History of Philosophy Without Any Gaps HoP 227 - Stayin’ Alive - Thirteenth Century Psychology
Jun 7, 2015
13th-century philosophers explore the nature of the soul by drawing on Aristotle and Avicenna's concepts. They discuss the immateriality and immortality of the soul, the composition of immortal souls and angels, and the relationship between matter and form. William of Auverne's treatise is highlighted, along with his arguments against the emergence of the soul from the physical body.
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Aristotle vs. Christian Immortality
- Medieval thinkers wrestled with Aristotle's definition of soul as the form of the body because it seemed to make the soul dependent on the body.
- This tension threatened Christian doctrines like the soul's survival after bodily death and required new syntheses.
Avicenna's Unexpected Dominance
- Avicenna profoundly shaped 13th-century psychology, sometimes outranking Aristotle in influence.
- John Blund treated soul as a metaphysical subject, following Avicenna to argue the soul is incorporeal.
Soul As Incorporeal and Accidental To Body
- John Blund argues the soul's relation to the body is accidental and that studying the soul in itself belongs to metaphysics.
- He concludes the soul is immaterial, simple, and thus immortal, though only the rational part survives bodily death.