Contingency, Time, and Possibility

An Essay on Aristotle and Duns Scotus

Nonfiction, Religion & Spirituality, Philosophy, Medieval, Metaphysics
Cover of the book Contingency, Time, and Possibility by Pascal Massie, Lexington Books
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Pascal Massie ISBN: 9780739149317
Publisher: Lexington Books Publication: November 19, 2010
Imprint: Lexington Books Language: English
Author: Pascal Massie
ISBN: 9780739149317
Publisher: Lexington Books
Publication: November 19, 2010
Imprint: Lexington Books
Language: English

If we are to distinguish mere non-being from that which is not, yet may be, from that which was not, yet could have been, or from that which will not be, yet could become, we are committed in some way to grant being to possibilities. The possible is not actual; yet it is not nothing. What then could it be? What ontological status could it possess? In Contingency, Time, and Possibility: An Essay on Aristotle and Duns Scotus, Pascal Massie opens these questions by combining two approaches: First, an original inquiry that analyses the notions of chance, fate, event, contradiction, and so forth, and suggests that the distinction between potency and act arises from a confrontation with the impossible. Second, a historical inquiry that focuses on Aristotle and Duns Scotus, two key figures contributing to a fundamental transformation in the history of Western ontology; namely, the transition from a metaphysics of nature (Aristotle) to a metaphysics of the will (Scotus). In doing so, this book departs from the prevailing interpretation of the history of modal logic according to which Scotus rejected the principle of plenitude attributed to Aristotle and replaced the ancient diachronic theory of possibilities with a synchronic one, thereby contributing to a Opossible worldOs semantics.O Rather, Massie argues that in its proper ontological import, the question of possibility concerns the limit between being and non-being and that this limit must be thought in terms of temporality. With Scotus, however, a radical shift occurs. Possibilities are understood in terms of will, creation, omnipotence, and transcending freedom. As such, they belong to the realm of what is supremely actual (i.e., superabundant activity). What used to be understood as a lesser degree of being (the quasi non-being of uninformed matter and mere possibilities) becomes the mark of omnipotence.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

If we are to distinguish mere non-being from that which is not, yet may be, from that which was not, yet could have been, or from that which will not be, yet could become, we are committed in some way to grant being to possibilities. The possible is not actual; yet it is not nothing. What then could it be? What ontological status could it possess? In Contingency, Time, and Possibility: An Essay on Aristotle and Duns Scotus, Pascal Massie opens these questions by combining two approaches: First, an original inquiry that analyses the notions of chance, fate, event, contradiction, and so forth, and suggests that the distinction between potency and act arises from a confrontation with the impossible. Second, a historical inquiry that focuses on Aristotle and Duns Scotus, two key figures contributing to a fundamental transformation in the history of Western ontology; namely, the transition from a metaphysics of nature (Aristotle) to a metaphysics of the will (Scotus). In doing so, this book departs from the prevailing interpretation of the history of modal logic according to which Scotus rejected the principle of plenitude attributed to Aristotle and replaced the ancient diachronic theory of possibilities with a synchronic one, thereby contributing to a Opossible worldOs semantics.O Rather, Massie argues that in its proper ontological import, the question of possibility concerns the limit between being and non-being and that this limit must be thought in terms of temporality. With Scotus, however, a radical shift occurs. Possibilities are understood in terms of will, creation, omnipotence, and transcending freedom. As such, they belong to the realm of what is supremely actual (i.e., superabundant activity). What used to be understood as a lesser degree of being (the quasi non-being of uninformed matter and mere possibilities) becomes the mark of omnipotence.

More books from Lexington Books

Cover of the book Philosophy of Childhood Today by Pascal Massie
Cover of the book Eisenhower at the Dawn of the Space Age by Pascal Massie
Cover of the book Urbanization and Party Survival in China by Pascal Massie
Cover of the book Neonationalist Mythology in Postwar Japan by Pascal Massie
Cover of the book State–Society Relations and Governance in China by Pascal Massie
Cover of the book The Rhetorical Invention of Man by Pascal Massie
Cover of the book Augustine and Kierkegaard by Pascal Massie
Cover of the book Mark Twain's Audience by Pascal Massie
Cover of the book The Political Theory of a Compound Republic by Pascal Massie
Cover of the book Fractured Fandoms by Pascal Massie
Cover of the book The Poetics of Tenderness by Pascal Massie
Cover of the book Socrates’ Request and the Educational Narrative of the Timaeus by Pascal Massie
Cover of the book Beer Culture in Theory and Practice by Pascal Massie
Cover of the book Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean by Pascal Massie
Cover of the book Puerto Rican Identity, Political Development, and Democracy in New York, 1960–1990 by Pascal Massie
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy