{"id":10458,"date":"2026-05-23T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-05-23T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10458"},"modified":"2025-11-08T15:35:34","modified_gmt":"2025-11-08T15:35:34","slug":"looking-at-daniel-novotnys-book-2013-ens-rationis-from-suarez-to-caramuelpart-6-of-19","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10458","title":{"rendered":"Looking at Daniel Novotny\u2019s Book (2013) “Ens Rationis from Suarez to Caramuel”(Part 6 of 19)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

0046 The mental process may be explicitly labeled, “implicit abstraction”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I can now sketch the relational drama.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

0047 First, a human encounters a real being2a<\/sub>.  This beingencountered<\/sup>2a<\/sub> must be thought of in the manner of being.  It is real.  It is actual.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0048 But, since actuality is dyadic, there must be another actuality2a<\/sub>, accounting for the actuality of the encountered being2a<\/sub><\/em>.  The human experiences this as a gap.  During this content-level emptiness, the human is unaware of a normal context or its underlying possibilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why does the human experience this in this way?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If the tendency to experience this gap is innate, then humans evolved into a very odd niche.  In that niche, a disposition to recognize the dyadic character of the category of secondness<\/em> increased reproductive success.  How strange is that?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0049 Second, a situation-level intellect projects a being of reason2a<\/sub> (a nonbeing regarded in the manner of being)<\/em> into the empty slot of the content-level dyad.  When this is done, a content-level nested forms gels.  The normal context3a<\/sub> is what is happening3a<\/sub><\/em>.  The underlying potential1a<\/sub> is something that could happen1a<\/sub><\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What does this imply?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A feature of the intellect2b<\/sub> is the efficient cause of<\/em> the being of reason2a<\/sub><\/em>.  I will call this the efficient intellect<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0050 As soon as the beingin_reason<\/sup> is in place, other causes become apparent.  A formal cause (referring to the normal context), a material cause (concerning the encountered being2a<\/sub>) and a final cause (imagining the possibilities inherent in the appearance of the encountered being1a<\/sub><\/em>) come into view.  These complete the content-level nested form.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0051 Third, another aspect of the intellect constructs a judgment2c<\/sub>, contextualizing the operation of the efficient intellect.  If the encountered being2a<\/sub> corresponds to \u2018what it is\u2019, and if the beingin_reason<\/sup>2a<\/sub> corresponds to \u2018what it ought to be\u2019, and if the efficient intellect grasps a comparison between the two<\/em>, then implicit abstraction ends up as a formal relation between \u2018what it is\u2019 and \u2018what it ought to be\u2019<\/em>.  This formal relation is a judgment that contextualizes the situation<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thus, a perspective-level formal judgment2c<\/sub> establishes the basis1b<\/sub> on which the efficient intellect2b<\/sub> operates<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0052 The barebones storyline for implicit abstraction<\/em> looks like this:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

0053 Next, I would like to consider Suarez\u2019s claims about beings of reason, as ably discussed by Novotny (Chapter 4; Sections A and B).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0054 SC1: Beingsin_reason<\/sup>2a<\/sub> have no formal3a<\/sub>, material2a and 1a<\/sub> and final1a<\/sub> causes in the strict<\/em> sense, but they have these causes in some<\/em> sense.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These causes engage as soon as the being of reason2a<\/sub><\/em> enters into the emptiness of the other element of the dyad of actuality<\/em>.  Consequently, they operate when a beingin_reason<\/sup> is present.  Yet, they cannot account for a beingin_reason<\/sup>because, technically, a being in reason<\/em> is a nonbeing.  It simply does not exist.  Yet, apparent formal, material and final causes contribute to the impression that it does<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0055 SC2: Beingsin_reason<\/sup>2a<\/sub> have no efficient cause in the strict sense.  However, they have an efficient cause in some sense.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

SC3: The human intellect is the only efficient cause of \u2018beings of reason\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This fits the dynamic of an efficient intellect reaching into the empty space of the second element in the dyad of actuality<\/em> and molding a<\/em> being of reason<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0056 SC4: Extrinsic denominations are necessary but insufficient conditions for beings of reason.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is an \u201cextrinsic denomination\u201d?  Is it an encountered being2a<\/sub>?  An encountered being2a<\/sub> is a necessary condition, but it is not a sufficient condition for the formation of a being of reason2a<\/sub>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An extrinsic denomination2a<\/sub>… er… encountered being2a<\/sub> (?) plays a crucial role of creating an emptiness in the realm of actuality2a<\/sub><\/em>.  It does this simply by occupying one of the elements of the content-level dyad.  The other element appears, almost magically, by an alignment of actualities2<\/sub> in the perspectivec<\/sub> and situationb<\/sub> levels. The content-level emptiness of the other element of the dyad of actuality2a<\/sub><\/em> is thus filled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0057 Another way to say this is:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

SC5: Beings of reason<\/em> are caused by an act of the intellect that conceives of something that has no being<\/em> in the manner of being<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0058 The beingin_reason<\/sup>2a<\/sub> is a nonbeing.  It does not exist, even though it belongs to the realm of actuality.  The efficient intellect2b<\/sub> is able to think of a beingin_reason<\/sup>2a<\/sub> as if it exists<\/em> because the formal intellect2c<\/sub> provides a facilitating perspective.  A perspective-level judgment2c<\/sub> virtually (across categories) brings a situation-level efficient intellect2b<\/sub> into relation with a nonbeing that can be thought of in the manner of being2a<\/sub><\/em>.  The being of reason2a<\/sub> is a nonbeing that has the potential of being grasped (by the efficient intellect) as a being2a<\/sub><\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0059 This corresponds to Suarez\u2019s sixth and last thesis concerning the causes of beings of reason:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

SC6: Beings of reason are caused by a reflexive act of the intellect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0060 Today, the word \u201creflex\u201d means \u201ca stimulated act performed without awareness\u201d.  Yet, to my mind, the word also suggests a bending, a re-<\/em> (again) flex<\/em> (turning), similar to a reflection.  The efficient intellect acts like a reflex.  But, it does so under the oversight of a reflection, a second turning.  A reflective second turning2c<\/sub> virtually brings the reflex2b<\/sub>into relation with the potential inherent in the beingin_reason<\/sup>2a<\/sub><\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0061 Next, I would like to consider Suarez\u2019s claims about the nature of beings of reason<\/em>, as ably condensed by Novotny (Chapter 3; Sections B and C).  I will demonstrate that this model of implicit abstraction<\/em> applies to Suarez\u2019s claims.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

0046 The mental process may be explicitly labeled, “implicit abstraction”. I can now sketch the relational drama. 0047 First, a human encounters a real being2a.  This beingencountered2a must be thought of in the manner of being.  It is real.  It is actual. 0048 But, since actuality is dyadic, there must be another actuality2a, accounting for the actuality of the encountered […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[417],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10458","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-book-review"],"yoast_head":"\nLooking at Daniel Novotny\u2019s Book (2013) "Ens Rationis from Suarez to Caramuel"(Part 6 of 19) - An Archaeology of the Fall<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10458\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Looking at Daniel Novotny\u2019s Book (2013) "Ens Rationis from Suarez to Caramuel"(Part 6 of 19) - An Archaeology of the Fall\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"0046 The mental process may be explicitly labeled, “implicit abstraction”. 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