According to Aristotle’s Metaphysics, a being/thing refers to a form, which relates to the structure or pattern of a being or thing, and what makes something an individual thing is the 'matter.' In other words, Aristotle argues that everything in the world (a thing or a being) is a formed matter or matter in a given form (Studtmann 83). According to Aristotle, a being or thing can be plants, humans, and non-human animals, all of which have different structures or forms that make them unique. Aristotle, therefore, argues that certain things or beings have more complex or richer forms than others (Studtmann 84).
Also, according to Aristotle's Metaphysics, beings reveal themselves to humans through their functions. Aristotle argues that to understand or discover the human good, it is imperative first to identify the role or function of a being or human being (Studtmann 86). He claims that the function of a human being is a rational activity, which has to be performed according to virtue. From the account of matter and form in Aristotle’s Metaphysics, Aristotle claims that function does not translate to purpose, but rather a means of functioning or how a thing/being does what it does (Studtmann 86). According to Aristotle, humans discover beings through rational choices. He argues that the human happiness or good is not just as a result of the rational decision, but forms part of the rational choice, because a rational activity or action is one whose principle articulates the agent's understanding of what is worth doing or performing (Studtmann 87).
The truest objects in the Universe, according to Aristotle’s Metaphysics, are those objects that contain the principles of motion and rest within themselves. According to Aristotle, such objects have common characteristics and are accessible to human understanding (Studtmann 91). Human beings can access the truest objects in the universe by studying them and differentiating them by reason. In his argument, Aristotle claims that humans can have a better understanding of the truest objects in the universe by studying the celestial motions, as well as the divinity of such objects (Studtmann 92).
Discussion Based on Descartes’ Argument
According to Descartes, a being relates to the state of being certain of oneself. For Descartes, humans discover beings through reason, thoughts, and rationalism (Joniak 414). Descartes argues that every individual has triadic existence (a mind within a body, which resides in the world), which stresses the individualism certainty. In other words, according to Descartes, beings can reveal themselves to humans through the rational mind by way of interaction between the mind and the body (Joniak 415).
The objects in the universe, according to Descartes, include God, Mind, and Matter. However, Descartes argues that God is the truest object or substance in the universe because God is the only entity in the universe that is completely independent of others (Joniak 419). According to Descartes, all other objects or things can only exist with the help of God's concourse. Descartes also argues that God is the only creative object or substance and that God's will is the cause of everything that takes place in the physical realm or world (Joniak 421). Descartes claims that God's creative activity accounts for the body and the mind and that the various components of the physical world operate or move according to the laws enacted by God (Joniak 427). He claims that since the world or universe consists of extended parts, the various activities in the universe must be as a result of an active force from outside the material world. According to Descartes, God did not only create matter, but he also controls and conserves matter in all historical moments (Joniak 429).
According to Descartes, the truest objects in the universe are accessible to human understanding through modern science. For instance, by exploring or studying Descartes' “universe is theocentric” humans can develop a better understanding of Descartes view that God is the only substance and the continuous source of everything that exists and everything that happens (Joniak 432). Descartes also claims that humans can understand the truest objects in the universe by studying the geographical properties of the universe to distinguish the body and the mind from God (Joniak 432). For Descartes, the body, unlike the mind, is an extended object. In other words, the form in which any material object can exist can be described or defined in the context of the object’s extensional features, such as shape, size, movement, and position. Therefore, according to Descartes, the physical world resembles an extended, vast machine, whose truest objects can be understood by humans through the study of its geometrical properties (Joniak 433).
Discussion based on Leibniz’s Argument
According to Leibniz, a being/thing relates to something that exists or an existing thing. Leibniz argues that beings reveal themselves to humans through the principle of sufficient reason. In other words, Leibniz claims that there has to be something beyond the entirety of contingent things that explains beings to humans (Nachtomy 51). According to the law of sufficient reason, the properties each monad in the universe are interconnected in a massive network of explanation, just like the properties within any single monad. Humans can, therefore, discover the existence of beings by exploring or understanding the nature of the universe itself through history and other schools of thought (Nachtomy 52).
The truest object in the universe, according to Leibniz, is God. Leibniz argues that God is the necessary being that constitutes the satisfactory explanation about the totality of contingent things (Nachtomy 57). According to Leibniz, if the contingent universe were merely an arbitrary or a random act of God, then God would not provide or constitute the explanation of all objects or things. In other words, Leibniz claims that God as the truest object must not only be necessary but must also be the source of lucidity or rationality of all objects or things (Nachtomy 59). He claims that God’s regulations about how created objects should behave are inscribed into the natures of such creatures. Thus, according to Leibniz, God did not only decide on how objects or creatures in the universe should act, but he also gave them natural powers and natures that control them (Nachtomy 60).
According to Leibniz, the truest object (God) is accessible to human understanding, and humans can develop an understanding about God by inquiring or studying the reasons that made God to authorize or allow the universe to exist (Nachtomy 62). Humans can also develop an understanding of God by knowing studying what makes God the explanation of the universe’s intelligibility or rationality. For Leibniz, God is a necessary being, the infinite intelligence, and the explanation of the universe (Nachtomy 62). Thus, to better understand God, Leibniz argues that humans should embrace the concept of perfection by imagining God’s creation. In his effort to create an understanding of the concept of perfection, Leibniz explores different ideologies and concludes that perfection simply implies the greatest quantity of essence. Therefore, for Leibniz, God (the truest object) is accessible to the human understanding by virtue of the proof for God’s existence (Nachtomy 64).
Works Cited
Janiak, Andrew. "Newton and Descartes: Theology and Natural Philosophy". The Southern Journal of Philosophy, vol 50, no. 3, 2012, pp. 414-435. Wiley, doi:10.1111/j.2041-6962.2012.00130.x.
Nachtomy, Ohad. "Leibniz on the Greatest Number and the Greatest Being". Leibniz Society Review, vol 15, 2005, pp. 49-66. Philosophy Documentation Center, doi:10.5840/leibniz2005151.
Studtmann, Paul. "Aristotle, Science and the Plenitude of Being". Apeiron, vol 40, no. 3, 2007. Walter De Gruyter Gmbh, doi:10.1515/apeiron.2007.40.3.245.
