will never allow him to lag or falter in the pursuit of the flying goal which points
the direction of his efforts.
Imagination and Conduct.—Another great field for imagination is with
reference to conduct and our relations with others. Over and over again the
thoughtless person has to say, "I am sorry; I did not think." The "did not think"
simply means that he failed to realize through his imagination what would be the
consequences of his rash or unkind words. He would not be unkind, but he did
not imagine how the other would feel; he did not put himself in the other's place.
Likewise with reference to the effects of our conduct on ourselves. What youth,
taking his first drink of liquor, would continue if he could see a clear picture of
himself in the gutter with bloated face and bloodshot eyes a decade hence? Or
what boy, slyly smoking one of his early cigarettes, would proceed if he could
see his haggard face and nerveless hand a few years farther along? What
spendthrift would throw away his money on vanities could he vividly see
himself in penury and want in old age? What prodigal anywhere who, if he could
take a good look at himself sin-stained and broken as he returns to his "father's
house" after the years of debauchery in the "far country" would not hesitate long
before he entered upon his downward career?
Imagination and Thinking.—We have already considered the use of
imagination in interpreting the thoughts, feelings and handiwork of others. Let
us now look a little more closely into the part it plays in our own thinking.
Suppose that, instead of reading a poem, we are writing one; instead of listening
to a description of a battle, we are describing it; instead of looking at the picture,
we are painting it. Then our object is to make others who may read our language,
or listen to our words, or view our handiwork, construct the mental images of the
situation which furnished the material for our thought.
Our words and other modes of expression are but the description of the flow of
images in our minds, and our problem is to make a similar stream flow through
the mind of the listener; but strange indeed would it be to make others see a
situation which we ourselves cannot see; strange if we could draw a picture
without being able to follow its outlines as we draw. Or suppose we are teaching
science, and our object is to explain the composition of matter to someone, and
make him understand how light, heat, etc., depend on the theory of matter;
strange if the listener should get a picture if we ourselves are unable to get it. Or,
once more, suppose we are to describe some incident, and our aim is to make its
every detail stand out so clearly that no one can miss a single one. Is it not
evident that we can never make any of these images more clear to those who