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1、MP_C30.qxd11/23/062:36AMPage22730ThomasAquinasOnBeingandEssencePrologueBecauseasmallerrorinthebeginninggrowsenormousattheend,asthePhilosopher1remarksinBook1ofOntheHeavensandtheWorld,andbeingandessencearethefirstthingstobeconceivedbyourunderstanding,asA
2、vicennadeclaresinBook1ofhis2Metaphysics,inordertoavoidfallingintoerroraboutthem,andtorevealtheirdifficulties,weshouldseewhataresignifiedbythenamesofbeingandessence,howthesearefound3invariousthings,andhowtheyarerelatedtothelogicalintentionsofgenus,specie
3、s,anddifference.Andsinceweneedtoarriveatthecognitionofsimplecomponentsfromthecognitionofwhattheycompose,andfromthosethatareposteriortothosethatareprior,sothatthediscussionmaysuitablyprogressfromtheeasiersubjects,weshouldproceedfromthe4significationofth
4、enameofbeingtothesignificationofthenameofessence.1Aristotle,DeCaelo,lb.1,c.5,A271;CommentaryofSt.Thomas,lc.9.2Avicenna,Metaphysica,lb.1,c.6.3The“logicalintentions”aresecond-orderconcepts(secundaeintentiones)wherebyweconceiveoffirst-orderconcepts[primaei
5、ntentiones],whichinturnareconceptswherebyweconceiveofthingsthatarenotconcepts.Forexample,bymeansofthefirst-orderconceptsofhumansandofdogswecon-ceiveofhumanbeingsandofdogs,whicharenotconcepts.Butbymeansofthesecond-ordercon-ceptofspeciesweconceiveofthefir
6、st-order,specificconceptsofhumans,dogs,donkeys,etc.,andbymeansofthesecond-orderconceptofgenusweconceiveofthegenericconceptsofanimals,plants,elements,etc.4ThispassageisaneatexpressionofAquinas’sgeneralAristotelianepistemologicalstance.Weshouldstartwitht
7、hethingswithwhichwearemorefamiliar,namely,thethingsgiveninoureverydayexperi-ence,whichare,nevertheless,metaphysicallyposteriortotheirsimplecomponents.Butthroughthecarefulconceptualanalysisofthesethingswemayarriveattheunderstandingoftheirsimplemeta-phy
8、sicalconstituents,whichwillthenenableustoseehowtheseconstituentscanbefoundeveninthingsbeyondoureverydayexperience.MP_C30.qxd11/23/062:36AMPage2282285Chapter1.TheMeaningsoftheNamesofBeingandEssenceWeshouldknowthat,asthePhilosophersaysinBook5oft
