Category: Aristotle
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Critics of Aristotle’s views on politics and governance
Aristotle’s views on politics and governance can be summed up in a few sentences: depending on the number of rulers (one, a few, everybody), political systems for the common good can be classified into monarchies, aristocracies, and polities. When rulers abuse their power, those three systems shall be named tyranny, oligarchy, and democracy. In order…
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Aristotle’s views on politics and governance
Aristotle presented his political philosophy in his works “Politics” and “Nicomachean Ethics.” He believed that humans are political by nature. By “political,” he meant that humans prefer living in communities to enhance the enjoyment of life. In his work “Politics,” Aristotle described different forms of government and compared their advantages and disadvantages. His classification of…
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Aristotle’s views on natural philosophy
Aristotle’s views on the natural world established the basis of scientific thought and civilisation. Aristotle’s philosophy is relying on experience, observation, and logical reasoning. His approach to natural philosophy consists of studying the cosmos and nature through careful observation and analysis. His three foundational works in this area are “Metaphysics,” “Physics” and “On the Heavens.”…
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Aristotle’s views on friendship
Aristotle addressed friendship in his “Nicomachean Ethics.” He viewed friendship as indispensable for leading a happy life, but identified three types of friendships: those based on utility, those based on pleasure, and those based on shared values or virtues. The latter is by far the most valuable. Friendships of utility are based on mutual interest.…
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Aristotle’s perspective on the purpose of human life
If you wonder why so many people seem completely lost, unable to make good decisions, the answer is straightforward: They have no purpose in life. They have no goals, no vision of what they want to achieve. They are going nowhere in particular and do not care if they get there or not. Since they…
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Aristotle’s views on the nature of reality
Aristotle used a systematic method for drawing conclusions from empirical observations. His concept of reality revolves around the idea of “substance,” which actually means “entity” in the sense employed by Aristotle. Every entity, he taught, is composed of matter that takes a certain form, configuration, or shape. For Aristotle, the “form” is what characterises each…
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Aristotle’s concept of practical wisdom
Like Schopenhauer would do twenty-four centuries later, Aristotle regarded practical wisdom (“phronesis” in Greek) as a crucial ingredient of a happy life. In his “Nicomachean Ethics,” Aristotle defined “phronesis” as a skill that enables us to choose the correct course of action and for the correct reasons. In other words, “phronesis” is the daily implementation…
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Aristotle’s views on ethics, virtue and happiness
Aristotle (384-322 BC) believed that ethics have a clear, definite purpose. He defined ethics as the science of achieving eudaimonia, which means “a happy, thriving, flourishing life.” He argued that human beings can only achieve happiness by living a life of virtue. Unfortunately, in some cases, he wrongly identified virtue with the “golden mean,” a…
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Happiness and Aristotle’s theory of the soul
The process of philosophical development is similar to the process of learning to walk after you have suffered an injury. It takes lots of training for your muscles to work properly and in a coordinated manner. The learning process can prove tough, but works fine if you are willing to put in the hours; there…
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Aristotle’s theory of the soul
People frequently ask me what is the point of studying philosophy? My answer is always short. A few words suffice. The point of studying philosophy is learning to see. Once you get familiar with key philosophical doctrines, such as those put forward by Aristotle, you will understand the world better and make better decisions. A…
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