The simile of classification
The narrator is referring to the classification of living organisms which was initiated by the natural biologist, Linnaeus. According to Linnaeus, the classification of living organisms starts by unraveling specimens of organisms into classes or species. The narrator compares the classification of organism into the army of men and women when he says, "It is like the army: men (plus women, nowadays) into squads, squads into 4 CONSILIENCE platoons, platoons into companies, and in the final aggregate, the armed services headed by the joint chiefs of staff.”
The simile of ideologies and religious dogmas
The narrator insists on the significance of integrating natural sciences, social sciences, and humanities. However, it is unfortunate that political and public intellects who are supposed to solve most of the challenges that affect humans have only specialized in one area of these studies making it impossible for the legislators to make informed decisions that can solve issues affecting humanity. The narrator says, "Only fluency across the 14 CONSILIENCE boundaries will provide a clear view of the world as it is, not as seen through the lens of ideologies and religious dogmas or commanded by the myopic response to the immediate need.”
The simile of the French Revolution
Condorcet was perceived to be a strong person who believed in what is right. The author compares the French revolutionists to Condorcet because they were fearless and ready to die as long as they achieved their ultimate goal. Being a revolutionist is not easy because it implies that one has to put his or her life in danger for the sake of the larger society. The narrator says, “The French Revolution drew its intellectual strength from men and women like Condorcet.”
The Simile of Condorcet
The author is comparing Condorcet's belief in natural rights to Immanuel Kant who does not only follow passions but for the moral imperatives that lead the natural rights. The author writes, “Liberal to the bone, a follower of the English philosopher John Locke, Condorcet believed in the natural rights of men, and, like his contemporary Immanuel Kant, he sought moral imperatives that lead rather than follow the passions.”
The simile of the human race
The philosopher by the name Pascal compared the human race to an individual who is immortal and continues to always gain more knowledge. In that regard, the human race is seen as an individual with continuous growth with its conditions. The author writes, "The human race, observed from its first beginning, seems in the eyes of the philosopher to be one vast whole, which, like each individual in it, has its infancy and its conditions of growth."
