Philosophers and their Respective Philosophies

JEAN-FRANÇOIS LYOTARD (1924–1998)

1924 BCE

French philosopher Jean-François Lyotard once said, "Scientific knowledge is a type of speech." Often to his dismay, The Postmodern Condition from 1979 is his most well-known work. 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.

GEORG WILHELM FRIEDRICH HEGEL (1770–1831)

1770 BCE

Hegel was a German philosopher and the leading proponent of German idealism. He described himself as "too fair to adore, too heavenly to love." Hegel essentially believes that human civilizations develop in a similar manner to how an argument might. Furthermore, he held the view that we only have access to our minds' notions of the world—images, perceptions, and concepts—and that we do not directly perceive the world or anything in it.

IMMANUEL KANT (1724–1804)

1724 BCE

"Science is arranged learning. Immanuel Kant, a German philosopher and a key figure in the Enlightenment, once said, "Wisdom is structured life. 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.

THOMAS HOBBES (1588–1679)

1588 BCE

Hobbes is best renowned for his political ideas, and with good reason—"Words are the money of idiots." His main focus is the issue of social and political order, namely how people can coexist peacefully without running the risk of or being afraid of armed confrontation. According to a positivist perspective, laws are legitimate because they are enacted by a legal authority and recognized by society, not because they were derived from natural law.

THALES OF MILETUS (620 BC–546 BC)

620 BCE

The prominent pre-Socratic and Ancient Greek philosopher Thales of Miletus once said, "The past is certain, the future unclear." He was recognized historically as one of the fabled Seven Wise Men, or Sophoi, of antiquity. His water-based cosmology, which depicted Earth as a flat disk floating in a vast sea, is what most people remember him for. Thales' theories were innovative and daring, and by removing supernatural explanations from observations, he helped to advance science.

SOCRATES (469 BC–399 BC)

469 BCE

Socrates, a classical Greek (Athenian) philosopher often regarded as the father of Western Philosophy, once said, "A life without inquiry is not worth living." 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.

PLATO (428 BC–348 BC)

428 BCE

Plato was a philosopher in classical Greece and the founder of the Academy in Athens, which is regarded as the first university in the Western world. He once said, "Never discourage someone who consistently makes progress, no matter how slow." When it comes to virtue and human fulfillment, Plato's philosophy is concerned with how people try to live happy lives.

ARISTOTLE (384 BC–322 BC)

384 BCE

Aristotle was regarded as one of the most influential philosophers who made a significant contribution to logic, mathematics, ethics, etc. He said, "The law is reason, free from passion." Aristotle stated that virtues are beneficial habits we adopt, which regulate our emotions. In contrast to Plato, he did not view virtues as being merely knowledge. He characterized it as something that should be done by behaving in accordance with nature and with moderation.