JOÃO GABRIEL BORGES RIBEIRO

Aristotle is a philosopher who is especially attentive to the nuanced complexities of animal psychology. The author's discussions of desires and emotions are characterized by a high degree of sophistication. Although it is anachronistic to ascribe to him a conscious distinction between the two notions, the author was acutely aware of the particular characteristics of each and the tensions that arise from attempts to attribute conceptual unity to them. These tensions appear to foreshadow the challenges that contemporary philosophers of psychology have faced when studying these phenomena. The author's discussion of emotions and desires is fragmented. In some contexts, Aristotle approaches these phenomena in an indifferent manner, while in others he is more restrictive. It is not possible to transfer the characteristics of specific analyses of the phenomena from one group to another. This thesis aims to analyze the conceptual boundaries between these phenomena in Aristotle's work. It will discuss the characteristics attributed by the author to each of the phenomena and compare his perceptions and difficulties with those present in the contemporary debate.