The Arabic Sea Battle: al-Fārābī on the Problem of Future Contingents

Adamson, Peter (14. August 2006): The Arabic Sea Battle: al-Fārābī on the Problem of Future Contingents. In: Archiv für Geschichte der Philosophie, Vol. 88, No. 2: pp. 163-188

Abstract

Ancient commentators like Ammonius and Boethius tried to solve Aristotle's “sea battle argument” in On Interpretation 9 by saying that statements about future contingents are “indefinitely” true or false. They were followed by al-Fārābī in his commentary on On Interpretation. The article sets out two possible interpretations of what “indefinitely” means here, and shows that al-Fārābī actually has both conceptions: one applied in his interpretation of Aristotle, and another that he is forced into by the problem of divine foreknowledge. It also explains the relevance of al-Fārābī's remarks as a link between the non-statistical modal theories of Philo and Avicenna.

• Item Type: Journal article
• Form of publication: Publisher's Version
• Faculties: Philosophy, Philosophy of Science and Religious Science
• Subjects: 100 Philosophy and Psychology > 100 Philosophy
• ISSN: 1613-0650
• Annotation: The final publication is available at www.degruyter.com
• Language: English