Abstract

The Introduction first outlines the structure of the _Posterior Analytics_, which, this book argues, is elegantly organized around discussions of three types of learning: by demonstration, by definition, and by induction. It then provides an overview of the book by highlighting three central topics: Meno’s Paradox, the order of inquiry, and _nous_. It briefly discusses Meno’s Paradox, a puzzle from Plato’s _Meno_ according to which inquiry and learning are impossible. It then outlines the Socratic Picture of the order of inquiry, to which (this book argues) Aristotle is committed. According to the Socratic Picture, one should seek what a thing’s essence is before seeking its demonstrable attributes and their causes. The Introduction ends with a discussion of what _nous_ (a form of scientific knowledge) is and how it is acquired.