principle of plenitude
Quick Summary
The principle of plenitude, in philosophy, refers to the idea that the best possible universe contains a maximum richness and variety of modes of being, realizing every possible kind of existence from the highest to the lowest. This concept, drawn from Neoplatonism, suggests a hierarchy of being and goodness, with God at the summit and descending through spiritual, animal, and plant life down to lifeless matter.1
In contrast, sparse theories posit universals only for very specific predicates, often those used in fundamental physics, while plenitudinous theories suggest a universal for almost every predicative expression in any language. This distinction became a significant issue in philosophy during the 20th century.234
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