-
551 BCE
Confucius
Confucius, a Chinese teacher, writer, and philosopher, saw himself as a conduit for the imperial dynasties' theological concepts and values that came before him. Believed in the importance of ethical harmony being achieved through skillful judgment rather than rule knowledge, implying that morality should be attained through self-cultivation. -
384 BCE
Aristotle
He is one of history's most prominent and influential philosophers and instructors. His ideas and writings on metaphysics, ethics, knowledge, and method inquiry are at the heart of human thought. His influence was a result of both his writings and his success during his time. He wrote of justice as the exchange of equals for equals in the Nicomachean Ethics, and of politics as "the art of aquisition," trade, and usury as part of domestic ethics. -
René Descartes
A philosopher, mathematician, and scientist from France. During the Dutch Golden Age, he wielded enormous intellectual power and distinguished himself by opposing or seeking to undermine the ideas of those who came before him. Descartes rejects believing in everything that isn't completely certain, focusing instead on comprehending what can be known for sure. -
John Locke
He is frequently referred to as the "Father of Liberalism" because of his contributions to the development of the social contract idea. Tabula rasa (blank slate) is a concept coined by Plato to describe how the human mind is born unformed and ideas and laws are only enforced through experience. It was argued that in order for something to be true, it had to be able to withstand repeated testing. -
Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Rousseau was a writer, philosopher, and, unlike the others on this list, an opera and classical music composer. He was one of the most significant Enlightenment intellectuals and writers. He claimed that the further we stray from our "state of nature," the closer we get to "species extinction." He is credited as being an early proponent of child-centered education and advocating for an education that stresses the development of individual moral character. -
Immanuel Kant
Kant is regarded as one of the most important personalities in modern philosophy, a proponent of reason as the basis of morality and a thinker whose ideas continue to reverberate in ethical, epistemological, and political debates. He coined the term "categorical imperative," which refers to the idea that there are essentially good and moral ideals to which we all have a responsibility, and that rational people will inevitably find reason in upholding moral obligations. -
Karl Marx
Karl Marx was a philosopher, economist, and political theorist who was born in Germany. He wrote some of the most revolutionary philosophical content ever written. argued that societies grow through class conflict, which would eventually lead to capitalism's demise. Capitalism is defined as a production system in which the ruling class and the working class have inherent conflicts of interest. -
Ludwig Wittgenstein
Wittgenstein, who was born into an affluent Austrian family, is one of philosophy's more colorful and odd figures; he wrote a great deal yet only published a single manuscript. Most intellectual tension in philosophy is based on conceptual uncertainty concerning language, according to the author. Assumed that the meaning of words is predicated on our comprehension of that meaning, and that our attribution of meaning is influenced by the cultural and social structures that surround us.