What are the concupiscible & irascible passions & how are they related?Dr. Patrick J. DiVietriThe terms concupiscible and irascible passions seem to be very abstract but they tend to permeate our daily life and present practical challenges to parents and to individuals as they seek maturity and stability. It is helpful to take a look at what they are and how the part they play in our lives. Stop and think of how many times during the day one wants something that is good or doesn’t want something that is bad. How many times do we find that getting to the thing that is good or avoided what is bad is difficult and takes some effort on our part? In a nutshell, the concupiscible either wants the good thing or to avoid the bad and the irascible seeks to overcome anything in the way of possession or escape. First of all, the concupiscible and irascible passions differ in regards to their object. The object of the concupiscible is the good simply or the apprehended or the evil to be avoided whereas the irascible are concerned with the arduous in obtaining the good and avoiding the evil. Both are concerned with the likeness in good and contrariety of evil but the concupscible seeks satisfaction by resting in the good or being absent of the evil. To put is simply, the concupiscible wants to obtain some good or want to avoid some evil. For example, a person apprehends a pizza and the concupiscible wants the pizza. If the person gets the pizza they can rest in it by being contented by consuming it. A person may want the love of another person, or a job title or education etc. A person could desire some pleasure or comfort for their mind or body. On the contrary, one may apprehend or see some evil approaching and want to take flight. For example, while walking down the streets some rough looking characters start yelling threats and advancing toward a person. The concupiscible would want to escape as quickly as possible. A student may have a great deal of homework to do and even though the homework is not evil per se, the amount of it seems overwhelming and impossible and the student may escape by playing basketball, watching TV or calling a friend etc.
There are times when object is the same such as fear and daring which are both concerned with overcome evil the former by flight the latter by approach in hopes of overcoming. In this case one might become aggressive with the potential attackers in hope of overcoming them. The student may sit down and make a list of the work to be done and set up a schedule or study plan for the evening and for the week. It is helpful for couples to keep these passions in mind when educating children or in trying to grow in personal maturity. These are the simple drives behind so many activities and dynamics and we struggle to control or direct them. We can see how the virtues help someone deal with these two passions. The chart that is below show many of the virtues that are all related to controlling the desire for something that is considered good or avoiding something that is bad or overcoming obstacles in either path.
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