Between 1509 and 1510 Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino created a fresco masterpiece designed for the Vatican entitled The School of Athens. The painting itself represents different branches of knowledge such as philosophy, theology and even literature. Most people consider The School of Athens to be Raphael's masterpiece and the epitome of the High Renaissance. My thesis for this article is to ask and understand why Raphael painted such a beautiful object and I will also look for why Michelangelo and Raphael were such rivals in a time period where I believe the Renaissance reached its peak in art, in music and in society as a whole. The background of the School of Athens falls in the center of the painting itself. It echoes signs of perspective, composition and skilful drawing. Immediately what catches the eye of the viewer or spectator is the focus on Plato and Aristotle which immediately caught my attention. I recognized Aristotle right away because I'm a big fan of his theories and knowledge since I took a philosophy class about three or four years ago at a community college....