The Principles of Psychology, Volume 2 (of 2)James, William
Science
The Principles of Psychology, Volume 2 (of 2)
James, William
Psychology
Whence does the extension come which gets so inseparably associated
with these non-extended colored sensations? From the 'sweep and
movements' of the _eye_--from muscular feelings. But, as Prof. Bain
says, if movement-feelings give us any property of things, "it would
seem to be not space, but time."[261] And John Mill says that "the idea
of space is, at bottom, one of time."[262] Space, then, is not to be
found in any elementary sensation, but, in Bain's words, "as a quality,
it has no other origin and no other meaning than the _association_ of
these different [non-spatial] motor and sensitive effects."[263]
This phrase is mystical-sounding enough to one who understands
association as _producing_ nothing, but only as knitting together
things already produced in separate ways. The truth is that the English
Associationist school, in trying to show how much their principle can
accomplish, have altogether overshot the mark and espoused a kind
of theory in respect to space-perception which the general tenor of
their philosophy should lead them to abhor. Really there are but three
possible kinds of theory concerning space. Either (1) there is no
spatial _quality_ of sensation at all, and space is a mere symbol of
succession; or (2) there is an _extensive quality given_ immediately
in certain particular sensations; or, finally, (3) there is a _quality
produced_ out of the inward resources of the mind, to envelop
sensations which, as given originally, are not spatial, but which, on
being cast into the spatial form, become united and orderly. This last
is the Kantian view. Stumpf admirably designates it as the 'psychic
stimulus' theory, the crude sensations being considered as goads to the
mind to put forth its slumbering power.
Brown, the Mills, and Bain, amid these possibilities, seem to have gone
astray like lost sheep. With the 'mental chemistry' of which the Mills
speak--precisely the same thing as the 'psychical synthesis' of Wundt,
which, as we shall soon see, is a principle expressly intended to do
what Association can never perform--they hold the third view, but again
in other places imply the first. And, between the impossibility of
getting from mere association anything not contained in the sensations
associated and the dislike to allow spontaneous mental productivity,
they flounder in a dismal dilemma. Mr. Sully joins them there in what
I must call a vague and vacillating way. Mr. Spencer of course is
bound to pretend to 'evolve' all mental qualities out of antecedents
different from themselves, so that we need perhaps not wonder at his
refusal to accord the spatial quality to any of the several elementary
sensations out of which our space-perception grows. Thus (Psychology,
ii. 168, 172, 218):
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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