This research aims to clearly reveal the purpose of physical education based on Aristotle's sports philosophy.
According to Aristotle, the objective of physical education is to maintain and improve health. This suggests a theoretical background for t...
This research aims to clearly reveal the purpose of physical education based on Aristotle's sports philosophy.
According to Aristotle, the objective of physical education is to maintain and improve health. This suggests a theoretical background for the so-called "health first" phenomenon these days. That is, Aristotle emphasizes the body as living matter as he believes form cannot be practical without matter. He sees physical health, one of the conditions for human happiness, is possible only though physical education.
Also, Aristotle maintains that the aim of physical education is to raise courage.
He understands that courage, the middle-path feeling between fear and easiness, can be brought up through physical education. In particular, he holds that youngsters with no physical education can fall vulgar and mean.
In sum, Aristotle considers that man's spirit and body are both affected by physical education, which serves as a theoretical background for the discipline of physical education. Therefore, Aristotle's sports philosophy makes us realize that physical education is not a secondary study, but a main academic research which has begun with the humankind and contributed a lot to human happiness.