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Rh the usual psychology terms a perception, or the content of a perception, what Schopenhauer called a presentation, what in England is called an "impression" or "idea," the "thing," "fact," or "object" of ordinary language; and the word is used independently of the presence or absence of a special sense-organ stimulation—a most important and novel addition. In the sense of Avenarius, and for our purpose, it is a matter of indifference to the terminology how far what is called "analysis" takes place, the whole tree may be taken as the "element," or each single leaf, or each hair, or (where most people would stop), the colours, sizes, weights, temperatures, resistances, and so forth. Still, the analysis may go yet further, and the colour of the leaf may be taken as merely the resultant of its quality, intensity, luminosity, and so forth, these being the elements. Or we may go still further and take modern ultimate conceptions reaching units incapable of sub-division.

In the sense of Avenarius, then, elements are such ideas as "green," "blue," "cold," "warm," "soft," "hard," "sweet," "bitter," and their "character" is the particular kind of quality with which they appear, not merely their pleasantness or unpleasantness, but also such modes of presentation as "surprising," "expected," "novel," "indifferent," "recognised," "known," "actual," "doubtful," categories which Avenarius first recognised as being psychological. For instance, what I guess, believe, or know is an "element"; the fact that I guess it, not believe it or know it, is the "character" in which it presents itself psychologically (not logically).

Now there is a stage in mental activity in which this sub-division of psychical phenomena cannot be made, which is too early for it. All "elements" at their first appearance are merged with the floating background, the whole being vaguely tinged by "character." To follow my meaning, think of what takes place, when for the first time at a distance one sees something in the landscape, such as a shrub or a heap of wood, at the moment when one does not yet know what "it" is.