Image and Formal Logic in the Philosophy of Aristotle and Avicenna, A Bridge Between Imagination and Reason

This article examines the central role of 'image' (imagination, mental image) and its connection to formal logic in the philosophical systems of Aristotle and Avicenna. Focusing on works such as Aristotle's De Anima and Avicenna's Al-Shifa and Al-Najat, it is argued that image, as an essential intermediary link between sensory perception and abstract intellectual activity, provides a fundamental basis for the formation and application of formal logic, especially syllogism, in both systems. Although both philosophers recognize the role of image as the raw material for rational thought, there are profound differences in their analysis of the nature of the soul, cognitive faculties, the process of abstraction, and consequently, the precise relationship between image and logical forms and intelligibles. Aristotle, by emphasizing phantasia as the source of sensible forms required by the intellect, and Avicenna, by elaborating on the theory of the soul's faculties and a clear distinction between formal and material meanings in logic, offer a more complex and systematic approach. This research shows that understanding formal logic in these two philosophers would be incomplete without grasping the underlying role of image and the mechanism of its transformation into intellectual material. A comparative analysis of these two perspectives not only enriches the history of the philosophy of mind and epistemology but also highlights the importance of mental imagery in rational argumentative processes. Article Question: How do abstract logical forms and rules take shape in the human mind and on what basis do they operate?

کلیدواژه ها:

Image ، Mental Image/Imagination ، Formal Logic ، Aristotle ، Avicenna ، Phantasia ، Imaginative Faculty ، Syllogism ، Rational Soul