The Science of the Soul
The Commentary Tradition on Aristotle's De anima, c. 1260–c.1360
Format:Hardback
Publisher:Leuven University Press
Published:6th Mar '13
Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back
The transformation of the science of the soul between 1260 and 1360.
Aristotle's highly influential work on the soul, entitled De anima, formed part of the core curriculum of medieval universities and was discussed intensively. It covers a range of topics in philosophical psychology, such as the relationship between mind and body and the nature of abstract thought. However, there is a key difference in scope between the socalled ‘science of the soul', based on Aristotle, and modern philosophical psychology. This book starts from a basic premise accepted by all medieval commentators, namely that the science of the soul studies not just human beings but all living beings. As such, its methodology and approach must also apply to plants and animals. The Science of the Soul discusses how philosophers, from Thomas Aquinas to Pierre d'Ailly, dealt with the difficult task of giving a unified account of life and traces the various stages in the transformation of the science of the soul between 1260 and 1360. The emerging picture is that of a gradual disruption of the unified approach to the soul, which will ultimately lead to the emergence of psychology as a separate discipline.
This publication is GPRC-labeled (Guaranteed Peer-Reviewed Content).
Leaving aside these historiographical differences, one must say that Sander de Boer's study is a readable, solid and well-argued study. De Boer studies new material beyond beaten paths - concerning authors (e.g. the several Anonymi, Oresme and Jandun), as well as places (e.g. Ockham's reception not only in Oxford but also in Paris). He acutely judges the arguments of the different positions, and always offers a clear statement on them. The author surveys the existing literature and discusses it at the relevant places. In the end, one must explicitly highlight that De Boer discloses the systematic status of the relationship between soul and body in this particular period. Future scholars and students of philosophical psychology in the Middle Ages should take a look at De Boer's study in order to be able to better judge a certain position concerning philosophical psychology in a systematic way.
Thomas Jeschke, Tijdschrift voor Filosofie, 76 (2014), 2
This is a technically impressive study of an ongoing philosophical debate, to which Thomas Aquinas made a major contribution but which continued to provoke discussion. Constant J. Mews, Parergon 32.2 (2015)
Malgrado questi limiti, il libro di de Boer rappresenta un contributo importante alla storia della dottrina dell’anima, e più in generale alla storia della tradizione aristotelica. Scritto in modo chiaro, ben documentato, capace di analizzare gli sviluppi interni alla tradizione aristotelica ma anche di valutare l’impatto che su di essa ebbero esigenze teologiche e interventi delle autorità ecclesiastiche (cfr. in particolare le pp. 197-206), questo libro mostra come la scientia de anima sia nel medioevo «as much about animals and even plants as it is about human beings» (p. 4); ma al tempo stesso chiarisce come, fra XIII e XIV secolo, si sia creata una sempre più ampia divaricazione fra l’analisi delle anime non umane e quella dell’anima umana, quindi sia emersa una crescente sfiducia nella possibilità di comprendere appieno la natura di quest’ultima tramite strumenti esclusivamente razionali. Luca Bianchi, Rivista di storia della filosofia, n. 1, 2017
ISBN: 9789058679307
Dimensions: unknown
Weight: unknown
500 pages