The lagoon - BookWyrm

501 pages

English language

Published Oct. 10, 2014

ISBN:: 978-0-670-02674-6
OCLC Number:: 870919602

(2 reviews)

A brilliant study of Aristotle as biologist

The philosophical classics of Aristotle loom large over the history of Western thought, but the subject he most loved was biology. He wrote vast volumes about animals. He described them, classified them, told us where and how they live and how they develop in the womb or in the egg. He founded a science. It can even be said that he founded science itself.

In The Lagoon , acclaimed biologist Armand Marie Leroi recovers Aristotle’s science. He revisits Aristotle’s writings and the places where he worked. He goes to the eastern Aegean island of Lesbos to see the creatures that Aristotle saw, where he saw them. He explores Aristotle’s observations, his deep ideas, his inspired guesses—and the things he got wildly wrong. He shows how Aristotle’s science is deeply intertwined with his philosophical system and reveals that he was not only the first …

A brilliant study of Aristotle as biologist

The philosophical classics of Aristotle loom large over the history of Western thought, but the subject he most loved was biology. He wrote vast volumes about animals. He described them, classified them, told us where and how they live and how they develop in the womb or in the egg. He founded a science. It can even be said that he founded science itself.

In The Lagoon , acclaimed biologist Armand Marie Leroi recovers Aristotle’s science. He revisits Aristotle’s writings and the places where he worked. He goes to the eastern Aegean island of Lesbos to see the creatures that Aristotle saw, where he saw them. He explores Aristotle’s observations, his deep ideas, his inspired guesses—and the things he got wildly wrong. He shows how Aristotle’s science is deeply intertwined with his philosophical system and reveals that he was not only the first biologist, but also one of the greatest.

The Lagoon is both a travelogue and a study of the origins of science. And it shows how a philosopher who lived almost two millennia ago still has so much to teach us today.

3 editions

markm reviewed The lagoon by Armand Marie Leroi

Review of 'The lagoon' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

A lengthy, detailed, and fascinating examination of the life and works of Aristotle with the position that Aristotle was the first scientist, and that since his proposed mechanisms (see the brilliant appendices) haven't aged well, his thoughts and techniques have been unjustly ignored or belittled.
This alone would be sufficient for me, but there are many interesting associated ideas here including the detective work necessary to locate Aristotle's workplace in Lesbos and to determine which animals he is referring to, the discussions of Aristotle's relationship to Darwin, the history and philosophy of biological taxonomy, some comparative anatomy to explain the source of Aristotle's classifications, some embryology, and some animal physiology and evolutionary biology to explain Aristotle's discussion of the relationship among animal size, longevity, and fecundity. As a seeming bonus we also read the author's comments on Aristotle's theory of the structure of the universe and his views on human …

A lengthy, detailed, and fascinating examination of the life and works of Aristotle with the position that Aristotle was the first scientist, and that since his proposed mechanisms (see the brilliant appendices) haven't aged well, his thoughts and techniques have been unjustly ignored or belittled.
This alone would be sufficient for me, but there are many interesting associated ideas here including the detective work necessary to locate Aristotle's workplace in Lesbos and to determine which animals he is referring to, the discussions of Aristotle's relationship to Darwin, the history and philosophy of biological taxonomy, some comparative anatomy to explain the source of Aristotle's classifications, some embryology, and some animal physiology and evolutionary biology to explain Aristotle's discussion of the relationship among animal size, longevity, and fecundity. As a seeming bonus we also read the author's comments on Aristotle's theory of the structure of the universe and his views on human society – including whether all modern battles over inequality ultimately turn on the question of whether "natural slaves" exist and, if so, how to distinguish them from "legal slaves".
------------------------------------------------
Words of interest include apophthegm (an aphorism, and Grammarly recommends spelling it apothegm), and although I knew that chorion and cotyledon came from the Greek, I did not know that they came so directly from the Greek.
Interesting quotes include Bertrand Russell Aristotle was the first man to write like a professor,
and Borges It has been said that all men are born either Aristotelians or Platonists.
I also liked the author's That the physical theory is wrong is irrelevant; in the long run, all physical theories are. and to be reminded of the expressions Natura non facit saltum (that Darwin liked), and the origin of virtus dormitiva.

LemonSky

rated it

April 13, 2021

Subjects

Biology
Philosophy
History