OF THE UNITY OF THOUGHT. 7l7 



philosophy, does not enter into the highest conception of 

 Wimdt's speculation, but he is led on to an investigation 

 of the historical manifestations of the collective Will in 

 the history of human culture and civilisation. Its first 

 and earliest conscious manifestation is to be found in 

 language. The latter is the source of myths, and these 

 the beginning of religion on the one side, of custom and 

 morality on the other. The gradual evolution of 

 individual minds, with their individual interests and con- 

 flicts, is thus a manifestation or outcome of the life and 

 development of the collective mind. In this way Wundt 

 gives special expression to the idea of Humanity, which 

 plays such an important part in the classical literature 

 and philosophy of Germany and in a different manner in 

 the Positivism of Comte in France. 



There is no doubt that Wundt's peculiar conception 

 of an actuality, of a willing process, as a special principle 

 distinguished from the conception of substance, is ex- 

 tremely fruitful in dealing with historical and ethical 

 questions. Not less fruitful is his conception of growth 

 and expansion as characteristic of mental as distinguished 

 from purely physical energy. By a combination of these 

 two fundamental conceptions he views the collective 

 Will neither as a mere sum of individual Wills, nor as a 

 finished and perfected existence. It is something more 

 than the sum of its parts : the principle of " creative 

 synthesis " comes here into evidence. Also, it is an ideal 

 which is being gradually realised by the combined effort 

 of the individual Wills. This ideal affords a foundation 

 for ethical development and for a definite though chang- 

 ing expression of moral precepts. This view confirms 



