THE INDIRECT JUSTIFICATION OF ENTELECHY 255 



and " dissimilation " also ; without it a chaos of chemical 

 processes would occur, and would soon disturb organisation 

 and functioning. Previous analytical work has taught us 

 that entelechy acts by means of setting free pre-existing 

 potentials the compensation of which it has suspended 

 before ; this applies also to its work in the fundamental 

 phenomena of all physiology. It probably is the production 

 and actuation of ferments that is immediately controlled 

 here, oxidation or any kind of chemical synthesis or analysis 

 thus being purely chemical processes that follow the funda- 

 mental vital act 



Ancient Problems 



In a certain respect the problem dealt with in our 

 present considerations is identical with the famous 

 Aristotelian question whether the concept of a house be 

 subordinated in more than a formal manner - - to the 

 concepts of wood or stone as its higher classes. Aristotle 

 answers the question negatively, as we should do also. 

 But it is exactly the same thing, only in a still more 

 general form, to deny that entelechy itself is connected 

 with or dependent on chemical substances. 



And still another famous problem has been solved by 

 us implicitly : the " enigma " how it might be possible for- 

 matter to " think," a question which plays a great part in 

 one of the well-known addresses of Emil du Bois-Eeymond. 

 The answer is simple, for the problem is a pseudo-problem : 

 " matter " not only does not " think," but " matter " is not 

 even the foundation of life in any sense. Entelechy is 

 something different from matter and altogether opposed to 

 the causality of matter. 



