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Some Conceptual Difficulties in Aristotle’s De caelo I.9

Some Conceptual Difficulties in Aristotle’s De caelo I.9 Abstract: The article discusses two issues implied by the structure of De caelo I.9: Aristotle’s further defence of the uniqueness of the universe and, in more detail, the general question of whether the cosmology of De caelo overlaps, or is even compatible, with Aristotle’s theology including the notion of the Prime Mover. It offers an analysis of several long-standing difficulties including the question of whether the lines 279 a 18–22 imply an external mover of the heavens. The negative answer that I will defend does however not solve the problem of how Aristotle conceives the source of natural cosmic motion. In this respect, the article pays close attention to the peculiar conception of the animate supralunary matter and to De caelo II.3, 286 a 7–21 as a text that complements I.9 by relying on the holistic self-motion that implies no Prime Mover, but requires the separation of the supralunary and the sublunary spheres. The article also concludes that Arist otle, despite his rejection of the unceasingly revolving world soul, inherits some Platonic difficulties that arise once we make the notion of the divine life irreducible to divine thinking. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Rhizomata de Gruyter

Some Conceptual Difficulties in Aristotle’s De caelo I.9

Thein, Karel
Rhizomata , Volume 1 (1) – Jan 1, 2013
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Publisher
de Gruyter
Copyright
Copyright © 2013 by the
ISSN
2196-5102
eISSN
2196-5110
DOI
10.1515/rhiz-2013-0003
Publisher site
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Abstract

Abstract: The article discusses two issues implied by the structure of De caelo I.9: Aristotle’s further defence of the uniqueness of the universe and, in more detail, the general question of whether the cosmology of De caelo overlaps, or is even compatible, with Aristotle’s theology including the notion of the Prime Mover. It offers an analysis of several long-standing difficulties including the question of whether the lines 279 a 18–22 imply an external mover of the heavens. The negative answer that I will defend does however not solve the problem of how Aristotle conceives the source of natural cosmic motion. In this respect, the article pays close attention to the peculiar conception of the animate supralunary matter and to De caelo II.3, 286 a 7–21 as a text that complements I.9 by relying on the holistic self-motion that implies no Prime Mover, but requires the separation of the supralunary and the sublunary spheres. The article also concludes that Arist otle, despite his rejection of the unceasingly revolving world soul, inherits some Platonic difficulties that arise once we make the notion of the divine life irreducible to divine thinking.

Journal

Rhizomata – de Gruyter

Published: Jan 1, 2013

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