Last and First Men · Chapter
II: The Dominance of Science explained
In this chapter, the narrator describes the unique position of science among the First Men, emphasizing its role in revolutionizing material circumstances and dominating the imagination of a race with waning intellectual curiosity.
What happens
In this chapter, the narrator describes the unique position of science among the First Men, emphasizing its role in revolutionizing material circumstances and dominating the imagination of a race with waning intellectual curiosity. The narrative details the crystallization of scientific doctrine, the rise of legends such as the mystery of Gordelpus, and the eventual formal union of science and religion through the founding of the Sacred Order of Scientists, which becomes the dominant force until the downfall of the first world civilization.
Themes in this chapter
Technology and Its Dangers
The chapter illustrates the dangers of science becoming a dogmatic and secretive institution, with the potential for misuse and the suppression of knowledge.
Society and Collective Identity
The unification of science and religion reflects a societal drive for uniformity and collective identity, as seen in the merging of diverse religious traditions.
The Limits of Knowledge
The complexity of science and the reluctance of scientists to understand other fields highlight the limits of individual knowledge and the fragmentation of understanding.
Characters to notice
- The First Men
The race described in this chapter, whose intellectual curiosity has waned and who now regard science primarily as a source of power.
- Gordelpus
The divine mystery or secret of science, reputed to allow the utilization of proton-electron energy, central to the legends and the new religious-scientific order.
- The Discoverer
A young figure regarded as an incarnation of Buddha or the Son of God, who entrusted the secret of Gordelpus to the Scientists.
- The Scientists
Members of the International College of Science, organized as a close corporation, who are believed to possess the supreme secret and eventually form the Sacred Order of Scientists.
Key passages
“Science now held a position of unique honour among the First Men. This was not so much because it was in this field that the race long ago during its high noon had thought most rigorously, nor because it was through science that men had gained some insight into the nature of the physical world, but rather because the application of scientific principles had revolutionized their material circumstances.”
Science was highly esteemed among the First Men, not for its intellectual achievements or insights into nature, but because it had transformed their material lives.
This highlights the shift in the value of science from pure knowledge to practical power.
“The once fluid doctrines of science had by now begun to crystallize into a fixed and intricate dogma; but inventive scientific intelligence still exercised itself brilliantly in improving the technique of industry, and thus completely dominated the imagination of a race in which the pure intellectual curiosity had waned.”
Science had become rigid and dogmatic, yet its inventive spirit continued to advance industry, capturing the imagination of a people who had lost their curiosity.
This underscores the theme of the limits of knowledge and the dangers of dogmatism.
“All knew, said the President, that some of the scientists were in possession of the supreme secret, though, wisely, they would not definitely admit it. It was time, then, that the organizations of Science and Religion should be merged, for the better guidance of men.”
The President declared that everyone knew some scientists held the supreme secret, and proposed merging science and religion for better guidance.
This marks the formal union of science and religion, leading to the creation of the Sacred Order of Scientists.