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ANCIENT GREEK PHILOSOPHERS
The twenty most known ancient Greek philosophers and their contributions to philosophy.
THE PRE-SOCRATICS
Thales
Milesian school
(c.624-546 BCE)
Anaximander
Milesian school
(c.610-546 BCE)
Anaximenes
Milesian school
(c.585-528 BCE)
Pythagoras
Pythagorianism
(570-495 BCE)
Parmenides
Eleatic school
(c. early 500's
BCE)
Heraclitus
Ephesian school
(c.535-475 BCE)
Zeno of
EleaEleatic
school
(c.490-430
BCE)
Thales is usually considered to be the first philosopher as well as 'the
father of science' as he was the first to try to explain things in nature
without relying on mythology. He was the first of three major figures in
the Milesian school, all of whom felt that one single substance was the
source of all things. According to Thales, that one substance was water.
Anaximander was a student of Thales and the second major figure in the
Milesian school. He believed that the single substance that was the
source of all things was an endless, unlimited substance called apeiron.
Anaximenes was a student of Anaximander and the third major figure in
the Milesian school. He believed that air was the single substance that
was the source of all things
Although little is known of the historical figure, Pythagoras is considered
to be the founder of the mystical/religious movement that bears his
name. He made important contributions to the field of mathematics, the
most famous of which is the Pythagorean theorem. He also believed in
reincarnation or the Transmigration of the Soul.
The founder of the Eleatic school, Parmenides believed that All is One,
that everything that exists has always existed, and that nothing ever
really changes. He felt that this conclusion, based on reason alone, was
correct and that our senses, which tell us otherwise, are ultimately
unreliable.
Unlike Parmenides, Heraclitus believed that everything is in a constant
state of change and that are sense are generally reliable. A melancholy
and obscure man, he is often portrayed as the "weeping philosopher".
A student of Parmenides, Zeno is most famous for his paradoxes, the most
famous of which is known as Achilles and the tortoise.
Empedocles
Pluralist
school
(c.490-430
BCE)
Anaxagoras
Pluralist
school
(c.500-428
BCE)
Protagoras
Sophist
(c.490-420
BCE)
Democritus
Atomist
school
(c.460-370
BCE)
Empedocles introduced the concept of four fundamental elements (fire,
air, earth & water), instead of just one -- an idea that persisted until
modern times.
Anaxagoras, a member of the pluralist school, was the first to bring
philosophy to Athens, where it later flourished in the hands of Socrates,
Plato and Aristotle.
Protagoras was one of the first sophists -- 'practical' philosophers who
taught the wealthy for money. He is most famous for his saying, "Man is
the measure of all things".
Democritus, together with his teacher Leucippus, is usually credited with
developing atomism -- the idea that everything in nature is made up of
indivisible elements called atoms. This theory reconciled Parmenides'
concept of nothing changing (because the atoms themselves don't change)
with Heraclitus' idea of constant change (because it is the way in which the
atoms are arranged that changes). He is often referred to as the laughing
philosopher.
THE THREE GREATEST GREEK PHILOSOPHERS
Socrates
Athens
(c.469399 BCE)
Plato
Athens
(428-327
BCE)
Aristotle
Athens
(c.384322
BCE2)
Socrates is remembered more for how he taught than for what he taught. He
liked to appear ignorant and ask a lot of questions, thus helping people to find
answers on their own -- a technique that became known as the Socratic
Method. He is also remembered for his death. Accused of corrupting youth
and disbelieving in the gods, he was sentenced to commit suicide by drinking
poison, Hemlock. Socrates left behind no writings and everything we know
about him is based on what Plato and his other students wrote.
A student of Socrates, Plato founded The Academy in Athens and became one
of the greatest figures in the entire history of philosophy. He believed in the
existence of ideal forms, residing beyond the physical world and known by
reason alone, upon which our world of senses is based. He expressed this
theory most clearly in his famous piece "The Myth of the Cave".
A student of Plato, Aristotle is perhaps the most influential of all the ancient
Greek philosophers. He is famous for his empirical approach to studying
nature, his theory of four causes (material, formal, efficient and final), and his
development of formal logic. He was also a tutor for Alexander the Great.
THE POST-SOCRATICS
Aristippus
Aristippus was the founder of Cyrenaicism, an ultra-hedonist philosophy
that encouraged people to get as much pleasure as possible out of life.
Cyrenaicism
(c.435-356
BCE)
Diogenes
Cynicism
(c.412-323
BCE)
Pyrrho
Skepticism
(c.360-270
BCE)
Epicurus
Epicureanism
(c.341-270
BCE)
Zeno of
Citium
Diogenes was one of the founders of Cynicism, a philosophy that, in
opposition to Cyrenaicism, rejected the desire for wealth and luxury and
encouraged a simple life, free from possessions, instead. Diogenes is
remembered for his theatrics such as walking around with a lamp during
the day proclaiming that he was looking for an honest man and for
responding to Alexander the Great's question, "What can I do for you?"
with "Move, because you're blocking my sun."
Pyrrho was an ultimate skeptic in that he believed it was impossible to
actually know anything for certain. He therefore recommended that
people suspend judgment on philosophical matters and simply focus on
more practical matters instead.
Influenced by Cyrenaicism, Epicurus saw pleasure and pain as the
measures of good and evil. Epicureans therefore tried their best to enjoy
life by aiming for as much happiness and as little suffering as possible. Eat,
drink, for tomorrow we die.
Zeno was the founder of Stoicism, a philosophy that developed out of
Cynicism and encourages people to use their free will to repress emotions
and simply be at peace with whatever nature throws their way. Fatalistic.
Stoicism
(c.334-262
BCE)
Plotinus
Neoplatonism
(204-270 CE)
Plotinus is considered the founder of Neoplatonism, a pantheistic and
mystical philosophy that emphasizes how everything is really part of "the
One" and that there really is no dualism (e.g. - darkness does not exist by
itself; it is simply the absence of light).