107. Effects of Sadness: Weighing Down, Operations, and Bodily Harm

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Lecture Notes

Main Topics #

The Weighing Down (Aggravatio) of the Soul #

• Sadness metaphorically ‘weighs down’ (aggravatio) the soul, impeding it from enjoying what it wishes
• The term metaphorically describes a physical burden: someone sad is said to be ‘weighed down,’ ‘heavy,’ or ‘depressed’
• Distinguished from proper (non-metaphorical) language about physical objects
• If hope remains, the soul is merely weighed down but can still move to repel the harmful thing causing sadness
• If hope is entirely lost, sadness becomes absorption (absorptio), narrowing the soul so completely that it cannot divert itself; this can even impede exterior bodily motion, leaving a person stupefied

Sadness and Human Operations #

• Sadness can be compared to operations in two distinct ways:
  1. As the object of sadness: When one is sad about X, sadness impedes one’s ability to perform X well (e.g., sadness about prayer impedes prayer)
  2. As a cause/beginning of sadness: Sadness may cause other operations aimed at expelling the sadness itself (e.g., solicitude from sadness motivates action)
• Solicitude (concern/diligence) arises from sadness and can aid good operations—this apparent contradiction is resolved by the distinction
• Some operations are proper to the sad person (e.g., weeping) and are intensified by sadness
• The will is the cause of human operation; when the operation is that about which one is sad, the action is debilitated

Why Sadness Most Harms the Body #

• Sadness, among all passions of the soul, most harms the body—not merely according to excess (quantity) but according to its very species
• Human life consists in a motion diffused from the heart to other members, proceeding according to a determined measure
• Other passions (love, joy, desire, fear, anger) are only repugnant to vital motion according to their measure/quantity: they aid life according to their species but harm it through excess
• Sadness alone is repugnant to vital motion according to its own species (formal aspect), not merely according to quantity
• Sadness impedes the process of vital motion itself, making it more fundamentally opposed to life than other emotions
• The bodily change in sadness is conformed to the soul’s motion of aversion/retraction from present evil

Metaphorical Language in Philosophy #

• Emotions are sometimes necessarily expressed metaphorically because they cannot be fully grasped rationally
• Metaphors (metaphora) literally means ‘carried over’ in Greek
• Thomas uses metaphorical language about the soul even though this is typically reserved for Scripture and poetry
• Example: fervor (heat) for love, dilation (expansion) for pleasure, aggravatio (weighing down) for sadness
• Unlike poetry (which deals with things below reason) or simple metaphor, understanding emotions requires recognizing what can be said properly, metaphorically, or not at all

Transfer of Emotional Language to God #

• Only two emotions can be properly carried over to God: love and joy
• Other emotions can be said of God metaphorically by the likeness of effects:
  • Anger: God punishes as an angry man punishes; thus God is said to be ‘angry’ by the similarity of the effect
  • Pity: God relieves suffering as a compassionate man does; thus God is said to ‘pity’
• Some emotions cannot even be said metaphorically of God:
  • Fear: No likeness of effect; God fears nothing
  • Despair: No conceivable metaphorical application to God
  • Sadness: No evil can befall God; God is unchangeable

Key Arguments #

On Weighing Down (Article 2 of Effects) #

Objection 1: Sadness according to God (as in 2 Corinthians 7:10) produces solicitude and indignation, which raise the soul rather than weigh it down.

• Response: Sadness according to God includes hope of avoiding sin and obtaining salvation, so it does not completely weigh down the soul

Objection 2: Sadness is opposed to pleasure; pleasure causes dilation (expansion); therefore sadness should cause constriction (narrowing), not weighing down.

• Response: Both constriction and weighing down apply to sadness, but for different reasons: (1) constriction—one cannot go forth freely to external things; (2) weighing down—the soul is drawn back upon itself

Objection 3: Sadness causes absorption (as in 2 Corinthians 2:7, ’lest by abundant sadness you be absorbed’), not weighing down.

• Response: Sadness causes both weighing down and absorption: when hope remains, it weighs down; when hope is lost, it absorbs (includes) the one in the sadness itself

On Operations (Article 3 of Effects) #

Objection 1: Solicitude arises from sadness and solicitude aids good operation; therefore sadness does not impede operation.

• Response: Operation is compared to sadness in two ways: (1) as object—sadness about X impedes doing X; (2) as cause—sadness causes increased effort to expel the sadness

Objection 2: Sadness causes concupiscence (desire), which intensifies operation.

• Response: Same distinction applies; sadness intensifies operations aimed at expelling it, not the operation that is its object

Objection 3: Some operations are proper to the sad (e.g., weeping) and are increased by sadness.

• Response: True; sadness increases operations suitable to sadness; this does not contradict that sadness impedes operations about which one is sad

On Bodily Harm (Article 4 of Effects) #

Objection 1: Sadness has spiritual being in the soul; spiritual things do not cause bodily change (analogy: color in air doesn’t make air colored).

• Response: The soul naturally moves the body; spiritual motions of the soul naturally cause bodily changes. The soul is the first actuality (πρώτη ἐντελέχεια / prima actualitas) of a living body and actually moves it.

Objection 2: All passions have bodily changes; anger and concupiscence cause insanity, which is worse than bodily harm from sadness.

• Response: Other passions have bodily changes proportionate to their species (conformed to vital motion); sadness is unique in being repugnant to vital motion according to its very species

Objection 3: If sadness impedes reason (causing melancholy or madness), then reason—the most excellent thing in man—is harmed most.

• Response: True; but sadness causes this loss of reason by impeding vital motion itself, not merely by excess

Important Definitions #

Aggravatio (Weighing Down / Depression) #

• Metaphorical term describing how sadness affects the soul
• The soul is impeded from enjoying what it wishes
• Analogous to a physical weight or burden bearing down on the body
• Distinct from absorption: weighing down allows residual motion toward expelling the cause; absorption excludes all hope and motion

Absorptio (Absorption) #

• The state when sadness becomes so intense that hope is entirely lost
• The soul is no longer merely weighed down but completely included/absorbed in the sadness
• Results in narrowing (angustiae) where the soul cannot divert itself in any direction
• Can lead to stupefaction of the entire person, affecting even bodily motion

Motio Vitalis (Vital Motion) #

• The motion diffused from the heart to other members that constitutes human life
• Proceeds according to a determined measure
• The formal object that determines whether a passion is repugnant to life according to species or merely according to quantity

Constriction (Constrictio) #

• The inability to move freely outward to external things
• One of the ways sadness affects the soul, distinct from weighing down
• The soul is ‘clasped’ or ‘bound’ upon itself

Metaphora (Metaphor) #

• Literally ‘carrying over’ (from Greek μετά + φέρω)
• Necessary for expressing realities that cannot be fully grasped rationally
• Distinguished from proper and improper predication; can be used in the highest teaching (theology) for realities above reason

Examples & Illustrations #

Personal Anecdotes #

• Teaching methodology: Berquist recalls his teacher telling him, “Read very carefully” and asking, “What’s in the text that you didn’t get out?"—emphasizing careful textual analysis before philosophical discussion
• Pacemaker patient: A parishioner mentioned that a pacemaker helps the heart and claimed it also prevents Alzheimer’s, keeping one more alert
• St. Thomas at dinner: The famous story of Thomas abstracting during a meal with a king, striking the table in solving a problem, then apologizing while the king had him write down the solution
• Archimedes in the bathtub: Upon discovering a geometrical solution, he suddenly thought of it and jumped out of the bath, running through the streets (Eureka!)

Literary Examples #

• Great Expectations (Dickens): Miss Havisham, abandoned at the altar, kept the clocks stopped and the wedding cake corrupting—representing sadness turned to obsession
• Washington Irving’s Life of Columbus: Confusion between Columbus and his uncle/cousin of the same name illustrates equivocation by chance in history (as opposed to philosophical equivocation by reason)
• The Merchant of Venice (Shakespeare): Portia, overjoyed at Bassanio making the right choice of caskets, is nearly overcome by joy and says she cannot hold/overcome it
• Musical example: The contrast between Mozart’s hopeful D Major Concerto (K. 593) and melancholy G Minor Sad Quintet; discussion of how minor keys suit sadness while major keys suit joy

Philosophical Examples #

• Equivocation by chance vs. by reason: Historical examples (Columbus’s relatives) versus philosophical (names applied to different things by accident vs. essential similarity)
• Angels and sensible deception: An angel cannot be confused by the same name appearing in history because angels depend on intellect, not senses
• Biblical confusion of names: The multiple Marys in Scripture (Mary Magdalene, Mary sister of Jesus, Mary wife of Cleophas) and their historical confusion even among Church Fathers

Notable Quotes #

“A soul rejoicing makes a flowery age, but a sad spirit dries out the bones.” — Proverbs 17:22 (cited regarding sadness’s bodily effects)

“Never affirm, rarely deny, always distinguish.” / “Don’t say yes, don’t say no, say distinguo.” — Dominican maxim (cited by Berquist as Thomas’s characteristic method)

“The soul naturally moves the body; the spiritual motion of the soul naturally is a cause of bodily change.” — Thomas Aquinas (on how emotions affect the body)

“Sadness, among all the passions of the soul, most harms the body.” — Thomas Aquinas (conclusion of Article 4)

“The effects of the passions of the soul are sometimes metaphorically named, according to the likeness of sensible bodies.” — Thomas Aquinas (on metaphorical language about emotions)

Questions Addressed #

1. Is weighing down (aggravatio) the correct term for sadness’s effect? Yes, metaphorically; it describes how sadness impedes the soul from enjoying what it wishes, like a physical weight impeding motion

2. How does hope affect whether sadness weighs down or absorbs? When hope remains, the soul is weighed down but can still move to expel the cause; when hope is lost, sadness absorbs (includes) the entire soul in narrowness

3. Does sadness impede all operations? No; it impedes operations about which one is sad, but may cause other operations aimed at expelling the sadness (solicitude, effort, etc.)

4. Why does sadness harm the body more than other passions? Because sadness is repugnant to vital motion according to its very species (formal aspect), not merely according to excess in quantity as other passions are

5. How can emotions be expressed about God? Only love and joy can be properly predicated of God; other emotions can be said metaphorically (anger, pity) by the likeness of effects; some cannot even be said metaphorically (fear, despair, sadness)

6. Why use metaphorical language about the soul in philosophy? Because emotions are realities above simple reason and cannot be fully grasped rationally; metaphor is necessary, as it is in theology for realities above reason

Pedagogical Notes #

• Berquist employs Thomas’s method of distinguishing rather than simple affirmation or denial
• The lecture moves from textual analysis (what does Thomas actually say?) to philosophical understanding (why does he say this? what are the implications?)
• The discussion of metaphorical language illustrates how philosophical precision requires recognizing different modes of predication
• The transfer of emotional language to God shows how understanding created emotions illuminates theology