Chapter Nine: Aristotle's 'Kronology': an attempt at Reconstruction

Abstract

This chapter investigates into the background of Tertullian's reference to an Aristotelian 'Kronology' by taking the first steps toward a reconstruction of the Aristotelian system of thought as it may have been expressed in his lost works. It offers a hypothetical reconstruction of which it can be argued that: (a) its elements were probably part of the debate held in the Old Academy around the middle of die 4th century BC; (b) its themes were probably important for the Aristotle we know from the Corpus Aristotelicum; (c) it gives a coherent and meaningful place to many elements of the classical tradition about Aristotle's writings and doctrine, so that the need to dismiss these elements as results of misunderstanding and corruption is minimized. In author's view, the mythical dreaming Kronos figure which Tertullian ascribes to Aristotle can only be understood against the background of Aristotle's opposition to this dialectical theology.Keywords: Aristotelian 'Kronology'; Corpus Aristotelicum; Tertullian