And this applies to man as well as to lower animals. All knowledge
is in man, therefore, primarily, a means by which he may conform to
environment, survive, and progress. But conformity includes more
than mere knowledge of environment. A man might have all knowledge,
and yet refuse to conform; and then his knowledge could not save him
from destruction. For conformity alone gives survival. Conformity in
man requires an effort of the will. It is intelligent, but it is
also voluntary action. And knowledge is a necessary means of
conformity because through it we see how we may conform, and because
it furnishes the motives which stimulate the will to the necessary
effort.
Now, that faculty of the intellect which is dominant in man, and
which has raised him immeasurably above the animal, and made him
man, is the rational intelligence. If there is any such thing as a
law of history or as continuity in evolution, man's future progress
must depend upon his clearer vision and recognition of the
perceptions of this faculty. Through it man perceives beauty, truth,
and goodness, and attains knowledge of himself as a person and moral
agent, and recognizes his rights and duties. Of all this the animal
is and remains unconscious; indeed he is not yet a moral being and
person in any proper sense of the word.
Pages:
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
204
205