The Plans of Men

Abstract

PROF. DOOB, of Yale University, has in this volume attempted a comprehensive treatment of the subject of planning. It perhaps suffers from being too comprehensive, nearly half the book consisting of prolegomena in the shape of a general discussion of the main types of human activity, biological, social, political and economic. Prof. Doob also suffers from the common failure of sociologists to reconcile their conscience as pure scientists with a firm and constructive handling of the problem of values. In especial, no adequate attention is given to the question of the hierarchy of values—in fact, the author goes so far as to assert that “no man can say whether the gratification secured from beer is or is not different qualitatively from that obtained by reading a sonnet”—a statement which to the reviewer appears plain nonsense, on a par with saying that no one can say whether the sensation of red is qualitatively different from that of green.