From Anaxagoras to Albert the Great: The Latency of Forms and the Active Power of Matter in the Middle Ages
This study explores the doctrine of the latency of forms in the Middle Ages, with a particular focus on Albert the Great’s elaboration through his theory of inchoatio formarum. The doctrine, whose origins date back to Anaxagoras and was further developed in the Arabic philosophical tradition, posits...
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E-theca OnLineOpenAccess Edizioni
2024-11-01
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| Series: | Noctua |
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| Online Access: | https://dx.doi.org/10.14640/NoctuaXI9 |
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| author | Nadia Bray |
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| description | This study explores the doctrine of the latency of forms in the Middle Ages, with a particular focus on Albert the Great’s elaboration through his theory of inchoatio formarum. The doctrine, whose origins date back to Anaxagoras and was further developed in the Arabic philosophical tradition, posits that matter contains all the manifest qualities of substances, though in a latent form. Albert reworks this doctrine, correcting the immanentist and paradoxical implications attributed to Anaxagoras’ error, and proposes an interpretation in which matter, while potentially active, receives the perfection of forms from an external causal principle. The study highlights how Albert’s inchoatio formarum provides a response to the doctrine of the latency of forms and fits into the broader medieval debate on the relationship between matter and forms, both in philosophical and theological contexts. The discussion also examines the commentators of Peter Lombard’s Sentences and the connection with Augustine’s doctrine of rationes seminales. Lastly, Albert’s contribution to the debate on Augustine’s rationes seminales and his interaction with the Thomist tradition and other 15th-century authors are analyzed. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-693ecd11a8d64dfa9fc3bc629bbc8fe6 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2284-1180 |
| language | deu |
| publishDate | 2024-11-01 |
| publisher | E-theca OnLineOpenAccess Edizioni |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Noctua |
| spelling | doaj-art-693ecd11a8d64dfa9fc3bc629bbc8fe62025-08-20T02:38:25ZdeuE-theca OnLineOpenAccess EdizioniNoctua2284-11802024-11-0111336839210.14640/NoctuaXI9From Anaxagoras to Albert the Great: The Latency of Forms and the Active Power of Matter in the Middle AgesNadia Bray0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1274-9719Università del Salento, LecceThis study explores the doctrine of the latency of forms in the Middle Ages, with a particular focus on Albert the Great’s elaboration through his theory of inchoatio formarum. The doctrine, whose origins date back to Anaxagoras and was further developed in the Arabic philosophical tradition, posits that matter contains all the manifest qualities of substances, though in a latent form. Albert reworks this doctrine, correcting the immanentist and paradoxical implications attributed to Anaxagoras’ error, and proposes an interpretation in which matter, while potentially active, receives the perfection of forms from an external causal principle. The study highlights how Albert’s inchoatio formarum provides a response to the doctrine of the latency of forms and fits into the broader medieval debate on the relationship between matter and forms, both in philosophical and theological contexts. The discussion also examines the commentators of Peter Lombard’s Sentences and the connection with Augustine’s doctrine of rationes seminales. Lastly, Albert’s contribution to the debate on Augustine’s rationes seminales and his interaction with the Thomist tradition and other 15th-century authors are analyzed.https://dx.doi.org/10.14640/NoctuaXI9latency of formsinchoatio formarumalbert the greatrationes seminalesanaxagorashylomorphismactive matter |
| spellingShingle | Nadia Bray From Anaxagoras to Albert the Great: The Latency of Forms and the Active Power of Matter in the Middle Ages Noctua latency of forms inchoatio formarum albert the great rationes seminales anaxagoras hylomorphism active matter |
| title | From Anaxagoras to Albert the Great: The Latency of Forms and the Active Power of Matter in the Middle Ages |
| title_full | From Anaxagoras to Albert the Great: The Latency of Forms and the Active Power of Matter in the Middle Ages |
| title_fullStr | From Anaxagoras to Albert the Great: The Latency of Forms and the Active Power of Matter in the Middle Ages |
| title_full_unstemmed | From Anaxagoras to Albert the Great: The Latency of Forms and the Active Power of Matter in the Middle Ages |
| title_short | From Anaxagoras to Albert the Great: The Latency of Forms and the Active Power of Matter in the Middle Ages |
| title_sort | from anaxagoras to albert the great the latency of forms and the active power of matter in the middle ages |
| topic | latency of forms inchoatio formarum albert the great rationes seminales anaxagoras hylomorphism active matter |
| url | https://dx.doi.org/10.14640/NoctuaXI9 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT nadiabray fromanaxagorastoalbertthegreatthelatencyofformsandtheactivepowerofmatterinthemiddleages |