Chapter 1

Human nature: Summary - Definition of 'human being'

1121. Let me go back to human nature as I have described it. I shall summarise all the elements composing it, and seek in the nature of these elements the laws that preside over the activity of human nature, laws through which the soul is developed and perfected. To do this, I must first consider the initial definition of 'human being'.

1122. The human being is 'an animal, intellective and volitive subject'. This definition can be summarised in another: 'a rational subject'.
The first definition has the advantage of indicating the primal potencies of the human being. In fact, intelligence is a primal potency; reason, a resultant potency, as I said. This is why I would prefer to say that the human being is an intellective subject rather than a reasoning subject. If I had put 'reasoning' or 'rational' in the first definition instead of 'intellective', it would have been impossible to place 'animality' in the definition. 'Animality' would be already contained in 'rationality' and I would have failed to offer a definition in which the primal potencies were mentioned separately.

1123. Nevertheless, as we go over the question, I find the other definition, 'The human being is a rational subject', more perfect. Given that the word 'rational' has already been explained, this definition has the following advantages, besides brevity:

1. Although intelligence is the primal potency, it does not constitute human nature. If intelligence alone is posited, we would have an intellective subject, but not a human being. As long as our thought goes no further than intelligence, the human being is in course of formation, but is not yet formed. Reason is the activity which posits the human being.

2. Reason, as the activity proper to intelligence and to its connection with animality, suitably expresses the unity of the human subject and the primal bond between its potencies. It is true that in the definition, 'The human being is an animal, intellective and volitive subject', the word 'subject' is sufficient to indicate the unity of the human being. However, the definition, 'the human being is a rational subject', besides expressing the unity of the human being, also indicates how this unity is formed, that is, in virtue of reason, which joins in itself intellect and sense.(94)

Notes

(94) The word 'rational' in the definition 'the human being is a rational subject' does not properly express the potency of reason, but the quality of rationality proper to the essence of the human being.