The Scheme of Things by Lester Del Rey

Author:Lester Del Rey [Rey, Lester Del]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Sci-Fi, Science Fiction
Publisher: Belmont Science Fiction
Published: 1966-07-14T00:00:00+00:00

As he left Dr. Bell’s office, Mike became aware of a physical tension that had crept over him so slowly that only the aching of tightened jaw muscles brought it to his attention. He consciously forced himself to loosen up even as he recognized and excused the cause.

It was natural for a man to stiffen up while waiting to be kited, at any moment, into a different world. It was a little like waiting for someone to dump a bucket of ice water on your head ...

8

Mike studied the faces of his class. He had achieved, it seemed, a new perception as to the caliber of each mind. Was this a byproduct of his new inner condition? He supposed that probably it was somehow related, but he gave the question scant thought. The perceptions were fascinating and there was no point in questioning them.

For instance, Lathan Mott was, at the moment, deeply preoccupied with a problem in logic. Would it be more logical to leave Kane College at the end of this term and enroll in a larger school where his prowess as a running back would attract greater attention?

“Why didn’t you enroll at UCLA in the first place, Lathan?”

“Well, you see my father went to—huh?”

A titter ran through the class. Lathan’s face reddened and there was anger in his eyes.

“Never mind,” Mike said. “More important—did you crack the Dialogues last night?”

“Yes, sir,” Mott snapped back.

The class had been waiting for the start of his lecture and now he made the opening statement.

“We Spend most of our time skirting truth and never reaching it. Most of what we are told to believe is not true. Our whole logical and philosophical basis is false. Things that we see as absolutes are, in the main, fallacies and variables.”

Puzzled, the class waited.

"For instance,” Mike went on. “There is no such thing as relative size or relative distances. All things are of equal size. The distance between all things is the same.”

There was mass silence during which a single hand came slowly aloft.

“Professor, what logical basis is there for such a theory?”

“We depend too much on what we see as logical,” Mike replied.

“But-”

“Let’s examine ourselves for a moment. What are we? We are conscious entities solely dependent for our impressions on the five senses that evolutional nature has given us. We see, we taste, we smell, we feel, we hear. But none of these senses necessarily report true.”

If he was stirring a flood of confusion in the class, Mike was fanning even more so a wave of recklessness in himself.

"While we are allegedly spiritual beings, we defend on the material for our total existence. The flesh and the senses govern, whether we wish it or not.”

Three hands went up. Mike ignored them.

“At times, it would appear that two forces are at work within us—the power of the flesh and the power of the spirit. This struggle was symbolized by the biblical account of Lucifer’s struggle with the archangel Michael. So, in essence, we dream of the spiritual, but our true loyalties are to the sensual.

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