Lord Judgement, Lady Memory and Miss Imagination

"Judgement, Memory, and Imagination; what strange actors are these, in a fable!" says Laluna after saying Basmalah and Salaam. "But whoever makes such a criticism, hasn't them al three, upon my word?" she added.

Judgment would tell him that these three personages make as good a figure in fable, as the Fox, the Wolf, and the Lamb; and let him consider whether I have been able to form these images to make good picture. Every thing is allowable, provided from the Tale there refults some Truth.

The Fable lies in the Morality, when an author goes directly to that, the Reader has what he desires, if he trifles and quibbles he has a wretched Taste. The Actors—who and or whatever they are—signify but little, and one is at liberty to make choice of those one likes. If I am contradicted here, I shall always maintain it, that to end the dispute, one must. appeal to the best of judges, that is, to Sense, and if my antagonist will not subscribe to this, I shall not submit to him.

Besides, to follow a rule strictly, according to the Letter, very often looses all its life and spirit. But, Rules are rules, it can be broken in the case you are offering a theory, or learning photography, art or alike, but don't try it if you live under the state laws.

Montesquieu wrote, that

Laws, taken in the broadest meaning, are the necessary relations deriving from the nature of things; and in this sense, all beings have their laws: the divinity has its laws, the material world has its laws, the intelligences superior to man have their laws, the beasts have their laws, man has his laws.

God [Montesquieu never capitalized 'diu' or 'god,' but in here, we use it] is related to the universe, as Creator and Preserver; the laws according to which He created, are those according to which He preserves; He acts according to these rules because He knows them; He knows them because He made them; He made them because they are related to His wisdom and His power.

As we see that the world, formed by the motion of matter and devoid of intelligence, still continues to exist, its motions must have invariable laws; and, if one could imagine another world than this, it would have consistent rules or it would be destroyed.

Thus creation, which appears to be an arbitrary act, presupposes rules as invariable as the fate claimed by atheists. It would be absurd to say that the Creator, without these rules, could govern the world, since the world would not continue to exist without them.

These rules are a consistently established relation. Between one moving body and another moving body, it is in accord with relations of mass and velocity that all motions are received, increased, diminished, or lost; every diversity is uniformity, every change is consistency.

Therefore, one must admit that there are relations of fairnessf prior to the positive law that establishes them, so that, for example, assuming that there were societies of men, it would be just to conform to their laws; so that, if there were intelligent beings that had received some kindness from another being, they ought to be grateful for it; so that, if one intelligent being had created another intelligent being, the created one ought to remain in its original dependency; so that one intelligent being who has done harm to another intelligent being deserves the same harm in return, and so forth.

It is not known whether beasts are governed by the general laws of motion or by a movement particular to themselves. Be that as it may, they do not have a more intimate relation with God than the rest of the material world has, and feeling is useful to them only in their relation to one another, either with other particular beings, or with themselves.

By the attraction of pleasure, they preserve their particular being; by the same attraction, they preserve their species. They have natural laws because they are united by feeling; they have no positive laws because they are not united by knowledge. Still, they do not invariably follow their natural laws; plants, in which we observe neither knowledge nor feeling, better follow their natural laws.

Beasts do not have the supreme advantages that we have; they have some that we do not have. They do not have our expectations, but they do not have our fears; they suffer death as we do, but without recognizing it; most even preserve themselves better than we do and do not make such bad use of their passions.

Man, as a physical being, is governed by invariable laws like other bodies. As an intelligent being, he constantly violates the laws God has established and changes those he himself establishes; he must guide himself, and yet he is a limited being; he is subject to ignorance and error, as are all finite intelligences; he loses even the imperfect knowledge he has.

As a feeling creature, he falls subject to a thousand passions. Such a being could at any moment forget his creator; God has called him back to him by the laws of religion. Such a being could at any moment forget himself; philosophers have reminded him of himself by the laws of morality. Made for living in society, he could forget his fellows; legislators have returned him to his duties by political and civil laws.

I'm not going to pay attention further to Montesquieu's ideas, I'd rather to tell a story. Listen,

Lord Judgment, Lady Memory and Miss Imagination—tho’ neither Fable nor History makes any mention of it—lived heretofore together in the same House. They lived in common, for they were Children to the same Father.

For some time, they enjoyed all the sweets of Peace, but alas! Unity amongst relations seldom lasts long; ill Humours soon set the Brother and Sister at variance; Imagination gave way to her Sallies; Memory was continually babbling, and Judgment tired to Death wirh their folly and tittle tattle grumbled cruelly; and after this manner, they passed their Days. There was, continually some wrangling or other between them, and quarrelling at every infignificant accident. They were never without calfing one another names; one was a Fool, the other a perfect Gossip, and t’other a meer downright Pedant.

'We must part, Sisters,' said Judgment one Day, 'Pray what do you think on’t? This Life can never continue long that’s certain; we were bom, I think, to live apart.'

'Why truly Brother, says Miss Pert, 'your Counsel is very good, for certainly one Gap is not enough for three Heads.'

'Indeed,' says my Lady—in a long-winded grave discourse of about two hours long—'fate decides otherwise.'

And so, they all concluded to separate that very Moment. The Example was noble, and they would follow it; adieu, a good journey, and so, they packed up, and went each their way, to seek out a new habitation.

It was not long before they found entertainment, and this was with three quarrelsome neighbours that never would see one another, the mosy lucky circumstance in the world for them.

He with whom Memory lodged, became very learned, God knows, and knew every thing in his way, Languages, Opinions, Customs, Fable, History, and what not?

Imagination too, quickly made her Man a hardy Poet, but the most unrestrained in the world, Extravagant, Enthusiastic; in short, a great inventor of ill connected Objects, and as great a coupler of words that were naturally afraid of each other.

Lord Judgment was made in another mould, and took particular care of his obliging Landlord. In the twinkling of an Eye, he became a Philofopher; no, I mistake, a man of good sense; one who judged of everything according to its intrinlick value, a friend to Truth and Juftice, acting always well, and never dreading anything without being well acquainted with its true cause.

These Neighbours, soon began to think that they might be serviceable to each other. Solid facts were in possesion of the man of learning, who might furnish therewith the wise man, and the poet. The wise man amuses himfelf with the flights of another: good senfe must now and then unbend it self and be diverted. The poet, on another hand, thinks it adviseable, to make use of his counsels as a good guide to Parnassus—a collection of poems or of elegant literature.

As for the man of learning, he despised—whom? Why all the world, and his Neighbours too, no doubt on’t. But he must chat now and then, and with whom do you think? Why with his Neighbours, and he did so.

Laluna then wrapped up with, "It is for the.common good of Mankind that in this World, all Talents are not possessed by one person. No man has them all. But this Division, is the Chain of all Society. And Allah knows best."

Citations & References:
- Sieur De La Motte, One Hundred New Court Fables, Peter-Nofter-Row
- Charles Louis Montesquieu, The Spirit of the Laws, translated by Anne M. Cohler, Basia C. Miller, & Harold Stone, Cambridge University Press

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