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ready mastered this subject, and made a thorough acquaintance with their own understanding; but for my own information, and the satisfaction of a few friends, who acknowledged themselves not to have sufficiently considered it. A conversation with five or six friends at my chamber, on a subject remote from this, gave rise to this Essay. Being much perplexed with difficulties that rose on every side, it came into my thoughts that it was necessary previously to examine our own abilities, and see what objects our Understandings were or were not fitted to deal with. And this discourse, thus begun by chance, was continued by intreaty, written by incoherent parcels, resumed at pleasure after long intervals of neglect, and at last arranged in the leisure of retire

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This discontinued way of writing may have occasioned, besides others, two contrary faults—brevity and prolixity. Where I may seem to have said too little, I shall be glad to have excited a desire for more: where too much, I acknowledge that the way in which it was written is apt to cause repetitions: but I am now too lazy or too busy to make it shorter.

I might alledge in my defence, that the same notion, having different respects, may be convenient or necessary to prove or illustrate several parts of the same discourse: but I frankly avow that I have ex

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pressed the same argument different ways, with the design of rendering plain and familiar some Truths which established prejudice, or the abstractness of Ideas themselves, might render difficult. had much rather the speculative and quick sighted should complain of my being in some parts tedious, than that any one not accustomed to abstract speculations, or prepossessed with different notions, should mistake or not comprehend my meaning.

"I shall always have the satisfaction to have aimed sincerely at truth and usefulness, though in one of the meanest ways. The commonwealth of learning is not at this time without master-builders, whose mighty designs, in advancing the sciences, will leave lasting monuments to the admiration of posterity but every one must not hope to be a Boyle or a Sydenham; and in an age that produces such masters as the great Huygenius, and the incomparable Mr. Newton, with some other of that strain, it is ambition enough to be employed as an Under-labourer in clearing ground a little, and removing some of the rubbish that lies in the way to knowledge; which certainly had been very much more advanced in the world, if the endeavours of ingenious and industrious men had not been much cumbered with the learned but frivolous use of uncouth, affected, or unintelligible terms, introduced into the sciences, and there made an art of, to that degree, that philosophy

which is nothing but the true knowledge of things, was thought unfit or uncapable to be brought into well-bred company and polite conversation. Vague and insignificant forms of speech, and abuse of language, have so long passed for mysteries of sciences, and hard or misapplied words, with little or no meaning, have by prescription such a right to be mistaken for deep learning, and height of speculation, that it will not be easy to persuade either those who speak, or those who hear them, that they are but the covers of ignorance, and hindrance of true knowledge. To break in upon the sanctuary of Vanity and Ignorance will be, I suppose, some service to human understanding: though so few are apt to think they deceive or are deceived in the use of words; or that the language of the sect they are of has any faults in it, which ought to be examined or corrected; that I hope I shall be pardoned, if I have in the third book dwelt long on this subject, and endeavoured to make it so plain, that neither the inveterateness of the mischief, nor the prevalency of the fashion, shall be any excuse for those, who will not take care about the meaning of their own words, and will not suffer the significancy of their expressions to be enquired into.',

OF HUMAN UNDERSTANDING.

BOOK I.

CHAP. I.

Introduction.

SINCE it is the Understanding that sets man above the rest of Sensible Beings, and gives him all the advantage and dominion which he has over them ; it is certainly a subject, even for its nobleness, worth our labour to enquire into.

The Understanding, like the eye, whilst it makes us see and perceive all other things, takes no notice of itself: and it requires art and pains to set it at a distance, and make it its own object.

My design is to enquire into the original, certainty, and extent of human knowledge; together with the grounds and degrees of Belief, Opinion, and Assent.

I shall not at present meddle with the Physical Consideration of the mind; or examine wherein its

essence consists, or by what motions of our spirits, or alteration of our bodies, we come to have any Sensation by our Organs, or any Ideas in our Understandings; or whether those Ideas do in their formation depend on matter or not. My purpose is to consider the discerning faculties of a man, as they are employed about the objects which they have to do with.

He that shall observe with what fondness men embrace, and with what eagerness they maintain opposite opinions, may have reason to suspect either, that there is no such thing as Truth at all, or that mankind hath no sufficient means to attain a certain knowledge of it.

It is therefore worth while to search out the bounds between Opinion and Knowledge, and examine by what measures, in things whereof we have no certain knowledge, we ought to regulate our Assent and moderate our Persuasions. Wherefore I shall enquire,―

1st, Into the Original of those Ideas, or Notions, which a man observes and is conscious that he has in his mind; and how the Understanding is furnished with them.

2dly, What knowledge the Understanding hath by those Ideas; and the Certainty, Evidence, and Extent of it.

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