`arche` Related Article Results

Archē (Ancient Greek: ἀρχή) was used in Ancient Greek philosophy to mean first principle, origin, fundamental substance, or primary element. For the Milesian natural philosophers Thales, Anaximander, and Anaximenes, archē denotes the underlying, more fundamental element behind the cycles of change and becoming, lying beneath appearances that are subject to transformation. The central question posed by these thinkers was: “What lies beneath all things, enduring beyond change?” The Milesian school

Anaximenes is regarded as the third major representative of the Milesian school, following Thales and Anaximander among the early natural philosophers centered in Miletus. His particular contribution to the problem of the arkhe stands out through his approach to material transformation via processes of condensation and rarefaction, and his effort to explain natural phenomena within a material-principled framework. Anaximenes’s work represents a significant stage in ancient Greek philosophy that