The Agustinian Conception of Time in Confessions XI
Keywords:
St. Augustine, time, distention, movement, spiritAbstract
In Confessions XI, we find one of the most debated and developed treatments regarding the nature of time in all of western philosophical literature. The relationship between the last three books of Confessions and the rest of the work has sparked debates that still continue today. The purpose of this article is to thoroughly discuss and comment on some passages from Book XI of Confessions in relation to the nature of time. Our intentions are focused on tracing Augustine's argumentative development from passage XI. XIV. 17 onwards, with particular attention to Augustine's conception of time as "distentio animi". To this end, we will take into consideration the successive refutations that the Doctor of Grace arrives at, ultimately formulating his conception of time in positive terms. The article concludes with some terminological considerations regarding the problematic terms "distentio," "intentio," and "extensio" in Conf. XI. XXIX. 39, following some of the guidelines proposed by S. Magnavacca.
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