An entelechy according to Aristotle is an inner force that potentially contains a goal, as well as a final result. For example, thanks to this phenomenon, a tree of walnut grows.
According to Democritus, it is not definitesubstance. Here it is appropriate to turn to Empedocles. He argued that the soul can not be the displacement of all substances. He explained this by the fact that two bodies can not occupy a single place. In this case, the concept of entelechy suggests that a disembodied soul also can not exist.
The Pythagoreans mistakenly believed that it was harmonybody. Plato, mistaken, claimed that it was a self-moving number. A different definition is more correct. The soul itself does not move, it "pushes" another body. A living being is not just made up of the soul and the body. According to the concept of philosophy, the situation is different.
The soul is the power that acts throughbody. It remains to understand the second concept. Proceeding from the above, it can be noted that the body is a natural tool for the soul. These phenomena are inseparable. They can be compared with the eye and eyes. To every soul corresponds a body. It arises from its power and for its sake. In addition, the body is designed as an instrument that is most suitable for the activity of a certain soul.
Here it is worth remembering Pythagoras.It is for the above-described reason that the doctrine of this philosopher about the transmigration of souls is absurd for Aristotle. He put forward a theory that is the opposite of the views of ancient natural philosophers. They withdrew from the bodily nature of the soul. Aristotle did the opposite. He takes the body out of a separate soul. Therefore, strictly speaking, for him only the animate is really a real, entelechic. This idea is mentioned in such works as "On the Parts of Animals", "Metaphysics", "On the Soul".
It should be remembered that only organicthe body can be animated. It is a holistic mechanism, all elements of which have a specific purpose and are designed to fulfill the assigned functions. This is the principle of unity of the organism. For this reason it arose, functions and exists. The law described and includes the term "entelechia", which is equivalent to the soul. It can not be separated from the body. The soul is one by being. An organic living being can be defined as being, for it contains the goal in itself.
Now let's turn to the philosophy of modern times.Here the term is liberated from the teachings of Aristotle about the act and potency. The concept is among the key words of organic and teleological understanding. It is opposed to a mechanical causal way of explaining the world around us. This phenomenon emphasizes the primacy of expediency, as well as individuality. According to this concept it turns out that each being is oriented by the internal device to the goal. It itself aspires to it for its own sake. Leibniz also mentions this term. He calls them monads, confirming the theory by biological teaching.