ARISTOTLE (384-322 BC) was a Greek philosopher and scientist, born in the Macedonian city of Stagira, Chalkidice, Greece. He joined Plato’s Academy in Athens when he was eighteen and remained there until the age of thirty-seven. His writings cover a range of subjects, including physics, metaphysics, logic, ethics, aesthetics, poetry, theatre, music, rhetoric, linguistics, politics and government. His work constitutes the first comprehensive system of Western philosophy. After Plato’s death, Aristotle left Athens, and at the request of Philip of Macedon, tutored Alexander the Great, from 343 BC.
While teaching Alexander the Great, Aristotle received many opportunities and an abundance of supplies. He established a library in the Lyceum which helped in the production of a number of his books. The fact that Aristotle was a pupil of Plato contributed to his earlier views of Platonism, but following Plato’s death, Aristotle focused on empirical studies and shifted from Platonism to empiricism. He believed that all people’s knowledge was ultimately based on perception. Aristotle’s works contain the earliest known formal study of logic, which was incorporated in the late 19th century into modern formal logic. In metaphysics, Aristotelianism had a deep influence on Judeo-Islamic philosophical and theological thought during the medieval period, and continues to influence Christian theology, especially the scholastic tradition of the Catholic church.
All the aspects of Aristotle’s philosophy continue to be the object of active academic study today. Aristotle wrote many elegant treatises and dialogues. Cicero described his literary style as “a river of gold.” It is believed that only around one-third of his original writings have survived.