Is Aristotle the GOAT human?

[ISHGoat]

He basically kick-started every branch of science and established "western philosophy" and "western culture".

Is there any other human that comes close to Aristotle in terms of advancement of mankind?

[StephHamann]

Kobe

[Nick Young]

Buddha>>>>Aristotle.


Aristotle was wrong about a lot of things.

[kNIOKAS]

Yes.

[ISHGoat]

Buddha>>>>Aristotle.


Aristotle was wrong about a lot of things.


Being wrong is not necessarily such a bad thing, especially in this context.

[Heilige]

Aristotle has a case. Here are others who have case as well:

Marcus Aurelius

Nikola Tesla

Alexander the Great

Jesus Christ

Buddha

Napoleon Bonaparte

Julius Caesar

Isaac Newton

Socrates

Plato

Leonardo da Vinci

Albert Einstein

Genghis Khan

[ISHGoat]

Aristotle has a case. Here are others who have case as well:

Marcus Aurelius

Nikola Tesla

Alexander the Great

Jesus Christ

Buddha

Napoleon Bonaparte

Julius Caesar

Isaac Newton

Socrates

Plato

Leonardo da Vinci

Albert Einstein

Genghis Khan

Solid list. I don't consider great military/state leaders such as Genghis Khan, Alexander, etc in the same class as intellectuals such as Newton, Plato, Einstein, etc.

Sure, Alexander and Khan may have united their respective nations, but they have also ruined many lives and families in the process. How many people have died at the blade of Leonardo da Vinci?

[JohnnySic]

Genghis Khan. :lol Funny how a mass murderer becomes a "great man" with the changing perspective that occurs due to the passage of time.

[oarabbus]

Being wrong is not necessarily such a bad thing, especially in this context.

Buddha, while he may not be the GOAT human, is superior to Aristotle.

[KyrieTheFuture]

Genghis Kahn. :lol Funny how a mass murderer becomes a "great man" with the changing perspective that occurs due to the passage of time.
It's not like all he did was kill people, idk why you're surprised military leaders are respected though.

[JohnnySic]

It's not like all he did was kill people, idk why you're surprised military leaders are respected though.
Yeah well Hitler didn't just kill people either, but not many are adding him to a "greatest man" list. :lol Genghis Khan makes Hitler look like a clueless dork when it comes to killing people, but no one cares due to the enormous passage of time; no one has a memory of it.

[ArbitraryWater]

Genghis Khan? Wat?

[ISHGoat]

Zingis Khan > Genghis Khan

[NumberSix]

Vlad Tepes.

[fiddy]

Aristotle has a case. Here are others who have case as well:

Marcus Aurelius

Nikola Tesla

Alexander the Great

Jesus Christ

Buddha

Napoleon Bonaparte

Julius Caesar

Isaac Newton

Socrates

Plato

Leonardo da Vinci

Albert Einstein

Genghis Khan
All these conquerors :wtf:

[NumberSix]

All these conquerors :wtf:
Amazingly, not one person thought to put the guy who cured polio or the guy who's GMOs prevented literally billions of people from starving.

[StephHamann]

Amazingly, not one person thought to put the guy who cured polio or the guy who's GMOs prevented literally billions of people from starving.

Or Kobe

[fiddy]

No mentions of Uncle Adolf? wtf ISH

[sammichoffate]

Suleiman the Magnificent is underrated for running the Ottoman Empire for so long.

[CakeorDeath]

Aristotle has a case. Here are others who have case as well:

Marcus Aurelius

Nikola Tesla

Alexander the Great

Jesus Christ

Buddha

Napoleon Bonaparte

Julius Caesar

Isaac Newton

Socrates

Plato

Leonardo da Vinci

Albert Einstein

Genghis Khan

A lot of questionable entries on this list, but I'll start with the Romans. Julius Caesar isn't even the greatest human in his own family. That would be Augustus.

Marcus Aurelius was good, but he was no Augustus nor was he Trajan.

[DonDadda59]

:no:

Mr. T


A lot of questionable entries on this list, but I'll start with the Romans. Julius Caesar isn't even the greatest human in his own family. That would be Augustus.

Bullshit. History does not remember Octavian if not for his great uncle putting him as his heir in his will. F*ck outta here with that silver spoon bullshit.

[bladefd]

Don't forget Mahatma Gandhi. Mozart. Shakespeare. Socrates, who was the teacher of Plato, who was the teacher of Aristotle, who was the teacher of Alexander the Great.

Aristotle has to be top 5 unanimously though. Newton too. They have changed our understanding of our world and what it means to be human.

[GIF REACTION]

Hitler turned the 2015 76ers into the 2007 Patriots

[DonDadda59]

Hitler turned the 2015 76ers into the 2007 Patriots

His megalomania and genocidal tendencies aside, Hitler was in fact a very effective leader and lifted Germany from a disastrous hell hole into the biggest power in Europe (and arguably the World). He rebuilt the country's infrastructure (including construction of the Autobahn), put people back to work following the depression, and turned the military into an efficient and effective killing machine. He restored National pride after Germany had been humiliated after WWI.

Just too damn crazy. If he had just cooled it on the mass murder and constant need for expansion, he would've been looked at as one of the great and most effective leaders of the 20th Century.

[GIF REACTION]

But the jews are not to blame for anything, right?

Hitler didn't seek War

He was backed into a corner and had to make a choice

[DonDadda59]

But the jews are not to blame for anything, right?

Hitler didn't seek War

He was backed into a corner and had to make a choice

Jeff/Steve's not gonna like this. Enjoy the ban bruh. :lol

[GIF REACTION]

http://iamthewitness.com/img/Judea.Declares.War.594.png

It's well documented that the elitist Jewish population had a hand in Germany's involvement in the first and second world wars

[DonDadda59]

http://iamthewitness.com/img/Judea.Declares.War.594.png

It's well documented that the elitist Jewish population had a hand in Germany's involvement in the first and second world wars

Bruh.... Staaaaaaaaaaaaaahp. :milton

[GIF REACTION]

Surely Jeff would not be so naive as to censor recorded history

Not all Jews are evil schemers

But the top tier elite's influence is wide and apparent. This is well known and documented

[GIF REACTION]

It's not so much a race/ethnicity thing as it is a wealth issue

The rich and wealthy are powerful people

It just so happens that some Jews are some of the most wealthy and powerful people in recorded history

[JohnFreeman]

Genghis Khan

[Nick Young]

Genghis Khan
This. I don't think anyone has a case against this guy. 1 in 8 people in Asia today are directly descended from him.

[Heilige]

A lot of questionable entries on this list, but I'll start with the Romans. Julius Caesar isn't even the greatest human in his own family. That would be Augustus.

Marcus Aurelius was good, but he was no Augustus nor was he Trajan.



Julius Caesar did a lot more for Rome than Trajan ever did.

Caesar is often put with Hannibal, Alexander, Subotai, Napoleon when it comes to being a general. If Caesar would've had the same luxury that Trajan had, when Rome was at its peak, Caesar would've done a hell of a lot more than Trajan. Caesar's military and political achievements speak for themselves.

He did what what was deemed impossible, he took the offensive to Gaul and crushed them.

Caesar conquered Gaul, Germany, and defeated Pompei and lead/established what would be the foundation of the Roman Empire.


There have been other individuals of history who could be said to have matched his historical influence (though not many), but he wins me over as being a genius of almost unrivalled proportions. There are individuals of history who match Caesar for influence, and possibly for genius, but none spring to mind for me who combine both traits to such an extent.

[Heilige]

A lot of questionable entries on this list, but I'll start with the Romans. Julius Caesar isn't even the greatest human in his own family. That would be Augustus.

Marcus Aurelius was good, but he was no Augustus nor was he Trajan.


Caesar's political career is a study of genius in the art of both reading and directing political trends and using them to his advantage. The way that he rose up the Cursus Honorum from being born into an impoverished noble family to building up a signifigant power base and translating this into a string of political offices, including the prestigous Pontifex Maximus, outmaneuvering all of his opponents in their attempts to bring him crashing downalone entitles him to be called a political genius. But Caesar's true masterpiece is his creation and maintainance of the First Triumvirate. In his forging of a political alliance to sieze unrivalled power in the Republic, and in his use of said power immeditaly afterwards, Caesar demonstrated an unrivalled mastery of both domestic and foriegn policy in his own time and estabalished himself as a politician and statesman for the ages. And this was all before he had ever fought a single major battle.

As Caesar embarked on the second stage of his career; the military stage, he only added to his demonstratiion of mastery of politics and statescraft. The Conquest of Gaulis not only a masterpiece of military strategy and tactics, but also a masterpiece of statesmanship and politics in which Caesar transformed what had been countless squabbling tribes into a unified and stable province dominated by parties devoted to his interests, in the process demonstrating that he could master other people's politics as ably as he could master his own. And while all of this was going on he had to, while conducting one of the greatest wars in history, maintain his influence back in Rome, ensuring that the ground on which he stood was not cut out from underneath him, and in doing this he further demonstrated his political genius.

Following the Gallic War he embarked on his great Civil War, where he made use of politics and diplomacy to win just as much as by waging war. Having seized absolute power, and having been annointed Dictator Perpetuus by the people of Rome, he proceeded to accomplish more in just one year of ruling than most rulers manage in a lifetime. His farseeing statesmanship was demonstrated most clearly of all in his laying the foundations for an Imperial Nation-State that was arguably the greatest of all Rome's achievements, and while doing this he showed himself to be one of the greatest administrators of all time. Ultimately, Caesar's tragedy was that he tried to do what he did without violence, without terror, but instead attempted to try and win his enemies over to his side. For the most part, he did succeed. It is notable that out of almost 1000 Senators, only 60 joined the conspiracy to assasinate him. Caesar refused to employ bodyguards, saying that to have done so would have been a sign that he was afraid of death, which he was not. And so he met his fate. Such is the tragedy of the greatest genius ever produced by Rome.


Regarding Augustus, the fact is that the end of the Republic must be laid at his door, and I for one do not regard that as a positive thing.

Augustus was a indeniably a very good ruler, but he lacked the brilliance and vision of Julius Caesar. For all that he solved many problems, his solutions would often lead to new problems further on down the road, and he was content to merely smooth over so many problems that Caesar would have addressed properly. Not for Augustus the brilliant visions that Caesar had for his city and country. Augsustus was an opportunist but not a visionary. Again in his defence, nobody but another universal genius could have been anywhere near the statesman and administrator that Caesar was. Still. Augustus must be seen as standing lower than him, and as not nearly as admirable a figure.

[Dresta]

A lot of questionable entries on this list, but I'll start with the Romans. Julius Caesar isn't even the greatest human in his own family. That would be Augustus.

Marcus Aurelius was good, but he was no Augustus nor was he Trajan.
lol no, and glad others have already provided the reasons why. Not many people come close to the exploits of Caesar, and certainly not the adopted son he placed on the throne.

And Augustus was rather unsparing of Cicero, lets be honest. Caesar had to defeat Pompey, whereas little Octavian only had to deal with Mark Antony.

[fiddy]

Still dont get no what criteria, a backstabbing vile ruler is the GOAT human :rolleyes:

[NumberSix]

This. I don't think anyone has a case against this guy. 1 in 8 people in Asia today are directly descended from him.
Why do people always say this? What would be indirectly descended? You're either descended from someone or you aren't.

[NumberSix]

Seriously though, probably Constantine. Without the spread of Christianity, the world would still be in the Iron Age.

[fiddy]

Seriously though, probably Constantine. Without the spread of Christianity, the world would still be in the Iron Age.
:wtf:

If anything, religions have be holding mankind back

[NumberSix]

:wtf:

If anything, religions have be holding mankind back
The unbelievable ignorance of this statement. :facepalm


Like it or not, Christianity is a major contributing factor as to why western culture/Civilization is what it is.

Even if you don't believe in god or that Christianity is divinely inspired, good ideas are good ideas even if the source of the ideas has been misattributed.

[fiddy]

The unbelievable ignorance of this statement. :facepalm


Like it or not, Christianity is a major contributing factor as to why western culture/Civilization is what it is.

Even if you don't believe in god or that Christianity is divinely inspired, good ideas are good ideas even if the source of the ideas has been misattributed.
"Ignorance""vs your delusion, who wins?

[Megabox!]

This. I don't think anyone has a case against this guy. 1 in 8 people in Asia today are directly descended from him.
Raping a shit ton of women makes you "GOAT" human being? You n*ggas on ISH have problems :facepalm

[Nastradamus]

Aristotle has a case. Here are others who have case as well:

Marcus Aurelius

Nikola Tesla

Alexander the Great

Jesus Christ

Buddha

Napoleon Bonaparte

Julius Caesar

Isaac Newton

Socrates

Plato

Leonardo da Vinci

Albert Einstein

Genghis Khan

Christ likely never existed. The rest we factually know existed.

[Nastradamus]

The unbelievable ignorance of this statement. :facepalm


Like it or not, Christianity is a major contributing factor as to why western culture/Civilization is what it is.

Even if you don't believe in god or that Christianity is divinely inspired, good ideas are good ideas even if the source of the ideas has been misattributed.

Not necessarily completely false.

[West-Side]

Uhm, pretty sure when I studied Philosophy; Plato was the KING.
Didn't he mentor Aristotle's bitch ass???

YEP.

Plato >>> Aristotle.

[bladefd]

Uhm, pretty sure when I studied Philosophy; Plato was the KING.
Didn't he mentor Aristotle's bitch ass???

YEP.

Plato >>> Aristotle.

If we use that logic, then Socrates >>> Plato because Socrates was the mentor of Plato. I don't believe that argument does justice. Socrates is already on the wrong foot because we have no writing from him - only what his student Plato recanted.

By the way, Plato was probably the better philosopher between the 2 BUTTTT Aristotle had more lasting impact to actual fields of study.

[FKAri]

Aside from rulers/leaders/religious figures its Isaac Newton


"Ignorance""vs your delusion, who wins?

Delusion. Easily

[Nick Young]

Ghengis Khan is the GOAT human.

[JEFFERSON MONEY]

Uhm, pretty sure when I studied Philosophy; Plato was the KING.
Didn't he mentor Aristotle's bitch ass???

YEP.

Plato >>> Aristotle.

Yeah but this is a Raiden-Liu Kang type relationship almost.

Or an Agent K-Agent J.

The grasshopper surpasses the SENSEI and THEN SOME.

[JEFFERSON MONEY]

Lol, funny looking back.

None of these guys even compare to the Sahabah.

[9erempiree]

Leonardo Da Vinci

[Im Still Ballin]

Alexander The Great!

[Pointguard]

Aristotle has a very fishy story and I posted this before, and its not as fresh for me now. I think he's a plagiarist, child molester and flat out dishonest. At age 37 when Plato dies he doesn't even ask that Aristotle take the school over and there is nothing to suggest Aristotle is special at this young age and Plato had to be aware of him. Aristotle later on teaches Alexander the Great and he later open his own school. As an incredibly late bloomer, he miraculously all of a sudden is a master of 10 disciplines (mentioned in the next paragraph) and writes more books than a person can write in a life time in his next 15 years while falling in deep love. He spent a large amount of time going over Plato's stuff as well. He was notorious for bad grammar and wrote in a style like he was taking notes. It wasn't like he had 60 watts lamps with speed typewriters and reality TV putting on helicopters for speed dates back then either.

Then when in exile he only writes about plants: Not ethics, politics, astronomy, not metaphysics, medicine, rhetoric, not music, logic, geology or the arts. It doesn't add up. I do believe he made some important contributions but it all doesn't add up.

[masonanddixon]

Aristotle was a very overrated philosopher, not nearly as acerbic or transcendent in thought as Plato/Socrates.

My pick would have to be someone like Faulkner. Dude was a creative genius, pretty much set an impossible barrier for anyone to reach.

[masonanddixon]

Uhm, pretty sure when I studied Philosophy; Plato was the KING.
Didn't he mentor Aristotle's bitch ass???

YEP.

Plato >>> Aristotle.

wtf, what about Locke and shit? Or even more recent cats like Wittgenstein and Nietzsche?

[9erempiree]

Da Vinci was an inventor.

Plato and Aristotle weren't.

[bladefd]

Kant has to be up there too. Perhaps the most complex philosopher we have ever had. His complex ideas are very difficult to understand.. I still get lost trying to keep up with his ideas. I had a hard time understanding his works in college :confusedshrug:

[JEFFERSON MONEY]

Kant has to be up there too. Perhaps the most complex philosopher we have ever had. His complex ideas are very difficult to understand.. I still get lost trying to keep up with his ideas. I had a hard time understanding his works in college :confusedshrug:

Another ISHer chime in to rectify my poor English but the gist of his categorical imperative was:
Each person has the duty to do what is right from a universal standpoint with good will.

Each and every time.