Legacy
Portrait
of Aristotle. Pentelic marble, copy of the Imperial Period (1st or 2nd century)
of a lost bronze sculpture made by Lysippos
More
than twenty-three hundred years after his death, Aristotle remains one of the
most influential people who ever lived. According to the philosopher Bryan
Magee, "it is doubtful whether any human being has ever known as much as
he did". Aristotle was the founder of formal logic, pioneered the
study of zoology, and left every future scientist and philosopher in his debt
through his contributions to the scientific method. Despite these
achievements, the influence of Aristotle's errors is considered by some to have
held back science considerably. Bertrand Russell notes that "almost every
serious intellectual advance has had to begin with an attack on some
Aristotelian doctrine". Russell also refers to Aristotle's ethics as
"repulsive", and calls his logic "as definitely antiquated as
Ptolemaic astronomy". Russell notes that these errors make it difficult to
do historical justice to Aristotle, until one remembers how large of an advance
he made upon all of his predecessors.
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Later
Greek philosophers
The
immediate influence of Aristotle's work was felt as the Lyceum grew into the
Peripatetic school. Aristotle's notable students included Aristoxenus,
Dicaearchus, Demetrius of Phalerum, Eudemos of Rhodes, Harpalus, Hephaestion,
Meno, Mnason of Phocis, Nicomachus, and Theophrastus. Aristotle's influence
over Alexander the Great is seen in the latter's bringing with him on his
expedition a host of zoologists, botanists, and researchers. He had also
learned a great deal about Persian customs and traditions from his teacher.
Although his respect for Aristotle was diminished as his travels made it clear
that much of Aristotle's geography was clearly wrong, when the old philosopher
released his works to the public, Alexander complained "Thou hast not done
well to publish thy acroamatic doctrines; for in what shall I surpass other men
if those doctrines wherein I have been trained are to be all men's common
property?"