The study of philosophy is that we may know not what men have taught but what the truth of things are – St. Thomas Aquinas

Metaphysics is a particularly challenging field because it underlies all we understand to be regarding the ultimate questions of life and reality and, further because it has such a long history. It is said that the literature covering the field of philosophy is the largest of all academic fields. Metaphysics, as a sub-discipline of philosophy, is the rational and critical investigation of Being or reality. It is held by the classical philosophers and those throughout the middle ages that metaphysics is the pursuit of wisdom through the intellectual discovery of the first principles and causes of reality. Aristotle explains that the genuinely wise individual is one who knows the first principles of something—not just that something exists but why and provides the example that it is one thing to know that fire is hot, but it is more significant to know why fire is hot. True wisdom goes beyond the knowledge which sense perception provides (because everyone to some extent has common sense perception) but to the rational understanding and ultimate wisdom of why something is the case. This post is the first in a series which will serve as a basic introduction to the field of metaphysics. Using Aristotle as our guide, we will discover why the understanding of metaphysics, or the study of reality, is the first and primary sort of wisdom.

In the Western intellectual trajectory, from the time of Plato and Aristotle, and through the middle ages, metaphysics was the chief end of philosophy. From about the Enlightenment to the modern period, metaphysics has fallen on hard times (modern-day critics come from various schools of thought known as “deconstruction”, “poststructuralism”, “critical theory” or other forms of postmodernism). Nonetheless, if a philosopher can’t speak intelligently about metaphysics there is nothing of significance left for a philosopher to discuss. For example, if a philosopher is a strict materialist, then he or she is not doing philosophy but, rather, science—no matter how creative or ingenious their argument might be. Science is a good and worthwhile enterprise but it is not philosophy.

The first book ever entitled “Metaphysics” comes from Aristotle. Aristotle’s Metaphysics examines the principles, axioms, and properties that underlie all reality and which apply to all fields of study. That is why he calls metaphysics “first philosophy” or the study of the most universal principles. I will point out that the skeptic cannot doubt the existence of Being. When one asks the question, “does something exist”? The skeptic might say “no” but miss the point that the question itself is something that exists and needs rational inquiry. Plato follows this line of thought in his dialogue entitled “Gorgias” and concludes that the skeptic can never say anything positive regarding reality. Try as one might, the fact of Being, or reality, cannot be denied.

When Aristotle refers to the content of his Metaphysics as “first philosophy” or simply “sophia” he is speaking about wisdom. From an Aristotelian stance, all of philosophy is said to be the love of “first philosophy” and should be inspired by the love of wisdom, which is the love of metaphysics. So what is this wisdom which should inspire all of philosophy? Further, why should reality be the primary starting point for the search of wisdom? And why should anyone be interested in this approach to wisdom in the first place? The answer to these kinds of questions rests, like most things in human life, in the ends or purpose of the enterprise. The end or purpose of metaphysics is to explain the most universal principles of reality, to offer a comprehensive view of all that exists, and through this inquiry offer wisdom regarding reality and the highest good of human existence.

Metaphysics speaks to the ultimate questions which no one can really avoid. Questions such as “is all reality ultimately in flux and change as Bergson, the process philosophers, and some of the pre-Socratics suggest, or is there a basic order and natural rhythm to the universe as other classical and contemporary philosophers claim? If there is a determined order to the universe, where is the place for human freedom, intuition, and non-rational ways of knowing? What is the origin, destiny, and fabric of reality? Is it always wrong to torture babies for fun?” We all have notions and ideas about the nature of reality, human nature, and the role of ethics in our lives. Far from being purely semantic or academic concerns, questions of metaphysics are part of our everyday experience and are ultimately grounded in our understanding of reality. In these introductory discussions, we’ll discover why we start with metaphysics and why it is unwise to let epistemology drive metaphysics. The point of metaphysics, then, is to illuminate our understanding of reality and offer a course to wisdom. The purpose (or end) of metaphysics, is to offer wisdom regarding the ultimate nature of reality and through rational deliberation, we can then apply this wisdom with intention and purpose to our own lives. This is why many have thought that wisdom is the highest good of the human mind.

For a more complete treatment see: Kane, Robert. “The Ends of Metaphysics.” International Philosophical Quarterly, Vol. XXXI., No. 4, Issue No. 132, 1993, 413-428. Kane’s article served as an inspiration to this post.