The Intellectual Emotions.
By "the intellectual emotions" is meant that class of emotional feeling
resulting from the presence of objects of intellectual interest. This
class of emotions depends for its satisfaction upon the exercise of the
intellectual faculties, from the most simple to the most complex, and
including perception, memory, imagination, reason, judgment, and all the
logical faculties. Those who are accustomed to employing the mind
through voluntary attention, particularly in the direction of creative
ideation or constructive imagination, experience these emotions to a
greater or less degree.
The exercise of perception, if we are skilled therein, gives us a
pleasurable feeling, and if we succeed in making an interesting or
important discovery by reason thereof, we experience a strong degree of
emotional satisfaction. Likewise, we experience agreeable feelings when
we are able to remember distinctly something which might well have been
forgotten, or when we succeed in recalling something which had escaped
our memory for the moment. In the same way the exercise of the
imagination is a source of great pleasure in many cases in the direction
of writing, planning, inventing, or other creative processes, or even in
the building of air castles. The exercise of the logical faculties gives
great pleasure to those in whom these faculties are well developed.
Halleck well says: "There was probably not a happier moment in Newton's
life than when he had succeeded in demonstrating that the same power
which caused the apple to fall held the moon and the planets in their
orbits. When Watts discovered that steam might be harnessed like a
horse, when an inventor succeeds in perfecting a labor-lightening
device, whenever an obscurity is cleared away, the reason for a thing
understood, and a baffling instance brought under a general law,
intellectual emotion results."
The pleasurable feelings we experience upon the reading of a good book,
or the discovery of real poetry, are forms of intellectual emotion. The
same class of emotional feeling is aroused when we witness a good play.
Among other instances of this class we mention the perception of clever
work of any kind, intricate machinery, ingenious devices, helpful
improvements, or other works of man which indicate the existence of
thought and inventive ability in the designer or builder. To appreciate
mental work of this kind we must bring a mind developed along the same
or similar lines. It has well been said that before one can take away
anything from a book he must bring something to it. It takes mentality
to recognize and appreciate mentality or the work of mentality.
The study of scientific subjects is a source of great pleasure to those
who are inclined to such pursuits. To the scientific mind the study of
the latest work on the favorite branch gives a joy which nothing else is
capable of arousing. To the philosopher the works of other philosophers
of the same school give intense satisfaction.
It is claimed that the sense of humor and wit is an intellectual
emotion, for it depends upon the detection of the ludicrous features of
a happening. Certain psychologists have held that the distinctive
element of humor is the feeling attendant upon the perception of
incongruity; while that of wit is the feeling of superiority on the part
of the witty person, and the corresponding chagrin of the object of his
wit. It would seem, however, that the appreciation of wit must depend
upon the intellectual perception of cleverness of expression and the
pleasure resulting from the discovery thereof, and that the feeling of
humor is aroused principally by reason of the incongruous element; the
feeling of self-satisfaction as contrasted with the discomfiture of the
other person belongs to the more selfish emotions. An authority says:
"Humor is a mental faculty which tends to discover incongruous
resemblances between things which essentially differ, or essential
differences between things put forth as the same, the result being
internal mirth or an outburst of laughter. Wit does so likewise, but the
two are different. Humor has deep human sympathy, and loves men while
raising a laugh against their weaknesses. Wit is deficient in sympathy,
and there is often a sting in its ridicule. Somewhat contemptuous of
mankind, it has not the patience to study them thoroughly, but must
content itself with noting superficial resemblances or differences.
Humor is patient and keenly observant, and penetrates beneath the
surface; while, therefore, the sallies of wit are often one-sided and
unfair, those of humor are, as a rule, just and wise."
The development and cultivation of the intellectual emotions depend, of
course, upon education, training, exercise, and practice. The
cultivation of the intellect (which has been referred to, in part, in
the previous parts of this book, and which will be again considered in
the chapters devoted to the intellect) results in the development and
cultivation of the emotions accompanying intellectual effort. In a
general way, however, it may be said that the reading of the best works
of fiction, science, and philosophy will bring out in time the best
form of intellectual enjoyment and feeling. The highest gives the
best--that is the rule. The present chapter should be read and studied
in connection with those devoted to the intellect.
BLENDED EMOTIONS.
As we have said at the beginning of our consideration of the subject of
the emotions, the majority of emotions are composed of several feelings,
and tend to blend and combine emotional elements. For instance, the
emotion of sexual love certainly has its origin in the instinctive
feelings of the race, and its motive element is that of passion. But
passion is far from being all there is in human sexual love. Above the
plane of passion is found the social emotion of companionship,
protection, and care; the desire for the welfare of the loved one; the
mingling of the love of the parent with that of the mate. Human love
manifests many of the altruistic emotions during its course. The welfare
of the loved one becomes the chief concern of life, often stronger even
than self-preservation. The joy of the loved one becomes the greatest
joy, far surpassing the more selfish forms of happiness. Then come the
æsthetic feelings, which find satisfaction in the two "liking the same
things," sympathy and community of feeling being the connecting link.
The several ideals of the two combining, there is produced an idealistic
union, which is often called "spiritual harmony." Finally, there is
found the blending of the intellectual emotions, in which harmony there
exists one of the highest forms of pleasure satisfaction between two
persons of opposite sexes. It is said that the more things that a man
and woman "like" in common, the closer will be their "liking" for each
other. "I love you because you love the things I love," is no rare
thought and expression.
So it is seen that though born in elemental instinct and passion, human
sexual love is something far different in its flowering. And yet without
its root it would not be, and cannot be. This is an excellent example of
the complex nature of the most common emotions. It may be used as a
typical illustration. What is true of it is also true, in a way and in a
degree, of every other form of emotion. Therefore in studying a
particular emotion, be not too quick to cry, "It is this; it is that!"
but rather seek to say, "It is composed of this and that, of this and
that!" Few, if any, emotions are simple; the majority are very complex.
Hence the difficulty of satisfactory classification, and the danger of
dogmatic definition.