6. Editorial vs. Logical Division and Man's Last End

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Lecture Notes

Main Topics #

Editorial vs. Logical Division #

• Editorial/Reference Division: Arbitrary divisions created for reference purposes (e.g., Matthew’s Gospel divided into 28 chapters and verses)
  • Useful for locating specific passages
  • Can be divided into any number of parts without reason
  • Does NOT convey understanding of the text’s structure
• Logical/Understandable Division: Division based on the content’s internal structure and meaning
  • Usually divides into two or three parts (“rule of two or three”)
  • Based on genuine intellectual understanding
  • Reveals how ideas develop and relate
• Application to Aristotle’s Metaphysics: 14 books (editorial) but logically divides into two main parts: the preamble (beginning of Book I) and the rest
• Application to Summa’s Second Part: Editorially divided into Prima Secundae and Secunda Secundae, but logically divided into consideration of (1) man’s last end and (2) the means to achieve or deviate from that end

Man as Image of God and the Structure of Ethics #

• Theological Approach: Thomas treats ethics theologically, considering man as made to the image and likeness of God (Genesis)
• Distinctive Features of Rational Nature:
  • Intellectual nature
  • Free judgment (libera sententia)
  • Self-movement (seipsum movens)
  • Power over his own acts
• Difference from Aristotelian Ethics: Aristotle considers man in Nicomachean Ethics without explicitly emphasizing the image of God; Thomas places this at the center
• Order of Virtues: Because God possesses intellect and will but not emotions, Thomas treats intellectual virtues and virtues of the will (like justice) before moral virtues concerning emotions (fortitude, temperance)
  • Aristotle treats fortitude and temperance first because they are more known to us and dispose us for higher things
  • Thomas reverses this order to reflect God’s nature

The Division of the Second Part #

• First Logical Division: Into consideration of the last end of human life (Questions 1-5 of Prima Secundae) and the things by which man arrives at or deviates from this end (remainder of Prima Secundae and all of Secunda Secundae)
• Reason for Order: From the end, it is necessary to take the reasons of those things ordered to the end (“ex fine necesse est sumere rationes eorum quae sunt ad finem”)
• Parallel to the Our Father: The three parts correspond to petitions in the Lord’s Prayer:
  • “Hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come” = the end itself
  • “Thy will be done, give us this day our daily bread” = means to arrive at the end
  • “Forgive us our trespasses, lead us not into temptation” = things by which we deviate from the end
• Connection to Hope: Virtue of hope is tied to prayer; hope aims at the end and then at the means to reach that end

Second Logical Division: The Last End in General #

• General Consideration of the End: Questions 1-5 divide the consideration of the last end into two parts:
  • The last end in general
  • The last end specifically as beatitude (ἐυδαιμονία, eudaimonia; Latin: beatitudo)
• Eight Questions Proposed:
  1. Whether man acts for an end
  2. Whether this is proper to rational nature
  3. Whether human acts receive their species from the end
  4. Whether there is a last end of human life
  5. Whether there can be many last ends for one man
  6. Whether man orders everything to the last end
  7. Whether the same last end is for all men
  8. Whether all other creatures come together in this last end

Key Arguments #

The End as a Cause (Against the First Objection) #

• Objection: The end cannot be a cause because the end is last, but causes are before their effects
• Response: Distinction between two orders:
  • Order of Execution (ordo exsecutionis): The end comes last; the chair exists only after the making is complete
  • Order of Intention (ordo intentionis): The end comes first; the carpenter must intend the chair before making it
• Resolution: The end, though last in execution, is first in intention, and as first in intention it has the ratio of a cause
• Example: The carpenter making a chair
  • In intention: first intends the chair, then intends going to the workshop
  • In execution: first goes to the workshop, then makes the chair
  • Without the intention of the chair, the action would not occur

Actions Without Deliberation (Second Objection) #

• Objection: Many human acts occur without deliberation (moving a foot, scratching a beard), so not all actions are for an end
• Response: The distinction between human acts properly so-called (from deliberate will) and acts of man
  • Acts that proceed from deliberate will are properly called human acts
  • Unconscious or unreasoned movements are acts of man but not properly human acts
  • Only properly human acts fall under the science of ethics

Important Definitions #

• ἐυδαιμονία (Eudaimonia) / Beatitudo (Beatitude): Properly the last end of human life; literally “well-demoned” (having divine influence); distinct from εὐτυχία (eutuchia, good fortune) used in Aristotle’s Poetics
• Last End (ultimus finis): That which is desired for its own sake and not for anything else; that to which all other things are ordered
• Free Judgment (libera sententia): The capacity of rational creatures to move themselves to ends through reason and will
• Human Act (properly so-called): Action proceeding from deliberate will, of which man is lord through reason and will
• Act of Man: Action belonging to man but not necessarily proceeding from deliberate will (e.g., digestion, unconscious movements)

Examples & Illustrations #

Shakespeare and the Nature of Reason #

• Henry IV Plays: Falstaff does not lead “the life of reason”; Prince Henry asks “What time of day is it?” to show that Falstaff has lost temporal ordering
• Significance: Reason involves “looking before and after” in time; someone without reason drinks whenever he feels like it, regardless of the time of day
• Contrast with Virtue: A virtuous person recognizes “a time for this, a time for that” (Scripture); mother says “don’t eat candy before dinner” because she understands temporal order and consequences
• Aristotle on Time: Man is the animal who has a sense of time; those who think only of what they want here and now do not use reason properly (e.g., a drunk doctor about to operate)

Shakespeare on Gold and Dust #

• “Golden Lads and Girls”: From Cymbeline; beautiful youth must “as chimney sweepers come to dust”; represents the transience of earthly beauty
• “Give to Dust That Is a Little Gilt”: From Troilus and Cressida; a famous meditation on fashion
  • Dust painted with a little gold receives more praise than solid gold dust
  • Represents how superficial novelty (new books, new fashions) attracts attention
  • Solid gold (eternal wisdom, like Scripture) gets overlooked
• Application to Reading: The Bible is ancient and solid; newspapers are new and covered in gold paint; people prefer the new and fashionable

The 100-Year Rule #

• Samuel Johnson’s Circle: A poet who is still read 100 years after death provides prima facie evidence of genuine merit
• Modern Problem: With today’s constant stream of new media, it’s impossible to apply this rule; what is most read today may be forgotten tomorrow

The Gospel Divisions #

• Matthew’s Gospel: Editorial division into 28 chapters and verses (no particular reason for 28)
  • Logical division: Matthew emphasizes Christ’s humanity; three parts: Christ comes into the world, preaches through the world, leaves the world (passion, death, resurrection)
• Function: Editorial division allows reference; logical division conveys understanding of Matthew’s theological emphasis

Questions Addressed #

1. How can the end be a cause if it does not exist when the action occurs? The end exists first in intention, and as intended it causes the action, though it comes last in execution.

2. Don’t many human acts occur without any end in mind? Such acts are acts of man but not properly human acts; only acts proceeding from deliberate will fall under ethics.

3. How is the Second Part of the Summa structured both editorially and logically? Editorial division: Prima Secundae and Secunda Secundae. Logical division: consideration of the last end, then consideration of means to achieve or deviate from the end.

4. Why does Thomas treat virtues in a different order than Aristotle? Because Thomas approaches ethics theologically (man as image of God), emphasizing intellect and will over emotions, whereas Aristotle emphasizes virtues more commonly known to us.

5. What is the significance of Damascene’s definition of man? It establishes that man is made to God’s image, characterized by something intellectual, free judgment, and self-movement—the foundational principles for understanding human acts ethically.

Notable Quotes #

“One I would call the editorial and reference division, and the other I would call the logical and understanding [division].” - Duane Berquist, on types of textual division

“From the end, it’s necessary to take the reasons of those things which are ordered to the end.” - Thomas Aquinas, establishing why the last end must be considered before the means

“Man differs from the other creatures that are without reason in this, that he is the Lord of his own acts.” - Thomas Aquinas, establishing man’s distinctive rational nature

“The end, although it is last in execution, is nevertheless first in the intention of the agent, and in this way it has the notion of a cause.” - Thomas Aquinas, resolving the paradox of the end as cause

“Give to dust that is a little gilt [more praise] than gilt or dust it on.” - William Shakespeare, Troilus and Cressida, on the fashion of praising superficial novelty