Let us stop
thinking for a while and observe. I will draw a picture of goodness
and teach the eye what sort of thing it is. We have only to follow in
our drawing the conditions already laid down. We agreed that when an
object was good it was good _for_ something; so that if A is good, it
must be good for B. This instrumental relation, of means to end, may
well be indicated by an arrow pointing out the direction in which the
influence moves. But if B is also to be good, it too must be connected
by an arrow with another object, C, and this in the same way with D.
The process might evidently be continued forever, but will be
sufficiently shown in the three stages of Figure 1. Here the arrow
always expresses the extrinsic goodness of the letter which lies
behind it, in reference to the letter which lies before.
[Fig. 1]
But drawing our diagram in this fashion and finding a little gap
between D and A, the completing mind of man longs to fill up that gap.
We have no warrant for doing anything of the sort; but let us try the
experiment and see what effect will follow. Under the new arrangement
we find that not only is D good for A, but that A, being good for B
and for C, is also good for D. To express these facts in full it would
be necessary to put a point on each end of the arrow connecting A and
D.
Pages:
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32