PHILOSOPHY - Aristotle

Summary

This script explores Aristotle's profound influence as a philosopher, highlighting his teachings on happiness through virtues, the purpose of art in catharsis, the significance of true friendship, and the art of rhetoric for effective persuasion. It emphasizes Aristotle's focus on practical wisdom and his belief in the potential for moral improvement through habit and guidance.

Takeaways

• 📜 Aristotle was a philosopher from Macedonia, renowned as 'the master' and 'the philosopher'.
• 👑 His first significant role was as a tutor to Alexander the Great, who later conquered the known world.
• 🏛️ In Athens, Aristotle founded the Lyceum, influencing the naming of French secondary schools.
• 🚶‍♂️ Known as 'peripatetics', Aristotle's followers were characterized by walking and discussing ideas.
• 📚 His works, which are essentially lecture notes, cover a wide range of topics, from ethics to natural sciences.
• 🌟 Aristotle identified 11 virtues and the concept of 'the golden mean', which balances virtues between two vices.
• 🎭 In 'Poetics', he provided guidelines for writing great plays, emphasizing the cathartic effect of tragedy.
• 👫 Aristotle distinguished three types of friendship: those based on pleasure, utility, and virtue.
• 🤝 True friendship involves caring for another as much as oneself, expanding one's perspective and resilience.
• 🗣️ Aristotle developed the art of Rhetoric to help well-intentioned people become persuasive in debate.
• 🧠 Philosophy, as Aristotle saw it, is about practical wisdom and making profound truths about life memorable.

Q & A

Where was Aristotle born and what was his father's profession?

Aristotle was born around 384 BC in the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia, where his father was the royal doctor.

What is Aristotle known for in the realm of philosophy?

Aristotle is arguably the most influential philosopher ever, known by modest nicknames like 'the master' and 'the philosopher'.

Who was Aristotle's most famous student and what did he achieve after being tutored by Aristotle?

Aristotle's most famous student was Alexander the Great, who went on to conquer the known world.

What did Aristotle found in Athens that influenced the naming of French secondary schools?

Aristotle founded a school called the Lyceum in Athens, which influenced the naming of French secondary schools as 'lycees' in its honor.

What was the nickname of Aristotle's followers and why were they called that?

Aristotle's followers were nicknamed 'peripatetics' or 'the wanderers' because he liked to walk about while teaching and discussing ideas.

What is the concept of 'the golden mean' in Aristotle's philosophy?

In Aristotle's philosophy, 'the golden mean' refers to the perfectly balanced state between two extremes of character, which he believed virtues occupy.

How did Aristotle view the role of tragedy in society?

Aristotle viewed tragedy as a means for society to experience katharsis or catharsis, a kind of emotional cleansing that helps in managing feelings of fear and pity.

What are the three types of friendship identified by Aristotle in the Nicomachean Ethics?

Aristotle identified three types of friendship: friendships based on pleasure, strategic friendships based on mutual advantage, and true friendship based on mutual care and shared virtues.

What does Aristotle suggest is the purpose of art in society?

Aristotle suggests that the purpose of art is to make profound truths about life stick in our minds, by reminding us of the potential for disaster in life and promoting compassion.

What is the art of rhetoric according to Aristotle, and why did he invent it?

According to Aristotle, the art of rhetoric is the practice of persuading others through various means, including acknowledging and soothing people's fears, appealing to emotions, and using humor and examples. He invented it to help thoughtful and well-intentioned people to be persuasive and reach those who don't already agree with them.

How does Aristotle's philosophy view the development of moral goodness?

Aristotle's philosophy views moral goodness as the result of habit, which takes time, practice, and encouragement to develop.

Outlines

00:00

📚 Aristotle's Influence and Ethical Virtues

Aristotle, born in 384 BC in Macedonia, is considered one of the most influential philosophers, known as 'the master' or 'the philosopher'. He tutored Alexander the Great and later founded the Lyceum in Athens, influencing the naming of French secondary schools. Aristotle's teaching style involved walking and discussing, earning his followers the nickname 'peripatetics'. His works, which are compilations of lecture notes, explore a wide range of topics, from natural sciences to human society. In his 'Nicomachean Ethics', he examines what makes a life good, identifying 11 virtues and the concept of the 'golden mean', a balanced state between two extremes. He also discusses the importance of conversational virtues and the potential for moral improvement through habit and guidance rather than punishment.

05:02

🎭 The Purpose of Art and Tragedy

Aristotle's exploration of art, particularly tragedy, is detailed in his 'Poetics', where he provides advice on writing effective plays, including the use of peripeteia and anagnorisis. He posits that the purpose of tragedy is katharsis, a cleansing of the emotions, specifically fear and pity. This emotional cleansing helps address our natural tendencies towards misplacing pity and fear. Tragedy serves as a reminder of the potential for disaster in any life, promoting compassion and a re-evaluation of our emotional responses. Aristotle views art as a tool for imprinting profound truths about life in our minds.

🤝 The Nature of Friendship

In the Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle delineates three types of friendship: those based on pleasure, those based on mutual advantage, and the true friendship characterized by mutual care and shared virtues. True friends are not simply similar to oneself but are valued as much as oneself. This type of friendship expands one's perspective, making one more resilient and fair-minded. Aristotle emphasizes that friendship is a vital part of life, teaching us about our own virtues and helping to mitigate our flaws.

🗣️ The Art of Rhetoric and Persuasion

Aristotle was intrigued by the dynamics of debate and persuasion, particularly in the public forums of Athens. He developed the art of rhetoric, aiming to enable well-intentioned individuals to influence others effectively. His insights into rhetoric include the need to address and soothe the audience's fears, acknowledge the emotional aspects of an argument, incorporate humor to capture attention, and use illustrations to enliven the message. Aristotle's work in rhetoric is a testament to his belief in the practical application of philosophy to navigate the complexities of communication and influence.

Keywords

💡Aristotle

Aristotle was an ancient Greek philosopher who is considered one of the most influential thinkers in Western philosophy. His work spans a wide range of subjects, including ethics, politics, metaphysics, logic, and natural sciences. In the video, he is highlighted as the tutor of Alexander the Great, the founder of the Lyceum, and the origin of the term 'peripatetic' due to his walking teaching style.

💡Virtue Ethics

Virtue ethics is a branch of moral philosophy that emphasizes character, virtue, and the development of moral habits. Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics is a foundational text in this field, where he discusses the importance of virtues for a good life. The video mentions Aristotle's identification of 11 virtues and the concept of the 'golden mean' as central to his ethical theory.

💡Golden Mean

The golden mean is a concept in Aristotle's ethics that refers to the balance between two extremes, embodying the ideal state of character. It is exemplified in the video through the idea that virtues like courage, temperance, and liberality are found at the midpoint between two vices, avoiding excess and deficiency.

💡Peripatetic

Peripatetic refers to the followers of Aristotle, who were known as 'the wanderers' due to their teacher's habit of walking about while teaching and discussing ideas. The term is also the origin of 'lyceum' and 'peripatetic' in modern contexts, as mentioned in the video.

💡Catharsis

Catharsis, derived from the Greek word 'katharsis,' is a concept in Aristotle's Poetics that refers to the purgation of emotions, particularly pity and fear, through the experience of tragedy. The video explains how tragedy serves to remind us of life's potential misfortunes and to cultivate compassion.

💡Poetics

Aristotle's Poetics is a treatise on the nature of tragedy and the principles of dramatic composition. The video references this work when discussing the elements of good plays, such as peripeteia and anagnorisis, and the purpose of tragedy in society.

💡Friendship

In the Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle explores the concept of friendship, identifying three types: friendships of pleasure, utility, and virtue. The video emphasizes the true friend as someone who cares as much for you as they do for themselves, expanding one's life and virtues.

💡Rhetoric

Rhetoric is the art of persuasion, which Aristotle developed as a means for thoughtful and well-intentioned people to influence others. The video discusses Aristotle's insights into the factors that influence audiences, such as emotions, pride, and the use of humor and examples to make a point.

💡Nicomachean Ethics

The Nicomachean Ethics is a work by Aristotle that focuses on the question of how to live a good life. Named after his son Nicomachus, who edited it, the text is central to the video's discussion of virtues, the golden mean, and friendship.

💡Ethics

Ethics is the branch of philosophy that deals with moral principles and values. In the video, Aristotle's ethical theories are central, particularly his focus on virtues, moral goodness as a result of habit, and the role of practical wisdom in living a good life.

💡Practical Wisdom

Practical wisdom, or phronesis in Greek, is a concept in Aristotle's philosophy that refers to the ability to make sound moral judgments and take appropriate actions in practical situations. The video highlights Aristotle's view that philosophy should be about practical wisdom, guiding how things work in life and society.

Highlights

Aristotle's birth in 384 BC in Macedonia and his influential status as 'the master' and 'the philosopher'.

Aristotle's role as a tutor to Alexander the Great and his subsequent establishment of the Lyceum in Athens.

The origin of the term 'peripatetics' for Aristotle's followers, reflecting his teaching style of walking and discussing.

Aristotle's philosophical focus on practical wisdom and the exploration of how things work in nature and society.

The 'Nicomachean Ethics' and Aristotle's quest to identify virtues leading to a good life.

Aristotle's identification of 11 virtues and the concept of the 'golden mean' between vices.

The importance of conversational virtues and the balance between wit and tactfulness.

Aristotle's table of virtues illustrating 'too little', 'too much', and 'just right' behaviors.

The idea that moral goodness is a result of habit and the need for practice and encouragement.

Aristotle's 'Poetics' as a guide to writing great plays, including the use of peripeteia and anagnorisis.

The purpose of tragedy as a form of katharsis, or emotional cleansing.

Aristotle's classification of three types of friendship: fun-based, strategic, and true friendship.

The significance of true friendship in expanding one's life and sharing virtues.

Aristotle's observations on the factors influencing debate outcomes beyond logic or facts.

The invention of Rhetoric by Aristotle to enable thoughtful persuasion in public discourse.

Aristotle's timeless points on persuasion, including acknowledging fears and using humor and examples.

The relevance of Aristotle's philosophy to modern practical applications and the need for a reevaluation of its importance.

Transcripts

Aristotle was born around 384 BC in the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia

where his father was the royal doctor. He grew up to be arguably the most influential

philosopher ever, with modest nicknames like ‘the master’ and simply ‘the philosopher’.

His first big job was tutoring Alexander the Great who, soon after, went out and conquered

the known world

Aristotle then headed off to Athens, worked with Plato for a bit, then branched out on

his own. He founded a little school called the Lyceum. French secondary schools - ‘the

lycees’ - are named in honour of this venture. He liked to walk about while teaching and

discussing ideas.

His followers were nicknamed ‘peripatetics’ - ‘the wanderers.’

His many books are actually lecture notes

Aristotle was fascinated by how many things

actually work: how does a chick grow in an egg? How do squid reproduce?

Why does a plant grow well in one place

and hardly at all in another? And - most importantly - what makes a human life, and

a whole society, go well? For Aristotle, philosophy was about practical

wisdom. Here are four big philosophical questions

he answered. One : what makes people happy?

In the ‘Nicomachean’ ethics (the book got it’s name because it was edited by his

son, Nicomachus) Aristotle set himself the task of identifying the factors that lead

people to have a good life - or not.

He suggested that good and successful people all possess distinct ‘virtues’ - and proposed

that we should get better at identifying what these are, so that we can nurture them in

ourselves and honour them in others. Aristotle zeroed in on 11 virtues

Courage Temperance

Liberality Magnificence

Magnanimity Pride

Patience Truthfulness

Wittiness Friendliness

Modesty

Aristotle also observed that every virtue seems to be bang in the middle of two vices.

It occupies what he termed ‘the golden mean’ [a perfectly balanced plank on triangle] between

two extremes of character. For example, in Book IV of his Ethics, under

the charming title of ‘Conversational Virtues: wit, buffoonery and boorishness’, Aristotle

looks at ways people are better or worse at conversation. (knowing how to have a good

conversation is one of the ingredients of the good life, Aristotle recognised).

Some people go wrong because they lack a subtle sense of humour: that’s the “boor”,

someone “useless for any kind of social intercourse, because he contributes nothing

and takes offence at everything.’

But others carry humour to excess: ‘The buffoon cannot resist a joke, sparing neither

himself, nor anybody else provided that he can raise a laugh, and saying things that

a man of taste would never dream of saying.’

So the ‘virtuous’ person is in the golden mean in this area: witty, but tactful.

A particularly fascinating moment is when Aristotle draws up a table of ‘too little’

‘too much’ and ‘just right’ around the whole host of virtues.

We can’t change our behaviour in any of these areas just at the drop of a hat. But

change is possible, eventually. ‘Moral goodness’ says Aristotle ‘ is the result of habit’.

It takes times, practice, encouragement. So, Aristotle thinks, people who lack virtue should

be understood as unfortunate rather than wicked. What they need is not scolding or being thrown

in prison but better teachers, more guidance.

Two: what is art for?

The blockbuster art at that time was tragedy. Athenians watched gory plays at community

festivals in huge open air theatres. Aeschylus, Euripides and Sophocles were household names.

Aristotle wrote a ‘how to write great plays’ manual: the Poetics. It’s packed with great

tips. For example, make sure to use:

peripeteia - a change in fortune, when for the hero things go from great to awful [in

Titanic, Leonardo de Caprio gets Kate Winslow (great) then they hit the iceberg (awful)

and anagnoresis - a moment of dramatic revelation

when suddenly the hero works out their life is a catastrophe

But what is tragedy actually for? What is

the point of a whole community coming together to watch horrible things happening to the

lead characters? Like Oedipus (in the play by Sophocles) who by accident, kills his father,

gets married to his mother, finds out he’s done these things [on screen: anagnoresis!)

and gouges out his own eyes in remorse and despair.

Aristotle’s answer is Katharis - which is greek for … Catharsis.

Catharsis is a kind of cleaning - you get

rid of bad stuff. In this case cleaning up our emotions, specifically our confusions

around the feelings of fear and pity. We’ve got natural problems here: we are

hard hearted: we don’t give pity where it is deserved. And we’re prone to either exaggerated

fears or not getting frightened enough

Tragedy reminds us that: terrible things can befall decent people including

ourselves): a small flaw can lead to a whole life unravelling

and so we should have more compassion (or pity) for

those whose actions go disastrously wrong. We need to be collective re-taught these crucial

truths on a regular basis. The task of art - as Aristotle saw it - is to make profound

truths about life stick in our minds. Three: What are friends for?

In books eight and nine of the Nicomachean Ethics Aristotle identifies three different

kinds of friendship. There’s friendship that comes about when

each person is seeking fun; their ‘chief interest is in their own pleasure and the

opportunity of the moment’ which the other person provides. We need other people to have

a nice time around. We need pleasant companions.

[on screen, beer drinking festival] Then there are friendships that are really

strategic acquaintances: ‘they take pleasure in each other’s company only in so far as

they have hopes of advantage of it.’

[on screen: faux-jovial business meeting] Then there’s the true friend: Not someone

who’s just like you. But someone who isn’t you - but about whom you care as much as you

are about yourself. The sorrows of a true friend are your sorrows

to, their joys are yours. It makes you more vulnerable - should anything befall this person.

But it is hugely strengthening: you are relieved from the too small orbit of your own thoughts

and worries, you expand into the life of another, together you become larger, cleverer, more

resilient, more fair minded. You share virtues and cancel out each other’s defects. Friendship

teaches us what we ought to be. It is - quite literally - the best part of life.

Four: how can ideas cut through in a busy world?

Like a lot of people, Aristotle was struck by the fact that the best argument doesn’t

always win the debate or the battle.

He wanted to know why

this happens and what we can do about it.

He had lots of opportunity for observations: in Athens lots of decisions were made in public

meetings (often in the Agora - the town square); orators would vie with one another to sway

popular opinion.

Aristotle plotted the ways audiences and individuals are influenced by many factors that don’t

strictly engage with logic or the facts of the case.

It’s maddening. And many serious people [especially Plato] can’t stand it. They

avoid the marketplace and populist debate.

Aristotle was more ambitious. He invented the art of what we still today call Rhetoric:

the art of getting people to agree with you. He wanted thoughtful, serious and well-intentioned

people to learn how to be persuasive - to reach those who don’t agree already.

He makes some timeless points: You have to recognise, acknowledge and sooth people’s

fears. You have to see the emotional side of the issue - is someone’s pride on the

line, are they feeling embarrassed - and edge round it accordingly.

You have to make it funny - because attention spans are short.

And you might have to use illustrations and examples to make your point come alive.

We’re keen students of Aristotle. Today ‘Philosophy’ doesn’t sound like

the most practical activity. Maybe that’s because we’ve not paid enough attention, recently, to

Aristotle