Aristotle
- Created by: malfoymanor
- Created on: 15-01-19 19:55
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- Aristotle
- Background
- c. 366 BC - studied at P's academy for 20 years
- An empiricist
- developed rhetoric
- A way of persuading people to change their point of view
- The four causes
- "We do not have knowledge of a thing until we have grasped its why, that is to say, its cause"
- Material cause
- The components of an object
- Formal cause
- The shape of an object
- Efficient cause
- The thing that brings about actuality
- actuality
- a state of being, the reality in that moment of time
- potentiality
- the inherent, undeveloped capabilities of something
- actuality
- The thing that brings about actuality
- Final cause
- The telos of a thing
- telos
- ultimate purpose
- telos
- The telos of a thing
- The Prime mover
- What s the prime mover?
- ultimate final cause
- actualises potential in everything else
- causes without being affected
- otherwise it would be another link in the chain
- a thing with no potential
- How does the prime mover work?
- causes change in all things - not in a physical way
- otherwise the act would affect the prime mover
- causes change by attracting other things towards itself
- everything is drawn towards it and wants to imitate it
- causes change in all things - not in a physical way
- Aristotle's conclusions on the nature of God / PM
- doesn't depend on anything else for existence
- otherwise it would have to be capable of change
- eternal due to lack of potential
- perfectly good
- badness means lacking something - PM has everything it ought
- immateral and beyond time and space
- not made of matter therefore cannot do anything
- the telos of the universe
- doesn't depend on anything else for existence
- 'What is the telos of the universe?'
- 'if everything is caused then how did it all start?
- Ari. concluded that there must be a fully actualised thing that caused the universe
- 'if everything is caused then how did it all start?
- What s the prime mover?
- Evaluation
- strengths
- can see cause and effect n universe
- relies on study of natural world which we can experience
- strong compared to Plato
- four causes can be applied to things in the universe
- PM influenced early ideas of God
- weaknesses
- Ari. assumes there's only one explanation for movement and change
- what about things that appear to have a negative telos?
- cancer??
- Russell
- Why can't the universe jut exist? does it need a purpose?
- idea of purpose doesn't work with inanimate objects
- purpose is to do with mental intentions
- flour only has purpose until humans want it to be part of a cake
- purpose is to do with mental intentions
- Hawking & scietists
- The Big Bang goes against attraction to a God
- where did the matter come from if not created by prime mover?
- conflicts with religious ideas of God
- PM is disinterested and transcendent
- what moved prime mover?
- strengths
- Organon
- students edited his lecture notes
- Background
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