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Thus, as we maintain, to know a thing’s nature is to know the reason why it
is; and this is equally true of things in so far as they are said without
qualification to he as opposed to being possessed of some attribute, and in so
far as they are said to be possessed of some attribute such as equal to right
angles, or greater or less.
3
It is clear, then, that all questions are a search for a ‘middle’. Let us now
state how essential nature is revealed and in what way it can be reduced to
demonstration; what definition is, and what things are definable. And let us
first discuss certain difficulties which these questions raise, beginning what
we have to say with a point most intimately connected with our immediately
preceding remarks, namely the doubt that might be felt as to whether or not it
is possible to know the same thing in the same relation, both by definition and
by demonstration. It might, I mean, be urged that definition is held to concern
essential nature and is in every case universal and affirmative; whereas, on the
other hand, some conclusions are negative and some are not universal; e.g. all
in the second figure are negative, none in the third are universal. And again,
not even all affirmative conclusions in the first figure are definable, e.g.
‘every triangle has its angles equal to two right angles’. An argument proving
this difference between demonstration and definition is that to have scientific
knowledge of the demonstrable is identical with possessing a demonstration
of it: hence if demonstration of such conclusions as these is possible, there
clearly cannot also be definition of them. If there could, one might know such
a conclusion also in virtue of its definition without possessing the
demonstration of it; for there is nothing to stop our having the one without the
other.
Induction too will sufficiently convince us of this difference; for never yet
by defining anything-essential attribute or accident-did we get knowledge of
it. Again, if to define is to acquire knowledge of a substance, at any rate such
attributes are not substances.
It is evident, then, that not everything demonstrable can be defined. What
then? Can everything definable be demonstrated, or not? There is one of our
previous arguments which covers this too. Of a single thing qua single there is
a single scientific knowledge. Hence, since to know the demonstrable
scientifically is to possess the demonstration of it, an impossible consequence
will follow:-possession of its definition without its demonstration will give
knowledge of the demonstrable.
Moreover, the basic premisses of demonstrations are definitions, and it has
195
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book The Complete Aristotle"
The Complete Aristotle
- Title
- The Complete Aristotle
- Author
- Aristotle
- Date
- ~322 B.C.
- Language
- English
- License
- PD
- Size
- 21.0 x 29.7 cm
- Pages
- 2328
- Keywords
- Philosophy, Antique, Philosophie, Antike, Dialogues, Metaphysik, Metaphysics, Ideologie, Ideology, Englisch
- Categories
- Geisteswissenschaften
- International
Table of contents
- Part 1; Logic (Organon) 3
- Categories 4
- On Interpretation 34
- Prior Analytics, Book I 56
- Prior Analytics, Book II 113
- Posterior Analytics, Book I 149
- Posterior Analytics, Book II 193
- Topics, Book I 218
- Topics, Book II 221
- Topics, Book III 237
- Topics, Book IV 248
- Topics, Book V 266
- Topics, Book VI 291
- Topics, Book VII 317
- Topics, Book VIII 326
- On Sophistical Refutations 348
- Part 2; Universal Physics 396
- Physics, Book I 397
- Physics, Book II 415
- Physics, Book III 432
- Physics, Book IV 449
- Physics, Book V 481
- Physics, Book VI 496
- Physics, Book VII 519
- Physics, Book VIII 533
- On the Heavens, Book I 570
- On the Heavens, Book II 599
- On the Heavens, Book III 624
- On the Heavens, Book IV 640
- On Generation and Corruption, Book I 651
- On Generation and Corruption, Book II 685
- Meteorology, Book I 707
- Meteorology, Book II 733
- Meteorology, Book III 760
- Meteorology, Book IV 773
- Part 3; Human Physics 795
- On the Soul, Book I 796
- On the Soul, Book II 815
- On the Soul, Book III 840
- On Sense and the Sensible 861
- On Memory and Reminiscence 889
- On Sleep and Sleeplessness 899
- On Dreams 909
- On Prophesying by Dreams 918
- On Longevity and the Shortness of Life 923
- On Youth, Old Age, Life and Death, and Respiration 929
- Part 4; Animal Physics 952
- The History of Animals, Book I 953
- The History of Animals, Book II translated 977
- The History of Animals, Book III 1000
- The History of Animals, Book IV 1029
- The History of Animals, Book V 1056
- The History of Animals, Book VI 1094
- The History of Animals, Book VII 1135
- The History of Animals, Book VIII 1150
- The History of Animals, Book IX 1186
- On the Parts of Animals, Book I 1234
- On the Parts of Animals, Book II 1249
- On the Parts of Animals, Book III 1281
- On the Parts of Animals, Book IV 1311
- On the Motion of Animals 1351
- On the Gait of Animals 1363
- On the Generation of Animals, Book I 1381
- On the Generation of Animals, Book II 1412
- On the Generation of Animals, Book III 1444
- On the Generation of Animals, Book IV 1469
- On the Generation of Animals, Book V 1496
- Part 5; Metaphysics 1516
- Part 6; Ethics and Politics 1748
- Nicomachean Ethics, Book I 1749
- Nicomachean Ethics, Book II 1766
- Nicomachean Ethics, Book III 1779
- Nicomachean Ethics, Book IV 1799
- Nicomachean Ethics, Book V 1817
- Nicomachean Ethics, Book VI 1836
- Nicomachean Ethics, Book VII 1851
- Nicomachean Ethics, Book VIII 1872
- Nicomachean Ethics, Book IX 1890
- Nicomachean Ethics, Book X 1907
- Politics, Book I 1925
- Politics, Book II 1943
- Politics, Book III 1970
- Politics, Book IV 1997
- Politics, Book V 2023
- Politics, Book VI 2053
- Politics, Book VII 2065
- Politics, Book VIII 2091
- The Athenian Constitution 2102
- Part 7; Aesthetic Writings 2156