PESSIMISM A HISTORY AND A CRITICISM BY JAMES SULLY, M.A. AUTHOR OF 'SENSATION AND INTUITION: STUDIES IN PSYCHOLOGY AND ESTHETICS Our philosophy, when not borrowed, HENRY S. KING & CO., LONDON 1877 THE present work consists almost exclusively of matter not previously published. Yet to avoid misapprehension it may be well to say that some of my objections to the pessimist's view of life are to be found in an essay on this subject in the Cornhill Magazine, April 1876: that my account of Hartmann is partly reprinted from an article on this writer in the Fortnightly Review, August 1876; and finally that the analysis of Schopenhauer's character may be found roughly sketched in a criticism of Miss Zimmern's biography of the pessimist in the Examiner, February 19, 1876. I need hardly add that these articles are from my own pen. I have great pleasure in acknowledging the assistance lent me by my friend Mr. F. Y. EDGEWORTH, M.A., of Balliol College, to whose careful perusal of the proof-sheets I am indebted for numerous improvements both in the argument and in the style of the work. Varieties of these beliefs-Crude forms-Higher forms-Function of ideals in the rival beliefs-Poetic optimism: Wordsworth-Instinctive pessimism: The Bible-Greek literature-Roman literature: as per- sonal element in Roman philosophers-Persian literature-Omar Khayyam-Eighteenth century writers: Diderot, Jonathan Swift- Characteristics of reasoned forms-Varieties according to the subject |