2Imayperhapsreferheretomy_Principles_of_Psychology,vol。I,pp。459ff。Itreallyseems’weird’tohavetoargue(asIamforcednowtodo)forthenotionthatitisonesheetofpaper(withitstwosurfacesandallthatliesbetween)whichisbothundermypenandonthetablewhileIwrite——the’claim’thatitistwosheetsseemssobrazen。YetIsometimessuspecttheabsolutistsofsincerity!
106
theunity(nowtakenasabarepostulateandnolongerasathingpositivelyperceivable)totheregionoftheAbsolute’smysteries。Idonoteasilyfathomthis,Isay,forthesaidopponentsareabovemereverbalquibbling;yetallthatIcancatchintheirtalkisthesubstitutionofwhatistrueofcertainwordsforwhatistrueofwhattheysignify。Theystaywiththewords,——notreturningtothestreamoflifewhenceallthemeaningofthemcame,andwhichisalwaysreadytoreabsorbthem。
IV
Foraughtthisargumentproves,then,wemaycontinuetobelievethatonethingcanbeknownbymanyknowers。Butthedenialofonethinginmanyrelationsisbutoneapplicationofastillprofounderdialecticdifficulty。
Mancan’tbegood,saidthesophist,formanis_man_and_good_isgood;andHegel(1)andHerbartintheirday,morerecentlyA。Spir,(2)andmost——-
1[Fortheauthor’scriticismofHegel’sviewofrelations,cf。
_Will_to_Believe_,pp。278-279,ED。]
2[Cf。A。Spir:_Denken_und_Wirklichkeit_,partI,bk。III,ch。IV
(containingalsoaccountofHerbart)。ED。]
107
recentlyandelaboratelyofall,Mr。Bradley,informsusthatatermcanlogicallyonlybeapunctiformunit,andthatnotoneoftheconjunctiverelationsbetweenthings,whichexperienceseemstoyield,isrationallypossible。
Ofcourse,iftrue,thiscutsoffradicalempiricismwithoutevenashilling。Radicalempiricismtakesconjunctiverelationsattheirfacevalue,holdingthemtobeasrealasthetermsunitedbythem。(1)Theworlditrepresentsasacollection,somepartsofwhichareconjunctivelyandothersdisjunctivelyrelated。Twoparts,themselvesdisjoined,mayneverthelesshangtogetherbyintermediarieswithwhichtheyareseverallyconnected,andthewholeworldeventuallymayhangtogethersimilarly,inasmuchas_some_pathofconjunctivetransitionbywhichtopassfromoneofitspartstoanothermayalwaysbediscernible。Suchdeterminatelyvarioushanging-togethermaybecalled_concatenated_union,todistinguishitfromthe’through-and-through’typeofunion,——-
1[Seeabove,pp。42,49。]
108
’eachinallandallineach’(unionof_total_
_conflux_,asonemightcallit),whichmonisticsystemsholdtoobtainwhenthingsaretakenintheirabsolutereality。Inaconcatenatedworldapartialconfluxoftenisexperienced。
Ourconceptsandoursensationsareconfluent;
successivestatesofthesameego,andfeelingsofthesamebodyareconfluent。Wheretheexperienceisnotofconflux,itmaybeofconterminousness(thingswithbutonethingbetween);orofcontiguousness(nothingbetween);
oroflikeness;orofnearness;orofsimultaneousness;orofin-ness;orofon-ness;
oroffor-ness;orofsimplewith-ness;orevenofmereand-ness,whichlastrelationwouldmakeofhoweverdisjointedaworldotherwise,atanyrateforthatoccasionauniverse’ofdiscourse。’
NowMr。Bradleytellsusthatnoneoftheserelations,asweactuallyexperiencethem,canpossiblybereal。(1)Mynextduty,accordingly,——-
1Hereagainthereadermustbewareofslippingfromlogicalintophenomenalconsiderations。Itmaywellbethatwe_attribute_acertainrelationfalsely,becausethecircumstancesofthecase,beingcomplex,havedeceivedus。Atarailwaystationwemaytakeourowntrain,andnottheonethatfillsourwindow,tobemoving。Wehereputmotioninthewrongplaceintheworld,butinitsoriginalplacethemotionisapartofreality。WhatMr。Bradleymeansisnothinglikethis,butratherthatsuchthingsasmotionarenowherereal,andthat,evenintheiraboriginalandempiricallyincorrigibleseats,relationsareimpossibleofcomprehension。
109
mustbetorescueradicalempiricismfromMr。
Bradley。Fortunately,asitseemstome,hisgeneralcontention,thattheverynotionofrelationisunthinkableclearly,hasbeensuccessfullymetbymanycritics。(1)
Itisaburdentotheflesh,andaninjusticebothtoreadersandtothepreviouswriters,torepeatgoodargumentsalreadyprinted。So,innoticingMr。Bradley,Iwillconfinemyselftotheinterestsofradicalempiricismsolely。
V
Thefirstdutyofradicalempiricism,takinggivenconjunctionsattheirface-value,istoclasssomeofthemasmoreintimateandsomeasmoreexternal。Whentwotermsare_similar_,theirverynaturesenterintotherelation。
——-
1ParticularlysobyAndrewSethPringle-Pattison,inhis_Man_and_
_the_Cosmos_;byL。T。Hobhouse,inchapterXII("TheValidityofJudgement")ofhis_Theory_of_Knowledge_;andbyF。C。S。Schiller,inhis_Humanism_,essayXI。Otherfatalreviews(inmyopinion)areHodder’s,inthe_Psychological_Review_,vol。I[1894],p。307;Stout’sinthe_Proceedings_of_the_Aristotelian_Society,1901-2,p。1;andMacLennan’sin[_The_Journal_of_Philosophy,_Psychology_and_Scientific_Methods_,vol。I,1904,p。403]。
110
Being_what_theyare,nomatterwhereorwhen,thelikenessnevercanbedenied,ifasserted。
Itcontinuespredictableaslongasthetermscontinue。Otherrelations,the_where_andthe_when_,forexample,seemsadventitious。Thesheetofpapermaybe’off’or’on’thetable,forexample;andineithercasetherelationinvolvesonlytheoutsideofitsterms。Havinganoutside,bothofthem,theycontributebyittotherelation。Itisexternal:theterm’sinnernatureisirrelevanttoit。Anybook,anytable,mayfallintotherelation,whichiscreated_pro_
_hac_vice_,notbytheirexistence,butbytheircausalsituation。Itisjustbecausesomanyoftheconjunctionsofexperienceseemsoexternalthataphilosophyofpureexperiencemusttendtopluralisminitsontology。Sofarasthingshavespace-relations,forexample,wearefreetoimaginethemwithdifferentoriginseven。Iftheycouldgetto_be_,andgetintospaceatall,thentheymayhavedonesoseparately。Oncethere,however,theyare_additives_tooneanother,and,withnoprejudicetotheirnatures,allsortsofspace-relationsmaysupervenebetween111
them。Thequestionofhowthingscouldcometobeanyhow,iswhollydifferentfromthequestionwhattheirrelations,oncethebeingaccomplished,mayconsistin。
Mr。Bradleynowaffirmsthatsuchexternalrelationsasthespace-relationswhichweheretalkofmustholdofentirelydifferentsubjectsfromthoseofwhichtheabsenceofsuchrelationsmightamomentpreviouslyhavebeenplausiblyasserted。Notonlyisthe_situation_
differentwhenthebookisonthetable,butthe_book_itself_isdifferentasabook,fromwhatitwaswhenitwasoffthetable。(1)Headmitsthat"suchexternalrelationsseempossibleandevenexisting……Thatyoudonotalterwhatyoucompareorrearrangeinspaceseemstocommonsensequiteobvious,andthaton——-
1Oncemore,don’tslipfromlogicalintophysicalsituations。Ofcourse,ifthetablebewet,itwillmoistenthebook,orifitbeslightenoughandthebookbeheavyenough,thebookwillbreakitdown。
Butsuchcollateralphenomenaarenotthepointatissue。Thepointiswhetherthesuccessiverelations’on’and’not-on’canrationally(notphysically)holdofthesameconstantterms,abstractlytaken。
ProfessorA。E。Taylordropsfromlogicalintomaterialconsiderationswhenheinstancescolor-contrastasaproofthatA,’ascontra-
distinguishedfromB,isnotthesamethingasmereAnotinanywayaffected’(_Elements_of_Metaphysics_,p。145)。Notethesubstitution,for’related’oftheword’affected,’whichbegsthewholequestion。
112
theothersidethereareasobviousdifficultiesdoesnotoccurtocommonsenseatall。AndI
willbeginbypointingoutthesedifficulties……
Thereisarelationintheresult,andthisrelation,wehear,istomakenodifferenceinitsterms。But,ifso,towhatdoesitmakeadifference?
[_Does_n’t_it_make_a_difference_to_us_on-_
_lookers,_at_least?_]andwhatisthemeaningandsenseofqualifyingthetermsbyit?[_Surely_the_
_meaning_is_to_tell_the_truth_about_their_relative_
_position_。1]If,inshort,itisexternaltotheterms,howcanitpossiblybetrue_of_them?[_Is_it_the_
_’intimacy’_suggested_by_the_little_word_’of,’_here,_
_which_I_have_understood,_that_is_the_root_of_Mr。_
_Bradley’s_trouble?]……Ifthetermsfromtheirinnernaturedonotenterintotherelation,then,sofarastheyareconcerned,theyseemrelatedfornoreasonatall……Thingsarespatiallyrelated,firstinoneway,andthenbecomerelatedinanotherway,andyetinnowaythemselvesarealtered;fortherelations,itissaid,arebutexternal。ButIreplythat,if————
1But"isthereanysense,"asksMr。Bradley,peevishly,onp。579,"andifso,whatsenseintruththatisonlyoutsideand’about’
things?"Surelysuchaquestionmaybeleftunanswered。
113
so,Icannot_understand_theleavingbythetermsofonesetofrelationsandtheiradoptionofanotherfreshset。Theprocessanditsresulttotheterms,iftheycontributenothingtoit[_Surely_they_contribute_to_it_all_there_is_
_’of’_it!_]seemirrationalthroughout。[_If_’irrational’_
_here_means_simply_’non-rational,’_or_non-_
_deducible_from_the_essence_of_either_term_singly,_it_
_is_no_reproach;_if_it_means_’contradicting’_such_
_essence,_Mr。_Bradley_should_show_wherein_and_
_how。_]But,iftheycontributeanything,they_mustsurelybeaffectedinternally。[_Why_so,_
_if_they_contribute_only_their_surface?__In_such_
_relations_as_’on,’_’a_foot_away,’_’between,’_’next,’_
_etc。,_only_surfaces_are_in_question。_]……Ifthetermscontributeanythingwhatever,thenthetermsareaffected[_inwardly_altered?_]bythearrangement……Thatforworkingpurposeswetreat,anddowelltotreat,somerelationsasexternalmerelyIdonotdeny,andthatofcourseisnotthequestionatissuehere。Thatquestionis……whetherintheendandinprincipleamereexternalrelation-_i。e。,_a_relation_
_which_can_change_without_forcing_its_terms_
114
_to_change_their_nature_simultaneously_]ispossibleandforcedonusbythefacts。"(1)
Mr。Bradleynextrevertstotheantinomiesofspace,which,accordingtohim,proveittobeunreal,althoughitappearsassoprolificamediumofexternalrelations;andhethenconcludesthat"Irrationalityandexternalitycannotbethelasttruthaboutthings。Somewheretheremustbeareasonwhythisandthatappeartogether。Andthisreasonandrealitymustresideinthewholefromwhichtermsandrelationsareabstractions,awholeinwhichtheirinternalconnectionmustlie,andoutofwhichfromthebackgroundappearthosefreshresultswhichnevercouldhavecomefromthepremises。"Andheaddsthat"Wherethewholeisdifferent,thetermsthatqualifyandcontributetoitmustsofarbedifferent……
Theyarealteredsofaronly[_How_far?_farther_
_than_externally,_yet_not_through_and_through?_]
butstilltheyarealtered……Imustinsistthatineachcasethetermsarequalifiedbytheirwhole[_Qualified_how?——Do_their_external_
115
_relations,_situations,_dates,_etc。,_changed_as_these_
_are_in_the_new_whole,_fail_to_qualify_them_’far’_
enough?_],andthatinthesecondcasethereisawholewhichdiffersbothlogicallyandpsychologicallyfromthefirstwhole;andIurgethatincontributingtothechangethetermssofararealtered。"
Notmerelytherelations,then,butthetermsarealtered:_Und_zwar_’sofar。’Butjust_how_
faristhewholeproblem;and’through-and-
through’wouldseem(inspiteofMr。Bradley’ssomewhatundecidedutterances(1))tobethe——-
1Isay’undecided,’because,apartfromthe’sofar,’whatsoundsterriblyhalf-hearted,therearepassagesintheseverypagesinwhichMr。Bradleyadmitsthepluralisticthesis。Read,forexample,whathesays,onp。578,ofabilliardballkeepingits’character’unchanged,though,initschangeofplace,its’existence’getsaltered;orwhathesays,onp。579,ofthepossibilitythatanabstractqualityA,B,orC,inathing,’maythroughoutremainunchanged’althoughthethingbealtered;orhisadmissionthatred-hairedness,bothasanalyzedoutofamanandwhengivenwiththerestofhim,theremaybe’nochange’p。580)。Whydoesheimmediatelyaddthatforthepluralisttopleadthenon-mutationofsuchabstractionswouldbean_ignoratio_
_elenchi?_Itisimpossibletoadmitittobesuch。Theentire_elenchus_andinquestisjustastowhetherpartswhichyoucanabstractfromtheirinnernature。Iftheycanthusmouldvariouswholesintonew_gestalqualitaten_,thenitfollowsthatthesameelementsarelogicallyabletoexistindifferentwholes[whetherphysicallyablewoulddependonadditionalhypotheses];thatpartialchangesarethinkable,andthrough-and-throughchangenotadialecticnecessity;
thatmonismisonlyanhypothesis;andthatanadditivelyconstituteduniverseisarationallyrespectablehypothesisalso。Allthesesofradicalempiricism,inshort,follow。
116
fullBradleyananswer。The’whole’whichheheretreatsasprimaryanddeterminativeofeachpart’smannerof’contributing,’simply_must_,whenitalters,alterinitsentirety。There_must_betotalconfluxofitsparts,eachintoandthrougheachother。The’must’appearshereasa_Machtspruch_,asan_ipse_dixit_ofMr。
Bradley’sabsolutisticallytempered’understanding,’
forhecandidlyconfessesthathowtheparts_do_differastheycontributetodifferentwholes,isunknowntohim。(1)
AlthoughIhaveeverywishtocomprehendtheauthoritybywhichMr。Bradley’sunderstandingspeaks,hiswordsleavemewhollyunconverted。’Externalrelations’standwiththeirwithersallunwrung,andremain,foraughtheprovestothecontrary,notonlypracticallyworkable,butalsoperfectlyintelligiblefactorsofreality。
——-
1Op。cit。,pp。577-579。
117
VI
Mr。Bradley’sunderstandingshowsthemostextraordinarypowerofperceivingseparationsandthemostextraordinaryimpotenceincomprehendingconjunctions。Onewouldnaturallysay’neitherorboth,’butnotsoMr。
Bradley。Whenacommonmananalyzescertain_whats_fromoutthestreamofexperience,heunderstandstheirdistinctness_as_thus_isolated_。
Butthisdoesnotpreventhimfromequallywellunderstandingtheircombinationwitheachother_as_originally_experienced_in_the_concrete_,ortheirconfluencewithnewsensibleexperiencesinwhichtheyrecuras’thesame。’
Returningintothestreamofsensiblepresentation,nounsandadjectives,and_thats_andabstract_whats_,growconfluentagain,andtheword’is’namesalltheseexperiencesofconjunction。
Mr。Bradleyunderstandstheisolationoftheabstracts,buttounderstandthecombinationistohimimpossible。(1)"Tounderstand——-
1SofarasIcatchhisstateofmind,itissomewhatlikethis:
’Book,’’table,’’on’——howdoestheexistenceofthesethreeabstractelementsresultin_this_bookbeinglivinglyon_this_table。Whyisn’tthetableonthebook?Orwhydoesn’tthe’on’connectitselfwithanotherbook,orsomethingthatisnotatable?Mustn’tsomething_in_
eachofthethreeelementsalreadydeterminethetwoothersto_it_,sothattheydonotsettleelsewhereorfloatvaguely?Mustn’tthe_whole_fact_be_prefigured_in_each_part_,andexist_de_jure_beforeitcanexist_de_fact?_But,ifso,inwhatcanthejuralexistenceconsist,ifnotinaspiritualminiatureofthewholefact’sconstitutionactuatingeverypartialfactorasitspurpose?Butisthisanythingbuttheoldmetaphysicalfallacyoflookingbehindafact_in_esse_forthegroundofthefact,andfindingitintheshapeoftheverysamefact_in_posse?_Somewherewemustleaveoffwitha_constitution_behindwhichthereisnothing。
118
acomplexAB,"hesays,"ImustbeginwithAorB。Andbeginning,saywithA,ifI
thenmerelyfindB,IhaveeitherlostA,orIhavegotbesideA,[_the_word_’beside’_seems_
_here_vital,_as_meaning_a_conjunction_’external’_
_and_therefore_unintelligible_]somethingelse,andinneithercasehaveIunderstood。(1)Formyintellectcannotsimplyuniteadiversity,norhasitinitselfanyformorwayoftogetherness,andyougainnothingif,besideAandB,youoffermetheirconjunctioninfact。Fortomyintellectthatisnomorethananotherexternalelement。And’facts,’onceforall,areformyintellectnottrueunlesstheysatisfyit……Theintellecthasinitsnaturenoprincipleofmeretogetherness。"(2)
——-
1Applythistothecaseof’book-on-table’!W。J。
2Op。cit。,pp。570,572。
119
OfcourseMr。Bradleyhasarighttodefine’intellect’asthepowerbywhichweperceiveseparationsbutnotunions——providedhegiveduenoticetothereader。Butwhythenclaimthatsuchamaimedandamputatedpowermustreignsupremeinphilosophy,andaccuseonitsbehoofthewholeempiricalworldofirrationality?Itistruethatheelsewhereattributestotheintellecta_proprius_
_motus_oftransition,butsaysthatwhenhelooksfor_these_transitionsinthedetailoflivingexperience,he’isunabletoverifysuchasolution。’(1)
Yetheneverexplainswhattheintellectualtransitionswouldbelikeincasewehadthem。
Heonlydefinesthemnegatively——theyarenotspatial,temporal,predicative,orcausal;
orqualitativelyorotherwiseserial;orinanywayrelationalaswenaivelytracerelations,forrelations_separate_terms,andneedthemselvestobehookedon_ad_infinitum_。Thenearestapproachhemakestodescribingatrulyintellectualtransitioniswherehespeaksof——-
1Op。cit。,pp。568,569。
120
AandBasbeing’united,eachfromitsownnature,inawholewhichisthenatureofbothalike。’(1)Butthis(which,_pace_Mr。Bradley,seemsexquisitelyanalogousto’taking’acongeriesina’lump,’ifnotto’swamping’)suggestsnothingbutthat_conflux_whichpureexperiencesoabundantlyoffers,aswhen’space,’’white’and’sweet’areconfluentina’lumpofsugar,’orkinesthetic,dermal,andopticalsensationsconfluentin’myhand。’(2)
AllthatIcanverifyinthetransitionswhichMr。Bradley’sintellectdesideratesasits_proprius_
_motus_isareminiscenceoftheseandothersensibleconjunctions(especiallyspace-
conjunctions),butareminiscencesovaguethatitsoriginalsarenotrecognized。Bradleyinshortrepeatsthefableofthedog,thebone,anditsimageinthewater。Withaworldofparticulars,giveninloveliestunion,inconjunctiondefinitelyvarious,andvariouslydefinite,——-
1Op。cit。,p。570。
2Howmeaninglessisthecontentionthatinsuchwholes(orin’book-on-table,’’watch-in-pocket,’etc)therelationisanadditionalentity_between_theterms,needingitselftoberelatedagaintoeach!
BothBradley(op。cit。,pp。32-33)andRoyce(_The_World_and_the_
_Individual_,vol。I,p。128)lovinglyrepeatthispieceofprofundity。
121
the’how’ofwhichyou’understand’assoonasyouseethefactofthem,(1)forthereisno’how’excepttheconstitutionofthefactasgiven;withallthisgivenhim,Isay,inpureexperience,heasksforsomeineffableunionintheabstractinstead,which,ifhegainedit,wouldonlybeaduplicateofwhathehasalreadyinhisfullpossession。Surelyheabusestheprivilegewhichsocietygrantstoallusphilosophers,ofbeingpuzzle-headed。
Polemicwritinglikethisisodious;butwithabsolutisminpossessioninsomanyquarters,omissiontodefendmyradicalempiricismagainstitsbestknownchampionwouldcountaseithersuperficialityorinability。Ihavetoconcludethatitsdialectichasnotinvalidatedintheleastdegreetheusualconjunctionsbywhichtheworld,asexperienced,hangssovariouslytogether。Inparticularitleavesanempiricaltheoryofknowledge(2)intact,andletsuscontinuetobelievewithcommonsensethat122
oneobject_may_beknown,ifwehaveanygroundforthinkingthatit_is_known,tomanyknowers。
In[thenextessay]Ishallreturntothislastsupposition,whichseemstometoofferotherdifficultiesmuchharderforaphilosophyofpureexperiencetodealwiththananyofabsolutism’sdialecticobjections。
123
IV
HOWTWOMINDSCANKNOW
ONETHING(1)
IN[theessay]entitled’DoesConsciousnessExist?’Ihavetriedtoshowthatwhenwecallanexperience’conscious,’thatdoesnotmeanthatitissuffusedthroughoutwithapeculiarmodalityofbeing(’psychic’being)asstainedglassmaybesuffusedwithlight,butratherthatitstandsincertaindeterminaterelationstootherportionsofexperienceextraneoustoitself。Theseformonepeculiar’context’forit;while,takeninanothercontextofexperiences,weclassitasafactinthephysicalworld。This’pen,’forexample,is,inthefirstinstance,abald_that_,adatum,fact,phenomenon,content,orwhateverotherneutralorambiguousnameyoumayprefertoapply。I
calleditinthatarticlea’pureexperience。’Togetclassedeitherasaphysicalpenorassomeone’sperceptofapen,itmustassumea_function_,——-
1[Reprintedfrom_The_Journal_of_Philosophy,_Psychology_and_
_Scientific_Methods_,volII,No。7,March30,1905。]
124
andthatcanonlyhappeninamorecomplicatedworld。Sofarasinthatworlditisastablefeature,holdsink,markspaperandobeystheguidanceofahand,itisaphysicalpen。Thatiswhatwemeanbybeing’physical,’
inapen。Sofarasitisinstable,onthecontrary,comingandgoingwiththemovementsofmyeyes,alteringwithwhatIcallmyfancy,continuouswithsubsequentexperiencesofits’havingbeen’(inthepasttense),itistheperceptofapeninmymind。Thosepeculiaritiesarewhatwemeanbybeing’conscious,’
inapen。
InSectionVIofanother[essay](1)Itriedtoshowthatthesame_that_,thesamenumericallyidenticalpenofpureexperience,canentersimultaneouslyintomanyconsciouscontexts,or,inotherwords,beanobjectformanydifferentminds。IadmittedthatIhadnotspacetotreatofcertainpossibleobjectionsinthatarticle;butin[thelastessay]Itooksomeoftheobjectionsup。Attheendofthat[essay]
Isaidthatastillmoreformidable-sounding——-
1"AWorldofPureExperience,"above,pp。39-91。
125
objectionsremained;so,toleavemypure-
experiencetheoryinasstrongastateaspossible,Iproposetoconsiderthoseobjectionsnow。
I
TheobjectionsIpreviouslytriedtodisposeofwerepurelylogicalordialectical。nooneidenticalterm,whetherphysicalorpsychical,ithadbeensaid,couldbethesubjectoftworelationsatonce。ThisthesisIsoughttoproveunfounded。Theobjectionsthatnowconfrontusarisefromthenaturesupposedtoinhereinpsychicfactsspecifically。Whatevermaybethecasewithphysicalobjects,afactofconsciousness,itisalleged(andindeedveryplausibly),cannot,withoutself-contradiction,betreatedasaportionoftwodifferentminds,andforthefollowingreasons。
Inthephysicalworldwemakewithimpunitytheassumptionthatoneandthesamematerialobjectcanfigureinanindefinitelylargenumberofdifferentprocessesatonce。
When,forinstance,asheetofrubberispulledatitsfourcorners,aunitofrubberinthemiddleofthesheetisaffectedbyallfourofthe126
pulls。It_transmits_themeach,asifitpulledinfourdifferentwaysatonceitself。So,anair-
particleoranether-particle’compounds’thedifferentdirectionsofmovementimprintedonitwithoutobliteratingtheirseveralindividualities。
Itdeliversthemdistinct,onthecontrary,atasmanyseveral’receivers’(ear,eyeorwhatnot)asmaybe’tuned’tothateffect。Theapparentparadoxofadistinctnesslikethissurvivinginthemidstofcompoundingisathingwhich,Ifancy,theanalysesmadebyphysicistshavebythistimesufficientlyclearedup。
Butif,onthestrengthoftheseanalogies,oneshouldask:"Why,iftwoormorelinescanrunthroughoneandthesamegeometricalpoint,oriftwoormoredistinctprocessesofactivitycanrunthroughoneandthesamephysicalthingsothatitsimultaneouslyplaysaroleineachandeveryprocess,mightnottwoormorestreamsofpersonalconsciousnessincludeoneandthesameunitofexperiencesothatitwouldsimultaneouslybeapartoftheexperienceofallthedifferentminds?"onewouldbecheckedbythinkingofacertainpeculiarityby127
whichphenomenaofconsciousnessdifferfromphysicalthings。
Whilephysicalthings,namely,aresupposedtobepermanentandtohavetheir’states,’afactofconsciousnessexistsbutonceand_is_astate。Its_esse_is_sentiri_;itisonlysofarasitisfelt;anditisunambiguouslyandunequivocallyexactly_what_isfeltThehypothesisunderconsiderationwould,however,obligeittobefeltequivocally,feltnowaspartofmymindandagainatthesametime_not_asapartofmymind,butofyours(formymindis_not)yours),andthiswouldseemimpossiblewithoutdoublingitintotwodistinctthings,or,inotherwords,withoutrevertingtotheordinarydualisticphilosophyofinsulatedmindseachknowingitsobjectrepresentativelyasathirdthing,——andthatwouldbetogiveupthepure-
experienceschemealtogether。
Canwesee,then,anywayinwhichaunitofpureexperiencemightenterintoandfigureintwodiversestreamsofconsciousnesswithoutturningitselfintothetwounitswhich,onourhypothesis,itmustnotbe?
128
II
Thereisaway;andthefirststeptowardsitistoseemorepreciselyhowtheunitentersintoeitheroneofthestreamsofconsciousnessalone。Justwhat,frombeing’pure,’doesitsbecoming’conscious’_once_mean?
Itmeans,first,thatnewexperienceshavesupervened;and,second,thattheyhaveborneacertainassignablerelationtotheunitsupposed。Continue,ifyouplease,tospeakofthepureunitas’thepen。’Sofarasthepen’ssuccessorsdobutrepeatthepenor,beingdifferentfromit,are’energetically’(1)relatedtoit,andtheywillformagroupofstablyexistingphysicalthings。Sofar,however,asitssuccessorsdifferfromitinanotherwell-
determinedway,thepenwillfigureintheircontext,notasaphysical,butasamentalfact。
Itwillbecomeapassing’percept,’_my_perceptofthatpen。Whatnowisthatdecisivewell-
determinedway?
Inthechapteron’TheSelf,’inmy_Principles_
——-
1[Foranexplanationofthisexpression,seeabove,p。32。]
129
_of_Psychology_,Iexplainedthecontinuousidentityofeachpersonalconsciousnessasanameforthepracticalfactthatnewexperiences(1)
comewhichlookbackontheoldones,findthem’warm,’andgreetandappropriatethemas’mine。’Theseoperationsmean,whenanalyzedempirically,severaltolerablydefinitethings,viz。:
1。Thatthenewexperiencehaspasttimeforits’content,’andinthattimeapenthat’was’;
2。That’warmth’wasalsoaboutthepen,inthesenseofagroupoffeelings(’interest’
aroused,’attention’turned,’eyes’employed,etc。)thatwerecloselyconnectedwithitandthatnowrecurandevermorerecurwithunbrokenvividness,thoughfromthepenofnow,whichmaybeonlyanimage,allsuchvividnessmayhavegone;
3。Thatthesefeelingsarethenucleusof’me’;
4。Thatwhateveroncewasassociatedwiththemwas,atleastforthatonemoment,’mine’——myimplementifassociatedwith——-
1Icallthem’passingthoughts’inthebook——thepassageinpointgoesfrompages330to342ofvol。I。
130
hand-feelings,my’percept’only,ifonlyeye-
feelingsandattention-feelingswereinvolved。
Thepen,realizedinthisretrospectivewayasmypercept,thusfiguresasafactof’conscious’
life。Butitdoessoonlysofaras’appropriation’
hasoccurred;andappropriationis_part_of_the_content_of_a_later_experience_whollyadditionaltotheoriginally’pure’pen。_That_
pen,virtuallybothobjectiveandsubjective,isatitsownmomentactuallyandintrinsicallyneither。Ithastobelookedbackuponand_used_,inordertobeclassedineitherdistinctiveway。Butitsuse,socalled,isinthehandsoftheotherexperience,while_it_stands,throughouttheoperation,passiveandunchanged。
Ifthispassmusterasanintelligibleaccountofhowanexperienceoriginallypurecanenterintooneconsciousness,thenextquestionisastohowitmightconceivablyenterintotwo。
III
Obviouslynonewkindofconditionwouldhavetobesupplied。Allthatweshouldhavetopostulatewouldbeasecondsubsequent131
experience,collateralandcontemporarywiththefirstsubsequentone,inwhichasimilaractofappropriationshouldoccur。Thetwoactswouldinterfereneitherwithoneanothernorwiththeoriginallypurepen。Itwouldsleepundisturbedinitsownpast,nomatterhowmanysuchsuccessorswentthroughtheirseveralappropriativeacts。Eachwouldknowitas’my’percept,eachwouldclassitasa’conscious’
fact。
Norneedtheirsoclassingitinterfereintheleastwiththeirclassingitatthesametimeasaphysicalpen。Sincetheclassinginbothcasesdependsuponthetakingofitinonegrouporanotherofassociates,ifthesupersedingexperiencewereofwideenough’span’itcouldthinkthepeninbothgroupssimultaneously,andyetdistinguishthetwogroups。Itwouldthenseethewholesituationconformablytowhat,wecall’therepresentativetheoryofcognition,’
andthatiswhatweallspontaneouslydo。Asamanphilosophizing’popularly,’IbelievethatwhatIseemyselfwritingwithisdouble——I
thinkitinitsrelationstophysicalnature,and132
alsoinitsrelationstomypersonallife;Iseethatitisinmymind,butthatitalsoisaphysicalpen。
Theparadoxofthesameexperiencefiguringintwoconsciousnessesseemsthusnoparadoxatall。Tobe’conscious’meansnotsimplytobe,buttobereported,known,tohaveawarenessofone’sbeingaddedtothatbeing;andthisisjustwhathappenswhentheappropriativeexperiencesupervenes。Thepen-experienceinitsoriginalimmediacyisnotawareofitself,itsimply_is_,andthesecondexperienceisrequiredforwhatwecallawarenessofittooccur。(1)Thedifficultyofunderstandingwhathappenshereis,therefore,notalogicaldifficulty:
thereisnocontradictioninvolved。Itisanontologicaldifficultyrather。Experiencescomeonanenormousscale,andifwetake——-
1ShadworthHodgsonhaslaidgreatstressonthefactthattheminimumofconsciousnessdemandstwosubfeelingsofwhichthesecondretrospectsthefirst。(Cf。thesection’AnalysisofMinima’inhis_Philosophy_of_Reflection_,vol。I,p。248;alsothechapterentitled’TheMomentofExperience’inhis_Metaphysic_of_Experience_,vol。I,p。34。)’Weliveforward,butweunderstandbackward’isaphraseofKierkegaard’swhichHoffdingquotes。[H。Hoffding:"A
PhilosophicalConfession,"
_Journal_of_Philosophy,_Psychology_and_Scientific_Methods_,vol。II,1905,p。86。
133
themalltogether,theycomeinachaosofincommensurablerelationsthatwecannotstraightenout。Wehavetoabstractdifferentgroupsofthem,andhandletheseseparatelyifwearetotalkofthematall。Buthowtheexperiencesever_get_themselves_made_,or_why_
theircharactersandrelationsarejustsuchasappear,wecannotbegintounderstand……
Granting,however,that,byhookorcrook,they_can_getthemselvesmade,andcanappearinthesuccessionsthatIhavesoschematicallydescribed,thenwehavetoconfessthatevenalthough(asIbeganbyquotingfromtheadversary)
’afeelingonlyisasitisfelt,’thereisstillnothingabsurdinthenotionofitsbeingfeltintwodifferentwaysatonce,asyours,namely,andasmine。Itis,indeed,’mine’onlyasitisfeltasmine,and’yours’onlyasitisfeltasyours。Butitisfeltasneither_by_itself_,butonlywhen’owned’byourtwoseveralrememberingexperiences,justasoneundividedestateisownedbyseveralheirs。
134
IV
Oneword,now,beforeIclose,aboutthecorollariesoftheviewsetforth。Sincetheacquisitionofconsciousqualityonthepartofanexperiencedependsuponacontextcomingtoit,itfollowsthatthesumtotalofallexperiences,havingnocontext,cannotstrictlybecalledconsciousatall。Itisa_that_,anAbsolute,a’pure’experienceonanenormousscale,undifferentiatedandundifferentiableintothoughtandthing。Thisthepost-Kantianidealistshavealwayspracticallyacknowledgedbycallingtheirdoctrinean_Identitats-_
_philosophie_。Thequestionofthe_Beseelung_oftheAllofthingsoughtnot,then,eventobeasked。Nomoreoughtthequestionofits_truth_
tobeasked,fortruthisarelationinsideofthesumtotal,obtainingbetweenthoughtsandsomethingelse,andthoughts,aswehaveseen,canonlybecontextualthings。Intheserespectsthepureexperiencesofourphilosophyare,inthemselvesconsidered,somanylittleabsolutes,thephilosophyofpureexperience135
beingonlyamorecomminuted_Identitatsphilosphie_。(1)
Meanwhile,apureexperiencecanbepostulatedwithanyamountwhateverofspanorfield。Ifitexerttheretrospectiveandappropriativefunctiononanyotherpieceofexperience,thelattertherebyentersintoitsownconsciousstream。Andinthisoperationtimeintervalsmakenoessentialdifference。Aftersleeping,myretrospectionisasperfectasitisbetweentwosuccessivewakingmomentsofmytime。Accordinglyif,millionsofyearslater,asimilarlyretrospectiveexperienceshouldanyhowcometobirth,mypresentthoughtwouldformagenuineportionofitslong-spanconsciouslife。’Formaportion,’Isay,butnotinthesensethatthetwothingscouldbeentitativelyorsubstantivelyone——theycannot,fortheyarenumericallydiscretefacts——butonlyinthesensethatthe_functions_ofmypresentthought,itsknowledge,itspurpose,itscontentand’consciousness,’inshort,beinginherited,wouldbecontinuedpractically——-
1[Cf。below,pp。197,202。]
136
unchanged。SpeculationslikeFechner’s,ofanEarth-soul,ofwiderspansofconsciousnessenvelopingnarroweronesthroughoutthecosmos,are,therefore,philosophicallyquiteinorder,providedtheydistinguishthefunctionalfromtheentitativepointofview,anddonottreattheminorconsciousnessunderdiscussionasakindofstandingmaterialofwhichthewiderones_consist_。(1)
——-
1[Cf。_A_Pluralistic_Universe_,Lect。IV,’ConcerningFechner,’andLect。V,’TheCompoundingofConsciousness。’]
137
V
THEPLACEOFAFFECTIONAL
FACTSINAWORLDOFPURE
EXPERIENCE(1)
COMMONsenseandpopularphilosophyareasdualisticasitispossibletobe。Thoughts,weallnaturallythink,aremadeofonekindofsubstance,andthingsofanother。Consciousness,flowinginsideusintheformsofconceptionorjudgement,orconcentratingitselfintheshapeofpassionoremotion,canbedirectlyfeltasthespiritualactivitywhichitis,andknownincontrastwiththespace-filling,objective’content’whichitenvelopsandaccompanies。
Inoppositiontothisdualisticphilosophy,Itried,in[thefirstessay]toshowthatthoughtsandthingsareabsolutelyhomogeneousastotheirmaterial,andthattheiroppositionisonlyoneofrelationandoffunction。
Thereisnothought-stuffdifferentfromthing-stuff,Isaid;butthesameidenticalpiece——-
1[Reprintedfrom_The_Journal_of_Philosophy,_Psychology_and_
_Scientific_Methods_,volII,,No。11,May25,1905。]
138
of’pureexperience’(whichwasthenameI
gavetothe_materia_prima_ofeverything)canstandalternatelyfora’factofconsciousness’
orforaphysicalreality,accordingasitistakeninonecontextorinanother。Fortherightunderstandingofwhatfollows,Ishallhavetopresupposethatthereaderwillhavereadthat-essay]。(1)
Thecommonestobjectionwhichthedoctrinetherelaiddownrunsupagainstisdrawnfromtheexistenceofour’affections。’Inourpleasuresandpains,ourlovesandfearsandangers,inthebeauty,comicality,importanceorpreciousnessofcertainobjectsandsituations,wehave,Iamtoldbymanycritics,agreatrealmofexperienceintuitivelyrecognizedasspiritual,made,andfelttobemade,ofconsciousnessexclusively,anddifferentinnaturefromthespace-fillingkindofbeingwhichisenjoyedbyphysicalobjects。InSectionVII,of[thefirstessay],Itreatedofthisclassofexperiencesinadequately,——-
1Itwillbestillbetterifheshallhavealsoreadthe[essay]
entitled’AWorldofPureExperience,’whichfollows[thefirst]anddevelopsitsideasstillfarther。
139
becauseIhadtobebrief。Inowreturntothesubject,becauseIbelievethat,sofarfrominvalidatingmygeneralthesis,thesephenomena,whenproperlyanalyzed,afforditpowerfulsupport。
Thecentralpointofthepure-experiencetheoryisthat’outer’and’inner’arenamesfortwogroupsintowhichwesortexperiencesaccordingtothewayinwhichtheyactupontheirneighbors。Anyone’content,’suchas_hard_,letussay,canbeassignedtoeithergroup。Intheoutergroupitis’strong,’itacts’energetically’andaggressively。Herewhateverishardinterfereswiththespaceitsneighborsoccupy。Itdentsthem;isimpenetrablebythem;andwecallthehardnessthenaphysicalhardness。Inthemind,onthecontrary,thehardthingisnowhereinparticular,itdentsnothing,itsuffusesthroughitsmentalneighbors,asitwere,andinterpenetratesthem。Takeninthisgroupwecallbothitandthem’ideas’or’sensations’;andthebasisofthetwogroupsrespectivelyisthedifferenttypeofinterrelation,themutualimpenetrability,140
ontheonehand,andthelackofphysicalinterferenceandinteraction,ontheother。
Thatwhatinitselfisoneandthesameentityshouldbeabletofunctionthusdifferentlyindifferentcontextsisanaturalconsequenceoftheextremelycomplexreticulationsinwhichourexperiencescome。Toheroffspringatigressistender,butcrueltoeveryotherlivingthing——bothcruelandtender,therefore,atonce。Amassinmovementresistseveryforcethatoperatescontrariwisetoitsowndirection,buttoforcesthatpursuethesamedirection,orcomeinatrightangles,itisabsolutelyinert。Itisthusbothenergeticandinert;andthesameistrue(ifyouvarytheassociatesproperly)ofeveryotherpieceofexperience。Itisonlytowardscertainspecificgroupsofassociatesthatthephysicalenergiesaswecallthem,ofacontentareputforth。Inanothergroupitmaybequiteinert。
Itispossibletoimagineauniverseofexperiencesinwhichtheonlyalternativebetweenneighborswouldbeeitherphysicalinteractionorcompleteinertness。Insuchaworldthe141
mentalorthephysical_status)ofanypieceofexperiencewouldbeunequivocal。Whenactive,itwouldfigureinthephysical,andwheninactive,inthementalgroup。
Buttheuniverseweliveinismorechaoticthanthis,andthereisroominitforthehybridorambiguousgroupofouraffectionalexperiences,ofouremotionsandappreciativeperceptions。
IntheparagraphsthatfollowIshalltrytoshow:
(1)Thatthepopularnotionthattheseexperiencesareintuitivelygivenaspurelyinnerfactsishastyanderroneous;and(2)Thattheirambiguityillustratesbeautifullymycentralthesisthatsubjectivityandobjectivityareaffairsnotofwhatanexperienceisaboriginallymadeof,butofitsclassification。
Classificationsdependonourtemporarypurposes。Forcertainpurposesitisconvenienttotakethingsinonesetofrelations,forotherpurposesinanotherset。Inthetwocasestheircontextsareapttobedifferent。
Inthecaseofouraffectionalexperienceswehavenopermanentandsteadfastpurposethat142
obligesustobeconsistent,sowefinditeasytoletthemfloatambiguously,sometimesclassingthemwithourfeelings,sometimeswithmorephysicalrealities,accordingtocapriceortotheconvenienceofthemoment。Thuswouldtheseexperiences,sofarfrombeinganobstacletothepureexperiencephilosophy,serveasanexcellentcorroborationofitstruth。
Firstofall,then,itisamistaketosay,withtheobjectorswhomIbeganbyciting,thatanger,loveandfearareaffectionspurelyofthemind。That,toagreatextentatanyrate,theyaresimultaneouslyaffectionsofthebodyisprovedbythewholeliteratureoftheJames-
Langetheoryofemotion。(1)Allourpains,moreover,arelocal,andwearealwaysfreetospeakoftheminobjectiveaswellasinsubjectiveterms。Wecansaythatweareawareofapainfulplace,fillingacertainbignessinourorganism,orwecansaythatweareinwardlyina’state’ofpain。Allouradjectivesof——-
1[Cf。_The_Principles_of_Psychology_,vol。II,ch。XXV;and"ThePhysicalBasisofEmotion,"_The_Psychological_Review_,vol。I,1894,p。516。]
wortharesimilarlyambiguous——Iinstancedsomeoftheambiguities[inthefirstessay]。(1)
Isthepreciousnessofadiamondaqualityofthegem?orisitafeelinginourmind?Practicallywetreatitasbothoraseither,accordingtothetemporarydirectionofourthought。
’Beauty,’saysProfessorSantayana,’ispleasureobjectified’;andinSections10and11ofhiswork,_The_Sense_of_Beauty_,hetreatsinamasterlywayofthisequivocalrealm。Thevariouspleasureswereceivefromanobjectmaycountas’feelings’whenwetakethemsingly,butwhentheycombineinatotalrichness,wecalltheresultthe’beauty’oftheobject,andtreatitasanouterattributewhichourmindperceives。Wediscoverbeautyjustaswediscoverthephysicalpropertiesofthings。
Trainingisneededtomakeusexpertineitherline。Singlesensationsalsomaybeambiguous。
Shallwesayan’agreeabledegreeofheat,’oran’agreeablefeeling’occasionedbythedegreeofheat?Eitherwilldo;andlanguagewouldlosemostofitsestheticandrhetoricalvalue——-
1[Seeabove,pp。34,35。]
144
wereweforbiddentoprojectwordsprimarilyconnotingouraffectionsupontheobjectsbywhichtheaffectionsarearoused。Themanisreallyhateful;theactionreallymean;thesituationreallytragic——allinthemselvesandquiteapartfromouropinion。Weevengosofarastotalkofawearyroad,agiddyheight,ajocundmorningorasullensky;andtheterm’indefinite’whileusuallyappliedonlytoourapprehensions,functionsasafundamentalphysicalqualificationofthingsinSpencer’s’lawofevolution,’anddoubtlesspasseswithmostreadersforallright。
Psychologists,studyingourperceptionsofmovement,haveunearthedexperiencesinwhichmovementisfeltingeneralbutnotascribedcorrectlytothebodythatreallymoves。Thusinopticalvertigo,causedbyunconsciousmovementsofoureyes,bothweandtheexternaluniverseappeartobeinawhirl。Whencloudsfloatbythemoon,itisasifbothcloudsandmoonandweourselvessharedinthemotion。IntheextraordinarycaseofamnesiaoftheRev。Mr。Hanna,published145
bySidisandGoodhartintheirimportantworkon_Multiple_Personality_,wereadthatwhenthepatientfirstrecoveredconsciousnessand"noticedanattendantwalkacrosstheroom,heidentifiedthemovementwiththatofhisown。Hedidnotyetdiscriminatebetweenhisownmovementsandthoseoutsidehimself。"(1)
Suchexperiencespointtoaprimitivestageofperceptioninwhichdiscriminationsafterwardsneedfulhavenotyetbeenmade。
Apieceofexperienceofadeterminatesortisthere,butthereatfirstasa’pure’fact。
Motionoriginallysimply_is_;onlylaterisitconfinedtothisthingortothat。Somethinglikethisistrueofeveryexperience,howevercomplex,atthemomentofitsactualpresence。
Letthereaderarresthimselfintheactofreadingthisarticlenow。_Now_thisisapureexperience,aphenomenon,ordatum,amere_that_orcontentoffact。_’Reading’_simply_is,_is_there_;
andwhetherthereforsomeone’sconsciousness,orthereforphysicalnature,isaquestionnotyetput。Atthemoment,itistherefor——-
1Page102。
146
neither;laterweshallprobablyjudgeittohavebeenthereforboth。
Withtheaffectionalexperienceswhichweareconsidering,therelatively’pure’conditionlasts。Inpracticallifenourgentneedhasyetarisenfordecidingwhethertotreatthemasrigorouslymentalorasrigorouslyphysicalfacts。Sotheyremainequivocal;and,astheworldgoes,theirequivocalityisoneoftheirgreatconveniences。
Theshiftingplaceof’secondaryqualities’inthehistoryofphilosophy(1)isanotherexcellentproofofthefactthat’inner’and’outer’arenotcoefficientswithwhichexperiencescometousaboriginallystamped,butareratherresultsofalaterclassificationperformedbyusforparticularneeds。Thecommon-sensestageofthoughtisaperfectlydefinitepracticalhalting-
place,theplacewhereweourselvescanproceedtoactunhesitatingly。Onthisstageofthoughtthingsactoneachotheraswellasonusbymeansoftheirsecondaryqualities。
——-
1[Cf。JanetandSeailles:_History_of_the_Problems_of_Philosophy_,trans。byMonahan,partI,ch。III。]
Sound,assuch,goesthroughtheairandcanbeintercepted。Theheatofthefirepassesover,assuch,intothewaterwhichitsetsa-boiling。Itistheverylightofthearc-
lampwhichdisplacesthedarknessofthemidnightstreet,etc。Byengenderingandtranslocatingjustthesequalities,activelyefficaciousastheyseemtobe,weourselvessucceedinalteringnaturesoastosuitus;anduntilmorepurelyintellectual,asdistinguishedfrompractical,needshadarisen,nooneeverthoughtofcallingthesequalitiessubjective。When,however,Galileo,Descartes,andothersfounditbestforphilosophicpurposestoclasssound,heat,andlightalongwithpainandpleasureaspurelymentalphenomena,theycoulddosowithimpunity。(1)
Eventheprimaryqualitiesareundergoingthesamefate。Hardnessandsoftnessareeffectsonusofatomicinteractions,andtheatomsthemselvesareneitherhardnorsoft,norsolidnorliquid。Sizeandshapearedeemed——-
1[Cf。Descartes:_Meditation_II;_Principles_of_Philosophy_,partI,XLVIII。]
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subjectivebyKantians;timeitselfissubjectiveaccordingtomanyphilosophers;(1)andeventheactivityandcausalefficacywhichlingeredinphysicslongaftersecondaryqualitieswerebanishedarenowtreatedasillusoryprojectionsoutwardsofphenomenaofourownconsciousness。Therearenoactivitiesoreffectsinnature,forthemostintellectualcontemporaryschoolofphysicalspeculation。
Natureexhibitsonly_changes_,whichhabituallycoincidewithoneanothersothattheirhabitsaredescribableinsimple’laws。’(2)
Thereisnooriginalspiritualityormaterialityofbeing,intuitivelydiscerned,then;butonlyatranslocationofexperiencesfromoneworldtoanother;agroupingofthemwithonesetoranotherofassociatesfordefinitelypracticalorintellectualends。
Iwillsaynothinghereofthepersistentambiguityof_relations_。Theyareundeniablepartsofpureexperience;yet,whilecommonsenseandwhatIcallradicalempiricismstand——-
1[Cf。A。E。Taylor:_Elements_of_Metaphysics_,bk。III,ch。IV。]
2[Cf。K。Pearson:_Grammar_of_Science_,ch。III。]
149
fortheirbeingobjective,bothrationalismandtheusualempiricismclaimthattheyareexclusivelythe’workofthemind’——thefinitemindortheabsolutemind,asthecasemaybe。
Turnnowtothoseaffectivephenomenawhichmoredirectlyconcernus。
Wesoonlearntoseparatethewaysinwhichthingsappealtoourinterestsandemotionsfromthewaysinwhichtheyactupononeanother。Itdoesnot_work_toassumethatphysicalobjectsaregoingtoactoutwardlybytheirsympatheticorantipatheticqualities。
Thebeautyofathingoritsvalueisnoforcethatcanbeplottedinapolygonofcompositions,nordoesits’use’or’significance’affectintheminutestdegreeitsvicissitudesordestinyatthehandsofphysicalnature。Chemical’affinities’areapurelyverbalmetaphor;and,asIjustsaid,evensuchthingsasforces,tensions,andactivitiescanatapinchberegardedasanthropomorphicprojections。Sofar,then,asthephysicalworldmeansthecollectionofcontentsthatdetermineineachothercertain150
regularchanges,thewholecollectionofourappreciativeattributeshastobetreatedasfallingoutsideofit。Ifwemeanbyphysicalnaturewhateverliesbeyondthesurfaceofourbodies,theseattributesareinertthroughoutthewholeextentofphysicalnature。
Whythendomenleavethemasambiguousastheydo,andnotclassthemdecisivelyaspurelyspiritual?
Thereasonwouldseemtobethat,althoughtheyareinertasregardstherestofphysicalnature,theyarenotinertasregardsthatpartofphysicalnaturewhichourownskincovers。
Itisthoseveryappreciativeattributesofthings,theirdangerousness,beauty,rarity,utility,etc。,thatprimarilyappealtoourattention。Inourcommercewithnaturetheseattributesarewhatgive_emphasis_toobjects;
andforanobjecttobeemphatic,whateverspiritualfactitmaymean,meansalsothatitproducesimmediatebodilyeffectsuponus,alterationsoftoneandtension,ofheart-beatandbreathing,ofvascularandvisceralaction。
The’interesting’aspectsofthinsarethus151
notwhollyinertphysically,thoughtheybeactiveonlyinthesesmallcornersofphysicalnaturewhichourbodiesoccupy。That,however,isenoughtosavethemfrombeingclassedasabsolutelynon-objective。