Allan Gotthelf
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780199287956
- eISBN:
- 9780191738296
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199287956.001.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Ancient Philosophy, Philosophy of Science
This book — an interconnected set of sixteen chapters, four previously unpublished, addresses in parallel three main topics and Aristotle's three main biological treatises. Starting with a set of six ...
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This book — an interconnected set of sixteen chapters, four previously unpublished, addresses in parallel three main topics and Aristotle's three main biological treatises. Starting with a set of six studies of central aspects of Aristotle's natural teleology, including its basis in what the book calls ‘irreducible potentials for form’, the book proceeds to the axiomatic (and other explanatory) structure of biological explanation to be found in the Parts of Animals, identifying three sorts of first principles involved in that structure. An exploration, in Part III, of the implications of these two treatises for our understanding of Aristotle's metaphysics (including the teleological basis of his theory of substance and essence), is followed in Part IV by a study of the method by which Aristotle, in the History of Animals, organizes the data that makes possible such systematic, explanatory study of animals; this study offers a new view of the place of classification in that enterprise. The concluding part, on ‘Aristotle as Theoretical Biologist’, first explores the basis of Charles Darwin's great 1882 praise of Aristotle, and then, in the first printing of a general lecture long delivered worldwide, provides an overview of Aristotle's practice as a philosophically oriented biologist, and ‘a proper verdict’ on his greatness as a scientist.Less
This book — an interconnected set of sixteen chapters, four previously unpublished, addresses in parallel three main topics and Aristotle's three main biological treatises. Starting with a set of six studies of central aspects of Aristotle's natural teleology, including its basis in what the book calls ‘irreducible potentials for form’, the book proceeds to the axiomatic (and other explanatory) structure of biological explanation to be found in the Parts of Animals, identifying three sorts of first principles involved in that structure. An exploration, in Part III, of the implications of these two treatises for our understanding of Aristotle's metaphysics (including the teleological basis of his theory of substance and essence), is followed in Part IV by a study of the method by which Aristotle, in the History of Animals, organizes the data that makes possible such systematic, explanatory study of animals; this study offers a new view of the place of classification in that enterprise. The concluding part, on ‘Aristotle as Theoretical Biologist’, first explores the basis of Charles Darwin's great 1882 praise of Aristotle, and then, in the first printing of a general lecture long delivered worldwide, provides an overview of Aristotle's practice as a philosophically oriented biologist, and ‘a proper verdict’ on his greatness as a scientist.
Allan Gotthelf
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780199287956
- eISBN:
- 9780191738296
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199287956.003.0010
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Ancient Philosophy, Philosophy of Science
This chapter takes a close look at nine passages in PA (and IA) where Aristotle speaks of a part as present, or as having the character it does, in an organism because it is part of or required by ...
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This chapter takes a close look at nine passages in PA (and IA) where Aristotle speaks of a part as present, or as having the character it does, in an organism because it is part of or required by the substance, or definition of the substance, or essence or definition of the organism. It then catalogues (i) these various ‘definitional’ relations, (ii) the objects of these definitions, and (iii) the contents of those definitions. One surprise is that there turns up among the contents of definitions, not only soul‐functions but certain parts (both uniform and non‐uniform) and certain ‘dimensional features’.Less
This chapter takes a close look at nine passages in PA (and IA) where Aristotle speaks of a part as present, or as having the character it does, in an organism because it is part of or required by the substance, or definition of the substance, or essence or definition of the organism. It then catalogues (i) these various ‘definitional’ relations, (ii) the objects of these definitions, and (iii) the contents of those definitions. One surprise is that there turns up among the contents of definitions, not only soul‐functions but certain parts (both uniform and non‐uniform) and certain ‘dimensional features’.
Allan Gotthelf
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780199287956
- eISBN:
- 9780191738296
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199287956.003.0011
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Ancient Philosophy, Philosophy of Science
Montgomery Furth's 1988 book was the fruit of some twenty years’ work on the relationship between Aristotle's biology and his metaphysics. This chapter, after placing Furth's work in relation to that ...
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Montgomery Furth's 1988 book was the fruit of some twenty years’ work on the relationship between Aristotle's biology and his metaphysics. This chapter, after placing Furth's work in relation to that of others working across the second half of the twentieth century on the philosophical interest of Aristotle's biological treatises, goes on to examine Furth's claim that the metaphysics (and the Metaphysics) has a biological provenance. The chapter distinguishes a stronger thesis — that the metaphysics arose from reflection on the biology — from a weaker thesis — that a close study of the paradigmatically substantial biological entities illuminates the metaphysics, and endorses only the weaker thesis. The chapter concludes by outlining a teleological account of the unity of an Aristotelian substance, which goes beyond Furth's own (non‐teleological) account of that unity.Less
Montgomery Furth's 1988 book was the fruit of some twenty years’ work on the relationship between Aristotle's biology and his metaphysics. This chapter, after placing Furth's work in relation to that of others working across the second half of the twentieth century on the philosophical interest of Aristotle's biological treatises, goes on to examine Furth's claim that the metaphysics (and the Metaphysics) has a biological provenance. The chapter distinguishes a stronger thesis — that the metaphysics arose from reflection on the biology — from a weaker thesis — that a close study of the paradigmatically substantial biological entities illuminates the metaphysics, and endorses only the weaker thesis. The chapter concludes by outlining a teleological account of the unity of an Aristotelian substance, which goes beyond Furth's own (non‐teleological) account of that unity.
Allan Gotthelf
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780199287956
- eISBN:
- 9780191738296
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199287956.003.0012
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Ancient Philosophy, Philosophy of Science
This extended chapter introduces readers to the systematic study of Aristotle's History of Animals. A brief history of 2,000 years of scholarship on HA culminates with the revolutionary work of D. M. ...
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This extended chapter introduces readers to the systematic study of Aristotle's History of Animals. A brief history of 2,000 years of scholarship on HA culminates with the revolutionary work of D. M. Balme, who held that HA's aim is not to classify animals systematically but to collect and group their differentiae in preparation for a discovery of their causes. A. Gotthelf and J. G. Lennox developed this position more systematically. D. Charles, building on APo. II.1‐2, argued that HA has a second important aim: establishing that animals divide into certain major kinds and subkinds. Lennox largely disagreed with Charles. The chapter reviews the evidence on both sides and then sketches (but only sketches) a distinct view of the Aristotelian progression from the first grasp of kinds in childhood through stages to a scientific grasp of kinds, identifying HA's (very limited) role in that progression.Less
This extended chapter introduces readers to the systematic study of Aristotle's History of Animals. A brief history of 2,000 years of scholarship on HA culminates with the revolutionary work of D. M. Balme, who held that HA's aim is not to classify animals systematically but to collect and group their differentiae in preparation for a discovery of their causes. A. Gotthelf and J. G. Lennox developed this position more systematically. D. Charles, building on APo. II.1‐2, argued that HA has a second important aim: establishing that animals divide into certain major kinds and subkinds. Lennox largely disagreed with Charles. The chapter reviews the evidence on both sides and then sketches (but only sketches) a distinct view of the Aristotelian progression from the first grasp of kinds in childhood through stages to a scientific grasp of kinds, identifying HA's (very limited) role in that progression.
Allan Gotthelf
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780199287956
- eISBN:
- 9780191738296
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199287956.003.0013
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Ancient Philosophy, Philosophy of Science
This chapter offers a close reading of what is perhaps the most difficult passage in all of HA. The passage introduces seven megista genê (‘very large kinds’) of animals that Aristotle apparently ...
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This chapter offers a close reading of what is perhaps the most difficult passage in all of HA. The passage introduces seven megista genê (‘very large kinds’) of animals that Aristotle apparently considers to have been correctly marked off for scientific study, then considers whether there are any other such groups yet to be identified, and how they should be studied. On the reading offered here, Aristotle rejects as a candidate for a ‘very large kind’, ‘wingless four‐footed animals’, but accepts two large kinds not previously recognized as unitary kinds at all: the four‐footed egg‐bearing animals and the four‐footed live‐bearing animals. This enterprise of identifying very large kinds seems not to be part of a taxonomic enterprise; its role is rather to facilitate the establishing of the correlations of animal differences that will facilitate the discovery of the causes of those differences.Less
This chapter offers a close reading of what is perhaps the most difficult passage in all of HA. The passage introduces seven megista genê (‘very large kinds’) of animals that Aristotle apparently considers to have been correctly marked off for scientific study, then considers whether there are any other such groups yet to be identified, and how they should be studied. On the reading offered here, Aristotle rejects as a candidate for a ‘very large kind’, ‘wingless four‐footed animals’, but accepts two large kinds not previously recognized as unitary kinds at all: the four‐footed egg‐bearing animals and the four‐footed live‐bearing animals. This enterprise of identifying very large kinds seems not to be part of a taxonomic enterprise; its role is rather to facilitate the establishing of the correlations of animal differences that will facilitate the discovery of the causes of those differences.
Allan Gotthelf
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780199287956
- eISBN:
- 9780191738296
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199287956.003.0014
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Ancient Philosophy, Philosophy of Science
Evident parallels between the aims, structure, and progression of Aristotle's History of Animals Book I and Theophrastus's History of Plants Book I invite a closer study of each, both separately and ...
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Evident parallels between the aims, structure, and progression of Aristotle's History of Animals Book I and Theophrastus's History of Plants Book I invite a closer study of each, both separately and comparatively, to illuminate both. It is asked whether the ultimate aim of each is taxonomy (or classification in some more limited sense), or the discovery of causes, or the reaching of scientific definitions or the achievement of epistēmē, or some combination thereof. Attention is given to the evolution of D. M. Balme's views over the years and how studies by A. Gotthelf and J. G. Lennox have advanced his work, but it is recognized that the central question of this chapter has not fully been answered yet.Less
Evident parallels between the aims, structure, and progression of Aristotle's History of Animals Book I and Theophrastus's History of Plants Book I invite a closer study of each, both separately and comparatively, to illuminate both. It is asked whether the ultimate aim of each is taxonomy (or classification in some more limited sense), or the discovery of causes, or the reaching of scientific definitions or the achievement of epistēmē, or some combination thereof. Attention is given to the evolution of D. M. Balme's views over the years and how studies by A. Gotthelf and J. G. Lennox have advanced his work, but it is recognized that the central question of this chapter has not fully been answered yet.
Allan Gotthelf
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780199287956
- eISBN:
- 9780191738296
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199287956.003.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Ancient Philosophy, Philosophy of Science
Starting from the premise that Aristotelian explanation proceeds via the concepts of natures and potentials (and not, say, laws), this chapter argues that for Aristotle the generation of a living ...
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Starting from the premise that Aristotelian explanation proceeds via the concepts of natures and potentials (and not, say, laws), this chapter argues that for Aristotle the generation of a living organism is not the actualization of the natures and potentials of the materials from which organisms develop, but rather the actualization of a primitive, irreducible potential to produce out of the appropriate materials an organism of a certain form. Each of the major texts in which Aristotle defends his natural teleology is shown to argue for or presuppose that material causes are insufficient to produce such an end. Aristotle's teleology is thus is an empirical thesis and not an a priori one brought to nature. A Postscript articulates various aspects of this view more precisely, showing that a part is for the sake of something only if it has come to be for the sake of something.Less
Starting from the premise that Aristotelian explanation proceeds via the concepts of natures and potentials (and not, say, laws), this chapter argues that for Aristotle the generation of a living organism is not the actualization of the natures and potentials of the materials from which organisms develop, but rather the actualization of a primitive, irreducible potential to produce out of the appropriate materials an organism of a certain form. Each of the major texts in which Aristotle defends his natural teleology is shown to argue for or presuppose that material causes are insufficient to produce such an end. Aristotle's teleology is thus is an empirical thesis and not an a priori one brought to nature. A Postscript articulates various aspects of this view more precisely, showing that a part is for the sake of something only if it has come to be for the sake of something.
Allan Gotthelf
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780199287956
- eISBN:
- 9780191738296
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199287956.003.0002
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Ancient Philosophy, Philosophy of Science
The analysis of Aristotle's natural teleology elsewhere in this book makes no defining reference to the good. While natural ends are inevitably good, they need not and should not, as many ...
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The analysis of Aristotle's natural teleology elsewhere in this book makes no defining reference to the good. While natural ends are inevitably good, they need not and should not, as many interpreters think, be defined in terms of the good. NE I appears to define good in terms of end. And a consideration of Aristotle's use of normative or value‐oriented categories of language for ‘that for the sake of which’ — the good, the better, the well, and the divine — shows that they are all to be understood ‘naturalistically’, in terms of the actualization of an ‘irreducible potential for form’, which need not be defined normatively.Less
The analysis of Aristotle's natural teleology elsewhere in this book makes no defining reference to the good. While natural ends are inevitably good, they need not and should not, as many interpreters think, be defined in terms of the good. NE I appears to define good in terms of end. And a consideration of Aristotle's use of normative or value‐oriented categories of language for ‘that for the sake of which’ — the good, the better, the well, and the divine — shows that they are all to be understood ‘naturalistically’, in terms of the actualization of an ‘irreducible potential for form’, which need not be defined normatively.
Allan Gotthelf
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780199287956
- eISBN:
- 9780191738296
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199287956.003.0004
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Ancient Philosophy, Philosophy of Science
This chapter takes a close look at the account across Generation of Animals I–II of the efficient cause of animal generation. The aim is to understand better the relationship of material‐efficient ...
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This chapter takes a close look at the account across Generation of Animals I–II of the efficient cause of animal generation. The aim is to understand better the relationship of material‐efficient causation to the teleological causation Aristotle insists is central to the coming to be of animals. Special attention is given to Aristotle's actual account of embryogenesis — the sequential development of the parts of the embryo — in GA II.6. This examination shows that there is no evidence that Aristotle thought material necessity by itself was causally sufficient for embryogenesis; rather material‐efficient causation does the bulk of its work as a ‘tool’ that the budding organism's formal nature — its ‘irreducible potential for form’ — makes use of in achieving its inherent ends. In the process the chapter provides significant insight into the essential flow of argument across GA I–II, for those unfamiliar with the treatise.Less
This chapter takes a close look at the account across Generation of Animals I–II of the efficient cause of animal generation. The aim is to understand better the relationship of material‐efficient causation to the teleological causation Aristotle insists is central to the coming to be of animals. Special attention is given to Aristotle's actual account of embryogenesis — the sequential development of the parts of the embryo — in GA II.6. This examination shows that there is no evidence that Aristotle thought material necessity by itself was causally sufficient for embryogenesis; rather material‐efficient causation does the bulk of its work as a ‘tool’ that the budding organism's formal nature — its ‘irreducible potential for form’ — makes use of in achieving its inherent ends. In the process the chapter provides significant insight into the essential flow of argument across GA I–II, for those unfamiliar with the treatise.
Allan Gotthelf and Mariska Leunissen
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780199287956
- eISBN:
- 9780191738296
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199287956.003.0005
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Ancient Philosophy, Philosophy of Science
Despite the renewed interest in Aristotle's Generation of Animals in recent years, the subject matter of GA V, its preferred mode(s) of explanation, and its place in the treatise as a whole remain ...
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Despite the renewed interest in Aristotle's Generation of Animals in recent years, the subject matter of GA V, its preferred mode(s) of explanation, and its place in the treatise as a whole remain misunderstood. Scholars focus on GA I–IV, which explain animal generation in terms of efficient‐final causation, but dismiss GA V as a mere appendix, thinking it to concern (i) individual, accidental differences among animals, which are (ii) purely materially necessitated, and (iii) are only tangentially related to the topics discussed in the earlier books. This chapter defends an alternative and more integrated account of GA V by closely examining Aristotle's methodological introduction in GA V.1 778a16–b19 and his teleological explanation of the differences of teeth in GA V.8. It argues for the unity of both GA V and of GA as a whole and present a more nuanced theory of teleological explanation in Aristotle's biologyLess
Despite the renewed interest in Aristotle's Generation of Animals in recent years, the subject matter of GA V, its preferred mode(s) of explanation, and its place in the treatise as a whole remain misunderstood. Scholars focus on GA I–IV, which explain animal generation in terms of efficient‐final causation, but dismiss GA V as a mere appendix, thinking it to concern (i) individual, accidental differences among animals, which are (ii) purely materially necessitated, and (iii) are only tangentially related to the topics discussed in the earlier books. This chapter defends an alternative and more integrated account of GA V by closely examining Aristotle's methodological introduction in GA V.1 778a16–b19 and his teleological explanation of the differences of teeth in GA V.8. It argues for the unity of both GA V and of GA as a whole and present a more nuanced theory of teleological explanation in Aristotle's biology
Allan Gotthelf
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780199287956
- eISBN:
- 9780191738296
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199287956.003.0006
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Ancient Philosophy, Philosophy of Science
This chapter offers a close reading and translation of the relevant passages on spontaneous generation in Generation of Animals III.11, showing that the ‘vital heat’ picked up from the water or ...
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This chapter offers a close reading and translation of the relevant passages on spontaneous generation in Generation of Animals III.11, showing that the ‘vital heat’ picked up from the water or moisture in which most spontaneously generated organisms are formed is not species‐specific, but carries an undifferentiated (irreducible) potential for life; the specific type of organism produced is a function of the particular material on which the vital heat acts. There is thus no directiveness upon the form of the kind of organism produced, and so no teleology. It is shown that, contrary to the view of some scholars, Aristotle's actual account of spontaneous generation sheds no light itself on the basic character of his teleological theory, and that there is no evidence that Aristotle reflected on the broader metaphysical implications of the new theory of spontaneous generation he presents in GA III.11.Less
This chapter offers a close reading and translation of the relevant passages on spontaneous generation in Generation of Animals III.11, showing that the ‘vital heat’ picked up from the water or moisture in which most spontaneously generated organisms are formed is not species‐specific, but carries an undifferentiated (irreducible) potential for life; the specific type of organism produced is a function of the particular material on which the vital heat acts. There is thus no directiveness upon the form of the kind of organism produced, and so no teleology. It is shown that, contrary to the view of some scholars, Aristotle's actual account of spontaneous generation sheds no light itself on the basic character of his teleological theory, and that there is no evidence that Aristotle reflected on the broader metaphysical implications of the new theory of spontaneous generation he presents in GA III.11.
Allan Gotthelf
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780199287956
- eISBN:
- 9780191738296
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199287956.003.0007
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Ancient Philosophy, Philosophy of Science
Contrary to the views prevalent prior to this chapter's original publication, it is argued here that the explanatory practice in Parts of Animals (PA)is in fundamental harmony with the theory of the ...
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Contrary to the views prevalent prior to this chapter's original publication, it is argued here that the explanatory practice in Parts of Animals (PA)is in fundamental harmony with the theory of the structure of a science presented in Posterior Analytics (APo.) I (and II). A close examination of the organization of and progressive explanatory structure across PA II–IV shows the theory presented in these books to have an implicit axiomatic structure. Three sorts of first principles are identified — (i) principles drawn from the natures of the constituent materials of animal parts, (ii) principles asserting the existence, as ends, of the kinds of animals there are, and (iii) (partial) definitions of these animal kinds. The chapter closes with a suggestion that the theory in APo. calls not for science to put in explicit axiomatic form but for it to be puttable in that form, which PA II–IV to a large extent is.Less
Contrary to the views prevalent prior to this chapter's original publication, it is argued here that the explanatory practice in Parts of Animals (PA)is in fundamental harmony with the theory of the structure of a science presented in Posterior Analytics (APo.) I (and II). A close examination of the organization of and progressive explanatory structure across PA II–IV shows the theory presented in these books to have an implicit axiomatic structure. Three sorts of first principles are identified — (i) principles drawn from the natures of the constituent materials of animal parts, (ii) principles asserting the existence, as ends, of the kinds of animals there are, and (iii) (partial) definitions of these animal kinds. The chapter closes with a suggestion that the theory in APo. calls not for science to put in explicit axiomatic form but for it to be puttable in that form, which PA II–IV to a large extent is.
Allan Gotthelf
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780199287956
- eISBN:
- 9780191738296
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199287956.003.0008
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Ancient Philosophy, Philosophy of Science
This chapter explores the complexity of the axiomatic structure of Aristotelian biological explanation, building on the work of the previous chapter. Using Aristotle's explanatory account of the ...
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This chapter explores the complexity of the axiomatic structure of Aristotelian biological explanation, building on the work of the previous chapter. Using Aristotle's explanatory account of the distinctive features of the elephant's trunk in Parts of Animals II.16, it is shown that these distinctive features are explained not from a single essential feature of the elephant, but from some seven basic features (which together perhaps constitute the essence of an elephant), when these features are taken along both with teleological principles and with principles pertaining to the material available to make the trunk. It is observed further that as one builds a sub‐science of elephants, in which all the common features of elephants are to be explained, the structure is immensely complicated; any diagram of that structure would need (at least) a third dimension, to capture the fact that explanation takes place at various levels of generality.Less
This chapter explores the complexity of the axiomatic structure of Aristotelian biological explanation, building on the work of the previous chapter. Using Aristotle's explanatory account of the distinctive features of the elephant's trunk in Parts of Animals II.16, it is shown that these distinctive features are explained not from a single essential feature of the elephant, but from some seven basic features (which together perhaps constitute the essence of an elephant), when these features are taken along both with teleological principles and with principles pertaining to the material available to make the trunk. It is observed further that as one builds a sub‐science of elephants, in which all the common features of elephants are to be explained, the structure is immensely complicated; any diagram of that structure would need (at least) a third dimension, to capture the fact that explanation takes place at various levels of generality.
Allan Gotthelf
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780199287956
- eISBN:
- 9780191738296
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199287956.003.0009
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Ancient Philosophy, Philosophy of Science
This chapter shows how Aristotelian division facilitates work at the explanatory stage of Aristotelian science. The key is PA I.5 645a36‐b3, which states in short: ‘First divide the attributes, then ...
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This chapter shows how Aristotelian division facilitates work at the explanatory stage of Aristotelian science. The key is PA I.5 645a36‐b3, which states in short: ‘First divide the attributes, then try to divide the causes.’ This precept, in the case (e.g.) of eye‐protection discussed in PA II.14, calls for the identification first of the widest class of animals that have eye‐protection, then the identification of the different types of eye‐protection, identifying for each type the animals that have that type. (‘First divide the attribute’.) Then, the general cause of eye‐protection is to be identified, after which an attempt is made to explain each of the types of eye‐protection in terms of the variation in that general cause that is found in the animals that possess that type of eye‐protection. (‘Then try to divide the cause’.) This practice is shown to be surprisingly pervasive in PA II–IV.Less
This chapter shows how Aristotelian division facilitates work at the explanatory stage of Aristotelian science. The key is PA I.5 645a36‐b3, which states in short: ‘First divide the attributes, then try to divide the causes.’ This precept, in the case (e.g.) of eye‐protection discussed in PA II.14, calls for the identification first of the widest class of animals that have eye‐protection, then the identification of the different types of eye‐protection, identifying for each type the animals that have that type. (‘First divide the attribute’.) Then, the general cause of eye‐protection is to be identified, after which an attempt is made to explain each of the types of eye‐protection in terms of the variation in that general cause that is found in the animals that possess that type of eye‐protection. (‘Then try to divide the cause’.) This practice is shown to be surprisingly pervasive in PA II–IV.
Jan N. Bremmer and Andrew Erskine
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780748637980
- eISBN:
- 9780748670758
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Edinburgh University Press
- DOI:
- 10.3366/edinburgh/9780748637980.003.0011
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, Ancient Religions
In the Greek pantheon there was a clear hierarchy. The most important gods were Zeus, Athena and Apollo, whereas other divinities, such as Poseidon, Artemis and Aphrodite, were clearly somewhat less ...
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In the Greek pantheon there was a clear hierarchy. The most important gods were Zeus, Athena and Apollo, whereas other divinities, such as Poseidon, Artemis and Aphrodite, were clearly somewhat less important. This chapter asks how the Greeks actually constructed one of the less important gods, Hephaistos, by looking at such as aspects as his wife, the animal he is associated with, his lameness and his most important place of worship, Lemnos.Less
In the Greek pantheon there was a clear hierarchy. The most important gods were Zeus, Athena and Apollo, whereas other divinities, such as Poseidon, Artemis and Aphrodite, were clearly somewhat less important. This chapter asks how the Greeks actually constructed one of the less important gods, Hephaistos, by looking at such as aspects as his wife, the animal he is associated with, his lameness and his most important place of worship, Lemnos.
Jan N. Bremmer and Andrew Erskine
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780748637980
- eISBN:
- 9780748670758
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Edinburgh University Press
- DOI:
- 10.3366/edinburgh/9780748637980.003.0005
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, Ancient Religions
Richard Buxton discuss five examples of narratives which relate in some way to divine metamorphosis, whether as animals or humans, for the purpose of presenting themselves to mortals. The narratives ...
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Richard Buxton discuss five examples of narratives which relate in some way to divine metamorphosis, whether as animals or humans, for the purpose of presenting themselves to mortals. The narratives studied are the following: Athena’s encounter with Telemachos in the Odyssey, Apollo in the Hymn to Apollo, Thetis’ relationship with Achilles, Dionysos in the Bacchae and Zeus’ serial metamorphoses in pursuit of his erotic ambitions. After drawing conclusions about each of these metamorphoses and epiphanies, Buxton concludes by considering what light this material might shed on the old problem of how far Greek religion was essentially anthropomorphic.Less
Richard Buxton discuss five examples of narratives which relate in some way to divine metamorphosis, whether as animals or humans, for the purpose of presenting themselves to mortals. The narratives studied are the following: Athena’s encounter with Telemachos in the Odyssey, Apollo in the Hymn to Apollo, Thetis’ relationship with Achilles, Dionysos in the Bacchae and Zeus’ serial metamorphoses in pursuit of his erotic ambitions. After drawing conclusions about each of these metamorphoses and epiphanies, Buxton concludes by considering what light this material might shed on the old problem of how far Greek religion was essentially anthropomorphic.
Robert Garner
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- September 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780199936311
- eISBN:
- 9780199345816
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199936311.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory
This book argues that animals are worthy recipients of justice, and that, in practice, excluding animals from a theory of justice amounts, at best, to the claim that we have very limited direct ...
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This book argues that animals are worthy recipients of justice, and that, in practice, excluding animals from a theory of justice amounts, at best, to the claim that we have very limited direct duties to some animals, and, at worst, that we only have indirect duties to them. At the level of ideal theory, or the goal to which we ought to be aiming, it is argued that a valid theory of justice for animals should be rights-based, and alternative approaches based on contractarianism, animal welfare, utilitarian or capabilities ought to be rejected. Further, an abolitionist (or species-egalitarian) theory of animal rights is rejected in favour of an interest-based theory of animal rights - described as the enhanced sentience position - which recognises that animals have a right not to suffer but suggests that humans have a greater interest in life and liberty than most species of nonhuman animals. Despite not necessarily ruling out the use of animals, it is argued that the enhanced sentience position is still very demanding on us, and is far removed from current practices. At the nonideal level, the book recommends a version of animal rights – described as the sentience position - as the most appropriate nonideal theory of justice for animals. Whilst only requiring that we show that animals have a right not to suffer at the hands of humans, it is sufficiently aspirational, whilst at the same time remaining morally permissible and politically possible.Less
This book argues that animals are worthy recipients of justice, and that, in practice, excluding animals from a theory of justice amounts, at best, to the claim that we have very limited direct duties to some animals, and, at worst, that we only have indirect duties to them. At the level of ideal theory, or the goal to which we ought to be aiming, it is argued that a valid theory of justice for animals should be rights-based, and alternative approaches based on contractarianism, animal welfare, utilitarian or capabilities ought to be rejected. Further, an abolitionist (or species-egalitarian) theory of animal rights is rejected in favour of an interest-based theory of animal rights - described as the enhanced sentience position - which recognises that animals have a right not to suffer but suggests that humans have a greater interest in life and liberty than most species of nonhuman animals. Despite not necessarily ruling out the use of animals, it is argued that the enhanced sentience position is still very demanding on us, and is far removed from current practices. At the nonideal level, the book recommends a version of animal rights – described as the sentience position - as the most appropriate nonideal theory of justice for animals. Whilst only requiring that we show that animals have a right not to suffer at the hands of humans, it is sufficiently aspirational, whilst at the same time remaining morally permissible and politically possible.
Erica Fudge
- Published in print:
- 2018
- Published Online:
- May 2019
- ISBN:
- 9781501715075
- eISBN:
- 9781501715105
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Cornell University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7591/cornell/9781501715075.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Early Modern History
What were people's feelings about and towards the animals who worked with them in early modern England? What meaning did those animals have? These questions are the starting point for this book. ...
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What were people's feelings about and towards the animals who worked with them in early modern England? What meaning did those animals have? These questions are the starting point for this book. Current historical analyses tell us how important animals were to the development of the economy and to the process of industrialization, but thus far little has been written recognizing the crucial fact that animals are, and always have been, more than simply stock: they are living, sentient beings with whom negotiated interaction is required. This book will take such interactions as its focus and will return animals to the central place they had in the domestic environments of so many in the early seventeenth century, thus tracking a lost aspect of early modern life: the importance of the day-to-day relationships between humans and the animals they worked with.Less
What were people's feelings about and towards the animals who worked with them in early modern England? What meaning did those animals have? These questions are the starting point for this book. Current historical analyses tell us how important animals were to the development of the economy and to the process of industrialization, but thus far little has been written recognizing the crucial fact that animals are, and always have been, more than simply stock: they are living, sentient beings with whom negotiated interaction is required. This book will take such interactions as its focus and will return animals to the central place they had in the domestic environments of so many in the early seventeenth century, thus tracking a lost aspect of early modern life: the importance of the day-to-day relationships between humans and the animals they worked with.
Poul Holm, Tim D. Smith, and David J. Starkey (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- January 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780973007312
- eISBN:
- 9781786944733
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Liverpool University Press
- DOI:
- 10.5949/liverpool/9780973007312.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, Maritime History
The book combines the approaches of maritime history and ecological science to explore the evolution of life-forms and eco-systems in the ocean from a historical perspective, in order to establish ...
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The book combines the approaches of maritime history and ecological science to explore the evolution of life-forms and eco-systems in the ocean from a historical perspective, in order to establish and develop the sub-discipline of marine environmental history. Documentary records relating to the human activity, such as fishing, plus naturally occurring paleo-ecological data are analysed in order to determine the structure and function of exploited ecosystems. The book is divided into four chapter groups, the first concerned with Newfoundland and Grand Banks’ fisheries, the second with the potential of historical sources to provide a history of marine animal populations, the third explores the development of fisheries in the southern hemisphere during the twentieth century, and the final section explores the limitations of data and existing analysis of whale populations. The epilogue reiterates the suggestion that collaboration between historians and biologists is the key to furthering the sub-discipline.Less
The book combines the approaches of maritime history and ecological science to explore the evolution of life-forms and eco-systems in the ocean from a historical perspective, in order to establish and develop the sub-discipline of marine environmental history. Documentary records relating to the human activity, such as fishing, plus naturally occurring paleo-ecological data are analysed in order to determine the structure and function of exploited ecosystems. The book is divided into four chapter groups, the first concerned with Newfoundland and Grand Banks’ fisheries, the second with the potential of historical sources to provide a history of marine animal populations, the third explores the development of fisheries in the southern hemisphere during the twentieth century, and the final section explores the limitations of data and existing analysis of whale populations. The epilogue reiterates the suggestion that collaboration between historians and biologists is the key to furthering the sub-discipline.
Michael Bell
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- January 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199208098
- eISBN:
- 9780191709227
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199208098.003.0009
- Subject:
- Literature, World Literature, European Literature
J. M. Coetzee is perhaps the author who most exemplifies at the turn of the century the nature of literary authority; a power and a predicament he has repeatedly thematised while refusing to ...
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J. M. Coetzee is perhaps the author who most exemplifies at the turn of the century the nature of literary authority; a power and a predicament he has repeatedly thematised while refusing to translate the authority of his writing into its supposed political or ideological equivalents. This chapter is devoted mainly to a close reading of The Lives of Animals in its original form and context as one of the 1998 Tanner lectures at Princeton. Costello herself is far from being a simple mouthpiece for the author and her account of the novelist's sympathy is vulnerable as well as eloquent. Although it is often discussed, and not inappropriately, for its thematic contribution to public debate on the human relation to animals, the mutual embedding of formal lecture and fictional narrative gives the work a philosophical focus on the incommunicability of all radical conviction that falls outside conventional norms.Less
J. M. Coetzee is perhaps the author who most exemplifies at the turn of the century the nature of literary authority; a power and a predicament he has repeatedly thematised while refusing to translate the authority of his writing into its supposed political or ideological equivalents. This chapter is devoted mainly to a close reading of The Lives of Animals in its original form and context as one of the 1998 Tanner lectures at Princeton. Costello herself is far from being a simple mouthpiece for the author and her account of the novelist's sympathy is vulnerable as well as eloquent. Although it is often discussed, and not inappropriately, for its thematic contribution to public debate on the human relation to animals, the mutual embedding of formal lecture and fictional narrative gives the work a philosophical focus on the incommunicability of all radical conviction that falls outside conventional norms.
