science

Velleity

Velleity is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Velleity rather than just read about it. In short: Velleity is the lowest degree of volition, a slight wish or tendency. It is a concept that has been used in philosophy and, to a lesser degree, religion, psychology, and ethics.

Key takeaways

Velleity belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Velleity to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Velleity from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Velleity is the lowest degree of volition, a slight wish or tendency. It is a concept that has been used in philosophy and, to a lesser degree, religion, psychology, and ethics.

Examples of usage

In philosophy The 16th-century French philosopher Montaigne, in his essay On the Force of Imagination begins with the epigraph he cites from a schoolboy textbook, Fortis imaginatio generat casum, or "A strong imagination begets the event itself." In this essay, Montaigne describes the various ways that the will (or imagination as he calls it) causes people and other animals to do things or to have things done to them, with the barest of initiatives. In said essay, he links (what is now called) the placebo effect to the power of the will. For example, he describes how a certain Germain, was born a female named Mary, who "that by straining himself in a leap his male organs came out" at the age of 22. He also cites the stigmata of Dagobert and Saint Francis, and when the bride Laodice worshipping Venus cured her husband Amasis, King of Egypt of his impotence, among several other examples. Friedrich Nietzsche describes the velleity of an artist as a "desire to be 'what he is able to represent, conceive, and express'...." Ogden Nash named "velleity is what I've got!" as what turns "varying commitment into vanishing commitment."

In religion In the Kabbalah, the number of Ratzon is 1/60 of perfection, which is the minimum level of the Divine will. Thomas Aquinas introduced the concept into Christian ethics. He posited that human thought must use a possibility to act, rather than an impossibility. Furthermore, command is a necessary but not sufficient requirement for an act: "An imperfect [that is, ineffective] command occurs when reason is moved by opposing motives ...." In this system of ethics, "velleity is a constant aspect of Thomas' teaching," and God wants to save the reprobate, which is impossible for humans but possible for God. However, as in the case of suicide, or any other sin, "the natural willing is an act of simple willing and that such an act is not the same as intention."

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Velleity

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Velleity claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Velleity before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Velleity ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Velleity

In research: Velleity appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Velleity in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Velleity is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Free will, Linguistics, Motivation, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Velleity outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Velleity in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Velleity means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Velleity out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Velleity in simple terms?

Velleity is the lowest degree of volition, a slight wish or tendency. It is a concept that has been used in philosophy and, to a lesser degree, religion, psychology, and ethics.

Why does Velleity matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Velleity?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Velleity.