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Aristotle and Theophrastus on metaphysical causes of movement
Fantyš, Daniel ; Roreitner, Robert (advisor) ; Špinka, Štěpán (referee)
This bachelor thesis starts from questions regarding the peripatetic conception of the mover or movers of the celestial spheres, which are directly and indirectly posed by Theophrastus in his Metaphysics, and it searches for possible answers to them in those texts of Aristotle where this conception is developed. It is above all the twelfth book of Aristotle's Metaphysics. At the same time, it aims to determine what answers to these questions would Theophrastus himself favor. Both the Peripatetics present in their texts a position according to which there must exist at least one eternal and unchanging first mover who moves the celestial spheres and so he maintains unceasing movement in the universe. This position, however, carries many difficulties with itself, which are articulated by Theophrastus. Specifically, this thesis aims to explore why the movers of the celestial spheres cause the circular motion of these spheres instead of their rest, in what way do they actually move the celestial speres, whether it is possible to explain the variety of motions in the sublunar world by the movements of the celestial spheres, why the first mover of the celestial spheres does not cause the movements in the sublunar world directly and other difficulties.
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