Page:The International Journal of Psycho-Analysis II 1921 1.djvu/135

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BOOK REVIEWS 127

on their guard. In one of its varieties— called by Miss Bradby the fallacy of Subjective Symbolism — in virtue of which events or things are regarded as expressing human tendencies or feelings, it constitutes a source of error from which the Zurich school of psychologists in particular have, in the opinion of the present writer, not been altogether free. A full treat- ment of the roots of this fallacy would probably have to take into con- sideration the whole mechanism of Projection and the psychological tendencies underlying Animism.

3. The Fallacy of Will— "a tendency to think that one can gain one's object by the mere imposition of one's will"; as illustrated by Gordon's unsuccessful attempt to save Khartoum, the Children's Crusade in 1212 and the Society of Friendly Workers inaugurated in 1894 with the idea that it would "speedily solve the problem of the poor in London in detail and as a whole", but which in three years time had ceased altogether to exist. In ttiis fallacy psycho-analysts will have no hesitation in seeing the continued operation of the primitive "omnipotence of thought".

4. The Fallacy of the Wish and the Fear — "a tendency to believe in the existence of that which one desires, to which may be added the complementary tendency to believe in the existence of that which one fears or dreads" ; as illustrated by the investment of savings in highly speculative companies, in the Russian Troops Myth of 1914, or the seeing of hostile aeroplanes when none were present. The psychological roots of this fallacy are obviously much the same as in the preceding case, the fallacies tljemselves differing little except as regards the intimacy of their relationship to action, which is greater in the case of (3) than in the case of (4).

5. The Fallacy of the Simple and Striking— "a tendency to accept a thing as true because it is simple and striking"; as exemplified in unreal simplifications in theology, history or science (In one of her examples the author erroneously states that Psycho-Analysis "tries to make its sexual theory do all duties by regarding every impulse as sexual, much as certain Indians regarded men and horses as kinds of pig" — though it is interesting to note that a reference to one of Jung's works is given in this connection.). A full explanation of the psycho- logical roots of this fallacy would doubtless involve a thorough investi- gation into the nature of what might be called the Principle of Least Effort (in this case intellectual effort) — a principle which is emerging into a position of great importance in connection with Freud's later work. The mechanisms of symbolism (particularly those to which Ernest Jones has drawn attention in his recent work on the subject) and the general tendency to use concrete images rather than abstract thought are also obviously of great importance here.

6. The Fallacy of Limited Experience— "a tendency to draw con-