Binghamton University The Open Repository @ Binghamton (The ORB) The Society for Ancient Greek Philosophy Newsletter 12-1977 Eidos as Norm in Aristotle's Biology Anthony Preus Binghamton University--SUNY,
[email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://orb.binghamton.edu/sagp Part of the Ancient History, Greek and Roman through Late Antiquity Commons, Ancient Philosophy Commons, and the History of Philosophy Commons Recommended Citation Preus, Anthony, "Eidos as Norm in Aristotle's Biology" (1977). The Society for Ancient Greek Philosophy Newsletter. 86. https://orb.binghamton.edu/sagp/86 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by The Open Repository @ Binghamton (The ORB). It has been accepted for inclusion in The Society for Ancient Greek Philosophy Newsletter by an authorized administrator of The Open Repository @ Binghamton (The ORB). For more information, please contact
[email protected]. /) ( '• sophy, 1977 for t he Society for Ancient Greek Philo EIDOS AS NORM (in Aristotle's Biology) Anthony Preus, SUNY Binghamton Introduction Aristotle and Modern Taxonomy Aristotle and Noah's Ark Genetic and Phenetic Species Three Normative Determinants of eidos The Taxonomy of Pleasures The Taxonomy of Constitutions Intro4uction Eidos, species or form, is a central concept in many of Aristotle's works, but the peculiarly Aristotelian character of the eidos concept was developed in his biological investigations. Some scholars have studied the meanin¥ of "eidos11 in the biological works, notably Marjorie Grene and David Balme; the present essay begins with an exploration of the same territory, but perhaps not always on the same paths. Once the biological sense of 11eidos" has been presented, it will be possible to compare uses of this concept in the normative treatises.