Aristotle is a famous ancient Greek scientist and philosopher. He managed to create an integral system of knowledge, covering all aspects of human life. Numerous works of Aristotle made an invaluable contribution to the development of natural science and social sciences.
Biographical information
Aristotle was born in Greece on the island of Euboea, in 384 BC. e. His father was engaged in medicine, and he instilled in his son a passion for the study of science. At the age of 17, Aristotle became a student of Plato's Academy, after a few years he began to teach himself and joined the community of Platonic philosophers.
After the death of Plato in 347 BC. e. Aristotle left the academy, having worked there for 20 years, and settled in the city of Atarney, in which Plato's student Hermias ruled. After some time, the Macedonian king Philip II invited him to the post of teacher for his son Alexander. Aristotle was close to the royal house and taught little Alexander the basics of ethics and politics, conducted conversations with him on the topics of medicine, philosophy and literature.
School in Athens
In 335 BC. Aristotle returned to Athens, and his former student ascended the throne. In Athens, the scientist founded his school of philosophy near the temple of Apollo Lycea, which became known as "Lyceum". Aristotle gave lectures in the open air, walking along the paths of the garden, the students attentively listened to their teacher. So another name was added - "Peripathos", which is translated from Greek as "walk". Aristotle's school began to be called peripatetic, and students - peripatetic. In addition to philosophy, the scientist taught history, astronomy, physics and geography.
In 323 BC, preparing for the next campaign, Alexander the Great falls ill and dies. At this time, an anti-Macedonian rebellion begins in Athens, Aristotle falls out of favor and flees the city. The scientist spends the last months of his life on the island of Euboea, located in the Aegean Sea.
Aristotle's achievements
An outstanding philosopher and scientist, the great dialectician of antiquity and the founder of formal logic, Aristotle was interested in many sciences and created truly great works: "Metaphysics", "Mechanics", "Economics", "Rhetoric", "Physiognomy", "Great Ethics" and many others. His knowledge covered all branches of science of ancient times.
It is with the writings of Aristotle that the emergence of the basic concepts for space and time is associated. His "Doctrine of Four Causes", which found its development in "Metaphysics", laid the foundation for attempts at deeper studies of the origins of all things. Paying great attention to the human soul, its needs, Aristotle stood at the origins of the emergence of psychology. His scientific work "On the Soul" for many centuries became the main material in the study of mental phenomena.
In his works on political science, Aristotle created his own classification of correct and incorrect state structures. In fact, it was he who laid the foundations of political science as an independent science of politics.
Having written the essay "Meteorology", Aristotle presented to the world one of the first serious works on physical geography. He also identified the hierarchical levels of all things, dividing them into 4 classes: "inorganic world", "plant world", "animal world", "man".
Aristotle created a conceptual and categorical apparatus, which is still present in the philosophical vocabulary and style of scientific thinking today. His metaphysical teaching was supported by Thomas Aquinas and subsequently developed by the scholastic method.
The manuscript works of Aristotle reflect the entire spiritual and scientific experience of Ancient Greece, they had a significant impact on the development of human thought.
