The Iron Heel · Chapter
My Eagle explained
Avis Everhard, writing from a quiet refuge, recalls her first meeting with Ernest Everhard at a dinner in Berkeley in 1912.
What happens
Avis Everhard, writing from a quiet refuge, recalls her first meeting with Ernest Everhard at a dinner in Berkeley in 1912. Initially put off by his ill-fitting clothes and bold manner, she watches as he challenges the assembled clergymen, denouncing their metaphysical thinking and ignorance of the working class. His passionate, direct speech captivates her, and she begins to see him as a 'superman' and a natural aristocrat devoted to human freedom.
Themes in this chapter
Class Struggle and the Rise of Oligarchy
Ernest's presence as a working-class intellectual at a dinner of churchmen highlights class tensions and his critique of their ignorance about the working class.
Ideology, Propaganda, and the Control of Thought
Ernest attacks the clergymen's metaphysical reasoning as a flawed method of thinking, contrasting it with scientific induction and challenging their ideological assumptions.
Revolution and Personal Sacrifice
Avis's opening reflections on the impending storm and Ernest's devotion to the Cause, for which he gave his life, frame the narrative as one of revolutionary sacrifice.
Characters to notice
- Avis Everhard
The narrator, writing from a peaceful refuge, reflects on her first meeting with Ernest and her restless anticipation of the coming revolution.
- Ernest Everhard
Introduced as a working-class philosopher and ex-horseshoer; his bold manner, ill-fitting clothes, and powerful speech challenge the clergymen at dinner.
- Bishop Morehouse
A sweet, Christ-like man and scholar; he listens intently to Ernest's arguments and questions the nature of metaphysics.
- Dr. Hammerfield
A clergyman who becomes exasperated by Ernest's critique of metaphysics and philosophy; he defends the philosophical approach.
- John Cunningham
Avis's father, who hosts the dinner and encourages Ernest to speak, amused by the effect of his 'human bombshell'.
Key passages
“He was a superman, a blond beast such as Nietzsche has described, and in addition he was aflame with democracy.”
Ernest embodied Nietzsche's ideal of a powerful, natural aristocrat, yet he was passionately committed to democratic equality.
Avis reflects on the paradoxical nature of Ernest's character, combining aristocratic strength with democratic fervor.
“You are metaphysicians. You can prove anything by metaphysics; and having done so, every metaphysician can prove every other metaphysician wrong—to his own satisfaction.”
Ernest accuses the clergymen of using metaphysical reasoning that allows them to prove contradictory things, making their conclusions unreliable.
Ernest's critique of the churchmen's method of thinking, contrasting it with scientific induction.
“The metaphysician reasons deductively out of his own subjectivity. The scientist reasons inductively from the facts of experience.”
Metaphysicians start from personal ideas and reason downward, while scientists start from observed facts and reason upward.
Ernest explains the fundamental difference between metaphysical and scientific reasoning to Bishop Morehouse.