Parts and Wholes in Paul of Venice’s Expositio super Universalia Porphyrii: the Metaphysical Composition of Material Beings

Parts and Wholes in Paul of Venice’s Expositio super Vniuersalia Porphyrii: the Metaphysical Composition of Material Beings Paul of Venice was one of the most prominent and interesting thinkers of the whole Middle Ages. His last work, the Expositio super Vniuersalia Porphyrii (1428) is not only an analytical commen-tary on the Isagoge, but a true summa of the doctrines on universals, individuals and individuation, categories, identity and distinction, and the nature and rules of predication from Albert the Great until the beginning of the 15th century. In this article, an interesting aspect of his logico-metaphysical system, until now neglected, namely his mereology, will be dealt with. This will shed new light on the problem of the metaphysical composition of the material beings in Paul of Venice, which is the central point in his world view.