Aristotle on the Sense-Organs

An in-depth study of Aristotle's theory of the sense-organs.

T. K. Johansen (Author)

9780521583381, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 13 November 1997

324 pages
22.3 x 14.7 x 2.6 cm, 0.56 kg

'… a valuable contribution to the field. The book is well written and well documented. Johansen demonstrates an ability to convey difficult positions with great clarity and frequently illustrates the issues with illuminating analogies and examples … I found the work to be very stimulating and informative … [It] represents the most extensive defense of the phenomenal model to date. I would recommend the work to advanced undergraduates, graduate students and scholars.' Bryn Mawr Classical Review

This book offers an important study of Aristotle's theory of the sense-organs. It aims to answer two questions central to Aristotle's psychology and biology: why does Aristotle think we have sense-organs, and why does he describe the sense-organs in the way he does? The author looks at all the Aristotelian evidence for the five senses and shows how pervasively Aristotle's accounts of the sense-organs are motivated by his interest in form and function. The book also engages with the celebrated problem of whether perception for Aristotle requires material changes in the perceiver. It argues that, surprisingly to the modern philosopher, nothing in Aristotle's description of the sense-organs requires us to believe in such changes.

Acknowledgements
List of abbreviations of Aristotle's works
Introduction
1. Sight
2. The medium
3. Hearing
4. The contact senses
5. Smell
6. The actuality of perception
Conclusion
Bibliography
Index locorum
General index.

Subject Areas: Western philosophy: Ancient, to c 500 [HPCA]