Matter and Form
In Aristotle's writings, matter (hyle) is a relative term, for example, clay might be the matter of some brick, which in turn, become the proximate matter of a house. Aristotle defines X's matter as "that out of which" X is made. For example, letters are the matter of syllables.
Change is analyzed as a material transformation: matter is what undergoes a change of form. For example, consider a lump of bronze that's shaped into a statue. Bronze is the matter and the forms (literally, shapes) are lump and statue.
According to Aristotle's theory of perception, we perceive an object by copying its form with our sense organs. Thus, forms include complex qualia like colors, textures and flavors, not just shapes.
Read more about this topic: Hylomorphism
Famous quotes containing the words matter and/or form:
“No matter what a man does, he is not fully sane or human unless there is a spirit of freedom in him, a soul unconfined by purpose and larger than the practicable world.”
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“Whoever denies that he possesses vanity generally possesses it in so brutal a form that he instinctively shuts his eyes in its presence, so as not to have to look down upon himself.”
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