Ancient Philosophical Influences Flashcards
Material Cause
the substance of which the thing is made. eg wood, bricks, nails.
Formal Cause
its design that shapes the formal concept. eg a carpenter, designer.
Efficient Cause
its maker or builder
Final Cause
its purpose or function eg a table, a house, a church
Metaphysics
a major branch of philosophy. it concerns existence and the nature of things that exist. altogether it is a theory of reality.
A Priori
relating to what can be known through an understanding of how certain things work rather than an observation.
Logical Reasoning
the process of using rational, systematic series of steps to arrive at a conclusion.
Theory of the forms
Plato’s theory that everything on earth is an inferior copy of ideal forms in a permanent spiritual reality. thus there are forms not only of objects such as tables and chairs, but also of concepts such as number or beauty. the highest form is the form of the good
The form of the good
the form of the good is the ultimate object of knowledge, it is only once one grasps the form of the good that one reaches the highest grade of understanding.
Analogy of the cave
an analogy put forward by Plato to help people understand the theory of the forms.
empiricism
the theory that all knowledge is based on experience derived from the senses.
four causes
Aristotle’s that all things within the universe centred on the four causes of being. they are the material, formal, efficient and the final cause.
teleology
from the Greek telos, meaning end or purpose is the philosophical study of nature by attempting to describe things in terms of their apparent purpose or goal.
Unmoved mover
the unmoved mover or prime mover is a concept advanced by Aristotle as a primary cause or ‘mover’ of all motion in the universe.
Eternal
lasting or existing forever; without end
