Aristotle on the Good of Reproduction
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Myrna Gabbe
Abstract
This paper discusses Aristotle’s theory of reproduction: specifically, the good that he thinks organisms attain by reproducing. The aim of this paper is to refute the widespread theory that Aristotle believes plants and animals reproduce for the sake of attenuated immortality. This interpretive claim plays an important role in supporting one leading interpretation of Aristotle’s teleology: the theory that Aristotelian nature is teleologically oriented with a view solely to what benefits individual organisms, and what benefits the organism is its survival and well–being. This paper challenges the theories that Aristotle takes plants and animals to reproduce for the sake of attenuated immortality, and that he believes survival to be the most basic of goods. It is argued that Aristotle believes reproduction is detrimental to organisms’ health and longevity but nonetheless is central to plant and animal flourishing. It is claimed that, to explain the fundamentality of the reproductive soul function, Aristotle appeals to the eternal and divine.
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© 2020 Walter de Gruyter Inc., Boston/Berlin
Artikel in diesem Heft
- Frontmatter
- Research Articles
- Friendship, Knowledge and Reciprocity in Lysis
- The One over Many Principle of Republic 596a
- Aristotle on the Good of Reproduction
- Akrasia in Epictetus: A Comparison with Aristotle
- The Presentation of the Epicurean Virtues
- The Myth of Cronus in Plato’s Statesman: Cosmic Rotation and Earthly Correspondence
- The Soul and Personal Identity in Early Stoicism: Two Theories?
Artikel in diesem Heft
- Frontmatter
- Research Articles
- Friendship, Knowledge and Reciprocity in Lysis
- The One over Many Principle of Republic 596a
- Aristotle on the Good of Reproduction
- Akrasia in Epictetus: A Comparison with Aristotle
- The Presentation of the Epicurean Virtues
- The Myth of Cronus in Plato’s Statesman: Cosmic Rotation and Earthly Correspondence
- The Soul and Personal Identity in Early Stoicism: Two Theories?
