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Single Idea 24057

[filed under theme 7. Existence / C. Structure of Existence / 4. Ontological Dependence ]

Full Idea

What is prior is always potentially present in what is next in order … - for example, the triangle in the quadrilateral, or the nutritive part of animate things in the perceptual part.

Gist of Idea

What is prior is always potentially present in what is next in order

Source

Aristotle (De Anima [c.329 BCE], 414a28)

Book Ref

Aristotle: 'De Anima (on the psuche)', ed/tr. Reeve, C.D.C. [Hackett 2017], p.26


A Reaction

'Prior' seems to be a value for Aristotle, which is never present in modern discussions of ontological relations and structure. Priority tracks back to first principles.

Related Idea

Idea 12372 The essence of a triangle comes from the line, mentioned in any account of triangles [Aristotle]


The 17 ideas with the same theme [things that rely on other things for their existence]:

A thing is prior to another if it implies its existence [Aristotle]
Of interdependent things, the prior one causes the other's existence [Aristotle]
What is prior is always potentially present in what is next in order [Aristotle]
Prior things can exist without posterior things, but not vice versa [Aristotle]
Many of us find Frege's claim that truths depend on one another an obscure idea [Heck on Frege]
Parallelism is intuitive, so it is more fundamental than sameness of direction [Frege, by Heck]
Being primitive or prior always depends on a constructional system [Goodman]
Ontological dependence rests on essential connection, not necessary connection [Molnar]
An object is dependent if its essence prevents it from existing without some other object [Fine,K]
A natural modal account of dependence says x depends on y if y must exist when x does [Fine,K]
An object depends on another if the second cannot be eliminated from the first's definition [Fine,K]
Dependency is the real counterpart of one term defining another [Fine,K]
There is 'weak' dependence in one definition, and 'strong' dependence in all the definitions [Fine,K]
Independent objects can exist apart, and maybe even entirely alone [Simons]
There may be a one-way direction of dependence among sets, and among natural numbers [Linnebo]
Non-causal dependence is at present only dimly understood [Liggins]
There's essential, modal, explanatory, conceptual, metaphysical and constitutive dependence [Jenkins, by PG]