Aristotle’s Foundational Works on Logic The general categories enumerated herein have been widely accepted and used even at present, which speaks to Aristotle’s enormous influence on western civilization. His reasoning, however, is faulty in quite a few instances, especially with regard to the relation between genus and species. Categories Substance, quantity, quality, relation, place, time, position, state, action, or affection. [–Update in 2014 –] 1. Substance Substance, in the truest […]
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“On Interpretation” by Aristotle
Propositions “Truth and falsity imply combination (copulation) and separation.” The denial must deny just that which the affirmation affirms concerning the same subject, and must correspond with the affirmation both in the universal or particular character of the subject and in the distributed or undistributed sense in which the proposition is understood. If anything else be negatively predicated of the subject or if anything else be the subject though the […]
Read more“Posterior Analytics” by Aristotle
The Cause of Its Own Essence Demonstration is syllogism that proves the cause, i.e. the reasoned fact, and it is rather the commensurate universal than the particular which is causative (as may be shown thus: that which possesses an attribute through its own essential nature is itself the cause of the inherence, and the commensurate universal is primary; hence the commensurate universal is the cause). To know its essential nature […]
Read more“Prior Analytics” by Aristotle
Demonstrative vs. Dialectical The demonstrative premiss differs from the dialectical, because the demonstrative premiss is the assertion of one of two contradictory statements, whereas the dialectical premiss depends on the adversary’s choice between two contradictories. A perfect syllogism needs nothing other than what has been stated to make plain what necessarily follows; a syllogism is imperfect, if it needs either one or more propositions, which are indeed the necessary consequences […]
Read more“The Athenian Constitution” by Aristotle
The Constitution of Solon “Some persons in fact believe that Solon deliberately made the laws indefinite, in order that the final decision might be in the hands of the people [jurycourts]. This, however, is not probable, and the reason no doubt was that it is impossible to attain ideal perfection when framing a law in general terms; for we must judge of his intentions, not from the actual results in […]
Read more“Politics” by Aristotle
As is his custom, Aristotle first surveys the existing political theories, discusses their strong and weak points, and then provides his own theory, describing the different forms of government, the reason of their existence and the means of their maintenance. The Licence of the Lacedaemonian Women The old mythologer would seem to have been right in uniting Ares and Aphrodite, for all warlike races are prone to the love either […]
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“Nicomachean Ethics” by Aristotle
Aristotle vs. Plato Having just finished and enjoyed Plato’s complete works, I find this book a bit annoying and uninspiring in comparison. Aristotle seems to take every opportunity to “correct” Plato, when in fact he is only attacking a strawman. His arguments, sometimes self-contradictory, often support and clarify Plato’s ideas, albeit using his own terminology. Aristotle seems to have great difficulty appreciating or understanding Plato’s abstractions (from species to genus, […]
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