De anima (On the Soul (Readings Classics)

In De Anima (On the Soul), Aristotle turns his attention to one of philosophy's most enduring questions: what is it that makes a living being alive? Rejecting myth and speculation, he develops a systematic account of the soul as the organising principle of life, examining sensation, perception, memory, imagination and intellect with remarkable precision.

His analysis extends from plants and animals to the distinctive capacities of the human mind, laying the foundations for centuries of inquiry into psychology, biology and metaphysics. Combining empirical observation with philosophical argument, De Anima reveals Aristotle at his most original and penetrating.

More than two millennia after its composition, it continues to inform debates on consciousness, cognition and the relationship between mind and body, securing its place among the defining works of Western philosophy.