The Human Person. A Beginner’s Thomistic Psychology

Description

The Human Person presents a brief introduction to the human mind, the soul, immortality, and free will. While delving into the thought of Thomas Aquinas, it addresses contemporary topics, such as skepticism, mechanism, animal language research, and determinism. Steven J. Jensen probes the primal questions of human nature. Are human beings free or determined? Is the capacity to reason distinctive to human beings or do animals also have some share of reason? Have animals really been taught to use language? The Human Person touches on topics that bear upon the very fabric of the universe. Are human beings merely well-ordered collections of chemicals or do they have a soul that gives them life and understanding? Is there any element in human beings that survives death? Can human minds get in touch with the objective world or just forever dwell in the domain of their subjective experiences? The book closes by considering the most fundamental question of all: are human beings merely cosmic accidents with no purpose or is there some meaning to human life? In this book, beginners of philosophy will learn the wonders of their own nature by studying Aquinas's thought on the human person. title page copyright page dedication Contents List of Figures and Tables Acknowledgments Abbreviations 1. Introduction 2. Sensation 3. Skepticism 4. Internal Senses 5. Τhe Emotions 6. Mechanism 7. Materialism and Dualism 8. Hylomorphism 9. The Problem of Universal Κnowledge 10. Reason 11. Immortality 12. Freedom 13. The Will 14. Free Decision 15. Purpose Selected Bibliography Index