Consider the following example: A gun is fired in my
presence and I say: “This crash wasn't
as loud as I had
66.
expected”.
Someone asks me: “How is this
possible? Was there a crash, louder than that of a
gun, in your imagination?” I must
confess that there was nothing of the sort. Now he
says: “Then you didn't really expect a
louder crash, ‒ ‒ ‒ but perhaps the shadow of one. ‒ ‒ ‒
And how did you know that it was the shadow of a louder
crash?” ‒ ‒ ‒ Let's see what, in
such a case, might really have happened. Perhaps in
waiting for the report I opened my mouth, held on to something to
steady myself, and perhaps I said: “This is
going to be terrible”. Then, when the explosion
was over: “It wasn't so loud after
all”. ‒ ‒ ‒ Certain tensions in my body
relax. But what is the connection between these
tensions, opening my mouth, etc., and a real louder
crash? Perhaps this connection was made by having heard
such a crash and having had the experiences mentioned.