ALEXANDER OF APHRODISIAS, pupil of Aristocles of Messene, Greek commentator on the writings of Aristotle, and styled, by way of pre-eminence, 4777w-* ("the expositor"), was a native of Aphrodisias in Caria. He came to Athens towards the end of the 2nd century A.D., became head of the Lyceum and lectured on peripatetic philosophy. The object of his work was to free the doctrine from the syncretism of Ammonius and to re produce the pure doctrine of Aristotle. Commentaries by Alex ander on the following works of Aristotle are still extant : The Analytica Priora,i.; the Topica; the Meteorologica; the De Sensu; and the Metaphysica, i.—v., together with an abridgment of what he wrote on the remaining books of the Metaphysica. The most important of Alexander's other extant works are On Fate, in which he argues against the Stoic doctrine of necessity; and On the Soul, in which he contends that the undeveloped reason in man is material (vois ALK6s) and inseparable from the body. He argued strongly against the doctrine of immortality. He identified the active intellect (van 7mm-was), through whose agency the poten tial intellect in man becomes actual, with God.
Several of Alexander's works were published in the Aldine edition of Aristotle (Venice, 1495-98) ; his De Fato and De Anima were printed along with the works of Themistius at Venice (1534) ; the former work, which has been translated into Latin by Grotius and also by Schulthess, was edited by J. C. Orelli (Ziirich, 1824) ; and his commentaries on the Metaphysica by H. Bonitz (Berlin, 1847)• J. Nourisson has treated of his doctrine of fate, De la liberte et du hazard (Paris, 187o).
See PERIPATETICS (ad fin.) ; ALEXANDRISTS ; POMPONAZZI, PIETRO ; also A. Apelt, "Die Schrift d. Alex. v. Aphr. " Philologus, xlv. (1886) ; C. Ruelle, "Alex. d'Aphr. et le pretendu 'Alex. d'Alexandrie," Rev. des etudes grecques, v. (1892) ; E. Zeller's Outlines of Gk. Phil. (Eng. trans. ed. 19o5. p. 296).