Considered as the founder of formal logic, Aristotle is also known for establishing quite a few tenets of zoological studies and the scientific method of investigation. Simply put, while we tend to characterize Aristotle as an eminent ancient Greek philosopher (which he certainly was), his various treatises and influence arguably touch upon most avenues of human knowledge, with fields ranging from metaphysics, ethics to economics and politics. In that regard, Aristotle, along with his one-time teacher Plato, is often considered as the ‘Father of the Western Philosophy’.
1) Early Life –
Born in circa 384 BC in Stagira, in the coastal Chalcidice region of northeastern Greece, Aristotle belonged to a fairly upper class family – since his father Nicomachus was the personal physician to King Amyntas of Macedon (grandfather of Alexander the Great), the founder of the unified Macedonian kingdom. Unfortunately, for young Aristotle, both his parents died when he was about thirteen (or ten). Consequently, Proxenus of Atarneus took up his guardianship and paved the way for Aristotle to take up the mantle of a philosopher – with the teenager, at the age of 17 or 18, being sent to continue his education at the famed Plato’s Academy in Athens.
Interestingly enough, while not much is known about this phase of Aristotle’s life, some hypotheses suggest how the would-be philosopher, during the teenage years, even spend his time inside the confines of the ancient Macedonian palace. In essence, such a conjecture does allude to Aristotle’s often warm relations with the Macedonian court and aristocracy.
2) The Divergence with Plato –
The next phase of Aristotle’s life was devoted to studying and attending the lectures of Plato for nearly two decades. Some accounts also suggest how Aristotle, an exceptional student by contemporary standards, was himself beginning to take active part in lectures and teachership, especially on rhetoric and dialogue, during the latter part of the twenty years – so much so that his ability fueled the possibility of his pre-designation as Plato’s successor at the Academy. However, after Plato’s death in circa 347 BC, the titular element of the successor passed down to Plato’s nephew Speusippus instead of Aristotle.
According to historians, there might be two reasons for the outcome. The first theory relates to how Aristotle’s views already started to diverge from that of Plato, thereby curtailing the chance for the succession. The second conjecture relates to nascent political reasons, with the anti-Macedonian sentiment growing in Athens during the reign of King Philip II (father of Alexander). To that end, it is certainly possible that Aristotle, known for his close ties to Macedonian aristocracy, already left Athens before the death of Plato, by circa 347 BC. And his destination to Asia Minor could have even been a directive from Philip II himself, as means to bolster Macedonian influence in the Greek cities of Anatolia that recently revolted against the Persian rule.
3) The Return of the Philosopher –
Thus after leaving Athens, Aristotle traveled with his friend Xenocrates (another Greek philosopher and mathematician) to the court of Hermias of Atarneus – who was the ruler of Atarneus and Assos in Mysia (situated in
However, by circa 343 BC, Aristotle once again came out of the ‘retirement’, as he was officially summoned by none other than King Philip II of Macedon. Once inducted into the Macedonian court, Aristotle served not only as a tutor to Alexander – the future conqueror of the Persian Empire but also as a teacher to future kings of the Hellenistic era – Ptolemy and Cassander. Furthermore, he was accorded the honorable title as the head of the royal academy of Macedon. Unsurprisingly, during the tenure, Aristotle was known for proclaiming his ethnocentric views (that were resonantly anti-Persian), given his own familial complications resulting from the Persian intrusion in Asia Minor.
4) The Rival School –
In circa 335 BC, after Philip’s death, Alexander was already primed as the Macedonian king. Aristotl