1. IMAGES, WORDS AND FORMULAE. The magical power of words and formulae--The power of words bound up with the images they evoke, and independent of their real sense--These images vary from age to age, and from race to race--The wear and tear of words--Examples of the considerable variations of sense of much-used words--The political utility of baptizing old things with new names when the words by which they were designated produced an unfavourable impression on the masses-- variations of the sense of words in consequence of race differences--The different meanings of the word "democracy" in Europe and America. 2. ILLUSIONS. Their importance--They are to be found at the root of all civilisations--The social necessity of illusions--Crowds always prefer them to truths. 3. EXPERIENCE. Experience alone can fix in the mind of crowds truths become necessary and destroy illusions grown dangerous--Experience is only effective on the condition that it be frequently repeated--The cost of the experiences requisite to persuade crowds. 4. REASON. The nullity of its influence on crowds--Crowds only to be influenced by their unconscious sentiments-- The role of logic in history--The secret causes of improbable events.
We have just investigated the remote and preparatory factors which give the mind of crowds a special receptivity, and make possible therein the growth of certain sentiments and certain ideas. It now remains for us to study the factors capable of acting in a direct manner. We shall see in a forthcoming chapter how these factors should be put in force in order that they may produce their full effect.
In the first part of this work we studied the sentiments, ideas, and methods of reasoning of collective bodies, and from the knowledge thus acquired it would evidently be possible to deduce in a general way the means of making an impression on their mind. We already know what strikes the imagination of crowds, and are acquainted with the power and contagiousness of suggestions, of those especially that are presented under the form of images. However, as suggestions may proceed from very different sources, the factors capable of acting on the minds of crowds may differ considerably. It is necessary, then, to study them separately. This is not a useless study. Crowds are somewhat like the sphinx of ancient fable: it is necessary to arrive at a solution of the problems offered by their psychology or to resign ourselves to being devoured by them.
