The role of appetites in Thomas Aquinas's theory of sensitive knowledge

DOI: https://doi.org/10.34096/petm.v41.n1.7640
Keywords: Thomas Aquinas, intentionality, sensitive knowledge, appetites, intention

Abstract

There is a principle in the thinking of Thomas Aquinas that maintains that every cognitive act is intentional. This principle is problematic in the field of sensitive knowledge because it contrasts with the idea that the senses are totally passive and that sensitive objects are the sufficient cause of perception. The synergy of these theses generates two kinds of conflicts: 1) between the passivity of the senses and their act of addressing objects; 2) between the need for directionality to knowledge and the sufficiency of sensitive objects to cause perception. The apparent inconsistency in which the Aquinate would fall can be resolved by analyzing the role that corresponds to intellectual, sensitive and natural appetites in his theory of sensitive knowledge.

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Published
2020-10-02
How to Cite
Hernández, F. G. (2020). The role of appetites in Thomas Aquinas’s theory of sensitive knowledge. Patristica Et Mediævalia, 41(1), 23-40. https://doi.org/10.34096/petm.v41.n1.7640
Issue
Vol 41 No 1 (2020)
Section
Articles

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