Reports from the Department of Philosophy Vol. 29 SPINOZA’S CONCEPT OF EMENDING THE INTELLECT A CRITICAL INVESTIGATION INTO SPINOZA’S METHOD OF EMENDING THE INTELLECT WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO THE TRACTATUS DE INTELLECTUS EMENDATIONE Daryl de Bruyn University of Turku Finland Copyright © 2014 Daryl de Bruyn SERIES EDITORS: Olli Koistinen Juha Räikkä Department of Philosophy University of Turku FI-20014 Turku Finland ISSN 1457-9332 ISBN 978-951-29-5841-2 (paperback) ISBN 978-951-29-5842-9 (PDF) Painosalama Oy, Turku 2014 Acknowledgements My heartfelt thanks, firstly, goes to the University of Turku for giving me the opportunity and support to accomplish this important project in my life. I express a deep gratitude to the Department of Philosophy and, most of all, to Professor Olli Koistinen for his kind invitation to study under his supervision and for his unfailing support and assistance to me as a ‘part-time’ philosopher. In the same vein, I extend a special word of thanks to Valtteri Viljanen for his supervisory assistance throughout and especially during the crucial finalization stage of this manuscript. I will always have fond memories of the warm Finnish hospitality he and Hanna extended me during this time. During our stay in Finland (2010–2011), I was especially privileged to be regularly included into the “Rationalist Circle”, a circle of top class philosophers, but also one of friends. Thank you all so much for the kind interest in my work and support. A special word of thanks goes also to Hemmo Laiho for his assistance in preparing the manuscript for publication and also to Hanna-Mari Salonen for her friendship and assistance throughout. I would also like to thank Associate Professor Julie Klein (Villanova University) and Dr. Peter Myrdal (University of Uppsala) for acting as external referees and for their valuable comments. On a personal note, I would like to thank my wife Anne and dedicate this work to her. Without her ongoing encouragement and support the achievement of this life long ambition of mine would not have materialized. I will always cherish the wonderful time we as family spent together in Turku. An especially ‘warm’ memory for me as a South African was taking our nine year-old son Philip to school by bus when it was minus 25° and watching him learn to ice skate! iii Contents 1. The Quest for Certitude ......................................................................................... 1 1.1. The nature of the human mind .................................................................................. 4 1.2. Medicina mentis ........................................................................................................ 7 1.3. Overview and method ............................................................................................. 13 2. Certainty and Essence ........................................................................................... 19 2.1. Descartes and his Regulae ....................................................................................... 20 2.2. Adequate ideas, simplicity and essence monism .................................................... 23 2.3. Self-evidence and certainty ..................................................................................... 29 2.4. Essence in Spinoza .................................................................................................. 31 2.4.1. Substance and essence monism ........................................................................ 34 2.4.2. The expression of God’s essence ..................................................................... 38 2.4.3. Adequacy and finite modes .............................................................................. 41 2.5. Ethics and certitude ................................................................................................. 46 3. Mind, Body and Essence ...................................................................................... 53 3.1. Mind ........................................................................................................................ 55 3.1.1. The essence of thought ..................................................................................... 55 3.1.2. Affirmation ....................................................................................................... 58 3.1.3. God’s infinite intellect ...................................................................................... 59 3.1.4. The innate idea of God ..................................................................................... 63 3.1.5. Parallelism ........................................................................................................ 66 3.1.6. The nature and constitution of the mind ........................................................... 68 3.2. Body ........................................................................................................................ 72 3.2.1. Mechanism ....................................................................................................... 73 3.2.2. Immanentism .................................................................................................... 74 3.2.3. Motion in matter ............................................................................................... 76 3.2.4. Particular bodies ............................................................................................... 77 3.2.5. Body and essence ............................................................................................. 86 4. Essence and Method in the TdIE ...................................................................... 88 4.1. Intellect and certainty .............................................................................................. 89 4.2. Reflexive knowledge ............................................................................................... 96 4.2.1. The idea of an idea ........................................................................................... 97 4.2.2. Simple ideas ..................................................................................................... 99 4.2.3. Deduction ....................................................................................................... 105 4.2.4. Other innate tools ........................................................................................... 108 4.3. Definitions ............................................................................................................. 109 4.4. The properties of the intellect ................................................................................ 117 iv 5. Knowledge and Essence ...................................................................................... 120 5.1. Historiola mentis ................................................................................................... 121 5.1.1. Hearsay ........................................................................................................... 121 5.1.2. Casual experience ........................................................................................... 122 5.1.3. Inadequate inference ....................................................................................... 123 5.1.4. Certainty and essence ..................................................................................... 126 5.2. Inadequate knowledge ........................................................................................... 129 5.3. Adequate knowledge ............................................................................................. 131 5.3.1. The dictates of reason ..................................................................................... 133 5.3.2. Intuition and inner certainty ........................................................................... 138 5.3.3. Proportion ....................................................................................................... 143 5.4. The passions .......................................................................................................... 147 5.4.1. Reason and the passions ................................................................................. 148 5.4.2. Intuition and the passions ............................................................................... 149 6. Certitude and Eternity ........................................................................................ 152 6.1. The nature of the intellect ...................................................................................... 154 6.1.1. Perceiving things sub quadam specie aeternitatis .......................................... 156 6.1.2. The intellect and the self ................................................................................. 161 6.2. Certitude and God’s concurrence .......................................................................... 165 6.3. Spinoza’s intellectual vision .................................................................................. 172 7. Conclusion ............................................................................................................... 174 Bibliography ................................................................................................................ 178 v Abbreviations 1. SPINOZA, BENEDICTUS DE (1632–77) S = Spinoza. 2002. Spinoza: Complete Works, Translated by Samuel Shirley, edited by Michael L. Morgan. Indianapolis: Hackett. CM = Metaphysical Thoughts (Cogitata