Curiosity : vice or virtue?

Augustine and Lonergan

Abstract : Two recent studies by Joseph Torchia and Paul Griffiths show the importance of Augustine’s critique of the vice of curiositas to contemporary life and thought. Superficially, it might seem that Augustine condemned curiosity because it “seeks to find out whatever it wishes without restrict...

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Bibliographic Details
Author:Patrick H. Byrne
Published: S.n., s.l., 2021
Volume:95
Pages:69-93
Language:English
Notes:DOI: 10.5840/acpq2020127215
Periodical:American Catholic Philosophical Quarterly
Number:1
ISSN:1051-3558
Format:Article
Topic:- Doctrine > From man to God > Evil. Sin > [Vices divers] > curiosity
- Doctrine > From man to God > [Morale] > Virtue
- Influence and Survival > [Époque Contemporaine (1789-1960)] > Authors > [Lonergan (Bernard)]
Status:Active
Description
Summary:Abstract : Two recent studies by Joseph Torchia and Paul Griffiths show the importance of Augustine’s critique of the vice of curiositas to contemporary life and thought. Superficially, it might seem that Augustine condemned curiosity because it “seeks to find out whatever it wishes without restriction of any kind.” Though profoundly influenced by Augustine, Bernard Lonergan praised intellectual curiosity precisely insofar as it is motivated by an unrestricted desire to know, rather than by less noble motives. Drawing upon the researches of Torchia and Griffiths, this article endeavors to show that Augustine does not simply equate curiositas with an unrestricted desire to know, and that the virtue of intellectual curiosity as Lonergan understood it is in fact endorsed by Augustine by means of its relationship to the virtue of studiositas. This more nuanced view of the virtues and vices of intellect can provide guidance for contemporary intellectual pursuits, both how to pursue and not to pursue knowledge.

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