Aristotle vs Plato
Who? Pick one and see how the world splits.
- Aristotle Ancient Greece · 384–322 BC 61% · #3 in the world
- Plato Ancient Greece · 428–348 BC 39% · #8 in the world
What the votes say
The world picks Aristotle over Plato, 61% to 39%. Aristotle is #3 of the 185 thinkers in the world ranking and Plato #8; among the 13 from Ancient Greece, they are #1 and #2.
The case for each
Aristotle: Plato's student for twenty years and later tutor to Alexander the Great. Wrote on almost everything, from logic and biology to politics, ethics and poetry, and founded the Lyceum; for centuries Europe called Aristotle simply "the Philosopher".
Plato: Socrates' student and the author of the dialogues that preserve Socrates' ideas, from the Republic to the Symposium. Founded the Academy in Athens, and left the West the theory of Forms and the question of what a just society is.
Side by side
| Aristotle | Plato | |
|---|---|---|
| World rank | #3 | #8 |
| Country | Ancient Greece | Ancient Greece |
| Lived | 384–322 BC | 428–348 BC |