The period from Plato's birth to Aristotle's death (427 322 BC) is one of the most influential and formative in the history of Western philosophy. The developments of logic, metaphysics, epistemology, ethics and science in this period have been investigated, controversies have arisen and many new theories have been produced. But this is the first book to give detailed scholarly attention to the development of dialectic during this decisive period. It includes chapters on topics such as: dialectic as interpersonal debate between a questioner and a respondent; dialectic and the dialogue form;...

During a career spanning four decades, Sten Ebbesen has produced a body of work which stands as a remarkable and important contribution to the field of medieval philosophy. Combining philological expertise and textual work with a deep philosophical understanding and a broad historical outlook, his vast output deftly penetrates and analyses often difficult and complex issues. The present volume pays homage to this body of work by investigating topics relevant to its two most central themes: logical and linguistic analysis. True to the work it seeks to honour, these closely connected themes are...

Suarez on Aristotelian Causality offers the first comprehensive account of Francisco Suarez's position with respect to the four Aristotelian causes in his Metaphysical Disputations. Suarez deals with these causes in the greater part of Metaphysical Disputations 12-27 approximately a third of his famous work on metaphysics. Nevertheless, no previous attempt at analysis of causality as a part of his overall metaphysical position has been offered. The material, formal, efficient and final cause as understood by Suarez each receives a chapter in this volume just as his...