Philoponus On Aristotle Posterior Analytics 1.1-8 [Paperback]

Aristotle'sPosterior Analyticselaborates for the first time in the history of Western philosophy the notions of science and the requirements for the distinctive kind of knowledge scientists possess. His model is mathematics and his treatment of science amounts to a philosophical discussion, from the perspective of Aristotelian syllogistic, of mathematical proofs and the principles they are based on. Chapters 1-8 expound the foundations of Aristotle's theory, pointing out the similarities and differences between scientific knowledge and other types of knowledge, establishing the need for basic principles, and identifying the types of principles and the source of necessity associated with scientific facts. Philoponus' massive commentary, the most complete ancient discussion ofPosterior AnalyticsBook 1, offers uniquely valuable testimony to the way this book was read and understood in late antiquity, as well as providing information on earlier interpretations. Of particular interest is Philoponus' account of scientific principles, which is based not only on Aristotle but also on the Greek mathematical tradition, especially Euclid and his commentator Proclus.

Richard McKirahanis the Edwin Clarence Norton Professor of Classics and Professor of Philosophy at Pomona College, Claremont, California, USA.

Conventions
Introduction
Textual Information
Translation
Notes
Appendix: Theorems from Euclid's Elements
Bibliography
English-Greek Glossary
Greek-English Index
Index of Passages
Index of Names
Subject Index

Aristotle's Posterior Analytics elaborates the notions of science and the requirements for the distinctive kind of knowledge scientists possess. This book explores the foundations of Aristotle's theory, pointing out the similarities and differences between scientific and other types of knowledge, and establishing the need for basic principles.