The Continuity Of Plato’s And Aristotle’s Views Of Time

The discussion of "time" has a long history,and the "time" category has become one of the basic categories at the source of western philosophy.It can be said that the issue of time is another problem that has deeply touched philosophers in addition to the issue of existence.This profoundness is not only reflected in its highly constructive nature,but also has a profound impact on the subsequent development of philosophy and world outlook.The solution to matter of time seems to be traced back to one of the ancient views of time.As a result,is there a continuity between the ancient concepts of time? If so,how are they linked? The inquiry into this question is what we examine and trace back to the origin of Greek thought about the meaning of time.On the basis of analyzing Plato’s and Aristotle’s concepts of time,examining the continuity of two views of time in thought is the ultimate purpose of this article.The full text is divided into three chapters and the structure is as follows:Chapter 1: Plato’s view of time is based on the cosmic framework.This chapter will explore the construction of the body of the universe and the soul of universe from the perspective of universal time.In addition,Plato’s understanding of time introduces the concept of "number",which has the characteristics of Pythagoreanism,and the concept of "number" was introduced as early as Plato’s construction of the universe.We will explain mathematical structure is the key to the stability and order of Plato’s cosmology in Section III,at the same time it provides the conditions for the formation of Plato’s time theory.In the fourth section,Plato’s rules on time and the relationship between time and the instruments of time are discussed.Chapter 2: Taking the problem of time as the starting point,Aristotle’s definition of time is discussed in conjunction with the relationship between time and motion,time and two aspects:number and measurement.We find that Aristotle’s understanding of time still in the scope of Plato’s view of time.In the last section of this chapter,we discussed the relationship between time and soul.Combining the soul as the subject with the ability to "calculate" and "perceive",we tried to give the conclusion that time depends on the soul and that there is no time without soul.Chapter 3: Both Plato and Aristotle’s view of time are inseparable from "movement".This chapter starts with "movement" to overcome and inherit two dimensions,comparing Plato’s and Aristotle’s views on movement,and paving the way for further discussion of the relationshipbetween their views of time.Plato and Aristotle are often considered to be "Great Divide" in philosophy.Comparing their opinions,contrary to many people’s views,we conclude that Aristotle generally agreed with Plato on the principles and premises of his view of time and the internal consistency can be attributed to the "number" of Pythagoreanism.Although Aristotle clearly put forward the view that "the before and after",time is understood as a number,which already has been introduced in the "Timaeus" by Plato and it obvious has Pythagorean characteristics.In addition,although this article explores the continuity of views of time,it is undeniable that in ancient philosophy,Plato’s theory has a profound influence on Neo-Platonism.The development of Pythagoraeanism-Plato-Plotinus-Augustine’s views of time cannot be ignored.Therefore,in the last section of this article,by examining Plotinus’ and Augustine’s views of time,the clue to the development of time is presented.