pre-socratics

What is metaphysics?

Meta means after, above, and beyond and Phusis means nature. Aristotle’s writings were the book after the book on nature.

What does physics (the study of nature) assume? The most basic questions, assumptions. Art, myth & religion.

Pre-Socratic Philosophy

The first group of philosophers were Thales, Anaximander, and Anaximenes.

The second group of philosophers were the Sophists (Protagoras).

The third group of philosophers were Pythagoras, Heraclitus, and Democritus.

The last pre-socratic philosopher was Parmenides.

Thales

He is the first philosopher in the Western tradition. Believed that “Unbounded water is the source of all things”. He believed in a material element & a unitary source. All living things need water and contain water, and earth is surrounded by water. This was an attempt at a rational explanation, not mythic or religious.

Anaximander

This was the first philosophical criticism/refutation. His reasoning was that if unbounded water is the source of all, then fire cannot exist. Fire does exist, therefore unbounded water is not the source of all.

If A, then B → not B → therefore not A

A theory has consequences; a theory always implies more than what it explicitly states, whether in science, politics, ethics, etc. If the consequences are false or unacceptable, then the theory must be rejected or modified

His theory was that the unbounded is the source of all.

The Unbounded

Limitless and undifferentiated stuff, more basic than the four elements which emerge from it. The four elements are “at war” and seek to destroy each other. Earth (cold), Air (dry), Fire (hot) and Water (wet) Cycle of seasons: Summer (hot & dry)/Winter (cold & wet). No element or quality ever “wins” because Time/Justice impose a moral order on the cosmos.

Greek tragedy: hubris (pride), nemesis (punishment), catharsis (moral experience of audience)

This is qualitative and moral explanation (like art, myth, religion).

His second theory is that air is the source of all things.

Source of all living things (Anaximenes)

Living things need air and the earth is surrounded by air. What about Anaximander’s criticism? Air becomes opposed elements through rarefaction (thinning) and condensation (thickening). This is a mechanical and quantitative explanation (like modern science)

The Sophists/Protagoras

Believed that it is a matter of opinion/convention. “Man is the measure of all things”. This means that individual human beings or cultures are the “measure” or what determines whether something is good/bad, just/unjust, beautiful/ugly. This is called cultural relativism

What do the Sophists propose? Pay us and we will teach you rhetoric, persuasive speech. Convince others that what you want is what is good, just and moral even though there is NO SUCH THING!

Plato and Aristotle will try to prove that this is wrong.

Pythagoras

Believed that “all things are numbers”. He created the Pythagorean Theorem. Music and mathematical ratios of string lengths.

not considered a materialist

Democritus

He believed that everything is made up of tiny, indestructible, eternal bits of matter called “atoms.”

They move around according to their own laws or no laws at all

scientific

Heraclitus

He believed that “all things are in flux” & “you cannot step in the same river twice”. Everything is in a state of constant change always, even if this is not visible to us. Therefore, nothing is ever really anything in particular because it has already changed to something else.

What is, is. What is not, is not. What is cannot be what is not. Therefore, what is cannot be. Therefore, what is must be. Therefore, what is, is eternal. Therefore what is, is unchanging. Therefore, what is, is one. None of us or the world around us is real. The only thing that is real is the One.

Can be described as both rational mysticism or a philosophical problem.

Parmenides

Thinks about the question “what do we mean by reality, what do we mean by being, what does is mean?”

If we don’t assume that we already know the answer to that question and we attempt to think about the meaning of is or reality what we end up realizing is that the concept of is simply means is but the concept of is does not seem to allow for either change or plurality

is just is, it is not something that can change