The Concept of Matter in the Natural Philosophy and Metaphysics

The concept of matter states that it is something which is made in a fundamental and measurable principle whose opposite is a form. The term has different definitions which exist from various traditions of philosophy. These can either be used by the scholastic philosophers and acquired a wide range of different meanings relating to the logic, psychology epistemology and ethics. The paper will address the concept of matter as being used in the natural philosophy and metaphysics; the sketched as well as the development of its history from the early existing times to the current times.

The concept of matter is defined according to the Greek naturalists in a sense that it be in the speculative situation about the world where people live and own a place. This understanding intends to establish concrete terms as well as the images which people experience in their daily lives. Further, when the entire physical universe and not the single species is in the approachable spirit, it is nor recognized that at first sight it would be found. There are two types of unity in regards to the ordinary experience which consist of the unity of common and the of common stuff. The unity of common has the characteristics where many religions were involved, but it rarely led to some speculative clarifications to the involved notions such as the existence of God. The unity of stuff established the approach of adopting some speculation of thinkers who viewed the universe as a bound together in a material sort is (Davies, 2011). As a result, there are several aspects which should be noted in describing matter under this perspective. There was no word which would describe matter until these individuals began to articulate this concept. The justified meaning for this case was that they were posting original stuff which is usually familiar such as air. The essence of this was determined as the answer to the problem of the real unity in diversity. The explanation was majorly based on the change and difference of the unnamed general categories of matter. 

The matter was also defined in different perspective during the time of Plato given the fact that it played two useful roles in the complex metaphysics. Further,  analysis of Plato was based on the knowledge of leading him to assert the existence regarding the realm in the form of immutability and stability which depends on science. These forms were in an image of defective and fashions which were flickering in a matrix of multiplicity and extendedness. Essentially this image of the world is the visible image that a person can perceive because the intelligibility comes from its form of relation. The essence of this is because the limitation of the coherence can be traced to multiple and defective chapters of space matter that takes place in images (Berkes, 2013).  Notably, the aspect which should be understood is that matter which was formerly referred to as the principle of unity by the Ionians has transformed to be known as the principle of multiplicity. Therefore for Plato, the diversity was not about understanding the reduction of one or more aspects which were underlying on the types of stuff as previously known in this regard there two elements of diversity which need deeper understanding to clarify the facets of matter.

The first one was about the indefinite and sheer of multiplicity in the sensible cases of existing form. The essence of this is based on a given attitude and not something which can be made for understanding in the future. The other element of diversity is based on the multiplicity of the existing forms which was more mysterious. The essence of this was constituting the relations of negation where the original unity of the one good is primarily focusing on the locus of perfect intelligibility that is gradually dissipated. However, there must be an existence of motion about the principle of the soul that can be seen as pure in man but often work less in all thing which is moving around (Berkes, 2013). These motions within the universe can be noted in the stars and seasons. Therefore matter can be collectively defined in this sense as an actively opposed soul where the source defect and breakdown family. Aristotle further advanced the continuation of this discovery of matter.

The understanding of matter according to Aristotle was based on the general term for the category of material which existed in the scientific explanation domain. Further, he was the first person to adopt the conventional terms of timber as a material which a carpenter works. Although there were frequent terms used other than the timber, the application of matter according to lonians did nit have potential reality at this time.  As a result, Aristotle began analyzing the kinds of things people would talk about themselves where he claims to be able to distinguish different levels of reference. There are things which people would refer by names and not predict other things (Blackwell, and Kusukawa, 2017). These are made to be understandable due to attributes of any kind or accidental which does not belong to any particular type of entity. The essence of this addressed the principle of change which illustrates the subject of prediction. Primarily this can be supported with scientific analysis which can remain to be right in all instances since it cannit pick the attribute of randomness.

The other aspect is the understanding of primary matter which was determined from the difficulty of distinction made by Aristotle as a doctrine. The essence of this was to ensure that all the cost of maintaining the essential experience given has to be entitative or substantial. Lastly, Aristotle describes matter in the context of material causality. There is the second part in which Aristotle describes the notion of material through different analysis to explain the physical change. Additionally, he claims that there are for types of change which are complementary to each other (Blackwell, and Kusukawa, 2017). The explanation of difference can depend on the material in which it will occur over the natural form involved towards the agent responsible for it to the end which is directed.

The other generation of philosophers also describes matter in a different dimension which brings it to the nearest materialist that can be experienced in the modern sense. Further, these are experienced from the old elementary school where the fire is considered as a primary element. Some philosophers such as Plotinus to Augustine made the solution to the problem in their early days where Plotinus proposed a continued powerful rethinking of the Neoplatonic themes. The essence of this aspect is beyond the mind and being considering its sources of multiplicity existing in the form of the world (Blackwell, and Kusukawa, 2017). The version of Augustine was inherited though dualism where the doctrine of Christianity forced him to modify it. Further, he was able to admit the emanation but allowed matter over against and not existentially depending on God. Primarily this was because the formless matter was the first and lowest creatures of God

During the medieval period, the Aristotelian doctrine of the matter was researched and divided into several sections. The vital aspect in determining the principle of individualism was the factor which contributed to the need of understanding the universal problems. There was very little from the discovery of Aristotle in the later age given the fact that the individual entities were prior in their existence. However, it is evident that individuation is considered to depending on the multiplicity which was made to be possible by matter (Blackwell, and Kusukawa, 2017). Therefore, Thomas Aquinas worked on the complexity theory to determine the quantity in the principle of multiplicity to constitute essential parts of physical order and the unique object of reference.

The metaphor of material of stuff exercised to constant pressure in a new direction following the Aristotelian primary matter. The essence of this was because it has some conservation in the change which was not quantified. The discussion of rarefaction was essential in indicating that the expansion of bodies and contraction a factor often referred to as quantity of matter always remains the same. The explanation of this stage was advanced from Giles to Newton where they argued that amount of matter is considered as the most likely subject for the cases of accidents which remained in the miracle of the transubstantiation. Further, this belief of matter to be working against the force was the central idea in formulating the notion of inertia. Primarily this is where Newton drew the threads together with the concept of mass force which is different from its weight. After all these possible descriptions of matter, Descartes further emphasize it as the central category for the metaphysicians. Primarily Descartes did more research than Plato where he equated matter with the extension by making it a subject to geometrics reducing it to physics (Descartes, 2018). The rationalistic tradition of the problem was defined as individualism which assists in identifying the extent of body operations under the simple laws of mechanics.

Reference list

Berkes, N., 2013. Introduction. In The Development of Secularism in Turkey (pp. 35-54). Routledge.

Blackwell, C. and Kusukawa, S., 2017. Philosophy in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries: conversations with Aristotle. Routledge.

Davies, M., 2011. Concept mapping, mind mapping, and argument mapping: what are the Descartes, R., 2018. The principles of philosophy. BookRix.fferences and do they matter?. Higher education, 62(3), pp.279-301.