Habitus or the Possibility of Science of the Contingent

Abstract

Most of sciences can be traced back to Aristotle. This is because in opposition to Plato he was able to find a way in which one could give a scientific form to reflection concerning contingent facts of every-day life. Knowledge of the contingent was made possible thanks to the Aristotelian concepts of category and state (habitus). It is the latter concept that was especially important for forming knowledge about change. Aristotle and his medieval followers apply it in analyses of various processes, from local motion to changes in temperaments, to formation of virtues.