10. The Six Characteristics of the Wise Man

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Lecture Notes

Main Topics #

The Six Characteristics of the Wise Man #

Aristotle develops a six-part description to help us understand what wisdom is:

1. Has a unified life - The wise man has his life “all together” with coherent order, not shipwrecked or in pieces
2. Knows all things in some way - The wise man has universal knowledge (not particular knowledge of individual things)
3. Knows difficult things - Wisdom concerns itself with what is hard for humans to know, things furthest from the senses
4. More certain - The wise man is more sure about what he knows than other men
5. Knows causes - The wise man understands why things are so, not merely that they are
6. Directs others - The wise man, like the chief artist, has authority to guide those in subordinate positions (though this ruling is speculative, not practical)

Universality in Predication and Causality #

Berquist explains the crucial connection between two kinds of universality:

• Universality in predicando (being said of many things) - e.g., “citizen” is said of all citizens
• Universality in causando (universal causality) - e.g., the king’s rule extends to all citizens

These correspond: the most universal in predication corresponds to the most universal cause. Since the wise man knows all things universally, he must be seeking knowledge of the first cause - that which causes all other things.

The King and General Analogy #

The causality of the general extends to all those of whom “soldier” can be said. The king’s causality extends to all those of whom “citizen” can be said. Since “citizen” is more universal than “soldier,” the king is a more universal cause than the general. This shows how the most universal concept corresponds to the most universal cause.

The Apparent Tension: Difficulty vs. Certainty #

There seems to be tension between the second characteristic (knows difficult things) and the third (more certain):

• Things most universal are furthest from the senses and therefore most difficult for humans to know
• Yet the wise man is most certain in his knowledge
• This is partially resolved by noting that effects are known before causes, and cause before cause of cause
• The axioms (self-evident truths) are the most universal and most certain, though also most difficult to defend
• The wise man can defend axioms like “nothing can both be and not be at the same time in the same way” with absolute certainty

Why Modern Philosophers Fail #

Berquist emphasizes that modern philosophers have great difficulty seeing the most universal things. He notes:

• Marx’s dialectical materialism never distinguishes the four senses of “opposition” (contradiction, contrariety, having and lacking, relatives)
• Modern philosophers cannot distinguish and order the senses of equivocal words that are central to wisdom
• Without knowledge of these distinctions, they make fundamental errors
• The logician seems more like the wise man than the natural philosopher because logic deals with the most universal things

Logic vs. Natural Philosophy #

Diana’s distinction: Logic is more like wisdom than natural philosophy because:

• Logic is more universal and deals with predication
• Logic disposes us for wisdom in a way natural philosophy does not
• Natural philosophy goes from general down to particular and toward matter
• Wisdom goes toward the immaterial and most universal
• However, natural philosophy teaches us about causes and helps with understanding act and potency

Key Arguments #

Why the Wise Man Knows the First Cause #

1. The wise man knows all things universally (characteristic 2)
2. The most universal in predication corresponds to the most universal cause
3. Therefore, the wise man must seek knowledge of the cause of all things
4. This cause is the first cause

The Hierarchy of Knowledge #

1. Effects are known before causes
2. Causes are known before causes of causes
3. Following this chain backward leads to the first cause
4. The first cause is known last in our progression but is the most universal and most difficult to know
5. Knowledge of the first cause is wisdom

Why the Axioms Are Most Certain #

1. The axioms are the most universal statements
2. They are the most certain things we know
3. The wise man can defend them by understanding the equivocal nature of the terms within them
4. For example, one cannot both be and not be in the same sense at the same time
5. If every statement needed to be known through another statement, nothing could be known
6. Therefore, some statements must be known through themselves (per se)

Important Definitions #

Wisdom (Sophia): Knowledge of the first causes and most universal principles; characterized by knowing all things in some way, knowing difficult things, having great certainty, knowing causes, directing other sciences, and pursued for its own sake.

Universality in predicando: The property of a term being said of all things of a certain kind; more universal terms are said of more things (e.g., “animal” is more universal than “man”).

Universality in causando: The property of a cause affecting all things that fall under a universal concept; a more universal cause extends to all those of whom the more universal term can be said.

Per se (through itself): Applied to statements known through themselves without needing proof from other statements; also applied to causes that cause through their own nature rather than through another cause.

Equivocal by reason (analogous): When a word has multiple senses that are ordered according to a central meaning; characteristic of the most universal philosophical terms like “being,” “cause,” and “opposition.”

Examples & Illustrations #

The King and General #

The king’s causality extends to all citizens (most universal category). The general’s causality extends only to soldiers (less universal). “Citizen” is more universal than “soldier,” so the king is a more universal cause. This shows how universality in what is said corresponds to universality in causation.

Democratic Age and Direction #

In a democratic age, people resist being directed by those wiser than themselves, claiming “I’ll do what I want to do.” Yet people lack the humility to listen to minds greater than their own. Pride prevents them from hearing the wise man who could recall them from errors.

Thomas and Pride as Cause of Error #

Thomas Aquinas identifies two ways pride causes error:

1. The proud man thinks he is more capable than he is, so he judges things he is not able to judge
2. The proud man will not listen to minds greater than his own, missing the correction they offer

The Professor and the Telephone Book #

It is remarked that one would rather be directed by the first 200 names in the telephone book than by the faculty of Harvard. Professors live in abstraction removed from “the real world” and thus lack the practical wisdom they seem to think they possess.

Marxism and the Four Senses of Opposition #

Marx’s dialectical materialism claims everything develops through conflict of opposites, but Marx never distinguishes the four senses of opposition: contradiction, contrariety, having and lacking, and relatives. This fundamental failure shows modern philosophers’ inability to work with the most universal concepts.

Notable Quotes #

“When you get out into the real world, then you really find out what it’s all about.” (Berquist on common saying about practical knowledge)

“Nothing great in science can be accomplished without the elementary wonder of the philosopher.” - Max Born (Nobel Prize physicist, cited by Berquist)

“If Euclid did not arouse your youthful enthusiasm, you were not born to be a scientist.” - Einstein

“Every respectable word in philosophy is analogous [equivocal by reason].” - Conic (cited by Berquist)

“We name things as we know them.” - Thomas Aquinas (principle governing how naming follows the order of knowing)

“The per se is before the per alia” (The through itself is before the through another) - Plato/Thomas Aquinas

Questions Addressed #

How can the wise man know all things if he cannot know all particulars? #

The wise man knows all things universally - through knowledge of the universal principles and causes that apply to all things. By knowing that “no odd number is even,” he knows an infinity of things without knowing each one individually.

Why is wisdom about the first cause rather than just any cause? #

Because the wise man has the most universal knowledge, and the most universal in predication corresponds to the most universal cause. The first cause is the cause of all other causes, so it is the most universal cause.

How can the wise man be most certain about things that are most difficult to know? #

The wise man is most certain about the axioms (self-evident truths) which, though difficult to defend, are the most certain and universal. He can defend them by understanding the equivocal nature of the terms used in them and distinguishing their central senses.

What does it mean that the wise man “directs” others? #

The wise man directs other sciences as the king directs soldiers and citizens - not through personal direction but through establishing the fundamental principles and causes to which all particular knowledge must conform. Logic similarly directs all sciences by establishing the rules of predication and demonstration.

Why do modern philosophers fail to see the most universal things? #

They have not learned to distinguish and order the multiple senses of equivocal words. Without knowledge of how equivocal terms like “being,” “cause,” and “opposition” have multiple ordered senses, modern philosophers cannot work with the most universal concepts that wisdom requires.