صفحة 192 من 1391

The psychology of Plato extends no further than the division of

the soul into the rational, irascible, and concupiscent elements,

which, as far as we know, was first made by him, and has been

retained by Aristotle and succeeding ethical writers. The chief

difficulty in this early analysis of the mind is to define

exactly the place of the irascible faculty (Greek), which may be

variously described under the terms righteous indignation,

spirit, passion. It is the foundation of courage, which includes

in Plato moral courage, the courage of enduring pain, and of

surmounting intellectual difficulties, as well as of meeting

dangers in war. Though irrational, it inclines to side with the

rational: it cannot be aroused by punishment when justly

inflicted: it sometimes takes the form of an enthusiasm which

sustains a man in the performance of great actions. It is the

'lion heart' with which the reason makes a treaty.