Aristotle
Ancient Greek philosopher who tutored Alexander the Great and first systematized logic Show bio
Bio
Aristotle lost his father, a physician to the king of Macedon, while still a boy. He studied nearly twenty years under Plato, who called him the "mind of the school."
Aristotle taught Alexander the Great, then thirteen, and gave him an annotated copy of the Iliad. He later opened his own school in Athens, where his surviving books likely began as lecture notes. Aristotle produced the earliest systematic study of logic, which dominated Western logic until the 19th century.
He fled a charge of impiety, reportedly unwilling to let Athens repeat its execution of Socrates. Aristotle went from Plato's "mind of the school" to "The First Teacher" of medieval Muslim scholars.
Books by Aristotle
- EthicsEthics
A set of lectures asks what makes a human life truly happy, and how habit builds good character. Each virtue sits between two extremes, so courage lies between cowardice and recklessness.
- PoliticsPolitics
A study of how cities are governed, comparing kingship, rule by the few, and rule by the many. It is the source of the famous claim that humans are by nature political animals.
- CategoriesCategories
This short treatise examines how words describe things and how those things can be grouped. Examples such as a particular horse help distinguish individual things from broader groups.
- PoeticsPoetics
This short study examines how poetry and plays tell stories, with special attention to tragedy. The story of Oedipus helps explain why a sudden discovery can change the course of a play.