Aristotle on the Uses of Contemplation

274 Pages·2018·3.82 MB·English

by  Matthew D. Walker

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ARISTOTLE ON THE USES OF CONTEMPLATION
Traditionally,Aristotleisheldtobelievethatphilosophicalcontem-
plation is valuable for its own sake, but ultimately useless. In this
volume, Matthew D. Walker offers a fresh, systematic account of
Aristotle’s views on contemplation’s place in the human good.
The book situates Aristotle’s views against the background of his
wider philosophy and examines the complete range of available
textual evidence (including neglected passages from Aristotle’s
Protrepticus). On this basis, Walker argues that contemplation also
benefits humans as living organisms by authoritatively guiding
human life-activity, including human self-maintenance. Aristotle’s
views on contemplation’s place in the human good thus cohere
withhisbroaderthinkingabouthowperishableorganismslivewell.
A novel exploration of Aristotle’s views on theory and practice, this
volume will interest scholars and students of both ancient Greek
ethics and natural philosophy. It will also appeal to those working
inotherdisciplinesincludingclassics,contemporaryethics,andpoli-
ticaltheory.
matthew d. walker is Assistant Professor of Humanities
(Philosophy) at Yale-NUS College. His work focuses on ancient
Greek philosophy and cross-cultural ethical theory, and has been
publishedinnumerousleadingjournals.

ARISTOTLE ON THE USES
OF CONTEMPLATION
MATTHEW D. WALKER
Yale-NUSCollege
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description:NewYork:CambridgeUniversityPress,2018.|Includes
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subjects:lcsh:Aristotle.|Contemplation.|Goodandevil.
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Contents
Acknowledgments pageviii
NoteonTexts,Translations,andAbbreviations x
1 HowCanUselessContemplationBeCentral
totheHumanGood? 1
1.1 AnIntroductiontotheUtilityQuestion 1
1.2 SomeMattersofMethod 4
1.3 AQuickStrolldownthePeripatos 9
2 UselessContemplationasanUltimateEnd 13
2.1 RereadingtheNicomacheanEthics’OpeningChapters 13
2.2 Life-Activity“AccordingtotheBestandMostComplete”Virtue 16
2.3 SophiaastheHighestVirtueinNicomacheanEthicsVI 24
2.4 TheNatureandObjectsofSophiaandContemplation 27
2.5 Contemplation,Uselessness,andLeisureliness 33
3 TheThrepticBasisofLiving 42
3.1 WhyExaminetheNutritiveBasisofLife? 42
3.2 AristotleonthePartsofSoul 43
3.3 UnderstandingtheThreptikon:TheMetaphysicsofMortalBeings 46
3.4 TheThreptikonasNutritive 51
3.5 TheThreptikonasReproductive 53
4 AuthoritativeFunctions,UltimateEnds,andtheGood
forLivingOrganisms 56
4.1 ThrepticSubserviencetotheAisthêtikon 56
4.2 PerceptiveGuidanceandthe“NatureDoesNothinginVain”Principle 58
4.3 APuzzleaboutNutritionandPerception 63
4.4 “Livingby”anAuthoritativeFunctionandLivingWell 71
4.5 DivineApproximation,PersistenceandActivity,andtheGood 73
5 TheUtilityQuestionRestated–andHowNottoAddressIt 78
5.1 FromPerceptiontoContemplativeNous–andtheUtilityQuestion 78
5.2 TwoInitialResponsestotheUtilityQuestion 83
v
vi Contents
5.3 ADeeperResponsetotheUtilityQuestion:NousandNonnaturalism? 87
5.4 NousandNatureinOnthePartsofAnimals 88
5.5 NousandNatureinDeAnimaandProblems 90
5.6 NicomacheanEthicsX.7–8:TheSeparabilityandDivinityofNous 93
5.7 ThreeProblemstoConsider 99
6 TheFirstWave:Reason,Desire,andThrepticGuidance
intheHarmonizedSoul 103
6.1 Epithumia 103
6.2 Thumos 106
6.3 Reason,EthicalVirtue,andtheRegulationofNonrationalDesire 110
6.4 PsychicHarmony,theHumanGood,andSelf-Maintenance 114
6.5 EthicalViceandImpairedThrepticProspects 116
6.6 Reason–OrPracticalReason? 118
7 TheSecondWave:CompleteVirtueandtheUtility
ofContemplation 123
7.1 DoesSophiaPossessMorethanFormalUtility? 123
7.2 AristotleonEthicalDevelopment:Fromthe“That”tothe“Why” 129
7.3 TheoreticalUnderstandingasaConditionforCompleteVirtue 132
7.4 TheoreticalUnderstandingandHoroiforPracticalReasoning 135
7.5 SomeHortatoryRemarksontheProtrepticus 139
7.6 Protrepticus10:TheUtilityArgument 145
7.7 IsAristotle’sProtrepticStrategyConsistent? 151
8 TheThirdWave:FromContemplatingtheDivine
toUnderstandingtheHumanGood 154
8.1 ObstaclesforDerivingBoundaryMarkersoftheHumanGood 154
8.2 TheProtrepticusonDerivingBoundaryMarkersoftheHumanGood 157
8.3 Self-AwarenessandFriendship’sLimitations
intheNicomacheanEthics 163
8.4 ReflectionsoftheAlcibiadesinAristotle 170
8.5 ContemplationandAwarenessoftheGood
inNicomacheanEthicsX.7–8 177
9 TheAnatomyofAristotelianVirtue 183
9.1 DesiringWellbetweenBeastandGod 183
9.2 Temperance 184
9.3 Courage 189
9.4 LiberalityandProperAmbition 193
9.5 TheGrand-ScaleVirtues:MagnificenceandMagnanimity 195
9.6 TheSocialVirtues:GoodTemper,Friendliness,
Truthfulness,Wittiness 198
9.7 Justice 200
9.8 BeastlinessandHeroicVirtue 201
9.9 IsThisAccountOverlySystematized? 203
Contents vii
10 SomeConcludingReflections 206
10.1 ContemplatingtheTerrainfromAbove 206
10.2 TheNecessityofContemplation? 208
10.3 AristotleontheUselessnessofaPlatonicIdeaoftheGood 210
10.4 Aristotle’sRemarksontheSophoi 212
10.5 SophiawithoutaPrimeMover? 214
Bibliography 217
IndexLocorum 237
Index 254
Acknowledgments
ThisbookbeganitslifeasadoctoraldissertationatYaleUniversity.Ithank
mycommitteemembers–JohnHare(whoshepherdedtheprojectasmy
initial advisor), Gabriel Richardson Lear, and Karsten Harries – for their
questions and comments. Verity Harte took over the project upon her
arrival at Yale. I owe her a great deal for her generous feedback, excellent
advice,andfriendlyencouragementthroughouttheyears.Iamalsograte-
fultomyfirstphilosophyteachers,JohnA.Sutula,W.E.Kennick,andJyl
Gentzler.
IntheyearsIhaveworkedonthisproject,manypeoplehaveofferedme
thebenefitoftheirhelp,comments,orotherinput.TheyincludeKeimpe
Algra, Susanne Bobzien, Elijah Chudnoff, Tim Clarke, Brad Cokelet,
Howard Curzer, Michael Della Rocca, Simon Evnine, Paula Gottlieb,
Dimitri Gutas, D.S. Hutchinson, Keita Ishino, James Kreines, James
Lennox,CharlesMore,AmélieOksenbergRorty,BarbaraSattler,Frisbee
Sheffield, Harvey Siegel, Nick Stang, Marissa Walsh, Jennifer Whiting,
and Leslie Wolf. I thank audiences at the University of Miami, Boston
University, St. Thomas University (Canada), the Society for Ancient
Greek Philosophy, Ludwig-Maximilians University, Yale University, the
AmericanCouncilofLearnedSocieties,andYale-NUSCollege(including
the Ancient Worlds Research Cluster) for their questions about material
that ultimately found its way into this work. I extend similar thanks to
students in my Aristotle seminars at Miami, Rutgers University, and
Yale-NUS.
IamgratefultoMichaelSloteforhishelpfulsupportandadviceduring
(andafter)mypostdoctoralfellowshipattheUniversityofMiami;toMatt
EvansforsponsoringmeasavisitingscholaratNewYorkUniversity;and
to the Fordham Philosophy Department (where I taught in 2009–2010).
An American Council of Learned Societies New Faculty Fellowship at
Rutgers University, New Brunswick (2010–2012), kept this project (and
me) afloat. Many thanks to the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation for
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