habitual1 will enable one to persist at
 work in the face of tempting           
distractions4 ,learning to tend to      
business by an intelligent application  
to the aims of the work to be done1 will

 be a healthy antidote against that     
yielding to every dissuading impulse    
which so often passes for mental        
weariness4     ,,chapter ,v  ,,the      
,,social ,,nature ,,of ,,man  ,,man ,,as
 ,a ,,social ,,being4 ,man has long been
 defined as the social animal1 and it is
 certainly characteristic of human      
activity that it takes place largely    
with reference to other people4 ,many of
 man's native tendencies1 such as those 
of sex1 self-assertiveness1 and the     
like1 require the presence and contact  
of other people for their operation4    
,nineteenth-century philosophers        
attempted frequently to explain how     
individuals who were natively           
self-seeking ever came to act socially4 
,the solution to this problem was       
usually found in the fact that precisely
 those self-seeking and                 
self-preservation instincts which       
governed man's activity could not find  
satisfaction except through coperation  
with a group4 ,all man's social activity

 was conceived as purely instrumental to
 the gratification of his own egoistic  
desires4 ,man got on with his fellows   
simply because he could not get on      
without them4 ,we shall see that1 in the
 light of the specific and natural      
tendencies toward social behavior which 
are part of man's original equipment1   
this sharp psychological isolation      
between the individual and the group is 
an altogether unwarranted assumption4   
,for it is just as native to man to act 
socially as it is for him to be hungry1 
or curious1 or afraid4 ,the element of  
truth in the nineteenth-century         
exaggeration of man's individuality lies
 in the fact that social activity is    
partly brought about in the satisfaction
 of the more egoistic impulses of the   
individual4 ,the fear motive drives men 
together in times of insecurity2 the    
pugnacity motive bands them together for
 group combat2 the economic motive      
brings industrial coperation and        
organization2 the self-assertive and    

submissive tendencies bring emulation as
 well as obedience2 the expansion of the
 self to cover one's family1 one's      
clique1 one's class1 one's country      
contributes to loyalty2 while the       
parental instinct1 expanding its scope  
to cover others besides children who are
 helpless1 leads to self-sacrifice and  
altruism4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,r4 ,s4      
,woodworth3 ,dynamic ,psychology1 p4    
#bjd4  ,the fact is1 however1 that while
 social activity is promoted because    
individuals find in coperation the      
possibility of the satisfaction of their
 egoistic desires1 social activity is   
primarily brought about through the     
specifically social tendencies which are
 part of our native equipment4 ,it is   
with these natural bases of social      
activity that we shall in this chapter  
be particularly concerned4 ,we shall    
have to take note1 in the first place1  
of a native tendency to be with other   
people1 to feel an unlearned sense of   
comfort in their presence1 and          

uneasiness if too much separated from   
them1 physically1 or in action1 feeling1
 or thought4 ,human beings tend1        
furthermore1 to reproduce               
sympathetically the emotions of others1 
especially those of their own social and
 economic groups4 ,thirdly1 man's       
conduct is natively social in that he is
 by nature specifically sensitive to    
praise and blame1 that he will modify   
his conduct so as to secure the one and 
avoid the other4 ,finally1 besides the  
specific tendencies to respond to the   
presence1 the feelings1 the actions1 and
 the thoughts of others1 man displays a 
capacity for social behavior4 ,and1 as  
is the case with all native capacities1 
man has1 therefore1 a native interest in
 group or social activity for its own   
sake4  ,the predominantly social        
character of human behavior has thus a  
twofold explanation4 ,it is based1 in   
the first place1 on the group of native 
tendencies of a social character to     
which we have already referred4 ,it is  

based1 secondly1 on the necessity for   
group activity and coperation which the 
individual experiences in the           
satisfaction of his egoistic impulses   
and desires4 ,man1 because of his       
original tendencies1 wants to live1 act1
 think1 and feel with others2 for the   
satisfaction of his nonsocial impulses  
he must live with others4 ,and in       
civilized society human action from     
almost earliest childhood is in1 and    
with reference to1 a group4 ,human      
behavior is thus seen to be that of an  
essentially social nature acting in an  
essentially social environment4 ,and1 as
 in the case of other instinctive and   
habitual activities1 human beings       
experience in social activity an        
immediate satisfaction apart from any   
satisfactions toward which it may be the
 instrument4  ,,gregariousness4 ,the    
herd instinct is manifested by many     
animals very low in the scale of animal 
development4 ,mc,dougall quotes in this 
connection ,francis ,galton's classical 

account of this instinct in its crudest 
form3 ,describing the ,south ,african ox
 in ,damaraland1 he says he displays no 
affection for his fellows1 and hardly   
seems to notice their existence1 so long
 as he is among them2 but1 if he becomes
 separated from the herd1 he displays an
 extreme distress that will not let him 
rest until he succeeds in rejoining it1 
when he hastens to bury himself in the  
midst of it1 seeking the closest        
possible contact with the bodies of his 
fellows4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,mc,dougall3  
,social ,psychology1 p4 #hd4  ,this     
original tendency exhibits itself among 
human beings in a variety of ways4 ,the 
tendency of human beings to herd        
together1 for which there is evidence in
 the earliest history of the race1 may  
be observed on any crowded thoroughfare1
 or in any amusement park1 or city4     
,that group life has expanded partly    
through practical necessity1 is1 of     
course1 true1 but groups of humans tend 
to become1 as in our monster cities1    

larger than they need be1 or can be for 
economic efficiency4  ,the fascination  
of city life has not infrequently been  
set down to the multiplicity of         
opportunities offered in the way of     
companions1 amusements1 and occupations 
after one's own taste4 ,but the         
fascination has clearly a more          
instinctive basis1 the desire to be with
 other people4 ,many a man1 as has been 
pointed out1 lives in a large city as   
unsociable and secluded a life as if he 
were surrounded by miles of mountain or 
prairie1 who yet could not be happy     
elsewhere4 ,any one who has failed to be
 amused by a really good comedy when the
 theater was comparatively empty1 or in 
the presence of thousands of others     
hugely enjoyed a second-rate baseball   
game1 or gone down to the crowded       
shopping district to get what he could  
have purchased on a side-street uptown1 
can appreciate how instinctive is this  
undiscriminating desire for             
companionship4  ,the native intensity of

 this desire is what makes rural        
isolation1 on the other hand1 so        
unsatisfactory4 ,the bleakness of ,new  
,england country life as pictured in    
,edith ,wharton's ,ethan ,frome1 or in  
some of ,robert ,frost's ,north of      
,boston1 is due more than anything else 
to this privation from companionship4   
,perhaps nothing better could be said   
for the rural telephone1 the interurban 
trolley1 and the cheap automobile than  
that they make possible the fulfillment 
of this normal human longing to be near 
and with other people in body and       
spirit4 ,the horror which makes it      
practically impossible in civilized     
countries to legalize punishment by     
solitary confinement and the nervous    
collapse which such confinement brings  
about are indications of how deep-seated
 is this desire4  ,the herd instinct1   
like all the other of man's original    
tendencies1 is educable4 ,it can be     
trained to respond to groups of various 
sizes and kinds4 ,in its simplest       

manifestation it tends to be aroused by 
the family1 but in the history of       
civilization the group tends            
progressively to enlarge4 ,the family1  
the town1 the nation--the gregarious    
instinct may be educated to respond to  
these ever-widening groups4 ,the        
intensity and controlling power of this 
instinct over our actions seems to vary 
with the degree of intimacy and         
intercommunication between the          
individual and the group4 ,in primitive 
society it is most intense among the    
family and clan1 and the family still   
remains in civilized society1 certainly 
in rural districts1 a very closely knit 
primary group4 ,but as                  
intercommunication widens1 a sense of   
attachment to and solidarity with a     
larger group begins to make itself felt4
 ,that intercommunication is largely    
important in extending the group in     
response to which the herd instinct may 
be aroused1 is well illustrated by the  
utter lack of national group feeling    

exhibited during the ,great ,war by     
recruits drafted from the backwoods     
districts where they had been tied by no
 railroads or newspapers to the national
 civilization of which they were a part4
  ,the devotion of generous-hearted     
souls to lost causes1 whether political 
or religious1 of the individual to his  
family or friends in the face of        
personal privation1 are classic         
illustrations of the power of men's     
gregarious instinct even in the face of 
the dictates of reason4 ,in the perhaps 
extreme but nevertheless suggestive     
statement of ,mr4 ,trotter3  ,he man is 
more sensitive to the voice of the herd 
than to any other influence4 ,it can    
inhibit or stimulate his thought and    
conduct4 ,it is the source of his moral 
codes1 of the sanctions of his ethics   
and philosophy4 ,it can endow him with  
energy1 courage and endurance1 and can  
as easily take these away4 ,it can make 
him acquiesce in his own punishment1 and
 embrace his executioner1 submit to     

poverty1 bow to tyranny1 and sink       
without complaint under starvation4 ,not
 merely can it make him accept hardship 
and suffering unresistingly1 but it can 
make him accept as truth the explanation
 that his perfectly preventable         
afflictions are sublimely just and      
gentle4 ,it is this acme of the power of
 herd suggestion that is perhaps the    
most absolutely incontestable proof of  
the profoundly gregarious nature of     
man4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,trotter3         
,instincts of the ,herd in ,peace and   
,war1 pp4 #aad-ae4  ,to how large a     
group the individual can respond with   
spontaneous and instinctive loyalty is  
questionable4 ,the small child throws   
out his arms and exclaims passionately1 
,i love the whole world4 ,auguste ,comte
 could be imbued with a fervor for      
humanity in the abstract4 ,the idea of a
 ,league of ,nations arouses in some    
minds a passionate devotion to a world  
order that to those themselves          
habituated to an intense loyalty to the 

national group seems incredible4        
,certainly it is true that we rapidly   
outgrow that state of mind common to    
enthusiastic adolescence when we can    
develop a love for the universe in the  
abstract4 ,the instinct of              
gregariousness seems unquestionably to  
be most intense where there is intimacy 
and vividness of group association4 ,the
 primary groups1 as ,professor ,ross    
calls them1 are face-to-face            
associations1 the family1 the play      
group1 the neighborhood group4 ,if world
 patriotism is a possibility1 it is     
because rapid communication and the     
frequency of travel1 and the education  
of the industrial classes to the        
international mind tend to break down   
barriers and to make distant countries  
and persons vivid and directly          
imaginable4 ,but there seems to be no   
substitute for direct personal contact4 
,even devotion to a country tends to    
take the form of phrases1 places1       
persons1 and symbols1 to which we have  

been familiarized4  ,,gregariousness    
,,important ,,for ,,social ,,solidarity4
 ,the gregarious instinct1 powerful as  
it is1 is of the greatest significance  
for social solidarity1 and1 if          
misdirected1 for seriously limiting it4 
,it is1 in the first place1 the trait   
without which social solidarity would be
 almost impossible4 ,in early times when
 population was scanty1 it must have    
played an important part in social      
evolution by keeping men together1 and  
thereby occasioning the need for social 
laws and institutions4#a ,the coherence 
of national1 political1 or religious    
groups depends primarily on the extent  
to which the gregarious instinct may be 
aroused4 ,allegiance to a group may1 of 
course1 be secured through participation
 in common ideals4 ,this is illustrated 
in the case of the numerous literary and
 scientific associations that cut across
 national boundaries and knit into      
groups similarly interested persons all 
over the world4 ,groups may1 again1 be  

formed through common economic          
interests1 as in the case of labor      
unions1 or employers' associations4     
,groups may be knit and strengthened    
through law and custom4 ,and all these  
factors play a smaller or larger part in
 any important grouping of men in       
contemporary society4 ,but unless there 
is1 on the part of the members of the   
group1 a deep-seated emotional          
attachment to the group itself1         
solidarity will be very precarious4 ,the
 intensity and solidarity1 of feeling   
exhibited so markedly during war-time is
 made possible by the intense           
excitability of this instinct when the  
group is under conditions of stress or  
danger4 ,any scheme for enlisting a     
great number of individuals in modern   
society in a scheme of social reform or 
improvement1 must and does1 when it is  
successful1 arouse in him a heightened  
sense of loyalty to a group more than   
reasoned approval of a cause4 ,effective
 recruiting posters more often told the 

passer-by1 ,your country needs you1 than
 they attempted to convince him in      
black-and-white logic of the justice of 
his country's aims4  ,footnote #a3      
,mc,dougall3 ,social ,psychology1 p4    
#cja4  ,,gregariousness ,,may ,,hinder  
,,the ,,solidarity ,,of ,,large         
,,groups4 ,while gregariousness is the  
foundation of group solidarity1 it also 
interferes with the solidarity of large 
groups1 and not infrequently brings     
about conflicts between them1 and within
 groups themselves4 ,within even so     
small a community as a college class1   
cliques may form2 and so in a country1  
attachment to the smaller group may     
inhibit attachment to the larger4 ,an   
individual may be vaguely patriotic1 but
 instinctively aroused more by his own  
economic or local or racial group than  
by the country as a whole4 ,a man may at
 heart be more devoted to his town or   
home than to the ,united ,states4 7,not 
infrequently his town or home is what   
the ,united ,states means to the        

citizen47 ,even to-day the sectional    
feeling that exists in many parts of the
 country cannot be completely explained 
as occurring through separate economic  
interests4 ,the division of classes     
within a country is largely an economic 
matter1 but even in such a situation a  
loyalty develops to the class as a class
 or group4  ,again1 the same instinct to
 herd with his fellows that makes a man 
intensely loyal to his own group may    
operate to make him indifferent to the  
difficulties or jealous and suspicious  
of the aims of others ,gregariousness is
 the basis not only of patriotism1 but  
of chauvinism1 not only of civic pride1 
but of provincialism4 ,the narrowness   
and parochialism of group attachments is
 most pronounced where groups and       
communities are rigidly set off one from
 another4 ,in such circumstances        
community of feeling and understanding  
is largely reduced4 ,this may be seen   
even under contemporary conditions in   
the comparatively complete inability of 

different professional1 social1 and     
economic groups within the same society 
to understand each other1 and the       
proverbial ignorance and carelessness of
 one half of the population as to how   
the other half lives4 ,narrowness of    
group feeling tends to grow less        
pronounced under the mobile conditions  
of modern industry1 communication1 and  
education4 ,trade relations knit the    
farthest parts of the globe together2   
this morning's newspaper puts us in     
touch with the whole of mankind4 ,we    
have outgrown the days when every       
stranger was an enemy4 ,but though the  
barriers between nations are tending to 
break down1 within nations individuals  
tend1 as they grow older1 to experience 
an insulated devotion to their own set  
or social group1 a callous oblivion to  
the needs and desires of that great     
majority of mankind with whom they have 
a less keen sense of consciousness of   
kind4  ,,gregariousness ,,in ,,belief4  
,man's gregarious character1 as already 

pointed out1 is manifested not only in  
his desire to be physically with his    
fellows1 but to be at one with them in  
their actions1 feelings1 and thoughts4  
,beliefs once established tend to remain
 established if for no other reason than
 that they are believed in by the       
majority4 ,that an opinion gains        
prestige merely because we know other   
people believe it1 is frequently        
illustrated by the facility with which  
rumor travels4 ,at the end of the ,great
 ,war1 it will be recalled1 the false   
news of the armistice report flew from  
mouth to mouth and was accepted with the
 most amazing credulity simply because  
everybody said so4 ,the spread of       
superstitions and old wives' tales and  
their long lingering in the minds even  
of intelligent people is testimony that 
men tend mentally as well as physically 
to herd together4  ,the tendency to find
 comfort in the presence of one's       
fellows and uneasiness if too much      
separated from them1 is as pronounced in

 the sphere of moral and intellectual   
relations as it is in the case of merely
 physical proximity4 ,we like to be one 
of a crowd in our opinions and beliefs1 
as well as in our persons4 ,there is    
hardly anything more painful than the   
sense of being utterly alone in one's   
opinions4 ,even the extreme dissenter   
from the accustomed ways of thinking and
 feeling of the majority is associated  
with or pictures some little group which
 agrees with him4 ,and1 if we cannot    
find contemporaries to share our extreme
 opinions1 we at least imagine some     
ideal group now or in posterity to share
 it with us4  ,,gregariousness ,,in     
,,habits ,,of ,,action4 ,but if men tend
 to think in groups they tend more      
emphatically still to act in groups1 to 
be acutely uncomfortable when acting in 
a fashion different from that customary 
among the majority of their fellows4    
,habits of action are more deep-seated  
physiologically than habits of thought  
7which is one reason why our theories   

are so often in advance of our          
practice74 ,people will accede          
intellectually to new ideas which they  
would not and could not practice1 the   
mind being1 as it were1 more convertible
 than the emotions4 ,even in minor      
matters1 in dress1 speech1 and manners1 
we like to do the accustomed thing4 ,it 
is more painful for most people to use  
the wrong fork at dinner1 or to be      
dressed in a business suit where        
everyone else is in evening clothes1    
than to commit a fallacy1 or to act upon
 prejudices rather than upon logical    
conclusions4  ,the individual's         
instinctive desire to be identical in   
action with other members of his group1 
from the collars and clothes he wears to
 the way he brings up his children1 is  
greatly reinforced by the punishment    
meted out to those who differ from the  
majority4 ,this may vary from ridicule1 
as in the case of the laughter that     
greets the poet's proverbial long hair  
and flowing tie1 the foreigner's accent1

 or a straw hat in ,april1 to the       
confinement and privation that are the  
penalties for any marked infringement of
 the accepted modes of life4 ,even when 
the punishments are slight1 they are    
effective4 ,a man who has no moral or   
religious scruples with reference to    
gambling on any day of the week will1 to
 avoid the social ostracism of his      
neighbors1 refrain from playing cards on
 his front porch on ,sunday4 ,for no    
other reason than to avoid being        
consciously different1 many a man will  
not wear cool white clothes on a hot day
 in his office who will wear them on a  
cool evening at the seashore4  ,,the    
,,effect ,,of ,,gregariousness ,,on     
,,innovation4 ,a strong instinctive     
tendency to community of action and     
thought is in large part responsible for
 the comparative absence of innovation  
in either of these fields4 ,a premium is
 put upon the conventional1 the         
customary1 the common1 both in the      
instinctive satisfaction they give the  

individual1 and in the high value set   
upon them by society4 ,in advanced      
societies1 however1 the habit of inquiry
 and originality may itself come to be  
endorsed by the majority1 as it is among
 scientists and artists4 ,the herd      
instinct need not always act on the side
 of unreason4 ,among the intellectual   
classes1 it is already enlisted on the  
side of free inquiry1 which among       
scholars is the fundamental common      
habit4  ,if rationality were once to    
become really respectable1 if we feared 
the entertaining of an unverifiable     
opinion with the warmth with which we   
fear using the wrong implement at the   
dinner table1 if the thought of holding 
a prejudice disgusted us as does a foul 
disease1 then the dangers of man's      
suggestibility would be turned into     
advantages4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,trotter2  
loc4 cit41 p4 #de4  ,,sympathy 7,a      
,,specialization ,,of ,,gregariousness74
 ,sympathy1 in the strict psychological 
sense of the term1 means a suffering    

with1 the experiencing of any feeling or
 emotion when and because we observe in 
other persons or creatures the          
expression of that feeling of emotion4#b
 ,the behavior of animals exhibits the  
external features of sympathetic action 
very clearly4 ,two dogs begin to growl  
or fight1 and at once all the dogs      
within sound and sight stiffen          
themselves1 and show every symptom of   
anger4 ,or one beast in a herd stands   
arrested1 gazing in curiosity on some   
unfamiliar object1 and presently his    
fellows also1 to whom the object may be 
invisible1 display curiosity and come up
 to join in the examination of the      
object4#a  ,footnote #b3 ,mc,dougall3   
loc4 cit41 p4 #ib4  ,footnote #a3       
,mc,dougall3 loc4 cit41 p4 #ic4  ,human 
beings tend not only sympathetically to 
reproduce the instinctive actions of    
others1#b but they tend1 despite        
themselves1 to experience directly and  
immediately1 often involuntarily1 the   
emotions experienced and outwardly      

manifested by others4 ,almost everyone  
has had his mood heightened to at least 
kindly joy by the presence in a crowded 
street car of a young child whose       
inquiring prattle and light-hearted     
laughter were subdued by the gray       
restraints and responsibilities of      
maturity4 ,one melancholy face can crush
 the joy of a boisterous and cheerful   
party2#c the eagerness and enthusiasm of
 an orator can1 irrespective of the     
merits of the cause he is defending1    
provoke eagerness and enthusiasm for the
 same cause among an audience that does 
not in the least understand what the    
orator is talking about4  ,footnote #b3 
,in man infectious laughter or yawning1 
walking in step1 imitating the movements
 of a ropewalker1 while watching him1   
feeling a shock in one's legs when one  
sees a man falling1 and a hundred other 
occurrences of this kind are cases of   
physiological sympathy4 ,ribot3         
,psychology of the ,emotions1 p4 #bcb4  
,reproduction of the actions of others  

has by a certain school of philosophers 
and psychologists1 notably ,tarde1 ,le  
,bon1 and ,baldwin1 been ascribed to    
imitation4 ,but no experimental         
researches have revealed any such       
specific instinct to imitate 7see       
,thorndike1 p4 #gc ff471 and imitations 
of acts can generally be traced to      
sympathy1 or suggestion--which is       
sympathy on an intellectual plane4      
,footnote #c3 ,such expressions as kill 
joy1 wet blanket1 life of the party are 
instances of the popular appreciation of
 the fact of social contagion4  ,one    
brand of cigarettes was recently        
advertised by the face of a young       
soldier1 roguishly irresponsible1       
palpably and completely given over to   
joy4 ,one found one's self transported  
into something of this same mood before 
one had a chance to speculate at all as 
to whether there was any causal relation
 between the specific quality of tobacco
 the youngster was smoking1 and that    
contagious1 undeniable delight4 ,what is

 called personal magnetism is perhaps   
more than anything else the ability to  
provoke in others sympathetic           
experiences of pleasant and exhilarating
 emotions4  ,sensibility to the emotions
 of others1 though possessed by almost  
all individuals1 varies in degree4 ,the 
complete absence of it marks a man out  
as stolid1 cold1 callous1 brutal4 ,such 
a type of personality may be efficient  
and successful in pursuits requiring    
nothing besides a direct analysis of    
facts1 uncolored by any irrelevant      
access of feeling1 as in the case of    
mathematics and mechanics4 ,but the     
geniuses even in strictly intellectual  
fields have frequently been men of      
sensitiveness1 delicacy1 and            
responsiveness to the feelings of       
others4 ,that intellectual analysis1    
however1 does frequently blunt the      
poignancy of feeling is illustrated in  
the case of ,john ,stuart ,mill1 who    
writes in his ,autobiography3  ,analytic
 habits may thus even strengthen the    

associations between causes and effects1
 means and ends1 but tend altogether to 
weaken those which are1 to speak        
familiarly1 a mere matter of feeling4   
,they are1 therefore1 ,i thought1       
favorable to prudence and               
clear-sightedness1 but a perpetual worm 
at the root both of the passions and of 
the virtues2 and above all fearfully    
undermine all desires and 444 all except
 the purely physical and organic2 of the
 entire insufficiency of which to make  
life desirable1 no one had a stronger   
conviction than ,i had4444 ,all those to
 whom ,i looked up were of the opinion  
that the pleasure of sympathy with human
 beings1 and the feelings which made the
 good of others1 and especially of      
mankind on a large scale1 the object of 
existence1 were the greatest and surest 
sources of happiness4 ,of the truth of  
this ,i was convinced1 but to know that 
a feeling would make me happy if ,i had 
it1 did not give me the feeling4#a      
,footnote #a3 ,mill3 ,autobiography     

7,holt edition71 p4 #ach4  ,a generous  
degree of susceptibility to the emotions
 of others makes a man what is variously
 called mellow1 humane1 large-hearted1  
generous-souled4 ,the possession of such
 susceptibility is an asset1 first1 in  
that it enriches life for its possessor4
 ,it gives him a warm insight into the  
feelings1 emotions1 desires1 habits of  
mind and action of other people1 and    
gives to his experiences with them a    
vivid and personal significance not     
attainable by any hollow intellectual   
analysis4 ,it is an asset1 moreover1 in 
the purely utilitarian business of      
dealing with men4 ,the statesman or     
executive who deals with men as so many 
animate machines1 may achieve certain   
mechanical and arbitrary successes4 ,but
 he will be missing half the data on    
which his decisions must be based if he 
does not have a live and sensitive      
appreciation of how men feel when placed
 in given situations4 ,the placing of   
women in positions of labor management  

where women chiefly are to be dealt with
 is an illustration of the recognition  
of the importance of sympathy1          
fellow-feeling in the management of     
human affairs4 ,one of the reasons why  
many university scholars make poor      
teachers is because they cannot place   
themselves back at the point where a    
subject was as live and fresh and virgin
 to them as it is to their students4    
,an extraordinary degree or a decided   
hypertrophy of emotional susceptibility 
is as dangerous a trait as its          
possession in a reasonable degree is a  
utility and an enrichment of life4 ,it  
results in the hysteria or              
sentimentalism which adds to the real   
evils and difficulties of life fancied  
grievances and disasters4 ,such         
temperaments when confronted with any   
good or beautiful action dissolve into  
ecstasy1 and when faced with a problem  
or a difficulty dissolve into tears4    
,doctors will not treat their own       
children because the overplus of        

sympathy is a hindrance to action4      
,sentimental ladies are not the most    
efficient charity workers or prisoner   
reformers4  ,while there is a general   
tendency to experience sympathetically  
the feelings of others1 this becomes    
specialized in most people1 and one     
tends to experience most immediately and
 intensely the emotions of one's own    
kind1 physically1 socially1 and         
intellectually4 ,sympathy is a          
specialization of man's general         
gregariousness1 and becomes more        
specialized as one becomes habituated   
exclusively to a small group4 ,within   
this small group1 individuals not only  
experience the emotions of others1 but  
like to share and communicate their own 
emotions4  ,the nearer people are to us 
in mode of life1 social status1 and     
intellectual interests1 the closer is   
community of feeling and consciousness  
of kind4 ,two ,americans meeting in a   
foreign country have a quick and        
sympathetic understanding of each other4

 ,two alumni of the same college meeting
 in a distant city have a common basis  
of interest and feeling4  ,this easy    
give-and-take of feeling and emotion    
makes the deep attractiveness of        
intimate companionship4 ,our companion  
has but to mention a name or a place1   
and we experience the same associations1
 the pleasures1 or antipathies which he 
does4 ,a gesture1 a curious glance of   
the eye1 a pause1 we understand as      
quickly as if he had spoken a sentence4 
,but not only do we understand his      
feelings2 he 7or she7 understands ours4 
,and for most people1 all their         
interests and enjoyments are heightened 
by the presence of an intimately known  
companion4  ,many children manifest very
 clearly this tendency of active        
sympathy2 they demand that their every  
emotion shall be shared at once4 ,oh1   
come and look6 is their constant cry    
when out for a walk1 and every object   
that excites their curiosity or         
admiration is brought at once1 or       

pointed out1 to their companion4444 ,on 
the other hand1 another child1 brought  
up1 perhaps1 under identical conditions1
 but in whom this impulse is relatively 
weak1 will explore a garden1 interested 
and excited for hours together1 without 
once feeling the need for sympathy1     
without once calling on others to share 
his emotions4#a  ,footnote #a3          
,mc,dougall3 loc4 cit41 p4 #agb4  ,in   
adult life1 few people care to go to    
theater or concert alone1 and a man at a
 club will wander half through the      
dining-room until he will find some one 
with whom he will feel like sitting     
through a dinner conversation4  ,the    
fact that emotions exhibited in one     
individual are readily aroused in       
another makes art possible and makes it 
interesting4 ,a poet by a phrase1 a     
musician by a chord or melody1 can      
suddenly reproduce in us his own feeling
 of gayety or exaltation4 ,a painter by 
disposition of line and color can       
suggest the majesty of mountains1 or the

 sadness of a sunset as he himself has  
experienced it4 ,in novels and dramas we
 can relive the feelings that the writer
 imagines to have been experienced by   
others4 ,it is testimony to the easy    
excitability of sympathy as well as to  
an artist's skill that this can         
sometimes be done in a few lines or     
paragraphs4 ,witness the famous opening 
of ,poe's ,fall of the ,house of ,usher3
  ,during the whole of a dull1 dark1 and
 soundless day in the autumn of the     
year1 when the clouds hung oppressively 
low in the heavens1 ,i had been passing 
alone on horseback1 through a singularly
 dreary tract of country2 and at length 
found myself1 as the shades of evening  
drew on1 within view of the melancholy  
,house of ,usher4 ,i know not how it    
was--but1 with the first glimpse of the 
building1 a sense of insufferable gloom 
pervaded my spirit4 ,i say insufferable2
 for the feeling was unrelieved by any  
of that half-pleasurable1 because       
poetic1 sentiment1 with which the mind  

usually receives even the sternest      
natural images of the desolate or       
terrible4 ,i looked upon the scene      
before me--upon the mere house and the  
simple landscape features of the domain1
 upon the bleak walls1 upon the vacant  
eye-like windows1 upon a few rank       
sedges1 and upon a few white trunks of  
decayed trees--with an utter depression 
of soul which ,i can compare to no      
earthly sensation more properly than to 
the after-dream of the reveller upon    
opium2 the bitter lapse into everyday   
life1 the hideous dropping off of the   
veil4 ,there was an iciness1 a sinking1 
a sickening of the heart1 an unredeemed 
dreariness of thought which no goading  
of the imagination could torture into   
aught of the sublime4 ,what was it--,i  
paused to think--what was it that so    
unnerved me in the contemplation of the 
,house of ,usher8  ,to ,aristotle       
tragedy seemed to afford a cleansing or 
katharsis of the soul through the       
sympathetic experience of pity or fear4 

,to ,schopenhauer music was the greatest
 of the arts because it made us at one  
with the sorrows and the strivings of   
the world4 ,all the representative arts 
are vivid ways of making us feel with   
the passions or emotions that stir      
mankind4 ,and those men are poets1      
painters1 or musicians who1 besides     
having a unique gift of expression1     
whether in word1 tone1 or color1 have   
themselves an unusually high sensitivity
 to the moods of other men and to the   
imagined moods of the natural scenes    
among which they move4#a  ,footnote #a3 
,poets generally are so susceptible to  
emotional shades and nuances that they  
read them into situations where they are
 not present1 and then reproduce them   
sympathetically in their works4 ,the    
so-called pathetic fallacy is an        
excellent illustration of this4 ,poets  
sympathize with the emotions of a       
landscape1 emotions which were in the   
first place1 their own4  ,in experience1
 the presence or absence of genuine     

sympathy with the emotions of others    
determines to no small extent the       
character of our dealings with them4    
,even courts of justice take motives    
into account and juries have been known 
to ask for clemency for a murderer      
because of their keen realization of the
 provocation which he had undergone4    
,fellow-feeling with others may again   
warp our judgments or soften them2 in   
our judgment of the work of our friends1
 it is difficult altogether to discount 
our personal interest and affection4 ,on
 the other hand1 we may have the most   
sincere admiration and respect for a    
man1 and yet be seriously hampered in   
our dealings with him1 socially or      
professionally1 by a total lack of      
sympathy with his motives and desires4  
,,praise ,,and ,,blame4 ,an important   
part of man's social equipment is his   
susceptibility to the praise and blame  
of his fellows4 ,that is1 among the     
things which instinctively satisfy men  
are objective marks of praise or        

approval on the part of other people2   
among the things which annoy them1      
sometimes to the point of acute         
distress1 are marks of disapproval1     
scorn1 or blame4 ,this is illustrated   
most simply and directly in the         
satisfaction felt at intimate approval  
as by smiles1 pats1 kindly words1 or    
epithets applied by other people to     
one's own actions or ideas1 and the     
discomfort1 amounting sometimes to pain1
 that is felt at frowns1 hoots1 sneers1 
and epithets of scorn or derision4 ,one 
student of this subject notes as early  
as the fourth month a 'hurt' way of     
crying which seemed to indicate a sense 
of personal slight4 ,it was quite       
different from the cry of pain or that  
of anger1 but seemed about the same as  
the cry of fright4 ,the slightest tone  
of reproof would produce it4 ,on the    
other hand1 if people took notice and   
laughed and encouraged1 she was         
hilarious4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,cooley3    
,human ,nature and the ,social ,order1  

p4 #aff4  ,man's sensitiveness to praise
 and blame is paralleled by his         
instinctive tendency to express them4   
,smiles1 respectful stares1 and         
encouraging shouts occur1 ,i think1 as  
instinctive responses to relief from    
hunger1 rescue from fear1 gorgeous      
display1 instinctive acts of strength   
and daring1 victory1 and other          
impressive instinctive behavior that is 
harmless to the onlooker4 ,similarly1   
frowns1 hoots1 and sneers seem bound as 
original responses to the observation of
 empty-handedness1 deformity1 physical  
meanness1 pusillanimity1 and defect4 ,as
 in the case of all original tendencies1
 such behavior is early complicated and 
in the end much distorted1 by training2 
but the resulting total cannot be       
explained by nurture alone4#a  ,footnote
 #a3 ,thorndike3 ,educational           
,psychology1 ,briefer ,course1 pp4      
#cb-cc4  ,man's instinctive tendency to 
respond to praise and blame and to      
exhibit them is1 next to                

gregariousness--through which men in the
 first place are able to live           
together--the individual human trait    
most significant for social life4 ,for  
while the desire for praise1 the        
avoidance of blame1 and the expression  
of both are instinctive1 the occasions  
on which they are called forth depend on
 the traditions and group habits to     
which the individual has been exposed4  
,he soon learns that in the society in  
which he is living1 certain acts will   
bring him the praise of others2 certain 
other acts will bring him their         
disapproval4 ,the whole scope of his    
activity may thus be profoundly modified
 by the penalties and prizes in the way 
of praise and blame which society       
attaches to different modes of action4  
,and the more explicit and outward signs
 there are of the approval or scorn of  
others1 the more will individual action 
be subject to social control4  ,as      
,plato said so long ago and said so     
well3  ,whenever they the public crowd  

to the popular assembly1 the law courts1
 the theaters1 the camp1 or any public  
gathering of large bodies1 and there sit
 in a dense and uproarious mass to      
censure some of the things said or done1
 and applaud others1 always in excess2  
shouting and clapping1 until1 in        
addition to their own noise1 the rocks  
and the places wherein they are echo    
back redoubled the uproar of their      
censure and applause4 ,at such a moment1
 how is a young man1 think you1 to      
retain his self-possession8 ,can any    
private education that he has received  
hold out against such a torrent of      
censure and applause1 and avoid being   
swept away down the stream1 wherever it 
may lead1 until he is brought to adopt  
the language of these men as to what is 
honorable and dishonorable1 and to      
imitate all their practices1 and to     
become their very counterpart8#a        
,footnote #a3 ,plato3 ,republic 7,davies
 and ,vaughn translation71 p4 #bjh4  ,we
 have already had occasion to point out 

that education is the method by which   
society inculcates in its younger       
members habits which are regarded as    
socially beneficial4 ,in its broadest   
sense the whole social environment is an
 individual's education4 ,and it is an  
education chiefly through experience    
with other people1 discovering what they
 will and will not tolerate1 what they  
will cherish and what they will condemn4
  ,the elaborate paraphernalia and rites
 of fashion in clothes exist chiefly by 
virtue of their value as means of       
securing diffuse notice and approval4   
,the primitive sex display is now a     
minor cause3 women obviously dress for  
other women's eyes4 ,much the same is   
true of subservience to fashions in     
furniture1 food1 manners1 morals1 and   
religion4 ,the institution of tipping1  
which began1 perhaps1 in kindliness and 
was fostered by economic self-interest1 
is now well-nigh impregnable because no 
man is brave enough to withstand the    
scorn of a line of lackeys whom he      

heartily despises1 or of a few onlookers
 whom he will never see again4#b        
,footnote #b3 ,thorndike3 loc4 cit41 p4 
#cb4  ,one of the things we mean when we
 say a man is worldly-wise1 shrewd1     
knows human nature1 is that he knows    
what will win people's admiration1 and  
knows1 moreover1 to distinguish between 
that which they publicly condemn and    
secretly approve1 and vice versa4 ,in   
the passage quoted above ,plato was     
trying to show how the young ,athenian  
acquired not wisdom itself1 but worldly 
wisdom1 the ability to get along in     
affairs4 ,this he learned not from the  
professional teachers1 but from the     
,athenian public1 with whose approvals  
and disapprovals he came in daily       
contact4  ,,praise ,,and ,,blame        
,,modify ,,habit4 ,in order to avoid    
censure and gain the expressed approval 
of others1 people learn1 either1 as we  
say1 through bitter experience1 or      
deliberately1 to modify their actions4  
,the well-brought-up child1 even when   

its mother is not about and its appetite
 unsatisfied1 may be ashamed to say ,yes
 to a second offering of ice cream4 ,the
 ten-year-old who likes to be coddled by
 his mother in private would be acutely 
embarrassed to be babied in the presence
 of other people4 ,among adults1        
likewise1 actions are checked1 prompted1
 or modified by the praise and blame    
that have become habitually associated  
with them4 ,men like to appear virtuous1
 even if they do not like to practice   
virtue4 ,it is not only the professional
 politician who does generous acts for  
public approval1 nor is even the most   
disinterested and conscientious work    
altogether free from being affected by  
the expressed attitudes of approval or  
disapproval of other people4 ,even      
transportation companies have found that
 they can increase the efficiency of    
their employees by expressing in some   
form the approval of their employees'   
courtesy and loyalty4#a ,a man1 again1  
444 may fail to see any 'reason' why an 

elementary-school teacher or a          
second-division clerk cannot do his work
 properly after he has been 'put in his 
place' by some official who happens to  
combine personal callousness with social
 superiority4 ,but no statesman who did 
so could create an effective educational
 or clerical service4#b  ,footnote #a3  
,many transportation companies maintain 
a merit system4 ,sometimes they award   
special insignia1 as the green flag to  
the ,new ,york bus-drivers who save     
gasoline4  ,footnote #b3 ,wallas3 ,great
 ,society1 p4 #aig4  ,to say that we are
 moved to action by praise and blame is 
not to indicate that actions thus       
motivated are done in a spirit of       
hypocrisy or charlatanism4 ,even the    
most sincere acts are prompted or       
sustained1 especially where their       
performance involves serious personal   
privation or sacrifice1 by the imagined 
or actual approval of those whom we     
love1 admire1 or respect4 ,whose praise 
and blame individuals will care about   

depends on their education and          
temperamental differences4 ,that there  
will be some group1 however small1 is   
almost sure to be the case4 ,the poet   
who curls his lip at popular taste      
cherishes the more keenly the applause  
of those whom he regards as competent   
judges4 ,the martyr will be unmoved by  
the curses1 the jeers1 and the hoots of 
the contemporary multitude so long as he
 has the trust of his small band of     
comrades or faith that the ,lord        
approves his ways4 ,a man who is utterly
 alone in the approval of his actions is
 regarded as crazy or is driven so by   
the perpetual disesteem in which he is  
held4 ,there have been cases in         
literature and life of accused criminals
 who could bear up against the belief of
 the whole world in their guilt so long 
as one friend or kinsman had faith in   
them4 ,that faith gone1 they completely 
collapsed4  ,,desire ,,for ,,praise     
,,may ,,lead ,,to ,,the ,,profession    
,,rather ,,than ,,the ,,practice ,,of   

,,virtue4 ,while the desire for social  
approval is strong in most men1 so are  
other desires4 ,it happens1 moreover1   
that the actions to which men's         
instincts prompt them are not always    
such as would be approved by others4#a  
,in order1 therefore1 to have their cake
 and eat it1 to do what they please and 
yet seem to please others1 men often    
conceal the discrepancy between what    
they profess and what they practice4    
,one of the least agreeable features of 
civilized society is the extent to which
 the codes which men and groups profess 
differ from those by which they live4   
,men who have ostensibly ,christian     
codes of honor1 and1 indeed1 practice   
them in their private lives1 will have  
an actual ethics for business that they 
could not possibly sanction in their    
dealings as trustees of a church4 ,there
 are practices within trades and        
professions1 the familiar trade         
practices1 and ethics of the profession1
 which1 for social as well as for       

professional reasons1 their             
practitioners would not want known4     
,company manners are a trivial          
illustration of this1 but there are more
 serious instances4 ,one has but to     
recall the sensation created a few years
 ago when a minister of a fashionable   
congregation called upon his            
congregation to practice ,christianity1 
or1 on a superb scale1 ,tolstoy's       
leaving the estates and mode of life of 
a rich ,russian noble1 in order to live 
the simple life he regarded as          
prescribed by the ,christian teaching4#b
  ,footnote #a3 ,at least not publicly  
approved4 ,there is1 however1           
admiration1 often unconcealed1 for the  
man who does even an unusual act        
conspicuously well4 ,one need only      
mention a ,raffles or a ,captain ,kidd4 
,footnote #b3 ,see ,tolstoy's ,diary and
 ,confessions4  ,psychologically1       
therefore1 the cause of the discrepancy 
between the codes which men preach and  
profess and those which they practice1  

is thus seen to be a desire to secure   
illicit 7that is1 socially unsanctioned7
 satisfactions without incurring the    
penalty of social disapproval4 ,part of 
this discrepancy is not to be set down  
to the evils men actually do so much as 
the irrationality and fanaticism of the 
codes which they have been taught to    
profess4 ,this is the case1 for example1
 where excessive ,puritanism or         
fanaticism1 not possible for most men1  
is imposed upon them by an arbitrary and
 fanatical teaching4 ,they will then    
pretend to types of action socially     
regarded as virtues in order to avoid   
the penalties incurred by not practicing
 them4 ,the desire for respectability is
 responsible for no small amount of     
pretension1 illustrated pathetically in 
cases where individuals1 to satisfy the 
standards of their associates1 live     
beyond their means physically1 socially1
 or intellectually4#a  ,footnote #a3    
,many ,bostonians1 crede experto 7and   
inhabitants of other cities1 too1 ,i    

fear71 would be happier men and women   
to-day if they could once for all       
abandon the notion of keeping up a      
,musical ,self and without shame let    
people hear them call a symphony a      
nuisance4 ,james3 ,psychology1 vol4 ,i1 
p4 #caa4  ,again1 codes of action remain
 formally accepted long after they have 
ceased to be taken seriously4 ,in       
,states that went dry where there was no
 majority public sentiment in their     
favor1 bootlegging1 the illicit making  
and selling of whiskey1 was practiced   
freely1 because not many people regarded
 prohibition as a serious matter1 or its
 infringement as a serious crime4 ,legal
 codes remain not infrequently a        
generation behind public opinion1 and   
many ideas are verbally professed that  
nobody takes quite seriously4  ,,the    
,,social ,,effectiveness ,,of ,,praise  
,,and ,,blame4 ,how far the social      
estimates of approval and disapproval   
affect the conduct of the individual    
depends on the degree to which1 through 

education1 public opinion1 and law1 he  
is made part of the group4 ,in primitive
 society1 even the slightest details of 
conduct were regulated by the group1    
through an elaborate system of          
punishments for slight infringements4   
,in civilized society1 the development  
of a sense of personal selfhood and     
social recognition of its importance has
 to a degree freed individual action    
from complete domination by the group4  
,this has in part been compensated by   
the education of the contemporary       
citizen to national interests1 and      
social sympathy1 which render him       
susceptible to the praise and blame of  
public opinion4  ,the effectiveness of  
praise and blame in determining action  
depends also on the explicitness with   
which they are expressed4 ,in           
contemporary life the control of public 
opinion is made precarious because there
 is so rarely complete or palpable      
unanimity on any subject among the      
variety of groups that constitute a     

modern society4 ,in a large city there  
are so many groups1 so many sets of     
opinion1 that an individual may not feel
 any great pressure of praise and blame 
except from the small circle of people  
with whom he is associated4 ,in small   
communities action is restrained by the 
fear of ostracism or contempt of the    
whole group among whom one is living4   
,but in large cities1 where one may not 
be known by one's next-door neighbor1   
this restraint is much reduced4 ,the    
temptations of a metropolis1 so often   
referred to in the lurid literature of  
the day1 consist not in temptations more
 numerous than or different from those  
in smaller places1 but in the marked    
absence of social control as compared   
with small villages where every one     
knows everyone else's business4  ,the   
influence of the social estimate on     
individual conduct depends finally on   
individual differences in               
suggestibility4 ,in normal individuals  
susceptibility to the praise and blame  

of others is very high1 especially among
 the close circle of friends1           
professional and business associates    
among whom one moves4 ,this             
susceptibility is heightened when the   
praise or blame comes from persons      
superior in social status1 though here  
the element of fear of the consequences 
of displeasing is perhaps more important
 than the responsiveness to the praise  
and blame itself4 ,to the praise and    
blame of close associates most men are  
also highly suggestible1 not less so    
when there is equality in social status4
 ,birds of a feather flock together1 but
 humans tend to become similar because  
they flock together4 ,there are few men 
who can withstand the pressure of doing 
what their group approves1 and          
refraining from doing what it           
disapproves4  ,in some men              
susceptibility to the attitudes of      
others is extremely low1 and of such are
 both criminals and martyrs made4 ,in   
the prisons of this country there are a 

large number of men absolutely          
indifferent to the usual social         
standards1 completely undeterred by the 
codes of conduct by which other people  
cannot help but be governed4 ,such      
absolute callousness to the feelings    
which govern the majority of mankind as 
we read of every now and then in the    
trial of some desperate criminal1 is not
 infrequently associated with abnormally
 low intelligence1 the sodden stolidity 
of the traditional criminal type4 ,where
 it appears1 as it sometimes does1 in   
criminals of high intelligence1 it is   
regarded by psychiatrists as a specific 
abnormality1 comparable to              
color-blindness or a physical deformity4
  ,there are1 on the other hand1        
individuals whose apparent low          
suggestibility is of the highest social 
value4 ,there are striking instances1   
throughout the long struggle toward     
human liberty1 of persons who could     
withstand the public opinion of their   
own day in the light of some ideal which

 they cherished1 of men who needed no   
other approval than their consciences1  
their better selves1 or their god4      
,socrates drinking the fatal hemlock1   
,christ upon the cross1 the ,christian  
saints1 ,joan of ,arc1 the extreme      
dissenters of every generation1 are     
instances of men and women seemingly    
unmoved by the praise and blame of their
 contemporaries4 ,sustained by their    
deep inner conviction of the justice and
 significance of their mission1 they    
have been content to suffer scorn1      
ridicule1 and martyrdom at the hands of 
their own generation in a persistent    
devotion to what in their eyes          
constituted the highest good of mankind4
  ,,social ,,estimates ,,and ,,standards
 ,,of ,,conduct4 ,individuals are early 
habituated to the customs of the society
 in which they live1 and come to        
approve1 as might be expected from the  
power of men's habits and from their    
instinctive gregariousness1 those things
 which they or their companions have    

always done4 ,that people don't do such 
things1 or that everybody does them1 is 
a frequently assigned reason for the    
approval or condemnation of an act4     
,social approvals thus become affixed to
 acts which are regularly done by the   
majority1 and divergences are subjected 
to varying degrees of censure4 ,in      
civilized societies variations from     
customs that are not legally enforced   
are punished mainly by social ostracism4
 ,there is no law against walking down a
 crowded city street in ,elizabethan    
costume1 yet few would indulge their    
taste for beautiful but archaic dress in
 the face of all the ridicule they would
 incur4 ,the whole system of etiquette1 
of the standard of living of respectable
 society1 is maintained in large part   
because of the approvals and outward    
marks of admiration that go to some     
types of life and the contempt in which 
others are held4 ,much of the economic  
activity of the leisure class1 as       
,professor ,veblen has so well pointed  

out1 is devoted to wasting time and     
spending money conspicuously as outward 
indications that the individual is      
living up to established and approved   
standards4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,veblen3    
,theory of the ,leisure ,class4  ,the   
more significant folkways1 standards of 
importance and unimportance1 of the     
admirable and the despicable1 the noble 
and the base1 are determined by         
approvals and disapprovals that have    
become socially habitual4 ,when we speak
 of a country being imperialistic or    
materialistic1 we mean that most        
individuals in it1 or at least those who
 are articulate or influential1 perform 
or approve of actions leading to        
national or individual aggrandizement4  
,the amount of money1 time1 and energy  
that is spent on amusement1 public      
works1 education1 the army and navy is a
 fairly accurate gauge of the relative  
group approvals they have respectively  
secured4 ,in the same way the           
professions and occupations in which men

 engage are determined by the social    
prestige attaching to them no less than 
by economic considerations4 ,the pay of 
stenographers is no less than that of   
primary-school teachers2 it is often    
much more2 yet many a girl remains a    
teacher for the gentility which is      
traditionally associated with the       
profession4 ,in the same way many girls1
 in spite of the fact that they are     
economically and physically better off  
in domestic service than in factory     
work1 still prefer the latter because of
 the social inferiority which is        
associated with the servant's position4 
,approvals and disapprovals become fixed
 to acts1 in the first place1 because of
 some supposed danger or utility they   
possess4 ,but whether the acts are      
really socially useful or not1 approvals
 and censures once fixed tend to remain 
habitual1 even though the conditions    
which first called them forth are       
utterly changed4 ,we are to-day still   
more shocked by errors in etiquette than

 in logic2 we are still horrified by the
 infringement of a law which1 if we     
stopped to consider it1 is not now1 if  
it ever was1 of any genuine service to  
mankind4  ,in advanced societies        
approvals are not always reserved for   
the habitual4 ,certainly in science     
original research and discovery are     
generally welcomed4 ,in art originality 
is cherished1 at least by the           
discriminating4#a ,variation in action  
is for reasons discussed in other       
connections less generally welcomed4    
,but in advanced societies1 criticism   
and reflection upon social institutions 
and habits may themselves come to be    
sanctioned and encouraged4 ,already we  
are beginning to endow the scientific   
study of government and industrial      
relations1 and regarding with favor     
genuine inquiry into the possibilities  
of progress4  ,footnote #a3 ,even in art
 most people's approvals and            
disapprovals are fixed by what is called
 good taste1 which consists not         

infrequently in approving what other    
people approve4 sthetic approval thus   
becomes approval of the customarily     
recognized4 ,it took a ,ruskin to make  
the neglected genius of ,turner         
fashionable4 ,keats and ,byron were     
bitterly attacked by the orthodox       
critics of their generation4            
,,importance ,,of ,,relating ,,praise   
,,and ,,blame ,,to ,,socially           
,,important ,,conduct4 ,what people     
approve and disapprove1 if their        
approval becomes sufficiently emphatic1 
is fixed by law4 ,law is the official   
and permanent preservation and          
enforcement of public approval and      
condemnation4 ,when certain acts are    
regarded as of crucial importance1 the  
group does not depend on the precarious 
effectiveness of public opinion1 but    
deliberately attaches punishments to the
 performance of undesired acts1 and1    
more infrequently1 rewards to the       
practices of others4 ,most of our laws  
are enforcement of social condemnations1

 for the performance or the             
non-performance of specific acts1 rather
 than direct encouragements of action4  
,but which laws will be passed depends  
in the first place on social approval or
 public opinion4 ,and if1 as happens in 
our complicated political machinery1    
laws are passed which have not the      
sanction of widespread public approval1 
they remain dead letters4  ,outside the 
field of legal control1 individual      
action is controlled primarily by public
 opinion4 ,there are many practices1    
strictly speaking within the law1 that  
an increasingly enlightened public      
opinion will not sanction2 there are    
many practices encouraged by an         
enlightened public which no law compels4
 ,there is no law forcing business      
establishments to close every ,saturday 
during the summer1 yet many now do4     
,there are many courtesies practiced by 
them which are not ordained by law4     
,that adverse public opinion may have   
economic consequences if disregarded is 

evidenced by the powerful instrument the
 ,consumers' ,league found in           
advertising against firms that          
maintained particularly unsanitary and  
morally degrading working conditions for
 their employees1 or the dread that     
hotels and department stores have for   
adverse publicity4 ,the phenomenal      
development of modern advertising is an 
instance of the direct economic values  
that have been found in winning public  
approval4 ,there is more than metaphor  
in the statement made during the war    
that ,lord ,northcliffe1 as owner of a  
chain of ,english newspapers with an    
immense circulation1 was a cabinet      
minister without portfolio4  ,the growth
 of humanitarian sentiment has          
frequently enforced the improvement of  
labor and social conditions before      
improvements were made compulsory by    
law4 ,and in that field of personal     
relations1 which constitute so large a  
part of our daily life1 our conduct is  
controlled almost entirely by the force 

of the public opinion with which we come
 in contact4 ,there is much more        
courtesy and kindliness and coperation  
manifested in the ordinary contacts of  
life of a modern city than is required1 
or ever could be secured by statute4    
,,education ,,as ,,the ,,agency ,,of    
,,social ,,control4 ,there is enormous  
power in the habits of approval or      
disapproval to which we have1 in our    
early days1 been subjected by our       
parents1 teachers1 and companions4 ,it  
is through education1 in the broadest   
sense1 that the young come to learn1 and
 hence to practice1 those actions which 
are socially approved1 and by the same  
token to avoid those acts which are     
socially condemned4 ,through formal     
education the adult members of a society
 impress upon the plastic minds of the  
immature those habits of thought and    
action which are currently recognized as
 desirable4 ,education thus becomes the 
crucial instrument by which social      
standards are established and           

transmitted4  ,society exists through a 
process of transmission quite as much as
 biological life4 ,the transmission     
occurs by means of communication of     
habits of doing1 thinking1 and feeling1 
from the older to the younger4 ,without 
this communication of ideals1 hopes1    
expectations1 standards1 opinions1 from 
those members of society who are passing
 out of the group life to those who are 
coming into it1 society could not       
survive4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,dewey2       
,democracy and ,education1 pp4 #c-d4    
,society survives through education4    
,just as truly might it be said that the
 kind of society1 art1 culture1         
industry1 religion1 science that does   
survive depends on the kind of likes and
 dislikes that are through education    
made habitual in the young4  ,education1
 however1 may not only transmit existing
 standards1 but can be used to inculcate
 newer and better expectations and      
ideals4 ,in the adult1 habits are       
already set physiologically1 and kept   

rigid by the demands of economic life4  
,in the young there is a fairer and     
freer field4 ,through education the     
immature may be taught to approve ways  
of action more desirable than those     
which have become habitual with their   
adult contemporaries4 ,the children of  
to-day may acquire habits of action1    
feeling1 and thought that will be their 
enlightened practice as the adults of   
to-morrow4 ,all great social reformers1 
from ,plato to our own contemporaries   
like ,bertrand ,russell1 have seen in   
education1 therefore1 the chief         
instrument1 as it is the chief problem1 
of social betterment4 ,we may train the 
maturing generation to approve modes of 
behavior which the best minds of our    
time may have found reason to think     
desirable1 but which could not be       
substituted immediately for the fixed   
habits of the already adult generation4 
,,social ,,activity1 ,,and ,,the        
,,social ,,motive4 ,in our analysis of  
the social nature of man we have1 thus  

far1 been dealing with his specific     
social tendencies4 ,but apart from      
these1 or rather as an outgrowth of     
these1 men exhibit what ,professor      
,woodworth has well described as a gift 
for learning social behavior4           
,possessing1 as he eminently does1 the  
capacity for group activity1 man is     
interested in such activity4 ,he needs  
no ulterior motive to attract him to it4
 ,it is play for him4444 ,the social    
interest is part and parcel of the      
general objective interest of man4#a    
,footnote #a3 ,woodworth3 ,dynamic      
,psychology1 pp4 #bjb1 #bjc4  ,in other 
words1 the activity of man as an        
individual is not simply deflected a    
little by man's native gregariousness1  
sympathy1 and susceptibility to praise  
and blame4 ,rather1 group activity      
becomes to the gregarious human1 born   
into an environment where he must act   
with and among other human beings1 an   
interesting and exciting activity in and
 for itself4 ,men enjoy working in a    

group or a society for joint and common 
objects just as they enjoy food or      
musical composition or golf4  ,the      
social motive is of the same order as   
the musical or mathematical motive4     
,just as one who has the musical gift   
takes to music naturally and finds it   
interesting for its own sake1 so the    
socially gifted individual understands  
other people1 sees the possibilities of 
collective activity1 and the ways of    
cordinating it1 and enters into such    
doings with gusto4444 ,the social gift  
is a capacity for learning social       
behavior4 ,individuals differ in degree 
in the social gift1 as in other         
capacities2 some are capable of becoming
 creative artists or inventors along    
social lines4#a  ,footnote #a3          
,woodworth3 ,dynamic ,psychology1 p4    
#bjc4  ,the social behavior of man is   
thus seen to be no curious anomaly and  
contradiction in the life of an         
otherwise thoroughly egoistic           
individual4 ,man is instinctively       

social2 he finds social activity useful 
in the satisfaction of his own desires1 
and he comes from his native tendencies 
and acquired habits of social behavior  
to enjoy and take part in social        
activities for their own sake4 ,the     
individual does not have to be coerced  
into social activity2 he finds in such  
behavior the same pleasure that attends 
the fulfillment of any of his native or 
acquired reactions4 ,society has been   
variously pictured as a force holding   
the individual in check1 as an organism 
of which he is a part1 as a machine of  
which he is a cog4 ,society consists    
rather as the collective name for the   
coperative and associated activities of 
human beings who find such activity1 by 
nature and by habit1 interesting for its
 own sake4     ,,chapter ,,vi  ,,crucial
 ,,traits ,,in ,,social ,,life  ,,the   
,,interpenetration ,,of ,,human         
,,traits4 ,this chapter is devoted to a 
consideration of a number of individual 
human traits--curiosity1 pugnacity1     

leadership1 fear1 love1 hate1 etc41 and 
some of their more important social     
consequences4 ,these are seldom present 
in isolation4 ,a man is not1 under      
normal circumstances1 simply and solely 
pugnacious1 curious1 tired1 submissive1 
or acquisitive4 ,one's desire to own a  
particular house at a particular        
location may be complicated by the      
presence of several of these traits at  
once4 ,the house may be wanted simply as
 a possession1 a crude satisfaction of  
our native acquisitiveness4 ,it may be  
sought further as a mode of             
self-display1 an indication of how one  
has risen in the world4 ,its            
attractiveness may be heightened by the 
fact that it is situated next door to   
the house of a rather particularly      
companionable old friend4 ,it may be    
peculiarly indispensable to one's       
satisfaction because it is also being   
sought by a detested rival4 ,moreover1  
as we shall see in the discussion of the
 ,self1 these traits are interwoven with

 each other and attain varying degrees  
of power as motive forces in an         
individual's character4  ,but while     
these distinctive human traits are      
seldom apparent in isolation1 it is     
worth while to consider them separately1
 not only because the elements of human 
behavior will thus stand out more       
clearly1 but because in certain         
individuals one or another of           
these-traits may be natively of especial
 strength4 ,and further1 in differing   
social situations1 the possession or the
 cultivation of one or another of these 
native endowments may be of particular  
social value or danger4 ,and in any     
given situation1 one or another of them 
may be predominant1 as when a man is    
intensely angry1 or curious1 or tired4  
,thus an individual may have a marked   
capacity for leadership1 or an          
extraordinarily tireless curiosity1 or  
an abnormally developed pugnacity or    
acquisitiveness4 ,the capacity for      
leadership1 as will later be discussed  

in some detail1 will be of particular   
social value in large enterprises2      
patient and persistent inquiry may      
produce science2 pugnacity when freely  
expressed may provoke quarrels1         
bickerings1 and war4 ,in the following  
discussion1 the continual               
interpenetration and qualification of   
these traits by one another in a complex
 situation must be recognized4 ,else it 
may appear in the discussion of any     
single trait1 as if by means of it all  
human action were being explained4      
,rather the aim is to trace them as one 
might the elements in the pattern of a  
tapestry1 or the recurrent themes in the
 development of a symphony4 ,but as the 
symphony is more than a single melody1  
the tapestry more than one element of   
line or color1 so is human life more    
than any single trait4#a  ,footnote #a3 
,philosophers and others have time and  
again made the mistake of simplifying   
human life to a single motive or driving
 power4 ,hobbes rested his case on fear2

 ,bain and ,sutherland on sympathy2     
,tarde on imitation2 ,adam ,smith and   
,bentham on enlightened self-interest4  
,in our own day the ,freudians interpret
 everything as being sexual in its      
motive4 ,and most recently has come an  
interpretation of life1 as in ,bertrand 
,russell and ,helen ,marot1 in terms of 
the creative impulse4  ,,the ,,fighting 
,,instinct4 ,almost all men exhibit in  
varying degrees the fighting instinct2  
that is1 the tendency1 when interfered  
with in the performance of any action   
prompted by any other instinct1 to      
threaten1 attack1 and not infrequently1 
if successful in attack1 to punish and  
bully the individual interfering4  ,the 
most mean-spirited cur will angrily     
resent any attempt to take away its     
bone1 if it is hungry2 a healthy infant 
very early displays anger if its meal is
 interrupted1 and all through life most 
men find it difficult to suppress       
irritation on similar occasions4 ,in the
 animal world the most furious          

excitement of this instinct is provoked 
in the male of many species by any      
interference with the satisfaction of   
the sexual impulse4#b  ,footnote #b3    
,mc,dougall3 loc4 cit41 p4 #fj4  ,this  
original tendency to fight is very      
persistent in human beings1 but is      
susceptible of direction1 and is not1 in
 civilized life1 frequently revealed in 
its crude and direct form1 save among   
children and among adults under intense 
provocation and excitement4             
,occasionally1 however1 pugnacity is    
displayed in its simple animal form4    
,man shares with many of the animals the
 tendency to frighten his opponent by   
loud roars or bellowings4444 ,many a    
little boy has1 without example or      
suggestion1 suddenly taken to running   
with open mouth to bite the person who  
has angered him1 much to the distress of
 his parents4#a ,as the individual grows
 older1 he learns to control the outward
 and immediate expression of this       
powerful and persistent human trait4 ,he

 learns in his dealings with other      
people not to give way1 when frustrated 
in some action or ambition1 to mere     
animal rage4 ,the customs and manners to
 which a child is early subjected in    
civilized intercourse are effective     
hindrances to uncontrolled display of   
anger and pugnacity2 superior           
intelligence and education find more    
refined ways than kicking1 pummeling1   
and scratching of overcoming the        
interferences of others4 ,but even in   
gentle and cultured persons1 an insult1 
a disappointment1 a blow will provoke   
the tell-tale signs of pugnacity and    
anger1 the flushing of the cheeks1 the  
flash of the eye1 the incipient         
clenching of the fists1 the compressing 
of the teeth and lips1 and the trembling
 of the voice4 ,we substitute sarcasm   
for punching1 and find subtly civilized1
 and1 in the long run1 more terrible1   
ways than bruises of punishing those who
 oppose us in our play1 our passions1   
our professions4 ,but our ancestors were

 beasts of prey1 and there is still     
fighting in our blood4  ,footnote #a3   
,mc,dougall3 loc4 cit41 p4 #fa4  ,the   
fighting instinct is aroused by both    
personal and impersonal situations1 and 
is occasioned even by very slight       
interferences1 and even when the author 
of the interference is neither human nor
 animate4 ,quite intelligent men have   
been known to kick angrily at a door as 
if from pure malice it refused to open4 
,irate commuters have glared            
vindictively at trains they have just   
missed4 ,the glint of anger is roused in
 our eye by an insolent stare1 an ironic
 comment1 or an impertinent retort4 ,the
 boiling point varies in different      
individuals and races1 and pugnacity is 
generally more readily roused in men    
than in women4 ,there are some persons1 
like the proverbial ,irishman1 who1     
seeing the slightest opportunity for a  
fight1 want to know whether it is       
private1 or whether anybody can get in4 
,in most men pugnacity is more intense  

when it is provoked by persons2 except  
for a moment1 one does not try to fight 
a chair struck in the dark4  ,under the 
conditions of civilized life the        
primitive expression of pugnacity in    
physical combat has been outlawed and   
made unnecessary by law and custom4     
,individuals are prevented by the fear  
of punishment1 besides their early      
training and habits1 from settling      
disputes by physical force4 ,but as the 
instinct itself remains strong1 it must 
find some other outlet4 ,this it secures
 in more refined forms of rivalry1 in   
business and sport1 or1 all through     
human history1 in fighting between      
groups1 from the squabbling and         
perpetual raids and killings1 and the   
extermination of whole villages and     
tribes in ,central ,borneo1 to the wars 
between nations throughout ,european    
history4  ,,pugnacity ,a ,,menace ,,when
 ,,uncontrolled4 ,the strength and      
persistency of this human tendency1 when
 uncontrolled or when fostered between  

groups1 make it a very serious menace4  
,like all the other instincts1 and more 
than most1 it is frustrated and         
continually checked in the normal       
peace-time pursuits of contemporary     
civilization4 ,participation1           
imaginative at least1 in a great        
collective combat undoubtedly holds some
 fascination for the citizens of modern 
industrial society1 despite the         
large-scale horror which war is in      
itself1 and the desolation it leaves in 
its wake4 ,during peace the fighting    
instinct for most men receives          
satisfaction on a small scale1 sometimes
 in nothing more important than small   
bickerings and peevishness1 or in seeing
 at first hand or on the ticker a       
championship prize-fight4 ,the pessimism
 which many writers have expressed at   
the possibility of perpetual peace rests
 in part on their perception of the easy
 excitability and deep persistence of   
this impulse1 especially among the      
vigorous and young4  ,not only may the  

fighting instinct be aroused by the     
possibility of international wars1 but  
it may be used by fomenters and         
agitators to add a sense of intense     
pugnacity and violent anger to the      
genuine friction that does exist between
 conflicting interests in the same      
society4 ,the theory of a class war     
possibly finds its appeal for many minds
 as much in its picturesque stimulation 
of their instincts of pugnacity as in   
the logic of its economics4  ,,pugnacity
 ,,as ,a ,,beneficent ,,social ,,force4 
,while the power of pugnacity and its   
easy stimulation makes this instinct a  
peculiarly inflammable and dangerous    
motive force in civilized society1 it   
is1 on the other hand1 an indispensable 
source of social progress4 ,many        
psychologists and sociologists1 such as 
,mc,dougall1 ,bagehot1 and ,lang1       
attribute the superiority in culture and
 social organization of the ,european   
races over1 say1 the ,chinese and ,east 
,indians1 to the fighting instinct4 ,in 

the long series of wars that for        
centuries constituted much of the       
history of ,europe1 those nations which 
survived1 as in earlier times those     
tribes which survived combat1 were those
 which displayed marked qualities of    
superiority in allegiance1 fidelity1 and
 social coperation4 ,the intensity and  
effectiveness of social coperation in   
our own country was never so well       
illustrated as during the ,great ,war4  
,in combat between groups those groups  
survive which do stand out in these     
respects4  ,william ,james in a famous  
essay#a recognizes clearly the enormous 
value of the fighting instinct in       
stimulating action to an intense        
effectiveness exhibited under no other  
circumstances1 and proposes a moral     
equivalent for war--an army devoted to  
constructive enterprises1 reclaiming the
 waste places of the land1 warring      
against poverty and disease and the     
like4 ,certainly every great reform     
movement has been intensely stimulated  

and has gathered about it the energies  
of men when it has become a crusade for 
righteousness4 ,part of ,theodore       
,roosevelt's power was in his           
picturesque phrasing of political issues
 as if they were great moral struggles4 
,no one could forget1 or fail to have   
his heart beat a trifle faster at       
,roosevelt's trumpet call in the #aiab  
campaign3 ,we stand at ,armageddon and  
we battle for the ,lord4 ,his ,big      
,stick became a potent political symbol4
 ,astute political leaders have not     
failed to capitalize the fighting       
instinct1 and any social project will   
enlist the wider enthusiasm and the more
 energetic support if it is hailed as a 
battle or fight against somebody or     
something4  ,footnote #a3 ,a ,moral     
,equivalent of ,war1 in ,memories and   
,studies4  ,in personal life also the   
instinct of pugnacity and the feeling of
 anger that goes with it seem to set    
loose immense floods of reserve energy4 
,mc,dougall exaggerates but a trifle    

when he says it supplies the zest and   
determines the forms of all our games   
and recreations1 and nine tenths of the 
world's work is done by it4 ,our        
educational system is founded upon it2  
it is the social force underlying an    
immense amount of strenuous exertion2 to
 it we owe in a great measure even our  
science1 our literature1 and our art2   
for it is a strong1 perhaps an          
essential1 element of ambition1 that    
last infirmity of noble minds4#a ,in the
 overcoming of obstacles1 whether in the
 work itself1 or in the difficulties    
that a surgeon or a scholar meets with1 
or in frustrations deliberately put in  
our way by other people1 pugnacity is an
 invaluable stimulant and sustainer of  
action4 ,every great personality of     
strong convictions and dominant energy  
has possessed it to some extent2 in     
characters of great moral energy it     
sometimes takes the form of a volcanic  
and virtuous wrath1 as in the case of   
the ,prophets of the ,old ,testament1 or

 of later religious and social reformers
 who brought an earnest and bitter anger
 against the wrongs they saw and        
literally fought to overcome4  ,footnote
 #a3 ,mc,dougall3 loc4 cit41 p4 #bid4   
,,the ,,submissive ,,instinct4 ,of great
 importance in the social relations of  
men is their original tendency to find  
satisfaction in following1 partly       
submitting to1 or completely            
surrendering to a person or cause more  
dominating than the individual4         
,thorndike describes this instinct in   
its simplest form3  ,there is an        
original tendency to respond to the     
situation1 the presence of a human being
 larger than one's self1 of angry or    
mastering aspect1 and to blows and      
restraint by submissive behavior4 ,when 
weak from wounds1 sickness1 or fatigue1 
the tendency is stronger4 ,the man who  
is bigger1 who can outyell and outstare 
us1 who can hit us without our hitting  
him1 and who can keep us from moving1   
does originally extort a crestfallen1   

abashed physique and mind4 ,women in    
general are thus by original nature     
submissive to men in general4 ,every    
human being thus tends by original      
nature to arrive at a status of mastery 
or submission toward every other human  
being1 and even under the more          
intelligent customs of civilized life   
somewhat of the tendency persists in    
many men4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,thorndike3  
,educational ,psychology1 briefer       
course1 p4 #cd4  ,the impulse to follow 
and submit to something not ourselves   
and more dominating than ourselves is   
very strong in most men1 and is called  
out by stimuli much less violent than   
those physical manifestations of power  
mentioned in the above quotation4 ,men  
instinctively long to be led1 especially
 if1 as happens in the case of most     
individuals1 there is in them a marked  
absence of definite interest1           
conviction1 or skill4 ,this instinct is 
aroused by any sign of exceptional      
power1 or1 more generally still1 by any 

exceptional conspicuousness1 whether    
socially useful or not4 ,men follow     
leaders partly because men live in      
groups with common interests and in any 
large-scale organization leadership is  
necessary4 ,but the power of demagogues1
 the faithfulness with which men will   
follow a bad leader as well as a good1  
are evidence that men find an           
instinctive satisfaction in submission4 
,self-dependence stands out as a virtue 
or an accomplishment precisely because  
most men feel so utterly at sea without 
any loyalty1 allegiance1 or devotion4   
,any one who has spent a summer at a    
boy's camp will recall the helplessness 
of youngsters to mark out a program for 
themselves and to keep themselves happy 
on the one afternoon when there was no  
official program of play4 ,half the     
mischief performed on such occasions is 
initiated by some boy with just a little
 more independence and persuasiveness   
than the others4 ,and it is not only    
among children that there is evinced an 

almost pathetic bewilderment and unrest 
in the absence of a leader4 ,there is an
 equally pathetic and sometimes         
dangerous attachment among adults to the
 first sign of leadership that makes its
 appearance4 ,the demoralizing authority
 of the ward heeler is sometimes        
dependent on no more trustworthy an     
index of real power than a booming      
voice1 a rough camaraderie1 and a       
physically big personality4 ,and there  
are1 on the other hand1 instances where 
lack of leadership seemed to be the     
chief reason why certain classes of     
labor were unable to make their demands 
effective at a much earlier date than   
they did4 ,in the first really big      
strike in the telephone industry in     
,boston during the autumn of #aiah      
success seems to have been chiefly due  
to the remarkable leadership of one of  
the young women operators1 a type of    
leadership which seems to have appeared 
nowhere else in the telephone           
industry4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,see the     

article by ,wm4 ,hard in the ,new       
,republic1 ,may #c1 #aiai4  ,the        
instinct of submissiveness1 as has been 
pointed out in connection with the      
discussion of all the other of man's    
original tendencies1 is not only strong1
 but may find its outlets in attachment1
 both to desirable and to undesirable   
persons or objects4 ,once aroused1      
attachment and submission may become as 
stanch as they are blind4 ,the signs    
which arouse our loyalty may be and most
 frequently are glaring rather than     
important4 ,as ,trotter phrases it3     
,the rational basis of the relation     
following a leader is1 however1 seen to 
be at any rate open to discussion when  
we consider the qualities in a leader   
upon which his authority so often rests1
 for there can be little doubt that     
their appeal is more generally to       
instinct than to reason4 ,in ordinary   
politics it must be admitted that the   
gift of public speaking is of more      
decisive value than anything else4 ,if a

 man is fluent1 dextrous1 and ready on  
the platform1 he possesses the one      
indispensable requisite for             
statesmanship2 if in addition he has the
 gift of moving deeply the emotions of  
his hearers1 his capacity for guiding   
the infinite complexities of national   
life becomes undeniable4 ,experience has
 shown that no exceptional degree of any
 other capacity is necessary to make a  
successful leader4 ,there need be no    
specially arduous training1 no great    
weight of knowledge1 either of affairs  
or the human heart1 no receptiveness to 
new ideas1 no outlook into reality4#a   
,footnote #a3 ,trotter1 p4 #aaf4        
,though these be picturesquely          
exaggerated statements1 they do indicate
 the fact that the outward signs of     
leadership1 of a conspicuously emotional
 sort1 may be more significant in       
determining the attachments and         
loyalties of human beings1 than are     
genuine marks of capacity in the        
direction of political and social       

affairs4  ,this pronounced tendency on  
the part of human beings to follow a    
lead1 and anybody's lead1 as it were1   
has the most serious dangers4 ,it means 
that a man with qualities that sway     
men's emotions and stir their           
imaginations can attach to himself the  
profoundest loyalties for personal or   
class ends4 ,the gifts of personal      
magnetism1 of a kindly voice1 an air of 
confidence and calmness1 exuberant      
vitality1 and a sensitivity to other    
people's feelings1 along with some of   
the genuine qualities of effective and  
expert control of men and affairs1 may  
be used by a demagogue as well as by a  
really devoted servant of the popular   
good1 by an ,alcibiades as well as by a 
,garibaldi1 by a conquering ,napoleon as
 well as by a ,lincoln4  ,our instincts 
of following and submission1 apart from 
education1 are as easily aroused by     
specious signs of social power and      
conspicuousness as by signs of mental   
effectiveness and genuine altruistic    

interest4 ,the exploitation of these    
tendencies by selfish leaders is        
therefore particularly easy4 ,the large 
circulation of the yellow press1 the    
power in politics of the unscrupulous1  
the selfish1 and the second-rate1 are   
symptoms of how men's natural tendency  
to follow has been played upon in       
support of plans and ambitions which    
would not be sanctioned by their reason4
 ,the genius for leadership has been    
exhibited in criminal gangs1 in         
conquests and in fanaticism1 as well as 
in the promotion of good government1 of 
better labor conditions and better      
education4  ,but progress in these      
last-named is dependent on the          
utilization of men's submissiveness by  
leaders interested in the promotion of  
desirable social enterprises4 ,while men
 may be so easily led1 they are         
responsive to leadership in good        
directions as well as bad4 ,no great    
social movements1 the freeing of slaves1
 the gaining of universal suffrage1 the 

bettering of factory conditions1 freedom
 of thought and action1 could have      
gained headway if men had been born     
unwilling to follow4 ,there are 7see    
chapter ,,ix7 ineradicable differences  
in capacity between men1 and if the     
uninformed and the socially helpless    
could not be aroused to follow those    
great both in mind and magnanimity1 it  
is difficult to see how the lot of      
mankind ever could have1 or ever can    
improve4 ,a good leader may make men    
support1 out of instinctive loyalty1    
purposes and plans which1 if they       
completely understood them1 they would  
support out of reason4 ,up to the       
present most people have been1 and will 
probably remain for a long time to come1
 too ill-educated or too poorly endowed 
by nature to understand the bearings of 
the great social movements in which they
 are involved4 ,in consequence1 it is a 
matter of congratulation that their     
instinct of submission can be utilized  
in the interests of their welfare which 

they frequently not only do not know how
 to obtain1 but do not understand4 ,the 
,roman populace1 enchanted by ,augustus1
 follow him to greatness1 without       
comprehending the imperial destiny which
 they are helping to build4 ,the        
barbarian hordes affectionately         
following the lead of ,charlemagne      
incidentally help to build the whole    
edifice of ,european civilization4      
,,men ,,display ,,qualities ,,of        
,,leadership4 ,the obverse of man's     
tendency to follow a lead is1 of course1
 his tendency to take it4 ,individuals  
tend to display persistently and        
conspicuously just those qualities which
 will win them the allegiance of others4
  ,the instinct of self-display is      
manifested by many of the higher social 
or gregarious animals4444 ,perhaps among
 mammals the horse displays it most     
clearly4 ,the muscles of all parts are  
strongly innervated1 the creature holds 
himself erect1 his neck is arched1 his  
tail lifted1 his motions become         

superfluously vigorous and extensive1 he
 lifts his hoofs high in air as he      
parades before the eyes of his          
fellows4444 ,many children clearly      
exhibit this instinct of self-display2  
before they can walk or talk the impulse
 finds its satisfaction in the admiring 
gaze or plaudits of the family circle as
 each new acquirement is practiced2 a   
little later it is still more clearly   
expressed by the frequently repeated    
command1 ,see me do this1 or ,see how   
well ,i can do so and so2 and for many a
 child more than half the delight of    
riding on a pony1 of wearing a new coat1
 consists in the satisfaction of this   
instinct1 and vanishes if there be no   
spectators4#a  ,footnote #a3            
,mc,dougall2 loc4 cit41 pp4 #fb-fd4     
,individuals thus instinctively love to 
stand out from their fellows1 to        
outdistance and outclass them4 ,and the 
qualities of leadership are not         
infrequently stimulated by this         
competition with others1 for place1     

power1 distinction4 ,to win the         
allegiance and loyal affection of men   
means that one's own personality is     
enhanced2 one stands out as a man of    
affairs1 a social or political leader1 a
 guide to others in action or thought4  
,as has already been pointed out1 the   
qualities that will win the submission  
and loyalty of others vary widely4 ,in  
the case of one man it may be a charming
 smile and a gift of saying striking and
 stirring rather than significant       
things4 ,in the case of another it may  
be his air of immense confidence1       
restraint1 and reserve4 ,it may be brute
 force or a terrible earnestness2 it may
 even be1 as in the case of certain     
religious reformers1 extraordinary      
gentleness4 ,garibaldi inspired among   
men of the most various temperaments    
love that nothing could shake1 and      
devotion that fell little short of      
idolatry4 ,he enjoyed the worship and   
cast the spell of a legendary hero4     
,alcibiades charmed1 despite the patent 

evil he wrought1 by his magical personal
 beauty and grace4 ,vandamme said of    
,napoleon3 ,that devil of a man         
exercises on me a fascination that ,i   
cannot explain to myself1 and in such a 
degree that1 though ,i fear neither ,god
 nor devil1 when ,i am in his presence  
,i am ready to tremble like a child1 and
 he could make me go through the eye of 
a needle to throw myself into the fire4 
,augereau is stupefied at their first   
meeting1 and confesses afterwards that  
this little devil of a general has      
inspired him with awe4#a  ,footnote #a3 
,see chapter ,,xxi on ,personality in   
,ross's ,social ,control4  ,men's       
qualities of leadership depend1 however1
 not only on their personal charm1 but  
on certain seeming or genuine symptoms  
of effectiveness4 ,evidences of strong  
determination1 of a sweeping            
imagination1 of calm1 of confidence1 of 
enthusiasm1 of qualities possessed by   
the vast majority only in minor degrees1
 win men's admiration and devotion      

because they are associated with the    
ability to accomplish great ends1 to do 
the unusual1 to succeed where most      
people fail4 ,most men are so conscious 
of their limitations and the            
difficulties of any enterprise which    
they undertake that at any sign of      
exceptional talent1 whether real or     
apparent1 they will commit their        
respect1 their energies1 and sometimes1 
as in the case of a religious crusade1  
their lives4  ,for good or evil1 the    
possession1 the cultivation1 and the    
exhibition of the qualities of          
leadership give men enormous power4     
,there was in the nineteenth century a  
historical fashion1 brilliantly         
exemplified by ,carlyle1 to assume that 
history was made by great men4          
,latterly1 there has been wide dissent  
from this simplification of the         
processes of history1 but it is clear   
that innovations must be started by     
individuals1 and that a powerful leader 
is a matchless instrument for           

initiating1 and getting wide and        
enthusiastic support for changes1       
whether good or bad4 ,to quote          
,carlyle's eloquent exaggeration3  ,for1
 as ,i take it1 ,universal ,history1 the
 history of what man has accomplished in
 this world1 is at the bottom the       
,history of the ,great ,men who have    
worked here4 ,they were the leaders of  
men1 444 the creators of whatsoever the 
general mass of men contrived to do or  
to attain2 all things that we see       
standing accomplished in the world are  
properly the outer material result1 the 
practical realization and embodiment1 of
 thoughts that dwelt in the ,great ,men 
sent into the world3 the soul of the    
whole world's history1 it may justly be 
considered1 was the history of these4444
 ,could we see them well1 we should get 
some glimpses into the very marrow of   
the world's history4#a  ,footnote #a3   
,carlyle3 ,heroes and ,hero-,worship1   
,lecture ,i4  ,later ,nietzsche made    
much of this same idea1 of the ,superman

 striding through the world and changing
 its destiny1 although in ,nietzsche the
 ,superman was an end in himself rather 
than the servant of the world in which  
he lived4  ,to most historical writers  
to-day the forces at work in history are
 much too complex to be dismissed with  
any such simple melodrama4 ,but there   
remain striking testimonies of the      
influence of leaders4 ,the sweep of     
,mohammedanism into ,europe was         
initiated by the burning and contagious 
zeal of one religious enthusiast4 ,the  
campaign against slavery in this country
 assumed large proportions through the  
strenuous leadership of the ,garrisons  
and the ,wendell ,phillipses4 ,in our   
own day we have seen the same           
phenomenon2 the great political and     
social changes of the last generation   
have all had their special advocates and
 leaders who1 if they were merely       
expressing the spirit of the times1 yet 
did give that spirit expression4 ,every 
reform or revolution has its leading    

spirits4 ,that leadership is not the one
 essential goes without saying2 there   
have been great guides of repeatedly    
lost causes4 ,but many great causes may 
have been lost through the want of good 
leadership4  ,in contemporary life      
leadership is not always directly       
personal1 but is carried on through the 
medium of the newspapers and            
periodicals4 ,but this merely means that
 a leader may reach a wider audience2 he
 reaches thousands through picture and  
print1 instead of hundreds by word of   
mouth4  ,qualities of leadership may be 
utilized in the support of the customary
 or the established1 as well as in      
initiation and support of the novel4    
,people ape the great1 or those that    
pass for great1 in manners and morals4  
,the words of a distinguished public man
 have prestige in the maintenance of the
 established4 ,men will follow1 and if  
the socially conspicuous lead them along
 the ways of the established1 they will 
follow there as readily and1 being      

creatures of habit1 often more readily  
than along new paths4 ,the immense      
following among the lower social classes
 that the ,conservative ,party had in   
,england all through the nineteenth     
century in the face of proposed changes 
that would have bettered their own      
conditions1 is an interesting           
illustration of this4 ,this is partly   
because the influence of leaders is     
dependent on their social status as well
 as their personal qualities4 ,the      
opinions of inventors and big business  
men are taken with eagerness and        
credulity even when touching matters    
outside their own field4 ,a man is made1
 as it were1 ipso facto1 a leader1 by   
being rich1 powerful1 of a socially     
distinguished family1 or the director of
 a large industry1 although he may have1
 besides1 qualities of leadership that  
do not depend on his social position4   
,,man ,,pities ,,and ,,protects ,,weak  
,,and ,,suffering ,,things4 ,nearly all 
human beings exhibit a tendency to      

protect weak and suffering things4 ,this
 impulse is closely related to1 and     
probably has its origin in the parental 
instinct1 more common1 of course1 in    
women than in men4 ,the feeling of      
affectionate pity and the impulse to    
rescue from pain are most intense when  
the distressed thing is a child1 and    
particularly one's own4 ,one of the most
 poignant instances extant is the speech
 of ,andromache1 one of the ,trojan     
women in ,euripides's play of that name1
 to her child who is about to be slain  
by the ,greeks3    ,and none to pity    
thee6444 ,thou little thing1   ,that    
curlest in my arms1 what sweet scents   
cling   ,all round thy neck6 ,beloved2  
can it be   ,all nothing1 that this     
bosom cradled thee   ,and fostered2 all 
the weary nights wherethrough   ,i      
watched upon thy sickness1 till ,i grew 
,wasted with watching8 ,kiss me4 ,this  
one time2   ,not ever again4 ,put up    
thine arms and climb   ,about my neck2  
now kiss me1 lips to lips444   ,o ye    

have found an anguish that outstrips    
,all tortures of the ,east1 ye gentle   
,greeks6   ,why will ye slay this       
innocent that seeks   ,no wrong8444#a   
,footnote #a3 ,euripides3 '',trojan     
,women'' 7,gilbert ,murray translation71
 p4 #di4  ,but the tender emotion as    
,mc,dougall calls it1 is aroused by     
other children than one's own1 and by   
others than children4 ,it is called out 
particularly by things that are by      
nature helpless and delicate1 but may be
 aroused by adults who are placed in    
situations where they are suffering and 
powerless4 ,samson1 shorn of his        
strength1 has been a traditional        
occasion for pathos4 ,the sick1 the     
bereaved1 the down-and-outers1 the      
failures1 the forlorn and               
broken-hearted1 call out in most men an 
impulse to befriend and protect4 ,those 
who have been dealt with unjustly or    
severely by their associates and society
 and who have no redress1 the           
poverty-stricken1 the criminal who has  

been punished and remains an exile1 the 
maimed and deformed1 the widow and      
orphan1 all these1 arouse1 apart from   
the restraining force exercised by other
 instincts and habits1 such as anger and
 disgust1 a natural tendency to pity and
 aid4  ,the parental instinct in its    
direct and primitive form is responsible
 for the closeness of family relations1 
a most important consideration in the   
case of humans who have1 as already     
discussed1 a long period of infancy     
during which they are absolutely        
dependent on their elders4 ,in the      
higher species1 writes ,mc,dougall1 ,the
 protection and cherishing of the young 
is the constant and all-absorbing       
occupation of the mother1 to which she  
devotes all her energies1 and in the    
course of which she will at any time    
undergo privation1 pain1 and death4 ,the
 instinct becomes more powerful than any
 other1 and can override any other1 even
 fear itself4#b ,wherever the power of  
the parental instinct has waned1 as in  

,greek and ,roman society1 the          
civilization in which that degeneration 
occurred was subjected to rapid decay4#c
  ,footnote #b3 ,mc,dougall3 loc4 cit41 
p4 #fg4  ,footnote #c3 ,cf4 ,ibid41 p4  
#bga4  ,the parental instinct in its    
more general form of pity and           
protectiveness toward all weak and      
suffering things is1 in the minds of    
many moralists1 the origin of all       
altruistic sentiments and actions1 and  
at the same time the moral indignation  
which insists on the punishment of      
wrong-doers4 ,it is clearly apparent in 
such movements as the ,societies for the
 ,prevention of ,cruelty to ,children or
 to ,animals1 the antivivisection       
crusade1 and the like4 ,but according to
 such a distinguished moralist as ,john 
,stuart ,mill1 the whole system of      
justice and punishment has its origins  
in this tender feeling for those who    
have been wronged4  ,,fear4 ,fear is one
 of the least specialized of human      
traits1 being called out in a great     

variety of situations1 and resulting in 
a great variety of responses4 ,the most 
obvious symptom of fear is flight1 but  
there may be a dozen other responses4   
,crouching1 clinging1 starting1         
trembling1 remaining stock still1       
covering the eyes1 opening the mouth and
 eyes1 a temporary cessation followed by
 an acceleration of the heart-beat1     
difficulty in breathing1 paleness1      
sweating1 and erection of the hair are  
responses of which certain ones seem    
bound1 apart from training1 to certain  
situations1 such as sudden loud noises  
or clutches1 the sudden appearance of   
strange objects1 thunder and lightning1 
loneliness and the dark4#a  ,footnote   
#a3 ,thorndike3 loc4 cit41 p4 #bj4  ,in 
general1 the marked physical reactions  
and deep emotional disturbance that we  
call fear are aroused by anything loud  
or strange1 or that has outward signs of
 possible danger to ourselves1 such as a
 large wild animal approaching us4 ,in  
civilized man1 whose life is            

comparatively sheltered1 there are      
considerable individual differences in  
susceptibility to fear1 and in the      
intensity with which it controls the    
individual4 ,but there are certain      
typical situations that call it forth4  
,among young children1 and not much less
 so among adults1 fear is aroused by any
 sudden loud noise1 by strange men and  
strange animals1 black things and dark  
places1 vermin1 such as spiders and     
snakes1 among a great many adults fear  
of high places1 and1 among a few        
agaraphobia or fear of open spaces4#a   
,the deep-seatedness of fear has been   
explained by the fact that most of the  
things which instinctively arouse fear  
were1 in primitive life1 the source of  
very real danger and that under those   
conditions1 where it was absolutely     
essential to beware of the unfamiliar   
and the strange1 only those animals     
survived who were equipped with such a  
protective mechanism as fear provides4  
,footnote #a3 ,for a discussion of      

these1 see ,james3 ,psychology1 vol4    
,,ii1 p4 #dae ff4  ,the instinct of fear
 has important social consequences1     
especially as its influence is not      
infrequently clothed over with reasons4 
,in savage life1 as ,mc,dougall points  
out1 fear of physical punishment        
inflicted by the anger of his fellows   
must have been the great agent of       
discipline of primitive man2 through    
such fear he must first have learned to 
control and regulate his impulses in    
conformity with the needs of social     
life4#b ,in contemporary society fear is
 not so explicitly present1 but it is   
still a deep-seated power over men's    
lives4 ,fear of punishment may not be   
the only reason why citizens remain     
law-abiding1 but it is an important     
control over many of the less           
intelligent and the less socially       
minded4 ,in an unideal society there are
 still many who will do as much evil as 
is within the law1 and fear of the      
consequences of failing a course is     

among some contemporary undergraduates  
still an indispensable stimulus of      
study4  ,footnote #b3 ,mc,dougall3 loc4 
cit41 p4 #cjc4  ,fear plays a part1     
however1 not only in preventing people  
from breaking the law1 but often from   
living their lives freely and after     
their own convictions4 ,as has been     
strikingly pointed out by ,hilaire      
,belloc and ,hobson1 one of the greatest
 evils of our present hit-or-miss       
methods of employment is the fear of    
losing his job1 the uncomfortable       
feeling of insecurity often felt by the 
workingman who1 having so frequently    
nothing to store up against a rainy day1
 lives in perpetual fear of sickness or 
discharge4  ,in earlier times fear of   
the consequences of expressing dissent  
from established opinions and beliefs   
was one of the chief sources of social  
inertia4 ,where excommunication1        
torture1 and death followed dissent1 it 
is not surprising that men feared to be 
dissenters4 ,in contemporary society    

under normal conditions men have much   
less to fear in the way of punishment1  
but may accept the traditional and      
conventional because they fear the      
consequences of being different1 even if
 those consequences are not anything    
more serious than a personal snub4      
,while men fear to dissent because of   
the disapproval to which they may be    
subjected1 dissent1 the novel and       
strange in action and opinion are       
themselves feared by most men because of
 the unknown and unpredictable          
consequences to which they may lead4    
,men were at first afraid of the        
steam-engine and the locomotive4 ,men   
still fear novel political and social   
ideas before they can possibly          
understand what they have to be afraid  
of4 ,the fact that thought so           
continually turns up the novel and the  
strange is1 according to ,bertrand      
,russell1 precisely the reason why most 
men are afraid to think4 ,and fear of   
the novel1 the strange1 the unaccustomed

 is1 as in the case of many other       
instincts1 a perfectly natural means of 
protection that would otherwise have to 
be sought by elaborate processes of     
reason4 ,in what we call prudence1      
caution1 and care1 fear undoubtedly     
plays some part1 and ,plato long ago    
pointed out it is only the fool1 not the
 brave man1 who is utterly unafraid4l   
,footnote #a3 ,protagoras4              
,psychologists may be said to differ    
largely as to the utility of fear4 ,they
 are nearly all agreed that in the      
forest life which was man's originally1 
fear had its specific marked advantages4
 ,open spaces1 dark caverns1 loud noises
 were undoubtedly associated very       
frequently with danger to the primitive 
savage1 and an instinctive recoil from  
these centers of disaster was           
undoubtedly of survival value4 ,but     
there is an increasing tendency to      
discount the utility of fear in         
civilized life4 ,many of the            
manifestations of fear must be regarded 

as pathological1 rather than useful4444 
,a certain amount of timidity obviously 
adapts us to the world we live in1 but  
the fear paroxysm is surely altogether  
harmful to him who is its prey4#a       
,footnote #a3 ,james3 ,psychology1 vol4 
,,ii1 p4 #dai4  ,fear and worry1 which  
is a continuous form of fear1 in general
 hinder action rather than promote it4  
,in its extreme form it brings about    
complete paralysis1 as in the case of   
terror-stricken hunted animals4 ,when   
humans or animals are utterly terrified 
even death may result4 ,this fact that  
fear hinders action1 sometimes most     
seriously1 seems to some philosophic    
writers1 especially ,bertrand ,russell1 
a key fact for social life4 ,no         
institution1 he writes1 inspired by     
fear1 can further life4#b ,and in       
another connection3 ,in the world as we 
have been imagining it1 economic fear   
will be removed out of life4444 ,no one 
will be haunted by the dread of         
poverty4444 ,the unsuccessful           

professional man will not live in terror
 lest his children should sink in the   
scale4444 ,in such a world1 most of the 
terrors that lurk in the background of  
men's minds will no longer exist4#c ,in 
the daily lives of most men and women1  
fear plays a greater part than hope4 ,it
 is not so that life should be lived4#d 
,footnote #b3 ,bertrand ,russell3 ,why  
,men ,fight1 p4 #ahj4  ,footnote #c3    
,russell3 ,proposed ,roads to ,freedom1 
p4 #bjc4  ,footnote #d3 ,ibid41 p4 #ahf4
 7,italics mine47  ,,love ,,and ,,hate4 
,all human relations are qualified by   
the presence1 more or less intense1 of  
emotion4 ,human beings are not merely so
 many items that are coldly counted and 
handled1 as one counts and handles      
pounds of sugar and pieces of machinery4
 ,a man may thus regard human beings    
when he deals with them in mass1 or     
thinks of them in statistical tables or 
in the routine of a government office4  
,but human beings experience some       
emotional accompaniment in their        

dealings with individuals1 especially   
when face to face1 and experience more  
especially1 in varying degrees1 the     
emotions of love or hate4 ,these terms  
are here used in the general sense of   
the receptive1 positive1 or expansive   
attitude and the cold1 negative1        
repellent1 and contractual attitude     
toward others4 ,these may both be       
intense and consciously noted1 as in the
 case of long-cherished and deep        
affections or antipathies to different  
individuals4 ,they may appear as a      
half-realized sense of pleasure in the  
mere presence and poise of a person1 or 
a curious sense of discomfort and       
irritation at his appearance1 his voice1
 or his gesture4 ,these attitudes1 even 
when slight1 color and qualify our      
relations with other individuals4 ,they 
may1 in their larger manifestations1    
play so large a part1 that they must be 
considered separately1 and in detail4   
,,love4 ,love1 used in this broad sense1
 varies in intensity4 ,it may be nothing

 more--it certainly frequently starts as
 nothing more--than the feeling1 so     
native as to be fairly called           
instinctive1 of common sympathy1 fellow 
feeling1 immediate affinity with        
another4 ,the psychological origins of  
this disposition have already been noted
 in connection with man's tendency to   
experience sympathetically immediately  
the emotions of others4 ,every business 
man1 lawyer1 teacher1 any one who comes 
much into contact with a wide variety of
 people1 knows how1 antecedent to any   
experience with an individual's         
capacities or talents1 or even before   
one had a chance to draw any inferences 
from a person's walk1 his bearing1 or   
his clothing1 one may register an       
immediate like or dislike4 ,every one   
has had the experience in crossing a    
college campus or riding in a train or  
street car of noting1 in passing some   
one whom one has never seen before1 an  
immediate reaction of good-will and     
affection4 ,this has been charmingly    

expressed by a well-known ,english poet3
    ,the street sounds to the soldiers' 
tread1      ,and out we troop to see2   
,a single redcoat turns his head1       
,he turns and looks at me4    ,my man1  
from sky to sky's so far1      ,we never
 crossed before2    ,such leagues apart 
the world's ends are1      ,we're like  
to meet no more4    ,what thoughts at   
heart have you and ,i1      ,we cannot  
stop to tell2    ,but dead or living1   
drunk or dry1      ,soldier1 ,i wish you
 well4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,a4 ,e4         
,housman3 ,the ,shropshire ,lad 7,john  
,lane edition71 p4 #cb4  ,all affection 
for individuals probably starts in this 
immediate instinctive liking4 ,the first
 note that gives sociability a personal 
quality and raises the comrade into an  
incipient friend is doubtless sensuous  
affinity4 ,whatever reaction we may     
eventually make on an impression1 after 
it has had time to soak in and to merge 
in some practical or intellectual habit1
 its first assault is always on the     

senses2 and no sense is an indifferent  
organ4 ,each has1 so to speak1 its      
congenial rate of vibration1 and gives  
its stimuli a varying welcome4 ,little  
as we may attend to these instinctive   
hospitalities of sense1 they betray     
themselves in unjustified likes and     
dislikes felt for casual persons and    
things1 in the je ne sais quai that     
makes instinctive sympathy4#b ,from this
 immediate instinctive liking it may    
rise to deep personal attachments1      
strikingly manifested in friendship and 
love between the sexes1 both            
immemorially celebrated by poets and    
novelists4 ,love is aroused chiefly by  
persons1 and among persons1 especially  
in the case of sexual love1 most        
frequently by more or less physical     
beauty and attractiveness4 ,but         
affection may be aroused and is         
certainly sustained by other than merely
 physical qualities4  ,footnote #b3     
,santayana3 ,reason in ,society1 p4     
#aea4  ,it is provoked by what we call  

personal or social charm1 a genuine     
kindliness of manner1 an open-handed    
sincerity and frankness1                
considerateness1 gentleness1            
whimsicality4 ,which particular social  
graces will win our affections depends  
of course on our own interests1         
equipment1 and fund of instinctive and  
acquired sympathies4 ,popular psychology
 has in various proverbs hit at and not 
entirely missed some of the obvious and 
contradictory elements3 ,opposites      
attract1 ,birds of a feather flock      
together1 and so on4 ,intellectual      
qualities1 in persons of marked         
intellectual interests1 will also       
sustain friendship and deepen an        
instinctive liking4 ,friendships thus   
begin in accident and are continued     
through community of interest4 ,it is to
 be questioned whether merely striking  
intellectual qualities initiate a       
friendship4 ,they may command admiration
 and respect1 but liking1 friendship1   
and love have a more emotional and      

personal basis4  ,this same warm        
affectionate appreciation that nearly   
all people have for other persons1 fewer
 people--great poets1 philosophers1 and 
enthusiastic leaders of men--have for   
causes1 institutions1 and ideas4 ,one   
feels in the works of great thinkers the
 same warmth and loyalty to ideas and   
causes that ordinary people display     
toward their friends4 ,plato has given  
for all time the progress of love from  
attachment to a single individual       
through to institutions1 ideas1 and what
 he called mystically the idea of beauty
 itself4  ,for he who would proceed     
rightly in this matter should begin in  
youth to turn to beautiful forms2 and   
first1 if his instructor guide him      
rightly1 he should learn to love one    
such form only--out of that he should   
create fair thoughts1 and soon he will  
himself perceive that the beauty of one 
form is truly related to the beauty of  
another1 and then if beauty in general  
is his pursuit1 how foolish would he be 

not to recognize that the beauty in     
every form is one and the same6 ,and    
when he perceives this he will abate his
 violent love of the one1 which he will 
despise and deem a small thing1 and will
 become a lover of all beautiful forms2 
this will lead him on to consider that  
the beauty of the mind is more honorable
 than the beauty of the outward form4   
,so that if a virtuous soul have but a  
little comeliness1 he will be content to
 love and tend him444 until his beloved 
is compelled to contemplate and see the 
beauty of institutions and laws1 and    
understand that all is of one kindred2  
and that personal beauty is only a      
trifle2 and after laws and institutions1
 he will lead him on to the sciences1   
that he may see their beauty444 until at
 length he grows and waxes strong1 and  
at last the vision is revealed to him of
 a single science which is the science  
of beauty everywhere4l  ,footnote #a3   
,plato3 ,symposium 7,jowett             
translation71 p4 #ejb4  ,there have been

 again great scientists who have had the
 same warm affectionate devotion for    
their subject-matter that most men      
display toward persons4 ,there are      
scholars almost literally in love with  
their subjects4 ,there have been a      
greater number whose capacity for       
affection has extended to include the   
whole human race1 and1 indeed1 all      
animate creation4 ,such a type of       
character is beautifully exemplified in 
,saint ,francis of ,assisi3  ,in        
,francis all living creatures may truly 
be said to have found a friend and      
benefactor2 his great heart embraced all
 the men and women who sought his       
sympathy and advice1 and his pity for   
the dumb helplessness of suffering      
animals was deep and true4 ,he would    
lift the worm from his path lest a      
careless foot should crush it1 and would
 encourage his little sister grasshopper
 to perch upon his hand1 and chirp her  
song to his gentle ear4 ,he tamed the   
fierce wolf of ,gubbio1 and fed the     

robins with crumbs from his table4#a    
,footnote #a3 ,goff and ,kerr-,lawson3  
,assisi of ,saint ,francis1 p4 #aba4    
,and ,christ stands1 of course1 in the  
,christian world1 as the supreme symbol 
of love for mankind4  ,in ordinary men  
it is this generalized affection which  
is at the basis of any sustained        
interest in philanthropic or altruistic 
enterprises4 ,no less than a large and  
generous affection for humanity is      
required to enable men to endure for    
long the dreariness and disillusion so  
often incident to philanthropic work1   
the conflicts and disappointments of    
public administration4 ,certainly this  
is true of the first rank of statesmen2 
no characterization of ,lincoln fails to
 emphasize his essential humanity and   
tenderness4  ,disinterested love for    
humanity is normally most intense in the
 adolescent4#b ,the pressure of private 
concerns1 of one's narrowing interest in
 one's own career1 one's own family1 and
 small circle of friends1 the           

restriction of one's sympathies by fixed
 habits and circumscribed experience1   
all tend to dampen by middle age the    
ardor of the man who as an undergraduate
 at eighteen set out to make the world a
 better place to live in4 ,but more     
effective in dampening enthusiasm is the
 disillusion and weariness that set in  
after a period of exuberant and romantic
 benevolence to mankind in general4 ,we 
call pessimists1 writes a contemporary  
,french philosopher1 those who are in   
reality only disillusioned optimists4#a 
,so the cynic may be fairly described as
 a disheartened lover of men4 ,it is    
only an unusual gift of affectionate    
good-will that enables mature men1 after
 rough and disillusioning experiences in
 public life1 to maintain without       
sentimentality a genuine and persistent 
interest in the welfare of others4      
,those in whom the fund of human        
kindness is slender will1 and easily do1
 become cynical and hard4  ,footnote #b3
 ,simeon ,strunsky has somewhere        

remarked3 ,at eighteen a man is         
interested in causes2 at twenty-eight in
 commutation tickets4  ,footnote #a3    
,georges ,sorel3 ,reflection on         
,violence 7,english translation71 p4 #i4
  ,the attitude of affection for others 
is profoundly influential in stimulating
 our interest in specific individuals1  
and modifying our attitudes toward them4
 ,we cannot help being more interested  
in those for whom we entertain affection
 than in those to whom we are           
indifferent4 ,in the same way our       
judgments of our own friends1 families1 
and children are qualified by our       
affection for them4 ,parents and lovers 
are notoriously partial1 and a fair     
judgment of the work of our friends     
demands unusual clarity1 determination1 
and poise4  ,in a larger way the        
generally friendly attitude towards     
others1 genial expansive receptivity1 is
 at the basis of what is called charity 
for human weakness4 ,the gentle cynic   
can see and tolerate other men's        

weaknesses3   ,he knows how much of what
 men paint themselves   ,would blister  
in the light of what they are2   ,he    
sees how much of what was great now     
shares   ,an eminence transformed and   
ordinary2   ,he knows too much of what  
the world has hushed   ,in others1 to be
 loud now for himself4#b  ,footnote #b3 
,edwin ,arlington ,robinson3 ,ben       
,jonson ,entertains a ,man from         
,stratford1 in his ,man ,against the    
,sky4  ,the devoutly religious have     
displayed keen psychological insight    
when they made man's salvation dependent
 on ,god's charity1 and identified1 as  
did ,dante1 charity with love4#c        
,footnote #c3 ,love and the gentle heart
 are one and the same thing4 ,the ,new  
,life4 ,,xx 7son ,,xi7 ,amore e cor     
gentile son una cosa4 ,to ,dante the    
spontaneous impulse to love is the basis
 of all altruism4 ,to feel and to follow
 this impulse is to be truly noble1 to  
have a cor gentile1 a gentle heart4     
,,hate4 ,hate may be described as an    

extreme form of disaffection usually    
provoked by some marked interference    
with our activities1 desires1 or ideals4
 ,but in less intense degree the        
negative feeling towards others may be  
provoked immediately and unmistakably by
 most casual evidence of voice1 manner1 
or bearing4 ,such immediate revulsions  
of feeling contrast with the instances  
of instinctive sympathy previously      
cited1 and are as direct and            
uncontrollable4 ,even kindly disposed   
persons cannot help experiencing in the 
presence of some persons they have never
 seen before1 a half-conscious thrill of
 repulsion or a dislike colored with    
dread4 ,a shifting gaze1 a noticeably   
pretentious manner1 a marked            
obsequiousness1 a grating voice1 a      
chillness of demeanor1 a physical       
deformity1 these1 however little they   
may have to do with a person's genuine  
qualities1 do affect our attitudes      
toward them4 ,as the familiar verse has 
it3   ,i do not like you1 ,dr4 ,fell1   

,the reason why ,i cannot tell1   ,but  
this ,i know1 and know full well1   ,i  
do not like you1 ,dr4 ,fell4  ,we may   
later revise our estimates1 but the     
initial reaction is made1 and often     
remains as a subconscious qualification 
of our general attitude toward another4 
,people of worldly experience learn to  
trust their first reactions1 to size a  
man up almost intuitively1 and to be    
surprised if their first impressions go 
astray4  ,from this merely instinctive  
revulsion the negative attitude may rise
 to that terrible form of destructive   
antipathy which is hate1 as popularly   
understood4 ,in between lie degrees of  
dislike depending partly on the strength
 of the initial antipathy1 but equally  
so on the degree to which others1       
whether persons1 institutions1 or ideas1
 interfere with our activities1 desires1
 or ideals4 ,the man who seriously      
obstructs our love1 our pleasure1 or our
 ambition1 or who tries to do so1       
provokes hate1 and its concomitants of  

jealousy1 rage1 and pugnacity4 ,it is   
not only that we dislike the mere       
presence of the person 7in the opposite 
case the mere presence of the beloved   
object is a joy71 but we dislike it for 
what it portends in danger and threat to
 ourselves4 ,the more serious the evil  
or disaster for which a person comes to 
stand1 the more violent the hatred for  
him1 despite his personal fascinations4 
,the villain is not infrequently a      
damned smiling villain4  ,the           
provocation of hate is complicated by   
the fact that it is closely associated  
with fear4 ,we dislike those who        
threaten our happiness partly because we
 fear them4 ,and we fear1 as was pointed
 out in more detail in the discussion of
 that powerful human trait1 the         
unfamiliar1 the strange1 the startling1 
the unexpected4 ,the facility with which
 sensational newspapers can work up in  
an ignorant population a hate for       
foreign nations1 especially those of a  
totally alien civilization1 is made     

possible by the fear which these        
uninformed readers can feel at the      
dangerous possibilities of mysterious   
foreign hordes4 ,the fomenting of fear  
is in nearly all such cases a           
prerequisite to the fomenting of hate4  
,and the promotion of hate has          
historically been one of the frequent   
ingredients of international conflicts4 
,like love1 hate is profoundly          
influential in modifying our interest in
 persons and situations4 ,to dislike a  
person moderately is1 in his absence1 to
 be indifferent to him4 ,to dislike him 
intensely1 in a sense increases our     
interest in him1 though perversely4     
,just as we wish the beloved person to  
succeed1 to gain honor and reputation   
and wealth1 so we long for and rejoice  
in the downfall and discomfiture of our 
enemies4 ,thus writes the ,psalmist3    
,arise1 ,o ,lord1 save me1 my ,god2 for 
thou has smitten all mine enemies upon  
the cheekbone2 thou hast broken the     
teeth of the ungodly4444  ,thou hast    

also given me the necks of mine enemies 
that ,i might destroy those that hate   
me4  ,hate may be directed against      
persons1 and usually it is4 ,but hatred 
may be directed against institutions and
 ideas as well4 ,for many persons it    
will be impossible for a decade to      
listen to ,german music or the ,german  
language1 so closely have these become  
associated in their minds with ideas and
 practices which they detest4 ,to a     
dogmatic ,calvinist in the sixteenth    
century1 both an heretical creed and its
 practitioners1 were objects of         
abomination4 ,disappointed men may take 
out in a spleen and hatred of mankind   
their personal pique and balked desires4
  ,great hates may be present at the    
same time and in the same persons as    
great loves4 ,indeed for some persons   
strength in the one passion is          
impossible without a corresponding      
strength in its opposite4 ,we cannot    
help hating1 more or less1 not only     
those who interfere with our own        

welfare1 but with the welfare of those  
who1 being dear to us1 have become1 as  
we say1 a part of our lives4 ,thus      
writes ,bertrand ,russell in the        
introduction to his treatment of some of
 the radical social tendencies of our   
own day3  ,whatever bitterness or hate  
may be found in the movements which we  
are to examine1 it is not bitterness or 
hate1 but love1 that is their           
mainspring4 ,it is difficult not to hate
 those who torture the objects of our   
love4 ,though difficult1 it is not      
impossible2 but it requires a breadth of
 outlook1 and a comprehensiveness of    
understanding which are not easy to     
preserve amid a desperate contest4#a    
,footnote #a3 ,russell3 ,proposed ,roads
 to ,freedom1 pp4 xvii-xviii4  ,hate may
 thus be1 as great religious and social 
reformers illustrate1 invoked on the    
side of good as well as evil4 ,the      
prophets burned with a righteous        
indignation4 ,but hate is a violent and 
consuming passion1 bent on destroying   

obstacles rather than solving problems4 
,it consumes in hatred for individuals  
such energy as might more expeditiously 
be devoted to the improvement of the    
circumstances which make people do the  
mean or small or blind actions which    
arouse our wrath4 ,the complete meekness
 and humility preached by ,christ have  
not been taken literally by the natively
 pugnacious peoples of ,europe4 ,but as 
,james says suggestively3  ,love your   
enemies6 ,mark you not simply those who 
do not happen to be your friends1 but   
your enemies1 your positive and active  
enemies4 ,either this is a mere         
,oriental hyperbole1 a bit of verbal    
extravagance1 meaning only that we      
should1 in so far as we can1 abate our  
animosities1 or else it is sincere and  
literal4 ,outside of certain cases of   
intimate individual relation1 it seldom 
has been taken literally4 ,yet it makes 
one ask the question3 ,can there in     
general be a level of emotion so        
unifying1 so obliterative of differences

 between man and man1 that even enmity  
may come to be an irrelevant            
circumstance and fail to inhibit the    
friendlier interests aroused4 ,if       
positive well-wishing could attain so   
supreme a degree of excitement1 those   
who were swayed by it might well seem   
superhuman beings4 ,their life would be 
morally discrete from the lives of other
 men1 and there is no saying444 what the
 effects might be3 they might           
conceivably transform the world4#a      
,footnote #a3 ,james3 ,varieties of     
,religious ,experience1 p4 #bhc4        
,dislikes1 disagreements1 native        
antipathies are not to be abolished1    
human differences being ineradicable and
 human interests1 even in an ideal      
society1 being in conflict4 ,but a      
keener appreciation of other viewpoints1
 which is possible through education1 a 
less violent concern with one's own     
personal interests to the exclusion of  
all others1 may greatly reduce the      
amount of hate current in the world1 and

 free men's energies in passions more   
positive in their fruits4     ,,chapter 
,,vii  ,,the ,,demand ,,for ,,privacy   
,,and ,,individuality  ,,privacy ,,and  
,,solitude4 ,although one of man's most 
powerful tendencies1 as has already been
 pointed out1 is his desire to be with  
his fellows1 this desire is not         
unqualified4 ,just as men can be        
satiated with too much eating1 and      
irritated by too much inactivity1 so men
 become fed up with companionship4 ,the 
demand for solitude and privacy is thus 
fundamentally a physiological demand1   
like the demand for rest4 ,the world is 
too much with us1 especially the human  
world4 ,companionship1 even of the most 
desirable kind1 exhausts nervous energy1
 and may become positively fatiguing and
 painful4 ,to crave solitude is thus not
 a sign of man's unsociability1 but a   
sign merely that sociability1 like any  
other human tendency1 becomes annoying1 
if too long or too strenuously indulged4
 ,much of the neurasthenia of city life 

has been attributed to the continual    
contact with other people1 and the total
 inability of most city dwellers to     
secure privacy for any considerable     
length of time4 ,in some people a       
lifelong habit of close contact with    
large numbers of people makes them      
abnormally gregarious1 so that solitude1
 the normal method of recuperation from 
companionship1 becomes unbearable4 ,few 
city dwellers have not felt after a     
period of isolation in some remote      
country place the need for the social   
stimulus of the city4 ,but a normal     
human life demands a certain proportion 
of solitude just as much as it demands  
the companionship of others4  ,with the 
spread of education and the general     
enhancement of the sense of personal    
selfhood and individuality among large  
numbers of people1 the demand for       
privacy has increased4 ,the modern      
reader is shocked to discover in the    
literature of the ,elizabethan period   
the amazing lack of a sense of privacy  

there exhibited4 ,in contemporary       
society this sense and the possibility  
of its satisfaction are variously       
displayed on different economic and     
social levels4 ,in the congested life of
 the tenements it is almost impossible1 
and many social evils are to be traced  
to the promiscuous mingling of large    
families 7and sometimes additional      
boarders7 in congested quarters4  ,the  
demand for privacy and solitude becomes 
acute among people who do a great deal  
of mental work4 ,man1 says ,nietzsche1  
cannot think in a herd1 and the thinker 
has traditionally been pictured as a    
solitary man4 ,this is because quiet    
seems to be1 for most men1 an essential 
condition of really creative thought4   
,there are some men who find it         
impossible to write when there is       
another person1 even one of whom they   
are fond1 in the same room4 ,no man1    
writes ,mr4 ,graham ,wallas1 is likely  
to produce creative thoughts 7either    
consciously or subconsciously7 if he is 

constantly interrupted by irregular     
noises4 ,constant association with other
 people means1 moreover1 continual      
distraction by conversation which       
seriously interrupts a consecutive train
 of thought4 ,the insistence in public  
and college reading rooms on absolute   
quiet is a device for securing as nearly
 as may be privacy in intellectual work4
  ,privacy is again demanded as a matter
 of emotional protection in individuals 
in whom there is a highly sensitive     
development of personal selfhood4 ,we   
like to keep our concerns to ourselves1 
or to share them only with those with   
whom we have a marked community of      
interest and feeling4 ,children love to 
have secrets they won't tell1 and older 
people1 especially sensitive and        
intelligent ones1 feel a peculiar sense 
of irritation at having their personal  
affairs and feelings publicly displayed4
 ,nearly everyone must recall occasions 
where he was vividly communicative and  
loquacious with a friend1 only to       

relapse into a clam-like silence on the 
entry of a third person4 ,this is       
primarily due to the fact that while men
 are by nature gregarious1 their        
gregariousness early becomes specialized
 and aroused exclusively by people for  
whom they develop a sense of personal   
affection and common sympathy4 ,any     
intrusion from without this circle      
becomes an intrusion upon privacy4      
,,satisfaction ,,in ,,personal          
,,possession3 ,,the ,,acquisitive       
,,instinct4 ,an almost universal human  
trait of considerable social consequence
 is the satisfaction men experience in  
having objects that are their own4 ,both
 animals and humans1 apart from         
training1 display a tendency to get and 
hold objects4 ,this tendency may take   
extreme forms1 as in the case of        
miserliness or kleptomania4 ,it is      
evidenced in special ways in the        
collections that children1 and some     
grown-ups1 make of miscellaneous objects
 without any particular use1 and with no

 particular sthetic value4  ,the objects
 which satisfy this instinct of         
possession may include material goods1  
family1 or larger groups4 ,in primitive 
tribes under the patriarchal system1 the
 patriarch practically owns the tribe4  
,our laws not so long ago recognized the
 marriage relation as a state in which  
the wife is possessed or owned by the   
husband4  ,possession gives the owner   
various kinds of satisfaction4 ,the     
instinctive satisfaction in possession  
itself may be quite irrespective of the 
values of the objects owned1 and        
deprivation may be fiercely resisted out
 of all proportion to the value of the  
objects4 ,especially will this be the   
case if the object possessed has become 
surrounded with other emotional         
attachments1 so that an individual may  
be as bitterly chagrined and piqued by  
being deprived of some slight memoir or 
keepsake as of a large sum of money4 ,in
 the same way the fighting spirit of a  
whole tribe or nation may be aroused by 

the invasion or seizure of a small and  
unimportant bit of land1 or by the      
chance of its possession4  ,the         
instinctive sense of satisfaction1 as in
 the last mentioned case is enhanced by 
the sense of importance which comes from
 possession1 and which enhances one's   
own individuality and personality4 ,a   
man's vast holdings in wealth1 land1    
factories1 machinery1 or private estates
 is1 in a sense1 regarded by him as an  
extension of his personality4 ,he is    
confirmed in this impression because it 
is so regarded by his neighbors and the 
whole social group4 ,a great landowner  
is a celebrity throughout the           
countryside1 and1 as ,mr4 ,veblen points
 out1 a large part of the luxurious     
display and expenditure of the leisure  
classes is their way of publicly and    
conspicuously indicating the amount of  
their possessions4  ,as in the case of  
any other strong native tendency1       
interference with the instinct of       
acquisition1 whether displayed by the   

individual or the group1 provokes often 
fierce anger and bitter combat4 ,the    
history of wars of aggrandizement       
throughout the history of ,europe are   
testimonies to the efficacy of this     
instinct at least in the initiation of  
war4  ,the progress of civilization     
beyond its earliest states is held1 by  
some sociologists and economists1 to be 
ascribed to the power of the acquisitive
 instinct4 ,the acquisition of material 
wealth or capital1 the development of   
the institution of private property with
 its concomitant individual development 
of land and natural resources is        
maintained by ,lester ,ward to be of    
paramount importance in social advance3 
444 ,objects of desire multiplied       
themselves and their possession became  
an end of effort4 ,slowly the notion of 
property came into being and in         
acquiring this1 as history shows1 the   
larger share of all human energy has    
been absorbed4 ,the ruling passion has  
for a time long anterior to any recorded

 annals always been proprietary         
acquisition4444 ,both the passion and   
the means of satisfying it were         
conditions to the development of society
 itself1 and rightly viewed they have   
also been leading factors in            
civilization4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,lester  
,ward3 ,the ,psychic ,factors of        
,civilization1 p4 #aef4  ,there are many
 other motives to activity than         
acquisition1 but there are many         
evidences of its intense operation even 
in modern society4 ,many men go on      
working long after they have money      
enough to enable them to live in        
comfort1 merely for the further         
satisfaction of this impulse4 ,while in 
the course of satisfaction of most other
 desires1 the point of satiety is soon  
reached1 the demands of this one grow   
greater without limit1 so that it knows 
no satiety4#a  ,footnote #a3            
,mc,dougall3 loc4 cit41 p4 #cbc4  ,the  
power of this tendency to personal      
acquisition and possession seems an     

obstacle to all thoroughly communistic  
forms of political and social           
organization4 ,the conception of a state
 where nobody owns anything1 but where  
all is owned in common--an idea which   
has been repeated in many modern forms  
of socialism and communism1 fails to    
note this powerful human difficulty4    
,many socialist writers1 it must be     
noted1 however1 point out that they wish
 social ownership of the means of       
production rather than of every item of 
personal property1 such as books1       
clothing1 and the like4  ,,individuality
 ,,in ,,opinion ,,and ,,belief4 ,men    
frequently display with regard to their 
opinions and beliefs the same passionate
 attachment that they exhibit with      
regard to their physical possessions4   
,like the latter1 these come to be      
regarded as an extension of the         
individual's personality1 and the same  
tenacious defense may be made of them as
 of a house1 land1 or money4            
,individual opinions and beliefs are not

 themselves possessions1 from a social  
point of view1 so much as is the right  
to express them4 ,a man's private       
opinion may influence his own conduct2  
his conduct itself may be an expression 
of opinion4 ,but unless an opinion is   
communicated1 it cannot influence any   
one else's conduct1 and society has     
never been much concerned about opinions
 that an individual harbored strictly in
 his own bosom4 ,silence1 socially1 is  
as good as assent4 ,the insistence on   
the right to one's own opinions becomes1
 therefore1 an insistence on the right  
or the freedom to express them4#b ,this 
right is cherished in varying degrees by
 different individuals in different     
ages4 ,it becomes pronounced in persons 
in whom there is marked development of  
individuality1 and1 in general1 where1  
as in ,anglo-,saxon countries1 a social 
and political tradition of liberty and  
individuality has become very powerful4 
,footnote #b3 ,beliefs and opinions may 
come to be regarded as important        

personal possessions in themselves1 as  
in the case of rival claimants to some  
theory or idea1 as in the case of       
,leibnitz's and ,newton's dispute over  
the calculus4  ,individuality in opinion
 and belief becomes critical chiefly    
when the opinions and beliefs expressed 
are at variance with those generally    
current among the group4 ,for reasons   
already discussed in connection with    
man's instinctive gregariousness and the
 emotional sway which habits of thought 
have over men1 dissent is regarded with 
suspicion4 ,especially is this the case 
where the dissenting opinions have to do
 with new social organization and       
custom4 ,the psychological causes of    
this opposition are various1 but include
 among other things a positive feeling  
of fear4  ,it is only recently that men 
have been abandoning the belief that the
 welfare of a state depends on rigid    
stability and on the preservation of its
 traditions and institutions unchanged4 
,wherever that belief prevails1 novel   

opinions are felt to be dangerous as    
well as annoying1 and any one who asks  
inconvenient questions about the why and
 the wherefore of accepted principles is
 considered a pestilent person4#a       
,footnote #a3 ,bury3 ,history of        
,freedom of ,thought1 p4 #i4            
,throughout history there has been a    
long struggle for freedom of thought and
 discussion1 and there have been great  
landmarks in the degree with which      
freedom was attained1 and the fields    
wherein it was permitted4 ,for a long   
time in the history of ,europe1 dissent 
from the prevailing opinion on religious
 matters was regarded both as abominable
 and socially dangerous1 and was        
severely punished4 ,since the middle of 
the nineteenth century there has been no
 legal punishment provided for dissent  
from established opinions in religion1  
although penalties for heterodoxy in    
countries where religious opinion is    
strong and fairly unanimous may be      
exerted in other ways4 ,in social       

matters also1 there has practically     
ceased to be legal coercion of          
opinion4#b ,the argument for the        
suppression of individual opinion has   
been tersely summarized by the author   
above quoted3  ,footnote #b3 ,except in 
the recent period of excitement and     
stress during the ,great ,war1 when     
suppression of opinion was1 for better  
or for worse1 taken as a measure of     
national defense4  ,those who have the  
responsibility of governing a society   
can argue that it is incumbent on them  
to prohibit the circulation of          
pernicious opinions as to prohibit any  
anti-social actions4 ,they can argue    
that a man may do far more harm by      
propagating anti-social doctrines than  
by stealing his neighbor's horse or     
making love to his neighbor's wife4     
,they are responsible for the welfare of
 the ,state1 and if they are convinced  
that an opinion is dangerous444 it is   
their duty to protect society against it
 as against any other danger4#a         

,footnote #a3 ,bury3 loc4 cit41 p4 #ac4 
,,the ,,social ,,importance ,,of        
,,individuality ,,in ,,opinion4 ,there  
have been many notable documents in     
support of the belief that society is   
the gainer and not the loser by         
permitting and encouraging individuality
 in thought and belief4 ,the following1 
taken from one of the most famous of    
these1 ,john ,stuart ,mill's ,essay on  
,liberty1 was written to illustrate the 
fatal results of prohibiting dissenting 
opinions merely because most people     
think or call them immoral3  ,mankind   
can hardly be too often reminded that   
there was once a man named ,socrates1   
between whom and the legal authorities  
and public opinion of his time there    
took place a memorable collision4 ,born 
in an age and country abounding in      
individual greatness1 this man has been 
handed down to us by those who best knew
 both him and the age1 as the most      
virtuous man in it4444 ,this            
acknowledged master of all the eminent  

thinkers who have since lived--whose    
fame1 still growing after two thousand  
years1 all but outweighs the whole      
remainder of the names which make his   
native city illustrious--was put to     
death by his countrymen1 after a        
judicial conviction1 for impiety and    
immorality4 ,impiety1 in denying the    
gods recognized by the ,state4444       
,immorality1 in being1 by his doctrines 
and instructions1 a corrupter of youth4 
,of these charges the tribunal1 there is
 every ground for believing1 honestly   
found him guilty1 and condemned the man 
who probably of all then born had       
deserved best of mankind to be put to   
death as a criminal4#b  ,footnote #b3   
,j4 ,s4 ,mill3 ,essay on ,liberty1 chap4
 ,,ii4  ,every important step in human  
progress has been a variation from the  
normal or accustomed1 something new4    
,most advances in science have been     
departures from older and accustomed    
ways of thinking4 ,through the          
permission and encouragement of         

individual variation in opinion we may  
discover in the first place that        
accepted beliefs are wrong4 ,galileo    
thought differently from the accepted   
,ptolemaic astronomy of his day1 and the
 demonstration of his diverging belief  
proved the ,ptolemaic astronomy to be   
wrong4 ,the evolutionary theory1        
bitterly attacked in its day1 replaced  
,cuvier's doctrine of the forms of life 
upon earth coming about through a series
 of successive catastrophes4 ,lyell1 in 
the face of the whole scientific world  
of his day1 insisted on the gradual and 
uniform development of the earth's      
surface4 ,half the scientific doctrines 
now accepted as axiomatic were bitterly 
denounced when they were first suggested
 by an inquiring minority4  ,milton in  
his famous ,areopagitica1 an address to 
,parliament written in #afdd1 protesting
 against the censorship of printing1    
stressed the importance of permitting   
liberty for the securing and developing 
of new ideas3  ,what should ye do then1 

should ye suppress all this flowery crop
 of knowledge and new light sprung up   
and yet springing daily in this city8   
,should ye set an oligarchy of twenty   
engrossers censors over it1 to bring a  
famine upon our minds again1 when we    
shall know nothing but what is measured 
us by their bushel8 444 ,that our hearts
 are now more capacious1 our thoughts   
more erected to the search and          
expectation of greatest and exactest    
things1 is the issue of your own virtue 
propagated in us2 ye cannot suppress    
that unless ye renforce an abrogated and
 merciless law4444 ,give me the liberty 
to know1 to utter1 and to argue freely  
according to conscience1 above all      
liberties4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,milton3    
,areopagitica4  ,even if the currently  
accepted doctrines prove to be true1    
there is1 as ,mill pointed out1 a vast  
social utility in permitting the        
expression of contrary opinion though it
 be an error4 ,new ideas1 however       
extreme1 may and commonly do possess    

some portion of truth2 they bring to    
light and emphasize some aspect or point
 of view which prevailing theories fail 
to note4 ,thus the possible             
over-emphasis of certain contemporary   
writers on the socialization of man's   
life is a valuable corrective to the    
equal over-emphasis on individualism    
which was current among so many thinkers
 during the nineteenth century4 ,the    
insistence with which present-day       
psychologists call our attention to the 
power of instinct1 though it may        
possibly be over-emphasized1            
counterbalances that tendency exhibited 
by such earlier authors as ,bentham to  
picture man as a purely rational being1 
whose every action was determined by    
sheer logic4  ,finally1 unless doctrines
 are subjected to criticism and inquiry1
 no matter how beneficial they are to   
society1 they will become merely futile 
and empty formul with very little beyond
 a mechanical influence on people's     
lives4 ,the maxims of conventional      

morality and religion which everybody   
believes and few practice are solemnly  
bandied about with little comprehension 
of their meaning and no tendency to act 
upon them4 ,a belief becomes1 as ,mill  
pointed out1 living1 vital1 and         
influential in the clash of controversy4
 ,whether novel and dissenting doctrines
 are true or false1 therefore1 the      
encouragement of their expression       
provides vitality and variation without 
which progress is not possible4  ,the   
social appreciation of persons who      
display marked individual opinions      
varies in different ages toward the same
 individual4 ,the martyr stoned to death
 by one generation becomes the hero and 
prophet of the next4 ,one has but to    
look back at the contemporary           
vilification and ridicule to which      
,lincoln was subjected to find an       
illustration4 ,or1 on a more monumental 
scale3  ,the event which took place on  
,calvary rather more than eighteen      
hundred years ago4 ,the man who left on 

the memory of those who witnessed his   
life and conversation such an impression
 of his moral grandeur that eighteen    
subsequent centuries have done homage to
 him as the ,almighty in person1 was    
ignominiously put to death1 as what8 ,as
 a blasphemer4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,mill3  
,essay on ,liberty1 chap4 ,,ii4  ,one   
would suppose that men would have       
learned not only to tolerate and be     
receptive to novelty in belief after    
these repeatedly tardy recognitions of  
greatness4 ,there are dozens of         
instances in the history of religious1  
social1 and political belief1 of men and
 women who1 suppressed with the         
bitterest cruelty in one generation1    
have been in effect1 and sometimes in   
fact1 canonized by posterity4 ,and a    
certain degree of tolerance and         
receptiveness has come to be the result4
 ,but while we no longer burn religious 
and social heretics1 condemnation is    
still meted out in some form of         
ostracism4 ,prejudice1 custom1 and      

special interest frequently move men to 
suppress in milder ways extremists1     
expression of whose opinions seems to   
them1 as unusual opinions have          
frequently seemed1 fraught only with the
 greatest of harm4     ,,chapter ,,viii 
,,the ,,development ,,of ,,the ,,self   
,,origin ,,and ,,development ,,of ,a    
,,sense ,,of ,,personal ,,selfhood4 ,the
 expression of individuality in opinion 
is only one way men have of expressing  
their personality1 individuality1 or    
self4 ,from the beginnings of childhood1
 men experience an increasing sense of  
personal selfhood which finds various   
outlets in action or thought4 ,so       
familiar1 indeed1 in the normal man is  
his realization that he is a self1 that 
it seldom occurs to him that this       
conception was an attainment gradually  
accomplished through long years of      
experience with the world about him4    
,the very young baby does not           
distinguish between ,itself and the     
,not-,self which constitutes the        

remainder of the universe4 ,it is       
nothing but a stream of experiences1 of 
moment to moment pulsations of desire1  
of hunger and satisfaction1 of bodily   
comfort and bodily pain4 ,as it grows   
older1 it begins dimly to distinguish   
between ,itself and ,everything-,else2  
it finds itself to be something         
different1 more vivid1 more personal and
 interesting than the chairs and tables1
 the crib and bottle1 the faces and     
hands1 the smiles and rattles that are  
its familiar setting4 ,it discovers that
 ,i am ,i1 and that everything else     
ministers to or frustrates or remains   
indifferent to its desires4 ,it becomes 
a person rather than a bundle of        
reactions4 ,it develops a consciousness 
of self4  ,in its simplest form this    
consciousness of self is nothing more   
than a continuous stream of inner       
organic sensations1 and the constant    
process of the body and limbs and the   
special interest of these as the seat of
 various pleasures and pains4 ,this is  

what ,james calls the bodily self4 ,as  
it grows older1 the baby distinguishes  
between persons and things4 ,and as1 in 
setting off his own body from other     
things1 it discovers its bodily self1 so
 in setting off its own opinions1       
actions1 and thoughts from other people1
 it discovers its social self4 ,it is   
because ,nature does in some degree the 
giftie gie us to see ourselves as others
 see us1 that we do discover our selves 
at all4 ,the normal human being1 if it  
were possible for him to grow up from   
birth onward in a purely physical       
environment1 deprived1 that is1 to say1 
of both animal and human companionship1 
would develop but a very crude and      
rudimentary idea of the self4#a         
,footnote #a3 ,mc,dougall3 loc4 cit41 p4
 #ahc4  ,,the ,,social ,,self4 ,a man's 
social self1 that is1 his consciousness 
of himself as set over against all the  
other individuals with whom he comes in 
contact1 develops as his relations with 
other people grow more complex and      

various4 ,a man's self1 apart from his  
mere physical body1 consists in his     
peculiar organization of instincts and  
habits4 ,in common language this        
constitutes his personality or          
character4 ,we can infer from it what he
 will1 as we say1 characteristically do 
in any given situation4 ,and a          
particular organization of instincts and
 habits is dependent very largely on the
 individual's social experience1 on the 
types and varieties of contact with     
other people that he has established4   
,there will be differences1 it goes     
without saying1 that depend on initial  
differences in native capacity4 ,but    
both the consciousness of self and the  
overt organization of instinctive and   
habitual actions are dependent primarily
 on the groups with which an individual 
comes in contact4 ,in the formation of  
habits1 both of action and thought1 the 
individual is affected1 as we have seen1
 largely by praise and blame4 ,he very  
early comes to detect signs of approval 

and disapproval1 and both his           
consciousness of his individuality and  
the character of that individuality are1
 in the case of most persons1 largely   
determined by these outward signs of the
 praise and blame of others4 ,and since1
 in normal experience1 a man comes into 
contact with several distinct groups1   
with varying codes of conduct1 he will  
really have a number of distinct        
personalities4 ,the professor is a      
different man in his class and at his   
club2 the judge displays a different    
character in the court and in the bosom 
of his family4  ,the self that comes to 
be most characteristic and distinctive  
of a man1 however1 is determined by the 
group with which he comes most          
habitually in contact1 or to whose      
approvals he has become most sensitive4 
,thus there develop certain typical     
personalities or characters1 such as    
those of the typical lawyer or soldier  
or judge4 ,their bearing1 action1 and   
consciousness of self are determined by 

the approvals and disapprovals of the   
group to which they are most completely 
and intimately exposed4  ,both the      
consciousness of self which most men    
experience and the overt expression of  
that selfhood in act are thus seen to be
 a more or less direct reflex of the    
praise and blame of the groups with     
which they are in contact4 ,men learn   
from experience with the praise and     
blame of others to place themselves     
socially1 to discover in the mirror of  
other men's opinions the status and     
locus of their own lives4 ,as we shall  
see in a succeeding section1 the degree 
of satisfaction which men experience in 
their consciousness of themselves is    
dependent intimately on the praise and  
blame by which their selfhood is1 in the
 first place1 largely determined4 ,in   
the chapter on the ,social ,nature of   
,man1 we examined in some detail the way
 in which praise and blame modified a   
man's habits4 ,the total result of this 
process is to give a man a certain fixed

 set of overt habits that constitute his
 character and a more or less fixed     
consciousness of that character4  ,on   
the other hand1 a man's character and   
self-consciousness may develop more or  
less independently of the immediate     
forces of the public opinion to which he
 is exposed4 ,one comes in contact in   
the course of his experience not merely 
with his immediate contemporaries1 but  
with a wide variety of moral traditions4
 ,except in the rigidly custom-bound    
life of primitive societies1 a man is1  
even in practical life1 exposed to a    
diversity of codes1 standards1 and      
expectations of behavior4 ,his family1  
his professional1 his political1 and his
 social groups expose him to various    
kinds of emphases and accent in         
behavior4 ,and a man of some            
intelligence1 education1 and culture may
 be determined in his action by         
standards whose origin is remote in     
time1 space1 and intention from those   
operative in the predominant public     

opinion of his day4 ,he may come to act 
habitually on the basis of ideal        
standards which he has himself set up   
through reflection1 or which he has     
acquired from some moral system or      
tradition1 far in advance of those which
 are the staple determinants of         
character for most of his               
contemporaries4 ,he may be one of those 
rare moral geniuses1 singularly         
unsusceptible to praise and blame1 who  
create a new ideal of character by the  
dominant individuality of their own4    
,or1 as more frequently happens1 he may 
follow the ideals set up by such a one1 
instead of accepting the orthodoxies    
which are generally observed4 ,he may   
follow ,christ instead of the           
,pharisees1 ,socrates instead of the    
habit-crusted citizens of ,athens4 ,we  
are1 indeed1 inclined to think of a man 
as a peculiarly distinctive personality1
 when his sense of selfhood1 and the    
overt actions in which that selfhood    
finds expression1 are not determined by 

the current dogmas of his day1 but by   
ideal standards to which he has         
reflectively given allegiance4 ,but so  
much is the self1 both in its           
consciousness and expression1 socially  
produced that men acting on purely      
imagined ideal standards1 current       
nowhere in their day and generation1    
have imagined a group1 no matter how    
small or how remote1 who would praise   
them or a ,god who noted and approved   
their ways4  ,,character ,,and ,,will4  
,from the foregoing it would appear that
 the self is an organization of habitual
 tendencies1 developed primarily through
 contact with other people and more     
specifically through their praise and   
blame4 ,and consciousness of self is the
 awareness of the unique or specific    
character of the habit-organization one 
has acquired4 ,individuals differ       
natively in given capacities1 and       
differences in fully developed          
personalities depend1 certainly in part1
 on innate initial differences4 ,but    

differences in the kinds of selfhood    
displayed and experienced by different  
men are due to something more than      
differences in native capacities and    
native desires4 ,the self that a man    
exhibits and of which he is conscious1  
at any given period of his life1 depends
 on the complex system of habits he has 
in the course of his experience         
developed4 ,one individual may1 as we   
have seen1 develop a number of sets of  
organized dispositions1 a multiple      
character1 as it were1 as a consequence 
of the multiplicity of groups with which
 he has come in contact4 ,but whether   
through deliberate or habitual          
conformity to one group as a norm1 or   
the deliberate organization of habits of
 action and feeling and thought1 on the 
basis of ideal or reflective standards1 
a man comes to develop a more or less   
permanent self4 ,that is1 while men     
start with somewhat similar native      
equipments1 each man's set of inborn    
tendencies comes to be fixed in a fairly

 definite and specific system4 ,while   
all men start within limits equally     
responsive and similarly responsive to  
all stimuli1 certain stimuli come to    
have the right of way4 ,they are more or
 less easily and more or less readily   
responded to1 according as they do or as
 they do not fit in with the            
habit-organization which the individual 
has previously acquired4  ,when we say  
that a man has no character or          
individuality1 we mean that he has      
developed no stable organization of     
actions1 feelings1 and thoughts1 with   
reference to which and by the           
predominant drive of which his actions  
are determined4 ,there is no particular 
system of behavior which he has come    
consciously to identify as his person or
 self2 no interweaving of motives and   
stimuli by the persistent momentum of   
which his conduct is controlled2 no     
single group of stimuli rather than     
another has1 in his pulpy person1       
attained priority in stimulating power4 

,such men are chameleons rather than    
characters4 ,their actions do not flow  
from a selfhood or individuality at all2
 they are merely the random results of  
the accidental situations in which such 
men find themselves4  ,the self exists1 
then1 as a well-defined1 systematic     
trend of behavior4 ,impulses to action  
attain a certain order of priority in an
 individual's conduct1 and it is by the 
momentum of these primary drives to     
action that his life is controlled4     
,what is commonly known as will is      
simply another name for the power and   
momentum of a man's personal self4 ,will
 exists not as a thing1 but as a        
process4 ,to will an action means to    
identify it consciously with one's      
permanent self1 to weigh and support it 
with all the emotions and energies      
connected with one's consciously        
realized habitual system of behavior4 ,a
 man may bring to bear on the           
accomplishment of a given action the    
deepest and most powerful motive forces 

of his developed personality4 ,to pass a
 course or make a team a student may    
marshal all the habits of loyalty1 of   
self-assertion 7and the emotional       
energies associated with them7 which    
have become the leading ingredients of  
his character4  ,the permanent self     
becomes involved in the same way in the 
case of willing not to perform a certain
 action4 ,any stimulus may1 on occasion1
 be strong even if it has ceased to be  
characteristic or habitual in a man's   
behavior4 ,this is particularly the case
 with some of the primary physical      
drives to action4 ,even the ascetic     
feels the strong sting of sense-desire4 
,a man in resisting temptation1 in      
denying the pressure of an immediate    
stimulus1 is setting up to block or     
inhibit it all the contrary reactions   
and emotions which have become part of  
the permanent self4 ,in more familiar   
language he is setting will over against
 desire4 ,the temporary desire may be   
strong1 but it is consciously regarded  

by the individual as alien to his real  
or better self4 ,and will is this whole 
complex organization of the permanent   
self set over against an alien intruding
 impulse4  ,the phenomenon of will      
contending against desire occurs usually
 when a stimulus not characteristically 
powerful in a man's conduct becomes so  
through special conditions of excitement
 or fatigue4 ,when a man is tired1 or   
stirred by violent emotion1 his         
systematic organization of habits begins
 to break down4 ,the ideal permanent or 
inclusive self is then brought into     
conflict with a temporary passion4 ,love
 conflicts with duty1 the lower with the
 higher self1 flesh with spirit1 desire 
with will4 ,few men have so thoroughly  
integrated a self that such conflicts   
altogether cease4 ,every one carries    
about with him a more or less divided   
soul4    ,fire and ice within me fight  
,beneath the suffocating night4  ,there 
are1 in the records of abnormal         
psychology1 many cases of really divided

 personalities1 cases of two or more    
completely separate habit-organizations 
inhabiting the same physical body4 ,such
 a complete ,dr4-,jekyll-and-,mr4-,hyde 
dissociation of a personality is clearly
 abnormal4 ,but it is almost as rare to 
find a completely integrated character4 
,we are all of us more or less multiple 
personalities4 ,our various             
personalities usually keep their place  
and do not interfere with each other4   
,our professional and family selves may 
be different2 they do not always        
collide4 ,but the various characters    
that we are in various situations not   
infrequently do clash4 ,the self whose  
keynote is ambition or learning may     
conflict with the self whose focus is   
love4    ,resolve to be thyself2 and    
know1 that he    ,who finds himself1    
loses his misery6  wrote ,matthew       
,arnold4 ,and it does seem to be true   
that a man whose will is never divided  
or confused by contending currents of   
desire1 whose character is unified and  

whose action is consistent1 is saved    
from the perturbations1 the confusions1 
the tossings of spirit which possess    
less organized souls4 ,but to find one's
 self1 and to keep one's self whole and 
undivided1 is a difficult achievement   
and a rare one4 ,even men whose         
interests and activities are fairly well
 defined find their characters divided  
and their wills1 consequently1 confused4
 ,a man's duties as a husband and father
 may conflict with his professional     
ambitions2 his love of adventure1 with  
his desire for wealth and social        
position2 his artistic interests1 with  
his philanthropic activities2 his       
business principles1 with his religious 
scruples4 ,a man can achieve a selfhood 
by thrusting out all interests save one1
 and achieving thereby unity at the     
expense of breadth4 ,there are men who  
choose to be1 and succeed in being1     
first and last1 scholars or poets or    
musicians or doctors4 ,all activities1  
interests1 and ideals that do not       

contribute to that particular and       
exclusive self are practically          
negligible in their conduct4 ,such men1 
although they have attained a permanent 
self1 have not achieved a broad1        
comprehensive1 or inclusive one4 ,they  
are like instruments which can sound    
only one note1 however clear that may   
be2 or like singers with only a single  
song4 ,all lives are necessarily finite 
and exclusive2 every choice of an       
interest or ideal very possibly         
precludes some other4 ,a man cannot be  
all things at once2 the philosopher and 
the lady-killer1 as ,james merrily      
remarks1 could not very well keep house 
in the same tenement of clay4 ,but a    
strong character need not necessarily   
mean a narrow one1 nor need a determined
 will be the will of a fanatic4 ,the    
self may be--in the case of rare        
geniuses it has been--diverse in its    
interests1 activities1 and sympathies1  
yet unified and consistent in action4 ,a
 character may be various without being 

confused2 versatility is not synonymous 
with chaos4 ,a man's interests and      
activities may be given a certain order1
 rank1 and proportion1 so that his life 
may exhibit at once the color1          
consistency1 clarity1 and variety of a  
finished symphony4  ,the consciousness  
of self which starts as a mere continuum
 of bodily sensations comes to be the   
net result of one's social and          
intellectual as well as physical        
activities4 ,the self of which we are   
conscious ceases to be our merely       
physical person1 and comes to include   
our possessions4 ,the house we live in  
and the garden we tend1 our children1   
our friends1 our opinions1 creations1 or
 inventions1 these become extensions and
 more or less inalienable parts of our  
personalities4 ,our selfhood includes   
not simply us1 but ours4  ,our          
possessions1 and especially such as are 
the fruits of our own actions1 are      
indications of what we are4 ,we judge1  
and within limits correctly1 of a man by

 the company he keeps1 the clothes he   
wears1 by the books he reads1 the       
pictures with which he decorates his    
home1 the kind of home he builds or has 
built4 ,and a man may feel as provoked  
by insult or injury to the person or    
things which have become an intimate    
part of his life as if he were being    
attacked in his physical person4 ,strip 
a man one by one of his physical        
acquisitions1 of his associates1 of the 
indications and mementos of the things  
he has thought and done1 and there would
 be no self left4 ,to speak of a man as 
a nonentity is to imply that he is no   
self worth speaking of2 that he can be  
blown about hither and thither2 that    
neither his opinions nor desires1 nor   
possessions1 nor associates make an iota
 of difference in the world4 ,a man who 
is a somebody1 a person to be reckoned  
with1 is one who is a self4 ,he is one  
whose physical possessions or personal  
abilities or standing in the community  
make him one of the powers that be4 ,and

 it is the desire to be a factor in the 
world1 to increase the scope and        
consequence of one's self that is the   
leading ingredient in what we call      
ambition1 and the desire for fame1 and  
at least one ingredient in the desire   
for wealth4 ,men may want wealth merely 
for the sake of possession1 or for      
bodily comfort1 but part of the desire  
consists in the ability thereby to      
spread one's influence1 to be one of the
 happy sons of earth1 who lord it over  
land and sea1 in the full-blown         
lustihood that wealth and power can     
give1 and before whom1 stiffen ourselves
 as we will 444 we cannot escape an     
emotion1 sneaking or open1 of dread4#a  
,footnote #a3 ,james3 ,psychology1 vol4 
,i1 p4 #bic4  ,,the ,,enhancement ,,of  
,,the ,,self4 ,the building-up of a more
 or less permanent self is natively     
satisfactory to most men1 and every     
means will be taken to increase its     
scope and influence4 ,biologically we   
are so constituted as to perform many   

acts making for our self-preservation4  
,the ordinary reflexes and instincts    
such as those which prompt us to eat1 to
 defend ourselves against blows and the 
threatening approach of animals1 to keep
 our equilibrium and recover our        
balance1 are examples of these4  ,the   
development and preservation of our     
social self is also made possible as it 
is initially prompted by our            
specifically social instincts4 ,there is
 a native tendency1 as already noted1 to
 get ourselves noticed by other people1 
to seek their praise and avoid their    
blame4 ,the instincts of self-display   
and leadership1 and many of the         
non-social instincts1 such as curiosity 
and acquisitiveness1 are frequently     
called into play in the service of the  
more directly social tendencies of the  
individual4 ,a large part of our        
activity1 whatever be its other motives1
 is determined to some degree by the    
desire to develop the social self1 to be
 a somebody1 to cut a figure in the     

world4  ,in the enlargement of the      
social self1 various people use various 
means1 and with varying degrees of      
vigor1 intensity1 and persistency4      
,there are a few who go through life    
with almost no sense of selfhood1 who go
 through their daily routine with no    
more recognition of their acts as their 
own than that displayed by an animal or 
a machine4 ,in most men the sense of    
their personality and their interest in 
it are high1 and the development of the 
self is sought in all possible or       
legitimate ways4 ,the ways in which the 
self is developed1 and the kind of self 
that is sought1 help to determine       
whether a man is self-seeking in the    
lowest sense of that epithet1 or        
idealistic and ambitious in the approved
 popular sense4  ,the kind of self we   
seek to build up depends1 as we have    
seen1 largely on the type of praise and 
blame and the general character of the  
moral tradition to which we have been   
exposed4 ,but whichever type of self a  

man does select as his ideal or         
permanent self1 all his activities will 
be more or less consciously and more or 
less consistently controlled by it4 ,his
 habits of action1 his habitual choices1
 his habitual feelings1 will be built up
 with this ideal self as a standard and 
control4 ,he will do those things which 
carry on toward the ideal self1 leave   
undone those things which do not4 ,the  
man or woman who wishes simply to cut a 
figure socially will cultivate the wit1 
the gayety1 the facility1 the smartness1
 which are the familiar ingredients of  
such a personality4 ,the same persons   
will be singularly blind to abysses of  
ignorance which would be painfully in   
the consciousness of those who had set  
up for themselves ideals of erudition   
and culture4 ,a laborer will live and   
move and have his being serenely in     
clothes and in surroundings that would  
never do for a professional man who had 
committed himself to live according to  
the social standards of his class4      

,sometimes a man's actions will be      
directed toward the construction of an  
ideal self1 on standards far in advance 
of those of his group4 ,a man in        
developing such a self is1 indeed1 in   
some cases practically committing social
 suicide4 ,the extreme dissenter from   
the current standards of action is      
attempting to build up what ,james has  
well called a spiritual self1 a self in 
the light of his own ideals1 rather than
 those current among his contemporaries4
  ,,egoism ,,versus ,,altruism4 ,the    
individual in developing his own        
personality need not1 necessarily1 be   
selfish1 nor is the enhancement of one's
 personality incompatible with altruism4
 ,one man may find his individuality    
sufficiently developed in a large bank  
account1 another in discovering a cure  
for cancer2 one man may seek nothing but
 gratification of his physical          
appetites2 another may find his         
fulfillment on the battlefield in       
defense of the national honor4 ,since   

man is born with the original tendencies
 to herd with and have common sympathies
 with his fellows1 and to pity those of 
them that are weak and distressed1 there
 is nothing more unnatural about        
altruism than about egoism4 ,it is true 
that in some men the so-called          
altruistic impulses1 the impulse to     
sympathize with the emotions1 feelings1 
aspirations and difficulties of others1 
and to pity them in their distress1 are 
comparatively weak2 that in some men the
 more obviously egoistic impulses1 such 
as the gratification of bodily desires1 
the acquisition of physical possessions 
are strong and uncontrollable4 ,but     
through education the altruistic and    
social impulses of men may be cultivated
 and strengthened1 so that they may     
become more powerful and dominant than  
even the urgency of physical desire4    
,man cannot live by bread alone1 and a  
man in whom a passion for reform or for 
religion1 for a cause or for a conquest 
has become strong1 will sacrifice food1 

sleep1 and physical comfort1 and may    
even find the satisfactory fulfillment  
of self in self-sacrifice and           
obliteration4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,this is 
partly because man's sense of selfhood  
is so largely socially conditioned and  
affected by praise and blame4 ,many a   
man in whom impulses of an egoistic sort
 are strong cannot resist the scorn of  
his gang1 club1 or clique4 ,in this     
sense even socially beneficial actions  
may be selfish4  ,the old distinction   
between egoism and altruism is thus an  
artificial one4 ,a genuinely altruistic 
individual derives satisfaction from the
 beneficent things he does1 though he   
does not1 as ,jeremy ,bentham supposed1 
calculate the benefits he will derive   
from his beneficence4 ,altruism is just 
as natural as egoism in its origins1    
though the impulses of self-preservation
 and personal physical satisfaction are 
natively stronger and more numerous4    
,but human beings can be educated to    
altruism1 and find the same satisfaction

 in service to others as individuals    
reared in less humane conditions find in
 satisfying their immediate physical    
desires4  ,,self-,,satisfaction ,,and   
,,dissatisfaction4 ,since the           
development of selfhood plays so large a
 part in human action1 it is natural    
that powerful emotions should be        
associated with it4 ,individuals become 
conscious of the kind of self they are  
and measure it favorably or unfavorably 
with the kind of self they would be4 ,in
 so far as the actuality they conceive  
themselves to be measures up to the     
ideal self1 to the fulfillment of which 
they have dedicated themselves1 they    
have a feeling of self-satisfaction1 of 
elation4 ,they are jubilant or          
crestfallen1 satisfied or dissatisfied  
with themselves1 in so far as they are  
in their own estimation making good4 ,in
 normal individuals1 these estimates of 
triumph and frustration are1 of course1 
colored and qualified by signs of       
approval and disapproval from other     

people4 ,there are very few--and these  
insanely conceited--in whom the opinions
 of others are not largely influential  
in determining their own estimates of   
themselves4  ,the emotions themselves of
 self-satisfaction and abasement are of 
a unique sort 444 each has its own      
peculiar physiognomical expression4 ,in 
self-satisfaction the extensor muscles  
are innervated1 the eye is strong and   
glorious1 the gait rolling and elastic1 
the nostril dilated1 and a peculiar     
smile plays upon the lips4 ,this complex
 of symptoms is seen in an exquisite way
 in lunatic asylums1 which always       
contain some patients who are literally 
mad with conceit1 and whose fatuous     
expression and absurdly strutting or    
swaggering gait is in tragic contrast   
with their lack of any valuable personal
 quality4 ,it is in these same castles  
of despair that we find the strongest   
examples of the opposite physiognomy1 in
 good people who think they have        
committed the unpardonable sin and are  

lost forever1 who crouch and cringe and 
slink from notice1 and are unable to    
speak aloud or look us in the eye4444   
,we ourselves know how the barometer of 
our self-esteem and confidence rises and
 falls from one day to another through  
causes that seem to be visceral and     
organic rather than rational1 and which 
certainly answer to no corresponding    
variations in the esteem in which we are
 held by our friends4#a  ,footnote #a3  
,james3 loc4 cit41 vol4 ,i1 p4 #cjg4    
,self-satisfaction depends1 as has been 
said1 on the kind of self we are aiming 
at1 and that in turn depends on the kind
 of self we are4 ,a professional        
bank-robber may take a craftsman's pride
 in the skill with which he has rifled a
 safe and made off with the booty1 just 
as a surgeon may take pride in a        
delicate operation1 or a dramatist in a 
play4 ,the ideal and the measure of     
satisfaction will again be determined by
 the group among whom we move4 ,the     
bank-robber will not boast of his       

exploits to a missionary conference2 the
 surgeon will prefer to explain the     
details of his achievement to medical   
men who can critically appreciate its   
technique4 ,the ideal self we set       
ourselves may far outreach our          
achievements1 considerable and generally
 applauded though these be4 ,a man may  
know in his heart how futile are his    
triumphs1 how far from the goals he     
cherished as young ideals4 ,many a      
brilliant comedian longs to play        
,hamlet2 the gifted and scholarly       
musician knows how easy it is to win an 
audience with sentimental and specious  
music4 ,the humility of genius has again
 and again been noted4 ,the more one    
knows the less one knows one knows4     
,many men attain self-satisfaction      
through negation1 through a serene      
surrender of the unattainable4 ,as the  
,epicureans counseled1 they increase    
their happiness by lessening their      
desires4 ,the content which middle-aged 
people exhibit is not so frequently to  

be traced to the dazzling character of  
their achievement as to their           
resignation to their station4 ,young    
people are moody and unhappy not        
infrequently because they cannot make a 
reconciliation between what they would  
be and what they are4 ,others again     
attain satisfaction vicariously in the  
achievements of others1 as mediocre     
fathers do in their brilliant children1 
or as sympathetic and interested people 
do in the whole world about them4  ,the 
magnanimity of these expansive natures  
is often touching indeed4 ,such persons 
can feel a sort of delicate rapture in  
thinking that1 however sick1            
ill-favored1 mean-conditioned1 and      
generally forsaken they may be1 they are
 yet integral parts of the whole of this
 brave world1 have a fellow's share in  
the strength of the dairy horses1 the   
happiness of the young people1 the      
wisdom of the wise ones1 and are not    
altogether without part or lot in the   
good fortunes of the ,vanderbilts and   

the ,hohenzollerns themselves4#a        
,footnote #a3 ,james3 loc4 cit41 vol4   
,i1 p4 #cac 7written in #ahij74  ,in    
some men a modicum of success will give 
a disproportionate sense of confidence  
and power4 ,the man to whom success has 
always come easily is not baffled by    
problems that would appall those who1 in
 middle life1 lie among the failures at 
the foot of the hill4 ,as ,goethe1 who  
had always been miraculously successful1
 said to one who came to complain to him
 about the difficulty of an undertaking3
 ,you have but to blow on your hands4   
,in a crowd one can hardly fail to note 
the easy air of competence and          
confidence that distinguishes the       
successful man of affairs4  ,,the       
,,contrast ,,between ,,the ,,self ,,and 
,,others4 ,the consciousness of self    
increases with the expression of        
personal opinion and power4 ,the man    
whose books are translated into half a  
dozen languages1 to whose lectures      
people come from all parts of the world1

 cannot help feeling an increased sense 
of importance1 although he may combine  
this consciousness with a sense of      
personal humility4 ,in the same way a   
man who exerts great social power1 who  
controls the economic lives of thousands
 of employees1 or whose benefactions in 
the way of libraries and charitable     
institutions dot the land1 develops     
inevitably a sense of his own selfhood  
as over against that of the group4 ,he  
begins to realize that he does make a   
significant difference in the world4    
,this was curiously illustrated in a    
speech delivered by ,andrew ,carnegie   
when1 after a prolonged absence in      
,europe1 he came back to the opening of 
the ,carnegie ,institute1 the building  
of which had cost him six million       
dollars3  ,he said he could not bring   
himself to a realization of what had    
been done4 ,he felt like ,aladdin when  
he saw this building and was aware that 
he had put it up1 but he could not bring
 himself to consciousness of having done

 it any more than if he had produced the
 same effect by rubbing a lamp4 ,he     
could not feel the ownership of what he 
had given1 and he could not feel that he
 had given it away4#a  ,footnote #a3    
,quoted from the obituary of ,andrew    
,carnegie in the ,new ,york ,times of   
,august #ab1 #aiai4  ,this sense of     
incredulity at one's actions or         
achievements is rarer than the          
consciousness of self which it promotes4
 ,the intensity of this self-awareness  
is increased when opinion is expressed  
or power exerted in the face of         
opposition4 ,the man who finds himself  
standing out against the community in   
which he lives1 who is a freethinker    
among those who are intensely religious1
 an extremist among those who are       
custom-ridden1 spiritualistic among     
people who are controlled by            
materialistic ideas1 finds the sense of 
his own personality heightened by       
contrast4 ,when dissenting opinions are 
steadfastly maintained in the face of   

the opposition of a powerful majority1  
there develops a personality with edge  
and strength4 ,the man who can persist  
in his belief against the prevailing    
winds of doctrine and of action may be  
wrong1 but he is a personality4 ,he is  
intensely and persistently aware of     
himself4 ,similarly1 the exertion of    
power in the face of opposition         
increases the sense of one's own power  
and helps to consolidate it4 ,one       
derives from it the same exhilaration   
that one has in feeling a canoe under   
the impulsion of one's paddle overcome  
the resistance of the water4 ,in the    
same way1 the exertion of social power  
in the face of obstacles makes half the 
exhilaration of politics and business   
for some types of men in business and   
political life4 ,one admires the        
ruthlessness of a ,napoleon at war or of
 a captain of industry in the sharp     
industrial competition of the nineteenth
 century1 not because it is ruthless1   
but because it is power4 ,such men are  

at least not neutral2 they are positive 
forces4  ,the contrast between the self 
and the others may be friendly1 with a  
recognition of all other selves as      
equally entitled to existence4 ,one     
pursues the even tenor of one's way1 and
 is content to let others pursue theirs4
 ,men of very powerful personality have 
exhibited the utmost gentleness and     
consideration of others4 ,lincoln1 the  
typical strong1 silent man1 displayed a 
tenderness for the suffering and        
distressed that has already become      
proverbial4  ,the contrast between one's
 self and the world may be one of bitter
 opposition1 as when one's ideas or     
actions are subjected to social censure4
 ,as ,mill argued over half a century   
ago1 the forceful suppression of opinion
 produces a more violent manifestation  
of it4 ,socrates was put to death1 but  
the ,socratic philosophy rose like the  
sun in the heavens4 ,a sense of         
injustice1 of unfairness1 will not only 
intensify a man's opinions but his      

consciousness of his own personality4   
,to meet with opposition is to feel     
acutely the outlines of one's own       
person2 to be forced to recognize the   
differences between ourselves and others
 is to discover what sort of people we  
ourselves are4  ,the contrast is        
likewise one of opposition1 sometimes to
 bitterness1 when the individual seeks  
to impose his own opinions or his own   
personality forcibly on others4 ,a      
,mohammed1 fired with the zeal of a     
religious enthusiasm1 may spread his    
doctrine by fire and sword and be       
resisted by similar violence4 ,others   
than the ,germans have betaken          
themselves to arms to spread a specific 
and arbitrary type of life4 ,on a small 
scale it is seen wherever a fanatical   
parent tries to force his own belief and
 type of life upon his children1 reared 
in a younger and freer generation4 ,in  
contemporary society most individuals   
are neither tempted nor permitted to    
coerce people to their own way of       

thinking1 although economic pressure and
 social ostracism are still powerful    
instruments by which strategically      
situated individuals can force their own
 opinions or types of life upon others4 
,,types ,,of ,,self4 ,the consciousness 
of self varies in its expression and    
intensity and at different times may    
display different types or combinations 
of types4 ,no one is ever utterly       
consistent1 and different situations1   
different groups1 provoke different     
selves in us4 ,nobody writes quite the  
same kind of letter to his different    
friends1 or is1 as has been pointed out1
 the same person in different           
situations4 ,but1 except for those      
intellectual will-o'-the-wisps1 or moral
 ne'er-do-wells who take on the color of
 every new circumstance in which they   
happen to be cast1 men do develop       
predominantly one type of self which    
constitutes1 in familiar language1 their
 character4  ,the manner of our         
consciousness of our personality may    

vary in quality1 even though it be      
intense in degree4 ,one may be aware    
even of one's importance1 without being 
self-important4 ,one may be quite       
conscious of one's significance in the  
world and yet not be self-conscious4 ,it
 is indeed usually the little man who   
has a great air about him4 ,the         
officiousness and pettiness of the small
 soul invested with authority has often 
been commented on4 ,proverbial wisdom   
has succinctly recorded the fact that   
empty barrels make the most noise4      
,latterly1 ,freudian psychology has     
pointed out the mechanisms by which     
insignificant people compensate for the 
poverty of their person by bluster and  
brag4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,on this point   
see an illuminating brief discussion by 
,hart in ,the ,psychology of ,insanity4 
,,self-,,display ,,or ,,boldness4 ,the  
most obvious type of consciousness of   
self is found in individuals who seek   
mere social conspicuousness1 who spend  
no inconsiderable part of their energy  

in deliberate display4 ,the child says  
with nave frankness1 ,see how high ,i   
can jump4 ,many adults find more        
conspicuous or subtle ways of saying the
 same thing4 ,one need only to take a   
ride in a bus or street car to find the 
certain symptoms of self-display4 ,these
 may consist in nothing more serious    
than a peculiarly conspicuous collar or 
hatband1 or particularly high heels4 ,it
 may consist in a loud voice full of    
pompous references to great banquets    
recently attended or great sums recently
 spent4 ,it may be in a raised eyebrow  
or a disdainful smile4 ,there are people
 among every one's acquaintance whose   
conversation is largely made up of      
reminiscences of more or less personal  
glory1 of deliberate allusions to large 
salaries and famous friends1 to glorious
 prospects and past laurels4#a          
,footnote #a3 ,almost every college     
class has one or two members who enter  
vociferously and continuously into      
discussions1 less for the contribution  

of ideas or information than for the    
propagation of their own personalities4 
,on a larger scale this is to be found  
in the almost universal desire to see   
one's name in print3  ,there is a whole 
race of beings to-day whose passion is  
to keep their names in the newspapers1  
no matter under what heading1 arrivals  
and departures1 personal paragraphs1    
interviews--gossip1 even scandal will   
suit them if nothing better is to be    
had4 ,guiteau1 ,garfield's assassin1 is 
an example of the extremity to which    
this craving for notoriety may go in a  
pathological case4 ,the newspapers      
bounded his mental horizon2 and in the  
poor wretch's prayer on the scaffold1   
one of the most heartfelt expressions   
was3 ,the newspaper press of this land  
has a big bill to settle with thee1 ,o  
,lord6#b  ,footnote #b3 ,james3 loc4    
cit41 vol4 ,i1 p4 #cjh4  ,as was pointed
 out in connection with praise and      
blame1 more of our actions than we      
should care to admit are determined by  

this desire for recognition4 ,the loud1 
the vulgar1 the notoriety seekers are   
merely extreme illustrations of a type  
of self that most of us are some of the 
time4  ,,self-,,sufficient ,,modesty4   
,the other extreme is exhibited by the  
type of personality that is markedly    
averse to display and shrinks from      
observation4 ,in its intensest and      
possibly least appealing form it is     
exhibited by people who become awkwardly
 embarrassed in the presence of a       
stranger1 however fluent and vivacious  
they may be with their friends4 ,this   
type at its best may be described by the
 epithet of self-sufficient modesty4 ,to
 be such a person may be said to be an  
achievement rather than a weakness4 ,to 
be self-sufficient and modest at the    
same time means that one is going about 
one's business1 that one is too absorbed
 in one's work to be continually and    
anxiously noting what sort of figure one
 cuts in the world4 ,to quote ,matthew  
,arnold's well-known lines3             

,unaffrighted by the silence round them1
    ,undistracted by the sights they    
see1    ,these demand not that the      
things without them    ,yield them love1
 amusement1 sympathy4#a  ,footnote #a3  
,self-,dependence4  ,there are in every 
great university quiet great men who    
steadily pursue vital and difficult     
researches without the slightest        
reference or desire for cheap           
conspicuousness4 ,in every profession   
and business there are known to the     
discriminating men who are experts1 even
 geniuses in their own field1 but who   
shrink back from the loudness of        
publicity as from a plague4 ,there are a
 number of wealthy philanthropists in   
all our large cities who consistently   
and steadily do good works in almost    
complete anonymity4 ,one finds in almost
 every department of human activity     
these types of self-effacing men who    
find their fulfillment in the work they 
do rather than in moving in the aura of 
other people's admiration4  ,,the       

,,positive ,,and ,,flexible ,,self4 ,but
 in order to be effective in affairs1   
some positive force must be displayed1  
and modesty need not mean pusillanimity4
 ,a frequently observable type of       
personality--and socially one of a      
highly desirable sort--is the type of   
man who1 himself standing for positive  
convictions1 ideas1 and principles of   
action1 and not casually to be deflected
 from them1 has sufficient flexibility  
and sensitivity to the feelings of      
others1 to accept modification4 ,such a 
self not only has its initial force and 
momentum1 but gains as it goes by the   
experience of others4 ,a personality    
must be positive to contribute to the   
solution of difficulties and the        
management of enterprises1 but it must  
be receptive in order to benefit by the 
ideas of others and coperate with them4 
,to have power and humility at once is  
sometimes sufficient to make a leader   
among men4 ,humility prevents us from   
rushing headlong along the paths of our 

own dogmatic errors2 it enables us      
further to deal with other people who   
would be simply antagonized by our      
flat-footed insistence on every detail  
of our own initial position4 ,the       
history of great statesmanship is in    
part1 at least1 the history of wise     
compromise4 ,nor does this mean sordid  
temporizing and opportunism4 ,as ,john  
,morley puts it3  ,it is the worst of   
political blunders to insist on carrying
 an ideal set of principles into        
execution1 where others have rights of  
dissent1 and those others persons whose 
assent is as indispensable to success as
 it is difficult to attain4 ,but to be  
afraid or ashamed of holding such an    
ideal set of principles in one's mind in
 their highest and most abstract        
expression1 does more than any other one
 cause to stunt or petrify those        
elements of character to which life     
should owe most of its savor4#a         
,footnote #a3 ,morley3 ,on ,compromise1 
p4 #abc4  ,,dogmatism ,,and             

,,self-,,assertion4 ,too often1 however1
 a person of powerful and distinctive   
opinions is so moved by the momentum of 
his own strong enthusiasms1 so fixed by 
the habitual definiteness of his own    
position that he cannot be swayed4 ,in  
its worst form this is rampant egoism   
and dogmatism4 ,all of us have met the  
loud-mouthed exponent of his own        
opinions1 who speaks whatever be the    
subject1 as if his position only were   
plausible or possible1 and as if all who
 gain-said him were either fools or     
knaves4  ,if we examine the mental      
furniture of the average man we shall   
find it made up of a vast number of     
judgments of a very precise kind upon   
subjects of very great variety1         
complexity1 and difficulty4 ,he will    
have fairly settled views upon the      
origin and nature of the universe1 and  
upon what he will probably call its     
meaning2 he will have conclusions as to 
what is to happen to him at death and   
after1 as to what is and what should be 

the basis of conduct4 ,he will know how 
the country should be governed1 and why 
it is going to the dogs1 why this piece 
of legislation is good and that bad4 ,he
 will have strong views upon military   
and naval strategy1 the principles of   
taxation1 the use of alcohol and        
vaccination1 the treatment of influenza1
 the prevention of hydrophobia1 upon    
municipal trading1 the teaching of      
,greek1 upon what is permissible in art1
 satisfactory in literature1 and hopeful
 in science4  ,the bulk of such opinions
 must necessarily be without rational   
basis1 since many of them are concerned 
with problems admitted by the expert to 
be still unsolved1 while as to the rest 
it is clear that the training and       
experience of no average man can qualify
 him to have any opinion on them at     
all4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,trotter3         
,instincts of the ,herd1 p4 #cf4  ,in   
action as well as opinion dogmatism and 
unbridled self-assertion may be the     
dominant characteristics of a           

personality4 ,the man who has a strong  
will and little social sympathy will be 
ruthlessly insistent on the attainment  
of his own ends4 ,this type of self has 
indeed been set up as an ideal by such  
philosophers as ,nietzsche and ,max     
,stirner1 who urged that the really     
great man should express his own        
personality irrespective of the         
weaklings whom he might crush in his    
comet-like career4 ,thus writes         
,nietzsche in one of his characteristic 
passages3  ,the ,superman ,i have at    
heart2 that is the first and only thing 
to me--and not man3 not the neighbor1   
not the poorest1 not the sorriest1 not  
the best4444  ,in that ye have despised1
 ye higher men1 that maketh me hope4444 
,in that ye have despaired1 there is    
much to honor4 ,for ye have not learned 
to submit yourselves1 ye have not       
learned petty policy4  ,for to-day have 
the petty people become master2 they all
 preach submission1 and humility1 and   
policy1 and diligence1 and              

consideration1 and the long et cetera of
 petty virtues4  ,these masters of      
to-day--surpass them1 ,o my             
brethren--these petty people3 they are  
the ,superman's greatest danger6#b      
,footnote #b3 ,thus ,spake ,zarathustra 
7,macmillan edition71 pp4 #cea-eb4  ,it 
need scarcely be noted that even if the 
genius or ,superman were justified1 as  
this philosophy insists1 on ruthlessly  
asserting his priority1 it is a         
dangerous procedure to identify one's   
ambitions with one's desserts4 ,as      
already noted1 a flamboyant assurance of
 one's own importance is sometimes a    
ludicrous symptom of the reverse4  ,the 
more legitimate manifestation of strong 
individualism in action or opinion is in
 the case of deeply conscientious       
natures1 who will not compromise by a   
hair's breadth from what they conceive  
to be the right4 ,the fanatic is seldom 
an appealing character1 but he is a type
 that enforces admiration4 ,of such     
unflinching insistence are martyrs and  

great leaders made4 ,there are in every 
community men who will regard it as     
treachery to their highest ideals to    
compromise at all from the inviolable   
principles to which they feel themselves
 committed4 ,such men are difficult to  
deal with in human situations involving 
coperation and compromise1 and they     
exhibit frequently a rigid austerity1   
bitterness1 and hate that do not readily
 win sympathy4 ,but it is to such men as
 these that many religious and social   
reforms owe their initiation4 ,bertrand 
,russell1 who1 whether one agrees with  
him or not1 exhibits a puritanical      
devotion to his social beliefs1 has     
finely described the type3  ,the        
impatient idealist--and without some    
impatience a man will hardly prove      
effective--is almost sure to be led into
 hatred by the oppositions and          
disappointments which he encounters in  
his endeavors to bring happiness to the 
world4 ,the more certain he is of the   
purity of his motives and the truth of  

his gospel1 the more indignant will he  
become when his teaching is rejected4444
 ,the intense faith which enables him to
 withstand persecution for the sake of  
his beliefs makes him consider these    
beliefs so luminously obvious that any  
thinking man who rejects them must be   
dishonest and must be actuated by some  
sinister motive of treachery to the     
cause4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,russell3       
,proposed ,roads to ,freedom1 pp4       
xiii-xiv4  ,,enthusiasm4 ,the enthusiast
 is another type of self that plays an  
important part in social life and makes 
not the least attractive of its figures4
 ,the exuberant exponent of ideas1      
causes1 persons1 or institutions is an  
effective preacher1 teacher1 or leader  
of men1 and may be1 apart from his      
utility1 intrinsically of the utmost    
charm4 ,emotions vividly displayed are1 
as already pointed out in connection    
with sympathy1 readily duplicated in    
others1 and the ardors of the enthusiast
 are1 when they have the earmarks of    

sincerity1 contagious4 ,a genuinely     
enthusiastic personality kindles his own
 fire in the hearts of others1 and makes
 them appreciate as no mere formal      
analysis could1 the vital and moving    
aspects of things4 ,good teaching has   
been defined as communication by        
contagion1 and the teachers whom        
students usually testify to have        
influenced them most are not those who  
doled out flat prescribed wisdom1 but   
those whose own informed ardor for their
 subject-matter communicated to the     
student a warm sense of its             
significance4 ,leaders of great         
movements who have been successful in   
controlling the energies and loyalties  
of millions of men have been frequently 
men of this high and contagious voltage4
 ,it certainly constituted part of      
,theodore ,roosevelt's political        
strength1 and1 in more or less genuine  
form1 is the asset of every successful  
political speaker and leader4  ,both for
 the one controlled by enthusiasm and   

for the others to whom it spreads1      
experience becomes richer in            
significance4 ,poets and the            
poetically-minded have to a singular    
degree the power of clothing with       
imaginative enthusiasm all the items of 
their experience4  ,enthusiasm does not 
necessarily connote hysteria or         
sentimentalism4 ,the unstable enthusiast
 is a familiar type1 the man who has    
another object of eagerness and loyalty 
each week4 ,mark ,twain describes the   
type in the person of his brother1 who  
had a dozen different ambitions a year4 
,but enthusiasm may be a long-sustained 
devotion to a single ideal4 ,a curious  
instance of it was seen in the case of  
an ,armenian scholar who1 so it is      
reported to the writer by a student of  
,armenian culture1 spent forty years in 
mastering cuneiform script in order to  
prove that the ,phrygians were descended
 from the ,armenians1 and not vice      
versa4  ,shelley could kindle the spirit
 of revolution in thousands who would   

have been bored to death with the same  
fiery doctrines in the abstract and cold
 pages of ,godwin1 from whom ,shelley   
derived his ideas of political justice4 
,the enthusiast1 since he instinctively 
likes to share his emotions1 not        
infrequently displays an intense desire 
for leadership1 not so much that he may 
be a leader as that he may win converts 
to his own cause or creed4 ,such a      
personality finds its satisfaction in   
some form of proselyting zeal1 be it for
 a religion1 for a favorite charity1 for
 good books1 poetry1 or social justice4 
,a well-known literary scholar who died 
recently was thus described by one of   
his former students3  ,dr4 ,gummere was 
not a teacher2 he was a vital atmosphere
 and his lectures1 as one considered    
them from an intellectual or emotional  
angle1 were revelations or adventures4  
,there never were such classes as his1  
we believed4 ,who could equal him in    
readiness of wit8 ,where was there such 
a raconteur8 ,who else could put the    

feel of a poem into one's heart8 444    
,his voice was very deep1 and           
exceedingly free and flexible4 ,it      
always seemed to brim up as from a      
spirit overflowing4 ,everything about   
him was individual and spontaneous4 ,he 
was perhaps most like a powerful river  
that braced one's energies1 and carried 
one along without the slightest desire  
to resist4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,charles    
,wharton ,stork3 ,a ,great ,teacher1    
,the ,nation1 ,july #bf1 #aiai4  ,,the  
,,negative ,,self4 ,all the types of    
personality or self that have thus far  
been discussed are in some way positive 
or assertive4 ,but the self may be      
exhibited negatively1 in a shrinking1   
not only from observation1 but from any 
positive or pronounced action4 ,this has
 already been noted in connection with  
submissiveness4 ,most people in the     
presence of their intellectual and      
social or even their physical superior1 
experience a sense of1 to use           
,mc,dougall's term1 negative            

self-feeling4 ,in some people this      
negation or effacement of the self is a 
predominant characteristic4  ,it may be 
mere social timidity1 which1 in the case
 of those continually placed in servile 
positions1 as in the case of the        
proverbial poor relation1 may become    
chronic4 ,in its most disagreeable form 
it is exhibited as an obsequious        
flattering and a pretentious humility4  
,of this the classic instance is ,uriah 
,heep in ,david ,copperfield3  ,i       
suppose you are quite a great lawyer1 ,i
 ,david ,copperfield said1 after looking
 at him for some time4  ,me1 ,master    
,copperfield8 said ,uriah4 ,oh1 no6 ,i'm
 a very umble person4  ,it was no fancy 
of mine about his hands1 ,i observed2   
for he frequently ground the palms      
against each other1 as if to squeeze    
them dry and warm1 besides often wiping 
them1 in a stealthy way1 on his         
pocket-handkerchief4  ,i am well aware  
that ,i am the umblest person going1    
said ,uriah ,heep modestly1 let the     

other be where he may4 ,my mother is    
likewise a very umble person4 ,we live  
in a numble abode1 ,master ,copperfield1
 but have much to be thankful for4 ,my  
father's former calling was umble4 ,he  
was a sexton4  ,what is he now8 ,i      
asked4  ,he is a partaker of glory1 at  
present1 ,master ,copperfield1 but we   
have much to be thankful for4 ,how much 
have ,i to be thankful for1 in living   
with ,mr4 ,wickfield4  ,negative        
self-feeling may be provoked by a       
genuine sense of unworthiness or        
modesty1 and when this takes place among
 religious people1 it may become a      
complete and rapturous submissiveness to
 ,god4 ,the records of many medival and 
of some modern mystics emphasize this   
complete yielding to the will of ,god1  
and in ,his will finding peace4 ,james  
quotes in this connection ,pascal's     
,prire pour bien user les maladies3  ,i 
ask you1 neither for health nor for     
sickness1 for life nor for death2 but   
that you may dispose of my health and my

 sickness1 my life and my death1 for    
your glory4444 ,you alone know what is  
expedient for me2 you are the sovereign 
master2 do with me according to your    
will4 ,give to me1 or take away from me1
 only conform my will to yours4 ,i know 
but one thing1 ,lord1 that it is good to
 follow you1 and bad to offend you4     
,apart from that1 ,i know not what is   
good or bad in anything4 ,i know not    
which is most profitable to me1 health  
or sickness1 wealth or poverty1 nor     
anything else in the world4 ,that       
discernment is beyond the power of men  
or angels1 and is hidden among the      
secrets of your ,providence1 which ,i   
adore1 but do not seek to fathom4#a     
,footnote #a3 ,quoted in ,james3        
,varieties of ,religious ,experience1 p4
 #bhf4  ,self-surrender1 however1 takes 
other forms than religious absorption or
 devotion4 ,saintliness is not unknown  
in secular forms of life1 in the        
devotion of men to any ideal1 despite   
pain and privation of worldly goods and 

successes4 ,the doctor sacrificing his  
life in a leper colony is an extreme    
example4 ,but something of the same     
humility and submissiveness is exhibited
 every time a man makes a choice which  
places the welfare of other people      
before his own immediate success4 ,it is
 shown by the thousands of physicians   
and settlement workers and teachers who 
spend their lives in patient devotion to
 labors that bring little remuneration  
and as little glory4 ,men of affairs and
 a large proportion of other men        
generally measure worth by worldly      
success4 ,but even from the worldly1    
such signs of self-surrender elicit     
admiration4  ,,eccentrics4 ,there is one
 type of self so various and            
miscellaneous that it can only be       
subsumed under the general epithet1     
eccentric4 ,these are the unexpectedly  
large number of individuals in our      
civilization who do not come under any  
of the usual categories1 who display    
some small or great abnormality which   

sets them off from the general run of   
men4 ,that some of these are accounted  
eccentric is to be explained in the     
light of man's tendency1 as a gregarious
 animal1 to think queer and freakish    
anything off the beaten track4 ,some are
 clearly and unmistakably abnormal in   
some physiological or psychological     
respect4 ,from these are recruited the  
inmates of our penitentiaries and insane
 asylums and the candidates for them4   
,but there are eccentricities of social 
behavior1 types of personality which    
though they cannot be classed as either 
insane or criminal1 yet definitely set  
an individual apart4  ,these include    
what ,trotter has called the mentally   
unstable1 as set over against the great 
class of normal1 sensible1 reliable     
middle age1 with its definite views1 its
 resiliency to the depressing influence 
of facts1 and its gift for forming the  
backbone of the ,state4 ,there are the  
large group of slightly neurasthenic1   
made so1 in part1 by the high nervous   

tension under which modern1 especially  
modern urban1 life is lived4 ,these     
include what are commonly called the    
hysterical or over-emotional1 or        
temperamental types4 ,in a civilization 
where most professions demand           
regularity1 restraint1 punctuality1 and 
directness1 unstability and excess      
emotionalism are necessarily at a       
discount4 ,there are the vagabond types 
who1 like young ,georges1               
,jean-qhristophe's protg1 regard a      
profession as a prison house1 in which  
most of one's capacities are cruelly    
confined4 ,there are again those who1   
possessing singular and exclusive       
sensitivity to sthetic values1 to music1
 art1 and poetry1 find the world outside
 their own lyric enthusiasms flat1      
stale1 and unprofitable4 ,if1 as so     
frequently happens1 these combine1 along
 with their peculiar temperaments1      
little genius and slender means1 social 
and economic life becomes for them a    
blind alley4 ,every year at our great   

universities we see small groups of     
young men1 who1 having spent three or   
four years on philosophy1 literature1   
and the liberal arts1 and having no     
interest in academic life1 are put to it
 to find a profession in which they can 
find a genuine interest or possible     
success4  ,among these eccentrics a few 
have been reckoned geniuses by their    
contemporaries or by posterity4 ,in such
 cases society hesitates to apply its   
usual formul4 ,one cannot condemn out of
 hand a ,shelley4 ,he is not of the run 
of men4  ,shelley was one of those      
spokesmen of the a priori1 one of those 
nurslings of the womb1 like a bee or a  
butterfly1 a dogmatic1 inspired1        
perfect1 and incorrigible creature4444  
,being a finished child of nature1 not a
 joint product1 like most of us1 of     
nature1 history1 and society1 he        
abounded miraculously in his own clear  
sense1 but was obtuse to the droll      
miscellaneous lessons of fortune4 ,the  
cannonade of hard inexplicable facts    

that knocks into most of us what little 
wisdom we have1 left ,shelley dazed and 
sore1 perhaps1 but uninstructed4#a      
,footnote #a3 ,santayana3 ,winds of     
,doctrine2 ,shelley1 p4 #aei4  ,it is   
difficult to draw the line in some cases
 between genius and insanity4#a ,there  
have been time and again in society     
,cassandras who have spoken true        
prophecies and have been thought mad4   
,there have been1 on the other hand1    
those who1 having some of the external  
eccentricities of genius1 have given an 
illusive impression of greatness4 ,the  
professional ,bohemian likes to make    
himself great by wearing his hair long  
and living in a garret4 ,but it is      
unquestionably true that a highly       
sensitive and creative mind is often ill
 at ease in the world of action1 and    
remains a vagabond1 an enfant terrible  
or an eccentric all through life4 ,it   
remains a fact that in contemporary     
society there are a small number of     
people1 some of them of considerable    

talents1 who simply cannot be made to   
fit into the social routine4 ,for such  
,bertrand ,russell suggests a vagabond's
 wage4 ,this he conceives as being just 
large enough to enable them to get      
along1 to give them a chance to wander  
and experiment1 but sufficiently small  
to penalize them for not settling down  
to the accustomed social routines4#b    
,footnote #a3 ,thus ,plato3 ,but he who1
 not being inspired and having no touch 
of madness in his soul1 comes to the    
door and thinks that he will get into   
the temple by the help of art--he1 ,i   
say1 and his poetry are not admitted2   
the sane man is nowhere at all when he  
enters into rivalry with the madman4    
,phoedrus 7,jowett translation71 p4     
#eej4  ,footnote #b3 ,russell3 ,proposed
 ,roads to ,freedom1 p4 #agg4 ,there was
 recently introduced to the writer a    
boy1 aged nineteen1 for whom this would 
be an admirable solution4 ,brought up in
 a tenement and working as a clerk1 this
 youngster wrote what competent judges  

pronounced to be really extraordinary   
lyrics4 ,he was at the same time utterly
 helpless in the world of affairs4 ,even
 at college his casual habits and       
absorption would have prevented him from
 getting through his freshman year4     
,mill has generalized the situation of  
the genius3  ,persons of genius1 it is  
true1 are1 and are always likely to be1 
a small minority2 but in order to have  
them1 it is necessary to preserve the   
soil in which they grow4 ,genius can    
only breathe freely in an atmosphere of 
freedom4 ,persons of genius are1 ex vi  
termini1 more individual than any other 
people--less capable1 consequently1 of  
fitting themselves1 without hurtful     
compression1 into any of the small      
number of moulds which society provides 
in order to save its members the trouble
 of forming their own character4444 ,if 
they are of a strong character1 and     
break their fetters1 they become a mark 
for the society which has not succeeded 
in reducing them to commonplace1 to     

point at with solemn warning as wild1   
erratic1 and the like2 much as if one   
should complain of the ,niagara ,river  
for not flowing smoothly between its    
banks1 like a ,dutch canal4#a  ,footnote
 #a3 ,mill3 ,essay on ,liberty1 chap4   
,,iii4  ,,the ,,active ,,and ,,the      
,,contemplative4 ,one final distinction 
must be made1 one that cuts across all  
the types of self hitherto discussed1   
namely1 the distinction between the man 
of action and the man of thought4 ,one  
need not go far in literature or in life
 to find the contrast made4 ,in the     
,scriptures ,mary is set over against   
,martha1 ,rachel against ,leah4 ,hamlet 
and ,ulysses are permanent              
representations of the melancholy       
thinker and the exuberant adventurer4   
,the business man and the executive may 
be put over against the poet and the    
scholar2 the strenuous organizer and    
administrator over against the quiet    
philosopher4 ,both have their           
outstanding uses1 and1 in their extreme 

forms1 their outstanding defects4 ,the  
active type1 as we say1 gets things     
done4 ,he builds bridges and industries2
 he manages markets and men4 ,his eye is
 on the practical2 he is dependable1    
rapid1 and efficient4 ,in an industrial 
civilization he is the great heroic     
type4 ,the statesman and the railroad   
builder1 the newspaper editors and the  
political leaders captivate the         
imaginations as they control the        
destinies of mankind4  ,on the other    
hand1 there are those who stand aside   
7either from incapacity or              
disinclination or both7 from the        
management of affairs and the life of   
action1 and spend their lives in        
observation and contemplation4 ,plato   
and ,aristotle regarded this as the     
highest type of life2 it may have been  
because they were themselves both       
philosophers4 ,in its extreme form it is
 exhibited in such men as ,spinoza or   
,kant1 spending their lives in practical
 obscurity1 speculating on time and     

space and eternity4 ,but it is apparent 
in less extreme types4 ,the patient     
observer1 the genial spectator of other 
men's actions is not infrequent4 ,when  
he has literary gifts he is a           
philosopher or a poet4 ,lucretius in a  
famous passage stated the contemplative 
ideal1 contrasting it with its opposite3
  ,sweet it is when on the great seas   
the winds are buffeting1 to gaze from   
the land on another's great struggles2  
not because it is pleasure or joy that  
any one should be distressed1 but       
because it is sweet to perceive from    
what misfortunes you yourself are free4 
,sweet is it1 too1 to behold great      
contests of war in full array over the  
plains1 when you have no part in the    
danger4 ,but nothing is more gladdening 
than to dwell in the calm high places1  
firmly embattled on the heights by the  
teaching of the wise1 whence you can    
look down on others1 and see them       
wandering hither and thither and going  
astray1 as they seek the way of life1 in

 strife matching their wits or rival    
claims of birth1 struggling night and   
day by surpassing effort to rise up to  
the height of power and gain possession 
of the world4#a  ,footnote #a3          
,lucretius3 ,de ,rerum ,natura 7,bailey 
translation71 book ,,ii1 lines #a-ab4   
,but in the two types it is not the     
fruit of action or contemplation1 but   
action and contemplation themselves that
 the two types find respectively        
interesting4 ,the man of action finds an
 immediate satisfaction in movement1    
change1 the clamor of affairs1 the      
contacts with other people1 the making  
of changes in the practical world4 ,the 
man of thought finds as immediate       
enjoyment in noting the ways of men1 and
 reflecting upon them4  ,that           
contemplation1 disinterested thinking1  
also has its use goes without saying4   
,the thinker and the dreamer may be     
something at least of what the ,irish   
poet boasts3    444 the movers and      
shakers    ,of the world1 forever1 it   

seems4  ,the scholar1 the thinker1 the  
man who stands aside from immediate     
action1 may1 often does1 help the world 
of action in a far-reaching way4 ,the   
researches of a ,newton make possible   
eventually the feats of modern          
engineering and telegraphy2 the abstruse
 study of the calculus helps to build   
bridges and skyscrapers4  ,both types1  
in their extremes1 have their           
weaknesses4 ,the extremely practical man
 may cut off the limb upon which he is  
sitting1 or see no further than the end 
of his nose4 ,a really great            
administrator is not penny-wise2 he     
thinks far ahead1 around and into a     
problem4 ,he is concerned for tomorrow  
as well as to-day4 ,the contemplative   
man may come to be sicklied o'er with   
the pale cast of thought4 ,there is the 
hero of one ,russian novel who reflects 
through three hundred pages on his      
wasted life1 all at the ripe age of     
twenty-three4#a ,the practical man gains
 width and insight by checking himself  

with reflection2 the contemplative finds
 thought called home and made meaningful
 by contacts with the world4 ,it was    
something of this balance which ,plato  
had in mind when he insisted that his   
future philosopher-king should1 after   
fifteen years' study1 go for fifteen    
years into the cave or world to learn to
 deal with men and affairs4 ,the mere   
theorist is often an absurd if not a    
dangerous character2 the practical man  
may come to make the wheels go round    
without ever taking note of his         
direction4  ,footnote #a3 ,contchareff3 
,oblomoff4  ,as pointed out in the      
beginning of this discussion1 no one of 
these types is exclusively exemplified  
in any one individual4 ,to be           
exclusively any one of these would be to
 be a caricature rather than a          
character4#b ,but to be no one of these 
types to any degree at all is to be no  
character at all1 is to be socially a   
nonentity1 a minus quantity2 it is to be
 determined by the vicissitudes of      

chance or circumstance2 it is to be a   
succession of vacillations rather than a
 distinctive self-determined            
personality4 ,each of these types1      
moreover1 if not extreme1 has its       
specific excellences1 and their various 
presence lends richness and diversity to
 social life4  ,footnote #b3 ,dickens's 
success lay1 perhaps chiefly1 in his    
ability to draw these unforgettable     
exaggerations1 these outstanding types3 
,micawber waiting for something to turn 
up2 the fiendish cruelty of ,bill       
,sikes2 the angelic self-effacement of  
,little ,nell2 the hypocritical ,mr4    
,pecksniff2 the gossipy ,sairy ,gamp4   
,he had a unique gift for representing  
psychological traits in large4 ,the     
so-called psychological novelists like  
,meredith1 trace a character through its
 moods and fluctuations1 making truer1  
more composite1 though less memorable   
characters4  ,,emotions ,,aroused ,,in  
,,the ,,maintenance ,,of ,,the ,,self4  
,these various types of self may be     

defended with bitterness and            
pertinacity1 and in their support the   
most powerful emotions may be enlisted4 
,as pointed out in connection with      
individuality in opinion1 men may be    
willing to die for their beliefs4       
,similarly invasion of one's home1      
infringement or threat against what one 
regards as one's rights or one's        
possessions1 whether physical or social1
 may be bitterly contested4 ,and in this
 conflict in support of the integrity of
 the self1 anger1 hate1 fear1           
submissiveness1 all the nuances of      
emotion may be aroused4 ,the themes of  
great tragedy are built largely on this 
theme of insistent selfhood4 ,any       
obstruction of the self-integrity one   
has set one's self may provoke a violent
 reaction4 ,it may be interference with 
one's love1 as in the case of ,medea or 
,othello1 the pain of ingratitude as in 
,lear1 the conflict between the lower   
and the higher self1 as in the case of  
,macbeth's loyalty and his ambition4    

,these are the staple materials of      
drama4 ,in common experience1 an insult 
to one's wife or friend1 an obstacle    
placed in the way of one's professional 
career1 deprivation of one's liberty or 
one's property1 or one's unhindered     
pursuit of happiness1 are the           
provocations to violent emotions in the 
sustaining of the self4 ,how violent or 
what form the reaction will take depends
 on the situation of the self involved4 
,if one has been grossly insulted by    
another upon whom one is utterly        
dependent socially and economically1 a  
rankling and impotent rage may be the   
only outlet4 ,to a person gifted with   
humility1 the disillusions of a false   
friendship may provoke nothing more than
 a deep but resigned disappointment4    
,where passion and determination run    
high1 and retaliation is feasible1 a    
violent hate may find violent           
fulfillment4 ,in earlier and more       
bloodthirsty days1 the dagger1 the duel1
 and poison were1 as illustrated in the 

history of the ,borgias1 ways of        
maintaining the self and venting one's  
anger or revenge4 ,even in modern       
society the still distressingly large   
number of crimes of violence may be     
traced in many1 perhaps most cases1 to  
blind and bitter hate4 ,to any deep     
personal injury1 hate1 whether it takes 
overt form or not1 is still the         
instinctive answer2 just such hate as   
,euripides represents in the jealous    
,medea1 when she1 a barbarian captive   
among the ,greeks1 sees ,jason1 her     
lover1 about to be married to a ,greek  
princess3    444 ,but ,i1 being         
citiless1 am cast aside1    ,by him that
 wedded me1 a savage bride4     4    4  
4    4    4    4    4    4   ,i ask one 
thing4 ,if chance yet ope to me    ,some
 path1 if even now my hand can win1     
,strength to requite this ,jason for his
 sin1    ,betray me not6 ,oh1 in all    
things but this1    ,i know how full of 
fears a woman is1    ,and faints at     
need1 and shrinking from the light      

,of battle2 but once spoil her of her   
right    ,in man's love1 and there      
moves1 ,i warn thee well1    ,no        
bloodier spirit between ,heaven and     
,hell4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,euripides3     
,medea 7,gilbert ,murray translation71  
p4 #af4  ,in defense of the self in its 
narrower or broader sense1 courage and  
heroism may be displayed4 ,the martyr   
will die rather than submit2 there have 
been many to whom ,patrick ,henry's     
,give me ,liberty or give me death1 was 
something more than rhetoric4 ,the self 
for which we will fight1 of course1     
varies4 ,a spoilt child will go into a  
paroxysm of rage if its toy is taken    
away4 ,older people will fight for      
smaller or larger points of social      
position4 ,there is the familiar citizen
 who will insist on his rights1 often of
 a petty sort1 in a hotel1 theater1 or  
department store4 ,or a man may display 
the last extremity of courage in defense
 of some ideal1 as in a man's surrender 
of his life for his country4 ,something 

of the same heroism is displayed by     
individuals who stand out against their 
group in the face of ridicule or        
persecution4 ,it is the general sympathy
 with the desire to preserve one's      
selfhood untarnished that gives point to
 ,henley's lines3    ,out of the night  
that covers me1      ,black as the pit  
from pole to pole1    ,i thank whatever 
gods may be      ,for my unconquerable  
soul4     4    4    4    4    4    4    
4    4   ,it matters not how strait the 
gate1      ,how charged with punishments
 the scroll1    ,i am the master of my  
fate1      ,i am the captain of my      
soul4#b  ,footnote #b3 ,invictus4  ,in  
the same way as the emotions fear1      
anger1 and hate1 and their variations   
and degrees1 may be aroused by attack or
 threat against the self1 so help and   
encouragement of an individual's        
selfhood arouse love1 affection1 and    
gratitude4 ,even our affection for our  
parents1 though in part instinctive1 is 
undoubtedly increased by the care and   

persistence with which they have        
fostered our own life and hopes1 have   
educated us1 and made possible for us a 
career4 ,the same motives play a part in
 our affection for teachers who have    
beneficently influenced our lives1 for  
other older people who give us a start1 
advice and encouragement or financial   
aid4 ,even the love of ,god has in      
religious ritual been colored with      
gratitude for ,god's mercies and        
benevolences4  ,,the ,,individuality    
,,of ,,groups4 ,groups may display the  
same individuality and sense of selfhood
 as is exhibited by individuals4 ,and   
the members of the group may come to    
regard the group life as something quite
 as important and inalienable as their  
own personalities and possessions4      
,indeed in defense of the integrity of  
the group life1 as in the case1 for     
example1 of national honor1 the         
individual life and possession may come 
to be reckoned as naught4 ,man's        
gregariousness and his instinctive      

sympathy with his own kind make it easy 
for the individual to identify his own  
life with that of the group4 ,what      
threatens or endangers the group will in
 consequence arouse in him the same     
emotions as are aroused by threats or   
dangers that concern his own            
personality4 ,an insult to the flag may 
send a thrill of danger through the     
millions who read about it1 just as     
would an insult to themselves or their  
families4  ,group feeling may exist on  
various levels4 ,it may be nothing more 
momentous than local pride1 having the  
tallest tower1 the finest amusement     
park1 the best baseball team1 or being  
the sixth largest city4 ,it may be a    
belligerent imperialism1 a desire for a 
place in the sun4 ,it may be a desire   
for independence and an autonomous group
 life1 manifested so strikingly recently
 by such small nationalities as ,poland 
and ,czecho-,slovakia and influential in
 keeping ,switzerland alive as a        
nationality through hundreds of years1  

though surrounded by powerful           
neighbors4#a ,while a group does not    
exist save as an abstraction1 looked at 
as a whole it may exhibit the same      
outstanding traits1 or the same types of
 selfhood as an individual4 ,it may be  
fiercely belligerent and dogmatic2 it   
may1 like literary exponents of the     
,german ideal1 desire to spread its own 
conception of ,kultur throughout the    
world4#b ,it may be insistent on its own
 position1 or its own possessions or its
 own glory4 ,it may be fanatic in       
aggrandizement4 ,it may be interested in
 the welfare of other groups1 as in the 
case of large nationalities championing 
and protecting the causes of small or   
oppressed ones1 such an ideal as was    
expressed1 for example1 by ,president   
,wilson in his address to ,congress on  
the entrance of ,america into the ,great
 ,war3  ,footnote #a3 ,group feeling may
 be displayed under the most            
disadvantageous conditions1 as in the   
strong sentiment for nationalism current

 among the ,jews1 even through all the  
centuries of dispersion4  ,footnote #b3 
,thorstein ,veblen has pointed out how  
the common man comes to identify his    
interest with that of the group3 ,the   
common man who so lends himself to the  
aggressive enhancement of the national  
,culture and its prestige has nothing of
 a material kind to gain from the       
increase of renown that comes to his    
sovereign1 his language1 his            
countrymen's art or science1 his        
dietary1 or his ,god4 ,there are no     
sordid motives in all this4 ,these      
spiritual assets of self-complacency are
 indeed to be rated as grounds of       
high-minded patriotism without          
afterthought4 7,the ,nature of ,peace1  
p4 #ef47  444 ,we shall fight for the   
things which we have always carried     
nearest our hearts--for democracy1 for  
the right of those who submit to        
authority to have a voice in their own  
governments1 for the rights and         
liberties of small nations1 for a       

universal dominion of right by such a   
concert of free peoples as shall bring  
peace and safety to all nations and make
 the world itself at last free4#c       
,footnote #c3 ,woodrow ,wilson3 ,address
 to ,congress1 ,april #b1 #aiag4  ,the  
selfhood displayed by various groups    
varies with the degree and integration  
of the individual within the group4 ,in 
extreme cases1 such as that of ,germany 
under the imperial rgime1 the group     
individuality may completely overshadow 
and engulf that of the individual4 ,this
 ideal was not infrequently expressed by
 ,german political writers3  ,to us the 
state is the most indispensable as well 
as highest requisite of our earthly     
existence4444 ,all individualistic      
endeavor must be unreservedly           
subordinated to this lofty claim4444    
,the state eventually is of infinitely  
more value than the sum of the          
individuals within its jurisdiction4    
,this conception of the state which is  
as much a part of our life as the blood 

in our veins1 is nowhere to be found in 
the ,english constitution1 and is quite 
foreign to ,english thought1 and to that
 of ,america as well4#a  ,footnote #a3  
,eduard ,meyer3 ,england1 ,its          
,political ,organization and            
,development and the ,war ,against      
,germany 7,english translation71 pp4    
#cj-ca4  ,while custom-bound and feudal 
rgimes may emphasize the tendency to    
suppress development of individuality1  
and insist on regimentation in thought  
and action--an ideal proclaimed with    
increasing generality in ,germany from  
,hegel down#b there may be on the part  
of both individuals and groups the      
tendency to promote individuality as    
itself a social good4 ,in such a case   
the social structure and educational    
systems and methods will be designed to 
promote individuality rather than to    
suppress it4 ,individual variations1 if 
it be generally recognized that they are
 the only source of progress1 will be   
utilized and cultivated instead of      

suppressed4#c  ,footnote #b3 ,see       
,dewey3 ,german ,philosophy and         
,politics4  ,footnote #c3 ,individuality
 is the theme of ,montessori            
kindergarten methods4  ,throughout the  
nineteenth century 7indeed throughout   
the history of political theory71 the   
pendulum swung between individualism and
 complete socialization4 ,spencer long  
ago proclaimed the dominance of the     
individual2 ,t4 ,h4 ,green1 following   
the ,german philosophers1 the dominance 
of the state4 ,like the contrast between
 egoism and altruism1 an emphasis on    
either side is bound to be artificial4  
,the individual can only be a self in a 
social order2 the individual is only an 
individual in contrast with others4 ,it 
is doubtful1 for example1 whether a man 
living all his life alone on a desert   
island would discover any individuality 
at all4 ,a man's character is displayed 
in action1 and his actions are always1  
or nearly always1 performed with        
reference to other people4 ,and a man's 

best self-realization cannot be achieved
 save in congenial social order4 ,a man 
will not readily grow into a saint among
 a society of sinners1 and unless the   
social order provides opportunities for 
the highest type of life1 it will exist 
only in a very fortunate and favored    
few4 ,one of the charges that has been  
laid against democracy is that it fails 
to encourage the highest types of       
scientific and artistic interests1 that 
it is the gospel of the mediocre4#a     
,footnote #a3 ,this is the essence of   
the aristocratic position1 that a choice
 life lived by a few is better than a   
vulgar one shared by the many4  ,it is  
too often forgotten1 on the other hand1 
by those who emphasize the importance of
 society1 that society is1 after all1   
nothing more than an aggregate of       
selves4 ,the state1 the social order is 
nothing but the individuals who make it 
up1 and their relations to each other4  
,the group exists1 after all1 even as   
the most completely socialized political

 doctrines insist1 for the realization  
of individual selves1 for freedom of    
opportunity and initiative4 ,it is when 
individualism runs rampant1 when        
self-realization on the part of one     
individual interferes with              
self-realization on the part of all     
others that individualism becomes a     
menace4 ,individuality is itself        
valuable1 in the first place1 because as
 ,mill pointed out in his essay on      
,liberty earlier quoted3  ,what has made
 the ,european family an improving      
instead of a stationary portion of      
mankind8 ,not any superior excellence in
 them1 which1 when it exists1 exists as 
the effect1 not the cause2 but their    
remarkable diversity of character and   
culture4 ,individuals1 classes1 nations1
 have been extremely unlike one another2
 they have struck out a great variety of
 paths1 each leading to something       
valuable2 and although at every period  
those who traveled in different paths   
have been intolerant of one another1 and

 each would have thought it an excellent
 thing if all the rest could have been  
compelled to travel his road1 their     
attempts to thwart each other's         
development have rarely had any         
permanent success1 and each has endured 
in time to receive the good which the   
others have offered4#b  ,footnote #b3   
,mill3 ,essay on ,liberty1 chap4 ,,iii4 
,apart from the variations in group     
customs and traditions1 and their       
progressive application to changing     
circumstances which individuality makes 
possible1 it cannot be too strongly     
emphasized that society is the name for 
the process by which individuals live   
together4 ,it is the individuals who are
 the realities and the happiness of     
individuals which is the aim of social  
organization4 ,such happiness is only   
attainable when individuals are allowed 
to make the most of their native        
capacities and individual interests4    
,the social group as a group will be    
more interesting1 colorful1 and various 

when every experimentation and variety  
of life are encouraged and promoted4    
,and the individuals in such a society  
will be personalities1 not the mere     
mechanisms of a regimented routine4     
,,chapter ,,ix  ,,individual            
,,differences  ,,the ,,meaning ,,of     
,,individual ,,differences4 ,the major  
part of this volume has been devoted to 
a consideration of those traits1        
interests1 and capacities which all     
individuals share1 and which may in     
general be described as the original    
nature of man4 ,these distinctive inborn
 tendencies were treated1 for purposes  
of analysis1 in the most general terms1 
and1 on the whole1 as if they appeared  
in the same strength and variety in all 
individuals4 ,when we thus stand off and
 abstract those characteristics which   
appear universally in all individuals1  
human nature appears constant4 ,but     
there are marked variations in the      
specific content of human nature with   
which each individual is at birth       

endowed4 ,put in another way1 one might 
say that to be a human being means to be
 by nature pugnacious1 curious1 subject 
to fatigue1 responsive to praise and    
blame1 etc41 and susceptible to training
 in all these respects4 ,by virtue of   
the fact that we are all members of the 
human race1 we have common              
characteristics2 by virtue that we are  
individuals1 we all display specific    
variations in specific human capacities4
 ,there is1 save abstractly1 no such    
thing as a standard human being4 ,we may
 intellectually set up a norm or        
standard1 but it will be a norm or      
standard from which every individual is 
bound to vary4  ,the fact that          
individuals do differ1 and in specific  
and definable respects1 has most serious
 consequences for social life4 ,it      
means1 briefly1 that while general      
inferences may be drawn from wide and   
accurate observations of the workings of
 human nature1 these inferences remain  
general and tentative1 and if taken as  

rigid rules are sure to be misleading4  
,theories of education and social reform
 certainly gain from the general laws   
that can be formulated about original   
human traits1 fatigue1 memory1 learning 
capacity1 and the like4 ,but they must1 
if they are to be applicable1 take      
account also1 in a precise and          
systematic way1 of the variety of men's 
interests and capacities4 ,to this fact 
of variety in the original nature of    
different men social institutions and   
educational methods must be adapted4    
,arbitrary rules that apply to human    
nature in general do not apply to the   
specific cases and specific types of    
talent and desires4 ,educational and    
social organizations can mould these1   
but the result of these environmental   
influences will vary with individual    
differences in original capacities4 ,we 
can waste an enormous amount of time and
 energy trying to train a person without
 mechanical or mathematical gifts to be 
an engineer4 ,we not only save energy   

and time1 but promote happiness1 if we  
can train individuals so that their     
specific gifts will be capitalized at   
one hundred per cent4 ,they will be at  
once more useful to society and more    
content with themselves1 when they are  
using to the full their own capacities4 
,they will at once be unproductive and  
unhappy when they find themselves in    
activities or social situations where   
their genuine talents are given no      
opportunity and where their defects put 
them at a conspicuous handicap4         
,individuals differ1 it must further be 
noted1 not only in specific traits1 but 
in that complex of traits which is      
commonly called intelligence4 ,in the   
broadest terms1 we mean by an           
individual's intelligence his competence
 and facility in dealing with his       
environment1 physical1 social1 and      
intellectual4 ,this competence and      
facility1 in so far as it is a native   
endowment1 consists of a number of      
traits present in a more or less high   

degree1 traits1 for example1 such as    
curiosity1 flexibility of native and    
acquired reactions1 sociability1        
sympathy1 and the like4 ,in a sense an  
individual possesses not a single       
intelligence1 but many1 as many as there
 are types of activity in which he      
engages4 ,but one may classify          
intelligence under three heads1 as does 
,thorndike3#a mechanical intelligence1  
involved in dealing with things2 social 
intelligence1 involved in dealing with  
other persons2 and abstract             
intelligence1 involved in dealing with  
the relations between ideas4 ,each of   
these types of intelligence involves the
 presence in a high degree of a group of
 different traits4 ,thus1 in social     
intelligence1 a high degree of sympathy1
 sensitivity to praise and blame1       
leadership1 and the like1 are more      
requisite than they are for intelligent 
behavior in the realm of mechanical     
operations or of mathematical theory4 ,a
 person may be highly intelligent in one

 of these three spheres and mentally    
helpless in the others4 ,thus1 a        
brilliant philosopher may be nonplused  
by a stalled motor2 a successful        
executive may be a babe in the realm of 
abstract ideas4 ,but what we rate as a  
person's general intelligence is a kind 
of average struck between his various   
competences1 an estimate of his general 
ability to control himself in the       
miscellaneous variety of situations of  
which his experience consists4          
,footnote #a3 ,measuring ,intelligence1 
,harper's ,magazine1 ,march1 #aibj4     
,there have been a number of tests      
devised for the purpose of estimating an
 individual's general intelligence4#a   
,on a rating scale such as is used in   
these examinations most individuals will
 come up to a certain standard that may 
be called average or normal4 ,there will
 be a certain number so far below the   
normal rating in a complex of traits    
that go to produce intelligent          
7competent and facile7 behavior that    

they will have to be classed as         
subnormal1 ranging from feeblemindedness
 to idiocy4 ,a certain number will be   
found so extraordinarily gifted in      
general traits and in specific          
abilities--in given subject-matters1 as1
 for example1 in mathematics and        
music--that they will be marked out as  
geniuses4 ,following the laws of        
probability1 the greater the inferiority
 or superiority1 the more exceptional it
 will be4  ,footnote #a3 ,these1 in     
large part1 deal with words and ideas   
and are1 therefore1 weighted in favor of
 abstract intelligence1 and put at a    
discount individuals whose experience   
and whose intelligence are predominantly
 social or mechanical in character4     
,some of the tests are fairly adequate  
for mechanical intelligence1 but no good
 tests have been devised for social     
intelligence4 ,these tests1 however1 as 
used in the army and for appraising     
college entrants1 as at ,columbia       
,university1 have been demonstrated to  

be fairly good indices of general       
intelligence4  ,individual differences  
are1 therefore1 seen to be not simply   
differences with respect to given mental
 traits1 but differences with respect to
 general mental capacity4 ,experimental 
investigation points to a graded        
difference in mental capacity1 ranging  
from idiocy to genius1 the largest group
 being normal or average1 the size of   
the group diminishing with further      
deviation from the average in either    
direction4  ,certain important          
correlations1 furthermore1 have been    
found between the level of intelligence 
and the level of character4 ,the great  
in mind1 it may be said briefly1 are    
also great in spirit4 ,general moral    
defect commonly involves intellectual   
inferiority4 ,woods and ,pearson find   
the correlation between intellect and   
character to be about 4#e4444 ,general  
moral defect is due in part to a        
generally inferior nervous              
organization4#a  ,footnote #a3          

,thorndike3 ,educational ,psychology    
7#aiaj71 p4 #bbd4  ,one other important 
correlation must be noted4 ,while gifts 
and capacities are specific1 superiority
 in a given trait commonly involves     
superiority in most others4 ,exceptional
 talent in one direction in most cases  
involves exceptionality in many other   
respects4 ,while talents are not        
indiscriminately transferable from one  
field to another1 the same complex of   
traits which makes a person stand out   
preminently in a given field1 say law1  
would make him stand out in any one of  
half a dozen different fields into which
 he might have gone4 ,there seems to be 
no evidence that extraordinary capacity 
in one direction is balanced by         
extraordinary incapacity and stupidity  
in others4 ,the fact that individuals   
differ not only in specific traits but  
in general mental capacity has1 also1   
certain obvious practical consequences4 
,it means that there are present in     
society1 in the light of recent tests in

 the army1 an unexpectedly large number 
of individuals below the level of normal
 intelligence4 ,one in five hundred1    
,thorndike estimates1 is the frequency  
of intellectual ability so defective as 
to disturb the home1 resist school      
influence1 and excite popular derision4 
,these are clearly liabilities in the   
social order4 ,on the other hand1 there 
is a large number above the level of    
average intelligence4 ,the importance of
 this group for human progress can      
hardly be overestimated4 ,as we have    
seen in other connections1 progress is  
contingent upon variation from the      
normal or the accustomed1 and such      
variation from the normal is initiated  
in the majority of cases by members of  
this comparatively small super-normal   
group4 ,if civilization is to advance it
 must capitalize its intelligence2 that 
is1 educate up to the highest point of  
native ability4 ,but in any case1 its   
chief guarantee of progress lies in the 
comparatively small group in whom native

 ability is exceptionally high4 ,for it 
is among this group that original       
thinking1 invention1 and discovery      
almost exclusively occur4  ,,causes ,,of
 ,,individual ,,differences4 ,among the 
chief causes of individual differences  
may1 in general1 be set down the        
following3 7#a7 ,sex1 7#b7 ,race1 7#c7  
,near ,ancestry or ,family1 7#d7        
,environment4 ,the particular fund of   
human nature which an individual        
displays1 that is1 his specific native  
endowments1 as they appear in practice1 
will be a resultant of these various    
causes4 ,in the study of each of these  
characteristics1 we should be able      
ideally to eliminate all the others and 
to consider them each in isolation4     
,,the ,,influence ,,of ,,sex4 ,in the   
case of sex1 for example1 we should not 
confuse individual differences due to   
the fact of sex with individual         
differences due to divergent training   
given to each of the sexes4 ,in         
scientific experiments to determine sex 

differences in mental traits1 there have
 been careful attempts to eliminate     
everything but the factor of sex itself4
 ,thus in ,karl ,pearson's studies of   
fifty twin brothers and sisters1 the    
factors of ancestry and difference of   
training and age were practically       
eliminated4  ,in so far as allowance can
 be made for other contributing factors1
 studies of individual differences due  
to sex have revealed1 roughly speaking1 
the following results4 ,there have been1
 in the field of sensory discrimination 
and accuracy of motor response1         
slight--and negligible--differences of  
responses made by male and female4 ,the 
subjects stated were1 in most cases1    
selected so far as possible from the    
same social strata1 social and          
intellectual interest1 and background4#a
  ,footnote #a3 ,as1 for example1 the   
members of the graduating and junior    
classes of the co-educational college at
 the ,university of ,chicago1 studied by
 ,dr4 ,thompson4  ,thorndike reports the

 general results of such tests as       
follows3  ,the percentages of males     
reaching or exceeding the median ability
 of females in such traits as have been 
subjected to exact investigation are    
roughly as follows3    ,in speed of     
naming colors and sorting cards by color
 and    discriminating colors as in a   
test for color blindness     #bd   ,in  
finding and checking small visual       
details such as letters  #cc   ,in      
spelling                                
#cc   ,in school marks in ,english      
#ce   ,in school marks in foreign       
languages                        #dj    
,in memorizing for immediate recall     
#db   ,in lowness of sensory thresholds 
#dc   ,in retentiveness                 
#dg   ,in tests of speed and accuracy of
 association                 #dh   ,in  
tests of general information            
#ej   ,in school marks in mathematics   
#ej   ,in school marks 7total average7  
#ej   ,in tests of discrimination 7other
 than for color7             #ea   ,in  

range of sensitivity                    
#eb   ,in school marks in history       
#ee   ,in tests of ingenuity            
#fc   ,in accuracy of arm movements     
#ff   ,in school marks in physics and   
chemistry                    #fh   ,in  
reaction time                           
#gj   ,in speed of finger and arm       
movement                           #ga  
,the most important characteristic of   
these differences is their small amount4
 ,the individual differences within one 
sex so enormously outweigh the          
differences between the sexes in these  
intellectual and semi-intellectual      
traits that for practical purposes the  
sex difference may be disregarded4 ,so  
far as ability goes1 there could hardly 
be a stupider way to get two groups     
alike within each group but differing   
between the groups than to take the two 
sexes4 ,as is well known1 the           
experiments of the past generation in   
educating women have shown their equal  
competence in school work of elementary1

 secondary1 and collegiate grade4 ,the  
present generation's experience is      
showing the same fact for professional  
education and business service4 ,the    
psychologists' measurements lead to the 
conclusion that this equality of        
achievement comes from an equality of   
natural gifts1 not from an overstraining
 of the lesser talents of women4#a      
,footnote #a3 ,thorndike3 ,educational  
,psychology1 briefer course1 pp4        
#cde-df4  ,that is1 so far as           
experiments upon objectively measurable 
traits have been conducted1 the specific
 differences that individuals display   
have comparatively nothing to do with   
the fact that an individual happens to  
be a man or a woman4 ,these experiments 
have been conducted with boys and girls 
as young as seven1 and with men and     
women ranging up to the age of          
twenty-five4#b  ,footnote #b3 ,there    
seems1 as might be expected to be1 a    
slightly higher differentiation between 
the two sexes after adolescence than    

before4  ,these experiments have been   
conducted to test sensory               
discrimination1 precision of motor      
response and some of the simpler types  
of judgment1 such as those involved in  
the solution of simple puzzles with     
blocks1 matches1 etc4 ,the fact of the  
negligibility of sex difference with    
regard to certain minor measurable      
traits has been adequately demonstrated 
by a wide variety of experiments4 ,the  
fact of sex equality or mental capacity 
has been less accurately but fairly     
universally noted by popular consensus  
of observation and opinion of the work  
of women in the various trades and      
professions4 ,there are differences     
between men and women in physical       
strength and in consequent              
susceptibility to fatigue4 ,these are   
important considerations in qualifying  
the amount of work a woman can do as    
compared with that of a man1 and have   
justly resulted in the regulation of    
hours for women1 as a special class4    

,but there do not seem to be1 on the    
average1 significant original           
differences in mental capacity4#c       
,footnote #c3 ,on this subject there has
 been collected a large amount of       
accurate experimental data4 ,see        
,goldmark3 ,fatigue and ,efficiency1    
part ,,ii1 pp4 #a-bb4 ,these refer to   
physiological differences4  ,there do   
exist1 as a matter of practical fact1   
some of the special attributes commonly 
ascribed to the masculine and feminine  
mental life1 but it is generally agreed 
by investigators that these are to be   
accounted for by the different          
environment and standards socially      
established for men and for women4      
,there are radical and subtle           
differences in training to which boys   
and girls are subjected from early      
childhood4 ,there are deeply fixed      
traditions as to the standards of       
action1 feeling1 and demeanor to which  
boys and girls are respectively trained 
and to which they are expected to       

conform4 ,if a boy should not live up to
 this training and expectation1 he may  
be marked out as effeminate4 ,if a girl 
does not conform1 she is defined as a   
hoyden or a tomboy4  ,these social      
distinctions1 which are emphasized even 
in the behavior of young boys and young 
girls1 grow more pronounced as          
individuals grow older4 ,one need hardly
 call attention to actions regarded as  
perfectly legitimate for men which      
provoke disapproval if practiced by     
women4 ,rigid training in these         
different codes of behavior may cause   
acquired characteristics to seem inborn4
 ,but whether these general features    
commonly held to distinguish the mental 
life of man or woman are or are not     
intrinsic and original1 they have been  
marked out by certain investigators as  
socially fundamental4 ,thus ,heymans and
 ,wiersma1 two ,german investigators1   
set down as the differentia of feminine 
mental life 7#a7 greater activity1 7#b7 
greater emotionality1 7#c7 greater      

unselfishness of the female4#a          
,footnote #a3 ,see ,thorndike's         
,educational ,psychology 7#aiaj71 p4    
#acf4  ,there are some general          
differences noted by both layman and    
psychologist1 which1 though not subject 
to quantitative determination1 yet seem 
to differentiate somewhat definitely    
between feminine and masculine mental   
activity4 ,these may be set down in     
general as occurring in the field of    
emotional susceptibility4 ,thorndike    
traces them back to the varying         
intensity of two human traits earlier   
discussed3 the fighting instinct1       
relatively much stronger in the male1   
and the nursing or mothering instinct1  
much stronger in the female4 ,with this 
fact are associated important           
differences in the conduct of men and   
women in social relations4 ,the maternal
 instinct is held by some writers1 for  
instance1 to be in large measure the    
basis of altruism1 and is closely       
associated with sensitivity to the needs

 and desires of others4 ,thorndike      
writes3  ,it has been common to talk of 
women's dependence4 ,this is1 ,i am     
sure1 only an awkward name for less     
resentment at mastery4 ,the actual      
nursing of the young seems likewise to  
involve equally unreasoning tendencies  
to pet1 coddle1 and do for others4 ,the 
existence of these two instincts has    
been long recognized by literature and  
common knowledge1 but their importance  
in causing differences in the general   
activities of the two sexes has not4    
,the fighting instinct is in fact the   
cause of a very large amount of the     
world's intellectual endeavor4 ,the     
financier does not think merely for     
money1 nor the scientist for truth1 nor 
the theologian to save souls4 ,their    
intellectual efforts are aimed in great 
measure to outdo the other man1 to      
subdue nature1 to conquer assent4 ,the  
maternal instinct in its turn is the    
chief source of woman's superiorities in
 the moral life4 ,the virtues in which  

she excels are not so much due to either
 any general moral superiority or any   
set of special moral talents as to her  
original impulses to relieve1 comfort1  
and console4#a  ,footnote #a3           
,thorndike3 loc4 cit41 pp4 #dh-di4      
,ordinary observation reveals1 as       
literature has in general recorded1 what
 ,havelock ,ellis has called the greater
 affectability of the female mind4      
,there is evidenced in many women a     
singular and immediate responsiveness to
 other people's emotions1 a quick       
intuition1 a precise though non-logical 
discrimination1 which1 though shared to 
some extent by all individuals gifted   
with sympathy and affection1 is a       
peculiarly feminine quality4 ,indeed    
when a man possesses it1 it is common to
 speak of him as possessing almost a    
woman's intuition4 ,such emotional      
susceptibility is manifested in the     
higher frequency of emotional           
instability and emotional outbreaks     
among women than among men1 and the     

decreased power of inhibition which     
women have over instinctive and         
emotional reactions4 ,further than this1
 women more than men may be said to     
qualify their judgments of persons and  
situations by their emotional reactions 
to them4  ,the common suspicion that in 
general women's abilities are less than 
those of men has seemed to gain strength
 from the greater number of geniuses and
 eminent persons there have been among  
men than among women4 ,professor        
,cattell writes in this connection3  ,i 
have spoken throughout of eminent men as
 we lack in ,english words including    
both men and women1 but as a matter of  
fact women do not have an important     
place on the list4 ,they have in all    
thirty-two representatives in the       
thousand4 ,of these eleven are          
hereditary sovereigns1 and eight are    
eminent through misfortunes1 beauty1 or 
other circumstances4 ,belles-lettres and
 fiction--the only department in which  
woman has accomplished much--give ten   

names as compared with seventy-two men4 
,sappho and ,joan d',arc are the only   
other women on the list4 ,it is         
noticeable that with the exception of   
,sappho--a name associated with certain 
fine fragments--women have not excelled 
in poetry or art4 ,yet these are the    
departments least dependent on          
environment1 and at the same time those 
in which the environment has been       
perhaps as favorable to women as to men4
 ,women depart less from the normal than
 men--a fact that usually holds for the 
female throughout the animal series2 in 
many closely related species only the   
male can be readily distinguished4#a    
,footnote #a3 ,cattell3 ,a ,statistical 
,study of ,eminent ,men1 ,popular       
,science ,monthly1 vol4 ,,lxii4 pp4     
#cge-gg4  ,in the facts of higher       
variability among males1 and the        
hitherto restricted social opportunities
 provided for women are to be found the 
chief reasons for the comparatively high
 achievement of the male sex as compared

 with the female4 ,but on the average   
the difference between the two sexes    
with respect to mental capacity is      
slight4  ,,the ,,influence ,,of ,,race4 
,a second factor in determining         
individual differences in mental traits 
is race4 ,there are certain popular     
presuppositions as to the inherent      
differences in the mental activity of   
different races4 ,the ,irishman's wit1  
the negro's joyousness1 the emotionality
 of the ,latin races1 the stolidity of  
the ,chinese1 are all supposed to be    
fundamental4 ,and in a sense they are4  
,that is1 in the life and culture of    
these groups1 such traits may stand out 
distinctively4 ,but most psychologists  
and anthropologists question seriously  
whether these traits are to be traced to
 radical differences in racial          
inheritance4 ,for the most part they    
seem rather to be the result of radical 
differences in environment4 ,many of the
 mental similarities of an ,indian to   
,indians and of his differences from    

,anglo-,saxons disappear1 if he happens 
to be adopted and brought up as an      
,anglo-,saxon4#a  ,footnote #a3         
,thorndike loc4 cit41 p4 #eb4  ,there   
have been various experimental studies  
made to determine how much divergences  
in the mental activity of different     
races are determined by differences in  
racial inheritance4 ,such experiments   
have been conducted chiefly upon very   
simple traits and capacities4 ,the      
accuracy of sensory response among      
different races has1 for example1 been  
examined4 ,there have proved to be1 in  
regard to these1 slight differences in  
the effectiveness and accuracy of       
response4 ,there are racial differences 
in hearing1 as tested by the ticking of 
a watch or clock artificially made4 ,in 
this test1 ,papuans1 to take an         
instance1 were inferior to ,europeans4  
,the sense of touch has been similarly  
tested1 and comparatively negligible    
differences have been found4 ,in regard 
to the five senses1 their efficiency    

seems to be about equal in all the races
 of mankind4 ,the proverbial keenness of
 vision of the ,indian1 for example1 is 
found to be due to a superior training  
in its use1 a training made imperative  
by the conditions of ,indian life4 ,in  
reaction time tests--that is1 tests in  
the speed of simple mental and motor    
performances--the time consumed in      
response has been found to be about the 
same for all races tested4 ,the results 
have been similar with regard to certain
 simple processes of judgment or        
inference3  ,there are a number of      
illusions and constant errors of        
judgment which are well known in the    
psychological laboratory1 and which seem
 to depend1 not on peculiarities of the 
sense organs1 but on quirks and twists  
in the process of judgment4 ,a few of   
these have been made the matter of      
comparative tests1 with the result that 
peoples of widely different cultures are
 subject to the same errors1 and in     
about the same degree4 ,there is an     

illusion which occurs when an object1   
which looks heavier than it is1 is      
lifted by the hand2 it then feels1 not  
only lighter than it looks1 but even    
lighter than it really is4 ,the contrast
 between the look and the feel of the   
thing plays havoc with the judgment4    
,women are1 on the average1 more subject
 to this illusion than men4 ,the amount 
of this illusion has been measured in   
several peoples1 and found to be1 with  
one or two exceptions1 about the same in
 all4 ,certain visual illusions1 in     
which the apparent length or direction  
of a line is greatly altered by the     
neighborhood of other lines1 have       
similarly been found present in all     
races tested1 and to about the same     
degree4 ,as far as they go1 these       
results tend to show that simple sorts  
of judgment1 being subject to the same  
disturbances1 proceed in the same manner
 among various peoples2 so that the     
similarity of the races in mental       
processes extends at least one step     

beyond sensation4#a  ,footnote #a3      
,woodworth3 ,racial ,differences in     
,mental ,traits1 ,science1 ,new ,series1
 vol4 #ca1 pp4 #agi-ha4  ,professor     
,woodworth also points out that these   
simple tests are not adequate to measure
 general intelligence4  ,a good test for
 intelligence would be much appreciated 
by the comparative psychologist1 since1 
in spite of equal standing in such      
rudimentary matters as the senses and   
bodily movement1 attention and the      
simpler sorts of judgment1 it might     
still be that great differences in      
mental efficiency existed between       
different groups of men4 ,probably no   
single test could do justice to so      
complex a trait as intelligence4 ,two   
important features of intelligent action
 are quickness in seizing the key to a  
novel situation1 and firmness in        
limiting activity to the right          
direction1 and suppressing acts which   
are obviously useless for the purpose in
 hand4 ,a simple test which calls for   

these qualities is the so-called form   
test4 ,there are a number of blocks of  
different shapes1 and a board with holes
 to match the blocks4 ,the blocks and   
board are placed before a person1 and he
 is told to put the blocks in the holes 
in the shortest possible time4 ,the key 
to the situation is here the matching of
 blocks and holes by their shape2 and   
the part of intelligence is to hold     
firmly to this obvious necessity1       
wasting no time in trying to force a    
round block into a square hole4 ,the    
demand on intelligence certainly seems  
slight enough2 and the test would       
probably not differentiate between a    
,newton and you or me2 but it does      
suffice to catch the feeble-minded1 the 
young child1 or the chimpanzee1 as any  
of these is likely to fail altogether1  
or at least to waste much time in random
 moves and vain efforts4 ,this test was 
tried on representatives of several     
races and considerable differences      
appeared4 ,as between whites1 ,indians1 

,eskimos1 ,ainus1 ,filipinos1 and       
,singhalese1 the average differences    
were small1 and much overlapping        
occurred4 ,as between these groups1     
however1 and the ,igorot and ,negrito   
from the ,philippines and a few reputed 
,pygmies from the ,congo1 the average   
differences were great1 and the         
overlapping small4#a  ,footnote #a3     
,woodworth3 loc4 cit41 pp4 #aga-hf4     
,equality among races in the various    
traits that have been measured by       
psychologists does not imply that common
 observation is wrong in counting one   
race as intellectually superior to      
another4 ,there have1 as yet1 been no   
measurements of such general features of
 social life as energy1 self-reliance1  
inventiveness1 and the like4 ,but from  
indications of experiments already made1
 these so-called 7and for practical     
purposes genuine7 intellectual          
differences between the individuals of  
different races must be attributed to   
differences in environment4 ,races as   

races seem to be equally gifted4        
,professor ,boas points out that        
civilized investigators traveling among 
savage tribes commit one serious fallacy
 in insisting on the inferiority of     
these primitive peoples4 ,they are said 
to be irrational1 for example1 when they
 are quite logical in their way of      
dealing with the material which is at   
their disposal4 ,without any scientific 
information available1 for example1     
anthropomorphism1 or the tendency to    
interpret cosmic phenomena in human     
terms is quite natural and reasonable4  
,again3  ,the difference in the mode of 
thought of primitive man and that of    
civilized man seems to consist largely  
in the difference of character of the   
traditional material with which the new 
perception associates itself4 ,the      
instruction given to the child of       
primitive man is not based on centuries 
of experimentation1 but consists of the 
crude experience of generations4 ,when a
 new experience enters the mind of      

primitive man1 the same process which we
 observe among civilized man brings     
about an entirely different series of   
associations1 and therefore results in a
 different type of explanation4 ,a      
sudden explosion will associate itself  
in his mind1 perhaps1 with the tales he 
has heard in regard to the mythical     
history of the world1 and consequently  
will be accompanied by superstitious    
fear4 ,when we recognize that neither   
among civilized men nor among primitive 
men the average individual carries to   
completion the attempt at causal        
explanation of phenomena1 but carries it
 only so far as to amalgamate it with   
other previously known facts1 we        
recognize that the result of the whole  
process depends entirely upon the       
character of the traditional material4#a
  ,footnote #a3 ,boas3 ,mind of         
,primitive ,man1 pp4 #bjc-jd4  ,this may
 be illustrated by our immediate        
reactions of pleasure or disgust at     
customs or ideas that provoke directly  

opposite reactions among races reared in
 another tradition4  ,again primitive   
races have been accused of lacking      
self-control4 ,the fact is that they    
exhibit self-control about matters which
 they regard as important1 and lack of  
it in respect to matters which they     
regard as trivial4 ,when an ,eskimo     
community is on the point of starvation1
 and their religious proscriptions      
forbid them to make use of the seals    
that are basking on the ice1 the amount 
of self-control of the whole community  
which restrains them from killing those 
seals is certainly very great4#b ,the   
case is similar with regard to nearly   
all the alleged inferiorities of        
primitive man1 his improvidence1        
unreliability1 and the like4 ,in nearly 
every instance1 it has been found that  
we are holding him to account for not   
being able to persist in courses of     
action which do not seem to him1 with   
his training and education1 worth       
persisting in1 and for not conforming to

 standards which1 given his background1 
are meaningless4  ,footnote #b3 ,ibid4  
p4 #ajh4  ,but if differences in racial 
attainments are due to differences in   
environment1 it might be said that this 
itself is testimony to the superiority  
of the race that has the more complex   
and exacting environment4 ,this is not  
by any means clearly the case4 ,the     
culture or civilization which a race    
exhibits is a very uncertain index of   
its gifts or its capacities4 ,the       
culture found in a race is1 it may be   
said without exaggeration1 largely a    
matter of accident or circumstance      
rather than of heredity4  ,some of the  
environmental causes for differences in 
culture may he explicitly noted4 ,any   
modern culture is the result of         
interminglings of many different        
cross-streams and cross-borrowings4     
,races that have long been isolated as1 
for example the ,african negroes1 have  
no possibility of picking up all the    
acquisitions to which races that        

intermingle have access4 ,progress in   
the developments of arts1 sciences1 and 
institutions depends on fortunate       
individual variations4 ,the smaller the 
race the less the number of variations  
possible1 including those on the side of
 what we call genius4 ,again fortunate  
variations depend not so much on the    
general average intellectual capacities 
of the race as on its variability4 ,so  
one race may possess a relative         
superiority of achievement because of   
its high variability1 just as1 as we    
have already pointed out1 the greater   
preminence of the male sex with regard  
to intellectual accomplishment is due to
 the greater number of variations both  
above and below the norm which it       
displays4 ,the reasons for variability  
are again1 according to ,professor      
,boas1 largely environmental4 ,we have  
seen1 when a people is descended from a 
small uniform group1 that then its      
variability will decrease2 while on the 
other hand1 when a group has a          

much-varied origin or when the ancestors
 belong to entirely distinct types the  
variability may be considerably         
increased4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,boas2 loc4 
cit41 p4 #ic4  ,again a race may be     
placed in such geographical conditions  
that a fortuitous variation on the part 
of one individual may prove of enormous 
value in the development of its         
civilization4 ,or fortunate geographical
 conditions may stimulate types of      
activity that lie dormant1 although     
possible1 among other races4 ,thus by   
some investigators the flexibility and  
emancipation of the ,greek genius were  
attributed to their access to the sea   
and their constant intermingling with   
other cultures1 especially the          
,egyptian4  ,on the subject of the      
fundamental equality of races despite   
their seeming disparity1 as that at     
present1 let us say1 between whites and 
negroes1 ,professor ,boas writes3  ,much
 has been said of the hereditary        
characteristics of the ,jews1 of the    

,gypsies1 of the ,french and ,irish1 but
 ,i do not see that the external and    
social causes which have moulded the    
character of members of these people    
have ever been eliminated               
satisfactorily2 and1 moreover1 ,i do not
 see how this can be accomplished4 ,a   
number of external factors that         
influence body and mind may easily be   
named--climate1 nutrition1              
occupation--but as soon as we enter into
 a consideration of social factors and  
mental conditions we are unable to tell 
definitely what is cause and what is    
effect4         99       99       99    
99       99  ,the conclusions reached   
are therefore1 on the whole1 negative4  
,we are not inclined to consider the    
mental organization of different races  
of man as differing in fundamental      
points4 ,although1 therefore1 the       
distribution of faculty among the races 
of man is far from being known1 we can  
say this much3 the average faculty of   
the white race is found to the same     

degree in a large proportion of         
individuals of all other races1 and     
although it is probable that some of    
these races may not produce as large a  
proportion of great men as our own race1
 there is no reason to suppose that they
 are unable to reach the level of       
civilization represented by the bulk of 
our own people4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,boas2 
loc4 cit41 pp4 #aaf1 #abc4  ,in contrast
 must be cited the opinions of a large  
class of psychologists and              
anthropologists who are inclined to     
regard racial differences as intrinsic  
and original4 ,of such1 for example1 is 
,francis ,galton1 who claims in his     
,hereditary ,genius1 that taking negroes
 on their own ground they still are     
inferior to ,europeans by about one     
eighth the difference1 say1 between     
,aristotle and the lowest idiot4 ,recent
 psychological experiments in the army  
reveal1 again1 certain fundamental      
intellectual inferiorities of negroes1  
though whether this is environmental or 

to be traced to hereditary causes is    
open to question4  ,the fact remains    
that there are1 despite the lack of     
evidence for hereditary mental          
differences1 practical differences in   
the mental activity of different races  
that are of social importance4 ,these   
differences1 which seem so fundamental1 
have been explained primarily by the    
powerful control exercised over the     
individual by the habits which he       
acquires even before the age of five    
years4 ,these1 though unconscious1 may  
be1 as the ,freudian psychologists      
maintain1 all the more important for    
that reason4 ,this would appear to be   
the only explanation of significant     
racial differences4 ,cultural           
differences cannot1 biologists are      
generally agreed1 be transmitted in the 
germs that pass from generation to      
generation4 ,one may say1 in effect1    
that an individual is differentiated in 
his mental traits by early association  
with a certain race1 and by his         

immediate ancestry or family1 rather    
than by the fact of belonging physically
 to a certain race4  ,,the ,,influence  
,,of ,,immediate ,,ancestry ,,or        
,,family4 ,a factor that is1 on         
experimental evidence1 rated to be of   
high importance in the determination of 
the differences of the mental make-up of
 human beings1 is immediate ancestry or 
family4 ,stated in the most simple and  
general terms this means that children  
of the same parents tend to display     
marked likenesses in mental traits1 and 
to exhibit less variation among         
themselves than is exhibited in the same
 number of individuals chosen at random4
 ,a great number of experiments have    
been conducted to determine how far     
resemblances in mental traits are due to
 common parentage4 ,the correlation     
between membership in the same family   
and resemblances of social traits has   
been found to be uniformly high4  ,the  
inference was made that children of the 
same family would show great            

resemblances in mental traits1 when     
accurate experiments showed marked      
similarity in physical traits under the 
same conditions4 ,the coefficient of    
correlation between brothers in the     
color of the eye1 is1 according to the  
results obtained by ,karl ,pearson1     
4#eb4a ,the coefficient of fraternal    
correlation in the case of the cephalic 
index 7ratio of width to length of head7
 is 4#dj4 ,the correlation of hair color
 is found to be 4#ee4 ,the fact of high 
correlation between resemblance of      
physical traits and membership in the   
same family is of crucial importance1   
because these traits are clearly due to 
ancestry1 and not to environmental      
differences4 ,if physical traits show   
such a correlation1 it is likely that   
mental traits will also1 mental traits  
being ultimately dependent on the brain 
and the nervous system1 which are both  
affected by ancestry4  ,footnote #a3    
,these facts are based on the reports of
 ,karl ,pearson in his ,on the ,laws of 

,inheritance in ,man4 ,what is meant by 
coefficient of correlation may be       
explained as follows3 ,if the           
coefficient of correlation between      
father and son is 4#c and the           
coefficient of correlation between      
brother and brother is 4#e we may say3 a
 son on the average deviates from the   
general trend of the population by 4#c  
of the amount of his father's deviation1
 a brother by 4#e of the amount of his  
brother4  ,measurements of measurable   
traits and observations of less         
objectively measurable ones1 have       
revealed that immediate ancestry is in  
itself an influential factor in         
producing likenesses and differences    
among men with respect to mental traits4
 ,one interesting case1 interesting     
because it was a test of a capacity that
 might be expected to be largely        
environmental in its origins1 was that  
of the spelling abilities of children in
 the ,st4 ,xavier ,school in ,new ,york4
 ,thorndike thus reports the test3  ,as 

the children of this school commonly    
enter at a very early age1 and as the   
staff and the methods of teaching remain
 very constant1 we have in the case of  
the #ahj brothers and sisters included  
in the #fjj children closely similar    
school training4 ,mr4 ,earle measured   
the ability of any individual by his    
deviation from the average for his grade
 and sex1 and found the co-efficient of 
correlation between children of the same
 family to be 4#ej4 ,that is1 any       
individual is on the average fifty per  
cent as much above or below the average 
for his age and sex as his brother or   
sister4  ,similarities in home training 
might theoretically account for this1   
but any one experienced in teaching will
 hesitate to attribute much efficacy to 
such similarities4 ,bad spellers remain 
bad spellers though their teachers      
change4 ,moreover1 ,dr4 ,j4 ,m4 ,rice in
 his exhaustive study of spelling       
ability found little or no relationship 
between good spelling and any one of the

 popular methods1 and little or none    
between poor spelling and foreign       
parentage4 ,yet the training of a home  
where parents do not read or spell the  
language well must be a home of         
relatively poor training for spelling4  
,cornman's more careful study of        
spelling supports the view that ability 
to spell is little influenced by such   
differences in school or home training  
as commonly exist4#a  ,footnote #a3     
,thorndike3 loc4 cit41 p4 #gh4  ,in     
general the influence of heredity may be
 said far to outweigh the influence of  
home training4 ,in all the cases        
reported1 the resemblances were about   
the same in traits subject to training1 
and in those not subject to training4   
,thus industry and conscientiousness and
 public spirit1 which are clearly       
affected by environment1 show no greater
 resemblance than such practically      
unmodifiable traits as memory1 original 
sensitiveness to colors1 sounds1 and    
distances4  ,the influence of parentage1

 it must be added1 consists in the      
transmission of specific traits1 not of 
a certain nature as a whole4 ,there are 
in the germ and the ovum which          
constitute the inheritance of each      
individual1 certain determinant         
elements4 ,the elements that determine  
the original traits with which each     
individual will be born vary1 of course1
 in the germs produced by a single      
parent less than among individuals      
chosen at random1 but they vary none the
 less4 ,in this variation of the        
determining elements in the germs of the
 same individual is to be found the     
cause of the variation in the physical  
and mental traits among children of the 
same parents4  ,since the determining   
elements1 the unit characters that      
appear in the sperm or ovum of each     
individual1 do not appear uniformly even
 in children of the same parents1       
brother and sister may resemble each    
other in certain mental traits1 and     
differ in others4 ,a pair of twins may  

be indistinguishable in eye color and   
stature1 but be notably different in    
hair color and tests of intellect4      
,mental inheritance1 as well as         
physical1 is1 then1 organized in detail4
 ,it is not the inheritance of gross    
total natures1 but of particular mental 
traits4 ,if we had sufficient data1 we  
should be able to analyze out the unit  
characters of an individual's mental    
equipment1 so as to be able to predict  
with some accuracy the mental           
inheritance of the children of any two  
parents4 ,in the case of physical       
inheritance1 the laws of the hereditary 
transmission of any given traits are    
known in considerable detail4 ,the      
detailed quantitative investigations of 
inheritance1 following the general lines
 set by ,mendel1 have given striking    
results4  ,physical traits have been    
found to be analyzable into             
unit-characters 7that is1 traits        
hereditarily transmitted as units71 such
 as curliness of hair1 blue eyes1 and   

the like4 ,mental traits1 however1 do   
not seem analyzable into the fixed      
unit-characters prescribed by the       
,mendelian laws of inheritance4  ,the   
success which breeders have had in the  
control of the reproduction of plants   
and animals1 in the perpetuation of a   
stock of desirable characteristics and  
the elimination of the undesirable1 has 
given rise to a somewhat analogous ideal
 in human reproduction4 ,that eugenics  
has at least its theoretical            
possibilities with regard to physical   
traits1 few biologists will question4   
,however difficult it may be in practice
 to regulate human matings on the       
exclusive basis of the kind of offspring
 desired1 it is a genuine biological    
possibility4 ,in a negative way1 it has 
already in part been initiated in the   
prevention of the marriage of some      
extreme types of the physically unfit1  
by the so-called eugenic marriage laws  
in some states in this country4#a       
,footnote #a3 ,there have been laws1 as 

there is a fairly decided public        
opinion1 adverse to reproduction by the 
feeble-minded and the morally defective4
 ,but 7see ,richardson3 ,the ,etiology  
of ,arrested ,mental ,development1 p4   
#i7 there have been a number of cases of
 feeble-minded parents producing normal 
children4  ,but whether scientific      
regulation of marriages for the         
production of eugenic offspring is      
feasible1 even apart from the personal  
and emotional questions involved1 is    
open to question4 ,no mental trait such 
as vivacity1 musical ability1           
mathematical talent1 or artistic sense1 
has been analyzed into such definitely  
transmissible unit-characters as blue   
eyes and curliness of hair4 ,so many    
unit-characters seem to be involved in  
any single mental trait that it will be 
long before a complete analysis of the  
hereditary invariable determinants of   
any single trait can be made4  ,it is   
thus impossible to tell as yet with any 
security or precision the biological    

components of any single mental trait4  
,the evidence at our disposal1 however1 
does confirm us in the belief that one  
of the most significant and certain     
causes of individual differences1       
whether physical or mental1 is immediate
 ancestry or family4 ,individuals are   
made by what they are initially1 and1 as
 we shall presently see1 therefore      
largely by their inheritance4 ,with the 
latter1 environment can do just so much1
 and no more4 ,and the most significant 
and effective part of an individual's   
inheritance is his family for some      
generations back1 rather than the race  
to which he belongs4  ,,the ,,influence 
,,of ,,the ,,environment4 ,those factors
 so far discussed which determine       
individual differences are independent  
of the particular conditions of life in 
which an individual happens to be       
placed4 ,an individual's race1 sex1     
family are beyond modification by       
anything that happens to him after      
birth4 ,maturity1 in so far as it is    

mere growth independent of training1 is 
also largely a fixed and unmodifiable   
condition4  ,the original nature1       
determined by race1 sex1 and immediate  
ancestry1 with which a man starts life  
is subject to modification by his social
 environment1 by the ideas1 customs1    
companions1 beliefs1 by which he is     
surrounded1 and with which he comes     
continuously in contact4 ,commonly the  
influence of environment is held to be  
very high4 ,it is difficult1 however1   
accurately to distinguish between       
effects which are due to original nature
 and effects which are due to           
environment4  ,differences in training  
are important1 but the results vary with
 the natures trained4 ,precisely the    
same environment will not have the same 
consequences for two different natures4 
,two approximately same natures will    
show something like the same effects in 
dissimilar environments4 ,human beings  
are certainly differentiated by the     
customs1 laws1 ideals1 friends1 and     

occupations to which they are exposed4  
,but what the net result will be in a   
specific case1 depends on the           
individual's equipment to start with1 an
 equipment that is fixed before the     
environment has had a chance to act at  
all4 ,the kindliness and indulgence that
 save some children demoralize others4  
,in some people a soft answer turneth   
away wrath2 in others it will kindle it4
 ,andrew ,carnegie starts as a bobbin   
boy1 and becomes a millionaire2 but     
there were many other bobbin boys4 ,the 
sunset that stirs in one man a lyric1   
leaves another cold4 ,the same course in
 biology arouses in one student a       
passion for a life of science2 it leaves
 another hoping never to see a          
microscope again4 ,on the other hand1   
the same types of original capacity     
thrown into different environments will 
yet attain somewhat comparable results1 
in the way of character and achievement4
 ,the biographies of a few poets1       
painters1 philosophers1 and scientists  

chosen at random1 show the most diverse 
antecedents4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,taking   
the social and professional status of a 
distinguished man's father as some index
 of the social environment to which he  
was subjected during his youth1 we find 
some interesting examples3 ,the father  
of ,john ,keats was a livery            
stable-keep2 his mother the daughter of 
one4 ,byron's father was a captain in   
the ,royal ,guards2 his mother a        
,scottish heiress4 ,newton's father was 
a tanner2 ,pasteur's1 a tanner2         
,darwin's1 a doctor of considerable     
means4 ,francis ,bacon's father was     
,lord ,keeper of the ,great ,seal2      
,newton's was a farmer and the          
headmaster of a school2 ,turner was the 
son of a barber4  ,an individual1 again1
 to a certain extent1 makes his own     
environment4 ,what kind of an           
environment he will make depends on the 
kinds of capacities and interests he has
 to start with4 ,similarity of original 
tendencies and interests brings men     

together as differences among these keep
 them apart4 ,the libraries1 the        
theaters1 and the baseball parks are all
 equally possible and accessible        
features of their environment to        
individuals of a given economic or      
social class4 ,yet a hundred individuals
 with the same education and social     
opportunities will make themselves by   
choice a hundred different environments4
 ,they will select1 even from the same  
physical environment1 different aspects4
 ,the ,grand ,caon is a different       
environment to the artist and to the    
geologist2 a crowd of people at an      
amusement park constitutes a different  
environment to the man who has come out 
to make psychological observations1 and 
the man who has come out for a day's    
fun4 ,a dozen men1 teachers and         
students1 selected at random on a       
university campus1 might well be        
expected to note largely different      
though overlapping facts1 as the most   
significant features of the life of the 

university4  ,the environment is the    
less important in the moulding of       
character1 the less fixed and           
unavoidable it becomes4 ,if an          
individual has the chance to change his 
environment to suit his own original    
demands and interests1 these are the    
less likely to undergo modification4    
,this is illustrated in the animal world
 by the migratory birds1 which change   
their habitations with the seasons4     
,similarly human beings1 to suit the    
original mental traits with which they  
are endowed1 can and do exchange one    
environment for another4 ,there are a   
very large number of individuals living 
in ,new ,york ,city1 in the twentieth   
century1 for example1 for whom a        
multiplicity of environments are        
possible4 ,the one that becomes habitual
 with an individual is a matter of his  
own free choice4 ,that is1 it is choice1
 in the sense that it is independent of 
the circumstances of the individual's   
life4 ,but an individual's choice of his

 environment must be within the limited 
number of alternatives made possible by 
the original nature with which he is    
endowed4 ,as pointed out in connection  
with our discussion of ,instinctive     
,behavior1 we do originally what gives  
satisfaction to our native impulses1 and
 avoid what irritates and frustrates    
them4 ,we may be trained to find        
satisfactions in acquired activities1   
but there is a strong tendency to       
acquire habits that chime in1 as it     
were1 with the tendencies we have to    
start with4  ,there is1 for example1 to 
certain individuals1 intrinsic          
satisfaction in form and color2 to      
others in sound4 ,to the former1        
pictures and paintings will tend to be  
the environment selected2 to the latter 
the hearing and the playing of music4   
,to those gifted with sensitivity in    
neither of these directions1 pictures   
may be through all their lives a bore1  
and a piano a positive nuisance4  ,these
 facts of original nature1 therefore1   

determine initially1 and consequently in
 large part1 what our environment is    
going to be4 ,once we get into1 or      
select through instinctive desires1 a   
certain kind of environment1 those      
desires become strengthened through     
habit1 and that environment becomes     
fixed through fulfilling those habitual 
desires4 ,a man may1 in the first place1
 choose artists or scholars as          
companions because his own gifts and    
interests are similar4 ,but such an     
environment will become the more        
indispensable for him when it has the   
reinforcement of habit to confirm what  
is already initially strong in him by   
birth4 ,to him who hath shall be given  
is most distinctly true of the          
opportunities and environment open to   
those with native gifts to begin with4  
,original nature thus sets the scope and
 the limits of an individual's character
 and achievement4 ,it tells how much    
and1 in the most general way1 what his  
capacities are4 ,thus a man born with a 

normal vocal apparatus can speak2 a man 
born with normal vision can see4 ,but   
what language he shall speak1 and what  
sights he shall see1 depend on the      
social and geographical situation in    
which he happens to be placed4 ,again1  
if a man is born with a high general    
intelligence1 that is1 with keen sensory
 discriminations and motor responses1   
precise and accurate powers of analysis 
of judgment1 a capacity for the quick   
and effective acquisition and           
modification of habits1 we can safely   
predict that he will excel in some      
direction4 ,but whether he will stand   
out as a lawyer1 doctor1 philosopher1   
poet1 or executive1 it is almost        
impossible from original nature to      
tell4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,the             
psychological tests used in the army1   
and being used now with modifications in
 the admission of students to ,columbia 
,college1 are general intelligence      
tests4 ,that is1 they show general      
alertness and intellectual promise1 but 

are not prophetic of any specialized    
talents or capacities4  ,,individual    
,,differences--,,democracy ,,and        
,,education4 ,the fact that individuals 
differ in ability and interest has      
important consequences for education and
 social progress4 ,it means1 in the     
first place1 that while current         
optimistic doctrines about the          
modifiability of human nature are true1 
they are true within limits--limits that
 vary with the individual4 ,whether or  
not we shall ever succeed1 through the  
science or the practice of eugenics1 in 
eliminating low ability and perpetuating
 high exclusively1 the fact remains that
 there are in contemporary society the  
widest variations both in the kinds of  
interest and ability displayed1 and in  
their relative efficacy under present   
social and industrial conditions4       
,there are1 it must be noted at the     
outset1 a not inconsiderable number of  
individuals who must be set down as     
absolute social liabilities4 ,even if   

existing social and educational         
arrangements were perfect1 these would  
remain unaffected and unavailable for   
any useful purpose4 ,they would have to 
be endowed1 cared for1 or confined4     
,there is the quite considerable class1 
who1 while normal with respect to       
sensory and motor discrimination1 seem  
to be seriously and irremediably        
defective in their powers of judgment4  
,these also seem to offer invulnerable  
resistance to education1 and their      
original natures would not be subject to
 modification even by an education      
perfectly adapted to the needs of normal
 people4  ,but the more significant     
fact1 more significant because it       
affects so many1 is the fact that within
 the ranks of the great class of normal 
people1 there are fundamental inherited 
differences in ability and interest4    
,next in importance to the fact that an 
individual is human is the fact that he 
is an individual1 with very specific    
initial capacities and desires4 ,for    

education the implications are serious4 
,education aims1 among other things1 to 
give the individual habits that will    
enable him to deal most effectively with
 his environment4 ,but an individual can
 be trained best1 it goes without       
saying1 in the capacities and interests 
he has to begin with4 ,education cannot1
 therefore1 be wholesale in its methods4
 ,it must be so adjusted as to utilize  
and make the most of the multifarious   
variety of native abilities and         
interests which individuals display4 ,if
 it does not utilize these1 and instead 
sets up arbitrary moulds to which       
individuals must conform1 it will be    
crushing and distorting the specific    
native activities which are the only raw
 material it has to work upon4  ,there  
have not as yet been many detailed      
quantitative studies of individual      
differences that would enable educators1
 if they were free to do so1            
scientifically to adapt education to    
specific needs and possibilities4       

,beginnings in this direction are being 
made1 though rather in advanced than in 
more elementary education4 ,professional
 and trade schools1 and group-electives 
in college courses are attempts in this 
direction4 ,any attempt1 of course1 to  
adapt education to specific needs and   
interests1 instead of crushing them into
 a priori moulds1 requires1 of course1 a
 wider social recognition and support of
 education than is at present common4   
,for individual differences require     
attention4 ,and where millions are to be
 educated1 individual attention requires
 an immense investment in teaching      
personnel4  ,but in this utilization of 
original interests and capacities lies  
the only possibility of genuinely       
effective education4#a ,in the first    
place to try in education to give       
individuals habits for which they have  
no special innate tendencies to begin   
with1 is costly4 ,secondly1 to train    
individuals for types of life or work   
for which their gifts and desires are   

ill adapted is to promote at once       
inefficiency and unhappiness4 ,one      
reason why the chance to identify one's 
life with one's work 7as is the case    
with the artist and the scholar7 is so  
universally recognized as good fortune1 
is because it is so rare4 ,a general and
 indiscriminate training of men1 as if  
they were all fitted with the same      
talents and the same longings1 does as  
much as underpayment or overwork to     
impair the quality of the work done and 
the satisfaction derived from it4       
,footnote #a3 ,a beginning in the       
application of this principle has been  
made by the vocational guidance and     
employment management work which is     
being done with increasing scientific   
accuracy throughout the ,united ,states4
 ,individual differences and interests  
are studied with a view to putting the  
right man in the right place4 ,this     
slogan is borrowed from the ,committee  
on ,classification and ,personnel1 which
 during the ,great ,war1 through its    

trade tests and other machinery of      
differentiation1 utilized for the       
national welfare the specific abilities 
of thousands of drafted men4  ,it has   
latterly been recognized that industry  
offers the crucial opportunity to       
utilize to the fullest individual       
differences4 ,by getting the right man  
in the right place1 we at once get the  
work done better and make the man better
 satisfied4 ,if adequate attention is   
given to placement1 to the specific     
demands put upon men by specific types  
of work1 and to the specific capacities 
of individuals for fulfilling those     
demands1 we will be capitalizing        
variations among men instead of being   
handicapped by them4 ,as it is1 specific
 differences do exist1 and men enter    
occupations and professions ignoring    
them4 ,as a result both the job and the 
man suffer2 the former is done poorly1  
and the latter is unsuccessful and      
unhappy4  ,it must be noted that the    
existence of specific differences       

between individuals does not altogether1
 or often even in part1 imply           
superiority or inferiority4 ,it implies 
in each case inferiority or superiority 
with respect to the performance of a    
particular type of work4 ,whether       
scientific insight and accuracy is      
better than musical skill1 whether a    
gift for salesmanship surpasses a gift  
for mathematics1 depends on the social  
situation and the standards that happen 
to be current among the group4 ,an      
intensely disagreeable person may be the
 best man for a particular job4 ,all    
scientific observation can do is to note
 individual differences1 to note what   
work makes demands upon what capacities1
 and try to bring the man and the job   
together4  ,it must be emphasized that1 
while individual capacities determine   
what an individual can do1 social ideals
 and traditions determine what he will  
do1 because they determine what he will 
be rewarded and encouraged to do4 ,there
 is no question but that in our         

industrial civilization certain types of
 ability1 that of the organizer1 for    
example1 have a high social value4      
,there is no question but that there are
 other abilities1 which under our       
present customs and ideals we reward    
possibly beyond their merit1 as1 to take
 an extreme case1 that of a championship
 prize fighter4 ,we can through         
education and vocational guidance       
utilize all native capacities4 ,to make 
provision for the utilization of all    
native capacities is to have an         
efficient social life4 ,but to what end 
our efficient human machinery shall be  
used depends on the ideals and customs  
and purposes that happen to be current  
in the social order at any given time4  
,in the words of ,professor ,thorndike1 
we can invest in profitable enterprises 
the capital nature provides4 ,but what  
profiteth a man or a society1 is a      
matter for reflective determination2 it 
is not settled for us1 as are our       
limitations1 at birth4  ,the net result 

of scientific observation in this field 
is the discovery1 in increasingly       
precise and specific form1 that men are 
most diverse and unequal in interest and
 capacity4 ,the ideal of equality comes 
to mean1 under scientific analysis1     
equality of opportunity1 leveling all   
social inequalities2 the fact of natural
 inequalities and divergences remains   
incontestable4  ,there may even be1 as  
recent psychological tests seem to      
indicate1 a certain proportion of       
individuals who are not competent to    
take an intelligent part in democratic  
government1 who1 having too little      
intellectual ability to follow the      
simplest problem needing coperative and 
collective decision1 must eternally be  
governed by others4 ,if these facts come
 to be authenticated by further data1 it
 merely emphasizes the fact that in a   
country professedly democratic it is    
essential to devise an education that   
will1 in the case of each individual1   
educate up to the highest point of      

native ability4  ,where a country is    
ostensibly democratic1 a few informed   
citizens will govern the many           
uninformed1 unless the latter are       
educated to an intelligent knowledge and
 appreciation of their political duties 
and obligations4 ,furthermore1 the      
citizens of a community who are         
prevented from using their native gifts 
will be both useless and unhappy4       
,certainly this is an undesirable       
condition in a society where all        
individuals are expected1 so far as     
possible1 to be ends in themselves and  
not merely means for the ends of others4
     ,,chapter ,x  ,,language ,,and     
,,communication#a  ,footnote #a3 ,much  
of the technical material for this      
chapter is drawn from ,leonard          
,bloomfield's ,the ,study of ,language1 
and ,w4 ,d4 ,whitney's ,the ,life and   
,growth of ,language4  ,it was earlier  
pointed out that human beings alone     
possess language4 ,they alone can make  
written symbols and heard sounds stand  

for other things1 for objects1 actions1 
qualities1 and ideas4 ,in this chapter  
the consideration of language may best  
be approached from the spoken tongue1   
under the influence of which1 except in 
the simplest type of pictorial writing1 
the written form develops4#b  ,footnote 
#b3 ,bloomfield3 loc4 cit41 pp4 #g-h4   
,from the point of view of the student  
of behavior1 language1 spoken language  
especially1 is a habit1 acquired like   
walking or swimming4 ,it is made        
possible primarily by the fact that     
human beings possess a variety and      
flexibility of vocal reflexes possessed 
by no other animal4 ,all the higher     
animals have a number of vocal reflexes1
 which are called out primarily in the  
expression of emotion or desire4 ,cries 
of pain1 hunger1 rage1 sex desire or    
desire for companionship1 are common to 
a great number of the animal species4   
,but these cries and vocal utterances   
are limited1 and comparatively          
unmodifiable4 ,they are moreover        

expressed1 so far as experimental       
observation can reveal1 with no         
consciousness of the specific           
significance of particular sounds and   
are used as the involuntary expression  
of emotion rather than as a specific    
means of communication4  444 ,the       
primates have a much larger number of   
such vocal instincts than the other     
mammals1 and a much larger number of    
stimuli can call them out1 e4g41 injury 
to bodily tissue calls out one group2   
hunger calls out a certain group2 sex   
stimuli 7mate1 etc47 another2 and       
similarly cold1 swiftly moving objects1 
tones1 strange animals call out others4 
,when attachments are formed between the
 female and her offspring another large 
group is called into action4 ,there is  
no evidence to show in the case of      
mammals that these vocal instincts are  
modified by the sounds of other         
animals4444 ,these throat habits may be 
cultivated to such an extent in birds   
that we may get an approximation1 more  

or less complete1 to a few such habits  
possessed by the human being4 ,such     
throat habits1 however1 are not language
 habits4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,watson3      
,behavior1 p4 #cbc4  ,in human beings   
language1 it is clear1 may attain       
extraordinary refinement and complexity1
 and may convey extremely fine shades   
and subtleties of emotion or idea4 ,this
 results from the fact that man is born 
with a vocal apparatus far superior in  
development to that of any of the       
animals4  ,it is pretty clear that the  
mutant man1 when thrown off from the    
primate stock1 sprang forth with a vocal
 apparatus different from that of the   
parent stock1 and possessing abundant   
richness in reflexes1 even far          
surpassing that found in the bird4 ,it  
is interesting to observe1 too1 in this 
connection1 that within the narrow space
 occupied by the vocal apparatus we have
 a system of muscular mechanisms which  
has within it1 looking at it now as a   
whole1 the same possibilities of habit  

formation that we find in the remaining 
portion of bodily musculature4444 ,it is
 probable that in a few years we shall  
undertake the study of such habits from 
exactly the same standpoint that we now 
employ in studies upon the acquisition  
of skill in the human being4#b          
,footnote #b3 ,ibid41 pp4 #cbc-bd4  ,the
 human baby starts its expressive habits
 by emitting with wide-open mouth an    
undifferentiated shriek of pain4 ,a     
little later it yells in the same way at
 any kind of discomfort4 ,it begins     
before the end of the first year to     
croon when it is contented4 ,as it grows
 older it begins to make different      
sounds when it experiences different    
emotions4 ,and with remarkable rapidity 
its repertoire of articulatory movements
 has greatly increased4  ,speech that   
begins in the child as a mere vague     
vocal expression of emotion soon begins 
to exhibit a marked element of mimicry4 
,the child begins to associate the words
 uttered by his nurse or parents with   

the specific objects they point to4 ,he 
comes to connect milk1 sleep1 mother    
with the experiences to which they      
correspond4 ,the child thus learns to   
react to certain sounds as significant  
of certain experiences4 ,unlike ,adam1  
he does not have to give names to       
animals1 or for that matter to anything 
else on earth4 ,they all have specific  
names in the particular language in     
which he happens to be brought up4 ,in  
the case of other habits1 largely       
through trial and error1 he learns to   
associate given sounds expressed by     
other people about him with given       
experiences1 pleasant or unpleasant4 ,he
 learns further to imitate1 so far as   
possible1 these sounds1 as a means of   
more precisely communicating his wants  
or securing their fulfillment4  ,in this
 connection students of language        
frequently have raised the question of  
how man first came to associate a given 
sound-sequence with a given experience4 
,like fire1 language was once conceived 

to be a divine gift4 ,another theory    
postulated a genius who took it into his
 head to give the things of earth their 
present inevitable names4 ,one other    
theory equally dubious held that        
language started in onomatopoetic       
expressions like ,bow-wow1 for dog4     
,still another hypothesis once highly   
credited held that the sounds first     
uttered were the immediate and          
appropriate expressions called out by   
particular types of emotional           
experience4 ,the validity of the last   
two theories has been rendered          
particularly dubious4 ,the very         
instances of imitative words cited1     
words like cuckoo1 crash1 flash1 were1  
in their original forms1 quite other    
than they are now4 ,and that words are  
not immediately apposite expressions of 
the emotions which they represent1 has  
been generally recognized4 ,in gesture  
language1 the gesture has to remain     
fairly imitative or expressive to be    
intelligible4 ,but an examination of    

half a dozen casual words in            
contemporary languages shows how        
arbitrary are the signs used1 and how   
little appositeness or relevance they   
bear in their sound to the sense which  
they represent4 ,the detailed study of  
the perfectly regular changes that so   
largely characterize the evolution of   
language1 have revealed the inadequacy  
of any of these views4 ,there seems to  
be1 in fact1 no explanation of the      
origin of the language any more than    
there is of the origin of life4 ,all    
that linguistic science can do is to    
reveal the history of language4 ,and in 
this history1 human language stands     
revealed as a highly refined development
 of the crude and undifferentiated      
expressions which1 under emotional      
stress1 are uttered by all the animals4 
,,language ,,as ,a ,,social ,,habit4    
,language1 as has repeatedly been       
pointed out1 is essentially social in   
character4 ,it is1 in the first place1  
primarily an instrument of communication

 between individuals1 and is cultivated 
as such4 ,in human speech1 interjections
 like ,oh6 or ,ah6 are still involuntary
 escapes of emotion1 but language       
develops as a vehicle of communication  
to others rather than as a mere         
emotional outlet for the individual4    
,even if it were possible for the       
mythical man brought up in solitude on a
 desert island to have a language1 it is
 questionable whether he would use it4  
,since language is a way of making our  
wants1 desires1 information known to    
others1 it is stimulated by the presence
 of and contact with others4 ,excess    
vitality may go into shouting or song1#a
 but language as an instrument of       
specific utterance comes to have a more 
definite use and provocation4 ,man1 as  
already pointed out1 is a highly        
gregarious animal1 and language is his  
incomparable instrument for sharing his 
emotions and ideas and experience with  
others4 ,the whole process of education1
 of the transmission of culture from the

 mature to the younger members of a     
society1 is made possible through this  
instrument1 whereby achievements and    
traditions are preserved and transmitted
 in precise and public terms4  ,footnote
 #a3 ,human song is by some linguistic  
experts1 including ,bloomfield1 held to 
have originated in the chant of rhythmic
 labor1 as in rowing or threshing4      
,secondly1 language is social in that1  
for the individual at least1 it is      
socially acquired4 ,the child first     
imitates sounds without any             
consciousness of their meaning1 just as 
he imitates other actions in sheer      
physiological sympathy4 ,but he learns  
soon1 by watching the actions of other  
people1 that given sounds are always    
performed when these others do given    
actions4 ,he learns that some sounds are
 portents of anger and punishment2 still
 others of satisfaction and pleasure4   
,he learns soon to specify his          
utterances1 to use sounds as specific   
stimuli1 to attain through other people 

specific satisfactions4 ,the child is   
born with a flexible set of reflexes4   
,in which way they shall be developed   
depends entirely on the accident of the 
child's environment4 ,whether he shall  
call it bread or pain or brod1 depends  
on the particular social environment in 
which he from the first hears that      
particular item of experience referred  
to4 ,a child of ,american missionaries  
in ,turkey picks up the language of that
 country as well as that of his own4 ,an
 ,english child brought up under a      
,french nurse may learn with perfect    
ease the foreign tongue1 and to the     
exclusion of that of his native country4
 ,indeed1 so completely subject is one  
in this regard to one's early           
environment1 that it is not only        
difficult in later life to acquire a new
 pronunciation1 but one finds it        
impossible to breathe freely1 as it     
were1 in the whole psychological        
atmosphere of a foreign language4 ,its  
grammatical categories1 its spelling1   

its logic seem hopelessly irrational4   
,it was perfectly natural of the        
,englishman in the story1 when he was   
told that the ,french called it pain1 to
 insist1 ,well1 it's bread1 anyhow4     
,many a reader of a foreign language    
which has become habitual can still not 
refrain from translating1 as he reads1  
what seem to him irrational idioms into 
the familiar1 facile1 and sensible modes
 of his native tongue4  ,,language ,,and
 ,,mental ,,life4 ,the connection of    
language with thought has repeatedly    
been noted4 ,it has even been questioned
 whether thought in any effective sense 
is possible without words4 ,in general  
it may be said that thinking demands    
clean-cut and definite symbols to work  
with1 and that language offers these in 
incomparable form4 ,a word enables one  
to isolate in thought the dominant      
elements of an experience and prevents  
them from slipping through one's        
fingers4  ,the importance of having     
words by which concepts may be          

distinguished and isolated from one     
another will become clearer by a brief  
reminder of the nature of reflection4   
,thinking is in large part 7as will be  
discussed in detail in chapter ,,xiii7  
concerned with the breaking-up of an    
experience into its significant         
elements4 ,but experience begins with   
objects1 and so far as perceptual       
experience is concerned1 ends there4 ,we
 perceive objects1 not qualities1       
actions1 or ideas apart from objects4   
,and the elements into which thinking   
analyzes an experience are never        
present1 save in connection with1 as    
parts of1 a sensibly perceived object4  
,thus we never perceive whiteness save  
in white objects2 warmth save in warm   
objects2 red save in red objects4 ,we   
never1 for that matter1 perceive so     
abstract a thing as an object4 ,we      
experience red houses or red flags2     
white flowers1 white shoes1 white paper2
 warm stoves1 warm soup1 and warm       
plates4 ,even houses and stoves and     

shoes are1 in a sense1 abstractions4 ,no
 two of these are ever alike4 ,but it is
 of the highest importance for us to    
have some means of identifying and      
preserving in memory the significant    
resemblances between our experiences4   
,else we should be1 as it were1 utterly 
astounded every time we saw a chair or a
 table or a fork4 ,though they may1 in  
each case in which we experience them1  
differ in detail1 chairs1 tables1 forks 
have certain common features which we   
can abstract from the gross total       
experience1 and by a word or term1      
define1 record1 communicate1 and recall4
 ,the advantage of a precise technical  
vocabulary over a loose popular one is  
that we can by means of the former more 
accurately single out the specific and  
important elements of an experience and 
distinguish them from one another4 ,the 
common nouns1 or general names in a     
language indicate to what extent and in 
what manner that language1 through some 
or other of its users1 classifies its   

experiences4 ,highly developed languages
 make it possible to classify           
similarities not easily detected in     
crude experience4 ,they make it possible
 to identify other things than merely   
directly sensed objects4  ,in primitive 
languages experience is described and   
classified only in so far as it is      
perceptual4 ,in other words1 primitive  
languages have names for objects only1  
not for ideas1 qualities1 or relations4 
,thus it is impossible in some ,indian  
languages to express the concept of a   
brother by the same word1 unless the    
brother is in every case in the same    
identical circumstances4 ,one cannot use
 the same word for man in different     
relations3 man-eating1 man-sleeping1    
man-standing-here1 and man-running-there
 would all be separate compound words4  
,among the ,fuegians there is one word  
which means to look at one another1     
hoping that each will offer to do       
something which both parties desire but 
are unwilling to do4#a ,marett writes in

 this connection3  ,footnote #a3        
,marett3 ,anthropology1 p4 #adj4  ,take 
the inhabitants of that cheerless spot1 
,tierra del ,fuego1 whose culture is as 
rude as that of any people on earth4 ,a 
scholar who tried to put together a     
dictionary of their language found that 
he had got to reckon with more than     
thirty thousand words1 even after       
suppressing a large number of forms of  
lesser importance4 ,and no wonder that  
the tally mounted up4 ,for the ,fuegians
 had more than twenty words1 some       
containing four syllables1 to express   
what for us would be either he or she2  
then they had two names for the sun1 two
 for the moon1 and two more for the full
 moon1 each of the last named containing
 four syllables and having no elements  
in common4#b  ,footnote #b3 ,ibid41 pp4 
#ach-ci4  ,it is easy to see how very   
little refinement or abstraction from   
experience could be made with such a    
cumbersome and inflexible vocabulary4   
,the thirty thousand word vocabulary    

expressed a poverty of linguistic       
technique rather than a richness of     
ideas4  ,at the other extreme stands a  
language like ,english1 which is1 to an 
extraordinary degree1 an analytic       
language4 ,it has comparatively no      
inflections4 ,this means that words can 
be used and moved about freely in       
different situations and relations4     
,thus the dominant elements of an       
experience can be freely isolated4 ,a   
noun standing for a certain object or   
relation is not chained to a particular 
set of accompanying circumstances4 ,man 
stands as a definite concept1 whether it
 be used with reference to an ancient   
,greek1 a wounded man1 a brave1 a       
wretched1 a competent1 or a tall man4   
,we can give the accompanying           
circumstances by additional adjectives1 
which are again freely movable verbally 
and intellectually4 ,thus we can speak  
of a brave child and a tall tower as    
well as a brave man and a tall man4 ,in 
,marett's words3  ,the evolution of     

language then1 on this view1 may be     
regarded as a movement away from the    
holophrastic compound in the direction  
of the analytic4 ,when every piece in   
your playbox of verbal bricks can be    
dealt with separately1 because it is not
 joined on in all sorts of ways to the  
other pieces1 then only can you compose 
new constructions to your liking4 ,order
 and emphasis1 as is shown by ,english1 
and still more conspicuously by         
,chinese1 suffice for sentence-building4
 ,ideally1 words should be individual   
and atomic4 ,every modification they    
suffer by internal change of sound1 or  
by having prefixes or suffixes tacked on
 to them1 involves a curtailment of     
their free use and a sacrifice of       
distinctness4 ,it is quite easy1 of     
course1 to think confusedly1 even whilst
 employing the clearest type of         
language4444 ,on the other hand1 it is  
not feasible to attain a high degree of 
clear thinking1 when the only method of 
speech available is one that tends      

toward wordlessness--that is to say1 one
 that is relatively deficient in verbal 
forms that preserve their identity in   
all contexts4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,marett3 
loc4 cit41 pp4 #ada-db4  ,languages     
differ not only in being more or less   
analytic1 but in their general modes of 
classification4 ,that is1 not only do   
they have more or less adequate         
vocabularies1 but in their syntax1 their
 sentence structure1 their word forms1  
they variously organize experience4 ,it 
is important to note that in these      
divergent classifications no one of them
 is more final than another4 ,we are    
tempted1 despite this fact1 to think    
that the grammar1 spelling1 and         
phonetics of our own language constitute
 the last word in the rational          
conveyance of thought4  ,,the           
,,instability ,,of ,,language4 ,language
 being a social habit1 it is to be      
expected that it should not stay fixed  
and changeless4 ,the simpler            
physiological actions are not performed 

in the same way by any two individuals1 
and no social practice is ever performed
 in the same way by two members of a    
group1 or by two different generations4 
,in this connection writes ,professor   
,bloomfield3  ,the speech of former     
times1 wherever history has given us    
records of it1 differs from that of the 
present4 ,when we read ,shakspere1 for  
example1 we are disturbed by subtle     
deviations from our own habits in the   
use of words and in construction2 if our
 actors pronounced their lines as       
,shakspere and his contemporaries did we
 should say that they had an ,irish or  
,german brogue4 ,chaucer we cannot read 
without some grammatical explanation or 
a glossary2 correctly pronounced his    
language would sound to us more like    
,low ,german than like our ,english4 ,if
 we go back only about forty generations
 from our time to that of ,alfred the   
,great1 we come to ,english as strange  
to us as modern ,german1 and quite      
unintelligible1 unless we study         

carefully both grammar and lexicon4#a   
,footnote #a3 ,bloomfield3 loc4 cit41 p4
 #aie4  ,there are1 in general1 three   
kinds of changes that take place in a   
language4 ,phonetic changes1 that is1   
changes in the articulation of words1   
regardless of the meaning they bear4    
,this is illustrated simply by the word 
name which1 in the eighteenth century   
was pronounced ne'm4  ,analogic changes1
 that is1 changes in the articulation of
 words under the influence of words     
somewhat similar in meaning4 ,the word  
flash1 for example1 became what it is   
because of the sound of words associated
 in meaning1 crash1 dash1 smash4 ,the   
third process of change in language     
alters not only the articulate forms of 
words1 not only their sound1 but their  
sense4 ,all these changes1 as will be   
presently pointed out1 can easily be    
explained by the laws of habit early    
discussed in this book1 these laws being
 applicable to the habit of language as 
well as to any other4  ,in the case of  

phonetic change1 it is only to be       
expected that the sounds of a language  
will not remain eternally changeless4 ,a
 language is spoken by a large number of
 individuals1 no two of whom are gifted 
with precisely the same vocal apparatus4
 ,in consequence no two of them will    
utter words in precisely the same way4  
,before writing and printing were       
general1 these slight variations in     
articulation were bound to have an      
effect on the language4 ,people more or 
less unconsciously imitate the sounds   
they hear1 especially if they are not   
checked up by the written forms of      
words4 ,even to-day changes are going   
on1 and writing is at best a poor       
representation of phonetics4 ,the       
,georgian1 the ,londoner1 the ,welshman 
and the ,middle ,westerner can          
understand the same printed language1   
precisely because it does not at all    
represent their peculiarities of        
dialect4 ,variant sounds uttered by one 
individual may be caught up in the      

language1 especially if the variant     
articulation is simpler or shorter4     
,thus the shortening of a word from     
several syllables to one1 though it     
starts accidentally1 is easily made     
habitual among a large number of        
speakers because it does facilitate     
speech4 ,in the classic example1        
pre-,english1 habeda and habedun became 
in ,old ,english1 hfde and hfdon1 and   
are in present ,english 7,i1 we7 had4#a 
,in the same way variations that reduce 
the unstressed syllables of a word      
readily insinuate themselves into the   
articulatory habits of a people4 ,in the
 production of stressed syllables1 the  
vocal chords are under high tension and 
the breath is shut in4 ,it is easier1   
consequently1 to produce the unstressed 
syllables with shortened1 weakened      
articulations444 lessening as much as   
possible all interference with the      
breath stream4#b ,thus contemporaneous  
prohibition becomes kntempe'rejnjes     
prhe'bifn4 ,sound changes thus take     

place1 in general1 as lessenings of the 
labor of articulation1 by means of      
adaptation to prevailing rest positions 
of the vocal organs4 ,they take place   
further in more or less accidental      
adaptations to the particular speech    
habits of a people4 ,that is1 those     
sounds become discarded that do not fit 
in with the general articulatory        
tendencies of a language4 ,of this the  
weakening of unstressed syllables in    
,english and palatalization in ,slavic  
are examples4#a99  ,footnote #a3        
,bloomfield3 loc4 cit41 p4 #baa4        
,footnote #b3 ,ibid41 p4 #bab4          
,footnote #a993 ,ibid41 p4 #bah4  ,these
 changes of sound in language so far    
discussed are made independently of the 
meaning of words4 ,other changes in     
articulation occur1 as already noted1 by
 analogy of sound or meaning4 ,that is1 
words that have associated meanings come
 to be similarly articulated4 ,this is  
simply illustrated in the case of the   
child who thinks it perfectly natural to

 assimilate by analogy came to come4    
,thus the young child will frequently   
say1 until he is corrected1 he comed1 he
 bringed1 he fighted4 ,in communities   
where printing and writing and reading  
are scarce1 such assimilation by analogy
 has an important effect in modifying   
the forms of words4  ,,changes ,,in     
,,meaning4 ,the changes in language most
 important for the student of human     
behavior are changes in meaning4        
,language1 it must again be stressed1 is
 an instrument for the communication of 
ideas4 ,the manner in which the store of
 meanings in a language becomes         
increased and modified 7the etymology of
 a language7 is1 in a sense1 the history
 of the mental progress of the people   
which use it4 ,for changes in meaning   
are primarily brought about when the    
words in a language do not suffice for  
the larger and larger store of          
experiences which individuals within the
 group desire to communicate to one     
another4 ,the meanings of old words are 

stretched1 as it were1 to cover new     
experiences2 old words are transferred  
bodily to new experiences2 they are     
slightly modified in form to apply to   
new experiences analogous to the old2   
new words are formed after analogy with 
ones already in use4  ,a simple         
illustration of the application of a    
word already current to a wider         
situation is the application of the word
 head as a purely objective name1 to a  
new experience1 which has certain       
analogies with the old2 as when we speak
 of a head of cabbage1 the head of an   
army1 the head of the class1 or the     
headmaster4 ,in many such cases the     
transferred meaning persists alongside  
of the old4 ,thus the word capital used 
as the name for the chief city in a     
country1 persists alongside of its use  
in capital punishment1 capital story1   
etc4 ,but sometimes the transferred     
meaning of the word becomes dominant and
 exclusive4 ,thus disease 7dis-ease7    
once meant discomfort of any kind4 ,now 

it means specifically some physical     
ailment4 ,the older use has been        
completely discarded4 ,to spill once    
meant1 in the most general sense1 to    
destroy4 ,now all the other uses1 save  
that of pouring out1 have lapsed4 ,meat 
which once meant any kind of nourishment
 has now come to refer almost           
exclusively 7we still make exceptions as
 in the case of sweetmeat7 to edible    
flesh4 ,whenever the special or novel   
application of the word becomes         
dominant1 then we say the meaning of the
 word has changed4  ,mental progress is 
largely dependent on the transfer of    
words to newer and larger spheres of    
experience1 the modification of old     
words or the formation of new ones to   
express the increasing complexity of    
relations men discover to exist between 
things4 ,in the instances already cited 
some of the transferred words lost their
 more general meaning and became        
specialized1 as in the case of meat1    
spill1 etc4 ,other words1 like head1    

though they may keep their specific     
objective meaning1 may come to be used  
in a generalized intellectual sense4    
,one of the chief ways by which a       
language remains adequate to the demands
 of increasing knowledge and experience 
of the group is through the transfer of 
words having originally a purely        
objective sense to emotional and        
intellectual situations4 ,these words1  
like bitter1 sour1 sharp1 referring     
originally only to immediate physical   
experiences1 to objects perceived       
through the senses1 come to have        
intellectual and emotional significance1
 as when we speak of a sour face1 a     
bitter disappointment1 a sharp struggle4
 ,most of our words that now have       
abstract emotional or intellectual      
connotations were once words referring  
exclusively to purely sensible 7sense   
perceptual7 experiences4 ,anxiety once  
meant literally a narrow place1 just as 
when we speak of some one having a close
 shave4 ,to refute once meant literally 

to knock out an argument4 ,to understand
 meant to stand in the midst of4 ,to    
confer meant to bring together4         
,sensation words themselves were once   
still more concrete in their meaning4   
,violet and orange are obviously taken  
as color names from the specific objects
 to which they still refer4 ,language   
has well been described as a book of    
faded metaphors4 ,the history of        
language has been to a large extent the 
assimilation and habitual mechanical use
 of words that were1 when first used1   
strikingly figurative4  ,the novel use  
of a word that is now a quite regular   
part of the language may in many cases  
first be ascribed to a distinguished    
writer4 ,shakespeare is full of         
expressions which have since1 and       
because of his use of them1 become      
literally household words4 ,many words  
that have now a general application     
arose out of a peculiar local situation1
 myth1 or name4 ,boycott which has      
become a reasonably intelligible and    

universal word1 only less than fifty    
years ago referred particularly and     
exclusively to ,boycott1 a certain      
unpopular ,irish landowner who was      
subjected to the kind of discrimination 
for which the word has come to stand4   
,burke used as a verb has its origin in 
the name of a notorious ,edinburgh      
murderer4 ,characters in fiction or     
drama1 history or legend come to be     
standard words4 ,everyone knows what we 
mean when we speak of a ,quixotic       
action1 a ,don ,juan1 a ,galahad1 a     
,chesterfield4 ,to tantalize arises from
 the mythical perpetual frustration of  
,tantalus in the ,greek story4          
,expressions that had a special meaning 
in the works of a philosopher or        
littrateur come to be generally used1 as
 ,platonic love4#a ,again words that    
arise as mere popular witticisms or     
vulgarisms may be brought into the      
language as permanent acquisitions4     
,mob1 now a quite legitimate word1 was  
originally a shortening of mobile       

vulgum1 and was1 only a hundred years   
ago1 suspect in polite discourse4       
,footnote #a3 ,though this is very      
loosely and inaccurately used4  ,outside
 the deliberate invention by scientists 
of terms for the new relations they have
 discovered1 more or less spontaneous   
variation in the use of words and their 
unconscious assimilation by large       
numbers with whose other language habits
 they chance to fit1 is the chief source
 of language growth4 ,one might almost  
say words are wrenched from their       
original local setting1 and given such a
 generalized application that they are  
made available for an infinite          
complexity of scientific and            
philosophical thought4  ,,uniformities  
,,in ,,language4 ,thus far we have      
discussed changes in language from the  
psychological viewpoint1 that is1 we    
have considered the human tendencies and
 habits which bring about changes in the
 articulation and meaning1 in the sound 
and the sense1 of words4 ,it is evident 

from these considerations that there can
 be no absolute uniformity in spoken    
languages1 not even in the languages of 
two persons thrown much together4       
,within a country where the same        
language is ostensibly spoken1 there are
 nevertheless differences in the        
language as spoken by different social  
strata1 by different localities4 ,there 
are infinite subtle variations between  
the articulation and the word uses of   
different individuals4 ,there are       
languages within languages1 the dialects
 of localities1 the jargon of           
professional and trade groups1 the      
special pronunciations and special and  
overlapping vocabularies of different   
social classes4  ,but while there are   
these many causes1 both of individual   
difference and of differing social      
environments1 why languages do not      
remain uniform1 there are similar causes
 making for a certain degree of         
uniformity within a language4 ,there is 
one very good reason why1 to a certain  

extent1 languages do attain uniformity2 
they are socially acquired4 ,the        
individual learns to speak a language   
from those about him1 and individuals   
brought up within the same group will   
consequently learn to speak1 within     
limits1 the same tongue2 they will learn
 to articulate through imitation1 and1  
while no individual ever precisely      
duplicates the sounds of others1 he     
duplicates them as far as possible4 ,he 
learns1 moreover1 as has already been   
pointed out1 to attach given meanings to
 given words1 not for any reason of     
their peculiar appositeness or          
individual caprice1 but because he      
learns that others about him habitually 
attach certain meanings to certain      
sounds4 ,and since one is stimulated to 
expression primarily by the desire and  
necessity of communication of ideas a   
premium is put upon uniformity4 ,it is  
of no use to use a language if it       
conceals one's thoughts4 ,in            
consequence1 within a group individual  

variations1 unless for reasons already  
discussed they happen to lend themselves
 to ready assimilation by the group1    
will be mere slips of the tongue4 ,they 
will be discarded and forgotten1 or1 if 
the individual cannot rid himself of    
them1 will like stammering or stuttering
 or lisping be set down as imperfections
 and social handicaps4 ,the uniformity  
of language within groups whose         
individual members have much            
communication with each other is thus to
 a certain extent guaranteed4 ,a man who
 is utterly individualistic in his      
language might just as well have no     
language at all1 unless for the         
satisfaction of expressing to himself   
his own emotions4#a ,language is learned
 from the group among whom one moves1   
and those sounds and senses of words    
are1 on the whole1 retained1 which are  
intelligible to the group4 ,those sounds
 and meanings will best be understood   
which are already in use4 ,no better    
illustration could be found of how      

custom and social groups preserve and   
enforce standards of individual action4 
,footnote #a3 ,there have been a few    
poets1 like ,emily ,dickinson1 or       
mystics like ,blake1 some of whose work 
exhibits almost complete                
unintelligibility to most readers1      
though doubtless it had a very specific 
meaning and vividness to the writers    
concerned4  ,the obverse of the fact    
that intercommunication promotes        
uniformity in language is that lack of  
communication brings about language     
differentiation4 ,the less the          
intercommunication between groups1 the  
more will the languages of the groups   
differ1 however uniform they may be     
within the groups themselves4 ,the most 
important factor in differentiation of  
language is local differentiation4 ,in  
some ,european countries every village  
speaks its own dialect4 ,in passing from
 one village to another the dialects may
 be mutually intelligible1 but by the   
time one has passed from the first      

village in the chain to the last1 one   
may find that the dialect of the first  
and last are utterly unintelligible to  
each other4 ,a real break in language1  
as opposed to dialect variations1 occurs
 where there is a considerable barrier  
between groups1 such as a mountain      
range1 a river1 a tribal or political   
boundary4 ,the more impenetrable the    
barriers between two groups the more    
will the languages differ1 and the less 
mutually intelligible will they be4     
,looking back over the history of       
language the student of linguistics     
infers that those languages which bear  
striking or significant similarities are
 related4 ,thus ,spanish1 ,italian1     
,french1 ,portuguese1 and ,roumanian are
 traceable directly back to the ,latin4 
,this does not mean that all over the   
areas occupied by the speakers of these 
languages ,latin was originally spoken4 
,but the ,romans in their conquests1    
both military and cultural1 were able to
 make their own language predominant4   

,the variations which make ,french and  
,roumanian1 say1 mutually               
unintelligible1 are due to the fact that
 ,latin was for the natives in these    
conquered territories assimilated to    
their own languages4 ,so that1 in the   
familiar example1 the ,latin homo       
becomes uomo in ,italian1 homme in      
,french1 hombre in ,spanish1 and om in  
,roumanian4 ,similarly related but      
mutually unintelligible languages among 
the ,american ,indians have been traced 
to three great source-languages4  ,the  
history of ,european languages offers an
 interesting example of differentiation4
 ,english and ,german1 for example1 are 
both traceable back to ,west-,germanic2 
from that in turn to a hypothecated     
primitive ,west-,germanic4 ,all the     
,european languages are traceable back  
to a hypothecated ,primitive            
,indo-,european4#a ,the theory held by  
most students of this subject is that   
the groups possessing this single       
uniform language spread over a wider and

 wider area1 gradually became separated 
from each other by geographical barriers
 and tribal affiliations1 and gradually 
7and on the part of individual speakers 
unconsciously7 modified their speech so 
that slight differences accumulated1 and
 resulted finally in widely different   
and mutually unintelligible languages4  
,footnote #a3 ,by the word primitive the
 linguistic experts mean a language the 
existence of which is inferred from     
common features of several related      
languages1 of which written records are 
current1 but of which no actual records 
exist4 ,thus1 if there were no written  
records of ,latin the approximate       
reconstruction of it by linguists would 
be called ,primitive ,romance4  ,the    
process of differentiation in the       
languages of different groups is very   
marked4 ,we find1 for example1 in the   
early history of ,greece and ,rome1 a   
number of widely different dialects4    
,there seems every evidence that these  
were derived from some more primitive   

tongue4 ,we find1 likewise1 on the      
,american continent1 several hundred    
different languages1 which--to the      
untrained observer--bear not the        
slightest resemblance to each other4    
,this welter and confusion can also be  
traced back to a few primitive and      
uniform languages4  ,thus the history of
 civilization reveals this striking     
differentiation in the language of      
different groups1 a counter-tendency    
making for a wider uniformity of        
particular languages4 ,one favored      
dialect becomes standard1 predominant   
and exclusive4 ,thus out of all the     
,french dialects1 the one that survives 
is the speech of ,paris2 ,castilian     
becomes standard ,spanish1 and in       
ancient ,greece the language of ,athens 
supersedes all the other dialects4 ,the 
reasons for the survival of one out of a
 great welter of dialects may be        
various4 ,not infrequently the language 
of a conquering people has1 in more or  
less pure form1 succeeded the language  

of the conquered4 ,this was the case in 
the history of the ,romance languages1  
which owe their present forms to the    
spread of ,roman arms and culture4      
,there was1 as is well known1 a similar 
development in the case of the ,english 
language4 ,the ,norman ,conquest        
introduced1 under the auspices of a     
socially superior and victorious group1 
a language culturally superior to the   
,anglo-,saxon4 ,the latter was1 of      
course1 not entirely replaced1 but      
profoundly modified1 especially in the  
enrichment and enlargement of its       
vocabulary4 ,one has but to note such   
words as place1 choir1 beef1 etc41 which
 came entirely to replace in the        
language the indigenous ,anglo-,saxon   
names for those objects4  ,colonization 
and commercial expansion may bring about
 the replacement of the native language 
of special localities by the language of
 the colonizers1 at least in hybrid     
form4 ,the spread of ,english through   
,australia1 and through the larger part 

of ,north ,america1 the spread of       
,spanish through ,south ,america1 in    
each instance practically replacing the 
native tongues1 are cases in point4#a   
,footnote #a3 ,dialects and jargons are 
often the result of the partial         
assimilation by the speakers of one     
language of another language to which   
they are exposed4 ,french-,canadian and 
,pennsylvania ,dutch are examples of    
such a mixture4  ,,standardization ,,of 
,,language4 ,at the present time1 and   
for some time in the past1 the          
differentiation of language has been    
greatly lessened by the stabilizing     
influence of print4 ,the printed word   
continually recalls the standard        
pronunciation and meaning1 and the      
changes in language 7save those         
deliberately introduced by the addition 
of scientific terms1 or the official    
modifications of spelling1 etc41 as in  
some ,european countries#b7 are much    
less rapid1 various1 and significant    
than hitherto4 ,it is true that         

differences in articulation and usage1  
especially the former1 do still1 to a   
degree1 persist and develop4 ,our       
,southern accent1 with its drawling of  
words and slurring of consonants1 our   
,middle-,western accent1 with its       
stressed articulation of r's and its    
nasalizing tendencies1 are instances of 
this persistence4  ,footnote #b3 ,in    
,france the ,ministry of ,education from
 time to time settles points of         
orthography definitely4  ,but the       
printed language--,english1 for         
example--the official language1 which is
 published in the newspapers1           
periodicals1 and books1 which is taught 
in the schools1 and spoken from the     
pulpit1 the platform1 on the stage1 in  
cultivated society1 is more or less     
alike all over the ,united ,states and  
wherever ,english is spoken4 ,it is1 of 
course1 only a standard1 a norm1 an     
ideal1 which like the concept of the    
circle1 never quite appears in practice4
 ,the language which is spoken1 even in 

the conversation of the educated1 by no 
means conforms to the ideal of correct  
usage4 ,but the important fact is that  
the standard language is a standard1    
that it is1 moreover1 a widely          
recognized and effective standard4 ,the 
dictionaries and the grammars become    
authoritative1 and are referred to when 
people consciously set about discovering
 what is the accepted or correct meaning
 or pronunciation4 ,but a more effectual
 authority is exerted by the teaching   
they receive at school1 and the         
continuous1 though unnoticed1 influence 
of the more or less standard language   
which they read in print4  ,even        
phonetic changes1 though they persist1  
are checked from spreading to the point 
of mutually unintelligible dialects by  
the standards enforced in print4 ,the   
accents in various parts of the ,united 
,states1 for example1 differ1 but not to
 the point of becoming absolutely       
divergent languages4 ,the ,southerner   
and the ,westerner may be conscious in  

each other's speech of a quaint and     
curious difference in pronunciation1 but
 they can1 except in extreme cases1     
completely understand each other4#a     
,footnote #a3 ,some of the isolated     
districts in the ,kentucky mountains    
reveal dialects with some important     
differences in vocabulary and           
construction4 ,these are shown most     
strikingly in some of the ballads of    
that region which have been collected by
 ,william ,aspinwall ,bradley1 and by   
,howard ,brockway4 ,rural schools and   
the breakdown of complete isolation will
 probably in time eliminate this        
divergence4  ,the most important        
stabilizing influence of print1 however1
 is its fixation of meanings4 ,it makes 
possible their maintenance uncorrupted  
and unmodified over wide stretches in   
which there are phonetic variations4    
,these variant articulations in         
different parts of a large country where
 the same language is spoken1 would1 if 
unchecked1 eventually modify the sense  

of words4 ,print largely prevents this  
from happening4 ,one can read newspapers
 published in ,maine1 ,california1      
,virginia1 and ,iowa1 without noticing  
any significant1 or1 in many cases1 even
 slight differences in vocabulary or    
construction4 ,there are1 of course1    
local idioms1 but these persist in      
conversation1 rather than in print1 save
 where they are caught up and exploited 
for literary purposes by a ,bret ,harte1
 a ,mark ,twain1 or an ,o4 ,henry4      
,,counter-,,tendencies ,,toward         
,,differentiation4 ,while the standard  
language does become fixed and stable1  
there are1 in the daily life of         
different social groups1 varying actual 
languages4 ,every class1 or profession1 
every social group1 whether of interest1
 or occupation1 has its slight          
individuality in articulation or        
vocabulary4 ,we still observe that      
members of a family talk alike2         
sometimes households have literally     
their own household words4 ,and on      

different economic and social levels1 in
 different sports1 intellectual1        
professional1 and business pursuits1 we 
notice slightly different actual        
languages4 ,these partly overlap4 ,the  
society lady1 the business man1 the     
musician1 the professor of literature1  
the mechanic1 have specializations of   
vocabulary and construction1 but there  
is1 for each of them1 a great common    
linguistic area4 ,every individual's    
speech is a resultant of the various    
groups with whom he associates4 ,he is  
affected in his speech habits most      
predominantly1 of course1 by his most   
regular associates1 professional and    
social4 ,in consequence we still mark   
out a man1 as much as anything1 by the  
kind of language he speaks4 ,the        
mechanic and the man of letters are not 
likely to be mistaken for each other1 if
 overheard in a street car4 ,many       
literary and dramatic characters are    
memorable for their speech habits4 ,such
 types are successful when they do hit  

upon really significant linguistic      
peculiarities4 ,their frequent failures 
lie in making the language of a         
particular social type artificially     
stable4 ,no one ever talks quite as the 
conventional stage policeman1 stage     
professor1 and stage ,englishman talk4  
,these actual variations in the         
language1 as it is used by various      
groups who are brought up under the same
 standard language1 operate to prevent  
complete stabilization of language4     
,such variations are remarkably         
influential1 considering the            
conservative influences upon language of
 the repeated and continuous suggestion 
made by the printed page4 ,the language 
is1 in the first place1 being           
continually enriched through increments 
of new words and modifications of old   
ones1 from the special vocabularies of  
trades1 professions1 sciences1 and      
sports4 ,through some accidental        
appositeness to some contemporaneous    
situation1 these may become generally   

current4 ,a recent and familiar example 
is the term camouflage1 which from its  
technical sense of protective coloration
 has become a universally understood    
name for moral and intellectual         
pretense4 ,the vocabulary of baseball   
has by this time already given to the   
language words that show promise of     
attaining eventual legitimacy4 ,an      
increasingly large source of enrichment 
of the native tongue comes from the     
spontaneous generation of slang1 which1 
starting in the linguistic whimsicality 
of one individual1 gets caught up in    
conversation1 and finds its ultimate way
 into the language4 ,important          
instruments1 certainly in the ,united   
,states1 in spreading such neologisms   
are the humorous and sporting pages of  
the newspapers1 in which places they not
 infrequently originate4#a ,whether a   
current slang expression will persist1  
or perish 7as do thousands initiated    
every year71 depends on accidents of    
contemporary circumstances4 ,if the     

expression happens to set off aptly a   
contemporary situation1 it may become   
very widespread until that situation1   
such as a political campaign1 is over4  
,but it may1 like the metaphor of a     
poet1 have some universal application4  
,log-rolling1 graft1 bluff1 have come   
into the language to stay4 ,roosevelt's 
pussy-foot1 and ,ananias ,club are1     
perhaps1 remembered1 but show less      
promise of permanency4 ,movies has      
already ceased to be a neologism1 its   
ready adoption illustrating a point     
already mentioned1 namely1 that a       
variation that facilitates speech 7as   
movies does in comparison with moving   
pictures1 or motion pictures 7 has a    
high potentiality of acceptance4        
,footnote #a3 ,h4 ,l4 ,mencken in his   
suggestive book1 ,the ,american         
,language1 sees in this upshoot of      
phrases indigenous to the soil and the  
temper of the ,american people1 and of  
grammatical constructions also1 symptoms
 of the increasing divergence of the    

,american from the ,english language4   
,that there are a large number of       
special expressions exclusively used in 
the ,united ,states1 and parts of the   
,united ,states1 that are not found in  
use in ,england1 goes without saying4   
,everyone knows that the ,englishman    
says lift where we say elevator1 shop1  
where we are likely to say store4 ,there
 are significant differences to be found
 even in the casual expressions of      
,american and ,english newspapers4 ,but 
it is doubtful whether the divergence   
can go very far1 in view of the constant
 intercommunication1 the rapidity of    
travel between the two countries1 and   
the promiscuous reading of ,english     
books in ,america1 and ,american books  
in ,england4  ,,language ,,as           
,,emotional ,,and ,,logical4 ,since     
language is primarily useful as an      
instrument of communication1 it should  
ideally be a direct and clean-cut       
representation of experience4 ,it should
 be as unambiguous1 and immediate1 as   

telegraphy1 algebra1 or shorthand4 ,but 
language has two functions1 which       
interfere with one another4 ,words not  
only represent logical relations2 they  
provoke emotional responses4 ,they not  
only explicitly tell2 they implicitly   
suggest4 ,they are not merely skeletons 
of thought2 they are clothed with       
emotional values4 ,they are not1 in     
consequence1 transitive vehicles of     
thought4 ,words should1 from the        
standpoint of communication1 be mere    
signals to action1 which should attract 
attention only in so far as they are    
signals4 ,they should be no more        
regarded as things in themselves than is
 the green lamp which signals a         
locomotive engineer to go ahead4 ,they  
should be as immediate signals to action
 as1 at a race1 the ,ready1 set1 go of  
the starter is to the runner4 ,yet this 
rarely happens in the case of words4    
,they frequently impede or mislead      
action by arousing emotions irrelevant  
to their intellectual significance1 or  

provoke action on the basis of emotional
 associations rather than on their      
merits1 so to speak1 as logical         
representations of ideas4  ,to take an  
example3 ,england1 as an intellectual   
symbol1 may be said to be a name given  
to a small island bounded by certain    
latitudes and longitudes1 having a      
certain distribution of raw materials   
and human beings1 and a certain         
topography4 ,it might just as well be   
represented by ,x for all practical     
purposes4 ,thus in the secret code of   
the diplomatic corps if ,x were agreed  
on as the symbol for ,england1 it would 
be just as adequate and would even save 
time4 ,but ,england 7that particular    
sound7 for a large number of individuals
 who have been brought up there1 has    
become the center of deep and           
far-reaching emotional associations1 so 
that its utterance in the presence of a 
particular listener may do much more    
than represent a given geographical     
fact4 ,it may be associated with all    

that he loves1 and all that he remembers
 with affection2 it may suggest         
landscapes that are dear to him1 a      
familiar street and house1 a particular 
set of friends1 and a cherished         
historical tradition of heroic names and
 storied places4 ,it may arouse such    
ardor and devotion as ,henley expresses 
in his famous ,england1 my ,england3    
,what have ,i done for you1             
,england1 my ,england1    ,what is there
 ,i would not do1      ,england1 my own8
    ,with your glorious eyes austere1   
,as the ,lord were walking near1        
,whispering terrible things and dear1   
,as the song on your bugles blown1      
,england--      ,round the world on your
 bugles blown6  ,words thus become      
powerful provocatives of emotion4 ,they 
become loaded with all the energies that
 are aroused by the love1 the hate1 the 
anger1 the pugnacity1 the sympathy1 for 
the persons1 objects1 ideas1 associated 
with them4 ,people may be set off to    
action by words 7just as a bull is set  

off by a red rag71 although the words   
may be as little freighted with meaning 
as they are deeply weighted with        
emotion4  ,poets and literary men in    
general exploit these emotional values  
that cling to words4 ,indeed1 in        
epithets suggesting illimitable vistas1 
inexpressible sorrows1 and              
dim-remembered joys1 lies half the charm
 of poetry4    ,before the beginning of 
years1      ,there came to the making of
 man1    ,time with a gift of tears1    
,grief with a glass that ran2           
,pleasure with pain for a leaven1       
,summer with flowers that fell2         
,remembrance fallen from ,heaven1       
,and madness risen from ,hell1          
,strength without hands to smite1       
,love that endures for a breath1        
,night the shadow of light1      ,and   
life1 the shadow of death4#a  ,footnote 
#a3 ,swinburne3 ,atalanta in ,calydon   
7,david ,mackay edition71 p4 #cic4      
,swinburne does not1 to be sure1 give us
 much information1 and what there is is 

mythical1 but he uses words that are    
fairly alive with suggested feeling4    
,but this emotional aura in which words 
are haloed1 beautiful though it is in   
literature1 and facile though it makes  
the communication of common feelings1 is
 a serious impediment in the use of     
words as effective instruments of       
communication4 ,language oscillates1 to 
speak metaphorically1 between algebra   
and music4 ,to be useful as an          
instrument of thought it should keep to 
the prosaic terseness of a telegraphic  
code4 ,one should be able to pass       
immediately from the word to the thing1 
instead of dissolving in emotions at the
 associations that the mere sound or    
music of the epithet arouses4 ,words    
should1 so to speak1 tend to business1  
which1 in their case1 is the            
communication of ideas4 ,but words are  
used in human situations4 ,and they     
accumulate during the lifetime of the   
individual a great mass of psychological
 values4 ,thus1 to take another         

illustration1 brother is a symbol of a  
certain relationship one person bears to
 another4 ,your is also a symbolic      
statement of a relation4 ,but if a      
telegram contains the statement ,your   
brother is dead1 it is less a piece of  
information to act on than a deep       
emotional stimulus to which one         
responds4 ,bacon long ago pointed out   
how men worshipped words4 ,as we shall  
see presently1 he was thinking of errors
 in the intellectual manipulation of    
words4 ,perhaps as serious is the       
inveterate tendency of men to respond to
 the more or less irrelevant emotions   
suggested by a word1 instead of to its  
strict intellectual content4 ,if the    
emotions stirred up by an epithet were  
always appropriate to the word's        
significance1 this might be an          
advantage4 ,but not infrequently1 as we 
shall see immediately1 words suggest and
 may be used to suggest emotions that1  
like the flowers that bloom in the      
spring1 have nothing to do with the     

case4  ,in practice1 political and      
social leaders1 and all who have to win 
the loyalties and support of masses of  
men have appreciated the use--and       
misuse--that might be made of the       
emotional fringes of words4 ,words are  
not always used as direct and           
transparent representations of ideas2   
they are as frequently used as stimuli  
to action4 ,a familiar instance is seen 
in the use of words in advertisements4  
,even the honest advertiser is less     
interested in giving an analysis of his 
product that will win him the rational  
estimation and favor of the reader than 
in creating in the reader through the   
skillful use of words1 emotions and     
sympathies favorable to his product4    
,the name of a talcum powder or tobacco 
is the subject of mature consideration  
by the advertising expert1 because he   
knows that the emotional flavor of a    
word is more important in securing      
action than its rational significance4#a
 ,ask ,dad6 ,he knows6 does not tell us 

much about the article it advertises1   
but it gives us the sense of secure     
trust that we had as a boy in those     
mysterious things in an almost          
completely unknown world which our      
fathers knew and approved4  ,footnote   
#a3 ,it has been pointed out that such  
an expression as cellar door1 considered
 merely from the viewpoint of sound1 is 
one of the most romantically suggestive 
words in the ,english language4 ,a      
consideration of some of the names of   
biscuits and collars will show a similar
 exploitation of both the euphony and   
the emotional fringes of words4  ,on a  
larger scale1 in political and social   
affairs words are powerful provocatives 
of emotion and of actions1 determining  
to no small degree the allegiances and  
loyalties of men and the satisfaction   
and dissatisfactions which they         
experience in causes and leaders4 ,a    
word remains the nucleus of all the     
associations that have gathered round it
 in the course of an individual's       

experience1 though the object for which 
it stands may have utterly changed or   
vanished4 ,this is illustrated in the   
history of political parties1 whose     
personnel and principles change from    
decade to decade1 but whose names remain
 stable entities that continue to secure
 unfaltering respect and loyalty4 ,in   
the same way1 the name of country has   
emotional reverberations for one who has
 been brought up in its traditions4 ,men
 trust old words to which they have     
become accustomed just as they trust old
 friends4 ,to borrow an illustration    
from ,graham ,wallas1 for many who call 
themselves ,socialists1 ,socialism is   
something more than  a movement towards 
greater social equality1 depending for  
its force upon three main factors1 the  
growing political power of the working  
classes1 the growing social sympathy of 
many members of all classes1 and the    
belief1 based on the growing authority  
of scientific method1 that social       
arrangements can be transformed by means

 of conscious and deliberate            
contrivance4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,wallas3  
,human ,nature in ,politics4 p4 #ib4    
,rather  the need for something for     
which one may love and work has created 
for thousands of workingmen a           
personified ,socialism3 ,socialism1 a   
winged goddess with stern eyes and a    
drawn sword1 to be the hope of the      
world1 and the protector of those that  
suffer4#b  ,footnote #b3 ,ibid41 p4 #ic4
  ,political leaders and advertising    
experts1 no less than poets1 have       
recognized the importance of the        
suggestive power of words4 ,half the    
power of propaganda lies in its arousing
 of emotions through suggestion1 rather 
than in its effectiveness as an         
instrument of intellectual conversion4#c
  ,footnote #c3 ,during the recent      
,liberty ,loan campaigns1 for example1  
when it was of the most crucial         
practical importance that bonds be      
bought1 the stimuli used were not in the
 form of reasoned briefs1 but rather    

emotional admonition3 ,finish the lob1  
,every miser helps the ,kaiser1 ,if you 
were out in ,no ,man's ,land4           
,,language ,,and ,,logic4 ,even where   
words are freed from irrelevant         
emotional associations1 they are still  
far from being adequate instruments of  
thought4 ,to be effectively             
representative1 words must be clean-cut 
and definitive2 they must stand for one 
object1 quality1 or idea4 ,words1 if    
they are to be genuine instruments of   
communication1 must convey the same     
intent or meaning to the listener as    
they do to the speaker4 ,if the         
significance attached to words is so    
vague and pulpy that they mean different
 things to different men1 they are no   
more useful in inquiry and communication
 than the shock of random noise or the  
vague stir and flutter of music4 ,words 
must have their boundaries fixed1 they  
must be terms1 fixed and stable         
meanings1 or they will remain           
instruments of confusion rather than    

communication4 ,francis ,bacon stated   
succinctly the dangers involved in the  
use of words3  ,for men imagine that    
their reason governs words1 whilst in   
fact words react upon the understanding2
 and this has rendered philosophy and   
the sciences sophistical and inactive4  
,words are generally formed in a popular
 sense1 and define things by those broad
 lines which are most obvious to the    
vulgar mind2 but when a more acute      
understanding or more diligent          
observation is anxious to vary these    
lines1 and adapt them more accurately to
 nature1 words oppose it4 ,hence the    
great and solemn disputes of learned men
 terminate frequently in mere disputes  
about words and names1 in regard to     
which it would be better to proceed more
 advisedly in the first instance1 and to
 bring such disputes to a regular issue 
by definitions4 ,such definitions1      
however1 cannot remedy the evil 444 for 
they consist themselves of words1 and   
these words produce others4444          

,footnote #a3 ,novum ,organum4 bk4 ,i1  
aphorism #ei4  ,if1 to take an extreme  
case1 a speaker said the word chair1 and
 by chair his listener understood what  
we commonly mean by the word table1     
communication would be impossible4      
,there must be some common agreement in 
the words used4 ,in the case of simple  
terms referring to concrete objects     
there are continual concrete reminders  
of the meaning of a word4 ,we do not    
make mistakes as to the meaning of words
 such as chair1 river1 stone1 stove1    
books1 forks1 knives1 because we so     
continually meet and use them4 ,we are  
continually checked up1 and the meanings
 we attach to these cannot go far       
astray4  ,but the further terms are     
removed from physical objects1 the more 
opportunity is there for ambiguity4 ,in 
the realm of politics and morals1 as    
,socrates was fond of pointing out1 the 
chief difficulties and misunderstandings
 of men have come from the ambiguities  
of the terms they use4 ,justice1        

liberty1 democracy1 good1 true1         
beautiful1 these have been immemorial   
bones of contention among philosophers4 
,they are accepted1 taken for granted1  
without any question as to their meaning
 by the individual1 until he finds1     
perhaps1 in discussion that his         
acceptation of the term is entirely     
different from that of his opponent4    
,thus many an argument ends with if     
that's what you mean1 ,i agree with you4
 ,intellectual inquiry and discussion to
 be fruitful must have certain          
definitive terms to start with4         
,discussion 444 needs to have the ground
 or basis of its various component      
statements brought to consciousness in  
such a way as to define the exact value 
of each4 ,the ,socratic contention is   
the need compelling the common          
denominator1 the common subject1        
underlying the diversity of views to    
exhibit itself4 ,it alone gives a sure  
standard by which the claims of all     
assertions may be measured4 ,until this 

need is met1 discussion is a            
self-deceiving play with unjudged1      
unexamined matters1 which1 confused and 
shifting1 impose themselves upon us4#a  
,footnote #a3 ,dewey3 ,essays in        
,experimental ,logic1 p4 #bjj4  ,to     
define our terms means literally to know
 what we are talking about and what     
others are talking about4 ,one of the   
values of discussion is that it enables 
us more clearly to realize the meaning  
of the words with which we constantly   
operate4 ,a man may entertain for a long
 while a half-conscious definition of   
democracy as meaning political equality1
 and suddenly come face to face with    
another who means by it industrial      
coperation and participation on the part
 of all workers4 ,whether he agrees with
 the new definition or not1 at least his
 own becomes clearer by contrast4       
,science1 wrote ,condillac1 is a        
well-made language4 ,no small part of   
the technique of science lies in its    
clear definition of its terms4 ,the     

chemist knows what he means by an acid1 
the biologist by a mammal4 ,under these 
names he classifies all objects having  
certain determinable properties4 ,social
 science will never attain the precision
 of the physical sciences until it also 
attains as clear and unambiguous a      
terminology4 ,as we shall see in the    
chapter on science1 however1 the        
definitions in the physical sciences are
 arrived at through precise inquiries   
not yet possible in the field of social 
phenomena4     ,,chapter ,,xi  ,,racial 
,,and ,,cultural ,,continuity  ,that the
 history of the race is an unbroken     
continuum goes without saying4 ,what    
this means in the way of transmission of
 the arts1 the sciences1 the religion1  
the ideas1 the customs of one generation
 to the next1 we shall presently see4   
,cultural continuity is made possible by
 the more fundamental fact of the actual
 biological continuity of the race4     
,this biological continuity extends     
back1 as far as we can infer from the   

scientific evidence1 unbrokenly through 
the half million years since man has    
left traces of his presence on earth4   
,the continuity of life itself goes back
 to that still more remote time when man
 and ape were indistinguishable1 indeed 
to that postulated epoch when life as it
 existed on earth was no more complex   
than it is as it now appears in the     
one-celled animal4 ,evolution has taught
 us that life1 however it started1 has  
been one long continuous process which  
has increased in complexity from the    
unicellular animals to man4  ,the       
continuity of the human race is a       
contrivance of nature rather than of    
man4 ,it is1 as it were1 a by-product of
 the sex instinct4 ,man is endowed      
natively with a powerful desire for sex 
gratification1 and though offspring are 
the chief utility of this instinct1     
desire for reproduction is not normally 
its primary stimulus4 ,but while the    
production of offspring may thus be said
 to be an incidental result of the sex  

instinct1 human reproduction may be     
subjected to rational consideration and 
control1 according as offspring are or  
are not considered desirable4  ,the     
sense of the desirability of offspring  
may1 in the first place1 be determined  
by social rather than individual        
considerations4 ,to the group or the    
state a large birth-rate1 a steady      
increase of the number of births over   
the number of deaths1 may be made       
desirable by the need of a large        
population for agriculture1 herding1 or 
war4 ,in primitive tribes1 superiority  
in numbers must have been1 under        
conditions of competitive warfare1 a    
pronounced asset4 ,in any imperialistic 
rgime1 where military conquest is highly
 regarded1 the maintenance and          
replenishment of large armies is a      
factor that has entered into reflection 
on the question of population4  ,in     
cases where a small ruling class is     
benefited by the labor of a slave or    
serf class1 there is1 at least for the  

ruling classes1 a marked utility in the 
increase in population4 ,it means just  
so much opportunity for increase of     
wealth on the part of landowning and    
slaveholding or serf-controlling        
classes4 ,in any country1 increase in   
the labor supply means just so much more
 human energy for the control of natural
 resources1 so many more units of energy
 for the production of national wealth4 
,offspring may come to be reflectively  
desired by the individual as a means of 
perpetuating property1 family1 or fame4 
,a man cannot nonchalantly face the     
prospect of obliteration1 and the       
biological fact of death may be         
circumvented by the equally real fact of
 reproduction4 ,a man's individuality1  
we have already had occasion to see1 is 
enhanced by his possessions1 and if his 
fortune or estate is handed down he     
shall not altogether have been          
obliterated from the earth4 ,similarly1 
where a family has become a great       
tradition1 there may be a deliberate    

desire on the part of an individual to  
have the name and tradition carried on1 
to keep the old lineage current and     
conspicuous among men4 ,a man may think 
through his children to keep his own    
fame alive in posterity4 ,at least his  
name shall be known1 and if1 as so often
 happens1 a son follows in his father's 
profession1 carries on his father's     
business1 farm1 or philanthropies1 the  
individual attains at least some measure
 of vicarious immortality4 ,his own     
ways1 habits1 traditions are carried on4
  ,a man may1 moreover1 come to desire  
offspring for the pleasures and         
responsibilities of domesticity and     
parenthood4 ,there is a parental        
instinct as such1 certainly very strong 
in most women1 and not lacking to some  
degree in most men4 ,the joys of caring 
for and rearing a child have too often  
been celebrated in literature and in    
life by parents both young and old to   
need more explicit statement here4      
,,restriction ,,of ,,population4 ,but   

reproduction has been in human history  
promiscuous1 and increase of population 
has been less a problem to moralists and
 economists than has its restriction4   
,the danger of over-increase in         
population was first powerfully stated  
by ,malthus in his ,essay on            
,population4 ,malthus contended in      
effect that population always tends to  
increase up to the limit of subsistence1
 and gives indications1 unless increase 
is checked1 of increasing beyond it4 ,in
 its extreme form1 as it appeared in    
,malthus's first edition of his ,essay1 
it ran somewhat as follows3  ,as things 
are now1 there is a perpetual pressure  
by population on the sources of food4   
,vice and misery cut down the number of 
men when they grow beyond the food4 ,the
 increase of men is rapid and easy2 the 
increase of food is in comparison1 slow1
 and toilsome4 ,they are to each other  
as a geometrical increase to an         
arithmetical2 in ,north ,america1 the   
population double their number in twenty

 years4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,bonar3        
,philosophy and ,political ,economy in  
their ,historic ,relations1 p4 #bje4    
,malthus's pessimistic prophecy of the  
increase of population beyond the means 
of subsistence has been subjected to    
refutation by various causes4 ,for one  
thing1 among civilized races at least1  
the birth-rate is declining4 ,again1    
intensive agriculture has vastly        
increased the possibilities of our      
natural resources4 ,on this point1      
writes ,kropotkin1 who is better        
acquainted with agricultural conditions 
than are most social reformers3  ,they  
market gardeners have created a totally 
new agriculture4 ,they smile when we    
boast about the rotation system having  
permitted us to take from the field one 
crop every year1 or four crops each     
three years1 because their ambition is  
to have six and nine crape from the very
 same plot of land during the twelve    
months4 ,they do not understand our talk
 about good and bad soils1 because they 

make the soils themselves1 and make it  
in such quantities as to be compelled   
yearly to seed some of it2 otherwise it 
would raise up the levels of their      
gardens by half an inch1 every year4    
,they aim at cropping1 not five or six  
tons of grass on the acre as we do1 but 
from fifty to one hundred tons of       
various vegetables on the same space2   
not #ea pounds worth of hay1 but #ajj   
pounds worth of vegetables of the       
plainest description1 cabbages and      
carrots4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,kropotkin3   
,fields1 ,factories1 and ,workshops1 p4 
#gd4  ,of intensive industry the same   
might be said4 ,where formerly a man    
could produce only enough for one man's 
consumption1 under conditions of machine
 production one man's work can supply   
quantities sufficient for many4 ,with a 
declining birth-rate and the vastly     
increased productivity of industry and  
agriculture1 there is a greatly reduced 
danger of the population growing beyond 
their possible sustenance by the        

available food supply4  ,under certain  
economic and social conditions there are
 marked variations in the birth-rate4   
,this may be due to various causes which
 are1 by different writers1 variously   
assigned4 ,the variation of the         
birth-rate among different classes is   
again a matter of common observation and
 statistical certainty4 ,higher         
standards of living are found regularly 
to be correlated with a decrease in the 
number of children in a family4 ,an     
important factor in the voluntary       
restriction of population is the desire 
to give children that are brought into  
the world adequate education1           
environment1 and social opportunity4    
,,cultural ,,continuity4 ,to the very   
young the world seems an unprecedented  
novelty4 ,it seems scarcely older than  
their own memories1 which are few and   
short1 and their own experience1 which  
is necessarily limited and confined4    
,through education our experience       
becomes immeasurably widened2 we can    

vicariously live through the experiences
 of other people through hearing or     
reading1 and can acquire the racial     
memory which goes back as far as the    
records of history1 or anthropological  
research4 ,as we grow older we come to  
learn that our civilization has a       
history2 that our present has a past4   
,this past extends back through the     
countless ons before man walked upright4
 ,the past of human life on earth goes  
back itself over nearly half a million  
years4 ,with this long past1 the present
 is continuous1 being as it were1       
additional pages in process of being    
written4  ,the physical continuity of   
the race is insured1 as we have just    
seen1 by a mechanism1 which1 though it  
may be subjected to rational            
consideration1 is instinctive in its    
operation4 ,the human beings that people
 the earth to-day are offspring of human
 ancestors reaching back to the         
appearance of the human animal in the   
long process of the evolution of life on

 earth4 ,so far as we can see1 posterity
 will be for countless generations      
physically similar to ourselves1 as they
 certainly will1 unless all records or  
evidences of the fact are obscured1     
trace their ancestry continuously back  
to us4  ,not only is there continuity of
 physical descent1 however1 but         
continuity of cultural achievement4 ,the
 past1 in any literal temporal sense1 is
 over and done with4 ,the ,romans are   
physically dead1 as are the generations 
of barbarians of the ,dark ,ages1 and   
all the inhabitants of medival and      
modern ,europe1 save our own            
contemporaries4 ,yesterdays are         
irrevocably over4 ,the past1 in any real
 sense1 exists only in the form of      
achievements that have been handed down 
to us from previous generations4 ,the   
only parts of the past that survive     
physically are the actual material      
products and achievements of bygone     
generations1 the temples and the        
cathedrals1 the sculptures and the      

manuscripts1 the roads and the relics of
 earlier civilizations4 ,even these     
exist in the present2 they are          
evidences1 memorials1 mementos of the   
past4 ,these heritages from past        
civilizations may be interesting1       
intrinsically1 as in the case of        
paintings and statues1 or useful1 as in 
the case of roads1 reservoirs1 or       
harbors4  ,but we inherit the past in a 
more vital sense4 ,we inherit ways of   
thought and action1 social systems1     
scientific and industrial methods1      
manners and morals1 educational bequests
 and ideals1 all that we have and are4  
,without these1 each generation would   
have to start anew4 ,if the whole of    
existing society were destroyed1 and a  
newborn generation could be miraculously
 preserved to maturity1 its members     
would have to start on the same level1  
with the same ignorances1 uncertainties1
 and impotences as primitive savages4   
,in order to make the nature and variety
 of our abject dependence on the past   

clear1 we have only to consider our     
language1 our laws1 our political and   
social institutions1 our knowledge and  
education1 our view of this world and   
the next1 our tastes and the means of   
gratifying them4 ,on every hand the past
 dominates and controls us1 for the most
 part unconsciously and without protest 
on our part4 ,we are in the main its    
willing adherents4 ,the imagination of  
the most radically-minded cannot        
transcend any great part of the ideas   
and customs transmitted to him4 ,when   
once we grasp this truth1 we shall1     
according to our mood1 humbly           
congratulate ourselves that 444 we are  
permitted to stand on the giant's       
shoulders1 and enjoy an outlook that    
would be quite hidden to us1 if we had  
to trust to our own short legs2 or we   
may resentfully chafe at our bonds and1 
like ,prometheus1 vainly strive to wrest
 ourselves from the rock of the past1 in
 our eagerness to bring relief to the   
suffering children of men4  ,in any     

case1 whether we bless or curse the     
past1 we are inevitably its offspring1  
and it makes us its own long before we  
realize it4 ,it is1 indeed1 almost all  
that we can have4#a  ,footnote #a3      
,robinson3 ,the ,new ,history1 pp4      
#bef-eg4  ,the cultural achievements of 
the past1 which we inherit chiefly as   
social habits1 are obviously not        
transmitted to us physically1 as are the
 original human traits with which this  
volume has so far been chiefly          
concerned4 ,they are not in our blood2  
they are acquired like other habits1    
through contact with others and through 
repeated practice4  ,we are thus to a   
very large extent conditioned by the    
past4 ,it is as if we had inherited a   
fortune composed of various kinds of    
properties1 houses1 books1 automobiles1 
warehouses1 musical instruments1 and in 
addition1 trade concessions1 business   
secrets1 formuls1 methods1 and          
good-will4 ,our activities will be      
limited in measure by the extent of the 

property1 its constituent items1 and the
 repair in which we keep it4 ,we may    
squander or misinvest our principal1 as 
when we use scientific knowledge for    
dangerous or dubious aims1 for example1 
for conquest or rapine4 ,we may add to  
it1 as in the development of the        
sciences and industrial arts4 ,we may1  
so to speak1 live on the income4 ,such  
is the case when a society ceases to be 
progressive1 and fails to add anything  
to a highly developed traditional       
culture1 as happened strikingly in the  
case of ,china4 ,again we may have      
inherited white elephants1 which may be 
of absolutely no use to us1 encumbrances
 of which we cannot easily rid          
ourselves1 influential ideas which are  
no longer adequate to our present       
situation1 obsolete emotions1 methods1  
or institutions4 ,we may allow our      
cultural inheritance1 through bad       
education1 to fall into disrepair and   
decay4  ,since we are so dependent on   
the past1 our attitude toward it1 which 

in turn determines the use we make of   
it1 is of the most crucial significance4
 ,the several characteristic and varying
 attitudes toward the past which are so 
markedly current are not determined     
solely by logical considerations4 ,for  
individuals and social groups particular
 features of their heritage have great  
emotional associations4 ,the living past
 is composed of habits1 traditions1     
values1 which are vivid and vital issues
 to those who practice them4            
,traditions1 customs1 or social methods 
come to have intrinsic values2 they     
become the center of deep attachments   
and strong passion4 ,they are a rich    
element of the atmosphere of the        
present2 they are woven into the        
intimate fabric of our lives4 ,the awe  
which we feel in great cathedrals is    
historical as well as religious4 ,those 
vast solemn arches are the voices of the
 past speaking to us4 ,the moral appeal 
of tradition appears with beautiful     
clarity in the opening chapter of       

,pater's ,marius the ,epicurean4  ,a    
sense of conscious powers external to   
ourselves1 pleased or displeased by the 
right or wrong conduct of every         
circumstance of daily life--that        
conscience1 of which the old ,roman     
religion was a formal1 habitual         
recognition1 had become in him a        
powerful current of feeling and         
observance4 ,the old-fashioned1 partly  
,puritanic awe1 the power of which      
,wordsworth noted and valued so highly  
in a northern peasantry1 had its        
counterpart in the feeling of the ,roman
 lad1 as he passed the spot1 touched of 
heaven1 where the lightning had struck  
dead an aged laborer in the field3 an   
upright stone1 still with moldering     
garlands about it1 marked the place4 ,he
 brought to that system of symbolic     
usages1 and they in turn developed in   
him further1 a great seriousness1 an    
impressibility to the sacredness of     
time1 of life and its events1 and the   
circumstances of family fellowship--of  

such gifts to men as fire1 water1 the   
earth from labor on which they live1    
really understood by him as gifts--a    
sense of religious responsibility in the
 reception of them4 ,it was a religion  
for the most part of fear1 of           
multitudinous scruples1 of a year-long  
burden of forms4#a  ,footnote #a3       
,walter ,pater3 ,marius the ,epicurean  
7,a4 ,l4 ,burt edition71 pp4 #c-d4  ,to 
the past1 as it is made familiar to us  
through song1 study1 and traditional    
practice1 we may experience a piety     
amounting almost to religious devotion4 
,in some individuals and in some        
nations1 this sense for tradition is    
very strong4  ,every one has felt more  
or less keenly this sense of being a    
link in a great tradition1 whether of a 
college1 family1 or country4 ,sometimes 
this sense for tradition takes an       
sthetic form1 as in the case of ritual1 
whether social or religious4 ,old       
streets1 ivied towers1 ancient rooms1   
become symbols of great and dignified   

achievements2 ceremonies come to be     
invested with a serious beauty and      
memorable charm4 ,they become reminders 
of a torch to be carried on1 of a spirit
 to be cherished and kept alive1 of a   
history to be carried on or a purpose or
 an ideal to be fulfilled4 ,as we shall 
see in a moment1 this sense for the     
past1 which1 as ,santayana says1 makes a
 man loyal to the sources of his being1 
has both its virtues and vices4 ,it is  
of immense value in preserving          
continuity and cultural integration1 in 
keeping many men continuously moving    
toward a single fixed end4 ,it may also 
wrap dangerously irrelevant habits and  
institutions in a saving--and           
illusive--halo4  ,there are1 on the     
other hand1 individuals with very little
 sense for tradition4 ,this may be      
accounted for in some cases by a marked 
sthetic insensibility1 which sees in    
ritual1 ceremony1 or habit1 merely the  
literal1 without any appreciation at all
 of its symbolic significance4#a ,in    

other cases1 individuals are            
unsusceptible and hostile to tradition1 
because they have themselves been       
socially disinherited4 ,this is         
illustrated not infrequently in the case
 of foreigners who1 for one reason or   
another1 have left and lost interest in 
their native land1 and become men       
without a country4  ,footnote #a3 ,this 
is illustrated by the crass excesses of 
certain radical satirists of religious  
forms4 ,those who are the enemies of    
religion for economic1 social1 or       
intellectualistic reasons combine a     
singular sense of the literal           
absurdities of religious forms with a   
marked insensibility to their symbolic  
values4 ,one may find interesting       
examples1 from ,voltaire to ,robert     
,ingersoll4  ,there are others by       
temperament rebellious and iconoclastic1
 who combine a keen sense of present    
difficulties and problems with small    
reverence1 use for1 or interest in the  
past1 and small imaginative sympathy    

with it4 ,the past is to them a sea of  
errors4 ,they regard all past           
achievements as bad scribblings which   
must be erased1 so that we may start    
with a clean slate4 ,there have been    
included among such1 great historical   
reformers4 ,bentham's enthusiasm for    
progress led him into most intemperate  
attacks on history and historical       
method4 ,the most noted of the          
eighteenth-century philosophers saw     
nothing but evil in tradition4 ,such    
sentiments were echoed in the early     
nineteenth century by ,shelley1 ,godwin1
 and their circle1 as expressed1 for    
example1 in ,shelley's ,hellas3    ,the 
world's great age begins anew1      ,the
 golden years return1    ,the earth doth
 like a snake renew      ,her winter    
weeds outworn2    ,heaven smiles1 and   
faiths and empires gleam1    ,like      
wrecks of a dissolving dream4       4   
4   4   4   4   4   4   4   4   ,another
 ,athens shall arise1      ,and to      
remoter time    ,bequeath1 like sunset  

to the skies1      ,the splendor of its 
prime2    ,and leave1 if nought so      
bright can live1    ,all earth can take 
or ,heaven can give4  ,it is not        
surprising that men with an eye fixed on
 the future should develop a contempt or
 an obliviousness of the past4 ,utopians
 nearly always start with a world       
various and beautiful and new4  ,perhaps
 the chief ingredient in such           
discounting of all past history is the  
rebel temperament which wants to break  
away from what it regards as the chains1
 the dead weight1 the ruts of tradition4
 ,it cheerfully says1 ,nous changerons  
tout cela1 and does not stop to         
discriminate between the roads and the  
ruts that have been made by people in   
the past4  ,these two temperaments1#a   
play a large part in determining        
attitudes toward the past4 ,the one     
regards with awe and reverence past     
achievement1 and rests his faith on the 
experiments which have been tested and  
proved by time4 ,the other1 to state the

 position extremely1 regards each day as
 the possible glorious dawn of a        
completely new world4 ,the first        
attitude1 when intemperately preached   
and practiced1 becomes an uncritical    
veneration of the past2 the second1 an  
uncritical disparagement4 ,we shall     
briefly examine each4  ,footnote #a3    
,one is reminded of the song of the     
sentry before the ,house of ,parliament 
in ,gilbert and ,sullivan's ,iolanthe2  
',t is strange how ,nature doth contrive
      ,that every little boy or gal1    
,that's born into the world alive1      
,is either a little ,liberal1        ,or
 else a little ,conservative6           
,,uncritical ,,veneration ,,of ,,the    
,,past4 ,the extreme form of uncritical 
veneration of the past may be said to   
take the position that old things are   
good simply because they are old2 new   
things are evil simply because they are 
new4 ,institutions1 ,ideas1 ,customs    
are1 like wines1 supposed to attain     
quality with age4 ,a custom1 a law1 a   

code of morals is defined or maintained 
on the ground of its ancient--and       
honorable--history1 of the great span of
 years during which it has been current1
 of the generation after generation that
 has lived under its auspices4 ,the ways
 of our fathers1 the old time-tested    
ways1 these1 we are told1 must be our   
ways4  ,the psychological origins of    
this position have in part been         
discussed4 ,there is in some individuals
 a highly developed sentiment and       
reverence for tradition as such1 and an 
sthetic sensibility to the mellowness1  
ripeness1 and charm that so often       
accompany old things4#a ,the new seems1 
as it often is1 loud1 brassy1 vulgar1   
and hard4 ,but there are other and      
equally important causes4 ,men trust and
 cherish the familiar in ideas1 customs1
 and social organization1 just as they  
trust and cherish old friends4 ,they    
know what to expect from them2 they have
 their well-noted excellences1 and1     
while they have their defects1 these    

also are definitely known and can be    
definitely reckoned with4 ,the old order
 may not be perfect1 but it is an order1
 and an order whose outlines and        
possibilities are known and predictable4
 ,change means change to the            
unaccustomed and the unfamiliar4 ,and   
the unaccustomed and the unfamiliar1 as 
already pointed out1 normally arouse    
fear4 ,one of the conventional phrases  
7which has become conventional because  
it is accurate7 with which changes have 
been greeted is the clich1 we view with 
alarm4 ,no small part of genuine        
opposition to change comes from the     
cautious and conscientious types of mind
 which will not sanction the reckless   
taking of chances1 especially where the 
interests of large groups are concerned1
 which want to know precisely where a   
change will lead4 ,such a mind holds off
 from committing society to making      
changes that will put a situation beyond
 control and lead to unforeseen and     
uncontrollable dangers4 ,especially is  

this felt by the administrator1 by the  
man who has experience with the         
difficulties of putting ideas in        
practice1 who knows how vastly more     
difficult it is to operate with people  
than with paper4#b ,the man of affairs  
knows how easy it is to check and change
 ideas in one's mind1 but knows also the
 uncontrollable momentum of ideas when  
they are acted upon by vast numbers of  
men4  ,footnote #a3 ,oxford1 said a     
distinguished visitor to that venerable 
institution1 looks just as it ought to  
look4 ,and one is reminded of the story 
of the ,american lady who1 admiring the 
smooth lawns at ,oxford1 asked a        
gardener how they managed to give them  
that velvet gloss4 ,we roll them1 madam1
 he said1 for eight hundred years4      
,footnote #b3 ,thus writes ,catharine   
,,ii1 in a letter to ,diderot1 the      
,french philosopher and humanitarian3   
,m4 ,diderot1 in all your schemes of    
reform1 you entirely forget the         
difference in our position2 you work    

only on paper1 which endures all things2
 it offers no obstacle1 either to your  
pen or your imagination4 ,but ,i1 poor  
,empress that ,i am1 work on a far more 
delicate and irritable substance1 the   
human skin4  ,again1 the maintenance of 
ways that have been practiced in the    
past has a large hold over people1 for  
reasons already discussed in the chapter
 on ,habit4 ,the old and the accustomed 
are comfortable and facile2 change means
 inconvenience and frustration of       
habitual desires4 ,this is in part the  
explanation of the increasing           
conservatism of men as they grow older4 
,not only do they have a keener sense of
 the difficulty of introducing changes1 
but their own fixed habits of mind and  
emotion make part of the difficulty4    
,they like the old ways and persist in  
them just as they like and keep old     
books1 old friends1 and old shoes4      
,,romantic ,,idealization ,,of ,,the    
,,past4 ,reverence for the past may also
 be due to a romantic idealization of   

it4 ,in such cases1 it is not an        
interest in maintaining the present     
order2 it is rather a contempt for the  
present and wistful yearning for the    
good old days4 ,everyone indulges more  
or less in such idealization4 ,such     
halos are made possible because we      
retain the pleasant rather than the     
painful and dreary aspects of our past  
experience4 ,the college alumnus        
returning to the campus tells of the    
since unsurpassed intellectual and      
athletic feats of the freshman class of 
which he was a member4 ,the elderly     
gentleman sighs over his newspaper at   
the bad ways into which the world is    
degenerating1 and yearns for the old    
days when the plays were better1        
conversation more interesting1 houses   
more comfortable1 and men more loyal4   
,in similar trivial instances we are all
 inclined to indulge in such mythology4 
,the universality and age of this       
tendency has been well described by a   
student of ,greek civilization4  ,this  

is the belief of the old school of every
 age--there was once a good time2 and it
 matters not at all in the study of     
moral ideals that no such time can be   
shown to have existed4 ,the men of the  
fourth century ,b4,c4 say that it was in
 the fifth2 those of the fifth say it   
was in the sixth2 and so on infinitely4 
,the same ideal was at work when        
,william ,morris looked to the          
thirteenth century1 forgetting that     
,dante looked to a still earlier period2
 and both forgot that the men of that   
earlier period said the same--not now1  
indeed1 but before us men were happy4   
,so simpler men incline to say that     
their grandfathers were fine fellows1   
but the old college is going to the     
dogs1 or the ,house of ,commons is not  
what it was once1 for reverence and     
faith and manliness once ruled the      
world4 ,the old school lives upon an    
ignorance of history2 it is genuinely   
moved by a simple moral ideal of life   
and character which its own imagination 

has created4 ,and when evil becomes     
obvious1 it is the new-fangled notions  
that are to blame4 ,trying new dodges   
has brought ,athens down in the         
world--as ,aristophanes in #cic ,b4,c4  
makes his protagonist say3    ,and would
 it not have saved the ,athenian state1 
,if she kept to what was good1 and did  
not try    ,always some new plan8#a     
,footnote #a3 ,c4 ,delisle ,burns3      
,greek ,ideals1 pp4 #aah-ai4  ,on a     
large scale the romantic idealization of
 the past has been made into a          
philosophy of history4 ,the golden age1 
instead of being put in a roseate and   
remote future1 is put in an equally     
remote and roseate past4 ,the ,greek    
legends were fond of a golden age when  
the gods moved among men4 ,the ,garden  
of ,eden is the ,christian apotheosis of
 the world's perfections4 ,various      
philosophers have pointed out the       
fallacy of finding such a mythological  
locus for our ideals1 and evolution and 
the general revelations of history have 

indicated the completely mythical       
character of the golden age4 ,history   
may1 in general1 be said to reveal that1
 whatever the imperfections of our own  
age1 we have immeasurably improved in   
many pronounced respects over conditions
 earlier than our own4 ,the idealized   
picture of the ,middle ,ages with its   
guardsmen and its courtly knights and   
ladies1 is coming1 with increasing      
historical information1 to seem         
insignificant and untrue in comparison  
with the unspeakable hardships of the   
mass of men1 the evil social and        
sanitary conditions1 the plagues and    
pestilences which were as much a part of
 it4 ,the picture of the ideally gentle 
and benevolent attitude of the master to
 his slaves is by no means regarded as a
 typical picture of conditions of slave 
labor in the ,south4 ,we know1          
positively1 on the other hand1 that our 
medicine and surgery1 our scientific and
 industrial methods1 our production and 
our resources are incomparably greater  

than those of any earlier period in     
history1 as are the possibilities of the
 control of ,nature still unrealized4   
,if there were time ,i might try to show
 that progress in knowledge and its     
application to the alleviation of man's 
estate is more rapid now than ever      
before4 ,but this scarcely needs formal 
proof2 it is so obvious4 ,a few years   
ago an eminent ,french littrateur1      
,brunetire1 declared science bankrupt4  
,this was on the eve of the discoveries 
in radio-activity which have opened up  
great vistas of possible human          
readjustments if we could but learn to  
control and utilize the inexhaustible   
sources of power that lie in the atom4  
,it was on the eve of the discovery of  
the function of the white blood         
corpuscles1 which clears the way for    
indefinite advance in medicine4 ,only a 
poor discouraged man of letters could   
think for a moment that science was     
bankrupt4 ,no one entitled to an opinion
 on the subject believes that we have   

made more than a beginning in           
penetrating the secrets of the organic  
and inorganic worlds4#a  ,footnote #a3  
,robinson3 ,the ,new ,history1 p4 #bfb4 
,even in the face of these facts1       
reverence for the past may amount to    
such religious veneration that change   
may come literally to be regarded as    
sacrilegious4 ,in primitive tribes the  
reasons for this insistence are clear4  
,rites and rituals are used to secure   
the favor of the gods and any departure 
from traditional customs is looked upon 
as fraught with actual danger4 ,but the 
past1 as it lives in established forms  
and practices1 is still by many1 and in 
highly advanced societies1 almost       
religiously cherished1 sustained1 and   
perpetuated4 ,every college1 religion1  
and country has its traditional forms of
 life and practice1 any infringement of 
which is regarded with the gravest      
disapproval4#b ,in social life1         
generally1 there are fixed forms for    
given occasions1 forms of address1      

greeting1 conversation1 and clothes1 all
 that commonly goes under the name of   
the conventions or proprieties4 ,in law1
 as is well known1 there is developed   
sometimes to an almost absurd degree a  
ritual of procedure4 ,in religion1      
traditional values become embodied in   
fixed rituals of music1 processional1   
and prayer4 ,in education1 especially   
higher education1 there has developed a 
fairly stable tradition in the granting 
of degrees1 the elements of a           
curriculum1 the forms of examination1   
and the like4 ,to certain types of mind1
 fixed forms in all these fields have   
come to be regarded as of intrinsic     
importance4 ,love of good form1 the     
classicist point of view at its best1   
may develop into sheer pedantry and     
,pharisaism1 an insistence on the fixed 
form when the intent is changed or      
forgotten1 a regard for the letter      
rather than the spirit of the law4 ,in a
 large number of cases1 the fixed modes 
of life and practice which are our      

inheritance come to be regarded as      
symbols of eternal and changeless       
values4 ,thus many highly intelligent   
men find ritual in religion and         
traditional customs in education or in  
social life freighted with symbolic     
significance1 and any infringement of   
them as almost sacrilegious in          
character4  ,footnote #b3 ,it has been  
said that a custom repeated on a college
 campus two years in succession         
constitutes a tradition4  ,,change      
,,synonymous ,,with ,,evil4 ,change1    
again1 may be discouraged by those who  
hold1 with more or less sincerity1 that 
no good can come of it4 ,such a position
 may1 and frequently is1 maintained by  
those in whom fortunate accident of     
birth1 favored social position1         
exuberant optimism1 or a stanch and     
resilient faith1 induces the belief that
 the social order and social practices1 
education1 law1 customs1 economic       
conditions1 science1 art1 et al41 are   
completely satisfactory4 ,like ,pippa1  

in ,browning's poem1 they are satisfied 
that ,god's in ,his ,heaven2 all's right
 with the world4 ,that there are no     
imperfections1 in manners1 politics1 or 
morals1 in our present social order1    
that there are no improvements which    
good-will1 energy1 and intelligence can 
effect1 few will maintain without       
qualification4 ,to do so implies1 when  
sincere1 extraordinary blindness to the 
facts1 for example1 of poverty and      
disease1 which1 though they do not      
happen to touch a particular individual1
 are patent and ubiquitous enough4 ,in  
the face of undeniable evils the        
position that the ways we have inherited
 are completely adequate to our         
contemporary problems cannot be         
ingenuously maintained4  ,the position  
more generally expounded by the         
opponents of change is that our present 
modes of life give us the best possible 
results1 considering the limitations of 
nature and human nature1 and that the   
customs1 institutions1 and ideas we now 

have are the fruits of a ripe1 a mellow1
 and a time-tested wisdom1 that any     
radical innovations would1 on the whole1
 put us in a worse position than that in
 which we find ourselves4 ,persons      
taking this attitude discount every     
suggested improvement on the ground     
that1 even though intrinsically good1 it
 will bring a host of inevitable evils  
with it1 and that1 all things           
considered1 we had better leave well    
enough alone4 ,some extreme exponents of
 this doctrine maintain1 as did some of 
the ,hebrew prophets1 that whatever     
evils are ours are our own fault1 that  
fault consisting in a lapse from the    
accustomed ancient ways4 ,to continue   
without abatement the established ways  
is the surest road to happiness4        
,education1 social customs1 political   
organization1 these are sound and       
wholesome as they are2 and modification 
means interference with the works and   
processes of reason4    ,all ,nature is 
but art1 unknown to thee2    ,all       

chance1 direction1 which thou canst not 
see2    ,all discord1 harmony not       
understood2    ,all partial evil1       
universal good2    ,and spite of pride1 
in erring reason's spite1    ,one truth 
is clear1 ,whatever is1 is right4#a     
,footnote #a3 ,pope3 ,essay on ,man1    
epistle ,i1 lines #bhi ff4  ,later      
,hegel developed an elaborate philosophy
 of history in which he tried to        
demonstrate that the history of the past
 was one long exemplification of reason2
 that each event that happened was part 
of the great cosmic scheme1 an          
indispensable syllable of the ,divine   
,idea as it moved through history2 each 
action part of the increasing purpose   
that runs through the ages4 ,that these 
contentions are1 to say the least1      
extreme1 will appear presently in the   
statement of the opposite position which
 sees nothing in the past but a long    
succession of blunders1 evils1 and      
stupidities4  ,,order ,,versus ,,change4
 ,finally1 genuine opposition to change 

arises from those who fear the          
instability which it implies4           
,continuation in established ways makes 
for integration1 discipline1 and        
stability4 ,it makes possible the       
converging of means toward an end1 it   
cumulates efforts resulting in definite 
achievement4 ,in so far as we do        
accomplish anything of significance1 we 
must move along stable and determinate  
lines2 we must be able to count on the  
future4#a ,it has already been pointed  
out that it is man's docility to        
learning1 his long period of infancy#b  
which makes his eventual achievements   
possible4 ,but it is man's persistence  
in the habits he has acquired that is in
 part responsible for his progress4 ,in 
individual life1 the utility of         
persistence1 and concentration of effort
 upon a definite piece of work1 have    
been sufficiently stressed by moralists1
 both popular and professional4 ,a      
rolling stone gathers no moss1 is as    
true psychologically as it is           

physically4 ,any outstanding            
accomplishment1 whether in business1    
scholarship1 science1 or literature1    
demands perseverance in definite courses
 of action4 ,we are inclined1 and       
usually with reason1 to suspect the     
effectiveness of a man who has half a   
dozen professions in half as many years4
 ,such vacillations produce whimsical   
and scattered movements2 but they are   
fruitless in results2 they literally get
 nowhere4  ,footnote #a3 ,the           
uncertainty that business men feel      
during a presidential campaign is an    
illustration4  ,footnote #b3 ,see ante1 
p4 #aj4  ,just as1 in the case of       
individuals1 any significant            
achievements require persistent         
convergence of means toward a definite  
end1 so is it in the case of social     
groups4 ,no great business organizations
 are built up through continual         
variations of policy4 ,similarly1 in the
 building up of a university1 a         
government department1 a state1 or a    

social order1 consecutive and           
disciplined persistence in established  
ways is a requisite of progress4        
,without such continuous organization of
 efforts toward fixed goals1 action     
becomes frivolous and fragmentary1 a    
wind along a waste4 ,the history of the 
,english people has elicited the        
admiration of philosophers and          
historians because it has been such a   
gradual and deliberate movement1 such a 
measured and certain progress toward    
political and social freedom4 ,to those 
who appreciate the value of unity of    
action1 of the assured fruits of        
cumulative and consistent action along a
 given path1 change as such seems       
fraught with danger4 ,nor is it specific
 dangers they fear so much as the loss  
of moral fiber1 the scattering of       
energies1 the waste and futility that   
are frequently the net result of casual 
driftings with every wind that blows4   
,no one has more eloquently expressed   
this view than ,edmund ,burke in his    

,reflections on the ,french ,revolution3
  ,but one of the first and most leading
 principles on which the commonwealth   
and the laws are consecrated1 is lest   
the temporary possessors and            
life-renters in it1 unmindful of what   
they have received from their ancestors1
 or of what is due to their posterity1  
should act as if they were the entire   
masters2 that they should think it among
 their rights to cut off the entail1 or 
commit waste on the inheritance1 by     
destroying at their pleasure the whole  
original fabric of their society2       
hazarding to leave to those who come    
after them a ruin instead of a          
habitation--and teaching these          
successors as little to respect their   
contrivances1 as they had themselves    
respected the institutions of their     
forefathers4 ,by this unprincipled      
facility of changing the state as often1
 and as much1 and in as many ways1 as   
there are floating fancies or fashions1 
the whole chain and continuity of the   

commonwealth would be broken4 ,no one   
generation could link with the other4   
,men would be little better than the    
flies of a summer4         99       99  
99       99       99  ,to avoid1        
therefore1 the evils of inconstancy and 
versatility1 ten thousand times worse   
than those of obstinacy and the blindest
 prejudice1 we have consecrated the     
state1 that no man should approach to   
look into its defects or corruptions1   
but with due caution2 that he should    
never dream of beginning its reformation
 by its subversion2 that he should      
approach to the faults of the state as  
to the wounds of a father1 with pious   
awe and trembling solicitude4#a         
,footnote #a3 ,edmund ,burke3           
,reflections on the ,french ,revolution 
7,george ,bell  ,sons1 #ahhh71 pp4      
#cff-fh4  ,,personal ,,or ,,class       
,,opposition ,,to ,,change4 ,sincere    
fear of the possible evils of novelty in
 the disorganization which it promotes1 
habituation to established ways1 or a   

sentimental and sthetic allegiance to   
them--all these are factors that        
determine genuine opposition to change4 
,but aversion to change may be          
generalized into a philosophical        
attitude by those who have special      
personal or class reasons for disliking 
specific changes4 ,the hand-workers in  
the early nineteenth century stoned the 
machinists and machines which threw them
 out of employment4 ,every change does  
discommode some class or classes of     
persons1 and part of the opposition to  
specific changes comes from those whom  
they would adversely affect4 ,it is not 
surprising that liquor interests should 
be opposed to prohibition1 that         
theatrical managers should have         
protested against a tax on the theater1 
or those with great incomes against an  
excess profits tax4 ,selfish opposition 
to specific changes is1 indeed1         
frequently veiled in the disguise of    
plausible reasons for opposition to     
change in general4 ,those who fear the  

results to their own personal or class  
interests of some of the radical social 
legislation of our own day may disguise 
those more or less consciously realized 
motives under the form of impartial     
philosophical opposition to social      
change in general4 ,they may find       
philosophical justification for         
maintaining unmodified an established   
order which redounds to their own       
advantage4  ,,uncritical                
,,disparagement4 ,the other extreme is  
represented by the position that old    
things are bad because they are old1 and
 new things good because they are new4  
,this is illustrated in an extreme      
though trivial form by faddists of every
 kind4 ,there are people who chiefly    
pride themselves on being               
up-to-the-minute1 and exhibit an almost 
pathological fear of being behind the   
times4 ,this thirst for the novel is    
seen on various levels1 from those who  
wear the newest styles1 and dine at the 
newest hotels1 to those who make a point

 of reading only the newest books1      
hearing only the newest music1 and      
discussing the latest theories4 ,for    
such temperaments1 and more or less to  
most people1 there is an intrinsic      
glamour about the word new4 ,the        
physical qualities that are so often    
associated with newness are carried over
 into social and intellectual matters1  
where they do not so completely apply4  
,the new is bright and unfrayed2 it has 
not yet suffered senility and decay4    
,the new is smart and striking2 it      
catches the eye and the attention4 ,just
 as old things are dog-eared1 worn1 and 
tattered1 so are old institutions1      
habits1 and ideas4 ,just as we want the 
newest books and phonographs1 the latest
 conveniences in housing and sanitation1
 so we want the latest modernities in   
political1 social1 and intellectual     
matters4 ,especially about new ideas1   
there is the freshness and infinite     
possibility of youth2 every new idea is 
as yet an unbroken promise4 ,it has not 

been subjected to the frustrations1     
disillusions1 and compromises to which  
all theory is subjected in the world of 
action4#a ,every new idea is an         
experiment1 a possibility1 a hope4 ,it  
may be the long-awaited miracle2 it may 
be the prayed-for solution of all our   
difficulties4  ,footnote #a3 ,real life 
is1 to most men1 a long second-best1 a  
perpetual compromise between the ideal  
and the possible2 but the world of pure 
reason knows no compromise1 no practical
 limitations1 no barrier to the creative
 activity embodying in splendid edifices
 the passionate aspiration after the    
perfect from which all great work       
springs4 ,remote from human passions1   
remote even from the pitiful facts of   
nature1 the generations have gradually  
created an ordered cosmos1 where pure   
thought can dwell as in its natural     
home1 and where one1 at least1 of our   
nobler impulses can escape from the     
dreary exile of the actual world4       
7,bertrand ,russell3 ,mysticism and     

,logic1 pp4 #fj-fa47  ,this             
susceptibility to the novel is          
peculiarly displayed by those who see   
nothing but evil in the old4 ,against   
the outworn past with its disillusions1 
its errors1 its evils1 and its          
hypocrisies1 the new shines out in      
glorious contrast4 ,there are persons   
who combine a very genuine sense of     
present evils with a resilient belief in
 the possibilities of change4 ,the      
classic instance of this is seen in the 
,messianic idea4 ,even in the worst of  
times1 the pious ,jew could count on the
 saving appearance of the ,messiah4     
,every ,utopian is as sure of the       
salvation promised by his prize solution
 as he is of the evils which it is      
intended to rectify4 ,the ardent        
,socialist may equally divide his       
energies between pointing out the evils 
of the capitalist system1 and the       
certain bliss of his ,socialist         
republic4 ,the past is nothing but a    
festering mass of evils2 industry is    

nothing but slavery1 religion nothing   
but superstition1 education nothing but 
dead traditional formalism1 social life 
nothing but hypocrisy4  ,where the past 
is so darkly conceived1 there comes an  
uncritical welcoming of anything new1   
anything that will take men away from   
it4 ,nothing could be worse than the    
present or past2 anything as yet untried
 may be better4 ,as ,karl ,marx told the
 working classes3 ,the proletarians have
 nothing to lose but their chains4 ,they
 have a world to win4  ,the past is1 by 
its ruthless critics1 conceived not     
infrequently as enchaining or enslaving4
 ,particularly1 the radical insists1 are
 men enslaved by habits of thought1     
feeling1 and action which are totally   
inadequate to our present problems and  
difficulties4 ,war-like emotions1 he    
points out1 may have been useful in an  
earlier civilization1 but are now a     
total disutility4 ,belief in magic may  
have been an asset to primitive man in  
his ignorance2 it is not to modern man  

with his science4 ,the institution of   
private property may have had its values
 in building up civilization2 its       
utility is over4 ,we still make         
stereotyped and archaic reactions where 
the situation has utterly changed4 ,the 
institutions1 ideas1 and habits of the  
past are at once so compelling and so   
obsolete that we must make a clear break
 with the past2 we must start with a    
clean slate4 ,to continue1 so we are    
told1 is merely going further and       
further along the wrong paths2 it is    
like continuing with a broken engine1 or
 without a rudder4  ,,critical          
,,examination ,,of ,,the ,,past4 ,that  
both positions just discussed are       
extreme1 goes without saying4 ,the past 
is neither all good nor all bad2 it has 
achieved as well as it has erred4 ,but  
it is1 in any case1 all we have4        
,without the knowledge1 the customs1 the
 institutions we have inherited1 we     
should have no advantage at all over our
 ancestors of ten thousand years ago4   

,biologically we have not changed4 ,the 
past is our basic material4 ,each       
generation starts with what it finds in 
the way of cultural achievement1 and    
builds upon that4  ,antiquity deserveth 
that reverence1 that men should take a  
stand thereupon1 and discover what is   
the best way2 but when the discovery is 
well-taken1 then to make progression4   
,and to speak truly1 antiquitas soeculi 
iuventus mundi4 ,these times are the    
ancient times1 when the world is        
ancient1 and not those which we account 
ancient ordine retrogrado1 by a         
computation backwards from ourselves4#a 
,footnote #a3 ,bacon3 ,the ,advancement 
of ,learning1 ,collected ,works1 vol4   
,i1 p4 #agb4  ,the past1 save what we   
discover in our generation1 is our sole 
storehouse of materials4 ,and a very    
small part of our useful knowledge in   
the industrial arts1 in science1 in     
social organization and administration  
does come from our own generation4 ,it  
is the accumulated experience of        

generations of men4 ,we can1 out of this
 mass of materials1 select whatever is  
useful in clarifying the issues of the  
present1 whatever helps us to accomplish
 those purposes which we have1 after    
critical consideration1 decided to be   
useful and serviceable4 ,if1 for        
example1 we decide to build a bridge1 it
 is of importance that we know all that 
men have in the past discovered of      
mechanical relations and industrial art 
which will enable us to build a bridge  
well4 ,if we want to establish an       
educational system in some backward     
portion of the world1 it is useful for  
us to know what methods men have used in
 similar situations4 ,whatever we decide
 to do1 we are so much the better off1  
if we know all that men before us have  
learned in analogous instances4  ,but to
 use the inheritance of the past implies
 an analysis of present problems1 and an
 acceptance of the course to be pursued4
 ,the experience of the past1 the       
heritage of knowledge that has come down

 to us1 is so various and extensive that
 choices must be made4 ,the historian in
 writing even a comprehensive history of
 a country must still make choices and  
omissions4 ,similarly1 in using         
knowledge inherited from the past as    
materials1 we must have specific        
problems to govern our choice4 ,the     
statistician could collect innumerable  
statistics2 he collects only those which
 have a bearing on his subject4 ,the    
lawyer searches out that part of the    
legal tradition which is applicable to  
his own case4 ,without some lead or clue
 we should lose ourselves in the        
multifariousness of transmitted         
knowledge at our disposal4  ,to use the 
past as an instrument for furthering    
present purposes implies neither        
veneration nor disparagement of it4 ,we 
neither condemn nor praise the past as a
 whole2 we regard specific institutions1
 customs1 or ideas1 as adequate or      
inadequate1 as serviceable or           
disserviceable4 ,in general1 it may be  

said that the value of any still extant 
part of the past1 be it a work of art1 a
 habit1 a tradition1 has very little to 
do with its origin4 ,the instinct of    
eating is still useful though it has a  
long history4 ,the works of the ,old    
,masters are not really great because   
they are old1 nor are the works of      
contemporaries either good or bad       
because they are new4 ,man himself is to
 be estimated no differently1 whether he
 is descended from the angels or the    
apes4  ,if we would appreciate our own  
morals and religion we are often advised
 to consider primitive man and his      
institutions4 ,if we would evaluate     
marriage or property1 we are often      
directed to study our remote            
ancestors4444 ,such considerations as   
these have diverse effects according to 
our temperaments4 ,they quite uniformly 
produce1 however1 disillusionment and   
sophistication4444 ,this exaltation of  
the past1 as the ancestral home of all  
that we are1 may make us regret our loss

 of illusions and our disconcerting     
enlightenment4444 ,we may break with the
 past1 scorn an inheritance so redolent 
of blood and lust and superstition1     
revel in an emancipation unguided by the
 discipline of centuries1 strive to     
create a new world every day1 and       
imagine that1 at last1 we have begun to 
make progress4#a  ,footnote #a3         
,woodbridge3 ,the ,purpose of ,history1 
p4 #gb4  ,the standards of value of the 
things we have or do or say1 the        
approvals or disapprovals we should     
logically accord them1 are determined   
not by their history1 not by their past1
 but by their uses in the living present
 in which we live4 ,an institution may  
have served the purposes of a bygone    
generation2 it does not follow that it  
thereby serves our own4 ,the reverse may
 similarly be true4 ,for us the specific
 features of our social inheritance     
depend upon the ends or purposes which  
we reflectively decide upon and accept4 
,whether capital punishment is good or  

evil2 whether private property is an    
adequate or inadequate institution for  
social welfare2 whether marriage is a   
perfect or an imperfect institution2    
whether collective bargaining1          
competitive industry1 old age insurance1
 income taxes1 nationalization of       
railroads are useful or pernicious      
depends neither on their age nor their  
novelty4 ,their value is determined by  
their relevancy to our own ideals1 by   
the extent to which they hinder or      
promote the results which we consciously
 desire4  ,the past may be studied with 
a view to clarifying present issues4 ,in
 the first place1 we may study past     
successes and failures in order to guide
 our actions in present similar         
situations4 ,a man setting out to       
organize and administer a newspaper will
 benefit by the experiences others have 
had in the same situation4 ,in the same 
way1 we can learn from past history     
something1 at least1 bearing on present 
political and social issues4 ,it is true

 enough that history has been much      
misused for the drawing of lessons and  
guidance4 ,as ,professor ,robinson says3
  ,to-day1 however1 one rarely finds a  
historical student who would venture to 
recommend statesmen1 warriors1 and      
moralists to place any confidence       
whatsoever in historical analogies and  
warnings1 for the supposed analogies    
usually prove illusive on inspection1   
and the warnings impertinent4 ,whether  
or no ,napoleon was ever able in his own
 campaigns to make any practical use of 
the accounts he had read of those of    
,alexander and ,csar1 it is quite       
certain that ,admiral ,togo would have  
derived no useful hints from ,nelson's  
tactics at ,alexandria or ,trafalgar4   
,our situation is so novel that it would
 seem as if political and military      
precedents of even a century ago could  
have no possible value4 ,as for our     
present anxious morality1 as            
,maeterlinck calls it1 it seems equally 
clear that the sinful extravagances of  

,sardanapalus and ,nero1 and the        
conspicuous public virtue of ,aristides 
and the ,horatii1 are alike impotent to 
promote it4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,robinson3 
,the ,new ,history1 p4 #cf4  ,but       
situations are1 within limits1          
duplicated in historical processes1 and 
it is illuminating at least to see      
wherein men failed and wherein they     
succeeded in the things they set        
themselves to do4 ,the history of labor 
legislation certainly testifies to the  
effectiveness of collective bargaining  
in securing improved labor conditions1  
as the history of strikes does also to  
the public loss and injury incident to  
this kind of industrial warfare4 ,if    
compulsory arbitration has been a       
successful method of dealing with labor 
difficulties in ,australia in the past1 
we can1 by a careful study and          
comparison of conditions there and      
conditions current in our country at the
 present1 illuminate and clarify our own
 problems4 ,a campaign manager in one   

presidential campaign does not forget   
what was effective in the last1 nor does
 he hesitate to profit by his mistakes  
or those of others4  ,an impartial      
survey of the heritage of the past      
undertakes critically to examine        
institutions1 customs1 ideas still      
current with a view to determining their
 relevancy and utility to our present   
needs4 ,this demands1 on the one hand1  
clarity as to what those needs are1 and1
 on the other hand1 freedom from        
prejudice for or against existing modes 
of life simply because they have a      
history4 ,a critical examination of the 
past amounts practically to a taking    
stock1 a summary of our social assets   
and liabilities4 ,we shall find our     
ideas1 for example1 and our customs1 a  
strange mixture of useful preservations1
 and absurd or positively harmful relics
 of the past4 ,ideas which were natural 
and useful enough in the situation in   
which they originated1 live on into a   
totally changed situation1 along with   

other ideas1 like that of gravitation1  
which are as true and as useful now as  
when they were first enunciated4 ,many  
customs and institutions which may be   
found to have as great utility now as   
when they were first practiced          
generations ago1 the customs and        
institutions1 let us say1 of family     
life1 may be found persisting along with
 customs and institutions1 like excess  
legal formalism 7or1 as their opponents 
claim1 a bi-cameral legislative system  
or a two-party system7 which may come   
generally to be regarded as impediments 
to progress4#a ,the unprejudiced        
observer1 scientifically interested in  
preserving those forms and mechanisms of
 social life which are of genuine       
service to his own generation1 will not 
condemn or applaud the past en masse4   
,he will1 rather1 examine it in specific
 detail4 ,he will not1 for example1     
dismiss classical education1 because it 
is classical or old4 ,he will rather try
 experimentally to determine the actual 

consequences in the case of those who   
study the classics4 ,he will examine the
 claims made for the study1 try in      
specific cases to find out whether those
 claims are fulfilled1 and condemn or   
approve the study1 say1 of ,latin and   
,greek1 according to his estimate of the
 desirability or undesirability of those
 consequences4 ,if he finds1 for        
example1 that the study of ,latin does  
promote general literary appreciation1  
his decision that it should or should   
not be continued will depend on his     
opinion of the value of general literary
 appreciation as compared with other    
values in an industrial civilization4   
,similarly1 with freedom of contract1   
freedom of the seas1 military service1  
bi-cameral systems1 party caucuses1     
presidential veto1 and all the other    
political and social heritages of the   
past4  ,footnote #a3 ,the situation in  
the case of outworn social institutions 
is paralleled in the case of the human  
appendix1 once possessing a function in 

the digestive system of primitive man1  
but now useless and likely on occasion  
to become a positive disutility4  ,but a
 man who impartially examines the past  
will usually exhibit also an            
appreciation of its attainments and a   
sense of the present good to which it   
has been instrumental4 ,he will not     
glibly dismiss institutions1 habits1    
methods of life that are the slow       
accumulations of centuries4 ,he will    
have a sense of the continuous efforts  
and energies that have gone into the    
making of contemporary civilization4 ,he
 will have1 in suggesting ruthless      
innovations1 a sobering sense of the    
gradual evolution that has made present 
institutions1 habits1 ideas1 what they  
are4  ,the student of the past knows1   
moreover1 that the present without its  
background of history is literally      
meaningless4 ,in the words of a         
well-known student of the development of
 human culture3  ,progress1 degradation1
 survival1 modification1 are all modes  

of the connection that binds together   
the complex network of civilization4 ,it
 needs but a glance into the trivial    
details of our own daily life to set us 
thinking how far we are really its      
originators1 and how far but the        
transmitters and modifiers of the       
results of long past ages4 ,looking     
round the rooms we live in1 we may try  
here how far he who knows only his own  
time can be capable of rightly          
comprehending even that4 ,here is the   
honeysuckle of ,assyria1 there the      
fleur-de-lis of ,anjou1 a cornice with a
 ,greek border runs round the ceiling1  
the style of ,louis ,,xiv and its parent
 the ,renaissance share the looking     
glass between them4 ,transformed1       
shifted or mutilated1 such elements of  
art still carry their history plainly   
stamped upon them4444 ,it is thus even  
with the fashion of the clothes men     
wear4 ,the ridiculous little tails of   
the ,german postilion's coat show of    
themselves how they came to dwindle to  

such absurd rudiments2 but the ,english 
clergyman's bands no longer so convey   
their history to the eye1 and look      
unaccountable enough till one has seen  
the intermediate stages through which   
they came down from the more serviceable
 wide collars1 such as ,milton wears in 
his portrait1 and which gave their name 
to the band-box they used to be kept in4
 ,in fact1 the books of costume showing 
how one garment grew or shrank by       
gradual stages and passed into another1 
illustrate with much force and clearness
 the nature of the change and growth1   
revival and decay1 which go on from year
 to year in more important matters of   
life4 ,in books1 again1 we see each     
writer not for and by himself1 but      
occupying his proper place in history2  
we look through each philosopher1       
mathematician1 chemist1 poet1 into the  
background of his education--through    
,leibnitz into ,descartes1 through      
,dalton into ,priestly1 through ,milton 
into ,homer4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,tylor1   

,edward ,b43 ,primitive ,culture1 vol4  
,i4 pp4 #ag ff4  ,besides understanding 
the present better in terms of its      
history1 there is much in the heritage  
of the past1 especially of its finished 
products1 that the citizen of           
contemporary civilization will wish     
preserved for its own sake4 ,the works  
of art1 of music1 and of literature     
which are handed down to us are         
possessions forever4 ,whatever be the   
limitations of our social inheritance1  
as instruments for the solution of our  
difficulties1 those finished products   
which constitute the best that has been 
known and thought in the world are      
beyond cavil4 ,they may not solve our   
problems1 but they immensely enrich and 
broaden our lives4 ,they are enjoyed    
because they are intrinsically          
beautiful1 but also because they widen  
men's sympathies and broaden the scope  
of contemporary purposes and ideals4    
,the culture that this transmission of  
racial experience makes possible1 can be

 made perfect by the critical spirit    
alone1 and1 indeed1 may be said to be   
one with it4 ,for who is the true critic
 but he who bears within himself the    
dreams and ideas and feelings of myriad 
generations1 and to whom no form of     
thought is alien1 no emotional impulse  
obscure4 ,and who is the true man of    
culture1 if not he in whom fine         
scholarship and fastidious rejection444 
develops that spirit of disinterested   
curiosity which is the real spirit1 as  
it is the real fruit of the intellectual
 life1 and thus attains to intellectual 
clarity2 and having learned the best    
that is known and thought in the world1 
lives--it is not fanciful to say        
so--among the ,immortals4#a  ,footnote  
#a3 ,oscar ,wilde3 ,intentions1 pp4     
#aib-ic4  ,the student of ,greek life   
knows that the ,greeks in their view of 
,nature and of morals1 in their         
conception of the way life should be    
lived1 in their discrimination of the   
beautiful1 have still much to teach us4 

,he knows1 however much we may have     
outlived the hierarchy of obedience     
which constitutes medival social and    
political life1 we should do well to    
recover the humility in living1 the     
craftsmanship in industry1 and precision
 in thinking which constituted so       
conspicuous features of medival         
civilization4 ,he knows that progress is
 not altogether measured by flying      
machines and wireless telegraphy4 ,he is
 aware that speed and quantity1 the key 
values in an industrial civilization1   
are not the only values that ever have  
been1 or ever should be cherished by    
mankind4  ,,limitations ,,of ,,the      
,,past4 ,along with a sensitive         
appreciation of the achievements and    
values of the past1 goes1 in the        
impartial critic1 an acknowledgment of  
its limitations4 ,we can appreciate the 
distinctive contributions of ,greek     
culture without setting up ,greek life  
as an ultimate ideal4 ,we know that with
 all the beauty attained and expressed  

in their art and1 to a certain extent1  
in their civilization1 the ,athenians   
yet sacrificed the majority to a life of
 slavery in order that the minority     
might lead a life of the spirit1 that   
their religion had its notable crudities
 and cruelties1 that their science was  
trivial1 and their control of ,nature   
negligible4 ,in the words of one of     
their most thoroughgoing admirers3  ,the
 harmony of the ,greeks contained in    
itself the factors of its own           
destruction4 ,and in spite of the       
fascination which constantly fixes our  
gaze on that fairest and happiest       
halting place in the secular march of   
man1 it was not there1 any more than    
here1 that he was destined to find an   
ultimate reconciliation and repose4#a   
,footnote #a3 ,g4 ,lowes ,dickinson3    
,greek ,view of ,life1 p4 #bdh4  ,again1
 we know the many beautiful features of 
medival life through its painting and   
poetry and religion4 ,we know ,saint    
,francis and are familiar with the      

heroic records of saintliness and       
renunciation4 ,we know1 the great       
cathedrals1 the pageantry and splendor1 
the exquisite handicraft1 the tapestries
 and illuminated manuscripts1 the vast  
learning and the incomparable dialectic4
 ,we know also the social injustices1   
the misery and squalor the ignorance in 
which the mass of the people lived4  ,we
 can stop1 therefore1 neither in        
perpetual adoration of nor perpetual    
caviling at the past4 ,each age had its 
special excellences and its special     
defects1 both from the point of view of 
the ideals then current1 and those      
current in our own day4 ,in so far as   
the past is dead and over with1 we      
cannot legitimately criticize it with   
standards of our own day4 ,we cannot    
blame the ,greeks for sanctioning       
slavery1 nor criticize ,james ,i because
 he was not a thoroughgoing democrat4   
,but in so far as the past still lives1 
it is open to critical examination and  
revision4 ,traditions1 customs1 ideas1  

and institutions inherited from the     
past1 which still control us1 are       
subject to modification4 ,we are        
justified in welcoming changes and      
modifications which1 after careful      
inquiry1 seem clearly to promise        
betterment in the life of the group4    
,thus to welcome changes which upon     
experimental evidence show clearly the  
benefits that will accrue to the group1 
is not radicalism4 ,nor is opposition to
 changes on the ground that upon        
critical examination they give promise  
of harmful consequences1 conservatism4  
,verdicts for or against change reached 
on such a basis reflect the spirit and  
technique of experimental science4 ,they
 reflect the desire to settle a course  
of action on the basis of its results in
 practice rather than on any            
preconceived prejudices in favor either 
of stability or change4 ,to the critical
 mind1 neither stability nor change is  
an end in itself4 ,there is no hypnotism
 about things as they are2 no lure about

 things as they have not yet been4 ,the 
problem is shifted to a detailed and    
thoroughgoing inquiry into the          
consequences of specific changes in     
social habits1 ideas and institutions1  
education1 business1 and industry4      
,whether changes should or should not   
win critical approval depends on the    
kind of ideals or purposes we set       
ourselves and1 secondly1 on the         
practicability of the proposed changes4 
,change may thus be opposed or approved1
 in a given case1 on the grounds of     
desirability or feasibility4 ,whether a 
change is or is not desirable depends on
 the ideals of the individual or the    
group4 ,whether it is or is not feasible
 is a matter open increasingly to       
scientific determination4 ,thus a city  
may hire experts to discover what kind  
of transportation or educational system 
will best serve the city's needs4 ,but  
whether it will or will not spend the   
money necessary depends on the social   
interests current4  ,,education ,,as    

,,the ,,transmitter ,,of ,,the ,,past4  
,education is the process by which      
society undertakes the transmission of  
its social heritage4 ,indeed the main   
function of education in static         
societies is the initiation of the young
 into already established customs and   
traditions4 ,it is the method used to   
hand down those social habits which the 
influential and articulate classes in a 
society regard as important enough to   
have early fixed in its young members4  
,the past is simply transmitted1 handed 
down en masse4 ,it is a set of patterns 
to be imitated1 of ideals to be         
continued1 of mechanisms for attaining  
the fixed purposes which are current in 
the group4  ,in progressive societies   
education may be used not simply to hand
 down habits of doing1 feeling1 and     
thinking1 from the older generation to  
the younger1 but to make habitual in the
 young reflective consideration of the  
ends which must be attained1 and        
reflective inquiry into the means for   

attaining them4 ,the past will not be   
handed down in indiscriminate           
completeness4 ,the present and its      
problems are regarded as the standard of
 importance1 and the past is considered 
as an incomparable reservoir of         
materials and methods which may         
contribute to the ends sought in the    
present4 ,but there is so much material 
and so little time1 that selection must 
be made4 ,many things in the past1      
interesting on their own merits1 must be
 omitted in favor of those habits1      
traditions1 and recorded files of       
knowledge which are most fruitful and   
enlightening in the attainment of       
contemporary purposes4 ,what those      
purposes are depends1 of course1 on     
ideals of the group in control of the   
process of education4 ,but these        
purposes of ideals may be derived from  
present situations and not taken merely 
because they have long been current in  
the group4 ,thus1 in a predominantly    
industrial civilization1 it may be found

 more advisable and important to        
transmit the scientific and technical   
methods of control which men have       
acquired in recent generations than the 
traditional liberal arts4 ,science may  
be found more important than the        
humanities1 medicine than moral theory4 
,even such education that tends to call 
itself liberal or cultural is effective 
and genuine education just in so far as 
it does illuminate the world in which we
 live4 ,the religion and art1 the       
literature and life of the past broaden 
the meaning and the background of our   
lives4 ,they are valuable just because  
they do enrich the lives of those who   
are exposed to their influence4 ,if     
studying the great literature and the   
art of the past did not clarify the mind
 and emancipate the spirit1 enabling men
 to live more richly in the present1    
they would hardly be as studiously      
cherished and transmitted as they are4  
,we are1 after all1 living in the       
present4 ,the culture of the past either

 does or does not illuminate it4 ,if it 
does not it is a competing environment1 
a shadow world in which we may play     
truant from actuality1 but which brings 
neither sweetness nor light to the      
actual world in which we live4          
,,part ,,ii   ,,the ,,career ,,of       
,,reason  ,the foregoing analysis of    
human behavior might thus be briefly    
summarized4 ,we found that man is born a
 creature with certain tendencies to act
 in certain definite ways1 tendencies   
which he largely possesses in common    
with the lower animals4 ,we found also  
that man could learn by trial and error1
 that his original instinctive equipment
 could be modified4 ,thus far in his    
mental life man is indistinguishable    
from the beasts4 ,but man's peculiar    
capacity1 it appeared1 lay in his       
ability to think1 to control his actions
 in the light of a future1 to choose one
 response rather than another because of
 its consequences1 which he could       
foresee and prefer4 ,this capacity for  

reflection1 for formulating a purpose   
and being able to obtain it1 we found to
 be practical in its origins1 but       
persisting on its own account in the    
disinterested inquiry of philosophy and 
science and the free imaginative        
construction of art4 ,and in all man's  
behavior1 whether on the plane of       
instinct1 habit1 or reflection1 we found
 action to be accompanied by emotion1 by
 love and hate1 anger and awe1 which    
might at once impede action by confusing
 it1 or sustain it by giving it a vivid 
and compelling motive4  ,the second part
 of the book was devoted to an analysis 
of the various specific traits which    
human beings display and the            
consequences that these have in men's   
relations with one another4 ,under      
certain conditions1 one or another of   
these may become predominant2 in        
particular historical conditions1 one or
 another of them may have a high social 
value or the reverse4 ,these traits vary
 in different individuals2 in any of    

them1 a man may be totally defective or 
abnormally developed4 ,but taken in     
general1 they constitute the changeless 
pattern of human nature1 and fix the    
conditions and the limits of action4    
,but while these universal traits       
determine what man may do1 and fix      
definitively the boundaries of human    
possibility1 within these limits the    
race has a wide choice of ideals and    
attainments4 ,the standards of what man 
will and should do1 within the          
boundaries of the nature which is his   
inheritance1 are to be found not in his 
original impulses1 but in his mind and  
imagination4 ,the human being is gifted 
with the ability to imagine a future    
more desirable than the present1 and to 
contrive ingeniously in behalf of       
anticipated or imagined goods4  ,these  
anticipated goods we call ideals1 and   
these ideals arise1 in the last         
analysis1 out of the initial and inborn 
hungers and cravings of men4 ,intellect 
is of the same flesh and blood with all 

the instincts1 a brother whose          
superiority lies in his power to        
appreciate1 harmonize1 and save them    
all4 ,the function of reason is not to  
set itself over against men's original  
desires1 but to envisage ideals and     
devise instruments whereby they may all1
 so far as nature allows1 be fulfilled4 
,man's reason1 then1 which has its roots
 in his instincts1 is the means of their
 harmonious fulfillment4 ,it attempts1  
in the various fields of experience1 to 
effect an adjustment between man's      
competing desires1 and between man and  
his environment4 ,if instincts were left
 each to its own free course1 they would
 all be frustrated2 if man did not learn
 reflectively to control his            
environment1 and to make it subserve his
 own ends1 he would be a helpless pygmy 
soon obliterated by the incomparably    
more powerful forces of ,nature4  ,these
 various attempts of man to effect an   
adjustment of his passions with one     
another1 and his life to his            

environment1 may be described as the    
,career of ,reason4 ,in this career man 
has formulated many ideals1 not a small 
number of which have led him into error1
 disillusion1 and unhappiness4          
,sometimes they have misled him by      
promising him fulfillments that were in 
the nature of things unattainable4 ,they
 have added to the real evils of life a 
longing after impossible goods1 goods   
which an informed intelligence would    
early have dismissed as unattainable4   
,man has disappointed himself by        
counting on joys which1 had he been less
 incorrigibly addicted to imaginative   
illusions1 he should never have         
expected4 ,sometimes he has framed      
ideals which could be fulfilled1 but    
only at the expense of a large          
proportion of natural and irrepressible 
human desires4 ,such1 for example1 have 
been the one-sided ascetic ideals of    
,stoicism or ,puritanism1 which in their
 attempt to give order and form to life1
 crush and distort a considerable       

portion of it4 ,the same is true of     
mysticism which seeks frequently to     
attain life by altogether denying its   
instinctive animal basis4 ,yet though   
reason has led men astray1 it is the    
only and ultimate hope of man's         
happiness4 ,it is responsible for       
whatever success man has had in         
mastering the turmoil of his own        
passions and the obstacles of an        
environment which was not made for him  
but in which he grew4 ,it has given     
point and justice to ,swinburne's       
exultant boast3  ,glory to man in the   
highest6 ,for man is the master of      
things6  ,this ,career of ,reason has   
taken various parallel fulfillments1 and
 in each of them man has in varying     
degrees attained mastery4 ,religion     
arose as one of the earliest ways by    
which man attempted to win for himself a
 secure place in the cosmic order4      
,science1 in its earliest forms hardly  
distinguishable from religion1 is man's 
persistent attempt to discover the      

nature of things1 and to exploit that   
discovery for his own good4 ,art is     
again an instance of man's march toward 
mastery4 ,beginning1 in the broadest    
sense1 in the industrial arts1 in       
agriculture and handicrafts1 it passes1 
as it were by accident1 from the        
necessary to the beautiful4 ,having in  
his needful business fortuitously       
created beautiful objects1 man comes to 
create them intentionally1 both for     
their own sake and for the sheer        
pleasure of creation4  ,finally in      
morals men have endeavored to construct 
for themselves codes of conduct1 ideals 
of life1 in which no possible good      
should be needlessly or recklessly      
sacrificed1 and in which men might live 
together as happily as is permitted by  
the nature which is at once their life  
and their habitation4 ,the ,career of   
,reason in these various fields we shall
 briefly trace and describe4 ,we must   
expect to find1 as in any career1       
however successful1 failures along with 

the triumphs1 and1 as in any notable    
career still unfinished1 possibility and
 great promise4 ,man's reason and       
imagination have a long past2 they have 
also an indefinite future4 ,man has in  
the name of reason made many errors2 but
 to reason he owes his chief success1   
and with increasing experience he may be
 expected to attain continually to a    
more certain and effective wisdom4 ,with
 these provisos1 let us address         
ourselves to the ,career of ,reason1    
beginning with religion4     ,,chapter  
,,xii  ,,religion ,,and ,,the           
,,religious ,,experience  ,,the         
,,religious ,,experience4 ,since human  
nature remains constant in its essential
 traits1 despite the variations it      
exhibits among different individuals1 it
 is to be expected that certain         
experiences should be fairly common and 
recurrent among all human beings4 ,joy  
and sorrow1 love and hate1 jubilance and
 despair1 disillusion and rapture1      
triumph and frustration1 these occur    

often1 and to every man4 ,they are1 as  
it were1 the sparks generated by the    
friction of human desires with the      
natural world in which they must1 if    
anywhere1 find fulfillment4 ,just such a
 normal1 inevitable consequence of human
 nature in a natural world is the       
religious experience4 ,it is common in  
more or less intense degree to almost   
all men1 and may be studied objectively 
just as may any of the other universal  
experiences of mankind4  ,there are1    
however1 certain peculiar difficulties  
in the study of the religious           
experience4 ,most men are by training   
emotionally committed to one particular 
religious creed which it is very        
difficult for them impartially to       
examine or to compare with others4 ,in  
the second place1 there is a confusion  
in the minds of most people between the 
personal religious experience1 and the  
formal and external institution we      
commonly have in mind when we speak of  
religion4 ,when we ordinarily use the   

term1 we imply a set of dogmas1 an      
institution1 a reasoned theology1 a     
ritual1 a priesthood1 all the apparatus 
and earmarks of institutionalized       
religion4 ,we think of ,christianity1   
,mohammedanism1 ,judaism1 the whole     
welter of churches and creeds that have 
appeared in the history of mankind4 ,but
 these are rather the outward vehicles  
and vestments of the religious          
experience than the experience itself4  
,they are the social expressions and    
external instruments of the inner       
spiritual occurrence4 ,but the latter is
 primary4 ,if man had not first been    
religious1 these would never have       
arisen4 ,in the words of ,william       
,james3  ,in one sense at least1 the    
personal religion will prove itself more
 fundamental than either theology or    
ecclesiasticism4 ,churches when once    
established live at second hand upon    
tradition1 but the founders of every    
,church owed their power originally to  
the fact of their direct personal       

communion with the divine4 ,not only the
 superhuman founders1 the ,christ1 the  
,buddha1 ,mahomet1 but all the          
originators of ,christian sects have    
been in this case2 so personal religion 
should still seem the primordial thing1 
even to those who esteem it             
incomplete4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,james3    
,varieties of ,religious ,experience1 p4
 #cj4  ,before we examine the social    
institutions and fixed apparatus of     
ritual and of reasoned theology in which
 the religious experience has become    
variously embodied1 we must pause to    
analyze the experience itself4 ,to be   
religious1 as a personal experience1 is1
 like being philosophical1 to take a    
total attitude toward the universe4 ,but
 the religious attitude is one of a     
somewhat specific kind4 ,it is1 one may 
arbitrarily but also somewhat fairly    
say1 to sense or comprehend one's       
relation to the divine1 however the     
divine be conceived4 ,it is to have this
 sense and comprehension not only       

deeply1 as one might in a poetic or a   
philosophical mood1 but to have it      
suffused with reverence4 ,we shall      
presently see that the objects of       
veneration have had a different meaning 
for different individuals1 groups1 and  
generations4 ,but whatever be the       
conception of the divine object1 the    
religious attitude seems to have this   
stable feature4 ,it is always an awed   
awareness on the part of the individual 
of his relation to that something not   
himself1 and larger than himself1 with  
whom the destinies of the universe seem 
to rest4 ,this somehow sensed relation  
to the divine appears throughout all the
 varieties of religion that have        
appeared in the world1 and among many   
individuals not popularly accounted     
religious4  ,it is just such an         
experience1 for example1 that           
,wordsworth expresses when he says in   
the ,lines ,written ,above ,tintern     
,abbey3                 444 ,and ,i have
 felt   ,a presence that disturbs me    

with the joy   ,of elevated thoughts2 a 
sense sublime   ,of something far more  
deeply interfused1   ,whose dwelling is 
the light of setting suns1   ,and the   
round ocean and the living air1   ,and  
the blue sky1 and in the mind of man2   
,a motion and a spirit1 that impels     
,all thinking things1 all objects of all
 thought1   ,and rolls through all      
things4  ,it is the same sense that     
comes over so-called worldly people when
 oppressed suddenly by a great sorrow1  
or uplifted by a sudden great joy1 an   
awareness of a divine power that moves  
masterfully and mysteriously through the
 events of life1 provoking on the part  
of finite creatures a strange and       
compelling reverence4 ,this divinity    
that shapes our ends may be variously   
conceived4 ,it may be an intimately     
realized personal ,god1 ,our ,father    
which art in ,heaven4 ,it may be such an
 abstract conception as the ,laws of    
,nature or ,scientific ,law1 such a     
religion as is expounded by the         

,transcendentalists1 in particular by   
,emerson3  ,these laws execute          
themselves4 ,they are out of time1 out  
of space1 and not subject to            
circumstance3 thus in the soul of man   
there is a justice whose retributions   
are instant and entire4444 ,if a man is 
at heart just1 then1 in so far is he    
,god2 the safety of ,god1 the           
immortality of ,god1 the majesty of     
,god1 do enter into that man with       
justice4444 ,for all things proceed out 
of the same spirit1 which is differently
 named1 love1 justice1 temperance1 in   
its different applications1 just as the 
ocean receives different names on the   
several shores which it washes4444 ,the 
perception of this law awakens in the   
mind a sentiment which we call the      
religious sentiment1 and which makes our
 highest happiness4 ,wonderful is its   
power to charm and to command4 ,it is a 
mountain air4 ,it is the embalmer of the
 world4 ,it makes the sky and the hills 
sublime1 and the silent song of the     

stars is it4 ,it is the beatitude of    
man4 ,it makes him illimitable4#a       
,footnote #a3 ,emerson3 ,miscellanies1  
quoted by ,james in ,varieties1 pp4     
#cb-cc4  ,it may be conceived as ,nature
 itself1 as it was by ,spinoza1 for whom
 ,nature was identical with ,god4 ,it   
may be the ,world-,soul which ,shelley  
sings with such rapture3    ,that ,light
 whose smile kindles the universe1      
,that beauty in which all things work   
and move1    ,that benediction which the
 eclipsing curse    ,of birth can quench
 not1 that sustaining love1    ,which   
through the web of being1 blindly wove1 
,by man and beast and earth and air and 
sea1    ,burns bright or dim1 as each   
are mirrors of    ,the fire for which   
all thirst--now beams on me1            
,consuming the last clouds of cold      
mortality4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,from       
,adonais4  ,in all these conceptions it 
still seems to be a hushed sense of     
reverential relationship to the divine  
power that most specifically constitutes

 the religious experience4 ,the latter  
exhibits certain recurrent elements1 any
 of which may be present in a more      
intense degree in some individuals than 
in others1 but all of which appear in   
some degree in most of the phenomena of 
personal life that we call religious4   
,,the ,,reality ,,of ,,the ,,unseen4 ,in
 the first place may be noted the sense 
of the actuality and nearness of the    
divine power1 what ,james calls the     
reality of the unseen1 and what is      
frequently spoken of by religious men as
 the presence of ,god4 ,james quotes in 
this connection an interesting letter of
 ,james ,russell ,lowell's3  ,i had a   
revelation last ,friday evening4444     
,happening to say something of the      
presence of spirits of whom1 as ,i said1
 ,i was often dimly aware1 ,mr4 ,putnam 
entered into an argument with me on     
spiritual matters4 ,as ,i was speaking1 
the whole system seemed to rise up      
before me1 like a vague destiny looming 
from the abyss4 ,i never before felt the

 spirit of ,god so keenly in me1 and    
around me4 ,the whole room seemed to me 
full of ,god4 ,the air seemed to waver  
to and fro with the presence of         
something ,i knew not what4 ,i spoke    
with the calmness and clearness of a    
prophet4#b  ,footnote #b3 ,lowell3      
,letters1 ,i1 p4 #ge4  ,the archives of 
the psychology of religion are crowded  
with instances of men who have felt     
deeply1 intimately1 and irrefutably the 
near and actual presence of ,god4 ,this 
sense of the reality of an unseen ,thing
 or ,power is not always identified with
 ,god4 ,there come moments in the lives 
of normal men and women when the world  
of experience seems alive with something
 that is apprehended through none of the
 five senses4 ,there are times when     
things unseen1 unheard1 and untouched   
seem to have1 nay1 for those concerned1 
do have1 a clearer and more unmistakable
 reality than the things we can touch1  
hear1 and see4 ,sometimes1 in the       
hearing of beautiful music1 we sense a  

transcendent beauty which is something  
other than1 something more real than1   
the specific harmonies which we         
physically hear4 ,in rare moments of    
rapture1 when the imagination or the    
affections are intensely stirred1 we    
become intensely aware of this reality  
which is made known to us through none  
of the ordinary avenues of experience4  
,the ,unseen is not only vividly felt1  
but is deeply felt and regarded as a    
thing of deep significance1 and is      
experienced in most cases with great    
inexplicable joy4 ,and1 not             
infrequently1 this significant and      
beautiful ,unseen ,somewhat is          
identified with ,god4  ,the sense of the
 reality of the divine1 is1 however1 as 
it were1 only the prerequisite of the   
religious experience4 ,when an          
individual does have this sense1 what   
interests the student of the psychology 
of religion is the attitude it provokes 
and the satisfactions it gives4 ,these  
we can the better understand if we      

examine the conditions in an            
individual's experience which make this 
longing for the divine presence acute1  
and the general circumstances of human  
life which make it a continuous desire  
in many people4  ,there are1 to begin   
with1 constant facts of experience which
 make the realization of the divine     
presence not only a satisfaction1 but   
the indispensable staff of life for     
certain human beings4 ,in their         
unfaltering faith in ,god's enduring and
 proximate actuality lies their sole    
source of security and trust4 ,for such 
persons a lapse or a lack of faith is   
the prelude to utter collapse4 ,a vague 
general assurance of the dependability  
of the future is1 for most people1 a    
prerequisite for a sane and untroubled  
existence4 ,even those who live in      
unreflective satisfaction with the      
fruits of the moment would find these   
moments less satisfactory were they not 
set in a background of reasonably fair  
promise4 ,the exuberant optimist1 when  

he stops to reflect1 has a buoyant and  
inclusive faith in the essential        
goodness of man and the universe4       
,whitman stands out in this connection  
as the classic type4 ,evil and good were
 to him indifferently beautiful4 ,he    
maintained an incredibly large-hearted  
and magnanimous receptivity to all      
things great or small1 charming or ugly1
 that lightened or blackened the face of
 the planet4  ,while the average man    
accepts the universe with a less        
wholesale and indiscriminate            
appreciation1 yet he does feel vaguely  
assured that the nature of things is    
ordered1 harmonious1 dependable1 and    
regular1 that affairs are1 cosmically   
speaking1 in a sound state4 ,he feels a 
vast and comfortable solidity about the 
frame of things in which his life is    
set2 he can depend on the familiar      
risings and settings of the sun1 the    
recurrent and assured movement of the   
seasons4 ,were this trust suddenly      
removed1 were the cosmic guarantee      

withdrawn1 to live would be one long    
mortal terror4 ,that this is precisely  
what does happen under such             
circumstances1 the voluminous literature
 of melancholia sufficiently proves4    
,the sense of insecurity takes various  
forms4 ,sometimes the patient           
experiences a profound and intimate     
conviction of the unreality of the world
 about him4 ,his whole physical         
environment comes to seem a mere        
phantasy and a delusion4 ,in some cases 
he finds himself unmoved by the normal  
interests and excitements of men1 unable
 to find any stimulus1 value1 or        
significance in the world4  ,esquirol   
observed the case of a very intelligent 
magistrate4444 ,every emotion appeared  
dead within him4 ,he manifested neither 
perversion nor violence1 but a complete 
absence of emotional reaction4 ,if he   
went to the theater1 which he did out of
 habit1 he could find no pleasure there4
 ,the thought of his house1 of his home1
 of his wife1 and of his absent         

children1 moved him as little1 he said1 
as a theorem of ,euclid4#a  ,footnote   
#a3 ,ribot3 ,psychology of the          
,emotions1 p4 #ed4  ,the sense of       
futility1 of the flatness1 staleness1   
and unprofitableness of the world1 which
 is felt in such extreme forms by       
pronounced melancholiacs1 is experienced
 sometimes1 though to a lesser degree1  
by every sensitive mind that reflects   
much upon life4 ,such an attitude1 it is
 true1 arises principally during moments
 of fatigue and low vitality1 and is    
undoubtedly organic in its origins1 as  
for that matter is optimism4 ,again such
 a sense of world-weariness comes often 
in moments of personal disappointment   
and disillusion1 when friends have      
proved false1 ambitions empty1 efforts  
wasted4 ,at such times even the normal  
man echoes ,swinburne's beautiful       
melancholy3    ,we are not sure of      
sorrow1      ,and joy was never sure1   
,to-day will die to-morrow1      ,time  
stoops to no man's lure2    ,and love   

grown faint and fretful1    ,with lips  
but half regretful1    ,sighs1 and with 
eyes forgetful1    ,weeps that no loves 
endure4    ,from too much love of       
living1      ,from hope and fear set    
free1    ,we thank with brief           
thanksgiving1      ,whatever gods may   
be1    ,that no life lives1 forever2    
,that dead men rise up never2    ,that  
even the weariest river1      ,winds    
somewhere safe to sea4#a  ,footnote #a3 
,from ,a ,garden of ,proserpine4  ,even 
the eager and exuberant1 if sufficiently
 philosophical and generous-minded1 may 
come1 despite their own success1 to a   
deep realization of the utter futility1 
meaninglessness1 and stupidity of life1 
of the essential blindnesses1 cruelties1
 and insecurities which seem to         
characterize the nature of things4      
,unless against this dark insight some  
reassuring faith arises1 life may become
 almost unbearable4 ,in extreme cases it
 has driven men to suicide4 ,take1 for  
example1 the picture of the universe as 

modern materialism presents it3         
,purposeless444 and void of meaning is  
the world which science reveals for our 
belief4444 ,that man is the product of  
causes that had no prevision of the end 
they were achieving1 that his origin1   
his growth1 his hopes and fears1 his    
loves and beliefs1 are but the outcome  
of accidental collocations of atoms2    
that no fire1 no heroism1 no intensity  
of thought or feeling can preserve an   
individual life beyond the grave1 that  
all the labors of the ages1 all the     
devotion1 all the inspiration1 all the  
noonday brightness of human genius are  
destined to extinction in the vast death
 of the solar system1 and that the whole
 temple of man's achievements must      
inevitably be buried beneath the dbris  
of a universe in ruins--all these things
 if not quite beyond dispute1 are yet so
 nearly certain that no philosophy which
 rejects them can hope to stand4 ,only  
within the scaffolding of these truths1 
only on the firm foundation of          

unyielding despair1 can the soul's      
habitation henceforth be safely built4#a
  ,footnote #a3 ,bertrand ,russell3     
,philosophical ,essays1 pp4 #fj-fa 7,the
 ,free ,man's ,worship74  ,such a       
prospect to the serious-minded and      
sensitive-spirited cannot but provoke   
the profoundest melancholy4 ,there is1  
even for the most healthy-minded of us1 
sufficient ground for pessimism1        
bitterness1 insecurity4 ,even if we     
personally--largely through the         
accidents of circumstance--happen to be 
successful1 our joy is a vulgar glee1   
not unlike the snicker of any rogue at  
his success4 ,the utter futility and    
evanescence of earthly goods1 beauties1 
and achievements is sensed at least     
sometimes by normally complacent souls4 
,and so patent and ubiquitous are the   
evidences of decay1 disease1 and death  
at our disposal1 that they may easily be
 erected into a thoroughgoing philosophy
 of life3  ,vanity of vanities1 saith   
the preacher1 vanity of vanities1 all is

 vanity4  ,what profit hath a man of all
 his labor which he taketh under the    
sun8444  ,all things come alike to all3 
there is one event to the righteous and 
to the wicked2 to the good and to the   
clean1 and to the unclean2 to him that  
sacrificeth and to him that sacrificeth 
not3 as is the good so is the sinner2   
and he that sweareth as he that feareth 
an oath4444  ,for the living know that  
they shall die2 but the dead know not   
anything1 neither have they any more a  
reward2 for the memory of them is       
forgotten4  ,also their love and their  
hatred and their envy is now perished2  
neither have they any more a portion    
forever in anything that is done under  
the sun4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,ecclesiastes4
  ,religion offers solace to those      
perturbed and passionate souls1 among   
others1 to whom these futilities have   
become a rankling1 continuous torment   
and depression4 ,when life on earth     
appears fragmentary and disordered1 not 
only nonsense but terrifying nonsense1  

full of hideous injustices1 sickening   
uncertainties1 and cruel destructions1  
men have not infrequently found a refuge
 in the divine4 ,come unto me all ye    
that labor and are heavy laden1 and ,i  
will give you rest4  ,in the religious  
experience man finds life to be made    
clear1 complete1 and beautiful4 ,what   
seems a contradictory fragment finds its
 precise niche in the divine scheme1    
what seems dark and cruel shines out in 
a setting of eternal beneficence and    
wisdom4 ,the experience of the          
individual1 even the happiest1 is always
 partial1 broken1 and disordered4 ,no   
ideal is ever completely realized1 or if
 realized leaves some perfection to be  
desired4 ,men living in a natural       
existence imagine values and ideals     
which can never be realized there4 ,in  
religion1 if anywhere1 men have found   
perfection1 and ultimate sufficiency4   
,this perfection1 completion1 and       
clarification of life has been attained 
in various ways4 ,the religious         

experience itself1 when intense1 may    
give to the individual apart from a     
reasoned judgment1 or from any actual   
change in his physical surroundings1 a  
translucent insight during which he sees
 deeply1 calmly1 joyously into the      
beautiful eternal order of things4 ,this
 mystic insight has been experienced on 
occasion by quite normal and prosaic men
 and women4 ,while it lasts1 reality    
seems to take on new colors and         
dimensions4 ,it becomes vivid1 luminous1
 and intense4 ,the mystic seems to rise 
to a higher level of consciousness1 in  
which he experiences a universe more    
significant1 ordered1 and unified than  
any commonly experienced through the    
senses4 ,one may take1 as an example1   
such an instance autobiographically and 
anonymously reported a few years ago1   
and well documented3  ,it was not that  
for a few keyed-up moments ,i imagined  
all existence as beautiful1 but that my 
inner vision was cleared to the truth so
 that ,i saw the actual loveliness which

 is always there1 but which we so rarely
 perceive2 and ,i knew that every man1  
woman1 bird1 and tree1 every living     
thing before me1 was extravagantly      
beautiful1 and extravagantly important4 
,and as ,i beheld1 my heart melted out  
of me in a rapture of love and delight4 
,a nurse was walking past2 the wind     
caught a strand of her hair and blew it 
out in a momentary gleam of sunshine1   
and never in my life before had ,i seen 
how beautiful beyond all belief is a    
woman's hair4 ,nor had ,i ever guessed  
how marvelous it is for a human being to
 walk4 ,as for the internes in their    
white suits1 ,i had never realized      
before the whiteness of white linen2 but
 much more than that1 ,i had never so   
much as dreamed of the beauty of young  
manhood4 ,a little sparrow chirped and  
flew to a near-by branch1 and ,i        
honestly believe that only the morning  
stars singing together1 and the sons of 
,god shouting for joy can in the least  
express the ecstasy of a bird's flight4 

,i cannot express it1 but ,i have seen  
it4  ,once out of all the gray days of  
my life ,i have looked into the heart of
 reality2 ,i have witnessed the truth2  
,i have seen life as it really          
is--ravishingly1 ecstatically1 madly    
beautiful1 and filled to overflowing    
with a wild joy1 and a value            
unspeakable4 ,for those glorified       
moments ,i was in love with every living
 thing before me--the trees in the wind1
 the little birds flying1 the nurses1   
the internes1 the people who came and   
went4 ,there was nothing that was alive 
that was not a miracle4 ,just to be     
alive was in itself a miracle4 ,my very 
soul flowed out of me in a great joy4#a 
,footnote #a3 ,twenty ,minutes of       
,reality1 ,the ,atlantic ,monthly1 vol4 
#aag1 p4 #eib4  ,the mystic experience  
is important in the study of religion   
because it has so frequently given those
 who have had it a very real feeling of 
cosmic consciousness4 ,the individual   
feels for one luminously transparent    

conscious moment1 at one with the       
universe2 he has a realization at once  
rapturous and tranquil of the passionate
 and wonderful significance of things4  
,he has moved from the chill periphery  
to the radiant core4 ,all the           
discrepancies which bestrew ordinary    
life are absent4 ,all the negations of  
disappointment1 all conflicts of desire 
disappear4 ,the mystic lives perfection 
at first hand3    ,the ,one remains1 the
 many change and pass1    ,heaven's     
light forever shines1 ,earth's shadows  
fly1    ,life1 like a dome of many      
colored glass1    ,stains the white     
radiance of eternity4  ,this sense of   
splendid unity in which all the divisive
 and corroding elements of selfhood are 
obliterated has to those who have been  
there no refutation4 ,it is1 writes     
,william ,james1 an open question       
whether mystic states may not be        
superior points of view1 windows through
 which the mind looks out on a more     
extensive and inclusive world4          

,whatever be the logical validity of the
 intense mystical insight1 of his       
singular gift for a vivid and intimate  
union with eternity which has been known
 by so many mystics1 the fruits of this 
insight are undeniable4 ,during such a  
vision the world is perfect4 ,there is  
no fever or confusion1 but rapture and  
rest4 ,and to some degree1 at a         
religious service1 a momentous crisis1  
joy at deliverance or resignation at    
calamity1 during beatific interludes of 
friendship or of love1 men have felt a  
clear enveloping oneness with divinity4 
,such states of intense religious       
experience1 however1 are as transient as
 they are ineffable4 ,though they recur1
 they are not continuous1 and something 
more than occasional vivid unions with  
the divine enter into the constant      
perfection with which the world1 as it  
appears to the religious man1 is        
endowed4 ,he feels himself1 in the first
 place1 to be part of a world scheme in 
which ultimate perfection is secured4   

,it has already been pointed out that   
any individual human life is            
characterized by negation1 conflict1 and
 disappointment4 ,our lives seem largely
 to be at the mercy of circumstance4    
,our inheritance is fixed for us without
 our connivance in the matter2 accident 
determines in which social environment  
we happen to be born4 ,and these two    
facts are the chief determinants of our 
careers4 ,even when successful we       
realize either the emptiness of the     
prize we had desired1 or the distance we
 are in reality from the goal we had set
 ourselves4 ,generalizing thus from his 
own experience1 the individual notes the
 similar disheartening discrepancies    
throughout human life4 ,he sees the good
 suffer1 and the wicked prosper2 the    
innocent die1 and the guilty escape4    
,disease is no respecter of persons1 and
 death comes to the just and the unjust 
alike4  ,wherefore do the wicked live1  
become old1 yea1 are mighty in power8   
,their seed is established in their     

sight with them1 and their offspring    
before their eyes4 ,their houses are    
safe from fear1 neither is the rod of   
,god upon them4 ,their bull gendereth   
and faileth not2 their cow calveth and  
casteth     not her calf4 ,they send    
forth their little ones like a flock1   
and their children dance4 ,they take the
 timbrel and harp1 and rejoice at the   
sound of the organ4 ,they spend their   
days in wealth1 and in a moment go down 
to the grave4 ,therefore they say unto  
,god2 depart from us1 for we desire not 
the     knowledge of thy ways4 ,what is 
the ,almighty that we should serve him8 
,and what profit     should we have if  
we pray unto him8#a  ,footnote #a3 ,job1
 chap4 ,,xxi4  ,in contrast1 in the     
religious experience man feels himself  
to be a part of a world scheme in which 
justice and righteousness are assured by
 an incontestable and invulnerable      
power2 ,god's in his ,heaven2 all's     
right with the world4 ,despite the      
grounds he has for doubt1 ,job robustly 

avers3 ,though he slay me1 yet will ,i  
trust in him4 ,calamities are but       
temporary2 ,god will bring all things to
 a beautiful fruition4  ,or a man may   
feel that the evils he or others        
experience here are not real evils1     
that1 seen sub specie oeternitatis1 they
 would cease to be regarded as such4 ,he
 may feel that ,god moves in a          
mysterious way his wonders to perform1  
that somehow good may come of ill4 ,he  
may feel1 as does the ,christian        
believer1 that all the evils and pains  
unjustly experienced in this world will 
be adjusted in the next4 ,whatever be my
 privations from earthly good1 in my    
,father's house are many mansions4      
,immortality is1 indeed1 the religious  
man's faith in a second chance4 ,the    
surety of a world to come1 in which the 
blessed shall live in eternal bliss1 is 
a compensation and a redress for the    
ills and frustrations of life in this   
world4 ,whatever be the seeming ills or 
injustices of life1 there is eventual   

retribution1 both to the just and the   
unjust4 ,once more to quote ,emerson3   
,and yet the compensations of calamity  
are made apparent to the understanding  
also1 after long intervals of time4 ,a  
fever1 a mutilation1 a cruel            
disappointment1 a loss of wealth1 a loss
 of friends1 seems at the moment unpaid 
loss1 and unpayable4 ,but the sure years
 reveal the deep remedial force that    
underlies all facts4 ,the death of a    
dear friend1 wife1 brother1 lover1 which
 seemed nothing but privation1 somewhat 
later assumes the aspect of a guide or  
genius2 for it commonly operates        
revolutions in our way of life1         
terminates an epoch of infancy or of    
youth which was waiting to be closed1   
breaks up a wonted occupation1 or a     
household1 or style of living1 and      
allows the formation of new ones more   
friendly to the growth of character4 ,it
 permits or constrains the formation of 
new acquaintances1 and the reception of 
new influences that prove of the first  

importance to the next years2 and the   
man or woman who would have remained a  
sunny garden flower1 with no room for   
its roots and too much sunshine for its 
head1 by the falling of the walls and   
the neglect of the gardener1 is made the
 banian of the forest1 yielding shade   
and fruit to wide neighbourhoods of     
men4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,emerson3 ,essay  
on ,compensation4  ,on a larger scale1  
from the cosmic rather than from the    
personal point of view1 an individual1  
gifted with a large and charitable      
interest in the future of mankind1 is   
secured and sustained by the feeling    
that he is a part of that procession    
headed to the one far-off divine event  
to which the whole creation moves4 ,the 
lugubrious picture of an utterly        
meaningless world1 blind1 purposeless1  
and heartless1 which materialistic      
science reveals1 is sufficient to wreck 
the equanimity of a sensitive and       
thoughtful mind4  ,that is the sting of 
it1 that in the vast drifting of the    

cosmic weather1 though many a jewelled  
shore appears1 and many an enchanted    
cloud-bank floats away1 long lingering  
ere it be dissolved--even as our world  
now lingers for our joy--yet when these 
transient products are gone1 nothing1   
absolutely nothing remains4 ,dead and   
gone are they1 gone utterly from the    
very sphere and room of being4 ,without 
an echo1 without a memory2 without an   
influence on aught that may come after1 
to make it care for similar ideals4     
,this utter wreck and tragedy is of the 
essence of scientific materialism1 as at
 present understood4#a  ,footnote #a3   
,james3 ,pragmatism1 p4 #aje4  ,a belief
 that a divine power governs the        
universe1 that all these miscellaneous  
and inexplicable happenings will be     
gathered up into a smooth and ultimate  
perfection1 gives faith1 comfort1 and   
solace4 ,we are on the side of the      
angels1 or rather the angels are on our 
side4 ,human passion1 purpose1 and      
endeavor are not wasted4 ,they are small

 but not altogether negligible          
contributions to eventual cosmic good4  
,and good is eventual4 ,perfection may  
be long delayed1 but ,god's presence    
assures it4 ,weeping may endure for a   
night1 but joy cometh in the morning4   
,a world with a ,god in it to say the   
last word may indeed burn up or freeze1 
but we then think of ,him as still      
mindful of the old ideals1 and sure to  
bring them elsewhere to fruition2 so    
that where ,he is1 tragedy is only      
provisional and partial1 and shipwreck  
and dissolution not the absolutely final
 things4#b  ,footnote #b3 ,ibid41 p4    
#ajf4  ,amid tragic errors and pitiful  
disillusions1 men have yearned for a    
benediction perfect and complete where  
they might cease to suffer and desire4  
,this perfection religion has1 as we    
have seen1 accorded them in various     
ways4 ,some have found it in the        
immediate vision1 the ecstatic union    
with the divine that1 in intense degree1
 is peculiarly the mystic's4 ,some have 

found it in the assured belief that evil
 is itself an illusion1 and1 if rightly 
conceived1 a beautiful dark shadow to   
set off by contrast the high lights of a
 divinely ordered cosmos1 a minor note  
giving lyric and lovely poignancy to the
 celestial music4 ,some have rested     
their faith in a perfect world not here1
 but hereafter1 where the blessed would 
enter eternal bliss with ,god their     
master4 ,thus man has in religion found 
the fulfillment of his ideals1 which    
always outrun the actualities amid which
 he lives4 ,in the religious experience1
 in all of its forms throughout the     
ages1 man has had the experience of     
perfection at first hand1 in the        
immediate and rich intensity of the     
mystic ecstasy1 in the serene faith of a
 lifelong intuition or of a reasoned    
belief in the ultimate divinely assured 
rightness of things4  ,besides          
experiencing perfection1 man has1 in the
 sense of security and trust afforded by
 the religious experience1 found release

 from the fret1 the fever1 the          
compulsion1 and constriction under which
 so much of life must be lived4         
,whatever happens1 the truly devout man 
has no fears or qualms4 ,he has attained
 equanimity2 the ,lord is his shepherd2 
he shall not want4 ,there is a serenity 
experienced by the genuinely faithful   
that the faithless may well envy4 ,god  
is the believer's eternal watcher2 a    
wise and merciful ,providence1 his      
infinite guarantee4  ,whoever not only  
says but feels1 ,god's will be done is  
mailed against every weakness2 and the  
whole historic array of martyrs1        
missionaries and religious reformers is 
there to prove the tranquil-mindedness1 
under naturally agitating or distressing
 circumstances1 which self-surrender    
brings4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,james2        
,varieties of ,religious ,experience1 p4
 #bhe4  ,but peace is attained not only 
through faith in the fulfillment of     
desire1 but in a marked lessening in the
 tension of desire itself1 in a large   

and spacious freedom attained through   
release from the confinement of self4   
,we saw in the chapter on the           
,consciousness of ,self how much        
exertion and energy may be devoted to   
the enhancement of ,self through fame1  
achievement1 social distinction1 power1 
or possession4 ,we saw how1 in the      
frustration of self1 the germ of great  
tragedy lay4 ,from the tragedy and      
bitterness of such frustration men have 
often been reassured by a genuine       
conversion to the religious life4       
,through the negation of self rather    
than through its fulfillment men have   
found solace and rest4 ,and this        
negation1 when it takes religious form1 
has consisted in a rapturous submission 
to the will of ,god4    ,outside1 the   
world is wild and passionate4           
,man's weary laughter and his sick      
despair    ,entreat at their            
impenetrable gate1      ,they heed no   
voices in their dream of prayer4        
,calm1 sad1 secure1 with faces worn and 

mild1      ,surely their choice of vigil
 is the best4    ,yea6 for our roses    
fade1 the world is wild2      ,but there
 beside the altar there is rest4#a      
,footnote #a3 ,ernest ,dawson3 ,nuns of 
the ,perpetual ,adoration4              
,,experiences ,,which ,,frequently      
,,find ,,religious ,,expression4 ,the   
religious experience1 as pointed out in 
the beginning of this discussion1 has   
its roots in the same impulses which    
cause men to love and to hate1 to be    
jubilant and sorrowful1 exalted and     
depressed4 ,all these human experiences 
sometimes take a religious form1 that   
is1 their expressions have some         
reference to the supernatural and the   
divine4 ,we find1 in surveying the      
history of religion1 that certain       
experiences more than others tend to    
find religious expression4 ,we shall    
examine a few of the chief of these4    
,,need ,,and ,,impotence4 ,an awed1     
almost frightened sense of dependence   
overcomes even the most robust and      

healthy-minded man when he sees the     
forces of ,nature suddenly unloosed on a
 magnificent scale4 ,a terrific peal of 
thunder1 an earthquake or a cyclone will
 send thrills of terror through the     
normally calm and self-sufficient4 ,even
 apart from such vivid and terrifying   
examples of the range and scale of      
non-human power1 there comes to the     
reflective a sense of the frailty of    
human life1 of the utter dependability  
of all human purposes and plans on      
conditions beyond human control4 ,in our
 most fundamental industry1 agriculture1
 an untimely frost can undo the work of 
the most ingenious industry and thrift4 
,a tornado or a snowstorm can           
disorganize the cunning and subtle1     
swift mechanisms of communication which 
men have invented4 ,in the field of     
humanly built-up relations1 again1 a    
fortune or a friendship may depend on   
some chance meeting2 a man's profession 
and ideals are fixed by a single        
fortuitous conversation1 by a chance    

encouragement1 opportunity or           
frustration4  ,there is thus a          
psychological though perhaps not literal
 truth in the figure of ,fate1 or in the
 metaphor that speaks of human destiny  
as lying on the knees of the gods4      
,action so often wanders from intent1 so
 much in the best-laid plans is at the  
mercy of external circumstance6 ,a      
creature whose being can be snuffed out 
in a moment1 whose life is less than an 
instant in the magnificent perspective  
of eternity1 comes not unnaturally to be
 aware of his own insignificance as     
compared with those vast forces1 some   
auspicious and some terrible1 which are 
patently afoot in the world4  ,but as   
patent a fact as man's impotence is his 
desire4 ,the individual realizes how    
powerless is a human being to fulfill1  
independently of external forces1 those 
impulses with which these same          
inexplicable forces have launched him   
into the world4 ,thus do we feel even   
to-day when we have learned that the    

forces of ,nature1 obdurate to the      
ignorant1 yet become flexible and       
fruitful under the knowing manipulation 
of science4 ,we realize that despite our
 cunning and contrivance1 our successes 
are1 as it were1 largely matters of     
grace2 the changes we can make in       
,nature are as nothing to the slow1     
gradual processes by which ,nature makes
 mountains into molehills1 builds and   
destroys continents1 develops man out of
 the lower animals1 and1 by varying     
climates and topographies1 affects the  
destinies of nations4  ,to primitive man
 the sense of impotence and need were   
not derived from any general reflections
 upon the insecurity of man's place in  
the cosmos1 but rather from the sharp   
pressure of practical necessity4  ,the  
helplessness of primitive man set down  
in the midst of a universe of which he  
knew not the laws1 may perhaps be       
brought home to the mind of modern man1 
if we compare the universe to a vast    
workshop full of the most various and   

highly-complicated machinery working at 
full speed4 ,the machinery1 if properly 
handled1 is capable of producing        
everything that the heart of primitive  
man can wish for1 but also1 if he sets  
hand to the wrong part of the machinery1
 is capable of whirling him off between 
its wheels1 and crushing and killing him
 in its inexorable and ruthless         
movement4 ,further1 primitive man cannot
 decline to submit himself to the       
perilous test3 he must make his         
experiments or perish1 and even so his  
survival is conditional on his selecting
 the right part of the machine to       
handle4 ,nor can he take his own time   
and study the dangerous mechanism long  
and carefully before setting his hand to
 it3 his needs are pressing and his     
action must be immediate4#a  ,footnote  
#a3 ,jevons3 ,an ,introduction to the   
,history of ,religion1 p4 #ag4  ,the    
very food of primitive man was to him as
 precarious as it was essential4 ,his   
life was practically at the mercy of    

wind and rain and sun4 ,his food and    
shelter were desperately lucky chances4 
,not having attained as yet to a        
conception of the impersonality of      
,nature1 he regarded these forces which 
helped and hindered him as friendly and 
alien powers which it was in the        
imperative interests of his own welfare 
to placate and propitiate4 ,it was in   
this urgent sense of helplessness and   
need that there were developed the two  
outstanding modes of communication with 
the supernatural1 sacrifice and prayer4 
,primitive man conceived his universe to
 be governed by essentially human       
powers2 powers1 of course1 on a grand   
scale1 but human none the less1 with the
 same weaknesses1 moods1 and humors as  
human beings themselves4 ,they could be 
flattered and cajoled2 they could be    
bribed and paid2 they could be moved to 
tenderness1 generosity1 and pity4       
,holiness1 says ,socrates in one of     
,plato's dialogues1 is an art in which  
gods and men do business with each      

other1 444 ,sacrifice is giving to the  
gods1 prayer is asking of them4#b ,in   
,frazer's ,golden ,bough one finds the  
remarkably diverse sacrificial rites by 
which men have sought to win the favor  
of the divine4 ,primitive man believed  
literally that the universe was governed
 by superhuman personal powers2 he      
believed literally that these are human 
in their motives4 ,he believed in       
consequence that sacrifices to the gods 
would help him to control the           
controlling powers of ,nature for his   
own good1 just as modern man believes   
that an application of the laws of      
electricity and mechanics will help him 
to control the natural world for his own
 purposes4 ,the sacrifices of primitive 
man were immensely practical in         
character2 they were made at the crucial
 moments and pivotal crises of life1 at 
sowing and at harvest time1 at the      
initiation of the young into the        
responsibilities of maturity1 at times  
of pestilence1 famine1 or danger4 ,the  

gods were given the choice part of a    
meal2 the prize calf2 in some cases1    
human sacrifices2 the sacrifice1        
moreover1 of the beautiful and best4    
,the chief sacrificial rites of almost  
all primitive peoples are connected with
 food1 the sustainer1 and procreation or
 birth1 the perpetuator1 of life4       
,footnote #b3 ,see ,plato's ,euthyphro4 
,as ,jane ,harrison puts it3  ,if man   
the individual is to live1 he must have 
food2 if his race is to persist1 he must
 have children4 ,to live and to cause to
 live1 to eat food and beget children1  
these were the primary wants of man in  
the past1 and they will be the primary  
wants of man in the future1 so long as  
the world lasts4 ,other things may be   
added to enrich and beautify life1 but  
unless these wants are first satisfied1 
humanity itself must cease to exist4    
,these two things1 therefore1 were what 
men chiefly sought to procure by the    
performance of magical rites for the    
regulation of the seasons4444 ,what he  

realizes first and foremost is that at  
certain times the animals1 and still    
more the plants1 which form his food1   
appear1 at certain others they          
disappear4 ,it is these times that      
become the central points1 the focusses 
of his interest1 and the dates of his   
religious festivals4#a  ,footnote #a3   
,jane ,harrison3 ,ancient ,art and      
,ritual1 p4 #ca4  ,sacrifice is only one
 way primitive man contrives of winning 
the favor of the gods toward the        
satisfaction of his desires4 ,another   
common method is prayer4 ,in its crudest
 form prayer is a direct petition from  
the individual to divinity for the grant
 of a specific favor4 ,the individual   
seeks a kindness from a supernatural    
power whose motives are human1 and who  
may1 therefore1 be moved by human       
appeals2 whose power is superhuman and  
can therefore fulfill requests4 ,prayer 
may become profoundly spiritualized1 but
 in its primitive form it is1 like      
sacrifice1 a certain way of getting     

things done4 ,they are both to primitive
 man largely what our science is to us4 
,both prayer and sacrifice arise in     
primitive man's need and helplessness   
and terror before mysterious            
supernatural powers1 but they may rise1 
in the higher form of religion1 to      
genuine nobility1 from this crass       
commerce with divinity1 this religion of
 bargaining and quid pro quo4 ,sacrifice
 may change from a desperate reluctant  
offering made to please a jealous god1  
to a thanksgiving and a jubilation1 an  
overflowing of happiness1 gratitude1 and
 good-will4  ,greek writers of the fifth
 century ,b4,c4 have a way of speaking  
of an attitude toward religion1 as      
though it were wholly a thing of joy and
 confidence1 a friendly fellowship with 
the gods1 whose service is but a high   
festival for man4 ,in ,homer1 sacrifice 
is but1 as it were1 the signal for a    
banquet of abundant roast flesh and     
sweet wine2 we hear nothing of fasting1 
cleansing1 and atonement4 ,this we might

 explain as part of the general splendid
 unreality of the ,greek saga1 but sober
 historians of the fifth century ,b4,c4 
express the same spirit4 ,thucydides is 
by nature no reveller1 yet religion is  
to him1 in the main1 a rest from toil4  
,he makes ,pericles say of the          
,athenians3 ,moreover we have provided  
for our spirit very many opportunities  
of recreation1 by the celebration of    
games and sacrifices throughout the     
year4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,jane ,harrison3 
,prolegomena to ,greek ,religion1 p4 #a4
  ,sacrifice may become spiritualized1  
as it is in ,christianity1 instead of   
he-goats and she-goats1 there are       
substituted offerings of the heart for  
all these vain oblations4 ,the          
sacrificial heart has at all times been 
accounted germane to nobility4 ,there is
 something akin to religion in the      
laying down of a life for a cause or a  
country or a friend1 in surrendering    
one's self for others4 ,it is this power
 and beauty of renunciation that is the 

spiritual value behind all the rituals  
of sacrifice that still persist1 as in  
the sacraments of ,christianity4 ,it is 
the tragic necessity of self-negation   
that haloes1 even in secular life1 the  
sacrificial attitude3  ,but there is in 
resignation a further good element4     
,even real goods when they are          
attainable ought not to be fretfully    
desired4 ,to every man comes sooner or  
later the great renunciation4 ,for the  
young there is nothing unattainable2 a  
good thing desired with the whole force 
of a passionate will1 and yet           
unattainable1 is to them not credible4  
,yet by death1 by illness1 by poverty1  
or1 by the voice of duty1 we must learn1
 each one of us1 that the world was not 
made for us1 and that1 however beautiful
 may be the things we crave1 ,fate may  
nevertheless forbid them4 ,it is the    
part of courage1 when misfortune comes1 
to bear without repining the ruin of our
 hopes1 to turn away our thoughts from  
vain regrets4 ,this degree of submission

 to power is not only just and right2 it
 is the very gate of wisdom4#a          
,footnote #a3 ,bertrand ,russell3       
,philosophical ,essays1 p4 #fe4  ,the   
spiritual meaning and value of sacrifice
 is thus seen to lie in self-surrender4 
,the human being1 born into a world     
where choices must be made1 must make   
continual abnegation4 ,and when the     
temporary good is surrendered in the    
maintenance of an ideal1 sacrifice      
becomes genuinely spiritual in          
character4  ,prayer1 also1 becomes      
genuinely spiritual in its values when  
one ceases to believe in its practical  
efficacy and comes to think it shameful 
to traffic with the divine4 ,prayer     
beautifully illustrates a point         
previously noted1 how speech oscillates 
between the expression of feeling and   
the conveyance of ideas4 ,beginning in  
primitive religion as a crude and cheap 
petition for favors1 it becomes in more 
spiritual religious experience1 a lyric 
cry of emotion1 a tranquil and serene   

expression of the soul's desire4 ,prayer
 is1 moreover1 religion in act4 ,that   
deep sense of an awed relationship to   
divine power which was1 in the beginning
 of this discussion1 noted as           
constituting certainly one of the       
outstanding characteristics of the      
religious experience1 finds its most    
adequate emotional expression in prayer4
  ,religion is nothing writes ,auguste  
,sabatier if it be not the vital act by 
which the entire mind seeks to save     
itself by clinging to the principle from
 which it draws life4 ,this act is      
prayer1 by which ,i understand no vain  
exercise of words1 no mere repetition of
 certain sacred formulas1 but the very  
movement itself of the soul1 putting    
itself in a personal relation of contact
 with the mysterious power of which it  
feels the presence--it may be even      
before it has a name by which to call   
it4 ,wherever this interior prayer is   
lacking1 there is no religion2 wherever1
 on the other hand1 this prayer rises   

and stirs the soul1 even in the absence 
of forms or doctrines1 we have          
religion4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,a4          
,sabatier3 ,esquisse d'une ,philosophie 
de la ,religion 7ed4 #ahig71 pp4 #bd-bf4
  ,in prayer1 furthermore1 we may hope  
to find not the fulfillment of our      
desires1 but what our desires really    
are4 ,we are released temporarily from  
tension of temporal and selfish         
longings4 ,we hold a tranquil and       
reverential speech with a power not     
ourselves1 and in communion with the    
infinite purge ourselves of the dross of
 immediate personal needs4 ,in such a   
peaceful interlude we may find at once  
clarity and rest4 ,prayer1 at its       
highest1 might be defined as audible    
meditation1 controlled by the sense of  
the divinity of the power we are        
addressing4 ,so that the truly spiritual
 man prays not for the fulfillment of   
his own accidental longings1 but pleads 
rather3 ,let the words of my mouth and  
the meditations of my heart be          

acceptable in thy sight1 #j ,lord1 my   
strength and my redeemer4  ,,fear ,,and 
,,awe4 ,man's attitude toward the divine
 was noted to have arisen partly in his 
feeling of dependence on personal forces
 incomparably superior to himself1 and  
in his urgent need for winning their    
favor4 ,in primitive man this sense of  
dependence was certainly bound up with a
 feeling of fear4  ,it must be borne in 
mind that uncivilized peoples had       
pathetically little understanding or    
control of the forces of ,nature4 ,in   
consequence on being afflicted with some
 sudden catastrophe of famine or        
disease1 on experiencing a sudden       
revelation in storm1 wind1 or volcanic  
eruption1 of the terrible magnificence  
of elemental forces1 he must have been  
struck with dread4 ,he was living in a  
world that appeared to him much less    
ordered and regular than ours appears to
 us4 ,his prayers and sacrifices were   
not always friendly and confidential    
intercourse with the gods2 they were as 

often ways of averting the evils of     
malicious and terrifying demons4 ,the   
enemies of religion have been fond of   
pointing out how much of it has been a  
quaking fear of the supernatural4 ,it is
 in this spirit that ,lucretius's bitter
 attack is conceived4  ,when the life of
 man lay foul to see and grovelling upon
 the earth1 crushed by the weight of    
religion1 which showed her face from the
 realms of heaven1 lowering upon mortals
 with dreadful mien1 't was a man of    
,greece who dared first to raise his    
mortal eyes to meet her1 and first to   
stand forth to meet her2 him neither the
 stories of the gods nor thunderbolts   
checked1 nor the sky with its revengeful
 roar1 but all the more spurred the     
eager daring of his mind to yearn to be 
the first to burst through the close-set
 bolts upon the doors of nature4#a      
,footnote #a3 ,lucretius3 ,de ,rerum    
,natura1 book ,i2 lines #bh-ch4         
,primitive man feared the gods as much  
as he needed them4 ,jane ,harrison      

points out1 for example1 that as great a
 part of ,greek religion was given over 
to the exorcising of the evil and       
jealous spirits of the underworld1 as in
 friendly communion with the beautiful  
and gracious ,olympians4  ,but what     
appears in the ignorant and harassed    
savage as fear may be transformed in    
civilized man into awe4 ,long after     
man's crouching physical terror of the  
divine has passed away1 he may still    
live awed by the ultimate power that    
orders the universe4 ,he may1 at        
twilight1 or in a mountain gorge1 at a  
caon or waterfall1 experience an        
involuntary thrill and breathlessness1 a
 deepened sense of the divinity which so
 orders these things4 ,he may have the  
same feeling at the crises of life1 at  
birth1 disease1 and death4 ,he may sense
 on occasion that overwhelming and      
infinite power of which ,job becomes    
aware1 as he listens to the voice out of
 the whirlwind3  ,who hath divided a    
water course for the overflowing of     

waters1 or a       way for the lightning
 of thunder8 ,to cause it to rain on the
 earth1 where no man is2 on the         
wilderness1       wherein there is no   
man2 ,to satisfy the desolate and waste 
ground2 and to cause the bud of the     
tender herb to spring forth8 444 ,canst 
thou bind the sweet influences of the   
,pleiades1 or loose the       bands of  
,orion8 444 ,knowest thou the ordinances
 of ,heaven8 ,canst thou set the        
dominion thereof in the earth8 444      
,canst thou send lightnings1 that they  
may go and say unto thee1       ,here we
 are8 ,who hath put wisdom in the inward
 parts8 ,or who hath given              
understanding to the heart8  ,where man 
experiences such awe1 he will become    
reverential1 and1 if articulate1 will   
express his reverence in prayer1 again  
not the prayer of practical requests for
 favors from ,god1 but a hushed         
meditation upon the assured eternity in 
which the precarious and finite lives of
 men are set4  ,,regret1                

,,remorse--,,repentance ,,and ,,penance4
 ,regret is a sufficiently common human 
experience4 ,there are for most men     
wistful backward glances in which they  
realize what might have been1 what might
 have been done1 what might have been   
accomplished4 ,for many this never rises
 above pique and bitterness over        
personal failure1 a chagrin1 as it were1
 over having made the wrong move4 ,but  
to some regret may take on a deeply     
spiritual quality4 ,instead of          
regretting merely the successes which he
 hoped1 as it proved vainly1 to attain1 
a man may become passionately aware of  
his own moral and spiritual             
shortcomings4 ,this sense of dereliction
 and delinquency may take extreme forms4
 ,james quotes a reminiscence of ,father
 ,gratry1 a ,catholic philosopher3  444 
,all day long without respite ,i        
suffered an incurable and intolerable   
desolation1 verging on despair4 ,i      
thought myself1 in fact1 rejected by    
,god1 lost1 damned6 ,i felt something   

like the suffering of hell4 ,before that
 ,i had never even thought of hell4444  
,now1 and all at once1 ,i suffered in a 
measure what is suffered there4#a       
,footnote #a3 ,quoted by ,james in his  
,varieties1 p4 #adf4  ,normal           
individuals may come to a deep          
consciousness of having left undone the 
things they ought to have done1 of      
having done the things they ought not to
 have done4 ,this realization may be at 
once a consciousness of sin1 and a      
desire for a new life4 ,if it is the    
consciousness of sin which becomes      
predominant1 then a desolate and        
tormenting remorse engulfs the          
individual4 ,but the consciousness of   
sin for the religious becomes simply a  
prelude to entrance upon a better life4 
,the awareness of past sins is combined 
in the religious1 especially in devout  
,christians1 with faith in ,god's mercy1
 and in his welcoming of the penitent   
sinner3  ,the sacrifices of ,god are a  
broken spirit2 a broken and a contrite  

heart1 ,o ,god1 thou wilt not despise4  
,have mercy upon me1 ,o ,god2 according 
to thy loving kindness1 blot       out  
my transgressions4 ,wash me throughly   
from mine iniquity1 and cleanse me from 
my sin4 ,for ,i acknowledge my          
transgressions1 and my sin is ever      
before me4 ,purge me with hyssop and ,i 
shall be clean2 wash me1 and ,i shall be
       whiter than snow4  ,again the    
,new ,testament call to repentance is   
symbolic of the experience of millions  
of religious people4 ,repent ye1 for the
 kingdom of ,heaven is at hand4 ,there  
is a terrible intensity and immediate   
imperativeness about this call4 ,but to 
all there comes at one time or another  
an urgent sense of spiritual shortcoming
 and the desire to lead a better life4  
,the lamenting of sins becomes the least
 part2 what is important is the immense 
new impetus toward a better life4 ,the  
records of religious conversion are full
 of instances where men by this sudden  
penitential revulsion from their past   

life and a startled realization of new  
spiritual possibilities1 have broken    
away permanently from lifelong habitual 
vices4 ,james cites a case of an        
exceedingly belligerent and pugilistic  
collier named ,richard ,weaver1 who was 
by a sudden conversion to religion not  
only made averse to fighting1 but       
persistently meek and gentle under      
provocation4 ,similar cases1 genuine and
 well documented1 fill the archives of  
religious psychology4  ,the religious   
man in repenting knows that ,god will1  
if his repentance is sincere1 forgive   
him1 and sustain and support him in his 
new life4  ,i say unto you that likewise
 ,joy shall be in ,heaven over one      
sinner that repenteth1 more than over   
ninety and nine just persons which need 
no repentance4  ,i say unto you there is
 joy in the presence of the angels of   
,god over one sinner that repenteth4#a  
,footnote #a3 ,luke1 #ae3 #g1aj4  ,while
 regret over sin1 alienation from a past
 life of evil1 and a persistent         

dedication to a purified and righteous  
existence constitute1 spiritually1 the  
phenomena of repentance and conversion1 
repentance has had in religion certain  
fixed outward forms4 ,if sin had been   
committed1 merely inward spiritual      
realization was not sufficient1 penance 
must be done4 ,penance in the early days
 of the ,christian ,church was public4  
,later penance became a private matter  
7public penance was suppressed by an    
ordinance of ,pope ,leo ,i in #dfa      
,a4,d474  ,private penance took various 
familiar forms1 such as scourgings1     
fastings on bread and water1 reciting a 
given number of psalms1 prayers1 and the
 like4 ,later penalties could be        
redeemed by alms4 ,a penitent would be  
excused from the prescribed works of    
penance at the cost1 e4 g41 of equipping
 a soldier for the crusade1 of building 
a bridge or road4 ,gradually in the     
history of the ,christian religion1     
penances have been lightened4 ,in the   
,protestant ,church1 with the           

enunciation of the principle of         
justification through faith alone there 
could be no sacrament of penance4  ,one 
form in which the penitential mood      
receives expression is in confession in 
which the penitent acknowledges his     
sins4 ,there is no space here to trace  
the development of this practice in     
religion4 ,it must suffice to point out 
that psychologically it is a cleansing  
or purgation4 ,it clears the moral      
atmosphere4 ,it is a relief to the      
tormented and remorseful soul to say    
,peccavi1 and to confide either directly
 or indirectly to the divine the burden 
of his sins4 ,it is for many people the 
necessary pre-condition1 as it is in the
 ,catholic ,church1 to penitence and the
 actual performance of penance4  ,the   
psychological value of confession varies
 with individual temperaments2 for many 
it is high4 ,there are few so           
self-contained and self-sufficient that 
they do not seek to express their       
emotions to others4 ,it is not          

surprising that the gregarious human    
creature should find confession a       
restorative and a solace4 ,human beings 
are not only natively responsive to the 
emotions of others1 but by nature tend  
to express their own emotions and to be 
gratified by a sympathetic response4    
,emotions of any sort1 joyous or        
sorrowful1 find some articulation4 ,the 
oppressive consciousness of sin         
particularly must find an outlet in     
expression4 ,and the expression of sin  
must somewhere be received4 ,the wrong  
done rankles heavily in the private     
bosom4 ,the crucified soul demands a    
sympathetic spirit to receive its       
painful and personal revelation4 ,he    
that would confess his sins requires a  
listener of a large and understanding   
heart4 ,just such a merciful1 forgiving1
 and understanding friend is the ,god   
whom ,christianity pictures4 ,god waits 
with infinite patience for the          
confessions and the surrender of the    
contrite heart4 ,the normal human desire

 to rid one's self of a tormenting      
secret1 to exteriorize one's rottenness1
 finds satisfaction on an exalted plane 
in confession to ,god1 or to his        
appointed ministers4  ,,joy ,,and       
,,enthusiasm--,,festivals ,,and         
,,thanksgivings4 ,so far our account has
 been confined to experiences in which  
man felt the need or fear of the divine1
 because of his own desires1 weaknesses1
 or sins4 ,but humans find religious    
expression for more joyous emotions4    
,even primitive man lives not always in 
terror or in tribulation4 ,there are    
occasions1 such as plentiful harvests1  
successful hunting1 the birth of        
children1 which stir him to expressions 
of enthusiastic appreciation and        
gratitude toward the divine4 ,some of   
the so-called ,dionysiac festivals in   
ancient ,greece are examples of the     
enthusiasm1 joy1 and abounding vitality 
to which religion has1 among so many    
other human experiences1 given          
expression4 ,in the religion of the ,old

 ,testament1 again1 we find that the    
,psalmist is time and again filled with 
rejoicing3  ,o give thanks unto the     
,lord1 for he is good1 and his mercy    
endureth     forever4 ,let the redeemed 
of the ,lord say so1 whom he hath       
redeemed from     the hand of the enemy4
 ,and he gathered them out of the lands 
from the east and from the     west1    
from the north and from the south4 ,they
 wandered in the wilderness in a        
solitary way2 they found no     city to 
dwell in4 ,hungry and thirsty their soul
 fainted in them4 ,then they cried unto 
the ,lord in their trouble1 and he      
delivered     them out of their         
distresses4 ,and he led them forth by   
the right way that they might go to a   
city     of habitation4 ,o that men     
would praise the ,lord for his goodness1
 and for his     wonderful works to the 
children of men4 ,for he satisfieth the 
longing soul and filleth the hungry     
heart with     goodness4  ,nor need this
 rejoicing be always an explicit        

thanksgiving for favors received4 ,it   
may be1 as were the dithyrambic         
festivals of ,greece1 the riotous       
overflow of enthusiasm1 a joyous1       
sympathetic exuberance with the vital   
processes of ,nature4 ,dionysos stood   
for fertility1 life1 gladness1 all the  
positive1 passionate1 and jubilant      
aspects of ,nature4 ,and the well-known 
satyr choruses1 the wine and dance and  
song of the ,greek spring festivals1 are
 classic and beautiful illustrations of 
the religion of enthusiasm4 ,euripides  
gives voice to this spirit in the song  
of the ,mnads in the ,bacchoe3    ,will 
they ever come to me1 ever again1       
,the long1 long dances1    ,on through  
the dark till the dim stars wane8       
,shall ,i feel the dew on my throat and 
the stream    ,of wind in my hair8      
,shall our white feet gleam      ,in the
 dim expanses8    ,o feet of a fawn to  
the greenward fled1      ,alone in the  
grass and the loveliness8#a  ,footnote  
#a3 ,euripides3 ,bacchoe 7,gilbert      

,murray translation74  ,every religion  
has its festival as well as its fast    
days4 ,sacrifices come to be held less  
as offerings to jealous gods than as    
sacrificial feasts1 in which the        
worshipers themselves partake1 as       
opportunities for communal rejoicings   
and for friendly fellowship with        
divinity4 ,at sacrificial feasts it is  
as if the gods themselves were at table4
  ,dance and song are a regular         
accompaniment of primitive religion4    
,students of ,greek drama1 such as ,jane
 ,harrison and ,gilbert ,murray1 trace  
,greek tragedy back to the choruses and 
dances of early ,dionysiac festivals4   
,throughout the history of religion not 
only have man's sorrow and need been    
expressed1 but also his sympathetic     
gladness with vitality1 fertility1 and  
growth1 his rejoicings over the         
fruitions and glad eventualities of     
experience4 ,man has felt the decay and 
evanescence of human goods4 ,he has felt
 also the exuberance of natural         

processes1 the triumph of life over     
death when a child is born1 the renewal 
of life by food1 the recurrence of      
growth and fertility in the processes of
 the seasons1 of sowing and of harvest4 
,and for all these enrichments and      
enlargements of life1 he has rejoiced1  
and found rituals to express his        
rejoicings4 ,he has had the impulse and 
the energy to sing unto the ,lord a new 
song4  ,,theology4 ,thus far we have    
discussed the religious experience as an
 experience1 as normal1 natural1 and    
inevitable as are love and hate1        
melancholy and exaltation1 joy and      
sorrow4 ,like these latter1 the         
religious experience is subjected to    
rationalization4 ,like all other        
emotions1 that of religion finds for    
itself a logic and a justification4 ,but
 so profoundly influential is cosmic    
emotion on men's lives that when it is  
reasoned upon1 the results are nothing  
less than an attitude taken toward the  
whole of reality4 ,theology arises as a 

world view formulated in accordance with
 a reasoned interpretation of the       
religious experience4 ,it must be noted 
again that the experience is primary4   
,if men had not first had the experience
 of religion1 they would not have       
reflected about it4 ,every contact of   
the individual with the world to some   
degree arouses emotion and provokes     
thought4 ,it is not different with      
religion4 ,that theologies should differ
 and conflict is not surprising4 ,no two
 individuals1 no two groups or ages have
 precisely the same experiences of the  
world1 and their reasonings upon their  
religious feelings are bound to differ1 
overlap1 and at times to conflict4 ,the 
variety of world views are testimony to 
the genuineness of the religious        
experience as it fulfills the different 
needs1 emotions1 and desires of         
different ages1 groups1 and generations 
of men4  ,,the ,,description ,,of ,,the 
,,divine4 ,reasonings upon religion     
exhibit1 like the religious emotions1   

certain recurrent features4 ,there is1  
in the first place1 a certain           
universality in the description of the  
objects of veneration4 ,these are nearly
 always regarded as self-sufficient in  
contrast with man4 ,man seeks1 strives1 
desires1 has partial triumphs and       
pitiful failures1 is always in travail  
after some ideal4 ,his life is          
incomplete2 at best it is a high        
aspiration2 it is never really          
fulfilled4 ,but divinity has nearly     
always been regarded as seeking nothing1
 asking nothing1 needing nothing4 ,this 
is what infinity in practical terms     
means4 ,and1 with certain exceptions    
presently to be noted1 the divine power 
has always been regarded as infinite4   
,thus ,aristotle says that in man's best
 moments1 when he lives in reflection a 
life of self-sufficiency1 he lives just 
such a life as ,god lives continually4  
,and ,plato describes the philosopher as
 a man who because he can live1 at least
 temporarily1 amid eternal1 changeless  

beauty and truth1 lives in recollection 
among those things among which ,god     
always abides1 and in beholding which   
,god is what he is4 ,lucretius also     
gives a simple picture of the even      
calmness and still1 even security of the
 life of the gods as he and all the     
,epicureans conceived it4 ,tennyson     
paraphrases the picture3        444,the 
,gods1 who haunt   ,the lucid interspace
 of world and world1   ,where never     
creeps a cloud1 or moves a wind1   ,nor 
ever falls the least white star of snow1
   ,nor ever lowest roll of thunder     
moans1   ,nor sound of human sorrow     
mounts to mar   ,their sacred           
everlasting calm6#a  ,footnote #a3      
,tennyson3 ,lucretius4  ,divinity has1  
again1 quite universally been recognized
 as exerting over the individual a      
compelling power1 and of insistently    
arousing his veneration4 ,the           
psychological origins of this phenomenon
 have already been noted4 ,men fear1    
need1 feel themselves dependent on the  

gods4 ,but further than this many       
religious thinkers hold that man cannot 
even be aware of the divine power       
without wishing to adjust himself       
harmoniously to it4 ,and they hold1 as  
did ,immanuel ,kant1 that man is born   
with an awareness of the divine4  ,the  
attributes of divinity have been        
differently assigned at different times 
in the history of religion4 ,in general 
two qualities have been regarded as     
characteristic3 power and goodness4 ,in 
primitive belief1 the first received the
 predominant emphasis2 the higher       
religions have emphasized the second4   
,for savage man1 as we have seen1 the   
divine personages were conceived in     
effect as human beings with superhuman  
powers4 ,they were feared and flattered1
 needed and praised4 ,adjustment to them
 was a practical1 imperative necessity4 
,they combined infinite capacity with   
human and finite caprice4 ,the attention
 they received from humans was          
distinctly utilitarian in character4    

,these forces of wind and sun and rain  
might be brutal or benignant4 ,primitive
 man established1 therefore1 a system of
 magic1 sacrifice1 and prayer1 whereby  
he might minimize the precariousness of 
existence1 and keep the gods on his     
side4  ,in the more spiritualistic      
monotheistic religions1 while the power 
of ,god has been insistently reiterated1
 there has been an increasing emphasis  
upon the divine goodness4 ,the ,psalmist
 is continually referring to both3      
,praise ye the ,lord4 ,o give thanks    
unto the ,lord2 for he is good3     for 
his mercy endureth forever4   ,who can  
utter the mighty acts of the ,lord8     
4       4       4       4       4   ,oh 
that men would praise the ,lord for his 
goodness1 and for his     wonderful     
works to the children of men6   ,for he 
hath broken the gates of brass1 and cut 
the bars of iron in     sunder4  ,wrath 
and terror gradually give place to mercy
 and benevolence as the primary         
attributes of the divine4 ,the power of 

,god1 in ,christianity1 for example1 is 
still regarded as unlimited1 but it is  
completely expended in the loving       
salvation of mankind4 ,where the        
divinity has ceased to be a willful     
power and has become instead the ,god of
 mercy and loving kindness1 it is no    
longer necessary to placate him by      
material sacrifice1 to win his favor by 
trivial earthly gifts4 ,divine favor is 
sought rather by aspiration after and   
the practice of a better life4 ,the     
mighty but capricious deity gives place 
to the ,god of unfailing charity and    
love4 ,one earns ,god's mercies by      
walking in the ways of the ,lord4       
,blessed are the pure in heart1 for they
 shall see ,god4444 ,blessed are they   
which do hunger and thirst after        
righteousness1 for they shall be filled4
 ,in both ,christianity and ,judaism1   
,god's grace and mercies go always to   
the pure in heart1 and the righteous in 
spirit4 ,what doth the ,lord require of 
thee1 proclaims ,micah1 but to do       

justly1 and to love mercy and to walk   
humbly with thy ,god8  ,,the ,,divine   
,,as ,,the ,,human ,,ideal4 ,there has  
been in certain latter-day philosophies1
 a tendency to interpret the divine as  
the objectification of human ideals4    
,that is1 according to this theory1 men 
have found in their imagined divinities 
the fulfillment of ideals that they     
could never have realized on earth4     
,men1 says this theory1 long to be      
immortal1 so they imagine gods who are4 
,finite man has infinite desires4 ,in   
,god is infinite fulfillment through    
eternity4 ,no men are all good2 some    
desire to be4 ,such fulfillment they    
find in the divine4 ,our conception of  
,god is an index of our own ideals4     
,when men were savages1 their divinity  
was a jealous monster4 ,in the          
refinement and spiritualization of the  
human imagination1 divinity becomes     
all-beautiful and all-benevolent as well
 as the wielder of infinite power4 ,john
 ,stuart ,mill gives possibly the       

clearest expression to this attitude    
which is1 if not in the strictest sense 
religious1 at least deeply spiritual3   
,religion and poetry address themselves1
 at least in one of their aspects1 to   
the same part of the human constitution2
 they both supply the same want1 that of
 ideal conceptions grander and more     
beautiful than we see realized in the   
prose of human life4 ,religion1 as      
distinguished from poetry1 is the       
product of the craving to know whether  
these imaginative conceptions have      
realities1 answering to them in some    
other world than ours4 ,the mind1 in    
this state1 eagerly catches at any      
rumors respecting other worlds1         
especially when delivered by persons    
whom it deems wiser than itself4 ,to the
 poetry of the supernatural1 comes to be
 thus added a positive belief and       
expectation1 which unpoetical minds can 
share with the poetical4 ,belief in a   
,god or gods1 and in a life after death1
 becomes the canvas which every mind1   

according to its capacity1 covers with  
such ideal pictures as it can either    
invent or copy4 ,in that other life each
 hopes to find the good which he has    
failed to find on earth1 or the better  
which is suggested to him by the good   
which on earth he has partially seen and
 known4 ,more especially this belief    
supplies the finer minds with material  
for conceptions of beings more awful    
than they can have known on earth1 and  
more excellent than they probably have  
known4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,mill3 ,three   
,essays on ,religion 7,henry ,holt      
,co471 pp4 #ajc-jd4  ,in his religion1  
,mill maintains1 man thus finds the     
fulfillment of unfulfilled desire4      
,religion is thus conceived as an       
imaginative enterprise of a very high   
and satisfying kind4 ,it peoples the    
world with perfections1 not true perhaps
 to actual experience1 but true to man's
 highest aspirations4 ,it gives man     
companionship with divinity at least in 
imagination4 ,it enables him to live1 at

 least spiritually1 in such a universe  
as his highest hopes and desires would  
have him live in1 in fact4 ,it must be  
pointed out1 however1 that the devoutly 
religious do not regard their ,god as a 
beautiful fiction1 but as a dear reality
 whom they can serenely trust and love1 
and whose existence is the certain faith
 by which they live4  ,,the ,,religious 
,,experience1 ,,theology1 ,,and         
,,science4 ,it has already been pointed 
out that theology is the reasoned       
formulation of the religious experience 
which comes to men with varying degrees 
of intensity1 or the revelation by which
 some man1 a ,moses or a ,mohammed1 has 
been inspired4 ,such a formulation has a
 dual importance4 ,for the individual it
 brings clarity1 order1 and stability   
into his religious experience4 ,for the 
group1 it makes possible the social     
transmission of religious conceptions   
and ideals4  ,reason in a man's         
religion1 as in any other experience1   
introduces stability1 consistency1 and  

order4 ,it makes distinctions2 it       
resolves doubts1 confusions1 and        
uncertainties4 ,it is true that there   
have been in religion1 as in politics   
and morals1 rebels against reason4      
,there have been mystics who preferred  
their warm ecstatic visions to the cold 
formulations and abstractions of        
theology4 ,but there have been1 on the  
other hand1 those gifted or handicapped1
 according to one's point of view1 by an
 insistence on reason as well as rapture
 in their religion4 ,these have not been
 satisfied with an intuition of ,god4   
,they have wished to know ,god1 as the  
highest possible object of knowledge4   
,thus in the ,middle ,ages philosophy   
and science were regarded as the        
,handmaids of ,theology4 ,all was       
dedicated to1 as nothing could be more  
important than1 a knowledge of ,god4 ,so
 we have1 in contrast with ecstatic     
visions of ,god1 the plodding analysis  
of the scholastics1 the subtle and      
clean-cut logic by which such men as    

,saint ,anselm sought to give form1     
clarity1 and ultimacy to their sense of 
the reality of ,god4 ,there has possibly
 nowhere in the history of thought been 
subtler and more thoroughgoing analysis 
than some of the medival schoolmen      
lavished upon the clarification and     
demonstration of the concept of ,god4   
,the necessity for reasoning upon one's 
sense of the reality of the divine1 as  
it was felt by many medival schoolmen1  
is thus stated by one historian3        
,anselm1 ,archbishop of ,canterbury 444 
is the true type of the schoolman2      
firmly convinced of the truth of the    
dogmas and yet possessed of a strong    
philosophical impulse1 he seeks to prove
 to reason what has to be accepted on   
authority4 ,he bravely includes in his  
attempt to rationalize the faith not    
only such general propositions as the   
existence of ,god1 but the entire church
 scheme of salvation1 the ,trinity1 and 
,incarnation1 and the ,redemption of    
man4 ,we must believe the ,catholic     

doctrine--that is beyond cavil--but we  
should also try to understand what we   
believe1 understand why it is true4#a   
,footnote #a3 ,thilly3 ,history of      
,philosophy1 p4 #afi4  ,but theology has
 public as well as purely private       
importance4 ,it must not be forgotten   
that religion is a social habit as well 
as a personal activity4 ,from primitive 
life down to our own day1 religion has  
been intimately associated with the     
other social activities of a people1 and
 has indeed been one of the chief       
institutions of moral and social        
control4 ,ethical standards have been   
until very recent times in the history  
of ,christian ,europe almost exclusively
 derived from religion4 ,where the      
religious experience is of such crucial 
importance1 it has been necessary to    
give it a fixed form and content which  
might be used to initiate the young and 
the outsider4  ,theology1 though        
essentially a product of reflection upon
 the religious experience itself1 tends 

to incorporate extra-religious material 
into its system4 ,in its demonstration  
of the divine order and of man's        
relationship to the divine1 it          
incorporates both science and history4  
,science becomes for it the             
manifestation of the divine arrangements
 of the universe2 history becomes a     
revelation of the divine purpose and its
 realization4 ,in primitive belief      
science and religion are practically    
indistinguishable from each other4 ,the 
way of the gods is the way of the       
universe4 ,the attribution of personal  
motives to the gods was primitive man's 
literal and serious way of conceiving   
the government of the cosmos4 ,he       
believed himself actually to be living  
in a world governed by living and       
personal powers1 an animistic world4    
,the myths which describe the birth and 
life of the gods1 the creation of man1  
the bestowing of the gift of fire are   
conceived as the literal and natural    
history of creation4  ,christianity     

affords a striking example of how       
theology incorporates science and       
natural history into its world view4    
,for the early ,christian ,fathers1     
natural science was interesting and     
useful in so far as it illustrated1     
which it did1 the ways of ,god upon     
earth4  ,the sole interest of the       
,fathers in natural fact1 writes ,henry 
,osborn ,taylor1 lay in its confirmatory
 evidence of ,scriptural truth4 ,they   
were constantly impelled to understand  
facts in conformity with their          
understanding of ,scripture1 and to     
accept or deny accordingly4 ,thus       
,augustine denies the existence of      
,antipodes1 men on the opposite side of 
the earth1 who walk with their feet     
opposite to our own4 ,that did not      
harmonize with his general conception of
 spiritual cosmogony4#a  ,footnote #a3  
,h4 ,o4 ,taylor3 ,the ,medioeval ,mind1 
vol4 ,i1 pp4 #ge-gf4  ,all the natural  
science current1 as represented1 for    
example1 in the compilation called the  

,physailogus1 is used as symbolical of  
the ways of the ,lord to man4  ,the     
,pelican is distinguished by its love   
for its young4 ,as these begin to grow  
they strike at their parents' faces1 and
 the parents strike back and kill them4 
,then the parents take pity1 and on the 
third day the mother comes and opens her
 side and lets the blood flow on the    
dead young ones1 and they become alive  
again4 ,thus ,god cast off mankind after
 the ,fall1 and delivered them over to  
death2 but he took pity on us1 as a     
mother1 for by the ,crucifixion ,he     
awoke us with ,his blood to eternal     
life4#b  ,footnote #b3 ,thilly3 loc4    
cit41 p4 #gf4  ,history is treated in   
the same way4 ,nearly all the histories 
written by the early ,christian ,fathers
 were written in deliberate advocacy of 
the ,faith4 ,it was to silence the      
heresies of those who attributed to the 
,church the entrance of ,alaric into    
,rome that ,augustine wrote his famous  
,city of ,god4 ,the whole of history is 

a revelation of the divine purpose which
 is eventually to be fulfilled4         
,orosius1 again1 a disciple of          
,augustine1 wrote his ,seven ,books of  
,histories against the ,pagans to prove 
the abundance of calamities which had   
afflicted mankind before the birth of   
,christ4 ,he gathers together all the   
evidence he can to exhibit at once the  
patience and the power of ,god4         
,straitened and anxious minds might not 
be able to see the purpose always1 but  
all was ordained for one end4 ,thus he  
writes at the beginning of his seventh  
book3  ,the human race from the         
beginning was so created and appointed  
that living under religion with peace   
without labor1 by the fruit of obedience
 it might merit eternity2 but it abused 
the ,creator's goodness1 turned liberty 
into wilful license1 and through disdain
 fell into forgetfulness2 now the       
patience of ,god is just and doubly     
just1 operating that this disdain might 
not wholly ruin those whom ,he wished to

 spare 444 and also so that ,he might   
always hold out guidance although to an 
ignorant creature1 to whom if penitent  
,he would mercifully restore the means  
to grace4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,orosius3    
,seven ,books of ,histories against the 
,pagans1 ,,ii1 #c4  ,history thus comes 
to reveal the fulfillment of the divine 
purpose1 as science reveals the divine  
arrangements of the universe4  ,it has  
already been noted that theology1       
certainly ,christian theology1 maintains
 that ,god is all-good4 ,in consequence 
the natural world which scientific      
inquiry reveals must be all-good in its 
operations and its fruits4 ,the history 
of the universe must be a steady and    
unfaltering fulfillment of the divine1  
of the beneficent eternal purpose4 ,the 
ways of the ,almighty1 so theology tells
 us1 are just ways1 and the universe in 
which we live1 so theology tells us1 is 
a revelation of that justice4 ,the      
eighteenth century natural theologians  
spent much energy in demonstrating how  

perfectly adapted to his needs are man's
 natural environment and his organic    
structure4 ,they pointed to the eye with
 its delicate membranes so subtly       
adapted to the function of sight4 ,all  
,nature was a continuous and magnificent
 revelation of ,god's designs1 which    
were good4 ,christian ,wolff1 for       
example1 a rationalistic theologian of  
the late eighteenth century1 writes3    
,god has created the sun to keep the    
changeable conditions on the earth in   
such an order that living creatures1 men
 and beasts1 may inhabit its surface4444
 ,the sun makes daylight not only on our
 earth1 but also on the other planets2  
and daylight is of the utmost utility to
 us2 for by its means we can            
commodiously carry on those occupations 
which in the night-time would either be 
quite impossible1 or at any rate        
impossible without our going to the     
expense of artificial light4#b          
,footnote #b3 ,christian ,wolff3        
,vernnftige ,gedanken von den ,absichten

 der natrlichen ,dinge1 #aghb1 pp4 #gd  
ff42 quoted by ,james in ,varieties of  
,religious ,experience1 p4#dib4         
,,mechanistic ,,science ,,and           
,,theology4 ,with the rise of           
mechanistic science there has come about
 a sharp collision between the          
conception of the goodness of the       
universe as theology declares it1 and of
 its blindnesses and indifference as    
science seems to unfold it to us4       
,contrast the picture of a cosmos which 
was deliberately and considerately made 
by ,god to serve every exigency of man's
 welfare1 with the picture earlier      
quoted from ,bertrand ,russell as the   
natural scientist gives it to us4 ,it is
 no longer easy to say the ,heavens     
declare the glory of ,god1 and the      
firmament showeth his handiwork4 ,as far
 as we can see natural processes go on  
without the slightest reference to the  
welfare of man1 who is but an accidental
 product of their indifferent forces4   
,the universe is a system of blind      

regularities4 ,omnipotent matter rolls  
on its relentless way4 ,nature is       
thoroughly impersonal1 and indeed1 were 
it to be judged by personal or human    
standards1 it could with more accuracy  
be maintained that it is evil than that 
it is good4 ,as ,mill puts it in a      
famous passage3  ,in sober truth1 nearly
 all the things which men are hanged or 
imprisoned for doing to one another1 are
 ,nature's everyday performances4       
,killing1 the most criminal act         
recognized by human laws1 ,nature does  
once to every being that lives1 and in a
 large proportion of cases1 after       
protracted tortures such as only the    
greatest monsters whom we read of ever  
purposely inflicted on their living     
fellow-creatures4444 ,nature impales    
men1 breaks them as if on the wheel1    
casts them to be devoured by wild       
beasts1 burns them to death1 crushes    
them with stones like the first         
,christian martyr1 starves them with    
hunger1 freezes them with cold1 poisons 

them by the quick or slow venom of her  
exhalations4444 ,a single hurricane     
destroys the hopes of a season2 a flight
 of locusts or an inundation desolates a
 district2 a trifling chemical change in
 an edible root starves a million of    
people4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,mill3 ,three  
,essays on ,religion 7,holt71 pp4       
#bh-cj4  ,the theology which insists on 
the patent and ubiquitous evidences of  
,god's beneficent purpose1 attempts1 as 
already pointed out1 to demonstrate that
 purpose in the history of mankind4     
,orthodox ,christian doctrine1 for      
example1 insists that man has been      
especially created by ,god1 as were the 
other animals each after their kind1 and
 that man's ultimate and unique destiny 
is salvation through ,god's grace4 ,man 
was created in perfection in the ,garden
 of ,eden1 sinned1 and will1 through    
,god's mercy1 find eventual redemption4 
,following the publication of ,darwin's 
,origin of ,species1 in #ahei1 the rapid
 spread of evolutionary doctrine aroused

 violent opposition on the part of      
,christian thinkers and devout          
,christians generally4 ,in the first    
place it conflicted sharply with the    
orthodox version of special creation4   
,secondly1 it made more difficult the   
insistence on marks of design or purpose
 in ,nature4 ,these two points will be  
clearer after a brief consideration of  
the nature of ,darwinian evolution1 with
 whose thoroughgoing mechanical         
principles nineteenth-century theology  
came most bitterly in conflict4 ,the    
theory explains the origins of species1 
somewhat as follows3  ,the variety of   
species now current developed out of    
simpler forms of animal life1 from which
 they are lineally descended4 ,their    
present forms and structures are        
modifications from the common forms     
possessed by their remote ancestors4    
,these modifications are1 in the        
stricter forms of ,darwinian evolution1 
explained in mechanical terms by the    
theory of the survival of the fittest4  

,that is1 those animals with variations 
adapted to their environment survive2   
those without1 perish4 ,in consequence  
when any individual in a species happens
 to be born with a variation specially  
adapted to its environment1 in the sharp
 struggle for existence that            
characterizes animal life in a state of 
nature1 it alone will be able to survive
 and reproduce its kind4 ,all the       
variations of species current are1      
therefore1 examples of this continuous  
process of descent with adaptive        
modifications4 ,the origin of the human 
species came about through just such a  
variation or mutation from one of the   
higher mammals 7we have reason to       
believe1 a species similar to that of   
the anthrapoid ape74 ,man's ancestry1 it
 seems1 from the scientific evidence    
which has been marshaled1 may be traced 
back biologically1 in an almost unbroken
 chain to unicellular animals4#a        
,footnote #a3 ,for detailed discussion  
see ,scott3 ,theory of ,evolution4      

,this theory profoundly affected        
theological thinking4 ,in the first     
place1 the evolutionary account not only
 of the origin of man1 but of the origin
 of all species1 as a descent with      
modification from simpler-animal forms1 
conflicts with the account of special   
creation1 certainly in the literal form 
of the ,biblical story4 ,secondly1 the  
arguments from design which had been    
drawn from the adaptation of organic    
life to environment were1 if not        
disproved1 at least rendered dubious4   
,although evolution did not account for 
the first appearance of life on earth1  
it did account for the processes of     
adaptation1 and without invoking design 
or purpose4  ,the eye1 for example1 as  
explained by the theory of evolution1   
came to its present perfection through a
 series of fortunate and cumulative     
variations through successive           
generations4 ,even in its imperfect     
form1 it was a variation with high      
survival value4 ,even when it was no    

more than a pigmented spot peculiarly   
sensitive to light1 so the theory holds1
 it was a variation that enabled a      
species to survive and perpetuate its   
kind4 ,those not possessing these       
fortunate variations were wiped out4    
,the process of ,nature1 certainly1 in  
the development of biological life thus 
appears to be no economical convergence 
of means upon an end4 ,nature has been  
recklessly prodigal4 ,millions more     
seeds of life are produced than ever    
come to fruition4 ,and only animals     
perfectly adapted to their environment  
survive1 while an incomparably greater  
number perish4  ,theology1 when it      
incorporates science and sets itself up 
as a direct and factual description of  
the universe1 thus comes sharply in     
rivalry with modern mechanistic science4
 ,the conflict is crucial with regard to
 the purpose which theology holds to be 
evident in the universe1 and the lack of
 purpose1 the purely blind regularity1  
which science seems to reveal4 ,the     

mechanical laws by which natural        
processes take place exhibit a fixed and
 changeless regularity1 in which man's  
good or ill counts absolutely nothing4  
,the earth instead of being the center  
of the solar system1 is a cosmic        
accident thrown out into space4 ,man    
instead of being a little lower than the
 angels is revealed by science as a     
little higher than the ape4  ,there is  
no space in these pages to trace the    
various reconciliations that have been  
made between theology and science4 ,it  
must be pointed out1 however1 that      
,christian theology has increasingly    
accepted modern mechanistic doctrines1  
including the doctrine of evolution4    
,but it has attempted to show that1     
granting all the facts of physical      
science1 the universe does still exhibit
 the divine purpose and its essential   
beneficence4 ,the very order and        
symmetry of physical law have been taken
 as testimony of divine instigation4    
,mechanism was set in motion by ,god4   

,in answer to this1 it is pointed out by
 the non-theologian that then ,god's    
goodness cannot be maintained4          
,mechanical processes are indiscriminate
 in their distribution of goods and     
evils to the just and the unjust3  ,all 
this ,nature does with the most         
supercilious disregard both of mercy and
 of justice1 emptying her shafts upon   
the best and noblest1 indifferently with
 the meanest and worst2 upon those who  
are engaged in the highest and worthiest
 enterprises1 and often as the direct   
consequence of the noblest acts2 and it 
might almost be imagined as a punishment
 for them4 ,she mows down those on whose
 existence hangs the well-being of a    
whole people2 perhaps the prospects of  
the human race for generations to come1 
with as little compunction as those     
whose death is a relief to themselves1  
or a blessing to those under their      
noxious influence4#a  ,footnote #a3     
,mill3 ,three ,essays on ,religion      
7,holt71 p4 #bi4  ,modern theology      

sometimes grants the apparent reality of
 the evils which are current in a       
mechanistic world1 but insists that they
 are making for goods which we with our 
finite understanding cannot comprehend4 
,were our intelligence infinite1 as is  
,god's1 we should see how somehow good  
will be the final goal of ill4          
,evolution has also been explained as   
,god's method of accomplishing his ends4
 ,by some evolutionists1 ,driesch and   
,bergson for example1 evolution itself1 
in its steady production of higher      
types1 has been held to be too purposive
 in character to permit of a purely     
mechanical explanation4 ,the process of 
evolution has itself thus come to be    
taken by some theologians as a clear    
manifestation of ,god's beneficent power
 at work in the universe4  ,but         
theology1 in the more spiritualistic    
religions1 has always insisted on the   
primacy of ,god's goodness4 ,there has  
been1 therefore1 in certain theological 
quarters the tendency to surrender the  

conception of divine omnipotence in the 
face of the genuine human evils that are
 among the fruits of blind mechanical   
forces4 ,the idea of a finite ,god who  
is infinitely good in his intentions1   
but limited in his powers1 has been     
advocated by such various types of mind 
as ,john ,stuart ,mill1 ,william ,james1
 and ,h4 ,g4 ,wells4 ,the first         
mentioned of these writes3  ,one only   
form of belief in the supernatural--one 
theory respecting the origin and        
government of the universe--stands      
wholly clear both of intellectual       
contradiction and of moral obliquity4   
,it is that which1 resigning irrevocably
 the idea of an omnipotent creator1     
regards ,nature and ,life not as the    
expression throughout of the moral      
character and purpose of the ,deity1 but
 as the product of a struggle between   
contriving goodness and an intractable  
material1 as was believed by ,plato1 or 
a principle of evil as was believed by  
the ,manicheans4 ,a creed like this 444 

allows it to be believed that all the   
mass of evils which exists was          
undesigned by1 and exists not by the    
appointment of1 but in spite of the     
,being whom we are called upon to       
worship4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,mill3 loc1   
cit41 p4 #aaf4  ,,religion ,,and        
,,science4 ,while there have thus been  
genuine points of conflict between      
theology and science1 these are         
essentially irrelevant to the religious 
experience itself4 ,man is still moved  
by the same emotions1 sensations1 needs1
 and desires which have1 from the dawn  
of history1 provoked in him a sense of  
his relationship with the divine4 ,there
 comes to nearly all individuals at some
 time1 not without rapture1 a sudden    
awareness of divinity4  ,it is the      
terror and beauty of phenomena1 the     
promise of the dawn and of the rainbow1 
the voice of the thunder1 the gentleness
 of the summer rain1 the sublimity of   
the stars1 and not the physical laws    
which these things follow1 by which the 

religious mind continues to be most     
impressed2 and just as of yore1 the     
devout man tells you that in the        
solitude of his room or of the fields he
 still feels the divine presence1 that  
inflowing of help come in reply to his  
prayers1 and that sacrifices to this    
unseen reality fill him with security   
and peace4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,james3     
,varieties of ,religious ,experience1 p4
 #dih4  ,modern man1 just as his savage 
ancestor cowering before forces he did  
not understand1 realizes sometimes--some
 persons realize it always--how         
comparatively helpless is man amid the  
magnificent and eternal forces in which 
his own life is infinitesimally set4    
,even when one has been educated to the 
sober prose of science1 one feels still 
the ancient emotions of joy1 sorrow1 and
 regret4 ,birth and death1 sowing and   
harvest1 conquest or calamity1 as of    
old1 evoke a sympathetic feeling with   
the movement of cosmic processes4 ,all  
of these emotions to-day1 as in less    

sophisticated times1 may take religious 
form4  ,nor does the universe because we
 understand it better seem1 to many1    
less worthy of worship4 ,the most       
thorough-going scientific geniuses have 
felt most deeply the nobility and       
grandeur of that infinite harmony and   
order which their own genius has helped 
to discover4 ,it has been well said the 
undevout astronomer is mad4 ,and it is  
not only the student of the stars who   
has intimations of divinity4 ,as        
,professor ,keyser puts it3 ,the cosmic 
times and spaces of modern science are  
more impressive and more mysterious than
 a ,mosaic cosmogony or ,plato's crystal
 spheres4 ,day is just as mysterious as 
night1 the mystery of knowledge is more 
wonderful and awesome than the darkness 
of the unknown4#b ,it is significant    
that such men as ,newton1 ,pasteur1 and 
,faraday1 giants of modern physical     
inquiry1 were devoutly religious4       
,footnote #b3 ,keyser3 ,science and     
,religion1 p4 #cj4  ,it would appear    

indeed that the objects which men revere
 are not the subject-matter of science4 
,physics and chemistry can tell us what 
,nature is like2 they cannot tell us to 
what in ,nature we shall give our faith 
and our allegiance4 ,religion remains1  
as ever1 loyalty to the highest values  
of life4 ,science instead of making the 
world less awesome has made it more     
mysterious than ever4 ,origins and      
destinies are still unknown4 ,science   
tells how2 it describes4 ,it does not   
tell why things occur as they do2 or    
what is the significance of their       
occurrence4 ,worship can never be       
reduced to molecules or atoms4 ,while   
man lives and wonders1 hopes and fears1 
feels the clear beauty1 the infinite    
mystery1 and the eternal significance of
 things1 the religious experience will  
remain1 and men will find objects worthy
 of their worship4  ,,the ,,church ,,as 
,a ,,social ,,institution4 ,religion    
being so crucial a set of social habits1
 institutions arise for the perpetuation

 of its traditions1 and for the social  
expression of the religious life4 ,the  
churches perpetuate the religious       
tradition in a number of ways4 ,fixed   
ecclesiastical systems1 recitals and    
definitions of creeds1 the regular and  
meticulous performance of rites and     
ceremonies1 become powerful instruments 
for the transmission of religious ideas 
and standards4 ,rites frequently        
performed by men in mass have a deep and
 moving influence4 ,they have at once   
all the pressure and prestige of custom1
 confirmed by the mystery and awe that  
attends any expression of man's         
relationship to the divine4 ,the church1
 moreover1 by the mere fact of being an 
institution1 having a hierarchy1 an     
ordered procedure1 a definite assignment
 and division of ecclesiastical labor1  
becomes thereby an incomparable         
preserver and transmitter of traditional
 values4  ,churches1 ecclesiastical     
organizations in general1 may be said to
 arise because of the necessity felt by 

men for intermediaries between          
themselves and the divine4 ,we have     
already seen of what vast practical     
moment in savage life was communication 
with the gods4 ,upon the success of such
 addresses to deity1 depended not only  
the salvation of the soul1 but the      
actual welfare of the body--shelter1    
harvest1 and victory4 ,the gods among   
many tribes were held to be meticulous  
about the forms and ceremonies which men
 addressed to them4 ,in consequence it  
became important to have1 as it were1   
experts in the supernatural1 men who    
knew how to win the favor of these      
watchful powers4 ,the priests were      
originally identical with medicine men  
and magicians4 ,they knew the workings  
of the providential forces4 ,in their   
hands lay1 at least indirectly1 the     
welfare of the tribe4 ,their principal  
duties were to administer and give      
advice as to the worship of the gods4   
,often it was necessary for them to     
point out to the lay members of the     

tribe which gods to worship on special  
occasions4 ,the priests being accredited
 with a superior knowledge of the ways  
of the gods1 they were required to      
influence the wind and rain1 to cause   
good growth1 to ensure success in       
hunting and fishing1 to cure illness1 to
 foretell the future1 to work harm upon 
enemies4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,for a        
detailed discussion see ,hastings3      
,encyclopoedia of ,religion and ,ethics1
 vol4 ,,ii1 pp4 #bgh-cce4  ,there is    
more than one criterion by which men may
 be set apart as priests4 ,sometimes    
they are those who in a mystic state of 
ecstasy are supposed to be inspired by  
the gods4 ,during their trance such men 
are questioned as to the will of the    
divine4 ,sometimes they become renowned 
through their reputed performance of an 
occasional miracle4 ,again1 as magical  
and religious ceremonies become more    
complicated1 there is a deliberate      
training of an expert class to perform  
these essential acts4 ,and1 whatever be 

the source of the selection of the      
priestly class1 the immense influence   
which their functions are regarded as   
having on the welfare of the tribe      
causes them to be particularly revered  
and often feared by the lay members of  
the tribe4 ,in more civilized and       
spiritual religions1 the priestly or    
professional ecclesiastical class is no 
longer regarded as possessed of magical 
powers by which it can coerce divinity4 
,it is the official administrator of the
 ceremonies of religion1 is especially  
trained1 versed and certificated in     
doctrine1 is empowered to receive       
confession1 fix penance1 and the like4  
,it is still an intermediary between man
 and the divine1 although itself not    
possessing any supernatural powers4     
,where ecclesiastical organization is   
highly developed and has become         
controlling in the life of a people1 it 
may be one of the most powerful forces  
in social life4 ,such1 for example1     
might be said of the ,catholic ,church  

during the ,middle ,ages3  ,a life in   
the ,church1 for the ,church1 through   
the ,church2 a life which she blessed in
 mass at morning and sent to peaceful   
rest by the vesper hymn2 a life which   
she supported by the constantly         
recurring stimulus of the sacraments1   
relieving it by confession1 purifying it
 by penance1 admonishing it by the      
presentation of visible objects for     
contemplation and worship--this was the 
life which they of the ,middle ,ages    
conceived as the rightful life of ,man2 
it was the actual life of many1 the     
ideal of all4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,bryce3  
,holy ,roman ,empire1 p4 #dbc4          
,churches may also come to acquire      
political functions4 ,the history of the
 ,church is for many centuries the      
leading factor in the political history 
of ,europe1 nor is it only in           
,christendom that political institutions
 have been inextricably associated with 
religion4  ,religious institutions may1 
as pointed out in the case of primitive 

tribes1 acquire educational functions4  
,the initiation ceremonies in           
,australian tribes have a markedly      
religious character4 ,in the higher and 
more modern religions educational       
functions still persist4 ,the ,catholic 
,church has been regarded as the        
educator of ,europe4 ,charlemagne's     
endowment and encouragement of education
 was largely made effectual through the 
,church4 ,the grammarians and didactic  
writers1 the poets1 the encyclopdists1  
the teachers whom ,charlemagne endowed  
and gathered about him1 the heads of the
 schools which he founded1 were all     
churchmen4 ,until very recently in the  
history of ,europe the universities and 
education in general were nearly all    
under the domination of the ,church4    
,the secularization of primary education
 in ,england took place only late in the
 nineteenth century1 and it is not yet a
 generation since the battle over the   
secularization of education was waged in
 ,france4 ,all religious sects maintain 

on a smaller or larger scale educational
 functions4 ,parochial and convent      
schools and denominational colleges are 
contemporary examples4  ,,the ,,social  
,,consequences ,,of ,,institutionalized 
,,religion4 ,the consequences of        
institutionalized religion in social    
development have been very marked4 ,the 
mere association of large groups in a   
common faith and a common religious     
interest has been a considerable factor 
in their integration4 ,there is to be   
noted in the first place the common     
emotional sympathies aroused by the     
participation of great numbers in       
identical rites and ceremonies4 ,any    
widespread social habit becomes weighted
 with emotional values for its members4 
,particularly is this true of religious 
habits1 the mystery and magnificence    
associated with which deeply intensify  
their emotional influence4 ,again       
religious habits are given a unanimous  
and high social approval1 especially    
where the prohibitions and commands     

enforced by religion are conceived      
intimately to affect the welfare of the 
tribe4 ,the prophets reiterated to the  
people of ,israel that their calamities 
were the result of their having ceased  
to follow in the ways of the ,lord4 ,the
 possession of a common religious       
history and tradition may also give a   
people a deepened sense of group        
solidarity4 ,the national development of
 the ancient ,hebrews was undoubtedly   
promoted by their sense of being the    
chosen people1 of possessing exclusively
 the law of ,jehovah4  ,again religious 
sanction is given to codes of belief1   
modes of conduct1 and to institutions1  
thus at once strengthening them and     
making change difficult4 ,it is not     
merely customs that are obeyed and      
disobeyed1 but the sacred commands4 ,a  
premium is put upon the regular and     
traditional because of the divine       
sanction associated with them4 ,to      
violate a prohibition1 even a slight    
one1 becomes thus the most terrible     

sacrilege4 ,customs that1 like the      
hygienic rules of the ,mosaic code1 may 
have started as genuine social utilities
 are maintained because they have become
 fixed in the religious traditions as   
enjoined by the ,lord4 ,in consequence  
there may be a ,pharisaical insistence  
on the performance of the letter of the 
law1 long after its practical utility or
 spiritual significance is forgotten4   
,it is this persistence in the literal  
fulfillments of religious commands at   
the expense of the spirit1 that the     
,hebrew prophets so vehemently          
condemned4 ,thus proclaims ,isaiah3  ,to
 what purpose is the multitude of your  
sacrifices unto me8 ,saith the ,lord3 ,i
 am full of the burnt offerings of rams1
 and the fat of fed beasts4444  ,bring  
no more vain oblations2 incense is an   
abomination unto me4444  ,your new moons
 and your appointed feasts my soul      
hateth3 they are a trouble unto me2 ,i  
am weary to bear them4444  ,wash you1   
make you clean2 put away the evil of    

your doings from before mine eyes2 cease
 to do evil2  ,learn to do well2 seek   
judgment1 relieve the oppressed1 judge  
the fatherless1 plead for the widow4#a  
,footnote #a3 ,isaiah ,i3 #aa-ag4       
,institutions and modes of life1 even   
when they are not1 strictly speaking1   
part of the religious tradition proper1 
are given tremendous sanction and       
confirmation when they become embodied  
in the religious tradition4 ,the        
institution of the family1 for example1 
through the strong religious sanctions  
and values implied in the marriage      
ceremony and relationship 7especially   
the marriage sacrament of the ,catholic 
,church71 comes to be strongly fortified
 and entrenched4 ,change in the form of 
an institution so hallowed by religion  
is something more than change2 it is    
sacrilege4 ,governments and dynasties1  
again1 when they have a religious       
sanction1 when the ,king rules by divine
 right1 acquire a strong additional     
source of persistence and power4 ,the   

imperial character of the ,japanese     
government to-day1 for example1 is said 
to be greatly enhanced in prestige by   
the widespread popular belief that the  
,emperor is lineally descended from     
divinity4  ,sometimes religious         
sanctions have inspired and promoted    
zeal for social enterprise4 ,the        
,crusades stand out as classic          
instances1 but in the name of religion  
men have done more than build cathedrals
 and go on pilgrimages4 ,in the ,middle 
,ages1 bridges and roads were           
constructed1 alms were given1 pictures  
were painted1 books illuminated1        
encyclopdias made1 education conducted1 
all under the auspices and inspiration  
of the ,church4 ,the medival            
universities started as church schools4 
,in our own day1 the expansion of the   
churches in the direction of welfare    
work and social reform1 the use of the  
church as a community center1 are       
examples of this development4 ,men have 
found justification by good works as    

well as faith4  ,,intolerance ,,and     
,,inquisition4 ,the influence of        
religious tradition over the minds of   
its followers has had1 among many noble 
and beautiful consequences1 the dark    
fruits of intolerance1 persecution1     
inquisition1 and torture4 ,part of the  
bitter narrow-mindedness which has      
characterized the history of            
ecclesiastical institutions is not to be
 attributed specifically to religion4   
,it is rather to be explained by the    
general uneasiness which the gregarious 
human creature feels at any deviation   
from the accustomed4 ,in addition men   
have felt frequently that any divergence
 from the divinely ordained would bring 
destruction upon the whole group4 ,in   
the ,christian tradition there was an   
additional reason for intolerance3 the  
heretic was willfully losing his own    
soul1 and it was only humane to compel  
him to come into the fold1 to rescue him
 from the pains he would otherwise      
suffer in ,hell4  ,the profound         

conviction that those who did not       
believe in its doctrines would be damned
 eternally1 and that ,god punishes      
theological error as if it were the most
 heinous of crimes1 led naturally to    
persecution4 ,it was a duty to impose on
 men the only true doctrine1 seeing that
 their own eternal interests were at    
stake1 and to hinder errors from        
spreading4 ,heretics were more than     
ordinary criminals1 and the pains that  
man could inflict on them were as       
nothing to the tortures awaiting them in
 hell4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,bury3 ,history 
of ,freedom of ,thought1 pp4 #eb-ec4    
,in fevered zeal for the ,faith began   
that long hunting and punishment of     
heresy1 which has done so much to darken
 the history of religion in ,western    
,europe4 ,there were1 as in the         
,albigensian ,crusade1 wholesale        
burnings and hangings of men1 women1 and
 children4#a ,heresy was hunted out in  
secret retreats4 ,it was the foulest of 
crimes2 to prevail against it was to    

prevail against the legions of ,hell4   
,the culmination of intolerance was1 of 
course1 the ,inquisition4 ,one need not 
pause to recall its espionage system1   
its search for the spreaders of false   
doctrine1 its use of any and every      
witness against the suspect1 its        
granting of indulgences to any one who  
should bear witness against him1 its    
relaxing of the criminal to the secular 
arm1 which unfailingly punished him with
 death4 ,it must be pointed out that in 
the instance of the ,inquisition1 just  
as in the case of all religious         
persecution1 the motives were most      
frequently of the noblest4 ,in the      
,middle ,ages and after1 men of kindly  
temper and the purest zeal were         
absolutely devoid of mercy when heresy  
was suspected4 ,nor are intolerance and 
persecution to be laid exclusively at   
the door of any one religion4 ,in       
,protestant countries1 in ,england and  
,scotland1 the persecution and torture  
of alleged witches is one of the most   

painful instances of the cruelties into 
which men can be led by loyalty to their
 religious convictions4 ,and            
,mohammedanism vividly taught men how a 
faith might be spread by fire and sword4
  ,footnote #a3 ,ibid41 pp4 #ef-eg4     
,,quietism ,,and                        
,,consolation--,,other-,,worldliness4   
,many religions1 including              
,christianity1 have emphasized          
other-worldliness4 ,this has most       
frequently taken the form of emphasis on
 the life to come4 ,this world has been 
conceived1 as it were1 as a prelude to  
eternity4 ,in the ,christian world      
scheme1 as most clearly expounded and   
universally accepted during the ,middle 
,ages1 man's chief imperative business  
was salvation4 ,all else was trivial in 
comparison with that incomparable       
eternal bliss which would be the reward 
of the virtuous1 and that unending agony
 which would be the penalty for the     
damned4 ,salvation was the master       
,christian motive4 ,the ,gospel of      

,christ was a gospel of salvation unto  
eternal life4 ,it presented itself in   
the self-sacrifice of divine love1 not  
without warnings touching its           
rejection4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,h4 ,o4     
,taylor3 ,medioeval ,mind1 vol4 ,i1 p4  
#fa4  ,where interest is centered on a  
world to come1 there not infrequently   
results a loss of interest and          
discrimination in the goods of earthly  
life4 ,for what shall it profit a man if
 he shall gain the whole world and lose 
his own soul8 ,the beauties1 goods1 and 
distinctions of this world coalesce into
 an indiscriminate triviality in        
comparison with that infinite glory     
hereafter to be attained4 ,one does not 
trouble one's self about the furniture  
of earthly life any more than one would 
take pains with the beautification of a 
room in which one happens to be lodged  
for a night4  ,lay not up for yourselves
 treasures upon earth1 where moth and   
rust doth corrupt1 and where thieves    
break through and steal4  ,but lay up   

for yourselves treasures in ,heaven1    
where neither moth nor rust doth        
corrupt1 and where thieves do not break 
through nor steal4  ,though on earth you
 may live in squalor1 poverty1 and      
disease1 yet in my ,father's house are  
many mansions4  ,poverty1 indeed1 became
 in the ,middle ,ages one of the vows of
 monastic orders4 ,in the ,new          
,testament it is prescribed1 ,blessed   
are the poor in spirit and the doctrine 
was in many cases literally accepted4   
,if any one of you will know whether he 
is really poor in spirit1 let him       
consider whether he loves the ordinary  
consequences and effects of poverty1    
which are hunger1 thirst1 cold1 fatigue1
 and the denudation of all conveniences4
 ,see if you are glad to wear a worn-out
 habit full of patches4 ,see if you are 
glad when something is lacking to your  
meal1 when you are passed by in serving 
it1 when what you receive is distasteful
 to you1 when your cell is out of       
repair4 ,if you are not glad of these   

things1 if instead of loving them you   
avoid them1 then there is proof that you
 have not attained the perfection of    
poverty of spirit4#b  ,footnote #b3     
,alfonso ,rodriguez3 ,pratique de la    
,perfection ,chrtienne1 part ,,iii1     
treatise ,,iii1 chap4 ,,vi2 quoted in   
,james's ,varieties of ,religious       
,experience1 p4 #cae4  ,contempt for    
this world's goods1 when generalized1   
promotes an attitude of indifference to 
the social conditions in which men live4
 ,the history of the saints is filled   
with references to their endurance of   
pain1 ill health1 poverty1 and disease4 
,and the world1 the flesh1 and the devil
 are for some types of religious mind   
all one4 ,for such1 to be engaged in    
social betterment is an irrelevant      
business1 it is to be lost in the world4
 ,people's souls must be saved2 not     
their bodies4  ,religions1 on the other 
hand1 have frequently emphasized man's  
social duty4 ,in ,christianity this is  
largely a derivative of the highly      

regarded virtue of ,charity4 ,interest  
in one's own well-being was a           
prerequisite for the devout1 but        
interest in the welfare of others was   
equally enjoined4 ,to help the poor and 
the needy1 the widowed and the          
fatherless1 to bring succor to the      
oppressed and justice to the            
downtrodden1 have been part of the      
religion whose ,founder taught that all 
men were the children of their ,father  
in ,heaven4 ,the mendicant orders of the
 ,middle ,ages were devoted to          
philanthropic works2 and with religious 
institutions1 throughout their history1 
have been associated works of           
philanthropy and social welfare4 ,very  
recently urban churches in this country 
have been showing a tendency to         
reorganize with emphasis on the church  
as an instrument of social coperation   
rather than as an aloof exponent of     
dogmatic theology4 ,it is the ideal of  
some liberal theologians to use the     
churches chiefly as instruments for     

giving social effectiveness to the      
religious impulse and at the same time  
for making social betterment a spiritual
 enterprise4     ,,chapter ,,xiii  ,,art
 ,,and ,,the ,,sthetic ,,experience     
,,art ,,versus ,,nature4 ,in the ,career
 of ,reason man has gradually learned to
 control the world in which he lives in 
the interests of his own welfare as he  
imaginatively contemplated it4          
,deliberate control has been made       
necessary because of the fact that man  
is born into a world which was not made 
for him1 but in which he must1 if       
anywhere1 grow2 in a world which was not
 designed to fulfill his desires1 but   
where alone his desires can find        
fulfillment4 ,art may thus1 in the      
broadest sense1 be set over against     
,nature4 ,it is the activity by which   
man realizes ideals4 ,he may realize    
them practically1 as when he builds a   
house which he has first imagined1 or   
reaps a harvest in anticipation of which
 he has first sown the seeds4 ,he may   

realize them imaginatively1 as when in  
color1 form1 or sound he creates some   
desiderated beauty out of the crude     
miscellaneous materials of experience4  
,art1 in the broad sense of control or  
direction of ,nature1 arises in the     
double fact of man's instinctive        
activities and desires and the          
inadequacy of the environment as it     
stands to afford them satisfaction4     
,because nature is not considerate of   
his needs1 man must himself take        
forethought1 and devise means by which  
the forces and the materials of ,nature 
may be exploited to his own good4 ,and  
the realization of this forethought is  
made possible through the fact that     
natural conditions do lend themselves to
 modification4 ,nature1 though          
indifferent to man's welfare1 is yet    
partly congruous with it4 ,while the    
wind blows careless of the good or ill  
it does to him1 yet man may learn by    
means of windmills or sailboats to turn 
the wind to his own interest4 ,though   

the river may flow on forever1 oblivious
 to the men that come and go along its  
shores1 yet the passing generations may 
transform this undeliberate flowing into
 the power that yields them clothing1   
machinery1 and transportation4 ,all     
civilization is1 as ,mill says1 an      
exhibition of ,art or ,contrivance2 it  
is illustrated by  the junction by      
bridges of shores which ,nature had made
 separate1 the draining of ,nature's    
marshes1 the excavation of her wells1   
the dragging to light of what she has   
buried at immense depths in the earth2  
the turning away of her thunderbolts by 
lightning rods2 of her inundations by   
embankments1 of her oceans by           
breakwaters4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,mill3    
,three ,essays on ,religion1 p4 #ai     
7essay on ,nature74  ,by irrigation man 
has learned to make the wilderness      
blossom as the rose4 ,by railways1      
telegraphs1 and telephones1 he has      
learned to minimize the obstacles that  
time and space offer to the fulfillment 

of his desires4 ,by controlling1 by     
means of education and social           
organization1 his own instincts in the  
light of the purposes he would attain1  
by studying the secret processes of     
,nature1 man has learned to make the    
world a fit habitation for himself4 ,to 
dig1 to plough1 to sow1 to reap1 are    
instances of the means whereby man has  
applied intelligent control to his      
half-friendly1 half-hostile environment4
  ,man's deliberate control of ,nature  
arises thus under the sharp pressure of 
practical necessity4 ,man is inherently 
active1 but1 as pointed out in an       
earlier connection1 his activity takes  
coherent and consecutive form primarily 
under the compulsion of satisfying his  
physical wants1 of finding food1        
clothing1 and shelter4 ,the greater part
 of human energy1 certainly under       
primitive conditions1 is devoted to     
maintaining a precarious equilibrium    
among the mysterious and terrifying     
forces of a half-understood environment4

 ,there is not much time for leisure1   
play1 or art1 where food is a           
continuously urgent problem1 where one's
 shelter is likely to be destroyed by   
storm or wind1 where one is threatened  
incessantly by beasts of prey1 and1 as  
primitive man supposed1 by capricious   
supernatural powers4 ,under such        
circumstances1 life is largely spent in 
instrumental or imperative pursuits4    
,action is fixed by necessity4 ,it is   
controlled with immediate and urgent    
reference to the business of keeping    
alive4 ,there is scarcely time for the  
activity of art1 which is spontaneous   
and free4  ,in civilized life1 also1 the
 greater part of human energy must be   
spent in necessary or instrumental      
business4 ,men must1 as always1 be fed1 
clothed1 and housed1 and the fulfillment
 of these primary human demands absorbs 
the greater part of the waking hours of 
the majority of mankind4 ,our           
civilization is predominantly           
industrial2 it is devoted almost        

entirely to the transforming of the     
world of nature into products for the   
gratification of the physical wants of  
men4 ,these wants have1 of course1      
become much complicated and refined3 men
 wish not only to live1 but to live     
commodiously and well4 ,they want not   
merely a roof over their heads1 but a   
pleasant and comfortable house in which 
to live4 ,they want not merely something
 to stave off starvation1 but palatable 
foods4 ,in the satisfaction of these    
increasingly complicated demands a great
 diversity of industries arises4 ,with  
every new want to be fulfilled1 there is
 a new occupation1 pursued not for its  
own sake1 but for the sake of the good  
which it produces4 ,there are industrial
 leaders1 of course1 who find in the    
development and control of the          
productive energies of thousands of men1
 in the manipulation of immense natural 
resources1 satisfactions analogous to   
that of the fine artist4 ,but for most  
men engaged in the routine operations of

 industry1 the work they do is clearly  
not pursued on its own account4         
,industry1 viewed in the total context  
of the activities of civilization1 is a 
practical rather than a fine art4 ,its  
ideal is efficiency1 which means economy
 of effort4 ,its interest is primarily  
in producing many goods cheaply4  ,,the 
,,emergence ,,of ,,the ,,fine ,,arts4   
,in the sharp struggle of man with his  
environment1 those instincts survived   
which were of practical use4 ,the       
natural impulses with which a human     
being is at birth endowed1 are chiefly  
those which enable him to cope          
successfully and efficiently with his   
environment4 ,but even in primitive     
life1 so exuberant and resilient is     
human energy that it is not exhausted by
 necessary labors4 ,the plastic arts1   
for example1 began in the practical     
business of pottery and weaving4 ,the   
weaver and the potter who have acquired 
skill and who have a little more        
vitality than is required for turning   

out something that is merely useful1    
turn out something that is also         
beautiful4 ,the decorations which are   
made upon primitive pottery exhibit the 
excess vitality and skill of the        
virtuoso4 ,similarly1 religious ritual1 
which1 as we have seen1 arises in       
practical commerce with the gods1 comes 
to be in itself cherished and beautiful4
 ,the chants which are prescribed       
invocations of divinity1 become songs   
intrinsically interesting to singer and 
listener alike2 the dance ceases to be  
merely a necessary religious form and   
becomes an occasion of beauty and       
delight4 ,jane ,harrison has shown in   
detail how ritual arises out of         
practical need1 and art out of ritual4#a
 ,thus the ,greek drama had its         
beginnings in ,greek religion2 the      
incidental beauty of the choruses of the
 ,greek festivals developed into the    
eventual tragic art of schylus1         
,sophocles1 and ,euripides4 ,ceasing to 
be a practical invocation to the gods it

 became an artistic enterprise in and   
for itself4 ,repeatedly we find in      
primitive life that activity is not     
exhausted in agriculture1 hunting1 and  
handicraft1 or in a desperate commerce  
with divinity4 ,harvest becomes a       
festival1 pottery becomes an opportunity
 for decoration1 and prayer1 for poetry4
 ,even in primitive life men find the   
leisure to let their imaginations loiter
 over these intrinsically lovely        
episodes in their experience4  ,the     
potter may be more interested in making 
a beautifully moulded and decorated     
vessel than merely in turning out a     
thing of use2 the maker of baskets may  
come to play with his materials1 to make
 baskets not so much for their          
usefulness as for the possible beauty of
 their patterns4 ,when this interest in 
beauty becomes highly developed1 and    
when circumstances permit1 the fine arts
 arise4 ,the crafts come to be practiced
 as intrinsically interesting           
employments of the creative imagination4

 ,the moulding of miscellaneous         
materials into beautiful forms becomes a
 beloved habitual practice4  ,footnote  
#a3 ,see ,jane ,harrison3 ,ancient ,art 
and ,ritual1 especially chap4 ,i4  ,the 
context in which art appears in         
primitive life is paralleled in         
civilized society4 ,the energies of men 
are still largely consumed in necessary 
pursuits4 ,men must1 as of old1 by the  
inadequacy of the natural order in which
 they find themselves1 find means by    
which to live2 and1 being by nature     
constituted so that they must live      
together1 they must find ways of living 
together justly and harmoniously4       
,industry1 writes ,santayana1 merely    
gives to ,nature that form which1 if    
more thoroughly humane1 she might       
already have possessed for our benefit4 
,it is creative in so far as it         
transforms matter from its crude        
indifferent state to forms better       
adapted to human ideals4 ,it makes      
cotton into cloth1 wool into clothing1  

wheat into flour1 leather into shoes1   
coal into light and power1 iron into    
skyscrapers4 ,it is devoted to annulling
 the discrepancies between nature and   
human nature4 ,it turns refractory      
materials and obdurate forces into      
commodious goods and useful powers4     
,but1 in the broadest sense1 industry is
 a means to an end4 ,interesting and    
attractive it may well become1 as when a
 bookbinder or a printer takes a        
craftsman's proud delight in the manner 
in which he performs his work1 and in   
the quality of its product4 ,but the    
industrial arts1 for the most part1     
serve more ultimate purposes4 ,it is    
imaginable that ,nature might have      
provided clothing1 food1 and shelter    
ready to our hand4 ,it is questionable  
whether under such circumstances men    
would out of deliberate choice continue 
industries which are now made imperative
 through necessity4 ,the mines and the  
stockyards are necessary rather than    
beautiful or intrinsically attractive   

occupations4 ,but in the world of fact1 
those things which are necessary to us  
are not ready to our hand4 ,our         
civilization is predominantly           
industrial1 and must be so1 if the      
billion and a half inhabitants of our   
world are to be maintained by the       
resources at our command4  ,nevertheless
 despite the absorption of a large      
proportion of contemporary society in   
activities pursued not for their own    
sakes1 but for the goods which are their
 fruits1 there is still1 as it were1    
energy left over4 ,this excess vitality 
may1 as it does for most men1 take the  
form of mere unorganized play or        
recreation4 ,but not so for those born  
with a singular gift for realizing in   
color or form or sound the ideal values 
which they have imagined4 ,for these    
play is creative production4 ,the fine  
arts are1 in a sense1 the play of the   
race4 ,they are the fruits of such      
energy as is1 through some fortunate    
accident of temperament or circumstance1

 not caught up in the routine and       
mechanics of industry or the            
trivialities of sport or pleasure4 ,they
 are human activities1 freed from the   
limitations imposed by the exigencies of
 practical life1 and controlled only by 
the artist's imagined visions4 ,creative
 activity is most explicit and most     
successful in the fine arts1 because in 
these there are fewer obstacles to the  
material realization of imagined        
perfections4 ,the liberal arts bring to 
spiritual fruition the matter which     
either nature or industry has prepared  
and rendered propitious4  ,the          
industrial arts are1 as already pointed 
out1 man's transformation of natural    
resources to ideal uses4 ,in the same   
way political and social organization   
are human arts1 enterprises1 at their   
best1 in the moulding of men's natures  
to their highest possible realization4  
,but in the world of action1 whether    
political or industrial1 there are      
incomparably greater hindrances to the  

realization in practice of imagined     
goods than there are1 at least to the   
gifted1 in the fine arts4 ,every ideal  
for which men attempt to find           
fulfillment in the world of action is   
subject to a thousand accidental        
deflections of circumstance4 ,every     
enterprise involves conflicting wills2  
the larger the enterprise1 the more     
various and probably the more           
conflicting the interests involved4     
,social movements have their courses    
determined by factors altogether beyond 
the control of their originators4       
,statesmen can start wars1 but cannot   
define their eventual fruits4 ,a man may
 found a political party1 and live to   
see it wander far from the ideal which  
he had framed4 ,but in the fine arts1 to
 the imaginatively and technically      
endowed1 the materials are prepared and 
controllable4 ,in the hands of a master1
 action does not wander from intent4    
,language to the poet1 for example1 is  
an immediate and responsive instrument2 

he can mould it precisely to his ideal  
intention4 ,the enterprise of poetry is 
less dependent almost than any other    
undertaking on the accidents of         
circumstance1 outside the poet's initial
 imaginative resources4 ,in music1 even 
so simple an instrument as a flute can  
yield perfection of sound4 ,the composer
 of a symphony can invent a perpetual   
uncorroded beauty2 the sculptor an      
immortality of irrefutably persuasive   
form4 ,this explains in part why so many
 artists1 of a reflective turn of mind1 
are pessimists in practical affairs4    
,the world of action with its perpetual 
and pitiful frustrations1 failures1 and 
compromises1 seems incomparably poor1   
paltry1 and sordid1 in comparison with  
the perfection that is attainable in    
art4  ,haunting foreshadowings of the   
temple appear in the realm of           
imagination1 in music1 in architecture1 
in the untroubled kingdom of reason1 and
 in the golden sunset magic of lyrics1  
where beauty shines and glows1 remote   

from the touch of sorrow1 remote from   
the fear of change1 remote from the     
failures and disenchantment of the world
 of fact4 ,in the contemplation of these
 things the vision of heaven will shape 
itself in our hearts1 giving at once a  
touchstone to judge the world about us1 
and an inspiration by which to fashion  
to our needs whatever is capable of     
serving as a stone in the sacred        
temple4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,bertrand      
,russell3 ,philosophical ,essays1 pp4   
#fe-ff4  ,the creative artist gives such
 form to the miscellaneous materials at 
his disposal that they give satisfaction
 not only to the senses or the          
intellect1 but to the imagination4 ,what
 constitute some of the chief elements  
in the sthetic experience1 we shall     
presently examine4 ,it must first be    
pointed out that in general in the fine 
arts creative genius has found ways of  
imaginatively attaining perfections not 
usually accorded in the experiences of  
the senses1 in the life of society1 or  

in the life of the mind4  ,the region   
called imagination has pleasures more   
airy and luminous than those of sense1  
more massive and rapturous than those of
 intelligence4 ,the values inherent in  
imagination1 in instant intuition1 in   
sense endowed with form1 are called     
sthetic values2 they are found mainly in
 nature and in living beings1 but also  
in man's artificial works1 in images    
evoked by language1 and in the realm of 
sound4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,santayana3     
,reason in ,art1 p4 #ae4  ,the painter  
imagines and seeks to realize hues and  
intensities of color more satisfying and
 more suggestive than those commonly    
experienced in nature1 save in the      
occasional grace of sunset on a mountain
 lake1 or the miracle of moonlight on   
the ocean4 ,the artist takes his hints  
from nature1 but clothes the suggestions
 of sense with the values and motives   
which exist only in his own mind and    
imagination4 ,a ,turner sunset is1 as   
,oscar ,wilde points out1 in a sense    

incomparably superior to one provided by
 nature4 ,it not only gives the         
beautiful sensations to be had in a     
landscape suffused with the sunset glow2
 it infuses into this experience the    
passionate and penetrating insight of a 
genius4 ,the artist1 to an extent1      
imitates nature4 ,but1 if that were all 
he did1 he would be no more than a      
photographer4 ,he pictures nature1 but  
gives it tint and melody and breath2 he 
gives it a value and significance       
derived from his own imaginative vision4
 ,the musician combines sounds more     
significant1 ordered1 and rhythmical    
than those miscellaneous noises which1  
in ordinary experience1 beat            
indifferently or painfully upon our     
ears4 ,the poet selects words whose     
specific music1 rhythmical combinations1
 and lyrical context produce a something
 more evocative1 compelling1 and        
euphonic than the casual and raucous    
instrument of communication which       
constitutes ordinary speech4  ,not only 

do poets give imaginative and ideal     
extensions to sense experience2 they do 
as much with and for social life4 ,in   
the dreaming of ,utopias1 in the        
building of the ,perfect ,city1 men have
 found compensations for the imperfect  
cities which have been their experiences
 on earth4 ,they build themselves in    
imagination a world where all injustices
 are erased1 where beauty is perennial1 
where truth1 courage1 kindliness1 and   
merriment are the pervasive colors of   
life4 ,in the activity of creative art1 
man's imagination has reached out beyond
 the confines of nature and of history1 
and built itself1 in marble and in      
music1 in lyrics and in legends1 hints  
of that enchanting possible1 of which   
the impoverished actual gives tentative 
and tenuous hints4  ,in some men        
sensitivity to the imaginative          
possibilities of the materials of       
,nature is so high1 that they can find  
satisfactory activity nowhere else than 
in one or another of the fine arts4     

,these are the poets1 the musicians1 and
 the sculptors1 who seek to give        
realization in the arts in the technique
 of which they are especially gifted1 to
 that imagined beauty by the intimate   
experience of which they live4 ,in one  
way or another the creative artist seeks
 to give form and dimension to    ,the  
light that never was on sea or land1    
,the consecration and the poet's dream4 
,this creative impulse may find its     
realization1 as already pointed out1 in 
industry1 though1 with the highly       
routine character of most men's         
occupations in present-day industrial   
life1 there is not much opportunity for 
imaginative activity4 ,that both work   
and happiness would be promoted by the  
encouragement of the craftsman ideal    
goes without saying4 ,whether or not it 
is possible to utilize the creative     
impulses in the processes of industry as
 now organized1 there are instances     
where the joy of craftsmanship may be   
exploited both for the happiness of the 

worker and the good of the work4 ,the   
,william ,morris ideal of the           
artist-worker may be hard to attain1 but
 it is none the less desirable1 both for
 the sake of the worker and his work4   
,in science the uses of the imagination 
have been frequently commented on1 not  
least by scientists4 ,the patient       
collection of facts1 the digging and    
measurement and inquiry that            
characterize so much of scientific      
investigation are not the whole of it4  
,inference1 the forming of a            
generalization1 is frequently described 
as a leap from the known to the unknown1
 and this discovery of a binding        
principle that brings together a wide   
variety of disconnected facts is not    
unlike the process of the creative      
artist4 ,the same unconscious method by 
which a poet hits upon an appropriate   
epithet1 a musician upon a melody1 a    
painter upon an effect of color or line 
is displayed in that sudden vivid flash 
of insight by which a scientist sees a  

mass of facts that have long seemed     
bafflingly contradictory1 gathered up   
under a single luminous law4 ,in his    
famous essay on ,the ,scientific ,uses  
of the ,imagination1 ,tyndall writes3   
,we are gifted with the power of        
,imagination1 444 and by this power we  
can lighten the darkness which surrounds
 the world of the senses4 ,there are    
tories even in science who regard       
imagination as a faculty to be feared   
and avoided rather than employed4 ,they 
had observed its action in weak vessels 
and were unduly impressed by its        
disasters4 ,but they might with equal   
justice point to exploded boilers as an 
argument against the use of steam4      
,bounded and conditioned by coperant    
,reason1 imagination becomes the        
mightiest instrument of the physical    
discoverer4 ,newton's passage from a    
falling apple to a falling moon was1 at 
the outset1 a leap of the imagination4  
,when ,william ,thomson tries to place  
the ultimate particles of matter between

 his compass points1 and to apply to    
them a scale of millimetres1 he is      
powerfully aided by this faculty4 ,and  
in much that has been recently said     
about protoplasm and life1 we have the  
outgoings of the imagination guided and 
controlled by the known analogies of    
science4 ,in fact1 without this power1  
our knowledge of ,nature would be a mere
 tabulation of coexistences and         
sequences4 ,we should still believe in  
the succession of day and night1 of     
summer and winter2 but the soul of      
,force would be dislodged from our      
universe2 causal relations would        
disappear1 and with them that science   
which is now binding the parts of nature
 into an organic whole4#a  ,footnote #a3
 ,tyndall3 ,fragments of ,science1 pp4  
#acj-ca4  ,as we shall presently see1   
this imaginative leap is guarded and    
controlled1 so that no flash of insight1
 however attractive1 is uncritically    
accepted4 ,but the origin of every      
eventually accepted hypothesis lies in  

the upshoot of irresponsible fancy1     
differing not at all from the images in 
the mind of a poet or painter or the    
melodies that unpredictably occur to a  
musician4  ,,the ,,sthetic ,,experience4
 ,art is1 on its creative side1 as we   
have seen1 the control of ,nature in the
 practical or imaginative realization of
 ideals4 ,the industrial arts are       
pursued out of necessity1 because man   
must find himself ways of living in a   
world which he must inhabit1 though it  
is not a prior arranged for his         
habitation4 ,the fine arts are pursued  
as ends in themselves4#a ,the genuinely 
gifted sing1 paint1 write poetry1 apart 
from fame and reward1 for the sheer     
pleasure of creation4 ,but the products 
of these creative activities themselves 
become satisfactions on a par with other
 natural goods4 ,the objects of         
art--poems1 paintings1 statues1         
symphonies--are themselves prized and   
sought after4 ,they afford satisfaction 
to that large number of persons who are 

sensitive to the beautiful without      
having a gift for its creation4         
,footnote #a3 ,many industrial processes
 exhibit elements of the fine arts4     
,this is the case whenever there is     
opportunity for the worker to feel1 and 
to have some ground for the feeling1    
that he is not merely turning out a     
product1 but turning out a well-made or 
a beautiful one1 to which his own skill 
is contributing4 ,the makers of fine    
books or bindings or furniture1 of fine 
embroidery and the like1 are examples4  
,but such conditions occur chiefly in   
the so-called luxury trades4 ,there is  
very little opportunity for the display 
of creative talent in quantity          
manufacture4  ,on the other hand1 every 
fine art involves some elements of      
merely technical skill or craftsmanship1
 which is important in achieving an     
imaginative result1 but is the skill of 
the mechanic rather than the vision of  
the artist4 ,in surveying the finished  
product of art as it appears in a       

painting by a ,turner or a ,cezanne1 we 
may forget the dust and ointment of the 
calling1 but it is none the less there4 
,the drudgery of art1 the practicing of 
scales4 the mixing of colors1 the       
rehearsing of plays1 are1 as it were1   
the necessary preliminary industry in   
art4  sthetic appreciation is indeed    
shared by all men1 and is called out by 
other objects than paintings or poems4  
,there is hardly anything men do which  
is not affected by what has been called 
an irrelevant access of sthetic feeling4
 ,we saw in another connection how our  
estimates of persons and situations are 
qualified by love and hate1 sympathy and
 revulsion4 ,in the same way all our    
experiences have an sthetic coloring4   
,it may be nothing more than the curious
 jubilance and vivacity1 the thrill and 
tingle of the blood that comes upon a   
crisp autumn day4 ,it may be1 as ,mill  
pointed out1 the largeness of thought   
and vision promoted by habitually       
working in a spacious and dignified     

room4 sthetic influences are always     
playing upon us2 they determine not only
 our tastes in the decoration of our    
houses1 our choices of places to walk   
and to eat1 but even such seemingly     
remote and abstract matters as a        
scientific theory or a philosophy of    
life4 ,even the industrial ideal of     
efficiency has1 with its suggestion of  
,dutch neatness and cleanliness1 order  
and symmetry1 an sthetic flavor4        
,similarly is there an appeal to our    
sthetic sensibilities in the grouping of
 a wide variety of facts under sweeping 
inclusive and simple generalizations4   
,there is1 as has often been pointed    
out1 scarcely anything to choose from as
 regards the relative plausibility of   
the ,copernican over the ,ptolemaic     
system4 ,the former we choose largely   
because of its greater symmetry and     
simplicity in accounting for the facts4 
,even a world view may be chosen on     
account of its artistic appeal4 ,one    
feels moved imaginatively1 even if one  

disagrees with the logic of those       
philosophies which see reality as one   
luminously transparent conscious whole1 
in which every experience is delicately 
reticulated with every other1 where     
discord and division are obliterated1   
and the multiple variety of mundane     
facts are gathered up into the          
symmetrical unity of the eternal4       
,,appreciation ,,versus ,,action4 ,every
 human experience has thus its          
particular and curious sthetic flavor1  
as an inevitable though undetected      
obligato4 sthetic values enter into and 
qualify our estimates of persons and    
situations1 and help to determine that  
general sympathy or revulsion1 that love
 or hate for people1 institutions1 or   
ideas1 which make the pervasive         
atmosphere of all human action4 ,but in 
the world of action1 we cannot emphasize
 these irrelevant sthetic feelings4 ,the
 appreciative and the practical moods   
are sharply contrasted4 ,in the latter  
we are interested in results1 and insist

 on the exclusion of all considerations 
that do not bear on their               
accomplishment4 ,the appreciative or    
sthetic mood is detached2 it is         
interested not to act1 but to pause and 
consider2 it does not want to use the   
present as a point of departure4 ,it    
wants to bask in the present perfection 
of color1 word1 or sound4 ,the practical
 man is interested in a present         
situation for what can be done with it2 
he wants to know1 in the vernacular1    
,what comes next8 ,where do we go from  
here8 ,the appreciator wishes to remain 
in the lovely interlude of perfection   
which he experiences in music1 poetry1  
or painting4  ,the sthetic mood is      
obviously at a discount in the world of 
action4 ,to bask in the charm of a      
present situation1 to linger and loiter1
 as it were1 in the sun of beauty1 is to
 accomplish nothing1 to interrupt       
action4 ,it is precisely for this reason
 that persons with extremely high       
sthetic sensibilities are at such a     

discount in practical life4 ,they are   
too easily dissolved in appreciation4   
,they are too much absorbed1 for        
practical efficiency1 in the tragic1 the
 whimsical1 the beautiful1 or the comic 
aspects of men and affairs4 ,the same   
sensitivity to the innuendoes and colors
 of life that enable some of such men to
 give an exquisite and various          
portraiture of experience1 incapacitates
 them for action4 ,the practical man    
must not observe anything irrelevant to 
his immediate business4 ,he must not be 
dissolved1 at every random provocation1 
into ecstacy1 laughter1 or sorrow4      
,there is too much to be done in        
business1 government1 mechanics1 and the
 laboratory1 to allow one's attention to
 wander dreamingly over the tragic1 the 
beautiful1 the pathetic1 the comic1 and 
the grotesque qualities of the day's    
work4 ,to take an extreme case1 it      
would1 as ,jane ,harrison observes1 be a
 monstrosity1 when our friend was       
drowning1 to note with lingering        

appreciation the fluent white curve of  
his arm in the glimmering waters of the 
late afternoon4 ,the man to whom every  
event is flooded with imaginative       
possibilities and emotional suggestions 
is a useless or a dangerous character in
 situations where it is essential to    
discriminate the immediate and important
 bearings of facts4 ,we cannot select an
 expert accountant on the basis of a    
pleasant smile1 nor a chauffeur for his 
sense of humor4  ,but while1 in the     
larger part of the lives of most men1   
observation of facts is controlled with 
reference to their practical bearings1  
observation may sometimes take place for
 its own sake4 ,the glory of a sunset is
 not commonly prized for any good that  
may come of it2 nobody but a general on 
a campaign or a fire warden looks out   
from a mountain peak upon the valley    
below for reasons other than the        
pleasure of the beholding4 ,in the case 
of persons1 also1 we are not always     
interested in them for their uses2 we   

are sometimes delighted with them in    
themselves4 ,we pause to watch merry or 
quaint children1 experts at tennis1     
beautiful faces1 for their own sakes4   
,while even in nature and in social     
experience1 we thus sometimes note      
specifically sthetic values1 the objects
 of fine art have no other justification
 than the immediate satisfactions they  
produce in their beholder4 ,those       
intrinsic pleasures which go by the     
general name of beauty are various and  
complicated4 ,our joy may be in the     
sheer delight of the senses1 as in the  
hearing of a singularly lucid and       
sustained note of a clarinet1 a flute1 a
 voice1 or a violin4 ,it may be in the  
appreciation of form1 as in the case of 
the symmetry of a temple1 an arch1 or an
 altar4 ,it may be in the simultaneous  
stirring of the senses1 the imagination1
 and the intellect1 by the presentation 
of an idea suffused with music and      
emotion1 as in the case of an ode by    
,wordsworth or a sonnet by ,milton4  ,in

 all these instances we are not         
interested in anything beyond the       
experience itself4 ,the objects of the  
fine arts are not drafts on the future1 
anticipations of future satisfactions   
eventually to be cashed in4 ,they are   
immediate and intrinsic goods1 absolute 
fulfillments4 ,they are not signals to  
action2 they are releases from it4 ,a   
painting1 a poem1 a symphony1 do not    
precipitate movement or change4 ,they   
invite a restful absorption4 ,it was    
this that made ,schopenhauer regard art 
as a rest from reality4 ,during these   
interludes1 at least1 we live amid      
perfections1 and are content there to   
move and have our being4  ,,sense       
,,satisfaction4 ,appreciation of the    
arts begins in the senses4 ,sight and   
sound1 these are unquestionably the     
chief avenues by which the imagination  
is stirred4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,the       
so-called lower senses are not regarded 
as yielding sthetic values4 ,smell1     
taste1 and touch are not generally1     

certainly in ,occidental art1 made much 
of4  ,in the words of ,santayana3  ,for 
if nothing not once in sense is to be   
found in the intellect1 much less is    
such a thing to be found in the         
imagination4 ,if the cedars of ,lebanon 
did not spread a grateful shade1 or the 
winds rustle through the maze of their  
branches1 if ,lebanon had never been    
beautiful to sense1 it would not now be 
a fit or poetic subject of allusion4444 
,nor would ,samarcand be anything but   
for the mystery of the desert1 and the  
picturesqueness of caravans1 nor would  
an argosy be poetic if the sea had no   
voices and no foam1 the winds and oars  
no resistance1 and the rudder and taut  
sheets no pull4 ,from these real        
sensations imagination draws its life1  
and suggestion its power4#b  ,footnote  
#b3 ,santayana3 ,sense of ,beauty1 p4   
#fh4  ,satisfaction in sounds arises    
from the regular intervals of the       
vibrations of the air by which it is    
produced4 ,the rapidity of these regular

 beats determines the pitch4 ,but sounds
 also differ in timbre or quality1      
depending on the number of overtones    
which occur in different modes of       
production4 ,this explains why a note on
 the scale played on the piano1 differs 
from the same note played on the 'cello 
or the organ4 ,from these fundamental   
sensuous elements of sound1 elaborate   
symphonic compositions may be built up1 
but they remain primary nevertheless4   
,unless the sensuous elements of sound  
were themselves pleasing it is difficult
 to imagine that a musical composition  
could be4 ,music would then be like an  
orchestra whose members played in       
unison1 but whose violins were raucous  
and whose trumpets hoarse4  ,color again
 illustrates the sthetic satisfactions  
that are found in certain kinds of sense
 stimulation1 apart from the form they  
are given or the emotions or ideas they 
express4 ,the elements of color1 as     
color1 may be reduced to three simple   
elements3 ,first may be noted hue1 as   

yellow or blue2 second1 value 7or notan7
 dark or light red2 and third intensity 
7or brightness to grayness71 as vivid   
blue or dull blue4 ,specific vivid      
sthetic combinations and variations are 
made possible by variations or          
combinations of these three elements of 
color4 ,if a color scheme is            
displeasing1 the fault may be in the    
wrong selection of hues1 in weak values1
 in ill-matched intensities or all      
three4  ,dutch tiles1 ,japanese prints  
and blue towels1 ,abruzzi towels1       
,american blue quilts1 etc41 are        
examples of harmony built up with       
several values of one hue4  ,with two   
hues innumerable variations are         
possible4 ,japanese prints of the red   
and green period are compositions in    
light yellow-red1 middle green1 black1  
and white4444  ,color varies not only in
 hue and value notan but in             
intensity--ranging from bright to gray4 
,every painter knows that a brilliant   
bit of color1 set in grayer tones of the

 same or neighboring hues1 will         
illuminate the whole group--a           
distinguished and elusive harmony4 ,the 
fire opal has a single point of intense 
scarlet1 melting into pearl2 the clear  
evening sky is like this when from the  
sunken sun the red-orange light grades  
away through yellow and green to steel  
gray4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,dow3            
,composition1 p4 #aji4  ,these          
variations in hue1 value1 and intensity 
of color afford specific sthetic        
satisfactions4 ,the blueness of the sky 
is its specific beauty2 the greenness of
 foliage in springtime is its           
characteristic and quite essential      
charm4 ,apart from anything else1       
sensations themselves afford            
satisfaction or the reverse4 ,a loud    
color1 a strident or a shrill sound may 
cause a genuine revulsion of feeling4 ,a
 soft hue or a pellucid note may be an  
intrinsic pleasure1 though a formless   
one1 and one expressive of no meaning at
 all4  ,,form4 ,while the imagination is

 stirred most directly by the immediate 
material beauty1 by the satisfaction of 
the senses1 beauty of form is an        
important element in the enhancement of 
appreciation4 ,in the plastic arts and  
in music1 it is1 next to the immediate  
appeal of the sensuous elements         
involved1 the chief ingredient in the   
effects produced4 ,and even in those    
arts which are notable for their        
expressive values1 poetry1 fiction1     
drama and painting1 the appeal of form1 
as in the plot of a drama1 or the       
structure of an ode or it sonnet is     
still very high4 ,certain dispositions  
of line and color in painting2 of       
harmony and counterpoint in music2      
rhythm1 refrain1 and recurrence in      
poetry2 symmetry and balance in         
sculpture2 all have their specific      
appeal1 apart from the materials used or
 the emotions or ideas expressed4       
,certain harmonic relations are         
interesting in music apart from the     
particular range of notes employed1 or  

the particular melody upon which        
variations are made4 ,the pattern of a  
tapestry may be interesting1 apart from 
the color combinations involved4 ,the   
structure of a ballade or a sonnet may  
be beautiful1 apart from the melody of  
the words or the persuasiveness of the  
emotion or idea4 ,out of the factors    
which enter into the appreciation of    
form certain elements stand out4  ,there
 is1 in the first place1 symmetry1 the  
charm of which lies partly in           
recognition and rhythm4 ,when the eye   
runs over a faade1 and finds the objects
 that attract it at equal intervals1 an 
expectation1 like the anticipation of an
 inevitable note or requisite word1     
arises in the mind1 and its             
non-satisfaction involves a shock4#a    
,footnote #a3 ,santayana3 ,the ,sense of
 ,beauty1 p4 #ib4  ,similarly1 form     
given to material brings a variety of   
details under a comprehensive unity1    
enabling us to have at once the         
stimulation of diversity and the        

clarification of a guiding principle4   
,we cherish sensations in themselves1   
when they consist of elements like      
limpidness of color and lucidity of     
sound4 ,but too much miscellany of      
sensation is disquieting2 it has an     
effect analogous to noise4 ,a baby or a 
barbarian may delight in loud           
heterogeneity and vivid confusion1 but  
extravagance of sensation does not      
constitute an sthetic experience4  ,the 
discovery of the one in the many1 the   
immediate apprehension of the fluent    
tracing of a pattern1 a form1 or a      
structure1 is intrinsically delightful4 
,the pattern of a tapestry design is as 
striking and suggestive as the colors   
themselves4 ,when musical taste has     
passed from a sentimental intoxication  
with the sensuous beauty of the sounds  
themselves1 the beauty we admire is     
primarily beauty of form or structure4  
,the musical connoisseur likes to trace 
the recurrence of a theme in a symphony1
 its deviations and disappearances1 its 

distribution in the various choirs of   
wood-wind1 brass1 and strings1 its      
interweaving with other themes1 its     
resilient1 surprising1 and apposite     
emergences1 its pervasive penetration of
 the total scheme4  ,the sthetic        
experience1 indeed1 as specifically     
sthetic1 rather than merely sensuous or 
intellectual1 is1 it might be said1     
almost wholly a matter of form4 ,it is  
the artist's function1 as it is         
occasionally his achievement1 to give   
satisfying1 determinate forms to the    
indeterminate and miscellaneous         
materials at his command4 ,formlessness 
is for the creator of beauty the        
unpardonable sin4 ,to give clarity and  
coherence to the vague ambiguous        
scintillations of sound1 to chisel a    
specific perfection out of the          
indefinite inviting possibilities of    
marble1 to form precise and consecutive 
suggestions out of the random and       
uncertain music of words1 is to achieve1
 in so far1 success in art4 ,nor does   

form mean formality4 ,experience is so  
various and fertile1 and so far outruns 
the types under which human invention   
and imagination can apprehend it1 that  
inexhaustible novelty is possible4      
,novelty1 on the other hand1 does not   
mean formlessness4 ,the artist must1 if 
he is to be successful1 always remain   
something of an artisan4 ,however       
beautiful his vision1 he must have      
sufficient command of the technical     
resources to his craft to give a        
specific and determinate embodiment to  
his ideal4  ,every one has haunting     
premonitions of beauty2 it is the       
business of the artist to give          
realization in form to the hints of the 
beautiful which are present in matter as
 we meet it in experience1 and to the   
imaginative longings which they provoke4
  ,in which forms different individuals 
will find satisfaction depends on all   
the circumstances which go to make one  
individual different from another4      
,there cannot be in the case of art1 any

 more than in any other experience1     
absolute standards4 ,we can be pleased  
only with those arrangements of sound or
 color to which our sensibilities have  
early been educated4 ,even the most     
catholic of tastes becomes restricted in
 the course of education4 ,to ,western  
ears1 there is at first no music at all 
in ,chinese music1 and ,beethoven would 
appear to the ,chinese as barbarous as  
their compositions appear to us4  ,but  
while in a wide sense1 conformity to the
 average determines or limits our       
possible appreciation of the beautiful1 
within these limits certain elements are
 intrinsically more pleasing than       
others4 ,those elements of experience1  
in the first place1 more readily acquire
 sthetic values1 which in themselves    
strikingly impress the senses4 ,thus    
tallness in a man1 because it is in the 
first place striking1 becomes readily   
incorporated into our standard of the   
beautiful4 ,and all elements in         
themselves beautiful1 the human eye1 the

 curve of the arm1 the wave of the hair1
 come to be emphasized4 ,these          
outstanding elements may themselves     
become conventionalized and             
standardized1 so that objects of art    
which conform to them are insured       
thereby of a certain degree of          
recognition as beautiful4 ,too close a  
conformity produces monotonous          
formalities1 cloying classicisms4 ,too  
wide a divergence results in shock and  
unpleasantness4 ,the history of all the 
arts1 however1 is full of instances of  
how the taste of a people can be        
educated to new forms4 ,ruskin had to   
educate the ,english people to an       
appreciation of ,turner4 ,the poets of  
the ,romantic period were condemned by  
the critics brought up on the rigid     
classic models4 ,the so-called ,romantic
 movements in the arts are1 at their    
best1 departures from old forms1 not    
into formlessness1 but into new1        
various1 and more fruitful forms4       
,romanticism at its worst dissolves into

 mere formlessness and inarticulate     
ecstacies4 ,infinite variety of forms   
the world of experience may be made to  
wear1 but sensations1 emotions1 and     
ideas must be given some form1 if they  
are to pass from a fruitless yearning   
after beauty into its positive          
incarnation in objects of art4  ,all    
forms have their characteristic         
emotional effects1 as have all          
materials1 even apart from the emotions 
or ideas they express4 ,the glitter of  
gold and the sparkle of diamonds1 the   
strength of marble1 the sturdiness of   
oak--we hardly can think of these       
materials without thinking of the       
associations which go with them4        
,similarly the symmetry of the          
colonnades of a temple1 the multiplicity
 and variety of ,gothic architecture1   
even so simple a form as a circle1      
provoke a great or slight characteristic
 emotional reaction4 ,likewise1 a       
staccato or a fluent rhythm in music1 a 
march1 or a dance movement1 have1 even  

apart from their unconscious or         
intentional expressiveness1 specific    
emotional values4 ,in literature1 also1 
where the value of the words themselves 
might be expected to give place entirely
 to the emotions or ideas of which they 
are the expressive instruments1 poems   
may themselves1 by their form and music1
 be provocative of specific emotional   
effects4    444,and over them the sea   
wind sang1    ,shrill1 chill1 with      
flakes of foam4 ,he1 stepping down      
,by zigzag paths and juts of pointed    
rock1    ,came on the shining levels of 
the lake4     ,dry clashed his harness  
in the icy caves1    ,and barren chasms1
 and all to left and right1    ,the bare
 black cliff clanged round him1 as he   
based    ,his feet on juts of slippery  
crag that rang1    ,sharp-smitten with  
the dint of armed heels--    ,and on a  
sudden1 lo6 the level lake1    ,and the 
long glories of the winter moon4#a      
,footnote #a3 ,from ,tennyson's ,morte  
d',arthur4  ,here the effect lies partly

 in the form1 but more especially in the
 timbre and reverberation of the words  
themselves4 ,in other cases1 it is the  
form that is the chief ingredient in the
 effect produced4 ,in ,alfred ,noyes's  
,the ,barrel ,organ1 apart from the     
meaning1 it is the rhythmic form that is
 of chief sthetic value3    ,come down  
to ,kew in lilac time1 in lilac time1 in
 lilac time1    ,come down to ,kew in   
lilac time1 it is n't far from ,london1 
,and you shall wander hand-in-hand with 
love in summer's wonderland4    ,come   
down to ,kew in lilac time2 it is n't   
far from ,london4    ,the cherry trees  
are seas of bloom and soft perfume and  
sweet perfume4    ,the cherry trees are 
seas of bloom 7and oh1 so near to       
,london67    ,and there they say1 when  
dawn is high1 and all the world's a     
blaze of sky1    ,the cuckoo1 though    
he's very shy1 will sing a song for     
,london4  ,apart from all considerations
 of meaning1 set the easy fluent grace  
of this lyric over against the march and

 majesty of the ,battle ,hymn of the    
,republic4    ,mine eyes have seen the  
glory of the coming of the ,lord2    ,he
 is trampling out the vintage where the 
grapes of wrath are stored2    ,he hath 
loosed the fateful lightning of ,his    
terrible swift sword2        ,his truth 
is marching on4    ,he has sounded forth
 the trumpet that shall never call      
retreat2    ,he is sifting out the      
hearts of men before ,his judgment-seat2
    ,oh1 be swift1 my soul1 to answer   
,him6 be jubilant1 my feet6        ,our 
,god is marching on4  ,,expression4 ,the
 objects of art1 as we have seen1 are   
interesting and attractive in           
themselves1 for the material of which   
they are formed1 and for the form which 
the artist has given them4 ,but they are
 interesting in another and possibly as 
important a way3 they are instruments of
 expression4 ,that is1 a painting is    
something more than an intrinsically    
interesting disposition of line and     
color1 a statue something more than an  

exquisite or sublime chiseling of       
marble1 a poem more than a rhythmic     
combination of the music of words4 ,all 
of these are expressive4 ,something in  
their form is associated with something 
in our past experience4 ,thus1 as ,james
 somewhere suggests1 a bare figure by   
,michelangelo1 with unduly flexed       
joints1 may come somehow to suggest the 
moral tragedy of life4 ,something in the
 face of an old man painted by          
,rembrandt may recall to us a similar   
outward evidence of inner seriousness1  
wistfulness1 and resignation which we   
have ourselves beheld in living people4 
,and we clearly value the poems of a    
,wordsworth1 a ,milton1 a ,matthew      
,arnold1 not solely for the magnificent 
form and music of their words1 but also 
for the sober beauty of their meaning4  
,we may come to appreciate even the     
highly immediate sensuous and formal    
pleasure of music for the reverie or    
rapture into which by suggestion it     
throws us4 ,expression may1 therefore1  

make beautiful by suggestion1 things in 
themselves indifferent1 or it may come  
to heighten the beauty which they       
already possess4  ,the objects of art   
may be appreciated chiefly either for   
their material and form1 or for the     
values which they express4 ,in some     
cases the actual object may be          
beautiful2 sometimes the beauty may lie 
almost wholly in the image1 emotion1 or 
idea evoked4 ,home1 ,sweet ,home1 for   
example1 may be plausibly held to win   
admiration rather for the sentimental   
associations which it evokes in the     
singer or hearer than for its verbal or 
melodic beauty4 ,the enjoyment which    
people without any musical gifts1 out on
 a camping or canoeing trip1 experience 
from singing a rather cheap and frayed  
repertory is obviously for sentimental  
rather than for sthetic satisfaction4   
,similarly1 we may cherish the mementos 
of a lost friend or child1 not for their
 intrinsic worth1 but for the tenderness
 of the memories they arouse4 ,the      

situation is delicately described in    
,eugene ,field's ,little ,boy ,blue3    
,the little toy dog is covered with     
dust1      ,but sturdy and staunch he   
stands1    ,and the little toy soldier  
is red with rust1      ,and his musket  
moulds in his hands4    ,time was when  
the little toy dog was new1      ,and   
the soldier was passing fair1    ,and   
that was the time when our ,little ,boy 
,blue      ,kissed them and put them    
there4  ,some objects of art may indeed 
become beautiful almost completely      
through their expressiveness4 ,there are
 certain poets whose music is raucous   
and who make little appeal through      
clarity of form4 ,these survive almost  
completely by virtue of the persistent  
strength and enduring sublimity of the  
ideas which they express4 ,much of      
,whitman may be put in this class1 and  
also much of ,browning4 ,similarly a    
sculptor may not captivate us by the    
fluent beauty of his marble1 but by the 
power and passion which his crude mighty

 figures express4 ,in such cases we may 
even come to regard what1 from a purely 
formal point of view1 is unlovely1 as a 
thing of the most extreme beauty4 ,even 
the roughness in such direct revelations
 of strength1 may come to be regarded as
 elements of the beautiful4 ,and where  
massiveness of effect does not suffice  
to retrieve a work of art from its      
essential crudities1 we may still come  
to accept it as beautiful1 as it were1  
in intention1 and for what comes to be  
regarded as its essence1 namely1 the    
idea or emotion it expresses4 ,we       
forgive the imperfections of form as we 
forgive the stammerings and stutterings 
of persons whose broken sayings are yet 
full of wisdom4  ,usually even where the
 object1 emotion1 or idea expressed is  
beautiful1 we demand certain formal and 
material elements of beauty4 ,a telegram
 may convey the very apex of felicity1  
yet be not at all felicitous in its form
 or in the music of its words4 ,if in   
such cases1 we speak of beauty1 the term

 is altogether metaphorical and imputed2
 we are using it in the same analogical 
sense as when we speak of a beautiful   
operation or a beautiful deed2 it is a  
moral rather than an sthetic term4 ,we  
may find the letter of a friend         
expressive of the gentleness1 fidelity1 
and charm that have endeared him to us1 
but unless these have attained          
sufficiently clear and explicit form and
 determinate unmistakable music1 the    
letter will have a meaningful beauty    
only in the light of the peculiar       
relation existing between us and the    
writer4 ,from an impartial sthetic point
 of view1 the epistle can only by       
affectionate exaggeration be called     
beautiful4  ,but the arts1 through their
 beauty of form1 may present pleasingly 
objects1 emotions1 ideas1 not in        
themselves beautiful or pleasing4 ,the  
clearest case of this kind is tragedy1  
where we may enjoy at arm's length and  
through the medium of art1 experiences  
which would in the near actualities of  

life be only unmitigated horror4        
,refracted through the medium of poetry 
and drama1 they may appear beautiful    
pervasively and long4  ,we are enabled  
through the arts to survey              
sympathetically universal emotions1     
those by which our own lives have been  
touched1 or to which they are liable2 we
 are enabled to survey bitterness and   
frustration calmly because they are set 
in a perspective1 a beautiful           
perspective1 in which they shine out    
clear and persuasive1 purified of that  
bitter personal tang which makes sorrow 
in real life so different in tone from  
the beauty with which in tragedy it is  
halved4 ,any sensation1 as ,max ,eastman
 justly remarks in his ,enjoyment of    
,poetry1 may1 if sufficiently mild1     
become pleasing4 ,and there is hardly   
any human action or experience1 however 
terrible1 which cannot in the hands of a
 master be made appealing and sublime in
 its emotional effect4  ,the beauty of  
,tragedy does but make visible a quality

 which1 in more or less obvious shapes1 
is present always and everywhere in     
life4 ,in the spectacle of death1 in the
 endurance of intolerable pain1 and in  
the irrevocableness of a vanished past1 
there is a sacredness1 an overpowering  
awe1 a feeling of the vastness1 the     
depth1 the inexhaustible mystery of     
existence1 in which1 as by some strange 
marriage of pain1 the sufferer is bound 
to the world by bonds of sorrow4 ,in    
these moments of insight we lose all    
eagerness of temporary desire1 all      
struggling and striving for petty ends1 
all care for the little trivial things  
that1 to a superficial view1 make up the
 common life of day by day2 we see1     
surrounding the narrow raft1 illumined  
by the flickering light of human        
comradeship1 the dark ocean on whose    
rolling waves we toss for a brief       
hour4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,bertrand        
,russell3 ,philosophical ,essays1 pp4   
#fg-fh4  ,but emotions and experiences  
that in real life are displeasing can be

 made pleasing in art chiefly by virtue 
of the qualities of material and form   
already discussed4 ,the disappointment1 
disillusion1 or terror which tragedy so 
vividly reveals is made tolerable       
chiefly through the intrinsic beauty of 
the vehicle in which it is set forth4   
,the high and breathless beauty of      
rhythm1 the verve1 the mystery1 and     
music with which evils are set forth1   
may make them not only tolerable but    
tender and appealing4 ,what would be as 
immediate experience altogether         
heartrending1 for example the torturing 
remorse of a ,macbeth1 is made splendid 
and moving in the incisive majesty and  
penetration of his monologues4 ,at the  
end of ,hamlet1 the utter wreck1        
unreason1 and confusion is made bearable
 and beautiful by the tender finality of
 ,hamlet's dying words to ,horatio3     
,absent thee from felicity awhile       
,and in this harsh world draw thy breath
 in pain1    ,to tell my story4  ,greek 
tragedy had the additional accouterments

 of a chorus1 of music1 of production in
 a vast amphitheater to give an         
atmosphere of outward grandeur to the   
glory of its intent4 ,tragedy often     
relieves the net horror which is its    
burden by the pomp and circumstance of  
the associations it suggests3  ,we have 
palaces for our scene1 rank1 beauty1 and
 virtues in our heroes1 nobility in     
their passions and in their fate1 and   
altogether a sort of glorification of   
life without which tragedy would lose   
both in depth of pathos--since things so
 precious are destroyed--and in subtlety
 of charm1 since things so precious are 
manifested4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,santayana3
 ,sense of ,beauty1 p4 #bbh4  ,tragedy  
still more subtly attains the beauty of 
expressiveness by making the very evils 
and confusions and terrors it presents  
somehow the exemplifications of a serene
 eternal order4 ,the function of the    
chorus in ,greek tragedy was indeed     
chiefly to indicate in solemn strophe   
and antistrophe the ordered and         

harmonious verities of which these      
particular follies and frustrations were
 so tender and terrible an illustration4
 ,they catch up the present and         
particular evil into the calm and       
splendid interplay of cosmic forces4    
,thus at the end of ,euripides's play   
,medea1 when the heroine has slain the  
children she has borne to ,jason and in 
her fury refuses to let him gather up   
their dead bodies1 when ,jason in utter 
inconsolable despair1 casts himself upon
 the earth1 out of all this wrack and   
torture the chorus raises the audience  
into a contemplation of the ordered     
eternity by which these things come to  
be4 ,it sings3    ,great treasure halls 
hath ,zeus in ,heaven1    ,from whence  
to man strange dooms be given1          
,past hope or fear2    ,and the end men 
looked for cometh not1    ,and a path is
 there where no man thought3        ,so 
hath it fallen here4#a  ,footnote #a3   
,euripides3 ,medea 7,gilbert ,murray    
translation74  ,,art ,,as ,,vicarious   

,,experience4 ,the drama1 art1 and      
painting are1 in general1 ways by which 
we can vicariously experience the       
emotions of others4 ,all of the         
expressive arts are made possible by the
 fundamental psychological fact that    
human beings give certain instinctive   
and habitual signs of emotion and       
instinctively respond to them4 ,in      
consequence1 through art experience may 
be immeasurably broadened1 deepened1 and
 mellowed4 ,through the medium of art1  
modes of life long past away can leave  
their imperishable and living mementos4 
,dante opens to the citizen of the      
twentieth century the mind and          
imagination of the ,middle ,ages4 ,a    
,grecian urn can arouse1 at least to a  
,keats1 the whole stilled magic of the  
,greek spirit4 ,and not only can we live
 through the life and emotion of times  
long dead1 but the fiction and drama and
 poetry of our own day permit us to     
enter into realms of experience which in
 extent and variety would not be        

possible to one man4 ,indeed1 the       
possibility of vicariously enlarging    
experience is one of the chief appeals  
of art4 ,we cannot all be rovers1 but we
 can have in reading ,masefield a       
pungent sense of romantic open spaces1  
the salt winds1 the perilous motion or  
the broad calm of the sea4 ,we feel     
something of the same urgency as that of
 the author when we read3    ,i must go 
down to the seas again1 the lonely sea  
and the sky1    ,and all ,i ask is a    
tall ship and a star to steer her by1   
,and the wheel's kick and the wind's    
song and the white sail's shaking1      
,and a gray mist on the sea's face and a
 gray dawn breaking4#b  ,footnote #b3   
,masefield3 ,sea-,fever4  ,art opens up 
wide avenues of possibility2 it releases
 us from the limitations to which a     
particular mode of life1 an accidental  
niche in a business or profession has   
committed us4 ,it enables us vividly to 
experience and sympathetically to       
appreciate the lives which are led by   

other men1 and in which something in our
 own personalities could have found     
fulfillment4  ,while the objects of art 
thus broaden our experience by their    
precise and contagious communication of 
emotion1 they may also express ideas4   
,thus a play may have a message1 a poem 
a vision1 a painting an allegory4 ,art  
is both at an advantage and at a        
disadvantage in the communication of    
ideas4 ,ideas1 if they are to be        
accurately conveyed1 should be devoid of
 emotional flourish1 and presented with 
telegraphic directness and precision4   
,they should have the clarity of        
formulas1 rather than the distracting   
array and atmosphere of form4 ,but ideas
 presented in the persuasive garb of    
beauty1 gain in their hold over men what
 they lose in precision4 ,thus an       
eloquent orator1 a touching letter1 a   
vivid poem1 may do more than volumes of 
the most definitive and convincing logic
 to insinuate an idea into men's minds4 
,compare in effectiveness the most      

thoroughgoing treatise on the status of 
the agricultural laborer with the       
stirring momentum of ,edwin ,markham's  
,the ,man ,with the ,hoe3    ,bowed by  
the weight of centuries he leans        
,upon his hoe and gazes on the ground1  
,the emptiness of ages in his face1     
,and on his back the burden of the      
world4    ,who made him dead to rapture 
and despair1    ,a thing that grieves   
not1 and that never hopes1    ,stolid   
and stunned1 a brother to the ox8       
,who loosened and let down this brutal  
jaw8    ,whose was the hand that slanted
 back this brow8    ,whose breath blew  
out the light within this brain8    ,is 
this the ,thing the ,lord ,god made and 
gave    ,to have dominion over sea and  
land2    ,to trace the stars and search 
the heavens for power1    ,to feel the  
passion of ,eternity8    ,is this the   
,dream he dreamed who shaped the suns1  
,and marked their ways upon the ancient 
deep8    ,down all the stretch of ,hell 
to its last gulf    ,there is no shape  

more terrible than this--    ,more      
tongued with censure of the world's     
blind greed--    ,more filled with signs
 and portents for the soul--    ,more   
fraught with menace to the universe4    
,an idea clothed with such music and    
passion is an incomparably effective    
means of arousing a response4 ,it is    
this which makes art so valuable an     
instrument of propaganda4 ,people will  
respond actively to ideas set forth with
 fervor by a ,tolstoy or an ,ibsen who  
would be left cold by the flat and      
erudite accuracy of a volume on         
economics4 ,and the confirmed ,platonist
 is made so perhaps less by the         
convincingness of ,plato's logic1 than  
by the inevitable and irrefutable grace 
of his dramatic art4  ,there is1 for    
certain persons educated in the arts1 a 
satisfaction that is neither sensuous   
nor emotional1 but intellectual4 ,these 
come to discriminate form with the      
abstract though warm interest of the    
expert4 ,the well-informed concert-goer 

begins to appreciate beauties hidden to 
the uninitiate4 ,he notes with eager    
anticipation the technical genius of a  
composition as it unfolds1 admiring the 
craft and skill as well as the vision of
 the artist4 ,in extreme cases this may1
 of course1 degenerate into mere        
pedantry4 ,but at its best1 it is the   
satisfaction of the man who1 having a   
keen eye for beauty1 is all the more    
solicitous for its accurate realization4
 ,the satisfactions of the connoisseur  
are merely a refinement of less         
sophisticated forms of appreciation4 ,to
 appreciate the bare sounds of music1 or
 the vividness of color in a painting is
 the prelude to more discriminating     
tastes4 ,it is impossible for most men  
to have in all the arts expert judgment1
 but the ability to be able to          
discriminate with authority the         
technical achievements of a work of     
genius1 while it does not supplant the  
emotional and sense satisfaction derived
 from the arts1 nevertheless enhances   

them4  ,,art ,,and ,,sthetic            
,,experience ,,in ,,the ,,social        
,,order4 ,the creative activity which   
is1 to a peculiar extent1 the artist's1 
is sought and practiced to some degree  
by all men4 ,genius is rare1 but talent 
of a minor sort is frequent4 ,in the    
playing of a musical instrument1 in the 
practice of a handicraft1 in the        
cultivation of a garden1 ordinary men in
 modern society find an outlet for      
invention1 craftsmanship1 and           
imagination4 ,to give this joy of       
creation1 in smaller or larger measure1 
to all men is to promote social         
happiness4 ,in the discussion of        
instinct it was pointed out that men    
come nearest to attaining happiness when
 they are doing what is their bent by   
original nature1 when they are acting   
out of sheer love of the activity rather
 than from compulsion4 ,and since all   
men possess1 although in moderate       
degree1 the creative impulse1 to give   
this impulse a chance is a distinct     

social good4  ,the employment of the    
creative imagination demands both       
leisure and training4 ,leisure is needed
 because1 in the routine activities of  
industry1 men's actions are determined  
not by their imagination1 but by the    
immediacies of practical demands4 ,there
 may be1 as ,helen ,marot suggests1 a   
possibility of a wide utilization of the
 creative impulse in industry4 ,but a   
large part of industrial life must of   
necessity remain routine4 ,in           
consequence1 during their leisure hours 
alone1 can men find free scope for some 
form of sthetic interest and activity4  
,the second requisite is training4 ,even
 the poor player of an instrument can   
derive some pleasure from his           
performance4 ,and1 under the accidents  
of economic and social circumstance1    
many a flower may really be born to     
blush unseen through the fact that its  
talents receive no opportunity4 ,the    
occasional discovery by a wealthy man of
 a genius in the slums1 indicates how a 

more liberal and general provision of   
training in the arts might redound to   
the general good4 ,and a more widespread
 endowment of training in the fine arts1
 if it did not produce many geniuses1   
might at least produce a number of      
competent painters and musicians1 who1  
in the practice of their skill1 during  
their leisure1 would derive considerable
 and altogether wholesome pleasure4     
,while high sthetic capacity may be     
lacking in most people1 sthetic         
appreciation is widely diffused1 and the
 education of taste and the growth in   
appreciation of the arts have been      
marked4 ,the museums of art in our large
 cities report a constantly increasing  
attendance1 both of visitors to the     
galleries and attendants at lectures4   
,and the crowds which regularly attend  
musical programs of a sustainedly high  
character in many cities1 winter and    
summer1 are evidence of how widespread  
and eager is appreciation of the fine   
arts4 ,in the ,scandinavian countries   

and in ,germany one of the most         
remarkable social phenomena has been the
 growth of a widely supported people's  
theater movement1 in which there has    
been consistent support of the highest  
type of operas and plays4  ,,art ,,as   
,,an ,,industry4 ,the fact that objects 
of art are themselves immediate         
satisfactions and supply human wants1   
makes their provision for large numbers 
an important social enterprise4 ,certain
 forms of art1 therefore1 become highly 
industrialized4 ,the provision of the   
objects of art becomes a profitable     
business1 as it is also made possible   
only by a large economic outlay4        
,tolstoy in his ,what is ,art8 brings   
out strikingly the economic basis of    
artistic enterprises in contemporary    
society3  ,for the support of art in    
,russia #ahih1 the government grants    
millions of roubles in subsidies to     
academies1 conservatories1 and theatres4
 ,in ,france1 twenty million francs are 
assigned for art1 and similar grants are

 made in ,germany and ,england4  ,in    
every large town enormous buildings are 
erected for museums1 academies1         
conservatories1 dramatic schools1 and   
for performances and concerts4 ,hundreds
 of thousands of workmen--carpenters1   
masons1 painters1 joiners1 paperhangers1
 tailors1 hairdressers1 jewelers1       
molders1 type-setters--spend their whole
 lives in hard labor to satisfy the     
demands of art1 so that hardly any other
 department of human activity1 except   
the military1 consumes so much energy as
 this4  ,not only is enormous labor     
spent on this activity1 but in it1 as in
 war1 the very lives of men are         
sacrificed4 ,hundreds of thousands of   
people devote their lives from childhood
 to learning to twirl their legs rapidly
 7dancers71 or to touch notes and       
strings very rapidly 7musicians7 or to  
turn every phrase inside out and find a 
rhyme for every word4#a  ,footnote #a3  
,tolstoy3 ,what is ,art8 pp4 #a-b       
7written in #ahih74  ,tolstoy's point in

 thus emphasizing the immense energies  
devoted to artistic enterprises is to   
lead us to consider what is the end of  
all this labor4 ,he points out          
scathingly the ugliness1 frivolity1 and 
crudity of much that passes for drama in
 the theater1 for music in the concert  
hall1 and for literature between covers4
 ,he pleads for a simple art that shall 
express with sincerity the genuine      
emotions of the great mass of men4      
,whatever be our estimate of ,tolstoy's 
sweeping condemnation of so much of what
 has come to be regarded as classic     
beauty1 the point he makes about the    
commercialization of art is             
incontrovertible4 ,if art is an         
industry1 the good is determined1 as it 
were1 by popular vote4 ,the many must be
 pleased rather than the discriminating4
 ,while1 as has been noted1 sthetic     
appreciation is fairly general1         
appreciation of the subtler forms of art
 requires training4 ,the glaring1 the   
conspicuous1 the broad effect1 is more  

likely to win rapid popular approval    
than the subtle1 the quiet1 and the     
fragile4 ,that taste is readily educable
 is true4 ,but when immediate profits   
are the end1 one cannot pause to educate
 the public4 ,and publishing and the    
theater are two conspicuous instances of
 the conflicts that not infrequently    
arise between standards of economic     
return and standards of sthetic merit4  
,even where there is no deliberate      
selection of the worse rather than the  
better1 commercial standards operate to 
put the novel in art at a discount4 ,as 
already pointed out1 we tend to         
appreciate forms and ideas to which we  
are accustomed4 ,in consequence1 where  
commercial demands make immediate       
widespread appreciation necessary1 the  
untried1 the odd1 the radical innovation
 in music1 literature1 or drama1 is a   
questionable venture4 ,there are notable
 instances of works which1 though       
eventually recognized as great1 had to  
go begging at first for a publisher or a

 producer4 ,this was the case with some 
of ,meredith's earlier novels2 later    
,meredith1 as a publisher's reader1     
turned down some of ,shaw4 ,the same    
inhospitality met some of the plays of  
,ibsen and some of the symphonies of    
,tschaikowsky4  ,,art ,,and ,,morals4   
,attention has already been called to   
the fact that objects of art are        
powerful vehicles for social propaganda4
 ,indeed some works become famous less  
for their intrinsic beauty than for     
their moral force4#a ,the effectiveness 
of art forms as instruments of          
propaganda lies in the fact1 previously 
noted1 that the ideas presented1 with   
all the accouterments of color1 form1   
and movement1 are incomparably effective
 in stimulating passion2 ideas thus     
aroused in the beholder have the vivid  
momentum of emotion to sustain them4    
,there is only rhetorical exaggeration  
in the saying1 ,let me sing a country's 
songs1 and ,i care not who makes its    
laws4 ,plato was one of the first to    

recognize how influential art could be  
in influencing men's actions and        
attitudes4 ,so keenly did he realize its
 possible influence1 that in            
constructing his ideal state he provided
 for the rigid regulation of all        
artistic production by the governing    
power1 and the exile of all poets4 ,he  
felt deeply how insinuatingly persuasive
 poets could become with their dangerous
 beautiful lies4 ,artists have1 indeed1 
not infrequently been revolutionaries1  
at least in the sense that the world    
which they so ecstatically pictured     
makes even the best of actual worlds    
look pale and paltry in comparison4 ,the
 imaginative genius has naturally enough
 been discontented with an existing     
order that could not possibly measure up
 to his ardent specifications4 ,shelley 
is possibly the supreme example of the  
type2 against his incorrigible          
construction of perfect worlds in       
imagination he set the real world in    
which men live1 and found it hateful4   

,footnote #a3 ,the classic instance of a
 work that certainly was notable in its 
early history for its propaganda value  
is ,uncle ,tom's ,cabin4 ,an extreme    
instance of a book famous almost        
exclusively for its vivid propaganda is 
,upton ,sinclair's ,the ,jungle4  ,in   
consequence of this discontent which the
 imaginative artist so often expresses  
with the real world1 and the power of   
his enthusiastic visions to win the     
loyalties and affections of men1 many   
moralists and statesmen have1 like      
,plato1 regarded the creative artist    
with suspicion4 ,they have half believed
 the lyric boast of the ,celtic poet who
 wrote3    ,one man with a dream at     
pleasure1      ,shall go forth and      
conquer a crown1    ,and three with a   
new song's measure1      ,can trample an
 empire down4    ,we1 in the ages lying1
      ,in the buried past of the earth1 
,built ,nineveh with our sighing1       
,and ,babel itself with our mirth2      
,we o'erthrew them with prophesying     

,to the old of the new world's worth1   
,for each age is a dream that1 is dying1
      ,or one that is coming to birth4#a
  ,footnote #a3 ,o',shaughnessy3 ,ode to
 the ,music-,makers4  ,many1 therefore1 
who have reflected upon art--,plato     
first and chiefly--have insisted that   
art must be used to express only those  
ideas and emotions which when acted upon
 would have beneficent social           
consequences4 ,only those stories are to
 be told1 those pictures to be painted1 
those songs to be sung1 which contribute
 to the welfare of the state4 ,many     
artists have similarly felt a           
,puritanical responsibility2 they have  
told only those tales which could be    
pointed with a moral4 ,the supreme      
example of this dedication of art to a  
moral purpose is found in the ,middle   
,ages1 when all beauty of architecture1 
painting1 and much of literature and    
drama1 was pervaded1 as it was inspired1
 with the ,christian message4 ,later    
,milton writes at the beginning of      

,paradise ,lost3    444 ,what in me is  
dark1    ,illumine1 what is low--raise  
and support1    ,that to the height of  
this great argument    ,i may assert    
,eternal ,providence1    ,and justify   
the ways of ,god to man4#b  ,footnote   
#b3 ,milton3 ,paradise ,lost1 book ,i1  
lines #bb-bf4  ,in a sense1 the supreme 
achievements of creative genius have    
been notable instances of the expression
 of great moral or religious or social  
ideals4 ,lucretius's ,on the ,nature of 
,things is the noblest and most         
passionate extant rendering of the      
materialistic conception of life4       
,goethe's ,faust expresses in epic      
magnificence a whole romantic philosophy
 of endless exploration and infinite    
desire4 ,dante's ,divine ,comedy sums up
 in a single magnificent epic the spirit
 and meaning of the medival point of    
view4 ,as ,henry ,osborn ,taylor writes 
of it3  ,yet even the poem itself was a 
climax long led up to4 ,the power of its
 feeling had been preparing in the      

conceptions1 even in the reasonings1    
which through the centuries had been    
gaining ardour as they became part of   
the entire natures of men and women4    
,thus had medival thought become        
emotionalized and plastic and living in 
poetry and art4 ,otherwise1 even        
,dante's genius could not have fused the
 contents of medival thought into a     
poem4 ,how many passages in the         
,commedia illustrate this--like the     
lovely picture of ,lia moving in the    
flowering meadow1 with her fair hands   
making her a garland4 ,the twenty-third 
canto of the ,paradiso1 telling of the  
triumph of ,christ and the ,virgin1     
yields a larger illustration2 and within
 it1 as a very concrete lyric instance1 
floats that flower of angelic love1 the 
song of ,gabriel circling the ,lady of  
,heaven with its melody1 and giving     
quintessential utterance to the love and
 adoration which the ,middle ,ages had  
intoned to the ,virgin4 ,yes1 if it be  
,dante's genius1 it is also the         

gathering emotion of the centuries1     
which lifts the last cantos of the      
,paradiso from glory to glory1 and makes
 this closing singing of the ,commedia  
such supreme poetry4 ,nor is it the     
emotional element alone that reaches its
 final voice in ,dante4 ,passage after  
passage of the ,paradiso is the         
apotheosis of scholastic thought and    
ways of stating it1 the very apotheosis1
 for example1 of those harnessed phrases
 in which the line of great scholastics 
had endeavoured to put in words the     
universalities of substance and accident
 and the absolute qualities of ,god4#a  
,footnote #a3 ,taylor3 ,the ,medival    
,mind1 vol4 ,,ii1 pp4 #ehh-hi4  ,in     
these supreme instances the ideas have  
been given a genuinely sthetic          
expression4 ,they are beautiful in form 
and music1 as well as in content and    
vision4 ,but not infrequently where     
propaganda appears1 art flies out of the
 window4 ,many modern plays and novels  
might be cited1 which in their serious  

devotion to the enunciation of some     
social ideal1 lapse from song into      
statistics4 ,the artist with his eye on 
the social consequences of his work may 
come altogether to cease to regard      
standards of beauty4 ,it is only the    
rare genius who can make poetry out of  
politics4 ,even ,shelley lapses into    
deadly and arid prosiness when his chief
 interest becomes the presentation of   
the political ideas of ,godwin4  ,in    
contrast with the theory that art has a 
social responsibility1 that so powerful 
an instrument must be used exclusively  
in the presentation of adequate social  
ideals1 must be set the doctrine1 widely
 current in the late nineteenth century1
 of art for art's sake4 ,to the         
exponents of this point of view1 the    
artist has only one responsibility1 the 
creation of beauty4 ,it is his to       
realize in form every pulsation of      
interest and desire1 to provide every   
possible exquisite sensation4 ,the      
artist must not be a preacher2 he must  

not tell men what is the good2 he must  
show them the good1 which is identical  
with the beautiful4 ,and he must exhibit
 the beautiful in every unique and      
lovely posture which can be imagined1   
and which he can skillfully realize in  
color1 in word1 or in sound4 ,art is its
 own justification2 a thing of beauty is
 a joy forever4  ,where art is governed 
by such intentions1 form and material   
become more important than expression4  
,thus there develops in ,france in the  
late nineteenth century a school of     
,symbolists and ,sensationalists in     
poetry1 whose single aim is the         
production of precise and beautiful     
sensations through the specific use of  
evocative words4 ,the form and the style
 become everything in literature1 in    
painting1 and the plastic arts4 ,the    
emphasis is put upon exquisiteness in   
decoration1 upon precision in technique1
 upon loveliness of material4 ,the      
,pre-,raphaelite movement in poetry1    
with its emphasis on the use of         

picturesque and decorative epithets1 the
 exclusive emphasis in some modern music
 on subtlety of technique in tone and   
color1 are recent examples4  ,the       
position taken has clearly this much    
justification4 ,a work does not become a
 work of art through the fact that it   
expresses noble sentiments4 ,the most   
righteous sermon may not be beautiful4  
,whatever be the source of its          
inspiration1 art must make its appeal   
through the palpable and undeniable     
beauty of the formal embodiment it has  
given to its vision4 ,however much an   
object be prized as a moral instrument1 
unless it stirs the senses and the      
imagination1 it hardly can be called a  
work of art4 ,on the other hand1 things 
intrinsically beautiful do seem to be   
their own justification4 ,a poem of     
,keats1 a ,japanese print1 a delicate   
vase1 or an exquisite song demand no    
moral justification4 ,they are their own
 sufficient excuse for being4  ,but the 
art for art's sake doctrine1 carried to 

extremes1 results in mere decadence or  
triviality4 ,it produces at best        
exquisite decorative trifles rather than
 works of a large and serious beauty4   
,music seems to be the art where sheer  
beauty of form is its own justification1
 for music can hardly be used as a      
specific medium of communication4 ,those
 compositions that purport to be program
 music1 to convey definite impressions  
of particular scenes or ideas1 are      
somewhat halting attempts to use music  
as one uses language4 ,yet even in      
music1 though we may enjoy ingenious and
 fluent melodic trifles1 we regard them 
less highly than the earnest and        
magnificent beauty of a ,beethoven      
symphony4  ,but because art is only     
effective when it appeals to the senses 
and to the imagination does not mean    
that the senses and the imagination must
 be stirred by insignificance4 ,the     
artist may use the rhythms of music1    
line and color1 the suggestiveness of   
words1 in the interests of ideal values4

 ,gifted1 as he is1 with imaginative    
foresight to imagine a world better than
 the one in which he is living1 he may1 
by picturing ideals in persuasive form1 
not only bring them before the mind of  
man1 but insinuate them into his heart4 
,the rational artist may note the       
possibilities afoot in his environment4 
,he may treasure these hints of human   
happiness1 and by giving them vivid     
reality in the forms of art indicate    
captivatingly to men where possible     
perfections lie4 ,for your young men    
shall see visions1 and your old men     
shall dream dreams4 ,the artist may     
become the most influential of prophets1
 for his prophecies come to men not as  
arbitrary counsels1 but as pictures of  
,perfection intrinsically lovely and    
intriguing4 ,when ,socrates is asked    
whether or not his perfect city exists1 
he replies that it exists only in       
,heaven1 but that men in beholding it   
may1 in the light of that divine        
pattern1 learn to attain in their       

earthly cities a not dissimilar beauty4 
,,chapter ,,xiv  ,,science ,,and        
,,scientific ,,method  ,,what ,,science 
,,is4 ,science may be considered either 
as the product of a certain type of     
human activity1 or as a human activity  
satisfactory even apart from its fruits4
 ,as an activity1 it is a highly refined
 form of that process of reflection by  
which man is1 in the first place1       
enabled to make himself at home in the  
world4 ,it differs from the ordinary or 
common-sense process of thinking1 as we 
shall presently see1 in being more      
thoroughgoing1 systematic1 and          
sustained4 ,it is common sense of a most
 extraordinarily refined and penetrating
 kind4 ,but before examining the        
procedure of science1 we must consider  
briefly its imposing product1 that      
science whose vast structure seems to   
the layman so final1 imposing1 and      
irrefragable4  ,from the point of view  
of the product which is the fruit of    
reflective activity1 ,science may be    

defined as a body of systematized and   
verified knowledge1 expressing in       
general terms the relations of exactly  
defined phenomena4 ,in all the respects 
here noted1 science may be contrasted   
with those matters of common knowledge1 
of opinion or belief which are the fruit
 of our casual daily thinking and       
experience4 ,science is1 in the first   
place1 a body of systematized knowledge4
 ,one has but to contrast the           
presentation of facts in an ordinary    
textbook in zology with the random      
presentation of facts in a newspaper or 
in casual conversation4 ,in science the 
facts bearing on a given problem are    
presented as completely as possible and 
are classified with reference to their  
significant bearings upon the problem4  
,moreover the facts gathered and the    
classifications of relationship made are
 not more or less accurate1 more or less
 true2 they are tested and verified     
results4 ,that putrefaction1 for        
example1 is due to the life of          

micro-organisms in the rotting substance
 is not a mere assumption4 ,it has been 
proved1 tested1 and verified by methods 
we shall have occasion presently to     
examine4  ,scientific knowledge1        
moreover1 is general knowledge4 ,the    
relations it expresses are not true in  
some cases of the precise kind          
described1 untrue in others4 ,the       
relations hold true whenever these      
precise phenomena occur4 ,this          
generality of scientific relations is   
closely connected with the fact that    
science expresses relations of exactly  
defined phenomena4 ,when a scientific   
law expresses a certain relation between
 ,a and ,b1 it says in effect3 ,given ,a
 as meaning this particular set of      
conditions and no others1 and ,b as     
meaning this particular set of          
conditions and no others1 then this     
relation holds true4 ,the relations     
between exactly defined phenomena are   
expressed in general terms1 that is1 the
 relations expressed hold true1 given   

certain conditions1 whatever be the     
accompanying circumstances4 ,it makes no
 difference what be the kind of objects1
 the law of gravitation still holds     
true3 the attraction between objects is 
directly proportional to the product of 
their masses and inversely proportional 
to the square of the distance between   
them4  ,thus science as an activity is  
marked off by its method and its intent 
rather than by its subject-matter4 ,as a
 method it is characterized by          
thoroughness1 persistency1 completeness1
 generality1 and system4 ,as regards its
 intent1 it is characterized by its     
freedom from partiality or prejudice1   
and its interest in discovering what the
 facts are1 apart from personal         
expectations and desires4 ,in the       
scientific mood we wish to know what the
 nature of things is4 ,there are men who
 seem to have a boundless1 insatiable   
curiosity1 who have a lifelong passion  
for acquiring facts and understanding   
the relationship between them4          

,,science ,,as ,,explanation4 ,the      
satisfactions which scientific          
investigators derive from their         
inquiries are various4 ,there is1 in the
 first place1 the sheer pleasure of     
gratifying the normal human impulse of  
curiosity1 developed in some people to  
an extraordinary degree4 ,experience to 
a sensitive and inquiring mind is full  
of challenges and provocations to look  
further4 ,the appearance of dew1 an     
eclipse of the sun1 a flash of          
lightning1 a peal of thunder1 even such 
commonplace phenomena as the falling of 
objects1 or the rusting of iron1 the    
evaporation of water1 the melting of    
snow1 may provoke inquiry1 may suggest  
the question1 ,why8 ,experience1 as it  
comes to us through the senses1 is      
broken and fragmentary4 ,the connections
 between the occurrences of ,nature seem
 casual1 and connected1 as it were1     
purely by accident4 ,a black sky        
portends rain4 ,but such an inference   
made by the untrained mind is merely the

 result of habit4 ,a black sky has been 
followed by rain in the past2 the same  
sequence of events may be expected in   
the future4 ,but the connection between 
the two is not really understood4       
,sometimes experiences seem to          
contradict each other4 ,the straight    
stick looks crooked or broken in water4 
,the apparent anomalies and             
contradictions1 the welter of           
miscellaneous facts with which we come  
in contact through the experiences of   
the senses1 are clarified by the        
generalizations of science4 ,the world  
of facts ceases to be random1           
miscellaneous1 and incalculable4 ,every 
phenomenon that occurs is seen to be an 
instance of a general law that holds    
among all phenomena that resemble it in 
certain definable respects4 ,thus the   
apparent bending of the stick in water  
is seen to be a special case of the laws
 of the refraction of light2 the        
apparent anomaly or contradiction of our
 sense experiences is1 as we say1       

explained4 ,what seemed to be a         
contradiction and an exception is seen  
to be a clear case of a regular law4    
,the desire for explanation in some     
minds is very strong4 ,science explains 
in the sense that it reduces a          
phenomenon to the terms of a general    
principle1 whatever that principle may  
be4 ,when we meet a phenomenon that     
seems to come under no general law1 we  
are confronted with a mystery and a     
miracle4 ,we do not know what to expect 
from it4 ,but when we can place a       
phenomenon under a general law1         
applicable in a wide variety of         
instances1 everything that can be said  
of all the other instances in which the 
law applies1 applies also to this       
particular case4  ,think of heat as     
motion1 and whatever is true of motion  
will be true of heat2 but we have had a 
hundred experiences of motion for       
everyone of heat4 ,think of the rays    
passing through this lens as bending    
toward the perpendicular1 and you       

substitute for the comparatively        
unfamiliar lens the very familiar notion
 of a particular change in direction of 
a line1 of which motion every day brings
 us countless examples4#a  ,footnote #a3
 ,james3 ,psychology1 vol4 ,,ii1 p4     
#cdb4  ,it must be noticed that the     
explanation which science gives1 is     
really in answer to the question1 ,how8 
not the question1 ,why8 ,we are said to 
understand phenomena when we understand 
the laws which govern them4 ,but to say 
that certain given phenomena--the       
appearance of dew1 the falling of rain1 
the flash of lightning1 the putrefaction
 of animal matter--obey certain laws is 
purely metaphorical4 ,phenomena do not  
obey laws in the sense in which we say  
the child follows the commands of his   
parents1 or the soldier those of his    
officer4 ,the laws of science simply    
describe the relations which have       
repeatedly been observed to exist       
between phenomena4 ,they are laws in the
 sense that they are invariably observed

 successions4 ,when it has been found   
that whenever ,a is present1 ,b is also 
present1 that the presence of ,a is     
always correlated with the presence of  
,b1 and the presence of ,b is always    
correlated with the presence of ,a1 we  
say we have discovered a scientific law4
  ,science thus explains in the sense   
that it reduces the multiplicity and    
variety of phenomena to simple and      
general laws4 ,the ideal of unity and   
simplicity is the constant ideal toward 
which science moves1 and its success in 
thus reducing the miscellaneous facts of
 experience has been phenomenal4 ,the   
history of science in the nineteenth    
century offers some interesting         
examples4 ,the discovery of the         
conservation of energy and its          
transformations has revealed to us the  
unity of force4 ,it has shown1 for      
example1 that the phenomenon of heat    
could be explained by molecular motions4
 ,electricity annexed magnetism4        
,finally the relations of electricity   

and light are now known2 the three      
realms of light1 of electricity and of  
magnetism1 previously separated1 form   
now but one2 and this annexation seems  
final4  ,there has been thus an         
increasing approach toward unity1 toward
 the summation of phenomena under one   
simple1 general formula4#a ,poincar1 in 
reviewing this progress1 writes3        
,footnote #a3 ,poincar notes also the   
opposite tendency1 for science to grow  
more complex4 ,as he says3 ,and         
,newton's law itself8 ,its simplicity1  
so long undetected1 is perhaps only     
apparent4 ,who knows whether it is not  
due to some complicated mechanism1 to   
the impact of some subtile matter       
animated by irregular movements1 and    
whether it has not become simple only   
through the action of averages and of   
great numbers8 ,in any case it is       
difficult not to suppose that the true  
law contains complementary terms1 which 
would become sensible at small          
distances4 7,foundations of ,science1 p4

 #acb47  ,the better one knows the      
properties of matter the more one sees  
continuity reign4 ,since the labors of  
,andrews and ,van der ,wals1 we get an  
idea of how the passage is made from the
 liquid to the gaseous state and that   
this passage is not abrupt4 ,similarly  
there is no gap between the liquid and  
solid states1 and in the proceedings of 
a recent congress is to be seen1        
alongside of a work on the rigidity of  
liquids1 a memoir on the flow of        
solids4444  ,finally the methods of     
physics have invaded a new domain1 that 
of chemistry2 physical chemistry is     
born4 ,it is still very young1 but we   
already see that it will enable us to   
connect such phenomena as electrolysis1 
osmosis1 and the motions of ions4  ,from
 this rapid exposition what shall we    
conclude8  ,everything considered1 we   
have approached unity2 we have not been 
as quick as we had hoped fifty years    
ago1 we have not always taken the       
predicted way2 but1 finally1 we have    

gained ever so much ground4#b  ,footnote
 #b3 ,poincar3 loc4 cit41 pp4 #aec-ed4  
,the satisfaction which disinterested   
science gives to the investigator is    
thus1 in the first place1 one of        
clarification4 ,science1 by enabling us 
to see the wide general laws of which   
all phenomena are particular instances1 
emancipates the imagination4 ,it frees  
us from being bound by the accidental   
suggestions which come to us from mere  
personal caprice1 habit1 and            
environment1 and enables us to observe  
facts uncolored by passions and hope1   
and to discover those laws of the       
universe which1 in the words of ,karl   
,pearson1 hold for all normally         
constituted minds4 ,in ordinary         
experience1 our impressions and beliefs 
are the results of inaccurate sense     
observation colored by hope and fear1   
aversion and revulsion1 and limited by  
accidental circumstance4 ,through       
science we are enabled to detach        
ourselves from the personal and the     

particular and to see the world1 as1    
undistorted1 it must appear to any man  
anywhere3  ,the scientific attitude of  
mind involves a sweeping away of all    
other desires in the interests of the   
desire to know--it involves suppression 
of hopes and fears1 loves and hates1 and
 the whole subjective emotional life1   
until we become subdued to the material1
 able to see it frankly1 without        
preconceptions1 without bias1 without   
any wish except to see it as it is1 and 
without any belief that what it is must 
be determined by some relation1 positive
 or negative1 to what we should like it 
to be1 or to what we can easily imagine 
it to be4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,bertrand    
,russell3 ,mysticism and ,logic1 p4 #dd4
  ,besides the satisfactions of system  
and clarity which the sciences give1    
they afford man power and security4     
,knowledge is power1 said ,francis      
,bacon1 meaning thereby that to know the
 connection between causes and effects  
was to be able to regulate conditions so

 as to be able to produce desirable     
effects and eliminate undesirable ones4 
,even the most disinterested inquiry may
 eventually produce practical results of
 a highly important character4 ,science 
is1 as ,bertrand ,russell says1 to the  
ordinary reader of newspapers1          
represented by a varying selection of   
sensational triumphs1 such as wireless  
telegraphy and aeroplanes1              
radio-activity1 etc4 ,but these         
practical triumphs in the control of    
natural resources are often casual      
incidents of patiently constructed      
systems of knowledge which were built up
 without the slightest reference to     
their fruits in human welfare4 ,wireless
 telegraphy1 for example1 was made      
possible by the disinterested and       
abstract inquiry of three men1 ,faraday1
 ,maxwell1 and ,hertz4  ,in alternating 
layers of experiment and theory these   
three men built up the modern theory of 
electromagnetism1 and demonstrated the  
identity of light with electromagnetic  

waves4 ,the system which they discovered
 is one of profound intellectual        
interest1 bringing together and unifying
 an endless variety of apparently       
detached phenomena1 and displaying a    
cumulative mental power which cannot but
 afford delight to every generous       
spirit4 ,the mechanical details which   
remained to be adjusted in order to     
utilize their discoveries for a         
practical system of telegraphy demanded1
 no doubt1 very considerable ingenuity1 
but had not that broad sweep and that   
universality which could give them      
intrinsic interest as an object of      
disinterested contemplation4#a          
,footnote #a3 ,bertrand ,russell3       
,mysticism and ,logic1 p4 #cd 7,science 
and ,culture74  ,,science ,,and ,a      
,,world ,,view4 ,one of the values of   
disinterested science that is of        
considerable psychological importance is
 the change in attitude it brings about 
in man's realization of his place in the
 universe4 ,lucretius long ago thought  

to free men's minds from terror and     
superstition by showing them how        
regular1 ordered1 and inevitable was the
 nature of things4 ,the superstitious   
savage walks in dread among natural     
phenomena4 ,he lives in a world which he
 imagines to be governed by capricious  
and incalculable forces4 ,to a certain  
extent he can1 as we have seen1 control 
these4 ,but he is ill at ease4 ,he is   
surrounded by vast ambiguous forces1 and
 moves in a trembling ignorance of what 
will happen next4  ,to those educated to
 the scientific point of view1 there is 
a solidity and assurance about the frame
 of things4 ,beneath the variability and
 flux1 which they continually perceive1 
is the changeless law which they have   
learned to comprehend4 ,although they   
discover that the processes of ,nature  
move on indifferent to the welfare of   
man1 they know1 nevertheless1 that they 
are dependable and certain1 that they   
are fixed conditions of life which1 to a
 certain extent1 can be controlled1 and 

the incidental goods and ills of which  
are definitely calculable4 ,heraclitus1 
the ancient ,greek philosopher1 noted   
the eternal flux1 yet perceived the     
steady order beneath1 so that he could  
eventually assert that all things       
changed save the law of change4 ,the    
magnificent regularity of natural       
processes has been repeatedly remarked  
by students of science4  ,,the ,,sthetic
 ,,value ,,of ,,science4 ,as pointed out
 in the chapter on ,art1 scientific     
discovery is more than a mere tabulation
 of facts4 ,it is also a work of the    
imagination1 and gives to the worker in 
the scientific field precisely the same 
sense of satisfaction as that           
experienced by the creative artist4 ,of 
,kelvin his biographer writes3  ,like   
,faraday and the other great masters in 
science1 he was accustomed to let his   
thoughts become so filled with the facts
 on which his attention was concentrated
 that the relations subsisting between  
the various phenomena gradually dawned  

upon him1 and he saw them1 as if by some
 process of instinctive vision denied to
 others4 444 ,his imagination was vivid2
 in his intense enthusiasm1 he seemed to
 be driven rather than to drive himself4
 ,the man was lost in his subject1      
becoming as truly inspired as is the    
artist in the act of creation4#a        
,footnote #a3 ,sylvanus ,p4 ,thompson2  
,the ,life of ,william ,thomson1 ,baron 
,kelvin of ,largs1 pp4 #aabe ff4  ,in   
the working-out of a principle1 the     
systematizing of many facts under a     
sweeping generalization1 the scientist  
finds a creator's joy4 ,he is giving    
form and significance to the disordered 
and chaotic materials of experience4    
,the scientific imagination differs from
 the artistic imagination simply in that
 it is controlled with reference to     
facts4 ,the first flash is subjected to 
criticism1 examination1 revision1 and   
testing4 ,but the grand generalizations 
of science originate in just such an    
unpredictable original vision4 ,the     

discovery of the fitting formula which  
clarifies a mass of facts hitherto      
chaotic and contradictory is very       
closely akin to the process by which a  
poet discovers an appropriate epithet or
 a musician an apposite chord4  ,but in 
its products as well as in its          
processes1 scientific investigations    
have a high sthetic value4 ,there is    
symmetry1 order1 and splendor in the    
relations which science reveals4 ,the   
same formal beauty that appeals to us in
 a ,greek statue or a ,beethoven        
symphony is to be found in the universe1
 but on a far more magnificent scale4   
,there is1 in the first place1 the sense
 of rhythm and regularity3  ,there comes
 to the scientific investigator a sense 
of pervading order4 ,probably this began
 at the very dawn of human reason--when 
man first discovered the year with its  
magnificent object-lesson of regularly  
recurrent sequences1 and it has been    
growing ever since4 ,doubtless the early
 forms that this perception of order    

took referred to somewhat obvious       
uniformities2 but is there any essential
 difference between realizing the       
orderliness of moons and tides1 of      
seasons and migrations1 and discovering 
,bodes's law of the relations of the    
planets1 or ,mendeleff's ,periodic ,law 
of the relations of the atomic weights  
of the chemical elements8#a  ,footnote  
#a3 ,thomson3 ,introduction to ,science1
 p4 #agd4  ,ever since ,newton's day the
 harmony of the spheres has been a      
favorite poetic metaphor4 ,the          
spaciousness of the solar system has    
captivated the imagination1 as have the 
time cycles revealed by the paths of    
comets and meteors4 ,the universe seems 
indeed1 as revealed by science1 to      
present that quality of sthetic         
satisfaction which is always derived    
from unity in multiplicity4 ,the stars  
are as innumerable as they are ordered4 
,and it was ,lucretius1 the poet of     
naturalism1 who was wakened to wonder   
and admiration at the ceaseless         

productivity1 inventiveness1 and        
fertility of ,nature4 ,we find in the   
revelations of science again the same   
examples of delicacy and fineness of    
structure that we admire so much in the 
fine arts4 ,the brain of an ant1 as     
,darwin said1 is perhaps the most       
marvelous speck of matter in the        
universe4 ,again the physicists tell us 
that the behaviour of hydrogen gas makes
 it necessary to suppose that an atom of
 it must have a constitution as complex 
as a constellation1 with about eight    
hundred separate corpuscles4#b          
,footnote #b3 ,ibid41 p4 #agf4  ,,the   
,,danger ,,of ,,pure ,,science4 ,the    
fascinations of disinterested inquiry   
are so great that they may lead to a    
kind of scientific intemperance4 ,the   
abstracted scientific interest may      
become so absorbed in the working-out of
 small details that it becomes          
over-specialized1 narrow1 and pedantic4 
,the pure theorist has always been      
regarded with suspicion by the practical

 man4 ,his concern over details of flora
 or fauna1 over the precise minuti of   
ancient hieroglyphics1 seems absurdly   
trivial in comparison with the central  
passions and central purposes of        
mankind4 ,there are workers in every    
department of knowledge who become wrapt
 up in their specialties1 forgetting the
 forest for the trees4 ,there are men so
 absorbed in probing the crevices of    
their own little niche of knowledge that
 they forget the bearings of their      
researches4 ,especially in time of      
stress1 of war or social unrest1 men    
have felt a certain callousness about   
the interests of the abstrusely remote  
scholar4 ,we shall have occasion to note
 presently that it is in this coldness  
and emancipation from the pressing      
demands of the moment that science has  
produced its most pronounced eventual   
benefits for mankind4 ,but an           
uncontrolled passion for facts and      
relations may degenerate into a mere    
play and luxury that may have its       

fascination for the expert himself1 but 
affords neither sweetness nor light to  
any one else4 ,one has but to go over   
the lists of doctors' dissertations     
published by ,german universities during
 the late nineteenth century to find    
examples of inquiry that seem to afford 
not the slightest justification in the  
way of eventual good to mankind4#a      
,footnote #a3 ,it is only fair to say   
that literary studies have been marked  
by more barren and fruitless            
investigations 7purely philological     
inquiry1 for example7 than have the     
physical sciences4  ,,practical ,,or    
,,applied ,,science4 ,thus far we have  
been considering science chiefly as an  
activity which satisfies some men as an 
activity in itself1 by the sthetic1     
emotional1 and intellectual values they 
derive from it4 ,but a fact at once     
paradoxical and significant in the      
history of human progress is that this  
most impersonal and disinterested of    
man's activities has been profoundly    

influential in its practical fruits4    
,the practical application of the       
sciences rests on the utilization of the
 exact formulations of pure science4    
,through these formulations we can      
control phenomena by artificially       
setting up relations of which science   
has learned the consequences1 thus      
attaining the consequences we desire1   
and avoiding those we do not4  ,the     
direct influence of pure science on     
practical life is enormous4 ,the        
observations of ,newton on the relations
 between a falling stone and the moon1  
of ,galvani on the convulsive movements 
of frogs' legs in contact with iron and 
copper1 of ,darwin on the adaptation of 
woodpeckers1 of tree-frogs1 and of seeds
 to their surroundings1 of ,kirchhoff on
 certain lines which occur in the       
spectrum of sunlight1 of other          
investigators on the life-history of    
bacteria--these and kindred observations
 have not only revolutionized our       
conception of the universe1 but they    

have revolutionized or are              
revolutionizing1 our practical life1 our
 means of transit1 our social conduct1  
our treatment of disease4#a  ,footnote  
#a3 ,karl ,pearson3 ,the ,grammar of    
,science1 pp4 #ce-cf4  ,francis ,bacon  
was one of the first to appreciate      
explicitly the possibilities of the     
control of nature in the interests of   
human welfare4 ,he saw the vast         
possibilities which a careful and       
comprehensive study of the workings of  
nature had in the enlargement of human  
comfort1 security1 and power4 ,in ,the  
,new ,atlantis he envisages an ideal    
commonwealth1 whose unique and singular 
institution is a ,house of ,solomon1 a  
kind of ,carnegie ,foundation devoted to
 inquiry1 the fruits of which might be1 
as they were1 exploited in the interests
 of human happiness3 ,the end of our    
foundation is the knowledge of causes   
and the secret motions of things2 and   
the enlarging of the bounds of human    
empire to the effecting of all things   

possible4#b  ,footnote #b3 ,the ,new    
,atlantis4  ,science sometimes appears  
so remote and alien to the immediate    
concrete objects which meet and interest
 us in daily experience that we tend to 
forget that historically it was out of  
concrete needs and practical interests  
that science arose4 ,geometry1 seemingly
 a clear case of abstract and           
theoretical science1 arose out of the   
requirements of practical surveying and 
mensuration among the ,egyptians4 ,in   
the same way botany grew out of herb    
gathering and gardening4  ,the          
application of the exact knowledge      
gained by the pure sciences1 may1 if    
properly directed1 immeasurably increase
 the sum of human welfare4 ,one has but 
to review briefly the history of        
invention to appreciate this truth with 
vividness and detail4 ,the great variety
 of the applied sciences shows the      
extent and multiplicity of the fruits of
 theoretical inquiry4 ,astronomy plays  
an important part in navigation2 but it 

also earns its living by helping the    
surveyor and the mapmaker and by        
supplying the world with accurate time4 
,industrial chemistry offers1 perhaps1  
the most striking examples4 ,there is1  
for example1 the fixation of nitrogen1  
which makes possible the artificial     
production of ammonia and potash2 the   
whole group of dye industries made      
possible through the chemical production
 of coal tar2 the industrial utilization
 of cellulose in the paper1 twine1 and  
leather industries2 the promise of      
eventual production on a large scale of 
synthetic rubber2 the electric furnace1 
which1 with its fourteen-thousand-degree
 range of heat1 makes possible untold   
increase in the effectiveness of all the
 chemical industries4  ,industrial      
chemistry is only one instance4 ,the    
application of theoretical inquiry in   
physics has made possible the telegraph1
 the telephone1 wireless telegraphy1    
electric motors1 and flying machines4   
,mineralogy and oceanography have opened

 up new stores of natural resources4    
,biological research has had diverse    
applications4 ,bacteriological inquiry  
has been fruitfully applied in surgery1 
hygiene1 agriculture1 and the artificial
 preservation of food4 ,the principles  
of ,mendelian inheritance have been used
 in the practical improvement of        
domestic animals and cultivated plants4 
,the list might be indefinitely         
extended4 ,the sciences arose as        
attempts1 more or less successful1 to   
solve man's practical problems4 ,they   
became historically cut off1 as they may
 in the case of the pure scientist still
 be cut off1 from practical             
considerations4 ,but no matter how      
remote and abstract they become1 they   
yield again practical fruits4  ,applied 
science1 if it becomes too narrowly     
interested in practical results1 limits 
its own resources4 ,purely theoretical  
inquiry may be of the most immense      
ultimate advantage4 ,in a sense the more
 abstract and remote science becomes1   

the more eventual promise it contains4  
,by getting away from the confusing and 
irrelevant details of particular        
situations1 science is enabled to frame 
generalizations applicable to a wide    
array of phenomena differing in detail1 
but having in common significant        
characteristics4 ,men can learn         
fruitfully to control their experience  
precisely because they can emancipate   
themselves from the immediate demands of
 practical life1 from the suggestions   
that arise in the course of instinctive 
and habitual action4 ,a certain power of
 abstraction1 of deliberate turning away
 from the habitual responses to a       
situation1 was required before men could
 be emancipated to follow up suggestions
 that in the end are fruitful4#a        
,footnote #a3 ,dewey3 ,how ,we ,think1  
p4 #aef4  ,too complete absorption in   
immediate problems may operate to       
deprive action of that sweeping and     
penetrating vision which a freer inquiry
 affords4 ,the temporarily important may

 be the less important in the long run4 
,a practical adjustment of detail may   
produce immediate benefits in the way of
 improved industrial processes and more 
rapid and economical production1 but    
some seemingly obscure discovery in the 
most abstruse reaches of scientific     
theory may eventually be of untold      
practical significance4  ,only the      
extremely ignorant can question the     
utility of1 let us say1 the prolonged   
application of the ,greek intellect to  
the laws of conic sections4 ,whether we 
think of bridges or projectiles1 of the 
curves of ships1 or of the rules of     
navigation1 we must think of conic      
sections4 ,the rules of navigation1 for 
instance1 are in part based on          
astronomy4 ,kepler's ,laws are          
foundation stones of that science1 but  
,kepler discovered that ,mars moves in  
an ellipse round the sun in one of the  
foci by a deduction from conic          
sections4444 ,yet the historical fact is
 that these conic sections were studied 

as an abstract science for eighteen     
centuries before they came to be of     
their highest use4#b  ,footnote #b3     
,thomson3 ,introduction to ,science1 pp4
 #bci-dj4  ,pasteur1 whose researches   
are of such immediate consequence in    
human health1 began his studies in the  
crystalline forms of tartrates4 ,the    
tremendous commercial uses which have   
been made of benzene had their origin in
 a single idea1 advanced in a masterly  
treatise by ,auguste ,kekule in the year
 #ahfe4a  ,footnote #a3 ,quoted by      
,thomson from an address on ,technical  
,chemistry by ,c4 ,e4 ,munroe4          
,practical life has been continually    
enriched by theoretical inquiry4        
,scientific descriptions increase in    
value as they become absolutely         
impersonal1 absolutely precise1 and     
especially as they become condensed     
general formulas1 which will be         
applicable to an infinite variety of    
particular situations4 ,and such        
descriptions are necessarily abstract   

and theoretical4  ,,analysis ,,of       
,,scientific ,,procedure4 ,scientific   
method is merely common sense made more 
thoroughgoing and systematic4           
,reflection of a more or less effective 
kind takes place in ordinary experience 
wherever instinctive or habitual action 
is not adequate to meet a situation1    
whenever the individual has a problem to
 solve1 an adjustment to make4          
,thinking1 of some kind1 goes on        
continually4 ,scientific thinking merely
 means careful1 safeguarded1 systematic 
thinking4 ,it is thinking alert and     
critical of its own methods4 ,as        
contrasted with ordinary common-sense   
thinking1 it is distinguished by        
caution1 carefulness1 thoroughness1     
definiteness1 exactness1 orderliness1   
and methodic arrangement4 ,we think1 in 
any case1 because we have to1 being     
creatures born with a set of instincts  
not adequate to meet the conditions of  
our environment4 ,we can think          
carelessly and ineffectively1 or        

carefully and successfully4  ,scientific
 method1 or orderly1 critical1 and      
systematic thinking1 is not applicable  
to one subject-matter exclusively4      
,examples are commonly drawn from the   
physical or chemical or biological      
laboratory1 but the elements of         
scientific method may be illustrated in 
the procedure of a business man meeting 
a practical problem1 a lawyer sifting   
evidence1 a statesman framing a new     
piece of legislation4 ,in all these     
cases the difference between a genuinely
 scientific procedure and mere casual   
and random common sense is the same4    
,science is nothing but trained and     
organized common sense1 differing from  
the latter only as a veteran may differ 
from a raw recruit3 and its methods     
differ from those of common sense only  
so far as the guardsman's cut and thrust
 differ from the manner in which a      
savage wields his club4 ,the primary    
power is the same in each case1 and     
perhaps the untutored savage has the    

more brawny arm of the two4 ,the real   
advantage lies in the point and polish  
of the swordsman's weapon2 in the       
trained eye quick to spy out the        
weakness of the adversary2 in the ready 
hand prompt to follow it on the instant4
 ,but1 after all1 the sword exercise is 
only the hewing and poking of the       
clubman refined and developed4  ,so1 the
 vast results obtained by science are   
won by 444 no mental processes1 other   
than those which are practiced by       
everyone of us1 in the humblest and     
meanest affairs of life4 ,a detective   
policeman discovers a burglar from the  
marks made by his shoe1 by a mental     
process identical with that by which    
,cuvier restored the extinct animals of 
,montmartre from fragments of their     
bones4444 ,nor does that process of     
induction and deduction by which a lady 
finding a stain of a peculiar kind upon 
her dress1 concludes that somebody has  
upset the inkstand thereon1 differ1 in  
any way1 in kind1 from that by which    

,adams and ,leverrier discovered a new  
planet4  ,the man of science1 in fact1  
simply uses with scrupulous exactness   
the methods which we all1 habitually and
 at every moment1 use carelessly2 and   
the man of business must as much avail  
himself of the scientific method--must  
as truly be a man of science--as the    
veriest bookworm of us all4#a  ,footnote
 #a3 ,huxley3 ,lay ,sermons1 ,addresses1
 and ,reviews1 pp4 #gg1 #gh 7in ,the    
,educational ,value of the ,natural     
,history ,sciences74  ,the scientific   
procedure becomes1 as we shall see1     
highly complicated1 involving elaborate 
processes of observation1               
classification1 generalization1         
deduction or development of ideas1 and  
testing4 ,but it remains thinking just  
the same1 and originates in some problem
 or perplexity1 just as thinking does in
 ordinary life4  ,,science ,,and        
,,common ,,sense4 ,it is profitable to  
note in some detail the ways in which   
scientific method1 in spirit and        

technique1 differs from common-sense    
thinking4 ,it is more insistent in the  
first place on including the whole range
 of relevant data1 of bringing to light 
all the facts that bear on a given      
problem4 ,in common-sense thinking we   
make1 as we say1 snap judgments2 we jump
 at conclusions4 ,anything plausible is 
accepted as evidence2 anything heard or 
seen is accepted as a fact4 ,the        
scientific examiner insists on examining
 and subjecting to scrutiny the facts at
 hand1 on searching for further facts1  
and on distinguishing the facts         
genuinely significant in a given        
situation from these that happen to be  
glaring or conspicuous4 ,this is merely 
another way of saying that both accuracy
 and completeness of observation are    
demanded1 accuracy in the examination of
 the facts present1 and completeness in 
the array of facts bearing on the       
question at hand4  ,scientific thinking 
is thus primarily inquiring and         
skeptical4 ,it queries the usual2 it    

tries1 as we say1 to penetrate beneath  
the surface4 ,common sense1 for example1
 gives suction as the explanation of    
water rising in a pump4 ,but where1 as  
at a great height above sea level1 this 
mysterious power of suction does not    
operate1 or when it is found that it    
does not raise water above thirty-two   
feet1 common sense is at a loss4        
,scientific thinking tries to analyze   
the gross fact1 and by accurately and   
completely observing all the facts      
bearing on the phenomenon endeavors to  
find out what special conditions are    
present when the effect occurs and      
absent when it does not occur4 ,instead 
of trying to fit all unusual1           
contradictory1 or exceptional facts into
 a priori ideas based on miscellaneous  
and unsifted facts1 it starts without   
any fixed conclusions beforehand1 but   
carefully observes all the facts which  
it can secure with reference to a       
particular problem1 deliberately seeking
 the exceptional and unusual as crucial 

instances4 ,thus in a sociological      
inquiry1 the scientist1 instead of      
accepting common-sense judgments 7based 
on a variety of miscellaneous1          
incomplete1 and unsifted facts7 that    
certain races are inferior or superior1 
tries1 by specific inquiries1 to        
establish the facts of racial capacities
 or defects4 ,instead of accepting      
proverbial wisdom and popular estimates 
of the relative capacities of men and   
women1 he tries by careful observation  
and experiment accurately to discover   
all the facts bearing on the question1  
and to generalize from those facts4     
,scientific method thus discounts       
prejudice or dogmatism4 ,a prejudice is 
literally a pre-judgment4 ,common sense 
sizes up the situation beforehand4      
,instead of examining a situation in its
 own terms1 and arriving at a           
conclusion1 it starts with one4 ,the    
so-called hard-headed man of common     
sense knows beforehand4 ,he has a       
definite and stereotyped reaction for   

every situation with which he comes in  
contact4 ,these rubber-stamp responses1 
these unconsidered generalizations1     
originate in instinctive desires1 or in 
preferences acquired through habit4     
,common sense finds fixed pigeon holes  
into which to fit all the variety of    
specific circumstances and conditions   
which characterize experience4 ,when its
 judgments happen to be correct1 it is  
almost as much a matter of good luck as 
of method4444 ,that potatoes should be  
planted only during the crescent moon1  
that near the sea people are born at    
high tide and die at low tide1 that a   
comet is an omen of danger1 that bad    
luck follows the cracking of a mirror1  
all these are the results of            
common-sense observation4 ,matters of   
common knowledge are thus not           
infrequently matters of common          
misinformation4  ,common-sense knowledge
 is largely a matter of uncritical      
belief4 ,when there is absent scientific
 examination of the sources and grounds 

of belief1 those judgments and          
conclusions are likely to be accepted   
which happen to have wide social        
currency and authority4 ,in an earlier  
chapter1 it was shown how the mere fact 
of an opinion prevailing among a large  
number of one's group or class gives it 
great emotional weight4 ,where opinions 
are not determined by intelligent       
examination and decision1 they are      
determined by force of habit1 early     
education1 and the social influences to 
which one is constantly exposed4  ,the  
scientific spirit is a spirit of        
emancipated inquiry as contrasted with  
blind acceptance of belief upon         
authority4 ,the phenomenal developments 
of modern science began when men ceased 
to accept authoritatively their beliefs 
about man and nature1 and undertook to  
examine phenomena in their own terms4   
,the phenomenal rise of modern science  
is coincident with the collapse of      
unquestioning faith as the leading      
ingredient of intellectual life4        

,common sense renders men peculiarly    
insensitive to the possibilities of the 
novel1 peculiarly susceptible to the    
influence of tradition4 ,it was common  
sense that credited the influence of the
 position of the stars upon men's       
welfare1 the power of old women as      
witches1 and the unhealthiness of night 
air4 ,it was common sense also that     
ridiculed ,fulton's steamboat1 laughed  
at the early attempts of telegraphy and 
telephony1 and dismissed the aeroplane  
as an interesting toy4 ,the             
characteristic feature of common sense  
or empirical thinking is its excess     
traditionalism1 its wholesale acceptance
 of authority1#a its reliance upon      
precedent4 ,where beliefs are not       
subjected to critical revision and      
examination1 to the constant            
surveillance of the inquiring           
intelligence1 there will be no criterion
 by which to estimate the true and the  
false1 the important and the trivial4   
,all beliefs that have wide social      

sanction1 or that chime in with         
immediate sense impressions1 established
 individual habits1 or social customs   
will be accepted with the same          
indiscriminate hospitality4 ,to common  
sense the sun does appear to go round   
the earth2 the stick does appear broken 
in water4 ,thus totally false opinions  
may appear to the holder of them to     
possess all the character of rationally 
verifiable truth4  ,footnote #a3        
,authority in this sense of social      
prestige must be distinguished from     
authority in the sense of scientific    
authority4 ,the acceptance of the       
authority of the expert is the          
acceptance of opinions that we have good
 reason to believe are the result of    
scientific inquiry4  ,the dangers and   
falsities of common-sense judgments are 
conditioned not only by expectations and
 standards fixed by the social          
environment1 but by one's own personal  
predilections and aversions4 ,recent    
developments in psychology have made    

much of the fact that many of our       
so-called reasoned judgments are        
rationalizations1 secondary reasons     
found after our initial1 primary1 and   
deep-seated emotional responses have    
been made4 ,they are the result of      
emotional complexes1 fears1             
expectations1 and desires of which we   
are not ourselves conscious4#a ,it is   
from these limiting conditions of       
personal preference and social          
environment that scientific method frees
 us4  ,footnote #a3 ,when a party       
politician is called upon to consider a 
new measure1 his verdict is largely     
determined by certain constant systems  
of ideas and trends of thought1         
constituting what is generally known as 
'party bias4' ,we should describe these 
systems in our newly acquired           
terminology as his 'political complex4' 
,the complex causes him to take up an   
attitude toward the proposed measure    
which is quite independent of any       
absolute merits that the latter may     

possess4 ,if we argue with our          
politician1 we shall find that the      
complex will reinforce in his mind those
 arguments which support the view of his
 party1 while it will infallibly prevent
 him from realizing the force of the    
arguments propounded by the opposite    
side4 ,now1 it should be observed that  
the individual himself is probably quite
 unaware of this mechanism in his mind4 
,he fondly imagines that his opinion is 
formed solely by the logical pros and   
cons of the measure before him4 ,we see1
 in fact1 that not only is his thinking 
determined by a complex of whose action 
he is unconscious1 but that he believes 
his thoughts to be the result of other  
causes which are in reality insufficient
 and illusory4 ,this latter process of  
self-deception1 in which the individual 
conceals the real foundation of his     
thought by a series of adventitious     
props1 is termed 'rationalization4'     
,the two mechanisms which manifest      
themselves in our example of the        

politician1 the unconscious origin of   
beliefs and actions1 and the subsequent 
process of rationalization to which they
 are subjected1 are of fundamental      
importance in psychology4 7,bernard     
,hart3 ,the ,psychology of ,insanity1   
pp4 #fd-ff47  ,again1 even where        
common-sense judgments are not          
particularly qualified by such          
conditions1 they are frequently based   
upon the observation of purely          
accidental conjunctions of              
circumstances4 ,a sequence once or twice
 observed is taken as the basis of a    
causal relation4 ,this gives rise to    
what is known in technical logic as the 
post hoc ergo propter hoc fallacy2 that 
is1 the assumption that because one     
thing happens after another1 therefore  
it happens because of it4 ,many         
superstitions probably had their origin 
in such chance observations1 and belief 
in them is strengthened by some         
accidental confirmation4 ,thus if a man 
walks under a ladder one day and dies   

the next1 the believer in the           
superstition that walking under a ladder
 brings fatal results will find in this 
instance a clear ratification of his    
belief4 ,there seems to be an inveterate
 human tendency to seek for causes1 and 
by those who are not scientific         
inquirers causes are lightly assigned4  
,it is easiest and most plausible to    
assign as a cause an immediately        
preceding circumstance4 ,exceptional or 
contradictory circumstances are then    
either unnoticed or pared down to fit   
the belief4  ,scientific method does not
 depend on such chance conjunctions of  
circumstance1 but controls its          
observations or experimentally arranges 
conditions so as to discover what are   
the conditions necessary to produce     
given effects1 or what effects          
invariably follow from given causes4 ,it
 does not accept a chance conjunction as
 evidence of an invariable relation1 but
 seeks1 under regulated conditions1 to  
discover what the genuinely invariable  

relations are4 ,this method of          
controlling our generalizations about   
the facts of experience1 we shall       
presently examine in some detail4       
,,curiosity ,,and ,,scientific          
,,inquiry4 ,curiosity1 the instinctive  
basis of the desire to know1 is the     
basis of scientific inquiry4 ,without   
this fundamental desire1 there could be 
no sustaining motive to deep and        
thoroughgoing scientific research1 for  
theoretical investigations do not always
 give promise of immediate practical    
benefits4 ,the scientific interest is a 
development of that restless curiosity  
for a knowledge of the world in which   
they are living which children so       
markedly exhibit4 ,beginning as a kind  
of miscellaneous and omnivorous appetite
 for facts of whatever description1 it  
grows into a desire to understand the   
unsuspected and hidden relations between
 facts1 to penetrate to the unities     
discoverable beneath the mysteries and  
multiplicities of things4  ,the         

scientific mood is thus in the first    
place a sheer instinctive curiosity1 a  
basic passion for facts4 ,it is this    
which sustains the scientific worker in 
the sometimes long and dreary business  
of collecting specimens1 instances1     
details4 ,many of the most notable      
scientific advances1 as ,lord ,kelvin   
pointed out1 must be attributed to the  
most protracted and unmitigated drudgery
 in the collection of facts1 a          
thoroughgoing and trying labor in which 
the scientific worker could persist only
 when fortified by an eager and         
insistent curiosity4 ,this hodman's work
 is the basis of the great              
generalizations which constitute the    
framework of the modern scientific      
systems4 ,the monotonous and            
quantitative work of star-cataloguing   
has been continued from ,hipparchus1 who
 began his work more than a century     
before ,christ1 work which is continued 
even to the present day4 ,this work1    
uninspiring as it seems1 is yet an      

essential basis for the applications of 
astronomy1 the determination of time1   
navigation1 surveying4 ,furthermore1    
without good star places1 we can have no
 theory of the motions of the solar     
system1 and without accurate catalogues 
of the stars we can know nothing of the 
grander problems of the universe1 the   
motion of our sun among the stars1 or of
 the stars among themselves4#a          
,footnote #a3 ,hinks3 ,astronomy1 p4    
#afb4  ,not only is curiosity a         
sustaining motive in the drudgery of    
collection and research incident and    
essential to scientific generalization2 
it alone makes possible that suspense of
 judgment which is necessary to fruitful
 scientific inquiry4 ,this suspense is1 
as we have already seen1 difficult for  
most men4 ,action demands immediate     
decision1 and inquiry deliberately      
postpones decision4 ,it is only a       
persistent desire to get at the bottom  
of the matter that will act as a check  
upon the demands of social life and of  

individual impatience which rush us to  
conclusions4 ,in most men1 as earlier   
noted1 the sharp edge of curiosity      
becomes easily blunted4 ,they are       
content1 outside their own immediate    
personal interests1 to take things for  
granted4 ,they glide over the surfaces  
of events1 they cease to query the      
authenticity of facts1 or to examine    
their relevance and their significance1 
or to be concerned about their          
completeness4 ,for an example1 one has  
but to listen to or partake in the      
average discussion of any political or  
social issue of the present day4 ,there 
are few men who retain1 even as far as  
middle life1 a genuinely inquiring      
interest in men and affairs4 ,their     
curiosity is dulled by fatigue and the  
pressure of their own interests and     
preoccupations1 and they allow their    
prejudices and formulas to pass for     
judgments and conclusions4 ,the         
scientist is the man in whom curiosity  
has become a permanent passion1 who1 as 

long as he lives1 is unwilling to forego
 inquiry into the processes of ,nature1 
or of human relations4  ,,thinking      
,,begins ,,with ,a ,,problem4 ,while the
 general habit of inquiry is developed  
in the satisfaction of the instinct of  
curiosity1 any particular investigation 
begins with a felt difficulty4 ,by      
difficulty is not meant one of an       
imperative and practical kind1 but any  
problem whether theoretical or          
practical4 ,for many men1 it is true1   
thinking occurs only when instinct and  
habit are inadequate to adjust them to  
their environment4 ,any problem of daily
 life affords an example4 ,to borrow an 
illustration from ,professor ,dewey3  ,a
 man traveling in an unfamiliar region  
comes to a branching of the roads4      
,having no sure knowledge to fall back  
upon1 he is brought to a standstill of  
hesitation and suspense4 ,which road is 
right8 ,and how shall the perplexity be 
resolved8 ,there are but two            
alternatives4 ,he must either blindly   

and arbitrarily take his course1        
trusting to luck for the outcome1 or he 
must discover grounds for the conclusion
 that a given road is right4#a          
,footnote l3 ,dewey3 ,how ,we ,think1 p4
 #aj4  ,to the inquiring mind1 purely   
theoretical difficulties or             
discrepancies will provoke thought4 ,to 
the astronomer an unaccounted-for       
perturbation in the path of a planet    
provokes inquiry2 the chemist is        
challenged by a curious unexplained     
reaction of two chemical elements1 the  
biologist1 anterior to the discovery of 
micro-organisms1 by the putrefaction of 
animal tissues4 ,the degree to which    
curiosity persists and the extent of    
training a man has had in a given field 
largely determine the kind of situations
 that will provoke inquiry4 ,a primrose 
by the river's brim may be simply a     
primrose to one man1 while to another1 a
 botanist1 it may suggest an interesting
 and complex problem of classification4 
,but however remote and recondite       

thinking becomes1 however far removed   
from immediate practical concerns1 it   
occurs essentially in a situation       
analogous to the forked-road situation  
described above4 ,the situation as it   
stands is confused1 ambiguous1          
uncertain4 ,in a practical problem1 for 
example1 there are two or more courses  
of action open to us1 all of them giving
 promise as solutions of our            
difficulties4 ,we aim through reflection
 to reduce the uncertainty1 to clarify  
the situation1 to discover more clearly 
the consequences of the various         
alternatives which suggest themselves to
 us4 ,when action is unimpeded1         
suggestions flow on just as they arise  
in our minds4 ,this is illustrated best 
in the reveries of a day-dream when     
casual and disconnected fancies follow  
each other in random and uncontrolled   
succession4 ,but when there is a problem
 to be settled1 an ambiguity to be      
resolved1 suggestions are held in check 
and controlled with reference to the end

 we have in view2 each suggestion is    
estimated with regard to its relevance  
to the problem in hand4 ,every idea that
 arises is1 so to speak1 queried3 ,is it
 or is it not a solution to our present 
difficulty8  ,we are indebted to        
,professor ,dewey1 for an analysis of   
the thought process4 ,every instance of 
thinking reveals five steps3  7#a7 ,a   
felt difficulty1 7#b7 its location and  
definition1 7#c7 suggestions of possible
 solutions1 7#d7 development by         
reasoning of the bearings of the most   
promising suggestion1 7#e7 further      
observation or experiment leading to its
 acceptance or rejection1 that is a     
conclusion either of belief or          
disbelief4  ,when instinct or habit     
suffices to adjust us to our            
environment1 action runs along smoothly1
 freely1 uninterruptedly4 ,in           
consequence the provocation to thinking 
may at first be a mere vague shock or   
disturbance4 ,we are1 as it were1 in    
trouble without knowing precisely what  

the trouble is4 ,we must carefully      
inquire into the nature of the problem  
before undertaking a solution4 ,to take 
a simple instance1 an automobile may    
suddenly stop4 ,we know there is a      
difficulty1 but whether it is a         
difficulty with the transmission1 with  
the carburetor1 or with the supply of   
gasoline1 we cannot at first tell4      
,before we do anything else in solving  
our problem1 we find out literally and  
precisely what the trouble is4 ,to take 
a different situation1 a doctor does not
 undertake to prescribe for a patient   
until he has diagnosed the difficulty1  
found out precisely what the features of
 the problem are4  ,the second step     
after the situation has been examined   
and its precise elements defined1 is    
suggestion4 ,that is1 we consider the   
various possibilities which suggest     
themselves as solutions to our problem4 
,there may be several ways of           
temporarily repairing our engine2 the   
doctor may think of two or three        

possible treatments for a disease4 ,in  
one sense1 suggestion is uncontrollable4
 ,the kind of suggestions that occur to 
an individual depend on his genius or   
temperament1 on his past experiences1 on
 his hopes or fears or expectations when
 that particular situation occurs4 ,we  
can1 however1 through the methods of    
science1 control suggestions indirectly4
 ,we can do this1 in the first place1 by
 rexamining the facts which give rise to
 suggestion4 ,if upon close examination1
 the facts appear differently from what 
they did at first1 we will derive       
different inferences from them4         
,different suggestions will arise from  
the facts ,a1 ,b1 ,c1 than from the     
facts ,a'1 ,b'1 ,c'4 ,again we can      
regulate the conditions under which     
credence is given to the various        
suggestions that arise4 ,these          
suggestions are entertained merely as   
tentative1 and are not accepted until   
experimentally verified4 ,the suggested 
conclusion as only tentatively          

entertained constitutes an idea4  ,after
 the variety of suggestions that proffer
 themselves as solutions to a problem   
have been considered1 the third step is 
the logical development of the idea or  
suggestion that gives most promise of   
solving the difficulty4 ,that is1 even  
before further facts are sought1 the    
idea that gives promise of being a      
solution is followed out to its logical 
consequences4 ,thus1 for example1       
astronomers were for a long time puzzled
 by unexplained perturbations in the    
path of the planet ,uranus4 ,the        
suggestion occurred that an unseen      
planet was deflecting it from the path  
it should1 from observation and         
calculation1 be following4 ,if this were
 the case1 from the amount of deflection
 it was mathematically calculated1 prior
 to any further observation1 that the   
supposed planet should appear at a      
certain point in space4 ,it was by this 
deductive elaboration that the planet   
,neptune was discovered4 ,it was figured

 out deductively that a planet          
deflecting the path of the planet       
,uranus by just so-and-so much should be
 found at just such and such a          
particular point in the heavens4 ,when  
the telescopes were turned in that      
direction1 the planet ,neptune was      
discovered at precisely the point       
deductively forecast4  ,the elaboration 
of an idea through reasoning it out may 
sometimes lead to its rejection4 ,but in
 thinking out its details we may for the
 first time note its appositeness to the
 solution of the problem in hand4 ,the  
gross suggestion may seem wild and      
absurd1 but when its bearings and       
consequences are logically developed    
there may be some item in the           
development which dovetails into the    
problem as its solution4 ,william ,james
 gives as the outstanding feature of    
reasoning1 sagacity1 or the perception  
of the essence4#a ,by this he meant the 
ability to single out of a complex      
situation or idea the significant or key

 feature4 ,it is only by a logical      
development of a suggested solution to a
 problem that it is possible to hit upon
 the essence of the matter for a        
particular situation1 to single out of a
 gross total situation1 the key to the  
phenomenon4 ,in reasoning1 ,a may       
suggest ,b2 but ,b1 instead of being an 
idea which is simply obeyed by us1 is an
 idea which suggests the distinct       
additional idea ,c4 ,and where the train
 of suggestion is one of reasoning      
distinctively so-called as contrasted   
with mere 'revery1' 444 the ideas bear  
certain inward relations to each other  
which we must carefully examine4 ,the   
result ,c yielded by a true act of      
reasoning is apt to be a thing          
voluntarily sought1 such as the means to
 a proposed end1 the ground for an      
observed effect1 or the effect of an    
assumed cause4#b ,thus what at first    
sight might seem a fantastic suggestion 
may1 when its bearings are logically    
followed out1 be seen in one of its     

aspects to be the key to the solution of
 a problem4 ,to primitive man it might  
have seemed absurd to suggest that      
flowing water might be used as power2 to
 the man in ,franklin's day that the    
same force that was exhibited in the    
lightning might be used in              
transportation and in lighting houses4#a
  ,footnote #a3 ,james3 ,psychology1    
vol4 ,,ii1 p4 #cdc4  ,footnote #b3      
,ibid41 p4 #cbi4  ,footnote #a3 ,james  
gives an illuminating passage on the    
importance of the effectiveness of      
reasoning things out3 ,i have a         
student's lamp1 of which the flame      
vibrates most unpleasantly unless the   
collar which bears the chimney be raised
 about a sixteenth of an inch4 ,i       
learned the remedy after much torment by
 accident1 and now always keep the      
collar up with a small wedge4 ,but my   
procedure is a mere association of two  
totals1 diseased object and remedy4 ,one
 learned in pneumatics could have named 
the cause of the disease1 and thence    

inferred the remedy immediately4 ,by    
many measurements of triangles1 one     
might find their area always equal to   
their height multiplied by half their   
base1 and one might formulate an        
empirical law to that effect4 ,but a    
reasoner saves himself all this trouble1
 by seeing that it is the essence 7pro  
hac vice7 of a triangle to be the half  
of a parallelogram whose area is the    
height into the entire base4 ,to see    
this he must invent additional lines2   
and the geometer must often draw such to
 get at the essential properties he may 
require in a figure4 ,the essence       
consists in some relation of the figure 
to the new lines1 a relation not obvious
 at all until they are put in4 ,the     
geometer's sagacity lies in the         
invention of the new lines4             
7,psychology1 vol4 ,,ii1 pp4 #cci-dj47  
,but no thinking is conclusive until    
after the experimental certification and
 warranting of the idea which has been  
held in mind as the solution of the     

problem4 ,by deduction1 by logical      
elaboration of an idea1 we find its     
adoption involves certain consequences4 
,some of the logical consequences which 
follow from an idea may indicate that it
 is a plausible solution of our problem4
 ,but no matter how plausible a         
suggestion looks1 until it is verified  
by observation or experiment the        
thinking process is not concluded1 is   
not finished1 as we say1 conclusively4  
,when an idea or a suggestion has been  
developed1 and seen to involve--as an   
idea--certain inevitable logical        
consequences1 the idea must be tested by
 further observation and experiment4    
,suggestions arise from facts and must  
be tested by them4 ,until the suggestion
 is verified1 it remains merely a       
suggestion1 a theory1 a hypothesis1 an  
idea4 ,it is only when the consequences 
implied logically in the very idea      
itself are found in the actual situation
 that the idea is accepted as a solution
 to the problem4 ,sometimes the         

suggestion may be verified by           
observation2 sometimes conditions must  
be deliberately arranged for testing its
 adequacy4 ,in either case it is only   
when the facts of the situation         
correspond to the conditions            
theoretically involved that the         
tentative idea is accepted as a         
conclusion4  ,thus a treatment that is  
regarded by the doctor as a possible    
cure can be called an actual cure only  
when its beneficent results are         
observed4 ,the supposition about the    
planet ,neptune is only verified when   
the planet is actually observed in the  
heavens4 ,thinking ends1 as it begins1  
in observation4 ,at the beginning the   
facts are carefully examined to see     
precisely where the difficulty lies2 at 
the end they are again examined to see  
whether an idea1 an entertained         
hypothesis1 a suggested solution1 can be
 verified in actual observable results4 
,,the ,,quality ,,of                    
,,thinking--,,suggestion4 ,the quality  

of thinking varies1 first1 with the     
fertility of suggestion of the analyzing
 mind4 ,ease of suggestion1 in the first
 place1 depends on innate individual    
differences4 ,there are some minds so   
constituted that every fact provokes a  
multitude of suggestions4 ,readiness in 
responding with ideas to any experience 
is dependent primarily on initial       
differences in resilience and           
responsiveness4 ,but differences in     
training and past experience are also   
contributory4 ,a man who has much       
experience in a given field1 say in     
automobile repairing1 will1 given a     
difficulty1 not only think of more      
suggestions1 but think more rapidly in  
that field4  ,again persons differ in   
range or number of suggestions that     
occur4 ,the quality of the thinking     
process and of the results it produces  
depends1 in part1 on the variety of     
suggestions which occur to an individual
 in the solution of a given problem4 ,if
 too few suggestions occur one may fail 

to hit upon any promising solution4 ,if 
too many suggestions occur one may be   
too confused to arrive at any conclusion
 at all4 ,whether an individual has few 
or many suggestions depends largely on  
native differences4 ,it depends1 also1  
however in part1 on acquaintance with a 
given field4 ,and the fertility of      
suggestions may be increased by a       
careful survey and re-survey of the     
facts at hand1 and by the deliberate    
searching-out of further facts from     
which further suggestions may be        
derived4 ,suggestions differ1 finally1  
in regard to depth or significance2 by  
nature and by training1 individuals     
produce ideas of varying degrees of     
significance in the solution of         
problems4 ,ease and versatility of      
suggestion not infrequently connote     
superficiality2 to make profound and    
far-reaching suggestions takes time4    
,it is further requisite1 as already    
pointed out1 that the analyzing mind be 
free from prejudice4 ,thinking is       

continually qualified1 as we have seen1 
by preferences and aversions4 ,every    
prejudice1 every a priori belief we     
have1 literally prejudges the inquiry4  
,whenever we are moved by a predominant 
passion1 we cannot survey the facts     
impartially4 ,it is hard to think       
clearly and justly about people whom we 
love or hate1 or to estimate with       
precision the morality of actions toward
 which we are moved by very strong      
impulses4 ,it is only the mind that     
remains resolutely emancipated from the 
compulsions of habit and circumstances1 
that persists in surveying facts as they
 are1 letting the chips1 so to speak1   
fall where they will1 that can be really
 effective in thinking4 ,in the physical
 sciences it is comparatively easy to   
start with no prejudices2 in social     
inquiries where we are bound by         
traditions1 loyalties1 and antipathies  
it is much more difficult4  ,not the    
least essential to effective thinking is
 persistence and thoroughness of        

investigation4 ,since we are primarily  
creatures of action1 we crave           
definiteness and immediacy of decision1 
and there is a constant temptation to   
rush to a conclusion4 ,in order to      
attain genuine completeness of the facts
 and certainty and accuracy as to what  
the facts are1 long1 unwavering         
persistence is required4 ,there must be 
persistence1 moreover1 not merely       
because of the length of time and the   
amount of labor involved in the         
collection of data2 steadiness is       
required in holding in mind the end or  
purpose of the investigation4 ,too often
 in inquiry into the facts of human     
relations1 the specific problem is      
forgotten and facts are collected with  
an indiscriminate omnivorousness4 ,there
 is in such cases plodding1 but of an   
unenlightened and fruitless sort4 ,not  
only persistency but consistency is     
required4 ,the investigation must be    
steadily carried on with persistent and 
unwavering reference to the specific    

business in hand4  ,effective thinking  
depends further on familiarity with the 
field of facts under investigation4     
,even the most ready and fertile of     
minds1 the most orderly habits of       
thought1 are at a loss without a store  
of material2 that is1 facts from which  
suggestions may arise4 ,and this store  
of materials can only be attained       
through a thoroughgoing acquaintance    
with the particular field of inquiry4   
,thinking aims to explain the relations 
between facts1 and an intimate          
acquaintance with facts involved in a   
given situation is prerequisite to any  
generalization whatsoever4  ,while the  
native fertility of given minds cannot  
be controlled1 suggestions can be       
controlled indirectly4 ,suggestions     
arise from the data at hand1 but the    
data themselves change under more       
precise conditions of observation1 and  
the suggestions that arise from them    
change in consequence4 ,the whole       
elaborate apparatus of science1 its     

instruments of precision1 are designed  
to yield an exact determination of the  
precise nature of the data at hand4 ,the
 scientist attempts to prevent          
reading-in of meanings4 ,reading-in of  
meanings may be due to various causes4  
,in the first place there may be purely 
physical causes3 a dim light1 a fog1 a  
cracked window-pane are examples of how 
ordinary observation may lead us astray4
 ,again1 physiological causes may be at 
work to distort sensations3             
imperfection's in the sense organs1     
fatigue1 illness1 and the like are      
examples4 ,but not least among the      
causes of error must be set             
psychological causes4 ,that is1 we read 
facts differently in the light of what  
we fear or hope1 like or dislike1 expect
 or recall4 ,we see things the way we   
want them to be1 or the way previous    
experience has taught us to expect them 
to be4  ,both physiological and         
psychological causes may be checked up  
by instruments4 ,indeed1 one of the     

chief utilities of instruments of       
precision is that they do serve to check
 up personal error4 ,they prevent       
scientific inquirers from reading in    
meanings to which they are led by hope1 
fear1 preference1 or aversion4 ,they    
help us to see the facts as they are1   
not as for various social and personal  
reasons we want or expect them to be4   
,they help to give precise and permanent
 impressions which are not dependent for
 their discovery or for their           
preservation on the precariousness of   
human observation or memory4            
,,classification4 ,next only in         
importance to accurate observation of   
the facts is their classification4      
,objects of experience as they come to  
us through the senses appear in a       
sequence which is random and chaotic4   
,but in order to deal effectively with  
our experience we must arrange facts    
according to their likenesses and       
differences4 ,whenever we discover      
certain striking similarities between   

facts1 we classify them1 place them in a
 class1 knowing that what will apply to 
one will apply to all4 ,some logicians  
go so far as to say that science cannot 
go any further than accurate            
classification4 ,in the words of        
,poincar3  ,the most interesting facts  
are those which may serve many times2   
these are the facts which have a chance 
of coming up again4 ,we have been so    
fortunate as to have been born in a     
world where there are such4 ,suppose    
that instead of sixty chemical elements 
there were sixty milliards of them1 that
 they were not some common1 the others  
rare1 but that they were equally        
distributed4 ,then1 every time we picked
 up a new pebble there would be great   
probability of its being formed of some 
unknown substance2 all that we knew of  
other pebbles would be worthless for it2
 before each new object we should be as 
the new-born babe2 like it we could only
 obey our caprices or our needs4        
,biologists would be just as much at a  

loss if there were only individuals and 
no species1 and if heredity did not make
 sons like their fathers4#a  ,footnote  
#a3 ,poincar3 ,foundations of ,science1 
p4 #cfc4  ,the aim of classification in 
science is grouping in such a way as to 
make manifest at once similarities in   
the behavior of objects4 ,that          
characteristic is selected as a basis of
 classification with which is correlated
 the greatest number of other           
characteristics belonging to the facts  
in question4 ,it would be possible to   
classify all living things according to 
color1 but such a classification would  
be destitute of scientific value4       
,biology offers some interesting        
examples of how an illuminating         
classification may be made on the basis 
of a single characteristic4 ,it has been
 found1 for example1 that the           
differences or resemblances of animals  
are correlated with corresponding       
differences or resemblances in their    
teeth4 ,in general1 the function of     

classification may be summarized in     
,huxley's definition as modified by     
,jevons3  ,by the classification of any 
series of objects is meant the actual or
 ideal arrangement together of those    
things which are like and the separation
 of those things which are unlike1 the  
purpose of the arrangement being1       
primarily1 to disclose the correlations 
or laws of union of properties and      
circumstances1 and1 secondarily1 to     
facilitate the operations of the mind in
 clearly conceiving and retaining in    
memory the characters of the object in  
question4  ,it should be noted that the 
object of classification is not simply  
to indicate similarities but to indicate
 distinctions or differences4 ,in       
scientific inquiry1 differences are as  
crucial in the forming of               
generalizations as similarities4 ,it is 
only possible to classify a given fact  
under a scientific generalization when  
the given fact is set off from other    
facts1 when it is seen to be the result 

of certain special conditions4  ,if a   
man infers from a single sample of grain
 as to the grade of wheat of the car as 
a whole1 it is induction1 and under     
certain circumstances1 a sound          
induction2 other cases are resorted to  
simply for the sake of rendering that   
induction more guarded and correct4 ,in 
the case of the various samples of      
grain1 it is the fact that the samples  
are unlike1 at least in the part of the 
carload from which they are taken1 that 
is important4 ,were it not for this     
unlikeness1 their likeness in quality   
would be of no avail in assisting       
inference4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,dewey3 ,how
 ,we ,think1 pp4 #hi-ij4  ,,experimental
 ,,variation ,,of ,,conditions4 ,in     
forming our generalizations from the    
observation of situations as they occur 
in ,nature1 we are at a disadvantage4   
,if we observe cases just as we find    
them1 there is much present that is     
irrelevant to our problem2 much that is 
of genuine importance in its solution is

 hidden or obscure4 ,in experimental    
investigation we are1 in the words of   
,sir ,john ,herschel1 active observers2 
we deliberately invent crucial or test  
cases4 ,that is1 we deliberately arrange
 conditions so that every factor is     
definitely known and recognized4 ,we    
then introduce into this set of         
completely known conditions one change1 
one new circumstance1 and observe its   
effect4 ,in ,mill's phrase1 we take a   
phenomenon home with us1 and watch its  
behavior4 ,mill states clearly the      
outstanding advantage of experimentation
 over observation3  ,when we can produce
 a phenomenon artificially1 we can take 
it1 as it were1 home with us1 and       
observe it in the midst of circumstances
 with which in all other respects we are
 accurately acquainted4 ,if we desire to
 know what are the effects of the cause 
,a1 and are able to produce ,a by means 
at our disposal1 we can generally       
determine at our own discretion 444 the 
whole of the circumstances which shall  

be present along with it2 and thus1     
knowing exactly the simultaneous state  
of everything else which is within the  
reach of ,a's influence1 we have only to
 observe what alteration is made in that
 state by the presence of ,a4  ,for     
example1 by the electric machine we can 
produce1 in the midst of known          
circumstances1 the phenomena which      
,nature exhibits on a grander scale in  
the form of lightning and thunder4 ,now 
let any one consider what amount of     
knowledge of the effects and laws of    
electric agency mankind could have      
obtained from the mere observation of   
thunderstorms1 and compare it with that 
which they have gained1 and may expect  
to gain1 from electrical and galvanic   
experiments4444  ,when we have succeeded
 in isolating the phenomenon which is   
the subject of inquiry1 by placing it   
among known circumstances1 we may       
produce further variations of           
circumstances to any extent1 and of such
 kinds as we think best calculated to   

bring the laws of the phenomenon into a 
clear light4 ,by introducing one        
well-defined circumstance after another 
into the experiment1 we obtain assurance
 of the manner in which the phenomenon  
behaves under an indefinite variety of  
possible circumstances4 ,thus1 chemists1
 after having obtained some newly       
discovered substance in a pure state1   
444 introduce various other substances1 
one by one1 to ascertain whether it will
 combine with them1 or decompose them1  
and with what result2 and also apply    
heat or electricity or pressure1 to     
discover what will happen to the        
substance under each of these           
circumstances4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,mill3  
,logic 7,london1 #ahgb71 vol4 ,i1 pp4   
#dda-db4  ,through experiment1 we are   
thus enabled to observe the relation of 
specific elements in a situation4 ,we   
are1 furthermore1 enabled to observe    
phenomena which are so rare in          
occurrence that it is impossible to form
 generalizations from them or improbable

 that we should even notice them3 ,we   
might have to wait years or centuries to
 meet accidentally with facts which we  
can readily produce at any moment in a  
laboratory2 and it is probable that many
 of the chemical substances now known1  
and many excessively useful products1   
would never have been discovered at all1
 by waiting till ,nature presented them 
spontaneously to our observation4 ,and  
phenomena1 such as that of electricity1 
which can only be understood when the   
conditions of their occurrence are      
varied1 are presented to us in ,nature  
most frequently in a fixed and          
invariable form4  ,,generalizations1    
,,their ,,elaboration ,,and ,,testing4  
,so far we have been concerned with the 
steps in the control of suggestion1 the 
rexamination of the facts so that       
significant suggestions may be derived1 
and the elimination of the significant  
from the insignificant in the elements  
of the situation as it first confronts  
us4 ,in logically elaborating a         

suggestion1 as we have already seen1 we 
trace out the bearings of a given       
situation4 ,we expand it2 we see what it
 implies1 what it means4 ,thus1 if we   
came1 for example1 to a meeting that had
 been scheduled1 and found no one       
present1 we might have several solutions
 arise in our minds4 ,the meeting1 we   
might suppose1 had been transferred to  
another room4 ,if that were the case1   
there would probably be some notice     
posted4 ,in all cases of deductive      
elaboration1 we go through what might be
 called the ,if-,then process4 ,if      
such-and-such is the case1 then         
such-and-such will follow4 ,we can then 
verify our suggested solution to a      
problem1 by going back to the facts1 to 
see whether they correspond with the    
implications of our suggestion4 ,we may1
 to take another example1 think that a  
man who enters our office is an         
insurance agent1 or a book solicitor who
 had said he would call upon us at a    
definite date4 ,if such is the case1 he 

will say such-and-such things4 ,if he   
does say them1 then our suggestion is   
seen to be correct4 ,the advantages of  
developing a suggestion include the fact
 that some link in the logical chain may
 bear a more obvious relation to our    
problem than did the undeveloped        
suggestion itself4  ,the systematic     
sciences consist of such sets of        
principles so related that any single   
term implies certain others1 which imply
 certain others and so on ad infinitum4 
,after the facts have been elaborated1  
the generalization1 however plausible it
 may seem1 must be subjected to         
experimental corroboration4 ,that is1 if
 a suggestion is found through local    
elaboration to mean ,a1 ,b1 ,c1 then the
 situation must be rexamined to see if  
the facts to be found tally with the    
facts deduced4 ,in the case cited1 the  
suggestion that the man who entered the 
room was the insurance agent we expected
 would be verified if he immediately    
broached the subject and the fact1 say1 

of a previous conversation4 ,in the case
 of disease1 if the illness is typhoid1 
we shall find certain specific          
conditions in the patient4 ,if these are
 found1 the suggestion of typhoid is    
verified4  ,the reliability of          
generalizations made by this scientific 
procedure varies according to several   
factors4 ,it varies1 in the first place1
 according to the correspondence of the 
predictions made on the basis of the    
generalization1 with subsequent events4 
,the reason we say the law of           
gravitation holds true is because in    
every instance where observations or    
experiments have been made1 the results 
have tallied precisely with expectations
 based upon the generalization4 ,we can1
 to a certain extent1 determine the     
reliability of a generalization before  
comparing our predictions with          
subsequent events4 ,if a generalization 
made contradicts laws that have been    
established in so many instances that   
they are practically beyond             

peradventure1 it is suspect4 ,a law1 for
 example1 that should be an exception to
 the laws of motion or gravitation1 is a
 priori dubious4  ,if an induction      
conflicts with stronger inductions1 or  
with conclusions capable of being       
correctly deduced from them1 then1      
unless on reconsideration it should     
appear that some of the stronger        
inductions have been expressed with     
greater universality than their evidence
 warrants1 the weaker one must give way4
 ,the opinion so long prevalent that a  
comet1 or any other unusual appearance  
in the heavenly regions1 was the        
precursor of calamities to mankind1 or  
to those at least who witnessed it2 the 
belief in the veracity of the oracles of
 ,delphi or ,dodona2 the reliance on    
astrology1 or on the weather prophecies 
in almanacs1 were doubtless inductions  
supposed to be grounded on              
experience4444 ,what has really put an  
end to these insufficient inductions is 
their inconsistency with the stronger   

inductions subsequently obtained by     
scientific inquiry1 respecting the      
causes on which terrestrial events      
really depend4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,mill3  
,logic 7,london1 #ahgb71 vol4 ,i1 pp4   
#cgj-ga4  ,,the ,,quantitative ,,basis  
,,of ,,scientific ,,procedure4 ,science 
is science1 some scientists insist1 in  
so far as it is mathematical4 ,that is1 
in the precise determination of facts1  
and in their repetition with a view to  
their exact determination1 quantities   
must be known4 ,the sciences have       
developed in exactness1 in so far as    
they have succeeded in expressing their 
formulations in numerical terms4 ,the   
physical sciences1 such as physics and  
chemistry1 which have been able to frame
 their generalizations from precise     
quantities1 have been immeasurably more 
certain and secure than such sciences as
 psychology and sociology1 where the    
measurement of exact quantities is more 
difficult and rare4 ,jevons writes in   
his ,principles of ,science3  ,as       

physical science advances1 it becomes   
more and more accurately quantitative4  
,questions of simple logical fact       
resolve themselves after a while into   
questions of degree1 time1 distance1 or 
weight4 ,forces hardly suspected to     
exist by one generation are clearly     
recognized by the next1 and precisely   
measured by the third generation4#a     
,footnote #a3 ,jevons3 ,principles of   
,science1 p4 #bgj4  ,the history of     
science exhibits a constant progress    
from rude guesses to precise measurement
 of quantities4 ,in the earliest history
 of astronomy there were attempts at    
quantitative determinations1 very crude1
 of course1 in comparison with the      
exactness of present-day scientific     
methods4  ,every branch of knowledge    
commences with quantitative notions of a
 very rude character4 ,after we have far
 progressed1 it is often amusing to look
 back into the infancy of the science1  
and contrast present with past methods4 
,at ,greenwich ,observatory in the      

present day1 the hundredth part of a    
second is not thought an inconsiderable 
portion of time4 ,the ancient           
,chaldreans recorded an eclipse to the  
nearest hour1 and the early ,alexandrian
 astronomers thought it superfluous to  
distinguish between the edge and center 
of the sun4 ,by the introduction of the 
astrolabe1 ,ptolemy1 and the later      
,alexandrian astronomers could determine
 the places of the heavenly bodies      
within about ten minutes of arc4 ,little
 progress then ensued for thirteen      
centuries1 until ,tycho ,brahe made the 
first great step toward accuracy1 not   
only by employing better instruments1   
but even more by ceasing to regard an   
instrument as correct4444 ,he also took 
notice of the effects of atmospheric    
refraction1 and succeeded in attaining  
an accuracy often sixty times as great  
as that of ,ptolemy4 ,yet ,tycho and    
,hevelius often erred several minutes in
 the determination of a star's place1   
and it was a great achievement of       

,roemer and ,flamsteed to reduce this   
error to seconds4 ,bradley1 the modern  
,hipparchus1 carried on the improvement1
 his errors in right ascension1         
according to ,bessel1 being under one   
second of time1 and those of declination
 under four seconds of arc4 ,in the     
present day the average error of a      
single observation is probably reduced  
to the half or the quarter of what it   
was in ,bradley's time2 and further     
extreme accuracy is attained by the     
multiplication of observations1 and     
their skillful combination according to 
the theory of error4 ,some of the more  
important constants444 have been        
determined within a tenth part of a     
second of space4#b  ,footnote #b3       
,ibid41 pp4 #bga-gb4  ,the precise      
measurement of quantities is important  
because we can1 in the first place1 only
 through quantitative determinations be 
sure we have made accurate observations1
 observations uncolored by personal     
idiosyncrasies4 ,both errors of         

observation and errors of judgment are  
checked up and averted by exact         
quantitative measurements4 ,the         
relations of phenomena1 moreover1 are so
 complex that specific causes and       
effects can only be understood when they
 are given precise quantitative         
determination4 ,in investigating the    
solubility of salts1 for example1 we    
find variability depending on           
differences in temperature1 pressure1   
the presence of other salts already     
dissolved1 and the like4 ,the solubility
 of salt in water differs again from its
 solubility in alcohol1 ether1 carbon1  
bisulphide4 ,generalization about the   
solubility of salt1 therefore1 depends  
on the exact measurement of the         
phenomenon under all these conditions4#a
  ,footnote #a3 ,see ,jevons1 p1 #bgi   
ff4  ,the importance of exact           
measurement in scientific discovery and 
generalization may be illustrated       
briefly from one instance in the history
 of chemistry4 ,the discovery of the    

chemical element argon came about       
through some exact measurements by ,lord
 ,rayleigh and ,sir ,william ,ramsay of 
the nitrogen and the oxygen in a glass  
flask4 ,it was found that the nitrogen  
derived from air was not altogether     
pure2 that is1 there were very minute   
differences in the weighings of nitrogen
 made from certain of its compounds and 
the weight obtained by removing oxygen1 
water1 traces of carbonic acid1 and     
other impurities from the atmospheric   
air4 ,it was found that the very        
slightly heavier weight in one case was 
caused by the presence of argon 7about  
one and one third times as heavy as     
nitrogen7 and some other elementary     
gases4 ,the discovery was here clearly  
due to the accurate measurement which   
made possible the discovery of this     
minute discrepancy4  ,it must be noted  
in general that accuracy in measurement 
is immediately dependent on the         
instruments of precision available4 ,it 
has frequently been pointed out that the

 ,greeks1 although incomparably fresh1  
fertile1 and direct in their thinking1  
yet made such a comparatively slender   
contribution to scientific knowledge    
precisely because they had no           
instruments for exact measurement4 ,the 
thermometer made possible the science of
 heat4 ,the use of the balance has been 
in large part responsible for advances  
in chemistry4  ,the degree to which     
sciences have attained quantitative     
accuracy varies among the physical      
sciences4 ,the phenomena of light are   
not yet subject to accurate measurement2
 many natural phenomena have not yet    
been made the subject of measurement at 
all4 ,such are the intensity of sound1  
the phenomena of taste and smell1 the   
magnitude of atoms1 the temperature of  
the electric spark or of the sun's      
atmosphere4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,see       
,jevons1 p4 #bgc4  ,the sciences tend1  
in general1 to become more and more     
quantitative4 ,all phenomena exist in   
space and involve molecular movements1  

measurable in velocity and extent4 ,the 
ideal of all sciences is thus to reduce 
all phenomena to measurements of mass   
and motion4 ,this ideal is obviously far
 from being attained4 ,especially in the
 social sciences are quantitative       
measurements difficult1 and in these    
sciences we must remain therefore at    
best in the region of shrewd guesses or 
fairly reliable probability4            
,,statistics ,,and ,,probability4 ,while
 in the social sciences1 exact          
quantitative measurements are difficult1
 they are to an extent possible1 and to 
the extent that they are possible we can
 arrive at fairly accurate              
generalizations as to the probable      
occurrence of phenomena4 ,there are many
 phenomena where the elements are so    
complex that they cannot be analyzed and
 invariable causal relations            
established4  ,in a study of the        
phenomena of the weather1 for example1  
the phenomena are so exceedingly complex
 that anything approaching a complete   

statement of their elements is quite out
 of the question4 ,the fallibility of   
most popular generalizations in these   
fields is evidence of the difficulty of 
dealing with such facts4 ,must we be    
content then simply to guess at such    
phenomena8 444 ,in instances of this    
sort1 another method 444 becomes        
important3 ,the ,method of ,statistics4 
,in statistics we have an exact         
enumeration of cases4 ,if a small number
 of cases does not enable us to detect  
the causal relations of a phenomenon1 it
 sometimes happens that a large number1 
accurately counted1 and taken from a    
field widely extended in time and space1
 will lead to a solution of the         
problem4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,jones2       
,logic1 ,inductive and ,deductive1 p4   
#aij4  ,if we find1 in a wide variety of
 instances1 two phenomena occurring in a
 certain constant correlation1 we infer 
a causal relation4 ,if the variations in
 the frequency of one correspond to     
variations in the frequency of the      

other1 there is probability of more than
 connection by coincidence4  ,the       
correlation between phenomena may be    
measured mathematically2 it is possible 
to express in figures the exact         
relations between the occurrence of one 
phenomenon and the occurrence of        
another4 ,the number which expresses    
this relation is called the coefficient 
of correlation4 ,this coefficient       
expresses relationship in terms of the  
mean values of the two series of        
phenomena by measuring the amount each  
individual phenomenon varies from its   
respective mean4 ,suppose1 for example1 
that in correlating crime and           
unemployment1 the coefficient of        
correlation were found to be 4#dg4 ,if  
in every case of unemployment crime were
 found and in every case of crime1      
unemployment1 the coefficient of        
correlation would be #a4 ,if crime were 
never found in unemployment1 and        
unemployment never in crime1 the        
coefficient of correlation would be -#a1

 indicating a perfect inverse           
relationship4 ,a coefficient of #j would
 indicate that there is no relationship4
 ,the coefficient of 4#dg would         
accordingly indicate a significant but  
not a high correlation between crime and
 unemployment4  ,we cannot consider here
 all the details of statistical methods1
 but attention may be called to a few of
 the more significant features of the   
process4 ,statistics is a science1 and  
consists in much more than the mere     
counting of cases4  ,with the collection
 of statistical data1 only the first    
step has been taken4 ,the statistics in 
that condition are only raw material    
showing nothing4 ,they are not an       
instrument of investigation any more    
than a kiln of bricks is a monument of  
architecture4 ,they need to be arranged1
 classified1 tabulated1 and brought into
 connection with other statistics by the
 statistician4 ,then only do they become
 an instrument of investigation1 just as
 a tool is nothing more than a mass of  

wood or metal1 except in the hands of a 
skilled workman4#a  ,footnote #a3       
,mayo-,smith3 ,statistics and           
,sociology1 p4 #ah4  ,the essential     
steps in a statistical investigation    
are3 7#a7 the collection of material1   
7#b7 its tabulation1 7#c7 the summary1  
and 7#d7 a critical examination of the  
results4 ,the terms are almost          
self-explanatory4 ,there are1 however1  
several general points of method to be  
noted4  ,in the collection of data a    
wide field must be covered1 to be sure  
that we are dealing with invariable     
relations instead of with mere          
coincidences1 or overemphasizing the    
importance of one out of a number of    
coperating causes4 ,tabulation of the   
data collected is very important1 since 
classification of the data does much to 
suggest the causal relations sought4    
,the headings under which data will be  
collected depend on the purposes of the 
investigation4 ,in general1 statistics  
can suggest generalizations1 rather than

 establish them4 ,they indicate         
probability1 not invariable relation4#b 
,footnote #b3 ,see ,jones3 ,logic1 pp4  
#bac-be1 for a discussion of            
,probability4  ,,science ,,as ,,an      
,,instrument ,,of ,,human ,,progress4   
,we have1 in an earlier section of this 
chapter1 referred to the practical value
 of science4 ,man's power of deliberate 
control of his own affairs depends upon 
ability to direct energies to use2 an   
ability which is1 in turn1 dependent    
upon insight into nature's processes4   
,whatever natural science may be for the
 specialist1444 it is knowledge of the  
conditions of human action4#c ,and the  
wider1 the more complete and the more   
penetrating our knowledge of the world  
in which we live1 the more extended     
become the boundaries of human action4  
,through a knowledge of natural         
processes1 men have passed from a       
frightened subjection to ,nature to its 
conscious control4 ,and the fruits of   
that control are1 as we have already had

 occasion to notice1 all-pervading in   
practical life4 ,that complete          
transformation of life known as the     
,industrial ,revolution1 which came     
about with such swiftness and           
completeness in the early nineteenth    
century1 and whose effects have not yet 
ceased to accumulate1 was the direct    
outcome of the application of the       
experimental science which had begun in 
the sixteenth4 ,some of the consequences
 of the application of theoretical      
investigation to practical life have    
already been noted4 ,there are first the
 more obvious facts of the inventions1  
great and small--the railways1          
steamships1 electric transportation1    
automobiles1 and telephones--which have 
changed in countless details our daily  
life4 ,there are the profound and       
all-pervasive changes which have been   
brought about in industrial and social  
relations3 the building-up of our vast  
industrial centers1 the change from     
small-scale handicrafts to large-scale  

machine production1 the factory system1 
with its concomitants of immensely      
increased resources and immensely       
complicated problems of human life4     
,science in the short span of three     
centuries has shown how rapid and       
immediate could be the fruits of human  
control of ,nature1 and its further     
fruits are incalculable4  ,footnote #c3 
,dewey3 ,democracy and ,education1 p4   
#bfg4  ,science has indeed already begun
 to affect men's attitude towards       
experience as well as their material    
progress4 ,it is only when men set out  
with the conscious realization that     
intelligence does make a difference in  
the world1 that science becomes         
articulate4 ,science is the guarantee of
 progress4 ,it has shown men that the   
future is to some extent in their own   
hands2 that by dint of a laborious and  
detailed application of intelligence to 
the processes of nature1 those processes
 can be controlled in the interests of  
human welfare4  ,science has led men to 

look to the future instead of the past4 
,the coincidence of the ideal of        
progress with the advance of science is 
not a mere coincidence4 ,before this    
advance men placed the golden age in    
remote antiquity4 ,now they face the    
future with a firm belief that          
intelligence properly used can do away  
with evils once thought inevitable4 ,to 
subjugate devastating disease is no     
longer a dream2 the hope of abolishing  
poverty is not ,utopian4#a  ,footnote   
#a3 ,dewey3 ,democracy and ,education1  
pp4 #bfb-fc4  ,but science may be used  
for any end4 ,it reveals the relations  
of phenomena1 relations which hold for  
all men4 ,it shows what causes are      
connected with what consequents1 and1 as
 already pointed out1 in the knowledge  
of causes lies the possible control of  
effects4 ,we can secure the results we  
desire1 by discovering what antecedents 
must first be established4 ,science is  
thus a fund of common resources4        
,specific causes are revealed to be     

connected with specific effects1 and    
men1 by making a choice of antecedents1 
can secure the consequences they desire4
 ,but which effects they will desire    
depends on the instincts1 standards1 and
 habits of the individual1 and the      
traditions and ideals of the group4 ,a  
knowledge of chemistry may be used for  
productive industrial processes1 or in  
the invention of poison gas4 ,expert    
acquaintance with psychology and        
educational methods may be used to      
impress upon a nation an arbitrary type 
of life 7an accusation justly brought   
against the ,prussian educational       
system71 or to promote the specific     
possibilities that each individual      
displays4  ,not only are the fruits of  
scientific inquiry used in different    
ways by different individuals and       
groups1 but scientific inquiry is itself
 affected by the prevailing interests   
and mode of life4 ,what inquiries shall 
be furthered depends on what the        
individual or group feels it important  

to know4 ,from a social point of view1  
certain scientific developments are of  
more urgency and imperativeness than    
others4 ,during an emergency1 as during 
the ,great ,war1 it might be necessary  
to turn all the energies of scientific  
men into immediately productive         
pursuits4 ,and1 since the pursuit of    
inquiry on a large scale demands large  
resources1 those researches which give  
promise of beneficent human consequences
 will the more readily command social   
sanction and approval and will be       
developed at the expense of more remote 
speculations however intrinsically      
interesting these latter may be4        
,science has proved so valuable a human 
instrument that it has attained a moral 
responsibility4 ,men have increasingly  
come to realize that the pressing       
problems of our industrial life require 
for their solution not the confusions   
and incompetences of passion and        
prejudice1 but an application of the    
fruits of scientific inquiry4 ,science  

has already so completely demonstrated  
its vast fruitfulness in human welfare1 
that it must be watched with jealous    
vigilance4 ,it must result as it began1 
in the improvement of human welfare4#a  
,but what constitutes human welfare is a
 question which leads us into the final 
activity of the ,career of ,reason1     
,morals and ,moral ,valuation1 man's    
attempt to determine what happiness is1 
and how he may attain it4  ,footnote #a3
 ,we have already noted the danger of   
too complete a commitment of science to 
immediately practical results4 ,this    
narrows instead of broadening           
possibility4 ,as ,mr4 ,f4 ,p4 ,keppel   
points out in a recent article1         
,scholarship in ,war 7,columbia         
,university ,quarterly1 ,july1 #aiai71  
some of the most important and          
immediately practical contributions     
during the ,great ,war came from the    
ranks of those who would be regarded as 
pure theorists4     ,,chapter ,,xv      
,,morals ,,and ,,moral ,,valuation      

,,the ,,pre-,,conditions ,,of           
,,morality--,,instinct1 ,,impulse1 ,,and
 ,,desire4 ,in ,art and ,science1 man   
attempts to transform the world of      
nature into conditions more in          
conformity with his desires4 ,in the    
enterprise of ,morals1 man attempts to  
discover how to control his own nature  
in the attainment of happiness4 ,we have
 already had occasion to see that ,art1 
in the broad sense of human contrivance1
 is made necessary by the incongruity   
between nature and human nature4 ,we    
shall examine now the conditions which  
make it necessary and make it possible  
for man to consider and to control those
 elementary impulses with which he is   
endowed4  ,the origin of the moral      
problem will become clearer after a     
brief recapitulation of those elements  
of original nature which form the basis 
of all human action4 ,we have seen that 
human beings are equipped1 apart from   
education or training1 with certain     
tendencies to act in certain definite   

ways1 given certain definite stimuli4   
,any single activity of an average human
 being in a modern civilized community  
is compounded of so many modifications  
of original tendencies to action that   
these latter seem often altogether      
obliterated4 ,the conditions of         
civilized life1 moreover1 place         
continual checks on the free activity of
 any given impulse1 and there are so    
many stimuli playing upon an individual 
at once that the responses called out   
tend to inhibit each other4 ,the        
particular thing we say to an           
acquaintance we happen to meet is not   
determined by a single original impulse1
 by love or hate1 fear or sympathy1     
pugnacity or pity4 ,it is a compound of 
some or of most of these4 ,on the other 
hand1 no matter how complicated or      
sophisticated human action becomes1 it  
is built out of these same impulses1    
which were operative when human beings  
had not yet passed out of savagery4 ,we 
may check and control our responses     

through habitual repressions1 through   
deliberate forethought1 through         
conscious or mechanical acquiescence in 
the ways of the group among which we    
live4 ,but these original impulses are  
still the mainspring of our activities4 
,the complex1 highly artificial         
character of our civilization often     
obscures the presence of these powerful 
instinctive tendencies1 but that they   
are present and powerful several facts  
bear witness4 ,they manifest themselves1
 as the newer psychology of the         
subconscious has repeatedly pointed out1
 in roundabout ways2 they are1 in the   
technical phrase1 sublimated4 ,instincts
 find1 as it were1 substitute           
realizations4 ,this process of          
sublimation of unfulfilled desire has   
been noted particularly with regard to  
the sex instinct1 but the principle     
applies to the others4  ,the continual  
suppression of instincts results in     
various forms of morbidity1 in what     
,graham ,wallas calls baulked           

dispositions4 ,to say that instincts are
 repressed1 is to say there is a        
maladjustment between the individual as 
he comes into the world1 and the world  
as he finds it4 ,this maladjustment may 
vary in intensity4 ,it may be exhibited 
in nothing more serious than boredom1 or
 petulance1 or hyper-sensitiveness4 ,it 
may be a chronic sense of not fitting   
in1 of being lost in a blind alley4 ,one
 has but to review one's list of        
acquaintances to see how many people    
there are who feel somehow frustrated in
 the work they happen to be doing1 who  
feel themselves inexplicably at odds    
with the world4 ,graham ,wallas well    
describes the situation when he writes3 
,for we cannot in ,saint ,paul's sense  
mortify our dispositions4 ,if they are  
not stimulated1 they do not therefore   
die1 nor is the human being what he     
would be if they had never existed4 ,if 
we leave unstimulated1 or1 to use a     
shorter term1 if we baulk any one of our
 main dispositions1 ,curiosity1         

,property1 ,trial and ,error1 ,sex1 and 
the rest1 we produce in ourselves a     
state of nervous strain4 ,it may be     
desirable in any particular case of     
conduct that we should do so1 but we    
ought to know what we are doing4  ,the  
baulking of each disposition produces   
its own type of strain2 but the         
distinctions between the types are1 so  
far1 unnamed and unrecognized1 and a    
trained psychologist would do a real    
service to civilized life if he would   
carefully observe and describe them4#a  
,footnote #a3 ,wallas3 ,the ,great      
,society1 p4 #fe4  ,the presence of     
instinctive activities is seen in stark 
immediacy and directness every now and  
then in civilized life4 ,lynchings and  
mob violence in general are             
illustrations of what happens when      
groups throw to the winds the multiple  
inhibitions of custom and law4 ,and the 
records of the criminal courts exhibit  
more cases than are commonly realized of
 sheer crimes of violence4 ,in some     

instances these can be set down as      
pathological1 but in many more they are 
normal instincts breaking through the   
fixed channels set by public opinion1   
tradition1 and legal compulsion4 ,on a  
smaller scale an outburst of anger1 a   
fit of temper1 sulk or spleen1 exhibits 
the enduring though often obscured      
presence of instinctive tendencies in   
civilized life4  ,,the ,,conflict ,,of  
,,interests ,,between ,,men ,,and       
,,groups4 ,how comes it1 then1 that men 
whose whole activity is a complication  
of these powerful original tendencies to
 action should not follow these native  
impulses freely8 ,the answer is that men
 not only live1 but live together4      
,wherever human wants1 as in any group1 
even a small one1 must be filled through
 cooperation1 accommodation1 compromise1
 give-and-take1 adjustment must be made4
 ,man1 to adapt ,kant's phrase1 cannot  
get on with his fellows2 and he cannot  
get on without them4 ,other men are     
necessary to help us fulfill our        

desires1 and yet our desires conflict   
with theirs4 ,the dual fact of          
cooperation and conflict is1 in a sense1
 the root of the moral problem4 ,how is 
one individual to attain happiness      
without at the same time interfering    
with the happiness of others8 ,how can  
the desires with which all men come into
 the world be fulfilled for all men8    
,the adjustment of these problems is at 
once complicated and facilitated by the 
fact that one of man's most powerful    
native desires is1 as we have already   
seen1 his desire to please other men4   
,this extreme sensitivity to the praise 
and blame of his fellows operates       
powerfully to qualify men's other       
instincts4 ,the ruthlessness with which 
men might otherwise fulfill their       
desires is checked by the fact that     
within themselves there is a conflict   
between the desire to win other sorts of
 gratification1 and the desire to win   
the praise of others and to avoid their 
blame4 ,this is simply one instance of  

what we shall have occasion presently to
 note1 that not only is there a conflict
 between men in the fulfillment of their
 native instincts1 but within           
individuals an adjustment must be made  
between competing impulses themselves4  
,the kinds of conflict that occur       
between men in the fulfillment of their 
original native tendencies1 are as      
various as those tendencies and their   
combinations4 ,it may be a conflict1 as 
in primitive life1 between individuals  
seeking food from the same source4 ,it  
may be a clash in the pursuit of one    
form or another of self-enhancement1    
enhancement which can come to only some 
individual out of a group4 ,the sex     
instinct has afforded1 in the case of   
the eternal triangle1 an example of the 
sharing by two people of an imperious   
desire for precisely the same object of 
satisfaction4 ,these conflicts of       
interest are an inevitable result of the
 constitution of human nature4 ,it is   
perfectly natural that human beings     

constituted with largely identical      
impulses should not infrequently seek   
identical satisfactions4 ,groups as well
 as individuals may come into collision1
 and for analogous reasons4 ,class      
divisions over the distribution of      
wealth1 international wars over the     
distribution of territory1 are          
sufficiently familiar examples4  ,,the  
,,levels ,,of ,,moral                   
,,action--,,custom--,,the               
,,establishment ,,of ,,folkways4 ,no    
anthropologist seems to have discovered 
anywhere individuals living totally     
alone or in total oblivion to the needs 
or interests of others4 ,the human      
necessity for coperation and the human  
desire for companionship bring          
individuals together4 ,and individuals1 
once living together1 find some modus   
vivendi4 ,adjustments are1 in general1  
effected through established and        
authoritative folkways4#a ,that is1     
certain acts come to be recognized as   
sanctioned or as disapproved by the     

group4 ,and these sanctions or          
disapprovals are powerful in the control
 of human action4 ,the fact that        
individuals live and must live together 
is thus the surest guarantee that they  
will not1 once they have grown old      
enough to communicate with other people1
 altogether follow their immediate      
capricious desires4  ,footnote #a3      
,professor ,sumner's convenient term4   
,the reason for the power of social     
approvals and disapprovals over         
individuals lies partly in the fact1    
already noted1 of the human being's     
extremely high sensitivity to the praise
 and blame of others4 ,but part of the  
explanation is social rather than       
psychological4 ,even primitive tribes   
take special pains to make public and   
pervasive the commands and prohibitions 
which have become affixed to given acts4
 ,the mere fact that an act is customary
 is itself a sufficiently strong        
guarantee that it will be practiced1    
since the human being tends to perform1 

as he likes to perform1 the habitual4   
,but in primitive life1 the enforcement 
of custom is not left to the influence  
of habit4 ,the prohibitions and         
sanctions1 both in savage and in        
civilized society1 are made into law4   
,in the former instance1 there are most 
elaborate devices and institutions for  
enforcing the traditional approvals and 
disapprovals4 ,tabus are one important  
instrument of the enforcement of social 
checks upon individual action2 tabus are
 perhaps not so much a means for        
enforcing custom as they are themselves 
customs invested with peculiar and awful
 sanction4 ,they prohibit or ban any    
contact with certain persons or objects 
under penalty of danger from unseen     
beings4  ,through ritual certain acts   
come to be performed with great         
regularity1 thoroughness1 detail1 and   
solemnity4 ,in primitive life it ritual 
is widely and effectively used to insure
 for educational1 political1 and        
domestic customs obedience to the group 

standards4 ,in contemporary life1       
certain social forms and observances1 as
 well as certain religious ceremonies1  
are examples of the enforcement of given
 acts1 by ritual4  ,praise and blame are
 equally effective enforcements of      
certain types of action and of the      
avoidance of others4 ,in primitive life1
 praise is as likely as not to take the 
form of art--decorations1 costumes1     
songs1 and tattoos4 ,in modern life1 as 
we have seen1 praise and blame take the 
form of public opinion1 as expressed by 
friends1 acquaintances1 newspapers1 and 
the like4#a ,praise and blame are not so
 fixed and rigid in civilized           
communities2 individuals move freely    
among diverse groups whose standards    
differ4 ,but group approval is none the 
less effective4  ,footnote #a3 ,see page
 #ajf4  ,in primitive life and1 though  
less patently1 in contemporary society1 
physical force is the ultimate power for
 enforcing custom4 ,primitive chiefs are
 usually the strong men of the tribes2  

and behind law in modern social         
organization is the physical power of   
the ,state to enforce it4  ,,morality   
,,as ,,conformity ,,to ,,the            
,,established4 ,the beginning of morals 
is thus to be found in conformity to the
 established or customary4 ,the         
criterion of morality is                
compliance--compliance with the regular1
 the socially approved1 the common 7that
 is1 the communal7 ways of action4      
,apart from the consequences of         
violation1 violation per se is impure1  
unholy1 immoral4 ,the terms are1 in some
 cases1 interchangeable4 ,in primitive  
life1 violations are regarded with      
particular horror1 because they are     
frequently held to be not only          
infringements of established ways of the
 tribe1 but as offenses against the     
gods1 offenses which involve the whole  
tribe in the retributive punishments of 
the gods4 ,violation of the customary   
may1 indeed1 apart from arousing        
intellectual disapproval1 provoke a     

genuine revulsion of feeling on the part
 of a group which has acquired certain  
fixed habits4 ,we still feel emotionally
 shocked by the infringement of a custom
 that we do not intellectually value    
highly4 ,if we examine our moral        
furniture we find it made up of an      
immense number of early acquired        
inhibitions or checks4 ,these not only  
prevent us from violating1 at least     
without qualms1 standards to which we   
have early been trained2 they make      
deviations or irregularities on the part
 of others appear as immoral1 even      
before or without our intellectually    
classifying them as such4 ,there are    
adults1 for example1 who cannot outgrow 
the feeling to which they have early    
been habituated1 that card-playing at   
any time1 or baseball-playing on        
,sunday1 is evil1 even though they are  
no longer intellectually affected by    
scruples in those respects4 ,there is   
significance in the fact that by        
speaking of irregularities in a man's   

conduct1 we signify4 or imply moral     
disapproval4  ,the group1 in any stage  
of civilization1 rewards in some form   
conformity to group standards1 and      
punishes infringements of them4         
,punishment may be nothing more tangible
 than disrepute or ostracism2 it may be 
as serious as execution4 ,reward may    
range from a decoration or a chorus of  
praise to all forms of compensation in  
the way of wealth1 rank1 and power4  ,we
 have noted how sanctions and           
prohibitions are made public and        
effective among the members of a group4 
,but it is further regarded as important
 by the group that these customs1       
positive and negative1 should be handed 
down from the current to succeeding     
generations4 ,in primitive life         
transmission of the traditional         
practices is made a very special        
occasion in the form of initiation      
ceremonies4  ,initiation ceremonies are 
held with the purpose of inducting boys 
into the privileges of manhood and into 

the full life of the group4 ,they are   
calculated at every step to impress upon
 the initiate his own ignorance and     
helplessness in contrast with the wisdom
 and power of the group2 and as the     
mystery with which they are conducted   
imposes reverence for the elders and the
 authorities of the group1 so the       
recital of the traditions and           
performances of the tribe1 the long     
series of ritual acts1 common           
participation in the mystic dance and   
song and decorations1 serve to reinforce
 the ties that bind the tribe4#a        
,footnote #a3 ,dewey and ,tufts3        
,ethics1 pp4 #eg-eh4  ,in civilized     
life1 the whole institution of          
education1 as has been repeatedly       
emphasized in these pages1 is designed  
to transmit to the young those habits of
 thought1 feeling1 and action which     
their influential elders wish to        
perpetuate4 ,as was noted in connection 
with man's gregariousness1 the normal   
becomes the respectable1 the regular    

becomes the proper4 ,we still speak of  
things that it is not nice to do4 ,this 
tendency to identify the moral with the 
customary is brought about through early
 habituating the members of the group to
 the group standards and securing for   
them thereby the emotional support that 
goes with all habitual action4          
,morality at this stage is clearly      
social in its origins and its           
operations4 ,the standards are group    
standards1 and the individual's single  
duty is obedience and conformity to the 
established social sanctions4  ,,the    
,,values ,,of ,,customary ,,morality4   
,the problem of morals begins1 as we    
have seen1 in the collision of interests
 of similarly constituted individuals   
living together4 ,adjustments of        
conflicting interests are effected by   
group standards more or less consciously
 transmitted and enforced by education1 
public opinion1 and law4 ,we shall note 
presently that reflection operates to   
modify and criticize these customary    

approvals and disapprovals and to       
substitute more effective standards4    
,but whether on the level of custom or  
reflection1 the moral problem is        
essentially a social problem1 the       
problem of the adjustment of the desires
 of individuals living together4 ,for an
 individual living altogether alone in  
the world there could hardly be a moral 
problem1 a question of ought4 ,there    
might be problems of how to attain      
satisfaction1 but no sense of duty or   
moral obligation4 ,custom is the first  
great stage through which morality      
passes1 and the only form in which      
morality exists for many people4 ,in    
civilized life there is1 to be sure1    
considerable reflection and querying of 
custom1 but for the vast majority of men
 right and wrong are determined by the  
standards to which their early education
 and environment have accustomed them4  
,in primitive life1 reflective criticism
 on the part of the individual is almost
 unknown1 and custom remains the great  

arbiter of action1 the outstanding      
source of social and moral control4     
,the values of custom as a moral force  
are1 in both primitive and civilized    
life1 notable and not to be despised4   
,custom is1 in the first place1         
frequently rational in its origin4 ,that
 is1 in general1 those acts are made    
habitual in the group which are         
associated with the general welfare4    
,the customary is the right1 but those  
activities most frequently come to be   
regarded as right which are favorable to
 the welfare of the group4 ,in the      
literal struggle for existence which    
characterizes primitive life1 those     
tribes may alone be expected to survive 
whose customs do promote the welfare of 
their members4 ,persistence by a group  
in customs like infanticide or excessive
 restriction of population will result  
in their extinction4 ,customs are1 for  
the most part1 standards of action      
established in the light of the         
conceptions of well-being as understood 

at the time of their origin4 ,the       
intensity with which they are           
maintained1 enforced1 and transmitted is
 an indication of how supremely and     
practically important they are regarded 
by primitive groups4  ,custom is        
valuable1 if for nothing else1 in the   
fact that it makes possible some        
accommodation or adjustment of competing
 individual interests--and on the basis 
of a widely considered social welfare4  
,customs are social1 they are binding on
 all2 they apply to all1 and to the     
extent that they do promote welfare1    
they promote1 within limits1 the welfare
 of all4 ,a man conforming to custom is 
thereby consulting something other than 
his arbitrary caprice or personal       
desire4 ,on the level of customary      
morality1 action through conformity to  
custom is referred to a wider context   
than unconsidered individual impulse2 it
 is1 for better or worse1 performed with
 reference to the group with whose      
standards it is in conformity4 ,it is   

the beginning of the socialization of   
human interests4 ,though unconsciously1 
the man conforming to a custom is       
considering his fellows1 and the values 
and traditions which have become current
 among them4  ,customs1 moreover1 are   
the first invasion of moral chaos4 ,they
 establish enduring standards2 they give
 common and permanent bases of action4  
,it is only through the establishment   
and transmission of customary standards 
that one generation is in any way       
superior to its predecessors4 ,customs1 
in civilized life1 include all the      
established effective ways of           
civilization1 its arts1 its sciences1   
its industries1 and its useful modes of 
coperation4  ,if a plague carried off   
the members of a society all at once1 it
 is obvious that the group would be     
permanently done for4 ,yet the death of 
each of its constituent members is as   
certain as if a plague took them off all
 at once4 ,but the graded difference in 
age1 the fact that some are born as some

 die1 makes possible through            
transmission of ideas and practices the 
constant reweaving of the social fabric4
 ,yet this renewal is not automatic4    
,unless pains are taken to see that     
genuine and thorough transmission takes 
place1 the most civilized group will    
relapse into barbarism and then into    
savagery4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,dewey3      
,democracy and ,education1 p4 #d4  ,in  
all levels of civilization1 there is a  
conscious transmission of those social  
habits which are regarded as of         
importance4 ,if this transmission were  
suddenly to cease1 not only would each  
generation have to start afresh1 but it 
would be altogether impossible for it to
 grow to maturity4  ,,the ,,defects ,,of
 ,,customary ,,morality4 ,while custom  
is thus valuable as a moral agent in    
establishing standards of social life   
and rendering them continuous and       
enduring1 a morality that is completely 
based upon it has serious defects4      
,though customs may start as allegedly  

or actually useful practices1 they tend1
 so strong is the influence of habit    
over the individual1 to outlive their   
usefulness1 and may become1 indeed1     
altogether disadvantageous conventions4 
,dr4 ,arthur ,smith tells of the        
advantage it would be in some parts of  
,china to build a door on the south side
 of the house1 in order to get the      
breeze1 in hot weather4 ,the simple and 
sufficient answer to such a suggestion  
is1 ,we don't build doors on the south  
side4  ,we have but to examine our own  
civilization to see that there are many 
customs which are practiced not for any 
good assignable reason1 but simply      
because they have become fixed and      
traditional4 ,this is not to say that   
everything that has become merely       
conventional is evil4 ,it is to suggest 
how1 even in civilized society1 groups  
may fall into modes of action that are  
practiced simply because they have been 
practiced1 rather than from any reasoned
 consideration that they should be4 ,an 

illustration may be taken from the      
experience of civilians drawn into the  
military routine during the ,great ,war4
 ,men engaged in war work at ,washington
 in civilian capacities reported        
repeatedly their impatience at the red  
tape of tradition with which certain    
classes of business were conducted by   
the military establishment4 ,in law     
also1 progressive practitioners and     
students have pointed out the well-known
 fact of the immense and beclogging     
ritual which has come to surround legal 
procedure4 ,it is the contention of     
critics of one or another of our        
contemporary social habits and          
institutions that traditionalism1 the   
persistence of custom simply because it 
is custom1 is responsible for many of   
the anachronisms in our social1         
political1 and industrial life4 ,space  
does not permit here a detailed         
consideration of this question1 but it  
must be noted that social habits1 when  
they are acquired1 as they are1         

unreflectively by the vast majority of  
people1 will tend to be repeated and    
supported1 apart from any consideration 
of their consequences4 ,this tendency   
toward social inertia1 earlier noted in 
connection with habit1 can only be      
checked by reflective criticism and     
appraisement of our current accustomed  
ways of action4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,see   
chapter on ,cultural ,continuity4  ,in  
the case of the group1 too complete a   
domination by custom is dangerous in    
that it sanctions and promotes the      
continuance of habits that have become  
useless or harmful4 ,in the case of the 
individual1 the determination of action 
by custom alone has its specific dangers
 and defects4 ,even though the          
individual happens to conform to useful 
customs1 his conformity is purely       
mechanical4 ,it involves no intelligent 
discrimination4 ,merely to conform      
places one at the disposition of the    
environment in which one chances to be4 
,there is not necessary any intelligent 

analysis on the part of the agent1 of   
the bearings and consequences of his    
actions4 ,he takes on with fatal        
facility the color of his environment4  
,to all men1 however critical and       
reflective1 a certain degree of         
conformity to custom is both necessary  
and useful4 ,there must1 in any social  
enterprise1 be some common basis of     
action4 ,because taking the right-hand  
side of the road is a convention1 it is 
none the less a useful one4 ,but        
reflective acquiescence in a custom     
differs from merely mechanical          
conformity4 ,it transforms a custom from
 a blind mechanism into a consciously   
chosen instrument for achieving good4   
,the trivial and the important in a     
morality based upon custom receive the  
same unconsidered support4 ,tithing     
mint1 anise1 and cummin are quite likely
 to involve the neglect of weightier    
matters of the law4 ,physical1          
emotional1 and moral energies that      
should be devoted to matters genuinely  

affecting human welfare are lavished    
upon the trivial and the incidental4 ,we
 may come to be concerned more with     
manners than with morals2 with ritual1  
than with right4 ,customary morality    
tends to emphasize1 moreover1 the letter
 rather than the spirit of the law4 ,it 
implies complete and punctilious        
obedience1 meticulous conformity4 ,it   
emphasizes form rather than content4    
,since conformity is the only criterion1
 the appearance of conformity is all    
that is required4 ,the individual may   
fear to dissent openly rather than      
actually4 ,this is seen frequently in   
the ritualistic performance or          
fulfillment of a duty in all its        
external details1 rather than the actual
 and positive performance of its        
content4 ,it is just such ,pharisaism   
that is protested against in the ,sermon
 on the ,mount3  ,and when thou prayest1
 thou shalt not be as the hypocrites    
are2 for they love to pray standing in  
the synagogues and in the corners of the

 streets1 that they may be seen of men4 
,verily ,i say unto you1 ,they have     
their reward4444  ,but when ye pray1 use
 not vain repetitions as the heathen do2
 for they think that they shall be heard
 for their much speaking4  ,formalism in
 morality has periodically roused       
protest from the ,prophets down1 and    
formalism is the result of an           
unconsidered mechanical acquiescence in 
custom1 or deliberate insistence on     
traditional details when the spirit and 
motive are forgotten4  ,,custom ,,and   
,,progress4 ,emphasis upon customs as   
already established tends to promote    
fixity and repetition1 and to discourage
 change regardless of the benefits to be
 derived from specific changes4 ,custom 
is supported by the group merely because
 it is custom2 and the ineffective modes
 of life are maintained along with those
 which are more useful4 ,progress comes 
about through individual variation1 and 
conformity and individual variation are 
frequently in diametrical collision4 ,it

 is only when1 in ,bagehot's phrase1 the
 cake of custom is broken1 that changes 
making for good have a possibility of   
introduction and support4 ,where the    
only moral sanctions are the sanctions  
of custom1 change of whatever sort is at
 a discount4 ,for change implies        
deviation from the ways of life         
sanctioned by the group1 and deviation  
is itself1 in a custom-bound morality1  
regarded with suspicion4  ,it is clear  
that complete conformity is impossible  
save in a society of automata4 ,there   
will be some individuals who will not be
 able to curb their desires to fit the  
inhibitions fixed by the group2 there   
will be some who will deliberately stand
 out against the group commands and     
prohibitions1 and assert their own      
imperious impulses against their        
fellows4 ,where such men are powerful or
 persuasive they may indeed bring about 
a transvaluation of all values2 they may
 create a new morality4 ,there are      
geniuses of the moral as well as the    

intellectual life1 whose sudden insight 
becomes a standard for succeeding       
generations4  ,there may1 again1 be more
 infringement of the moral code than is 
overtly noticeable4 ,frequently1 as in a
 ,puritanical rgime1 there may be1 along
 with fanatic public professions and    
practice of virtue1 private violation of
 the conventional moral codes4 ,our     
civilization is unpleasantly decorated  
with countless examples of this         
discrepancy between professed and       
practiced codes4 ,the desire for praise 
and the fear of blame and its           
consequences1 the desire1 as we say1 for
 the good-will and respect of others1   
will lead to all the public             
manifestations of virtue1 with a private
 vice or two to appease the wayward     
flesh4 ,the utterance of conventional   
moral formulas by men in public1 and the
 infringement of those high doctrines in
 private1 needs unfortunately not to be 
illustrated4 ,molire drew ,tartuffe from
 real life4  ,,origin ,,and ,,nature    

,,of ,,reflective ,,morality4 ,if the   
customs current were adequate to adjust 
men to their environment1 reflection    
upon them might never arise4 ,reflection
 does arise precisely because customs   
are not1 or do not remain1 adequate4 ,an
 individual is brought up to believe    
that certain actions are good1 and that 
their performance promotes human        
happiness4 ,he discovers1 by an alert   
and unclouded insight1 that in specific 
cases the virtues highly regarded by his
 group do not bring the felicitous      
results which they are commonly and     
proverbially held to produce4 ,he       
observes1 let us say1 that meekness1    
humility1 honesty are not modes of      
adaptation that bring happy results4 ,he
 observes1 as ,job observed1 that the   
wicked prosper2 he notes that those who 
follow the path called righteous bring  
unhappiness to themselves and to others4
  ,or the individual's first reflection 
upon moral standards may arise in his   
discovery that moral standards are not  

absolute1 that what is virtue in the    
,occident is vice in the ,orient1 and   
vice versa4 ,he discovers that those    
actions which he regards as virtuous are
 so regarded by him simply because he   
has been trained to their acceptance4   
,given another environment1 his moral   
revulsions and approvals might be       
diametrically reversed4 ,he makes the   
discovery that ,protagoras made two     
thousand years ago3 ,man is the measure 
of all things2 standards of good and    
evil depend on the accidents of time1   
space1 and circumstance4 ,in such a     
discovery an individual may well query1 
,what is the good8 ,not what passes for 
good1 but what is the essence of        
goodness8 ,what is justice8 ,not what is
 accredited justice in the courts of    
law1 or in the market-place1 or in the  
easy generalizations of common opinion4 
,but what constitutes justice           
essentially8 ,what is the standard by   
which actions may be rated just and     
unjust8  ,where individuals are         

habituated to one single tradition or   
set of customs1 such questions may not  
arise4 ,but where one1 through personal 
experience or acquaintance with history 
and literature1 discovers the           
multiplicity of standards which have    
been current with regard to the just and
 the good in human conduct1 the search  
for some reasonable standard arises4    
,the great historical instance of the   
discovery of the relativity and         
irrationality of customary morality and 
the emergence of reflective standards of
 moral value is the ,athenian period of 
,greek philosophy4 ,the ,sophists       
pointed out with merciless perspicuity  
the welter1 the confusion1 the essential
 irrationality of current social and    
religious traditions and beliefs4 ,they 
went no further in moral analysis than  
destructive criticism4 ,they pointed out
 the want of authenticity or reason in  
the traditional morality by which men   
lived4 ,socrates went a step further4   
,if current customs are not             

authoritative1 he said1 let us find     
those that have and ought to have       
enduring authority over men4 ,if the    
traditional standards are proved to be  
futile and inefficacious1 let us find   
the unfaltering standards authenticated 
by reason4 ,let us substitute relevant  
and adequate codes and creeds for those 
which have by reason been shown to be   
unreasonable4 ,beneath the multiplicity 
of contradictory and often vicious      
customs1 reason must be able to discover
 ways of life1 which1 if followed1 will 
lead men to eventual happiness4  ,there 
are thus two stages in the process of   
reflection upon morals4 ,in the first   
stage reflection does no more than to   
point out the essential discrepancies   
and absurdities of the current moral    
codes4 ,reflection upon morals begins by
 being critical and querying4 ,it starts
 when an individual1 a little more      
thoughtful and perspicacious than his   
fellows1 notes the discrepancies between
 the customs of different men1 and notes

 also the discrepancies between the     
threatened results of the violation of  
traditional codes and the actual        
results4 ,he may then come to the       
cynic's conclusion that morality is a   
myth and a delusion1 and1 in the words  
of the ,sophist in ,plato's ,republic1  
justice is merely the right of the      
stronger4 ,men in whom reflection or    
social sympathy extends not very far    
may1 as they frequently do1 stop at this
 point4 ,these are the worldly wise2    
they are interested not in goodness1    
truth1 and justice1 but in those        
effective representations of those      
things publicly accounted good1 true1   
and just which will win them public     
approval and increase their own wealth  
or power and position4 ,plato1 in the   
,republic1 pictures the type with       
magnificent irony3  ,all those mercenary
 adventurers who1 as we know1 are called
 sophist by the multitude1 and regarded 
as rivals1 really teach nothing but the 
opinions of the majority to which       

expression is given when large masses   
are collected1 and dignify them with the
 title of wisdom4 ,as well might a      
person investigate the caprices and     
desires of some huge and powerful       
monster in his keeping1 studying how it 
is to be approached1 and how            
handled1--at what times and under what  
circumstances it becomes most dangerous1
 or most gentle--on what occasions it is
 in the habit of uttering its various   
cries1 and further1 what sounds uttered 
by another person soothe or exasperate  
it1--and when he has mastered all these 
particulars1 by long-continued          
intercourse1 as well might he call his  
results wisdom1 systematize them into an
 art1 and open a school1 though in      
reality he is wholly ignorant which of  
these humours and desires is fair1 and  
which foul1 which good and which evil1  
which just and which unjust2 and        
therefore is content to affix all these 
names to the fancies of the huge animal1
 calling what it likes good1 and what it

 dislikes evil1 without being able to   
render any other account of them1--nay1 
giving the titles of just and fair to   
things done under compulsion1 because he
 has not discerned himself1 and         
therefore cannot point out to others1   
that wide distinction which really holds
 between the nature of the compulsory   
and the good4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,plato3  
,republic 7,golden ,treasury edition71  
pp4 #bji-aj4  ,throughout human history1
 there have been periods of             
individualism1 of self-assertion against
 the traditional morality1 which have   
been marked by loss of moral restraints1
 by a breakdown of the old standards    
without a substitution of new and       
sounder ones4 ,there has been1 in the   
beginning of almost every advance toward
 a new stage of moral valuation1 the    
accompaniment of liberty by license4    
,reflection upon morals is not likely to
 produce immediately good results4 ,the 
established morality is at least        
established4 ,in so far as it is        

controlling in men's actions1 it keeps  
those actions ordered and regular4 ,the 
traditional code by which a man's life  
is governed may be a poor code1 but it  
is more satisfactory than no code at    
all4 ,on discovering the inadequacy of  
the morality by which he has lived1 a   
man may reject morality altogether4     
,from that time forth he may have no    
other standard than his own selfish     
desires4 ,when a whole society1 as at   
the time of the ,renaissance1 throws its
 traditional morality to the winds1 it  
may make havoc of its freedom4 ,in place
 of a bad moral order it may cease to   
have any moral order at all4  ,the      
discovery that the codes by which we    
have lived are misleading and delusive  
may lead us to have nothing whatsoever  
to do with morals4 ,the individual may  
decide simply to employ his superior    
insight in the exploitation of other    
people4 ,it is something of this point  
of view that is expressed in the rampant
 individualism of ,nietzsche and ,max   

,stirner4 ,the customary morality is    
meant for slaves2 the ,superman must    
stride above the signs and shibboleths  
by which men are led1 and create himself
 a morality more adequate to his own    
superb and insolent welfare4  ,for the  
reconstruction of a morality more       
adequate than the prevailing codes1 more
 is demanded than merely a reflective   
criticism of prevailing standards4      
,where reflection goes no further than  
this1 the net result is merely cynicism 
and libertinism4 ,for moral progress    
there is needed a person who is         
individual in choice1 in feeling1 in    
responsibility1 and at the same time    
social in what he regards as good1 in   
his sympathies and in his purposes4     
,,reflective ,,reconstruction ,,of      
,,moral ,,standards4 ,the second stage  
of reflection upon morals consists in   
the reconstruction of moral standards1  
in a deliberate discovery of codes by   
which men can live together happily4 ,it
 attempts to establish standards of     

action which are enforced and           
recommended not because they have been  
current and are currently approved1 but 
because they give promise1 upon critical
 examination1 of contributing to human  
happiness4 ,it must be recalled here    
that reflective morality is not a       
substitute for action based upon        
instinct or custom4 ,it merely modifies 
these types of action in the light of   
the desirable consequences which would  
result from such modification4  ,the    
establishment of reflective standards is
 limited by two general conditions4 ,the
 first1 previously mentioned1 is that   
human beings come into the world with   
certain fixed tendencies to act4 ,these 
original impulses may be obscured1 but  
cannot be abolished4 ,secondly1         
reflection upon morals always must occur
 in a given social situation1 that is1  
in a situation where certain habits of  
mind1 emotion and action1 are already in
 operation4 ,moral standards are not    
fresh constructions2 they are           

reconstructions4 ,we may want to change 
current customs and traditions2 but that
 is simply another way of iterating the 
fact that they are there to be changed4 
,the moral reformer who would improve   
society must take into account the fact 
that there exist among the adult members
 of a generation1 powerful habits1 which
 may be improved or amended1 but which  
cannot be ignored4 ,any attempt to      
improve men's ways of action starts     
within processes of action already going
 on4 ,it is not as if we could hold up  
the processes of human life1 and say1   
,let us begin afresh4 ,the generation   
whose habits are to be changed consists 
of living men1 who are acting on the    
basis of customs which have become      
intimately and powerfully controlling in
 their lives4 ,these customs1 though    
they may not be altogether satisfactory1
 are yet great social economies4 ,they  
give men certain determinate and        
efficacious modes of action4 ,reflection
 must start with them and from them4    

,unless men1 furthermore1 did act       
according to custom1 they would have to 
reflect in detail about every step of   
their conduct4 ,the aim of reflection is
 simply to transform existing customs   
into more effective methods for         
achieving the good4  ,reflection1       
indeed1 must move within certain limits2
 it must take certain things for        
granted4 ,we have already seen that     
reflection arises in a crisis of greater
 or lesser degree2 it settles           
ambiguities1 resolves the obscure and   
doubtful phases of situations4 ,it is   
designed to secure adjustments where    
instinct and habit are inadequate to    
adapt the individual to his environment4
 ,but unless there were certain fixed1  
determined points to start with1 certain
 limits within which reflection could   
operate1 and which it could use as      
points of reference or departure1 all   
would be chaos1 and reflection would be 
impossible4 ,it is precisely because we 
do take certain things as settled1      

because1 as the phrase runs1 they go    
without saying1 that we can think to any
 purpose whatsoever4 ,useful customs    
once established provide precisely these
 fixed points4 ,if arbitration of labor 
disputes has become a fixed social      
habit1 for example1 attention can be    
turned to ways and means4 ,if education 
has become a generally approved social  
habit1 we can spend our time on         
instruments and methods4 ,every useful  
custom firmly established gives a basis 
of operations4 ,that much is settled2   
that much does not demand our alert     
attention and inquiry4 ,a society       
without any fixed habits would be sheer 
anarchy4 ,the aim of intelligent        
consideration of morals is not to       
abolish customs1 but to bring about     
their modification so that they will be 
the most effective adjustment of the    
individual and the group to their       
environment4  ,indeed1 in advanced      
societies1 reflection may itself become 
a custom1 and the most highly valued of 

all4 ,for where alert and conscious     
criticism of existing folkways is       
habitual among all the members of a     
society1 that society is saved from     
subjection through inertia to           
disserviceable habits4 ,it acts as a    
continual check and control2 it prevents
 social and moral stagnation4 ,the habit
 of reflection upon conduct1 if it could
 be made generally current1 would insure
 social progress4 ,for customs would be 
regarded merely as tools1 as instruments
 to be modified and adapted to new      
circumstances1 as provisional modes of  
attaining the good4 ,fixity and rigidity
 in social life would give place to     
flexibility and wise continual          
adaptation4  ,,the ,,values ,,of        
,,reflective ,,morality4 ,some of these 
have already been noted4 ,we may briefly
 summarize the foregoing discussion1 and
 call attention to some additional      
values of a morality based upon reason1 
as contrasted with a morality of mere   
mechanical conformity to custom4 ,it has

 already been pointed out that          
intellectual preferences and valuations 
are rooted in primary impulses2 that is1
 our desires are anterior to reflection4
 ,what we intellectually value and      
prefer has its roots in primary         
impulses4 ,reason can discover how man  
may attain the good2 but what is good is
 determined by the desires with which   
man is1 willy-nilly1 endowed4 ,our      
preferences are1 within limits1 fixed   
for us4 ,as ,santayana writes3  ,reason 
was born1 as it has since discovered1   
into a world already wonderfully        
organized1 in which it found its        
precursor in what is called life1 its   
seat in an animal body of unusual       
plasticity1 and its function in         
rendering that body's volatile instincts
 and sensations harmonious with one     
another and with the outer world on     
which they depend4#a  ,footnote #a3     
,santayana3 ,life of ,reason1 vol4 ,i1  
p4 #dj4  ,our chief aim in reflective   
behavior is to discover ways and means  

by which a harmony may be achieved1 a   
harmony of those very instincts which1  
left to themselves1 would be in         
perpetual collision1 frustrating and    
checking each other4  ,reflection not   
only seeks to find a way of life in     
which no natural impulse shall be       
frustrated1 but it is through reflection
 that desires are broadened1 and that   
new desires arise4 ,out of reflection   
upon social relations1 which is in the  
first instance prompted by man's innate 
gregariousness1 arise the conception of 
ideal friendship and the thirst for and 
movement toward ideal society4 ,out of  
reflection upon the animal passion of   
sex may rise ,dante's beatific vision of
 ,beatrice4 ,conduct1 consciously       
controlled1 finds not only ways by which
 animal desires may be fulfilled without
 catastrophe2 it transmutes animal      
desires into ideal values4  ,,reflection
 ,,transforms ,,customs ,,into          
,,principles4 ,in reflective behavior1  
as contrasted with that which is        

controlled by instinct and custom1 there
 are established standards of action to 
which the individual consciously        
conforms4 ,that is1 instead of merely   
conforming to custom1 an individual     
comes to act upon principles1           
consciously avowed and maintained4 ,a   
man who sets up a standard of action in 
his professional or business relations  
is not conforming to an arbitrary code2 
he is living according to a way of life 
which he has deliberately and           
consciously chosen4 ,when a man acts    
upon principles because he has          
consciously adopted them in view of the 
consequences which he believes to be    
associated with them1 he will not make  
his standard an idol4 ,reflection       
establishes standards1 but it is not    
mastered by them4 ,it is persistently   
critical4 ,standards are tools1         
instruments toward the achievement of   
the good4 ,they are merely general      
rules1 derived from experience and      
retained so long as they bear desirable 

fruits in experience4 ,moral laws are   
not regarded as arbitrary and eternal1  
but as good only in so far as they      
produce good4 ,a virtue is a virtue     
because it is conducive to human        
well-being4 ,standards are not absolute1
 but relative--relative to their fruits 
in practice4  ,,reflective ,,action     
,,genuinely ,,moral4 ,action is most    
genuinely moral when it is reflective4  
,it is only then that the individual is 
a conscious and controlling agent4 ,it  
is only then that he knows what he is   
doing4 ,when a machine performs actions 
that happen to have useful results1 we  
do not speak of the action as moral or  
virtuous4 ,and action in conformity with
 custom is purely mechanical and        
arbitrary4 ,an individual who is merely 
conforming to the customary is no more  
moral than an automaton4 ,given a       
certain situation1 he makes a certain   
response4 ,it makes no difference that  
the act happens to have fruitful        
consequences4 ,it is not a matter of    

individual choice1 of conscious         
volition4 ,aristotle long ago stated the
 indispensable conditions of moral      
actions3  ,it is necessary that the     
agent at the time of performing them    
should satisfy certain conditions1 i4e4 
in the first place that he should know  
what he is doing1 secondly that he      
should deliberately choose to do it and 
to do it for its own sake1 and thirdly  
that he should do it as an instance of a
 fixed and immutable moral state4#a     
,footnote #a3 ,aristotle3 ,ethics1 book 
,,ii1 p4 #db 7,weldon translation74     
,only when the individual is aware of   
the consequences of his action1 and     
deliberately chooses those consequences1
 is there any individuality1 any        
exhibition of choice--in other words1   
any moral value in the act4 ,when an act
 is prompted by mere habit and custom1  
we have an evidence of an individual's  
environment rather than of his          
character4 ,creatures thus moved by     
capricious and arbitrary impulse are    

hardly persons1 and certainly not       
personalities4 ,they are played upon by 
every whimsicality of circumstance2     
their own character makes no difference 
at all in the world in which they live4 
,to act reflectively is to be the       
controlling rather than the controlled  
element in a situation4 ,action guided  
by intelligence is freed from the       
enslavement of passion1 prejudice1 and  
routine4 ,it becomes genuinely free4    
,the individual1 emancipated from       
emotion1 sense1 and circumstance1 from  
the accidental environment in which he  
happens to be born1 is in command of his
 conduct4 ,though shakes the magnet1    
steady is the pole4 ,morally1 at least1 
he is the master of his fate1 the       
captain of his soul4  ,,reflection      
,,sets ,,up ,,ideal ,,standards4        
,reflection constantly sets up ideal    
standards by which current codes of     
conduct are judged and corrected4 ,it is
 clear that ideals of life1 even when   
sincerely entertained1 are not always   

possible of immediate fulfillment4      
,theory tends continually to outrun     
practice1 since human reflection tends  
to set up goals in advance of its       
achievement4 ,for many individuals1     
anxious to attain immediate             
self-enhancement1 the current cones are 
not criticized at all1 but are taken for
 granted1 as inevitable and irrefragable
 bases of operation4  ,many men1 perhaps
 after a first flush of altruistic      
rebellion in adolescence1 settle down   
with more or less complacency to the    
current moral codes4 ,they do in ,rome  
as the ,romans do4 ,they may have an    
intellectual awareness of the crassness1
 the stupidity1 the essential injustice 
and inadequacy of the codes by which men
 in contemporary society live1 but they 
may also1 out of selfish preoccupation  
with their own interests1 let things go 
at that4 ,if the established ways are   
not as they ought to be1 at least they  
are as they are4 ,and since the current 
system is the one by which a man must   

live1 assent is the better part of      
wisdom4 ,there are comparatively few who
 persist in a criticism of prevailing   
standards1 or who are troubled very much
 beyond their early twenties by a       
tormenting conviction that things are   
not done as they ought to be done4 ,it  
is from the few who realize             
intellectually the inadequacies of      
prevailing customs1 and are emotionally 
disturbed by them1 that moral criticism 
arises4 ,and it is only by such         
criticism that moral progress is made   
possible4 ,the duty of some exercise of 
discriminating intelligence as to       
existing customs1 for the sake of       
improvement and progress1 is thus a mark
 of reflective morality--of the rgime of
 conscience as over against custom4#a   
,footnote #a3 ,dewey and ,tufts3        
,ethics1 pp4 #aha-hb4  ,reflection is   
thus the process by which progress is   
made possible1 although1 as we shall    
presently see1 it is not thereby        
insured4 ,the function of intelligence  

is precisely to indicate anticipated    
goods1 to imagine a future which is the 
projection of the desirable in the      
present4 ,even the best ordered life or 
society reveals some maladjustment1 some
 remove1 near or far1 from perfection4  
,it is the business of reflection and   
imagination to note the discrepancy     
between what is1 and what ought to be1  
and assiduously to foster the vision of 
the latter1 so that in the light of that
 imagined good1 men's ways of life may  
be amended4  ,nor does the setting-up of
 ideal standards mean the construction  
of fruitless ,utopias4 ,reflection upon 
the present ways of life and the        
prospect of their improvement does not  
mean a mere wistful yearning after      
better things4 ,it means careful inquiry
 into those elements of established ways
 which may be incorporated into the     
construction of the ideal4 ,it means the
 resolute application of intelligence to
 an analysis of present maladjustments  
in the interests of preserving out of   

inherited and current ways those factors
 which point towards the goal desired4  
,it means to be eager for perfection1   
and sensitive to current imperfections4 
,moral progress demands a vision of the 
desirable future1 and a persistent and  
discriminating reflection upon the means
 of its attainment out of the materials 
of the present4  ,,the ,,defects ,,of   
,,reflective ,,morality4 ,reflection1 as
 already pointed out1 tends to stop with
 merely destructive criticism4 ,provoked
 by maladjustment and imperfection1 it  
frequently goes no further than to note 
these1 with cynicism or despair4        
,criticism of established customs and   
ways of life frequently rests with the  
exhibition of absurdities in men's ways1
 finding refuge in laughter or          
rebellion4 ,there is no one so cynical  
as the man who has been recently wakened
 out of dogmatic and innocent faith in  
the traditions to which he has been     
reared4  ,the child receives from the   
herd the doctrines1 let us say1 that    

truthfulness is the most valuable of all
 the virtues1 that honesty is the best  
policy1 that to the religious man death 
has no terrors1 and that there is in    
store a future life of perfect happiness
 and delight4 ,and yet experience tells 
him with persistence that truthfulness  
as often as not brings him punishment1  
that his dishonest playfellow has as    
good if not a better time than he1 that 
the religious man shrinks from death    
with as great a terror as the           
unbeliever1 is as broken-hearted by     
bereavement1 and as determined to       
continue his hold upon this imperfect   
life rather than trust himself to what  
he declares to be the certainty of      
future bliss4444 ,who of us is there who
 cannot remember the vague feeling of   
dissatisfaction1 the obscure and elusive
 sense of something being wrong1 which  
is left by these and similar            
conflicts8#a  ,footnote #a3 ,trotter3   
,instincts of the ,herd in ,peace and   
,war1 p4 #di4  ,a little reflection is1 

in morals1 a dangerous thing4 ,it       
discovers difficulties1 and does not    
solve them4 ,it finds that human life is
 darkly strewn with hypocrisies1 with   
shams1 with makeshifts and compromises4 
,and having made this discovery1 it     
sighs or satirizes or forgets4 ,it is   
notorious with what frequency men go to 
pieces when they are loosed from the    
moorings of their childhood moralities1 
before they have had a chance to acquire
 new and more reasonable constraints4   
,plato1 in protesting that young men    
should not study philosophy too early1  
has well described the dangers of       
shallow analysis4#b  ,footnote #b3 ,and 
will it not be one great precaution to  
forbid their meddling with it philosophy
 while young8 ,for ,i suppose you have  
noticed1 that whenever boys taste       
dialectic for the first time1 they      
pervert it into an amusement1 and always
 employ it for purposes of              
contradiction1 and imitate in their own 
persons the artifices of those who study

 refutation1--delighting1 like puppies1 
in pulling and tearing to pieces with   
logic any one who comes near them4444   
,hence1 when they have experienced many 
triumphs and many defeats1 they fall1   
quickly and vehemently1 into an utter   
disbelief of their former sentiments3   
and thereby both they and the whole     
cause of philosophy have been prejudiced
 in the eyes of the world4 7,plato3     
,republic1 ,golden ,treasury edition1 p4
 #bfg47  ,,the ,,inadequacy ,,of        
,,theory ,,in ,,moral ,,life4           
,reflection upon morals1 even when it   
goes beyond the stage of criticism and  
proceeds to the reconstruction of habits
 and customs upon a more reasonable     
basis1 is yet inadequate4 ,however      
logically convincing a code of morals   
may be1 it is not efficacious simply as 
logic4 ,in ,aristotle's still relevant  
words3  ,it may fairly be said then that
 a just man becomes just by doing what  
is just and a temperate man becomes     
temperate by doing what is temperate1   

and if a man did not so act1 he would   
not have so much as a chance of becoming
 good4 ,but most people1 instead of     
doing such actions1 take refuge in      
theorizing2 they imagine that they are  
philosophers and that philosophy will   
make them virtuous2 in fact they behave 
like people who listen attentively to   
their doctors1 but never do anything    
that their doctors tell them4 ,but it is
 as improbable that a healthy state of  
the soul will be produced by this kind  
of philosophizing as that a healthy     
state of the body will be produced by   
this kind of medical treatment4#a       
,footnote #a3 ,aristotle3 ,ethics1 book 
,,ii1 chap4 ,,iii1 pp4 #db-dc 7,weldon  
translation74  ,moral standards1 in     
order to be effective1 must have        
emotional support and be constantly     
applied4 ,men must be in love with the  
good1 if good is to be their habitual   
practice4 ,and only when the good is an 
habitual practice1 can men be said to be
 living a moral life instead of merely  

subscribing verbally to a set of moral  
ideals4 ,justice1 honesty1 charity1     
mercy1 benevolence1 these are names for 
types of behavior1 and are real in so   
far as they do describe men's actions4  
,as ,aristotle says1 in another         
connection3 ,a person must be utterly   
senseless if he does not know that moral
 states are formed by the exercise of   
the powers in one way or another4 ,the  
virtues are not static or frozen2 they  
are names we give to varieties of       
action1 and are exhibited1 as they      
exist1 only in action4#b  ,footnote #b3 
,but the virtues we acquire by first    
exercising them1 as is the case with all
 the arts1 for it is by doing what we   
ought to do when we have learned the    
arts1 that we learn the arts themselves2
 we become1 e4g4 builders by building1  
and harpists by playing the harp4       
,similarly it is by doing just acts that
 we become just1 by doing temperate acts
 that we become temperate1 by doing     
courageous acts that we become          

courageous4444 ,again the causes and    
means by which any virtue is produced1  
and by which it is destroyed1 are the   
same2 and it is equally so with any art2
 for it is by playing the harp that both
 good and bad harpists are produced1 and
 the case of builders and all other     
artisans is similar1 as it is by        
building well that they will be good    
builders1 and by building badly that    
they will be bad builders4444 ,it is by 
acting in such transactions as take     
place between man and man that we become
 either just or unjust4 ,it is by acting
 in the face of danger and habituating  
ourselves to fear or courage that we    
become either cowardly or courageous4   
,it is much the same with our desires   
and angry passions4 ,some people become 
temperate and gentle1 others become     
licentious and passionate1 according as 
they conduct themselves in one way or   
another way in particular circumstances4
 7,aristotle3 ,ethics1 pp4 #ce-cf1      
,weldon translation47  ,the mere        

preaching of virtue will thus not       
produce its practice4 ,those standards  
which reflection discovers1 however     
useful in the guidance of life1 are not 
sufficient to improve human conduct4    
,they must1 as noted above1 be          
emotionally sanctioned to become        
habitual1 and1 on the other hand1 only  
if they are early acquired habits1 will 
the emotions associated with them be    
pleasant rather than painful4           
,accordingly the difference between one 
training of habits and another from     
early days is not a light matter1 but is
 serious or rather all-important4#a     
,ideals of life1 when they remain mere  
closet-ideals1 are interesting academic 
specimens1 but are hardly effective in  
the helpful amendment of the lives of   
mankind4 ,whoever contemplates the world
 in the light of an ideal1 writes       
,bertrand ,russell1 whether what he     
seeks be intellect or art1 or love1 or  
simple happiness1 or all together1 must 
feel a great sorrow in the evils which  

men allow needlessly to continue and--if
 he is a man of force and vital         
energy--an urgent desire to lead men to 
the realization of the good which       
inspires his creative vision4 ,great    
thinkers upon morals have not been      
content to work out interesting systems 
which were logically conclusive1        
abstract methods of attaining happiness4
 ,they have worked out their ethical    
systems as genuinely preferred ways of  
life1 they have offered them as         
solutions of the difficulties men       
experience in controlling their own     
passions and in adapting their desires  
to the conditions which limit their     
fulfillment4  ,footnote #a3 ,aristotle3 
loc4 cit41 p4 #cf4  ,our present study1 
writes ,aristotle1 is not1 like other   
studies1 purely speculative in its      
intention2 for the object of our inquiry
 is not to know the nature of virtue1   
but to become ourselves virtuous1 as    
that is the sole benefit which it       
conveys4#b ,reflection upon morals can  

map out the road2 it cannot make people 
travel it4 ,for that1 an early          
habituation to the good is necessary4   
,footnote #b3 ,ibid41 p4 #cf4  ,but it  
should be noted further that the        
greatest ethical reformers have not been
 those who have convinced men through   
the impeccability of their logic4 ,they 
have been rather the supreme seers1 the 
,hebrew prophets1 ,christ1 ,saint       
,francis1 who have won followers not so 
much by the conclusiveness of their     
demonstration as through the persuasive 
fervor and splendor of their vision4    
,,the ,,danger ,,of ,,intellectualism   
,,in ,,morals4 ,there has been          
throughout the history of ethical theory
 a tendency to oversimplify life by     
cramping it into the categories fixed by
 reason4 ,reflection tends to set up    
certain standards which the infinite    
variety of human experience tends to    
outrun4 ,in the mere fact of setting up 
generalizations1 reflection is          
arbitrary4 ,any generalization1 by      

virtue of the very fact that it does    
apply to a wide variety of situations1  
must forego concern with the peculiar   
colors and qualities inhering in any    
specific experience4 ,various ethical   
writers have set up general rules1 which
 they have attempted to apply to life   
with indiscriminate ruthlessness4 ,they 
have tried to shear down the endless    
rich variety of human situations to fit 
the categories which they assume to     
start with4 ,unsophisticated men have   
complained with justice against the     
recurrent attempts of moralists to set  
up absolute laws1 standards1 virtues1   
which were to be applied regardless of  
the specific circumstances of specific  
situations4 ,it was such formalism that 
,aristotle protested against throughout 
his ,ethics4  ,there is the same sort of
 uncertainty with regard to good things1
 as it often happens that injuries      
result from them2 thus there have been  
cases in which people were ruined by    
wealth1 or again by courage4 ,as our    

subjects moral inquiries then and our   
premises are of this nature1 we must be 
content to indicate the truth roughly1  
and in outline4#a  ,footnote #a3        
,aristotle3 loc4 cit41 pp4 #c-d4  ,he   
points out repeatedly that situations   
are specific1 that laws or              
generalization can only be tentatively  
made4  ,questions of practice and       
expediency no more admit of invariable  
rules than questions of health4 ,but if 
this is true of general reasoning upon  
,ethics1 still more true is it that     
scientific exactitude is impossible in  
reasoning upon particular ethical cases4
 ,they do not fall under any art or any 
law1 but the agents themselves are      
always bound to pay regard to the       
circumstances of the moment1 as much as 
in medicine or navigation4#a  ,footnote 
#a3 ,aristotle3 loc4 cit41 p4 #cg4      
,instead of framing absolute general    
rules1 ,aristotle points out those      
specific conditions which must be taken 
into account in any act that can1       

without quibbling1 be called good or    
virtuous4  ,it is possible to go too    
far1 or not to go far enough1 in respect
 of fear1 courage1 desire1 anger1 pity1 
and pleasure and pain generally1 and the
 excess and the deficiency are alike    
wrong2 but to experience these emotions 
at the right time1 and on the right     
occasions and towards the right persons1
 and for the right causes and in the    
right manner is the mean or the supreme 
good1 which is characteristic of        
virtue4#b  ,footnote #b3 ,ibid4 p4 #df4 
,reflection thus unduly simplifies the  
moral problem by setting up general     
standards which are not adequate to the 
multiple variety of specific situations 
which constitute human experience4 ,but 
in reasoning upon the conduct of life1  
there has been displayed1 furthermore1  
by ethical writers an inveterate        
tendency to identify the processes of   
life with the process of reason4 ,one   
may cite as a classic instance of this  
point of view the ethical theory of     

,jeremy ,bentham and the ,utilitarians4 
,according to the ,utilitarians human   
beings judged acts in terms of their    
utility1 as measured in the amount of   
pleasure and pain produced by an action4
 ,the individual figured out the        
pleasures and pains that would be the   
consequences of his action4 ,we shall in
 the next section examine this point of 
view in more detail2 we are referring to
 it here simply as an illustration of   
intellectualizing of morals4 ,few       
individuals go through anything remotely
 resembling the hedonic calculus laid   
down by ,bentham4#c ,the individual is  
not a static being1 mathematically      
considering the amount of pleasure and  
pain associated with the performance of 
specific actions4 ,we are1 in the vast  
majority of cases1 prompted to specific 
responses1 not by any mathematical      
considerations of pleasures and pains1  
but by the immediate urgency of         
instinctive and habitual desires4       
,reflection arises in the process of    

adjustment of competing impulses1 in the
 effecting of a harmony between various 
desires that are much more primary and  
fundamental than the reflection that    
arises upon them4 ,we may largely agree 
with ,mc,dougall when he writes3        
,footnote #c3 ,the hedonic calculus of  
,bentham was1 briefly1 the following3   
,every proposed act is to be viewed with
 reference to its probable consequences1
 in 7#a7 intensity of pleasures and     
pains1 7#b7 their duration1 7#c7 their  
certainty or uncertainty1 7#d7 their    
nearness or remoteness1 7#e7 their      
fecundity1 i4e41 the tendency of a      
pleasure to be followed by others1 or a 
pain by other pains2 7#f7 their purity1 
i4e41 the tendency of a pleasure to be  
followed by pains and vice versa2 7#g7  
their extent1 that is1 the number or    
range of persons whose happiness is     
affected--with reference to whose       
pleasures and pains each one of the     
first six items ought in strictness also
 to be calculated4 ,then sum up all the 

pleasures which stand to the credit side
 of the account2 add the pains which are
 the debit items1 or liabilities1 on the
 other2 then take their algebraic sum1  
and the balance of it on the side of    
pleasure will be the good tendency of   
the act upon the whole4 7,dewey and     
,tufts3 ,ethics1 pp4 #bge-gf47  ,we may 
say1 then1 that directly or indirectly1 
the instincts are the prime movers of   
all human activity2 by the conative or  
impulsive force of some instinct 7or of 
some habit derived from an instinct7    
every train of thought1 however cold and
 passionless it may seem1 is borne along
 towards its end1 and every bodily      
activity is initiated and sustained4    
,the instinctive impulses determine the 
ends of all activities and supply the   
driving power by which all mental       
activities are sustained2 and all the   
complex intellectual apparatus of the   
most highly developed mind is but a     
means towards these ends1 is but the    
instrument by which these impulses seek 

their satisfactions1 while pleasure and 
pain do but serve to guide them in their
 choice of the means4  ,take away these 
instinctive dispositions with their     
powerful impulses1 and the organism     
would become incapable of activity of   
any kind2 it would lie inert and        
motionless1 like a wonderful clockwork  
whose mainspring had been removed1 or a 
steam-engine whose fires had been       
drawn4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,mc,dougall3    
,social ,psychology1 p4 #dd4            
,reflection is last rather than first2  
it is provoked and sustained by         
instinctive desires1 and is the means   
whereby they may be fulfilled4  ,,types 
,,of ,,moral ,,theory4 ,reflection upon 
morals produces certain characteristic  
types of moral theory4 ,these may be    
classified1 although1 because of the    
complexity of factors involved in any   
moral theory1 cross-division is         
inevitable4 ,but in the long history of 
human reflection upon a reasonable way  
of life1 certain divisions stand out    

clearly4 ,the first great contrast that 
may be mentioned is that existing       
between ,absolutism and ,relativism1 the
 contrast1 namely1 between theories of  
morals that regard right and wrong as   
absolute and a priori1 unconditioned by 
time1 place1 and circumstance2 and      
theories of morals that judge the       
rightness and wrongness of acts in terms
 of their consequences1 in the happiness
 or welfare of human beings1 however    
that be conceived4 ,these two points of 
view represent radically different      
temperaments and differ radically in    
their fruits4 ,the contrast will stand  
out more clearly after a brief          
discussion of each4  ,,absolutism4      
,absolutistic moralities are            
distinguished by their maintenance of   
the fundamental moral idea of ,duty1    
,duty consisting in an obligation to    
conform to the ,right4 ,implied in this 
obligation of absolute conformity is the
 conception that the ,right is          
unalterable1 universally binding1 and   

imperative4 ,good and evil are not      
discoverable in experience1 but are     
standards to which human beings must in 
experience conform4 ,the right is not   
simply the desirable--frequently it is1 
from the standpoint of impulses and     
emotion1 the undesirable2 but it is a   
universal1 an a priori standard to which
 human beings must in experience        
conform4 ,morals are eternal and        
immutable principles1 absolutely        
irrefutable and indefeasible in         
experience4 ,we shall1 in approaching   
the problem from the standpoint of moral
 knowledge1 see that most absolutist    
moral philosophers have also supposed   
that these eternal principles of right  
action are intuitively perceived4 ,what 
concerns us in this connection1 however1
 is the nature of this absolutistic     
conception1 and its bearings on the     
governance of human conduct4  ,according
 to the absolutist1 the goodness of an  
act is not at all affected by its       
immediate consequences4 ,the value of a 

good or a moral act does not consist in 
its results4 ,the moral value of an act 
consists in the good-will of the agent1 
and the good-will of the agent consists 
in his willing and conscious conformity 
to the absolute moral principle         
involved4 ,nothing is fundamentally good
 but the good-will4 ,that is1 an act to 
be moral1 must be the conscious         
conformity of a rational agent to the   
moral law1 which he recognizes to be    
morally binding4 ,to ,kant1 the classic 
exponent of this position1 an act       
performed out of mere inclination1 if   
not immoral1 certainly was not moral4 ,a
 moral act could only flow from reason1 
and reason would dictate to an          
individual conformity to the moral law1 
which was a law of reason4 ,conduct that
 is determined by mere circumstance is  
not moral conduct4 ,morality is above   
the domain of circumstance4 ,and the    
moral agent is above the defeats and    
compromises imposed by time and place4  
,he is a free agent1 that is1 morally   

free4 ,he accepts no commands1 except   
those of reason4 ,a man1 in following   
impulse or being dictated to by         
circumstance1 is a mere animal or a     
machine4 ,he is only a reasonable1 that 
is1 a moral being1 when he conforms to  
the laws which are above time and place 
and circumstance1 and above the whirls  
and eddies of personal inclination4     
,concretely1 one may take the           
absolutistic attitude toward a specific 
virtue3 honesty4 ,the morality of       
telling the truth consists in a         
conscious conformity to the moral       
standard of honesty in the face of all  
deflections of inclination and          
particular situations4 ,it makes no iota
 of difference what the result of       
telling the truth in a particular       
instance may be4 ,it makes no difference
 what urgent and plausible and          
practically decent reason one has for   
not telling the truth4 ,the truth must  
be told1 as justice must be done1 though
 the heavens fall4 ,we have a case1 let 

us suppose1 where telling bad news to a 
very sick man may kill him4 ,that       
temporally disastrous consequence is1   
from an absolutistic point of view1 a   
totally irrelevant consideration1 as is 
also the pain we feel in telling the    
truth under such conditions4 ,but the   
single moral course is clear2 there is  
no alternative2 in absolutistic morals  
there are no extenuating circumstances4 
,the truth must be told1 whatever be the
 consequences4 ,for to tell the truth is
 a universal moral law1 and conformity  
to that law a universal moral           
obligation4  ,the defects of this       
position1 if they are not obvious from  
its bare statement1 will become clearer 
from the analysis of the relativist or  
teleological positions4 ,but its        
specific virtues deserve attention4 ,the
 ,kantian or absolutistic position1 by  
its emphasis on the indefeasible and    
unwavering character of moral action1   
suggests something that rouses          
admiration from common sense1           

unsophisticated by moral theory4 ,we do 
not think highly of the man who is at   
the mercy of every chance appetite1 or  
every casual incident4 ,morality must be
 constituted of more enduring stuff4 ,we
 do not deeply admire the caliber of a  
man who yields to every pressing        
exigency1 surrendering thereby every    
ideal1 principle1 or value1 the         
attainment of which demands some        
postponement or some privation of the   
fulfillment of immediate desire4 ,the   
man who compromises his political ideals
 in the attainment of his personal      
success1 is a scornful figure morally4  
,and we estimate more highly the        
character of an individual who can      
persist in the strenuous attainment of  
an ideal in the face of the             
counter-inclination of passing          
pleasures4 ,in its emphasis on the      
autonomy and integrity of moral action1 
even its opponents credit the ,kantian  
or absolutistic position with having hit
 upon a genuinely moral aspect of human 

action4 ,it is1 as we shall see1 in the 
rigidity and formalism of its           
conception1 in its fanatical allegiance 
to a priori standards1 and its absolute 
sanctification of given ways of action1 
that the theory is questionable4        
,,relativistic ,,or ,,teleological      
,,morality4 ,contrasted with the        
theories of morals that maintain that   
right and wrong are absolute and eternal
 principles unaffected by time1 place1  
and circumstance1 are those moral       
philosophies which set out explicitly to
 discover a way of life by which human  
happiness in this world of time and     
place and circumstance may be attained4 
,to know what is the supreme good1 and  
to discover what are the means of its   
attainment1 are1 as ,aristotle long ago 
and justly observed1 of great importance
 in the regulation of life4 ,it is this 
knowledge and discovery that constitute1
 according to ,aristotle1 the business  
of ethics4 ,regarding this supreme good1
 we may quote his own expressions3  ,we 

speak of that which is sought after for 
its own sake1 as more final than that   
which is sought after as a means to     
something else2 we speak of that which  
is never desired as a means to something
 else as more final than the things     
which are desired both in themselves and
 as means to something else2 and we     
speak of a thing as absolutely final1 if
 it is always desired in itself and     
never as a means to something else4  ,it
 seems that happiness preminently       
answers to this description1 as we      
always desire happiness for its own     
sake1 and never as a means to something 
else1 whereas we desire honour1         
pleasure1 intellect1 and every virtue1  
partly for their own sakes1444 but      
partly also as being means to happiness1
 because we suppose they will prove the 
instruments of happiness4 ,happiness1 on
 the other hand1 nobody desires for the 
sake of these things1 nor indeed as a   
means to anything else at all4#a        
,footnote #a3 ,aristotle3 loc4 cit41 pp4

 #ac-ad4  ,happiness may1 as ,aristotle 
observes1 be differently conceived by   
different people4 ,to some it may mean a
 life of sensual enjoyment2 to some men 
a life of money-making4 ,but it is the  
attainment of complete satisfaction and 
self-realization by the individual that 
ethical theories should promote2 for    
such self-realization constitutes       
happiness4 ,it is sufficient here to    
point out that all so-called            
teleological or relativistic moralities1
 insist that the morality of an action  
is not determinable a priori1 or        
absolutely4 ,they are relativistic in   
the sense that they insist on taking    
into account the specific circumstances 
of action in the determination of its   
moral value4 ,they are teleological in  
that they insist on measuring the moral 
value of an action in terms of its      
consequences in human well-being or     
happiness1 however those be conceived4  
,to revert to the illustration used in  
connection with the discussion of       

,absolutism1 to lie in order to save a  
life would1 on this basis1 be construed 
as good rather than evil4               
,,utilitarianism4 ,one of the classic   
statements of relativistic and          
teleological morality is                
,utilitarianism4 ,according to the      
,utilitarians the criterion of the worth
 of a deed was to be found in an        
estimation of the relative pleasures and
 pains produced by it4 ,the view is thus
 stated by ,john ,stuart ,mill3  ,the   
creed which accepts as the foundation of
 morals1 ,utility1 or the ,greatest     
,happiness ,principle1 holds that       
actions are right in proportion as they 
tend to promote happiness1 wrong as they
 tend to produce the reverse of         
happiness4 ,by happiness is intended    
pleasure1 and the absence of pain2 by   
unhappiness1 pain and the privation of  
pleasure4 ,to give a clear view of the  
moral standard set up by the theory1    
much more requires to be said2 in       
particular1 what things it includes in  

the ideas of pain and pleasure2 and to  
what extent this is left an open        
question4 ,but these supplementary      
explanations do not affect the theory of
 life on which this theory of morality  
is grounded--namely1 that pleasure and  
freedom from pain are the only things   
desirable as ends2 and that all         
desirable things 7which are as numerous 
in the utilitarian as in any other      
scheme7 are desirable either for the    
pleasure inherent in themselves1 or as  
means to the promotion of pleasure and  
the prevention of pain4#a  ,footnote #a3
 ,mill3 ,utilitarianism 7,london1       
#aijg71 pp4 #i-aj4  ,simply stated1     
,utilitarianism says3 ,add together all 
the pleasures promised by a contemplated
 course of action1 then the pains1 and  
note the difference2 the nature of the  
difference will determine whether the   
course is right or wrong4 ,pleasures and
 pains are thus conceived as being open 
to quantitative determination4 ,action  
is determined by mathematical           

calculation in advance of the pleasure  
and pain produced by any action4        
,bentham's name is particularly         
associated with the dictum1 the greatest
 happiness for the greatest number4 ,but
 two implications of this doctrine must 
be taken into account1 at least as      
,bentham interpreted it4 ,the greatest  
happiness meant the maximum amount of   
pleasure4 ,and each individual could    
desire the greatest happiness1 only in  
so far as it contributed to his own     
happiness or pleasure4 ,and1 for        
,bentham1 as for all strict             
,utilitarians1 there was no qualitative 
distinction in the amounts of pleasure4 
,the quantity being the same1 said      
,bentham1 pushpin is as good as poetry4 
,utilitarianism is here considered as an
 instance of a type of ethical theory   
that set human happiness as the end1 and
 made its judgments of actions depend on
 their consequences in human welfare4   
,it must be pointed out1 however1 that  
its conception of happiness was         

dependent on a psychology now almost    
unanimously recognized as false3        
,bentham's assumption that the reason   
human beings performed certain actions  
was because they desired certain        
pleasures1 completely reverses the      
actual situation4 ,it puts1 as it were1 
the cart before the horse4 ,pleasure is 
psychologically the accompaniment1 what 
psychologists call the feeling tone of  
the satisfaction of any instinctive or  
habitual impulse4 ,human beings have    
certain native or habitual tendencies to
 action1 and pleasure attends the       
performance of these4 ,it is not because
 we want the pleasure of eating1 that we
 decide to eat2 we want to eat1 and     
eating is therefore pleasant4  ,if the  
good ,samaritan cared about the present 
feelings or the future welfare of the   
man fallen among thieves1 it would no   
doubt give him some pleasure to satisfy 
that desire for his welfare2 if he had  
desired his good as little as the priest
 and the ,levite1 there would have been 

nothing to suggest the strange idea that
 to relieve him1 to bind up his nasty   
wounds1 and to spend money upon him1    
would be a source of more pleasure to   
himself than to pass by on the other    
side and spend the money upon himself4  
,in the case of the great majority of   
our pleasures1 it will probably be found
 that the desire is the condition of the
 pleasure1 not the pleasure of the      
desire4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,rashdall3     
,ethics1 p4 #ah4  ,as has been          
previously pointed out in this and other
 chapters1 action does not start with   
reflection upon pleasures1 or1 for that 
matter1 upon anything else4 ,action is  
fundamentally initiated by instinctive  
promptings1 or the promptings of habit4 
,satisfaction or pleasure attends the   
fulfillment of any inborn or acquired   
impulse1 and dissatisfaction or pain its
 obstruction or frustration4 ,apart from
 the satisfactions experienced in the   
fulfillment in action of such impulses1 
pleasure does not exist4 ,actions1      

situations1 persons1 or ideas can be    
pleasant to us1 but pleasure as a       
separate objective entity cannot be said
 to exist at all4 ,the ,utilitarians1   
again1 made the intellectualist error of
 supposing that men dispassionately and 
mathematically weighed the consequences 
of their actions1 whereas their relative
 impulsions to action are determined by 
the instincts they inherit and the      
habits they have already acquired4      
,despite its false psychology1          
,utilitarianism does stand out as one of
 the great classic attempts to build an 
ethical theory squarely designed to     
promote human happiness4 ,an execution  
of the same worthy intention1 more      
acceptable to those trained in the      
modern psychology of instinct1 is that  
moral conception variously known as     
,behaviorism1 or ,energism1 a point of  
view maintained by thinkers from        
,aristotle to ,professor ,dewey in our  
own day4 ,all behavioristic theories    
take the position that in order to find 

out what is good for man1 we must begin 
by finding out what man is4 ,in order to
 discover what will give man            
satisfaction1 we must discover what his 
natural impulses and capacities are4 ,in
 the utilization and fulfillment of     
these will man find his most complete   
realization and happiness4 ,the standard
 of goodness1 therefore1 is measured in 
terms of the extent to which action     
promotes a complete and harmonious      
utilization of natural impulses and     
natural capacities4 ,ethics1 from such a
 viewpoint1 cannot set up arbitrary     
standards1 but must form its standards  
by inquiries into the fundamental and   
natural needs and desires of men4       
,instead of laying down eternal         
principles to which human beings must be
 made to conform1 it must derive its    
principles from observations of human   
experience1 and test them there4 ,the   
good is what does good2 the bad what    
does harm4 ,and what is good for men1   
and bad for men1 depends not on rigid a 

priori intellectual standards1 but on   
the original nature which is each man's 
inheritance4  ,to base ethics upon an   
analysis of the conditions of human     
nature1 as scientific inquiry reveals   
it1 carries with it two implications4   
,it means that nothing that is shown to 
be a part of man's inevitable original  
equipment can with justice to man's     
welfare be ruled out4 ,every instinct   
taken by itself is as good as any other4
 ,it is only when one instinct competes 
with another1 so that excessive         
indulgence of one1 as1 for example1 that
 of sex or pugnacity1 interferes with   
all a man's other instincts or interests
 7or with those of other men71 that an  
instinct becomes evil4 ,it means1       
secondly1 that since individuals differ1
 and since situations are infinitely    
various and individual1 no arbitrary and
 fixed laws can be laid down as         
fundamental eternal principles4  ,,moral
 ,,knowledge4 ,the contrast between the 
two types of morality that have been    

historically current may be approached  
from the standpoint of moral knowledge4 
,that is1 moral theories may be         
classified on the basis of their answer 
to the question3 ,how do moral judgments
 arise8 ,the chief contrast to be drawn 
is that between ,intuitionalism on the  
one hand1 and ,empiricism on the other4 
,intuitionalism holds briefly that the  
moral quality of an act is intuitively  
perceived1 and is recognized apart from 
experience of its consequences4 ,the    
empirical theory holds that moral       
judgments come to be attached to acts as
 a result of experience1 and            
particularly experiences of the approval
 and disapproval of other people4 ,the  
contrast will again become clearer by a 
discussion of each theory separately4   
,,intuitionalism4 ,intuitionalism takes 
two chief forms4 ,the first1 ,perceptual
 ,intuitionalism1 as ,sidgwick calls it1
 holds that the rightness of each       
particular act is immediately known4    
,the second1 called by the same author  

,dogmatic ,intuitionalism1 holds that   
the general laws of common-sense        
morality are immediately perceived4 ,the
 popular view of conscience1 well       
illustrates the first-mentioned position
 of the ,intuitionalist4  ,we commonly  
think of the dictates of conscience as  
relating to particular actions1 and when
 a man is bidden in a particular case to
 trust to his conscience1 it commonly   
seems to be meant that he should        
exercise a faculty of judging morally   
this particular case without reference  
to general rules1 and even in opposition
 to conclusions obtained by systematic  
deduction from such rules4#a  ,footnote 
#a3 ,sidgwick3 ,methods of ,ethics 7#dth
 edition71 p4 #ii4  ,conscience1 this   
organ of immediate moral perception1 is 
frequently taken to be divinely given at
 birth4 ,there is no one so certain or  
immovable as the man whose actions are  
dictated by his conscience4 ,he does not
 have to think about his actions2 he    
knows immediately what is right and what

 is wrong4 ,the intuitionalist does not 
go into the natural history of scruples 
for or against the performance of       
certain actions4 ,he takes these        
immediate aversions or promptings to act
 as the revelations of immediate and    
unquestionable knowledge1 frequently    
presumed to be divinely implanted4 ,most
 ,intuitionalists hold not that we      
experience an immediate intuition of the
 rightness or wrongness of action in    
every single situation1 but that the    
common rules of morality1 such common   
rules as good faith and veracity1 are   
immediately recognized and assented to  
as moral4 ,they insist that these are   
not determined by experience or by      
reflection1 since stealing1 lying1 and  
murder are known to be wrong by         
everyone1 though most men could not tell
 way4  ,intuitionalism carried out to   
logical extremes is represented by such 
men as ,tclstoy1 and1 in general1 those 
who genuinely and persistently act      
according to the dictates of their      

conscience1 who hold1 and so far as they
 can1 act upon the principle that we    
must never resist force by force1 never 
arrest a thief1 must literally give to  
him that asketh1 up to one's last penny1
 and so on4  ,,empiricism4 ,to explain  
the grounds of the ,empirical position  
is to exhibit the arguments in          
refutation of ,intuitionalism4 ,the most
 obvious and frequent line of attack    
that empirical moralists make upon      
,intuitionalism is to examine and       
compare the various intuitions of right 
conduct which have been held by men in  
different ages and places4  ,the        
traditional method of combating         
intuitionalism from the time of ,john   
,locke to that of ,herbert ,spencer has 
been to present the reader with a list  
of cruel and abominable savage customs1 
ridiculous superstitions1 acts of       
religious fanaticism and intolerance1   
which have all alike seemed             
self-evidently good and right to the    
peoples or individuals who have         

practised them4 ,there is hardly a vice 
or a crime 7according to our own moral  
standard7 which has not at some time or 
other in some circumstances been looked 
upon as a moral and religious duty4     
,stealing was accounted virtuous for the
 young ,spartan1 and among the ,indian  
caste of ,thugs4 ,in the ancient world1 
piracy1 that is1 robbery and murder1 was
 a respectable profession4 ,to the      
medival ,christian1 religious           
persecution was the highest of duties1  
and so on4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,rashdall3  
loc4 cit41 p4 #ei4  ,the ,empiricist    
asks3 ,if all these intuitions are      
absolute2 if men at various times and at
 various places1 indeed1 if1 as is the  
case1 men of different social classes   
and situations at the present time1     
differ so profoundly in their intuitions
 of the just1 the noble1 and the base1  
which of the conflicting intuitions1 all
 equally absolute1 is the absolute8 ,the
 ,intuitionalist continually appeals to 
the universal intuition and assent of   

,mankind4 ,but there is scarcely a      
single moral law for which universal    
assent in even a single generation can  
be found4 ,one has but to survey the    
heterogeneous collection of customs and 
prohibitions collected in such a work as
 ,frazer's ,golden ,bough1 to see how   
little unanimity there is in the moral  
intuitions of mankind4  ,the ,empiricist
 finds the origin of these divergent    
moral convictions in the divergent      
environments to which individuals in    
different places1 times1 and social     
situations are exposed4 ,the intensity  
and apparent irrefutability of these    
convictions1 which the ,intuitionalist  
ascribes to their innateness1 the       
,empiricist ascribes to their early     
acquisition1 and the deep emotional hold
 which early acquired habits have over  
the individual4 ,those moral beliefs    
which we hold with the utmost conviction
 and intensity are1 instead of being    
thereby guaranteed as most reasonable   
and genuinely moral1 thereby rendered1  

says the ,empiricist1 the more suspect4 
,they are evidences of the effectiveness
 of our early education1 or of our high 
degree of sensitiveness to our fellows4 
,conscience is thus reduced to habitual 
emotional reactions produced by the     
contact of a given individual           
temperament with a given environment4   
,thus acts come by the individual to be 
recognized as right or wrong1 according 
to the tradition to which he has been   
educated and the contacts with other    
people to which he is continually       
exposed4 ,the ,empiricist does not deny 
that there are intuitions1 or apparent  
intuitions4 ,he denies their ultimacy1  
their unquestionable validity4  ,when   
444 we find ourselves entertaining an   
opinion about the basis of which there  
is a quality of feeling which tells us  
that to inquire into it would be absurd1
 obviously unnecessary1 unprofitable1   
undesirable1 bad form1 or wicked1 we may
 know that that opinion is a            
non-rational one1 and probably1         

therefore1 founded upon inadequate      
evidence4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,trotter3    
,instincts of the ,herd1 p4 #dd4  ,these
 so powerful convictions are the        
immediate promptings of instincts1 or of
 the habits into which they have been   
modified4 ,the humane ,christian1 had he
 been brought up in the ,eskimo         
tradition1 would with the most tender   
solicitude slaughter his aged parents1  
just as the humane ,christian in the    
,middle ,ages thought it his duty to    
slay heretics4 ,there is no limit to the
 excesses to which men have gone on the 
dictates of conscience4 ,to put actions 
on the basis of conscience is to put    
them beyond the control of reflection or
 the check of inquiry4 ,it is to reduce 
conduct to caprice2 to exalt impulse    
into a moral command4 ,and the results  
of accepting blind intuitions as        
rational knowledge have been in many    
cases catastrophic4  ,if reason has     
slain its thousands1 the acceptance of  
instinct as evidence has slain its tens 

of thousands4 ,day by day1 in the       
ordinary direction of their lives1 men  
have learned during hundreds of         
generations how untrustworthy is the    
interpretation of fact which ,instinct  
offers1 and how bitter is the truth     
contained in such proverbs as ,anger is 
a bad counsellor1 or ,love is blind4 444
 ,wars are often started and maintained1
 neither from mere blind anger1 nor     
because those on either side find that  
they desire the results which a cool    
calculation of the conditions makes them
 regard as probable1 but largely because
 men insist on treating their feelings  
as evidence of fact and refuse to       
believe that they can be so angry       
without sufficient cause4#a  ,footnote  
#a3 ,graham ,wallas3 ,the ,great        
,society1 pp4 #bbd-be4  ,the ,empiricist
 insists that the morality of an act    
cannot be told from the intensity of    
approval or disapproval which it arouses
 in the individual4 ,actions are not    
moral or immoral in themselves1 but in  

their consequences or relations1 which  
are only discoverable in experience4    
,the goodness or badness of an act is   
measurable in terms of its consequences1
 and the consequences of action are     
discoverable only in experience4 ,this  
does not imply that we calculate the    
results of every action before          
performing it1 or measure the           
consequences of the acts of other       
persons before judging them4 ,our       
immediate reactions are frequently not  
the result of reflection at all1 but are
 responses prompted by previously formed
 habits1 or by instinctive caprice4     
,these immediate intuitions are not to  
be relied upon as moral standards1      
precisely because reflection frequently 
comes to an estimate of an act1 directly
 at variance with our instinctive       
reaction to it4 ,we come1 upon          
reflection1 to approve acts that we are1
 by instinct1 moved to condemn4 ,and the
 reverse holds true4  ,when we see that 
a child's clothes have caught fire1 we  

do not need to reflect on any           
consequences for universal well-being   
before we make up our minds that it is a
 duty to extinguish the flames1 even at 
the cost of some risk to ourselves4 ,it 
is clear that the act will conduce to   
pleasure and to the avoidance of pain4  
,we should feel an equally instinctive  
desire to kick out of the room a man    
whom we saw making incisions in the     
flesh of a human being if we did not    
know that he was a surgeon1 and that the
 making of incisions will tend to save  
the man's life4 ,were a competent       
physician to suggest that the burning of
 the child's clothes upon its back would
 cure it of a fever1 every reasonable   
person would consider it his duty to    
reconsider his prima-facie view of the  
situation4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,rashdall3  
,ethics1 pp1 #ea-eb4  ,the ,empiricist  
insists that moral standards are matters
 of discovery2 that the laws of conduct 
must be derived from experience1 just as
 must the laws of the physical sciences4

 ,to condemn an act as evil means that  
the performance of that act has in      
experience been found to produce harmful
 results4 ,those moral laws which at the
 present stage of civilized society seem
 to have attained universal assent1 have
 attained it because they are rules     
whose practice has1 in the history of   
the race1 repeatedly been found to      
produce desirable results4 ,even the    
conception of justice1 which has by so  
many thinkers been held to be absolute1 
to inhere somehow in the nature of      
things1 is by ,mill demonstrated at     
length to be merely a particularly      
highly regarded utility3  ,it appears   
444 that justice is a name for certain  
moral requirements1 which1 regarded     
collectively1 stand higher in the scale 
of social utility1 and are therefore of 
more paramount obligation than any      
others2 though particular cases may     
occur where some other social duty is so
 important as to overrule any one of the
 general maxims of justice4 ,thus1 to   

save a life1 it may not only be         
allowable1 but a duty1 to steal1 or take
 by force1 the necessary food or        
medicine1 or to kidnap1 and compel to   
officiate1 the only qualified medical   
practitioner4#b  ,footnote #b3 ,mill3   
,utilitarianism 7,london1 #aijg71 p4    
#ie4  ,indeed it is clear1 that in the  
processes of natural selection those    
tribes would survive whose rules of     
morality did in general promote welfare4
 ,and it is the business of reflection1 
says the ,empiricist1 not to accept     
either his own conviction or those of   
others on ethical questions1 but in     
cases of ambiguity to establish1 after  
inquiry1 a standard the practice of     
which promises the widest benefits in   
human happiness4  ,,ethics ,,and ,,life4
 ,all ethical theories are more or less 
deliberately intended as definitions of 
the good1 and as instruments for its    
attainment4 ,they must1 therefore1 be   
immediately tested by their fruits in   
life4 ,an ethical theory that is only   

verbally concerned with the good1 but   
does not in practice promote human      
welfare1 is futile pedantry or worse4   
,reflection upon conduct arises in man's
 attempt to control the nature which is 
his inheritance in the interests of his 
happiness4 ,men have learned through    
experience that to follow each impulse  
without forethought brings them pain1   
misery1 and sometimes destruction4 ,they
 have found that to achieve happiness   
some harmony must be established between
 competing desires1 and that only by    
balances1 adjustment1 and control1 can  
they make the most of the nature which  
is theirs inescapably4 ,this nature     
consists1 as we have seen1 in certain   
specific tendencies to action4 ,men are 
natively endowed with instincts to love1
 to fight1 to be curious1 to long for   
and enjoy the companionship of their    
fellows1 to wish privacy and solitude1  
to follow a lead and to take it1 to fear
 and hate1 and sympathize with others4  
,the satisfaction of any one of these   

impulses gives pleasure4 ,any one of    
these may become a dominant passion4    
,but it is not through yielding to a    
single imperious impulse that men attain
 genuine happiness4 ,to be excessively  
pugnacious or amorous or fearful is to  
court unhappiness1 both for the         
individual and his fellows4 ,it is only 
by giving each instinct its             
proportionate chance in the total       
context of all the instincts1 that      
happiness is to be found4  ,it is for   
this reason that1 as ,aristotle first   
pointed out1 a study of what is good for
 man must start with a study of what man
 himself is4 ,the study of ethics must  
consequently fall back for its data upon
 psychology4 ,it must note with         
precision the things that men can do1   
before it tells them what they ought to 
do4 ,for the things they ought to do1   
are dependent on the conditions which   
limit and determine their ideals4 ,any  
ethical system that deliberately        
excludes from its formulation natural   

human desires and capacities1 is denying
 the very sources of all morality4 ,for 
every ideal has its root back in some   
unlearned human impulse1 and an ideal   
that has no basis in the nature of man1 
is not an ideal1 but a negation4 ,the   
ideal way of life is one that provides  
for the harmonious utilization of all   
those possibilities which lie in man's  
original nature4 ,to deny a place to the
 sex impulse is to deny a place to ideal
 love4 ,to deny the moral legitimacy of 
the fighting instinct is to take away   
the basis of that immense energy which  
goes to sustain great moral reformers4  
,the place of ethical theory is not to  
deny human impulses1 but to turn them to
 uses in which they will not hinder     
other impulses either of the individual 
or of others4 ,through physical science1
 men have sought to make the most of    
their physical environment2 through     
moral science1 they can try to make the 
most of the human equipment which is    
theirs for better or for worse4 ,this   

human equipment is an opportunity2 and  
the utilization of this opportunity     
constitutes happiness4 ,it is in the    
realization of the possibilities offered
 by our original human nature that      
reflection upon morals is justified4 ,it
 is in the effective fulfillment of this
 opportunity that its success must be   
measured4  ,,morality ,,and ,,human     
,,nature4 ,a moral theory that is merely
 coercive and arbitrary1 therefore1 is  
not in a genuine sense moral4 ,a        
morality1 to justify itself1 must appeal
 to the heart of man4 ,the good which it
 recommends must be a good which man can
 without sophistry approve4 ,and the    
good for which man can whole-heartedly  
strive is not determined by logic1 but1 
in the last analysis1 by biology4 ,human
 beings cannot freely call good that to 
which they have no spontaneous          
prompting4 ,those ascetics who have     
denied the flesh may have displayed a   
certain degree of heroism1 but they     
displayed an equal lack of insight4 ,for

 it is out of physical impulses alone   
that any ideal values can arise4  ,it is
 only when one instinct interferes with 
its neighbors1 or one individual with   
his fellows1 that instincts or          
activities can be called evil4 ,they are
 called evil in relation1 in context1   
with reference to their consequences4   
,in itself no natural impulse is subject
 to condemnation4 ,it is just as natural
 as thunder or sunshine1 and is to be   
taken as a point of departure1 as a     
basis for action1 rather than as a      
chance for censure4 ,impulses demand    
control simply because1 left to         
themselves1 they collide with each      
other1 just as individuals uncontrolled 
by custom1 law1 and education1 collide  
with each other in the pursuit of       
satisfaction4 ,the ideal is a way of    
life1 which will allow as much          
spontaneity as the conditions of nature 
and life allow1 and provide as much     
control as they make necessary4 ,to be  
thus in control of one's desires is to  

be free4 ,it is to utilize one's        
interests and capacities in the light of
 a harmony both of one's own desires1   
and in so far as this harmony is        
universal1 of the desires of all men4   
,it is to lead the ,life of ,reason3    
,every one leads the ,life of ,reason in
 so far as he finds a steady light      
behind the world's glitter1 and a clear 
residuum of joy beneath pleasure and    
success4 ,no experience not to be       
repented of falls without its sphere4   
,every solution to a doubt1 in so far as
 it is not a new error1 every practical 
achievement not neutralized by a second 
maladjustment consequent upon it1 every 
consolation not the seed of another1    
greater sorrow1 may be gathered together
 and built into this edifice4 ,the ,life
 of ,reason is the happy marriage of two
 elements--impulse and ideation--which  
if wholly divorced would reduce man to a
 brute or to a maniac4 ,the rational    
animal is generated by the union of     
these two monsters4 ,he is constituted  

by ideas which have ceased to be        
visionary and actions which have ceased 
to be vain4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,santayana3
 ,reason in ,common ,sense1 p4 #f4  ,nor
 does the leading of a moral life1 as   
,kant and other moralists said or       
implied1 demand a stern and lugubrious  
countenance and a sad1 resigned         
determination to be good4 ,a moral      
system should promote rather a          
hallelujah than a halo4 ,one may suspect
 the adequacy to human happiness of     
those moral systems which promote in    
their holders or practitioners a        
virtuous somberness and a moral         
melancholy4 ,a morality that demands    
such unwholesome outward evidences is   
inwardly not beautiful4 ,as art is an   
attempt to give perfection and          
fulfillment to matter1 so is morals an  
attempt to give perfect and complete    
fulfillment to human possibility4 ,a    
genuine morality will1 in consequence1  
be spontaneous and free4 ,in ,matthew   
,arnold's well-known lines3    ,then1   

when the clouds are off the soul1       
,when thou dost bask in ,nature's eye1  
,ask1 how she view'd thy self-control1  
,thy struggling task'd morality4        
,nature1 whose free1 light1 cheerful air
    ,oft made thee1 in thy gloom1       
despair4        99       99       99    
99       99   ,there is no effort on my 
brow--    ,i do not strive1 ,i do not   
weep4    ,i rush with the swift spheres1
 and glow    ,in joy1 and when ,i will1 
,i sleep4#a  ,footnote #a3 ,from        
,morality4  ,,morals1 ,,law1 ,,and      
,,education4 ,no moral code1 however    
adequate in its theoretical formulation 
or the means of its attainment1 is      
socially effective merely as theory4 ,no
 matter how completely it takes into    
account all the natural desires and     
possibilities which demand fulfillment1 
it remains merely an academic yearning4 
,it becomes an instrument of happiness  
only when it has been made the habitual 
mode of life of the individual and the  
group1 through the long continuous      

processes of education and law4 ,there  
is a familiar discrepancy between theory
 and practice1 even when the discrepancy
 is not due to insincerity4 ,philosophy 
cannot make a man virtuous1 however much
 it may convince him of the path to     
virtue4 ,socrates thought that if men   
only knew the good they would follow it4
 ,but modern psychologists and ordinary 
laymen know better4 ,the good must      
become a habitual practice if men are to
 follow it1 and it can only become a    
habitual practice if education and      
social conditions in general provide for
 the early habituation of the individual
 to conduct that is socially useful4    
,aristotle1 who himself framed a theory 
of morals that was built on the firm    
foundation of human possibility1 was    
aware of the inadequacy of theory by    
itself to make men good3  ,some people  
think that men are made good by nature1 
others by habit1 others again by        
teaching4  ,now it is clear that the    
gift of ,nature is not in our own power1

 but is bestowed through some divine    
power upon those who are truly          
fortunate4 ,it is probably true also    
that reason and teaching are not        
universally efficacious2 the soul of the
 pupil must first have been cultivated  
by habit to a right spirit of pleasure  
and aversion1 like the earth that is to 
nourish the seed4#a  ,footnote #a3      
,aristotle3 ,ethics1 book ,x1 chap4 ,x1 
p4 #cdd 7,weldon translation74  ,it is  
only when people find pleasure in the   
right actions1 that they can be depended
 upon to perform them4 ,and it is by    
their early and habitual performance    
that they will become pleasant4 ,in the 
formation of such socially and          
individually useful habits1 education is
 the incomparable instrument4 ,the      
conduct of individuals is1 as we have   
repeatedly seen1 largely fixed by the   
customary recognition of certain acts as
 approved1 and others as disapproved4   
,these approvals and disapprovals are   
transmitted through education4          

,education is used here to refer not    
simply to the formal institutions of    
teaching1 but to the complete social    
environment1 the approvals and          
disapprovals with which an individual   
comes in contact4 ,formal education is1 
however1 the chief means by which       
society inculcates into younger members 
those values1 traditions1 and customs   
which its controlling elements regard as
 of the most pivotal importance4        
,social customs which are transmitted in
 education1 become fixed in law4 ,so    
that1 as ,aristotle points out in this  
same connection1 laws are symptomatic of
 the moral values which the group       
regards as of the highest importance4   
,laws are customs given all the         
sanction1 support1 and significance that
 the group can put into them4 ,education
 transmits the values1 ideals1 and      
traditions cherished by the group1 but  
the laws and customs already current    
largely control the scope and methods of
 education4 ,education proceeds         

ultimately from the patterns furnished  
by institutions1 customs1 and laws4     
,only in a just state will these be such
 as to give the right education4#a      
,footnote #a3 ,dewey3 ,democracy and    
,education1 p4 #ajc4  ,the state of law 
and education which is exhibited by a   
society1 thus accurately mirrors the    
degree of moral progress of the group4  
,and what is1 perhaps1 more significant1
 the kind of law and education current  
determines the moral ideals and         
conditions the moral achievements of the
 maturing generation4 ,education1 more  
especially1 is the instrument through   
which the young can be educated not only
 to ideals and customs already current1 
but to their reflective modification in 
the light of our ever-growing knowledge 
of the conditions of human welfare4     
,,index  ,ability1 education and native4
 ,absolutism in morality4 ,acquisitive  
instinct4 ,activity1 creative 7see      
,creative activity72 mental2 physical2  
social4 sthetic experience2 and form2 in

 industry2 in science2 sense            
satisfaction   basis of2 standards1     
effect of custom on2 value of science2  
values2 vs4   moral values2 vs4         
practical values4 ,see also ,art4       
,affection4 ,see ,love4 ,age1 influence 
of on learning4 ,altruism4 ,ambition4   
,animal1 instincts compared with human2 
man as an2 man a social4 ,appreciation4 
,see sthetic4 ,aristocracy4 ,aristotle4 
,arnold1 ,matthew4 ,art1 and emotion2   
and morals2 and nature2 appreciation of2
 as an industry2   as propaganda2 as    
realization of ideals2 as recreation2 as
 vicarious   experience2 expression of  
ideas by2 fine2 for art's sake2         
imagination in2   industrial2 origin of2
 standards in4 ,see also sthetic4       
,attention in habit formation4 ,awe4    
,bacon1 ,francis4 ,bagehot4 ,bain4      
,beauty4 ,see ,art1 and sthetic4        
,behavior1 habitual2 instinctive2 types 
of human4 ,behaviorism4 ,belief1        
gregariousness in2 individuality in4    
,bentham4 ,bergson4 ,bible4 ,blame4 ,see

 ,praise4 ,bloomfield1 ,leonard4 ,boas4 
,bryce4 ,burke1 ,edmund4 ,burns1 ,c4    
,delisle4 ,bury4 ,butler4  ,cannon4     
,career of reason4 ,carlyle4 ,carnegie4 
,cattell4 ,change1 in customs2 in       
habits2 in language2 opposition to4     
,character4 ,see ,personality1 and      
,self1 development of4 ,christ4         
,christianity4 ,church1 the1 as a social
 institution2 educational functions of2 
political   functions of4 ,civilization1
 and acquisitive instinct2 control of   
instincts in2 factors   in development  
of4 ,see also ,society4 ,classification 
in science4 ,coefficient of correlation4
 ,common sense and science4             
,communication4 ,see ,language4         
,companionship4 ,see ,gregariousness4   
,comte1 ,auguste4 ,conduct1 cultivation 
of socially desirable2 social standards 
of4 ,confession4 ,conscience4           
,conservatism1 place of fear in2 of     
habit4 ,continuity1 cultural4 ,cooley4  
,courage4 ,creative activity1 and       
eccentricity2 as sublimation of sex     

instinct2 in   art2 in industry2 in     
society4 ,see also ,imagination4        
,culture1 continuity of2 dependent on   
environment4 ,curiosity1 instinct of2   
and scientific inquiry4 ,custom1        
attitudes toward2 and art2 and morals2  
changes in2 effects of on   progress2   
preservation of2 social value of4       
,dante4 ,darwin4 ,deduction4 ,democracy4
 ,dewey4 ,dickens4 ,dickinson1 ,g4      
,lowes4 ,differences1 individual1 and   
education2 causes of2 in industry2 in   
leadership2   in reflection3 influence  
of environment on2 of heredity2 of race2
 of sex4 ,discontent1 due to repression 
of instincts4 ,dislike4 ,see ,hate4     
,divine1 as the human ideal2 description
 of4 ,dogmatism4 ,dow4 ,dowson1 ,ernest4
  ,eccentrics4 ,education1 and          
individual differences2 and morals2 as  
transmitter of the   past2 by the       
church2 instrument for social betterment
 and control2 made   possible by        
prolonged period of infancy2 and by     
language4 ,see also   ,learning4        

,egoism4 ,emerson4 ,emotion1 accompanies
 satisfaction or frustration of         
instincts or habits2   and art2 and     
language2 aroused in maintenance of     
self2 as driving power2   difficulty of 
classifying2 in morals2 impedes         
reflection2 ,james-,lange   theory of2  
of dislike or hate2 of fear2 of pity2 of
 love2 physical   indications of4       
,empirical morality4 ,enthusiasm2       
religious4 ,environment1 control of by  
science2 influence of on sthetic        
appreciation2   on individual           
differences2 on racial differences2 on  
instincts2   maladjustment between      
individual and2 possibility of choice   
of4 ,ethics1 and life2 contrast between 
professed and practiced4 ,see also      
,morality4 ,euripedes4 ,evolution4      
,experience1 art as vicarious2 modifies 
man's instincts4 ,experiment1 to        
determine learning process in animals2  
number of instincts   in animals2 in    
children4 ,experimental moral standards4
 ,experimentation in science4           

,expression1 art as means of4 ,see also 
sthetic1 and ,religion4  ,fatigue1      
influence of on learning2 in relation to
 industry2 mental2 nervous2   physical4 
,fear1 and religious experience2        
instinct of2 of the new4 ,field1        
,eugene4 ,fighting instinct4 ,see       
,pugnacity4 ,fiske4 ,folkways4 ,food1   
instinct of4 ,form1 and sthetic         
experience4 ,freedom of speech4         
,freudian psychology4 ,friendship4 ,see 
,love4 ,frost1 ,robert4  ,galton1       
,francis4 ,garibaldi4 ,generalization in
 reflection4 ,genius4 ,god4 ,goethe4    
,goff4 ,goldmark4 ,gregariousness1      
effect of on innovation2 importance of  
for social solidarity2   in action2 in  
belief2 instinct of4 ,group-feeling2    
influence of on language4 ,see also     
,society4  ,habit1 as time-saver2       
importance of in morals2 language as a2 
of reflection1   importance of2 strength
 of in individual2 in society4 ,habits1 
and emotion2 and instincts2             
disserviceable2 education a deliberate  

acquisition of2 formation of1 influence 
of on thinking2 modification of   by    
reflection2 of mind2 specific not       
general2 transference of4 ,hard1        
,william4 ,harrison1 ,jane4 ,hart4      
,hate4 ,health1 influence of on         
learning4 ,hegel4 ,henley4 ,heraclitus4 
,herd instinct4 ,see ,gregariousness4   
,heredity4 ,hinks4 ,history1 and        
religion4 ,hobhouse4 ,housman4 ,hunger1 
instinct of4 ,huxley4  ,ideals1 created 
by reflection2 devotion to2 foundation  
of2 realization of   in art2 in morals2 
in religion4 ,ideas1 expressed in art2  
fear of the novel in2 man alone reacts  
to4 ,imagination1 as form of mental     
activity2 in art2 in science4 ,see also 
,creative activity4 ,impotence4 ,see    
,need4 ,impulses4 ,see ,instincts4      
,individual1 and education2 differences 
7see ,differences1 individual72         
maladjustment between environment and4  
,individualism4 ,individuality1 and     
progress2 consciousness of unique in    
man2 in opinion   and belief4           

,induction4 ,industry1 art as an2       
individual differences in2 need of      
creative activity in4 ,infancy1         
prolonged period of in man4             
,inquisition4 ,instinct1 and habit2     
acquisitive2 definition of2 of          
curiosity2 fear2   gregariousness2      
hunger2 leadership2 mental activity2    
parental2 physical   activity2 pity2    
play2 pugnacity2 self-preservation2 sex2
 shelter2   submission2 sympathy4       
,instincts1 and education2 and emotion2 
basis of morals2 conflict of2   control 
of2 happiness comes from satisfaction   
of2 interpenetration of2   modification 
of2 number and variety of2 repression   
of2 specific not   general2 unchanged   
since prehistoric times4 ,intelligence1 
a conscious adjustment of habits2       
influence of heredity on1   of race1 of 
sex2 makes possible control of nature2  
measurement of2 types of4 ,interests1   
conflict of in society4 ,intolerance4   
,intuition4 ,intuitionalism4 ,invention 
of tools4    ,james1 ,william4          

,jennings4 ,jevons4 ,job4 ,jones1 ,a4   
,l44 ,joy1 religious expression of4     
,kant4 ,kelvin4 ,kerr-,lawson4 ,keyser4 
,kropotkin4  ,ladd4 ,lang4 ,lange4      
,language1 and emotion2 and logic2 and  
thought2 as a social habit2 changes     
in2 importance of for civilization2 man 
alone possesses2 origin of2   primitive2
 uniformities in4 ,law1 and morals2 and 
society2 scientific4 ,leadership1       
instinct of2 submission to4 ,learning1  
affected by age1 fatigue1 and health2   
capacity for in men and   animals2 drill
 and attention in2 importance of habit  
of2 process of   7see also ,education1  
and ,reflection72 trial-and-error4 ,le  
,bon4 ,lee1 ,frederick ,s44 ,lincoln4   
,logic1 and language4 ,love4 ,lowell4   
,loyalty4 ,lucretius4  ,mc,dougall4     
,malthus4 ,man1 as social being2        
primitive2 study of1 basis of ethics2   
unique   characteristics of4 ,marett4   
,markham1 ,edwin4 ,marot1 ,helen4 ,marx1
 ,karl4 ,masefield4 ,mayo-,smith4       
,mendelian laws of heredity4 ,mental    

activity4 ,meyer1 ,eduard4 ,mill1 ,john 
,stuart4 ,mills4 ,milton4 ,moral action2
 knowledge2 standards2 theory1 types of2
 values4 ,morality1 absolutistic2 and   
art2 and education2 and emotion2 and    
habit2   and human nature2 and          
intellectualism2 and law2 based on      
instincts2   customary2 empirical2      
inadequacy of theory in2 intuitional2   
reflective2   relativistic and          
teleological2 spontaneous4 ,morley1     
,john4 ,mysticism4  ,napoleon4 ,nature1 
and art2 man's control of2 science as   
explanation of2   unchangeability of4   
,need1 and religious experience4 ,new1  
progress and the2 distrust of2          
idealization of4 ,see also ,originality4
 ,newton4 ,nietzsche4 ,northcliffe1     
,lord4 ,noyes1 ,alfred4  ,observation in
 science4 ,opinion1 individuality in2   
suppression of4 ,originality in         
thinking1 causes of2 encouragement of2  
fear of1 in society4   ,see also ,new4  
,orosius4 ,o',shaughnessy4              
,other-worldliness4  ,parental instinct4

 ,pascal4 ,past1 critical examination   
of2 disparagement of2 education as      
transmitter   of2 idealization of2      
limitations of2 our heritage from2      
veneration of4 ,pasteur4 ,pater1        
,walter4 ,pearson1 ,karl4 ,penance4     
,personality4 ,see also ,self4 ,physical
 activity1 instinct of2 fatigue4 ,pity1 
instinct of4 ,plato4 ,play4 ,see        
,physical activity1 and ,recreation4    
,pleasure4 ,poe4 ,poincar4 ,pope4       
,population2 restriction of4            
,possession4 ,see ,acquisitive4 ,praise 
and blame1 as instruments of social     
control2 determine professed            
standards2 in development of self2      
indifference to2 man responsive to4     
,prayer4 ,prejudice1 influences         
thinking4 ,primitive and civilized      
races2 language2 man's manufacture of   
tools2   morality2 religion2 science4   
,principles4 ,privacy1 instinctive      
demand for4 ,probability4 ,progress1 and
 custom2 and pugnacity2 and reflection2 
and variation from   normal2 science as 

an instrument of4 ,propaganda1 art as2  
emotional value of words in4            
,psychological tests4 ,see              
,intelligence1 measurement of4          
,psychology1 and ethics2 behavioristic2 
faculty2 ,freudian2 of ,utilitarianism4 
,public opinion2 opposition to4         
,pugnacity1 instinct of4  ,quiescence4  
,race1 continuity of human2 influence of
 on individual differences4 ,rashdall4  
,reason1 and religion2 as director of   
life2 career of2 in absolutistic        
morality4 ,see also ,reflection1 and    
,thinking4 ,recreation2 art as2 form    
dependent on work and habits4           
,reflection1 and individual differences2
 and morality2 creates moral standards2 
in art2 in science2 inadequacy of in    
morals2 limited by instinct and habit2  
modifier of instinct and habit2 process 
of2 value of for society4 ,see also     
,learning1 ,scientific method1 and      
,thinking4 ,reflex4 ,relativistic       
morality4 ,religion1 and history2 and   
science2 experiences giving rise to     

expression   of2 institutionalized2     
offers solace2 realization of ideals in2
 primitive2   rationalization of        
personal4 ,remorse and religion4        
,repentance4 ,repetition in habit       
formation4 ,repression of instincts4    
,ribot4 ,robinson1 ,james ,harvey4      
,robinson1 ,edwin ,arlington4           
,roosevelt4 ,ross4 ,russell1 ,bertrand4 
,sabatier4 ,sacrifice4 ,santayana4      
,schopenhauer4 ,science1 sthetic aspect 
of2 and common sense2 and progress2 and 
religion2   as explanation of natural   
phenomena1 classification in2 definition
 of2   experimentation in2 imagination  
in2 innovation in2 observation in2      
practical2 primitive2 pure2 social4     
,scientific inquiry1 curiosity and2 law2
 method4 ,self-assertion2 consciousness 
of the2 development of2 display2        
preservation2   sufficiency2 surrender2 
satisfaction and dissatisfaction2 the   
divided2   the negative2 the permanent2 
the social2 types of the4 ,sense        
satisfaction basis of sthetic           

experience4 ,sex1 and creative activity2
 and racial continuity2 influence of on 
individual differences2 instinct of4    
,shakespeare4 ,shelley4 ,sidgwick4      
,smith1 ,adam4 ,social activity2 being1 
man as a2 consequences of fear2 of      
leadership2 of   opposition to public   
opinion2 of pity2 of submission2        
inertia2 institution1   the church as a2
 motive2 sciences2 self2 solidarity2    
standards of conduct2   value of        
consciousness of self2 of custom2 of    
individuality in opinion2 of   praise   
and blame2 of prolonged period of       
infancy2 of pugnacity2 of reflection4   
,socialism4 ,society1 and education2 and
 individual happiness2 and law2 based on
 instinct   of gregariousness2 conflict 
of interests in2 control of instincts   
in4 ,socrates4 ,solitude4 ,sorel1       
,georges4 ,specificity of instincts2 of 
habits4 ,speech 7see also ,language72   
freedom of4 ,standards1 sthetic2 a      
priori2 experimental2 ideal2 language2  
moral2 social4 ,statistics4 ,stirner1   

,max4 ,stork1 ,charles ,wharton4        
,submissive instinct4 ,suggestion1 in   
thinking4 ,sutherland4 ,swinburne4      
,sympathy4  ,tabu4 ,tarde4 ,taylor1     
,henry ,osborn4 ,teleology in morals4   
,tender emotion4 ,tennyson4 ,theology4  
,theory1 inadequacy of in morals4       
,thilly4 ,thinking1 common sense vs4    
scientific2 influence of habit on2      
analyzes   experience2 begins with a    
problem4 ,see also ,reflection1 and     
,scientific   method4 ,thompson1        
,sylvanus ,p44 ,thomson4 ,thorndike1    
,edward ,l4 ,thought1 and language2     
originality in4 ,tolstoy4 ,tools1 man   
only maker and user of4 ,tradition4 ,see
 ,custom4 ,trial-and-error1 learning2   
reflection as mental4 ,trotter4 ,tufts4 
,tylor1 ,edward ,b4 ,tyndall4 ,types of 
self2 of intelligence4  ,utilitarianism4
    ,values1 sthetic2 ideal2 moral4     
,veblen4 ,verification in scientific    
procedure4    ,wallas1 ,graham4 ,war1   
and acquisitive instinct2 and hate2 and 
pugnacity4 ,ward1 ,lester4 ,watson4     

,wharton1 ,edith4 ,wilde1 ,oscar4 ,will4
 ,wilson1 ,woodrow4 ,wolff1 ,christian4 
,woodbridge4 ,woodworth4 ,wordsworth4   
,work determines form of recreation4