Combining Philosophers

Ideas for H.Putnam/P.Oppenheim, Plotinus and Aristotle

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6 ideas

7. Existence / E. Categories / 3. Proposed Categories

13121	Substance,Quantity,Quality,Relation,Place,Time,Being-in-a-position,Having,Doing,Being affected [Aristotle, by Westerhoff]
	Full Idea: Aristotle's list of ten categories proved to be the most influential scheme found in his works: Substance, Quantity, Quality, Relation, Place, Time, Being-in-a-position, Having, Doing, Being affected.
	From: report of Aristotle (Categories [c.331 BCE]) by Jan Westerhoff - Ontological Categories §01

3311	The categories (substance, quality, quantity, relation, action, passion, place, time) peter out inconsequentially [Benardete,JA on Aristotle]
	Full Idea: The Aristotelian schedule of categories - substance, quality, quantity, relation, action, passion, place, time, and so forth - appears to peter out inconsequentially.
	From: comment on Aristotle (Categories [c.331 BCE]) by José A. Benardete - Metaphysics: the logical approach Ch.7
	A reaction: Compare Idea 5544 for Kant's attempt to classify categories. Personally I like the way Aristotle's 'peter out'. That seems to me a more plausible character for good metaphysics.

11035	There are ten basic categories for thinking about things [Aristotle]
	Full Idea: Of things said without any combination, each signifies either substance or quantity or qualification or a relative or where or when or being-in-a-position or having or doing or being-affected.
	From: Aristotle (Categories [c.331 BCE], 01b25)
	A reaction: This sums up the earlier of Aristotle's two metaphysical view, and each of this categories is discussed in the present text.

12267	There are ten categories: essence, quantity, quality, relation, place, time, position, state, activity, passivity [Aristotle]
	Full Idea: The four main types of predicates fall into ten categories: essence, quantity, quality, relation, place, time, position, state, activity, passivity.
	From: Aristotle (Topics [c.331 BCE], 103b20)
	A reaction: These are the standard ten categories of Aristotle. He is notable for the divisions not being sharp, and ten being a rough total. He is well aware of the limits of precision in such matters.

12347	The immediate divisions of that which is are genera, each with its science [Aristotle]
	Full Idea: The immediate divisions of that which is are genera, and there will be one science for each genus.
	From: Aristotle (Metaphysics [c.324 BCE], 1004a04)
	A reaction: This is robustly realist, and right at the heart of Aristotle's philosophy. It explains why essences and forms must be given through genera and differentiae, even though essences are individual. Genera are the only way to identify things.

7. Existence / E. Categories / 4. Category Realism

16116	Aristotle derived categories as answers to basic questions about nature, size, quality, location etc. [Aristotle, by Gill,ML]
	Full Idea: Aristotle seems to have worked out his list of categories by considering various questions that one might ask about a particular object, such as What is it? How big is it? How is it qualified? And Where is it?
	From: report of Aristotle (Categories [c.331 BCE]) by Mary Louise Gill - Aristotle on Substance
	A reaction: Of course, to think of his questions, Aristotle already had categories in his mind. How would he approach a proposal to recategorise reality more efficiently?