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620 BCE
THALES OF MILETUS (620 BCE–546 BCE)
“The past is certain, the future obscure.” Greek philosopher Thales of Miletus, who lived before Socrates, was significant. He was well-known historically for being one of the fabled Sophoi, or Seven Wise Men, of antiquity. His water-based cosmology, which depicted the Earth as a flat disk floating in a great sea, is what people most often recall about him. With his innovative and daring speculations, Thales helped to advance science by removing supernatural explanations from natural events. -
469 BCE
SOCRATES (469 BCE–399 BCE)
“An unexamined life is not worth living.” Socrates was an ancient Greek philosopher from Athens who is regarded as the father of Western philosophy. His most famous works are the dialogues of Plato, which have made a significant impact on the study of ethics and education. Although he did not claim to know it personally, he felt that virtue could be known and that those who conduct badly only do so because they are unaware of or misunderstand the true nature of virtue. -
428 BCE
PLATO (428 BCE–348 BCE)
“Never discourage anyone who continually makes progress, no matter how slow.” Greek Philosopher Plato founded the Academy in Athens, which is regarded as the first university in Western World. He was also the founder of the Academy in classical Greece. The way humans attempt to live happy lives is addressed in Plato's Philosophy of virtues and human fulfillment. According to Plato, a wise person applies what he learns about moral truth to his daily life after using the mind to grasp it. -
384 BCE
ARISTOTLE (384 BCE–322 BCE)
“The law is reason, free from passion.” Aristotle is one the most important philosophers, he made significant contributions to logic, mathematics, ethics, and other fields. According to Aristotle, virtues are constructive habits we develop that control our emotions . In contrast to Plato, he did not view virtues as being merely knowledge. He described it as something that ought to be carried out by acting moderately and in accordance with nature. -
THOMAS HOBBES (1588 BCE–1679 BCE)
“Words are the money of fools.” Hobbes is most well-known for his political philosophy, and for good reason. His main focus is the issue of social and political order: how people can coexist peacefully and reduce the risk and anxiety associated with armed conflict. According to a positivist perspective, laws are legitimate not because they were derived from natural law but rather because they were established by a legal authority and recognized as such by society. -
IMMANUEL KANT (1724 –1804)
“Science is organized knowledge. Wisdom is organized life.” German philosopher Immanuel Kant was a key figure in the Enlightenment. He contends that human reason provides the moral law, which serves as the foundation for our belief in God, freedom, and immortality, and that human understanding is the source of the fundamental natural laws that govern all of our experiences. One of the most important figures in contemporary Western philosophy is Kant. -
GEORG WILHELM FRIEDRICH HEGEL (1770 –1831)
“Too fair to worship, too divine to love.”German philosopher Hegel is regarded as the leading representative of German idealism. Hegel essentially believes that human civilizations develop in a similar manner to how an argument might. -
JEAN-FRANÇOIS LYOTARD (1924 –1998)
“Scientific knowledge is a kind of discourse.” French philosopher Jean-François Lyotard is most recognized for his 1979 book The Postmodern Condition, much to his dismay. Lyotard maintained that events constantly take place in the face of what is not presentable to a phenomenology, discourse, language game, or phrase regimen, starting with his early work on phenomenology and continuing through Discourse, Figure, Libidinal Economy, and The Postmodern Condition.