Aristotle of Cyrene (or Aristoteles, el, Ἀριστοτέλης; fl. 325 BC) was a

Greek philosopher Ancient Greek philosophy arose in the 6th century BC, marking the end of the Greek Dark Ages. Greek philosophy continued throughout the Hellenistic period and the period in which Greece and most Greek-inhabited lands were part of the Roman Empire ...

who may have belonged to the

Cyrenaic school The Cyrenaics or Kyrenaics ( grc, Κυρηναϊκοί, Kyrēnaïkoí), were a sensual hedonist Greek school of philosophy founded in the 4th century BCE, supposedly by Aristippus of Cyrene, although many of the principles of the school are belie ...

. He was a native of Cyrene, and a contemporary of

Stilpo Stilpo (or Stilpon; el, Στίλπων, gen.: Στίλπωνος; c. 360 – c. 280 BC) was a Greek philosopher of the Megarian school. He was a contemporary of Theophrastus, Diodorus Cronus, and Crates of Thebes. None of his writings survive, b ...

. He taught

Cleitarchus Cleitarchus or Clitarchus ( el, Κλείταρχος) was one of the historians of Alexander the Great. Son of the historian Dinon of Colophon, he spent a considerable time at the court of Ptolemy Lagus. He was active in the mid to late 4th centu ...

and Simmias of Syracuse before they became pupils of Stilpo. It has generally been assumed that Aristotle was a member of the

, but this assumption is somewhat doubtful. According to

Diogenes Laërtius Diogenes Laërtius ( ; grc-gre, Διογένης Λαέρτιος, ; ) was a biographer of the Ancient Greece, Greek philosophers. Nothing is definitively known about his life, but his surviving ''Lives and Opinions of Eminent Philosophers'' is a ...

, he wrote a work on the art of

poetry Poetry (derived from the Greek ''poiesis'', "making"), also called verse, is a form of literature that uses aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language − such as phonaesthetics, sound symbolism, and metre − to evoke meanings i ...

. The only aspect of his philosophical views which is known is a short piece of ethical advice preserved by

Aelian Aelian or Aelianus may refer to: * Aelianus Tacticus, Greek military writer of the 2nd century, who lived in Rome * Casperius Aelianus, Praetorian Prefect, executed by Trajan * Claudius Aelianus, Roman writer, teacher and historian of the 3rd centu ...

Aristoteles of Cyrene said that you should not accept a favor from anyone. For either you have trouble if you try to pay it back, or you appear to be ungrateful if you don't.

An athlete of the same period called Aristotle of Cyrene, who spurned the love of Lais, is mentioned in a moral anecdote by

Clement of Alexandria Titus Flavius Clemens, also known as Clement of Alexandria ( grc , Κλήμης ὁ Ἀλεξανδρεύς; – ), was a Christian theologian and philosopher who taught at the Catechetical School of Alexandria. Among his pupils were Origen and ...

.Clement of Alexandria, ''Stromata'', iii. 6. 50-51

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References

* * * {{AncientGreece-philosopher-stub 4th-century BC Greek philosophers Ancient Greek ethicists Cyrenaic philosophers Hellenistic-era philosophers from Africa Classical Greek philosophers