ABSTRACT
Preliminary to explanation is description and classification. Phenomena to be explained must be identified and labelled. Whether classification as such can ever count as explanatory is a controversial issue. Given that explanations are answers to questions of some sort, it seems reasonable to suggest that there may be as many different types of answers as there are types of question, and that the type of explanation adopted will depend on the following three factors: who asked the question, what the question was aimed at, and who gave the answer. Explanations must supply new information. In contrast to causal explanations, teleological or purposive explanations explain a given event by reference to a future event. In contrast to causal explanations which can be pursued indefinitely, teleological explanations may be considered ultimate if they refer to natural goals.
