Literature Humanities 07-08

Beyond a Shadow of a Doubt

The two most famous passages in The Confessions are the Pear Tree in Book IV and the conversion scene in Book VIII. We covered the pear tree pretty well, but somehow didn't make it to the "Pick Up and Read" section on Wednesday. Your instructor offers his apologies. Luckily, we have this handy blog-like forum to catch such egregious mistakes. A pedagogical air-bag if you will.

Anyway, I turn our attention to VIII.28-29. Augustine Prime isn't doing too hot: ""massive downpour of tears," "accompanying groans," "bitter agony of my heart," etc. No, he isn't watching Flavor of Love 2--he's getting ready to be a Christian.

I'd like to keep this topic relatively free of pointed questions so to give you space for your reactions to the this remarkable moment. What was your reaction to this conversion sequence?

(Though if you ARE looking for some direction you might consider one or more of the following questions: Is this an experience "powerful" enough to "dispell" all doubts? What if this is a fabrication for an audience? Why might Augustine stage his conversion like this? What is missing from the Bible verse that Augustine Prime (and perhaps even Augustine Proper) struggled with? What of Alypius?)
-Jeff

Humans, God, sin, huh?

*Sorry if this question doesn't make sense, but most of The Confessions didn't make sense to me* In Book II Chapter 13, Augustine goes into a very very long list of human sins and follies and matches them with some sort of attribute to God. (Pride imitates what is lofty; but you alone are God most high above all things.... Its wish would be that nothing be taken away, just as nothing can be taken from you). However, is each sin really a desire to be more like God? Does having pride really mean someone is seeking to be the loftiest, the highest above all things, and be more with God? This chapter highlighted a lot of aspects of the Neoplatonic form-- there isn't really evil but a spiritual distance from God that pretty much leads to sin, bad things, etc. So secondly, all this chaos-- the pride, ambition, etc etc-- turns away from God but still shows a desire to be with God? So basically, it boils down to: what do you think Augustine is saying about seeking God? Do people subconsciously seek to be with Him, or do they creating chaos and turning more away from him? - Corinne

Feigned Modesty? Perhaps.

In *the Confessions*, Saint Augustine used his own personal wisdom and the wisdom of others to explain God's power and abilities. While contrasting God to himself, Augustine said that he was able to read AND understand "Ten Categories" by Aristotle, a feat that not many completed. Even so, Augustine remarked that his "comprehension of religion was erroneous, distorted, and shamefully sacrilegious". (71) Augustine then contrasts the ability of astrologers to God. Astrologers have the ability to predict the time, day, and proportion of the light that will be eclipsed. Yet, according to Augustine, their irreligious nature is terrible and knowing of the stars is nothing since they do not know of God. Throughout *the Confessions*, Augustine has the habit of making humble remarks while still pitching in one of his feats or a little bit of praise on himself, which he always quickly revokes, but nevertheless he puts it in. What do you think of this tactic of Augustine? Was it necessary for him to make his point? Are there any other examples of Augustine necessarily/not necessarily stating his high points in life but then quickly retracting it? -Lulu

On Curiosity

Toward the end of Book X, Augustine begins to catalog various temptations: of the ear, of the eye, of the stomach, etc. The sum of all these sense-perceptions is a general inclination toward a 'cupidity' for 'knowing.' He goes on to describe this  particular human malady (as opposed to animals, according to Augustine, which possess both senses and memory, but not a desire for knowledge) as " a vain inquisitiveness dignified  with the title of knowledge and science" (X.54,  p.211).

It seems like a strange position for Augustine--are not the Confessions rife, plagued even, with questions about knowledge of the divine, of the self, of the human? Is it possible that this is the one 'temptation' that Augustine has not yet conquered ('Lord, who is never carried a little beyond the needs of necessity?...I am not like that, for I am a sinful man' X.47, p207)?

If it is indeed the case that Augustine is still subject to a 'lust for knowledge,' then it tells us something about conversion. He is not changed so much as he is controlled: "By fear of you, you repressed my pride and by your yoke you made my neck submissive" (X.58, 213). The idea of someone "changing" is a great mystery to me. Can we alter ourselves? Or do we just turn various, underlying elements of our characters on and off? Can I be something other than what I am?

One of the tasks of The Confessions might be to respond to this question, but I'm not sure what the answer turns out to be. Do you think the writer-of-the-Confessions Augustine is fundamentally different than the unconverted  Augustine Prime? If so how? If not, what has happened?
-Jeff