In so far as it regards the point as one, it judges singly and coincidently with perception.” 2 Crudely put, if I perceive an object to be both red and hot at the same time, then I determine those two characteristics of the object with two different senses, that of sight, and that of touch. In so far as it employs a terminal mark as two, it distinguishes two things, and these are separable for it as a separable faculty. As Aristotle puts it succinctly, “In so far as it is indivisible, the judging principle is one and coincident with perception in so far as it is divisible, it is not one, for it employs twice and simultaneously the same mark. This sense acts as kind of guide for the others, organizing them as well as mobilizing them in one connected perceptual apparatus. 1įor Aristotle, common sense (also known as koine aisthesis or sensus communis) describes the higher-order perception that humans uniquely possess. An overview of some of the most notable conceptions of common sense delineates a progress leading toward abstraction, from something to be had to something to be achieved. Common sense is not reducible to mere animal instinct it is what might be called, at its purest embodied state, “know-how.” One can only speculate so far, though, before it becomes helpful, if not necessary, to turn one’s gaze toward the past. The phrase seems to appeal to something essential to a human attitude toward the world and the other entities that populate it. If a protest were to arise in one or more constituents of the group, we could safely assume the contrary. It is, in its usage, redundant if an action occurs in the presence of two or more people, all of whom take no umbrage with that action and do not find reason to protest it, then it can be safely assumed that, if any of them were asked whether or not the action conformed to their notion of common sense, they would respond affirmatively. If we find ourselves in agreement with someone, we might very well have the confidence to say of a person or an action that it conforms to common sense, but when we find ourselves in any form of disagreement, it is in frustration, rather than confidence, that we invoke the term.
In truth, the phrase seems something of a tautology, at least in everyday parlance.
“Common sense as opposed to what?” one may be tempted to respond. If one is called upon to offer a definition, however, the matter presents a few challenges. It seems fitting that the phrase “common sense” should strike most as being fairly self-explanatory.
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