VIII 

 THE DEFENCE 



THE main objections against the doctrine of Idealism to 

 which, as we saw in my last article, Mr. Hobhouse has 

 given such vigorous expression, may be stated as follows : 



1. That Idealism, by its spiritual interpretation of all 

 institutions and beliefs, implies an optimism which makes 

 the world into a place in which there is nothing to improve, 

 a veritable conservative, non-moral Paradise. 



2. That Idealism abolishes the distinction between right 

 and wrong by making everything right, and destroys the 

 uses of the intelligence by making everything doubtful. 



3. That, in the sphere of politics, Idealism aggrandises 

 the State at the expense of the individual, and brute-force 

 order at the expense of freedom and of humanitarian rela- 

 tions between citizen and citizen and between State and 

 State. 



1 am very much disposed to say that these charges are 

 all true. Idealism does make all things spiritual, and 

 imply an optimism ; it does deny that there is an absolute 

 difference between right and wrong ; it does assert that no 

 particular truth is absolutely certain ; it does greatly 

 magnify the State. But I should immediately require per- 

 mission to add : first, that its optimism implies the fight 



