Metaphysics
by Aristotle · Μετὰ τὰ φυσικά
Assigned by 5 of the 9 reading lists, catalogue entry only
- Written
- c. 340 BCE
- Form
- Treatise
- Language
- Greek
- Length
- Long · 350 pp300 to 700 pages
- Difficulty
- Formidable5 of 5 for a first-year reader
We recommendAristotle's Metaphysics, translated by Joe SachsGreen Lion Press, 2002Renders Aristotle's coinages into plain English rather than Latinate jargon, with commentary on every book.
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Fourteen books of Aristotle's first philosophy, the study of being as being. He reviews his predecessors' accounts of causes, defends the principle of non-contradiction, and in the central books asks what substance is, working through matter, form, essence, potentiality and actuality. Book XII argues for an eternal unmoved mover, thought thinking itself, on which the heavens and nature depend.
No reading guide yet
The catalogue entry above is complete: the dates, the form, the themes and every program that assigns Metaphysics are verified against each program's published list.
What is missing is the part that takes real work: the summary, the key passages, and a recommended translation. The edition named below is the one most programs assign, so the buy links are useful already.

