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Who can claim Aristotle?

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Re: Who can claim Aristotle?

#21

Post by [deleted] »

tokai wrote: post #11
ChocMontePy wrote: post #10

I think Aristotle had the greatest mind of any human who ever lived. The older I get the more I realize that there are a thousand true and intelligent things you can say about any topic. Magazines, journals, and libraries are full to the brim of intelligent people writing intelligent things. But an extremely minuscule portion of that huge mass is made of writing that gets right to the heart of the matter. And Aristot…

On the other hand deification of Aristotle's intellect and thought hampered the development of physics for almost 1500 years.

[deleted]

Re: Who can claim Aristotle?

#22

Post by openrisk »

Its quite difficult to rationalize and demystify the depth of Ancient Greek thought and Aristotle is probably the best embodiment of that conundrum.

It would be quite an educational breakthrough if we could actually feel how and why there was this peak moment in intellectual inquiry, why it did not persist, why it emerged again but only millennia afterwards and whether it may again vanish as we drift into digitally intermediated dark ages.

Re: Who can claim Aristotle?

#23

Post by mbivert »

jumpoddly wrote: post #8
throw0101d wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A decent argument can be made that most of modern life is based of Aristotle's metaphysics: * https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/43277412-aristotle-s-rev... And that most 'Western values' are basically Christian in origin (with an undercurrent of Aristotle): * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dominion_(Holland_book) * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_WEIRDest_People_in_the_Wor... MacIntyre argues that when it comes to…

Interesting reads, thanks I think the broadest most practical day to day knowledge stems from Plato, née Socrates, “I do not think I know what I do not know”

There are so many ways to practically apply Plato.

The simplicity of his elocution, his use of systematic pauses when communicating — that's a common advice given to contemporary speakers — the relevancy of the cycle of political systems, that ancient Greeks were first taught sports and music to acquire psychological balance, a necessary prerequisite to efficient further studies, etc.

Having knowledge of Plato & other old fellows, almost feels like cheating at life: it equips ones mind with knowledge and skills that has been deemed worthy by enough humans to help it endure for millennia.

The people who don't know about them can't fathom how much they miss.

Re: Who can claim Aristotle?

#24

Post by optimalsolver »

ChocMontePy wrote: post #10

I think Aristotle had the greatest mind of any human who ever lived. The older I get the more I realize that there are a thousand true and intelligent things you can say about any topic. Magazines, journals, and libraries are full to the brim of intelligent people writing intelligent things. But an extremely minuscule portion of that huge mass is made of writing that gets right to the heart of the matter. And Aristot…

Great mind? I don't think so.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_slavery

Re: Who can claim Aristotle?

#25

Post by cybersoyuz »

analog31 wrote: post #14
motohagiography wrote: post #12

His ideas provide a useful filter with words personal qualities, and the moderation of virtues in Nichomchean Ethics pretty much describes what it means when we say someone is 'honest.' it's a foundational read, along with the stoics. the provocative aspect of Aristotle today is that for people who see themselves as not on the level of citizens and who reject being compared by the virtues he (and later, aquinas) arti…

Ask HN: What's a favored translation these days?

A recent translation by Bartlett and Collins has extensive notes and reflects up-to-date scholarship. https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/A/bo113934...

Re: Who can claim Aristotle?

#26

Post by cgh »

optimalsolver wrote: post #24
ChocMontePy wrote: post #10

I think Aristotle had the greatest mind of any human who ever lived. The older I get the more I realize that there are a thousand true and intelligent things you can say about any topic. Magazines, journals, and libraries are full to the brim of intelligent people writing intelligent things. But an extremely minuscule portion of that huge mass is made of writing that gets right to the heart of the matter. And Aristot…

Great mind? I don't think so. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_slavery

This is addressed in the article.

Re: Who can claim Aristotle?

#27

Post by optimalsolver »

cgh wrote: post #26
optimalsolver wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Great mind? I don't think so. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_slavery

This is addressed in the article.

Addressed how? Just a meek claim that Artistotle may have been misinterpreted. Meek because the author knowingly can't argue with Aristotle's own stringent defense of the "right kind" of slavery.

Re: Who can claim Aristotle?

#28

Post by mykowebhn »

ChocMontePy wrote: post #10

I think Aristotle had the greatest mind of any human who ever lived. The older I get the more I realize that there are a thousand true and intelligent things you can say about any topic. Magazines, journals, and libraries are full to the brim of intelligent people writing intelligent things. But an extremely minuscule portion of that huge mass is made of writing that gets right to the heart of the matter. And Aristot…

I agree. Look, for example, at his work on Logic, especially Categories, On Interpretation, and the Prior and Posterior Analytics.

Of course, the fields of Philosophical and Mathematical Logic have advanced since Aristotle, especially starting with the work of Frege, but that took approximately 2000 years. And before Aristotle, no work on Logic came close to what Aristotle discovered and developed. Aristotle's work on Logic was sui generis and hardly any advancement in logic occurred until Frege 2000 years later.

I feel his work in Logic alone makes him one of the greatest minds who ever lived. That doesn't take into account his contributions in other areas of philosophy, which were also significant.

Re: Who can claim Aristotle?

#29

Post by istjohn »

Given that everything that Aristotle said that we can empirically test has been found to be nonsense, any ongoing relevance he might have to any modern field of inquiry just shows how unmoored that field of inquiry is from any actual knowledge.
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