1.Sinclair on ravaisson

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Ravaisson and the Force of Habit

Mark Sinclair

Journal of the History of Philosophy, Volume 49, Number 1, January

2011, pp. 65-85 (Article)

Published by The Johns Hopkins University Press

DOI: 10.1353/hph.2011.0013

For additional information about this article

Access Provided by Library Services, Univ. of the West of England at 08/11/12 10:04PM GMT

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Journal o the History o Philosophy, vo. 49, o. 1 (2011) 6585

[65]

Rvsso d the Fore o HbtM a R k S i n c l a i R

it is hardly a secret that with the phosophy o Dvd Hume oeptoo hbt omes to oupy eter-stge wth epstemoog d psyhoogreeto. Hbt or ustom s the gret gude o hum e,1 prtury thtt odtos, s the groud o the ssoto o des, our dutos oer-

g the objets o experee, d our bees tht us retos obt betweethem. Yet ordg to Hume, we ot sy wht hbt tse s. certy, An En-quiry Concerning Human Understandingdesrbes geer d pprety ommooepto o hbt or ustomterms whh re preseted s syoymousthe oowg mer: Wherever the repetto o y prtur t or opertoprodues propesty to reew the sme t or operto, wthout beg mpeedby y resog or proess o the uderstdg; we wys sy, tht ths propestys the eet oCustom.2 Ths oepto ppes to hbts o the md d hbtso the body: s resut o ther repetto, ert ts ome to our wthout the

express terveto o the w or the uderstdg. These ts re propestes,presey beuse they our wthout the gude o the w or uderstdg;d suh propestes re, or Hume, the eet o use, prpe, or powertht s hbt. Hbt or ustom, the, s the prpe tht ows repeted ts tobeome propestes, but the ture o ths prpe rems osed to us:

By empoyg tht word (ustom) we preted ot to hve gve the utmte resoo suh propesty. We oy pot out prpe o hum ture, whh s u-

versy owedged, d whh s we ow by ts eets. Perhps we pushour equres o rther, or preted to gve the use o ths use; but must restoteted wth t s the utmte prpe, whh we ssg, o our ou-

sos rom experee.3

Ths pot s ot urther deveoped the frstEnquiry, d thus we rem, otetor otherwse, wth probem: we ow oythatthrough ther repetto oper-tos ome to our t remove rom w d reeto, qus-utomt

Mark Sinclair s Seor leturer Phosophy t Mhester Metropot Uversty.

1Dvd Hume,Enquiries Concerning the Human Understanding and Concerning the Principles o Morals,ed. l. a. Seby-Bgge (Oxord: Oxord Uversty Press, 1902), 44.

2ibd., 43.3ibd.


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66 journal of the history of philosophy 49:1 january 2011

sho, d othowor whythey do so. i suggestg tht we push our e-qures o urther, Hume seems to m tht we hve o vbe expto orthe pheome o hbt; d thus, by mpto, tht ttempted exptos

o hbt ether terms o phys modftos o the body, or ordg to resgy profet operto o teetu uty, re srey ompe-g ojetures.

Thoms Red oers more susted tretmet o the probem the setoo the Essay on theActive Powers o Manetted O Hbt, but he rrves t smry poret ouso:

i see o reso to th, tht we sh ever be be to ssg the phys use etheroinstinctor o the power o habit. Both seem to be prts o our org osttuto.Ther ed d use s evdet; but we ssg o use o them, but the W ohm who mde us.4

Hbt be dstgushed rom stt, se prtur hbts re quredthrough e rther th gve s osttuet o our boog ture. Yet hbts smr to stt or two resos: frst, both stt d hbt re spees owht Red s meh s dstt rom rto prpes o to, seboth prpes, he rgues, re ot uto o reetve gey. Seod, tseems mpossbe to fd phys, mter use or ether hbt or stt. asRed otues,

Wth regrd to instinct, whh s natural propensity, ths w perhps be esy grtedbut t s o ess true wth regrd to tht power d to whh we qure by

hbt. no m show reso why our dog thg requety shoud produeether ty or to to do t.5

Eve though he sses hbt d stt s meh prpes, Red seemsto rgue ot oy tht eghteeth-etury owedge o the boog strutured mehs o the hum beg s sufet to out or these prpes,but so tht suh owedge, eve s t dves, ever w be be to outor them.

The preset rte s oered wth the respose to ths aporiatht s provded Fx Rvssos text o1838 ettedDe lhabitude, whh hs reety bee trs-

ted s O Habit.6 i m to show how Rvsso, upo expty rtzg restd destor phys d rtost (H55)pprohes, oers oeptoo hbt s wy o beg (H25) tht heges d trsorms the otoog- grouds o whh the Sottsh phosophers re ed to ther epstemoogseptsm oerg hbt s ore or prpe.7 Ths hege, i oted, sst pertet or otemporry phosoph reeto oerg both hbtd otoogy geer. i order to ssess uy the hstor sgfe o ths

4

Thoms Red,Essay on the Active Powers o Man(Edburgh, 1788), 120.5ibd.6Fx Rvsso, O Habit, trs. d ed. c. crse d M. Sr (lodo: cotuum, 2008).

For the se o brevty, i reer soey to the Egsh pges o ths bgu edto (the org pssges Freh w most wys be o the preedg pge) wth the bbrevto H.

7Rvsso does ot provde ths respose to the Sottsh phosophers drety, d O Habitots oy three otes, whh i exme beow, reerrg to them.


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67ravaisson and the forc e of habit

hege, however, the frst two setos o the text i show how Rvsso, rtutg hs ow otoog pproh, deveops trdto outs d ex-ptos o wht he terms the doube w o hbt, prtury those oered

by hs mmedte predeessor the ege o Freh phosophers oeredwth hbt, mey Perre Me de Br.8

1 . t h e d o u b l e l a w o f h a b i t

Rvssos reeto o hbt s wde-rgg d possesses rur strutureordg to whh the ousos o the text serve to support ts t ssertos.The frst prt o the essy dsusses the roe o hbt the veget d mrems, but Rvsso owedges tht t s soey wth our ow experee,wth the hum rem exmed the seod prt o the text, tht we g ess to d owedge o hbt s ore, use, or prpe: it s oy osousess tht we spre ot just to estbsh ts ppret w but toer ts howd ts why, to umte ts geerto d, fy, to uderstdts use (H39). i the thrd seto o ths rte, i w show how Rvssosessy brgs to questo the very de o hbt s use, but the ppret wwhh he sees to exp s doube w, w desrbg two sorts o emprregurtes:

The otuty or the repetto o psso wees t; the otuty or repetto oto exts d stregthes t. Prooged or repeted sesto dmshes grdu-yd evetuy des wy. Prooged or repeted movemet beomes grduy

eser, quer d more ssured. Perepto, whh s ed to movemet, smrybeomes erer, swter d more ert. (H49)

Through ther otuty or repetto, sestos o the oe hd de tothe pot where we re o oger wre o them t . To our dsmy, sesorypesures ote de, wheres we beome hbtuted to ps to the pot thtwe (hppy) hrdy ote them t . O the other hd, tve pereptos,though they beome more indierentsor s they vove ess eort, beomeerer, more ssured, d more dstt. Through hdhood, t beomes eseror us to pereve objets d dstgush souds; d through duthood, to dd

exmpe to the ew provded O Habit, we mght deveop tste or we or

8i the agophoe word, tte dret tteto hs bee pd to Rvssos essy, probby s resut o the bsee o Egsh trsto. it s ote rudey desrbed s presetg meresythess o the des o Me de Br d F. W. J. Sheg; see, prtur, G. Boss trodu-to to Me de Br, The Infuence o Habit on the Faculty o Thinking, trs. M. D. Boehm (Btmore:Wms d Ws, 1929; Westport: Greewood Press, 1970); d Freder copesto, A Historyo Philosophy: 19th and20th Century French Philosophy(lodo: cotuum, 2003), 15558. More o-erted redgs hve, however, bee provded rom the perspetve o the wor o Her Bergso; seeBe-am Shrste, Roots o Bergsons Philosophy(new Yor: coumb Uversty Press, 1943); arthur

O. lovejoy, Some ateedets o the Phosophy o Bergso: the coepto o Re Durto,Mind22 (1913): 46583; d l. Sus Stebbg, Pragmatism and French Voluntarism (cmbrdge:cmbrdge Uversty Press, 1914). a bre d dsmssve redg o Rvssos essy s oered aberto Toso, Theatre o Production: Philosophy and Individuation between Kant and Deleuze(Bsg-stoe: Pgrve, 2006). More reety, however, cre crse hs studed the hstor sgfeo Rvssos des wth regrd to eths: Betwee Freedom d neessty: Fx Rvsso o Hbtd the Mor le, Inquiry53 (2010): 12345.


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whsy tht ows us to dstgush the drs vors d ose more presey,eve sme d tste re the most pssve o the seses. Equy, voutrymovemet o the body, s the qusto o s, the movemets requety

repeted beome resgy esy, prompt d prese. Eort dees to suh extet tht to seems to our wthout beg expty govered by to w, or, Humes words, wthout beg mpeed by y resog or proesso the uderstdg.

The rgumet s, the, tht the ses o both sesto, o the oe hd,d perepto or movemet o the other, repetto brgs bout ert retretrom osous wreess; but sestos de to othg, wheres pereptod movemets beome more ssured, prompt, d prese. The me hbtovers two sets o deret eets, eve both these eets rse s resut o theotuty or repetto o hge. Rvsso remrs tht most o the uthors

who hve exmed hbt (H121) hve rtuted some orm o ths doube w,d oers st udg the mes o Destutt de Try, Xver Bht, Me deBr, d the Sottsh phosopher Dugd Stewrt. He tres ts frst dsusso,however, b to Joseph Buters Analogy o Religiono1736, whh dstgushestve d pssve hbts mor e.9 Rvsso does ot reer to Hume thsoeto, but the tter hd drety owedged the mporte o Butersdsusso the seto oA Treatise o Human Natureoered wth the eetso ustom o the pssos.10

i Fre, however, the dstto o tve d pssve hbts ws studed be-

yod the mor sphere: the deret eets o repetto or otuty o sestod judgmet were dsussed by the vtst physoogst Bht hs PhysiologicalResearches on Lie and Deatho1800;11 d Bhts sghts were subsequety de-veoped by Perre Me de Br the Infuence o Habit on the Faculty o Thinkingo1802, whh ws preseted s the wg etry to ompetto orgzed bythe Acadmie de sciences morales et politiques whh ddtes were to determewht s the uee o hbt o the uty o thg, or, other words, show theeet tht requet repetto o the sme opertos produes o our teetu

9See ch. V.ii o Joseph Buter, Analogy o Religion, Natural and Revealed, to the Constitution andCourse o Nature(lodo: Hery G. Boh, 1860); d crse, Betwee Freedom d neessty: FxRvsso o Hbt d the Mor le.

10Dvd Hume, A Treatise o Human Nature, ed. P. H. nddth (Oxord: Oxord Uversty Press,1978), 424:ad ths s the reso why ustom ereses activehbts, but dmshespassive, -ordg to the observto o te emet phosopher; see so J. P. Wrght, Buter d Hume oHbt d Mor chrter, Hume and Humes Connexions, ed. M. Stewrt d J. Wrght (UverstyPr, Pa: Pe Stte Uversty Press, 1995), 10518. it seems to be beuse Hume reers to tved pssve hbts so eetgy tht Rvsso omts hm rom hs st ( H12123) o phosopherswho hve reogsed the doube w. i hs 1792Elements o the Philosophy o the Human Mind(vo. 2

oThe Collected Works o Dugald Stewart[Edburgh: Thoms costbe, 1854], 462 d 504), DugdStewrt dsusses t greter egth Buters dstto, but wthout ttemptg y phosophexpto o t; hbt, s Stewrt w wrte 1793, depeds o uses o the ture o whh were gort (bd., 24).

11See arte 5 o Bhts Physiological Researches on Lie and Death, trs. T. Wts(Phdeph:Smth d Mxwe, 1809), whh bers the tte, Geer Derees o the Two lves wth Respetto Hbts.


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utes.12 Rvssos ormuto o wht he terms the doube w s drwmost word or word rom The Infuence o Habit on the Faculty o Thinking, d yeths expto o ths w ders mredy rom those preseted by Br.

Brs exptos o the doube w re grouded hs dust psyho-ogy, t oe physoog d voutrst psyhoogy, the outes o whh, hergues, be ofrmed by the doube w o hbt tse:

amog the repeted mpressos whh grduy wee, some otue to de wyd eve ompetey vsh, whst others, beomg more indierent, ot oy o-serve ther rty, but ote qure eve more dstto. Ths t oe, whhs beyod otestto, woud be eough, perhps, to reve esset deree the hrter o sestos, whh deterorte d vsh, d pereptos, whhbeome erer, eve we dd ot ow y other wy ths deree.13

We ot srbe the two deret eets o repetto to the sme uty, s to

do so we woud hve to suppose tht ths uque uty beome t oe moreert d more tve by the sme proess o hbtuto, supposto whhseems to be bsurd.14 The eets o repetto re thus te to demostrte esset deree betwee perepto d sesto, betwee wht Br hddesrbed the troduto to hs text s tve d pssve mpressos. Oths out, eh o the fve seses, to vryg degrees, dmts o dsttobetwee pssvey reevg mpresso d tvey pprehedg t. Wheresor Br pssve mpressos our depedety o the w, perepto ortve mpressos, o the otrry, requre the voutry movemet o the sese

orgs, whh eessry voves wreess or pperepto o the se s wg get. i ths mer Br presets the frst oute o the psyhoogyo the w tht he deveops hs ter wors: perepto eessry vovespperepto o the se s tg se [moi agissant]: the eort o physmovemet omprses both my wreess o resste d my wreess tht t si who moves, or who wantsto move. The voutry get d the resste tmeets re, or Br, the two terms o the reto eessry to groud the frstsmpe judgmet o persoty: I am;15 d these two terms re gve through

12Beore ddg mportt otes to hs wg etry o1802 d pubshg t, Me de Brhd submtted usuessu etry to the sme ompetto 1800. Wth the bbrevto, Infu-ence, i reer to the pubshed 1802 text Infuence de lhabitude sur la acult de penser, vo.1 oOeuvres deMaine de Biran, ed. F. azouv (Prs: J. Vr, 1987), d, ter orwrd ssh the reerees, to M. D.Boehms trsto o Brs The Infuence o Habit on the Faculty o Thinking, whh does ot otsome o the mportt otes metoed bove d whh i hve osoy modfed. a study o theevouto o Brs thg betwee 1800 d 1802, whh i m ube to exme here, s to beoud Her Gouher, Les Conversions de Maine de Biran(Prs: J. Vr, 1948).

13Br, Infuence, 163/87. it shoud be oted tht hs Physiological Researches on Lie and Death,

Bht hd preseted hs reeto o hbt s support or hs dstto betwee org d me, d tht Brs out o the du eets o hbt hs omprbe yt d methodoogpurpose sor s t s preseted s ofrmto o hs dstto betwee tve d pssve mpres-sos. O ths pot, see Je-Mre Dgerdo, revew oInfuence, by Br, La Dcade philosophique,littraire et politique11 (1803); repr., Infuence, 35359.

14Br, Infuence,163/87.15The three quottos: Br, Infuence, 135/55.


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wreess o eort, through wht Br terms here mpresso o eort,whh dmts o degrees.16

it s wth ths rmewor, the, tht Br oers the frst prt o hs text

exptos o the uee o hbt o sesto, d the o perepto dvoutry movemet.17 certy, these exptos re proposed tettvey,d the troduto to hs text Br eve proessesthus demostrtg theuee o Humes epstemoog septsmto be oered soey wththe infuenceo hbt presey beuse we ow othg o the ture o oreswhh mest themseves to us oy through ther eets.18 Yet to m thtMe de Br rems wth the how; Rvsso goes b to the why o hbt,s to be msed by both the tte d the trodutory remrs o the 1802 text,d, s w beome er, suh vew does ot te to out uy the otestht Br dded to the text beore ts pubto.19

Br frst presets hypothess to out or the dee o sestos throughther otuty or repetto ojeture tht s oered ot order to ds-over the seret o ture, but to ry urther the ts, d to reve wht bdsthem.20 it shoud be oted tht Brs ojeture s oered mpt oppos-to to the oe dved by Bht, who rgues tht sestos dmsh throughther otuty beuse sesto tse s wys uto o met omprsobetwee the preset sesto d those preedg t; preset sesto thusbeomes ess dstt to the extet tht t o oger be dstgushed romthose tht preeded t.21The Infuence o Habit on the Faculty o Thinkingttempts

to demt the teetusm o Bhts out o sesto by hghghtg ts

16Br, Infuence, 136/56. Gve tht eort osttutes the uty o w d resste, the detht t s mpresso s probemt. Domque Jud (Ravaisson et la mtaphysique: une gnalogiedu spiritualisme ranais[Ravaisson et la mtaphysique],[Prs: J. Vr, 1997], 24) hs show how t gvesrse to tesos Brs text oerg the eet o repettoo hbto ths mpresso. iretur to the questo beow, but hs ter wor Br w ome to rgue tht eort s ot et orsesed, but s rther prmtve t o deret order, whh gves us mmedte ppereptoo the se s wht he w term hyper-org ore, whh ot be seprted rom the body s use be seprted rom ts eets.

17

Br gves the tte O Pssve Hbts to ths frst prt o hs text, wheres the seod prtexmg the Repetto o the Opertos Grouded o the Use o Voutry d artuted Sgss etted O atve Hbts. Thtthisdstto betwee tve d pssve hbts s msedggve tht the frst prt exmes the hbts o perepto d motor tows redy remred byDestutt de Try, Rpport de M. Destutt de Try. Report o Infuence o Habit on the Faculty o Think-ing, by Br. Acadmie des Sciences morales et politiques, 1802. arhv doumet isttut de Fre,arhves de adme des Sees mores et potques (cote B 6Rpport du 17 Messdor, aX). See Br, Infuence, 338/3334.

18Br, Infuence, 132/52.19Jud, Ravaisson et la mtaphysique, 16. Trsto me. We st do ot do juste to the

orgty o the 1802 text by reogzg tht suh shemt dstto s ompted by thet tht styg wth the eets does ot exude tht hs [Brs] study depeds o ert presup-

postos oerg uses (bd.). as i show here, Br does ot merey presuppose ert useso hbt, but rther oers exptory hypotheses oerg hbts o both sesto d movemet.Emmue Bode (Rvsso eteur de Me de Br, tudes sur Ravaisson, ed. J-M. lou[Prs: km, 1999], 24) oers smr remr to tht o Jud mg tht reto to exptory out o hbt, Me de Br s here ot esset [ne serait pas ici lessentiel].

20Br, Infuence, 164/88.21See Bht, Physiological Researches on Lie and Death, rt. 5.


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bty to out or oe prtur spet o the ts, mey the dstress,mse, dsquet ordesre22 tht we mght ee whe the use or soure o sesto tht hs ded or vshed ompetey rom our sesory wreess

beuse we hve beome ustomed to ts the physy removed rom us.a exmpe o ths, smr to the oe tht Rvsso presets O Habit,23 woudbe the peur ourree o our emergg rom seep durg rod-joureywhe the r, d thus the otuous soud d vbrtos ompyg themoto, hve ome to stop. i order to out or both the dg o sestosd these eegs o dsquet, Br posts o-voutry tvty beogg to prpe o e resdet the sese orgs; tvty tht s more seret, moreprooud th tht through whh the se ppereves tse. it thus emerges thto ths out pssve mpressos re ot bsoutey pssve: the orgs o sesemy, s Br wrtes, gve the tone o sesto s muh they reeve t, but ths

s exeuted me wthout me,24 depedety o the w. i t, through theotuty or repetto o sesto, t s ths seret tvty tht ts the toeo the sese org, thus ommodtg tse to the sesto d estbshg sort o equbrum wth t.25 For Br, the uty o sesg teds to, or strvesor, ths equbrum, d the dsquet or desre et the bsee o sestos uto o ts rupture; the dsquet resuts rom dsequbrum betwee thetoe gve by the org d the ow bset sesto.

i the hpter o hs text devoted to the iuee o Hbt o Perepto,Br eve sees to root out prt o the seret o hbt, d to utge

ew o the eemets o ts so very ompex produts, by uerthg the uses orprp rumstes o the peretg o perepto d movemet throughrepetto. He detfes three suh uses. Frst, the weeg o the pssve,sesory spet o movemet through ts repetto ttes the movemet othe orgs, s Br rgues deveopg m dved by Bht: t s oywhe, or exmpe, hd s o oger shoed, rrtted, hurt by ts sestostht t ome to pereve.26 Seod, d more sgfty, there s res-g ty d preso o the movemets the prtur orgs themseves.i expg ths wth ote dded to hs 1802 text beore ts pubto,

Br ttempts to go beyod mterst d teetust hypotheses. agstthe ormer, the ty ged hrdy be exped terms o vsbe mte-r terto o the org suh s g muse mss, se eve retveyeortess movemets, whh do ot ed to ths mter terto, beome essremred ther repetto. agst teetust hypotheses, Br rejets

22Br, Infuence, 172/97.23Rvsso, O Habit, 30: Every uorm sesto tht s repeted over og perod dus

sesbty, dug seep, the more so whe the sesto s strog d whe sesbty s ee.Suh s the ordry eet o otu swgg or rog, or o mootoous ose, prtury

hdhood.24Br, Infuence, 135/55.25Br, Infuence, 164/88.26a quottos so r ths prgrph re rom Br, Infuence, 17576/101. Ths s, t shoud

be oted, Bhts soe expto o the eets o otuty or repetto o judgmet, d thushs expto o sesory hbtuto s oered so s expto o the resg ty ojudgmet.


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the m tht hbtu movemets there ours, ubeowst to ourseves, ftey rpd suesso o judgmetsor ts o w.27 isted, he rgues thtby mes o the repetto o orgy wed movemets there s vertbe

eet o oetrto

28

the orgs; tht the body s memory rte; thtprts o the body hve ther ow muse memory.Suh eet o oetrto s desrbed by Br s determto, s

hge tht perssts d survves beyod the mpresso. a motor determ-to, o the oe hd, s tedey o the org or the motor eter to repetthe to o the movemet whh hs ourred or the frst tme. There s, sBr ms despte hs proessed septsm oerg our owedge o ores, vey ore [une orce vive] heret the orgs tht ows wed tos tovove ess eort the more they re repeted.29 a sesory determto, o theother hd, s the tedey tht the seret tvty resdet the sese orgs

hs to hrmoze tse wth prtur sesto.Br does ot drw out the phosoph sgfe o ths de o tedey

or vg ore, whh res the Freh vtsm o the eghteeth etury. Hepresets the de oy mbguousy d hestty, d oy o the bss o hsbs m to brg physs to metphyss,30 tht s, to deveop, by mes o more physoog pproh, the type o psyhoog yss uderte by theideoog shoo Fre. Ths physoog pproh, t shoud be oted, wsueed by the turst psyhoog speutosthe europhosophys two ommettors hve reety desrbed t31o chres Boet, ordg

to whh psyhoog pheome re the resut o vbrtory movemets o fbers the ervous system; movemets whh suppose hge the moeur oreemet stte o the erves themseves. Boet osequety outed orthe qusto o motor hbt s the resut o determtos, uderstood s hged stte the dspostos o erve fbers tht produes tedey towrdreprodug tht sme movemet, or dsposto to exeute tht sme move-met.32 The uee o Boets thg o Br s prtury mest the tters presetto o the thrd use or the resg ty d presoo movemet, mey the ssotos o movemets d mpressos om-

mo eter.

33

Suh ssoto, or Br, ours by mes o the mgto,but the operto o the mgto, uderstood s pssve uty, s rooteddrety determtos o the etr org, tht s, o the br.

athough The Infuence o Habit on the Faculty o Thinkingbers the uee oBoets physoogy, Br does ot y wy preset or edorse euroog

27Br, Infuence, 179. Ths ote does ot pper the Egsh trsto o the text.28Br, Infuence, 148/70.29The quottos ths prgrph re rom Br, Infuence, 148/69.30Br, Infuence, 132/52. i oetrte o Brs respose to chres Boets physoogy

here, but or out o Brs herte o the teets o the ideoog shoo d o Destuttde Try prtur, see Jud, Ravaisson et la mtaphysique, 1921.31c. Hrry a. Whter d Yves Turgeo, chres Boets neurophosophy, Brain, Mind

and Machine, ed. H. Whter, c. U. M. Smth, d S. Fger (new Yor: Sprger, 2007), 191212.32chres Boet,Essai analytique sur les acults de lme(copehge: c. d a. Phbert, 1760),

57. Trsto me.33Me de Br, Infuence, 182/105.


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expto o the oto o determto. isted he ppes mmedtey to de o vey ore tht ot, s he seems to m, be exped by tom- hges. Hee t be sd tht whe Brs stted m s to brgs physs

to metphyss, ths physs d o tse otsor t est eds tots owd o metphyss sor s both orms o hbt re outed or terms o tedey, tedey to persst, whh, he ms, be uderstood ether meh or met, ether mter or de terms.

2 . t h e f o r c e o f h a b i t a s a n o b s c u r e a c t i v i t y

it s suh phosoph or metphys pproh to hbt tht Rvsso deve-ops d reders more expt O Habit. He owedges hs debt to Mede Br by reerrg my tmes hs 1838 essy to The Infuence o Habit on theFaculty o Thought.34 i otrst, however, to Brs oer or deret useso the two orms o hbtuto, Rvsso ttempts to provde utry exp-to tht uderuts hs predeessors dust rmewor. Ths s bsed o themdved Prt ii, Seto 2 o hs texttht both orms o hbt ourby vrtue o obsure tvty:

cotuty or repetto brgs bout sort o obsure tvty tht resgy -tptes [prvient de plus en plus] both the mpresso o exter objets sesbty,d the w tvty. i tvty, t reprodues the to tse; sesbty t doesot reprodue the sesto, the pssoor ths requres exter usebuts or t, voes t; ert sese t mpores the sesto. (H51)

O the oe hd, there s obsure tvty opertve sesto, whh s ot vertbe tvty (H51) se t voves o eort, but s rther tedey ordesre (H51) tht be uderstood to derve rom pssvty s muh s romtvty, d whh beomes mest to us the bsee o sesto to whhwe hve beome ustomed. i ths oeto t s eessry to ote, oowgEmmue Bode, the subte but sgft dspemet tht Rvsso hseeted o Brs thg: Br hd rgued tht the bsee o suh sestow produe dstress, mse, dsquet, desire us s the psyhoog eet o o-psyhoog determto, wheres Rvsso rgues tht the desre s

othg but the hbtu tedey tse.35 For Rvsso, desre s ot propertyo the md s opposed to the body, but s rther to be thought, s w beomeer, s the pror groud o y possbe opposto betwee the two.

O the other hd, s eort dees the repetto o tve movemets,d s the to beomes swter d more ssured, tht to beomes tedey, to tht o oger wts the ommdmets o the w butrther tptes them, d whh eve espes etrey d rremedby bothw d osousess (H51). i other words, the ty to ged

34

Emmue Bode (Rvsso eteur de Me de Br, 1516) otes tht there re, t, three modtes o reeree to Brs wor O Habit: 1) to prese pssges o the orgHerhs edto o Brs 1802 text; 2) to ths text geer; d 3) to Brs wor s whoewth the term passim. Bode so sts the texts o Br, those pubshed beore 1838, to whhRvsso oud reer.

35See Bode, Rvsso eteur de Me de Br, 2526: Rvsso w oserve the termdesireor the groud o beg, d ot or prtur stte o beg (trsto me).


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through ts repetto beome pre-reetve desre, tedey or toto rry out the t, s Hume d Red hd redy oted; but ths to, tur, deveop to the most ompetey voutry pheome tht we

ow s ts.

36

i both pssve d tve hbts, or Rvsso, there s t wor the smemdde term betwee pure pssvty d the tvty o osousess; d thsmdde term s prtur mode o tvty tht s hrterzed s seret or ob-sure presey beuse t s ot proper to osousess d the osous w.37Ths m erty opposes Brs rgumet tht the sme uty oud otbe resposbe or both orms o hbt, se t were we woud hve to ssumetht the uty beomes t oe more pssve d more tve through repetto.Yet Brs rgumet s to reogze tht motor hbts osst the vtory opure, d tht s to sy, osous tvty s tte s sesory hbtuto resuts

rom rese pssvty; t s rther the se tht both orms o hbtutoour by mes o ert d o spotety tht s ether purey pssve orpurey tve. The rgumet so sts uomortby wth other spets o Brsyss, prtury wth hs out o the ores uderyg pssve d tvehbtuto s two spees o determto, d so wth hs m the oteted bove tht there s ert ogy betwee the two orms o hbt.38 itseems, the ed, tht Br ms to mobze hs reeto o hbt to supporths dstto o pssve d tve mpressos, wheres propery uderstoodsuh reeto udermes ths very dstto.39 i ths oeto, t shoud

be oted tht Br ttempts to justy hs psyhoog dusm wth reereeto the doube w o hbt presey beuse o the dfuty o sotg eveo pure pssvty experee, presey beuse there s hrdy y mpressotht does ot resut rom the mutu support40 o tvty d pssvty. For Rvs-so, however, ths dfuty shoud be uderstood s er evdee gst thepsyhoog dusm tht Br proposes. i t, othg e pure pssvty sgve experee beuse tvty d pssvty wys wor together s propor-totey d versey reted (H43); the more experee s pssve, the esst s tve, d ve vers. Just s there s, or the hum beg, o pure tvty o

movemet or perepto tht woud exst wthout mesure o pssvty, there so suh thg s purey pssve mpresso: i every sesto motty d

36c. Hume, A Treatise o Human Nature, 424. Rvssos oer or motor hbt s postveto or tedey, d ot merey s mere ty, my seem to otrst wth Brs ttemptto out or, s we hve see, the resg ty d preso o movemets. Ths, however,s merey mtter o emphss, d hs frst dssertto o1800, Br hd redy dsussed thepossbty o hbtu tedees beomg ts; see Br, Infuence, 72.

37Rvsso reers to ths pre-osousess but st teget ore umber o deretwys: s tvty, t s hrtersed s obsure, seret, d ter, but t s so desrbed s u-reeted spotety d obsure tegee d, utmtey, s i w show, s gre; o

ths pot, see cre Mr, ltvt obsure de hbtude, tudes sur F. Ravaisson: De lhabitude,ed. J.-M. lou (Prs: km, 1999), 4759.38Br, Infuence, 179.39Hee Georges le Roy ote, t the rs o exggerto, tht the soe go o Brs

reetos o hbt s tht o estbshg the soudess o the phosophy tht spres them (Lesphilosophes clbres, ed. Mure Mereu-Poty [Prs: Mzeod, 1956], 237; trsto me).

40Br, Infuence,136/56.


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perepto hve roe (H49). it tes very peur rme o md to pprehedsomethg e pure sesto; d r rom omg frst, mere sesto, to teMure Mereu-Poty, s rther the st eet o osousess.41 isted o

Brs dstto o pssve d tve mpressos, the, Rvsso ppreheds,s i w show the oowg seto o ths pper, grduted otuum romthe owest eves o tvty more pssve, sesory experees to ts hghest eves the erest osousess d voutry pperepto.

i seeg to trsorm the dust phosoph struture whh Brrmes hs reeto, Rvsso reders oy more method d expt hspredeessors ttempts to steer betwee rest d teetust, phys drtost (H55) outs o hbt. O the oe hd, teetust exptos terms o deveopmets tteto, the w, d/or tegee eouterdfutes: the smpe de tht sesto des beuse we o oger py tte-

to to t ot out or the t tht sesbty resgy demds thssesto tht the w bdos (H53). i reto to hbtu movemets, thede tht there re y umber o met judgmets or ts o w tht pss u-oted by the get ether orrespods to or exps our experee, gvetht the very probem o reeto o motor hbts ossts uderstdg howts pper resgy to our depedety o the w d reeto. O theother hd, Rvsso hghghts the mttos o rest or phys terpret-tos o both orms o hbt:

The grdu weeg o the sestos d the resg ese o the movemets

oud perhps be exped hypothety by some hge (whh tomy hs otyet dsovered) the phys osttuto o the orgs. But o org modfto exp the tendency, the to whose progress odes wth the degrd-to o sesto d eort. (H53)

O Habitdoes ot, the, dsmss outrght the possbty o the dsovery o orghges ompyg both orms o hbt, d though Boets des werergey hypothet, otemporry euroboogy hs oered outs o suhhges.42 Yet Rvssos rgumet s tht y physoog out w be -sufet to out or the tedey or to mest ether orm o

hbt, presey beuse suh tedey or to s o mere thrd-perso ormeh pheomeo, but s rther trsy reted to the reedom o thew d to tegee.

The m s tht our experee hbtu ts preset themseves s ormo spotety tht s t oe tve d pssve, equy opposed to mehFtty d to reetve Freedom (H55). i there s empr regurty ds-

41Mure Mereu-Poty, Phenomenology o Perception, trs. c. Smth (lodo: Routedge, 1962),37. See so Jud, Ravaisson et la mtaphysique, 23.

42See, prtur, Robert Hws d Erh kde, Steps Towrd ce-Boog aphbet

or Eemetry Forms o lerg, Neurobiology o Learning and Memory, ed. Gry lyh, Jmes l.MGugh, d norm Weberger(new Yor: Gudord Press, 1984), 385404, or euroboog- expto o the bs orms o erg ms tht hd bee demrted by behvourstpsyhoogy: pssve hbtuto, sestvsto (the rese o reex resposes) d ss, s-sotve odtog. For geer d more reet troduto to the gos d methods o thseurosetf pproh, see lrry R. Squre d Er kde, Memory: From Mind to Molecules(newYor: Setf amer lbrry, 1999).


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erbe the pheome o motor hbt, the these pheome do ot beogto meh, eess ture, rem o ded eessty. Hbtu movemets doot beome the meh eet o exter mpuse but rther the eet o

to tht oows rom the w; d eve hbt eves the sphere ow d reeto, t does ot eve tht o tegee (H55), gve tht theyst e towrds go. From ths perspetve, Reds ssfto o hbt s meh prpe o to hs, eet, deded everythg dvewthout sufet regrd to the prtur ture o body to. Eve thoughmovemets tht hve beome hbtu pper to be o oger otroed mme-dtey by w d judgmet, Rvsso wts us to see tht they possess ther owsort o tegee d drve. They re ot merey, s Her Bergso w hve t hs dsourse o Rvssos e d wor, the osszed resdue o sprtutvty,43 se they possess tve prpe tht s ether meh or

exusvey uto o reetve thought.it s the sme d o obsure or seret tve prpe, Rvsso ms,

tht uderes sesory hbtuto, d tht mes tse mest to us the b-see o sesto to whh we hve beome hbtuted. Ths ppe to ormo desre d to sesory hbtuto my be ess ovg th t s reto to motor hbts, se here the reto to osous w s ess obv-ous; d oe shoud erty hestte beore ttemptg to oer metphyssuppemet to the exptory power o moder euroboog studes o pssvehbtuto o the bss o wht my be pssed o s psyhoog oddty tht

some mght proess ot to experee t . Yet the weght o Rvssos rgu-met ts urther eborto s o hs oepto o motor hbts: ttemptsto exp motor hbt purey thrd-perso, physoog terms ot oy ms-ostrue hbtu tedees or tos, but so rem wth the probemo uderstdg how ts o w resut physoog hges44d t spresey ths md-body probem tht, s w beome er the oowg seto,Rvssos reeto o hbt ows us to th beyod sor s t trsormstrdto oeptos o the body.

3 . a n a c t i v e o n t o l o g y o f h a b i t

Rvsso sees, the, to overtur emphty rest d dest exptoryouts o hbtuto. Yet sted o remg wth poret septsmoerg the ore o hbt the e o the uovg or eve utebe

43Bergso oers ths terpretto wth hs dsourse o Rvsso tht ws rghty used oBergsoyg hs predeessors wor; see Her Bergso, l ve et oeuvre de Rvsso, Oeuvres(Prs: Presses Uverstres de Fre, 1959), 145081, t146263; Rvssos le d Wor, The Creative Mind, trs. M. l. adso (new Yor: Phosoph lbrry,1946), 261300, t274275).Though uthu, the terpretto hs proved uet. it oors, or exmpe, l. Sus Steb-

bgs pproh to Rvsso wth her Pragmatism and French Voluntarism, d Mereu-Poty tesBergso to ts (Phenomenology o Perception, 142) o ths terpretto o hbt wthout pperg toreze tht Rvsso hd, eet, redy rejeted t. For studes o Bergsos herte o Rvs-sos out o hbt, see aexdr Reut, lhbtude hez Bergso: ue esqusse du oeptphomoogque de Stitung?, Alter12 (2004): 79104; d Jud, Ravaisson et la mtaphysique.

44We rem wth the probem, eed t be sd, oy we fd t mpossbe to emte redu-tvey d mtersty our ow osous experee.


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ture o these hypotheses, he dves, deveopg Me de Brs des, oepto o obsure tvty tht uderes both orms o hbtuto. it hsbee remred tht so dog Rvssos reeto moves rom pheomeo-

og to metphys eve, rom desrpto o our experee to outo wht goes beyod tht experee d mes t possbe.45 Wht i m to showhere, however, s tht the orgty d the suess o hs respose to Hume dRed utmtey deped o hs oepto o the seret or obsure tvty properto hbt otoog terms, ordg to oepto obeingproposed Prtii, Seto 3 o the text; d oomtty tht ths otoog oepto o theore o hbt terrupts y dstto betwee phys or sesbe pheomed metphys or super-sesbe prpe.

Frst o , pprehedg the pheome o motor hbt the wy tht Rvs-so proposes requres us to th beyod the otoog dusms tht we hve

herted rom Desrtes prtur. Reeto o hbt ores us to trsedthe oepto o exteded, meh mter body tht woud stdpartesextra partesopposed to sphere o thought d reedom. ideed, s Rvssowrtes, movemets re orgy determed by theorety posted gorepreseted s de the md, ther otuty or repetto,

the ideabeomes beg, the very beg o the movemet d o the tedey thtt determes. Hbt beomes more d more substantial idea. The obsure te-gee tht through hbt omes to repe reeto, ths mmedte tegee

where subjet d objet re oouded, s realtuto, whh the re d

the de, beg d thought, re used together. (H55

)We re ed to reogze emboded tegee or ogtve orporety, whhtrseds y possbe opposto betwee thg subjet d the objets owhh t ths: the qusto o motor hbts, de gos ome to osttutethe very ture, the very beg, o the orgs o the body. The progress o motorhbts ossts deset o thought d w to body beg. Hee wht wehve see Br preset s determto o the orgs s oeved by R-vsso ordg to oepto o beg. The hbtuted bodyisot smpy exteded, meh thg, se des d the hbtu tos beome

more d more the orm, the wy o beg, eve the very beg o these orgs(H57). Wht the body s, or (better) the mer whh the body exsts, omesto be trsormed through the durto or repetto o hge. it s ty ths sese tht Rvssos reeto o hbt voves otoogy: t orportes

45See Mr, ltvt obsure de hbtude,47. Pheomeoogy s to be te here thebrod d phosophy eutr sese o desrptve out o experee, though my rgu-met tht Rvssos pheomeoogy o hbt ot be seprted rom otoogy or metphyssmy pot the dreto o more spef tweteth etury terprettos o the term wth thepheomeoog movemet. a prtur use o the term, t shoud be oted, ppers Rvs-

sos essy o1840 (l Phosophe cotempore:Fragments de Philosophiepr M. Hmto [lPhosophe cotempore], Mtaphysique et morale[Prs: J. Vr, 1986], 132, t23), whhdsusses the deveopmet o Europe thought the eghteeth d eteeth etures romthe perspetve o Brs phosophy o the w: the Sottsh shoo, sor s t hods tht oed the sme phosoph method ppes equy d pre to both ter d exterpheome, oers bstrt pheomeoogy (phnomnologie abstraite) o er sese. Whetherpheomeoogy or Rvsso s eessry bstrt s moot pot.


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reeto o the possbe modes or megs o beg. i we re ube to reog-ze tht the verb to be sgy somethg other th, o the oe hd, thepresee o those exteded objets ourrg wth dom o meh w,

d, o the other hd, the presee o mds or those thg thgs beog-g to rem o pure reedom, the t w be mpossbe to oer phosophrespose, rther th smpy physoog oe, to Hume d Reds mpsseoerg hbt. Yet Rvssos rgumet s tht uprejuded study o hbtores us to reogze the possbty, d eve eessty, o revsg suh dustotoog tegores.

Ths oepto o hum orporety seems to be ueed by Brs owout ole corps propre,o oes ow body, tht he preseted the deveopmeto hs voutrst psyhoogy. i expty quyg the geer epstemoogseptsm oerg ores tht he hd expressed 1802, d rtzg my

trdto oeptos o the w, udg tht o Hume, Br w rgue thteort s prmtve t o osousess through whh we hve mmedtepperepto o the w s ore or use tht s seprbe rom d otem-poreous wth ts eets.46 O ths out, the w s ot somethg resdet o-phys sphere ed the md tht ets the body e the pug o trgger ets the rtrdge the brre o gu. cosequety, Br rgues otoy tht the body ot meguy be subjet to crtes sept doubt,gve tht the prmtve t o osousess ossts o the reto o w to theresste tht the body oers, but so tht my body s i orgy experee t

s ot my body studed rom the outsde by the physoogst. The body s rtheroeved s beogg to mmet subjetve sphere tht ot be repre-seted s objetpartes extra partes. Br deveops ths dstto betwee thesubjetve d objetve body by dstgushg two modes o pprehedg spe:the body frst o ppers to me the orm o vgue teror exteso thtot be represeted the orm o spt mge.47 The subjetve wreesso my ow body tht tweteth etury psyhoogsts w ter dsuss terms othe body mge does ot, ordg to Br, te the orm o mge t .

as ommettors hve ote remred, Br oers ths oepto o the

ved body s osttutve o the prmtve t o osousess wthout everreoug the de tht there s depedet d st more prmry eveo ture d stt pror to the dvet o w d osousess.48 as i hveredy remred, t s presey ths dusm tht Rvsso sees to overtur, dhe does so by rgug tht there s otuum uderyg the eves tht Br

46See prtur the 1807 text,De laperception immdiate, vo. 4 oOeuvres de Maine de Biran, ed.i. Rdrzz (Prs: J. Vr, 1995).

47For Brs oepto o the body see, prtur,Essai sur les ondements de la psychologie, vo. 2oOeuvres de Maine de Biran, ed. F. c. T. Moore (Prs: J. Vr, 2001). For rt dsussos o Brs

theses oerg the body, see the seod prt o F. c. T. Moores The Psychology o Maine de Biran(Ox-ord: credo, 1970), d the redgs oered by tweteth etury Freh phosophers shooed Germ pheomeoogy: Mure Mereu-Poty, LUnion de lme et du corps chez Malebranche, Biranet Bergson, ed. J. Depru(Prs: J. Vr, 1997); d Mhe Hery, Philosophie et phnomnologie du corps:essai sur lontologie biranienne(Prs: Presses Uverstres de Fre, 1965).

48O ths pot, see, prtur, the teth hpter o Mereu-Potys LUnion de lme et ducorps.


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dstgushes.49 Ths otuum, Rvsso rgues, s reveed to us by hbt tse,sor s t s by suesso o mpereptbe degrees tht tos te overrom ts o w (H57). isted o opposto betwee reedom d body

eessty, the progress o hbt mests to us otuum uderyg hbtutos d movemets govered by theorety posted gos. The tureo the otuum s oeved s tegee or s desre (H61): there s suesso o mpereptbe degrees betwee, frst o , desre s the beg othe hbtuted body d desre the orm o the w, whh, oowg Br,Rvsso hods to be the preodto o osousess d o the theoretpostg o gos. it s ths mer tht, s i med bove, hbtu tos retrsy reted to the w d uderstdg eve though they re o ogermmedtey otroed by the tter: pprehedg the otuum uderygbody hbts ows us to reogze tht the oepto o sotbe sphere

o the w d uderstdg s bstrto rom more prmry truth. YetRvsso goes o to rgue tht ths otuum strethes the wy dow to thetedees tht Br, ter Red, srbes to ture d stt, to the most vo-utry spets o hum beg.50 For Rvsso, experee shows us tht tured stt ot be ompetey soted rom hbt, just s hbtu tedees ever be etrey seprted rom the w.51

Wth prtur t theorety posted go my be rezed by mes oy umber o subsdry d hbtu movemets. i other words, prtu-r movemet, t y prtur pot tme, deret stges o the otuum

o desre w be t wor.52

Yet se hbt mes ths otuum mest to us,Rvsso rgue tht hbt be osdered s method, s the oy remethod, or the estmto, by overget fte seres, o the reto, re tse, but ommesurbe the uderstdg, o nture d W (H59).athough reeto o hbt ws redy used mpty s method Brstext o1802, here the probem to be soved s ot tht o sotg orgy de-pedet psyhoog or physoog utes, but s rther tht o overomgcrtes dusm d, t the sme tme, the kt tomy betwee eessty

49

Ths oepto o otuty s obvousy ueed by lebz; see, prtur, New Essayson Human Understanding, trs. d ed. P. Remt d J. Beett (cmbrdge: cmbrdge UverstyPress, 1996), iV.xv.12, 471.

50i ths wy Rvsso respods to probem tht Br hd ddressed ootote (Mede Br, Infuence, 13839) outg or the geess o eort d perepto: resste dw both presuppose eh other, whh or Br presets d o vous re whe ttemptgto out or how voutry perepto rses o the bss o pssve mpressos. as wy out oths re, Br rgued tht sesto redy possesses orm o stt, whh, though o-voutry, eouters resste, d tht t s rom out o ths sttve eort tht the w rses.Ths hypothess s probemt, s Jud otes, tht t udermes the spefty o eort wthBrs yss (Ravaisson et le mtaphysique, 26). i otrst, Rvsso rgues tht there s ether wor resste pror to expt osousess, d tht the w rses whe eortess teedet

tedey meets resste (H61).51Hbt drws resgy er to, perhps wthout ever ttg, the rebty, eessty dperet spotety o stt. Betwee hbt d stt, betwee hbt d ture, the derees merey oe o degree, d ths deree wys be esseed d redued (H5759).

52The grdu, or suessve, dg o osousess d w the voutry prt o the move-met orrespods, thereore, to the smuteous seres o the sttes o w d osousess wththe prts o the whoe movemet, rom the rego o w to tht o ture (H61).


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d reedom. Reeto o motor hbts ows Rvsso, mer tht sdoubtess ueed by F. W. J. Shegs projet o trsedet desm dIdentittsphilosophie, to oeve reedom ot s opposed to ture, but rther s

hbtg or mtg the tur body the orm o tos or tede-es, tht s, s the spotety o desre (H57).53

certy, the des o hbtto or mto tht i hve just dved order to eudte Rvssos oepto o the body d otuty re mbgu-ous. They te us oy prt o the wy og the pth thtO Habiters d-dressg the probem o hbt sor s t mght st be temptg to oeve odesre s resdg somewhere other th the body, or s beg somehow tthedto t s use tht woud be seprbe rom, d tempory pror to, ts eets.The rux o the mtter s tht though Rvsso ty desrbes the serettvty s use, desre s ot to be thought y suh suessve mer.

as i oted bove, Br hd redy rtzed trdto oeptos o the u-sty o the w s the suesso o voutry use d eet, d Rvsso sudoubtedy ueed by ths.54 cruy, however, he heves postve o-epto o hbtu desre or tvty by thg t, oe g, otoogy, s determto o the beg o begs; d ths oeto t shoud be otedtht, our yers pror to wrtg O Habit, he hd redy wrtte prze-wgdssertto o the sese d hstor reepto o arstotes Metaphysics.55ORvssos out, desre hbts the body s beg hbts begs. There s deree, s Mrt Hedegger w emphsze revtzg the arstote

trdto o otoogy the tweteth etury, betwee begs d beg, betweetht whh exsts d ts exstee, just s here there s deree betwee thebody d the obsure tvty or tedees tht mte t. Yet ths deree so ordry deree betwee two thgs; d t s ot deree tht be

53Hbt, t shoud be oted, tes over the roe tht Sheg hd srbed to rt 1800 s theorgo d doumet o phosophy (System des transcendetalen Idealismus,vo. 3 oSmtliche Werke,ed. k. F. a. Sheg (Stuttgrt: cott, 185661), 627), but the otuum reveed by reeto o

hbt ders mredy rom the detty o sprt d ture tht Sheg ttempts to th wthhs system o trsedet desm. coerg Rvssos reto to Sheg, see Joseph Dopp,Ravaisson : La ormation de sa pense daprs des documents indits(louv : dtos de isttut Supereurde Phosophe, 1933); D. Ps, RvssoetSheg, Les tudes philosophiques3 (1988): 395413;J.-F. courte, les retos de Rvsso et de Sheg, Idealismus mit Folgen. Die Epochenswelleum1800 in Kunst und Geisteswissenschaten, ed. H.-J. Gwo d c. Jmme (Muh: Whem FVerg, 1994), 27391; d c. Muve, Rvsso, eteur et terprte de Sheg, Romantisme25(1995): 6574.

54i 1840, Rvsso desrbes Brs oepto o the ore o the w s oows: cosous-ess o motve tvty s the mmedte wreess o use, o use boud to ts eet s dvsbe t. it s ot the bstrt wreess o mere pty, o use exstg prt rom tseet, but rther o tve use [cause agissante] d ts re efousess (l Phosophe

cotempore, 22).55a revsed verso o the dssertto ws orgy pubshed two voumes, the frst 1837,d the seod 1845, d hs reety bee reprted oe voume: Fx Rvsso,Essai sur laMtaphysique dAristote(Prs: les Edtos du cer, 2007). Ths reprt s, however, urebe dthe org text o voumes 1 d 2 s vbe, respetvey, t http://g.b.r/r:/12148/bpt6861141.r=Ess+sur++metphysque+d%27arstote.gEn d http://g.b.r/r:/12148/bpt686115.r=Ess+sur++metphysque+d%27arstote.gEn.


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outed or s reto o suesso betwee use d eet, or s thereto o odto to wht t odtos.56

The pot be stted muh more postvey syg tht the pheome o

hbtarethe tvty o desre rther th beg the eets o the tter. it s or thsreso, t, tht the opposto o w d use shoud be uderstood toosttute oy provso pproh to the probem o hbt wth Rvssostext. as he goes o to rgue, the pheome preset ert sort o regurty,ompuso, d eve eessty, the ths s eessty o ttrto d desre(H57). The w o hbt, s he wrtes wth reeree to St Pu, s erty w o the mbs, but t s t the sme tme w o gre (H57), the gt o obsure, o-meh tvty tht rses rom outsde o the sphere o reetvethought, t est s suh sphere s determed crtes or kt th-g. Desre d gre re here ot outer-posed to empr w s use to

eet, or s noumenontophenomenon; the w rther s desre d gre oper-to. i other words, the very de o hbtu tedey, to orto usethe vored term o Humepropesty s to be thought tvey ordg to thepeur, obsure or seret tvty tht s evertheess mest s somethgother th meh operto the pheome themseves. it s, dd-to, or ths reso tht Rvsso seems to brg to questo the very de oexpg hbt: the tuty o the pheome o hbt s expbetuty o tegee d desre (H63).

O ths bss t s possbe to respod uy to the aporiaoerg the ore o

hbt t whh Hume d Red hted ther equres. Rvssos tve otoogyo hbt ows us to trsorm d overome Humes dstto betwee hbtupropestes d uow prpe tht brgs them bout. i oudg OHabit, t the ed o seto summrzg the text s whoe, Rvsso wrtes,

The dsposto o whh hbt ossts, d the prpe egederg t, re oed the sme thg: ths s the prmord w d the most geer orm o beg,the tedey to persevere the very tuty tht osttutes beg. (H49)

Dsposto s oe o the trdto trstos o the arstote term hexis.57Yet wthout reerrg drety to arstote o ths spef pot, Rvsso rgues

tht hbtu dsposto s to be thought ether s thg, or stty s stte; uderstood s syoymous wth the de o tedey, t s rther metotoogys osttutg the beg o those begs be to qure hbtsddymyot oy beuse dspostos re deveoped through tme, but so

56The ter Hedegger w brg to questo the very de o otoog deree preseybeuse t seems to ed us b to trsedet oepto o ths deree s oerg odto d wht t odtos. See, or exmpe, Contributions to Philosophy, trs. P. Emd d k.My (Boomgto: id Uversty Press, 1999), 266.

57

The sese ohexis, prtury ts reto to ethos, s mbguous arstotes texts, but or dym terpretto o the term ssued depedety o Rvsso, see Perre Rodrgo, ldymque de hexishez arstote, Alter12 (2004): 1126; d Joe Shs, pree to AristotlesNico-machean Ethics, by arstote(newburyport: Pus, 2002). i ths prgrph i stute the f es oRvssos text reto to Hume, but t so be uderstood to rete to arstotes dsttobetwee hexisd ethos; there woud be o eed to dstgush the two, se ethos, the sese ohbtu tos, arethe dym rety ohexis.


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beuse they w ted to reze themseves geue tvty. cosequety, theesset pot o the pssge s tht oe qured, hbts re uderstood tve d o-meh sese, the there s o eed to seprte them rom the

prpe o ther qusto. The bty to qure or otrt hbts s othgother th the power or ore uderyg d osttutg hbtu propestes: tedey o to to repet tse, d thus tedey to persst beg,whh osttutes the very beg o those begs suseptbe to hbt. i ths sese,hbt s dsposto tht udes our preset ss or tedees ddto toour bty to er others: we qure or otrt (H25) hbts, or exmpe, erg to py strumet, d the hbts we hve otrted ow us toqure others, erg to py tht strumet better. The struture o motorhbt, the, s ot to be broe dow, the mer o Hume d Red, to) repeted ts, b) the propesty produed through ths repetto, d )

uowbe super-sesbe prpe tht ows the propesty to be produedby the repetto, se the prpe tht ows propestes to be ormed byrepetto is maniest in thems o-meh drve or tedey.

i ths wy t so beomes er tht there be o smpe dstto be-twee pheomeoogy d metphyss Rvssos reeto o hbt: hspheomeoogy o hbt redy voves d requres the reogto tht theres obsure, o-meh tvty preset these pheome.58 certy, swe hve see, the de o suh obsure tvty s urther eborted by Rvsso otoog terms. Yet, s i hve tred to show, ths oepto o beg does

ot te us rom sesbe to super-sesbe eve. it shoud be oted, however,tht desrbg the most geer w o beg s the tedey to persst the very tuty tht osttutes beg, Rvsso sgs the mporte olebzs oepto o tve ore or hs otoog terpretto o hbt.For lebz, tve ore ots ert t or entelechiad s thus md-wybetwee the uty o tg d the t tse, d voves otus; 59 t s tedey, d o strvg or drve, whh w reze tse, w ed to geu-e tvty, s og s there s othg to mpede ts rezto. The desrptoo hbt s tedey to persst drws tery rom lebzs oomtt d

postve terprettos o ert, ordg to whh body osdered tserets y mpetus mprted to t, d rems constant ts mobty, thushvg tedey to persevere whtever sequee o hges t hs begu.60Rvsso s ueed, the, by ths geer oepto o ore, but hs outo hbt does ot std or wth t. O Habitdoes ot osttute ppe to dogmt oto o ore tht woud uder Humes sept rtque, pre-

58it s ths sese tht Juds m tht O Habitthe metphys redg s ed ordrety by the observto d the yss s best uderstood; see Hbter hbtude, Les tudes

Philosophiques1 (1993):1723, t19. Trsto me. We seem to hve goe wry, however, , oowgMr, we rgue tht wth the de o obsure tvty Rvssos yss moves rom pheomeo-og eve to metphys eve (ltvt obsure de hbtude, 48; trsto me).

59lebz, Philosophical Papers and Letters, 2d ed., ed. l. loemer (Bosto: D. Rede Pubshgco., 1969), 433.

60lebz, Philosophical Texts, ed. R. Woohouse d R. Frs(Oxord: Oxord Uversty Press,1998), 217.


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sey sor s hbt s ore or tedey, s tedey to persst, s frst o d most drety mest to us in and asthe pheome o hbt.61

i Prt ii, Seto 3, Rvsso does rgue, however, tht ter pprehed-

g ths tedey wth ourseves we reogze deret orms o the smetedey throughout the se o begs, the wy dow, through the md the veget remswhh re suseptbe, s Red hd oted hsEssays onthe Active Powers o Man, dmshg degrees to the power o hbt62to thesphere o the org. it s possbe to rgue tht these rems std s ormso oe d the sme tedey oy o the bss o showg tht there s otu-ty throughout ture s whoe, d or ths Rvsso provdes ogrgumet, whh he presets s the most poweru o oges (H65): just sthere s otuum uderyg the crtes oepto o md d body, sotoo there s otuty ture s whoe, rom the org remwhh, s

lebz hd show, redy be uderstood to mest ert ore, tvty,or tedey the wy up to the hum beg.cotuty, d otuty odesre, ture s whoe s erty ot s evdet to us s t s ourseves,but or Rvsso, the tter serves s the strogest possbe justfto, howeverdret t my be, or y m oerg the ormer.63

4 . c o n c l u s i o n

Reeto o hbt serve s method or phosoph thg sor st ebes us to th beyod the tomy o reedom d eessty proper to

kt thought, whe eve provdg the bss or phosophy o ture s whoe. Yet we re to pprehed dequtey the ture o the pheomeo hbt, we must be ve to the questo o beg, whh, or arstote, ws theprmry soure o woder or phosophers.64 We must be prepred to reogze the verb to be more th empty or se-evdet oept, d thus to brgto questo the uderstdg o beg tht s wys d redy heret y phosoph thg. O ths bss t s possbe to trsed phosophyHume d Reds aporiaoerg the uow prpe produg hbtudspostos whe overomg the resdu dusm o Brs thg. For these

resos, i oted, Rvssos thg s st pertet or us, d t s the

61O ths pot, Rvsso wrtes, We do ot see the exterorty o the tuty o thgs; we doot see ther dspostos o powers. i osousess, by otrst, the sme beg t oe ts dsees the t; or, better, the t d the ppreheso o the t re used together. The uthor, thedrm, the spettor re oe (H39).

62See Red,Essay on the Active Powers o Man,121: it s sd, tht trees d other vegetbes, bygrowg og udy mte, sometmes qure qutes by whh they ber ts em-

ey wth ess hurt. Ths, the vegetbe gdom, hs some resembe to the power o hbt; but mte mtter, i ow othg tht resembes t.63Rvsso desrbes ths movemet o the method o hgh phosophy, o metphyss hs

report o La philosophie en France au XIXmesicle([Prs: Fyrd, 1984], 300; trsto me) thus:Ths tmte osttuto o our beg, whh osousess ows us to ow, s oud, by ogy,to resde esewhere, d the everywhere.

64See arstote, Metaphysics, Vii, 1028b57.


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more so tht, by deveopg Brs wor, t tptes the reetos wthtweteth etury Freh pheomeoogy oerg the ved body.65

By wy o ouso, t s mportt to remr tht Prt ii, Seto 4 o hs

text, Rvsso deveops hs respose to Hume d Reds aporiaby rgug thtt s o the bss o hs otoog terpretto o hbt tht the ssoto odes be exped. i pssge whh ots the texts soe reeree toHume, Rvsso rtzes the Sottsh phosophers ery oepto o thessoto o des the Treatise on Human Nature,ordg to whh therere qutes heret des themseves tht produe ssoto betweethem, whh upo the ppere o oe de tury trodue other.66O Rvssos out, hbt s obsure tvty s the soe power requredto out or suh ssoto: the to to whh orgy voutryd osous met ts, opertos d ssotos re grduy bsorbed,

s tur spotety (H71). Ths spotety or obsure tvty s preset met opertos, the sphere o the bstrt uderstdg d pure reso(H67) s we s the orgs o the body. certy, the rgumettve ore oths out o the ssoto o des depeds o hs terpretto o the oreproper to sesory d motor hbts. Yet wth suh out Rvsso tedsto outer the ms o Dugd Stewrt, ordg to whh hbts o the mdre to be uderstood ordg to more prooud prpe th hbt tse,mey the ssoto o des.67 Ths pproh begs the questo o the oreor prpe tht produes ssoto ts deret modes. it s ths ght tht

Rvsso hrterzes, some thrty yers ter d wth due modesty, the s-gurty o hs ow rgumet reto to the deveopmet o Sottsh thoughtter Hume wth hs of report o Philosophy in France in the19thCentury(Laphilosophie en France au XIXmesicle):

Red hd sd, but wthout ttemptg to prove t, tht the ssoto o des must begrouded hbt. i otrst, Dugd Stewrt, tedg muh more th hs teherto expto by mes o pheome oe, ws o the opo tht t s

65it seems tht Mereu-Poty does ot dsuss O Habit y o hs pubshed texts or etures,

eve though he tught ourse o Me de Br d Bergso 194849 (both uthors were othe progrmme o the agrgation phosophy). Jud (Ravaisson et la mtaphysique, 11) retes thtMereu-Poty hd med t hs thess deee tht Rvsso ws o terest oy s preursor oBergso. The mporte o Rvsso ws, however, reorded by other Freh phosopher o-ered wth hbt d the body, Pu Roeur, who wrtes hsFreedom and Nature: The Voluntary andInvoluntary([Evsto: northwester Uversty Press, 1966], 286), orgy pubshed Freh 1950, tht tutos o tht gret phosopher re the soure o my o the reetos thsboo. O ths redg, see Beot Thro, l eture roeuree de Rvsso ds Le volontaireet linvolontaire, Les tudes Philosophiques3 (2002): 37190.For exeet survey o eteeth- dtweteth-etury phosoph reetos o hbt Fre, d thus o Rvssos egy, see creMr, ltre et hbtude ds phosophe rse otempore, Alter12 (2004): 14972.

66Hume, ATreatise on Human Nature, 1011. Rvsso seems, t, ot to hve red Humes

deret out the frstEnquiry.67i rgug tht t s ot the association o ideastht exps hbt; t s rther by the w, bythe prpe o hbt tht the ssoto o des be exped (H73), Rvsso reers (H12364) to the pssge o StewrtsElements o the Philosophy o the Human Mindtht respods to Redshrterzto o hbt s deomtg tedees o both body d md: Wth ths observto iot gree, beuse i th t more phosoph to resove the power o hbt to the ssotoo des, th to resove the ssoto o des to hbt (258).


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rther hbt tht must be exped by the suesso d the ssoto o des.The uthor o thess OHabit, submtted 1838 to theacult des lettres de Paris, drwg the ssoto o des b to ths pheomeo, exped hbt by theto oe hs to repet d mtte oese to tht tse be

redued to the tedey, to the eort o thgs to persevere the tuty thtosttutes ther very beg.68

68Fx Rvsso,De lhabitude/La philosophie en France au XIXmesicle(Prs: Fyrd, 1984), 218.Trsto me.

Documents

1.Sinclair on ravaisson