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Teleology (Greek: telos: end, purpose) is the philosophical study of design and purpose. Greek (el ελληνική γλώσσα or simply el ελληνικά — "Hellenic" is an Indo-European language, spoken today by 15-22 million people mainly Philosophy is the study of general problems concerning matters such as existence knowledge truth beauty justice validity mind and language Purpose is the Cognitive Awareness in Cause and effect linking for achieving a Goal in a given System, whether A teleological school of thought is one that holds all things to be designed for or directed toward a final result, that there is an inherent purpose or final cause for all that exists.

It is traditionally contrasted with metaphysical naturalism, which views nature as lacking design or purpose. This article covers metaphysical naturalism as a worldview Naturalism (philosophy discusses methodological naturalism In the first case form is defined by function, in the second function is defined by form. Teleology would say that a person has eyes because he has the need of eyesight, (form follows function), while naturalism would argue that a person has sight simply because he has eyes, or that function follows form (eyesight follows from having eyes).

In European philosophy, teleology may be identified with Aristotelianism and the scholastic tradition. Aristotelianism is a tradition of Philosophy that takes its defining inspiration from the work of Aristotle. Most theology presupposes a teleology[1]: "intelligent design" is a teleological argument for the existence of God. Theology is the study of a god or the gods from a religious perspective Intelligent A teleological argument, or argument from design, is an Argument for the Existence of God or a creator based on perceived evidence of order purpose design Aristotle's analysis speaks of a material cause, efficient cause, and formal cause but all these serve a final cause.

Later teleology was fundamental to the speculative philosophy of Hegel and was explored in detail by Immanuel Kant in his Critique of Judgement. Immanuel Kant (ɪmanuəl kant 22 April 1724 12 February 1804 was an 18th-century German Philosopher from the Prussian city of Königsberg The Critique of Judgement ( Kritik der Urteilskraft, 1790 or in the new Cambridge translation Critique of the Power of Judgement, also known

In general it may be said that there are two types of final cause, which may be called intrinsic finality and extrinsic finality. Intrinsic finality is the idea that there is a natural good for all beings and that all beings have a natural tendency to pursue their own good Extrinsic finality is a principle of the Philosophy of Teleology that holds that a being has a final cause or purpose external to that being itself in contrast to

In bioethics, teleology is used to describe the utilitarian view that an action's ethics is determined by its good or bad consequences. Bioethics is the philosophical study of the ethical controversies brought about by advances in Biology and Medicine. Utilitarianism is the idea that the moral worth of an action is solely determined by its contribution to overall Utility, that is its contribution to happiness

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Classical Teleology

Plato summarized the teleological position in his dialogue Phaedo, bemoaning those who fail to distinguish between the ultimate Cause and the mere means by which that Cause acts:

“ Imagine not being able to distinguish the real cause from that without which the cause would not be able to act as a cause. Biography Early life Birth and family Plato was born in Athens Greece Plato 's Phaedo (ˈfiːdoʊ Greek: Φαίδων, Phaidon) is one of the great Dialogues of his middle period along with It is what the majority appear to do, like people groping in the dark; they call it a cause, thus giving it a name that does not belong to it. That is why one man surrounds the earth with a vortex to make the heavens keep it in place, another makes the air support it like a wide lid. As for their capacity of being in the best place they could possibly be put, this they do not look for, nor do they believe it to have any divine force, but they believe that they will some time discover a stronger and more immortal Atlas to hold everything together more, and they do not believe that the truly good and "binding" binds and holds them together. " [Plato, Phaedo 99bc] ”

Similarly, Aristotle argued that Democritus, proponent of the atomic theory, was wrong to attempt to reduce all things to mere necessity, because such thinking neglects the purpose, order, and "final cause" that causes the necessity:

“ Democritus, however, neglecting the final cause, reduces to necessity all the operations of nature. Democritus ( Greek:) was a pre-Socratic Greek Materialist Philosopher (born at Abdera in Thrace ca Now they are necessary, it is true, but yet they are for a final cause and for the sake of what is best in each case. Thus nothing prevents the teeth from being formed and being shed in this way; but it is not on account of these causes but on account of the end. . . . " [Aristotle, Generation of Animals V. 8, 789a8-b15] ”

Hence Plato and Aristotle agreed that all lesser causes were in the service of an ultimate good while Democritus or Lucretius were supporters of what is now often called metaphysical naturalism, or accidentalism:

Nature adapts the organ to the function, and not the function to the organ

– Aristotle, De Partibus Animalium (On the Parts of Animals)[2]

Nothing in the body is made in order that we may use it. Titus Lucretius Carus (ca 99 BC- ca 55 BC was a Roman Poet and Philosopher. Accidentalism is a term with several meanings In Philosophy, it is used for any System of Thought which denies the Causal On the Parts of Animals (or De Partibus Animalium) is a text by Aristotle. What happens to exist is the cause of its use.

– Lucretius, De Rerum Natura (On the Nature of Things)[3]

Modern and postmodern philosophy

In the various neo-Hegelian schools - proposing a history of our species some consider to be at variance with Darwin, with the dialectical materialism of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels and with what is now called analytic philosophy — the point of departure is not so much formal logic and scientific fact but 'identity'. On the Nature of Things (Latin De rerum natura) is a first century BC Poem by the Roman Poet and Philosopher Charles Robert Darwin (February 12 1809 &ndash April 19 1882 was an English naturalist, who realised and demonstrated that all Species of life Friedrich Engels (28 November 1820 – 5 August 1895 was a German social scientist and philosopher, who Analytic philosophy (sometimes analytical philosophy) is a generic term for a style of Philosophy that came to dominate English-speaking countries in the 20th century (In Hegel's terminology: 'objective spirit'. Hegelianism is a Philosophy developed by Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel which can be summed up by Hegel's "the Rational alone is real" which means )

Individual human consciousness, in the process of reaching for autonomy and freedom, has no choice but to deal with an obvious reality: the collective identities (such as the multiplicity of world views, ethnic, cultural and national identities) which divide the human race and which set (and always have set) different groups in violent conflict with each other. Hegel conceived of the 'totality' of mutually antagonistic world-views and life-forms in history as being 'goal-driven', that is, oriented towards an end-point in history. The 'objective contradiction' of 'subject' and 'object' would eventually 'sublate' into a form of life which has leaves violent conflict behind. This goal-oriented, 'teleological' notion of the 'historical process as a whole' is present in a variety of 20th Century authors, from Lukács and Jaspers to Horkheimer and Adorno. The twentieth century of the Common Era began on György Lukács (pronounced in IPA dyɶrdyə ˈlukɑtʃ) ( April 13, 1885 – June 4, 1971) was a Hungarian Karl Theodor Jaspers ( February 23, 1883 – February 26, 1969) was a German Psychiatrist and Philosopher who Max Horkheimer (February 14 1895 &ndash July 7 1973 was a German Philosopher and Sociologist, and a founder and guiding thinker of Critical Theodor Ludwig Wiesengrund Adorno ( September 11, 1903 &ndash August 6, 1969) was a German -born international sociologist

In contrast teleology and "grand narratives" are eschewed in the postmodern attitude [4] and teleology may be viewed as reductive, exclusionary and harmful to those whose stories are erased. In Critical theory, and particularly Postmodernism, a metanarrative (from Meta - Narrative, sometimes also known as a master- or Postmodernism literally means 'after the modernist movement' While " Modern " itself refers to something "related to the present" the movement of modernism [5]

Against this, Alasdair MacIntyre has argued that a narrative understanding of oneself, of one's capacity as an independent reasoner, one's dependence on others and on the social practices and traditions in which one participates, all tends towards an ultimate good of liberation. Alasdair Chalmers MacIntyre (born January 12, 1929 in Glasgow, Scotland) is a philosopher primarily known for his contribution to moral Social practices may themselves be understood as teleologically orientated to internal goods, for example practices of philosophical and scientific enquiry are teleologically ordered to the elaboration of a true understanding of their objects. MacIntyre's book After Virtue famously dismissed the naturalistic teleology of Aristotle's 'metaphysical biology', but he has cautiously moved from that book's account of a sociological teleology toward an exploration of what remains valid in a more traditional teleological naturalism. After Virtue is a highly regarded book on moral philosophy by Alasdair MacIntyre.

Teleology and Science

Science concerns itself with physical causality and is well able to function within the bounds of naturalism, indeed, it has frequently to counter appeals to undemonstrable modes of causality. Yet teleological ideas still find refuge in the unpenetrated beginnings and endings of things.

Physics

It has been claimed that within the framework of thermodynamics, the irreversibility of macroscopic processes is explained in a teleological way. In Physics, thermodynamics (from the Greek θερμη therme meaning " Heat " and δυναμις dynamis meaning " In science a Process that is not reversible is called irreversible. [6]

In recent decades a form of teleological reasoning has reappeared in certain quarters of physics and cosmology, under the heading of anthropic principle, a term Brandon Carter coined in 1973. Physics (Greek Physis - φύσις in everyday terms is the Science of Matter and its motion. Physical cosmology, as a branch of Astronomy, is the study of the large-scale structure of the Universe and is concerned with fundamental questions about its In Physics and Cosmology, the anthropic principle states that humans should take into account the constraints that human existence imposes on the kind of theoretical Brandon Carter (born 1942 is an Australian theoretical physicist, best known for his work on the properties of Black holes and for being the first One of the problems the anthropic principle tries to address is this: why has the universe, which began in a very simple state (Big Bang), since grown ever more complex to the extent that it is even more hospitable to human life than is necessary for mere survival but even allows advanced human civilization?

Chemistry

Teleological arguments in the field of chemistry have once again often centred around the fitness of materials to form the complex molecular bonds of life. The Big Bang is the cosmological model of the Universe that is best supported by all lines of scientific evidence and Observation. For example, Lawrence Joseph Henderson, an American bio-chemist, advanced such a view in the early 20th century. Lawrence Joseph Henderson (b June 3 1878 Lynn Massachusetts &ndash d

Biology

Biology has always been susceptible to teleological thought, even after Darwin proposed survival as the only observable final good. Driesch, for example, presented a modified vitalism in whch an Aristotlean (or Kantian) entelechy drove embryonic development. Hans Adolf Eduard Driesch ( October 28, 1867 - April 16, 1941) was a German Biologist and Philosopher from Vitalism, as defined by the Merriam-Webster dictionary is a doctrine that the functions of a living organism are due to a vital principle distinct from physicochemical Entelechy ( Gk ἐντελέχια is a philosophical concept of Aristotle that was later adopted by the biological thinker Hans Driesch. Contemporary accounts of teleology within biology are heavily influenced by Larry Wright's etiological account,[7] which seeks to supply a definition of "function" that can be applied to natural phenomena as well as human constructions such as a hammer. Larry Wright may refer to Larry Wright (cartoonist, cartoonist known for his editorial cartoons Larry Wright (philosopher, creator Etiology (alternatively aetiology, aitiology) is the study of causation. Most contemporary accounts of teleology follow Wright. (Ruth Millikan[8] for instance[9]). Ruth Garrett Millikan (born 1933 is a well-known American Philosopher of biology, psychology, and language. Others, however, such as Godfrey-Smith[10] and Ernst Mayr,[11] object to any such theory, preferring naturalistic accounts of teleology. Ernst Walter Mayr ( July 5, 1904, Kempten, Germany &ndash February 3, 2005, Bedford Massachusetts U

Cybernetics and Teleonomy

Julian Bigelow, Arturo Rosenblueth, and Norbert Wiener have conceived of feedback mechanisms as lending a teleology to machinery. Julian Bigelow (1913 - February 21, 2003 in Princeton New Jersey) was a pioneering Computer engineer. Arturo Rosenblueth Stearns ( October 2, 1900 – September 20, 1970) was a Mexican researcher physician and physiologist Norbert Wiener ( November 26, 1894, Columbia Missouri – March 18, 1964, Stockholm, Sweden) was an American Feedback is a circular causal Process whereby some proportion of a system's output is returned (fed back to the Input. Wiener, a mathematician, coined the term 'cybernetics' to denote the study of "teleological mechanisms," [12]. Cybernetics is the interdisciplinary study of the Structure of Complex systems especially Communication processes control mechanisms and Feedback Cybernetics is the study of the communication and control of regulatory feedback both in living beings and machines, and in combinations of the two. Cybernetics is the interdisciplinary study of the Structure of Complex systems especially Communication processes control mechanisms and Feedback Communication is the process of conveying information from a sender to a receiver with the use of a medium in which the communicated information is understood the same way Control theory is an interdisciplinary branch of Engineering and Mathematics, that deals with the behavior of Dynamical systems The desired output Feedback is a circular causal Process whereby some proportion of a system's output is returned (fed back to the Input.

In recent years, end-driven teleology has become contrasted with "apparent" teleology, i. e teleonomy or process-driven systems. Teleonomy is the quality of apparent purposefulness and of goal-directedness of structures and functions in living organisms that derive from their evolutionary history and adaptation for

Philosophy of science

For a very detailed discussion of the recent resurgence of teleology in natural science, see Barrow and Tipler (1986). Their work includes:

See also

References

  1. ^ Martin Bertman, Kant’s Theology and Teleology, : "The fulcrum of theology is the principle of God’s teleology – (telein in Greek connotes perfectly complete) – in the organ of nature. In Physics and Cosmology, the anthropic principle states that humans should take into account the constraints that human existence imposes on the kind of theoretical Causality (but not causation) denotes a necessary relationship between one event (called cause and another event (called effect) which is the direct consequence The chicken or the egg Causality dilemma is commonly stated as "which came first the Chicken or the egg ?" Chickens hatch from eggs Cybernetics is the interdisciplinary study of the Structure of Complex systems especially Communication processes control mechanisms and Feedback Destiny refers to a predetermined course of events It may be conceived as a predetermined future whether in general or of an individual Dysteleology is the philosophical view that Existence has no telos or final cause. Elohim ( אֱלוֹהִים, אלהים) is a Hebrew word which expresses concepts of Divinity. Edward Flanders Robb Ricketts ( May 14, 1897 - May 11, 1948) commonly known as Ed Ricketts, was an American Marine For other uses see Emergence (disambiguation, Emergent, and Emergency. The Moirae or Moerae (in Greek – the " apportioners " often called the The Fates) in Greek mythology, were the white-robed Philosophical naturalism has been described in various ways In its broadest and strongest sense naturalism is the metaphysical position that "nature is all there is Orthogenesis, orthogenetic evolution, progressive evolution or autogenesis, is the Hypothesis that Life has an innate tendency to Purpose is the Cognitive Awareness in Cause and effect linking for achieving a Goal in a given System, whether In Epistemology and in its broadest sense rationalism is "any view appealing to Reason as a source of knowledge or justification" (Lacey 286 A teleological argument, or argument from design, is an Argument for the Existence of God or a creator based on perceived evidence of order purpose design " http://www.rescogitans.sdu.dk/files/RC___Bertman.pdf.
  2. ^ De Partibus Animalium On the Parts of Animals, IV, xii, 694b; 13
  3. ^ De Rerum Natura (On the Nature of Things), IV, 833; cf. On the Parts of Animals (or De Partibus Animalium) is a text by Aristotle. On the Nature of Things (Latin De rerum natura) is a first century BC Poem by the Roman Poet and Philosopher 822-56. William Leonard's translation is very different: "Since naught is born in body so that we / May use the same, but birth engenders use".
  4. ^ Jean-François Lyotard (1979). Jean-François Lyotard (ʒɑ̃ fʀɑ̃swa ljɔˈtaʀ August 10 1924 April 21 1998) was a French philosopher and literary
  5. ^ Lochhead, Judy (2000). Postmodern Music/Postmodern Thought, p. 6. (ISBN 0-8153-3820-1)
  6. ^ J. S. Wicken, Causal Explanations in Classical and Statistical Thermodynamics, Philosophy of Science, Vol. 48, No. 1 (Mar. , 1981), pp. 65-77
  7. ^ Wright, Larry. Teleological Explanations: An Etiological Analysis of Goals and Functions, (University of California Press, 1976). Also see Wright, Larry. The Case Against Teleological Reductionism. British Journal for the Philosophy of Science (Vol. 19, No. 3 [Nov. 1968]) and Wright, Larry. Functions, The Philosophical Review (Vol. 83, No. 2 [Apr. , 1973]), pp. 139-168,
  8. ^ Millikan, Ruth. Varieties of Meaning (The 2002 Jean Nicod Lectures) (Cambridge, Mass : MIT Press, 2004)
  9. ^ For a collection of essays mostly in the line of Wright's thought, see David J. Buller, Function, Selection, and Design (State University of New York Press, 1999)
  10. ^ Godfrey-Smith, Functions: Consensus Without Unity
  11. ^ Mayr, Ernst. The Idea of Teleology, Journal of the History of Ideas (Vol. 53 [Jan. /Mar. 1992]), pp. 117-135.
  12. ^ Cybernetics, or control and communication in the animal and machine' (1948)

Further reading

Dictionary

teleology

-noun

  1. (philosophy) The study of the purpose of natural occurrences.
  2. The use of a non-natural purpose to explain an occurrence.
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