9
Moreover,ifthedefinitionbeofthestateofanything,lookatwhatisinthestate,whileifitbeofwhatisinthestate,lookatthestate:andlikewisealsoinothercasesofthekind。Thusifthepleasantbeidenticalwiththebeneficial,then,too,themanwhoispleasedisbenefited。Speakinggenerally,indefinitionsofthissortithappensthatwhatthedefinerdefinesisinasensemorethanonething:forindefiningknowledge,amaninasensedefinesignoranceaswell,andlikewisealsowhathasknowledgeandwhatlacksit,andwhatitistoknowandtobeignorant。Forifthefirstbemadeclear,theothersbecomeinacertainsenseclearaswell。Wehave,then,tobeonourguardinallsuchcasesagainstdiscrepancy,usingtheelementaryprinciplesdrawnfromconsiderationofcontrariesandofcoordinates。
Moreover,inthecaseofrelativeterms,seeifthespeciesisrenderedasrelativetoaspeciesofthattowhichthegenusisrenderedasrelative,e。g。supposingbelieftoberelativetosomeobjectofbelief,seewhetheraparticularbeliefismaderelativetosomeparticularobjectofbelief:and,ifamultipleberelativetoafraction,seewhetheraparticularmultiplebemaderelativetoaparticularfraction。Forifitbenotsorendered,clearlyamistakehasbeenmade。
See,also,iftheoppositeofthetermhastheoppositedefinition,whether(e。g。)thedefinitionof’half’istheoppositeofthatof’double’:forif’double’is’thatwhichexceedsanotherbyanequalamounttothatother’,’half’is’thatwhichisexceededbyanamountequaltoitself’。Inthesameway,too,withcontraries。Fortothecontrarytermwillapplythedefinitionthatiscontraryinsomeoneofthewaysinwhichcontrariesareconjoined。Thus(e。g。)if’useful’=’productiveofgood’,’injurious’=productiveofevil’or’destructiveofgood’,foroneortheotheroftheeisboundtobecontrarytothetermoriginallyused。Suppose,then,neitherofthesethingstobethecontraryofthetermoriginallyused,thenclearlyneitherofthedefinitionsrenderedlatercouldbethedefinitionofthecontraryofthetermoriginallydefined:andthereforethedefinitionoriginallyrenderedoftheoriginaltermhasnotbeenrightlyrenderedeither。Seeing,moreover,thatofcontraries,theoneissometimesawordforcedtodenotetheprivationoftheother,as(e。g。)inequalityisgenerallyheldtobetheprivationofequality(for’unequal’merelydescribesthingsthatarenotequal’),itisthereforeclearthatthatcontrarywhoseformdenotestheprivationmustofnecessitybedefinedthroughtheother;whereastheothercannotthenbedefinedthroughtheonewhoseformdenotestheprivation;forelseweshouldfindthateachisbeinginterpretedbytheother。Wemustinthecaseofcontrarytermskeepaneyeonthismistake,e。g。supposinganyoneweretodefineequalityasthecontraryofinequality:forthenheisdefiningitthroughthetermwhichdenotesprivationofit。Moreover,amanwhosodefinesisboundtouseinhisdefinitiontheverytermheisdefining;andthisbecomesclear,ifforthewordwesubstituteitsdefinition。Fortosay’inequality’isthesameastosay’privationofequality’。Thereforeequalitysodefinedwillbe’thecontraryoftheprivationofequality’,sothathewouldhaveusedtheverywordtobedefined。Suppose,however,thatneitherofthecontrariesbesoformedastodenoteprivation,butyetthedefinitionofitberenderedinamannerliketheabove,e。g。suppose’good’tobedefinedas’thecontraryofevil’,then,sinceitisclearthat’evil’toowillbe’thecontraryofgood’(forthedefinitionofthingsthatarecontraryinthismustberenderedinalikemanner),theresultagainisthatheusestheverytermbeingdefined:for’good’isinherentinthedefinitionof’evil’。If,then,’good’bethecontraryofevil,andevilbenothingotherthanthe’contraryofgood’,then’good’willbethe’contraryofthecontraryofgood’。Clearly,then,hehasusedtheverywordtobedefined。
Moreover,seeifinrenderingatermformedtodenoteprivation,hehasfailedtorenderthetermofwhichitistheprivation,e。g。
thestate,orcontrary,orwhateveritmaybewhoseprivationitis:
alsoifhehasomittedtoaddeitheranytermatallinwhichtheprivationisnaturallyformed,orelsethatinwhichitisnaturallyformedprimarily,e。g。whetherindefining’ignorance’aprivationhehasfailedtosaythatitistheprivationof’knowledge’;orhasfailedtoaddinwhatitisnaturallyformed,or,thoughhehasaddedthis,hasfailedtorenderthethinginwhichitisprimarilyformed,placingit(e。g。)in’man’orin’thesoul’,andnotinthe’reasoningfaculty’:forifinanyoftheserespectshefails,hehasmadeamistake。Likewise,also,ifhehasfailedtosaythat’blindness’isthe’privationofsightinaneye’:foraproperrenderingofitsessencemuststatebothofwhatitistheprivationandwhatitisthatisdeprived。
Examinefurtherwhetherhehasdefinedbytheexpression’aprivation’atermthatisnotusedtodenoteaprivation:thusamistakeofthissortalsowouldbegenerallythoughttobeincurredinthecaseof’error’byanyonewhoisnotusingitasamerelynegativeterm。Forwhatisgenerallythoughttobeinerrorisnotthatwhichhasnoknowledge,butratherthatwhichhasbeendeceived,andforthisreasonwedonottalkofinanimatethingsorofchildrenas’erring’。’Error’,then,isnotusedtodenoteamereprivationofknowledge。
10
Moreover,seewhetherthelikeinflexionsinthedefinitionapplytothelikeinflexionsoftheterm;e。g。if’beneficial’means’productiveofhealth’,does’beneficially’meanproductivelyofhealth’anda’benefactor’a’producerofhealth’?
LooktooandseewhetherthedefinitiongivenwillapplytotheIdeaaswell。Forinsomecasesitwillnotdoso;e。g。inthePlatonicdefinitionwhereheaddstheword’mortal’inhisdefinitionsoflivingcreatures:fortheIdea(e。g。theabsoluteMan)isnotmortal,sothatthedefinitionwillnotfittheIdea。Soalwayswhereverthewords’capableofactingon’or’capableofbeingactedupon’areadded,thedefinitionandtheIdeaareabsolutelyboundtobediscrepant:forthosewhoasserttheexistenceofIdeasholdthattheyareincapableofbeingactedupon,orofmotion。Indealingwiththesepeopleevenargumentsofthiskindareuseful。
Further,seeifhehasrenderedasinglecommondefinitionoftermsthatareusedambiguously。Fortermswhosedefinitioncorrespondingtheircommonnameisoneandthesame,aresynonymous;
if,then,thedefinitionappliesinalikemannertothewholerangeoftheambiguousterm,itisnottrueofanyoneoftheobjectsdescribedbytheterm。Thisis,moreover,whathappenstoDionysius’
definitionof’life’whenstatedas’amovementofacreaturesustainedbynutriment,congenitallypresentwithit’:forthisisfoundinplantsasmuchasinanimals,whereas’life’isgenerallyunderstoodtomeannotonekindofthingonly,buttobeonethinginanimalsandanotherinplants。Itispossibletoholdtheviewthatlifeisasynonymoustermandisalwaysusedtodescribeonethingonly,andthereforetorenderthedefinitioninthiswayonpurpose:
oritmayquitewellhappenthatamanmayseetheambiguouscharacteroftheword,andwishtorenderthedefinitionoftheonesenseonly,andyetfailtoseethathehasrenderedadefinitioncommontobothsensesinsteadofonepeculiartothesenseheintends。Ineithercase,whichevercoursehepursues,heisequallyatfault。
Sinceambiguoustermssometimespassunobserved,itisbestinquestioningtotreatsuchtermsasthoughtheyweresynonymous(forthedefinitionoftheonesensewillnotapplytotheother,sothattheanswererwillbegenerallythoughtnottohavedefineditcorrectly,fortoasynonymoustermthedefinitionshouldapplyinitsfullrange),whereasinansweringyoushouldyourselfdistinguishbetweenthesenses。Further,assomeanswererscall’ambiguous’whatisreallysynonymous,wheneverthedefinitionrenderedfailstoapplyuniversally,and,viceversa,callsynonymouswhatisreallyambiguoussupposingtheirdefinitionappliestobothsensesoftheterm,oneshouldsecureapreliminaryadmissiononsuchpoints,orelseprovebeforehandthatso—and—soisambiguousorsynonymous,asthecasemaybe:forpeoplearemorereadytoagreewhentheydonotforeseewhattheconsequencewillbe。If,however,noadmissionhasbeenmade,andthemanassertsthatwhatisreallysynonymousisambiguousbecausethedefinitionhehasrenderedwillnotapplytothesecondsenseaswell,seeifthedefinitionofthissecondmeaningappliesalsototheothermeanings:forifso,thismeaningmustclearlybesynonymouswiththoseothers。Otherwise,therewillbemorethanonedefinitionofthoseothermeanings,forthereareapplicabletothemtwodistinctdefinitionsinexplanationoftheterm,viz。theonepreviouslyrenderedandalsothelaterone。
Again,ifanyoneweretodefineatermusedinseveralsenses,and,findingthathisdefinitiondoesnotapplytothemall,weretocontendnotthatthetermisambiguous,butthateventhetermdoesnotproperlyapplytoallthosesenses,justbecausehisdefinitionwillnotdosoeither,thenonemayretorttosuchamanthatthoughinsomethingsonemustnotusethelanguageofthepeople,yetinaquestionofterminologyoneisboundtoemploythereceivedandtraditionalusageandnottoupsetmattersofthatsort。
11
Supposenowthatadefinitionhasbeenrenderedofsomecomplexterm,takeawaythedefinitionofoneoftheelementsinthecomplex,andseeifalsotherestofthedefinitiondefinestherestofit:ifnot,itisclearthatneitherdoesthewholedefinitiondefinethewholecomplex。Suppose,e。g。thatsomeonehasdefineda’finitestraightline’as’thelimitofafiniteplane,suchthatitscentreisinalinewithitsextremes’;ifnowthedefinitionofafiniteline’bethe’limitofafiniteplane’,therest(viz。’suchthatitscentreisinalinewithitsextremes’)oughttobeadefinitionofstraight’。Butaninfinitestraightlinehasneithercentrenorextremesandyetisstraightsothatthisremainderdoesnotdefinetheremainderoftheterm。
Moreover,ifthetermdefinedbeacompoundnotion,seeifthedefinitionrenderedbeequimembralwiththetermdefined。Adefinitionissaidtobeequimembralwiththetermdefinedwhenthenumberoftheelementscompoundedinthelatteristhesameasthenumberofnounsandverbsinthedefinition。Fortheexchangeinsuchcasesisboundtobemerelyoneoftermforterm,inthecaseofsomeifnotofall,seeingthattherearenomoretermsusednowthanformerly;
whereasinadefinitiontermsoughttoberenderedbyphrases,ifpossibleineverycase,orifnot,inthemajority。Foratthatrate,simpleobjectstoocouldbedefinedbymerelycallingthembyadifferentname,e。g。’cloak’insteadof’doublet’。
Themistakeisevenworse,ifactuallyalesswellknowntermbesubstituted,e。g。’pellucidmortal’for’whiteman’:foritisnodefinition,andmoreoverislessintelligiblewhenputinthatform。
Lookandseealsowhether,intheexchangeofwords,thesensefailsstilltobethesame。Take,forinstance,theexplanationof’speculativeknowledge’as’speculativeconception’:forconceptionisnotthesameasknowledge—asitcertainlyoughttobeifthewholeistobethesametoo:forthoughtheword’speculative’iscommontobothexpressions,yettheremainderisdifferent。
Moreover,seeifinreplacingoneofthetermsbysomethingelsehehasexchangedthegenusandnotthedifferentia,asintheexamplejustgiven:for’speculative’isalessfamiliartermthanknowledge;fortheoneisthegenusandtheotherthedifferentia,andthegenusisalwaysthemostfamiliartermofall;sothatitisnotthis,butthedifferentia,thatoughttohavebeenchanged,seeingthatitisthelessfamiliar。Itmightbeheldthatthiscriticismisridiculous:becausethereisnoreasonwhythemostfamiliartermshouldnotdescribethedifferentia,andnotthegenus;inwhichcase,clearly,thetermtobealteredwouldalsobethatdenotingthegenusandnotthedifferentia。If,however,amanissubstitutingforatermnotmerelyanothertermbutaphrase,clearlyitisofthedifferentiaratherthanofthegenusthatadefinitionshouldberendered,seeingthattheobjectofrenderingthedefinitionistomakethesubjectfamiliar;forthedifferentiaislessfamiliarthanthegenus。
Ifhehasrenderedthedefinitionofthedifferentia,seewhetherthedefinitionrenderediscommontoitandsomethingelseaswell:
e。g。wheneverhesaysthatanoddnumberisa’numberwithamiddle’,furtherdefinitionisrequiredofhowithasamiddle:fortheword’number’iscommontobothexpressions,anditistheword’odd’forwhichthephrasehasbeensubstituted。Nowbothalineandabodyhaveamiddle,yettheyarenot’odd’;sothatthiscouldnotbeadefinitionof’odd’。If,ontheotherhand,thephrase’withamiddle’beusedinseveralsenses,thesensehereintendedrequirestobedefined。Sothatthiswilleitherdiscreditthedefinitionorprovethatitisnodefinitionatall。
12
Again,seeifthetermofwhichherendersthedefinitionisareality,whereaswhatiscontainedinthedefinitionisnot,e。g。
Suppose’white’tobedefinedas’colourmingledwithfire’:forwhatisbodilesscannotbemingledwithbody,sothat’colour’
’mingledwithfire’couldnotexist,whereas’white’doesexist。
Moreover,thosewhointhecaseofrelativetermsdonotdistinguishtowhattheobjectisrelated,buthavedescribeditonlysoastoincludeitamongtoolargeanumberofthings,arewrongeitherwhollyorinpart;e。g。supposesomeonetohavedefined’medicine’asascienceofReality’。Forifmedicinebenotascienceofanythingthatisreal,thedefinitionisclearlyaltogetherfalse;whileifitbeascienceofsomerealthing,butnotofanother,itispartlyfalse;foritoughttoholdofallreality,ifitissaidtobeofRealityessentiallyandnotaccidentally:asisthecasewithotherrelativeterms:foreveryobjectofknowledgeisatermrelativetoknowledge:likewise,also,withotherrelativeterms,inasmuchasallsuchareconvertible。Moreover,iftherightwaytorenderaccountofathingbetorenderitasitisnotinitselfbutaccidentally,theneachandeveryrelativetermwouldbeusedinrelationnottoonethingbuttoanumberofthings。Forthereisnoreasonwhythesamethingshouldnotbebothrealandwhiteandgood,sothatitwouldbeacorrectrenderingtorendertheobjectinrelationtoanyonewhatsoeverofthese,iftorenderwhatitisaccidentallybeacorrectwaytorenderit。Itis,moreover,impossiblethatadefinitionofthissortshouldbepeculiartothetermrendered:fornotonlybutthemajorityoftheothersciencestoo,havefortheirobjectsomerealthing,sothateachwillbeascienceofreality。Clearly,then,suchadefinitiondoesnotdefineanyscienceatall;foradefinitionoughttobepeculiartoitsownterm,notgeneral。
Sometimes,again,peopledefinenotthethingbutonlythethinginagoodorperfectcondition。Suchisthedefinitionofarhetoricianas’onewhocanalwaysseewhatwillpersuadeinthegivencircumstances,andomitnothing’;orofathief,as’onewhopilfersinsecret’:forclearly,iftheyeachdothis,thentheonewillbeagoodrhetorician,andtheotheragoodthief:whereasitisnottheactualpilferinginsecret,butthewishtodoit,thatconstitutesthethief。
Again,seeifhehasrenderedwhatisdesirableforitsownsakeasdesirableforwhatitproducesordoes,orasinanywaydesirablebecauseofsomethingelse,e。g。bysayingthatjusticeis’whatpreservesthelaws’orthatwisdomis’whatproduceshappiness’;
forwhatproducesorpreservessomethingelseisoneofthethingsdesirableforsomethingelse。Itmightbesaidthatitispossibleforwhatisdesirableinitselftobedesirableforsomethingelseaswell:butstilltodefinewhatisdesirableinitselfinsuchawayisnonethelesswrong:fortheessencecontainsparexcellencewhatisbestinanything,anditisbetterforathingtobedesirableinitselfthantobedesirableforsomethingelse,sothatthisisratherwhatthedefinitiontoooughttohaveindicated。
13
Seealsowhetherindefininganythingamanhasdefineditasan’AandB’,orasa’productofAandB’orasan’AB’。IfhedefinesitasandB’,thedefinitionwillbetrueofbothandyetofneitherofthem;suppose,e。g。justicetobedefinedas’temperanceandcourage。’Forifoftwopersonseachhasoneofthetwoonly,bothandyetneitherwillbejust:forbothtogetherhavejustice,andyeteachsinglyfailstohaveit。Evenifthesituationheredescribeddoesnotsofarappearveryabsurdbecauseoftheoccurrenceofthiskindofthinginothercasesalso(foritisquitepossiblefortwomentohaveaminabetweenthem,thoughneitherofthemhasitbyhimself),yetleastthattheyshouldhavecontraryattributessurelyseemsquiteabsurd;andyetthiswillfollowiftheonebetemperateandyetacoward,andtheother,thoughbrave,beaprofligate;forthenbothwillexhibitbothjusticeandinjustice:forifjusticebetemperanceandbravery,theninjusticewillbecowardiceandprofligacy。Ingeneral,too,allthewaysofshowingthatthewholeisnotthesameasthesumofitspartsareusefulinmeetingthetypejustdescribed;foramanwhodefinesinthiswayseemstoassertthatthepartsarethesameasthewhole。Theargumentsareparticularlyappropriateincaseswheretheprocessofputtingthepartstogetherisobvious,asinahouseandotherthingsofthatsort:forthere,clearly,youmayhavethepartsandyetnothavethewhole,sothatpartsandwholecannotbethesame。
If,however,hehassaidthatthetermbeingdefinedisnot’AandB’butthe’productofAandB’,lookandseeinthefirstplaceifAandBcannotinthenatureofthingshaveasingleproduct:forsomethingsaresorelatedtooneanotherthatnothingcancomeofthem,e。g。alineandanumber。Moreover,seeifthetermthathasbeendefinedisinthenatureofthingsfoundprimarilyinsomesinglesubject,whereasthethingswhichhehassaidproduceitarenotfoundprimarilyinanysinglesubject,buteachinaseparateone。Ifso,clearlythattermcouldnotbetheproductofthesethings:forthewholeisboundtobeinthesamethingswhereinitspartsare,sothatthewholewillthenbefoundprimarilynotinonesubjectonly,butinanumberofthem。If,ontheotherhand,bothpartsandwholearefoundprimarilyinsomesinglesubject,seeifthatmediumisnotthesame,butonethinginthecaseofthewholeandanotherinthatoftheparts。Again,seewhetherthepartsperishtogetherwiththewhole:foritoughttohappen,viceversa,thatthewholeperisheswhenthepartsperish;whenthewholeperishes,thereisnonecessitythatthepartsshouldperishtoo。Oragain,seeifthewholebegoodorevil,andthepartsneither,or,viceversa,ifthepartsbegoodorevilandthewholeneither。Foritisimpossibleeitherforaneutralthingtoproducesomethinggoodorbad,orforthingsgoodorbadtoproduceaneutralthing。Oragain,seeiftheonethingismoredistinctlygoodthantheotherisevil,andyettheproductbenomoregoodthanevil,e。g。supposeshamelessnessbedefinedas’theproductofcourageandfalseopinion’:herethegoodnessofcourageexceedstheeviloffalseopinion;accordinglytheproductoftheseoughttohavecorrespondedtothisexcess,andtobeeithergoodwithoutqualification,oratleastmoregoodthanevil。Oritmaybethatthisdoesnotnecessarilyfollow,unlesseachbeinitselfgoodorbad;formanythingsthatareproductivearenotgoodinthemselves,butonlyincombination;or,percontra,theyaregoodtakensingly,andbadorneutralincombination。Whathasjustbeensaidismostclearlyillustratedinthecaseofthingsthatmakeforhealthorsickness;forsomedrugsaresuchthateachtakenaloneisgood,butiftheyarebothadministeredinamixture,bad。
Again,seewhetherthewhole,asproducedfromabetterandworse,failstobeworsethanthebetterandbetterthantheworseelement。
Thisagain,however,neednotnecessarilybethecase,unlesstheelementscompoundedbeinthemselvesgood;iftheyarenot,thewholemayverywellnotbegood,asinthecasesjustinstanced。
Moreover,seeifthewholebesynonymouswithoneoftheelements:
foritoughtnottobe,anymorethaninthecaseofsyllables:forthesyllableisnotsynonymouswithanyofthelettersofwhichitismadeup。
Moreover,seeifhehasfailedtostatethemanneroftheircomposition:forthemerementionofitselementsisnotenoughtomakethethingintelligible。Fortheessenceofanycompoundthingisnotmerelythatitisaproductofso—and—so,butthatitisaproductofthemcompoundedinsuchandsuchaway,justasinthecaseofahouse:forherethematerialsdonotmakeahouseirrespectiveofthewaytheyareputtogether。
Ifamanhasdefinedanobjectas’AB’,thefirstthingtobesaidisthat’AB’meansthesameeitheras’AandB’,orasthe’productofAandB。’for’honeywater’meanseitherthehoneyandthewater,orthe’drinkmadeofhoneyandwater’。If,then,headmitsthat’AB’isB’isthesameaseitherofthesetwothings,thesamecriticismswillapplyashavealreadybeengivenformeetingeachofthem。Moreover,distinguishbetweenthedifferentsensesinwhichonethingmaybesaidtobe’’another,andseeifthereisnoneoftheminwhichAcouldbesaidtoexist’B。’Thuse。g。supposingtheexpressiontomeanthattheyexisteitherinsomeidenticalthingcapableofcontainingthem(ase。g。justiceandcouragearefoundinthesoul),orelseinthesameplaceorinthesametime,andifthisbeinnowaytrueoftheAandBinquestion,clearlythedefinitionrenderedcouldnotholdofanything,asthereisnopossiblewayinwhichAcanexistB’。If,however,amongthevarioussensesabovedistinguished,itbetruethatAandBareeachfoundinthesametimeastheother,lookandseeifpossiblythetwoarenotusedinthesamerelation。Thuse。g。supposecouragetohavebeendefinedas’daringwithrightreasoning’:hereitispossiblethatthepersonexhibitsdaringinrobbery,andrightreasoninginregardtothemeansofhealth:buthemayhave’theformerqualitythelatter’atthesametime,andnotasyetbecourageous!Moreover,eventhoughbothbeusedinthesamerelationaswell,e。g。inrelationtomedicaltreatment(foramanmayexhibitbothdaringandrightreasoninginrespectofmedicaltreatment),still,nonetheless,noteventhiscombinationof’theonetheother’makeshim’courageous’。Forthetwomustnotrelatetoanycasualobjectthatisthesame,anymorethaneachtoadifferentobject;rather,theymustrelatetothefunctionofcourage,e。g。meetingtheperilsofwar,orwhateverismoreproperlyspeakingitsfunctionthanthis。
Somedefinitionsrenderedinthisformfailtocomeundertheaforesaiddivisionatall,e。g。adefinitionofangeras’painwithaconsciousnessofbeingslighted’。Forwhatthismeanstosayisthatitisbecauseofaconsciousnessofthissortthatthepainoccurs;
buttooccur’becauseof’athingisnotthesameastooccur’athing’inanyofitsaforesaidsenses。
14
Again,ifhehavedescribedthewholecompoundedasthe’composition’ofthesethings(e。g。’alivingcreature’asa’compositionofsoulandbody’),firstofallseewhetherhehasomittedtostatethekindofcomposition,as(e。g。)inadefinitionof’flesh’or’bone’asthe’compositionoffire,earth,andair’。Foritisnotenoughtosayitisacomposition,butyoushouldalsogoontodefinethekindofcomposition:forthesethingsdonotformfleshirrespectiveofthemanneroftheircomposition,butwhencompoundedinonewaytheyformflesh,wheninanother,bone。Itappears,moreover,thatneitheroftheaforesaidsubstancesisthesameasa’composition’atall:foracompositionalwayshasadecompositionasitscontrary,whereasneitheroftheaforesaidhasanycontrary。
Moreover,ifitisequallyprobablethateverycompoundisacompositionorelsethatnoneis,andeverykindoflivingcreature,thoughacompound,isneveracomposition,thennoothercompoundcouldbeacompositioneither。
Again,ifinthenatureofathingtwocontrariesareequallyliabletooccur,andthethinghasbeendefinedthroughtheone,clearlyithasnotbeendefined;elsetherewillbemorethanonedefinitionofthesamething;forhowisitanymoreadefinitiontodefineitthroughthisonethanthroughtheother,seeingthatbothalikearenaturallyliabletooccurinit?Suchisthedefinitionofthesoul,ifdefinedasasubstancecapableofreceivingknowledge:forithasalikecapacityforreceivingignorance。
Also,evenwhenonecannotattackthedefinitionasawholeforlackofacquaintancewiththewhole,oneshouldattacksomepartofit,ifoneknowsthatpartandseesittobeincorrectlyrendered:forifthepartbedemolished,sotooisthewholedefinition。Where,again,adefinitionisobscure,oneshouldfirstofallcorrectandreshapeitinordertomakesomepartofitclearandgetahandleforattack,andthenproceedtoexamineit。Fortheanswererisboundeithertoacceptthesenseastakenbythequestioner,orelsehimselftoexplainclearlywhateveritisthathisdefinitionmeans。Moreover,justasintheassembliestheordinarypracticeistomoveanemendationoftheexistinglawand,iftheemendationisbetter,theyrepealtheexistinglaw,sooneoughttodointhecaseofdefinitionsaswell:oneoughtoneselftoproposeaseconddefinition:
forifitisseentobebetter,andmoreindicativeoftheobjectdefined,clearlythedefinitionalreadylaiddownwillhavebeendemolished,ontheprinciplethattherecannotbemorethanonedefinitionofthesamething。
Incombatingdefinitionsitisalwaysoneofthechiefelementaryprinciplestotakebyoneselfahappyshotatadefinitionoftheobjectbeforeone,ortoadoptsomecorrectlyexpresseddefinition。
Foroneisbound,withthemodel(asitwere)beforeone’seyes,todiscernbothanyshortcominginanyfeaturesthatthedefinitionoughttohave,andalsoanysuperfluousaddition,sothatoneisbettersuppliedwithlinesofattack。
Astodefinitions,then,letsomuchsuffice。
BookVII
1
WHETHERtwothingsare’thesame’or’different’,inthemostliteralofthemeaningsascribedto’sameness’(andwesaid’that’thesame’appliesinthemostliteralsensetowhatisnumericallyone),maybeexaminedinthelightoftheirinflexionsandcoordinatesandopposites。Forifjusticebethesameascourage,thentoothejustmanisthesameasthebraveman,and’justly’isthesameas’bravely’。Likewise,too,inthecaseoftheiropposites:foriftwothingsbethesame,theiroppositesalsowillbethesame,inanyoftherecognizedformsofopposition。Foritisthesamethingtotaketheoppositeoftheoneorthatoftheother,seeingthattheyarethesame。Againitmaybeexaminedinthelightofthosethingswhichtendtoproduceortodestroythethingsinquestionoftheirformationanddestruction,andingeneralofanythingthatisrelatedinlikemannertoeach。Forwherethingsareabsolutelythesame,theirformationsanddestructionsalsoarethesame,andsoarethethingsthattendtoproduceortodestroythem。Lookandseealso,inacasewhereoneoftwothingsissaidtobesomethingorotherinasuperlativedegree,iftheotheroftheseallegedidenticalthingscanalsobedescribedbyasuperlativeinthesamerespect。ThusXenocratesarguesthatthehappylifeandthegoodlifearethesame,seeingthatofallformsoflifethegoodlifeisthemostdesirableandsoalsoisthehappylife:for’themostdesirable’
andthegreatest’applybuttoonething。’Likewisealsoinothercasesofthekind。Each,however,ofthetwothingstermed’greatest’ormostdesirable’mustbenumericallyone:otherwisenoproofwillhavebeengiventhattheyarethesame;foritdoesnotfollowbecausePeloponnesiansandSpartansarethebravestoftheGreeks,thatPeloponnesiansarethesameasSpartans,seeingthat’Peloponnesian’isnotanyonepersonnoryet’Spartan’;itonlyfollowsthattheonemustbeincludedundertheotheras’Spartans’
areunder’Peloponnesians’:forotherwise,iftheoneclassbenotincludedundertheother,eachwillbebetterthantheother。ForthenthePeloponnesiansareboundtobebetterthantheSpartans,seeingthattheoneclassisnotincludedundertheother;fortheyarebetterthananybodyelse。LikewisealsotheSpartansmustperforcebebetterthanthePeloponnesians;fortheytooarebetterthananybodyelse;eachthenisbetterthantheother!Clearlythereforewhatisstyled’best’and’greatest’mustbeasinglething,ifitistobeprovedtobe’thesame’asanother。ThisalsoiswhyXenocratesfailstoprovehiscase:forthehappylifeisnotnumericallysingle,noryetthegoodlife,sothatitdoesnotfollowthat,becausetheyareboththemostdesirable,theyarethereforethesame,butonlythattheonefallsundertheother。
Again,lookandseeif,supposingtheonetobethesameassomething,theotheralsoisthesameasit:foriftheybenotboththesameasthesamething,clearlyneitheraretheythesameasoneanother。
Moreover,examinetheminthelightoftheiraccidentsorofthethingsofwhichtheyareaccidents:foranyaccidentbelongingtotheonemustbelongalsototheother,andiftheonebelongtoanythingasanaccident,somusttheotheralso。Ifinanyoftheserespectsthereisadiscrepancy,clearlytheyarenotthesame。
Seefurtherwhether,insteadofbothbeingfoundinoneclassofpredicates,theonesignifiesaqualityandtheotheraquantityorrelation。Again,seeifthegenusofeachbenotthesame,theonebeing’good’andtheotherevil’,ortheonebeing’virtue’andtheother’knowledge’:orseeif,thoughthegenusisthesame,thedifferentiaepredictedofeitherbenotthesame,theone(e。g。)beingdistinguishedasa’speculative’science,theotherasa’practical’
science。Likewisealsoinothercases。
Moreover,fromthepointofviewof’degrees’,seeiftheoneadmitsanincreaseofdegreebutnottheother,orifthoughbothadmitit,theydonotadmititatthesametime;justasitisnotthecasethatamandesiresintercoursemoreintensely,themoreintenselyheisinlove,sothatloveandthedesireforintercoursearenotthesame。
Moreover,examinethembymeansofanaddition,andseewhethertheadditionofeachtothesamethingfailstomakethesamewhole;
orifthesubtractionofthesamethingfromeachleavesadifferentremainder。Suppose(e。g。)thathehasdeclared’doubleahalf’tobethesameas’amultipleofahalf’:then,subtractingthewords’ahalf’fromeach,theremaindersoughttohavesignifiedthesamething:buttheydonot;for’double’and’amultipleof’donotsignifythesamething。
Inquirealsonotonlyifsomeimpossibleconsequenceresultsdirectlyfromthestatementmade,thatAandBarethesame,butalsowhetheritispossibleforasuppositiontobringitabout;ashappenstothosewhoassertthat’empty’isthesameas’fullofair’:
forclearlyiftheairbeexhausted,thevesselwillnotbelessbutmoreempty,thoughitwillnolongerbefullofair。Sothatbyasupposition,whichmaybetrueormaybefalse(itmakesnodifferencewhich),theonecharacterisannulledandnottheother,showingthattheyarenotthesame。
Speakinggenerally,oneoughttobeonthelook—outforanydiscrepancyanywhereinanysortofpredicateofeachterm,andinthethingsofwhichtheyarepredicated。Forallthatispredicatedoftheoneshouldbepredicatedalsooftheother,andofwhatevertheoneisapredicate,theothershouldbeapredicateofitaswell。
Moreover,as’sameness’isatermusedinmanysenses,seewhetherthingsthatarethesameinonewayarethesamealsoinadifferentway。Forthereiseithernonecessityorevennopossibilitythatthingsthatarethesamespecificallyorgenericallyshouldbenumericallythesame,anditiswiththequestionwhethertheyareorarenotthesameinthatsensethatweareconcerned。
Moreover,seewhethertheonecanexistwithouttheother;for,ifso,theycouldnotbethesame。
2
Suchisthenumberofthecommonplacerulesthatrelateto’sameness’。Itisclearfromwhathasbeensaidthatallthedestructivecommonplacesrelatingtosamenessareusefulalsoinquestionsofdefinition,aswassaidbefore:’forifwhatissignifiedbythetermandbytheexpressionbenotthesame,clearlytheexpressionrenderedcouldnotbeadefinition。Noneoftheconstructivecommonplaces,ontheotherhand,helpsinthematterofdefinition;foritisnotenoughtoshowthesamenessofcontentbetweentheexpressionandtheterm,inordertoestablishthattheformerisadefinition,butadefinitionmusthavealsoalltheothercharactersalreadyannounced。
3
Thisthenistheway,andthesethearguments,wherebytheattempttodemolishadefinitionshouldalwaysbemade。If,ontheotherhand,wedesiretoestablishone,thefirstthingtoobserveisthatfewifanywhoengageindiscussionarriveatadefinitionbyreasoning:
theyalwaysassumesomethingofthekindastheirstartingpoints—bothingeometryandinarithmeticandtheotherstudiesofthatkind。Inthesecondplace,tosayaccuratelywhatadefinitionis,andhowitshouldbegiven,belongstoanotherinquiry。Atpresentitconcernsusonlysofarasisrequiredforourpresentpurpose,andaccordinglyweneedonlymakethebarestatementthattoreasontoathing’sdefinitionandessenceisquitepossible。Forifadefinitionisanexpressionsignifyingtheessenceofthethingandthepredicatescontainedthereinoughtalsotobetheonlyoneswhicharepredicatedofthethinginthecategoryofessence;andgeneraanddifferentiaearesopredicatedinthatcategory:itisobviousthatifoneweretogetanadmissionthatsoandsoaretheonlyattributespredicatedinthatcategory,theexpressioncontainingsoandsowouldofnecessitybeadefinition;foritisimpossiblethatanythingelseshouldbeadefinition,seeingthatthereisnotanythingelsepredicatedofthethinginthecategoryofessence。
Thatadefinitionmaythusbereachedbyaprocessofreasoningisobvious。Themeanswherebyitshouldbeestablishedhavebeenmorepreciselydefinedelsewhere,butforthepurposesoftheinquirynowbeforeusthesamecommonplacerulesserve。Forwehavetoexamineintothecontrariesandotheroppositesofthething,surveyingtheexpressionsusedbothaswholesandindetail:foriftheoppositedefinitiondefinesthatoppositeterm,thedefinitiongivenmustofnecessitybethatofthetermbeforeus。Seeing,however,thatcontrariesmaybeconjoinedinmorethanoneway,wehavetoselectfromthosecontrariestheonewhosecontrarydefinitionseemsmostobvious。Theexpressions,then,havetobeexaminedeachasawholeinthewaywehavesaid,andalsoindetailasfollows。Firstofall,seethatthegenusrenderediscorrectlyrendered;forifthecontrarythingbefoundinthecontrarygenustothatstatedinthedefinition,andthethingbeforeyouisnotinthatsamegenus,thenitwouldclearlybeinthecontrarygenus:forcontrariesmustofnecessitybeeitherinthesamegenusorincontrarygenera。Thedifferentiae,too,thatarepredicatedofcontrariesweexpecttobecontrary,e。g。thoseofwhiteandblack,fortheonetendstopiercethevision,whiletheothertendstocompressit。Sothatifcontrarydifferentiaetothoseinthedefinitionarepredicatedofthecontraryterm,thenthoserenderedinthedefinitionwouldbepredicatedofthetermbeforeus。Seeing,then,thatboththegenusandthedifferentiaehavebeenrightlyrendered,clearlytheexpressiongivenmustbetherightdefinition。Itmightberepliedthatthereisnonecessitywhycontrarydifferentiaeshouldbepredicatedofcontraries,unlessthecontrariesbefoundwithinthesamegenus:ofthingswhosegeneraarethemselvescontrariesitmayverywellbethatthesamedifferentiaisusedofboth,e。g。ofjusticeandinjustice;fortheoneisavirtueandtheotheraviceofthesoul:’ofthesoul’,therefore,isthedifferentiainbothcases,seeingthatthebodyaswellhasitsvirtueandvice。Butthismuchatleastistrue,thatthedifferentiaeofcontrariesareeithercontraryorelsethesame。If,then,thecontrarydifferentiatothatgivenbepredicatedofthecontrarytermandnotoftheoneinhand,clearlythedifferentiastatedmustbepredicatedofthelatter。Speakinggenerally,seeingthatthedefinitionconsistsofgenusanddifferentiae,ifthedefinitionofthecontrarytermbeapparent,thedefinitionofthetermbeforeyouwillbeapparentalso:forsinceitscontraryisfoundeitherinthesamegenusorinthecontrarygenus,andlikewisealsothedifferentiaepredicatedofoppositesareeithercontraryto,orthesameas,eachother,clearlyofthetermbeforeyoutherewillbepredicatedeitherthesamegenusasofitscontrary,while,ofitsdifferentiae,eitherallarecontrarytothoseofitscontrary,oratleastsomeofthemaresowhiletherestremainthesame;or,viceversa,thedifferentiaewillbethesameandthegeneracontrary;
orbothgeneraanddifferentiaewillbecontrary。Andthatisall;forthatbothshouldbethesameisnotpossible;elsecontrarieswillhavethesamedefinition。
Moreover,lookatitfromthepointofviewofitsinflexionsandcoordinates。Forgeneraanddefinitionsareboundtocorrespondineithercase。Thusifforgetfulnessbethelossofknowledge,toforgetistoloseknowledge,andtohaveforgottenistohavelostknowledge。
If,then,anyonewhateveroftheseisagreedto,theothersmustofnecessitybeagreedtoaswell。Likewise,also,ifdestructionisthedecompositionofthething’sessence,thentobedestroyedistohaveitsessencedecomposed,and’destructively’means’insuchawayastodecomposeitsessence’;ifagain’destructive’means’apttodecomposesomething’sessence’,thenalso’destruction’means’thedecompositionofitsessence’。Likewisealsowiththerest:anadmissionofanyoneofthemwhatever,andalltherestareadmittedtoo。
Moreover,lookatitfromthepointofviewofthingsthatstandinrelationsthatarelikeeachother。Forif’healthy’means’productiveofhealth’,’vigorous’toowillmean’productiveofvigour’,and’useful’willmean’productiveofgood。’Foreachofthesethingsisrelatedinlikemannertoitsownpeculiarend,sothatifoneofthemisdefinedas’productiveof’thatend,thiswillalsobethedefinitionofeachoftherestaswell。
Moreover,lookatitfromthepointofandlikedegrees,inallthewaysinwhichitispossibletoestablisharesultbycomparingtwoandtwotogether。ThusifAdefinesabetterthanBdefinesandBisadefinitionofsotooisAofa。Further,ifA’sclaimtodefineaislikeB’stodefineB,andBdefinesB,thenAtoodefinesa。Thisexaminationfromthepointofviewofgreaterdegreesisofnousewhenasingledefinitioniscomparedwithtwothings,ortwodefinitionswithonething;fortherecannotpossiblybeonedefinitionoftwothingsortwoofthesamething。
4
Themosthandyofallthecommonplaceargumentsarethosejustmentionedandthosefromco—ordinatesandinflexions,andthesethereforearethosewhichitismostimportanttomasterandtohavereadytohand:fortheyarethemostusefulonthegreatestnumberofoccasions。Oftherest,too,themostimportantarethoseofmostgeneralapplication:forthesearethemosteffective,e。g。thatyoushouldexaminetheindividualcases,andthenlooktoseeinthecaseoftheirvariousspecieswhetherthedefinitionapplies。Forthespeciesissynonymouswithitsindividuals。ThissortofinquiryisofserviceagainstthosewhoassumetheexistenceofIdeas,ashasbeensaidbefore。’Moreoverseeifamanhasusedatermmetaphorically,orpredicateditofitselfasthoughitweresomethingdifferent。Sotooifanyotherofthecommonplacerulesisofgeneralapplicationandeffective,itshouldbeemployed。
5
Thatitismoredifficulttoestablishthantooverthrowadefinition,isobviousfromconsiderationspresentlytobeurged。
Fortoseeforoneself,andtosecurefromthosewhomoneisquestioning,anadmissionofpremissesofthissortisnosimplematter,e。g。thatoftheelementsofthedefinitionrenderedtheoneisgenusandtheotherdifferentia,andthatonlythegenusanddifferentiaearepredicatedinthecategoryofessence。Yetwithoutthesepremissesitisimpossibletoreasontoadefinition;forifanyotherthingsaswellarepredicatedofthethinginthecategoryofessence,thereisnotellingwhethertheformulastatedorsomeotheroneisitsdefinition,foradefinitionisanexpressionindicatingtheessenceofathing。Thepointisclearalsofromthefollowing:Itiseasiertodrawoneconclusionthanmany。Nowindemolishingadefinitionitissufficienttoargueagainstonepointonly(forifwehaveoverthrownanysinglepointwhatsoever,weshallhavedemolishedthedefinition);whereasinestablishingadefinition,oneisboundtobringpeopletotheviewthateverythingcontainedinthedefinitionisattributable。Moreover,inestablishingacase,thereasoningbroughtforwardmustbeuniversal:forthedefinitionputforwardmustbepredicatedofeverythingofwhichthetermispredicated,andmustmoreoverbeconvertible,ifthedefinitionrenderedistobepeculiartothesubject。Inoverthrowingaview,ontheotherhand,thereisnolongeranynecessitytoshowone’spointuniversally:foritisenoughtoshowthattheformulaisuntrueofanyoneofthethingsembracedundertheterm。
Further,evensupposingitshouldbenecessarytooverthrowsomethingbyauniversalproposition,notevensoisthereanyneedtoprovetheconverseofthepropositionintheprocessofoverthrowingthedefinition。Formerelytoshowthatthedefinitionfailstobepredicatedofeveryoneofthethingsofwhichthetermispredicated,isenoughtooverthrowituniversally:andthereisnoneedtoprovetheconverseofthisinordertoshowthatthetermispredicatedofthingsofwhichtheexpressionisnotpredicated。Moreover,evenifitappliestoeverythingembracedundertheterm,butnottoitalone,thedefinitionistherebydemolished。
Thecasestandslikewiseinregardtothepropertyandgenusofatermalso。Forinbothcasesitiseasiertooverthrowthantoestablish。Asregardsthepropertythisisclearfromwhathasbeensaid:forasarulethepropertyisrenderedinacomplexphrase,sothattooverthrowit,itisonlynecessarytodemolishoneofthetermsused,whereastoestablishitisnecessarytoreasontothemall。Then,too,nearlyalltheotherrulesthatapplytothedefinitionwillapplyalsotothepropertyofathing。Forinestablishingapropertyonehastoshowthatitistrueofeverythingincludedundertheterminquestion,whereastooverthrowoneitisenoughtoshowinasinglecaseonlythatitfailstobelong:further,evenifitbelongstoeverythingfallingundertheterm,butnottothatonly,itisoverthrowninthiscaseaswell,aswasexplainedinthecaseofthedefinition。Inregardtothegenus,itisclearthatyouareboundtoestablishitinonewayonly,viz。byshowingthatitbelongsineverycase,whileofoverthrowingittherearetwoways:forifithasbeenshownthatitbelongseitherneverornotinacertaincase,theoriginalstatementhasbeendemolished。Moreover,inestablishingagenusitisnotenoughtoshowthatitbelongs,butalsothatitbelongsasgenushastobeshown;
whereasinoverthrowingit,itisenoughtoshowitsfailuretobelongeitherinsomeparticularcaseorineverycase。Itappears,infact,asthough,justasinotherthingstodestroyiseasierthantocreate,sointhesematterstootooverthrowiseasierthantoestablish。
Inthecaseofanaccidentalattributetheuniversalpropositioniseasiertooverthrowthantoestablish;fortoestablishit,onehastoshowthatitbelongsineverycase,whereastooverthrowit,itisenoughtoshowthatitdoesnotbelonginonesinglecase。Theparticularpropositionis,onthecontrary,easiertoestablishthantooverthrow:fortoestablishit,itisenoughtoshowthatitbelongsinaparticularinstance,whereastooverthrowit,ithastobeshownthatitneverbelongsatall。
Itisclearalsothattheeasiestthingofallistooverthrowadefinition。Foronaccountofthenumberofstatementsinvolvedwearepresentedinthedefinitionwiththegreatestnumberofpointsforattack,andthemoreplentifulthematerial,thequickeranargumentcomes:forthereismorelikelihoodofamistakeoccurringinalargethaninasmallnumberofthings。Moreover,theotherrulestoomaybeusedasmeansforattackingadefinition:forifeithertheformulabenotpeculiar,orthegenusrenderedbethewrongone,orsomethingincludedintheformulafailtobelong,thedefinitionistherebydemolished。Ontheotherhand,againsttheotherswecannotbringalloftheargumentsdrawnfromdefinitions,noryetoftherest:foronlythoserelatingtoaccidentalattributesapplygenerallytoalltheaforesaidkindsofattribute。Forwhileeachoftheaforesaidkindsofattributemustbelongtothethinginquestion,yetthegenusmayverywellnotbelongasapropertywithoutasyetbeingtherebydemolished。Likewisealsothepropertyneednotbelongasagenus,northeaccidentasagenusorproperty,solongastheydobelong。Sothatitisimpossibletouseonesetasabasisofattackupontheotherexceptinthecaseofdefinition。Clearly,then,itistheeasiestofallthingstodemolishadefinition,whiletoestablishoneisthehardest。Forthereonebothhastoestablishallthoseotherpointsbyreasoning(i。e。thattheattributesstatedbelong,andthatthegenusrenderedisthetruegenus,andthattheformulaispeculiartotheterm),andmoreover,besidesthis,thattheformulaindicatestheessenceofthething;andthishastobedonecorrectly。
Oftherest,thepropertyismostnearlyofthiskind:foritiseasiertodemolish,becauseasaruleitcontainsseveralterms;whileitisthehardesttoestablish,bothbecauseofthenumberofthingsthatpeoplemustbebroughttoaccept,and,besidesthis,becauseitbelongstoitssubjectaloneandispredicatedconvertiblywithitssubject。
Theeasiestthingofalltoestablishisanaccidentalpredicate:
forinothercasesonehastoshownotonlythatthepredicatebelongs,butalsothatitbelongsinsuchandsuchaparticularway:
whereasinthecaseoftheaccidentitisenoughtoshowmerelythatitbelongs。Ontheotherhand,anaccidentalpredicateisthehardestthingtooverthrow,becauseitaffordstheleastmaterial:forinstatingaccidentamandoesnotaddhowthepredicatebelongs;
andaccordingly,whileinothercasesitispossibletodemolishwhatissaidintwoways,byshowingeitherthatthepredicatedoesnotbelong,orthatitdoesnotbelongintheparticularwaystated,inthecaseofanaccidentalpredicatetheonlywaytodemolishitistoshowthatitdoesnotbelongatall。
Thecommonplaceargumentsthroughwhichweshallbewellsuppliedwithlinesofargumentwithregardtoourseveralproblemshavenowbeenenumeratedataboutsufficientlength。
BookVIII
1
NEXTtherefalltobediscussedtheproblemsofarrangementandmethodinpittingquestions。Anyonewhointendstoframequestionsmust,firstofall,selectthegroundfromwhichheshouldmakehisattack;secondly,hemustframethemandarrangethemonebyonetohimself;thirdlyandlastly,hemustproceedactuallytoputthemtotheotherparty。Nowsofarastheselectionofhisgroundisconcernedtheproblemisonealikeforthephilosopherandthedialectician;buthowtogoontoarrangehispointsandframehisquestionsconcernsthedialecticianonly:forineveryproblemofthatkindareferencetoanotherpartyisinvolved。Notsowiththephilosopher,andthemanwhoisinvestigatingbyhimself:thepremissesofhisreasoning,althoughtrueandfamiliar,mayberefusedbytheanswererbecausetheylietooneartheoriginalstatementandsoheforeseeswhatwillfollowifhegrantsthem:butforthisthephilosopherdoesnotcare。Nay,hemaypossiblybeevenanxioustosecureaxiomsasfamiliarandasneartothequestioninhandaspossible:forthesearethebasesonwhichscientificreasoningsarebuiltup。
Thesourcesfromwhichone’scommonplaceargumentsshouldbedrawnhavealreadybeendescribed:’wehavenowtodiscussthearrangementandformationofquestionsandfirsttodistinguishthepremisses,otherthanthenecessarypremisses,whichhavetobeadopted。Bynecessarypremissesaremeantthosethroughwhichtheactualreasoningisconstructed。Thosewhicharesecuredotherthantheseareoffourkinds;theyserveeitherinductivelytosecuretheuniversalpremissbeinggranted,ortolendweighttotheargument,ortoconcealtheconclusion,ortorendertheargumentmoreclear。Besidethesethereisnootherpremisswhichneedbesecured:thesearetheoneswherebyyoushouldtrytomultiplyandformulateyourquestions。Thosewhichareusedtoconcealtheconclusionserveacontroversialpurposeonly;butinasmuchasanundertakingofthissortisalwaysconductedagainstanotherperson,weareobligedtoemploythemaswell。
Thenecessarypremissesthroughwhichthereasoningiseffected,oughtnottobepropoundeddirectlyinsomanywords。Ratheroneshouldsoarasfaralooffromthemaspossible。Thusifonedesirestosecureanadmissionthattheknowledgeofcontrariesisone,oneshouldaskhimtoadmititnotofcontraries,butofopposites:for,ifhegrantsthis,onewillthenarguethattheknowledgeofcontrariesisalsothesame,seeingthatcontrariesareopposites;
ifhedoesnot,oneshouldsecuretheadmissionbyinduction,byformulatingapropositiontothateffectinthecaseofsomeparticularpairofcontraries。Foronemustsecurethenecessarypremisseseitherbyreasoningorbyinduction,orelsepartlybyoneandpartlybytheother,althoughanypropositionswhicharetooobvioustobedeniedmaybeformulatedinsomanywords。Thisisbecausethecomingconclusionislesseasilydiscernedatthegreaterdistanceandintheprocessofinduction,whileatthesametime,evenifonecannotreachtherequiredpremissesinthisway,itisstillopentoonetoformulatetheminsomanywords。Thepremisses,otherthanthese,thatwerementionedabove,mustbesecuredwithaviewtothelatter。Thewaytoemploythemrespectivelyisasfollows:Inductionshouldproceedfromindividualcasestotheuniversalandfromtheknowntotheunknown;andtheobjectsofperceptionarebetterknown,tomostpeopleifnotinvariably。
Concealmentofone’splanisobtainedbysecuringthroughprosyllogismsthepremissesthroughwhichtheproofoftheoriginalpropositionisgoingtobeconstructed—andasmanyofthemaspossible。Thisislikelytobeeffectedbymakingsyllogismstoprovenotonlythenecessarypremissesbutalsosomeofthosewhicharerequiredtoestablishthem。Moreover,donotstatetheconclusionsofthesepremissesbutdrawthemlateroneafteranother;forthisislikelytokeeptheanswereratthegreatestpossibledistancefromtheoriginalproposition。Speakinggenerally,amanwhodesirestogetinformationbyaconcealedmethodshouldsoputhisquestionsthatwhenhehasputhiswholeargumentandhasstatedtheconclusion,peoplestillask’Well,butwhyisthat?’Thisresultwillbesecuredbestofallbythemethodabovedescribed:forifonestatesonlythefinalconclusion,itisunclearhowitcomesabout;fortheanswererdoesnotforeseeonwhatgroundsitisbased,becausetheprevioussyllogismshavenotbeenmadearticulatetohim:whilethefinalsyllogism,showingtheconclusion,islikelytobekeptleastarticulateifwelaydownnotthesecuredpropositionsonwhichitisbased,butonlythegroundsonwhichwereasontothem。
Itisausefulrule,too,nottosecuretheadmissionsclaimedasthebasesofthesyllogismsintheirproperorder,butalternatelythosethatconducetooneconclusionandthosethatconducetoanother;for,ifthosewhichgotogetheraresetsidebyside,theconclusionthatwillresultfromthemismoreobviousinadvance。
Oneshouldalso,whereverpossible,securetheuniversalpremissbyadefinitionrelatingnottotheprecisetermsthemselvesbuttotheirco—ordinates;forpeopledeceivethemselves,wheneverthedefinitionistakeninregardtoaco—ordinate,intothinkingthattheyarenotmakingtheadmissionuniversally。Aninstancewouldbe,supposingonehadtosecuretheadmissionthattheangrymandesiresvengeanceonaccountofanapparentslight,andweretosecurethis,that’anger’isadesireforvengeanceonaccountofanapparentslight:for,clearly,ifthisweresecured,weshouldhaveuniversallywhatweintend。If,ontheotherhand,peopleformulatepropositionsrelatingtotheactualtermsthemselves,theyoftenfindthattheanswererrefusestograntthembecauseontheactualtermitselfheisreadierwithhisobjection,e。g。thatthe’angryman’doesnotdesirevengeance,becausewebecomeangrywithourparents,butwedonotdesirevengeanceonthem。Verylikelytheobjectionisnotvalid;foruponsomepeopleitisvengeanceenoughtocausethempainandmakethemsorry;butstillitgivesacertainplausibilityandairofreasonablenesstothedenialoftheproposition。Inthecase,however,ofthedefinitionof’anger’itisnotsoeasytofindanobjection。
Moreover,formulateyourpropositionasthoughyoudidsonotforitsownsake,butinordertogetatsomethingelse:forpeopleareshyofgrantingwhatanopponent’scasereallyrequires。Speakinggenerally,aquestionershouldleaveitasfaraspossibledoubtfulwhetherhewishestosecureanadmissionofhispropositionorofitsopposite:forifitbeuncertainwhattheiropponent’sargumentrequires,peoplearemorereadytosaywhattheythemselvesthink。
第6章