Aristotle posited four logical causes for any phenomenon to help analyze that phenomenon:
1. Material causes are those things which are caused by the underlying matter itself. The material cause of a table having grain is that it is made of wood;
2. A formal cause is something that is caused by the actual structure of a thing. The formal cause of a table standing up is that it distributes its weight on its legs;
3. An efficient cause is that which is performed by an agent other than the thing being examined. The efficient cause of the table is the carpenter carving it from wood;
4. A final cause is the ultimate outcome of a change. Aristotle’s example here is that the final cause of the seed is the tree – it is what is within the thing to become. This is better classified as the reason for which things are done.
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