517); the human being who is able to contemplate (theoretical bios) is the most happy (eudamonia) for Aristotle's Ethics (EN X 7-9); the theoretical knowledge is about ousia, physis,
aitia (causes) for their own sake (Metaph.
Aitia as generative factor in Aristotle's philosophy.
Victor Davis Hanson, the classicist and military historian, observes: "When statesmen pontificate about idealism or noble intentions, Thucydides is ready to differentiate propbasis (pretext) from ulterior or real motive (
aitia)." Fairly may we inquire about Allison's
aitia.
paused with her hardly has the impact of, for example, the ritual
aitiaAttribution of the
aitia of generation and destruction to phusis in this sense forces us to j ettison our understanding of ourselves as beings who act in accord with what they think is best.
In contrast, Morrisons detailed analysis of the
Aitia in "Greek Literature in Egypt" (certainly part of the "intellectual domain") leads to the conclusion that it was written for an audience including both Greeks and Greek-speaking Egyptians and, moreover, that understanding all the subtleties would require "...close knowledge of native Egyptian traditions alongside central Greek texts..." (p.
Cusset (ed.),
Aitia (revue electronique), Le bouvier dans la poesie hellenistique et le roman grec.