Alexander of Aphrodisias on Aristotle's Theory of the Stoic Indemonstrables

In Mi-Kyoung Lee (ed.), Strategies of Argument: Essays in Ancient Ethics, Epistemology, and Logic. NY: Oxford University Press. pp. 199-227 (2014)
  Copy   BIBTEX

Abstract

ABSTRACT: Alexander of Aphrodisias’ commentaries on Aristotle’s Organon are valuable sources for both Stoic and early Peripatetic logic, and have often been used as such – in particular for early Peripatetic hypothetical syllogistic and Stoic propositional logic. By contrast, this paper explores the role Alexander himself played in the development and transmission of those theories. There are three areas in particular where he seems to have made a difference: First, he drew a connection between certain passages from Aristotle’s Topics and Prior Analytics and the Stoic indemonstrable arguments, and, based on this connection, appropriated at least four kinds of Stoic indemonstrables as Aristotelian. Second, he developed and made use of a specifically Peripatetic terminology in which to describe and discuss those arguments – which facilitated the integration of the indemonstrables into Peripatetic logic. Third, he made some progress towards a solution to the problem of what place and interpretation the Stoic third indemonstrables should be given in a Peripatetic and Platonist setting. Overall, the picture emerges that Alexander persistently (if not always consistently) presented passages from Aristotle’s logical œuvre in a light that makes it appear as if Aristotle was in the possession of a Peripatetic correlate to the Stoic theory of indemonstrables.

Other Versions

No versions found

Links

PhilArchive

External links

  • This entry has no external links. Add one.
Setup an account with your affiliations in order to access resources via your University's proxy server

Through your library

Similar books and articles

Logic: The Stoics (Part Two).Susanne Bobzien - 1999 - In Keimpe Algra, Jonathan Barnes, Jaap Mansfeld & Malcolm Schofield (eds.), The Cambridge History of Hellenistic Philosophy. New York: Cambridge University Press.
Stoic Syllogistic.Susanne Bobzien - 1996 - Oxford Studies in Ancient Philosophy 14:133-92.
Stoic Logic.Susanne Bobzien - 2003 - In Brad Inwood (ed.), The Cambridge Companion to Stoic Philosophy. Cambridge University Press.
Ancient logic.Susanne Bobzien - 2012 - In Ed Zalta (ed.), Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Stanford, CA: Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.

Analytics

Added to PP
2013-04-02

Downloads
1,421 (#11,755)

6 months
156 (#26,829)

Historical graph of downloads
How can I increase my downloads?

Author's Profile

Susanne Bobzien
University of Oxford

References found in this work

Stoic Syllogistic.Susanne Bobzien - 1996 - Oxford Studies in Ancient Philosophy 14:133-92.
Die stoische Logik.Michael Frede - 1974 - Göttingen: Vandenhoeck und Ruprecht.
Die Stoische Logik.Michael Frede - 1974 - Mind 86 (342):286-289.
Wholly Hypothetical Syllogisms.Susanne Bobzien - 2000 - Phronesis 45 (2):87-137.

View all 14 references / Add more references