Strengths and Weaknesses of Aristotle's Arguments (Essay Sample)

Student’s Name:
Professor:
Class:
Date:
Aristotle
Aristotle was an ancient Greek philosopher and scholar whose work influenced the thoughts of several generations of scholars. Aristotle was not only a philosopher but also a scientist who wrote documents on biology, physics, and other concepts of natural science. It is also important to note that Aristotle contributed to logic, ethics, linguistics, poetry, metaphysics, and zoology among others. Since his studies covered many subjects, many scholars refer to Aristotle as one of the pioneers in research and philosophy. Aristotle was a student at the Plato’s academy. This paper focuses on Aristotle as a scholar and his contributions to the development of western philosophy and knowledge.
Strengths and Weaknesses of Aristotle’s Arguments
Aristotle was the first person to study formal logic. Several scholars have agreed that Aristotle developed formal logic through his works. Many scholars used prior analytics, which he developed, until the 19th century (Bambrough and Bobzien 12). The thoughts and writings of Aristotle helped other scholars to conduct their philosophical and scientific studies in the ancient Greece. Moreover, Aristotle’s work did not focus on one specific subject. Instead, he contributed to the study of poetry, linguistics, zoology, physics, metaphysics, morality, logic, and ethics among others. Unlike Plato, who focused on non-material world, Aristotle developed theories, which could be used to explain natural phenomena. Additionally, his theories were not meant to overrule other theories that already existed. For instance, Aristotle did not attempt to challenge God with his works on metaphysics (Bambrough and Bobzien 12). Aristotle could support his arguments with strong evidence since most of his discoveries and revelations were based on observation of the natural world.
Even though Aristotle was one of the most celebrated scholars, some of his works had their weaknesses. For instance, he could not provide evidence to support his position that the physical world was the source of knowledge. Notably, Aristotle relied on observations and experiences while formulating his theories (Bambrough and Bobzien 8). It is wrong to assume that all people are likely to have the same experiences. Therefore, it is reasonable to say that some of his observations were not correct. The introduction of mathematical logic proved that Aristotle’s theories were not sufficient to elucidate every subject appropriately. Even though Aristotle’s works had weaknesses and strengths, people still consider the scholar as one of the greatest ever due to the contributions he made to various disciplines.
Importance of Aristotle
After the death of Plato, Aristotle rented space in Lyceum to start his academy. The new school attracted scholars from different parts of Greece. It was also at the new academy that Aristotle wrote about 200 writings (Bambrough and Bobzien 7). Most of the Aristotle’s writings that have survived are merely lecture notes, which he had written while teaching Alexander the Great. The Oragon refers to the collection of works that have been used by philosophers and scientific researchers from different parts of the world. Additionally, Aristotle compiled a set of writings on biology, zoology, cosmology, and other fields of study. Contemporary philosophers refer to the work as “Physics.” This body of work has helped many researchers to gain knowledge and apply theories that they attribute to Aristotle (Saugstad 346). Moreover, philosophers have been using Aristotle’s work on metaphysics to explain the existence of God. Aristotle developed the theological theories and conceptualizations to study the existence of a deity. It is important to note that the theory by Aristotle has been an influence for scholars to develop different theological theories. Finally, Aristotle developed the study of “rhetoric” which people have been using to analyse speeches and arguments (Atwill 23). The work is one of the most important contributions of Aristotle to the development of human knowledge since it can be used to analyse people's arguments and speeches critically.
Application of Aristotle’s Works
Unlike Plato, Aristotle focused on the material world. He based his studies on things that he could observe. According to Aristotle, it was more important for human beings to understand the material world than the non-material or the world of Being, which was just theoretical. It is still possible to...