John Fiske (philosopher)

thumb|Science is but the increment of the power of the eye, and...art is the increment of the power of the hand. John Fiske (March 30, 1842 – July 4, 1901) was an American philosopher and historian. He was heavily influenced by Herbert Spencer and applied Spencer's concepts of evolution to his own writings on linguistics, philosophy, religion, and history. Quotes The ability to imagine relations is one of the most indispensable conditions of all precise thinking. No subject can be named, in the investigation of which it is not imperatively needed; but it can nowhere else be so thoroughly acquired as in the study of mathematics. Darwinism, and Other Essays, rev. ed. (Boston and New York: Houghton, Mifflin and Co, 1885) XIV. "University Reform", p. 296 The Destiny of Man Viewed in the Light of His Origin (1884) Boston and New York: Houghton, Mifflin and Co Man does not dwell at the centre of things, but is the denizen of an obscure and tiny speck of cosmical matter quite invisible amid the innumerable throng of flaming suns that make up our galaxy. Ch. 1, p. 15 In a very deep sense all human science is but the increment of the power of the eye, and all human art is the increment of the power of the hand. Ch. 7, p. 60 Misattributed The United States—bounded on the north by the Aurora Borealis, on the south by the precession of the equinoxes, on the east by the primeval chaos, and on the west by the Day of Judgment. "Bounding the United States", attributed to Fiske in Bartlett's Familiar Quotations, 14th ed. (1968) p. 655, note. However, Fiske was himself quoting: Among the legends of our late Civil War there is a story of a dinner-party given by the Americans residing in Paris, at which were propounded sundry toasts concerning not so much the past and present as the expected glories of the great American nation. In the general character of these toasts geographical considerations were very prominent, and the principal fact which seemed to occupy the minds of the speakers was the unprecedented bigness of our country. "Here's to the United States," said the first speaker, "bounded on the north by British America, on the south by the Gulf of Mexico, on the east by the Atlantic, and on the west by the Pacific, Ocean." "But," said the second speaker, "this is far too limited a view of the subject: in assigning our boundaries we must look to the great and glorious future which is prescribed for us by the Manifest Destiny of the Anglo-Saxon Race. Here's to the United States,—bounded on the north by the North Pole, on the south by the South Pole, on the east by the rising and on the west by the setting sun." Emphatic applause greeted this aspiring prophecy. But here arose the third speaker—a very serious gentleman from the Far West. "If we are going," said this truly patriotic American, "to leave the historic past and present, and take our manifest destiny into the account, why restrict ourselves within the narrow limits assigned by our fellow-countryman who has just sat down? I give you the United States,—bounded on the north by the Aurora Borealis, on the south by the precession of the equinoxes, on the east by the primeval chaos, and on the west by the Day of Judgment!" American Political Ideas Viewed from the Standpoint of Universal History (New York: Harper & Bros, 1885) Lecture 3: "Manifest Destiny", pp. 101–102 Compare: Our country—[whether] bounded by the St. John's and the Sabine, or however otherwise bounded or described, and be the measurements more or less—still our country—to be cherished in all our hearts, to be defended by all our hands. Robert C. Winthrop, Toast at Faneuil Hall (July 4, 1845). Niles' National Register (July 12, 1845) p. 290, col. 2 "What do I consider the boundaries of my country, sir?" exclaimed a Kentuckian. "Why, sir, on the east we are bounded by the rising sun—on the north by the aurora-borealis—on the west by the precession of the equinoxes—and on the south by the day of judgment!" The Literary World (September 1, 1849) p. 182, col. 1 A Kentuckian when describing America, said, "that it was bounded on the east by the rising sun, on the west by the setting ditto, on the north by the aurora borealis, and on the the south by a d—d sight further than you'd like to go. Alexander Marjoribanks, Travels in South and North America (1853) p. 294 "The Gulf Stream," said Major June [of the Light Artillery], in the manner of a school-boy, "rises in the Equator and empties into Symms' Hole; it is bounded, North by the Aurora Borealis, South by Colonel Kinney's Expedition, East by the savans of Europe, and West by Lieutenant Maury. It is guided in its wonderful course by 'Manifest Destiny,' and guarded by the American eagle. It went into the Ark with Noah, and came out of the Crystal Palace with Mr. Barnum, who has contracted to exhibit it at his next Baby Show, where he will baptize young America in its waters." Major March, Faca: An Army Memoir (1857) p. 106 America in the school-boy's definition: "Bounded on the north by the aurora borealis, on the south by the Frozen Ocean, on the east by the rising sun, and on the west by the day of judgment." The New York Times (July 31, 1881) p. 6, col. 4 External links Category:Philosophers from the United States Category:Historians from the United States Category:Harvard University alumni Category:People from Connecticut Category:1842 births Category:1901 deaths