Aristotelian Metaphysics: Principles and Causes
Chapter I: Analysis of Aristotelian Metaphysics
Men prefer visible knowledge because sight allows us to know objects and their differences. Animals, such as humans, that possess not only the ability to see but also to retain information (memory) are more capable of learning. Intelligence without the ability to learn is the heritage of those that lack the ability to perceive through the senses (e.g., bees). The human race relies on art and reasoning, unlike other animals. Experience comes from memory.
Art begins when a large number of notions provided by experience coalesce into a single understanding. Those with experience alone may achieve better results than those with theory but without experience. Experience is knowledge of particular things, while art provides a general understanding of the philosophy of art. Men of art are considered wiser than men of experience because they know *why* something exists, not just *that* it exists; they understand the cause.
In conclusion, common opinion holds that art, rather than experience, is essential because men of art can teach, while men of experience cannot. Therefore, the man of experience seems to be wiser than one who only possesses sensory knowledge, and the man of art is wiser than the experienced man.
The Object of Study of Metaphysics Through Different Eras
The metaphysical question concerns determining the existence of a supersensible object, i.e., one that is beyond our senses and belongs exclusively to the realm of intelligence. It is commonly held that metaphysics begins with Plato. However, we can recognize important contributions from Parmenides and Heraclitus.
- Heraclitus was the first to name all that exists and call it Logos.
- Parmenides called this principle Being.
- Plato addressed the question of the ultimate foundation of reality and argued that such a foundation must be sought in the intelligible.
- Aristotle maintained that the truth of things resides in the things themselves; the challenge is to know the essence that makes something what it is.
- Descartes, considered the founder of modern metaphysics, believed that thinking must start with itself, taking leave of any standard of authority other than thought itself. This is expressed through doubt.
Chapter II: Analysis of Aristotelian Metaphysics
Aristotle defines philosophy as a science, which is the subject of our inquiries. The philosopher is a person who knows or seeks to know about all things. However, those skills that we acquire through our senses, without effort, are not considered philosophical.
The philosopher determines laws, based on the balance of science and experience. The philosopher seeks knowledge for the sake of knowing, not for money, power, or other external rewards. He should not be subject to obeying others; the philosopher with superior knowledge does not receive written laws.
General knowledge is beyond the reach of the senses. Some sciences give more importance to deeds than to causes; these sciences are more rigid. Other sciences are in constant contact with causes; therefore, they are not rigid, and their object of study is varied.
Metaphysics
Metaphysics is the science of first principles (that by which something exists in a particular way) and first causes (found in its forms and processes). Metaphysics, as its name implies, is defined as something that goes beyond the physical, devoting its study to the abstract nature of Being and God. It is a fundamental part of philosophy that deals with the study of Being as such, along with its properties, principles, causes, and fundamental reasons for existence.