Alexander of Aphrodisias
ancientPeripatetic150 – 215
Alexander of Aphrodisias (fl. c. 200 CE) was a Greek philosopher and head of the Peripatetic school in Athens, revered in antiquity as 'The Commentator' for his authoritative expositions of Aristotle. He defended a thoroughgoing naturalism, arguing that the soul is a functional property of the body rather than a separable substance, and produced influential treatments of fate, providence, and the problem of universals that shaped both late ancient and medieval philosophy.
Notable Achievements
1
Produced the most authoritative ancient commentaries on Aristotle's logical, physical, and metaphysical works, earning the title 'The Commentator'
2
Defended a materialist account of the soul as the body's functional disposition (De Anima), opposing Platonist dualism
3
Argued for a compatibilist theory of fate and moral responsibility in De Fato
4
Developed an influential realist position on universals as properties immanent in particulars
5
Appointed to the Athenian chair of Peripatetic philosophy under emperors Septimius Severus or Caracalla