I will now briefly sum up the argument of this book. The problem of truth is to discover the nature of the agreement between the things of the mind, our ideas, and the reality of which ideas are the knowledge. We call the agreement truth. What is it? We have seen that there are three different answers, namely—(1) That it is a correspondence between the idea and the reality; (2) That it is the coherence of the idea in a consistent and harmonious whole; and (3) That it is a value that we ourselves give to our ideas.
The theory that truth is correspondence we found to offer this difficulty. To say of an idea that it corresponds with reality supposes a knowledge of reality in addition to and distinct from the knowledge that is the idea, and yet the knowledge of reality is the idea of it. And if it be said that not the idea but the judgment is what corresponds with reality in truth, this equally supposes a knowledge of reality that is not a judgment. If, as the common sense of mankind requires us to believe, the reality that is known by us exists in entire independence of our relation of knowing to it, how can we state this fact without falling into contradiction in the very statement of it? This is the difficulty of a realist theory of knowledge.
We next examined the theory that truth is coherence, and this seemed to present to us an unattainable ideal.Only the whole truth is wholly true. We followed the idealist argument on which it is based, and this seemed to lead us inevitably, in the doctrine of the Absolute, to the paradox that unless we know everything we know nothing.
In pragmatism we met a new principle, the proposal to regard truth as a value. Truth, it is said, is something that happens to ideas; they become true, or are made true. There is no criterion, no absolute standard, independent of ideas to which they must conform if they are judged to be true. The value of an idea is its practical usefulness as tested by its workability. Truth is what works. This led us to criticise the concept of utility. We found that it is impossible to identify utility with truth even if we include theoretical utility in its widest meaning, because over and above the usefulness and workability of an idea there always remains the question of its relation to reality. But we recognised in the principle of truth-value an important advance towards a theory of knowledge.
The solution of the problem of truth, it became clear, must be sought in a theory of knowledge. Have we, in the new theory of life and knowledge of Bergson's philosophy, an answer to the question, What is truth? Yes, but not in the form of a direct solution of the dilemma which confronts us in every theory that accepts the independence of knowledge and reality—rather in a theory of knowledge in which the dilemma does not and cannot arise.
The theory of Bergson is that in the intuition of life we know reality as it is, our knowledge is one with our knowing; and in the intellect we possess a mode of knowing which is equally immediate but the essential quality of which is that it externalises or spatialises reality. We understand this mode of knowing inrecognising the purpose it serves, its practical advantage to us. The theory, therefore, resembles pragmatism in bringing the concept of utility to the aid of its theory of knowledge. But, we insisted, the resemblance is outward only, for the essential tenet of pragmatism, that truth itself is a value, is fatal to the theory. It would mean, in fact, that not the mode of knowing, that is the intellect, but the actual knowledge itself, is a practical endowment. But the problem of truth arises in a new form, for the practical utility of the intellect consists in the illusion which it produces in us. It makes the flowing reality appear as fixed states. How, then, can universal illusion be consistent with the possession of truth? To answer this question we examined the nature of illusion and its distinction from error.
In the last chapter we have dealt with the problem of error. The fact of error presented a difficulty distinct from the question, What is truth? for it implied a real object of thought, of which it seemed equally contradictory to say that it exists and that it does not exist. In the solutions that have been proposed we saw how the problem is forcing philosophers to examine again the fundamental processes of the mind and the nature of the universe they reveal.
TheTheætetusof Plato is an exposition of the problem of truth and error as it presented itself in ancient philosophy. The quotation I have made from it, and also the quotations from theRepublic, are from Jowett's translation.
The most clear exposition of what I have called the realistic doctrine isThe Problems of Philosophy, by the Hon. Bertrand Russell, in the Home University Library (Williams and Norgate). I have adopted Mr. Russell's terms, "acquaintance" and "description"; the distinction they denote seems to me of fundamental importance, and Mr. Russell's doctrine on this point a permanent addition to philosophy. Mr. Russell's theory, that in the judgment what is present to the mind is a relation which is external to the terms of the judgment, and that agreement or disagreement between this relation and reality makes the truth or falsehood of the judgment, can only be appreciated if studied in connection with his general scheme.
The classical work on what I have called the modern idealist doctrine (I have avoided the word intellectualist) is Mr. F. H. Bradley'sAppearance and Reality. I have attempted to give the main lines of the theory in my chapter on "The Absolute." Although it is a book for advanced students, it is not a closed volume even to the uninstructed. The brilliant dialectical skill of theauthor is acknowledged and may be enjoyed by those who reject or may fail to understand his conclusion. Mr. Harold H. Joachim'sThe Nature of Truth(Oxford, Clarendon Press) is a most able and scholarly argument for the coherence theory of truth.
The principal expositions of Pragmatism are the works of William James and of Dr. F. C. S. Schiller. William James'The Will to Believewas the first distinct formulation of the principle.Pragmatism, a New Name for some Old Ways of Thinking, is the fullest and most systematic statement of the doctrine.The Meaning of Truthis a defence of the doctrine against the criticism that had been meted out to it unsparingly. All three books are published by Longmans.
Dr. F. C. S. Schiller is uncompromising in his advocacy of a complete return to the doctrine taught in the ancient world by Protagoras. He has defended that philosopher against the arguments of Plato in a polemical pamphlet entitledPlato or Protagoras?(Oxford, Blackwell). An Essay on "Axioms as Postulates" inPersonal Idealism(Macmillan & Co.), and two volumes of collected essays onHumanism(Macmillan & Co.), set forth the doctrine, which he prefers to call Humanism, with great force, abundant illustration, and the relief of no small amount of humour.
For an account of the theories of Bergson, I may mention my own little book in this series,Henri Bergson: The Philosophy of Change. M. Bergson's books areTime and Freewill,Matter and Memory, andCreative Evolution. To these has been recently addedAn Introduction to Metaphysics(Macmillan, 1912). It is the republication in English of an article written in 1903, which has been for a long time out of print. It is a short and clear statement of the doctrine of Intuition.
The important studies of Professor G. F. Stout are not easily accessible to the general reader, as they consist in contributions to philosophical journals and proceedings of learned societies. The essay referred to in the last chapter, "Some Fundamental Points in the Theory of Knowledge," is in theSt. Andrews Quincentenary Publications, 1911 (Maclehose). I may mention also his essay on "Error" inPersonal Idealism, noticed above, and "The Object of Thought and Real Being," inProceedings of the Aristotelian Society, 1911.
Bergson, Mons. Henri,63,69,73,89
Berkeley,20,32,73
Coherence Theory,25,27
Correspondence Theory,24,27
Discovery of Planet Neptune,59
Faith-attitude of Pragmatism,55
Formal Logic,10
Hegel,44
Hume,30
Intellectualism,44
James, William,44
Kant,26,27,42,73
Meinong,84
Pierce, C. S.,44
Plato,11,44,67,68,74
Pluralistic Realism,24
Poincaré, Henri,54
Pragmatist Theory of Truth,55
Primary Qualities,32
Protagoras, His bookThe Truth,10,11; His maxim,44
Pythagoras,87
Relativity, Principle of,48,53,62
Republicof Plato,67
S. Anselm's Argument,29,31,41
Schiller, Dr. F. C. S.,44
Self, The Idea of,36
Socrates,11,74
Space and Time,33,34,36
Stout, Prof. G. F.,84
Theætetus of Plato,11,74
Unknowable, The,29,37
Zeno,34
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THE PEOPLE'S BOOKS
THE FIRST HUNDRED VOLUMES
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SCIENCE
1. The Foundations of Science . . . By W. C. D. Whetham, M.A., F.R.S.2. Embryology—The Beginnings of Life . . . By Prof. Gerald Leighton, M.D.3. Biology . . . By Prof. W. D. Henderson, M.A.4. Zoology: The Study of Animal Life . . . By Prof. E. W. MacBride, M.A., F.R.S.5. Botany; The Modern Study of Plants . . . By M. C. Stopes, D.Sc., Ph.D., F.L.S.7. The Structure of the Earth . . . By Prof. T. G. Bonney, F.R.S.8. Evolution . . . By E. S. Goodrich, M.A., F.R.S.10. Heredity . . . By J. A. S. Watson, B.Sc.11. Inorganic Chemistry . . . By Prof. E. C. C. Baly, F.R.S.12. Organic Chemistry . . . By Prof. J. B. Cohen, B.Sc., F.R.S.13. The Principles of Electricity . . . By Norman K. Campbell, M.A.14. Radiation . . . By P. Phillips, D.Sc.15. The Science of the Stars . . . By E. W. Maunder, F.R.A.S.16. The Science of Light . . . By P. Phillips, D.Sc.17. Weather Science . . . By R. G. K. Lempfert, M.A.18. Hypnotism and Self-Education . . . By A. M. Hutchison, M.D.19. The Baby: A Mother's Book . . . By a University Woman.20. Youth and Sex—Dangers and Safeguards for Boys and Girls . . . By Mary Scharlieb, M.D., M.S., and F. Arthur Sibly, M.A., LL.D.21. Marriage and Motherhood . . . By H. S. Davidson, M.B., F.R.C.S.E.22. Lord Kelvin . . . By A. Russell, M.A., D.Sc., M.I.E.E.23. Huxley . . . By Professor G. Leighton, M.D.24. Sir William Huggins and Spectroscopic Astronomy . . . By E. W. Maunder, F.R.A.S., of the Royal Observatory, Greenwich.62. Practical Astronomy . . . By H. Macpherson, Jr., F.R.A.S.63. Aviation . . . By Sydney F. Walker, R.N.64. Navigation . . . By William Hall, R.N., B.A.65. Pond Life . . . By E. C. Ash, M.R.A.C.66. Dietetics . . . By Alex. Bryce, M.D., D.P.H.94. The Nature of Mathematics . . . By P. E. B. Jourdain, M.A.95. Applications of Electricity . . . By Alex. Ogilvie, B.Sc.96. Gardening . . . By A. Cecil Bartlett.97. The Care of the Teeth . . . By J. A. Young, L.D.S.98. Atlas of the World . . . By T. Bartholomew, F.R.G.S.110. British Birds . . . By F. B Kirkman, B.A.
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25. The Meaning of Philosophy . . . By Prof. A. E. Taylor, M.A., F.B.A.26. Henri Bergson . . . By H. Wildon Carr, Litt.D.27. Psychology . . . By H. J. Watt, M.A., Ph.D., D.Phil.28. Ethics . . . By Canon Rashdall, D.Litt., F.B.A.29. Kant's Philosophy . . . By A. D. Lindsay, M.A., of Balliol College, Oxford.30. The Teaching of Plato . . . By A. D. Lindsay, M.A.67. Aristotle . . . By Prof. A. E. Taylor, M.A., F.B.A.68. Friedrich Nietzsche . . . By M. A. Mügge.69. Eucken: A Philosophy of Life . . . By A. J. Jones, M.A., B.Sc., Ph.D.70. The Experimental Psychology of Beauty . . . By C. W. Valentine, B.A., D.Phil.71. The Problem of Truth . . . By H. Wildon Carr, Litt.D.99. George Berkeley: The Philosophy of Idealism . . . By C. W. Valentine, B.A.31. Buddhism . . . By Prof. T. W. Rhys Davids, F.B.A.32. Roman Catholicism . . . By H. B. Coxon. Preface, Mgr. R. H. Benson.33. The Oxford Movement . . . By Wilfrid Ward.34. The Bible and Criticism . . . By W. H. Bennett, D.D., Litt.P., and W. F. Adeney, D.D.35. Cardinal Newman . . . By Wilfrid Meynell.72. The Church of England . . . By Rev. Canon Masterman.73. Anglo-Catholicism . . . By A. E. Manning Foster.74. The Free Churches . . . By Rev. Edward Shillito, M.A.75. Judaism . . . By Ephraim Levine, M.A.76. Theosophy . . . By Annie Besant.
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36. The Growth of Freedom . . . By H. W. Nevinson.37. Bismarck and the Origin of the German Empire . . . By Professor F. M. Powicke.38. Oliver Cromwell . . . By Hilda Johnstone, M.A.39. Mary Queen of Scots . . . By E. O'Neill, M.A.40. Cecil John Rhodes, 1853-1902 . . . By Ian D. Colvin.41. Julius Cæsar . . . By Hilary Hardinge.42. England in the Making . . . By Prof. F. J. C. Hearnshaw, M.A., LL.D.43. England in the Middle Ages . . . By E. O'Neill, M.A.44. The Monarchy and the People . . . By W. T. Waugh, M.A.45. The Industrial Revolution . . . By Arthur Jones, M.A.46. Empire and Democracy . . . By G. S. Veitch, M.A., Litt.D.61. Home Rule . . . By L. G. Redmond Howard. Preface by Robert Harcourt, M.P.77. Nelson . . . By H. W. Wilson.78. Wellington and Waterloo . . . By Major G. W. Redway.100. A History of Greece . . . By E. Fearenside, B.A.101. Luther and the Reformation . . . By Leonard D. Agate, M.A.102. The Discovery of the New World . . . By F. B. Kirkman, B.A.103. Turkey and the Eastern Question . . . By John Macdonald, M.A.104. Architecture . . . By Mrs. Arthur Bell.
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LETTERS
51. Shakespeare . . . By Prof. C. H. Herford, Litt.D.52. Wordsworth . . . By Rosaline Masson.53. Pure Gold—A Choice of Lyrics and Sonnets . . . by H. C. O'Neill54. Francis Bacon . . . By Prof. A. R. Skemp, M.A.55. The Brontës . . . By Flora Masson.56. Carlyle . . . By L. MacLean Watt.57. Dante . . . By A. G. Ferrers Howell.60. A Dictionary of Synonyms . . . By Austin K. Gray, B.A.83. Insurance as a Means of Investment . . . By W. A. Robertson, F.F.A.84. Classical Dictionary . . . By A. E. Stirling.85. A History of English Literature . . . By A. Compton-Rickett, LL.D.86. Browning . . . By Prof. A. R. Skemp, M.A.87. Charles Lamb . . . By Flora Masson.88. Goethe . . . By Prof. C. H. Herford, Litt.D.89. Balzac . . . By Frank Harris.90. Rousseau . . . By H. Sacher91. Ibsen . . . By Hilary Hardinge.93. Tennyson . . . By Aaron Watson.107. R. L. Stevenson . . . By Rosaline Masson.108. Shelley . . . By Sydney Waterlow, M.A.109. William Morris . . . By A. Blyth Webster, M.A.
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