In a famous argument at the beginning of the Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle argues that the function and good of the human being is the "actuality of the soul in accordance with virtue". Presenting a view critical of the widespread intellectualist reading of Aristotle's Ethics, in this thesis I argue that the characteristic function of the human being is constitutive of a distinctly human life as a dynamic formal cause teleologically operative in human awareness. I argue for the validity of my own view in a preliminary way in the introduction by way of Aristotle's critique of the Platonic forms. In the second chapter, I argue that the processes of the non-rational part of the soul are acquired and actively operate once acquired independently of singular dictates of active reason within the individual. By this I mean that the virtues do not obey reason in the sense that they receive individual commands from discursive reason to desire or feel in certain ways. Rather, although the moral virtues are formed gradually by repeated acts of choice, as affective states, they are activated by being affected from without by external stimuli. These external stimuli produce impulses in the soul which are conducive to virtuous action, including a cognitive element: primarily, non-rational and non-discursive evaluative judgments of phantasia, which supply a human agent immediately with the ends of his action and the beginning-points of deliberation. These judgments are the awareness of sensible particulars as pleasant. In the third chapter, I turn to the De Anima in order to illuminate the cognitive conditions of human praxis. Following on the arguments contained in the second chapter, I argue that there are two primary cognitive moments which are necessary conditions of action. While the ends of desire are immediate objects of awareness and move humans as unmoved movers, motivational desires, which move as efficient causes, are initiated by a distinct cognitive power: proclamations to pursue or avoid.

"Forests Full of Beasts" analyzes late-Shakespearean thought as represented in "Timon of Athens" and "King Lear," focusing on expressions of madness. Applying an Aristotelian framework, each chapter examines the two plays through a different lens, applying the "Nicomachean Ethics," "Politics" and "Poetics" in turn. Looking at these plays through the "Ethic"s shows that Timon and Lear miss the mark of happiness through excessive action, and their madness is therefore construed as deliberately maintaining unsustainable behaviour. The Politics foregrounds humanity's social nature, and it is in their rejection of society's provisions and friendship that Timon and Lear are seen to be most mad. Following the Poetics' prioritization of plot, both plays are analyzed in terms of the unified whole, and their madness is seen as seamlessly interwoven with the overall action. The conclusion ties these analyses together, understanding Timon's and Lear's madness as the deliberate choice to pursue excessive, antisocial behaviour.

Ce mémoire a pour tâche de déterminer le statut ontologique de la puissance chez Aristote. Pour ce faire, il est d’abord question, dans le premier chapitre, de bien définir les deux sens de la puissance, soit la puissance motrice et l’état potentiel. Nous expliquons aussi alors les multiples sens de la puissance motrice et les multiples types de la puissance que sont la nature, l’âme et l’art. Ensuite, le second chapitre étudie les liens entre l’état potentiel et la matière, d’une part, et les liens entre le non-être, la puissance et la possibilité, d’autre part. Enfin, le troisième chapitre explicite la hiérarchie ontologique aristotélicienne pour en dégager le statut ontologique de la puissance par rapport à l’acte. Cela est fait de trois manières : selon l’antériorité de l’acte sur la puissance au sein d’une substance unique ; selon l’antériorité des êtres éternels, notamment celle du premier moteur, sur les êtres générables et corruptibles ; l’antériorité du bien en acte sur le bien puissance. / This master thesis seeks to determine the ontological value of potency in Arstotle’s philosophy. To do so, the first chapter defines the two meanings of potency, which are the power to change something else and the potential state of a being. We then explain the multiple meanings of power and its multiple types, namely nature, soul and art. The second chapter, in addition to analysing the links between potentiality and non-being, also studies how non-being, potency and possibility are connected. Finally, the third chapter explains the aristotelian ontological hierarchy to highlight the ontological value of potency in connection to act. This is done in accordance with three kinds of priority, which are the priority of act over potency in a single substance, the priority of eternal beings, especially the one of the prime mover, over generated and corruptible beings, and the priority of good in actuality over potential good.

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Mémoire numérisé par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal

Mémoire numérisé par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal

This thesis analyzes Martin Heidegger's early interpretation of Aristotelian concepts. The goal is to acquire an increased understanding of the ideas underlying Aristotle's political philosophy, as well as those underlying Heidegger's own later philosophy. The investigation begins with a critique of Kantian logic and the assumptions which underlie it, which are ultimately traced back to Aristotle. The passages that pertain to Kant's interpretation are assessed by Heidegger, who concludes that it is speaking, not explicit definition, that grounds possibility for life in a human sense. To demonstrate Heidegger's argument, the thesis transitions into an assessment of the Greek view of life and the way it influences Aristotle's investigation of the human being. The goal of the first three chapters is ultimately to demonstrate the manner in which speaking allows for a unique way of being in the world for the human being, a way of being that makes ethical disposition and thus moral excellence possible. Beginning in Chapter 4, the thesis discusses the Aristotelian concept of ends and endhood, ultimately outlining the manner in which Aristotle goes about his investigation in the Nicomachean Ethics which serves to re-emphasize the interpretation set forth in the first half of the thesis. After giving an account of eudaimonia, the thesis discusses rhetoric and politics in chapter five, since it is demonstrated that an ethical disposition cannot be acquired without both being and conversing with other people in a community. A brief account of Aristotle's conclusions in the Politics and Rhetoric follows, and the thesis concludes with an outline of the web of ideas that Heidegger has set forth in his interpretation. The thesis also provides an in-depth interpretation of key passages from the Metaphysics, Politics, Rhetoric, De Anima and Nicomachean Ethics which ultimately serve as examples of Heidegger's unique manner of interpretation to the reader.

The dissertation investigates Heidegger‘s thinking of being in terms of its relation to the philosophy of Aristotle. Whereas Heidegger‘s texts committed to reconstructing Aristotle‘s philosophy were released and started being translated to other languages relatively recently, the German‘s thinking has so far been rather poorly understood both in Lithuania and in the rest of the world. The Heideggerian phenomenological-hermeneutical exegesis of Aristotle‘s texts is apparently essential not only to the project of Being and Time but also to the thought developed after „the Turn“. When the thinking of the philosopher of the Black Forest is viewed in the background of interpreting Aristotle‘s philosophy, one can also better understand its historic(al) dimension, its relation to the pre-modern (ancient and medieval-Christian), modern and post-modern paradigms. The dissertation defends the thesis that the philosophy of Heidegger as a whole is a double move of destructuring and more primordially restructuring the philosophy of Aristotle (and – together – the Cartesian philosophy that conceptually as well as historically is dependent on Greek ontology). This move is performed by construing the basic concepts of Aristotle in terms of the twofold of being and entity which is enabled by the Christian experience of creatio ex nihilo. Furthermore, the construction of the philosophy of Aristotle in terms of the ontological difference is also a critique of modern and post-moderns paradigms... [to full text] / Disertacijoje tiriamas Heideggerio būties mąstymas jo santykio su Aristotelio filosofija požiūriu. Kadangi Heideggerio tekstai, skirti Aristotelio filosofijos rekonstrukcijai, buvo išleisti ir pradėti versti į kitas kalbas palyginti neseniai, šiuo požiūriu vokiečio mąstymas kol kas gan menkai suprastas ne tik Lietuvoje, bet ir likusiame pasaulyje. Haidegeriškoji fenomenologinė-hermeneutinė Aristotelio tekstų egzegezė, regis, ne tik esminga Būties ir laiko projektui, bet ir po „posūkio“ skleidžiamai minčiai. Žvelgiant į Juodosios Girios filosofo mąstymą Aristotelio filosofijos aiškinimo fone, galima geriau suprasti ir Heideggerio filosofijos istorinį matmenį, jos santykį su ikimoderniąja (antikine ir viduramžiškąja-krikščioniškąja), moderniąja ir postmoderniąja paradigmomis. Disertacijoje ginama tezė, jog Heideggerio filosofija kaip visuma yra dvigubas Aristotelio filosofijos (ir sykiu – nuo graikiškosios ontologijos konceptualiai ir istoriškai priklausomos karteziškosios filosofijos) išardymo ir pirmapradiškesnio atkūrimo judesys. Šis judesys atliekamas Aristotelio pamatines sąvokas aiškinant būties ir esinio dvisklaidos požiūriu, kurį leidžia krikščioniškoji creatio ex nihilo patirtis. Be to, Aristotelio filosofijos aiškinimas ontologinio skirtumo požiūriu yra ir moderniosios bei postmoderniosios paradigmų kritika, nes jos istoriškai ir konceptualiai siejamos su graikų ontologijoje taip pat glūdinčia būties užmarštimi kaip neautentiška šios ontologijos išsklaidos galimybe. ... [toliau žr. visą tekstą]

Disertacijoje tiriamas Heideggerio būties mąstymas jo santykio su Aristotelio filosofija požiūriu. Kadangi Heideggerio tekstai, skirti Aristotelio filosofijos rekonstrukcijai, buvo išleisti ir pradėti versti į kitas kalbas palyginti neseniai, šiuo požiūriu vokiečio mąstymas kol kas gan menkai suprastas ne tik Lietuvoje, bet ir likusiame pasaulyje. Haidegeriškoji fenomenologinė-hermeneutinė Aristotelio tekstų egzegezė, regis, ne tik esminga "Būties ir laiko" projektui, bet ir po „posūkio“ skleidžiamai minčiai. Žvelgiant į Juodosios Girios filosofo mąstymą Aristotelio filosofijos aiškinimo fone, galima geriau suprasti ir Heideggerio filosofijos istorinį matmenį, jos santykį su ikimoderniąja (antikine ir viduramžiškąja-krikščioniškąja), moderniąja ir postmoderniąja paradigmomis. Disertacijoje ginama tezė, jog Heideggerio filosofija kaip visuma yra dvigubas Aristotelio filosofijos (ir sykiu – nuo graikiškosios ontologijos konceptualiai ir istoriškai priklausomos karteziškosios filosofijos) išardymo ir pirmapradiškesnio atkūrimo judesys. Šis judesys atliekamas Aristotelio pamatines sąvokas aiškinant būties ir esinio dvisklaidos požiūriu, kurį leidžia krikščioniškoji creatio ex nihilo patirtis. Be to, Aristotelio filosofijos aiškinimas ontologinio skirtumo požiūriu yra ir moderniosios bei postmoderniosios paradigmų kritika, nes jos istoriškai ir konceptualiai siejamos su graikų ontologijoje taip pat glūdinčia būties užmarštimi kaip neautentiška šios ontologijos išsklaidos galimybe... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / The dissertation investigates Heidegger‘s thinking of being in terms of its relation to the philosophy of Aristotle. Whereas Heidegger‘s texts committed to reconstructing Aristotle‘s philosophy were released and started being translated to other languages relatively recently, the German‘s thinking has so far been rather poorly understood both in Lithuania and in the rest of the world. The Heideggerian phenomenological-hermeneutical exegesis of Aristotle‘s texts is apparently essential not only to the project of 'Being and Time' but also to the thought developed after 'the Turn'. When the thinking of the philosopher of the Black Forest is viewed in the background of interpreting Aristotle‘s philosophy, one can also better understand its historic(al) dimension, its relation to the pre-modern (ancient and medieval-Christian), modern and post-modern paradigms. The dissertation defends the thesis that the philosophy of Heidegger as a whole is a double move of destructuring and more primordially restructuring the philosophy of Aristotle (and – together – the Cartesian philosophy that conceptually as well as historically is dependent on Greek ontology). This move is performed by construing the basic concepts of Aristotle in terms of the twofold of being and entity which is enabled by the Christian experience of creatio ex nihilo. Furthermore, the construction of the philosophy of Aristotle in terms of the ontological difference is also a critique of modern and post-moderns... [to full text]

This inquiry suggests a new epistemological foundation for understanding and discernment in biomedical ethics. This foundation, based on Aristotle's phronesis or practical wisdom, contains elements of the lived human experience which are seen as essential aspects of ethical, as well as medical, deliberation. The Aristotelian intellectual virtues of theoria and phronesis, used as "ideal types" of rationality, provide epistemological prejudices that structure two distinct ways of thinking. With this distinction, an alternative to certain dominant trends within biomedical ethics arises as phronesis provides more human centered prejudices for understanding. In conclusion, we shall see, using the doctrine of informed consent, that a phronetic rationality allows different, more humane meanings to come into being. Phronesis, it will be argued, provides a mode of rationality which promotes compassion and engagement in both ethics and medicine and consequently, is the more appropriate way of thinking in these important human practices.