Note 1270 — Chapter III · : THE SOLIDARISTS

This is the sense in which solidarity has been understood by the Lausanne philosopher Charles Secrétan, in his book La Civilisation et la Croyance, and the same point of view has been adopted by M. Alfred Fouillée. “Solidarity,” writes Fouillée, “has all the practical value of an ideal force. The recognition of the profound identity which pervades humanity and the adoption of an ideal of perfect unity as the supreme object of rational desire must assume the form of a duty in the eyes of every human being. We should anticipate the unity of the human race, which is as yet far from being realised, and which will never be perfect perhaps, by acting as if we were already one.” (Revue des Deux Mondes, July 15, 1901.)