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Journals / Felsefe Arkivi / 2026 / Sayı: 62

Sensation, Abstraction and Sensible Qualities: Can Ibn Sīnā be Qualia Representationalist or Externalist?

Duyumsama, Soyutlama ve Duyulur Nitelikler: İbn Sînâ Nitelce Temsilcisi ya da Dışsalcısı Olabilir mi?

Mehmet Zahit Tiryaki(İstanbul Medeniyet Üniversitesi, Edebiyat Fakültesi, Felsefe Bölümü)0000-0003-1346-9775
Pages
59–76
Publication Date
2025-06-30
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AI Summary & Key Takeaways

AI Insight
⚡ TL;DR(Too Long; Didn't Read)

With the possible answers to these questions, it is aimed to show how Ibn Sīnā relates sensation and cognition to the human rational soul and to determine where Ibn Sīnā positions the sensible qualities.

📌 3 Key Takeaways

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Objective & Hypothesis:One of the major philosophical problems debated in the ancient-Hellenistic period and throughout the Middle Ages was the position of sensation and perception in relation to the rational activity of the human rational soul and the status of sensible qualities.
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Key Findings & Data:In this article, the relation of sensation (ihsas) and perception (idrak) to the human rational soul and the appearance of the problem of the status of sensible qualities in Ibn Sīnā will be analysed in the context of contemporary debates and answers to three questions will be sought: 1.
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Conclusion & Impact:With the possible answers to these questions, it is aimed to show how Ibn Sīnā relates sensation and cognition to the human rational soul and to determine where Ibn Sīnā positions the sensible qualities.
🔬Design:Araştırma Makalesi
📍Scope:Comprehensive Sample
⚙️Variables:İbn Sînâ · duyumsama · soyutlama

Abstract

One of the major philosophical problems debated in the ancient-Hellenistic period and throughout the Middle Ages was the position of sensation and perception in relation to the rational activity of the human rational soul and the status of sensible qualities. The association of sensation with the bodily faculties of the soul in the AncientHellenistic period and the Middle Ages has led some contemporary scholars to claim that the mind-body problem cannot be historically traced back to Descartes. Therefore, this discussion, which may seem like a detailed problem when expressed in terms of the relation of sensation and perception to the human rational soul and the status of sensible qualities, also contains some clues about what kind of the soul-body or mind-body relationship the philosopher in question had. In contemporary debates on the mind-body problem, the status of qualia serves a similar function, and philosophers or neuroscientists discuss the status of qualia in relation to their basic positions on the mind-body relationship. In this article, the relation of sensation (ihsas) and perception (idrak) to the human rational soul and the appearance of the problem of the status of sensible qualities in Ibn Sīnā will be analysed in the context of contemporary debates and answers to three questions will be sought: 1. How is sensation defined? 2. What is the position of sensation in the process of abstraction? 3. What is the status of sensible qualities? With the possible answers to these questions, it is aimed to show how Ibn Sīnā relates sensation and cognition to the human rational soul and to determine where Ibn Sīnā positions the sensible qualities.

Özet

Antik-Helenistik dönem ve Orta Çağ boyunca tartışılan belli başlı felsefi problemlerden biri de duyumsama ve algının insani natık nefsin rasyonel etkinliğine kıyasla konumu ve duyulur niteliklerin statüsüdür. Antik-Helenistik dönemde ve Orta Çağda duyumsamanın nefsin bedensel güçleriyle ilişkilendirilmesi bazı çağdaş araştırmacıların zihin-beden probleminin tarihsel olarak Descartes’tan öncesine götürülemeyeceğiyle ilgili iddialarına neden olmuştur. Dolayısıyla duyumsama ve algının insani natık nefsle ilişkisi ve duyulur niteliklerin statüsü şeklinde ifade edildiğinde detay bir problem gibi gözükebilecek bu tartışma söz konusu filozofun ne türden bir nefsbeden ya da zihin-beden ilişkisi anlayışına sahip olduğuyla ilgili birtakım ipuçları da barındırmaktadır. Zihin-beden problemiyle ilgili çağdaş tartışmalarda da nitelcelerin (qualia) statüsü benzer bir işlev görmekte ve filozoflar ya da sinirbilimciler zihin-beden ilişkisi hakkındaki temel tutumlarıyla ilişkili olarak nitelcelerin statüsünü tartışmaktadırlar. Bu makalede duyumsama (ihsas) ve algının (idrak) insani natık nefsle ilişkisi ve duyulur niteliklerin statüsü probleminin İbn Sînâ’daki görünümü çağdaş tartışmalar bağlamında incelenecek ve üç soruya cevap aranacaktır: 1. Duyumsama nasıl tanımlanır? 2. Duyumsamanın soyutlama sürecindeki konumu nedir? 3. Duyulur niteliklerin statüsü nedir? Bu sorulara verilebilecek muhtemel cevaplarla İbn Sînâ’nın duyumsamayı ve idraki insani natık nefsle nasıl ilişkilendirdiğinin gösterilmesi ve İbn Sînâ’nın duyulur nitelikleri nerede konumlandırdığının tespit edilmesi amaçlanmaktadır.

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Cite This Article

Tiryaki, M. Z. (2025). Sensation, Abstraction and Sensible Qualities: Can Ibn Sīnā be Qualia Representationalist or Externalist?. Felsefe Arkivi, Sayı: 62, 59–76. https://doi.org/10.26650/arcp.260625

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