Abstract
AbstractIn contrast to other ancient philosophers, Epicurus and his followers famously maintained the infinity of matter, and consequently of worlds. This was inferred from the infinity of space, because they believed that a limited amount of matter would inevitably be scattered through infinite space, and hence be unable to meet and form stable compounds. By contrast, the Stoics claimed that there was only a finite amount of matter in infinite space, which stayed together because of a general centripetal tendency. The Roman Epicurean poet Lucretius tried to defend the Epicurean conception of infinity against this Stoic alternative view, but not very convincingly. One might suspect, therefore, that the Epicureans’ adherence to the infinity of matter was not so much dictated by physical arguments as it was motivated by other, mostly theological and ethical, concerns. More specifically, the infinity of atoms and worlds was used as a premise in several arguments against divine intervention in the universe. The infinity of worlds was claimed to rule out divine intervention directly, while the infinity of atoms lent plausibility to the chance formation of worlds. Moreover, the infinity of atoms and worlds was used to ensure the truth of multiple explanations, which was presented by Epicurus as the only way to ward off divine intervention in the realm of celestial phenomena. However, it will be argued that in all of these arguments the infinity of matter is either unnecessary or insufficient for reaching the desired conclusion.
Highlights
A prominent feature of ancient atomism that still captures the imagination is its endorsement of the infinity of the universe and, associated with it, the infinite number of worlds.[1]
The infinity of the universe, in terms of space as well as bodies, was arrived at through rigorous argumentation, much of which may go back to the earlier atomists, but which has come down to us mainly through the works of Epicurus and Lucretius, who adopted and reinforced some of the earlier arguments.[3]. The centrality of this theory to Epicurean cosmology is clear from the prominent place given to it in Epicurus’ Letter to Herodotus and in Lucretius’ De rerum natura
While in the Letter to Herodotus Epicurus could still confidently claim to have proved, once and for all, the joint infinity of space and bodies, the subsequent appearance of an alternative theory which allowed for a finite amount of matter to remain together in infinite space posed a challenge which later Epicureans had to meet
Summary
A prominent feature of ancient atomism that still captures the imagination is its endorsement of the infinity of the universe and, associated with it, the infinite number of worlds.[1]. The dual infinity of matter and void, and the consequent infinite number of worlds, are not curious but otherwise sterile logical consequences of the basic tenets of Epicurean physics, but they serve as the starting points for further inferences: the infinity of the universe is argued to rule out divine governance, to make the spontaneous formation of a cosmos not merely possible but inevitable, and to guarantee the simultaneous truth of multiple, mutually incompatible explanations. All of these consequences relate directly or indirectly to the question of the gods’ involvement in the world. I will critically examine the Epicurean arguments for the infinity of space and bodies, as well as the way in which they deal with a rival view, and, second, I will look into some of the corollaries to the infinity of space and bodies, and the role these corollaries play in underpinning the Epicurean view of the gods, in order to see whether this role may serve as an additional motivation for the Epicureans’ insistence on the infinity of bodies and worlds
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