Assignment One Reading Response

docx

School

Australian Catholic University *

*We aren’t endorsed by this school

Course

PHCC102

Subject

Philosophy

Date

Oct 30, 2023

Type

docx

Pages

Uploaded by MajorBeaverPerson910

De Anima is an exploration into the inner-workings of the soul, focusing specifically on what defines it. Written in a methodical and scientific way Aristotle delves into philosophy through the lens of biology, highlighting the composite of matter and form and the corresponding links to that of the body and soul. Aristotle takes the view that only through an analysis and understanding of form are we truly able to identify the purpose behind one’s matter. Eventually devising that the soul as a form is therefore the first actuality of a natural body. All the while, continuously emphasising the links between biology and a deeper understanding of one’s metaphysical and ethical composition. This analysis will focus on Chapter One, specifically 412a-412b, which forms the foundation upon which Aristotle builds the rest of his discussion on the rationality of the human race. Beginning with the concept of substances, Aristotle divides each substance into three categories; matter, form and matter-and-form. Matter refers to the subject that underlies all else and form is what makes up or defines a particular subject. In order for a subject to exist it must possess some form. Matter-and-form is thus a marriage between the two. Through his statement “matter is potentiality” (Aristotle 156) Aristotle characterises matter as something that has the potential to either stay as it is or change into something else. “Matter, which in itself is not a particular this” (Aristotle 156) suggests that matter alone cannot be categorised as anything actual. Through this Aristotle implicates that for matter to be actual, its potential must be realised and it must take some form, once this has occurred it can be classified as a substance. Aristotle views form as actuality or a completeness within a living thing. He suggests that actuality can be divided into two kinds, the possession of knowledge and the active contemplation and exercise of that knowledge. As the passage continues Aristotle begins to identify these substances as that of bodies, distinguishing between those which are natural and artificial. Within the natural bodies “some have life and some do not” (Aristotle 156), those that are alive fuelled by self-nutrition, growth and its inevitable decay. Aristotle thus argues that if every natural body is a substance then each body must contain a composite of form and matter within them.

Linking back to his original thesis, Aristotle likens the concept of matter and form to that of the body and soul. “For the body, stands rather itself as subject and is matter…soul is the form of a natural body” (Aristotle 157). Suggesting that these two substances are intrinsically intertwined. For without the soul the body is simply potentiality, the inclusion of the soul provides the natural body with its first actuality. Aristotle is therefore answering the question that he initially posed, the soul is the form which provides the entelechy to that of a natural living body. Aristotle makes the distinction that whilst actuality is multi-faceted, the soul is the kind of actuality “in the way that knowledge is” (Aristotle 157). He uses the analogy of waking and sleeping to highlight the concept that both soul and knowledge take the same type of form. This brings us to the realisation that soul exists as form once it has been acquired, irrespective of whether or not it is being put to use through the activities of life. Much like knowledge does not cease to exist within an individual because they are not actively using it, such as when they are sleeping. Aristotle then links the soul back to the body stating that the soul is the “first actuality of a natural body which potentially has life” (Aristotle 157), indicating that the type of actuality, that is both knowledge and the soul, must come first. Upon analysis of this section of text it is clear that Aristotle views the concept of the soul in perhaps a more logical and scientific way than that of his predecessors. His ideas are laid out in a systematic way with the inclusion of psychology and biology as one concept. Whilst I tend to believe that the biology can be separate to that of one’s thoughts, I agree to an extent that without the soul the body cannot exist. However, I do believe that once the body is gone the soul can exist in perpetuity without taking on a form. For it is the soul that gives a person their attributes and characteristics. The soul is what defines an individual’s nature and gives us our intellect.