59. Definition of Motion and the Categories of Being

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Lecture Notes

Main Topics #

The Problem of Definition #

• Perfect reasoning requires prior definition of the thing being reasoned about
• Imperfect reasoning about undefined things is possible but limited (illustrated by Plato’s Meno on virtue)
• Modern philosophers (Descartes, Locke) incorrectly claim motion cannot be defined
• One can reason toward a definition even before achieving it

Motion and the Categories #

• Motion is not a separate eleventh category alongside substance, quantity, quality, and relation
• Motion is the coming-to-be of something within one of the ten categories:
  • Generation: coming-to-be of substance
  • Growth (augmentation): coming-to-be of quantity
  • Alteration: coming-to-be of quality
  • Locomotion: coming-to-be of place
• Relations do not truly change; rather something external changes, causing the relational change
• Motion is not “beside things” but intrinsically bound to the categories

Act and Ability (Potentiality) Across All Categories #

• Every genus (category) contains both act (ἐνέργεια, energeia) and ability (δύναμις, dynamis)
• Act and ability “crisscross” the categories rather than forming separate categories themselves
• Examples:
  • Something able to be a man vs. actually being a man
  • Something able to be 5'10" vs. actually being 5'10"
  • Something able to be hot vs. actually being hot

The Definition of Motion: Three Essential Parts #

Aristotle’s definition: “The act of what is able to be as such” (ἡ τοῦ δυνάμει ὄντος ἐνέργεια, ᾗ τοιοῦτον)

1. Act (ἐνέργεια) - actualization component
2. Of what is able to be (τοῦ δυνάμει ὄντος) - the potentiality component
3. As such (ᾗ τοιοῦτον) / Insofar as - the crucial qualifier

First Meaning of “As Such”: Distinguishing Motion from Other Acts #

• Motion is not the act that something already possesses (e.g., being a man, being a philosopher)
• Motion is the act that belongs to something precisely insofar as it is still in ability
• A person in the hallway is actually a man and philosopher; entering the room is the act of them insofar as able to be in the room
• Water becoming hot is not the act of water as water (as already actual), but as able to be hot
• This distinction prevents circular definition and confusion of motion with other actualities

Second Meaning of “As Such”: Incomplete Actualization #

• Motion is inherently incomplete or imperfect actualization
• The ability is not fully actualized while motion is occurring
• Once fully in the room, one cannot “come into the room” anymore
• Complete actualization = motion has ceased
• Water becoming hot must be distinguished from water that is fully hot

Third Meaning of “As Such”: Ordered Toward Further Act #

• Motion is inherently directed toward a further, more complete actualization
• This ordering toward completion is per se (essential to motion), not accidental
• Contrast: Standing in a doorway (might have no intention to go further; accidental to standing)
• Coming through a doorway (necessarily continues toward completion as long as motion persists)
• As long as water is becoming hot, it will necessarily continue to become hotter

Being and Becoming #

• Being and becoming are not the same thing, despite both being said “to be”
• Plato/Aristotle carefully distinguish these concepts
• Example (Protagoras dialogue): “difficult to become good” ≠ “difficult to be good”
• Becoming is a diminished sense of being:
  • It is the coming-to-be of some being
  • It has relation to being through the being it realizes
• Humans depend on parents for becoming, not for being
• Only God is cause of being itself; creatures depend on God for continuous existence
• Becoming cannot be as fully said to exist as substance, quantity, quality, or relation

The Problem of Contraries in Motion #

• Abilities to be healthy vs. sick: distinguished by different termini but same subject
• Unlike abilities to walk vs. talk (genuinely distinct capacities)
• One cannot be healthy and sick simultaneously
• Yet one can walk and talk simultaneously
• The “as such” clause clarifies this distinction

Key Arguments #

Why “As Such” Is Essential #

• If motion were simply “the act of the movable,” definition would be circular
• The movable is defined by its ability to be moved—cannot use to define motion itself
• “As such” specifies that motion belongs to something insofar as it is in ability, not insofar as it already has other acts
• Prevents confusion with static actualities

Why Motion Must Be Incomplete #

• Complete actualization would mean the motion has ceased
• A body fully in a room is no longer coming into the room
• The incompleteness is essential to motion’s very definition

Why Motion Must Be Ordered to Further Act #

• Without ordering toward completion, coming through a doorway would be indistinguishable from standing in it
• The per se (essential) ordering distinguishes motion from accidental states
• This intrinsic directedness is what makes motion inherently dynamic

Important Definitions #

Motion (κίνησις, kinesis): The act of what is able to be as such; incomplete actualization of a potentiality, inherently ordered toward further completion. Broader than modern English “motion” (includes alteration, growth, generation, not just change of place).

Act (ἐνέργεια, energeia): Actualization or realization of potential; can be complete (full actualization) or incomplete (motion).

Ability/Potentiality (δύναμις, dynamis): Capacity to be or become something; not yet fully actualized; can have multiple possible actualizations.

Categories (κατηγορίαι, categoriae): The ten highest genera of being—substance, quantity, quality, relation, place, time, position, state, action, passion. Substance is primary; others depend on it.

As Such (ᾗ τοιοῦτον, qua): A qualifying phrase specifying the respect or capacity in which something is being considered.

Examples & Illustrations #

Coming Into a Room #

• Person standing in hallway: actually a man, philosopher, father; able to be in the room
• Motion of entering: act of the person insofar as able to be in the room—not the act insofar as being a man, philosopher, or father
• Fully in the room: ability actualized; can no longer “come into the room”
• Standing in doorway: not necessarily motion; accidental to standing whether one goes further
• Coming through doorway: essential ordering toward completion; must go further as long as motion continues

Water Becoming Hot #

• Water is actually water; able to be hot
• Becoming hot: act of water insofar as able to be hot—not the act of water as water
• Incompleteness: as long as water is becoming hot, it will become hotter
• Completion: once fully hot, motion ceases

Clay Becoming a Statue #

• Bronze is actually bronze; able to be a statue, sphere, cube, or many other shapes
• Becoming a statue: not the act of bronze as bronze (as already actual), but as able to be a statue
• The ability to be a sphere and ability to be a cube are distinct (though same subject and material)
• Not as distinct as ability to walk vs. ability to talk (genuinely different capacities)

Notable Quotes #

“The act of the able to be as such is motion.” — Aristotle’s definition of motion, central to natural philosophy

“Motion is not beside things.” — Aristotle, asserting that motion is not a separate category but the coming-to-be within the categories

“Examples are not a definition.” — Socrates (Plato’s Meno), illustrating why enumeration of instances cannot substitute for defining the universal

“You can’t really know well whether virtue can be taught before you know what virtue is.” — Socrates (Meno), establishing the priority of definition for perfect reasoning

“To be or not to be, that is the question.” — Hamlet (Shakespeare), illustrating that “being” primarily means life and death (substance), not qualified forms of being

Questions Addressed #

Why Can’t Motion Be Defined Simply as “the Act of the Movable”? #

• Such a definition would be circular: the movable is defined by its ability to be moved
• We need to specify that motion is the act insofar as the thing is still in ability, not insofar as it already possesses other acts

What Distinguishes Motion from Complete Actualization? #

• Complete actualization means the motion has ended
• Motion is inherently incomplete and on the way to completion
• The “as such” clause captures this incompleteness as essential to motion

How Can Becoming Be Said to Be If Being and Becoming Are Different? #

• Becoming is a diminished sense of being, not univocal with substance
• It is the coming-to-be of some being; it has relation to being through what it actualizes
• Like logic is called philosophy not fundamentally but because it is a tool for acquiring philosophy
• Being is primarily substance; quantity, quality, and relation are beings in diminished senses; becoming is being in the most diminished sense

Why Must Motion Be Ordered to Further Act? #

• Without this ordering, standing in a doorway would be indistinguishable from coming through it
• The per se ordering toward completion is what makes motion inherently dynamic and progressive
• This prevents motion from being confused with static or accidental states

What Is the Relationship Between the Ten Categories and Motion? #

• Motion is not an eleventh category
• Motion is the coming-to-be of something within one of the ten categories
• Each category can be divided into act and ability
• Motion occurs in substance (generation), quantity (growth), quality (alteration), and place (locomotion), but not in relation (which presupposes change elsewhere)

Connections to Broader Philosophical Framework #

• Definition and demonstration: Illustrates the Aristotelian principle that perfect knowledge requires prior definition
• Univocal vs. equivocal predication: Motion shows how “being” is not said univocally of all things; becoming is being in an equivocal sense
• Act and potentiality: Motion is fundamental to understanding the relationship between act and potentiality, which extends to metaphysics and theology
• Causality: Understanding motion as intrinsically ordered toward completion relates to final causality