Phaenomenon

(φαινόμενον, from φαίνομαι, to appear) is that which has, appeared. It is generally applied to some sensible appearance, some occurrence in the course of nature. But in mental philosophy it is applied to the various and changing states of mind. "How pitiful and ridiculous are the grounds upon which such men pretend to account for the very lowest and commonest phcenomena of nature without recurring to a God and Providence!" "Among the various phaenomena which the human mind presents to our view, there is none more calculated to excite our curiosity and our wonder than the communication which is carried on between the sentient, thinking, and active principle within us and the material objects with which we are surrounded" (Stewart, Elements, chapter 1, section 1). In the philosophy of Kant, phaenomenon means an object such as we represent it to ourselves or conceive of it, in opposition to noumenon, or a thing as it is in itself. "According to Kant, the facts of consciousness, in their subjective character, are produced partly from the nature of the things of which it is conscious; and hence, in their objective character, they are phenomena, or objects as they appear in relation to us, not things in themselves, noumena, or realities in their absolute nature, as they may be out of relation to the mind. The subjective elements which the mind itself contributes to the consciousness of every object are to be found, as regards intuition, in the forms of space and time; and as regards thought, in the categories, unity, plurality, and the rest. To perceive a thing in itself would be to perceive it neither in space nor in time; for these are furnished by the constitution of our perceptive faculties, and constitute an element of the phcenomenal object of intuition only. To think of a thing in itself would be to think of it neither as one nor as many, nor under any other category; for these, again, depend upon the constitution of our understanding, and constitute an element of the phcenomenal object of thought. The phaenonenal is the product of the inherent laws of our own mental constitution, and, as such, is the sum and limit of all the knowledge to which we can attain" (Mansel, Lect. on Phil. of Kant, pages 21, 22). The definition of phaenomenon is, "that which can be known only along with something else" (Ferrier, Inst. Of Metaphys. page 319). See McCosh, Intuition; Jour. Specul. Philos. volume 2, No. 2, art. 3 and 4; volume 3, No. 2, art. 4; June 1872, art. 5. SEE NOUMENON.