The Greek Philosopher Aristotle

The Greek philosopher, Aristotle, is known as one of the greatest philosophers and thinkers of all time. He was the student of another important philosopher, Plato, and is known for writing on a multitude of subjects. Aristotle was born in 384 BCE in Stagira, a city located in northern Greece. His father, Nicomachus, was a physician to King Amyntas of Macedonia. Because of his father, Aristotle had the same education as the aristocrats of that time. His dad died when Aristotle was still young, and as a teenager he was sent to study at Plato's academy in Athens. Aristotle studied with Plato till 347 BCE, the time of Plato's death. Although it seemed as if Aristotle would become the head of Plato's academy, he did not, because some of Aristotle's views differed from that of Plato's (Nardo, "Scientistst" 47).

After Aristotle left Athens he went to the court of Hermeas, the ruler of Atarneus and Assos. This is where Aristotle met his wife, Pythias, the niece of Hermeas. They had one daughter together (Nardo, "Scientists" 48). Around this time Aristotle also went to the island of Lesbos, and this is where he studied plants and animals (Nardo, "Scientists" 54). A couple of years later he became the teacher of Alexander the Great and taught him until Alexander came to power. Afterwards, Aristotle went back to Athens and opened up his own academy, the Lyceum. He taught there for twelve years, and his academy became known as the "Peripatetic School." This was because Aristotle liked to "walk around and discuss his ideas" (Nardo, "Ancient" 60). During his time in Athens, Aristotle's wife, Pythias, died. But later in life he married another woman, Herpyllis, and had a son with her. Aristotle named his son after his father, Nicomachus (Nardo, "Scientists" 48).

After Alexander the Great died, the government was overthrown. And since Aristotle was close to Alexander, the new government didn't like Aristotle very much. They made charges against Aristotle for being "impious." Before he could be prosecuted, Aristotle fled to Euboea. This is where he died of natural causes in 322 BCE (Nardo, "Ancient" 62).

The contributions Aristotle has made to society are many. According to Don Nardo, the author of the book, Ancient Philosophers, Aristotle's work has been very important to western philosophy and