ItisfromProfessorDeweythatIhavelearnedthatthemostsacredresponsibilityofaman’, tothinkwithoutstrictregardtotheantecedentsandconsequencesofthought, toacceptready-madeandunanalyzedconceptsaspremisesofthinking, toallowpersonalfactorsunconsciouslytoinfluenceone’sthinking, ortofailtotestone’, andallthegreatestcalamitiesinhistory, dependuponthis.
Deweyhasgivenusaphilosophyofthinkingwhichtreatsthinkingasanart, , butalsoofthebestresearchesinthehistoricalsciences, suchastextualcriticism, philologicalreconstruction, , thebestresultshavebeenachievedbythesametechnique, .
Curiouslyenough, , , myargumentsfortheliteraryrevolutioninChinahavebeenentirelybasedupontheundeniablefactsofhistoricalevolutionandtheyhavebeensofarunanswerablebymyopponents.
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ThedeathofmymotherinNovember, 1918, , 1919, inanessayentitled “Immortality, MyReligion.”
“ThreeImmortalities”whichIfoundintheTsoCommentaryontheChunChiu, whereitwasrecordedthatthewisestatesmanShu-sinPaodeclaredintheyear548B.C.(whenConfuciuswasonly3yearsold) thattherewerethreekindsofimmortality: theimmortalityofVirtue, ofService, andofWiseSpeech.“Thesearenotforgottenwithlengthoftimeandthatiswhatismeantbyimmortalityafterdeath.” ThisdoctrineattractedmesomuchthatIoftenspokeofittomyforeignfriendsandgavetoitthename “thedoctrineoftheimmortalityofthethreeW’s (Worth, Work, andWords).”