Tout art et toute investigation, et pareillement toute action et tout choix tendent vers quelque bien, a ce qu'il semble. Aussi a-t-on declare avec raison que le Bien est ce a quoi toutes choses tendent. Mais on observe, en fait, une certaine difference entre les fins: les unes consistent dans des activites, et les autres dans certaines oeuvres, distinctes des activites elles-memes. Et la ou existent certaines fins distinctes des actions, dans ces cas-la, les oeuvres sont par nature superieures aux (...) activites qui les produisent. [...]. Si donc il y a, de nos activites, quelque fin que nous souhaitons par elle-meme, [...] il est clair que cette fin-la ne saurait etre que le bien, le Souverain Bien.. (shrink)

Since the Middle Ages, Aristotle has been hailed as the father of economics. But recently classicists have maintained that he did no economics at all. This book clears up the anomaly. The author argues that Aristotle had a theory of money and commerce, but that it is ethical rather than economic. According to Aristotle ethics and economics are fundamentally opposed and can never be reconciled.

Originally published in 1949. This meticulously researched book presents a comprehensive outline and discussion of Aristotle’s mathematics with the author's translations of the greek. To Aristotle, mathematics was one of the three theoretical sciences, the others being theology and the philosophy of nature. Arranged thematically, this book considers his thinking in relation to the other sciences and looks into such specifics as squaring of the circle, syllogism, parallels, incommensurability of the diagonal, angles, universal proof, gnomons, infinity, agelessness of the universe, (...) surface of water, meteorology, metaphysics and mechanics such as levers, rudders, wedges, wheels and inertia. The last few short chapters address ‘problems’ that Aristotle posed but couldn’t answer, related ethics issues and a summary of some short treatises that only briefly touch on mathematics. (shrink)