An Essay Concerning Humane Understanding, fol. 68
Machine transcription. Not an edition. Errors are expected: about 8% character error rate on Latin and French lines, higher on German. Mean line confidence on this page: 0.92.
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The machine reads it as
- C II A P. A
- Of Discernins, and otber Operations of the Mind.
- S. F. A Nocher Faculer e may tate notice of in our Minds, is thae
- L OF Discerning and distinguistring verween the several Ideas
- it has. It is noc enoush tohare a contuled perception ot lomethins
- in general. Unless the Mind had a distinct perception of disterent Ob-
- jects, and their Oualities, it rould be capable ol vers little Hnoledec,
- thouoh the Bodies that atfect us, vere as buse about uS, aS they arC NOU,
- and the Mind vere continually emploz d in chinting. On this faculty
- oF Distinguistrins one thins from another, depends the evidence and cer-
- rainty ot leveral, eren verr general Propolitions, Which have passed for
- innate Fruths; because Men over-lookins the true cause, Why thole
- Propolitions find universal assent, impute it eholly co nacive unitorm Im-
- pressions; Whereas it in truch depends upon chis clear discernins Faculty
- Ofthe Mind, Wvhereby it perceires tro Ldeas to bethe lame, or different:
- Buc ot this more hereatter.
- 8. 2. Lio much the imperfection ot accurately discriminatine ideas
- one trom anocher lics, cirtier in the dulnels, or taults of the Oreans ot
- Senle; Or Want ot accuteness, exereise, or artention in the Understan-
- dins; Or hrastinels and precipitanes, natural to lome Tempers, I will
- not here examine: Ir suffices to talce norice, that this is one of the Ope-
- rations, chat the Mind may reflect on, and observe in it selF. IE isoF thae
- consequence to its other Rnomledse, that (0 lar as this faculer is in it (elt
- dull, or not righely made ule ot, tor the distinguithins one thins trOm
- another; (0 tar our Notions are contused, and our Realon and Fudement
- disturbed or missed. TF in harins our Ideas in the Memory ready at
- hand, consicts quicteness of parts; in ehis ofhavins them uncontuled, and
- beins able nicelr to distinsuist one thing trom another, where there is
- bur the least difference, consists; in a great mealure, the exactness oF
- Sudomene, and clearness ot Reason, irhich is to be oblerred in onc Man
- above another. And hence, perhaps, may be siven lome Realon ot
- that common Obserration, That Menirho have a great deal of Wic, anc
- prompe Memories, hare not alvays the clearest Judement, or deepest
- ReaIOn. FOr Wit Ping most in the assemblase of ideas, and putting thole
- together rith quicknels and varier, Wherein can be tound any resem-
- blance or congruit, thereby to malce ux pleasant Pictures, and agree-
- able Visions in the FanCY: Fudement, on the contrarr, lies quite on
- the other side, in separatins caresully Ideas one From anottier, Where.
- in ean be found the least difference, therebr to avoid beins missed
- by Similicade, and by aftinity to takee one chins for anotter. This
- is a irar ot proccedins quite contrarr to Metaphor and AIlusion, Where
- in, For che most pare, lies chat entertainment and pleasantrs oF Wit
- Which Strikes (0 lively on the Fancs; and theretore (0 accepable to all
- People, because its Beauts appears at tirs liglt, and there is required no
- labour of thoushe, to examine what Truth or Reolon thereis in it. Tll0
- Mlind, withour loolcing anr Farther, rests satissied irith the plealantness ot
- the Picture, andthe gayetr oFthe Faner: And it is a kinc oF an attront
- t080 about r0 examine il, by the serere Rules ol Fruth, and sood Rea-
- f02;
Cite
An Essay Concerning Humane Understanding, fol. 68. Machine transcription, not an edition: Leibniz Legible (model FoNDUE-GD_v2_ft_Leibniz, run 74). https://leibnizlegible.com/page/778263916:0084?run=74