Wednesdays, 1pm–2pm (Weeks 5-8), Schwarzmann Centre (Ryle Room)
Convened by Setareh Rezazad
In these lectures we will focus on the notion of accidentality in Aristotle’s philosophy and its application in his physics and biology. We will examine how Aristotle defines accidentality, what he takes to be the causes of accidental outcomes, and how chance, luck, and error fit within his broader account of the accidental.
Lecture 1: What is Accidentality?
In this lecture, we will explore Aristotle’s notion of the accidental: items that come to be ‘neither always nor for the most part’. The key questions are: are there different senses of accidentality in Aristotle’s philosophy? If so, can they be unified? How should the notion of ‘neither always nor for the most part’ be understood?
Reading: Metaphysics Ε.2, Posterior Analytics I.4
Lecture 2: Accidental and Per Se Causes
The second lecture will focus on the causes of the accidental. Aristotle distinguishes between per se and accidental causes, stating that the cause of the accidental is itself accidental. Some questions to be addressed are: what is the distinction between per se and accidental causes? Should the latter be called causes? Further, Aristotle thinks that accidental causes, unlike per se causes, are indefinite. How should we understand this indefiniteness?
Reading: Metaphysics Ε.2, Physics II.3
Lecture 3: Chance and Luck
In the third session we will discuss luck and chance, which in Aristotle’s view are accidents that could come to be for the sake of something, but in fact do not. We will address the following questions: how are chance and luck related to teleology? What is the difference between chance and luck? Does Aristotle’s philosophy allow for the existence of bad luck?
Reading: Physics II. 4-6
Lecture 4: Errors in Nature and Craft
In our final session, we will examine how errors arise in both nature and craft, and how Aristotle understands errors within his broader account of the accidental. In particular, we will focus on errors and anomalies in natural generation.
Reading: Physics II.8, Generation of Animals IV.3
