Lewis was known for his Platonism, but what of Aristotle? Today, Matt sits down with returning guest Dr. Louis Markos to discuss the influence of the legendary Greek philosopher.
S8E26: “Jack’s Bookshelf: Aristotle”, After Hours with Dr. Louis Markos (Download)
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Show Notes
Introduction
Quote of the Week
However far I went I found only dingy lodging houses, small tobacconists, hoardings from which posters hung in rags, windowless warehouses, goods stations without trains, and bookshops of the sort that sell The Works of Aristotle.
C. S. Lewis, The Great Divorce, Chapter One
Biographical Information
Dr. Louis Markos… is a Professor of English and Scholar in Residence at Houston Christian University, where he holds the Robert H. Ray Chair in Humanities. He teaches courses on film, the Classics, British Romantic and Victorian literature, as well as on C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien. He’s been on the show many times to discuss his books, including “Heaven and Hell: Afterlife in the Western Poetic Tradition” and “Myth Made Fact”. Last time he introduced us to Plato, drawing from his book “From Plato to Christ: How Platonic Thought Shaped the Christian Faith” and today we’re going to be learning about Aristotle from his book “From Aristotle to Christ”, as well as another forthcoming release…
Chit-Chat
- Dr. Markos asserted right off the bat that the third part of “Mere Christianity” was heavily Aristotelian. Additionally, many of the other authors that Lewis read were influenced by Aristotle. He’s almost impossible to escape!
- Matt directed listeners to his previous conversation from last season with Dr. Markos, where they discussed Plato’s influence on Lewis. It helped him while reading “Perelandra” this season as our hero Elwin Ransom plunged into the cave, and while reading “The Last Battle”. And who could read “The Problem of Pain” without a proper conception of human free will?
- Along with choice, Dr. Markos discussed the “Law of Noncontradiction”, laid out by Aristotle, which was held by Jack. Many of the rational principles used in logic and ethics in the West were established by this man.
- Dr. Markos is also the author of “Ancient Voices: An Insider’s Look at the Early Church”, examining primary sources to clarify what early worship practices looked like, and how they connected with ancient philosophies and practices.
Discussion
01. “The Man”
Q. What do we know about Aristotle, and what was your first encounter with him?
- After writing about Plato, Dr. Markos know that he would have to follow that work with a book on Aristotle. The project differed in how he organised the book, due to the nature of Aristotle’s teachings, which were segmented based on disciplines. In each chapter, Markos begins with Aristotle and ends with the early Christians.
- We do not have “books” from Aristotle. Much of what is left over is treatises and essays, which have been stitched together. This makes Aristotle more difficult to read than Plato, because the “flow” is not quite there.
- Dr. Markos explained the succession of Greccian philosophy teaching. First came Socrates, who lived 400 years before Christ, the Golden Age of Greece. His star pupil was Plato, who went on to mentor Aristotle, who lived in the fourth century, when Athens was slowly slipping away due to Alexander the Great; a student of Aristotle!
- Alexander the Great spread Greek Hellenism (including the Greek language) to the corners of the world. We have him to thank for the old Greek original transcription of the Scriptures.
- Though Aristotle loved his student Alexander, he did not fancy the idea of “empire”. Rather, he promoted the small “city state”, otherwise called the “polis”.
- Socratic thinking is often used to break down arguments and analogies, but Socrates himself was often not very keen on reconstructing what he deconstructed. His student Plato is the one who would fill in those gaps with full, complete, idealised definitions and foundations.
- It was ultimately Aristotle who brought these ideals down to earth with practical, realistic application. What he would argue is that reality and the essence of being does not come from Heaven, but from within, from our “telos”.
- While Plato tended to get more theology correct than did Aristotle, Aristotle did have a leg up when it came to the concept of hylomorphism. While Plato believed the soul was trapped in a body, Aristotle would say that the two were interconnected, and that the flesh was not nothing.
Q. Did Aristotelianism influence differences in Christian sacramental beliefs, particularly in form and matter debates?
- Of course! In fact, the language of St. Thomas Aquinas describing the Eucharist is very Aristotelian. He discusses differences between substance and accidents. We (often) do not debate substance, but accidents can be moved around. Hence, substantiation.
- Additionally, the differences between venial and mortal sins is Aristotelian thinking, because they draw distinctions and clarity.
- The founders of the Protestant Reformation despised Scolasticism, which is Aristotelian at its core. However, Protestants adhere to Aristotle’s teaching that the law is king, as opposed to its more traditional inverse. For example, in Britain, government officials swear allegiance to the king/queen, while in America, allegiance is sworn to the law, or the Constitution.
02. “Aristotelian Thought”
Q. Is there an overarching ideology or framework we are meant to view Aristotle’s works through, or should we observe each work separately?
- With every subject he is discussing, Aristotle always seeks to determine the “telos”, or the “purposeful end”. As Christians, we say that the chief end of man is to love God and enjoy Him forever. This is Aristotelian thinking.
- Aristotle was certainly not right about everything. However, his approach was always logical. We see this in the world today when it comes to test taking. We might arrive at the wrong answer; however, if we show our work, we might receive partial credit, if our steps were logical and on the correct path.
03. “The Four Causes”
Q. Are there any other key things to know about Aristotle before discussing his influence on Lewis?
- Aristotle is famous for outlining “The Four Causes”.
- An often used example of this is Michelangelo’s “David” statue.
- The material cause is the marble.
- The formal cause is the form of the man David that is made out of the marble.
- The efficient cause is the artist who sculpted the statue, which is Michelangelo.
- At last, the final cause is to glorify both God and man.
- Dr. Markos opined that the modern world no longer looks at the essence of things, or the final cause. Because we cannot define what something is, we cannot determine its ultimate end.
04. “Influencing Lewis”
Q. What was Lewis’ exposure to Aristotle? In what ways was he influenced by the Ancient Greek philosopher?
- Lewis’ professor William Kirkpatrick (known to fellow Lewisians as “The Great Knock”) not only put Jack through intensive classical education, but grilled him on his Latin and Greek. Lewis would have read Aristotle in the original form.
- Jack’s biggest takeaway from Aristotle would be his philosophy on virtue. For Aristotle, virtue is more than pure legalism; it is the mean between the extremes. Take the virtue of courage. A lack of courage is cowardice. However, excess courage is foolishness and bravado.
- As explained in detail in “Mere Christianity”, virtue is not a feeling. It is an action and a habit. Charity is not simply being in a generous or sympathetic mood; it is helping the struggling individual.
- Practiced often enough, virtue will become instinctual, and that will be the moment when a person truly becomes “virtuous”.
- The last thing that Aristotle teaches on virtue is that it is rewarding in and of itself. It becomes enjoyable the more it is exercised. Though virtue is not a feeling, eventually feelings will conform to the practice of the virtue.
- Lewis describes putting the feeling before the virtue as a demonic tactic in “The Screwtape Letters”.
Think of your man as a series of concentric circles, his will being the innermost, his intellect coming next, and finally his fantasy. You can hardly hope, at once, to exclude from all the circles everything that smells of the Enemy: but you must keep on shoving all the virtues outward till they are finally located in the circle of fantasy, and all the desirable qualities inward into the Will. It is only in so far as they reach the will and are there embodied in habits that the virtues are really fatal to us.
C. S. Lewis, The Screwtape Letters, Chapter Six
- Dr. Markos dismisses the notion that enjoying the practice of virtue negates virtue itself, an idea that emerged with Immanuel Kant.
Q. Are there any books that Lewis wrote that we can connect to Aristotelean thinking?
- The trilemma regarding the character Lucy in “The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe” is a classic example of Aristotelean logic.
“Logic!” said the Professor, half to himself. “Why don’t they teach logic at these schools? There are only three possibilities. Either your sister is telling lies, or she is mad, or she is telling the truth. You know she doesn’t tell lies and it is obvious that she is not mad. For the moment then, and unless any further evidence turns up, we must assume that she is telling the truth.”
C. S. Lewis, Professor Kirk, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
- In “Planet Narnia”, Michael Ward describes how celestial bodies influence people, an idea that Aristotle helped to spread. One example of this in Lewis’ novels is in “The Silver Chair”, as the moon produces lunacy in Prince Rillian, or the “martian” book, “Prince Caspian”, in which Narnia draws out courage and vigor in the children. Another is in “That Hideous Strength”, where the influence of the planets descend.
- Dr. Markos quoted a scene from “The Voyage of the Dawn Treader”, where Eustace meets Ramandu.
“In our world,” said Eustace, “a star is a huge ball of flaming gas.”
C. S. Lewis, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
“Even in your world, my son, that is not what a star is but only what it is made of.“
- In “The Problem of Pain”, Lewis discusses the origin of religion. Many people believe it stems from fear of the unknown. However, Lewis – thinking like Aristotle – points out that there are fears of different qualities.
Suppose you were told that there was a tiger in the next room: you would know that you were in danger and would probably feel fear. But if you were told ‘There is a ghost in the next room,’ and believed it, you would feel, indeed, what is often called fear, but of a different kind. It would not be based on the knowledge of danger, for no one is primarily afraid of what a ghost may do to him, but of the mere fact that it is a ghost. It is ‘uncanny’ rather than dangerous, and the special kind of fear it excites may be called Dread. With the Uncanny one has reached the fringes of the Numinous. Now suppose that you were told simply ‘There is a mighty spirit in the room’ and believed it. Your feelings would then be even less like the mere fear of danger: but the disturbance would be profound. You would feel wonder and a certain shrinking–described as awe.
C. S. Lewis, The Problem of Pain
- Dr. Markos also brought up the example of Eustace being un-dragoned, and how he was afraid of the Lion Aslan, not because of what He could do to him, but because of Who He is.
Wrap Up
Concluding Thoughts
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More Information
- You can find all of Dr. Markos’ books on his Amazon author page, including preordering his upcoming books “From Aristotle to Christ”, and “Passing the Torch: An Apology for Classical Christian Education”.
- Dr. Markos also has a YouTube channel to check out.
