The jealous lover…ideas of remoter facts
Upon reading James’ chapter The Reality of the Unseen, he made a statement that a memory of an insult may make one angrier than when it was received and also that such thoughts may elicit stronger reactions than that of the senses, I feel gives some insight as to how one can be so passionate about something they cannot see or sense but rather think, such as a jealous lover who is sure that their partner is cheating and carries out acts of rage not based on evidence or proof but only due to the thought. The jealous lover is following something he thinks he “knows” but in fact he does not, but only believes and has faith that his belief is right and causes him to act upon his faith. It seems that James’ point is that what has been considered knowledge thus far such as Plato’s forms is like the knowledge the jealous lover has, it is actually not knowledge and really not knowable but only a matter of faith such as Kant who posited that knowledge be denied to make room for faith in order to maneuver throughout the world on a daily basis in practical acts. What we know is the appearances of things such as the appearance of the jealous lover’s idea of infidelity, but we really can’t know, because we do not understand the idea behind the cause and effect of our so called knowledge or faith but only the appearances we receive from the senses or thoughts.
