History of Philosophy Without Any Gaps HoP 083 - Not Written in Stone – Alexander of Aphrodisias
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Jun 3, 2012 AI Snips
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Stone Inscription Confirms Alexander's Role
- Archaeologists found a one-meter stone tablet in Aphrodisias dedicating a statue to Aurelius Xandros, confirming Alexander of Aphrodisias led the Aristotelian school there.
- The son calls himself diadocos, showing Alexander held the philosophical chair established by Marcus Aurelius around 200 AD.
Alexander Shaped Aristotle's Later Reception
- Alexander became the preeminent ancient commentator on Aristotle, shaping later Byzantine, Arabic, and medieval Latin receptions.
- His commentaries were lematized, quoting Aristotle lemma by lemma and explaining each sentence in detail to defend Aristotle's consistency.
Commentary As Creative Defense
- Alexander assumed Aristotle never contradicted himself, so commentators used ingenuity to reconcile tensions across texts.
- This methodological faith turned commentary into creative defense rather than mere summary.