BOOK I PART III
I must not conclude this subject without ob-
serving, that it is very difficult to talk of the
operations of the mind with perfect propriety
and exactness; because common language has
seldom made any very nice distinctions among
them, but has generally called by the same term
all such as nearly resemble each other. And
as this is a source almost inevitable of obscu-
rity and confusion in the author; so it may fre-
quently give rise to doubts and objections in
the reader, which otherwise he would never
have dreamed of. Thus my general position,
that an opinion or belief is nothing but a strong
and lively idea derived from a present impres-
sion related to it, maybe liable to the follow-
ing objection, by reason of a little ambiguity
in those words strong and lively. It may be
said, that not only an impression may give rise
to reasoning, but that an idea may also have