Introducing Aristotle
Aristotle was named the "master of those who know." He is a foundational thinker in every field of inquiry. He established logic as a systematic discipline, conceived the earliest rules of science, developed a rational psychology, a political science and an outline of sociology, and gave us a virtue theory of ethics that is still a model today. His contributions to metaphysics continue to permeate modern philosophy. He supplied the first theory of aesthetics, which still provides the basis of debates today. Aristotle"s authority extended beyond his time to influence Islamic society and medieval scholasticism. For fifteen hundred years he remained the paradigm of knowledge itself, until scientific empiricism in the 17th century is said to have discredited his methods. Is this true? How "scientific" is Aristotle?