A Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology. By various writers. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

832 ARISTOTELES.
as the first sketch of an uncompleted work; others,
as an extract from a larger work; others again, as
the notes, taken by some hearer, of lectures delivered by Aristotle. Thus much, however, is clear,
that the treatise, as we have it at present, is an
independent whole, and, with the exception of a
few interpolations, the work of one author. Farther,
that the lost work 7r-pl oroTr&,cv, a history of the
literature of poetry, must not be confounded with
the Poetics, to which it stands in the same relation
as the Polities do to the Politics., As regards the
contents of the Poetics, Aristotle, like Plato, starts
from the principle of the imitation, or imitative representation (tioles), either of a real object existing in the external world, or of one produced by
the internal power of imagination. It is in accordance with this view that the different species of
art generally, and of poetry in particular, assume
their definite forms. The activity of art is distinguished from practical activity in this respect:
that in the case of the former the exercise of the
creative faculty, the production of a work, is the
main thing; and that the internal condition, the
disposition, of the person who exercises this creative faculty, is a matter of indifference. The
greatest part of the treatise (cc. 6-22) contains a
theory of tragedy; nothing else is treated of, with
the exception of the epos; comedy is merely alluded to. The best editions of the work are by
Gottf. Hermann, Lips. 1802, with philological and
philosophical (Kantian) explanations; Gritfenhan,
Lips. 1821, an ill-arranged compilation; Bekker,
Berol. 1832, 8vo.; and Ritter, Colon. 1839,
8vo. Ritter considers two-thirds of the Poetics
to consist of the interpolations of a later and
extremely silly editor; but his opinion has been
almost universally rejected in Germany. As
explanatory writings, besides Lessing's Hamburgische Dramaturgie, we need mention only
MUller, Gesch. der Theorie der Kunst bei den Alten,
pt. ii. pp. 1-181, and the German translation by
Knebel, Stuttgart, 1840.
2. The Rhetoric (Tvixn pjropc4), in three
books. Aristotle, in accordance with his method,
as we have already observed in the case of the
Physics, Politics, and Poetics, before proceeding to
lay down a theory of rhetoric, prepared a safe
foundation by means of extensive studies. These
studies gave rise to a separate historical work
(entitled c'EXv&cWV avaOywy), in which he collected
all the earlier theories of the rhetoricians from
Tisias and Corax onwards. From the latter work
the Aristotelian rhetoric developed itself, a work of
which, as regards its leading features, the first
sketch was drawn at an early period;-it has been
already mentioned that the first lectures and
written works of Aristotle treated of rhetoric;-it
was then carefully enlarged from time to. time,
and enriched with remarks drawn from the observation of human life and knowledge through
many years. The period of its composition is
treated of by Max. Schmidt, De tempore quo ab
Arist. libri de Arte Rhetor. conscripti et editi sint,
Halle, 1837.
Rhetoric,as a science, accordingto Aristotle, stands
side by side (dvriorpo<pov) with Dialectics. That
which alone makes a scientific treatment of rhetoric possible is the argumentation which awakens
conviction (al *ydp tricres L 'EvreX'vT CrT Idvov).
He therefore directs his chief attention to the
theory of oratorical argumentation; and the more,

ARISTOTELES.
inasmuch as earlier rhetoricians, as he says, had
treated this most important subject in an exceedingly superficial manner. The second main division of the work treats of the production of that
favourable disposition in the hearer, in consequence
of which the orator appears to him to be worthy of
credit. Yet it is not sufficient merely to know
what must be said,-one must also say this in a
proper manner, if the speech is to produce the intended effect. Therefore in the third part he
treats of oratorical expression and arrangement.
The best edition with a commentary is the one
published at Oxford, 1820, 8vo.; but a good critical
and explanatory edition is still a desideratum.
Among the writings of Aristotle we also find
3. A work on Rhetoric addressed to Alexander
('PrlTopunKrj rpas 'AAeavSpov); but it is spurious,
and should probably be ascribed to Anaximenes
of Lampsacus. Others consider its author to have
been Theodectes or Corax.
C. MISCELLANEOUS WORKS.
Among the writings which Aristotle left behind
him, there was undoubtedly a large number of
Collectanea, which had grown up under the hand
of the philosopher in the course of his extended
studies. To these writings, which were not
originally destined for publication, belong
1. The Problems (Trpofxofrara), in 36 sections,
questions on individual points in all the departments of knowledge, a treasure of the deepest and
most acute remarks, which has been far from being
properly used and sifted. A good edition is a
desideratum. (Compare Chabanon, Trois Mimnoires
sur les Problenes d'Arist. in the Mim. de l'Acad.
des Inscript. vol. xlvi. p. 285, &c., p. 326, &c.
2. OavucxdLia 'Acodeo-uara, short notices and accounts of various phaenomena, chiefly connected
with natural history, of very unequal value, and
in part manifestly not of Aristotelian origin. The
best edition is by Westermann, in his Rerun
Mirabil. script. Graeci, Bruns. 1839.
D. LETTERS.
All those which are extant are spurious: the
genuine and copious collection of Aristotle's letters,
which antiquity possessed, is lost. Those which
were arranged by Andronicus of Rhodes filled 20
books. (Pseudo-Demetrius, de Elocut. ~ 231.)
A later collection by Artemon, a learned Christian
of the third century, consisted of 8 books. (See
David, Categ. p. 24, a. 1. 27, ed. Berol.) David
(p. 22, a. 21, Berol.) praises the clear, simple,
noble style of Aristotle's letters, a description
which is quite at variance with the character of
those that are extant. Respecting Aristotle's will,
which Diog. Lairt. (v. 11-16) has preserved,
we have spoken before. [p. 321, a.]
E. POEMS AND SPEECHES.
There are preserved1. The Scolion addressed to Hermias, which we
have already mentioned. (In Ilgen, Scolia, Jenae,
1798, p. 137; Grafenhan, Aristot. poeta, Mulhusae, 1831, 4to.; Bergk, Po'itae Lyrici Graeci.)
2. Two epigrams, the one on a statue erected to
his friend Hermias, and one on an altar dedicated
to Plato.
The speeches of Aristotle which are lost, were
'A'noho'ya Eoege(as rwpbs Eipvpuilovra, of which
we have already spoken; an 'ETwitiov 7rho1Srov,