Aristotle's Understanding of Reality
Religious Studies: OCR A Level, topic 1.2.1
Aristotle's Understanding of Reality
Aristotle considered at the beginning of his Physics that we can only know something inasmuch as we can explain it.
Quotation from Physics
- "Knowledge is the object of our inquiry, and men do not think they know a thing till they have grasped the ‘why’ of it".
- For Aristotle, the word he used for the ‘why’ of something was aition, which has been translated as 'cause', although explanation could also be used.
Potentially vs actuality
- Aristotle draws a distinction between potentiality and actuality.
- He applies this to the process of change (or motion).
- Change is simply the process by which an object acquires a new form (very different from Plato’s idea of Form). The object has the potentiality to become something different, and change is the actualisation of the potential of one form of matter to become another form of matter.
Marble/statue example
- For example, the block of marble has the potential to become an actual statue.
- The statue is latent within the block of marble – the block of marble has the capacity to become a statue.
Potency and act are distinct
- It is important to note that potency and act are distinct.
- The marble cannot be both a block and the statue at the same time.
- In another example a piece of wood cannot be both potentially on fire and actually on fire at the same time – so change is this movement between potential and actual.
Test yourself on Aristotle's Understanding of Reality
Which of these is NOT true of potentiality and actuality?