Book contents
- Searching for the Divine in Plato and Aristotle
- Searching for the Divine in Plato and Aristotle
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Acknowledgments
- Abbreviations
- Introduction
- Chapter 1 Traditional Theoria
- Chapter 2 Literary and Philosophical Texts on Theoria
- Chapter 3 Plato’s Contribution to Theoria
- Chapter 4 Aristotle’s Refinement of Theoria
- Chapter 5 Theoria and Its Objects
- Chapter 6 The Value of Theoria
- Concluding Remarks
- Bibliography
- Index of Passages
- General Index
Chapter 4 - Aristotle’s Refinement of Theoria
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 09 December 2021
- Searching for the Divine in Plato and Aristotle
- Searching for the Divine in Plato and Aristotle
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Acknowledgments
- Abbreviations
- Introduction
- Chapter 1 Traditional Theoria
- Chapter 2 Literary and Philosophical Texts on Theoria
- Chapter 3 Plato’s Contribution to Theoria
- Chapter 4 Aristotle’s Refinement of Theoria
- Chapter 5 Theoria and Its Objects
- Chapter 6 The Value of Theoria
- Concluding Remarks
- Bibliography
- Index of Passages
- General Index
Summary
The fourth chapter examines Aristotle's distinctive contribution to the history of theoria, one which develops Plato's idea of an intellectual activity aimed at the apprehension of form, concluding it counts among the highest human activities. In many ways, Aristotle would concur with Plato's rejection of traditional theoria as a pursuit practiced by unphilosophical, doxastic believers. Leaving aside a negative critique of the practice, his own treatment emphasizes the great intellectual potential afforded by philosophical theoria. For Aristotle, this activity consists in a specific kind of thinking he connects to scientific understanding; in other aspects, he compares the activity to seeing, describing the performance as divine, or god-like, in its nature.
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- Information
- Searching for the Divine in Plato and AristotlePhilosophical Theoria and Traditional Practice, pp. 86 - 117Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2021