If a great and original individuality were the aim of history, I think history should stop with the first man upon earth, for our first ancestor must have been the most striking individual who ever existed. Men coming after Adam have been like their parents and each other. Kaiser William is not such an interesting and striking a creature by far as the first man was. When Kaiser William opens his mouth to speak, he speaks words that are known. When he moves or sits, when he eats or prays--all that is a _nuance_ only of what other people do, all is either from heritage or imitation, and quite an insignificant amount is individual. Whereas every sound that the first man uttered was quite new for the Universe; every movement striking and dramatic; every look of his eyes was discovering new worlds; every joy or sorrow violently felt; every struggle a great accumulation of experiences. And so forth. Well, if one striking individuum is the aim of history, history should close with the death of Adam. But history still continues. Why? Just because not Adam was its aim, but mankind; not one, or two, or ten heroes, but millions of human creatures; not some few great men, but all men, all together, all without exception. From this point of view we get the true ideal of education. The purpose of education is not to make grand personalities, but to make bricks for the building, i.e., to make suitable members of a collective body and suitable workers of a collective work. COLLECTIVE WORKS Are greater than personal works. A pupil from the old, individualistic school would object: --And what do you think of the work of Ibsen? _I:_ I think it is incomparably smaller than the ancient Scandinavian legends. _He:_ Do you not grant that Alfred the Great was the real creator of the English Kingdom? _I:_ Never. Millions and millions of human creatures are built into this building that we call England, or English history, or English civilisation. _He:_ And what about the man who built St. Paul's Cathedral? _I:_ It is a collective work, as are all the great works that have been done. The architecture of St. Paul's is one of the ancient styles, and no style in architecture was ever invented or created by one person, but by generations and generations. _He:_ And what about Victor Hugo and Milton? Are they not great poets? _I:_ Yes, they are if compared with certain minor poets, but they are not great if compared with the popular poetry of India or Greece. Mahabarata, the Koran, and Zend-Avesta, and the Bible, are products of collective efforts--therefore they are superior to every personal effort. _He:_ Do you not appreciate the great economists and what they did for the household, and common-wealth in general?