Hylemorphism, proposed by Aristotle, indicated that the body is composed of matter and form.
The etymology of hylemorphism takes us to two words from the Greek language: hýlē (which can be translated as "matter" ) and morphḗ (referring to "form" ). The concept alludes to a theory developed by Aristotle , who maintained that the body is composed of form and matter .
For this philosopher from Ancient Greece , form and matter are the essential principles of every body. Material objects always have form, while form has matter as a substrate. Hylemorphism is based on the fact that there is no form without matter and no matter without form .
What is hylemorphism
It can be said that hylemorphism is an explanation offered from philosophy about the constitution of bodies. It is important to keep in mind that the concept transcends the merely physical.
Hylemorphism ensures that corporeal substances are governed by particular principles. They are not made up of other complete substances, neither spiritual nor material. When developing this theory, Aristotle set out to delve into the link between the body and the soul .
According to Thomas Aquinas
Also known as Saint Thomas Aquinas , he was a Catholic philosopher and theologian who left an important intellectual legacy. In the specific case of hylemorphism, his position was based on the fact that the soul of an object was its only substantial form , although it also has several accidental forms that serve to explain its non-essential features. According to his theory, we understand by substantial form that which determines the constitution of an object according to its matter.
If we talk about a human being, the general tendency is that its substantial form is its reasoning , that is, its ability to use reason to understand its environment and make judgments. All other features of our species, according to Aquinas, are accidental forms. Despite this, it is necessary to point out that he did not believe that the person himself and his soul were identical. Regarding reasoning, Aquinas was sure that it was a property of the soul , although he also attributed certain fundamental cognitive functions to the brain.
On the other hand, he stated that the combination of form and raw material is necessary to have an appropriate human being, since if these parts are taken individually it is not possible to notice all the attributes of our species together. To give an example, this theory considers that a corpse is not a person.
The university professor of philosophy Eleonore Stump , born in the United States in 1947, relies on the concept of "configuration" to describe Aquinas' theory: the soul fulfills the function of "configurator" while the body is configured, it is matter that has that has been structured . Of course the soul also has a configuration. Based on this new point of view, we can affirm that a corpse is matter that, in the past, received a configuration from its respective soul.
There are experts who maintain that hylemorphism is a response to Plato's postulates.
A response to platonism
There are those who understand hylemorphism as a response to Platonism . Plato 's doctrine did not postulate the existence of a unity between form and matter, but rather stated that materiality is nothing more than a copy of the world of ideas and that the soul exists independently of the body and eternally.
On the contrary, hylemorphism proposed that all beings have form and matter. In this way there is no separation between soul and body , since they are a unit . Being, in short, is made up of the formal and the material.