Aristotle was born in the ancient Greek state of Macedonia in 384 BC, wherein his father was the official physician. With humble labels like 'the guru' and simply 'the philosopher,' he grew up to be possibly the most critical philosopher of all time. His first major assignment was to educate Alexander the Great, who went on to dominate the world not long after. Aristotle then traveled to Athens, where he collaborated with Plato for a time before striking off on his own. He established the Lyceum, a small school. The lycées, or high schools in French, are named after this enterprise. He enjoyed walking about while lecturing and debating topics. His disciples were dubbed the "Peripatetics," or "wanderers." Many of his publications are only lecture recordings. How does a chick grow in an egg? Aristotle was amazed by how things truly operate. Squid reproduce in a variety of ways. Why does a plant thrive in one location but not at all in another? And, most crucially, what makes a human existence, and a community as a whole, go smoothly? Philosophy, according to Aristotle, was about empirical knowledge. Here are his answers to four major philosophical problems.

One: what makes people happy?

Aristotle gave himself the challenge of discovering the elements that drive individuals to live a happy life - or not - in the ‘Nicomachean' ethics (the book was named after his son, Nicomachus, who edited it). He claimed that excellent and successful individuals all have different ‘virtues,' and that we should grow better at identifying them so that we can foster and appreciate them in ourselves and others. Aristotle identified 11 virtues. Courage Temperance Liberality Magnificence Magnanimity Patience and pride Truthfulness Wittiness Friendliness Modesty. According to Aristotle, every virtue seems to be divided between two vices. It falls in what he refers to as the "golden mean" [a perfectly balanced plank on a triangle] between two character extremes. For example, in Book IV of his Ethics, Aristotle examines how individuals are better or worse at conversing, under the delightful title of ‘Conversational Virtues: wit, buffoonery, and boorishness.' (Aristotle realized that understanding how to have a nice conversation is one of the components of a happy existence.) Some people make mistakes due to a lack of subtle humor: That's the "boor," someone "unfit for any social interaction because he contributes nothing and takes offense at everything." Others, on the other hand, go overboard with humor: ‘The buffoon cannot resist a joke, sparing neither himself nor anyone else so long as he can raise a laugh, and saying things that a man of taste would never say.' As a result, the ‘virtuous' individual falls somewhere in the middle: funny but delicate. Aristotle's table of "too little," "too much," and "just enough" around the full array of virtues is particularly intriguing. We can't just alter our behavior in any of these areas at any time. However, change is conceivable in the long run. Aristotle claims that moral excellence is the product of habit. It requires time, practice, and motivation. People who lack virtue, according to Aristotle, should be thought of as unlucky rather than evil. What they need better instructors and more supervision, not scolding or incarceration.

Two: what is art for?

At the time, tragedy was the most popular form of art. Athenians sat in enormous open-air theatres to watch horrific plays at communal festivals. Aeschylus, Euripides, and Sophocles were well-known Greek authors. The Poetics, written by Aristotle, is a guidebook on how to produce excellent plays. It's jam-packed with useful advice. For instance, make certain you use: peripeteia - a turn of fortune for the hero, when things move from good to bad [in Titanic, Leonardo di Caprio gets Kate Winslow (wonderful) and then they strike the iceberg] (awful) and anagnorisis - a dramatic epiphany in which the hero realizes that their life is a disaster. But what is the point of tragedy in the first place? What is the point of an entire town gathering to see terrible things happen to the protagonists? Like Oedipus (in Sophocles' play), who accidentally kills his father, marries his mother, and then discovers his guilt. In sorrow and anguish, he gouges out his own eyes. The solution given by Aristotle is Katharsis, which is Greek for... catharsis. Catharsis is a cleansing process in which you get rid of negative emotions. Cleaning up our emotions in this situation, particularly our confusions about sentiments of dread and pity. Here are some of our natural issues: We have a hard heart, and we don't show pity when it's due. And we're prone to either overblown or insufficiently scared worries. We should have more compassion (or pity) for those whose actions go disastrously wrong, as tragedy reminds us that terrible things can happen to good people, including ourselves): a small flaw can lead to a whole life unraveling, and so we should have more compassion (or pity) for those whose actions go disastrously wrong. We need to be reminded of these fundamental facts on a frequent basis. According to Aristotle, the purpose of art is to imprint fundamental truths about life on our minds.

Three: What are friends for?

Aristotle distinguishes three types of friendship in books eight and nine of the Nicomachean Ethics. When each individual is looking for a good time, their "main interest is in their own enjoyment and the opportunity of the moment," which the other person gives. We require the company of others in order to have a good time. We require friendly company. Then there are friendships that are really strategic acquaintances: ‘they enjoy each other's company only to the extent that they hope to benefit from it.' Then there's the real buddy, who isn't someone who shares your interests 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 too, 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?

The reality that the best argument does not always win the discussion or the war struck Aristotle, as it did many others. He was curious as to why this occurs and what we might do about it. He had plenty of opportunities to observe: in Athens, many decisions were decided in public assemblies (typically in the Agora, the town square), and orators would compete with one another to sway public opinion. Many variables that do not precisely interact with logic or the facts of the case affect audiences and people, according to Aristotle. It's infuriating. And it irritates a lot of serious people, notably Plato. They stay away from the market and populist discourse. Aristotle, on the other hand, was more ambitious. He created what we now refer to as Rhetoric: the skill of persuading others to agree with you. He wished for smart, serious, and well-intentioned people to understand how to persuade those who aren't yet convinced. He makes a number of timeless points, including the following: People's anxieties must be recognized, acknowledged, and soothed. You must consider the emotional aspect of the situation - is someone's pride on the line, are they ashamed - and work your way around it. Because attention spans are limited, you must make it humorous. You may also need to utilize pictures and examples to bring your idea to life. We're Aristotelian aficionados.

Today, the word "philosophy" does not conjure up images of a practical pursuit. It's because we haven't paid careful attention to it.