Aristotle
Also known as Aristotélēs
Ancient Greek philosopher and polymath (384–322 BC); founded the Peripatetic school at the Lyceum.
At a glance
Main ideas
Virtue and the mean, A political animal, The mixed constitution …
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Nicomachean Ethics, Politics, Rhetoric …
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Plato and Politics
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Also on this page: Key facts · Links · Sources · Related pages
- Aristotle was an ancient Greek philosopher whose writings span the natural sciences, philosophy, linguistics, economics, politics, psychology and the arts.
- He studied at Plato's Academy in Athens for nearly twenty years and later tutored Alexander the Great.
- He then founded his own school at the Lyceum in Athens.
- Only around a third of his original output has survived, mostly treatises thought to be lecture aids.
- His views profoundly shaped medieval scholarship in the Islamic, Jewish and Christian worlds.
Why it matters
- His works contain the earliest known systematic study of logic, his physics held until the Enlightenment, and his ethics has regained interest with modern virtue ethics.
Key facts
- Born
- 384 BC, Stagira, Chalcidice1
- Died
- 322 BC, Chalcis, Euboea, of natural causes1
- Plato's Academy
- From about age 17 or 18 until 348/47 BC, after Plato's death1
- Tutor to Alexander
- From 343/42 BC, invited to Pella by Philip II of Macedon1
- The Lyceum
- Founded his school there after returning to Athens; taught and researched for twelve years1
- Major treatises
- Physics, Metaphysics, Nicomachean Ethics, Politics, On the Soul, Poetics1
- Known as
- "The First Teacher" among medieval Muslim scholars; "The Philosopher" to Thomas Aquinas1
Main ideas
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Virtue and the mean1
Virtue is the mean between excess and deficiency, and the aim of human action is eudaimonia, "happiness" or "well-being".
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A political animal1
"Man is by nature a political animal"; the city is a natural community, prior to the family and the individual.
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The mixed constitution1
A good constitution mixes elements of democracy and oligarchy.
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Ethos, pathos, logos1
A speaker persuades through character, emotion and reasoning.
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Art as imitation1
Poetry, drama, music and dance are acts of mimesis; tragedy arouses pity and fear to effect catharsis.
Books to start with
Connections
Related
- PlatoStudied at Plato's Academy for nearly twenty years
Writes
Links
Sources
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