Aristotle's Essentialism and its Enemies

Aristotle – Popper – Quine

Term Paper , 2008 , 14 Pages , Grade: 2,0

Philosophy - Practical (Ethics, Aesthetics, Culture, Nature, Right, ...)

The
 "Posterior
 Analytics,"
 the
 oldest
 text
 on
 the
 philosophy
 of
 science
 known
 today,
 displays 
Aristotle’s 
ideas
 of
 systematic
 acquisition 
of 
scientific 
knowledge
 and 
its 
proper
 demonstration.
 On
 the
 basis
 of
 the
 Posterior
 Analytics,
 and
 by
 means
 of
 two
 examples,
 this
 essay
 wants
 to
 sketch
 the
 critique
 on
 essentialism
 and
 universals
 in
 the
 mid‐20th
 century.
The 
focus 
is
 on 
Karl
 Raimund 
Popper’s 
account 
given
 in
 "The 
Open 
Society 
and 
its
 Enemies
"(1945),
 namely 
book
 II
 chapter
 11,
 and 
on
 Williard
 Van 
Orman
 Quine’s
 essay
 "On
 What 
There
 Is
" (1948).


Inhaltsverzeichnis (Table of Contents)

• Aristotle's Essentialism and its Enemies
• Popper's Critique of Aristotle
• Quine's Critique of Aristotle

Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte (Objectives and Key Themes)

This essay aims to analyze the critique of essentialism and universals in the mid-20th century, focusing on Karl Raimund Popper and Williard Van Orman Quine. It examines their criticisms of Aristotle's essentialist philosophy, drawing on the Posterior Analytics, Popper's The Open Society and its Enemies, and Quine's On What There Is.

• Aristotle's essentialist philosophy and its impact on scientific knowledge
• Popper's critique of Aristotle's essentialism in relation to historicism and totalitarianism
• Quine's rejection of classical essentialism and his views on the "ontological problem" of universals
• The role of first principles, induction, and definition in Aristotle's philosophy of science
• The contrast between Aristotle's essentialist approach and modern empirical science

Zusammenfassung der Kapitel (Chapter Summaries)

The first part of the essay focuses on Aristotle's essentialism and its role in the development of scientific knowledge. It explores his concept of first principles, their role in induction, and the relationship between definition and demonstration. The essay then examines Aristotle's view of how knowledge is acquired through experience and understanding, highlighting his distinction between knowledge and opinion.

The second part of the essay turns to Popper's critique of Aristotle's essentialism. It explores how Popper connects Aristotle's philosophy to historicism and totalitarianism, arguing that Aristotle's essentialism lays the groundwork for these dangerous ideologies. Popper specifically critiques Aristotle's reliance on intellectual intuition in defining first principles, contrasting it with the methods of modern empirical science.

Schlüsselwörter (Keywords)

This essay explores key concepts such as essentialism, universals, historicism, totalitarianism, first principles, induction, definition, demonstration, knowledge, opinion, intellectual intuition, and modern empirical science. It analyzes the critiques of Aristotle's essentialist philosophy by both Popper and Quine, and examines their implications for the philosophy of science.

• College: University of California, Berkeley (Department of Philosophy)
• Course: Aristotle's Posterior Analytics
• Grade: 2,0
• Author: Adam Seitz (Author)
• Publication Year: 2008
• Pages: 14
• Catalog Number: V130790
• ISBN (eBook): 9783640395644
• ISBN (Book): 9783640395453
• Language: English
• Tags: aristotle, essentialism, enemies, popper, quine