Sunday, April 6th, 2014
Confessions Book X
Book X Augustine questions what he loves when he loves God, so he searches in his own mind to reach god. Augustine describes memory as a “storehouse.” According to Augustine images are created through the five senses (sight, taste, smell. touch, and hearing) then stored in the memory. The images can then easily be recalled, even if it is not physically there. Augustine talks about skill memories. They are stored in an interior place “that is not actually a place.” The actual skill is stored and not images of the skill because skills do not enter though the five senses. Augustine then talks about ideas. Ideas are a separate type of memory and it is stored the way they are learnt. Augustine also talks about emotional memories. Emotions could be recalled without actually experiencing the emotion again by just thinking about past experiences.
Discussion Questions:
1. Do you think Augustine’s explanation of how memory works is accurate?
2. What does Augustine say about forgetfulness?