PLS1501
ASSIGNMENT 1 SEMESTER 2 2025
UNIQUE NO.
DUE DATE: 2025
, Question 1
The debate among the Milesians about the archē (the first principle or cause of reality)
illustrates the beginnings of philosophy as a rational practice and shows how
philosophical thought develops through dialogue and critique. Each of the three thinkers
proposed a different fundamental substance, and each refined the discussion by
responding to the weaknesses of earlier views.
Thales of Miletus suggested that water was the first principle of all things. He observed
that moisture is essential for life, that water can change forms, and that it is present in
nature everywhere. This represents a crucial move away from mythological
explanations: instead of appealing to gods, Thales gave a natural explanation grounded
in observation (Kenny, 2012:17; Graham, 2019).
Anaximander, his student, rejected water as the source because it could not account for
the existence of its opposite (for example, water cannot explain fire). He proposed the
ápeiron, or “the indefinite/boundless,” as the origin of all things. The ápeiron contains all
opposites and allows them to emerge and return in a cycle governed by a kind of
natural justice (Kirk, Raven & Schofield, 1983:104; Graham, 2019). This move
advanced the discussion by introducing an abstract principle rather than a specific
physical element.
Anaximenes, in turn, criticized the abstractness of the ápeiron and returned to a
determinate substance: air. Unlike Thales, however, he explained how air could
transform into other elements through rarefaction (becoming fire) and condensation
(becoming water, earth, or stone). This attempt at a causal mechanism shows a more
systematic and scientific way of thinking (Barnes, 1982:32; Graham, 2019).
The Milesian debate teaches us that philosophy begins with critical reflection and
rational explanation. It develops over time not by arriving immediately at truth but by
ASSIGNMENT 1 SEMESTER 2 2025
UNIQUE NO.
DUE DATE: 2025
, Question 1
The debate among the Milesians about the archē (the first principle or cause of reality)
illustrates the beginnings of philosophy as a rational practice and shows how
philosophical thought develops through dialogue and critique. Each of the three thinkers
proposed a different fundamental substance, and each refined the discussion by
responding to the weaknesses of earlier views.
Thales of Miletus suggested that water was the first principle of all things. He observed
that moisture is essential for life, that water can change forms, and that it is present in
nature everywhere. This represents a crucial move away from mythological
explanations: instead of appealing to gods, Thales gave a natural explanation grounded
in observation (Kenny, 2012:17; Graham, 2019).
Anaximander, his student, rejected water as the source because it could not account for
the existence of its opposite (for example, water cannot explain fire). He proposed the
ápeiron, or “the indefinite/boundless,” as the origin of all things. The ápeiron contains all
opposites and allows them to emerge and return in a cycle governed by a kind of
natural justice (Kirk, Raven & Schofield, 1983:104; Graham, 2019). This move
advanced the discussion by introducing an abstract principle rather than a specific
physical element.
Anaximenes, in turn, criticized the abstractness of the ápeiron and returned to a
determinate substance: air. Unlike Thales, however, he explained how air could
transform into other elements through rarefaction (becoming fire) and condensation
(becoming water, earth, or stone). This attempt at a causal mechanism shows a more
systematic and scientific way of thinking (Barnes, 1982:32; Graham, 2019).
The Milesian debate teaches us that philosophy begins with critical reflection and
rational explanation. It develops over time not by arriving immediately at truth but by
