3pr.md (3105B)
1 Most writers on the emotions and on human conduct seem to be treating rather of 2 matters outside nature than of natural phenomena following nature's general 3 laws. They appear to conceive man to be situated in nature as a kingdom within a 4 kingdom: for they believe that he disturbs rather than follows nature's order, 5 that he has absolute control over his actions, and that he is determined solely 6 by himself. They attribute human infirmities and fickleness, not to the power of 7 nature in general, but to some mysterious flaw in the nature of man, which 8 accordingly they bemoan, deride, despise, or, as usually happens, abuse: he, who 9 succeeds in hitting off the weakness of the human mind more eloquently or more 10 acutely than his fellows, is looked upon as a seer. Still there has been no lack 11 of very excellent men (to whose toil and industry I confess myself much 12 indebted), who have written many noteworthy things concerning the right way of 13 life, and have given much sage advice to mankind. But no one, so far as I know, 14 has defined the nature and strength of the emotions, and the power of the mind 15 against them for their restraint. 16 17 I do not forget, that the illustrious Descartes, though he believed, that the 18 mind has absolute power over its actions, strove to explain human emotions by 19 their primary causes, and, at the same time, to point out a way, by which the 20 mind might attain to absolute dominion over them. However, in my opinion, he 21 accomplishes nothing beyond a display of the acuteness of his own great 22 intellect, as I will show in the proper place. For the present I wish to revert 23 to those, who would rather abuse or deride human emotions than understand them. 24 Such persons will, doubtless think it strange that I should attempt to treat of 25 human vice and folly geometrically, and should wish to set forth with rigid 26 reasoning those matters which they cry out against as repugnant to reason, 27 frivolous, absurd, and dreadful. However, such is my plan. Nothing comes to pass 28 in nature, which can be set down to a flaw therein; for nature is always the 29 same, and everywhere one and the same in her efficacy and power of action; that 30 is, nature's laws and ordinances, whereby all things come to pass and change 31 from one form to another, are everywhere and always the same; so that there 32 should be one and the same method of understanding the nature of all things 33 whatsoever, namely, through nature's universal laws and rules. Thus the passions 34 of hatred, anger, envy, and so on, considered in themselves, follow from this 35 same necessity and efficacy of nature; they answer to certain definite causes, 36 through which they are understood, and possess certain properties as worthy of 37 being known as the properties of anything else, whereof the contemplation in 38 itself affords us delight. I shall, therefore, treat of the nature and strength 39 of the emotions according to the same method, as I employed heretofore in my 40 investigations concerning God and the mind. I shall consider human actions and 41 desires in exactly the same manner, as though I were concerned with lines, 42 planes, and solids. 43 44