Western Culture and the Arabic Culture - Essay Example

The knowledge of the Greeks, which was passed down to the Romans, would have been doomed to oblivion. However, due to the Arabs’ study of Greek knowledge and their distance from the effects of Rome’s downfall, many of the Greek studies in the humanities, sciences, and mathematics were saved. In the study of humanities, the Arabs were able to keep texts of philosophy in reference to renowned Greek philosophers Plato and Aristotle. Arab scholars such as Ibn-Sina or Avicenna and Ibn Rushd or Averroes were able to preserve the philosophical teachings of Aristotle and Plato with their own understanding and interpretation of their philosophical concepts.

This led to the development of Neoplatonism and Aristotelianism, which later on was adopted by Christian monk-philosophers like Augustine of Hippo and Thomas of Aquinas. Western philosophy was possible due to the Arab preservation of Greek classical philosophy as the Roman Empire dissolved by the barbarian invasions and onslaught.