SECTION V. 453 learning ; even at artificial trifles, as a flea kept alive in a chain ; at any uncommon appearances in nature discovered by a telescope, a microscope, &c. Admiration has no regard to the agreeable- ness or disagreeableness of the object, but only the rarity oï it. And for this reason wonder seems to be the first Of the passions. Ifthe object which is rare and uncommon appear to us on a sudden, or in an unexpected moment, we give it the name of surprize: If our wonder arise to a highdegree . we call it amaze- ment or astonishment. The passion discovers itself by lifting up of the hands or the eyes, and by an intense fixation of the sight or the thoughts. When it rises very high on a sudden, it will stop the voice, and reduce the person as it were to the fixed posture and silence of a statue for a few moments, this is called stupor ; and if fear be joined with it, it will produce more unhappy effects. Let it be observed, thatthispassion has properly no opposite, because if the object be not rare or new, or if the appearance be not suddenor unexpected, but a mere common and familiar thing, or an expected occurrence, we receive it withgreat calmness, and feel no such commotion ofnature about it ; we treat it with neg- lect instead of wonder : Now, neglect is no passion. The rest of the passions, at least the most of them, go in pairs. . Let us take notice also, that admiration is most frequently excited in young persons, and such as have had but little oppor- tunity of furnishing themselves with the knowledge of various things either in nature orprovidence, or in the sciences ; whereas wise and learned men, who have seen or known a large varietyof 'objects and events, seldom find things rare and new, or strange enough to wonder at. I might observe also, that those who are of a very heavy and stupid genius, have not curiosity or sprightliness enough in their constitution to take notice of things new and strange ; and they are not very subject to admiration. Thus it appears why -wise men and fools donot so often wonder, as persons ofa middle rank of genius or improvement. The great end and design ofthis passion of admiration, is to fix our attention upon the admired object, to impress it more ef- fectuallyupon our memory, as well as to give a sensible- delight to the mind of man, which loves newness and variety ; and especially whère the object has any thing in it that is valuableor agreeable, which would Moline us to esteem or love it. This `leads meto the next general passions of thefirst rank. SECT. V.Love and Hatred. The motions of the mind, and the correspondent ferments of the blood, are very numerous in our natures, and are not r f3
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