Aristotle
Luke Coviello
10/13/13
History 153
Merson
Aristotle
Aristotle was a pupil of the famous philosopher Plato. During his lifetime (384-322 BC) he learned and taught Socratic philosophy which was taught to him. He was taught this philosophy by Plato, who is responsible for all of Socrates written works since Socrates himself did not write down his teachings. During his teen years he was enrolled in Plato's “Academy” where he then taught for about 20 years after his graduation. After this he started his own school called the “Lyceum”. Here he taught of philosophy and politics. His political teaching broke down regimes into six categories. These categories are then broken down into three groups of pairs. Each of these pairs has one “good” form and one “bad” form. The first tier consists of Monarchy and Tyranny. Each of these is “the rule of the one”, but according to Aristotle, a Monarchy was better than Tyranny because a Monarch puts the needs of his people before his own. The second tier is Oligarchy and Aristocracy. Both of these are “the rule of the few” but Oligarchy was considered a better form because the Oligarchy was not necessarily influenced by money and class whereas Aristocracy was. The third tier was Polity and Democracy. Both of these were “the rule of the many” but Democracy was considered better for the same reasons that Oligarchy was better than Aristocracy. With his teachings of philosophy, and his image of an ideal regime which could possibly be attainable (unlike his predecessor Plato' “ideal city”) he was a very influential character in the future of society. Due to his father being a court physician for King Amyntas of Macedonia, Aristotle was a childhood friend of the later King Phillip. His friendship with King Phillip was the main reason he was asked to teach Phillip's son Alexander (later known as Alexander the Great). Aristotle played a pivotal role in the development of Alexander the Great and it is quite possible that he would
10/13/13
History 153
Merson
Aristotle
Aristotle was a pupil of the famous philosopher Plato. During his lifetime (384-322 BC) he learned and taught Socratic philosophy which was taught to him. He was taught this philosophy by Plato, who is responsible for all of Socrates written works since Socrates himself did not write down his teachings. During his teen years he was enrolled in Plato's “Academy” where he then taught for about 20 years after his graduation. After this he started his own school called the “Lyceum”. Here he taught of philosophy and politics. His political teaching broke down regimes into six categories. These categories are then broken down into three groups of pairs. Each of these pairs has one “good” form and one “bad” form. The first tier consists of Monarchy and Tyranny. Each of these is “the rule of the one”, but according to Aristotle, a Monarchy was better than Tyranny because a Monarch puts the needs of his people before his own. The second tier is Oligarchy and Aristocracy. Both of these are “the rule of the few” but Oligarchy was considered a better form because the Oligarchy was not necessarily influenced by money and class whereas Aristocracy was. The third tier was Polity and Democracy. Both of these were “the rule of the many” but Democracy was considered better for the same reasons that Oligarchy was better than Aristocracy. With his teachings of philosophy, and his image of an ideal regime which could possibly be attainable (unlike his predecessor Plato' “ideal city”) he was a very influential character in the future of society. Due to his father being a court physician for King Amyntas of Macedonia, Aristotle was a childhood friend of the later King Phillip. His friendship with King Phillip was the main reason he was asked to teach Phillip's son Alexander (later known as Alexander the Great). Aristotle played a pivotal role in the development of Alexander the Great and it is quite possible that he would