Aristotelian physics
E20053
Aristotelian physics is the pre-modern natural philosophy based on Aristotle’s ideas about motion and the elements, which dominated Western thought until it was displaced by the new mechanics of the Scientific Revolution.
Aliases (3)
Statements (51)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
historical scientific theory
→
natural philosophy → physical theory → |
| basedOn |
Aristotle’s On Generation and Corruption
→
Aristotle’s On the Heavens → Aristotle’s Physics → the works of Aristotle → |
| challengedBy |
Galilean mechanics
→
Newtonian mechanics → impetus theory → |
| claims |
celestial bodies move in uniform circular motion
→
heavier bodies fall faster than lighter ones → motion in a void is impossible → natural motion is motion toward natural place → sublunar realm is composed of four elements → superlunar realm is composed of aether → there is no vacuum in nature → violent motion requires a continuous mover → |
| describesUniverseAs |
finite
→
geocentric → spherical → |
| dividesCosmosInto |
sublunar realm
→
superlunar realm → |
| dominantIn |
Western thought before the Scientific Revolution
→
|
| hasCoreConcept |
ether
→
final causes → four elements theory → natural motion → natural place → potentiality and actuality → substance and accidents → teleology → violent motion → |
| historicalPeriod |
Antiquity
→
Middle Ages → Renaissance → |
| influenced |
Christian theology
→
Islamic philosophy → Jewish philosophy → medieval scholasticism → |
| posits |
aether as a celestial element
→
air as an element → earth as an element → fire as an element → water as an element → |
| rejectedBy |
modern physics
→
|
| usesConcept |
efficient cause
→
final cause → formal cause → four causes → material cause → |
Referenced by (5)
| Subject (surface form when different) | Predicate |
|---|---|
|
Aristotelian physics
("Aristotle’s Physics")
→
Ptolemaic system → |
basedOn |
|
Newton's first law of motion
("Aristotelian mechanics")
→
|
contrastsWith |
|
Scientific Revolution
→
|
opposedDoctrine |
|
History of Animals
("Aristotelian natural philosophy")
→
|
philosophicalContext |