Explain Aristotle's Notion of Substance Research Paper

Explain Aristotle's Notion of Substance - Research Paper Example It will be argued along with Leszl's claim that substance is more than just a category for logic, and that it is really an argument for the nature of being. There is no separating logic from ontology in Aristotle when it comes to substance and it with regard to ontology, substance is that which is constant set against everything else which changes. The context in which "first substance" emerges, concerns the "combination of words, expressions and phrases." (Categories, 1a16). Aristotle first divides these kategoriai of words, expressions and phrases by distinguishing how some predicates are are "present" in a subject, while others are "parts within a whole" (Categories, 1a20), which is marked by a difference between something "which cannot exist apart from the subject referred to", such as an attribute like "whiteness" (Categories, 1a24-1b2), and something which can be attributed but which is not found phenomenally "in a subject", such as predicating the species "man" to an individua l man, as a subject. Aristotle adds that there may also be predicates which can be asserted of a subject, and yet which are neither present physically, or related in a genus-individual relation. These kategoriai he raises as particular or individual expressions with a direct object, or direct reference: "this or that man or horse, for example" (Categories, 1b4), which is a form of predication related to both substance, and the mind, and will be outlined in more detail in the section dealing with De Anima. At this point in the Categories, Aristotle is explicit about this instance of substance as being "primary" (Categories, 1b11-13), and it is therefore a topic which is not a question for the agenda at hand, which are the rules of "combination of words, expressions and phrases"-- or, "secondary substance" (Categories, 1b14). He proceeds at this point to establish further specifications for the rules of predication, such as predicate of a subject, is also a predicate of a substance(Ca tegories, 1b9-15, 1b21-25), and how some predicates may help to differentiate genus's, but not species (Categories, 1b16-20), and finally how "each uncombined word or expression" will be determined by a particular form of possible predicate. Having covered the possible predicates in terms of their forms, relation via genus, species, and how whether the predicate is necessarily "present" in a subject or not, he addresses the criteria itself which determines all of these possible combination's and types of combination's, which is the first important step into substance-- a step which more clearly divides primary from secondary substances, and a division which can be characterized as a division between substance (primary) and subject (secondary). Aristotle gives the simple example that "`Footed', `two-footed' and `winged'" are attributes which are true of genus, but which do not allow for the distinction of a particular species, given that many species possess these attributes.(Categor ies, 1b16-20). Primary substance is more a topic proper to the Physics and Metaphysics, given that actual being and actual beings are the focus, not, as in the Categories with how these beings can be "expressed". As we shall see, the Metaphysics addresses