ATTENTION

(Lat. attentio.) In Metaphysics, a steady exertion or application of the mind to any object of sense or intellect, in order to its being thoroughly understood, and afterwards retained. Attention is regarded by Stewart as a distinct faculty of the mind; and though this arrangement does not coincide with the views of many philosophers, his illustrations of the results or effects of attention are universally considered as a masterpiece of metaphysical disquisition. (Vide Inquiry into the Human Mind, ch. 2.) [s. 117]