Comparing and Contrasting Aristotle and Plato's Philosophies

This essay offers a detailed comparison and contrast of the philosophical works of Aristotle and Plato, focusing on their core ideas presented in Nicomachean Ethics and The Allegory of the Cave, respectively. The essay explores Aristotle's concept of happiness as the ultimate goal of human life, achieved through virtuous actions and the importance of elements like friendship and justice. It contrasts this with Plato's Allegory of the Cave, which emphasizes the pursuit of knowledge and the importance of philosophical reasoning to escape the limitations of sensory perception. The essay highlights the similarities and differences in their approaches, emphasizing the significance of ethics, virtues, and philosophical reasoning in leading a fulfilling life. The essay references key works, providing a comprehensive overview of both philosophers' contributions to understanding human existence and the pursuit of happiness and knowledge.

1Student’s name
Name of the student:
Name of the professor:
Subject:
Date:
BIG IDEAS
Great thinkers have made a tremendous contribution to human society. They have given
theories and philosophies that have provided people perspective of viewing the society in
different ways with virtues and moral values (Tonnies and Loomis). Two of the great thinkers
belonging from the ancient era are Aristotle and Plato (Nightingale). Even in the contemporary
period, their philosophies play an essential role in shaping perspective. The paper aims to
compare and contrast the works of the two philosophers considering their two famous works,
Nicomachean Ethics and The Allegory of the cave. The main idea of the two works will be
discussed in order to compare and contrast both.
According to Keys, Nicomachean ethics is a philosophical inquiry to the nature of
human’s good life. Nicomachean ethics is considered as one of the most influential books with
classic wisdom. Aristotle presents the way to achieve happiness, the goal of every man.
According to Aristotle, all human activities are done in order to attain something that is certainly
good and brings happiness. No action is performed if one thinks it will be bad for them. Among
these, most activities are not the primary objective however they are means to a higher end.
Therefore, the action is the end in itself is the highest good, where the highest good is happiness.
Since humans only aim at happiness, it is the greatest mission. According to Prior, considering

the greatest mission, Aristotle offers lessons on the significant aspects of human life that help in
achieving the greatest mission such as wealth, money, the middle ground, justice and friendship.
According to Aristotle, good are the supreme goal of life and the main purpose of life. He
distinguishes between three types of happiness setting priority to each one. Money is not and
cannot b the end of life according to Aristotle, and he sets a middle ground where anything
access is dangerous. He highlights the two aspects of justice, individual and global justice where
both are significant to society. Lastly, he empathises on the most necessary for life, friendship.
The Athenian philosopher, Plato was an advocator of knowledge and reasons and is
known widely as the founder of the Platonist school of thought. According to Blenkinsop and
Beeman, the Allegory of the cave is a story that coveys an important message that lead to
happiness. The allegory is a story about three prisoners who have always been in prison and
never seen the outside world. The three people used by Plato in the story is a representation of
common people who commonly make the mistake of gaining knowledge through senses. There
was only a part of the prison where the prisoners would a glimpse of the outer world in shadows.
Also, since they were tied in upside down, they would see the shadows upside down on the stone
wall. Since the three prisoners never saw the world outside the prison, they would perceive the
outer world from the shadows. They would play games of guessing the objects passing shadows.
One of the prisoners escaped the prison, and after he was exposed to the outer world, he was
surprised to the world in an entirely different condition. After seeing the world in real condition,
his intellectual journey begins, and he understands that all these years of guessing the outer
world have been meaningless. He started following his new world and began exploring the world
with each discovery (Wicks). When he returned to the prison, he explained to the other prisoners.
However, they did not believe him and even threatened to kill him if he tried changing their

perception. Through this storey, Plato showed the importance of philosophical reasoning. Until
knowledge is not reasoned or criticised, it remains the only opinion.
According to Nielsen, both thinkers have presented theories that are associated with
human lives. They focus on the main elements of life. While Plato manifested his philosophy
through the form of a story, Aristotle explained in details in different books. Both thinkers have
aimed to the same concept in different ways. While Nicomachean ethics focus on various aspects
of life that can help humans to get happiness, the allegory of the cave is a story that leads
towards happiness. A person will certainly be exposed to real knowledge when it is reasoned and
critically though. The escaped prisoner was able to move out of the cave and get enlightened
while the other prisoners believed their sensory knowledge. According to Edel, in the
Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle discusses various elements such as friendship, justice, money and
other related. The process of the two thinkers differs on their approach to making their
philosophy understand. Nicomachean ethics present ethical ways of living life stating ethics as
the most important factor of human life. Both the philosophers believe in the potential of
reasoning, and they both believe virtues should the guiding principles. Also, more than
theoretical philosophy it is the practical philosophy that is important where vital part is not
knowing but acting.
As discussed, great thinkers have made a tremendous contribution to human society. The
philosophies discusses above are certainly of major significance. Both the philosophers, Aristole
and Plato have manifested ways to lead a happy human life. As discussed above, the major goal
of human life is to find happiness. All human activities are done in order to attain something that
is certainly good and are able to bring happiness. No action is performed thinking it will be able
to have bad impact or bad result. Although the process of both the philosophers is different they

certainly hold elements that give different perception of human lives. There is major significance
of virtues, ethics and philosophical reasoning in order to live a happy life.

Work cited:
Blenkinsop, Sean, and Chris Beeman. "The Experienced Idea: Using Experiential Approaches to
Teach Philosophical Concepts." American Association of Philosophy Teachers Studies in
Pedagogy (2019).
Edel, Abraham. Aristotle and his Philosophy. Routledge, 2017.
Keys, Mary M. "Politics Pointing beyond the Polis and the Politeia: Aquinas on Natural Law and
the Common Good." Searching for the Common Good. Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft mbH
& Co. KG, 2018.
Nielsen, Karen Margrethe. "Levels of Argument: A Comparative Study of Plato’s Republic and
Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics, by Dominic Scott." (2016): 289-299.
Nightingale, Andrea. "Sight and the philosophy of vision in Classical Greece: Democritus, Plato
and Aristotle." Sight and the Ancient Senses. Routledge, 2015. 68-81.
Prior, William J. Virtue and knowledge: An Introduction to ancient Greek ethics. Routledge,
2016.
Tonnies, Ferdinand, and Charles P. Loomis. Community and society. Routledge, 2017.
Wicks, Robert. "Plato’s Conception of Time at the Foundation of Schopenhauer’s
Philosophy." Brill's Companion to German Platonism. BRILL, 2019. 192-216.