Aporia 11 on being and one is a superlative one, for according to Aristotle it is the most difficult, but also the most necessary for the knowledge of the truth. The aporia is whether being and one are substances or rather attributes of substances. Its diaporia or dialectical discussion starts from the negative thesis that being and one are not substances and derives the denial of the existence of both universals and numbers. As for the affirmative antithesis that being and one are substances, it seems to imply both Parmenidean absolute monism and again the denial of the existence of a plurality of numbers. In this chapter, a close reading of both the Greek text and of its argumentative structure is offered, and as for the superlative character of the aporia an historical interpretation is suggested, namely aporia 11 is according to Aristotle the breaking point of Greek metaphysics paralleled by the ‘gigantomachy’ about ousia in Plato’s Sophist
W. Cavini (2009). Aporia 11. OXFORD : Oxford University Press.
Aporia 11
CAVINI, WALTER
2009
Abstract
Aporia 11 on being and one is a superlative one, for according to Aristotle it is the most difficult, but also the most necessary for the knowledge of the truth. The aporia is whether being and one are substances or rather attributes of substances. Its diaporia or dialectical discussion starts from the negative thesis that being and one are not substances and derives the denial of the existence of both universals and numbers. As for the affirmative antithesis that being and one are substances, it seems to imply both Parmenidean absolute monism and again the denial of the existence of a plurality of numbers. In this chapter, a close reading of both the Greek text and of its argumentative structure is offered, and as for the superlative character of the aporia an historical interpretation is suggested, namely aporia 11 is according to Aristotle the breaking point of Greek metaphysics paralleled by the ‘gigantomachy’ about ousia in Plato’s SophistI documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
