Montaigne has said of true philosophers, that "if they were great
in science, they were yet much greater in action;... and whenever
they have been put upon the proof, they have been seen to fly to
so high a pitch, as made it very well appear their souls were
strangely elevated and enriched with the knowledge of things." (22)
At the same time, it must be acknowledged that too exclusive a
devotion to imaginative and philosophical literature, especially
if prolonged in life until the habits become formed, does to a
great extent incapacitate a man for the business of practical
life. Speculative ability is one thing, and practical ability
another; and the man who, in his study, or with his pen in hand,
shows himself capable of forming large views of life and policy,
may, in the outer world, be found altogether unfitted for carrying
them into practical effect.
Speculative ability depends on vigorous thinking--practical
ability on vigorous acting; and the two qualities are usually
found combined in very unequal proportions. The speculative man
is prone to indecision: he sees all the sides of a question, and
his action becomes suspended in nicely weighing the pros and cons,
which are often found pretty nearly to balance each other; whereas
the practical man overleaps logical preliminaries, arrives at
certain definite convictions, and proceeds forthwith to carry his
policy into action.
Pages:
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156