CATEGORIES
by Aristotle
translated by E. M. Edghill
CHAPTER 1
Things are said to be named 'equivocally'
when, though they have a common name, the
definition corresponding with the name differs
for each. Thus, a real man and a figure in
a picture can both lay claim to the name
'animal'; yet these are equivocally so named,
for, though they have a common name, the
definition corresponding with the name differs
for each. For should any one define in what
sense each is an animal, his definition in
the one case will be appropriate to that
case only.
On the other hand, things are said to be
named 'univocally' which have both the name
and the definition answering to the name
in common. A man and an ox are both 'animal',
and these are univocally so named, inasmuch
as not only the name, but also the definition,
is the same in both cases: for if a man should
state in what sense each is an animal, the
statement in the one case would be identical
with that in the other.
Things are said to be named 'derivatively',
which derive their name from some other name,
but differ from it in termination. Thus the
grammarian derives his name from the word
'grammar', and the courageous man from the
word 'courage'.
CHAPTER 2
Forms of speech are either simple or composite.
Examples of the latter are such expressions
as 'the man runs', 'the man wins'; of the
former 'man', 'ox', 'runs', 'wins'.
Of things themselves some are predicable
of a subject, and are never present in a
subject. Thus 'man' is predicable of the
individual man, and is never present in a
subject.
By being 'present in a subject' I do not
mean present as parts are present in a whole,
but being incapable of existence apart from
the said subject.
Some things, again, are present in a subject,
but are never predicable of a subject. For
instance, a certain point of grammatical
knowledge is present in the mind, but is
not predicable of any subject; or again,
a certain whiteness may be present in the
body (for colour requires a material basis),
yet it is never predicable of anything.
Other things, again, are both predicable
of a subject and present in a subject. Thus
while knowledge is present in the human mind,
it is predicable of grammar.
There is, lastly, a class of things which
are neither present in a subject nor predicable
of a subject, such as the individual man
or the individual horse. But, to speak more
generally, that which is individual and has
the character of a unit is never predicable
of a subject. Yet in some cases there is
nothing to prevent such being present in
a subject. Thus a certain point of grammatical
knowledge is present in a subject.
CHAPTER 3
When one thing is predicated of another,
all that which is predicable of the predicate
will be predicable also of the subject. Thus,
'man' is predicated of the individual man;
but 'animal' is predicated of 'man'; it will,
therefore, be predicable of the individual
man also: for the individual man is both
'man' and 'animal'.
If genera are different and co-ordinate,
their differentiae are themselves different
in kind. Take as an instance the genus 'animal'
and the genus 'knowledge'. 'With feet', 'two-footed',
'winged', 'aquatic', are differentiae of
'animal'; the species of knowledge are not
distinguished by the same differentiae. One
species of knowledge does not differ from
another in being 'two-footed'.
But where one genus is subordinate to another,
there is nothing to prevent their having
the same differentiae: for the greater class
is predicated of the lesser, so that all
the differentiae of the predicate will be
differentiae also of the subject.
CHAPTER 4
Expressions which are in no way composite
signify substance, quantity, quality, relation,
place, time, position, state, action, or
affection. To sketch my meaning roughly,
examples of substance are 'man' or 'the horse',
of quantity, such terms as 'two cubits long'
or 'three cubits long', of quality, such
attributes as 'white', 'grammatical'. 'Double',
'half', 'greater', fall under the category
of relation; 'in the market place', 'in the
Lyceum', under that of place; 'yesterday',
'last year', under that of time. 'Lying',
'sitting', are terms indicating position,
'shod', 'armed', state; 'to lance', 'to cauterize',
action; 'to be lanced', 'to be cauterized',
affection.
No one of these terms, in and by itself,
involves an affirmation; it is by the combination
of such terms that positive or negative statements
arise. For every assertion must, as is admitted,
be either true or false, whereas expressions
which are not in any way composite such as
'man', 'white', 'runs', 'wins', cannot be
either true or false.
CHAPTER 5
Substance, in the truest and primary and
most definite sense of the word, is that
which is neither predicable of a subject
nor present in a subject; for instance, the
individual man or horse. But in a secondary
sense those things are called substances
within which, as species, the primary substances
are included; also those which, as genera,
include the species. For instance, the individual
man is included in the species 'man', and
the genus to which the species belongs is
'animal'; these, therefore- that is to say,
the species 'man' and the genus 'animal'-
are termed secondary substances.
It is plain from what has been said that
both the name and the definition of the predicate
must be predicable of the subject. For instance,
'man' is predicted of the individual man.
Now in this case the name of the species
'man' is applied to the individual, for we
use the term 'man' in describing the individual;
and the definition of 'man' will also be
predicated of the individual man, for the
individual man is both man and animal. Thus,
both the name and the definition of the species
are predicable of the individual.
With regard, on the other hand, to those
things which are present in a subject, it
is generally the case that neither their
name nor their definition is predicable of
that in which they are present. Though, however,
the definition is never predicable, there
is nothing in certain cases to prevent the
name being used. For instance, 'white' being
present in a body is predicated of that in
which it is present, for a body is called
white: the definition, however, of the colour
'white' is never predicable of the body.
Everything except primary substances is either
predicable of a primary substance or present
in a primary substance. This becomes evident
by reference to particular instances which
occur. 'Animal' is predicated of the species
'man', therefore of the individual man, for
if there were no individual man of whom it
could be predicated, it could not be predicated
of the species 'man' at all. Again, colour
is present in body, therefore in individual
bodies, for if there were no individual body
in which it was present, it could not be
present in body at all. Thus everything except
primary substances is either predicated of
primary substances, or is present in them,
and if these last did not exist, it would
be impossible for anything else to exist.
Of secondary substances, the species is more
truly substance than the genus, being more
nearly related to primary substance. For
if any one should render an account of what
a primary substance is, he would render a
more instructive account, and one more proper
to the subject, by stating the species than
by stating the genus. Thus, he would give
a more instructive account of an individual
man by stating that he was man than by stating
that he was animal, for the former description
is peculiar to the individual in a greater
degree, while the latter is too general.
Again, the man who gives an account of the
nature of an individual tree will give a
more instructive account by mentioning the
species 'tree' than by mentioning the genus
'plant'.
Moreover, primary substances are most properly
called substances in virtue of the fact that
they are the entities which underlie everything
else, and that everything else is either
predicated of them or present in them. Now
the same relation which subsists between
primary substance and everything else subsists
also between the species and the genus: for
the species is to the genus as subject is
to predicate, since the genus is predicated
of the species, whereas the species cannot
be predicated of the genus. Thus we have
a second ground for asserting that the species
is more truly substance than the genus.
Of species themselves, except in the case
of such as are genera, no one is more truly
substance than another. We should not give
a more appropriate account of the individual
man by stating the species to which he belonged,
than we should of an individual horse by
adopting the same method of definition. In
the same way, of primary substances, no one
is more truly substance than another; an
individual man is not more truly substance
than an individual ox.
It is, then, with good reason that of all
that remains, when we exclude primary substances,
we concede to species and genera alone the
name 'secondary substance', for these alone
of all the predicates convey a knowledge
of primary substance. For it is by stating
the species or the genus that we appropriately
define any individual man; and we shall make
our definition more exact by stating the
former than by stating the latter. All other
things that we state, such as that he is
white, that he runs, and so on, are irrelevant
to the definition. Thus it is just that these
alone, apart from primary substances, should
be called substances.
Further, primary substances are most properly
so called, because they underlie and are
the subjects of everything else. Now the
same relation that subsists between primary
substance and everything else subsists also
between the species and the genus to which
the primary substance belongs, on the one
hand, and every attribute which is not included
within these, on the other. For these are
the subjects of all such. If we call an individual
man 'skilled in grammar', the predicate is
applicable also to the species and to the
genus to which he belongs. This law holds
good in all cases.
It is a common characteristic of all substance
that it is never present in a subject. For
primary substance is neither present in a
subject nor predicated of a subject; while,
with regard to secondary substances, it is
clear from the following arguments (apart
from others) that they are not present in
a subject. For 'man' is predicated of the
individual man, but is not present in any
subject: for manhood is not present in the
individual man. In the same way, 'animal'
is also predicated of the individual man,
but is not present in him. Again, when a
thing is present in a subject, though the
name may quite well be applied to that in
which it is present, the definition cannot
be applied. Yet of secondary substances,
not only the name, but also the definition,
applies to the subject: we should use both
the definition of the species and that of
the genus with reference to the individual
man. Thus substance cannot be present in
a subject.
Yet this is not peculiar to substance, for
it is also the case that differentiae cannot
be present in subjects. The characteristics
'terrestrial' and 'two-footed' are predicated
of the species 'man', but not present in
it. For they are not in man. Moreover, the
definition of the differentia may be predicated
of that of which the differentia itself is
predicated. For instance, if the characteristic
'terrestrial' is predicated of the species
'man', the definition also of that characteristic
may be used to form the predicate of the
species 'man': for 'man' is terrestrial.
The fact that the parts of substances appear
to be present in the whole, as in a subject,
should not make us apprehensive lest we should
have to admit that such parts are not substances:
for in explaining the phrase 'being present
in a subject', we stated that we meant 'otherwise
than as parts in a whole'.
It is the mark of substances and of differentiae
that, in all propositions of which they form
the predicate, they are predicated univocally.
For all such propositions have for their
subject either the individual or the species.
It is true that, inasmuch as primary substance
is not predicable of anything, it can never
form the predicate of any proposition. But
of secondary substances, the species is predicated
of the individual, the genus both of the
species and of the individual. Similarly
the differentiae are predicated of the species
and of the individuals. Moreover, the definition
of the species and that of the genus are
applicable to the primary substance, and
that of the genus to the species. For all
that is predicated of the predicate will
be predicated also of the subject. Similarly,
the definition of the differentiae will be
applicable to the species and to the individuals.
But it was stated above that the word 'univocal'
was applied to those things which had both
name and definition in common. It is, therefore,
established that in every proposition, of
which either substance or a differentia forms
the predicate, these are predicated univocally.
All substance appears to signify that which
is individual. In the case of primary substance
this is indisputably true, for the thing
is a unit. In the case of secondary substances,
when we speak, for instance, of 'man' or
'animal', our form of speech gives the impression
that we are here also indicating that which
is individual, but the impression is not
strictly true; for a secondary substance
is not an individual, but a class with a
certain qualification; for it is not one
and single as a primary substance is; the
words 'man', 'animal', are predicable of
more than one subject.
Yet species and genus do not merely indicate
quality, like the term 'white'; 'white' indicates
quality and nothing further, but species
and genus determine the quality with reference
to a substance: they signify substance qualitatively
differentiated. The determinate qualification
covers a larger field in the case of the
genus that in that of the species: he who
uses the word 'animal' is herein using a
word of wider extension than he who uses
the word 'man'.
Another mark of substance is that it has
no contrary. What could be the contrary of
any primary substance, such as the individual
man or animal? It has none. Nor can the species
or the genus have a contrary. Yet this characteristic
is not peculiar to substance, but is true
of many other things, such as quantity. There
is nothing that forms the contrary of 'two
cubits long' or of 'three cubits long', or
of 'ten', or of any such term. A man may
contend that 'much' is the contrary of 'little',
or 'great' of 'small', but of definite quantitative
terms no contrary exists.
Substance, again, does not appear to admit
of variation of degree. I do not mean by
this that one substance cannot be more or
less truly substance than another, for it
has already been stated that this is the
case; but that no single substance admits
of varying degrees within itself. For instance,
one particular substance, 'man', cannot be
more or less man either than himself at some
other time or than some other man. One man
cannot be more man than another, as that
which is white may be more or less white
than some other white object, or as that
which is beautiful may be more or less beautiful
than some other beautiful object. The same
quality, moreover, is said to subsist in
a thing in varying degrees at different times.
A body, being white, is said to be whiter
at one time than it was before, or, being
warm, is said to be warmer or less warm than
at some other time. But substance is not
said to be more or less that which it is:
a man is not more truly a man at one time
than he was before, nor is anything, if it
is substance, more or less what it is. Substance,
then, does not admit of variation of degree.
The most distinctive mark of substance appears
to be that, while remaining numerically one
and the same, it is capable of admitting
contrary qualities. From among things other
than substance, we should find ourselves
unable to bring forward any which possessed
this mark. Thus, one and the same colour
cannot be white and black. Nor can the same
one action be good and bad: this law holds
good with everything that is not substance.
But one and the selfsame substance, while
retaining its identity, is yet capable of
admitting contrary qualities. The same individual
person is at one time white, at another black,
at one time warm, at another cold, at one
time good, at another bad. This capacity
is found nowhere else, though it might be
maintained that a statement or opinion was
an exception to the rule. The same statement,
it is agreed, can be both true and false.
For if the statement 'he is sitting' is true,
yet, when the person in question has risen,
the same statement will be false. The same
applies to opinions. For if any one thinks
truly that a person is sitting, yet, when
that person has risen, this same opinion,
if still held, will be false. Yet although
this exception may be allowed, there is,
nevertheless, a difference in the manner
in which the thing takes place. It is by
themselves changing that substances admit
contrary qualities. It is thus that that
which was hot becomes cold, for it has entered
into a different state. Similarly that which
was white becomes black, and that which was
bad good, by a process of change; and in
the same way in all other cases it is by
changing that substances are capable of admitting
contrary qualities. But statements and opinions
themselves remain unaltered in all respects:
it is by the alteration in the facts of the
case that the contrary quality comes to be
theirs. The statement 'he is sitting' remains
unaltered, but it is at one time true, at
another false, according to circumstances.
What has been said of statements applies
also to opinions. Thus, in respect of the
manner in which the thing takes place, it
is the peculiar mark of substance that it
should be capable of admitting contrary qualities;
for it is by itself changing that it does
so.
If, then, a man should make this exception
and contend that statements and opinions
are capable of admitting contrary qualities,
his contention is unsound. For statements
and opinions are said to have this capacity,
not because they themselves undergo modification,
but because this modification occurs in the
case of something else. The truth or falsity
of a statement depends on facts, and not
on any power on the part of the statement
itself of admitting contrary qualities. In
short, there is nothing which can alter the
nature of statements and opinions. As, then,
no change takes place in themselves, these
cannot be said to be capable of admitting
contrary qualities.
But it is by reason of the modification which
takes place within the substance itself that
a substance is said to be capable of admitting
contrary qualities; for a substance admits
within itself either disease or health, whiteness
or blackness. It is in this sense that it
is said to be capable of admitting contrary
qualities.
To sum up, it is a distinctive mark of substance,
that, while remaining numerically one and
the same, it is capable of admitting contrary
qualities, the modification taking place
through a change in the substance itself.
Let these remarks suffice on the subject
of substance.
CHAPTER 6
Quantity is either discrete or continuous.
Moreover, some quantities are such that each
part of the whole has a relative position
to the other parts: others have within them
no such relation of part to part.
Instances of discrete quantities are number
and speech; of continuous, lines, surfaces,
solids, and, besides these, time and place.
In the case of the parts of a number, there
is no common boundary at which they join.
For example: two fives make ten, but the
two fives have no common boundary, but are
separate; the parts three and seven also
do not join at any boundary. Nor, to generalize,
would it ever be possible in the case of
number that there should be a common boundary
among the parts; they are always separate.
Number, therefore, is a discrete quantity.
The same is true of speech. That speech is
a quantity is evident: for it is measured
in long and short syllables. I mean here
that speech which is vocal. Moreover, it
is a discrete quantity for its parts have
no common boundary. There is no common boundary
at which the syllables join, but each is
separate and distinct from the rest.
A line, on the other hand, is a continuous
quantity, for it is possible to find a common
boundary at which its parts join. In the
case of the line, this common boundary is
the point; in the case of the plane, it is
the line: for the parts of the plane have
also a common boundary. Similarly you can
find a common boundary in the case of the
parts of a solid, namely either a line or
a plane.
Space and time also belong to this class
of quantities. Time, past, present, and future,
forms a continuous whole. Space, likewise,
is a continuous quantity; for the parts of
a solid occupy a certain space, and these
have a common boundary; it follows that the
parts of space also, which are occupied by
the parts of the solid, have the same common
boundary as the parts of the solid. Thus,
not only time, but space also, is a continuous
quantity, for its parts have a common boundary.
Quantities consist either of parts which
bear a relative position each to each, or
of parts which do not. The parts of a line
bear a relative position to each other, for
each lies somewhere, and it would be possible
to distinguish each, and to state the position
of each on the plane and to explain to what
sort of part among the rest each was contiguous.
Similarly the parts of a plane have position,
for it could similarly be stated what was
the position of each and what sort of parts
were contiguous. The same is true with regard
to the solid and to space. But it would be
impossible to show that the parts of a number
had a relative position each to each, or
a particular position, or to state what parts
were contiguous. Nor could this be done in
the case of time, for none of the parts of
time has an abiding existence, and that which
does not abide can hardly have position.
It would be better to say that such parts
had a relative order, in virtue of one being
prior to another. Similarly with number:
in counting, 'one' is prior to 'two', and
'two' to 'three', and thus the parts of number
may be said to possess a relative order,
though it would be impossible to discover
any distinct position for each. This holds
good also in the case of speech. None of
its parts has an abiding existence: when
once a syllable is pronounced, it is not
possible to retain it, so that, naturally,
as the parts do not abide, they cannot have
position. Thus, some quantities consist of
parts which have position, and some of those
which have not.
Strictly speaking, only the things which
I have mentioned belong to the category of
quantity: everything else that is called
quantitative is a quantity in a secondary
sense. It is because we have in mind some
one of these quantities, properly so called,
that we apply quantitative terms to other
things. We speak of what is white as large,
because the surface over which the white
extends is large; we speak of an action or
a process as lengthy, because the time covered
is long; these things cannot in their own
right claim the quantitative epithet. For
instance, should any one explain how long
an action was, his statement would be made
in terms of the time taken, to the effect
that it lasted a year, or something of that
sort. In the same way, he would explain the
size of a white object in terms of surface,
for he would state the area which it covered.
Thus the things already mentioned, and these
alone, are in their intrinsic nature quantities;
nothing else can claim the name in its own
right, but, if at all, only in a secondary
sense.
Quantities have no contraries. In the case
of definite quantities this is obvious; thus,
there is nothing that is the contrary of
'two cubits long' or of 'three cubits long',
or of a surface, or of any such quantities.
A man might, indeed, argue that 'much' was
the contrary of 'little', and 'great' of
'small'. But these are not quantitative,
but relative; things are not great or small
absolutely, they are so called rather as
the result of an act of comparison. For instance,
a mountain is called small, a grain large,
in virtue of the fact that the latter is
greater than others of its kind, the former
less. Thus there is a reference here to an
external standard, for if the terms 'great'
and 'small' were used absolutely, a mountain
would never be called small or a grain large.
Again, we say that there are many people
in a village, and few in Athens, although
those in the city are many times as numerous
as those in the village: or we say that a
house has many in it, and a theatre few,
though those in the theatre far outnumber
those in the house. The terms 'two cubits
long', 'three cubits long,' and so on indicate
quantity, the terms 'great' and 'small' indicate
relation, for they have reference to an external
standard. It is, therefore, plain that these
are to be classed as relative.
Again, whether we define them as quantitative
or not, they have no contraries: for how
can there be a contrary of an attribute which
is not to be apprehended in or by itself,
but only by reference to something external?
Again, if 'great' and 'small' are contraries,
it will come about that the same subject
can admit contrary qualities at one and the
same time, and that things will themselves
be contrary to themselves. For it happens
at times that the same thing is both small
and great. For the same thing may be small
in comparison with one thing, and great in
comparison with another, so that the same
thing comes to be both small and great at
one and the same time, and is of such a nature
as to admit contrary qualities at one and
the same moment. Yet it was agreed, when
substance was being discussed, that nothing
admits contrary qualities at one and the
same moment. For though substance is capable
of admitting contrary qualities, yet no one
is at the same time both sick and healthy,
nothing is at the same time both white and
black. Nor is there anything which is qualified
in contrary ways at one and the same time.
Moreover, if these were contraries, they
would themselves be contrary to themselves.
For if 'great' is the contrary of 'small',
and the same thing is both great and small
at the same time, then 'small' or 'great'
is the contrary of itself. But this is impossible.
The term 'great', therefore, is not the contrary
of the term 'small', nor 'much' of 'little'.
And even though a man should call these terms
not relative but quantitative, they would
not have contraries.
It is in the case of space that quantity
most plausibly appears to admit of a contrary.
For men define the term 'above' as the contrary
of 'below', when it is the region at the
centre they mean by 'below'; and this is
so, because nothing is farther from the extremities
of the universe than the region at the centre.
Indeed, it seems that in defining contraries
of every kind men have recourse to a spatial
metaphor, for they say that those things
are contraries which, within the same class,
are separated by the greatest possible distance.
Quantity does not, it appears, admit of variation
of degree. One thing cannot be two cubits
long in a greater degree than another. Similarly
with regard to number: what is 'three' is
not more truly three than what is 'five'
is five; nor is one set of three more truly
three than another set. Again, one period
of time is not said to be more truly time
than another. Nor is there any other kind
of quantity, of all that have been mentioned,
with regard to which variation of degree
can be predicated. The category of quantity,
therefore, does not admit of variation of
degree.
The most distinctive mark of quantity is
that equality and inequality are predicated
of it. Each of the aforesaid quantities is
said to be equal or unequal. For instance,
one solid is said to be equal or unequal
to another; number, too, and time can have
these terms applied to them, as indeed can
all those kinds of quantity that have been
mentioned.
That which is not a quantity can by no means,
it would seem, be termed equal or unequal
to anything else. One particular disposition
or one particular quality, such as whiteness,
is by no means compared with another in terms
of equality and inequality but rather in
terms of similarity. Thus it is the distinctive
mark of quantity that it can be called equal
and unequal.
CHAPTER 7
Those things are called relative, which,
being either said to be of something else
or related to something else, are explained
by reference to that other thing. For instance,
the word 'superior' is explained by reference
to something else, for it is superiority
over something else that is meant. Similarly,
the expression 'double' has this external
reference, for it is the double of something
else that is meant. So it is with everything
else of this kind. There are, moreover, other
relatives, e. g. habit, disposition, perception,
knowledge, and attitude. The significance
of all these is explained by a reference
to something else and in no other way. Thus,
a habit is a habit of something, knowledge
is knowledge of something, attitude is the
attitude of something. So it is with all
other relatives that have been mentioned.
Those terms, then, are called relative, the
nature of which is explained by reference
to something else, the preposition 'of' or
some other preposition being used to indicate
the relation. Thus, one mountain is called
great in comparison with another; for the
mountain claims this attribute by comparison
with something. Again, that which is called
similar must be similar to something else,
and all other such attributes have this external
reference. It is to be noted that lying and
standing and sitting are particular attitudes,
but attitude is itself a relative term. To
lie, to stand, to be seated, are not themselves
attitudes, but take their name from the aforesaid
attitudes.
It is possible for relatives to have contraries.
Thus virtue has a contrary, vice, these both
being relatives; knowledge, too, has a contrary,
ignorance. But this is not the mark of all
relatives; 'double' and 'triple' have no
contrary, nor indeed has any such term.
It also appears that relatives can admit
of variation of degree. For 'like' and 'unlike',
'equal' and 'unequal', have the modifications
'more' and 'less' applied to them, and each
of these is relative in character: for the
terms 'like' and 'unequal' bear a reference
to something external. Yet, again, it is
not every relative term that admits of variation
of degree. No term such as 'double' admits
of this modification. All relatives have
correlatives: by the term 'slave' we mean
the slave of a master; by the term 'master',
the master of a slave; by 'double', the double
of its half; by 'half', the half of its double;
by 'greater', greater than that which is
less; by 'less,' less than that which is
greater.
So it is with every other relative term;
but the case we use to express the correlation
differs in some instances. Thus, by knowledge
we mean knowledge of the knowable; by the
knowable, that which is to be apprehended
by knowledge; by perception, perception of
the perceptible; by the perceptible, that
which is apprehended by perception.
Sometimes, however, reciprocity of correlation
does not appear to exist. This comes about
when a blunder is made, and that to which
the relative is related is not accurately
stated. If a man states that a wing is necessarily
relative to a bird, the connexion between
these two will not be reciprocal, for it
will not be possible to say that a bird is
a bird by reason of its wings. The reason
is that the original statement was inaccurate,
for the wing is not said to be relative to
the bird qua bird, since many creatures besides
birds have wings, but qua winged creature.
If, then, the statement is made accurate,
the connexion will be reciprocal, for we
can speak of a wing having reference necessarily
to a winged creature, and of a winged creature
as being such because of its wings.
Occasionally, perhaps, it is necessary to
coin words, if no word exists by which a
correlation can adequately be explained.
If we define a rudder as necessarily having
reference to a boat, our definition will
not be appropriate, for the rudder does not
have this reference to a boat qua boat, as
there are boats which have no rudders. Thus
we cannot use the terms reciprocally, for
the word 'boat' cannot be said to find its
explanation in the word 'rudder'. As there
is no existing word, our definition would
perhaps be more accurate if we coined some
word like 'ruddered' as the correlative of
'rudder'. If we express ourselves thus accurately,
at any rate the terms are reciprocally connected,
for the 'ruddered' thing is 'ruddered' in
virtue of its rudder. So it is in all other
cases. A head will be more accurately defined
as the correlative of that which is 'headed',
than as that of an animal, for the animal
does not have a head qua animal, since many
animals have no head.
Thus we may perhaps most easily comprehend
that to which a thing is related, when a
name does not exist, if, from that which
has a name, we derive a new name, and apply
it to that with which the first is reciprocally
connected, as in the aforesaid instances,
when we derived the word 'winged' from 'wing'
and 'ruddered' from 'rudder'.
All relatives, then, if properly defined,
have a correlative. I add this condition
because, if that to which they are related
is stated as haphazard and not accurately,
the two are not found to be interdependent.
Let me state what I mean more clearly. Even
in the case of acknowledged correlatives,
and where names exist for each, there will
be no interdependence if one of the two is
denoted, not by that name which expresses
the correlative notion, but by one of irrelevant
significance. The term 'slave', if defined
as related, not to a master, but to a man,
or a biped, or anything of that sort, is
not reciprocally connected with that in relation
to which it is defined, for the statement
is not exact. Further, if one thing is said
to be correlative with another, and the terminology
used is correct, then, though all irrelevant
attributes should be removed, and only that
one attribute left in virtue of which it
was correctly stated to be correlative with
that other, the stated correlation will still
exist. If the correlative of 'the slave'
is said to be 'the master', then, though
all irrelevant attributes of the said 'master',
such as 'biped', 'receptive of knowledge',
'human', should be removed, and the attribute
'master' alone left, the stated correlation
existing between him and the slave will remain
the same, for it is of a master that a slave
is said to be the slave. On the other hand,
if, of two correlatives, one is not correctly
termed, then, when all other attributes are
removed and that alone is left in virtue
of which it was stated to be correlative,
the stated correlation will be found to have
disappeared.
For suppose the correlative of 'the slave'
should be said to be 'the man', or the correlative
of 'the wing' 'the bird'; if the attribute
'master' be withdrawn from 'the man', the
correlation between 'the man' and 'the slave'
will cease to exist, for if the man is not
a master, the slave is not a slave. Similarly,
if the attribute 'winged' be withdrawn from
'the bird', 'the wing' will no longer be
relative; for if the so-called correlative
is not winged, it follows that 'the wing'
has no correlative.
Thus it is essential that the correlated
terms should be exactly designated; if there
is a name existing, the statement will be
easy; if not, it is doubtless our duty to
construct names. When the terminology is
thus correct, it is evident that all correlatives
are interdependent.
Correlatives are thought to come into existence
simultaneously. This is for the most part
true, as in the case of the double and the
half. The existence of the half necessitates
the existence of that of which it is a half.
Similarly the existence of a master necessitates
the existence of a slave, and that of a slave
implies that of a master; these are merely
instances of a general rule. Moreover, they
cancel one another; for if there is no double
it follows that there is no half, and vice
versa; this rule also applies to all such
correlatives. Yet it does not appear to be
true in all cases that correlatives come
into existence simultaneously. The object
of knowledge would appear to exist before
knowledge itself, for it is usually the case
that we acquire knowledge of objects already
existing; it would be difficult, if not impossible,
to find a branch of knowledge the beginning
of the existence of which was contemporaneous
with that of its object.
Again, while the object of knowledge, if
it ceases to exist, cancels at the same time
the knowledge which was its correlative,
the converse of this is not true. It is true
that if the object of knowledge does not
exist there can be no knowledge: for there
will no longer be anything to know. Yet it
is equally true that, if knowledge of a certain
object does not exist, the object may nevertheless
quite well exist. Thus, in the case of the
squaring of the circle, if indeed that process
is an object of knowledge, though it itself
exists as an object of knowledge, yet the
knowledge of it has not yet come into existence.
Again, if all animals ceased to exist, there
would be no knowledge, but there might yet
be many objects of knowledge.
This is likewise the case with regard to
perception: for the object of perception
is, it appears, prior to the act of perception.
If the perceptible is annihilated, perception
also will cease to exist; but the annihilation
of perception does not cancel the existence
of the perceptible. For perception implies
a body perceived and a body in which perception
takes place. Now if that which is perceptible
is annihilated, it follows that the body
is annihilated, for the body is a perceptible
thing; and if the body does not exist, it
follows that perception also ceases to exist.
Thus the annihilation of the perceptible
involves that of perception.
But the annihilation of perception does not
involve that of the perceptible. For if the
animal is annihilated, it follows that perception
also is annihilated, but perceptibles such
as body, heat, sweetness, bitterness, and
so on, will remain.
Again, perception is generated at the same
time as the perceiving subject, for it comes
into existence at the same time as the animal.
But the perceptible surely exists before
perception; for fire and water and such elements,
out of which the animal is itself composed,
exist before the animal is an animal at all,
and before perception. Thus it would seem
that the perceptible exists before perception.
It may be questioned whether it is true that
no substance is relative, as seems to be
the case, or whether exception is to be made
in the case of certain secondary substances.
With regard to primary substances, it is
quite true that there is no such possibility,
for neither wholes nor parts of primary substances
are relative. The individual man or ox is
not defined with reference to something external.
Similarly with the parts: a particular hand
or head is not defined as a particular hand
or head of a particular person, but as the
hand or head of a particular person. It is
true also, for the most part at least, in
the case of secondary substances; the species
'man' and the species 'ox' are not defined
with reference to anything outside themselves.
Wood, again, is only relative in so far as
it is some one's property, not in so far
as it is wood. It is plain, then, that in
the cases mentioned substance is not relative.
But with regard to some secondary substances
there is a difference of opinion; thus, such
terms as 'head' and 'hand' are defined with
reference to that of which the things indicated
are a part, and so it comes about that these
appear to have a relative character. Indeed,
if our definition of that which is relative
was complete, it is very difficult, if not
impossible, to prove that no substance is
relative. If, however, our definition was
not complete, if those things only are properly
called relative in the case of which relation
to an external object is a necessary condition
of existence, perhaps some explanation of
the dilemma may be found.
The former definition does indeed apply to
all relatives, but the fact that a thing
is explained with reference to something
else does not make it essentially relative.
From this it is plain that, if a man definitely
apprehends a relative thing, he will also
definitely apprehend that to which it is
relative. Indeed this is self-evident: for
if a man knows that some particular thing
is relative, assuming that we call that a
relative in the case of which relation to
something is a necessary condition of existence,
he knows that also to which it is related.
For if he does not know at all that to which
it is related, he will not know whether or
not it is relative. This is clear, moreover,
in particular instances. If a man knows definitely
that such and such a thing is 'double', he
will also forthwith know definitely that
of which it is the double. For if there is
nothing definite of which he knows it to
be the double, he does not know at all that
it is double. Again, if he knows that a thing
is more beautiful, it follows necessarily
that he will forthwith definitely know that
also than which it is more beautiful. He
will not merely know indefinitely that it
is more beautiful than something which is
less beautiful, for this would be supposition,
not knowledge. For if he does not know definitely
that than which it is more beautiful, he
can no longer claim to know definitely that
it is more beautiful than something else
which is less beautiful: for it might be
that nothing was less beautiful. It is, therefore,
evident that if a man apprehends some relative
thing definitely, he necessarily knows that
also definitely to which it is related.
Now the head, the hand, and such things are
substances, and it is possible to know their
essential character definitely, but it does
not necessarily follow that we should know
that to which they are related. It is not
possible to know forthwith whose head or
hand is meant. Thus these are not relatives,
and, this being the case, it would be true
to say that no substance is relative in character.
It is perhaps a difficult matter, in such
cases, to make a positive statement without
more exhaustive examination, but to have
raised questions with regard to details is
not without advantage.
CHAPTER 8
By 'quality' I mean that in virtue of which
people are said to be such and such.
Quality is a term that is used in many senses.
One sort of quality let us call 'habit' or
'disposition'. Habit differs from disposition
in being more lasting and more firmly established.
The various kinds of knowledge and of virtue
are habits, for knowledge, even when acquired
only in a moderate degree, is, it is agreed,
abiding in its character and difficult to
displace, unless some great mental upheaval
takes place, through disease or any such
cause. The virtues, also, such as justice,
self-restraint, and so on, are not easily
dislodged or dismissed, so as to give place
to vice.
By a disposition, on the other hand, we mean
a condition that is easily changed and quickly
gives place to its opposite. Thus, heat,
cold, disease, health, and so on are dispositions.
For a man is disposed in one way or another
with reference to these, but quickly changes,
becoming cold instead of warm, ill instead
of well. So it is with all other dispositions
also, unless through lapse of time a disposition
has itself become inveterate and almost impossible
to dislodge: in which case we should perhaps
go so far as to call it a habit.
It is evident that men incline to call those
conditions habits which are of a more or
less permanent type and difficult to displace;
for those who are not retentive of knowledge,
but volatile, are not said to have such and
such a 'habit' as regards knowledge, yet
they are disposed, we may say, either better
or worse, towards knowledge. Thus habit differs
from disposition in this, that while the
latter in ephemeral, the former is permanent
and difficult to alter.
Habits are at the same time dispositions,
but dispositions are not necessarily habits.
For those who have some specific habit may
be said also, in virtue of that habit, to
be thus or thus disposed; but those who are
disposed in some specific way have not in
all cases the corresponding habit.
Another sort of quality is that in virtue
of which, for example, we call men good boxers
or runners, or healthy or sickly: in fact
it includes all those terms which refer to
inborn capacity or incapacity. Such things
are not predicated of a person in virtue
of his disposition, but in virtue of his
inborn capacity or incapacity to do something
with ease or to avoid defeat of any kind.
Persons are called good boxers or good runners,
not in virtue of such and such a disposition,
but in virtue of an inborn capacity to accomplish
something with ease. Men are called healthy
in virtue of the inborn capacity of easy
resistance to those unhealthy influences
that may ordinarily arise; unhealthy, in
virtue of the lack of this capacity. Similarly
with regard to softness and hardness. Hardness
is predicated of a thing because it has that
capacity of resistance which enables it to
withstand disintegration; softness, again,
is predicated of a thing by reason of the
lack of that capacity.
A third class within this category is that
of affective qualities and affections. Sweetness,
bitterness, sourness, are examples of this
sort of quality, together with all that is
akin to these; heat, moreover, and cold,
whiteness, and blackness are affective qualities.
It is evident that these are qualities, for
those things that possess them are themselves
said to be such and such by reason of their
presence. Honey is called sweet because it
contains sweetness; the body is called white
because it contains whiteness; and so in
all other cases.
The term 'affective quality' is not used
as indicating that those things which admit
these qualities are affected in any way.
Honey is not called sweet because it is affected
in a specific way, nor is this what is meant
in any other instance. Similarly heat and
cold are called affective qualities, not
because those things which admit them are
affected. What is meant is that these said
qualities are capable of producing an 'affection'
in the way of perception. For sweetness has
the power of affecting the sense of taste;
heat, that of touch; and so it is with the
rest of these qualities.
Whiteness and blackness, however, and the
other colours, are not said to be affective
qualities in this sense, but because they
themselves are the results of an affection.
It is plain that many changes of colour take
place because of affections. When a man is
ashamed, he blushes; when he is afraid, he
becomes pale, and so on. So true is this,
that when a man is by nature liable to such
affections, arising from some concomitance
of elements in his constitution, it is a
probable inference that he has the corresponding
complexion of skin. For the same disposition
of bodily elements, which in the former instance
was momentarily present in the case of an
access of shame, might be a result of a man's
natural temperament, so as to produce the
corresponding colouring also as a natural
characteristic. All conditions, therefore,
of this kind, if caused by certain permanent
and lasting affections, are called affective
qualities. For pallor and duskiness of complexion
are called qualities, inasmuch as we are
said to be such and such in virtue of them,
not only if they originate in natural constitution,
but also if they come about through long
disease or sunburn, and are difficult to
remove, or indeed remain throughout life.
For in the same way we are said to be such
and such because of these.
Those conditions, however, which arise from
causes which may easily be rendered ineffective
or speedily removed, are called, not qualities,
but affections: for we are not said to be
such and such in virtue of them. The man
who blushes through shame is not said to
be a constitutional blusher, nor is the man
who becomes pale through fear said to be
constitutionally pale. He is said rather
to have been affected. Thus such conditions
are called affections, not qualities.
In like manner there are affective qualities
and affections of the soul. That temper with
which a man is born and which has its origin
in certain deep-seated affections is called
a quality. I mean such conditions as insanity,
irascibility, and so on: for people are said
to be mad or irascible in virtue of these.
Similarly those abnormal psychic states which
are not inborn, but arise from the concomitance
of certain other elements, and are difficult
to remove, or altogether permanent, are called
qualities, for in virtue of them men are
said to be such and such.
Those, however, which arise from causes easily
rendered ineffective are called affections,
not qualities. Suppose that a man is irritable
when vexed: he is not even spoken of as a
bad-tempered man, when in such circumstances
he loses his temper somewhat, but rather
is said to be affected. Such conditions are
therefore termed, not qualities, but affections.
The fourth sort of quality is figure and
the shape that belongs to a thing; and besides
this, straightness and curvedness and any
other qualities of this type; each of these
defines a thing as being such and such. Because
it is triangular or quadrangular a thing
is said to have a specific character, or
again because it is straight or curved; in
fact a thing's shape in every case gives
rise to a qualification of it.
Rarity and density, roughness and smoothness,
seem to be terms indicating quality: yet
these, it would appear, really belong to
a class different from that of quality. For
it is rather a certain relative position
of the parts composing the thing thus qualified
which, it appears, is indicated by each of
these terms. A thing is dense, owing to the
fact that its parts are closely combined
with one another; rare, because there are
interstices between the parts; smooth, because
its parts lie, so to speak, evenly; rough,
because some parts project beyond others.
There may be other sorts of quality, but
those that are most properly so called have,
we may safely say, been enumerated.
These, then, are qualities, and the things
that take their name from them as derivatives,
or are in some other way dependent on them,
are said to be qualified in some specific
way. In most, indeed in almost all cases,
the name of that which is qualified is derived
from that of the quality. Thus the terms
'whiteness', 'grammar', 'justice', give us
the adjectives 'white', 'grammatical', 'just',
and so on.
There are some cases, however, in which,
as the quality under consideration has no
name, it is impossible that those possessed
of it should have a name that is derivative.
For instance, the name given to the runner
or boxer, who is so called in virtue of an
inborn capacity, is not derived from that
of any quality; for those capacities have
no name assigned to them. In this, the inborn
capacity is distinct from the science, with
reference to which men are called, e. g.
boxers or wrestlers. Such a science is classed
as a disposition; it has a name, and is called
'boxing' or 'wrestling' as the case may be,
and the name given to those disposed in this
way is derived from that of the
science. Sometimes, even though a name exists
for the quality, that which takes its character
from the quality has a name that is not a
derivative. For instance, the upright man
takes his character from the possession of
the quality of integrity, but the name given
him is not derived from the word 'integrity'.
Yet this does not occur often.
We may therefore state that those things
are said to be possessed of some specific
quality which have a name derived from that
of the aforesaid quality, or which are in
some other way dependent on it.
One quality may be the contrary of another;
thus justice is the contrary of injustice,
whiteness of blackness, and so on. The things,
also, which are said to be such and such
in virtue of these qualities, may be contrary
the one to the other; for that which is unjust
is contrary to that which is just, that which
is white to that which is black. This, however,
is not always the case. Red, yellow, and
such colours, though qualities, have no contraries.
If one of two contraries is a quality, the
other will also be a quality. This will be
evident from particular instances, if we
apply the names used to denote the other
categories; for instance, granted that justice
is the contrary of injustice and justice
is a quality, injustice will also be a quality:
neither quantity, nor relation, nor place,
nor indeed any other category but that of
quality, will be applicable properly to injustice.
So it is with all other contraries falling
under the category of quality.
Qualities admit of variation of degree. Whiteness
is predicated of one thing in a greater or
less degree than of another. This is also
the case with reference to justice. Moreover,
one and the same thing may exhibit a quality
in a greater degree than it did before: if
a thing is white, it may become whiter.
Though this is generally the case, there
are exceptions. For if we should say that
justice admitted of variation of degree,
difficulties might ensue, and this is true
with regard to all those qualities which
are dispositions. There are some, indeed,
who dispute the possibility of variation
here. They maintain that justice and health
cannot very well admit of variation of degree
themselves, but that people vary in the degree
in which they possess these qualities, and
that this is the case with grammatical learning
and all those qualities which are classed
as dispositions. However that may be, it
is an incontrovertible fact that the things
which in virtue of these qualities are said
to be what they are vary in the degree in
which they possess them; for one man is said
to be better versed in grammar, or more healthy
or just, than another, and so on.
The qualities expressed by the terms 'triangular'
and 'quadrangular' do not appear to admit
of variation of degree, nor indeed do any
that have to do with figure. For those things
to which the definition of the triangle or
circle is applicable are all equally triangular
or circular. Those, on the other hand, to
which the same definition is not applicable,
cannot be said to differ from one another
in degree; the square is no more a circle
than the rectangle, for to neither is the
definition of the circle appropriate. In
short, if the definition of the term proposed
is not applicable to both objects, they cannot
be compared. Thus it is not all qualities
which admit of variation of degree.
Whereas none of the characteristics I have
mentioned are peculiar to quality, the fact
that likeness and unlikeness can be predicated
with reference to quality only, gives to
that category its distinctive feature. One
thing is like another only with reference
to that in virtue of which it is such and
such; thus this forms the peculiar mark of
quality.
We must not be disturbed because it may be
argued that, though proposing to discuss
the category of quality, we have included
in it many relative terms. We did say that
habits and dispositions were relative. In
practically all such cases the genus is relative,
the individual not. Thus knowledge, as a
genus, is explained by reference to something
else, for we mean a knowledge of something.
But particular branches of knowledge are
not thus explained. The knowledge of grammar
is not relative to anything external, nor
is the knowledge of music, but these, if
relative at all, are relative only in virtue
of their genera; thus grammar is said to
be the knowledge of something, not the grammar
of something; similarly music is the knowledge
of something, not the music of something.
Thus individual branches of knowledge are
not relative. And it is because we possess
these individual branches of knowledge that
we are said to be such and such. It is these
that we actually possess: we are called experts
because we possess knowledge in some particular
branch. Those particular branches, therefore,
of knowledge, in virtue of which we are sometimes
said to be such and such, are themselves
qualities, and are not relative. Further,
if anything should happen to fall within
both the category of quality and that of
relation, there would be nothing extraordinary
in classing it under both these heads.
CHAPTER 9
Action and affection both admit of contraries
and also of variation of degree. Heating
is the contrary of cooling, being heated
of being cooled, being glad of being vexed.
Thus they admit of contraries. They also
admit of variation of degree: for it is possible
to heat in a greater or less degree; also
to be heated in a greater or less degree.
Thus action and affection also admit of variation
of degree. So much, then, is stated with
regard to these categories.
We spoke, moreover, of the category of position
when we were dealing with that of relation,
and stated that such terms derived their
names from those of the corresponding attitudes.
As for the rest, time, place, state, since
they are easily intelligible, I say no more
about them than was said at the beginning,
that in the category of state are included
such states as 'shod', 'armed', in that of
place 'in the Lyceum' and so on, as was explained
before.
CHAPTER 10
The proposed categories have, then, been
adequately dealt with.
We must next explain the various senses in
which the term 'opposite' is used. Things
are said to be opposed in four senses: (i)
as correlatives to one another, (ii) as contraries
to one another, (iii) as privatives to positives,
(iv) as affirmatives to negatives.
Let me sketch my meaning in outline. An instance
of the use of the word 'opposite' with reference
to correlatives is afforded by the expressions
'double' and 'half'; with reference to contraries
by 'bad' and 'good'. Opposites in the sense
of 'privatives' and 'positives' are 'blindness'
and 'sight'; in the sense of affirmatives
and negatives, the propositions 'he sits',
'he does not sit'.
(i) Pairs of opposites which fall under the
category of relation are explained by a reference
of the one to the other, the reference being
indicated by the preposition 'of' or by some
other preposition. Thus, double is a relative
term, for that which is double is explained
as the double of something. Knowledge, again,
is the opposite of the thing known, in the
same sense; and the thing known also is explained
by its relation to its opposite, knowledge.
For the thing known is explained as that
which is known by something; that is, by
knowledge. Such things, then, as are opposite
the one to the other in the sense of being
correlatives are explained by a reference
of the one to the other.
(ii) Pairs of opposites which are contraries
are not in any way interdependent, but are
contrary the one to the other. The good is
not spoken of as the good of the bad, but
as the contrary of the bad, nor is white
spoken of as the white of the black, but
as the contrary of the black. These two types
of opposition are therefore distinct. Those
contraries which are such that the subjects
in which they are naturally present, or of
which they are predicated, must necessarily
contain either the one or the other of them,
have no intermediate, but those in the case
of which no such necessity obtains, always
have an intermediate. Thus disease and health
are naturally present in the body of an animal,
and it is necessary that either the one or
the other should be present in the body of
an animal. Odd and even, again, are predicated
of number, and it is necessary that the one
or the other should be present in numbers.
Now there is no intermediate between the
terms of either of these two pairs. On the
other hand, in those contraries with regard
to which no such necessity obtains, we find
an intermediate. Blackness and whiteness
are naturally present in the body, but it
is not necessary that either the one or the
other should be present in the body, inasmuch
as it is not true to say that everybody must
be white or black. Badness and goodness,
again, are predicated of man, and of many
other things, but it is not necessary that
either the one quality or the other should
be present in that of which they are predicated:
it is not true to say that everything that
may be good or bad must be either good or
bad. These pairs of contraries have intermediates:
the intermediates between white and black
are grey, sallow, and all the other colours
that come between; the intermediate between
good and bad is that which is neither the
one nor the other.
Some intermediate qualities have names, such
as grey and sallow and all the other colours
that come between white and black; in other
cases, however, it is not easy to name the
intermediate, but we must define it as that
which is not either extreme, as in the case
of that which is neither good nor bad, neither
just nor unjust.
(iii) 'Privatives' and 'positives' have reference
to the same subject. Thus, sight and blindness
have reference to the eye. It is a universal
rule that each of a pair of opposites of
this type has reference to that to which
the particular 'positive' is natural. We
say that that which is capable of some particular
faculty or possession has suffered privation
when the faculty or possession in question
is in no way present in that in which, and
at the time at which, it should naturally
be present. We do not call that toothless
which has not teeth, or that blind which
has not sight, but rather that which has
not teeth or sight at the time when by nature
it should. For there are some creatures which
from birth are without sight, or without
teeth, but these are not called toothless
or blind.
To be without some faculty or to possess
it is not the same as the corresponding 'privative'
or 'positive'. 'Sight' is a 'positive', 'blindness'
a 'privative', but 'to possess sight' is
not equivalent to 'sight', 'to be blind'
is not equivalent to 'blindness'. Blindness
is a 'privative', to be blind is to be in
a state of privation, but is not a 'privative'.
Moreover, if 'blindness' were equivalent
to 'being blind', both would be predicated
of the same subject; but though a man is
said to be blind, he is by no means said
to be blindness.
To be in a state of 'possession' is, it appears,
the opposite of being in a state of 'privation',
just as 'positives' and 'privatives' themselves
are opposite. There is the same type of antithesis
in both cases; for just as blindness is opposed
to sight, so is being blind opposed to having
sight.
That which is affirmed or denied is not itself
affirmation or denial. By 'affirmation' we
mean an affirmative proposition, by 'denial'
a negative. Now, those facts which form the
matter of the affirmation or denial are not
propositions; yet these two are said to be
opposed in the same sense as the affirmation
and denial, for in this case also the type
of antithesis is the same. For as the affirmation
is opposed to the denial, as in the two propositions
'he sits', 'he does not sit', so also the
fact which constitutes the matter of the
proposition in one case is opposed to that
in the other, his sitting, that is to say,
to his not sitting.
It is evident that 'positives' and 'privatives'
are not opposed each to each in the same
sense as relatives. The one is not explained
by reference to the other; sight is not sight
of blindness, nor is any other preposition
used to indicate the relation. Similarly
blindness is not said to be blindness of
sight, but rather, privation of sight. Relatives,
moreover, reciprocate; if blindness, therefore,
were a relative, there would be a reciprocity
of relation between it and that with which
it was correlative. But this is not the case.
Sight is not called the sight of blindness.
That those terms which fall under the heads
of 'positives' and 'privatives' are not opposed
each to each as contraries, either, is plain
from the following facts: Of a pair of contraries
such that they have no intermediate, one
or the other must needs be present in the
subject in which they naturally subsist,
or of which they are predicated; for it is
those, as we proved, in the case of which
this necessity obtains, that have no intermediate.
Moreover, we cited health and disease, odd
and even, as instances. But those contraries
which have an intermediate are not subject
to any such necessity. It is not necessary
that every substance, receptive of such qualities,
should be either black or white, cold or
hot, for something intermediate between these
contraries may very well be present in the
subject. We proved, moreover, that those
contraries have an intermediate in the case
of which the said necessity does not obtain.
Yet when one of the two contraries is a constitutive
property of the subject, as it is a constitutive
property of fire to be hot, of snow to be
white, it is necessary determinately that
one of the two contraries, not one or the
other, should be present in the subject;
for fire cannot be cold, or snow black. Thus,
it is not the case here that one of the two
must needs be present in every subject receptive
of these qualities, but only in that subject
of which the one forms a constitutive property.
Moreover, in such cases it is one member
of the pair determinately, and not either
the one or the other, which must be present.
In the case of 'positives' and 'privatives',
on the other hand, neither of the aforesaid
statements holds good. For it is not necessary
that a subject receptive of the qualities
should always have either the one or the
other; that which has not yet advanced to
the state when sight is natural is not said
either to be blind or to see. Thus 'positives'
and 'privatives' do not belong to that class
of contraries which consists of those which
have no intermediate. On the other hand,
they do not belong either to that class which
consists of contraries which have an intermediate.
For under certain conditions it is necessary
that either the one or the other should form
part of the constitution of every appropriate
subject. For when a thing has reached the
stage when it is by nature capable of sight,
it will be said either to see or to be blind,
and that in an indeterminate sense, signifying
that the capacity may be either present or
absent; for it is not necessary either that
it should see or that it should be blind,
but that it should be either in the one state
or in the other. Yet in the case of those
contraries which have an intermediate we
found that it was never necessary that either
the one or the other should be present in
every appropriate subject, but only that
in certain subjects one of the pair should
be present, and that in a determinate sense.
It is, therefore, plain that 'positives'
and 'privatives' are not opposed each to
each in either of the senses in which contraries
are opposed.
Again, in the case of contraries, it is possible
that there should be changes from either
into the other, while the subject retains
its identity, unless indeed one of the contraries
is a constitutive property of that subject,
as heat is of fire. For it is possible that
that which is healthy should become diseased,
that which is white, black, that which is
cold, hot, that which is good, bad, that
which is bad, good. The bad man, if he is
being brought into a better way of life and
thought, may make some advance, however slight,
and if he should once improve, even ever
so little, it is plain that he might change
completely, or at any rate make very great
progress; for a man becomes more and more
easily moved to virtue, however small the
improvement was at first. It is, therefore,
natural to suppose that he will make yet
greater progress than he has made in the
past; and as this process goes on, it will
change him completely and establish him in
the contrary state, provided he is not hindered
by lack of time. In the case of 'positives'
and 'privatives', however, change in both
directions is impossible. There may be a
change from possession to privation, but
not from privation to possession. The man
who has become blind does not regain his
sight; the man who has become bald does not
regain his hair; the man who has lost his
teeth does not grow a new set. (iv) Statements
opposed as affirmation and negation belong
manifestly to a class which is distinct,
for in this case, and in this case only,
it is necessary for the one opposite to be
true and the other false.
Neither in the case of contraries, nor in
the case of correlatives, nor in the case
of 'positives' and 'privatives', is it necessary
for one to be true and the other false. Health
and disease are contraries: neither of them
is true or false. 'Double' and 'half' are
opposed to each other as correlatives: neither
of them is true or false. The case is the
same, of course, with regard to 'positives'
and 'privatives' such as 'sight' and 'blindness'.
In short, where there is no sort of combination
of words, truth and falsity have no place,
and all the opposites we have mentioned so
far consist of simple words.
At the same time, when the words which enter
into opposed statements are contraries, these,
more than any other set of opposites, would
seem to claim this characteristic. 'Socrates
is ill' is the contrary of 'Socrates is well',
but not even of such composite expressions
is it true to say that one of the pair must
always be true and the other false. For if
Socrates exists, one will be true and the
other false, but if he does not exist, both
will be false; for neither 'Socrates is ill'
nor 'Socrates is well' is true, if Socrates
does not exist at all.
In the case of 'positives' and 'privatives',
if the subject does not exist at all, neither
proposition is true, but even if the subject
exists, it is not always the fact that one
is true and the other false. For 'Socrates
has sight' is the opposite of 'Socrates is
blind' in the sense of the word 'opposite'
which applies to possession and privation.
Now if Socrates exists, it is not necessary
that one should be true and the other false,
for when he is not yet able to acquire the
power of vision, both are false, as also
if Socrates is altogether non-existent.
But in the case of affirmation and negation,
whether the subject exists or not, one is
always false and the other true. For manifestly,
if Socrates exists, one of the two propositions
'Socrates is ill', 'Socrates is not ill',
is true, and the other false. This is likewise
the case if he does not exist; for if he
does not exist, to say that he is ill is
false, to say that he is not ill is true.
Thus it is in the case of those opposites
only, which are opposite in the sense in
which the term is used with reference to
affirmation and negation, that the rule holds
good, that one of the pair must be true and
the other false.
CHAPTER 11
That the contrary of a good is an evil is
shown by induction: the contrary of health
is disease, of courage, cowardice, and so
on. But the contrary of an evil is sometimes
a good, sometimes an evil. For defect, which
is an evil, has excess for its contrary,
this also being an evil, and the mean, which
is a good, is equally the contrary of the
one and of the other. It is only in a few
cases, however, that we see instances of
this: in most, the contrary of an evil is
a good.
In the case of contraries, it is not always
necessary that if one exists the other should
also exist: for if all become healthy there
will be health and no disease, and again,
if everything turns white, there will be
white, but no black. Again, since the fact
that Socrates is ill is the contrary of the
fact that Socrates is well, and two contrary
conditions cannot both obtain in one and
the same individual at the same time, both
these contraries could not exist at once:
for if that Socrates was well was a fact,
then that Socrates was ill could not possibly
be one.
It is plain that contrary attributes must
needs be present in subjects which belong
to the same species or genus. Disease and
health require as their subject the body
of an animal; white and black require a body,
without further qualification; justice and
injustice require as their subject the human
soul.
Moreover, it is necessary that pairs of contraries
should in all cases either belong to the
same genus or belong to contrary genera or
be themselves genera. White and black belong
to the same genus, colour; justice and injustice,
to contrary genera, virtue and vice; while
good and evil do not belong to genera, but
are themselves actual genera, with terms
under them.
CHAPTER 12
There are four senses in which one thing
can be said to be 'prior' to another. Primarily
and most properly the term has reference
to time: in this sense the word is used to
indicate that one thing is older or more
ancient than another, for the expressions
'older' and 'more ancient' imply greater
length of time.
Secondly, one thing is said to be 'prior'
to another when the sequence of their being
cannot be reversed. In this sense 'one' is
'prior' to 'two'. For if 'two' exists, it
follows directly that 'one' must exist, but
if 'one' exists, it does not follow necessarily
that 'two' exists: thus the sequence subsisting
cannot be reversed. It is agreed, then, that
when the sequence of two things cannot be
reversed, then that one on which the other
depends is called 'prior' to that other.
In the third place, the term 'prior' is used
with reference to any order, as in the case
of science and of oratory. For in sciences
which use demonstration there is that which
is prior and that which is posterior in order;
in geometry, the elements are prior to the
propositions; in reading and writing, the
letters of the alphabet are prior to the
syllables. Similarly, in the case of speeches,
the exordium is prior in order to the narrative.
Besides these senses of the word, there is
a fourth. That which is better and more honourable
is said to have a natural priority. In common
parlance men speak of those whom they honour
and love as
'coming first' with them. This sense of the
word is perhaps the most far-fetched.
Such, then, are the different senses in which
the term 'prior' is used.
Yet it would seem that besides those mentioned
there is yet another. For in those things,
the being of each of which implies that of
the other, that which is in any way the cause
may reasonably be said to be by nature 'prior'
to the effect. It is plain that there are
instances of this. The fact of the being
of a man carries with it the truth of the
proposition that he is, and the implication
is reciprocal: for if a man is, the proposition
wherein we allege that he is true, and conversely,
if the proposition wherein we allege that
he is true, then he is. The true proposition,
however, is in no way the cause of the being
of the man, but the fact of the man's being
does seem somehow to be the cause of the
truth of the proposition, for the truth or
falsity of the proposition depends on the
fact of the man's being or not being.
Thus the word 'prior' may be used in five
senses.
CHAPTER 13
The term 'simultaneous' is primarily and
most appropriately applied to those things
the genesis of the one of which is simultaneous
with that of the other; for in such cases
neither is prior or posterior to the other.
Such things are said to be simultaneous in
point of time. Those things, again, are 'simultaneous'
in point of nature, the being of each of
which involves that of the other, while at
the same time neither is the cause of the
other's being. This is the case with regard
to the double and the half, for these are
reciprocally dependent, since, if there is
a double, there is also a half, and if there
is a half, there is also a double, while
at the same time neither is the cause of
the being of the other.
Again, those species which are distinguished
one from another and opposed one to another
within the same genus are said to be 'simultaneous'
in nature. I mean those species which are
distinguished each from each by one and the
same method of division. Thus the 'winged'
species is simultaneous with the 'terrestrial'
and the 'water' species. These are distinguished
within the same genus, and are opposed each
to each, for the genus 'animal' has the 'winged',
the 'terrestrial', and the 'water' species,
and no one of these is prior or posterior
to another; on the contrary, all such things
appear to be 'simultaneous' in nature. Each
of these also, the terrestrial, the winged,
and the water species, can be divided again
into subspecies. Those species, then, also
will be 'simultaneous' in point of nature,
which, belonging to the same genus, are distinguished
each from each by one and the same method
of differentiation.
But genera are prior to species, for the
sequence of their being cannot be reversed.
If there is the species 'water-animal', there
will be the genus 'animal', but granted the
being of the genus 'animal', it does not
follow necessarily that there will be the
species 'water-animal'.
Those things, therefore, are said to be 'simultaneous'
in nature, the being of each of which involves
that of the other, while at the same time
neither is in any way the cause of the other's
being; those species, also, which are distinguished
each from each and opposed within the same
genus. Those things, moreover, are 'simultaneous'
in the unqualified sense of the word which
come into being at the same time.
CHAPTER 14
There are six sorts of movement: generation,
destruction, increase, diminution, alteration,
and change of place.
It is evident in all but one case that all
these sorts of movement are distinct each
from each. Generation is distinct from destruction,
increase and change of place from diminution,
and so on. But in the case of alteration
it may be argued that the process necessarily
implies one or other of the other five sorts
of motion. This is not true, for we may say
that all affections, or nearly all, produce
in us an alteration which is distinct from
all other sorts of motion, for that which
is affected need not suffer either increase
or diminution or any of the other sorts of
motion. Thus alteration is a distinct sort
of motion; for, if it were not, the thing
altered would not only be altered, but would
forthwith necessarily suffer increase or
diminution or some one of the other sorts
of motion in addition; which as a matter
of fact is not the case. Similarly that which
was undergoing the process of increase or
was subject to some other sort of motion
would, if alteration were not a distinct
form of motion, necessarily be subject to
alteration also. But there are some things
which undergo increase but yet not alteration.
The square, for instance, if a gnomon is
applied to it, undergoes increase but not
alteration, and so it is with all other figures
of this sort. Alteration and increase, therefore,
are distinct.
Speaking generally, rest is the contrary
of motion. But the different forms of motion
have their own contraries in other forms;
thus destruction is the contrary of generation,
diminution of increase, rest in a place,
of change of place. As for this last, change
in the reverse direction would seem to be
most truly its contrary; thus motion upwards
is the contrary of motion downwards and vice
versa.
In the case of that sort of motion which
yet remains, of those that have been enumerated,
it is not easy to state what is its contrary.
It appears to have no contrary, unless one
should define the contrary here also either
as 'rest in its quality' or as 'change in
the direction of the contrary quality', just
as we defined the contrary of change of place
either as rest in a place or as change in
the reverse direction. For a thing is altered
when change of quality takes place; therefore
either rest in its quality or change in the
direction of the contrary may be called the
contrary of this qualitative form of motion.
In this way becoming white is the contrary
of becoming black; there is alteration in
the contrary direction, since a change of
a qualitative nature takes place.
CHAPTER 15
The term 'to have' is used in various senses.
In the first place it is used with reference
to habit or disposition or any other quality,
for we are said to 'have' a piece of knowledge
or a virtue. Then, again, it has reference
to quantity, as, for instance, in the case
of a man's height; for he is said to 'have'
a height of three or four cubits. It is used,
moreover, with regard to apparel, a man being
said to 'have' a coat or tunic; or in respect
of something which we have on a part of ourselves,
as a ring on the hand: or in respect of something
which is a part of us, as hand or foot. The
term refers also to content, as in the case
of a vessel and wheat, or of a jar and wine;
a jar is said to 'have' wine, and a corn-measure
wheat. The expression in such cases has reference
to content. Or it refers to that which has
been acquired; we are said to 'have' a house
or a field. A man is also said to 'have'
a wife, and a wife a husband, and this appears
to be the most remote meaning of the term,
for by the use of it we mean simply that
the husband lives with the wife.
Other senses of the word might perhaps be
found, but the most ordinary ones have all
been enumerated.
THE END
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