The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1884-03-02

row. destination. ON tho CONTRARY. Is an In
heriteA estate. Il frees tho owner forever from
all care" Carried out to completion. this SELF
denial would end In annihilating the universe
we have recognized the Utmost nature OF the
world as will. and all Its phenomena as only tho
objectivity Of will. and we have followed this
objectivity from the working OF obscure forces
OF nature up to the completely conscious
action OF man. Therefore We shali
by no means evade the consequence that Win
the free denial. the surrender OF the will all
those phenomena are also abolished that con-
slant strain and effort without end and with
out rest. at oil tho grades OF objectlvity In
which and through which the world consists:
the multifarious forms succeeding each other
In graduation tho whole manifestation OF tue
will: and. finally. also the universal forms OF
this manifestation. time and space. ana also It's
last fundamental form. subject and object--all
arc abolished. No will no idea. no world" In
the later additions and ampliflcations OF his
work Schopenhauer makes the often quoted as
sertion that this Is tho worst OF all possible
though not OF all imaginable worlds. and that
such as 1t is. It Is such as 1t must be In order
barely to continue in existence. because. II 1t
were the loast bit worse than 1t is. 1t would 90
to destruction.
further consequence OF regarding the uni
verse as tho liberalization OF will or force Is
that this will. being an undivided whole. and
individual cxistences being only transitory
manifestations or embodiments oft individual
Immortality is impossible. Tho will every
where manifests itself In tho multiplicity OF
individuals. But this multiplicity docs not
concern the will as thing-in itself. but only Its
phenomena. Tho will itself 10 present. whole
and undivided. in every one Of these" 1t is
true we see the individual come Into being and
pass away; but the individual Is only phe-
nomenal. exists only for the knowledge which
Is bound to the principle OF sufficient reason.
to the principle imiiridudtionis. Certainly, for
this kind OF knowledge. the individual receives
his life as gift rises out Of nothing. then suf-
fers the loss OF the gift through death. and
returns again to nothing" But this no more
Affects the will TO live. Of whose manifestation
tho individual is. ms it were, only particular
example or specimen. than tho death Of an in
dividual Injuries tho whole Of nature"
In regard to the freedom Of the individual
lied will schopenhauer adopts the determinlst
view. and holds with Kant that II only mans
character and the motives affecting him were
given. 1t would be possible to calculate his
conduct Just rs we calculate IN eclipse Of tho
sun. Although the will may in itself and apart
from the phenomenon be called free and even
omnipotent. yet in it's particular phenomena
enlighted by knowledge. as In men and brutes.
1t Is determined by motives to which tho
special character regularly and necessarily re-
spends. and always In the same way"
OF right and wrong Schopenhauer says: The
content OF the concept Of wrong is that quality
OF the conduct Of the individual In which he
extends tho assertion Of the will appearing in
his own body. so far that 1t becomes the denial
OF the will appearing In the bodies Of Others"
The concept right. contains merely the mega
tons OF wrong. and every action Is subsumed
under it which does not transzress the limit
laid down above. l. e.. is not denial OF the will
OF another for the stronger assertion OF our
own" In his definitions OF good and evil he
seems to have anticipated Herbert Spencer.
Everything that corresponds to the will In any
OF its expressions. is thought through the con-
cept. good. however different such things may
BIO in other respects. Thus We speak OF good
eating. good roads. good weather. good weap-
ons. good omens. and 30 on: In short. We call
everything good that Is just as we wish 1t to be.
and therefore. that may be good in the eyes Of
one man which is Just the reverse In those Of
another" The conception OF the opposite. so
long as we are speaking OF unconscious exist.
ence. Is expressed by the word bad. moro rare
ly and abstractlv by the word eri'. which thus
denotes everything that does not correspond
to any effort of tho WILL"
A noteworthy feature OF tho work Is the
frankness with which the author acknowledges
his indebtedness to Hindoo sources for HE
idens. He quotes frequently from the sacred
books Of the Brahmans and the Buddhists.
and docs not hesitate to extol the philosophy
| they teach as superior to that Of Christian
| theism. The fundamental principle of this
philosophical the world Is only tine show or
appearance OF the eternal divine substance
and has no independent existence in itsslf-has
| indeed found many advocates among Eu-
rOpeans. from Py;hagoras down through
! Epicurus. Bruno and Spinoza to Swedenborg
hut Schopenhausr was. We believe. the first to
| expand 1t into complete system. and to bring
| il within the grasp Of the popular mind. That
| in performing this task he has not escaped
metaphysical errors and has involved himself
in unsolvable difficulties. has been more than
once pointed out by his critics; but his main
idea. that all nature is only the expression OF a
unitary will or force Is daily receiving fresh
confirmation from both science and philosophy
and seems destined to take its place finally as
an undisputed truth Upon It rests both the
doctrine of atomic dynamism and that OF the
correlation Of forces; and upon 1t. too. Is
confsssedly built the whole system OF Eduard
Won Hartmann. who. while he avoids
| Schopenhauers mistakes. and far excels
him in methodical arrangement. fullness
Of illustration. and lucidity OF treatment. Ia
none the less indebted to him for his germinal
thought. We are glad to hear. by tho way that
an English translation OF Hartmann's chief
work. =" The Philosophy Of tho Unconscious. ~
is also soon to be published by the same firm
to which the public Is indebted for this edition
Of Schopenhauer. and We hope. In the interest
of philosophy. that both works may be widely
| read
The transiators Of the book deserve meed
| OF praise. While our judgment does not al
| together coincide with theirs as to the choice
| OF words. We cannot but commend the skill
with which they have made readable English
| out OF the German original. and tho success
| with which. on the whole they have exhibited
| the authors meaning. TIL.
How Great Jsdses Make Invasd Wills.
| From the 81 Jdm,ss Gd:ette FEB s.
| The case Of the Earl Of Cottsnham agt Pc
pys. another illustration of the misfortune which
| proyerbtally overtskes tho wills Of treat iawvsr.