Aristotle (384–322 BCE), the prolific ancient Greek philosopher and polymath, was a towering figure in the development of Western thought and science. A student of Plato and the tutor to Alexander the Great, Aristotle's intellectual endeavors spanned various disciplines including metaphysics, ethics, logic, biology, and politics. Central to his philosophy was the pursuit of knowledge, which he classified into practical, theoretical, and productive. In his seminal works such as 'Nicomachean Ethics', 'Metaphysics', 'Politics', and 'Poetics', Aristotle laid the foundation for numerous fields of study and established principles that remain influential to this day. His approach to understanding the world was empirical, emphasizing observation and experience over Plato's idealism. Aristotle's contributions to logic, with his syllogistic method, continue to underpin modern deductive reasoning. In literary theory, his 'Poetics' provides an early treatise on the nature of poetry and drama, crucial to the development of later literary criticism. The corpus of Aristotle's texts, such as those compiled in 'Yale Classics – Ancient Greek Literature', reflects the breadth of his scholarly pursuit, and his works remain essential reading in philosophy, ethics, and the sciences. Although some of his scientific theories were eventually superseded, his logical and philosophical frameworks have endured, affirming his status as one of the founding figures of Western philosophy.