ARISTÓTELES Y LA INFINITUD EXTENSIVA DEL TIEMPO (Fís. IV 13, 222a28-b7)

Abstract

This essay focuses on the brief but significant passage of Physics IV 13, 222a28-b7, where Aristotle provides two arguments in favor of the extensive infinitude of time. The first one, Vigo argues, presents its extensive infinitude as depending on infinitude of movement. By contrast, the second argument proceeds immanently out of the consideration of the properties the ‘now’ possesses as being a limit that accounts for both the possibility of limitation (divisibility) and the continuity of time. The paper also explores some systematic consequences of this last argument and attempts to figure out some puzzles it involves from the methodological point of view. Such difficulties underline some structural limits of Aristotle’s attempt to perform a re(con)ductive treatment of the properties of time regarded as a way of continuum dependent of other two more basic domains: movement and spatially extensive magnitude.

Keywords

• Aristóteles
• Física
• tiempo
• infinitud
• movimiento.