On Activity and Passivity in Perception: Aristotle, Philoponus, and Pseudo-Simplicius, 2014
By: Tuominen, Miira, Silva, José Filipe (Ed.)
Title On Activity and Passivity in Perception: Aristotle, Philoponus, and Pseudo-Simplicius
Type Book Section
Language English
Date 2014
Published in Active Perception in the History of Philosophy From Plato to Modern Philosophy
Pages 55-78
Categories no categories
Author(s) Tuominen, Miira
Editor(s) Silva, José Filipe
Translator(s)
Ancient and late ancient theories of perception are often described by a generalisation according to which Aristotle held a passive theory whereas Plato, the Platonists and the Neoplatonists supposed perception to be something active. I shall argue that, despite this general difference, there are important points of convergence in the theories of Aristotle and his Neoplatonic commentators. First, the notion of activity is important for Aristotle’s theory as well. Perception not only is an activity (energeia) for Aristotle. It is a perfect activity, the perfection of which is the activity itself and is thus not dependent on an external product. Further, the reception of forms without matter is by no means an exhaustive description of perceptual cognition in Aristotle. The sensitive soul is also capable of memory, imagination, and non-universal generalisation Aristotle calls ‘experience’. Human beings who have reason also make perceptual judgments that, however, are not identified with perceptions in Aristotle’s theory. While the Neoplatonic commentators on Aristotle’s De anima modified his theory in several ways and underlined the activity of the soul, I contend that they also maintained some of Aristotle’s core assumptions. By contrast to Aristotle, they identified perception with rational perceptual judgments. However, I argue that they still retained the assumption that there also is sensation of external objects but ascribed this to the sense organism rather than the sensitive soul. The point is rather clear in Pseudo-Simplicius and I also argue that it is likely that Philoponus maintained a similar view. [author's abstract]

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[author's abstract]","btype":2,"date":"2014","language":"English","online_url":"","online_resources":"https:\/\/uni-koeln.sciebo.de\/s\/8hnpXzad7gCFriC","doi_url":null,"categories":[],"authors":[{"id":434,"full_name":"Tuominen, Miira","role":{"id":1,"role_name":"author"}},{"id":559,"full_name":"Silva, Jos\u00e9 Filipe","role":{"id":2,"role_name":"editor"}}],"book":{"id":1506,"pubplace":"Berlin","publisher":"Springer","series":"Studies in the History of Philosophy of Mind","volume":"14","edition_no":"","valid_from":null,"valid_until":null},"booksection":{"id":1506,"section_of":1507,"pages":"55-78","is_catalog":null,"book":{"id":1507,"bilderberg_idno":null,"dare_idno":null,"catalog_idno":null,"entry_type":"bibliography","type":4,"language":"en","title":"Active Perception in the History of Philosophy From Plato to Modern Philosophy ","title_transcript":"","title_translation":"","short_title":"","has_no_author":null,"volume":null,"date":"2014","edition_no":null,"free_date":null,"abstract":"The aim of the present work is to show the roots of the conception of perception as an active process, tracing the history of its development from Plato to modern philosophy. 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The Ancient Commentators on Plato and Aristotle, 2009
By: Tuominen, Miira
Title The Ancient Commentators on Plato and Aristotle
Type Monograph
Language English
Date 2009
Publication Place Berkley
Publisher University of California Press
Categories no categories
Author(s) Tuominen, Miira
Editor(s)
Translator(s)
The study of the ancient commentators has developed considerably over the past few decades, fueled by recent translations of their often daunting writings. This book offers the only concise, accessible general introduction currently available to the writings of the late ancient commentators on Aristotle and, to a lesser extent, Plato. Miira Tuominen provides a historical overview followed by a series of thematic chapters on epistemology, science and logic, physics, psychology, metaphysics, and ethics. In particular, she focuses on the writings of Alexander of Aphrodisias, Themistius, Porphyry, Proclus, Philoponus, and Simplicius. Until recently, the late ancient commentators have been understood mainly as sources of information concerning the masters upon whose works they comment. This book offers new insights into their way of doing philosophy in their own right. [author's abstract]

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  • PAGE 1 OF 1
On Activity and Passivity in Perception: Aristotle, Philoponus, and Pseudo-Simplicius, 2014
By: Tuominen, Miira, Silva, José Filipe (Ed.)
Title On Activity and Passivity in Perception: Aristotle, Philoponus, and Pseudo-Simplicius
Type Book Section
Language English
Date 2014
Published in Active Perception in the History of Philosophy From Plato to Modern Philosophy
Pages 55-78
Categories no categories
Author(s) Tuominen, Miira
Editor(s) Silva, José Filipe
Translator(s)
Ancient and late ancient theories of perception are often described by a generalisation according to which Aristotle held a passive theory whereas Plato, the Platonists and the Neoplatonists supposed perception to be something active. I shall argue that, despite this general difference, there are important points of convergence in the theories of Aristotle and his Neoplatonic commentators. First, the notion of activity is important for Aristotle’s theory as well. Perception not only is an activity (energeia) for Aristotle. It is a perfect activity, the perfection of which is the activity itself and is thus not dependent on an external product. Further, the reception of forms without matter is by no means an exhaustive description of perceptual cognition in Aristotle. The sensitive soul is also capable of memory, imagination, and non-universal generalisation Aristotle calls ‘experience’. Human beings who have reason also make perceptual judgments that, however, are not identified with perceptions in Aristotle’s theory.

While the Neoplatonic commentators on Aristotle’s De anima modified his theory in several ways and underlined the activity of the soul, I contend that they also maintained some of Aristotle’s core assumptions. By contrast to Aristotle, they identified perception with rational perceptual judgments. However, I argue that they still retained the assumption that there also is sensation of external objects but ascribed this to the sense organism rather than the sensitive soul. The point is rather clear in Pseudo-Simplicius and I also argue that it is likely that Philoponus maintained a similar view. [author's abstract]

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Human beings who have reason also make perceptual judgments that, however, are not identified with perceptions in Aristotle\u2019s theory.\r\n\r\nWhile the Neoplatonic commentators on Aristotle\u2019s De anima modified his theory in several ways and underlined the activity of the soul, I contend that they also maintained some of Aristotle\u2019s core assumptions. By contrast to Aristotle, they identified perception with rational perceptual judgments. However, I argue that they still retained the assumption that there also is sensation of external objects but ascribed this to the sense organism rather than the sensitive soul. The point is rather clear in Pseudo-Simplicius and I also argue that it is likely that Philoponus maintained a similar view. [author's abstract]","btype":2,"date":"2014","language":"English","online_url":"","online_resources":"https:\/\/uni-koeln.sciebo.de\/s\/8hnpXzad7gCFriC","doi_url":null,"categories":[],"authors":[{"id":434,"full_name":"Tuominen, Miira","role":{"id":1,"role_name":"author"}},{"id":559,"full_name":"Silva, Jos\u00e9 Filipe","role":{"id":2,"role_name":"editor"}}],"book":{"id":1506,"pubplace":"Berlin","publisher":"Springer","series":"Studies in the History of Philosophy of Mind","volume":"14","edition_no":"","valid_from":null,"valid_until":null},"booksection":{"id":1506,"section_of":1507,"pages":"55-78","is_catalog":null,"book":{"id":1507,"bilderberg_idno":null,"dare_idno":null,"catalog_idno":null,"entry_type":"bibliography","type":4,"language":"en","title":"Active Perception in the History of Philosophy From Plato to Modern Philosophy ","title_transcript":"","title_translation":"","short_title":"","has_no_author":null,"volume":null,"date":"2014","edition_no":null,"free_date":null,"abstract":"The aim of the present work is to show the roots of the conception of perception as an active process, tracing the history of its development from Plato to modern philosophy. 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The Ancient Commentators on Plato and Aristotle, 2009
By: Tuominen, Miira
Title The Ancient Commentators on Plato and Aristotle
Type Monograph
Language English
Date 2009
Publication Place Berkley
Publisher University of California Press
Categories no categories
Author(s) Tuominen, Miira
Editor(s)
Translator(s)
The study of the ancient commentators has developed considerably over the past few decades, fueled by recent translations of their often daunting writings. This book offers the only concise, accessible general introduction currently available to the writings of the late ancient commentators on Aristotle and, to a lesser extent, Plato. Miira Tuominen provides a historical overview followed by a series of thematic chapters on epistemology, science and logic, physics, psychology, metaphysics, and ethics. In particular, she focuses on the writings of Alexander of Aphrodisias, Themistius, Porphyry, Proclus, Philoponus, and Simplicius. Until recently, the late ancient commentators have been understood mainly as sources of information concerning the masters upon whose works they comment. This book offers new insights into their way of doing philosophy in their own right. [author's abstract]

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  • PAGE 1 OF 1