Perception and a Chain of Existence

In his “On the Free Choice of Will,” St. Augustine speaks of three “senses”: sense, inner sense and reason. He speaks of how sense can be perceived only by inner sense, and of how both sense and inner sense, as well as reason itself, can be perceived only by reason. We are not able to recognize the fact that we have seen the color red by using our eyes; we must use our inner sense. By the same token, we cannot perceive that we have perceived this outer sense, sight, through our inner sense using our inner sense; we must use reason. Sense, inner sense and reason must be perceived because we are aware of their existence, and it is for this reason that inner sense and reason are necessarily within us. Also, any being that possesses reason must necessarily possess both sense and inner sense as well, but a being that possesses both sense and inner sense does not necessarily possess reason. This is made obvious when we compare ourselves with the other animals, or “beasts,” who possess only two of these qualities: sense and inner sense. Augustine illustrates this point perfectly on page 42: “We must not believe that beasts know that light is not perceived by the ears nor a voice by the eyes, for we perceive this only by rational thought and reflection within the soul.” This relates to Augustine’s idea of reason assisting faith in that it is through reason that we are able to understand the higher forms and, possibly, God.

Like Plotinus, Augustine sets up a chain of existence in his discussion. “What is eternal and immutable,” as Augustine puts it, rests at the top. Next are human beings, who through their capacity to reason are able to comprehend and to contemplate the ideals that are at the top of the chain. Finally, we have all other animals and creatures of the earth, who are able to see, taste, touch, hear and smell, and are able to control these senses using their inner sense, but who are not able to understand that they have perceived and controlled these senses using their inner sense. They are also certainly unable to understand abstract concepts like numbers. This is true because no animal besides human beings has within it the capacity to reason. It is because of reason that we, as human beings, are closest to God. Animals have no concept of God, but we do, and Augustine believes that it is entirely within our capacity to understand God. Your “god” may not be the same as the one Augustine is referring to, but this concept should have resonance for even the non-religious because it shows that what is greatest within us is our ability to learn, to understand and to contemplate. Admittedly, animals also have the ability to learn and to understand, but we do not refer to these qualities within animals and human beings in the same way at all.