From Puzzles to Principles?: Essays on Aristotle's Dialectic (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9780739100295)

Scholars of classical philosophy have long disputed whether Aristotle was a dialectical thinker. Most agree that Aristotle contrasts dialectical reasoning with demonstrative reasoning, where the former reasons from generally accepted opinions and the latter reasons from the true and primary. Starting with a grasp on truth, demonstration never relinquishes it. Starting with opinion, how could dialectical reasoning ever reach truth, much less the truth about first principles? Is dialectic then an exercise that reiterates the prejudices of one's times and at best allows one to persuade others by appealing to these prejudices, or is it the royal road to first principles and philosophical wisdom? In From Puzzles to Principles? May Sim gathers experts to argue both these positions and offer a variety of interpretive possibilities. The contributors' thoughtful reflections on the nature and limits of dialectic should play a crucial role in Aristotelian scholarship.

Author: May Sim
ISBN-10: 0739100297
ISBN-13: 9780739100295
Publisher: Lexington Books
Language: English
Published: 10/13/1999
Pages: 288
Format: Paperback
Weight: 0.83lbs
Size: 9.00h x 6.00w x 0.58d

Review Citation(s):
Reference and Research Bk News 08/01/2000 pg. 3