Augustine

Summary

On Order

2.11.32–19.51

Thus I see two cases in which the powers of our ruling faculty are affected by the senses themselves: the visible products of human activity, and audible sounds and words. In either case our mind is in need of an additional judgement of the senses due to the fact that the body is involved in both: in the former case, the judgement of the eyes, in the latter of the ears. Accordingly, when we see something that is shaped in such a way that its parts are in harmony with one another, it is not inept for us to say that it ‘appears to have order or regularity’. Also, when we hear something that sounds harmonious, we do not hesitate to say that the ‘sound exhibits regularity or proportion’. At the same time, no one would escape ridicule if he said ‘it smells with regularity’, ‘it tastes proportionate’, or ‘it is orderly to the touch’…

We have then, so far as we were able to investigate, certain traces of regularity or proportion in our senses and, in so far as it pertains to sight and hearing, in the pleasurable response itself … So far as vision is concerned, whenever parts harmonize with each other with regularity, this is usually called beautiful. However, as regards hearing, when voices sound good together according to some regularity or musical ratios, or a song is composed with some regular rhythm, the proper name for this is sweetness.