The Great Chain of Being: Origins and Structure
The Great Chain of Being, known in Latin as "Scala Naturae" and in German as "Stufenleiter der Wesen/der Natur", was a fundamental concept in natural philosophy during the Elizabethan era. This hierarchical structure of the universe originated from the works of ancient Greek philosophers such as Aristotle, Plato, Plotinus, and Proclus.
The Chain of Being was divided into two main realms:
- The Realm of Being: Encompassing God and spiritual entities
- The Realm of Becoming: Including all material beings subject to change and death
The hierarchy, from top to bottom, consisted of:
- God
- Angels
- Humans
- Animals
- Plants
- Minerals
- Non-Being
Vocabulary: Actuality and Potentiality - In this concept, higher beings possessed more "actuality" realizedpotential, while lower beings had more "potentiality" unrealizedpotential.
This structure reflected the belief that the higher up the chain a being was, the more attributes it possessed, including all those below it. Spiritual essence increased towards the top, while material substance increased towards the bottom.
Highlight: God and Angels, being pure spirits, were considered to have no material bodies. Humans, positioned between the spiritual and material realms, possessed both spirit and matter, making them unique in their ability to change and die.