The logical position of Heraclitus is similar to that of Anaximenes. He
likewise posits a simple predicate and further signalizes its functional
character by naming it Fire. Without venturing upon debatable ground we
may say that it was the restless activity of the element that caused him
to single it out as best expressing the meaning of things. Its rhythmic
libration typified to him the principle of change in existence and of
existence in change. It is the "ever-living" copula, devouring subject
and predicate alike and re-creating them functionally as co-ordinate
expressions of itself. That which alone _is_, the abiding, is not the
physical composition of a thing, but the law of reciprocity by which it
maintains a balance. This he calls variously by the names of Harmony,
Logos, Necessity, Justice. In this system of functional co-ordinates
nothing escapes the accounting on 'Change;[91] all things are in
continuous flux, only the nodes of the rhythm remaining constant. It is
not surprising therefore that Heraclitus has been the subject of so much
speculation and comment in modern times; for the functional character of
all distinctions in his system marks the affinity of his doctrines for
those of modern psychology and logic.[92]
The Pythagoreans, having by abstraction obtained a predicate,
acknowledged the existence of the subject, but did not feel the need of
a copula in the theoretical sphere, except as it concerned the inner
relation of the predicate. To them the world was number, but number
itself was pluralistic, or let us rather say dualistic. The odd and the
even, the generic constituents of number, had somehow to be brought
together. The bond was found in Unity, or, again, in Harmony. When they
inquired how numbers constituted the world, their answer was in general
only a nugatory exercise of an unbridled fancy.[93] Such and such a
number was Justice, such another, Man. It was only in the wholly
practical sphere of experiment that they reached a conclusion worth
recording. Its significance they themselves did not perceive. Here, by
the application of mathematical measurements to sounds, they discovered
how to produce tones of a given pitch, and thus successfully
demonstrated the efficiency of their copula.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account