Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of figures
- List of tables
- Acknowledgments
- A note on the texts
- Introduction
- Part 1 THE PASSIONS IN GENERAL
- Part 2 PARTICULAR PASSIONS: THE CONCUPISCIBLE PASSIONS
- 5 Love
- 6 Hatred and concupiscence
- 7 Pleasure
- 8 Sorrow
- Part 3 PARTICULAR PASSIONS: THE IRASCIBLE PASSIONS
- Bibliography
- Index
7 - Pleasure
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 06 July 2009
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of figures
- List of tables
- Acknowledgments
- A note on the texts
- Introduction
- Part 1 THE PASSIONS IN GENERAL
- Part 2 PARTICULAR PASSIONS: THE CONCUPISCIBLE PASSIONS
- 5 Love
- 6 Hatred and concupiscence
- 7 Pleasure
- 8 Sorrow
- Part 3 PARTICULAR PASSIONS: THE IRASCIBLE PASSIONS
- Bibliography
- Index
Summary
The treatment of the passion of pleasure is complex, requiring as many Questions as Aquinas assigns to the passions in general. In considering the nature of pleasure, Aquinas draws crucial distinctions between pleasure and joy, bodily pleasures and spiritual pleasures, arguing in some detail for the superiority of the latter (§7.1). After describing the essence of pleasure, Aquinas turns to a detailed consideration of its causes, distinguishing between the direct cause (operation) and multiple indirect causes (§7.2). What does pleasure do to a person? What are its effects? Aquinas considers the sense in which pleasure brings about a kind of “expansion” or “enlargement” of the soul, whets the appetite for more pleasure, and constitutes the completion of activities that would be good even if they did not involve pleasure (§7.3). How are pleasures related to the human good? Aquinas argues for a strong connection, arguing that pleasure is not only the natural byproduct of good action, but constitutes the criterion by which good character may be distinguished from bad (§7.4).
THE NATURE OF PLEASURE
In Questions 31–4, Aquinas returns to the tripartite scheme that he used to interrogate the passion of love. Asking first what pleasure is in itself (Question 31), Aquinas proceeds to inquire about the causes of pleasure (Question 32) and its effects (Question 33). He expands the scheme by the inclusion of an appendix on the passion's goodness and badness (de bonitate et malitia) (Question 34).
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Thomas Aquinas on the PassionsA Study of Summa Theologiae, 1a2ae 22–48, pp. 160 - 187Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2009