#CosmicWisdomGr • Parmenides • on Change

Parmenides • on Change

Parmenides' philosophy on change is that it is impossible.

ত Parmenides' argument against the reality of change is based on the principle of contradiction or identity, which he formulates as "Being is, non-being is not; you will never get beyond this thought".

 

He believed that the very notion of change is incoherent, there is no coming into existence, or ceasing to exist, and that everything that exists is permanent, ungenerated, indestructible, and unchanging. 

Principle  of contradiction or identity 

being and non-being are mutually exclusive

and that something cannot both be and not be

at the same time and in the same respect.

 

This is not just an assumption that Parmenides makes. Nor is it based on observation. (Quite the contrary: things certainly do appear to change.) Rather, it is the conclusion of a strictly deductive argument, from more basic premises.

Parmenides is well known for his rational approach to Truth, and his deductive reasoning. His reasoning can be better understood through his challenges in Plato's Dialogue "Parmenides".

 

Parmenides' argument for the lack of motion was twofold.

 

ত His first argument was that for change to occur, it must progress from being to non-being, since. If something comes to be then it is clearly a being and clearly is. Then what does this being come to be from? For this Parmenides offers us two solutions, either what is or what is not. However if the original thing is what is, and the resulting being is also what is, then nothing has actually come into being and so therefor no change has occurred.

 

For example, if I grow tall, it is I who persists through the change. Tall to non-tall is not absolute change because the I is the unchanging ground upon which the ball of change can roll.

 

ত His other argument is about the incomprehensibility of non-being. A world in which there is change requires a combination of being and non-being, but we can't possibly comprehend non-being since it is absolutely nothing.

 

The crux of Parmenides' argument lies in his assertion that non-being is, in essence, "absolutely nothing." Non-being, as he conceives it, has no ontological or conceptual status. It is not a thing, a concept, or a state of affairs that can be comprehended, discussed, or even acknowledged. Therefore, the very idea of change, which requires a transition between being and non-being, becomes problematic. How can we understand or talk about something that is "absolutely nothing"?

 

ত  Last but not least, he thinks that the world is devoid of movement or qualitative change. He would presumably also hold that there cannot be any qualitative difference; indeed, there cannot be difference of any kind.

 

To Parmenides, the world is a singular, unchanging reality. This implies that not only is there no movement or transformation between different states of being, but there can also be no variation in qualities, properties, or attributes.

Any form of qualitative difference or distinction would suggest the existence of something other than the singular, unchanging reality he envisions, which is an idea he vehemently opposes.

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 Wrap up as to Farewell...

Parmenides posited that change is fundamentally impossible, rooted in his principle of contradiction or identity: "Being is, non-being is not." He contended that change is incoherent, denying any coming into or ceasing to exist, insisting that everything is permanent, ungenerated, indestructible, and unchanging.

 

His reasoning is deductive and independent of observations.

Parmenides' two-fold argument for the absence of motion hinges on the progression from being to non-being, undermining the very notion of change.

 

He also emphasized the incomprehensibility of non-being, suggesting that it is "absolutely nothing." This unique perspective challenges our understanding of existence and the nature of reality.

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