(in Polish) Aristotle’s Metaphysical Theory: an Introduction

elective seminars
general courses

As is well known, in Aristotle’s texts we find the first formulation of many fundamental concepts which to this day are used in our thinking about metaphysics and the structure of reality. Substance, form, matter, essence, accident, theory of the categories – all these concepts and theories have their origin in the philosophy of Aristotle.

As is well known, in Aristotle’s texts we find the first formulation of many fundamental concepts which to this day are used in our thinking about metaphysics and the structure of reality. Substance, attribute, form, matter, essence, accident, theory of the categories – all of these concepts and theories have their origin, to a large extent, in the philosophy of Aristotle.

The aim of this seminar is to guide students through an introductory analysis of these concepts in Aristotle’s philosophy. Our main focus will be on the following topics: substance and attribute, the notion of subject, form and matter, the doctrine of the categories. In particular, we will be asking about the nature of Aristotle’s hylomorphism (the connection of form and matter), his idea of the structure of the particular (different conceptions of the subject), and the nature of his system of the categories. We will look at the origin of these concepts in Aristotle’s thought, try to grasp their meaning and ask about their philosophical applicability; we will also look at different possible interpretations of the ideas found in Aristotle.

Our approach in this introductory analysis will be twofold: on the one hand, our focus will be on the interpretation of these concepts in Aristotle’s texts (especially in the Categories, Physics and Metaphysics), on the other, we will be using the perspective of contemporary philosophers to find out whether Aristotle’s ideas may still be useful today and what is their proper understanding from the point of view of current philosophical positions (e.g. different theories of the particular, different theories of properties). With this aim in mind we will be reading excerpts from contemporary metaphysicians (e.g. from M. Loux’s textbook Metaphysics. A Contemporary Introduction or essays by E.J. Lowe); our main guide, however, will be an introduction to Aristotle’s metaphysical thought written by one of the classics of analytic philosophy – Elisabeth Anscombe (“Aristotle: The Search for Substance”).

Additional topics within this seminar will include peculiar and less often recognized elements of Aristotle’s ontology, such as accidental compounds (also called “kooky objects”), states of affairs and tropes.

J. Ackrill, Aristotle’s Categories and De Interpretatione, Oxford 1963.

C.D.C. Reeve, Substantial Knowledge: Aristotle’s Metaphysics, Indianapolis/Cambridge 2000.

M.J. Loux, Metaphysics. A Contemporary Introduction, Routledge, Abingdon 2017 (4th ed.).

M.J. Loux, Primary Ousia: en Essay on Aristotle’s Metaphysics, Ithaca/London 1991.

D. Bostock, Space, Time, Matter and Form: Essays on Aristotle’s Physics, Oxford 2006.

D. Morrison, „The Taxonomical Interpretation of Aristotle’s Categories: a Criticism”, in: J. Preus, J. Anton (eds.) Essays in Ancient Greek Philosophy, New York 1992.

E.J. Lowe, „A Neo-Aristotelian Substance Sntology: Neither Relational Nor Constituent” in: T. Tahko (ed.) Contemporary Aristotelian Metaphysics, Cambridge 2011.

F. Lewis, Substance and Predication in Aristotle, Cambridge 1991.

G. Matthews „Accidental Unities” in: M. Schofield, M. Nussbaum (eds.) Language and Logos, Cambridge 1982.

G.E.M. Anscombe, “Aristotle: The Search for Substance” in: G.E.M. Anscombe, P. Geach, Three Philosophers: Aristotle, Aquinas, Frege, Ithaca/New York 1961.

M. Frede, „Aristotle’s Categories” in: Essays on Ancient Philosophy, Minneapolis 1987.

M. Wedin, Aristotle’s Theory of Substance, Oxford 2000.

R. Dancy, „On Some of Aristotle’s First Thoughts about Substances”, Philosophical Review, 84 (1975), 338-375.

Knowledge:

- the student has basic knowledge about main directions of development and new interpretations in the research on Aristotle’s metaphysical theory

- knows basic research methods typically used in the area of history of philosophy

- knows the principles of working out interpretations of philosophical texts

Skills:

- is able to read, understand and compare different philosophical texts

- is able to listen and understand oral presentations of philosophical ideas and arguments and is able to prepare his/her own presentations

- is able to analyze the logical structure of the argument presented by other participants of the seminar and is able to assess the possible influence of logical mistakes on the validity of the conclusions (2nd degree of studies)

- is able to choose suitable argumentative strategies, present objections and formulate arguments in favour of his/her own position

- is able to conduct research on a basic (1st degree) or advanced (2nd and 3rd degree) level under the guidance of the teacher

Social competence:

- without the help of the teacher sets up and carries out simple research tasks

- is open to discussion and new solutions of the presented problems

- is able to cooperate within a group, assuming different roles within the group

The course requirements are: attendance (possible two absences per semester), reading of obligatory texts, seminar presentation or essay and a short final written test. The final grade will be based on student’s activity, the presentation/essay and the result from the test.