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

h0 b0otu hoEo CiouTly Win 0yo VI uuuef-
standing. yet whatever he hath attained to. he
Is both able and willing to behold his God
above It."
Thus much concerning Scripture. Now"
>Kepler concludes. "as touching TIE authority
OF the Fathers. Sacred was Lactantius. who
denied the earth's rotundity; sacred was Au
gustlne. who admitted the earth to be round.
but denied tho antipodes: sacred is the liturgy
OF our moderns. who admit the smnllness the
earth. but deny its motion. But to me moro sa-
cred than all these is-TGuTH."
An Essiiss Transission or schopenhaus-.
Under the title The World as WIZ and Idea
the London house OF Trnbner 4 Co. has under
taken the publication OF an English translation
ofARTHuR ScHoPENHAuERs principalwork Die
Welt ais Willie und vorstellung." 1t Is to mako
three volumes. OF which only tho first has yet
appeared. consisting Of the four books. or
parts. which. with q criticism OF Rants philos-
ophy. formed the work published by Schopen-
hauer In 1918. The other two volumes will
contain. besides tho criticism OF Kant the
additions and engagements Of the second edi-
ton. published In 1914. and possibly. an alb
stract OF an earlier work. on the Principle OF
Sufficient Reason. In the present volume.
therefore. We have Schopenhauer's philosophy
rs he originally gave II to the world but still
such as he taught 1t to the end Of his career.
As nearly as 1t can DO expressed In brief.
Schopenhauers fundamental conception is
this: The only reality In the univorse-the
thing in tsef-s will or force: and all objects.
| as well OF sensation as OF thought. are manfos-
| tations. ideas. ombodiments or to use tho
| German word. Iorsteihni0en tpresentmentsl. OF
this will. Thus every individual mans body Is
| will In FORM and all his actions are actions OF
| will 30 embodied. Teeth. throat and bowels
are objectfed hunger; tho organs Of genera
| ton are obiectined sexual desire; the
| grasring hand. the hurrying feet corre-
| spond to tho moro indirect desires OF the will
which they express" Tho same will animates
| in like manner every department Of creation.
| 1t Ia the Utmost nature OF animals. tho force
| which vegotates and terminates in the plant.
and. indeed. the force through which the crys.
tai Is formed; that by which the magnet turns
| to the north pole; the force whose shock we
| experience from the contact Of two different
| kinds Of metals: the force which appears in tho
| elective aflnities OF matter as repulsion and
| attraction. decomposition and construction.
| and. lastly, even gravitation. which acts 80
| powerfully throughout matter. DRAWN. the
| stone to tho earth. and the earth to the sun"
| Il desire that every force in nature should be
| thought rs will"
Tho development OF this conception occupies
the second book. that on Tho Objectiiicn-
| uDU VI Tue W Ill, anu ny WHY VI
ton. the author cxpounds In the first book on
The World as idea" the facts OF conscious
ness and experience upon which he bases his
| proposition. He points out that all We can
know OF external objects Is the effect they
produce upon one another and upon us.
Matter is nothing more than causaton. IA
any one may see ut once II he reflects. Its true
being is its action. nor can we possibly con-
ceive it US having any other meaning.
Only as active does it I'll space and time
its action upon the Immediate object
(which Is itseIf matter determines that per-
ccpton in which alono II exists. The con
sequence OF the action OF any material object
upon any other Is known only in so far Us the
latter acts upon tho immediate object In dif-
ferent way from that in which it acted before
it consists only Of this. Cause aud effect thus
constitute the whole nature Of matter; its true
being Ia its action" The discussion and de-
fence OF this doctrine leads tho author into
metaphysical subtcties and rsinements which.
We confess We find rather wear!some. but
which. We doubt not. possess an interest for
minds capable OF understanding them easily.
The aim OF his argument is to prove. as we
have stated. that the universe Is nothing but
the continual manifestation Of force and that
the popular conception Of matter as something
fixed and inert ia popular error.
The third book. on The Platonic Idea: the
Object OF Art" eXpounds what may BE- called
tho aesthetics OF Schopenhauor's system. rs
the first two books expoundsd his metaphysics
Actual objncts.' he says. "nrcNlmost always
very imperfect copies OF the ideas expressed In
them: therefore the man OF genius requires I'M
aginaton In order to SEQ in things not that
which Nature has actually made hut that which
she endeavored to make. yet could not because
OF tho conflict OF her forms among themselves II
ct Lao. D nx ri,
Dyes. That he has these eyes. that he knows
the inner nature OF things apart from all their
relations. Ia the gift Of genius is In.
born; but that he Is able to lend us this
gift. to lot US see with his eyes. Is
acquired. and is tho technical side OF art. "
If tho whole world as idea is only the visl.
bility OF will the work OF art Is to render this
visibility moro distinct" The aesthetic pleasure
afforded by beautiful objects in nature as vol
as in art consists in tho deivcrance from the
limitations Of individuality which they pro.
.duce. their power to elevate us momentariy
out OF the slavery Of the will to tho state OF
pure knowing. As the pure subject OF knowl-
edge freed from the miserable self. we become
entirely ono with those objects. and for the
moment our wants are as foreign to us as they
are to them. The world as idea alone remains
and the world as will has disappeared" This
proposition IL developed In its application to
painting. sculpture. architecture. poetry. the
drama. music. and gives occasion to much
subtle criticism.
In the fourth book. on The Assertion and
Denial OF tho WILL" we find an exposition oil
what may be called Schopenhauer's ethics. and
OF those pessimist views OF practical life by
which he is best known to the great majority
OF readers. Man. he says. being embodied will
Is tormented with desires which render him
constantly unhappy. Willing and striving Is
his whole being. which may be very we'll com.
pared to an unIuenchable thirst. But the basis
OF all willing Is need deficiency. and thus pain.
Consequently. the nature Of brutes and man
is subject to pain. originally and through its
very being. II. on the other hand. 1t lacks OBJ
jacts OF desire. because 1t Is at once deprived
OF them by too easy satisfaction. a terrible
void and ennui comes over tit. e.. its being
and existence itself become an unbeara-