Combining Texts

All the ideas for 'Mahaprajnaparamitashastra', 'Socrates: Ironist and Moral Philosopher' and 'Aristotle on Substance'

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5 ideas

9. Objects / C. Structure of Objects / 3. Matter of an Object

16083	Aristotelian matter seriously threatens the intrinsic unity and substantiality of its object [Gill,ML]
	Full Idea: On the interpretation of Aristotelian matter that I shall propose, matter seriously threatens the intrinsic unity, and hence the substantiality, of the object to which it contributes.
	From: Mary Louise Gill (Aristotle on Substance [1989], Intro)
	A reaction: Presumably the thought is that if an object is form+matter (hylomorphism), then forms are essentially unified, but matter is essentially unified and sloppy.

23. Ethics / C. Virtue Theory / 3. Virtues / a. Virtues

7903	The six perfections are giving, morality, patience, vigour, meditation, and wisdom [Nagarjuna]
	Full Idea: The six perfections are of giving, morality, patience, vigour, meditation, and wisdom.
	From: Nagarjuna (Mahaprajnaparamitashastra [c.120], 88)
	A reaction: What is 'morality', if giving is not part of it? I like patience and vigour being two of the virtues, which immediately implies an Aristotelian mean (which is always what is 'appropriate').

25. Social Practice / D. Justice / 3. Punishment / b. Retribution for crime

1658	In early Greece the word for punishment was also the word for vengeance [Vlastos]
	Full Idea: Down to the last third of the fifth century, 'timoria', whose original and always primary sense is "vengeance", is THE word for "punishment".
	From: Gregory Vlastos (Socrates: Ironist and Moral Philosopher [1991], p.186)

26. Natural Theory / A. Speculations on Nature / 6. Early Matter Theories / b. Prime matter

17006	Prime matter has no place in Aristotle's theories, and passages claiming it are misread [Gill,ML]
	Full Idea: I argue that prime matter has no place in Aristotle's elemental theory. ..References to prime matter are found in Aristotle's work because his theory was thought to need the doctrine. If I am right, these passages will all admit of another interpretation.
	From: Mary Louise Gill (Aristotle on Substance [1989], App)
	A reaction: If correct, this strikes me as important for the history of ideas, because scholastics got themselves in a right tangle over prime matter. See Pasnau on it. It pushed the 17th century into corpuscularianism.

16093	Prime matter is actually nothing and potentially everything (or potentially an element) [Gill,ML]
	Full Idea: Prime matter is supposed to be actually nothing and potentially everything or, at any rate, potentially the simplest bodies - earth, water, air and fire.
	From: Mary Louise Gill (Aristotle on Substance [1989], Ch.1)
	A reaction: The view that the four elements turn out to be prime matter is distinctive of Gill's approach. Prime matter sounds like quark soup in the early universe.