In some directions no doubt the growth of ap-
plied science has extended the sphere of reason in
human affairs. Yet in the world of mind, which
might seem to be her own domain, reason in these
days seems sadly out of fashion. Psychology,
which begins to reduce the play of mental activity
to a science, has not fostered the conception of
conduct as a reasoned art. On the contrary, its
tendency is to emphasize the primacy of feeling,
the sway of instinct, the prevalence of the irra-
tional in the mass movements of mankind. What
is still more remarkable, philosophy itself, once
the appointed guardian and advocate of reason,
shares in the irrationalist tendency. We shall
end by defining man as the irrational animal, and
the modern philosopher as his prophet.

2. So far as psychology is concerned the em-
phasis on the irrational is easy to understand.
When men first reflect upon their behaviour they
naturally start with things of which they are fully
conscious. If I am asked why I do this or that,
my answer is given in terms of an End. If I
cannot state the end clearly I seem to myself
rather foolish, and to my neighbour, perhaps, in-
sincere. So axiomatic does it seem that--to use
the Greek phrase--everything is done for the sake
of the apparent good that is to come from it.

-4-