Aristotle · Metaphysics §5.29-5.30
Definitions of the False and the Accidental
Summary
In §5.29, the concept of the false is distinguished into false things, false statements, and false persons, while critically examining the views of Antisthenes and Plato's Hippias. In §5.30, the accidental (attribute) is defined, drawing a distinction between what is neither necessary nor usual, and what belongs to a thing in itself (per se) without being part of its essential substance.
§5.29τὸ ψεῦδος λέγεται ἄλλον μὲν τρόπον ὡς πρᾶγμα ψεῦδος, καὶ τούτου τὸ μὲν τῷ μὴ συγκεῖσθαι ἢ ἀδύνατον εἶναι συντεθῆναι (ὥσπερ λέγεται τὸ τὴν διάμετρον εἶναι σύμμετρον ἢ τὸ σὲ καθῆσθαι· τούτων γὰρ ψεῦδος τὸ μὲν ἀεὶ τὸ δὲ ποτέ· οὕτω γὰρ οὐκ ὄντα ταῦτἀ, τὰ δὲ ὅσα ἔστι μὲν ὄντα, πέφυκε μέντοι φαίνεσθαι ἢ μὴ οἷα) ἐστιν ἢ ἃ μὴ ἔστιν (οἷον ἡ σκιαγραφία καὶ τὰ ἐνύπνια·
"False" is said in one way as a "false thing", and of this, in one way because it is not combined or is impossible to be combined (as it is said that the diagonal is commensurate, or that you are sitting; for of these, one is false always, the other sometimes; for in this way these are non-existent); and in another way, such things as exist indeed, but are of such a nature as to appear either not of such a kind as they are, or what they are not (as shadow-painting and dreams; for these are indeed something, but not that of which they produce the appearance).
ταῦτα γὰρ ἔστι μέν τι, ἀλλʼ οὐχ ὧν ἐμποιεῖ τὴν φαντασίαν)· —πράγματα μὲν οὖν ψευδῆ οὕτω λέγεται, ἢ τῷ μὴ εἶναι αὐτὰ ἢ τῷ τὴν ἀπʼ αὐτῶν φαντασίαν μὴ ὄντος εἶναι·
Things, then, are called false in this way, either by not being themselves, or by the appearance from them being that of a non-existent thing.
λόγος δὲ ψευδὴς ὁ τῶν μὴ ὄντων, ᾗ ψευδής, διὸ πᾶς λόγος ψευδὴς ἑτέρου ἢ οὗ ἐστὶν ἀληθής, οἷον ὁ τοῦ κύκλου ψευδὴς τριγώνου.
And a "false statement" is the statement of non-existent things, insofar as it is false; wherefore every statement is false of something other than that of which it is true, as the statement of a circle is false of a triangle.
ἑκάστου δὲ λόγος ἔστι μὲν ὡς εἷς, ὁ τοῦ τί ἦν εἶναι, ἔστι δʼ ὡς πολλοί, ἐπεὶ ταὐτό πως αὐτὸ καὶ αὐτὸ πεπονθός, οἷον Σωκράτης καὶ Σωκράτης μουσικός (ὁ δὲ ψευδὴς λόγος οὐθενός ἐστιν ἁπλῶς λόγος)·
And the statement of each thing is in one way one, namely that of the "what it was to be", but in another way many, since a thing itself and itself affected in some way are somehow the same, as Socrates and musical Socrates (but the false statement is simply the statement of nothing).
διὸ Ἀντισθένης ᾤετο εὐήθως μηθὲν ἀξιῶν λέγεσθαι πλὴν τῷ οἰκείῳ λόγῳ, ἓν ἐφʼ ἑνός· ἐξ ὧν συνέβαινε μὴ εἶναι ἀντιλέγειν, σχεδὸν δὲ μηδὲ ψεύδεσθαι.
Wherefore Antisthenes thought foolishly when he claimed that nothing should be spoken of except by its own statement, one statement for one thing; from which it followed that it was not possible to contradict, and almost not even to tell a falsehood.
ἔστι δʼ ἕκαστον λέγειν οὐ μόνον τῷ αὐτοῦ λόγῳ ἀλλὰ καὶ τῷ ἑτέρου, ψευδῶς μὲν καὶ παντελῶς, ἔστι δʼ ὡς καὶ ἀληθῶς, ὥσπερ τὰ ὀκτὼ διπλάσια τῷ τῆς δυάδος λόγῳ.
But it is possible to speak of each thing not only by its own statement but also by that of another, falsely indeed and completely so, but in a way also truly, as eight is called double by the statement of the dyad.
τὰ μὲν οὖν οὕτω λέγεται ψευδῆ, ἄνθρωπος δὲ ψευδὴς ὁ εὐχερὴς καὶ προαιρετικὸς τῶν τοιούτων λόγων, μὴ διʼ ἕτερόν τι ἀλλὰ διʼ αὐτό, καὶ ὁ ἄλλοις ἐμποιητικὸς τῶν τοιούτων λόγων, ὥσπερ καὶ τὰ πράγματά φαμεν ψευδῆ εἶναι ὅσα ἐμποιεῖ φαντασίαν ψευδῆ.
These things, then, are called false in this way, but a "false man" is one who is ready and choosing such statements, not for the sake of something else but for its own sake, and one who is apt to produce such statements in others, just as we say those things are false which produce a false appearance.
διὸ ὁ ἐν τῷ Ἱππίᾳ λόγος παρακρούεται ὡς ὁ αὐτὸς ψευδὴς καὶ ἀληθής.
Wherefore the argument in the Hippias deceives by assuming that the same person is false and true.
τὸν δυνάμενον γὰρ ψεύσασθαι λαμβάνει ψευδῆ (οὗτος δʼ ὁ εἰδὼς καὶ ὁ φρόνιμος)· ἔτι τὸν ἑκόντα φαῦλον βελτίω.
For it takes the one who is able to tell a falsehood to be false (and this is the one who knows and is prudent); and further, that the one who is voluntarily bad is better.
τοῦτο δὲ ψεῦδος λαμβάνει διὰ τῆς ἐπαγωγῆς—ὁ γὰρ ἑκὼν χωλαίνων τοῦ ἄκοντος κρείττων—τὸ χωλαίνειν τὸ μιμεῖσθαι λέγων, ἐπεὶ εἴ γε χωλὸς ἑκών, χείρων ἴσως, ὥσπερ ἐπὶ τοῦ ἤθους, καὶ οὗτος.
But this takes a falsehood through induction—for the one who limps voluntarily is better than the one who does so involuntarily—by calling limping "imitating", since if he were voluntarily lame, he would perhaps be worse, just as in the case of character, so also here.
§5.30συμβεβηκὸς λέγεται ὃ ὑπάρχει μέν τινι καὶ ἀληθὲς εἰπεῖν, οὐ μέντοι οὔτʼ ἐξ ἀνάγκης οὔτε ὡς ἐπὶ τὸ πολύ, οἷον εἴ τις ὀρύττων φυτῷ βόθρον εὗρε θησαυρόν.
"Accidental" is said of that which belongs to something and of which it is true to say so, but neither of necessity nor for the most part; for example, if someone digging a hole for a plant found a treasure.
τοῦτο τοίνυν συμβεβηκὸς τῷ ὀρύττοντι τὸν βόθρον, τὸ εὑρεῖν θησαυρόν· οὔτε γὰρ ἐξ ἀνάγκης τοῦτο ἐκ τούτου ἢ μετὰ τοῦτο, οὔθʼ ὡς ἐπὶ τὸ πολὺ ἄν τις φυτεύῃ θησαυρὸν εὑρίσκει.
This, then, is accidental to the one digging the hole, namely finding a treasure; for neither does this come from this or after this of necessity, nor if one plants does one for the most part find a treasure.
καὶ μουσικός γʼ ἄν τις εἴη λευκός· ἀλλʼ ἐπεὶ οὔτε ἐξ ἀνάγκης οὔθʼ ὡς ἐπὶ τὸ πολὺ τοῦτο γίγνεται, συμβεβηκὸς αὐτὸ λέγομεν.
And a musical person might be white; but since this happens neither of necessity nor for the most part, we call it accidental.
ὥστʼ ἐπεὶ ἔστιν ὑπάρχον τι καὶ τινί, καὶ ἔνια τούτων καὶ ποὺ καὶ ποτέ, ὅ τι ἂν ὑπάρχῃ μέν, ἀλλὰ μὴ διότι τοδὶ ἦν ἢ νῦν ἢ ἐνταῦθα, συμβεβηκὸς ἔσται.
So, since there is something belonging to something, and some of these belong somewhere and sometime, whatever belongs indeed, but not because it was this thing now or here, will be accidental.
οὐδὲ δὴ αἴτιον ὡρισμένον οὐδὲν τοῦ συμβεβηκότος ἀλλὰ τὸ τυχόν· τοῦτο δʼ ἀόριστον.
Nor indeed is there any definite cause for the accidental, but only the chance cause; and this is indefinite.
συνέβη τῳ εἰς Αἴγιναν ἐλθεῖν, εἰ μὴ διὰ τοῦτο ἀφίκετο ὅπως ἐκεῖ ἔλθῃ, ἀλλʼ ὑπὸ χειμῶνος ἐξωσθεὶς ἢ ὑπὸ λῃστῶν ληφθείς.
It happened to someone to go to Aegina, if he did not arrive there for the sake of going there, but was driven out of his course by a storm or captured by pirates.
γέγονε μὲν δὴ ἢ ἔστι τὸ συμβεβηκός, ἀλλʼ οὐχ ᾗ αὐτὸ ἀλλʼ ᾗ ἕτερον· ὁ γὰρ χειμὼν αἴτιος τοῦ μὴ ὅπου ἔπλει ἐλθεῖν, τοῦτο δʼ ἦν Αἴγινα.
The accident, then, has come to be or exists, but not qua itself but qua another; for the storm was the cause of his coming not to where he was sailing, and this happened to be Aegina.
λέγεται δὲ καὶ ἄλλως συμβεβηκός, οἷον ὅσα ὑπάρχει ἑκάστῳ καθʼ αὑτὸ μὴ ἐν τῇ οὐσίᾳ ὄντα, οἷον τῷ τριγώνῳ τὸ δύο ὀρθὰς ἔχειν.
"Accidental" is also said in another way, namely, of all those things which belong to each thing in itself without being in its substance, as having two right angles belongs to the triangle.
καὶ ταῦτα μὲν ἐνδέχεται ἀΐδια εἶναι, ἐκείνων δὲ οὐδέν.
And while it is possible for these to be eternal, none of the former can be.
λόγος δὲ τούτου ἐν ἑτέροις.
But the explanation of this is in other works.
Notes
- 1024b17τούτου τὸ μὲν τῷ μὴ συγκεῖσθαι ἢ ἀδύνατον εἶναι συντεθῆναι — The genitive `τούτου` is a partitive genitive referring to `πρᾶγμα ψεῦδος` (false thing). It stands in contrast with `τὰ δὲ` (1024b21), meaning "of false things, some are so because they are not combined or are impossible to be combined."
- 1024b33μηθὲν ἀξιῶν λέγεσθαι πλὴν τῷ οἰκείῳ λόγῳ — This is an accusative with infinitive construction governed by `ἀξιῶν` (claiming), where `μηθέν` is the subject of the infinitive `λέγεσθαι`, meaning "claiming that nothing should be spoken of except by its own statement."
- 1025a23ὅ τι ἂν ὑπάρχῃ μέν, ἀλλὰ μὴ διότι τοδὶ ἦν ἢ νῦν ἢ ἐνταῦθα — The phrase `τοδὶ ἦν` (it was this) refers to the essential definition of a thing, contrasted with the spatio-temporal accidental conditions of `νῦν` (now) and `ἐνταῦθα` (here). It defines the accidental as that which belongs not because of its essence, nor because of the specific time or place.
Cite this passage
Aristotle, Metaphysics §5.29-5.30. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0086.tlg025.humanitext-grc2:5.29-5.30
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