Aristotle's works express the view that every aspect of human life and society is the object of thinking and analysis; Everything in the universe is not controlled by gods, opportunities and fantasies, but operates according to certain laws; It is worthy of systematic and in-depth study of nature; We should draw our own conclusions through experiments and logical analysis. Aristotle's anti-tradition, anti-superstition and anti-mysticism had a far-reaching impact on western culture.
Aristotle was born in Stajila. /kloc-at the age of 0/7, he went to Athens and studied in Plato's Academy for 20 years, until Plato died. Perhaps influenced by his father, Aristotle was interested in biology and empirical science; Under the influence of Plato, he became interested in philosophical reasoning.
Aristotle was first and foremost a great philosopher. Although he was a student of Plato, he gave up the idealistic view held by his teacher. Plato believes that idea is the prototype of physical object, which exists independently of physical object. Aristotle thinks that the real thing itself contains essence. Plato asserted that feeling cannot be the source of real knowledge. Aristotle believed that knowledge originated from feeling. These thoughts already contain some materialistic factors. Aristotle, like Plato, thinks that rational scheme and purpose are the guiding principles of all natural processes. But Aristotle's view of causality is richer than Plato's, because he accepted some views of ancient Greece on this issue. He pointed out that there are four main reasons. The first is the material reason, that is, the main substance that constitutes an object. The second is the form factor, that is, the design pattern and form given to the main substance. The third is the dynamic reason, that is, to realize the mechanism and function provided by this design. The fourth is the purpose, that is, the purpose of designing the object. For example, the Potter's clay provides the material reason for pottery, while the design style of pottery is the form reason, the Potter's wheels and hands are the motivation reason, and the expected use of pottery is the purpose reason. Aristotle himself took a fancy to the formal reason and purpose reason of objects, and he believed that formal reason was included in all natural objects and functions. At first, these formal reasons are potential, but once an object or creature develops, these formal reasons are revealed. Finally, when an object or organism reaches the completion stage, its finished product is used to achieve the original design purpose, that is, to serve the purpose. He also believes that in concrete things, there is no form without matter, and there is no matter without form. The process of combining matter with form is the movement of transforming potential into reality. This theory shows the idea of spontaneous dialectics.
Aristotle divided science into:
(1) theoretical science (mathematics, natural science and the first philosophy later called metaphysics);
(2) Practical science (ethics, politics, economics, strategy and decoration);
(3) The science of creation, namely poetics.
Aristotle thinks that analysis or logic is the tool of all sciences. He is the founder of formal logic. He tried to link the form of thinking with existence, and expounded the category of logic according to the objective reality. Aristotle applied his findings to scientific theory. As an example, he chose mathematics, especially geometry, because geometry has changed from the experimental stage in which Thales wanted to give a reasonable explanation to the empirical law of land survey in the early stage to a relatively complete deductive form in the later stage. However, logical syllogism is really useless to experimental science. Because the goal of experimental science is discovery, not formal proof from recognized premise. Based on the premise that elements can no longer be divided into simpler objects, it is necessary to put forward a correct list of known elements in 1890, but by 1920, if this premise is used again, all radioactive elements will be excluded. Since the premise has changed, the meaning of the word "element" has also changed. However, this fact does not prove that syllogism is useless, nor can it be concluded that modern physics is wrong. Fortunately, modern experimenters no longer worry about logical forms, but under Aristotle's authority, Greek and medieval scientific circles used deductive methods to say that many wrong authorities were absolutely correct and made many wrong inferences with deceptive logical forms.
In astronomy, he believes that the running celestial bodies are physical entities, the earth is spherical and the center of the universe; The earth and celestial bodies are made up of different substances. Matter on the earth is composed of four elements: water, air, fire and earth, and celestial bodies are composed of the fifth element "ether". In physics, he opposed atomism and denied the existence of vacuum. He also believes that an object will only move under the impetus of an external force, and when the external force stops, the movement will stop. In biology, he classified more than 500 different plants and animals, studied at least 50 animals, pointed out that whales were viviparous, and investigated the development process of chicken embryos. Alexander the Great often brought back various animal and plant specimens in his explorations. In education, he thinks that rational development is the ultimate goal of education and advocates that the state should carry out public education for the children of slave owners. Make their bodies, virtues and wisdom develop harmoniously. Aristotle also put forward many mathematical and physical concepts such as limit, infinite number, composition of force and so on. Aristotle's logic works were later compiled into a book by his annotators, called "On Tools". They inherited Aristotle's view that logic is neither theoretical knowledge nor practical knowledge, but a tool of knowledge. Instrumentalism mainly discusses deduction, which lays the foundation for formal logic and has a far-reaching influence on the development of this science.
Another work of Aristotle, Physics, discusses natural philosophy, principle of existence, matter and form, movement, time and space. He believes that in order to make an object move endlessly, there needs to be a reason to keep working.
Aristotle began to discuss the matter and the things that can be destroyed in the Theory of Heaven, and then discussed the occurrence and destruction. In this process of occurrence and destruction, the opposing principles of cold and heat and dry and wet interact to produce four elements: fire, fire, soil and water. In addition to these elements on the ground, he added ether. The ether moves in a circle, forming a perfect and immortal celestial body.
Meteorology discusses the area between heaven and earth, that is, the zone of planets, comets and meteors; There are also some primitive theories about vision, color vision and rainbow. In the fourth book, some primitive chemical concepts are described. At present, Aristotle's meteorology is far less satisfactory than his biological work, but this work had a great influence in the late Middle Ages.
Aristotle's other important works include Metaphysics, Ethics, Politics and Analysis, the first and second parts. These works had a great influence on the later development of philosophy and science.
Aristotle's contribution to the world is shocking. He wrote at least 170 works, 47 of which have been handed down from generation to generation. Of course, it is not enough to measure by numbers. More importantly, his profound knowledge is convincing. His scientific works were an encyclopedia at that time, covering astronomy, zoology, embryology, geography, geology, physics, anatomy and physiology, in short, all the subjects known to the ancient Greeks. His works include three aspects: first, the accumulation of knowledge by predecessors, second, the findings made by assistants, and third, his own independent opinions.
As one of the most encyclopedic scientists, Aristotle's contribution to the world is unparalleled. But his achievements are far more than that. He is also a true philosopher, who has contributed to almost every subject of philosophy. His works cover morality, metaphysics, psychology, economics, theology, politics, rhetoric, science, education, poetry, customs and Athens Constitution. One of his research topics is to collect and compare the constitutions of various countries.
In philosophy, Aristotle's greatest contribution lies in the creation of formal logic. This important branch discipline. Logical thinking is the pillar of Aristotle's outstanding achievements in many fields, and this way of thinking runs through his research, statistics and thinking. Of course, he also made mistakes, but surprisingly few.
Aristotle's thought has a profound influence on the basic tendency and content of western culture. In ancient and medieval times, his works were translated into Latin, Syrian, Arabic, Italian, Hebrew, German and English. Later Greek scholars studied and praised his works, and so did Byzantine scholars. His thought is the pillar of medieval Christian thought and Islamic scholasticism. Avero is the most important thinker in the Islamic world. He integrated the traditional Islamic theory with Aristotle's rationalism and formed his own ideological system. Maimonide, the most influential Jewish thinker, explained Jewish teachings with rationalism and made great achievements in reconciling science, philosophy and religion.
With the continuous discovery of Aristotle's works, a new era of studying Aristotemism appeared in the Middle Ages, and scholars used it as the basis for obtaining true knowledge in all aspects. Aristotle is used to criticizing past and contemporary theories in research methods, proposing and discussing theoretical blind spots, and using deductive reasoning to demonstrate in the form of syllogism.
By today's standards, some of Aristotle's ideas seem extreme. For example, he agrees with slavery and the unequal treatment of women, which is the arrangement of nature (of course, these thoughts are the portrayal of his time). But many of Aristotle's ideas are still very advanced today, such as "poverty is the mother of revolution and evil" and "legislators should pay attention to educating young people; Ignoring education will inevitably harm the country. " (Aristotle's thought on education is obviously ahead of time, because there was no public education in his time. )
Aristotle is knowledgeable and writes a lot. He studied the unclassified scientific departments at that time, such as politics, logic, ethics, history, physics (natural science), psychology, aesthetics, pedagogy, etc., and was praised by Marx as "the greatest thinker in ancient times". Aristotle's teaching thoughts are mainly scattered in his Politics and Ethics.
Aristotle's teaching thought is based on his theory of human nature, epistemology and his investigation of children's physical and mental development. He divides human soul into two parts, one is irrational soul, whose function is instinct, feeling and desire, and the other is rational soul, whose function is thinking, understanding and cognition. He believes that in the process of human cognition, the main function of the soul is feeling and thinking. The soul perceives external things with the help of sensory organs, and the perceived things are not transferred by human will, thus acknowledging the position and role of feeling in the cognitive process. But he thinks that feeling only plays an inductive role here, and truth and knowledge can only be obtained through rational thinking. So Aristotle's teaching purpose is to develop the rationality of the higher part of the soul.
Aristotle offered an encyclopedic course for his philosophy school. He advocates the all-round development of students' morality, intelligence, physique and beauty, with different emphasis in different periods. Early childhood is dominated by physical development (exercise); Music education is the core of adolescence, and moral, intellectual and physical beauty is the main content; Senior students should study grammar, rhetoric, poetry, literature, philosophy, ethics, politics, arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, music and other subjects. But in any case, the focus should be on developing students' intelligence. He particularly emphasized the role of music in cultivating children's comprehensive quality. It is believed that music has three functions: entertainment, temperament cultivation and rationality cultivation. It can relieve fatigue, cultivate the mind, mold the character, stir the soul, and then enter the rational and noble moral realm through meditation. In physical education, he doesn't agree that teachers should only let students have harsh and even painful training, and should teach "simple gymnastics" and "light martial arts", focusing on the normal development of children's bodies.
In teaching methods, Aristotle attaches importance to the role of practice and practice. For example, in music teaching, he often arranges children to perform on stage, experience the scene, master the technology and improve their level. In the relationship between teachers and students, Aristotle did not blindly listen to his mentor but only followed Nuo Nuo, but dared to think, stick to the truth and dare to challenge on the basis of inheritance. His character of "I love my teacher, especially the truth" inspired him to push Plato's teaching theory to a higher level.
Aristotle was another great teaching thinker in ancient Greece. His thought about the natural development of human soul has laid an epistemological foundation for the implementation of age-divided teaching. This is not only a good start for teaching to conform to nature, but also a preliminary attempt for teaching theory to be based on the laws of human development and education development. His naturalistic teaching view has had an important influence on the development of western naturalistic teaching theory and promoted the research atmosphere of natural science. He inherited and developed the intellectualism tradition since Socrates, established an encyclopedic curriculum system including natural subjects, and put forward good measures to pay attention to practice, leaving a rich educational legacy for future generations.
Aristotle showed a turning point in Greek science. Before him, scientists and philosophers tried to put forward a complete world system to explain natural phenomena. He was the last person to put forward a complete world system. After him, many scientists gave up trying to put forward a complete system and turned to study specific problems.
Aristotle devoted himself to the study of ancient knowledge. In the hundreds of years after his death, no one had a systematic investigation and comprehensive grasp of knowledge like him. His book is an ancient encyclopedia. Engels called him "the most learned man". & lt China Education Network >