In this chapter we shall make an analysis of the process of thinking into its steps or elementary constituents2, basing the analysis upon descriptions of a number of extremely simple, but genuine, cases of reflective experience.[13]
A simple case of practical deliberation
1. "The other day when I was down town on 16th Street a clock caught my eye. I saw that the hands pointed3 to 12.20. This suggested that I had an engagement at 124th Street, at one o'clock. I reasoned that[Pg 69] as it had taken me an hour to come down on a surface car, I should probably be twenty minutes late if I returned the same way. I might save twenty minutes by a subway express. But was there a station near? If not, I might lose more than twenty minutes in looking for one. Then I thought of the elevated, and I saw there was such a line within two blocks. But where was the station? If it were several blocks above or below the street I was on, I should lose time instead of gaining it. My mind went back to the subway express as quicker than the elevated; furthermore, I remembered that it went nearer than the elevated to the part of 124th Street I wished to reach, so that time would be saved at the end of the journey. I concluded in favor of the subway, and reached my destination by one o'clock."
A simple case of reflection upon an observation
2. "Projecting nearly horizontally from the upper deck of the ferryboat on which I daily cross the river, is a long white pole, bearing a gilded4 ball at its tip. It suggested a flagpole when I first saw it; its color, shape, and gilded ball agreed with this idea, and these reasons seemed to justify5 me in this belief. But soon difficulties presented themselves. The pole was nearly horizontal, an unusual position for a flagpole; in the next place, there was no pulley, ring, or cord by which to attach a flag; finally, there were elsewhere two vertical6 staffs from which flags were occasionally flown. It seemed probable that the pole was not there for flag-flying.
"I then tried to imagine all possible purposes of such a pole, and to consider for which of these it was best suited: (a) Possibly it was an ornament7. But as all the ferryboats and even the tugboats carried like poles,[Pg 70] this hypothesis was rejected. (b) Possibly it was the terminal of a wireless8 telegraph. But the same considerations made this improbable. Besides, the more natural place for such a terminal would be the highest part of the boat, on top of the pilot house. (c) Its purpose might be to point out the direction in which the boat is moving.
"In support of this conclusion, I discovered that the pole was lower than the pilot house, so that the steersman could easily see it. Moreover, the tip was enough higher than the base, so that, from the pilot's position, it must appear to project far out in front of the boat. Moreover, the pilot being near the front of the boat, he would need some such guide as to its direction. Tugboats would also need poles for such a purpose. This hypothesis was so much more probable than the others that I accepted it. I formed the conclusion that the pole was set up for the purpose of showing the pilot the direction in which the boat pointed, to enable him to steer9 correctly."
A simple case of reflection involving experiment
3. "In washing tumblers in hot soapsuds and placing them mouth downward on a plate, bubbles appeared on the outside of the mouth of the tumblers and then went inside. Why? The presence of bubbles suggests air, which I note must come from inside the tumbler. I see that the soapy water on the plate prevents escape of the air save as it may be caught in bubbles. But why should air leave the tumbler? There was no substance entering to force it out. It must have expanded. It expands by increase of heat or by decrease of pressure, or by both. Could the air have become heated after the tumbler was taken from the hot suds? Clearly not the air that was already entangled[Pg 71] in the water. If heated air was the cause, cold air must have entered in transferring the tumblers from the suds to the plate. I test to see if this supposition is true by taking several more tumblers out. Some I shake so as to make sure of entrapping10 cold air in them. Some I take out holding mouth downward in order to prevent cold air from entering. Bubbles appear on the outside of every one of the former and on none of the latter. I must be right in my inference. Air from the outside must have been expanded by the heat of the tumbler, which explains the appearance of the bubbles on the outside.
"But why do they then go inside? Cold contracts. The tumbler cooled and also the air inside it. Tension was removed, and hence bubbles appeared inside. To be sure of this, I test by placing a cup of ice on the tumbler while the bubbles are still forming outside. They soon reverse."
The three cases form a series
These three cases have been purposely selected so as to form a series from the more rudimentary to more complicated cases of reflection. The first illustrates11 the kind of thinking done by every one during the day's business, in which neither the data, nor the ways of dealing12 with them, take one outside the limits of everyday experience. The last furnishes a case in which neither problem nor mode of solution would have been likely to occur except to one with some prior scientific training. The second case forms a natural transition; its materials lie well within the bounds of everyday, unspecialized experience; but the problem, instead of being directly involved in the person's business, arises indirectly13 out of his activity, and accordingly appeals to a somewhat theoretic and impartial14 interest. We[Pg 72] shall deal, in a later chapter, with the evolution of abstract thinking out of that which is relatively15 practical and direct; here we are concerned only with the common elements found in all the types.
Five distinct steps in reflection
Upon examination, each instance reveals, more or less clearly, five logically distinct steps: (i) a felt difficulty; (ii) its location and definition; (iii) suggestion of possible solution; (iv) development by reasoning of the bearings of the suggestion; (v) further observation and experiment leading to its acceptance or rejection16; that is, the conclusion of belief or disbelief.
1. The occurrence of a difficulty(a) in the lack of adaptation of means to end
1. The first and second steps frequently fuse into one. The difficulty may be felt with sufficient definiteness as to set the mind at once speculating upon its probable solution, or an undefined uneasiness and shock may come first, leading only later to definite attempt to find out what is the matter. Whether the two steps are distinct or blended, there is the factor emphasized in our original account of reflection—viz. the perplexity or problem. In the first of the three cases cited, the difficulty resides in the conflict between conditions at hand and a desired and intended result, between an end and the means for reaching it. The purpose of keeping an engagement at a certain time, and the existing hour taken in connection with the location, are not congruous. The object of thinking is to introduce congruity17 between the two. The given conditions cannot themselves be altered; time will not go backward nor will the distance between 16th Street and 124th Street shorten itself. The problem is the discovery of intervening terms which when inserted between the remoter end and the given means will harmonize them with each other.[Pg 73]
(b) in identifying the character of an object
In the second case, the difficulty experienced is the incompatibility18 of a suggested and (temporarily) accepted belief that the pole is a flagpole, with certain other facts. Suppose we symbolize19 the qualities that suggest flagpole by the letters a, b, c; those that oppose this suggestion by the letters p, q, r. There is, of course, nothing inconsistent in the qualities themselves; but in pulling the mind to different and incongruous conclusions they conflict—hence the problem. Here the object is the discovery of some object (O), of which a, b, c, and p, q, r, may all be appropriate traits—just as, in our first case, it is to discover a course of action which will combine existing conditions and a remoter result in a single whole. The method of solution is also the same: discovery of intermediate qualities (the position of the pilot house, of the pole, the need of an index to the boat's direction) symbolized20 by d, g, l, o, which bind21 together otherwise incompatible22 traits.
(c) in explaining an unexpected event
In the third case, an observer trained to the idea of natural laws or uniformities finds something odd or exceptional in the behavior of the bubbles. The problem is to reduce the apparent anomalies to instances of well-established laws. Here the method of solution is also to seek for intermediary terms which will connect, by regular linkage23, the seemingly extraordinary movements of the bubbles with the conditions known to follow from processes supposed to be operative.
2. Definition of the difficulty
2. As already noted24, the first two steps, the feeling of a discrepancy25, or difficulty, and the acts of observation that serve to define the character of the difficulty may, in a given instance, telescope together. In cases of striking novelty or unusual perplexity, the difficulty, however, is likely to present itself at first as a shock, as[Pg 74] emotional disturbance26, as a more or less vague feeling of the unexpected, of something queer, strange, funny, or disconcerting. In such instances, there are necessary observations deliberately27 calculated to bring to light just what is the trouble, or to make clear the specific character of the problem. In large measure, the existence or non-existence of this step makes the difference between reflection proper, or safeguarded critical inference and uncontrolled thinking. Where sufficient pains to locate the difficulty are not taken, suggestions for its resolution must be more or less random28. Imagine a doctor called in to prescribe for a patient. The patient tells him some things that are wrong; his experienced eye, at a glance, takes in other signs of a certain disease. But if he permits the suggestion of this special disease to take possession prematurely29 of his mind, to become an accepted conclusion, his scientific thinking is by that much cut short. A large part of his technique, as a skilled practitioner30, is to prevent the acceptance of the first suggestions that arise; even, indeed, to postpone31 the occurrence of any very definite suggestion till the trouble—the nature of the problem—has been thoroughly32 explored. In the case of a physician this proceeding33 is known as diagnosis34, but a similar inspection35 is required in every novel and complicated situation to prevent rushing to a conclusion. The essence of critical thinking is suspended judgment36; and the essence of this suspense37 is inquiry38 to determine the nature of the problem before proceeding to attempts at its solution. This, more than any other thing, transforms mere39 inference into tested inference, suggested conclusions into proof.
3. Occurrence of a suggested explanation or possible solution
3. The third factor is suggestion. The situation in[Pg 75] which the perplexity occurs calls up something not present to the senses: the present location, the thought of subway or elevated train; the stick before the eyes, the idea of a flagpole, an ornament, an apparatus40 for wireless telegraphy; the soap bubbles, the law of expansion of bodies through heat and of their contraction41 through cold. (a) Suggestion is the very heart of inference; it involves going from what is present to something absent. Hence, it is more or less speculative42, adventurous43. Since inference goes beyond what is actually present, it involves a leap, a jump, the propriety44 of which cannot be absolutely warranted in advance, no matter what precautions be taken. Its control is indirect, on the one hand, involving the formation of habits of mind which are at once enterprising and cautious; and on the other hand, involving the selection and arrangement of the particular facts upon perception of which suggestion issues. (b) The suggested conclusion so far as it is not accepted but only tentatively entertained constitutes an idea. Synonyms45 for this are supposition, conjecture46, guess, hypothesis, and (in elaborate cases) theory. Since suspended belief, or the postponement47 of a final conclusion pending48 further evidence, depends partly upon the presence of rival conjectures49 as to the best course to pursue or the probable explanation to favor, cultivation50 of a variety of alternative suggestions is an important factor in good thinking.
4. The rational elaboration of an idea
4. The process of developing the bearings—or, as they are more technically51 termed, the implications—of any idea with respect to any problem, is termed reasoning.[14] As an idea is inferred from given facts, so reasoning[Pg 76] sets out from an idea. The idea of elevated road is developed into the idea of difficulty of locating station, length of time occupied on the journey, distance of station at the other end from place to be reached. In the second case, the implication of a flagpole is seen to be a vertical position; of a wireless apparatus, location on a high part of the ship and, moreover, absence from every casual tugboat; while the idea of index to direction in which the boat moves, when developed, is found to cover all the details of the case.
Reasoning has the same effect upon a suggested solution as more intimate and extensive observation has upon the original problem. Acceptance of the suggestion in its first form is prevented by looking into it more thoroughly. Conjectures that seem plausible52 at first sight are often found unfit or even absurd when their full consequences are traced out. Even when reasoning out the bearings of a supposition does not lead to rejection, it develops the idea into a form in which it is more apposite to the problem. Only when, for example, the conjecture that a pole was an index-pole had been thought out into its bearings could its particular applicability to the case in hand be judged. Suggestions at first seemingly remote and wild are frequently so transformed by being elaborated into what follows from them as to become apt and fruitful. The development of an idea through reasoning helps at least to supply the intervening or intermediate terms that link together into a consistent whole apparently53 discrepant54 extremes (ante, p. 72).[Pg 77]
5. Corroboration55 of an idea and formation of a concluding belief
5. The concluding and conclusive56 step is some kind of experimental corroboration, or verification, of the conjectural57 idea. Reasoning shows that if the idea be adopted, certain consequences follow. So far the conclusion is hypothetical or conditional58. If we look and find present all the conditions demanded by the theory, and if we find the characteristic traits called for by rival alternatives to be lacking, the tendency to believe, to accept, is almost irresistible59. Sometimes direct observation furnishes corroboration, as in the case of the pole on the boat. In other cases, as in that of the bubbles, experiment is required; that is, conditions are deliberately arranged in accord with the requirements of an idea or hypothesis to see if the results theoretically indicated by the idea actually occur. If it is found that the experimental results agree with the theoretical, or rationally deduced, results, and if there is reason to believe that only the conditions in question would yield such results, the confirmation60 is so strong as to induce a conclusion—at least until contrary facts shall indicate the advisability of its revision.
Thinking comes between observations at the beginning and at the end
Observation exists at the beginning and again at the end of the process: at the beginning, to determine more definitely and precisely61 the nature of the difficulty to be dealt with; at the end, to test the value of some hypothetically entertained conclusion. Between those two termini of observation, we find the more distinctively62 mental aspects of the entire thought-cycle: (i) inference, the suggestion of an explanation or solution; and (ii) reasoning, the development of the bearings and implications of the suggestion. Reasoning requires some experimental observation to confirm it, while experiment can be economically and fruitfully conducted only[Pg 78] on the basis of an idea that has been tentatively developed by reasoning.
The trained mind one that judges the extent of each step advisable in a given situation
The disciplined, or logically trained, mind—the aim of the educative process—is the mind able to judge how far each of these steps needs to be carried in any particular situation. No cast-iron rules can be laid down. Each case has to be dealt with as it arises, on the basis of its importance and of the context in which it occurs. To take too much pains in one case is as foolish—as illogical—as to take too little in another. At one extreme, almost any conclusion that insures prompt and unified63 action may be better than any long delayed conclusion; while at the other, decision may have to be postponed64 for a long period—perhaps for a lifetime. The trained mind is the one that best grasps the degree of observation, forming of ideas, reasoning, and experimental testing required in any special case, and that profits the most, in future thinking, by mistakes made in the past. What is important is that the mind should be sensitive to problems and skilled in methods of attack and solution.
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purport
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| n.意义，要旨，大要；v.意味著，做为...要旨，要领是... | |
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constituents
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| n.选民( constituent的名词复数 )；成分；构成部分；要素 | |
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pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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gilded
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| a.镀金的，富有的 | |
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justify
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| vt.证明…正当(或有理)，为…辩护 | |
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vertical
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| adj.垂直的，顶点的，纵向的；n.垂直物，垂直的位置 | |
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ornament
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| v.装饰，美化；n.装饰，装饰物 | |
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wireless
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| adj.无线的；n.无线电 | |
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steer
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| vt.驾驶，为…操舵；引导；vi.驾驶 | |
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entrapping
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| v.使陷入圈套，使入陷阱( entrap的现在分词 ) | |
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illustrates
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| 给…加插图( illustrate的第三人称单数 )； 说明； 表明； （用示例、图画等）说明 | |
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dealing
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| n.经商方法，待人态度 | |
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indirectly
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| adv.间接地，不直接了当地 | |
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impartial
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| adj.(in,to)公正的，无偏见的 | |
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relatively
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| adv.比较...地，相对地 | |
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rejection
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| n.拒绝，被拒，抛弃，被弃 | |
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congruity
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| n.全等，一致 | |
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incompatibility
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| n.不兼容 | |
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symbolize
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| vt.作为...的象征，用符号代表 | |
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symbolized
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| v.象征，作为…的象征( symbolize的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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bind
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| vt.捆，包扎；装订；约束；使凝固；vi.变硬 | |
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incompatible
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| adj.不相容的，不协调的，不相配的 | |
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linkage
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| n.连接；环节 | |
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noted
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| adj.著名的，知名的 | |
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discrepancy
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| n.不同；不符；差异；矛盾 | |
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disturbance
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| n.动乱，骚动；打扰，干扰；(身心)失调 | |
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deliberately
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| adv.审慎地；蓄意地；故意地 | |
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random
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| adj.随机的；任意的；n.偶然的(或随便的)行动 | |
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prematurely
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| adv.过早地，贸然地 | |
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practitioner
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| n.实践者，从事者；(医生或律师等)开业者 | |
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postpone
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| v.延期，推迟 | |
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thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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proceeding
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| n.行动，进行，(pl.)会议录，学报 | |
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diagnosis
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| n.诊断，诊断结果，调查分析，判断 | |
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inspection
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| n.检查，审查，检阅 | |
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judgment
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| n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见 | |
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suspense
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| n.（对可能发生的事）紧张感，担心，挂虑 | |
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inquiry
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| n.打听，询问，调查，查问 | |
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mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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apparatus
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| n.装置，器械；器具，设备 | |
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contraction
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| n.缩略词，缩写式，害病 | |
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speculative
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| adj.思索性的，暝想性的，推理的 | |
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adventurous
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| adj.爱冒险的；惊心动魄的，惊险的，刺激的 | |
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propriety
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| n.正当行为；正当；适当 | |
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synonyms
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| 同义词( synonym的名词复数 ) | |
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conjecture
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| n./v.推测，猜测 | |
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postponement
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| n.推迟 | |
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pending
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| prep.直到，等待…期间；adj.待定的；迫近的 | |
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conjectures
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| 推测，猜想( conjecture的名词复数 ) | |
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50
cultivation
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| n.耕作，培养，栽培（法），养成 | |
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technically
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| adv.专门地，技术上地 | |
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52
plausible
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| adj.似真实的，似乎有理的，似乎可信的 | |
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apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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54
discrepant
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| 差异的 | |
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corroboration
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| n.进一步的证实，进一步的证据 | |
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conclusive
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| adj.最后的，结论的；确凿的，消除怀疑的 | |
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conjectural
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| adj.推测的 | |
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conditional
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| adj.条件的，带有条件的 | |
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irresistible
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| adj.非常诱人的，无法拒绝的，无法抗拒的 | |
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confirmation
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| n.证实，确认，批准 | |
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precisely
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| adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地 | |
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distinctively
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| adv.特殊地，区别地 | |
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unified
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| (unify 的过去式和过去分词)； 统一的； 统一标准的； 一元化的 | |
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postponed
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| vt.& vi.延期，缓办，（使）延迟vt.把…放在次要地位；[语]把…放在后面（或句尾）vi.（疟疾等）延缓发作（或复发） | |
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