Information about Aristotle

Aristotle (384 BC - 322 BC), a native of Scytara in ancient Greece, was one of the greatest philosophers, scientists and educators in the ancient history of the world.

Aristotle was a student of Plato and a teacher of Alexander. In 335 BC, he founded a school called Lyceum in Athens, which was called the Peripatetic School. Marx once called Aristotle the most knowledgeable figure among ancient Greek philosophers, and Engels called him the ancient Hegel.

Aristotle studied under Plato and advocated that education is a function of the state and schools should be managed by the state. He first proposed the idea of ????the stages of children's physical and mental development; he supported the Athenian education of healthy physique and harmonious development, and advocated considering natural qualities, forming habits, and developing rationality as the three sources of moral education. However, he opposed women's education and advocated "gentleness." Education, make education serve leisure.

Aristotle studied diligently throughout his life and engaged in academic research involving logic, rhetoric, physics, biology, education, psychology, politics, economics, aesthetics, etc., and wrote He wrote a large number of works. His famous works include the ancient "Encyclopedia", which is said to have 400 to 1,000 volumes, mainly including "On Instruments", "Metaphysics", "Physics", "Ethics", "Politics" "Learning", "Poetics", etc. His thoughts had a profound impact on mankind. He founded formal logic, enriched and developed various branches of philosophy, and made great contributions to science.

Aristotle was born in Stagira, Thrace, and his father was the physician to the king of Macedon. In 366 BC Aristotle was sent to study at Plato's Academy in Athens. Aristotle lived in the Academy for the next 20 years until the death of his teacher Plato. After Plato's death, Aristotle could not bear the fact that the new head of the Academy was more sympathetic to the mathematical tendency in Plato's philosophy, so he left Athens.

After leaving the academy, Aristotle first accepted the invitation of his former schoolmate Hermias to visit Asia Minor. Hermias was the ruler of Mysia on the coast of Asia Minor. There Aristotle also married the niece of Hermias. But in 344 BC, Hermias was murdered in a riot, and Aristotle had to leave Asia Minor and go to Mytilene with his family.

Three years later, Aristotle was summoned back to his hometown by King Philip II of Macedonia and became the teacher of Alexander the Great, who was only 13 years old at the time. According to the famous ancient Greek biographer Plutarch, Aristotle instilled a moral, political and philosophical education in the future world leader. We also have reason to believe that Aristotle also used his influence and played an important role in the formation of Alexander the Great's thoughts. It was under the influence of Aristotle that Alexander the Great was always very concerned about science and respected knowledge. However, Aristotle and Alexander the Great may not have had exactly the same political views. The political outlook of the former was based on the Greek city-states that were about to decline, while the centralized empire later established by Alexander the Great was nothing more than a barbarian invention to the Greeks.

Although his student was already a king, Aristotle did not stay with the king forever. He decided to return to Athens, establish his own academy, and teach philosophy. Aristotle attached great importance to teaching methods. He opposed rigid teaching methods, so he often took his students for walks on the garden boulevard while discussing philosophy. Therefore, later generations called the Aristotelian school " "Xiaoyao School".

After Philip died in 335 BC, Aristotle returned to Athens and established his own school there. The name of the academy (Lyceum) is named after the wolf-slayer (Lyceus) near the Temple of Apollo. During this period, Aristotle lectured and wrote many philosophical works. Aristotle had a habit of walking in the corridors and gardens while lecturing. Because of this, the philosophy of the academy is called "the philosophy of leisure" or "the philosophy of wandering". Aristotle also wrote many works during this period, mainly about natural science and philosophy about nature and physics, and the language he used was much more obscure than Plato's "Dialogues". Many of his works are based on lecture notes, and some are even class notes of his students. Therefore, some people regard Aristotle as the author of the first textbook in the West. After Alexander's death, the Athenians began to rise up against Macedonian rule. Because of his relationship with Alexander, Aristotle had to take refuge in Galses because he was accused of impiety. His academy was placed in the charge of Theophrastus. A year later, in 322 BC, Aristotle died. The cause of his death was an illness that had accumulated for many years. Rumors that he was poisoned or committed suicide by jumping into the sea due to unexplained tidal phenomena are completely unfounded.

Biography

In 384 BC, Aristotle was born in Stakir, a Greek immigrant in Phulacia (Thrace). District. Some regard Aris, the birthplace of Aristotle, as the first textbook author in the West. It was a colony of Greece, adjacent to the emerging Macedonia. His father was the court physician of King Philip II of Macedonia. The family situation belongs to the middle class of the slave-owning class.

He moved to Athens in 367 BC. He studied medicine and studied at Plato's Academy in Athens for many years, becoming an active participant in Plato's Academy.

From the age of 18 to 38 in 366 BC - studied philosophy at Plato's Academy in Athens until the death of his teacher Plato. His study and life during this period had a decisive impact on his life. It is a very important stage

Socrates was Plato’s teacher, and these three generations of masters and disciples are all famous figures in the history of philosophy.

In Plato's Academy, Aristotle performed very well. Plato called him the "spirit of the academy". But Aristotle was not a person who only worshiped authority and was academically submissive without having his own ideas. He was different from teachers who talked about mysteries. He worked hard to collect various books and materials, studied diligently, and even built a library for himself. It is recorded that Plato once mocked him as a nerd.

While at the academy, Aristotle had ideological differences with his teacher. He once metaphorically said that wisdom will not die with Plato. When Plato reached his later years, the differences between his teacher and his students became even greater, and they often had quarrels. After Plato's death, Aristotle could not bear the fact that the new head of the Academy was more sympathetic to the mathematical tendency of Plato's philosophy, so he left Athens.

In 347 BC, Plato died and Aristotle stayed in Athens for two years. After that, he began to travel around the world.

After leaving the academy, Aristotle first accepted the invitation of his former school friend Hermias to visit Asia Minor. Hermias was the ruler of Mysia on the coast of Asia Minor. There Aristotle also married the niece of Hermias.

In 344 BC, Hermias was murdered in a riot, and Aristotle had to leave Asia Minor and went to Mytilene with his family.

In 342 BC, at the age of 42, Aristotle was hired by King Philip II of Macedonia to become the teacher of Alexander the Great, who was only 13 years old at the time.

According to the famous ancient Greek biographer Plutarch, Aristotle instilled moral, political and philosophical education into the future world leader. However, Aristotle and Alexander the Great's political views may not have been identical. The political outlook of the former was based on the Greek city-states that were about to decline, while the centralized empire later established by Alexander the Great was nothing more than a barbarian invention to the Greeks.

In 338 BC, King Philip II of Macedonia defeated the anti-Macedonian coalition composed of Athens, Thebes and other countries, and since then dominated Greece.

In 337 BC, Philip convened a meeting of the whole of Greece, at which it was agreed that the Greek states would cease war and establish a permanent alliance, with Macedonia as the leader. At the meeting, Philip announced that he would lead the coalition of Greek states in an expedition to Persia. At this point, Macedonia actually controlled the military and political power of all Greece, and the Greek states had ceased to exist in name only and became vassals of Macedonia.

In 336 BC, Philip was assassinated. His son, Alexander, who was only twenty years old, became king.

Aristotle returned to Athens in 335 BC and established his own school there. The name of the academy (Lyceum) is named after the wolf-slayer (Lyceus) near the Temple of Apollo. During this period, Aristotle lectured and wrote many philosophical works. Aristotle attached great importance to teaching methods. He opposed rigid teaching methods. He often took his students for walks on the garden boulevard while discussing philosophy, so he called Aristotle's school the "Peripatetic School." .

The philosophy of the academy is called "the philosophy of leisure" or "the philosophy of wandering".

Aristotle also wrote many works during this period, mainly about natural science and philosophy about nature and physics, and the language he used was much more obscure than Plato's "Dialogues".

In 334 BC, Alexander led the Macedonian army and the coalition of Greek states to conquer Persia. In less than ten years, he defeated the Persian army of millions, and then destroyed the ancient Persian Empire. An unprecedentedly large Alexander Empire—with its territory stretching from Greece in the west to the Indus River in the east, Egypt in the south, and Central Asia in the north—was established.

In 323 BC, Alexander died of illness. This great empire, established through military conquest, split into several independent kingdoms after melee.

After Alexander's death, the Athenians began to rise up against Macedonian rule. Because of his relationship with Alexander, Aristotle had to take refuge in Galses because he was accused of impiety. His academy was handed over to Theophrastus.

In this turbulent era, Aristotle returned to Athens and lived there for twenty years, that is, from the year before Alexander set out on his expedition to the day of Alexander's death. Year. Although Macedonia controlled Athens militarily and politically during this time, there was considerable anti-Macedonian potential there.

When Aristotle came to Athens, he may have had a political mission to persuade the Athenians to obey Macedonia.

He received a lot of preferential treatment. In addition to his prominent political position, he also received a large amount of money, materials and land support from Alexander and Macedonian bureaucrats at all levels.

The Lyceum Academy he founded occupies a large sports ground and garden area near the Temple of Apollo Lyceum. In the academy, there were the first-class libraries and zoological and botanical gardens at that time. Here he founded his own school, and it is said that Alexander paid eight hundred gold talents for his studies (each talent equaled sixty pounds of gold). Alexander also provided a large amount of manpower for his teachers. He ordered his men to collect plant and animal specimens and other information for Aristotle.

In fact, Aristotle’s vast works cannot be completed by one person. For example, he once summarized and analyzed one hundred and fifty-eight political systems. This work required a large amount of collection and organization work, which would have been impossible to complete without the assistance of a group of assistants. When the news of Alexander's death reached Athens, anti-Macedonian frenzy immediately set off. The Athenians attacked Aristotle and convicted him of impiety. Socrates was sentenced to death for impiety. . But Aristotle finally escaped from Athens

His works include three aspects:

First, the accumulation of knowledge by predecessors;

Second, The investigations and discoveries made by his assistants for him,

The third one is his own independent opinions.

In 322 BC, Aristotle died at the age of sixty-three due to a disease accumulated over many years. Rumors that he was poisoned or committed suicide by jumping into the sea due to unexplained tidal phenomena are completely unfounded.

Please ask another question about his main academic achievements.