Buridan’s Theory of Free Choice and Its Influence

Lagerlund, Henrik

doi:10.1007/978-94-010-0506-7_8

Cited by 4 publications

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“…It understands that the first act of the will, the desire to do something, occurs in the form of judgement. Although Buridan applies the Aristotelian idea of practical deliberation and syllogistic reasoning, his description of the first acts of the will resembles the Stoic view in which the agent is 97 For Buridan's ethics and action theory, see Krieger (1986); Saarinen (1994), 161-88;Saarinen (2003); Lagerlund (2002); Zupko (2003), 227-70. Pironet (2001 is a valuable electronic edition and commentary.…”

Section: Medieval Voluntarists: Walter Of Bruges and Henry Of Ghentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Weakness of Will in Renaissance and Reformation Thought

Saarinen¹

2011

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Sources and Literature Index life in the thirteenth century, it became possible to compare Aristotle's insights with the Augustinian and Christian views of human action. Aristotle prevailed in this comparison to an astonishing extent, but there were also Augustinian and Franciscan critics who did not adopt the Aristotelian view of human action. In addition, new views of action theory emerged in fourteenth-century scholasticism. Although these nominally followed Aristotle and, in some cases, Augustine, they introduced new ways of understanding human action. The discussion of akrasia provided a conceptual laboratory in which new ideas could be tested and their implications spelled out. 5 The richness of medieval philosophy has been discussed in many specialized studies. The results of this discussion have found their way into the more general historical presentations of akrasia. 6 This interest has not, however, extended to the early modern period. The standard work on philosophical terminology, Historisches Wörterbuch der Philosophie, claims, immediately after its elaborate discussion of the medieval period, that 'weakness of will has not been a relevant concept or problem for the philosophy of the modern era. It only begins to be discussed again in the analytic philosophy'. 7 Given that many recent studies deal with akrasia in the writings of Descartes, Spinoza, Locke, Leibniz, and even Kant, this is a suprising statement. 8 It may, however, contain a grain of truth. In order to find a discussion on 'weakness of will' in these philosophers, the interpreter must define akrasia in broad terms; for instance, as general irrationality in human behaviour. One may doubt whether the non-Aristotelian philosophers of the modern era really are discussing Aristotle's problem. As their conceptual framework appears to be a different one, they may not be discussing akrasia but other problems of irrationality in human action. When Justin Gosling writes that 'between the Middle Ages and the twentieth century… interest in these problems [of akrasia] vanishes', 9 he means that Aristotle's questions no longer appeared as genuine philosophical problems after the decline of medieval Aristotelianism.My earlier study investigated Augustine's treatment of the so-called 'reluctant actions' (invitus facere) in addition to Aristotle's discussion. While that study focused on the medieval commentaries on Aristotle's EN, it also paid attention to the reception history of Augustine's views, claiming that his discussion deals with similar, although not identical, problems of 'weakness of will'. The present study follows the same

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Section: Medieval Voluntarists: Walter Of Bruges and Henry Of Ghentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Weakness of Will in Renaissance and Reformation Thought

Saarinen¹

2011

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“…For an account of Buridan's view of action and incorporation of the Stoic doctrine of first motions seeLagerlund (2002).54 Buridan's solution is very similar to Descartes' and in a sense, they both try to explain away the whole problem. For Descartes' discussion of the problem see Section 47 of The Passions of the Soul(AT XI,(364)(365) CSM I,(345)(346).…”

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The Achilles of Rationalist Psychology

Lennon¹,

Stainton²

2008

Studies in the History of Philosophy of Mind

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Aims and ScopeThe aim of the series is to foster historical research into the nature of thinking and the workings of the mind. The volumes address topics of intellectual history that would nowadays fall into different disciplines like philosophy of mind, philosophical psychology, artificial intelligence, cognitive science, etc. The monographs and collections of articles in the series are historically reliable as well as congenial to the contemporary reader. They provide original insights into central contemporary problems by looking at them in historical contexts, addressing issues like consciousness, representation and intentionality, mind and body, the self and the emotions. In this way, the books open up new perspectives for research on these topics.

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Will and Choice in Medieval Thought

Holopainen

2013

Sourcebook for the History of the Philosophy of Mind

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Buridan’s Theory of Free Choice and Its Influence

Cited by 4 publications

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Weakness of Will in Renaissance and Reformation Thought

Weakness of Will in Renaissance and Reformation Thought

The Achilles of Rationalist Psychology

Will and Choice in Medieval Thought

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