Aristotles Influence on Alexander the Great

HIST134 11/7/2016
Gina Mahaz

2
Aristotles Influence on Alexander the Great
It is only fitting that the greatest emperor in history was tutored by the greatest
philosopher. Though this claim is not without some dispute, it cannot be argued that both
Aristotle and Alexander were seminal in their own ways. What is a more interesting question,
however, is to what extent did Aristotles influence cause Alexander to have such a great
advantage over his adversaries that he should come to dominate the entire earth. In other words,
how is it possible that the musings of one man, Aristotle, can change world. Thoughts are where
actions germinate, Aristotle knew this, and he knew that he held the key to a more liberated
humanity (Merlan, 48). But for the light to spread, a great individual would have to rise. There is
no doubt that Alexander had many innate talents. But it takes a great teacher to bring forth the
fruition of inborn abilities.
The reason that it is difficult to readily understand the influence of Aristotle on Alexander
is that parallels are basically impossible to come by in history. The extent that Aristotle changed
how people think cannot be overstated (Merlan, 211). Socrates, who came before Aristotle, and
Plato who taught him were both in their own way adrift in their thinking. There is no doubt that
they had a large effect in their own right, but their main effect was in planting the seeds of
curiosity that would contribute to Aristotles ideas.
Logic has its origin with Aristotle (Merlan, 131). This is so hard for modern minds to
comprehend since logic seems completely innate. But a cursory review of history shows that
before Aristotle, the thinking of the Greeks or any other group were not at all fastened to any
kind of stronghold of reason. Logic is simply correct thinking, and is a science in its own right. It
is a science because it can be defined by sets of rules that can be applied by any normal mind.
Setting guidelines for thinking may seem to be a suffocating concept, but in matter of fact, it is

3
by such a restricting paradigm of exactitude of thought that the rationality of man can fully
blossom.
So, when the inception of logic meets with someone as innately talented as Alexander,
who was in a unique position to take advantage of that talent, extraordinary things can happen.
There is no question that Alexander would have gone on to be successful had he not had such a
great education. He had other teachers besides Aristotle and these would have served him well if
they were alone. But Aristotle had three years with a young Alexander, and these three years
changed the course of history. The way that history would have looked without Aristotle is not
easy to imagine. Though it is impossible to fully imagine an alternate timeline for any important
historical event, the case of Aristotle teaching Alexander is much different. Aristotle was a
singular mind, and Alexander a singular emperor. There is no precedent for this and so all that
can be done is to appreciate the uniqueness and the grandness of the history as it presents itself.
It is conceivable that during the time he was tutored, Alexander did not quite understand
the extent to which he was benefitting by his tutelage. No doubt, as a young man he would have
had no perspective on the history of thought and imagined that Aristotle was a great teacher, but
nothing more. Only in the hindsight that being in our current age permits can we see the crucial
stage in history that Aristotle ushered forth. Indeed, following Alexander, a new age followed,
the hellenistic (Bury, 155). This new age would be governed by the types of thinking that
Alexander learned from Aristotle. It involved a more grounded and well thought out way to
govern city-states. As a conqueror, Alexander arguably did good to those he conquered, as he
brought stability to many regions, and in some way brought enlightenment to them. This is no
doubt a big reason that Alexander fought, he would have wanted to spread the light of Greek
thought to the ends of the world.

4
Alexander would have learned a lot about ethics from Aristotle. This would have
included learning about the doctrine of the mean (Merlan 89). There is little question that
Alexander the Great was prone to anger, and at times he acted out against his enemies with great
fury and without mercy. But there were other times that Alexander acted with kindness. When he
captured Dariuss wife and daughter he did not torture them, but rather treated them well. It is
not known why he acted this way, but surely his upbringing and teaching from Aristotle had a
role to play. Alexander also treated his army very well and they loved him. This allowed him to
go undefeated in battle, often winning against much larger forces. Alexander would have been
keenly aware of the importance of treating others well and the importance of brotherhood
(Wilcken, 311). This is a concept that although common today, would not have been common in
other parts of the world at the time. The result would have been that a lot of the forces that
Alexander went up against would be against enemies that were fighting reluctantly for masters
that they hated. This would mean they would surrender easily and fight with a lot less zeal. It is
in treating the people around him with respect that won him the loyalty that fueled his campaign.
Alexander also had a love for learning that no doubt can at least partially be attributed to
Aristotle. It is not clear how any particular bit of knowledge that he had contributed to his
campaigns or his tactics. But clearly everything that he knew would have come into play at some
point. This idea of the importance of the nourishment of the whole mind came long before the
idea of a renaissance man become prominent and would have given Alexander a huge advantage.
His thirst for learning caused him to found many libraries, the most famous of which was in
Alexandria, Egypt (Bosworth, 75 ). These centers for learning would be cultural hubs for many
centuries after and would help shape the future of the world.

5
Aristotles grip on western thought may have lessened in recent years as some of his
ideas have been shown to be incorrect. But his system of thinking, the logic that he originated,
were the cornerstone by which we derived the understanding that we now have of the world. In a
similar way, leaders have looked to Alexander as an example of how to behave to gain respect,
how to wage war, and how to live a life that will be remembered through the ages. There is no
question that both Aristotle and Alexander have shaped history in a very profound way. The fact
that Aristotle taught Alexander is even more remarkable and shows the importance of a correct
thinking and how thoughts shape actions and how actions shape history.

6
Works Cited
Bosworth, Albert Brian. Conquest and Empire: the reign of Alexander the Great. Cambridge
University Press, 1993.
Bury, John Bagnell. A History of Greece to the Death of Alexander the Great. Macmillan and
Company, limited, 1906.
Merlan, Philip. "Isocrates, Aristotle and Alexander the Great." Historia: Zeitschrift fr Alte
Geschichte H. 1 (1954): 60-81.
Wilcken, Ulrich, and Eugene N. Borza. Alexander the Great. WW Norton & Company, 1967.