It sounds like a fairy-tale, but not only that; this story of what man
by his science and practical inventions has achieved on this earth,
where he first appeared as a weakly member of the animal kingdom, and
on which each individual of his species must ever again appear as a
helpless infant—O inch of nature!—is a direct fulfilment of all, or of
most, of the dearest wishes in his fairy-tales. All these possessions
he has acquired through culture. Long ago he formed an ideal conception
of omnipotence and omniscience which he embodied in his gods. Whatever
seemed unattainable to his desires—or forbidden to him—he attributed
to these gods. One may say, therefore, that these gods were the ideals
of his culture. Now he has himself approached very near to realizing
this ideal, he has nearly become a god himself. But only, it is true,
in the way that ideals are usually realized in the general experience
of humanity. Not completely; in some respects not at all, in others
only by halves. Man has become a god by means of artificial limbs,
so to speak, quite magnificent when equipped with all his accessory
organs; but they do not grow on him and they still give him trouble
at times. However, he is entitled to console himself with the thought
that this evolution will not come to an end in A.D. 1930. Future ages
will produce further great advances in this realm of culture, probably
inconceivable now, and will increase man’s likeness to a god still
more. But with the aim of our study in mind, we will not forget, all
the same, that the human being of to-day is not happy with all his
likeness to a god.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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