§1#1## ΠΕΡΙ ΜΝΗΜΗΣ ΚΑΙ ΑΝΑΜΝΗΣΕΩΣ.
Περὶ μὲν οῦν τῶν αἰσθητηρίων καὶ τῶν αἰσθητῶν τίνα τρόπον ἔχει καὶ κοινῇ καὶ καθ’ ἕκαστον αἱσθητήριον εἴρηται·
ON MEMORY AND RECOLLECTION. First, then, regarding the sense organs and the objects of sense, in what manner they stand, both in general and with respect to each sense organ individually, has been discussed.
τῶν δὲ λοιπῶν πρῶτον σκεπτέον περὶ μνήμης καὶ τοῦ μνημονεύειν, τί ἐστι, καὶ διὰ τίν’ αἰτίαν γίγνεται, καὶ τίνι τῶν τῆς ψυχῆς μορίων συμβαίνει τοῦτο τὸ πάθος καὶ τὸ ἀναμιμνήσκεσθαι·
Of the remaining topics, we must first consider memory and remembering, what it is, through what cause it occurs, and to which of the parts of the soul this affection and recollecting belong.
οὐ γὰρ οἱ αὐτοί εἰσι μνημονικοὶ καὶ ἀναμνηστικοί, ἀλλ’ ὡς ἐπὶ τὸ πολὺ μνημονικώτεροι μὲν οἱ βραδεῖς, ἀναμνηστικώτεροι δὲ οἱ ταχεῖς καὶ εὐμαθεῖς.
For the same people are not both good at remembering and good at recollecting, but for the most part, slow people are better at remembering, whereas quick and fast-learning people are better at recollecting.
Πρῶτον μὲν οὖν ληπτέον ποῖά ἐστι τὰ μνημονευτά· πολλάκις γὰρ ἐξαπατᾷ τοῦτο.
First, then, we must grasp what kinds of things are memorable; for this often misleads.
Οὔτε γὰρ τὸ μέλλον ἐνδέχεται μνημονεύειν, ἀλλ’ ἔστι δοξαστὸν καὶ ἐλπιστόν (εἴη δ’ ἂν καὶ ἐπιστήμη τις ἐλπιστική, καθάπερ τινές φασι τὴν μαντικήν), οὔτε τοῦ παρόντος, ἀλλ’ αἴσθησις· ταύτῃ γὰρ οὔτε τὸ μέλλον οὔτε τὸ γενόμενον γνωρίζομεν, ἀλλὰ τὸ παρὸν μόνον.
For it is not possible to remember the future, but it is an object of opinion and expectation (and there might even be an expectant science, just as some say divination is), nor of the present, but rather perception; for by this we know neither the future nor the past, but only the present.
Ἡ δὲ μνήμη τοῦ γενομένου·
But memory is of the past.
τὸ δὲ παρὸν ὅτε πάρεστιν, οἷον τοδὶ τὸ λευκὸν ὅτε. ὁρᾷ, οὐδεὶς ἂν φαίη μνημονεύειν, οὐδὲ τὸ θεωρούμενον, ὅτε θεωρῶν τυγχάνει καὶ ἐννοῶν· ἀλλὰ τὸ μὲν αἰσθάνεσθαί φησι, τὸ δ’ ἐπίστασθαι μόνον·
And when the present is present, for example, when one sees this white thing, no one would say they are remembering it, nor the object of contemplation, when one happens to be contemplating and thinking of it; but in the former case one says he perceives, and in the latter only that he knows.
ὅταν δ’ ἄνευ τῶν ἐνεργειῶν ἔχῃ τὴν ἐπιστήμην καὶ τὴν αἴσθησιν, οὕτω μέμνηται τὰς τοῦ τριγώνου ὅτι δύο ὀρθαῖς ἴσαι, τὸ μὲν ὅτι ἔμαθεν ἢ ἐθεώρησεν, τὸ δὲ ὅτι ἤκουσεν ἢ εἶδεν ἢ ὅ τι τοιοῦτον·
But when one possesses knowledge and perception without their active exercises, thus one remembers: that the angles of a triangle are equal to two right angles, in the case of [knowledge], because he learned or contemplated it, and in the case of [perception], because he heard or saw or something of the sort.
ἀεὶ γὰρ ὅταν ἐνεργῇ κατὰ τὸ μνημονεύειν, οὕτως ἐν τῇ ψυχῇ λέγει, ὅτι πρότερον τοῦτο ἤκουσεν ἢ ᾔσθετο ἢ ἐνόησεν.
For whenever one actively exercises memory, one says thus in the soul: that previously he heard, perceived, or thought this.
Ἔστι μὲν οὖν ἡ μνήμη οὔτε αἴσθησις οὔτε ὑπόληψις, ἀλλὰ τούτων τινὸς ἕξις ἢ πάθος, ὅταν γένηται χρόνος.
Memory, then, is neither perception nor belief, but a state or affection of one of these, when time has elapsed.
Τοῦ δὲ νῦν ἐν τῷ νῦν οὐκ ἔστι μνήμη, καθάπερ εἴρηται καὶ πρότερον, ἀλλὰ τοῦ μὲν παρόντος αἴσθησις, τοῦ δὲ μέλλοντος ἐλπίς, τοῦ δὲ γενομένου μνήμη.
Of the "now" in the "now" there is no memory, as has also been said before, but perception of the present, hope of the future, and memory of the past.
Διὸ μετὰ χρόνου πᾶσα μνήμη.
Therefore, all memory is accompanied by time.
Ὥσθ’ ὅσα χρόνου αἰσθάνεται, ταῦτα μόνα τῶν ζῴων μνημονεύει, καὶ τούτῳ ᾧ αἰσθάνεται.
Consequently, only those of animals which perceive time remember, and they do so by means of that with which they perceive [time].
Ἐπεὶ δὲ περὶ φαντασίας εἴρηται πρότερον ἐν τοῖς περὶ ψυχῆς, καὶ νοεῖν οὐκ ἔστιν ἄνευ φαντάσματος· συμβαίνει γὰρ τὸ αὐτὸ πάθος ἐν τῷ νοεῖν ὅπερ καὶ ἐν τῷ διαγράφειν· ἐκεῖ τε γὰρ οὐθὲν προσχρώμενοι τῷ τὸ ποσὸν ὡρισμένον εἶναι τὸ τριγώνου, ὅμως γράφομεν ὡρισμένον κατὰ τὸ ποσόν· καὶ ὁ νοῶν ὡσαύτως, κἂν μὴ ποσὸν νοῇ, τίθεται πρὸ ὀμμάτων ποσόν, νοεῖ δ’ οὐχ ᾗ ποσόν.
Since we have previously spoken about imagination in On the Soul, and it is not possible to think without an image; for the same affection occurs in thinking as in drawing geometric figures; for in the latter case, though we make no use of the triangle's being of a determinate size, we nevertheless draw it determinate in size; and in the same way, the person who thinks, even if he does not think of quantity, places a quantity before his eyes, but thinks of it not qua quantity.
Ἂν δ’ ἡ φύσις ᾖ τῶν ποσῶν, ἀόριστον δέ, τίθεται μὲν ποσὸν ὡρισμένον, νοεῖ δ’ ᾖ ποσὸν μόνον.
But if its nature is of quantities, though indeterminate, he places a determinate quantity, but thinks of it only qua quantity.
Διὰ τίνα μὲν οὖν αἰτίαν οὐκ ἐνδέχεται νοεῖν οὐδὲν ἄνευ τοῦ συνεχοῦς, οὐδ’ ἄνευ χρόνου τὰ μὴ ἐν χρόνῳ ὄντα, ἄλλος λόγος.
Now, for what cause it is not possible to think of anything without continuity, nor without time to think of things not in time, is another discussion.
Μέγεθος δ’ ἀναγκαῖον γνωρίζειν καὶ κίνησιν ᾧ καὶ χρόνον, καὶ τὸ φάντασμα τῆς κοινῆς αἰσθήσεως πάθος ἐστίν.
But it is necessary to know magnitude and motion with the same [faculty] by which we also know time, and the image is an affection of the common sense.
Ὥστε φανερὸν ὅτι τῷ πρώτῳ αἰσθητικῷ τούτων ἡ γνῶσίς ἐστιν.
So it is clear that the knowledge of these belongs to the primary sensory faculty.
Ἡ δὲ μνήμη καὶ ἡ τῶν νοητῶν οὐκ ἄνευ φαντάσματός ἐστιν.
And memory, even of intelligible objects, does not exist without an image.
Ὥστε τοῦ νοουμένου κατὰ συμβεβηκὸς ἂν εἴη, καθ’ αὑτὸ δὲ τοῦ πρώτου αἰσθητικοῦ.
Therefore, it would belong to the object of thought accidentally, but essentially to the primary sensory faculty.
Διὸ καὶ ἑτέροις τισὶν ὑπάρχει τῶν ζῴων, καὶ οὐ μόνον ἀνθρώποις καὶ τοῖς ἔχουσι δόξαν ἢ φρόνησιν.
Therefore, it also belongs to certain other animals, and not only to humans and those possessing opinion or prudence.
Εἰ δὲ τῶν νοητικῶν τι μορίων ἦν, οὐκ ἂν ὑπῆρχε πολλοῖς τῶν ἄλλων ζῴων, ἴσως δ’ οὐδενὶ τῶν θνητῶν, ἐπεὶ οὐδὲ νῦν πᾶσι διὰ τὸ μὴ πάντα χρόνου αἴσθησιν ἔχειν· ἀεὶ γὰρ ὅταν ἐνεργῇ τῇ μνήμῃ, καθάπερ καὶ πρότερον εἴπομεν, ὅτι εἶδε τοῦτο ἢ ἤκουσεν ἢ ἔμαθε, προσαισθάνεται ὅτι πρότερον· τὸ δὲ πρότερον καὶ ὕστερον ἐν χρόνῳ ἐστίν.
But if it were one of the cognitive parts, it would not belong to many of the other animals, and perhaps to none of mortal creatures, since even now it does not belong to all, because not all have perception of time; for whenever one actively exercises memory, as we also said before, that he saw this or heard or learned, he additionally perceives that it was "before"; and "before" and "after" are in time.
Τίνος μὲν οὖν τῶν τῆς ψυχῆς ἐστὶν ἡ μνήμη, φανερόν, ὅτι οὗπερ καὶ ἡ φαντασία· καὶ ἔστι μνημονευτὰ καθ’ αὑτὰ μὲν ὅσα ἐστὶ φανταστά, κατὰ συμβεβηκὸς δὲ ὅσα μὴ ἄνευ φαντασίας.
To which part of the soul memory belongs, then, is clear, namely to that very part to which imagination belongs; and those things are memorable essentially which are objects of imagination, and accidentally those which are not without imagination.