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399 BCE
socrates
Socrates believed in the importance of knowledge and wisdom and spent his life questioning others in order to better understand the world around him. He believed that knowledge was not a matter of memorizing information but of examining one's own beliefs and assumptions through critical thinking and dialogue. Socrates was known for his humility and his commitment to ethical principles, even when it meant standing up against the powerful Athenian democracy. -
347 BCE
Plato
Plato's philosophy is centered around the idea of the Forms, or abstract objects that exist outside of the physical world. According to Plato, the physical world is merely a shadow or copy of the world of Forms, which is eternal and unchanging. -
322 BCE
Aristotle
Aristotle (384 BC – 322 BC) was a Greek philosopher and scientist who lived in ancient Greece. He was a student of Plato and taught Alexander the Great. Aristotle is known for his extensive work in a wide range of fields, including metaphysics, ethics, politics, biology, and physics. -
Immanuel Kant
Kant's most famous work is his Critique of Pure Reason, in which he sought to reconcile the rationalist and empiricist traditions in philosophy by arguing that all knowledge originates in our sensory experience, but that our minds must impose certain categories and concepts on that experience in order to make sense of it. -
John Stuart Mill
In his book "On Liberty," Mill developed his famous harm principle, which states that the only legitimate reason for the state to restrict individual liberty is to prevent harm to others. He also argued that free speech and open debate were essential for the development of knowledge and the progress of society. -
Jean-Paul Sartre
Sartre's philosophy focused on the question of human existence and the meaning of life. He argued that human beings have no predetermined essence or nature, and that we are free to define ourselves through our choices and actions. Sartre believed that this freedom was both liberating and terrifying, as it placed an immense burden of responsibility on each individual. -
John Rawls
Rawls also introduced the concept of the "original position," which is a hypothetical scenario in which individuals are placed behind a "veil of ignorance" and must design a just society without knowledge of their own social status or personal characteristics. Rawls believed that this thought experiment would help to eliminate biases and prejudices, and allow individuals to arrive at a more objective understanding of justice.