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Full Idea
Contrary to Locke, I should hold that real essences are in principle knowable, and contrary to Aristotle, I should hold that non-essential or accidental properties can also be objects of scientific knowledge.
Gist of Idea
Real essences are scientifically knowable, but so are non-essential properties
Source
Irving M. Copi (Essence and Accident [1954], p.717)
Book Ref
-: 'Journal of Philosophy' [-], p.717
A Reaction
Copi has just become my hero. Aristotle's account of definition is on the brink of allowing fine-tuned essences, but he thinks universal understanding blocks knowledge of individuals. But cross-referencing of universals pinpoints individuals.
Related Idea
Idea 12309 There cannot be a science of accidentals, but only of general truths [Aristotle]
| 9787 | Scientists must know the essential attributes of the things they study [Aristotle] |
| 16745 | No one even knows the nature and properties of a fly - why it has that colour, or so many feet [Bacon,R] |
| 7713 | We identify substances by supposing that groups of sensations arise from an essence [Locke] |
| 12545 | Other spirits may exceed us in knowledge, by knowing the inward constitution of things [Locke] |
| 17968 | By digging deeper into the axioms we approach the essence of sciences, and unity of knowedge [Hilbert] |
| 12310 | Real essences are scientifically knowable, but so are non-essential properties [Copi] |
| 6612 | Without general principles, we couldn't predict the behaviour of dispositional properties [Ellis] |
| 5487 | Essentialism requires a clear separation of semantics, epistemology and ontology [Ellis] |
| 8553 | It looks as if the immutability of the powers of a property imply essentiality [Shoemaker] |
| 4965 | Science searches basic structures in search of essences [Kripke] |
| 21219 | Find the essence by varying an object, to see what remains invariable [Velarde-Mayol] |
| 14307 | Some dispositions are so far unknown, until we learn how to manifest them [Mumford] |
| 9437 | To distinguish accidental from essential properties, we must include possible members of kinds [Mumford] |
| 15704 | Essentialism starts from richly structured categories, leading to a search for underlying properties [Gelman] |
| 6789 | If flame colour is characteristic of a metal, that is an empirical claim needing justification [Bird] |