Aquinas' First Way Flashcards
What is it from?
Motion
What does it say about the universe?
That everything is in a state of potentiality or actuality.
Define potentiality.
Having the potential for movement/change/growth
Define actuality.
In a state of fixed progression from potentiality, a ‘final stage’ of sorts
What does the argument say about movement? Why can nothing move itself?
Nothing can move itself
Who believed that objects have the potential to become something else? What example did they use?
Aristotle, marble statue example = block of marble has the potential to become a statue.
What did Aristotle propose that Aquinas developed on from?
The 4 causes
- Final
- Efficient
- Material
- Formal
Why can nothing move itself?
Because everything is in either a state of actuality or potentiality, then it has either got potential or has already progressed from said potentiality with aid from another object in the state of actuality. Nothing can be in both potentiality and actuality.
What example does Aquinas use for the motion argument? Explain it.
The hot/cold wood argument, he said that cold wood has the potential to become hot wood because it possesses the property of ‘hotness’, without this, it would not have the potential to become hot wood.
What does the hot wood example stress the importance of?
An efficient cause - fire
Who proposed the train example?
20th century philosopher JL Mackie
What does the train example aim to do?
Aims to explain why there cannot be an infinite regress of actual moving potential.
What phrase does Aquinas adopt when speaking of an infinite regress?
Ad infinitum
Explain the train example.
Uses the analogy of a train.
- We see trains moving all the time
- If carriages are moving, then they are in a state of actuality.
- In order to have got here, they must have needed an efficient cause (nothing can move itself).
- This efficient cause is the carriage in front, and so on .
- This, however, cannot go on ad infinitum as the carriages themselves cannot move (nothing can move itself) yet we still need an explanation as to what moves each carriage that moves the carriage behind it.
- We know there must be something because nothing can move itself, so in theory the carriages should not be moving, but they are.
- This is the engine, the thing bringing about motion in the carriages and the explanation for the movement.
- Likened to God, the engine is the prime mover, existing in pure actuality.
Why is a Prime Mover necessary?
Without one, we would have to deny movement, something Aquinas said was impossible, as if each thing is moved by the next, then this HAS to lead to a catalyst, a starting movement of them all - God.
