ABSTRACT
The gestation period for Spencer’s philosophical system was the s. His lifelong adhesion to the psychological and metaphysical doctrines that he shared with religious and scientifi cally minded contemporaries in the mid-century dictated the content of much of his serious writings for the remainder of his life. At times, his early attempt at coherence became an embarrassment to Spencer because it committed him to a position that he later distrusted. At other times his philosophical system wearied him by imposing endless burdens as he struggled through his last four decades with preordained tasks stretching endlessly ahead. However, there was one consolation that buoyed him up during his toil. is was a residual gift from the s. His philosophical and scientifi c labours were never dry and empty; they were always a reservoir of religious meaning. To most of his readers, and to himself, his endeavours were always pregnant with spiritual vitality. Spencer’s worship of the “Unknown” provided solace to those who feared that the universe was only a collection of lifeless material objects and physical laws.
Even before he began writing his philosophical system, Spencer was keen to tell his readers that they should search for answers that transcended experience. Without such transcendence they would be atheists: people for whom the universe was empty. e choice was philosophically stark: one could follow J. S. Mill and rely on experience without knowledge of a fi rst cause: alternatively, one could uphold the intuitionism of William Hamilton, which would also mean that one truly possessed no knowledge. e second choice was slightly less bleak because a person might feel meaningful responses that indicated there was something out there even if this could not be known. is was Spencer’s solution; he believed that the responses he felt were signifi cant, and on this basis chose to construct his own philosophy.
