{"id":10542,"date":"2026-05-02T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-05-02T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10542"},"modified":"2025-11-08T16:36:32","modified_gmt":"2025-11-08T16:36:32","slug":"looking-at-daniel-novotnys-essay-2017-izquierdo-on-universals-part-5-of-6","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10542","title":{"rendered":"Looking at Daniel Novotny\u2019s Essay (2017)\u00a0Izquierdo on Universals\u00a0(Part 5 of 6)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

0334 So, what is a universal?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0335 The intellect<\/em> is capable of using reason3c<\/sub> to actualize a primal triad2c<\/sub>, judgment2c<\/sub>, within the possibilities inherent in intellectual understanding1a<\/sub><\/em>.  Thus, the intellect itself is a universal structure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0336 Whatever goes into each slot of the primal triad<\/em> is a universal in a different sense.  \u2018What is\u2019 goes with existence.  \u2018What ought to be\u2019 goes with predication.  Relation goes with meaning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0336 Aristotle formulated the universal<\/em> in terms of the many<\/em>.  A universal is held in common by many existents or many predicates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0337 The category-based nested form<\/em> turns this around, since the many<\/em> may also refer to those who hold universals within their intellects<\/em>.  The sharing of a cognitive space among many <\/em>potentiates organized activities<\/em>.  Universals, as objective concepts,<\/em> potentiate the sharing of a single cognitive space that opens avenues<\/em> for organizing our human world<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0338 A universal<\/em> is an opportunity to organize our world<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0339 What is the nature of the intellect-dependent universal?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Or: What kind of unity does this universal (generated by the intellect) have?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0340 As Novotny recounts, Izquierdo lists and critiques various approaches before detailing his own favored treatment, T4.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

T4 goes like this: A universal, by nature, is common to individuals only in the intellect.  It is indivisible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0341 From T4, Izquierdo offers four propositions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

P1. Confused acts of cognition do not constitute a universal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

P2. The objective unity of a universal is generated by a substitute phantom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

P3. The unity of reason supports the unity of a universal.  All other supports are fictions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

P4. Future philosophers may consider the disposition of the universal to existence-in-many and predicability-of-many.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0342 Novotny discusses each proposition in detail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0343 My question is: How well does the diagram of the primal triad of judgmen<\/em>t2c<\/sub> fit these propositions?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0344 Proposition P1 and P4 pertain to the primal triad2c<\/sub>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

0345 The first proposition (P1) runs against nominalism, which takes universals as whatever the name evokes<\/em>.  Nominalism argues that a universal is merely an act of cognition<\/em>, as if the act of cognition had no real constraints (hence the term \u201cconfused\u201d).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0346 The primal triad provides a real constraint.  Each universal must be a whole (as either a whole quality of existence, a whole predicate, or a whole operation) within a congruent triadic relation.  The two elements identified by Aristotle as universals are thus constrained by their capacities to enter into relation with one another<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The resulting judgment is intersubjective.  Others can generate similar primal triads (that is, judgments). Why?  The constraints on the universals<\/em> are real.  This holds even when each universal cannot be fully symbolized (in speech-alone talk).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0347 For example, let me say this, \u201cI am king of Bohemia.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When asked why, I reply, \u201cI like Bohemian beer.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0348 Surely, the subject<\/em> (the existence of lovers of Bohemian beer) is a universal.  What the subject is supposed to be<\/em>(the king of Bohemia) is also a universal.  If Bohemia is a monarchy, then it has a king or queen or both.  All monarchies are predicated on this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That leaves the relation, to which I exclaim, \u201cThe king of Bohemia must love Bohemian beer!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0349 Surely, this act of cognition cannot be reduced to a universal.  Why?  There are many existents (beer lovers) but only one predicate (king of Bohemia).  The operation of loving beer<\/em> is not sufficient to serve as a universal relation between \u2018the subject\u2019 and \u2018what the subject is supposed to be\u2019<\/em>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

0334 So, what is a universal? 0335 The intellect is capable of using reason3c to actualize a primal triad2c, judgment2c, within the possibilities inherent in intellectual understanding1a.  Thus, the intellect itself is a universal structure. 0336 Whatever goes into each slot of the primal triad is a universal in a different sense.  \u2018What is\u2019 goes with existence.  \u2018What ought to be\u2019 goes with predication.  Relation […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[418],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10542","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article-review"],"yoast_head":"\nLooking at Daniel Novotny\u2019s Essay (2017)\u00a0Izquierdo on Universals\u00a0(Part 5 of 6) - An Archaeology of the Fall<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10542\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Looking at Daniel Novotny\u2019s Essay (2017)\u00a0Izquierdo on Universals\u00a0(Part 5 of 6) - An Archaeology of the Fall\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"0334 So, what is a universal? 0335 The intellect is capable of using reason3c to actualize a primal triad2c, judgment2c, within the possibilities inherent in intellectual understanding1a.  Thus, the intellect itself is a universal structure. 0336 Whatever goes into each slot of the primal triad is a universal in a different sense.  \u2018What is\u2019 goes with existence.  \u2018What ought to be\u2019 goes with predication.  Relation […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10542\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"An Archaeology of the Fall\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-05-02T08:00:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Slide10-1.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"450\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10542#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10542\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/ad695f570ebd1b2a6f85c4ac5badcd04\"},\"headline\":\"Looking at Daniel Novotny\u2019s Essay (2017)\u00a0Izquierdo on Universals\u00a0(Part 5 of 6)\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-05-02T08:00:00+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10542\"},\"wordCount\":648,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10542#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Slide10-1.png\",\"articleSection\":[\"Article Review\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10542\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10542\",\"name\":\"Looking at Daniel Novotny\u2019s Essay (2017)\u00a0Izquierdo on Universals\u00a0(Part 5 of 6) - 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