This tradition took its cue largely from Aristotle. During the twelfth and thirteenth centuries the renewed attention to Aristotle by scholastic philosophy led to numerous attempts to incorporate the ideas of that philosopher into the fabric of Christian belief. Aristotle believed human beings were fundamentally rational and that if wise laws were enacted to punish wrongdoing and reward right then people would follow them. This view fitted in with the optimism about the human condition that gained ground in the periods of stability in medieval society, particularly during the thirteenth century.