Aristotle

Aristotélēs; (384 – 322 BC) was a Greek philosopher and scientist born in the Macedonian city of Stagira, Chalkidice, on the northern periphery of Classical Greece. His father, Nicomachus, died when Aristotle was a child, where after Proxenus of Atarneus became his guardian. At eighteen, he joined Plato’s Academy in Athens and remained there until the age of thirty-seven (c. 347 BC). His writings cover many subjects – including physics, biology, zoology, metaphysics, logic, ethics, aesthetics, poetry, theater, music, rhetoric, linguistics, politics and government – and constitute the first comprehensive system of Western philosophy. Shortly after Plato died, Aristotle left Athens and, at the request of Philip of Macedon, tutored Alexander the Great starting from 343 BC. According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, “Aristotle was the first genuine scientist in history … [and] every scientist is in his debt.”

“There was never a genius without a tincture of madness.” Aristotle

“There is no great genius without a mixture of madness.” Aristotle

“Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom” Aristotle

“Wise men speak when they have something to say, fools speak because they have to say something” Aristotle

“I count him braver who overcomes his desires than him who overcomes his enemies.” Aristotle

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.”  Aristotle

“It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.” Aristotle

“The roots of education are bitter, but the fruit is sweet.” Aristotle

“Quality is not an act, it is a habit.” Aristotle

“Education is an ornament in prosperity and a refuge in adversity.” Aristotle

“Men acquire a particular quality by constantly acting in a particular way.” Aristotle

 

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