Common sense
The term common sense (Greek koine AISTHESIS ( κοινὴ αἴσθησις ), Latin sensus communis, Eng. Commonsense, French bon sens ) is ambiguous in German and has three basic meanings. It can be addressed within the framework of a ( philosophical ) psychology understood as a property which the individual senses provides a reflected unity, as a synonym for common sense or to refer to the inner basis of a common good - oriented thinking, feeling and acting. In medicine, the term " koine AISTHESIS " is treated as Zönästhesie.
- 2.1 Stoics, Cicero
- 2.2 Middle Ages
- 2.3 Hutcheson and Hume
- 2.4 Common sense in the common -sense philosophy
- 2.5 Common Sense in Kant
- 2.6 Current positions to common sense
- 4.1 See also
- 4.2 External links
- 4.3 Literature
- 4.4 Notes and references
Sense of community in the sense of ( philosophical ) psychology
In psychology, the German term sense of community is a calque on sensus communis of koine AISTHESIS.
In the ( philosophical ) psychology, the term common sense is used differently.
Two main meanings can be distinguished:
- " the perception of the different senses Common "
- The internal sense.
Common sense as perception of the senses Common ( Aristotle )
Common sense is in Aristotle ( De anima III, p 2 425 to 15: tôn Koinon Echomen aisthêsin koinên. ) The assets, the Common recognize the with the external senses perceived. It is with him the inner sense, which sense impressions bundles into a whole. They called him initially mean because he perceives that which not only the subject of an external senses range comes, but can be thought of together just as the external senses, such as motion, number, shape or size.
According to Aristotle, we take at the same time also true that we perceive " ( aisthanometha hoti kai horômen akouomen lc III 2, 425b 12; De memor 1, . Somn De 2. ). "
Common sense as an inner sense
Avicenna expects a sense of community to the inner senses as the ability to " omnia quae sensu Percepta recipit " Similarly Suarez in De anima III, 30, inter alia,
Thomas Aquinas, acting under the sense of community " all show ways that are not the individual senses and the intellect falls, so imagination, memory, apperception, among other things "
During the Reformation, we identified five inner senses and stood next to the sense of community their judgment, imagination, thinking and memory.
René Descartes (1596-1650) referred to as common sense that which summarizes the sense impressions into a total sensory impression in the mind. This could ( animaux wit ) over the so-called spirits as innate ideas ( innate ideas ) both translate sensory impressions into spiritually conscious as well as implement volitions as acts of the Spirit in muscle movement. He assumes as a further inner sense of hunger and thirst.
" The sensualist Hobbes, Locke and Condillac retained the concept of the internal sense. "
" Wundt referred to in chronological significance as a " general sense " those meaning which precedes all others, and therefore endowed with all animate beings, in a spatial meaning to mind, which has the most extensive the charms accessible sensory surface, the entire outer skin with the adjacent thereto mucosa parts. the body cavities and a large number of internal organs, such as the joints, muscles, tendons, bones, etc., in which spread sensitive nerves and either continuously or intermittent stimuli are accessible to the general sense, so determined includes four sensational systems: pressure -, cold, heat and pain sensations in a ( Wundt, floor plan of psychology § 6, pp. 56 ff.) Wundt thus sets the general sense in place of touch or feeling sense. "
Common sense as common sense
The term also refers to the common sense of common sense or even common sense.
In the common sense, it is " by and large, widely-used and usually unquestioned beliefs ." According to Kant 's common sense " nothing more than the average mind of a healthy person. "
Prominent is the doctrine of common sense in the Scottish common-sense philosophy of the 18th century. She gave it but previously and the appeal to common sense is also now a popular argument ( topos ).
Stoicism, Cicero
In Stoicism, the idea of common terms ( communes conceptiones or notiones communes) was developed as the strongest criterion of truth. Then there are general statements and terms, such as the Good or the laws of geometry of Euclid, which one can assume at all. Is a general moral and cognizant instinct behind these terms.
For Cicero, the term formed further to the agreement of all ( consensus gentium ), which, like the laws of nature has general validity for society.
Middle Ages
Boethius examined the concept of a common mind ( animis conceptio communis ) as a general law, as a statement that everyone agrees on, as well as in medieval philosophy Peter Abelard and Thomas Aquinas. Communes conceptiones are principles that are evident by the necessary and the truth is detected (summa Theologica I / II, q 94, ad. 4c).
Hutcheson and Hume
In the English philosophy, the meaning of the concept of common sense in Francis Hutcheson and David Hume to the generally recognized principles of practical life, specifically which also include a moral sense developed. Both can be seen as successors of Shaftesbury, who emphasizes the importance of wit and humor under the title of the Sensus communis and relies on attention to the Roman classics and their humanist interpreters. The principles of common sense must be distinguished from the prejudices of the crowd. In Hume added that the common sense forms the basis of experience and habit.
Common sense in the common -sense philosophy
In the 18th century formed in connection to the Scottish Common Sense philosophy, which was strongly influenced by Thomas Reid, the importance of a common conviction as the basis of a recognition. Against materialistic views, but also against the skepticism of Hume, Thomas Reid developed in " Essays on the Intellectual Powers of Man ," a theory of common sense, according to the knowledge on the intuitive ability to access based in the truth, while the only reason a dispute with this includes insights. As irrefutable truths he looked in particular the presence of a self- consciousness, the existence of an external world and general, always valid laws of nature. The function of common sense to correct particularly exaggerated speculations of metaphysics as well as radical skepticism.
For the representatives of the so-called " Scottish school" (annex Reid especially James Beattie, Joseph Priestley ) called " common sense " common sense they make to the " source of a priori truth, of morality, of religion" did. Basis of the entire philosophy should therefore be sufficiently reflected everyday experiences, answer each question of their justification and their origin, the use and usefulness of the terms.
Sense of community in Kant
In Immanuel Kant found both a critique of the appeal to the common sense in the metaphysical debate, as well as a justification of the sensus communis in his theory of judgment. In the view of the " Scottish school" of common sense and its affiliated German popular philosophy Kant saw only a convenient evasion of the actual tasks of Reason ( Immanuel Kant: AA 0004IV, 259-260 ). Common sense show especially in the immediate application of judgments in the experience, but he could not be regarded as a justification for concepts and dogmas as propositions a priori.
Another picture of public spirit drew Kant, however, in the area of judgment, especially in judgments of taste: "Under the sensus communis you have the idea of a common sense, di an evaluation assets understand, which in its reflection on the conception of each other in thought (a priori) be accountable to speak to the entire human reason to keep his judgment and thereby avoid the illusion of subjective private conditions, which are easily mistaken for objectively could, would have on the judgment injurious influence. [ ... ] You could call the taste by sensus communis aestheticus, the common understanding of sensus communis logicus " ( Immanuel Kant: AA 0005V, 293-295 ). . Here, the sense of community is regulative and tends to make a distinction between objective and subjective- personal and subjective- general of the assessment. This sense of community wants Kant but know from common sense of common sense distinction.
Current positions to common sense
In the 20th century, George Edward Moore is known for his " defense of common sense ." Great importance is the ordinary use of language with him. Generally, the appeal to the common sense among representatives of ordinary language philosophy remains influential.
The critics of the doctrine of common sense see her in the wake of Kant " a strategy of argument denial ". Despite critical distance to the common sense but is also the need for a "floor ( s ) of beliefs " seen (eg existence and identity of self, relatives, colleagues, etc., outside world reality, etc.). It will apply a heuristic criterion: Who represents something, as a philosopher, what him if he lives according to the " man on the street " for holding insane, has an increased load argument for his opinion. However, this should not be misunderstood in the sense of conformism.
Common sense as a symbol for the common good
Common sense understood as an ethical attitude, the willingness to work for the common good. Thus "common sense " was already in Rotteck Welcker Staatslexikon as " the direction of the mind to the pursuit of general or common [ ... ] interests " section. Related terms in this sense, public spirit, the "actual, civic virtue ' ", active citizenship, social, civic engagement. "Common sense " is considered sometimes as a antonym of obstinacy.
Thomas Wanninger discussed in "Education and Common Sense " the educability of common sense and a historical overview forms of meaning and judgment fields of the " sensus communis ". Here also a pedagogy of common sense is developed, because it is not just assume that the sense of community is an instinct, but the formability subject. The possibility to act according to the principles of common sense is allocated to each, he only has to make an effort to eliminate disturbing ( selfishness, tendency to prejudice, ...). The question of the teacher is therefore not know what to do, but what is to be aware of. In essence, it is here in a negative education ( negare, lat take away ).