FREE ESSAY ON PLATO VS. ARISTOTLE

PLATO VS. ARISTOTLE

Alli Kelly
10-06-98
Humanities
Aristotle vs. Plato
What is real? What gives life meaning? What happens when we die? These three questions
are very common in today's society. Everyone has different beliefs and their answers to
these world view questions are different. Greek Philosopher's, Aristotle and Plato had
very different views and answers to these questions.
What is real? Aristotle believed that for something to be real it had to have a substance
and a form or a body and a soul. Our senses are also reality. Now Plato on the other hand
believed that reality is permanent and our senses can't be trusted. He also believed
immortal things are more real than the mortal. For example, Greek gods, immortal souls,
and universals are more real than humans, animals, and plants that are considered mortal.

What gives life meaning? According to Aristotle achieving the highest possible potential
with our talents, to reason with our emotions and the "golden mean" which is everything
in moderation gives life meaning. Now Plato believed that education through a forty-four
year program gives life meaning. Plato thought that everybody's goal in life is, "We
learned but forgot."
What happens when we die? Aristotle believed nothing happens when we die because to even
exist you have to have a body and a soul. So if you die and your body leaves then you
don't exist because you don't have both a body and a soul. Plato believed that when we
die we are recycled. It is kind of like reincarnation but not quite. When you die you're
reborn but have lost all of your previous knowledge due to the trauma birth causes. This
is where Plato's goal in life ties in. We learned but our soul forgot when we are reborn.

Plato and Aristotle had completely different answers to the questions, What is real? What
gives life meaning? and What happens when we die? Some of their answers to these world
view questions may seem bizarre but we all have our own answers and views about many
different things.