PHILOSOPHERS

Thales of Miletus

(c. 624 - 546 B.C.)

First philosopher in the Western tradition.

Define the substance or substances of which all material objects were composed,
which he identified as water.

Anaximander
(c. 610 - 546 B.C.)
Student of Thales
Considered to be the first true scientist, and to have
conducted the earliest recorded scientific experiment,
founder of astronomy, and he tried to observe and explain
different aspects of the universe and its origins, and to
describe the mechanics of celestial bodies in relation to the
Earth.
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Anaximenes of Miletus

(c. 586 – c. 526 BC)

Air is the arche

The Universe is in constant motion
Matter changes through rarefaction and condensation

First revolutionary thinkers of the Western world

Best known and identified as a younger friend or student of Anaximander

Pythagoras of Samos[a] (c. 570 – c. 495 BC)[b]

Pythagoreans used mathematics for solely mystical reasons, devoid of practical application. [123] They
believed that all things were made of numbers.

he was the first man to call himself a philosopher ("lover of wisdom")[c] and that he was the first to
divide the globe into five climatic zones.

Heraclitus of Ephesus

540 BC- 480 BC

Discerned in the cosmic process a logos analogous to the reasoning power in man.

Heraclitus as the "weeping philosopher"

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Parmenides (515 BCE)

Parmenides' great contribution to philosophy was the method of reasoned proof for
assertions.

Parmenides began his argument with the assertion that being is the material substance of
which the universe is composed and argued that it was the sole and eternal reality.

Pre-Socratic Greek philosopher from Elea in Magna Graecia

Empedocles 494-434 BC

Empedocles' philosophy is best known for originating the cosmogonic theory of the four
classical elements. He also proposed forces he called Love and Strife which would mix and
separate the elements

He is known for hexametric poems

Anaxagoras (510 BC- 428 BC)

The most original aspect of Anaxagoras's system was his doctrine of nous (“mind” or
“reason”). The cosmos was formed by mind in two stages: first, by a revolving and mixing
process that still continues; and, second, by the development of living things.

Greek philosopher of nature remembered for his cosmology and for his discovery of the
true cause of eclipses.
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Democritus (460-370 BC)

According to Democritus' atomic theory, the universe and all matter obey the following
principles: Everything is composed of “atoms”, which are physically, but not geometrically,
indivisible.

Father of the atomic theory

Socrates (470-399 BC)

Socrates believed the best way for people to live was to focus on the pursuit of virtue rather than the
pursuit, for instance, of material wealth.[126] He always invited others to try to concentrate more on
friendships and a sense of true community, for Socrates felt this was the best way for people to grow
together as a populace.

Socrates main contribution to Western philosophy is his method of inquiry that was called
after him Socratic method, sometimes also known as elenchus. According to the latter, a
statement can be considered true only if it cannot be proved wrong.

He is known for creating Socratic irony and the Socratic method (elenchus)
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Plato (428/427 or 424/423-348/347 BC)

Founder of the Academy, best known as the author of philosophical works of unparalleled
influence.

Plato is also considered the founder of Western political philosophy. His most famous
contribution is the theory of Forms known by pure reason, in which Plato presents a solution to
the problem of universals known as Platonism (also ambiguously called either Platonic realism
or Platonic idealism).

Aristotle (384-322 BC)

One of Aristotle's most important contributions was defining and classifying the various
branches of knowledge. He sorted them into physics, metaphysics, psychology, rhetoric,
poetics, and logic, and thus laid the foundation of most of the sciences of today.

Greek philosopher and polymath during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. He was the
founder of the Lyceum and the Peripatetic school of philosophy and Aristotelian tradition.

Stoicism

Stoicism is a school of Hellenistic philosophy which was founded by Zeno of Citium, in Athens, in
the early 3rd century BC. Stoicism is a philosophy of personal ethics informed by its system of logic
and its views on the natural world.
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 Zeno of Citium
 (334-262 BC)
 Zeno of Citium (c. 336 – 265 BCE) was the founder of the Stoic School of philosophy in
Athens which taught that the Logos (Universal Reason) was the greatest good in life and
living in accordance with reason was the purpose of human life.
 He is considered the founder of the Stoicism school of philosophy (which became the
dominant philosophy of the Hellenistic and Roman periods, and an influence on early
Christianity) ...

St. Augustine of Hippo

13 November 354 – 28 August 430 AD

His Contribution is the divine illumination this claims is that God plays an active
and regular part in human perception and understanding by illuminating the mind so
that human beings can recognize intelligible realities that God presents.

He is a Philosopher, and a Bishop He is famous for being an

inimitable Catholic theologian and for his agnostic contributions to
Western philosophy.

Boethius (477-524 AD)

The Roman logician and theologian Anicius Manlius Severinus Boethius (c. 480-c. 524)
is best known for his influential work "The Consolation of Philosophy." He also wrote theological
treatises and transmitted to the Middle Ages portions of Aristotle's writings.

Boethius received the title of patrician c. 507 and was appointed consul in Rome in 510.
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St. Anselm of Canterbury

(1033-1109)
Saint Anselm was one of the most important Christian thinkers of the eleventh century. He is
most famous in philosophy for having discovered and articulated the so-called “ontological
argument;” and in theology for his doctrine of the atonement.

He is a Bishop and Philosopher

William of Ockham (c. 1285/7–c. 1347)

Was an English Franciscan philosopher who challenged scholasticism and the papacy, thereby
hastening the end of the medieval period. His claim to fame was “Ockham's Razor,” the
principle of parsimony, according to which plurality should not be posited without necessity.

William of Ockham (or William of Occam) (c. ... In addition to formulating

his famous methodological principle commonly known as Occam's Razor, he produced
significant works on Logic, physics and theology. His philosophy was radical in his day
and continues to provide insight into current philosophical debates.

Rene Descartes (31 March, 1596-11 February, 1650)

He believed that reason is the only way to attain higher knowledge. In optics, he also discovered
laws of reflection and refraction. Rene Descartes also advanced his views on motion of objects
in his treatise “Principles of Philosophy”. His ideas influenced later philosophers like Hobbes,
Pascal, Locke and Kant.
“Father of Modern Philosophy.”
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John Locke (29 August 1632- 28 October 1704)

John Locke is regarded as one of the most influential philosophers of modern times. He
founded the modern theory of Liberalism and made an exceptional contribution to
modern philosophical empiricism. He was also influential in the areas of theology, religious
tolerance and educational theory.
"Father of Liberalism".

George Berkeley (12 march1685-14 january1753)

(The other two are John Locke and David Hume.) Berkeley is best known for his early works

on vision (An Essay towards a New Theory of Vision, 1709) and metaphysics (A Treatise

concerning the Principles of Human Knowledge, 1710; Three Dialogues between Hylas and

Philonous, 1713).

George Berkeley (/ˈbɑːrkli/; 12 March 1685 – 14 January 1753) – known as Bishop

Berkeley (Bishop of Cloyne) – was an Irish philosopher whose primary achievement was the

advancement of a theory he called "immaterialism" (later referred to as "subjective idealism" by

others).

Soren Kierkegaard (may 5, 1813-november 11, 1855)

Contribution of Danish philosopher Soren Kierkegaard to European philosophy is his

interest in the free human living (existence). The transcedence of an intellect on behalf of belief
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gets his thinking beyond the conventional conception of the world which culminated in the

Hegel's system.

Kierkegaard published some of his works using pseudonyms and for others he signed his

own name as author. Whether being published under pseudonym or not, Kierkegaard's central

writing on religion was Fear and Trembling, and Either/Or is considered to be his magnum opus.

Thomas Hobbes

(April 5, 1588-december 4, 1679)

Thomas Hobbes. Thomas Hobbes (1588 - 1679) was an English philosopher of the

Age of Reason. His famous 1651 book "Leviathan" and his social contract theory, developed

during the tumultuous times around the English Civil War, established the foundation for

most of Western Political Philosophy.

Leviathan or The Matter, Forme and Power of a Common-Wealth Ecclesiasticall and

Civil, commonly referred to as Leviathan, is a book written by Thomas Hobbes (1588–
1679) and published in 1651 (revised Latin edition 1668). Its name derives from the
biblical Leviathan.
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Gottfried Leibniz (july 1, 1646-november 14, 1716)

Philosophical Principles
Gottfried Leibniz not only excelled in math, but also wrote two books on philosophy:

Theodicee and Discourse on Metaphysics. Theodicee, which addressed issues related

to God, human free choice, and the problem of evil, was published during his lifetime.

As an adult, Leibniz often introduced himself as "Gottfried von Leibniz". Many posthumously

published editions of his writings presented his name on the title page as "Freiherr G. W.

von Leibniz."

Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz. Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz (1646–1716) was one of the great

thinkers of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries and is known as the last “universal

genius”.

Immanuel Kant (22 April, 1724- 12 February 1804)

Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) is one of the most influential philosophers in the

history of Western philosophy. His contributions to metaphysics, epistemology,

ethics, and aesthetics have had a profound impact on almost every philosophical movement

that followed him.

Baptized Emanuel, he later changed his name to Immanuel after learning Hebrew. He was

brought up in a Pietist household that stressed religious devotion, humility, and a literal

interpretation of the Bible.