[lit-ideas] "Developing Series" -- From Aristotle To Grice -- And Back
- From: Jlsperanza@xxxxxxx
- To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Sun, 14 Jun 2009 19:06:59 EDT
I'm analyzing a passage from Ethica Nichomachea by Aristotle -- what a
difficulty!
It is mentioned by Grice in his "Method in philosophical psychology".
Apparently, Aristotle coined the term, 'developing series'. This when
first reading Grice, I thought it was a boring notion in evolution theory; but
it's not: it's a fascinating area of semantics.
For Aristotle (and Grice), various notions allow for a 'developing series'.
One is _number_ indeed. Aristotle criticises Plato for having failed to
reflect on 'number' (but only on oneness, twoness, threness, etc). Then
Aristotle uses the argument of 'developing series' not just for 'number' but to
elucidate the meaning of 'good' (agathon) -- as per the passage below.
Finally, and this is what interested primarily Grice: to identify 'psyche'
in terms of a 'developing series'. Thus, Grice quotes Witters. Witters had
said, "an animal can expect food (e.g. Geary's feral cats) but a man can
expect a drought in the summer. Yet we wouldn't say that 'expect' has a
different sense for cats and men. It's a developing series.
Aristotle writes:
"to men gar zên koinon einai phainetai kai tois phutois, zêteitai de to
idion. aphoristeon ara tên te threptikên kai tên auxêtikên zôên. hepomenê de
aisthêtikê tis an eiê, phainetai de kai autê koinê kai hippôi kai boï kai
panti zôiôi. leipetai dê praktikê tis tou logon echontos: toutou de to men
hôs epipeithes logôi, to d' hôs echon kai dianooumenon. dittôs de kai tautês
legomenês tên kat' energeian theteon: kuriôteron gar hautê dokei legesthai.
ei d' estin ergon anthrôpou psuchês energeia kata logon ê mê aneu logou,
to d' auto phamen ergon einai tôi genei toude kai toude spoudaiou, hôsper
kitharistou kai spoudaiou kitharistou, kai haplôs dê tout' epi pantôn,
prostithemenês tês kata tên aretên huperochês pros to ergon: kitharistou men
gar
kitharizein, spoudaiou de to eu: ei d' houtôs, [anthrôpou de tithemen ergon
zôên tina, tautên de psuchês energeian kai praxeis meta logou, spoudaiou
d' andros eu tauta kai kalôs, hekaston d' eu kata tên oikeian aretên
apoteleitai: ei d' houtô,] to anthrôpinon agathon psuchês energeia ginetai kat'
aretên, ei de pleious hai aretai, kata tên aristên kai teleiotatên. eti d' en
biôi teleiôi. mia gar chelidôn ear ou poiei, oude mia hêmera: houtô de
oude makarion kai eudaimona mia hêmera oud' oligos chronos. perigegraphthô men
oun tagathon tautêi: dei gar isôs hupotupôsai prôton, eith' husteron
anagrapsai. doxeie d' an pantos einai proagagein kai diarthrôsai ta kalôs
echonta têi perigraphêi, kai ho chronos tôn toioutôn heuretês ê sunergos
agathos
einai: hothen kai tôn technôn gegonasin hai epidoseis: pantos gar
prostheinai to elleipon. memnêsthai de kai tôn proeirêmenôn chrê, kai tên
akribeian
mê homoiôs en hapasin epizêtein, all' en hekastois kata tên hupokeimenên
hulên kai epi tosouton eph' hoson oikeion têi methodôi. kai gar tektôn kai
geômetrês diapherontôs epizêtousi tên orthên: ho men gar eph' hoson chrêsimê
pros to ergon, ho de ti estin ê poion ti: theatês gar talêthous. ton auton
dê tropon kai en tois allois poiêteon, hopôs mê ta parerga tôn ergôn pleiô
ginêtai."
The Loeb Classical Library translates:
"The mere act of living appears to be shared even by plants, whereas we are
looking for the function peculiar to man; we must therefore set aside the
vital activity of nutrition and growth. Next in the scale will come some
form of sentient life; but this too appears to be shared by horses, oxen, and
animals generally. [13] There remains therefore what may be called the
practical1 life of the rational part of man. (This part has two divisions,2
one rational as obedient to principle, the others possessing principle and
exercising intelligence). Rational life again has two meanings; let us assume
that we are here concerned with the active exercise3 of the rational
faculty, since this seems to be the more proper sense of the term. [14] If then
the function of man is the active exercise of the soul's faculties4 in
conformity with rational principle, or at all events not in dissociation from
rational principle, and if we acknowledge the function of an individual and
of a good individual of the same class (for instance, a harper and a good
harper, and so generally with all classes) to be generically the same, the
qualification of the latter's superiority in excellence being added to the
function in his case (I mean that if the function of a harper is to play the
harp, that of a good harper is to play the harp well): if this is so, and
if we declare that the function of man is a certain form of life, and
define that form of life as the exercise of the soul's faculties and activities
in association with rational principle, [15] and say that the function of a
good man is to perform these activities well and rightly, and if a
function is well performed when it is performed in accordance with its own
proper
excellence--from these premises it follows that the Good of man is the
active exercise of his soul's faculties in conformity with excellence or
virtue, or if there be several human excellences or virtues, in conformity with
the best and most perfect among them. [16] Moreover, to be happy takes a
complete lifetime; for one swallow does not make spring, nor does one fine day;
and similarly one day or a brief period of happinessdoes not make a man
supremely blessed5 and happy."
Cheers,
J. L. Speranza
Bordighera, Imperia
**************Download the AOL Classifieds Toolbar for local deals at your
fingertips.
(http://toolbar.aol.com/aolclassifieds/download.html?ncid=emlcntusdown00000004)
------------------------------------------------------------------
To change your Lit-Ideas settings (subscribe/unsub, vacation on/off,
digest on/off), visit www.andreas.com/faq-lit-ideas.html
Other related posts:
- » [lit-ideas] "Developing Series" -- From Aristotle To Grice -- And Back - Jlsperanza
