Read Ebook: An Enquiry into an Origin of Honour; and the Usefulness of Christianity in War by Mandeville Bernard

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Hor. But what is all this to the Origin of Honour? What Reason have you to think it to be of Gothick Extraction?

Cleo. My Conjecture concerning Honour, as it signifies a Principle from which Men act, is, that it is an Invention of Politicians, to keep Men close to their Promises and Engagements, when all other Ties prov'd ineffectual; and the Christian Religion itself was often found insufficient for that Purpose.

Hor. But the Belief of an over-ruling Power, that will certainly punish Perjury and Injustice, being common to all Religions, what pre-eminence has the Christian over the Rest, as to the Civil Society in Temporals?

Cleo. It shews and insists upon the Necessity of that Belief more amply and more emphatically than any other. Besides, the Strictness of its Morality, and the exemplary Lives of Those who preach'd it, gain'd vast Credit to the mysterious Part of it; and there never had been a Doctrine or Philosophy from which it was so likely to expect, that it would produce Honesty, mutual Love and Faithfulness in the Discharge of all Duties and Engagements as the Christian Religion. The wisest Moralists, before that Time, has laid the greatest Stress on the Reasonableness of their precepts; and appeal'd to Human Understanding for the Truth of their Opinions. But the Gospel, soaring beyond the Reach of Reason, teaches us many Things, which no Mortal could ever have known, unless they had been reveal'd to him; and several that must always remain incomprehensible to finite Capacities; and this is the Reason, that the Gospel presses and enjoins Nothing with more Earnestness than Faith and Believing.

Hor. But would Men be more sway'd by Things they believed only, than they would be by those they understood?

Cleo. All Human Creatures are sway'd and wholly govern'd by their Passions, whatever fine Notions we may flatter our Selves with; even those who act suitably to their Knowledge, and strictly follow the Dictates of their Reason, are not less compell'd so to do by some Passion or other, that sets them to Work, than others, who bid Defiance and act contrary to Both, and whom we call Slaves to their Passions. To love Virtue for the Beauty of it, and curb one's Appetites because it is most reasonable so to do, are very good Things in Theory; but whoever understands our Nature, and consults the Practice of Human Creatures, would sooner expect from them, that they should abstain from Vice, for Fear of Punishment, and do good, in Hopes of being rewarded for it.

Hor. Would you prefer that Goodness, built upon Selfishness and Mercenary Principles, to that which proceeds from a Rectitude of Thinking, and a real Love of Virtue and Reasonableness of Mens Actions?

Cleo. We can give no better Proof of our Reasonableness, than by judging rightly. When a Man wavers in his Choice, between present Enjoyments of Ease and Pleasure, and the Discharge of Duties that are troublesome, he weighs what Damage or benefit will accrue to him upon the Whole, as well from the Neglect as the Observence of the Duties that are prescrib'd to him; and the greater the Punishment is he fears from the Neglect, and the more transcendent the Reward is which he hopes for from the Observance, the more reasonably he acts, when he sides with his Duty. To bear with Inconveniencies, Pain and Sorrow, in Hopes of being eternally Happy, and refuse the Enjoyments of Pleasure, for Fear of being Miserable for ever, are more justifiable to Reason, and more consonant to good Sense, than it is to do it for Nothing.

Hor. But our Divines will tell you, that this Slavish Fear is unacceptable, and that the Love of God ought to be the Motive of good Actions.

Hor. Those who profess to be of a Theory, which they contradict by their Practice, are, without Doubt, hypocrites.

Hor. Has not a Man Desires beyond the Grave, who buys an Estate, not to be enjoy'd but by his Heirs, and enters into Agreements that shall be binding for a Thousand Years.

Cleo. All the Pleasure and Satisfaction that can arise from the Reflection on our Heirs, is enjoy'd in this Life: And the Benefits and Advantages we wish to our Posterity are of the same Nature with those which we would wish to our Selves if we were to live; and what we take Care of is, that they shall be Rich, keep their Possessions, and that their Estates, Authority and Prerogatives shall never diminish, but rather encrease. We look upon Posterity as the Effect of which we are the Cause, and we reckon our Selves as it were to continue in them.

Hor. But the Ambitious that are in Pursuit of Glory, and sacrifise their Lives to Fame and a lasting Reputation, sure they have Wishes beyond the Grave.

Hor. I don't see what you drive at.

Cleo. I am endeavouring to account for the small Effect and little Force, which Religion, and the Belief of future Punishments, may be of to mere Man, unassisted with the Divine Grace. The Practice of nominal Christians is perpetually clashing with the Theory they profess. Innumerable Sins are committed in private, which the Presence of a Child, or the most insignificant Person, might have hinder'd, by Men who believe God to be omniscient, and never question'd his Ubiquity.

Hor. But pray, come to the Point, the Origin of Honour.

Cleo. If we consider, that men are always endeavouring to mend their Condition and render Society more happy as to this World we may easily conceive, when it was evident that Nothing could be a Check upon Man that was absent, or at least appear'd not to be present, how Moralists and Politicians came to look for Something in Man himself, to keep him in Awe. The more they examin'd into Human Nature, the more they must have been convinced, that Man is so Selfish a Creature, that, whilst he is at Liberty, the greatest Part of his Time will always be bestow'd upon himself; and that whatever Fear or Revenerence he might have for an invisible Cause, that Thought was often jostled out by others, more nearly relating to himself. It is obvious likewise, that he neither loves nor esteems any Thing so well as he does his own Individual; and that here is Nothing, which he has so constantly before his Eyes, as his own dear Self. It is highly probable, that skilful Rulers, having made these observations for some Time, would be tempted to try if Man could not be made an Object of Reverence to himself.

Hor. You have only named Love and Esteem; they alone cannot produce Reverence by your own Maxim; how could they make a man afraid of himself?

Hor. But, how are you sure, that this was the Work of Moralists and Politicians, as you seem to insinuate?

Cleo. I give those Names promiscuously to All that, having studied Human Nature, have endeavour'd to civilize Men, and render them more and more tractable, either for the Ease of Governours and Magistrates, or else for the Temporal Happiness of Society in general. I think of all Inventions of this Sort, the same which told you of Politeness, that they are the joint Labour of Many, Human Wisdom is the Child of Time. It was not the Contrivance of one Man, nor could it have been the Business of a few Years, to establish a Notion, by which a rational Creature is kept in Awe for Fear of it Self, and an Idol is set up, that shall be its own Worshiper.

Hor. But I deny, that in the Fear of Shame we are afraid of our Selves. What we fear, is the judgment of others, and the ill Opinion they will justly have of us.

Cleo. Examine this thoroughly, and you'll find, that when we covet Glory, or dread Infamy, it is not the good or bad Opinion of others that affects us with Joy or Sorrow, Pleasure or Pain; but it is the Notion we form of that Opinion of theirs, and must proceed from the Regard and Value we have for it. If it was otherwise, the most Shameless Fellow would suffer as much in his Mind from publick Disgrace and Infamy, as a Man that values his Reputation. Therefore it is the Notion we have of Things, our own Thought and Something within our Selves, that creates the Fear of Shame: For if I have a Reason, why I forbear to do a Thing to Day, which it is impossible should be known before to Morrow, I must be with-held by Something that exists already; for Nothing can act upon me the Day before it has its Being.

Hor. The Upshot is I find, that Honour is of the same Origin with Virtue.

Cleo. But the Invention of Honour, as a Principle, is of a much later Date; and I look upon it as the greater Atchievement by far. It was an Improvement in the Art of Flattery, by which the Excellency of our Species is raised to such a Height, that it becomes the Object of our own Adoration, and Man is taught in good Earnest to worship himself.

Hor. But granting you, that both Virtue and Honour are of Human Contrivance, why do you look upon the Invention of the One to be a greater Atchievement than that of the other?

Cleo. Because the One is more skilfully adapted to our inward Make. Men are better paid for their Adherence to Honour, than they are for their Adherence to Virtue: The First requires less Self-denial; and the Rewards they receive for that Little are not imaginary but real and palpable. But Experience confirms what I say: The Invention of Honour has been far more beneficial to the Civil Society than that of Virtue, and much better answer'd the End for which they were invented. For ever since the Notion of Honour has been receiv'd among Christians, there have always been, in the same Number of People, Twenty Men of real Honour, to One of real Virtue. The Reason is obvious. The Persuasions to Virtue make no Allowances, nor have any Allurements that are clashing with the Principle of it; whereas the Men of Pleasure, the Passionate and the Malicious, may all in their Turns meet with Opportunities of indulging their darling Appetites without trespassing against the Principle of Honour. A virtuous Man thinks himself obliged to obey the Laws of his Country; but a Man of Honour acts from a Principle which he is bound to believe Superiour to all Laws. Do but consider the Instinct of Sovereignty that all Men are born with, and you'll find, that in the closest Attachment to the Principle of Honour there are Enjoyments that are ravishing to Human Nature. A virtuous Man expects no Acknowledgments from others; and if they won't believe him to be virtuous, his Business is not to force them to it; but a Man of Honour has the Liberty openly to proclaim himself to be such, and call to an Account Every body who dares to doubt of it: Nay, such is the inestimable Value he sets upon himself, that he often endeavours to punish with Death the most insignificant Trespass that's committed against him, the least Word, Look, or Motion, if he can find but any far-fetch'd reason to suspect a Design in it to under-value him; and of this No body is allow'd to be a Judge but himself. The Enjoyments that arise from being virtuous are of that Nicety, that every ordinary Capacity cannot relish them: As, without Doubt, there is a noble Pleasure in forgiving of Injuries, to Speculative Men that have refin'd Notions of Virtue; but it is more Natural to resent them; and in revenging one's self, there is a Pleasure which the meanest Understanding is capable of tasting. It is manifest then, that there are Allurements in the Principle of Honour, to draw in Men of the lowest Capacity, and even the vicious, which Virtue has not.

Hor. I can't see, how a Man can be really virtuous, who is not likewise a Man of Honour. A Person may desire to be Honest, and have an Aversion to Injustice, but unless he has Courage, he will not always dare to be just, and may on many Occasions be afraid to do his Duty. There is no Dependance to be had on a Coward, who may be bully'd into vicious Actions, and every Moment be frighten'd from his Principle.

Hor. Yet the further we look back for these Seven or Eight Hundred years, the more we shall find Honour and Religion blended together.

Hor. What are those, pray.

Cleo. Indulging Some in their Vices, Humouring Others in their Folly, and Flattering the Pride of All. The various Orders of Knighthood were so many Bulwarks to defend the Temporals of the Church, as well against the Encroachments of her Friends, as the Invasions of her Enemies. It was in the Institutions of these Orders, that Pains were taken by the grand Architects of the Church, to reconcile, in outward Shew, the Principle of Honour with that of the Christian Religion, and make Men stupidly believe, that the Height of Pride is not inconsistent with the greatest Humility. In these Solemnities the jugling Priests resolved to be kept out no where; had commonly the greatest Share; continually blending Rites seemingly Sacred with the Emblems of vain Glory, which made all of them an eternal Mixture of Pomp and Superstition.

Hor. I don't believe, that ever Any body set those Things in such a Light besides your Self; but I see no Design, and the Priests gave themselves a great Deal of Trouble for Nothing.

Cleo. Yet it is certain, that, by this and other Arts, they made themselves sure of the most dangerous Men; for by this Means the boldest and even the most wicked became Bigots. The less Religion they had, the more they stood in Need of the Church; and the farther they went from God, the more closely they stuck to the Priests, whose Power over the Laity was then the most absolute and uncontroul'd when the Crimes of These were most flagrant and enormous.

Hor. I believe, that among the Men of Honour Many were tainted with Pride and Superstition at the same Time; but there were others in whom superlative Bravery was united with the strictest Virtue.

Hor. Pardon my Rudeness, I cannot stay one Moment. An Affair of Importance requires my Presence. It is an Appointment which I had entirely forgot when I came hither. I am sure I have been staid for this Half Hour.

Hor. You don't stir out I know; I shall be back again in Two Hours Time.

Cleo. And I shall be at Home for No body but your Self.

Horatio. I Believe I am within my Time.

Hor. I remember it, and it is true. Gallantry with Women, is no Discredit to the Men, any more than Want of Courage is a Reproach to the Ladies. But do you think this is an Answer to what I said?

Cleo. It is an Answer to your Charge against me of making Use of an Artifice, which, I declare to you, never enter'd into my Head. That the Honour of Women in general, is allow'd to consist in their Chastity, is very true; the Words themselves have been made Use of as Synonimous even among the Ancients: But this, strictly speaking, ought only to be understood of Worldly Women, who act from Political Views, and at best from a Principle of Heathen Virtue. But the Women you speak of among the Christians, who, having vow'd a perpetual Virginity, debar themselves from sensual Pleasures, must be set on, and animated by a higher Principle than that of Honour. Those who can voluntarily make this Vow in good Humour and Prosperity, as well as Health and Vigour, and keep it with Strictness, tho' it is in their Power to break it, have, I own with you, a Task to perform, than which Nothing can be more mortifying to Flesh and Blood. Self-liking or Pride, as you say, have Nothing to do there. But where are these Women to be found?

Hor. I told you; in the Religious Houses.

Cleo. I don't believe there is one in a Thousand that answers the Character you gave of them. Most Nuns are made whilst they are very young, and under the Tuition of others; and oftner by Compulsion than their own Choice.

Hor. But there are Women grown, who take the Veil voluntarily, when they are at their own Disposal.

Cleo. Not many, who have not some substantial Reason or other for it, that has no Relation to Piety or Devotion; such as the Want of a Portion suitable to their Quality; Disappointments or other Misfortunes in the World. But to come to the Point. There are but two Things which, in Celibacy, can make Men or Women, in Youth and Health, strictly comply with the Rules of Chastity; and these are Religion, and the Fear of Shame. Good Christians, that are wholly sway'd by the Sense of a Religious Duty, must be supernaturally assisted, and are Proof against all Temptations. But These have always been very scarce, and there are no Numbers of them any where, that one can readily go to. It would perhaps be an odious Disquisition, whether, among all the young and middle-aged Women who lead a Monastick Life, and are secluded from the World, there are Any that have, abstract from all other Motives, Religion enough to secure them from the Frailty of the Flesh, if they had an Opportunity to gratify it to their Liking with Impunity. This is certain, that their Superiors, and Those under whose Care these Nuns are, seem not to entertain that Opinion of the Generality of them. They always keep them lock'd up and barr'd; suffer no Men to converse with them even in Publick, but where there are Grates between them, and not even then within Reach of one another: And tho' hardly a Male Creature of any Kind is allow'd to come near them, yet they are ever suspicious of them, pry into their most Secret Thoughts, and keep constantly a watchful Eye over them.

Hor. Don't you think this must be a great Mortification to young Women?

Cleo. Yes, a forc'd one; but there is no voluntary Self-denial, which was the Thing you spoke of. The Mortifitation which they feel is like that of Vagabonds in a Work-House: There is no Virtue in the Confinement of either. Both are dissatisfied, without Doubt, but it is because they are not employ'd to their Liking; and what they grieve at, is, that they can't help themselves. But there are Thousands of vain Women, whom no Thoughts of Futurity ever made any Impression upon, that lead single Lives by Choice, and are at the same Time careful of their Honour to the greatest Nicety, in the Midst of Temptations, gay sprightly Women, of amorous Complexions, that can deny a passionate, deserving Lover, whose Person they approve of and admire, when they are alone with him in the dark; and all this from no better Principle than the Fear of Shame, which has its Foundation in Self-liking, and is so manifesty derived from that and no other Passion. You and I are acquainted with Women, that have refused Honourable Matches with the Men they loved, and with whom they might have been Happy, if they themselves had been less intoxicated with Vanity.

Hor. But when a Woman can marry, and be maintain'd suitably to her Quality, and she refuses a Man upon no other Score, than that his Fortune, or his Estate, are not equal to her unreasonable Desires, the Passion she acts from is Covetousness.

Cleo. Would you call a Woman covetous, who visibly takes Delight in Lavishness, and never shew'd any Value for Money when She had it: One that would not have a Shilling left at the Year's End, tho' she had Fifty Thousand Pounds coming in? All Women consult not what is befitting their Quality: What many of them want is to be maintain'd suitably to their Merit, their own Worth, which with great Sincerity they think inestimable and which consequently no Price can be equal to. The Motive therefore of these Women is no other, than what I have call'd it, their Vanity, the undoubted Offspring of Self-liking, a palpable Excess, an extravagant Degree of the Passion, that is able to stifle the loudest Calls of Nature, and with a high Hand triumphs over all other Appetites and Inclinations. What Sort of Education now do you think the fittest to furnish and fill young Ladies with this high Esteem for themselves and their Reputation, which, whilst it subsists and reigns in them, is an ever-watchful and incorruptible Guardian of their Honour? Would you mortify or flatter; lessen or increase in them the Passion of Self-liking, in order to preserve their Chastity? In short, which of the Two is it, you would stir up and cultivate in them if you could, Humility or Pride?

Hor. I should not try to make them Humble, I own: And now I remember, that in our Third Conversation, speaking of raising the Principle Honour in both Sexes, you gave some plausible Reasons why Pride should be more encourag'd in Women than in Men. So much for the Ladies. I shall now be glad to hear what you have to add further concerning Honour, as it relates to Men only, and requires Courage. When I took the Freedom to interupt you, you was saying Something of Two Hundred Years ago.

Cleo. I was then going to put you in Mind, that Two Hundred Years ago and upward, as all Gentlemen were train'd up to Arms, the Notions of Honour were of great Use to them; and it was manifest, that never any Thing had been invented before, that was half so effectual to create artificial Courage among Military Men. For which Reason it was the Interest of all politicians, among the Clergy, as well as the Laity, to cultivate these Notions of Honour with the utmost Care, and leave no stone unturn'd to make Every body believe the Existence and Reality of such a Principle; not among Mechanicks, or any of the Vulgar, but in Persons of high Birth, Knights, and others of Heroick Spirit and exalted Nature. I can easily imagine, how, in a credulous, ignorant Age, this might be swallow'd and generally receiv'd for Truth; nor is it more difficult to conceive, how illiterate Men and rude Warriours, altogether unacquainted with Human Nature, should be so far imposed upon by such Assertions, as to be fully persuaded, that they were really posses'd of; and actually animated by such a Principle, constantly ascribing to the Force and Influence of it every Effort and Suggestion they felt from the Passion of Self-liking. The Idol it self was finely dress'd up, made a beautiful Figure, and the Worship of it seem'd to require Nothing, that was not highly commendable and most beneficial to Society. Those who pretended to pay their Adoration to it, and to be true Votaries of Honour, had a hard Task to perform. They were to be Brave and yet Courteous, Just, Loyal, and the Protectors of Innocence against Malice and Oppression. They were to be the profess'd Guardians of the Fair; and chaste, as well as profound Admirers of the Sex: But above all, they were to be Stanch to the Church, implicite Believers, zealous Champions of the Christian Faith, and implacable Enemies to all Infidels and Hereticks.

Hor. I believe, that between Two and Three Hundred Years ago, Bigotry was at the greatest Height.

Hor. But the Ignorance of those Days notwithstanding, you believe, that there were Men of that strict Honour, you have been speaking of.

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