On redefining the concept of 'function' in Aristotle's philosophy: An investigation into the contradiction between 'moral responsibility' and 'biological determinism'

Aristotle's ideas about biology can be thought of as a series of natural teleology and its implications. Indeed, he claims that there is an apparent distinction among living beings, following a hierarchy. This distinction has also been noticeable in his non-biological works. There are various key concepts involved in this distinction. One of them is the notion of function, which, in his philosophy, plays a crucial role in answering the question of what the human good is. The notion of function is a key concept that can help human beings to arrive at happiness. Yet, it is used by him as an argument to account for the human good and used to describe the soul as a unity of form within matter and even used to explain the uses of body parts. This study brings forward that to give an account of function, a reference to human good is not consistent. For example, in the field of politics, the function argument can lead to conflicting results when it is compared to the theory of slavery. When viewed from this angle, it is obvious that the function argument goes against his prerequisite for moral responsibility, which involves voluntary actions. Because even though he agrees with the idea of free will by its role of being the ground for moral responsibility, he claims that some human beings are slaves by nature. Keywords: Aristotle, function, teleology, biology, ethics, politics, free will.