The Philosophy of Evolution: Together With a Preliminary Essay on The Metaphysical Basis of Science — John Shaqi
The Philosophy of Evolution: Together With a Preliminary Essay on The Metaphysical Basis of ScienceCarpenter, Stephen H. (Stephen Haskins)
Religion
The Philosophy of Evolution: Together With a Preliminary Essay on The Metaphysical Basis of Science
Carpenter, Stephen H. (Stephen Haskins)
Evolution; Science
The Supreme Intelligence, being the final generalization, must possess
all knowledge, and the only intelligent action possible to him from our
point of view, is from this absolute generalization towards the concrete
and individual. The absolute general is purely subjective, which, to
become cognizable, must be rendered objective. This can be secured to us
only through the intervention of material forms. From this point of
view, matter is only the symbol of thought--thought apart from the
thinker. The first result of the divine activity in self-manifestation
would be the analysis of _being_ into subjective and objective--that is
the discrimination of mind and matter, which terms are severally the
final generalizations of the two fundamental divisions of science.
Matter, then, mere formless, chaotic matter, would be the first result
of creative activity. Following the development of this idea in its
continually increasing individuality, as new attributes are severally
added, matter assumes determinate form and becomes related in systems,
as the various so-called elementary substances are discriminated, until
finally all truth, capable of being revealed by inorganic matter, is
presented to us.
Add the idea of organism and we have the two great divisions of
phenomena--material and vital. The higher the generalization, the fewer
will be the attributes composing the concept, and thus the simpler will
be the form symbolizing its expression. As in the case of matter, the
first result of the divine activity was more matter, undiscriminated by
any further attribute; so here, we have, as the first organic creation,
a concrete expression of the highest possible generalization comprising
the fewest possible attributes--that is, forms of life involving the
fewest individual characteristics. To matter add the simplest organic
attribute--that is, the one lying nearest the genus--and we have mere
organized matter, the simple cell, the foundation of all life, no matter
how great its future complexity, equally the origin of animal and
vegetable growth, which are as yet entirely undiscriminated. This would
be the first appearance of life.[1] Differentiating again by the
addition of a new attribute, and organic being is subdivided into the
two species, vegetable and animal. Beginning with these typical forms,
adding single attributes in a continuous series, we at last reach the
highest types of animals and plants. Finally, add rationality to the
animal, and we reach man, the highest and therefore the most complex
type of life, and who, so far as we are concerned, must be the end of
creation. We cannot conceive of any higher creation, because we cannot
add an attribute to those we already possess, any more than we can
conceive of an additional sense by which to cognize such new attribute.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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