Our natural tendency to imitate others in everything

After having explained the nature of the imagination, the faults to which it is prone, and how our own imagination leads us into error, there remains only one topic to discuss in this second book: the contagious communication of strong imaginations — that is, the power certain minds have over others to draw them into their own mistakes.

Strong imaginations are extremely contagious; they dominate weaker ones, gradually shaping them in the same pattern and imprinting upon them the same impressions. Given that those with a strong and vigorous imagination are often quite unreasonable, this dangerous transmission of mental habits is one of the most widespread causes of human error.

To understand what this contagion is and how it passes from one person to another, we must recognize that human beings depend on one another and are created to form a unified whole, with each part connected and responsive to the rest. To maintain this unity, God commanded us to practice charity toward one another. But since self‑love could gradually weaken charity and break the bonds of society, God also linked people together through natural ties — bonds that remain even when charity fails, and which appeal directly to self‑interest.

The origin of the spread of errors arising from the power of the imagination

These natural links, which we share even with animals, consist in a certain structure of the brain common to all human beings: a tendency to imitate those we interact with, to form the same judgments they form, and to experience the same passions that move them. This bond usually connects people far more closely than a charity based on reason — which is, after all, quite rare.

When someone lacks this natural tendency to share our feelings and emotions, they are by nature incapable of uniting with us or forming part of the same community. They are like rough‑hewn stones that cannot fit into a building because they cannot be joined properly to the rest.

The sad hate the cheerful, and the cheerful hate the sad;

The slow despise the quick, the quick the slow‑paced man.

It takes more strength of character than most people realize to remain on good terms with those who disregard our feelings and hold views opposite to our own. And this is not entirely unreasonable: when someone has reason to feel sadness or joy, it is in a way an insult not to share their state of mind. If a person is grieving, we should not stand before them with a bright, cheerful demeanor that conveys joy and forces its mood upon their imagination. To do so is to try to take them out of the state most natural and comforting to them; for even sorrow is the most tolerable of all passions to someone who is suffering.

Two main causes that strengthen this tendency

All human beings therefore possess a certain natural structure of the brain that inclines them to think and act in ways similar to those around them. This tendency has two main causes that sustain and strengthen it: one originating in the soul, the other in the body.

The first cause lies chiefly in the universal human desire for status and distinction, and for gaining a respected place in the minds of others. This desire is what secretly urges us to speak, walk, dress, and adopt the manners of people of high standing. It is the source of changing fashions, the instability of living languages, and even certain widespread declines in moral standards. Ultimately, it is the main reason behind all kinds of extravagant and bizarre innovations — ideas supported not by reason, but only by human fancy.

The second cause, which we shall focus on here, is the powerful impression made upon weak minds and soft, sensitive brains by those who possess a strong imagination.

What is meant by a strong imagination

By a strong and vigorous imagination, I mean a brain structure capable of receiving impressions and traces of extraordinary depth — impressions so deep that they occupy the entire capacity of the soul, preventing it from giving attention to anything other than the images they represent.

There are different kinds of it. Concerning madmen and those who have a strong imagination in the sense intended here

There are two types of people who have a strong imagination in this sense. The first receive these deep impressions through the uncontrolled and random movement of the “animal spirits” that govern thought. The second — and the ones we shall chiefly discuss — receive them because of the inherent structure of their brain itself.

It is clear that the first group are fully mad: because of the natural link between their ideas and these fixed impressions, they are forced to think of things that no one else around them is thinking about. This makes them unable to speak appropriately or answer questions correctly. There are countless degrees of this condition, and we may say that anyone driven by intense passion falls into this category. In moments of strong emotion, the animal spirits stamp the traces and images of that passion so deeply into the brain that the person can think of nothing else.

Yet it should be noted that such people cannot corrupt the imagination of even the weakest and most impressionable minds, for two main reasons. First, since they cannot express themselves in ways that match the thoughts of others, they cannot persuade anyone. Second, because their confusion is obvious to everyone, their words are listened to only with contempt.

It is true, however, that passionate people stir passion in others and leave impressions on our imagination similar to what they feel themselves. But since their agitation is clearly visible, we resist these impressions and usually shake them off after a short time. They fade naturally once the cause that produced them is removed — that is, when the person is no longer present, and the sight of the emotions written on their face no longer alters the fibers of our brain or stirs our own animal spirits.

Here I will examine only that kind of strong and vigorous imagination which comes from a brain structure naturally suited to receiving deep impressions even from faint or unremarkable objects.

It is not a flaw to have a brain capable of forming vivid mental pictures and clear, lively images of even the smallest things — as long as the soul remains in full control. If these images are formed only at our will and vanish when we wish, then this very capacity is the source of sharpness and strength of mind. But when the imagination takes over, and deep impressions form without waiting for the command of the will — simply because of the brain’s structure and the action of objects and spirits — then this is clearly a serious defect, a kind of madness. Let us now describe the character of those who have this kind of imagination.

To understand this, we must remember that the mind’s capacity is very limited. Nothing fills it more completely than the sensations of the soul, and generally all perceptions of things that deeply affect us. Deep impressions in the brain are always accompanied by strong sensations or perceptions that command our full attention. This allows us to recognize the true nature of those with a strong imagination.

Two major flaws in those with a strong imagination

The first major flaw in such people is that they are incapable of judging complex or difficult matters soundly. Because their mental capacity is already filled by the ideas linked to those overly deep impressions, they lack the freedom to think about several things at once. Yet in complex problems, the mind must move quickly and freely over many ideas, seeing all their relationships and connections in a single glance — which is essential for finding a solution.

Everyone knows from experience that it is impossible to focus on the truth of something while in the grip of strong emotion or sharp pain. At such times, deep traces in the brain occupy all our mental capacity. Similarly, those we are discussing, because they form deeper impressions of the same objects than others do, cannot have the same breadth of thought or grasp as many things at once. Their first fault, therefore, is having a narrow mind — and the more deeply their brain retains impressions of small or insignificant things, the narrower their mind becomes.

The second flaw is that they are visionaries, though in a subtle way that is hard to detect. Most people do not see them as deluded; only fair‑minded and enlightened observers recognize their distorted views and the wandering of their imagination.

To understand why this happens, we must recall what we stated at the beginning of this second book: in terms of what takes place in the brain, the senses and the imagination differ only in degree. It is the size and depth of impressions that determine whether the soul feels an object as actually present, as capable of affecting it, and as near enough to cause pleasure or pain. When impressions are faint, the soul merely imagines the object without believing it is there, or even regarding it as very important. But as impressions grow larger and deeper, the soul judges the object to be more significant, closer, and finally capable of touching or harming it.

The visionaries I speak of do not fall into the extreme madness of believing they see objects that are not there at all; their impressions are not yet deep enough. They are only half‑mad — and if they were fully mad, we would not need to discuss them here, since everyone would recognize their confusion and avoid being deceived. They are not visionaries of the senses, but visionaries of the imagination. The truly mad are visionaries of the senses: they do not see things as they are, and often see things that do not exist. But those we describe here are visionaries of the imagination: they picture things quite differently from how they really are, and even invent things that have no existence. Yet it is clear that these two states differ only in degree, and one often slides into the other. We can therefore understand the mental condition of the latter by comparing it to the former, which is more obvious and easier to grasp — for when things differ only in degree, we must always explain the less obvious by reference to the more obvious.

So the second flaw in those with a strong and vigorous imagination is that they are visionaries of the imagination — or simply visionaries, using the term in its broadest sense. Their characteristics are as follows:

They are excessive in everything they do. They elevate lowly things, magnify small ones, and bring distant things close. Nothing appears to them as it truly is. They admire everything, and exclaim over everything without judgment or discernment. If their natural constitution inclines them to fear — that is, if their brain fibers are extremely delicate, and their animal spirits are few, weak, and sluggish, unable to send strong signals to the rest of the body — they startle at the slightest sound and tremble at the falling of a leaf. But if they have an abundance of spirits and blood — the more common case — they feed on empty hopes, and letting their fertile imagination run wild, they build, as the saying goes, castles in the air, with great satisfaction and joy. Their passions are intense, their opinions stubborn, and they are always full of self‑esteem. If they set out to be known as clever men and to publish their own work — and there are all kinds of writers, visionary and otherwise — what extravagance, what excess, what unnatural and forced expression! They never follow nature; everything is artificial, strained, and exaggerated. Their thoughts leap rather than flow; their speech is rhythmical and dramatic, filled with figures of speech and hyperbole. If they turn to religion and follow their own fancy, they adopt the spirit of the Pharisee and the rigid legalist. They fix on outward forms, external ceremonies, and minor observances, and give them their full attention. They become scrupulous, timid, and superstitious; everything becomes a matter of faith and absolute necessity — except the things that truly are so. For they often neglect the most important teachings of the Gospel: justice, mercy, and the law itself, their minds being occupied with lesser duties.

The power they possess to persuade and deceive

Those with a strong and vigorous imagination also possess certain qualities that need to be clearly explained. So far we have spoken only of their weaknesses; it is only fair to mention their advantages. One of these is particularly relevant to our subject: it is by this advantage that they dominate ordinary minds, draw them into their own way of thinking, and pass on to them all the false impressions they hold.

This advantage consists in an ability to express themselves in a forceful, vivid, and highly charged manner — even if it is not natural. Those who picture things strongly express them with great power, and they convince everyone who judges more by appearance and feeling than by the strength of reasoning. As we have said, their brain receives deep impressions of the subjects they contemplate; these impressions naturally stir a great surge of animal spirits, which instantly and vigorously prepare the whole body to communicate their thoughts. Their facial expression, the tone of their voice, and the flow of their words give life to what they say. This prepares those who listen and watch to pay close attention and to receive almost automatically the impression of the image that moves the speaker. For in the end, someone who is deeply convinced of what they say usually convinces others as well; a passionate person always stirs emotion. Even if their rhetoric is unstructured, it remains highly persuasive — because manner and presence make themselves felt, and act upon the imagination more powerfully than the most carefully reasoned speech delivered in cold detachment. Such calm arguments do not appeal to the senses or strike the imagination.

Thus, imaginative people have the power to please, to move, and to persuade, because they form such vivid and tangible images of their thoughts. Several other factors also help them win over others. They usually speak only on subjects that are easy and within the reach of ordinary minds. They use only expressions and terms that evoke the vague but strong and compelling notions of the senses. When they do address large or difficult topics, they treat them in vague and general terms, relying on commonplaces rather than venturing into detail or stating clear principles — either because they do not truly understand those subjects, or because they fear stumbling over words, confusing themselves, or tiring listeners who cannot sustain deep concentration.

From what we have said, it is easy to see that distortions of the imagination are extremely contagious, and spread quickly and easily through most minds. Since those with a strong imagination are usually enemies of reason and good sense — because of their narrow perspective and their tendency toward delusion — we can recognize that the contagious transmission of these mental disorders is one of the most common causes of our errors. In the chapters that follow, we shall confirm these truths with examples and experiences familiar to everyone.