Demostración y silogismo en los Segundos Analiticos. Reconstruccion y discusion

FABIAN MIE

DIáNOIA

UNAM-FCE

Lugar: México D.F.; Año: 2013 vol. 58 p. 35 - 58

0185-2450

Aristotle's concept of scientific knowledge in his Posterior Analytics has been discussed as to three related aspects: (a) the problem of demonstration, which concerns the applicability of Aristotle?s theory to scientific practice; (b) the relation between syllogism and demonstration; and (c) the concept of epistéme as to the link which connects causal explanation and deductive systematization. In this article I focus on the second aspect. In order to do it I am going to develop my work by means of the following three main lines of argumentation: (i) I am going to give reasons to reject that the syllogistic systematization plays only a role as a skill for justification and didactic proof of a body of knowledge previously acquired. Alternatively, (ii) I aim going to show that an Aristotelian explanation requires the syllogistic as to the role of the cause as middle syllogistic term. As a consequence of that, it should be feasible (iii) to sustain that to firmly establish proper principles as explanative premises is not possible without constructing syllogisms.