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Metaphysics
(2,930 words)

[German Version]

is now the traditional name for the philosophical discipline that studies the most elementary conditions and forms of being, praxis, and cognition (Epistemology). The epoch-making transition to metaphysics as an elementary philosophical discipline was made possible by the brilliant scholarly rigor with which Aristotle transformed the treatment of such topics into far-reaching and profound conceptual as well as argumentative and analytical investigations and case studies.

In the post-Socratic history of philosophy, however, Plato too already ga…

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Enskat, Rainer, “Metaphysics”, in: Religion Past and Present. Consulted online on 26 March 2023 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/1877-5888_rpp_SIM_14029>
First published online: 2011
First print edition: ISBN: 9789004146662, 2006-2013



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