Lecture
LCHP Colloquium "Physiology of Sleep According to Aristotle"
- Date
- Wednesday 13 November 2024
- Time
- Location
-
P.J. Veth
Nonnensteeg 1-3
2311 VJ Leiden - Room
- 1.03
The Leiden Centre for the History of Philosophy is proud to announce a lecture by Julia Baranowska PhD student at the Doctoral School of Languages and Literatures at the Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Poland and a guest reseacher Erasmus + at our Institute. In her research her main focus is on the psychophysiology of sleep in Aristotle's works. Her research also includes the study of Byzantine commentaries on Aristotle's treatised by Michael of Ephesus and Sophonias.
The lecture will be on zoom:
Launch Meeting - Zoom
Meeting-ID: 661 1823 6008
Password: Cp.cTz9A
Abstract
The very first systematic treatises on the physiology of dreaming, grounded in a naturalistic rather than divine approach, can be found in Aristotle’s Parva Naturalia, specifically in On Sleep, On Dreams, and On Divination in Sleep. This lecture outlines Aristotle’s most important ideas regarding the essence of waking, sleeping, and dreaming, as well as his skeptical perspective on the possibility of divination through dreams. In On Sleep, Aristotle defines sleep as the privation of waking, describing the physiological processes involved in falling asleep. He emphasizes the significant role of the koine aisthesis (common sense) located near the heart in this process. There is also an indication of a link between the digestive process and the initiation of sleep. On Dreams explores the origins of dreams, the connection between sensory experiences during wakefulness and the content of dreams, as well as the distinction between dreaming and imaginative thought. In On Divination in Sleep, Aristotle unequivocally denies that dreams can be divinely inspired, categorizing “prophetic” dreams into three types: those that reflect actions to be taken during the day, those signaling potential illnesses, and coincidental occurrences. This examination reveals Aristotle's naturalistic perspective, contrasting sharply with the supernatural interpretations of dreams prevalent in his time.
All are welcome!