The Exuberance of the Imagination

Abstract

The development of the imaginative process brings with it advantages for organic life, especially the vegetative kind. However, if ideas outbalance sensation too far, drawbacks may result: the soul becomes a parasite on the body, consuming the oil of life (Herbart’s phrase). This is evident in view of the chance events that may affect the associations on which adaptation of thought to facts depends, as was illustrated earlier. If favourable circumstances guide the imagination in such a way that it follows or anticipates facts, we gain knowledge. However, unfavourable circumstances can direct the attention on to inessentials, promoting thought connections that do not correspond to the facts but mislead. Thoughts repeatedly tested and found to correspond to the facts will always be constructive rules for action; but if in special circumstances one adopts untested chance connections as generally corresponding to fact, serious error will result, and disastrous practical consequences if one acts on them. Some examples from the history of culture illustrate the point.