OCR Text |
Show 6'8 'Di(cerning, &c. Book II. 'I CHAP. Xf. ' - n Of 'Dijce;.,.ing, and, ,O l~er Operations of tl>e Mind. §. 1• ANother Faculty we m.~ take ';~Otice of in our Minds, is that of Difcerning and dJiliogudhing between the feveral Ideas it has. It is not enough to have a mnfufed per~~puon of fomethmg in general. Unlefs bhe Mind had a d!!hnd: perccptwn of d1fferent ObjeCts, and their ~alities, it would be capable of very httlG Knowledge, though the Bodies that affed us, were ·~ bufie about us, as they are now, and the Mind were continually employ d m thmluo~. On thJs faculty of Difringuifhing one thing from another , d~pends the e7.!itlence a1id certainty of feveral, even very general Propofiuons, wluch have pafTed for innate Truths; bccaufe Men over-lookmg the true caufe, why thofc Propofitions find univerfal affent, impute it wholly to native uniform Impreffions; wher~ns it in truth depends upon tbis cle.r difcerning Faculty qf the Mind, whereby it perceives two Idea; to be the fame, or different : I.IPI of this more hereafter. J §. 2. How much the imperfedion of accurately difcrjmiJlating Jdw qn~ ·(rom another lies, either in the dulnefs, or faults of the Organs of Stnf~ 1 or want of accutenefS, exercife, or attention in th<: Underllandi! Jg ; or hallinefS and precipitancy, natural to fome Tempers, I will llot here examine : It fuffices to t:ike notice, that this is one of the Operations; thar the Mind may refleCt on, and obferve in it felf. It is of that eonl(:quence to its other Knowledge, that fo far as this f.1culty is in it [elf dull; or not rightly made ufe of, tor the dillinguifhing one thing from another ; fo far our•Notions are confufcd, and our Reafon and judgmenr dil'lurhcd or milled. If in having our Idta.s in the Memory ready at hand,confillsquickncfS of parts; in this ofbaving them unconfufed, and being able nicely to dillinguifh one thing from another , where there is but the leafl: difference , cQnfifl:s , in a great meafure , the cxaCl:ncfs of Judgment, and clearnefs of Reafon, which is to be obfcrved in one Man above another. And hence, perhaps, may be given fome Reafon of that common Obfervation, That Men who have a great deal ofWir, and prompt Memories, have nor always the clearell Judgtncnt , or dcepefl: Rcafon. For Wit lying moll in the aifemblage of Idem, and putting thofe to!1>ether with quicknefs and variety, wherein can l:e found any rcfcmblance or congruity , thereby to make up plenfant PiCtures, and agreeable Vifions in the Fancy: Judgm<nt , on the contrary, lies quite on the other fide, in feparating carefully Jd'"' one from another, wherein can be found the !call difference, thereby to avoid being mifled by Similitude , and by affinity to take one thing for another. This is a way of proceeding quite contrary to Metaphor and Allufion, where· in, for the mofl: part, lies that entertainment and plcafanuy of Wit, which llrikes fo lively on the Fancy; and therefore fo acccpable to all People, becaufe lts Beauty appears at fir(l fight, and there is required no labour of thought, to exam me what Truth or Reafon there is in it. Tlte Mind, without looking any farther, refls fatisfied with the pleafantnefs of the PtCl:urc, and the gayety of the Fancy : And it is a kind of an affront to go about to examine it, by the fevere Rules of Truth, and good Rca• fon; Chap. XI. 'Difcerning, ~c. -6p ----------------~--~~-~----------------- fon ; whereby it appears, that it confifis in fom~thing, that is not per• feCl:ly conformable to them. • §. 3· To the well iliftinguifhing our Idea.;, it ohielly contributes that they be clear and determinate: And when they ore fo, it will no:' heed •.".Y confN}run or mtllake about them, though the SehfCs Jhould (as fomettmes they do) convey them from the fame Objael differently, <Jn different occafions, and fo ft'Cm to err. For thougtt a Man in a Fever fhould from Sugar have a bitter talle, which at another time would produce a fwect one ; yet the Idea of Bitter in thor Man's Mind, would be as clear and dillin:Ol: from the Idea of S\\·ect , as if he had tafl:cd only Gall. Nor does it mai<e any more confufion between the two !dens of Sweet and Bitter, that the f.ome fort of Body produces at one time one and at another time another Idea, by the taffe, than it makes a confuil~n in the two Idea; of White and Sweet, or White and Round, that d1e fame piece of Sugar produces them both 1ti the Mmd at the fame time. 'And the U eas ofOrangc-colour~nd Azure, that arc p~oduced in the Mind by the lame parcel ot the mfuJton of Ll!l,••m N ephnt1c•m, are no lefs diflind: Ideas, than thofe of the fame Colours, taken from two very di!Tercnt Bodies. §. 4- The C 0 lf1 PAR I NG them one with another, in refpeCI: of Extent, Degrees, Time, Place , or any other circumfranccs , is another operation ot' rhe Mind about its Ideas, and is that upon which depends all that large tribe of Jderu, comprehended under Relation ; which of how vall an extent it is, I f11all have occafion to confider hereafter. §. S'. HoW far Brutes! partake in this faculty, ls'l'fGt eaue to determine; I imagine they have it> not in any great degrec:' Fbrthough they probably havcfevcral Idea~ di(linCl: enough, yet it feems to me to be the Prerog• tivc of Humane Underllanding, when it has fufficiently dillingui· !heel any IdefiJ, fo as to perceive them to be perfeCtly diffcrent, and focon• fequently two, to call about and confider in what circumflances they arc capable to be compared. And therefore, I think, Beaf1s compare not their Ideas, farther than fome fenfiblc Circumllances annexed to theOl;jc<' ls them!elves. The other power ofComparinf;, which may be obferved in Men, belonging to general !dear, and ufetul only to abflrad: Reafonings, we may probably conjedure Beafls ,have not. §. 6. The next Operation we may obferve in the Mind about its Idtns, is CO 111 PO S ll' JON; whcr.epy it puts together fevcral of thofc fimple ones it has received from Senfation and Retle&ion, and combines them into compleX: ones. Under tliis of Compofition, may be reckon'd alfo that of ENLARGING; wherein though the Compofitiondocs not fo mu~h appear, as in more complex ones, yet it is ncvert!Jelefs a putting feveral Ideas together, thoughofthefame kind. Thus by adding feveral Unites together, we make rhe Iclea of a dozen ; and putting together therepeated Id~ar of feveral Perches, we frame that of a Furlong. §. 7· In this alfo, I fuppofe, Brut« come far fl10rt of Man. For though they take in, and rctnrn together feveral Combinations of fimple Idea;, as poillbly the Shape, Smell, and Voice of his Maller, make up • com· plcx Idea a Dog has of him, or rather are fo manydiflinCl: Marks whereby he knows him; yet, I do not' think they do of themfelvcs ever compound them , and mak< complex Ideas : And perhaps even where we think they have complex Ideas , 'tis only one fomple one that direcb them io theknowlt:dgeoffeveral things, which poflibly they diflinguifh lefs by their Sight, than Wf' imagine. For I ha•e been cre<libly in famed, that a Bitch will nurfc, play with, and be fond of young Foxes, as mu,ch,. |