Abstract
Before continuing with our psycho-physiological consideration, we remark that none of the special sciences required has reached the desirable degree of development to be able to serve as secure foundation for the others. Observational psychology needs considerable support from physiology and biology, but these in turn are as yet very imperfectly accountable for in terms of physics and chemistry. Therefore all our reflections are to be taken as provisional, with results that remain problematical and largely to be corrected by future research. Life consists of processes that actually preserve, repeat and spread themselves encompassing gradually increasing amounts of ‘material’. Thus, vital processes resemble a fire, with which they are in any case related though in a somewhat complex way. Most physico-chemical processes on the other hand soon run to a halt, unless constantly resuscitated and kept going by special external circumstances. Even apart from this main difference in character, modern physics and chemistry remain rather inadequate at keeping track of the details of the vital process. In view of the main feature, self-preservation, we must expect that the parts of a complicated organism, or symbiosis of organs, will be attuned to the preservation of the whole that could not otherwise result.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Notes
Goltz, Die Nervenzentren des Frosches, Berlin 1869.
Ibid., pp. 20f.
J. v. Sachs, Vorlesungen über Pflanzen-Physiologie, Leipzig, 1887.
Loeb, ‘Orientierung der Tiere gegen das Licht’, SB. d. Würzburger ph.-med. Gesellschaft, 1888; ‘Orientierung der Tiere gegen die Schwerkraft’, ibid., 1888; Heliotropismus der Tiere, Würzburg 1890; ‘Geotropismus der Tiere’, Pflügers Archiv 1891.
Cf. the writings of Sachs and Loeb cited above.
A. Forel, ‘Psychische Fähigkeiten der Ameisen’, Verh. d. 5. internat. Zoologenkongresses, Jena 1902; ‘Geruchsinn bei den Insekten’, ibid; ‘Expériences et remarques sur les sensations des insectes’, Pts. 1–5, Rivista de scienze biologiche, Como 1900–1901.
By means of topochemical memory a kind of spatial olfactory picture of the region traversed is supposed to emerge, as will hardly be denied in the case of dogs. From the polarized olfactory track an ant is to recognize whether the path leads towards or away from the nest. Thus, left and right on the track should be distinguishable by smell.
Cf. Haberlandt, Über den tropischen Urwald, Schr. d. Vereins z. Verbr. naturw. Kenntnisse, Vienna 1898.
H. Müller, Befruchtung der Blumen durch Insekten, Leipzig 1873.
Loeb, Vergleichende Gehirnphysiologie, Leipzig 1899.
The first few times, the sensation of hunger or thirst are accompanied by reflex movements that under suitable circumstances lead to the satisfaction of the need, witness the behaviour of infants. The more mature a person the clearer and more distinct the memories that help in the satisfaction of needs, starting from sensations before and after satisfaction and pointing the way. The mixture of conscious and instinctive behaviour can moreover occur in the most varied proportions. Some years ago I suffered from a severe neuralgia of the leg that set in at 3 a.m. precisely and tortured me till morning. On one occasion I observed that I found it very difficult to wait for my breakfast coffee. It occurred to me to take coffee at 3 a.m. and in this way I actually suppressed the neuralgic pain. This success, which comes near to the seemingly miraculous self-subordination of hyper-sensitive sleepwalkers, amazed even me at first. However, mysticism cannot stand up to attentive reflection. Indeed, the pains had regularly much abated shortly after breakfast and the supervening euphoria had become associated with the idea of ‘coffee’, without my having become clearly conscious of it.
Variation in sexual instincts doubtless is based on chance circumstances attending their being first excited. It will hardly be justifiable to turn every ‘perversion’ into a special kind of ‘sexual psychopathy’ and even to regard it as physically based. We need recall merely the gymnasia of antiquity, the relative seclusion of women, and pederasty.
Preyer, Die Seele des Kindes, Leipzig 1882.
J. Müller, Handbuch der Physiologie, Koblenz 1840, II, p. 500.
W. James, The feeling of effort, Boston 1880; Principles of Psychology, New York 1890, II, pp. 486f.
Münsterberg, Die Willenshandlung, Freiburg i.B. 1888.
Hering, in Hermann’s Handb. d. Physiol. III, 1 pp. 547, 548.
Strümpell, Deutsch. Archiv. f. klin. Medic. XXII, p. 321.
I was myself unable for some time to break loose from Müller’s views. The observations (A 4, p. 135) on my own apoplectically paralysed but sensitive hand, which reveals no movement whereas I seem to feel a slight opening and closing, I cannot really fit into the new theory either.
Groos, Die Spiele der Tiere, Jena 1896, p. 210f.
Cf. Ch. III, sn. 11.
Cf. P 3, pp. 287f.
Cf. ‘Zur Theorie des Gehörorgans’, Sitzb. d. Wiener Akademie 48, July 1863, where a rather more biological view of attention is given.
Cf. J. C. Kreibig, Die Aufmerksamkeit als Willenserscheinung, Vienna 1897.
Cf. Schopenhauer, Über den Willen in der Natur.
Ribot, Maladies de la volonté, Paris 1888, p. 27.
Hering, Die Lehre vom binocularem Sehen, Leipzig 1868, p. 27.
Ribot, l.c., pp. 40–48.
Meynert, Populäre Vorträge, Vienna 1892, pp. 36f.
Ribot, Les maladies de la personnalité, Paris 1888.
Vaschide et Vurpas, Essai sur la Psycho-Physiologie des Monstres humains, Paris (undated).
Cf. Plautus’ Menaechmi or Shakespeare’s Comedy of Errors. Galton’s ‘History of Twins’ is instructive as to the facts.
As regards the demonological conception, see Ennemoser, Geschichte der Magie, Leipzig 1844; Roskoff, Geschichte des Teufels, Leipzig 1869; Hecker, Die grossen Volkskrankheiten des Mittelalters, Berlin 1865. Pathological phenomena, mental disturbances and especially hallucinations, whether chronic as in paranoia or temporarily provoked by poisons (witches’ ointment), all these, with inadequate scientific criticism, helped to support belief in demons and witches, both in the victim and the observer. Cf. P. Max Simon, Le Monde des Rêves, Paris 1888. Further interesting data in Walter Scott, Letters on Demonology and Witchcraft, 4th ed., London 1898.
This process is mentioned in biological writings. My sister, who for many years raised yama-mai silkworms in open oak forests, where caterpillars often sustained injury but also often healed again, denies the accuracy of the observation. The caterpillars seem to examine the wound and perhaps try to close it.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1976 D. Reidel Publishing Company, Dordrecht, Holland
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Mach, E., Hiebert, E.N. (1976). Reflex, Instinct, Will, Ego. In: Knowledge and Error. Vienna Circle Collection, vol 3. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-010-1428-1_4
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-010-1428-1_4
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-90-277-0282-1
Online ISBN: 978-94-010-1428-1
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive