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Aristotle · Mechanics §10.1

Why Heavy or Large Balances and Wheels Are Harder to Move

Passage 12 of 38 · Greek

Summary

The text explains why a balance or a wheel is harder to move when it is heavy or large, attributing this to the physical property that a heavy object is difficult to move not only against its inclination but also to the side.

§10.1Διὰ τί ῥᾷον, ὅταν ἄνευ βάρους ᾖ, κινεῖται τὸ ζυγόν, ἢ ἔχον βάρος;
Why does the balance move more easily when it is without a weight than when it has a weight?
ὁμοίως δὲ καὶτροχὸς ἢ ἄλλο τοιοῦτο τὸ βαρύτερον μὲν μεῖζον δὲ τοῦ ἐλάττονος καὶκουφοτέρουἭ ὅτι οὐ μόνον εἰς τοὐναντίον τὸ βαρύ, ἀλλὰ καὶ εἰς τὸ πλάγιον δυσκίνητόν ἐστιν.
And likewise also with a wheel or other such thing, is the heavier and larger one more difficult to move than the smaller and lighter? Or is it because a heavy object is difficult to move not only in the opposite direction, but also to the side?
Ἐναντίον γὰρ τῇ ῥοπῇκινῆσαι χαλεπῶς, ἐφ’ ὃ δὲ ῥέπει, ῥᾳδίως· εἰς δὲ τὸ πλάγιον οὐ ῥέπει.
For to move it contrary to its inclination is difficult, but in the direction it inclines, easy; but it does not incline to the side.

Notes

  1. §10.1τοῦ ἐλάττονος καὶ κουφοτέρου — Genitive of comparison. The verb at the end of the clause (corresponding to κινεῖται in the preceding sentence or δυσκίνητόν ἐστιν in the following) is omitted; the sense "is more difficult to move" must be supplied in comparison to the smaller and lighter.
  2. §10.1Ἐναντίον γὰρ τῇ ῥοπῇ κινῆσαι χαλεπῶς — κινῆσαι is an infinitive expressing the action of moving. χαλεπῶς is an adverb, which in this context functions to express that to move is difficult. τῇ ῥοπῇ is a dative governed by ἐναντίον ("contrary to").

Cite this passage

Aristotle, Mechanics §10.1. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0086.tlg023.humanitext-grc1:10.1

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