142 THE CLASS STRUGGLE WHAT THE UNDER CLASS ANSWERS 143 ANSWER I have answered this Phrase exhaustively in the periodical, Tiden (The Times. No. 154, which appeared 1884, and until you make an exhaustive reply to my answer, shall not answer again. shall merely point out that to be of value a reform must cover the entire population. otherwise it no reform at all. Have you not a few more Phrases to give exercise to my ingenuity?
Please phrase a little about morality!
PHRASE 10 You ve said it! How is it that all reformers are so immoral, as soon as you put them under the magnifying class? Eh? Answer that if you can!
ANSWER It is true that it is a simile, but hardly expected that it would seem poetic! If it is, it must be your fault for having given me such a poetic bringing up. But am ready to try it again in prose, this time. Your elevated point of view is merely your imagining; if it seems elevated, it is only because you have determined the point of view! But the fact that you fixed it does not necessarily make it elevated. Do you want me to investigate it. Aside) He surely will not! He will rather talk about tearing down.
PHRASE It is easy enough to tear down, but what will you put in its place?
ANSWER It is not so easy, in the first place, to tear down the structures which it has taken you a few thousand unmolested years to build up. Do you know what they had to do in order to demolish the Linköping church tower? Why, they had to blast it with hmdynamite! In the second place, remember, of the precepts in the ancient Building Law, a very remarkable one on demolitions (B. Chap. II, Sec. If a man build to another harm, tear it down, after notifying him of it! Well, if you will not do the tearing down, we ll have to see to it! And then, in the third place, there are systems of society so congested, that all they need is to tear them down so that the inhabitants shall have light and air. In the fourth place, do not forget the great example in Russia, of how they proceeded with infected towns a few years ago!
PHRASE You are not accurate; it was many years ago!
ANSWER Forgive me, stern sir; what matters it whether it be few or many, if the fact be as indicated! And yet! It would almost seem as if facts were subsidiary in your eyes, and minor matters elevated into positions of importance! The fact remains that they burnt up the infected cities. Aside) He can answer that unless he makes use of his old reply: deny the fact! Or the other: It a lie! Or perhaps this one: That is irrelevant. PHRASE That is irrelevant! But if you want reforms, reform yourself first!
ANSWER 10 This is caused by two circumstances at least. First, that they are put under the magnifying glass! Try it on yourselves; your blemishes will be just as large! For. a) it is of the essence of human nature to have defects (be immoral. and. b) the essence of the magnifying glass is that it magnifies. So the whole thing is based on the application of the magnifying glass. As the law forbids its application to the upper class, it is of course applied only to the lower class! Is that clear?
Second: It may be that in their judgment of the lower class the upper class make use of a different standard than in their own case.
Third. It is possible that morality is not so dreadfully moral, as it is an invention of the upper class, for their own immoral purposes, to keep down the lower class. Perhaps it is now clear that the lower class reformers are immoral because of the above, and not for any other reason?
Do you still wish to speak of Zola? Eh? But perhaps there is no need of that, now that he is not as pleasant toward the lower class as we had once hoped. PHRASE 11 We needn quarrel about such things at present; we must take the world as it is, for it will not change; and it is, after all, the best of all worlds. The article referred to is in the form of a playlet, Autumn Slush (Höstslask. which will be printed in the next number of The Class Struggle.