太子爷小说网 > 英语电子书 > a confession >

第6节

a confession-第6节

小说: a confession 字数: 每页4000字

按键盘上方向键 ← 或 → 可快速上下翻页,按键盘上的 Enter 键可回到本书目录页,按键盘上方向键 ↑ 可回到本页顶部!
————未阅读完?加入书签已便下次继续阅读!




each man:  〃What am I?〃 or 〃Why do I live?〃 or 〃What must I do?〃

one has first to decide the question: 〃What is the life of the

whole?〃 (which is to him unknown and of which he is acquainted with

one tiny part in one minute period of time。  To understand what he

is; one man must first understand all this mysterious humanity;

consisting of people such as himself who do not understand one

another。

     I have to confess that there was a time when I believed this。 

It was the time when I had my own favourite ideals justifying my

own caprices; and I was trying to devise a theory which would allow

one to consider my caprices as the law of humanity。  But as soon as

the question of life arose in my soul in full clearness that reply

at once few to dust。  And I understood that as in the experimental

sciences there are real sciences; and semi…sciences which try to

give answers to questions beyond their competence; so in this

sphere there is a whole series of most diffused sciences which try

to reply to irrelevant questions。  Semi…sciences of that kind; the

juridical and the social…historical; endeavour to solve the

questions of a man's life by pretending to decide each in its own

way; the question of the life of all humanity。

     But as in the sphere of man's experimental knowledge one who

sincerely inquires how he is to live cannot be satisfied with the

reply  〃Study in endless space the mutations; infinite in time

and in complexity; of innumerable atoms; and then you will

understand your life〃  so also a sincere man cannot be satisfied

with the reply: 〃Study the whole life of humanity of which we

cannot know either the beginning or the end; of which we do not

even know a small part; and then you will understand your own

life。〃 And like the experimental semi…sciences; so these other

semi…sciences are the more filled with obscurities; inexactitudes;

stupidities; and contradictions; the further they diverge from the

real problems。  The problem of experimental science is the sequence

of cause and effect in material phenomena。  It is only necessary

for experimental science to introduce the question of a final cause

for it to become nonsensical。  The problem of abstract science is

the recognition of the primordial essence of life。  It is only

necessary to introduce the investigation of consequential phenomena

(such as social and historical phenomena) and it also becomes

nonsensical。

     Experimental science only then gives positive knowledge and

displays the greatness of the human mind when it does not introduce

into its investigations the question of an ultimate cause。  And; on

the contrary; abstract science is only then science and displays

the greatness of the human mind when it puts quite aside questions

relating to the consequential causes of phenomena and regards man

solely in relation to an ultimate cause。  Such in this realm of

science  forming the pole of the sphere  is metaphysics or

philosophy。  That science states the question clearly:  〃What am I;

and what is the universe?  And why do I exist; and why does the

universe exist?〃  And since it has existed it has always replied in

the same way。  Whether the philosopher calls the essence of life

existing within me; and in all that exists; by the name of 〃idea〃;

or 〃substance〃; or 〃spirit〃; or 〃will〃; he says one and the same

thing:  that this essence exists and that I am of that same

essence; but why it is he does not know; and does not say; if he is

an exact thinker。  I ask:  〃Why should this essence exist?  What

results from the fact that it is and will be?〃 。。。 And philosophy

not merely does not reply; but is itself only asking that question。 

And if it is real philosophy all its labour lies merely in trying

to put that question clearly。  And if it keeps firmly to its task

it cannot reply to the question otherwise than thus:  〃What am I;

and what is the universe?〃  〃All and nothing〃; and to the question

〃Why?〃 by 〃I do not know〃。

     So that however I may turn these replies of philosophy; I can

never obtain anything like an answer  and not because; as in the

clear experimental sphere; the reply does not relate to my

question; but because here; though all the mental work is directed

just to my question; there is no answer; but instead of an answer

one gets the same question; only in a complex form。





                               VI



     In my search for answers to life's questions I experienced

just what is felt by a man lost in a forest。

     He reaches a glade; climbs a tree; and clearly sees the

limitless distance; but sees that his home is not and cannot be

there; then he goes into the dark wood and sees the darkness; but

there also his home is not。

     So I wandered n that wood of human knowledge; amid the gleams

of mathematical and experimental science which showed me clear

horizons but in a direction where there could be no home; and also

amid the darkness of the abstract sciences where I was immersed in

deeper gloom the further I went; and where I finally convinced

myself that there was; and could be; no exit。

     Yielding myself to the bright side of knowledge; I understood

that I was only diverting my gaze from the question。  However

alluringly clear those horizons which opened out before me might

be; however alluring it might be to immerse oneself in the

limitless expanse of those sciences; I already understood that the

clearer they were the less they met my need and the less they

applied to my question。

     〃I know;〃 said I to myself; 〃what science so persistently

tries to discover; and along that road there is no reply to the

question as to the meaning of my life。〃  In the abstract sphere I

understood that notwithstanding the fact; or just because of the

fact; that the direct aim of science is to reply to my question;

there is no reply but that which I have myself already given: 

〃What is the meaning of my life?〃  〃There is none。〃  Or:  〃What

will come of my life?〃 〃Nothing。〃  Or:  〃Why does everything exist

that exists; and why do I exist?〃  〃Because it exists。〃

     Inquiring for one region of human knowledge; I received an

innumerable quantity of exact replies concerning matters about

which I had not asked:  about the chemical constituents of the

stars; about the movement of the sun towards the constellation

Hercules; about the origin of species and of man; about the forms

of infinitely minute imponderable particles of ether; but in this

sphere of knowledge the only answer to my question; 〃What is the

meaning of my life?〃 was: 〃You are what you call your 'life'; you

are a transitory; casual cohesion of particles。  The mutual

interactions and changes of these particles produce in you what you

call your 〃life〃。  That cohesion will last some time; afterwards

the interaction of these particles will cease and what you call

〃life〃 will cease; and so will all your questions。  You are an

accidentally united little lump of something。  that little lump

ferments。  The little lump calls that fermenting its 'life'。  The

lump will disintegrate and there will be an end of the fermenting

and of all the questions。〃  So answers the clear side of science

and cannot answer otherwise if it strictly follows its principles。

     From such a reply one sees that the reply does not answer the

question。  I want to know the meaning of my life; but that it is a

fragment of the infinite; far from giving it a meaning destroys its

every possible meaning。  The obscure compromises which that side of

experimental exact science makes with abstract science when it says

that the meaning of life consists in development and in cooperation

with development; owing to their inexactness and obscurity cannot

be considered as replies。

     The other side of science  the abstract side  when it

holds strictly to its principles; replying directly to the

question; always replies; and in all ages has replied; in one and

the same way:  〃The world is something infinite and

incomprehensible part of that incomprehensible 'all'。〃  Again I

exclude all those compromises between abstract and experimental

sciences which supply the whole ballast of the semi…sciences called

juridical; political; and historical。 In those semi…sciences the

conception of development and progress is again wrongly introduced;

only with this difference; that there it was the development of

everything while here it is the development of the life of mankind。 

The error is there as before: development and progress in infinity

can have no aim or direction; and; as far as my question is

concerned; no answer is given。

     In truly abstract science; namely in genuine philosophy  not

in that which Schopenhauer calls 〃professorial philosophy〃 which

serves only to classify all existing phenomena in new philosophic

categories and to call them by new names  where the philosopher

does not lose sight of the essential question; the repl

返回目录 上一页 下一页 回到顶部 0 0

你可能喜欢的