8/9/2019 Aristotle on Practical Truth: Coherence vs. Correspondence?
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/aristotle-on-practical-truth-coherence-vs-correspondence 1/11
BOCHUMER
PH
1
LOSOPH
ISCH
S
J HRBUCH
••
FUR NTIKE UND
MllTEL LTER
HER USGEGEBEN
VON
BURKH RD MOJSISCH
OL F PLUT
RUDOLF REHN
SBD FFLCH USP
335 11
BAND 9 · 1 4
8/9/2019 Aristotle on Practical Truth: Coherence vs. Correspondence?
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/aristotle-on-practical-truth-coherence-vs-correspondence 2/11
A ristotle
on
Practical Truth
oherence
vs.
Correspondence?
I
hztroduction
\\'hilc it
is L·onrnrnn knowlcdge that ,\ristotlc ad\'ocalt'd sorne \'crsiun ui what has
e
come
to
lw
known é1S lhL' correspondencc lhcury oi truth,
1
lcss
<1tte11tiun
has lwcn
paid lo lhe fact that \\ilhin his discussion of tlw sphcrc of practical ralio11alit: thc
S<1111c philosophcr,
hulding
that truc reason(oning) must conforrn 1vith right dcsirc,
adumbrall'd a conccption
oi
truth hich. in part
at
lcast, lcnds itsclf to a11 u11dcr
slanding in tcrrns of a cohcrcnce thcon, or so 1 shall arguc. ln <111\ case. l am inter-
_
l'Sll'd
i11
thc tcchnicaJ
rnea11i11g of
the exprcssion > < ° > ~ l ( l À ( ° i j l 1 l - - :
i'xouCTct• in
f'i/1.
\Jic.
\'
2,
l l 3Ya30. ' lhe point in qucstion secms lo bc this:
1. II Arislotlc ,,·anls us to undcrsland the lcrm -agrecing· as cxpressing thc notion ui
corrcspo11d,·11t c, such as thc une assumed in ulk ahout language 1·s. rcalit\',
thoughl
\'S. heing, conccpl \'S. ohjecl, •righl desirc·, the
cou11tcrp<1rl
oi •reason•, should
re Cr
lo some brulc fact
on
a
par
wilh a Humean passion;
il
1\hal is meanl, hm\'l'\'lT, is
lh<it
re,1son would
hc1\'l'
lo c uill'rc with right dcs1rc, lhe
bttcr L·ould not he just sorne brulc item. Rathcr
it
musl be proposilionalh struL·
lured. at
lcasl to
some
extcnt.
1 lakc
it
that lhe lattcr alll'rnati\e 11oinb in thc right dircllion. 1or ( > f 1 t ~ 1 c ; m
f ~ o l i X l m - - :
clrL
ratiunal
dcsirL'S
and would han·
to
count
<1S
prnpositi()nal altitudes. 1 hat
1
Ji1, l , <J\
i<lrllh thc· Lirgc-r
p.nl
f a lccturc dclí1·c-rc·d tu an '1ud1c·11cc· .1t 1
\w
L1111·c'l',Íl11il( 'f 'l 'll '
ín '\ícmíc1111 (
ktohc'l ~ ( ) ( ) . )
l'hnc· 1-, _,l1ll
1 c·nL1111
alllllllllt I d1,agrc·cmc·11l 011 lhe quc·-,[;(\n \\·\wthn lhe·
nlr.1 l111g111,l1c
,-"unlc'rparh - tl1c· ,1r<1yp,nn. tltcll 1,, li1111g, ,[rnuld hc
co11cc·í1·c·d
.h h c h or c1' 'l.lic·,
,,
:l1Lu1'
d
hei' hc·c1\Jlll' [.i,htilll.il1 c·
;tllcl'
( ·1i,1rlc-.,
f-....t 111·,
111lroduLt11>11 , , j lhe· ll' ltdic.1 'L'll'L 1il \i,·1111:·
[ 01· .l llc'() ortlwd11\ i11lc'1-prc·L1lin11 i. t\1c· 'lf'll'i'flL\Tc1 C<ll1L'l'J'llc'd 111 krllh Ili 1>l11c·ch 'L'L'
\\ '
J( ·
( ,111,,'f'/1,>11.c ,1/
'/r111/1.
\ )\l;ird 21i11 I . \quite
co111prc·hc11,11·c·
dt'Lli"ll>ll 1il cL'l'LlÍll P·"'·l --'.""
111
\r1'
11\ic·
h,1, hc·c·111•rnc·11tnl l11 ' ( hl 1 .\11.c/11//,· ,111 11111/1 ( .rn1hr1dgc· .. 1111-1
8/9/2019 Aristotle on Practical Truth: Coherence vs. Correspondence?
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/aristotle-on-practical-truth-coherence-vs-correspondence 3/11
8/9/2019 Aristotle on Practical Truth: Coherence vs. Correspondence?
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/aristotle-on-practical-truth-coherence-vs-correspondence 4/11
,\
i-;ccllanL'<l
II. Sorne problcnzs
l'lll'
tnrn
,practical
truth'
o r
l'élthcr
,truth
co11ccrncd \\'ith
alliun,)
Ulllll'S into
pL\\
11·ill'11 :\ ristot k, d
r<rn·i
ng a 1 analog1· bct\\ 'Cl' Il < ffi rmation
a11d
11cgat ion i
1
l hc sp here
ui' rL\lsun <rnd pursuit é1 1d él\'Oidance in thc sphcrc of dcsirL»' suggL'-;ls that if
our
cimice
(npm1ipníld
is to hc dl'lTnl 0 n o v < ~ n i n ) hoth tlw rcaso11ing rnust hc truc
aml
tlll' dcsirL' right so
théll
\\'hat thc formn asseris is whé1l lhe bt L'r pursucs. This is
hm1
hc cu11ti11ucs:
"· .. this kind of thought <rnd lrntl1 is
pr<1CtKal.
Ih contras , ll'ill'n tlrnughl
is L'<lllL.lTllL'd
11ith slud1, not ll'illi :Ktion
<ir
product1on, ils good
or
had
sl<liL'
L·<i11->ish in hL'ing
lrllL'
or
l ~ 1 l s l .
hir
lrnlh
'>
lhL'
ru11c'tion
ot
ll'h<lll'\l'J' thinks; hut
Lhe
fundion
ur
\\'hat
ill'
lhinks
<1hout
,1L\1on is truth <1grn'1ng 11itli currcLt Lk-,irc.";
Ih is srnall piccc
uf lL'xt
is fui of ditlicultics of <111 ki11ds.
:\s
1
L·é1111wt
possibl) lwf)l' to
address ali of thcrn 1sh,111 hal'L' to confine rnysclt to a tl.'11 poi11ts.
(i)
t
is prt'lt1 oh1ious
th<1t :\ristotk\ point
is to 11<1llll' rcquirL'l1ll'l1ts
Lh<1t
CL'rt<1i11
kinds
of
choiccs ll'ill h<ll'L' to nwct.
l
lm1·c1·n, flL'lllling tlw
umkrsundi11g of
tlw ( ;rL'L'k
i11 11 Y : h ~ . i
-
that is, taki11g tlw wurds tu llll'<lll nif thc choiLL' is dcccnt"
m ,,iJ
tlw
choicc is to hL' dL'LL'lll" rcspL'cti1ch' rnic rnight raisc thc
Ljlll'Stio11
wlicthcr .\ristotk is
thi11king
aboul
ci thcr sufficiL'I1l
m
llL'Less<irv
conditions.
1
takc
it
that what
ic., <1t
c.,1<1ke
are conditio11s 1ointh 1iccL·ess<ir1· and sufficient. Th1s cm he gathl'rcd i'rorn
ÍIÍI
J-11J
l
22C)h'.'i
l\hcrc it is said that clwicL' "arises lrnrn
both",
that
is,
lwlief
f ü > ~ n ) <111d
11ish
l ~ ~ m i \ q m d ln
foct, tllL' passagc conLerned tl'stifics
to
lhe effcct th;1t
l ~ l i u i c c
is to be
seL'll
l'hnL' :1rl'
o thn
J'LlcL'' \\11l'rc'
.\r1\lutlc
l'L'\orh ((1 :lll.ilog1L'\
hct11·L'L'll
thc· l111g1ml1c :rnd tlic· lllL'lll:1l
l'L'.iillh,
\L'L'
c'.g
\1;i.,1,11 'i',
l>c·
1111.
Ili :-,-Ul:iK-1(1
.dung \\Jth
thL·
d1oc'll\\IL>ll
h\· J
..
11111\1:11;<.
( og1u/101111/ \;i/11,· 111.\1'1.\/11//"'.' 11/u1. '. .\lh:lll\, \; Y 20ll2, ppl<i2 ''llJ·
lhe·
po111t 111 ///if(li .\1
t1>11111,/11·i1 h:L\ hL'L'll
t:1kc·11 up h»
l 1-:lll/ l\ru1l:lll<> SL·c
R.
( 111•1111: 11, ,,j;rL'll\:111u» 1h1.«>1·1·11 (
.t11Tc·ct
,1111.i l11cu1Tc'ct l 11wt1<>11,., 111: /(1T11<' i111,.,.11<11io111il1· de i'/ulo.101'/11<'
: s
1 1 l LJ<ih), pp ' :>-111: r1.·
111111kd
111 IZ.
( ·1i1,Jwllll.
11/11,s 1111d /11/1i11si, \
;1/11,·s,
L'cl.
:111d 111trndL1LL'd
h1· J
R.
\\
hik, l
I L 1 1 k l l w r ~ ~
21llJl.pp.
]tJ:112\
.\1.h11i1111<, l.1/1. ,\11 \ ' 2, l 13lJ:i2h-.'1.
lm
thc· lllmt p:irt 1
,Jiall
nukc' ll'>c'
oi
and c'.\plrntl tlll'
tr:111'> :1t1<11111ni\'11kd h1
lcTL'lll.L' l1·11·i11
(,\,11<1<>11 , \'1,«n1111,/11·,11111 1ics,
lndi:rn.1polh l'J,'-\"..1
lr11111
'> tr:ll1'>ht1<111
r1ll1·1·, :\ll ,,1,
...
.\lo->l llllLTpt-L'ltT< 11uuld -;uggc'\( :rn
..
1 1t
I'>
tn hc.
] l)
8/9/2019 Aristotle on Practical Truth: Coherence vs. Correspondence?
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/aristotle-on-practical-truth-coherence-vs-correspondence 5/11
as
a hybrid hct\\'l'l'll bclicf a11d 11ish,'' tlrns rcsc111hli11g,
to
a ccrtain cxtc11t, whal
in
L-011-
ll'mporary philosophiL-al discussio11 h'1s come to bc k11ow11 as ·lwsircs'
(ii) Thc co11ditio11 that thc rcaso11ing should affirm wh,1t thc desirc pur-,ues
(
11 YJa2:> sq.) looks a bit stra11gc. (a) For
onc thi11g,
thc requiremcnt is a
co11ditio11
011
all
choiL-L',
cllld
11()[
just
()Jl
a good choicc.' (b)
Seco11dl;·,
sayi11g
that asscrtio11
(orar
lir111atio11) ,rnd pursuit ha1-c the sarne objL'ct (Tll
mhét
[,12:>]) Ill<ll' look ta11tamou11t to
L-lllllll1ilti11g cl scrious hlu11dn. hir
\\'h,1t
is assertcd (or affirn1ed)
is
some propmi
tio11<1l L-011tcnt (//1111p)11hik 11hat is pursued
i-,
some thing
(.\J,or
so onc lllay Mgt1L'.
1
a)
lhe
lirst diffilulty
Lal1
be ml't pro1iLlcd
\IT
grant tlut
.\ristotlc
rcalizcd that thc
'i1-st t11·0
u111ditio1i-,
( . L . r L · a - 0 1 1 i 1 1 ~
111ust
bc truc -- arnl thL· desire rnust hc right) do
e•
'
not, 1<1ke11 b1 themsL·h·cs,
cnsure
pral11cal truth. Reaso11i11g a11d dcsirc L-uuld imlccd
co11ccr11 different ohjcds. (
;i1·c11
the scquellLL' of thc argumL'llt Aristotlc had
to
add
that both lllust addrcss thc sarne objcct. Yl't this condition apparc11tly
is
subjcLt tu thc
charge cxprcssed
in
(ii).
h) \'ie11ed
in
this light thc poi11t i11 questio11 gi1cs risc to thc suspicion that ,\risto-
tlc's
arguments
rcst upo11
cl
serious misundcrsta11di11g frolll
tlut u11dcrmi11es
11 hatc1·L·r
it
was th<1l he 11a11tcd to sai-.
thc \L'r\
J)L'gÍl111il1g, Olll'
L L
:\mi· 11 hilc 1doubt that ,·\ristotlc can \)L compktcly exoncratcd 011 this poi11t, 1arn
hesitant
to
co11dude that the ubjL'Ltion
is
lcthal ur for that mal ter that the argu111e11t as
sud1
is
bound
to bc
cl
11011-startcr. ln
fali,
if
e.
g.
11·e
tum
to passages portraying Aris
totk's thcor; of the prallicil s; llogism 11c Ci1LOlll1tcr c1·idc11cc -,uggesti11g that thc
L-()]1clu-,io11
oi the s1ll(1gism 1. <lll adi<m (cf.
i:t/1. ,\'ic.
\ 'II:;, 11
l/a28,
/Jc
1110t 1111. 7,
.
.
1 hL' l'\f'IL'õ'>i<lll -l11hncl· h.b
hL'L'll
li'L'cl in
thi '
c-ullk\l h\ \:. S, i
11.·.:
.'-./li,· 1 lflllt il/C/1tlrdtll'r
r-
IS/tJ//,·'c l/1,·nry,1/\'11/11('.()\t(ird ]')S'J
Sn·
.\. (
;1,.11,11,,
l'/11/,,sn11/1i,·
11111/ ///11k,
I h1\-;L·ld<lrt ·
l\rnrn. 19' 9,
p.
(,, \.
I
hL·
11ol1ll11 111 qu,·,11011 \ia,
hl'l'll 11ltackL'll
l1\
1
\.1
\\h,
..
[J1sp<"1t10111il I ill'uric-; oi \alue·-, lll: J
1
rnu·c,/i11gs o/ tl1c :\nslotc/i,111
\,1(1,'/l' h.'
(
i' SlJ). p
111:\.1(rqirintcd111
h1'
}'11[','l'S
111l:t/1i,s1uul \o,i11/
l'/11/osop/1\',
Camhmlgc
2 ) ) ), lll:lpll'r :-).
SL·c·
IJ l \ ' I ' ' ' c.. \ns/o//i, l lws. ()\ l l lrd 21JIJI), l'
SIJ,
l \uk l·I. hir thi ' pui11t l\<hlOLK l111mL·llrc
ln., lo 1 11. (,, (;1:1 l '-"'-'"'it,.\11.1/,J//,·. .
1,,1111,1,/1,·,111
/1/11,s. jj,,,,k \'/.<_:amhrid)-'.c' 19\)'J.
\\'h:1l 1s 111urL'. llilL' rni)-'.hl .11·gril' th:1l 11 h.ll 1' ,l\\LTkd hclong:-,
to
ihL· do11L1111
lll-
tlll' /'lilt'llll\\111111
fl /)J 11·\i1\e i\il' \\l\\i cllllll 'lll\
lll,l\ic'I'
L'\[11\'\;c'd
ÍIJ
illl' f'ldt'llll>'<I 111<1//Jl /lf
i\ic
\lr.Jcilc,i\ \\ l\tlgLslll.
'1.1r.1h lh,1,1d1L sh ' ' '
h<l\1·
1h1, d1n-rgc11cL'
L-.111
lll mil1g.1tc,i;
-'L'l'
.\"1'i•>lll, .\1,,1111d,/1,·i111 /://11,,
t1.111,l.1t1u11
(111\h l11slur1 •• l 111\n1ducl1011) h1 ( .. l\ll\\'L'. 11hilml l\' iilLlli 111\1t1duél1tll1
:111d
clllllllll'll·
1.111 h1 e, l\w.1d1l-, < hltl1d .21)112. [' 1· ·
l )-1
8/9/2019 Aristotle on Practical Truth: Coherence vs. Correspondence?
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/aristotle-on-practical-truth-coherence-vs-correspondence 6/11
.\ 1 sccl lanc'a
701a12) or tliat cxprcssio11s such as ,,:\void
this'
count as
dcscriptiom of
<lction (/
1/1.
:\'ic. \ ll
5, 1 1 · ~ 7 a 3 5 .
\:1..'ithcr thcsis would bl.. accl..'ptabk. So herc, too,\\' ..' face
co11fu
sio11, if ;·ou likc, \'Cl it is b;· 110 mcam a co11fusio11 truly dctri11w11tal to thc m'1ttcr at
stakl..'.
Ih thc s'llllL' tokcn onc might fccl rl..'lucta11t
about
putti11g too much \\cight
upon
thc
complaint
that
:\ristotk
fails to notice thc diffcrL'llCc hct\\'cc11 a-,scrting
somcthi11g lll hc thc L·asc
and
pursui11g
some
ohjcct.
l lm\c\·er,
it
is h\
110 11wa11s
clcar
th,1t
:\ristotk actuallv is liahlc to thc charge
in
thc
first placc. l or
i11
\ iew of what is said i11 the tcxt Oill ' might arguc that
ali
1\rislotlc had
in mind W<ls that gi\ e11 sollle goal / that \\ 'C \\ould likc to hc
re<1lizcd,
a11d
gi\·c11
that
, \
turns out to lw thc appropriatc coursc of action to
realize/,,\
is thc coursc oi
<lL
tio11 that \\'e hoth apprm·e of a11d \\'ish to
C<llT\
out. C:o11sidcri11g
110\\'
:\ristotlc\ \ iL'\\
oi actio11 [pruxisj as so111cthi11g, .\, i11 \\'hich thc cnd, / , is prescnt Ulct11ph l \
h
1 O-l8b22 sq .. /:t/1. ,\ '/e.\' 5, l
l• Oh-i 7
ct ai.) it \\ill hlYOille olwious that tlw pmitio11
l<lkL'll
\\
ith rL'g<ll'd to thc ickntit; ui the objccts of bclicf <111d dcsirc may hc hoth f'LT
fccth· clcar a11d u11objcctio11able: Thc pla;·i11g of
thL'
pi<i110
is
thc c11d of thc activil\
COJKCl'lll'd <lllll does not rdcr to some othcr c11d (i\lug11. wr 1 34, l 107<1 l 12 ).
,\Jorco\'LT, :\ristotk
scc111s
to haH' suggcstcd that e11ds of actions are thclllsl..'lves <ll
li< J1S.111
(iii) : \ lar IllmL'
SLTious problcm
sccms to emerge bccause oi thc faLl that :\ristotlc,
i11trnduci11g the subjçct
matkr
LOllccrned, 011 thc onc hand 1<1lks oi
bci11g
lruc' as a
prnpert;· of
thl' fogos (
J l
3l)a24)
<llld,
011 lhe
OthLT, o( truth <\S
<\ f10SSCSSiOll
()J'
J',\lJicr <l
statc
oi
millll
of
lhe thi11king i11st<rnce
1l39a20
sq.J.
\\'hat is
more. practical
truth
i.-
charactcrized i11 tcrms oi
<lll agrecnw11t
of
that
\Tr \
i11stancc with right Lk-,1rc. l
k-
pcnding
11
what prc·ciSL'h· ,Jogos, 1s supposcd to
mcc111
thcre
SCl'lllS
to
lw
a
te11sio11
bl'lwcen thc ide<l that tlw 1.ogos rnust bc trul..'
<llld
the
11otio11
of truth as a
sl<llc'
of
millll (or sorne part
oi
it) co11í(l 'mi11g to thc state of dcsiring. l ~ 1 k i n g rcfugc to the
ex
prL'ssiu11 ill'11sio11' 1 me<rn to sav th<1l thc \ \ éW :\ristotlc i11trnduccs his point (i.c. sa\ ing
tliat reasem nrnst be truc
u11d
tlw desirc right) suggcsts th<ll our thought ,,\is thc
<lC·
1
" Sc'c' T. 1:1:11:1, .. J>()],·;,1.;,
und l'raxi;,.
U
L'Íllc'r
h:i11dlu11g,thc'l>l'<.'lisclw11 l'ntcrsclll'1dung
de'' .\nst()IL'
lc';, .. , i11: /<'i/.<,/1n/i /1ir pl11/usupl11.<c/1c
l orsc/11111g _)()
(
l'J:-6), Pf'·
..
: 1
t:1kc·
it th:1t
11
h:it Jlllhl hc· mcant hc'J'L' 1s th:it til<' mcans spccif1nl b1· J <. . 1. <lll :11·,· imknl lll'éc' 'll;
mc·am. ( T .\. (;. \ 1go, .,fJic :mstotcJi,chc Auffassu11g der pr:1kti;,Llll'11 \\':1hrhcit i11: /11/c11111/i1i11
11/,, / , itst/111/l
/Ílr
/'/11/osupl1ic
2 (] ) )1:1 , I'· 21:\ J.
195
8/9/2019 Aristotle on Practical Truth: Coherence vs. Correspondence?
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/aristotle-on-practical-truth-coherence-vs-correspondence 7/11
tion to he do11e' m igh t lw t rue i11dependen th· nf what our motivat ional sL'l is l ke.
1
1·1fr,
\\ould
carn· the furtlll'r implication that n ordcr to
vidd
an instance of practic1l
truth
in
thL'
sensc rcquired
su111c
truc thought
such as
,X
is
the action to
bc
donc·
\\ould
han' to agrcc with surne
L1ct about
our 111otivational systc111.
e •
:\ow
suhlllit that this
understamling
luoks
odd
and, what
is
more, that
it
is
k1hlc
to the Lharge of burdcning :\ristotlc with an unncccssciry co111plication. But is it rc<1lly
<lll u1111cLcessc1ry one? On
furthcr
comidcration OllL' rnav arguc that thc prnhlcm con
ccrnL'd is suLh that its solution actualh- rcqui1-cs some re,1ding along that line. l.ct me
trv to show wll\' that isso:
:\ristotlc
L'lllphasi1es that heis
concerncd
with ; p u n i p c m ~ o n o u < ~ l 1 Í L 1 . So heis not
thinking
oi
iust any
dccis1011
but
oi
sorne péirliculcir
(or
ncn
t/ic
moral decision.
111
uthcr
words, so lung as \\'L' arL' content to stay with any
dclibnation
whatsoevcr clc
signcd tu identily
llL'ClllS
lit to élCCo llplish what
\\L'
\\.éllll, \\l'
ma\
as well lllélke do
1\ith 1ll'rL' cln·crncss. that is.
< ~ u 1 < n q . . ; .
ClcHTill'SS 1\ould certai11lv pnl\idc
us
l\ilh
anl' nurnlwr oi truc
tlwughts ur
senlt'nccs
conccrning
what thc nccc";sar;·
lllL'é\11'
are
in Cclch
caSL'
(lt/1.
Sic. \ ' 12 .
Yet Ó t < n ~
by itsclf does not sccurc thc élcquisition oi
lloral llll'élllS. Rathcr, thc rnorality
of
thc llll'élllS cnvisagcd to rcali1c rnor,i cnds
\\Ould
han'
tu lw constitutl'd by prude11ce ( Y l f l < . l \ l m ~ ) whilc thc dctcrrnination of
111ural
cnds \\ould
bc a rnattcr
of
\·irtuc
(lt/1.
:\ lt .
VI
12
l
l..f..fa8
sq.)
This
in
turn
shu\\S th<ll in ordcr to arri\L'
ata
lloral dL'L·ision c011ccrning thc appropriatc coursc of
adi<lll more
is
rcquircd than jusl élll\' bit oi truc tlwught.
1
'
\\'hat is rcquirl'd is sorne ,1dditiu11,1 factor m'cr aml abovl' rncrc cnds-lllL'élllS-LO·
hctTllCL'.
11
· l'h
is is
\\ hcrl' t hc n< 1t ion oi agrccrncnt o
rl'éh<
l l wit h righ t de si rc
L-oml's
i
1.
ln othcr 1\·ords, SL'cing things tl1is \\a\' gin·s rc,1so11 to prL'surnc that thc abm·L' undcr-
I' f'Jw lcrlll ci11<lti\'illl011ili Sc't \\i S (llll1l'd
b1·
t\ic Ja\l' llcTl1Md
\\'1JJi1ll11S
111 \i1s '111111<11 l'",11·.
l\
\\º111:1\\\,
..
[11\nnal
,mel
l\\l 'rnal IZc«1"im-. in: l t
IL11T1stll1
(cd.l. f\<1tio111il .\l/1(111 C11111irndgc
l ' r ' .p[ '
1-
2S
1rcpr111tcd
i11:
I\
\\º:111111,,,\Jor.il /11ck,<:arnhridgc
l ' Sl.pp
I l i
1
UI.
l c11rnwt c'11kr i11\<l thc' d1scussl()ll oi thc· n>k ihsig11c·d to Y'f)(l\'llOlé 1
or
Sillllc'
Íl111)(l\li l1\ Clb,cr111
t1011s rc·ga1·,IJ11<>
th1s 111,itkr thc
rc»JdcT is rl'IL'ITc'cl
to 1.
h.i 1;1,
,.jllmlllc'SIS
..
\11mnku11gL'l11u c·111c·m
;::->
'-
lkg ·
ili der .\risto\l'l1.schc11 l.tl11k
(\ ' e; uml
S·l.l) '" 111
()
l loffc (c·d.I, .lri,101,·lc·.s. JJ1,· .\1/..1111111·
, l1i.s, /1,· 1 /11/.. lkrlrn l ' ' 'i, PI' 1 1Sh.
'1 1 :.ub1111t th11t
1
1 ,jrn1L1r po111t sc·c·rns to ha1c' hcc11 11111dc li1·
1\
\\'1111.111s, ,,,\ct111g as thc· 1·irtuous
l'cTso11 11cts .. , 111: IZ 1ki111l\11,l\1 (c·cl. 1 ,\ri.stot/,· 111ul
111<mil
n·11/is111, Lomlon l ' ' 'i, p. 21: . 'l1i "'111l'
n\l'11t, 011c· éill1 d1sti11guish hc·twn·n SL'l'll1g that a st11\l'111c·11t is corrl'l:L and scc·ing th11t
1t
1s rc·k··
11mt to thc·
pr11ctic1il :.1tu11tio11
at h,ll1d
...
l l)6
8/9/2019 Aristotle on Practical Truth: Coherence vs. Correspondence?
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/aristotle-on-practical-truth-coherence-vs-correspondence 8/11
sLrnding uf :\ristutlc's use
of
>lrnc,
and ,[ruth·
respccti\'eh, for frn111 bci11g
odd,
does
111akc scnsc
alter
ali.
.\lthough
l would prcfer a sim[1kT reading acL·ording to ,,·hiLh
110 such frag111L'11tatio11 oi truth \\ould lw L·<ilkd for, l lwlic1e that in tlw back
oi
his
rnind
il
111US\
hd\l'
UCCllrl'lJ
\O :\ristotlc
thal
SOllll'
spccial kind
of fit
\\<lS [O
hL·
looh·d
(ir_
i\lmkrn rL'adcrs
\\111 rcc<ill
tlw clforts
l.1kc11
by Kant to p()ínt out lhe
dilfrrencc
bct1\c'L'll
L·o11l(m11i11g
011c's allio11 to the principies
of
lcgalit; and
111or,1lit:·
i'L'spc'L
lÍ\'L'k 1\gain, tlw
\T I \
srn·t
uftl1111g is,
in pri11ciplc al lcast,emis<1gcd
b;
:\ristotlc
11hc11
hc
rc111arks
that
111mal
1
irtuc
is a slak
11ol
iust in accurLLllKl' (
lúHLt)
ll'ilh righl
i'L'aso11
but
togcthL'r with
(fit'TL't)
right l'L'<lson - ,,110t rnncly lhe statc e\[ncssing correcl
i L <l
son, but thc state im()lvi11g cnrrecl l'L\lSllll U 1/1. .\ic. \ ' 13, l l-l lb26 sq.). ·
III. Cmzfornzing to Desire
l lo\\' crn
thcrc
bc
a11;· <1grccmc11t bct11L'e11
rcason
a11d
dcsire i11 thc 1·irst
[1L1cc'
.\mi
wln
is il that rcaso11
or
tlrnught lias lo
urnforrn
to dcsire or thc likc?
( )
The
a11swcr to t he
ti
rst q
LIL Sl
ion sccrns cas ;·:
Trf10L1Lf1tCTI<.; is su111c co111
pie\ Lhar
actnizcd i
1
krrns
of
L'i t
hcr
u11dcrsta11d i ng co111bi
ncd wi
th
de si
rc [
Óf1fKTIK<l<.;
nw<.;]
m cise desirc co111bincd with tlrnught [ < 1 f 1 t ~ 1 < . ;
61Lwoq11K1l] ft/1. , \ic.
\ ' 2,
11.Nbl-
::;
).
Such an assurn[1lion scc111s to bc Lalkd for i11 1·icw uf thc fall that hurnan lw111gs
,,smldenlv
think
thn
uught
to
<lCl <lml
wish to act"
(Ft/1. /11J
ll
10, 1 2 2 < 1 h l ) . ~
.\nd
this
in lurn
nol onh
lllL'<\llS
that chuicc or dccisiun
crnhodv
two i11grcdicnh. so tu
spc<1k, both oi
\\hich rnusl bc l'\fWLted to coincidt' sornehow as in tlll' case tlut
11c
think wc h<l\ e to
carry out
X and ,,·ish to
do
su. :\s for <lS this gues we also
1111ght
sug
gcst that the ln·hrid \ icw of choice naturalh·
ckars
the wa1· for <\ll u11dnsta11di11g ac
<. _
cording
to 1\hich
hoth
ite111s,
rc<1son
and <.ksirc, are rl'i<1ted to
one
another to the n
tcnt that right dcsirL'
somclww
shares the
cognitiw
fcature L'\hihitcd
h1·
rcason.
' e ,
:\s some of
this 111av sound quite ,1bstract
11·e should
note that issucs likc
th1s onL·
sonlL'hO\\' wcre in the air. ln order to
<1[1precialL'
the [1oi11t in
question
wc 111ay
tum
to
lrwin's transL1ti<i11.
''
li>L'l1hcrL' .\ri,l<ilk siwak,
<li
cho1cc tcrrns
uf < l f 1 E ( 1 ~
f),n1\rnni-:11 m < ~ < i ( c t
f ,,t
1
1
n..:q 1 //1
l i id
l 22hhK- 1K .
TliL· tr:111sL1tio11 1s ln· l
l.
Zackh;1111l:\1Ch111:1, //1c
.\t/1,·11u111
Co11stit11tio11. J/1,· l:udc 11111111 / t/111. .
()11\ irt11cs111ul
\'/,,-."
1
<i11d<in
l 'Jhh).
l 9
;-
8/9/2019 Aristotle on Practical Truth: Coherence vs. Correspondence?
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/aristotle-on-practical-truth-coherence-vs-correspondence 9/11
Plato's discussion of l ~ 1 l s c plcasurcs in thc J>/1ile/n1s
Thus,
in 36c-·l
la
lw has Socratcs
ilkntifr 011c
SL'Jlsc of ,faJsc· in which
it \\ould true
to <lsscrt that a plcasurc
is l ~ 1 l s c
\\ hL'll
it (i. e. thc suhiL'll)
is
mistaken
ahoul
thc ubjcll it
tc1kcs
plcasurl' in.
1
'
.\ccord-
111gh·
plcasurc
hcrc
must
he anah-zcd 'is a
prnpositional
attitutc
dircctcd
lm,a1·d .sorne
prcsu111cd sUtc oi <1ffoirs.
Thc point
Socratcs
is
aftcr
sccms
to hc
that
plcasurcs likc
judgmcnts ha\c LOntcnts ,rnd in fact are judg11w11tc1l in charactcr. \\'hat is more, Soc
ratcs, ,1t
OllL'
poi11t, takcs 1t that thcrt' is no rc<1l diffcrcncc hct\l'Ct'll, sa\, judgmcnls
(\oyo1) and
lrnpC'< "1
hcrc <lrL' thcn asscrtions in cach or us that
\ \L
L·all lwpcs?e 1
P/11/
·lO<lh-:--J. lt is truc
that this li11c nf
tlwught
has hecn criticizcd h\ a numlwr of 1110dcrn
scl10L1rs,
cL1imi11g
that
prnpositions and
fcelings and thc likc must 1wt he conllatcd.
StilL
J>lato's
idea
rna1·
1wt hc hcsidc thc point
<lt
ali. ln
foct,
llhJrc
rL'LL'lll
discuss1011
in
tlw 'iclll oi' L'llwtion witncsscs
1 rcturn
o
cogniti\ is111
in tlw
thcor;
of
L'l1lotiom
..
\\'hilc
it
i.s
ccrtainl;
hclplul to rcili1<..' that Plato's sketch of
judgmcnts
t s cmotions
or cmotions
us iudgmcnts
sorncho11 <mticipaks intcrcst in thc kirnl o strullural
point urnlcrhing ,\ristotlc's analysis
of
choice, it is importanl to apprccialL' thc rele
\ ancc
of
tlii<;
conccption
as sorne ki11d nf h; hrid bctwccn ( J ~ l C K T l K l l < . ; 1·0Cic; or ( J p c ~ 1 c ;
l ~ l L 1 \ ' 0 l l T t h : ' l (/ 11. \iL. \ ·1 2, 1 UlJh--l-:'i) or tlw outcomc
of
) o \ \ l m ~ <llld c ~ c J ~ L t 011 i s rn1 n
mnits (lt/1. hui. II 10.
l.2.26b8-10
and 12.27<13-5). lor
it
i'i
this
strullural poinl
11hich
111<1; lw takcn as an c11dorscmc11t oi· tlw 1·icw that, in the case conccrncd, pursuit and
<1ffirm<llio11
do
h<11c
thc .sarne obicch; and it
is
this point, again, 1\hich facilitalL's
élf'
prcciating thL' idc<l that rL'aso11
lll<l\
bc suppuscd to sorncl10\\ co11f(lrm lo
dL'Sirc.
( ii) 1
rnm
hcrc
it is
1 short skp to a d ~ o w l n l g c lhat 1·ic1\ cd
rnm
within
thL'
co11tcxl
ui hu11u11 actiun. Lks1rc
1s
pri111<n1· and thus Sl'r\L's as
thL·
lou1s of nidcllLL' lo he
LlkL'll
intu
aL·Lllllllt. \s ~ i r
as this goes thc
n·Jlc
of
dcs1r<..'
still
11i<11 fit holh
a lU 'rL·spo11
dL'llLL' thL·on and 1 l·oherL'llLC tlwon·. f o\\t'\LT, frnm 1\·h,1t has lwcn said 1t 1s 1«1lhcr
ub1·ious that
.\ristullc
doL'S 110t 1·ie\1 ratio11al dcsircs as hrutc dcsircs.
11
othcr l\ords,
as for as
lhe
r\ik
of
lksirL'
is
L·o11cerncd
,\ristotlc\
position
ditfcrs lrorn thc
OllL'
hcld
b1·
I- umL' in that tl1L'
L1ltcr
kndcd to 1·icw ali dés1rcs u11 <l par \\1th occun<'llLCs of
thirst or hungcr <llld tlw likc a11d hL'llLL' rcgardcd thcm
<lS
11111110ti1all'd dcsircs.·., 111
LlLL .\ristotlc's appL·al to r1ghl dcsirL' as thc instanLc to which rcason must
c011for111
' 'wL·
l
l \ 1;11 •1. i11 l 'L i t .
/'/11/d,11s.
t r ~ r n s l a l L ' L i . 111th 111trnduct1<m. l11d1.rn.1p<>l1s. J l)l)_\, p \l1
S
L L .
[ ) i , •
1,
·· (
"S 11
l 1 Is
lll 111 li
l ' 1 h ·m \
ll
f
J .11ll1l1<>11
111
f f
1
J () J { ] 'J
') l ) p p S
2
I S
; l.
.,,
l l ih
lL'llll 11as 111lr<>dllcL'li
h1
l. : .:
11 .1:, J/1L
l' ·'·'ilnlit1
r>
.-\/tri11s111,
l r incL l()l l
]
l);-r, [
l
st
L d.
0\-
t(Hd
\
l):-IJ[,
p .
.'lJ.
8/9/2019 Aristotle on Practical Truth: Coherence vs. Correspondence?
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/aristotle-on-practical-truth-coherence-vs-correspondence 10/11
cnLiils lhal lhcre are rnotivatcd dcsires
or
rcason-folluwing-dcsires. '
1
:\l i
lhis
lcll.s
againsl lhe u11dcrsla11di11g or practical lruth as a sp1xillle11 of lruth as corrcspo11
de11ce.
Tcntlltive onclusicms
\ristotlc's clLdllllll oi r)ractical
truth
should be apprL'L·iatcd as
a11
important
atll'lllpl at
lorging an intrinsic link hL'l\\'eL'Jl llhltivalion
and
rationalit;. ln ordcr to sho\\
\\hat
1
llleé\11 1
lake thc lilwrt\ ur llll'lllioning jusl
one of
lhe examplcs
adduccd hy
all cmi
lll'llt dccision thcorisl in ordcr to show that a llu11wa11 aL·L·ou11t alung tllL' linL'S imli
c,1tcd b;· Davidson will not do.,. :\LL'Ording to thc lattcr
é\
re;1son ror acting (OllSisls
oi
a
pro-altitude anda
bclieC
.,
( ;iven that
both
faclors ohlain, action occurs. But
110\\
consider
the case
oi
sornehml:·
de'[)L'J«1tch· in lleL'd ufa
L"onsidcrablc surn oi 11011c\·.
The
unh- wa\·
of
ohL1i11inl.', lhis
su111 \\ould
bc lo gl'l rid
of
lwr
riL·h
old aunt. Su <lL
I L \_
cording
to L·onll'mporar; thcor\·
of
<lction il would lw
1«1lional
to opl for thc
rne<llls
specilied bv rcason.
i\m,·
lhe person co11L"n11ed does not rcsort to action .. p[)arc11lh
she freis that comrnilting sorne such act \\'ould hc lantanmunt to cornrnitting rnurder.
\\'ould
that make her irraliu11al' Or does shc realh· fali vict1m to liw charuc
oi
\\L'ak
'
-
lll'SS of \\'i J?
ChargL'S oi lhis kind \\·ould slrikc us <lS bci11g ahsurd. l lcncc
it
1nust SL'em lhat
modem thcon ui action is at loss to ,\LL·ounl for such onlissions in liw lirsl plcice. '
\pparenll;·
sorncth1ng
1s
1rnsslllg. .
\l
tliis point lhe
qucsl1011
arises ho\\
suL·h
a dis
crcpancy helwccn bclief and dcsire lllighl lw acL·ounted t(ir. lhe <llls\\LT cm isagcd hy
i:rcderic SchiL·k is lk1l "rL>ctsons i1woh·c u11dnsl,rndings
or (more
loosely) scc1ngs" ·
thal
is
lo
s a ~ : some umlcrslanding
oi'
somelhing,
.\, in lerms ui so11wthing
clsL',
l:
1·1ius,
\ \ l '
sec
some
silualion as
,lJl i s l ~ l l l L T
o i ~
sa;·,
trcasu11,
<ls
a hrcach
of
L·onl.idcllLL\
clS \1a11l of lad
<llld lhe likl'.
l\'nding
our umkr-,l<rnding
of
t hl' circurn-,UmL·l's con
'
1
'lhl' lat L'r tnm hcr' IWL'l1 suggL'SlL'LI h1· S. '), 1111111,, ... \
l\1radll\
of Jk,irc·"',
111:
\1111"11cu11 1 111/1
- ºf fii,
11/ (ju1111a/1· 1.\
( l
LJ:-hl. pp
l 'J'i-..'.IU
- ( l \.S,111• c,.\111/.:mg( fi,,1,,s \
/\,·c,l.' 111,..:uf
j),·,;:;1011
r/1c'cll),( crn1lmdgL·
ILJLJ-:-,f'P
. \ Ih
.'il'L' ll. 111111'"''·
Lss,n·s
,,11
:\«lio1h
111d
h·c11ts.
( lxford
9SO.
• 1 (
lt liL·r nit1L·ism ha1·L· hc'L'll hrnught lnn1 cird
h1 (
B11
l
. i
l•,
1 0111s rl1i11gs /;,,. /\,·,1sn11_;. ( l'\l(ml 21)1)..
SL L [li,; .\lc1/.:111g U1oi,,·s (,1hllll', 1wk 1
Ji.
p IS.
j l)l)
8/9/2019 Aristotle on Practical Truth: Coherence vs. Correspondence?
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/aristotle-on-practical-truth-coherence-vs-correspondence 11/11
L'LTlll'd
\\'L' 11ill Lkl1hc1«1ll' \clrillll.\ LOLllSL'S
()1
actioIL
.\s
a
IL'SU t
\\ 'L'
rna1·
11cll
lkLidl'
til
,1hstc1i11
lrorn doi11l
,·crLu11 thi11gs likL· taki11g ad1·,rntagl' ui <l situati()ll l'\l'Il tlwugh
\.
<. _
L <_
'
lhL'I
rn1ght f1L'IILYth
l'it i11
lrorn tlw
pollll
uf 1 ic11 uf
llll'l'L'
cm1',-111c,rn-, c()hl'rL'ilLL'. 1hc
dL'LISJ\'l'
pui11t
\\'OU d
hL'
th<ll
\ \ l '
do
llOl
SL'L'
l)LIJ'sl'hl'\
ª'
fll'rS()Jl\ 11lw \\UUid,
'ª>
]J\k
hurt111g
,11101hcr \1LT,1lll's
l ~ · , · i i 1 1 g s .
l k11L·l'
11
k i t
sLL'illS to lw 111issi11g in
thL·
C<lL1s,1l ponl,
· º lil 'f1l'<lk,
is 1
grasp ui lhe -,ituatioll LililLL'rlll'd l takc it th<ll \ri-,tlltle 11a., Jl()t i11-,,·11
s1ti1·L'
tu th,11cls[1L'Ll1il
thL·
rn,lltn. l
()J 111
f//1.
.\'it'.
\ 'l 11 ih' si11gk-,
oul
umkr-,ta11di11g
1OL'l ' tOI( ur
t
l'ot11To111) ' is a 'flL'Lial kllld oi gr,isp of thL· 1·l',1lurcs rck1
ant
til thc silu,1
(Íllll ,\[ '-,[,\kL', ,llld \\'h,tt
is
llllf1tll'Llllt (li hL'<ll'
111
mim\ is ilut 11Ji1k· f11'll<killl'
(ylfl() \ ' l]OI() l\
s1q1p()SL'd
to hc f11L'\Lli[1li1L'
(UTITLlldlkll),
Lll1Lkr-,Lllldi11g i.s
110t
(/ 1/1.
\'1t'.
\ ' l 11,
UaLJ
10)
lhi.; 11uuld lit i11 p.1rt at k,1-,t, lhL· 11otio11 ()f llillkr-,t<llllli11g
1111okL·d
h;
111odcrn <lllillllrs. \:011
li1L'
Ll.LIL·i,i
pililll
i11
. \r istotk\
trL"Clt1m·11t
oi
11L1llL'rs
rL·L1lL'd til thL' prohkrn cilllLl'IIlL'd is th,ll 11ra,·t1c,1 lruth L'ilSlll'l'.\ lhe 1ight or LkCl'lll
ch11iCL',
thal
is,
l>lll'
lll<lrkL·d
h1 IL'<l'lll1 L01lli11g lo ll'rnis 11 ith ratiu11,il 11 j,, 1 lhat Is to
s,n, i'L'<lso11 is slill 111-,lrurnc11tal 111 thL· sl'llSL' rcquircd h1·
.\ristlltk-,
SLhL'illl':
\ d
1h1s
k,1turL' 1.-, compktL·ly a-,s1rnil<1kd l1i thL· ['L'CtiliM LliaraLkr Ili onc ' moral rnoli1
, 111l11.
l ~ l i l l L I l l h n lh<ll
.\ristlltk
has
1l that "go1id
dclihnaliun
is uiIIl'LlI1L'S' that rcilL·,
h
11
h<lt i-, hc11l'fiLi<1 . <lhuut
lhL'
right lhlllg,
lhe
right 11a; ,rnd ,1t
lhe
right lÍl11L'" f//1 \ '11.
\ l
9,
l I l.2h2:- 28), addi11g a l1tlk hit laln ihat good dclilwr,1tio11 11ill
hL'
thc t\}'L' oi
Lillll'L'lill'SS
lh<ll
L'\}li'L'\SL'S
11h<tt
IS
L'\}1l'dic11l i'or
prn111llti11g
till'
cllll.
Ili' 11hich
pru
LkilL.L'
is lruL'
suppmition
(/ 1/1
. .
it-.
\ ' I
9,
I I
l.2h3.2 33). knCL' lhL' '1Llion crnhraLcd
h\ clwicc
is hmllld
to hL' é\ rnoralil gil()d
()JlL".
SuLh till'll
is thc
lll<lrk lllpr,lL(IC,il trulh .
.
\11tf l't1S
( 1/'tlt'S1'1
f l t ' l l l i
Lndc·1·,1.111cl111g
is
Jllsl f'lrtl 'll· k • ,.,. \11,l1•ll<. \1,,i111t1c'lic'<lll
li/11c1
' · ) Ih. \ t tgg ' ' 'h l lut tfi,·
dt lkr
c'llcL·
c()illl 'ltll 'li
tlLl\
lw
l'lll ltkc· t l ih:
..
( llll11'lc'hc·11s1011 \él\\ ·li \<lll ,ll'ulllg11c· to l11l11.
l1,·
\\'til h·
''' ll' \L'llllul' lnlt'lligc·tlll'
S,l\\, ~ 1 1 1 l l
\ ( ) l i tlllhl l'L'lllll\L' hts l'L')L'llltllc'lll. \llll
lllll\I
· l\ ' lngi;, · l<l
,
·
,,
.
ln udcT
111
,1\1i1d thl' c1mtr.1,J1,t1<i11 uf rn,1k111g y 1 1 1 1 1 1 · 1 1 m ~ a lntl ' u111cq1tiu11 r thc· l'l1tÍ 1
Jull
J
l\11;"-.1 t,
l/1t'
ltlw <
if .\1i<l11/li". 1 umlt111 [ l) l) l l .
I
2: : . rc·lat111g .. ot 11·hich· t ..
11hat
11 L'\l'c·d1,·11t
2
)()