I recommend the fore-going Paragraph to the Consideration of the
Advocates for the Eternity and Divine Original of Virtue; assuring
them, that, if I am mistaken, it is not owing to any Perverseness of
my Will, but Want of Understanding.
The Opinion, that there can be no Virtue without Self-denial, is more
advantagious to Society than the contrary Doctrine, which is a vast
Inlet to Hypocrisy, as I have shewn at large [1]: Yet I am willing to
allow, that Men may contract a Habit of Virtue, so as to practise it,
without being sensible of Self-denial, and even that they may take
Pleasure in Actions that would be impracticable to the Vicious: But
then it is manifest, that this Habit is the Work of Art, Education and
Custom; and it never was acquired, where the Conquest over the
Passions had not be already made. There is no Virtuous Man of Forty
Years, but he may remember the Conflict he had with some Appetites
before he was Twenty. How natural seem all Civilities to be a
Gentleman! Yet Time was, that he would not have made his Bow, if he
had not been bid.
[Footnote 1: Fable of the _Bees_. p. ii. P. 106.]
Whoever has read the Second Part of the Fable of the _Bees_, will see,
that in these Dialogues I make Use of the same Persons, who are the
Interlocutors there, and whose Characters have been already draw in
the Preface of that Book.
The CONTENTS OF THE FIRST DIALOGUE.
_Honour is built upon a Passion in Human Nature, for which there is no
Name_
_The Author's Reasons for Coining the Word Self-liking_
_How the Passion of Self-liking is discovered in Infants_
_A Definition of Honour, and what it is in Substance_
_The Author's Opinion illustrated by what we know of Dishonour or Shame_
_The different Symptoms of Pride and Shame in the Mechanism of Man_
_Are both the Result of the same Passion_
_The Word Honour, as it signifies a Principle of Courage and Virtue, is
of Gothick Extraction_
_All Societies of Men are perpetually in Quest after Happiness_
_The true Reason, why no Nations can be govern'd without Religion,
enquired into_
_Why no one Sort or Degree of Idolatry can be more or less absurd than
another_
_For what Purpose all Religions may be equally serviceable_
_All Men are born with the Fear of an invisible Cause_
_The Usefulness of that Fear, as to Religion_
_The Impossibility of making_ Atheism _universally received_
_Religion no Invention of Politicians_
_The Benefit expected from the Notions of Honour_
_The Reasonableness of Mens Actions examined_
_How the Strictness of the Gospel came to be first disapproved of, and
the Consequence_
_How Mens Actions may be inconsistent with their Belief_
_That many bad Christians were yet kept in Awe by the Fear of Shame,
gave the first Handle to the Invention of Honour as a Principle_
_What it is we are afraid of in the Fear of Shame_
_Why the Principle of Honour has been of more Use to Society than that
of Virtue_
_The Principle of Honour, clashing with Christianity_
_Reasons why the Church of_ Rome _endeavour'd to reconcile them_
_The real Design of_ Legends _and_ Romances
_The Stratagems of the Church of_ Rome _to enslave the Laity_
_What gave Rise to the Custom of Duelling_
The Contents of the Second Dialogue.
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