Customer Reviews

The Philosophy of Aristotle (Signet Classics)

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Two things make this book great: its selection and its translation.

For a pocket size selection of Aristotle, this book is tops. It has sections from all of his major works, so it is useful for survey classes, or personal study. Of fundamental import is Metaphysics, which is the meta-basis for his thought. Also included are selections from his more popular Ethics and Politics, and lesser known Poetics.

What drew me to this book was the translation. Most translations are really crude transliterations. Yes, it is important to be as faithful to the text as humanly possible. But the "ivory tower academeese" sucks the life out of vibrant philosophies.

Creed and Wardmen avoid this problem entirely. This text was readable, and therefore enjoyable. It reminds me of the smooth prose of J. B Phillips or Edgar J. Goodspeed. It was like talking to a good friends, rather than a Latinized statue.

For a more comprehensive selection, I would recommend "Basic Works of Aristotle" (ISBN: 0375757996), or getting the books individually.

I love the cover!

This edition of Aristotle cuts quite severely from the complete books. There are very few complete books. In Nichomachean Ethics, for example, the chapters on friendship are omitted. This is so frustrating that I don't use it.

I'd suggest getting complete works as led by your interest primarily. Get the Ethics, Politics, Poetics, Physics.

The other problem is that the large amount of explaining before and between the actual texts in this edition doesn't actually explain anything. In fact, it makes it more confusing in many cases. You just can't out-clarify Aristotle, and the high-school-ese of the introductions is a bit patronizing to him and us. Better to have a personal response to the work or nothing than this faux objectivity.

Finally, as with other reviews I agree it's broad and fairly well translated, especially compared to the past translations, but I find older translations have a spirit and nobility which this frankly lacks.

I much anticipated this book's arrival. It was good to carry round - portability is fine. But it takes more than a convenient format to present Aristotle in a popular format.

I suggest trying the Penguin editions.