Recommend me a book on Aristotle's metaphysics?

[Hal]

I'm weak, and there's no way I'll make it through all 500 pages of Aristotle's Metaphysics. Plus, I dont think I'd get that much out of it anyway, since a) I'd have to read a translation, and I'd be reading it outside of its historical context, with little knowledge of its place in Aristotle's system.

I was wondering if anyone could recommend me a decent book that summarises his views on metaphysics (substances, the soul, 4 species of causation, categories, etc) at a reasonably advanced level. In particular, I'd like a book which covers how his views connect with the pre-Socratics, and which strongly distinguishes between Aristotle's views, and the 'Aristotle' of the scholastics.

Thanks.

edit: I should probably list the aspects of his philosophy that I'm most interested in, to make recommendations easier. I'd like to know more about his 'object centered' approach, where casuation is a function of an objects nature rather than a relationship between events. This will link up with his ideas about potentiality and final casuation. I'd also like to know about the place the soul/mind had in Aristotle's system, since I understand he has been read as anti-Cartesian, and I'm trying to work out when and where Western philosophy of mind managed to go so horribly wrong.

Edited August 6, 2005 by Hal

[BurgessLau]

Let's see if I can list your requirements:

- You want a summary of Aristotle's extraordinarily difficult metaphysics, around which many scholarly controversies swirl.

- You don't want to read any translations (even though you are willing to accept someone else's summary, that is, interpretation).

- You want an advanced discussion, but in a summary form.

- You want a book that connects Aristotle to the pre-Socratics.

- You want a book that distinguishes Aristotle from the scholastic misinterpretations 1600 years later.

- You want to understand his view of the soul (which is the subject of one of his most difficult books, De anima) and its place in his whole philosophy.

And you want all of this in one volume -- but you are too "weak" to read Aristotle's writings themselves?

Edited August 6, 2005 by BurgessLau

[Hal]

Yeah, thats pretty much what I'm asking for.

"Summary" might have been the wrong word; 'overview' is better. Something that discussed the controvesies surrounding various points of interpretation would also be useful.

edit: I realise your post is sarcastic, but I dont think my request is unreasonable. There are controversies over the interpretation of many difficult philosophers, but I would still be able to recommend people decent academic level discussions of (eg) Kant or Heidegger. Reading the original texts would committ me to struggling with ~1000 pageswhich I dont think I'd be able to properly appreciate due to being largely unaware of the historical context, and having to rely on Greek translations (of which which Heidegger, damn him, has taught me to be very suspicious). If I could get a (detailed) overview of themain points of this system from a ~3-400 page modern book, I'd be quite happy - I would then be able to decide whether I thought the original texts were worth reading.

Edited August 6, 2005 by Hal

[BurgessLau]

There are controversies over the interpretation of many difficult philosophers, but I would still be able to recommend people decent academic level discussions of (eg) Kant or Heidegger.

To illustrate your point, what single secondary work would you recommend for Kant, that is, what work that meets the requirements you have stated for Aristotle's metaphysics (adjusted for differences in historical period)?

This is not an idle question. I have a strong interest in some aspects of Kant's philosophy -- particularly his views on the nature of reason and faith, and their relationship.

So, to elaborate a little, I am looking for a full-length, scholarly (fully documented) work devoted to Kant's epistemology (anachronistic though that term would be), while showing his relationship to Locke, Leibnitz, Hume, Hamann, and (indirectly) Sextus Empiricus (or his 18th Century proxies), while also clearly distinguishing his actual views from those imputed to him by his neo-Kantian successors during the last 200 years. This writer should also explain Kant's relationship to religion (which is not the same as his view of faith). Of course, the overviewer's use of quotations from Kant's texts must offer translations that are fully accurate. And so forth down the list.

Which work meets those requirements?

Edited August 6, 2005 by BurgessLau

[Hal]

To illustrate your point, what single secondary work would you recommend for Kant, that is, what work that meets the requirements you have stated for Aristotle's metaphysics (adjusted for differences in historical period)?

So, to elaborate a little, I am looking for a full-length, scholarly (fully documented) work devoted to Kant's epistemology (anachronistic though that term would be), while showing his relationship to Locke, Leibnitz, Hume, Hamann, and (indirectly) Sextus Empiricus (or his 18th Century proxies), while also clearly distinguishing his actual views from those imputed to him by his neo-Kantian successors during the last 200 years. This writer should also explain Kant's relationship to religion (which is not the same as his view of faith). Of course, the overviewer's use of quotations from Kant's texts must offer translations that are fully accurate. And so forth down the list.

I think that "Henry Allison - Kant's Transcendental Idealism" would satisfy most of your requirements. It's essentially an interpretation of the CPR, although it makes continual references to Kant's other works to both support HAs interpretation and to clarify passages that are unclear. He continually cites to the work of other Kant scholars to make clear the main disagreements and controversies surrounding Kant interpretation. There's continual reference to the British empiricists and Leibniz, as HA tries to explain how Kant's views fits alongside there's. There's no mention of Sextus Empiricus though, which isnt really surprising. There isnt really explicitly on religion though, since this isnt really central to Kantian epistemology - I wasnt asking for a summary of Aristotle's religious views either. There's quite a bit of discussion on how Kant's views differs from neo-Kantians, which is quite important because HA believes that the writings of the positivists, along with Strawson's influential work on Kant (the Bounds of Sense), has caused him to be widely misinterpreted within Anglo-American philosophy

Regarding translation - the quotes are taken from the English translation of the CPR is thought to be most accurate (Guyer-Wood), and HA discusses why he thinks previous translations have contributed to Kant being widely misinterpretated. But my problem with Aristotle translations isnt their 'accuracy' - its that (afaik) a lot of his key terms dont have direct English equivalents. If I were to read a translation then I'd have to make do with reading words like 'existence' and 'predicate', without actually knowing what the precise Greek meanings were. However, a good commentary on Aristotle would try to give an explaination of the Greek rather than just translating it into English. As an example of what I mean, I think that German translations which translate Geist as either 'mind' or 'spirit' are flawed - the term should remain untranslated, and there should be a discussion of what 'Geist' actually means in German.

Edited August 6, 2005 by Hal

[BurgessLau]

I think that "Henry Allison - Kant's Transcendental Idealism" would satisfy most of your requirements.

Based on your description, I doubt that it will meet most of my requirements -- particularly a discussion of Kant's view of faith, the other half of the faith-and-reason formula.

However, Allison's book may meet some of my requirements. I thank you for the recommendation. It might give me an intelligible overview of CPR (which is not the same as Kant's view of reason despite the title.) Your description was interesting enough that I looked for it at a huge local bookstore: four shelves of Kant books, but no Allison. I will try to examine it in a local university library, and then purchase it if appropriate. (I am already familiar with the Guyer/Wood translation, so that will be a benefit.)

Regarding translation [...]  But my problem with Aristotle translations isnt their 'accuracy' - its that (afaik) a lot of his key terms dont have direct English equivalents. If I were to read a translation then I'd have to make do with reading words like 'existence' and 'predicate', without actually knowing what the precise Greek meanings were. However, a good commentary on Aristotle would try to give an explaination of the Greek rather than just translating it into English.

Here are a couple of points that don't answer your question about a suitable commentary, but they might help you find one in the long term:

First, D. M. Balme, "Aristotle's biology was not essentialist," in Allan Gotthelf, editor, Philosophical Issues in Aristotle's Biology, 1st edition (1987), p. 296, notes: "Ross [the main editor/translator of Aristotle into English before the 1960s] even used the one word 'essence' to translate six different technical expressions in the Metaphysics, as though they were merely different ways of regarding the same absolute thing." [My emphasis in bold.] That is the kind of horror story that would make anyone leary of reading translations without a second opinion.

Ross and his fellow translators into English, at that time, mid-twentieth century, were not only Platonists, tending to interpret Aristotle as merely an errant student of Plato, but they were also Latininzers, using terms drawn from Latin (such as "essence," perhaps, but I am not a specialist here) rather than using basic English terms such as "the what-it-is" (which is straight from the Greek and not rationalistic).

Second, my understanding is that translations began to improve in the 1960s, particularly with the work of J. L. Ackrill, whose little introductory book, Aristotle the Philosopher, is where I would start. Ch. 3 is "The analysis of change: matter and form." It references Aristotle's works, and Ackrill offers his own translations of the excerpts he provides. His translations are more accurate than smooth, which is good.

However, my approach to beginning study of a philosopher is different from yours. I start small and gradually work up. I cannot recommend the more advanced and specialized work you are seeking.