Page:Psychology and preaching.djvu/112

 CHAPTER V

SENTIMENTS AND IDEALS

WE are now in a position to discuss sentiments and ideals, matters of supreme importance to all public speakers, and especially to preachers, because they figure so largely in the religious life. They are here discussed together, because, though quite distinct, they have so much in common.

I. We shall consider, first, the sentiments.

i. As to the definition. To Mr. Alexander F. Shand, an eminent English psychologist, is due the credit of having first pointed out the important fact that, with the develop ment of personality, the emotions are organized into sys tems. These systems, into which the primary emotions are organized, he calls sentiments. 1 Following Shand, Mc- Dougall defines a sentiment as &quot; an organized system of emotional tendencies centered about some object.&quot; 2 It is an obvious fact that as a personality develops it acquires more or less permanent and definite emotional attitudes towards various objects. The objects may be material things, animals, persons, groups of persons, institutions, or abstract principles. For example, one is almost certain to acquire a definite and more or less permanent emotional attitude towards a house in which he has lived ; or a dog which he owns ; or his mother, father, wife, child, friend, or enemy, etc.; or a particular city, state, nation, school, church, etc., or the principles of truth, justice, benevolence, selfishness, etc. When he sees such an object, or the mental image of it comes into his mind, certain feelings are aroused, either incipiently or in power. The tendency is always pres-

1 See especially &quot; The Foundations of Character,&quot; pp. 24-63.

2 &quot;An Introduction to Social Psychology,&quot; p. 122.

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