Practice question · Select all that apply
Which are features of the atomist cosmology?
Hints
- Three describe a mechanistic universe; one belongs to Anaxagoras.
- Atomism is thoroughly non-teleological.
Show the answer
- B. Order arises without anyone intending it
- C. Atoms move by necessity rather than purpose
- D. The universe is infinite and contains innumerable worlds
Why
The atomist universe is infinite, mechanical and purposeless, order emerges from necessity without intention. The ordering mind is Anaxagoras’ nous, and its absence here is exactly what Aristotle objected to.
Practise The Atomists: Leucippus and Democritus
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