Aristotle\u27s De Anima

Intelligence in Aristotle\u27s Treatise On the Soul (De Anima) - Henry Kahl In his treatiseOn the Soul(DeAnima) Aristotle claims that human beings are the most intelligent of animals because they have the most precise sense of touch (DA2.9, 421a23). But he does not explain what it is about the sense of touch that makes humans so intelligent. Some commentators claim that our precise sense of touch makes us better at grasping concepts, which in turn makes us better reasoners. But in my paper, I argue that having a precise sense of touch does not make humans more rational. Rather, I claim that humans are the most intelligent of animals, according to Aristotle, because they are able to discriminate between objects of perception better than other animals. This interpretation of intelligence digresses from commentators\u27 conventional understanding of intelligence as the ability to reason, i.e., understand an object\u27s essence. I support my thesis by first, outlining the link between intelligence and tactile perception in DA 2.9. Second, I explain how the texture of an animal\u27s flesh impacts their perceptual ability. And finally, I show that touch underlies all other perceptual capacities, which is why having a precise sense of touch makes human beings better at discriminating all sensible objects. Perception, Desire, and Imagination in Aristotle\u27s Treatise On the Soul (De Anima) - Luke Sandmann This presentation addresses a seemingly inconsistent triad in Aristotle\u27s De Anima. In his account of the souls of animals, Aristotle stipulates that because all animals have the ability to perceive, they necessarily have the capacity to desire. He further claims that whatever has desire has imagination. Elsewhere, Aristotle states that only some animals have imagination. All three of these claims cannot be true. I arguethat the third presumption is incorrect: Aristotle believes that all animals do in fact have some level of imagination. I will defend this assertion by showing that in specific passages where Aristotle claims only some animals have imagination, he is talking about determinate imagination. According to Aristotle, this type of imagination is an aid to perception in its ability to recast prior impressions, providing a more specific depiction of our objects of perception. This is the type of imagination common to all animals with sensory abilities beyond touch. Conversely, indeterminate imagination is extremely limited and belongs to animals with the sense of touch alone. While these two types of imagination have key differences, the two will be collectively exhaustive in animals. With this, the consistency of Aristotle\u27s triad can be preserved by confirming the presence of perception, desire, and imagination in all animals. Aristotle\u27s Account on the Inseparability of the Body and Soul Due to the Faculty of Imagination - Hallie Altwies In his treatise, On the Soul (De Anima), Aristotle claims that every affection of the soul seems to require the body with one possible exception: reasoning. He claims that reason is the one affection of the soul that may not involve the body and would therefore be distinct from the body. If reasoning does not require the body, then there is at least one part of the soul that is separable from the body and can survive the death of the body. However, Aristotle states that if reason requires the faculty of imagination, which is an affection of the body, then reason too would be an affection of the soul that requires the body. Thus, if imagination requires the body in order to persist, and imagination is a condition of reasoning, then it can be assumed that reasoning also requires the body. Thus, the most pressing issue in interpreting Aristotle\u27s assessment of the separability of mind and body is deciding whether or not reasoning requires imagination in order to operate. In the paper, I argue that imagination is indeed a condition of reasoning due to the fact that we must form imaginative associations in order to conceive any object that is grasped through perception