International Relations. A self-Study Guide to Theory

empirical observation (see Bedenig 2011: 44). However, for Aristotle and 
Plato, whose works shaped European philosophy, only logical reasoning was 

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assumed to result in knowledge, not empirical observation. Remember our 
discussion on the epistemological positions of empiricism and rationalism as 
two different ways of coming to know something (in Unit 2). Plato and Aris-
totle’s emphasis on logical reasoning (and their disregard of empirical obser-
vation) is important because it explains why the idea of science associated 
with Aristotle – and with Greek philosophy more generally – is theoretical 
science and not empirical. Aristotle is well known for his systematic presen-
tation of the knowledge of his time, ranging from mathematics to political 
science. He differentiated between two types of knowledge based on different 
origins and goals of knowledge: practical knowledge (techne) and theoretical 
knowledge (episteme). For him, theoretical knowledge derived from rational 
reasoning was most important. He considered empirical methods always de-
fective, so the only reliable basis of gaining knowledge was rationality 
through logical reasoning. Thus, in Aristotelian philosophy, logical thought 
formed the most important starting point for gaining knowledge. European 
classical philosophy has been fundamentally shaped by the idea of knowledge 
derived from logical reasoning, while the rise of the natural sciences since 
the 17
th
 century results from a new emphasis on an empiricist epistemologi-
cal position. These initial remarks will help you to better understand the 
rise of the empirical (natural) sciences during the scientific revolution, their 
focus on the empirical testing of theoretical hypotheses (as will be dis-
cussed in Step 2.3.), and the split between (natural) science and the arts still 
common today. 
In short, with Aristotle and Plato, the idea of science first became theoret-
ical. Greek science “produced” philosophy instead of industries and technol-
ogies. This development was in line with a Greek society in which only 
slaves had direct contact with “nature”, while the aristocracy focused on con-
templation and philosophical reflection. With regard to sciences, in Greek an-
tiquity originally everything was philosophy; only later did new subjects such 
as geometry and rhetoric emerge. However, the separation between (natural) 
science and philosophy did not exist in antiquity. Therefore, in ancient 
Greece, scientists were philosophers. In fact, one single person was often 
simultaneously a philosopher, an astronomer, a mathematician, etc., a cir-
cumstance which differs considerably from the later stages of the develop-
ment of the idea of science. In the 19
th
century, the epistemological prioritiza-
tion of empirical observation brought about a split between the natural sci-
ences and philosophy, leading to a huge diversity of highly specialized aca-
demic disciplines and sub-disciplines.  
Ancient Greek thought on science was reflected in the geocentric world 
view of the universe as the all-encompassing cosmological world view in 

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Greek antiquity. The basic models and assumptions can be summarized as 
follows (see Bedenig 2011: 33-48; Harrison 2000: 28-34):
First, the general (ontological) view existed that there is “order” in the 
cosmos and that the cosmic order is similar to the order of human mind. This 
view resulted in the belief that, if the cosmic order is akin to the order of hu-
man mind, then the cosmic order can be known by the human mind and by 
human rationality (an epistemological position). Behind the cosmic order a 
“methodical intelligence” (god) was supposed to exist, bringing to the uni-
verse a spirituality and purpose that can be conceived by the human mind. 
Second, because of its divine origin, the ideas and forms in the cosmos are 
perfect, as expressed by models such as those of planets and stars with ideal 
circular orbits. You know about ideal forms and ideas from our discussion of 
Plato’s theory of ideas (or theory of forms) in Unit 2. The geocentric model 
draws on Euclidean geometry, where such ideas of ideal geometrical forms 
are modeled, deduced from a small set of axioms and then provided with 
mathematical proof (Euclid’s Elements). Third, the world view is atomistic: it 
draws on atomism, the idea systematically developed by Democritus and Ep-
icurus that everything in the universe consists of tiny, indivisible atoms (re-
member the discussion of atomism in Unit 2). The atomized world is made of 
“matter” – a materialist ontological position. As you know, there have been 
different ontological positions regarding the make-up of the world; for exam-
ple, Heraclitus assumed all things in nature to be in a state of perpetual flux, 
connected by logical structures. Such a position stands in contrast to atom-
ism. However, atomism ultimately became the dominant perspective and has 
shaped the idea of science throughout European history. We will later return 
to this argument in more detail. Finally, in the geocentric world view, the be-
lief existed that each movement in the universe has a cause (with the first 
movement caused by god as the prime mover). Causes of natural phenomena 
are seen as physical in origin and explanation thus implies the expression of a 
relation between cause and effect. Cause and effect are linked by natural 
laws. 
From what you know about the “elements” of a philosophy of science, 
you can easily see that the ideas mentioned above refer to ontological as well 
as epistemological and methodological assumptions and models of explana-
tion. All these principles and assumptions will sound familiar to you. Many 
of them have been introduced in more detail in Unit 2 because they are 
shared by positivism as a philosophy of science. Indeed, European philoso-
phy, culture and science have been fundamentally shaped by the philosophy 
of Greek antiquity. The work of Greek philosophers such as Socrates, Plato, 
or Aristotle is reflected in our philosophical and literary terminology, in our 

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political and economic ideas of liberalism and pluralism, in our political 
analysis, in our idea of freedom, in the way we perform and perceive science. 
Al-Jabri raises an interesting point with his argument that, in fact, the idea of