Μικρά Φυσικά, Τόμος Δεύτερος

Aristotle begins a careful investigation of the dreaming mind, asking whether the images that visit us at night belong to the realm of the senses or of the intellect. He notes that when we sleep our eyes are closed, yet we still experience vivid pictures, sounds, and movements, suggesting that dreaming operates beyond ordinary perception. By comparing waking awareness with the nocturnal imagination, he reveals how the mind can conjure forms, colors, and even judgments while detached from direct sensory input.

The treatise then moves to the mechanics of these internal presentations, describing how the soul “sees” and “hears” in the dark, and how belief and judgment arise in the dream state. Aristotle points out that some dream images are simple reproductions of waking experiences, while others emerge from a deeper, imaginative faculty that can mislead even when we are otherwise clear‑sighted. This early philosophical guide offers listeners a fascinating glimpse into how the ancient thinker sought to explain the mysterious theatre of our nightly visions.