Aristotle of Cyrene

Aristotle of Cyrene (or Aristoteles, Greek: Ἀριστοτέλης; fl. 325 BC) was a Greek philosopher who may have belonged to the Cyrenaic school.

He was a native of Cyrene, and a contemporary of Stilpo. He taught Cleitarchus and Simmias of Syracuse before they became pupils of Stilpo.^[1] It has generally been assumed that Aristotle was a member of the Cyrenaic school, but this assumption is somewhat doubtful.^[2] According to Diogenes Laërtius, he wrote a work on the art of poetry.^[3] The only aspect of his philosophical views which is known is a short piece of ethical advice preserved by Aelian:^[4]

Aristoteles of Cyrene said that you should not accept a favor from anyone. For either you have trouble if you try to pay it back, or you appear to be ungrateful if you don't.

An athlete of the same period called Aristotle of Cyrene, who spurned the love of Lais, is mentioned in a moral anecdote by Clement of Alexandria.^[5]

Notes

1. Laërtius 1925, § 113.
2. Dorandi 1999, p. 47.
3. Laërtius 1925b, § 35.
4. Aelian, Varia Historia, x. 8
5. Clement of Alexandria, Stromata, iii. 6. 50-51

References

• Dorandi, Tiziano (1999). "Chapter 2: Chronology". In Algra, Keimpe; et al. The Cambridge History of Hellenistic Philosophy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 47. ISBN 9780521250283.
•  Laërtius, Diogenes (1925). "Socrates, with predecessors and followers: Stilpo". Lives of the Eminent Philosophers 1:2. Translated by Hicks, Robert Drew (Two volume ed.). Loeb Classical Library. § 113.
•  Laërtius, Diogenes (1925b). "The Peripatetics: Aristotle". Lives of the Eminent Philosophers 1:5. Translated by Hicks, Robert Drew (Two volume ed.). Loeb Classical Library. § 35.