Plato and Aristotle. Two Kinds of Metaphysics. Plato: Theory of Forms, allegory of the cave, Knowledge

Transcription

1 Plato and Aristotle Two Kinds of Metaphysics Plato: Theory of Forms, allegory of the cave, Knowledge Aristotle: Form, Matter, Substance, classification, cosmology

2 Plato Theory of Forms: Eidos emphasizes two worlds World of appearance, world of being Hierarchy of Reality and degrees of Being What is form?: Form as never changing, inalterable, whole, immutable, incorporeal The form of beauty: The most exiting form exemplars

3 allegory of the cave The telling of the story: Youtube video v=69f7ghasodm a picture of human existence under our education system THe nature of truth (aletheia) Connection between appearance and reality

4 What the allegory also shows Liberty and freedom Education: Turning the soul around Methexis: Each particular participates in the universal The hierachy of being and the degrees of being: Mimesis and reproduction DEGREES OF BEING BASED ON IDEA OF ORIGINAL (PAROUSIA) Presence and return sign and example

5 The Meno The nature of dialogue and definition Dia-haresis (Separation of truth and untruth) Knowledge as recollection Innate ideas: numbers and the slave boy Immortality of the soul or reincarnation skepticism, meno s as such Between knowing and ignorance

6 Aristotle Metaphysics: after physics but first philosophy: The science of being rejects Plato s analysis of methexis the world as mere metaphor and empty concept In failing to explain the connection between the particular and the universal Plato diminishes the importance of things.

7 aristotle and reality Our world of experience is real. There is no world behind this one things do change but also stay the same the reality of things is THERE PARTICULARITY Form the form of cup is cupping (activity)

8 aristotle s metaphysics inquiry into the word being we say, something is this sort of thing. What does is mean? Isness: something s substance substance means to stand alone substances have their own nature, independent of concepts a thing s substance is its particularity

9 aristotle s metaphysics The acorn and the oak tree nature involves the relationship between form and matter form: actuality, aim, purpose matter: what things are made of...wood, stone, etc.. Potentiality

10 ARISTOTLE NATURE AS SUBSTANCE UNCHANGING AND UNDERLYING EMPHASIS ON BIOS AS REALITY (BIOLOGY) CLASSIFICATION AS KNOWLEDGE GENUS AND SPECIES REFERENTS (THE REAL THINGS)

11 ARISTOTLE THE CONCEPT OF MATTER: ARISTOTLE S DISCOVERY: IT CANNOT BE KNOWN A BOAT, FOR EXAMPLE WOOD=MATTER; FORM=DESIGN MATTER IS INFORMED CHANGE EXPLAINED AS A NEW COMBINATION OF MATTER AND FORM We cannot know matter ANALOGY WITH CRAFTSMANSHIP

12 Aristotle s cosmology pre-scientific but rather organic concerned with the nature of cause non-mechanistic view stressed teleological cause why : the aim Hence, the universe has purpose or a purpose

13 aristotle and teleology nature does nothing in vain everything has its place The reason the plant turns towards the sunlight: to face the sun cause of object falling it contained in the object, not in the earth

14 aristotle s 4 causes all combined to explain why a thing is what it is material cause: silver formal cause: design efficient cause: what makes something happen, an event teleological cause:goal, purpose

15 aristotle s 5th cause prime cause: first cause or final cause most important explanation of why a thing is as it is overall purpose of nature and universe purpose is whole, a sort of monism

16 aristotle and infinite regress the material generation of any thing cannot go on in an infinite regress causal chains: there must be an end to this chain, a start or first cause principle of sufficient reason the prime mover or unmoved mover thought thinking itself a metaphysical necessity