A Physics of Mental Life: Spinoza's Use of the Geometrical Method and his Scientific Theory of the Emotions 公开
Haas, Julia Simone (2011)
Abstract
Abstract
A Physics of Mental Life:
Spinoza's Use of the Geometrical Method and his Scientific Theory
of the Emotions
By Julia Haas
This thesis introduces the geometrical method as an interpretive
framework for examining and
elucidating key features of Part III of Spinoza's Ethics. In
doing so, it presents Part III as a modern,
penetrating and deeply coherent account of the human emotions.
Specifically, it aims to: 1) examine
the scientific nature of Spinoza's theory of the emotions, 2) set
it apart from strictly descriptive
theories of the emotions, and 3) clarify several of the text's
somewhat perplexing features. I argue
that understanding the key components of Spinoza's scientific
method helps makes sense of his theory
of the emotions. Spinoza's commitment to the principle of
homogeneity explains his decision to
extend rational inquiry to the problem of the emotions, and tracing
out his application of the
geometrical method helps uncover his rich, integrative theory of
emotional experience. Section I
addresses both of these methodological principles, and defends
their role as important conceptual
tools in Spinoza's scientific undertaking. Since the human being
stands at the center of Spinoza's
theory of the emotions, Section II begins by considering Spinoza's
principle of parallelism, and
explores its deep-seated implications for understanding the nature
of the human body and, especial y,
the constitution of the human mind. Final y, Section III builds on
these preparatory considerations to
tackle the important connections between Spinoza's use of the
geometrical method and his
articulation of a modern, scientific theory of the emotions. It
explains how an underlying framework
organizes the seemingly disparate components of Part III, which in
turn enabled Spinoza to elucidate
the causal origins and essential properties of the most basic human
emotions.
A Physics of Mental Life:
Spinoza's Use of the Geometrical Method and his Scientific Theory
of the Emotions
By
Julia Haas
B.A., Concordia University, 2008
Advisor: Ursula Goldenbaum, Ph.D.
A thesis submitted to the Faculty of the
James T. Laney School of Graduate Studies of Emory University
in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of
Master of Arts
in
Philosophy
2011
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Introduction
1
Section I - The Principle of Homogeneity and the
Geometrical Method
4
1. The Principle of Homogeneity
6
2. The Geometrical Method
7
(i) The Geometrical Method in the Seventeenth Century
9
(ii) Logic
11
(iii) Mos Geometricus
16
Section II - The Human Being
20
1. The Principle of Parallelism
21
2. The Body
23
3. The Mind
26
Section III - A Physics of Mental Life
30
1. Vis Existendi
34
2. Projection on to Objects
38
3. Behavior: Affirmation and Negation
38
4. Human Interactions
39
5. Definitions
40
Conclusion - Spinoza's Theory of the Emotions as a Model for Future
Inquiry
41
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