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520 BCE
Confucius, The Golden Rule
Confucius, a Chinese teacher, writer, and philosopher, saw himself as a channel for the imperial dynasties' theological concepts and values that came before him. He established his own Golden Rule: "Do not impose on others what you do not wish for yourself." The Golden Rule is a principle that business leaders can teach their teams about how to respect and treat each other well and it expects us to be fair, honest, generous, kind and all those things that are good according to ethical tradition. -
470 BCE
Socrates, Creator of Western Philosophy
Socrates is an essential inclusion on this list because to his status as the fundamental creator of Western Philosophy, yet he is unique among entrants on this list in that he produced no written works representing his fundamental ideas or concepts. Thus, the body of his thoughts and ideas is left to be deciphered through the works of his two most prominent students, Plato and Xenophon, as well as to the legions of historians and critics who have written on him since. -
427 BCE
Plato, Eudaemonistic Conception of Ethics
Plato was an Athenian philosopher who founded the Platonist school of thought and the Academy, the first institution of higher learning in the Western world, during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. Plato, like most other ancient philosophers, believes in a virtue-based eudaemonistic ethics. To put it another way, happiness (eudaimonia) is the highest goal of moral thought and behavior, while virtues are the necessary abilities and dispositions to achieve it. -
340 BCE
Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics
Born in the northern part of ancient Greece, Aristotle is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential thinkers and teachers in human history, and is often referred to as the "Father of Western Philosophy" alongside his mentor, Plato. Aristotle concludes in his Nicomachean Ethics that the responsibility of the leader is to create an atmosphere in which all members of an organization can realize their full potential. -
327 BCE
Zeno of Citium, Stoicism
Zeno of Citium was a Hellenistic philosopher of Phoenician origin who lived in Citium, Cyprus. Stoicism was a philosophical school that flourished in Greek and Roman antiquity. It was one of the most lofty and sublime ideologies in Western civilization's history. Stoics have always held that the objective of all inquiry, in encouraging engagement in human events, is to produce a method of conduct marked by mental serenity and conviction of moral worth. -
280 BCE
Epicurus, Ethical Hedonism
An ancient greek philosopher and sage who created Epicureanism, a highly influencial philosophical school. He was born on the Greek island of Samos. Epicurus is a significant figure in the history of science and philosophy. He is well-known for his theory of hedonism. According to hedonism, we are motivated solely by pleasure or suffering. Ethical or evaluative hedonism claims that only pleasure has worth or value, whereas suffering or displeasure has disvalue or the reverse of worth. -
1256
Thomas Aquinas, Christian Theology and Aristotelian Philosophy
Thomas Aquinas was a Dominican friar, theologian, and Doctor of the Church. He created a complete synthesis of Christian theology and Aristotelian philosophy that affected Roman Catholic thought for decades, eventually becoming the church's official philosophy. He claimed that God is the source of both natural and faith-based illumination. His ideas influenced much of modern philosophy, especially in the domains of ethics, natural law, metaphysics, and political theory. -
René Descartes, Cartesian Dualism
Descartes, a French philosopher, mathematician, and physicist, was born in France but spent the first 20 years of his life in the Dutch Republic. His idea on the separation of the intellect and the body, known as Cartesian dualism, influenced contemporary Western philosophies. Descartes endeavored to demonstrate the existence of God and the separation between the human soul and the body in Meditations on First Philosophy. -
David Hume, Naturalistic Science of a Man
A historian, economist, and philosopher of Scottish origin. He aimed to develop a "naturalistic science of man" that delved into the psychological circumstances that define human nature. Hume argued against moral absolutes, instead positing that our ethical behavior and treatment of others is forced by emotion, sentiment, and internal passions, and that we are influenced to engage in positive activities by the likelihood of favorable consequences. -
Immanuel Kant, Deontology
Kant, who was born in Prussia is considered as one of the most important characters in contemporary philosophy, an advocate of reason as the basis of morality, and a thinker whose views continue to pervade ethical, epistemological, and political discourse. The belief that there are essentially good and moral ideals to which we all have a duty, and that rational humans will inherently find reason in adhering to moral obligation, is defined by him as the “categorical imperative.” -
Ralph Waldo Emerson, Ethics of Authenticity
Ralph Waldo Emerson, a Boston-born writer, philosopher, and poet, is often regarded as the founder of the transcendentalist movement. This was a uniquely American philosophical perspective that rejected the pressures of society, consumerism, and organized religion in favor of individuality, independence, and a personal emphasis on the soul's interaction with the surrounding natural environment. -
Jeremy Bentham, Utilitarianism
The philosopher whose name is most strongly connected with the foundational age of the contemporary utilitarian school is Jeremy Bentham, a lawyer and political reformer. He is the founder of modern utilitarianism which is an ethical theory that holds that actions are morally right if they tend to promote happiness or pleasure among all individuals who are affected by them (and morally wrong if they tend to promote unhappiness or suffering). -
Henry Sidgwick, Ethical Egoism
Henry Sidgwick was an English philosopher and author best known for his forthright ethical philosophy based on Utilitarianism and his Methods of Ethics. Every ethical philosophy endorses some activities and forbids others. In this scenario, ethical egoism suggests considering one's own (long-term) self-interest. It also states that we have a moral obligation to avoid being concerned about others if by doing so it does not further out own interests. -
John Rawls, Veil of Ignorance
John Rawls was an American political philosopher in the liberal tradition. Rawls recommends seeing yourself in an original position behind a veil of ignorance. You know nothing about yourself, your innate abilities, or your place in society behind this curtain. Individuals are merely characterized as rational, free, and morally equal beings under such a veil of ignorance.