In
scholastic philosophy
Scholasticism was a medieval European philosophical movement or methodology that was the predominant education in Europe from about 1100 to 1700. It is known for employing logically precise analyses and reconciling classical philosophy and C ...
, "quiddity" (;
Latin
Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
: ''quidditas'') was another term for the
essence
Essence () has various meanings and uses for different thinkers and in different contexts. It is used in philosophy and theology as a designation for the property (philosophy), property or set of properties or attributes that make an entity the ...
of an object, literally its "whatness" or "what it is".
Etymology
The term "quiddity" derives from the Latin word ''quidditas'', which was used by the medieval scholastics as a literal translation of the equivalent term in
Aristotle
Aristotle (; 384–322 BC) was an Ancient Greek philosophy, Ancient Greek philosopher and polymath. His writings cover a broad range of subjects spanning the natural sciences, philosophy, linguistics, economics, politics, psychology, a ...
's
Greek ''to ti ên einai'' (τὸ τί ἦν εἶναι)
[Aristotle, '']Metaphysics
Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy that examines the basic structure of reality. It is traditionally seen as the study of mind-independent features of the world, but some theorists view it as an inquiry into the conceptual framework of ...
'', 1029b. or "the what it was to be (a given thing)".
Overview
Quiddity describes properties that a particular substance (e.g. a person) shares with others of its kind. The question "what (quid) is it?" asks for a general description by way of commonality. This is quiddity or "whatness" (i.e., its "what it is"). Quiddity was often contrasted by the scholastic philosophers with the
haecceity
Haecceity (; from the Latin , 'thisness') is a term from medieval scholastic philosophy, first coined by followers of Duns Scotus to denote a concept that he seems to have originated: the irreducible determination of a thing that makes it ''this ...
or "thisness" of an item, which was supposed to be a positive characteristic of an individual that caused it to be ''this'' individual, and no other. It is used in this sense in British poet
George Herbert
George Herbert (3 April 1593 – 1 March 1633) was an English poet, orator, and priest of the Church of England. His poetry is associated with the writings of the metaphysical poets, and he is recognised as "one of the foremost British devotio ...
's poem, "Quiddity". Example: What is a "tree"? We can only see specific trees in the world around us - the category "tree" which includes all trees is a classification in our minds, not empirical, and not observable. The quiddity of a tree is the collection of characteristics which make it a tree. This is sometimes referred to as "treeness". This idea fell into disuse with the rise of empiricism, precisely because the essence of things, that which makes them what they are, does not correspond to any observables in the world around us. Nor can it be logically arrived at.
Other senses
* In law, the term is used to refer to a quibble or academic point. An example can be seen in Hamlet's graveside speech found in ''
Hamlet
''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...
'' by
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
. "Where be his quiddities now, his quillets, his cases, his tenures" says Hamlet, referring to a lawyer's quiddities.
* Quiddity is the name for the mystical dream sea in
Clive Barker's novel ''
The Great and Secret Show'' that exists as a higher plane of human existence. It is featured as more of a literal sea in the novel's sequel, ''
Everville'', and the related short story, "
On Amen's Shore".
See also
*
Hypokeimenon
''Hypokeimenon'' ( Greek: ὑποκείμενον), later often material substratum, is a term in metaphysics which literally means the "underlying thing" (Latin: ''subiectum'').
To search for the ''hypokeimenon'' is to search for that substan ...
*
Ousia
''Ousia'' (; ) is a philosophical and theological term, originally used in ancient Greek philosophy, then later in Christian theology. It was used by various ancient Greek philosophers, especially Aristotle, as a primary designation for philoso ...
*
Problem of universals
The problem of universals is an ancient question from metaphysics that has inspired a range of philosophical topics and disputes: "Should the properties an object has in common with other objects, such as color and shape, be considered to exist ...
*
Quidditism
*
Similarity (philosophy)
In philosophy, similarity or resemblance is a relation between objects that constitutes how much these objects are alike. Similarity comes in degrees: e.g. oranges are more similar to apples than to the moon. It is traditionally seen as an interna ...
*
Substance theory
Substance theory, or substance–attribute theory, is an ontological theory positing that objects are constituted each by a ''substance'' and properties borne by the substance but distinct from it. In this role, a substance can be referred to as ...
*
Tathātā
References
External links
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Metaphysical properties
Ontology
Scholasticism