نقد و بررسي ديدگاه‌ فخررازي مبني بر استحاله منطقي تعريف

A Critical Assessment of Fakhr al-Din Razi’s Views on the Logical Impossibility of Definition

تعريف، به ادعاي منطق‌دانان، راهكاري براي اكتساب علوم نظري است. اما اين راهكار از سوي بسياري مورد نقد قرار گرفته است. از مهم‌ترين نقدها، نقد فخررازي است كه مي‌توان آن را نقد بر مباني معرفت‌شناختي تعريف دانست. وي: اولاً، مدعي است كه چون تقسيم علم به بديهي و نظري محال است، اكتساب نظري به وسيله بديهي نيز محال است؛ ثانياً، تعريف حدي تحصيل حاصل است و تعريف رسمي به دنبال مجهول مطلق رفتن. بنابراين، تعريف حدي و رسمي محال است. مقاله پيش‌رو مي‌كوشد با توجه به درجات معرفت, به نقد نخست وي پاسخ گويد؛ همان‌گونه كه ارزش و كاركرد علم بديهي و نظري متفاوت است، راه‌هاي تحصيل هريك نيز متفاوت است. بنابراين، راهي نيست جز اينكه تقسيم علم به بديهي و نظري را قبول و در پي آن، تحصيل هريك به شيوه خاصي را بپذيريم. پاسخ سخن دوم ايشان آن است كه اگر به رابطه اجزا با كل توجه كنيم، چنانكه فخررازي خود،‌ اعتراف دارد، در آن صورت، متوجه مي‌شويم كه تعريف حدي، تحصيل حاصل و تعريف رسمي، به دنبال مجهول مطلق رفتن نيست.

According to logicians, definition is a mechanism for obtaining theoretical knowledge. However, this mechanism has been criticized by many. Among the most important criticisms are those of Fakhr al-Din Razi which can be taken as ones aiming at the epistemic foundations of definition. First, he maintains that as it is impossible to divide knowledge into self-evident and theoretical, it is impossible to acquire theoretical knowledge through self-evident knowledge; second, essential definition is acquiring what has been acquired (tautology) and descriptive definition is nothing but seeking the absolutely unknown. Thus, both essential and descriptive definitions are impossible. Considering the different degrees of knowledge, the present article seeks to provide an answer for his first criticism by saying that since their significance and applications are different so are the ways that lead to acquiring them. Thus, there is no option but to accept that knowledge is divided into self-evident and theoretical and each is acquired in a particular manner. The response to his second criticism is that if we take into account the relation between a whole and its components, as noticed by Fakhr al-Din Razi himself, we will find out that essential definition is not acquiring what has been acquired and descriptive definition seeking an absolutely unknown thing.