The Ancient Worlds Most Influential Philosophers

Author : Michael Chase
Publisher : John Wiley & Sons
ISBN 13 : 1118609220
Total Pages : 358 pages
Book Rating : 4.24/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Philosophy as a Way of Life written by Michael Chase and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2013-08-05 with total page 358 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Philosophy as a Way of Life This unique collection of essays on the late Pierre Hadot’s revolutionary methodological approach to studying and practicing philosophy explores Hadot’s primary conviction that philosophy itself goes beyond solving puzzles and analyzing abstract arguments. Hadot believed that philosophy is a key part of humanity’s search for happiness, that it can transform our perception of the world, and thus can alter our very mode of being. His argument that the goal of philosophy is to shift our focus away from our habitual obsession with individuality, and to embrace universality and objectivity, has resonated with thinkers across the Academy – and outside it. Offering genuinely interdisciplinary analysis of Hadot’s work and philosophical practice, this volume includes papers written from a gamut of philosophical, historical, and geographical perspectives. Articles address issues in the history of philosophy from Pythagoras to Descartes, by way of Islamic thought, thus corresponding to Hadot’s view of the importance of philologically based analysis of ancient texts and historical contexts. Others study the presence of ideas related to, or influenced by, Hadot in contemporary thought, from Wittgenstein to Leonard Nelson, analytic philosophy, and French postmodernism. The result is a wide-ranging publication pointing to an additional “third way” alongside the traditional approaches of Continental and analytic philosophy, one that expands our horizons with secular spiritual exercises designed to enable us to be in a fuller, more authentic way.

Author : Charles River Charles River Editors
Publisher : Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
ISBN 13 : 9781985003736
Total Pages : 316 pages
Book Rating : 4.32/5 ( download)

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Download or read book The Ancient World's Most Influential Philosophers written by Charles River Charles River Editors and published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform. This book was released on 2018-02-03 with total page 316 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: *Includes pictures Many people argue that Confucius is the most influential person of all time, and if having a significant effect on the greatest number of people is the criterion, he may very well be. China is one of the largest and oldest civilizations on earth, and Confucius has been influential there from almost the beginning: the first Chinese dynasty was founded around 1600 BCE and Confucius lived from 551-479 BCE. There is little evidence that he thought of himself as a harbinger of any kind, but shortly after his death, writings, sayings, and theories based on his life and ideas spread throughout China and even took hold of the imperial court of one of the most powerful and important dynasties, the Han (206 BCE-220 CE). It was during the Han Dynasty that Confucianism became closely tied to state affairs. None of Socrates' works survived antiquity, so most of what is known about him came from the writings of his followers, most notably Plato. What is known about Socrates is that he seemed to make a career out of philosophy, and Plato was intent on following in his footsteps. Yet for all of the influence of Socrates' life on his followers, it was Socrates' death around 399 B.C. that truly shaped them. Plato was so embittered by Socrates' trial in Athens that he completely soured on Athenian democracy, and Aristotle would later criticize politicians who relied on rhetoric; when Aristotle's own life was threatened, he fled Greece and allegedly remarked, "I will not allow the Athenians to sin twice against philosophy." Since Socrates wrote nothing down, or at least nothing that survived antiquity, there has been a wealth of scholarship ever since attempting to determine the person to whom the philosophical positions of the various (and genuine) Socratic dialogues of Plato's should be attributed. Even though Aristotle insisted that Socrates only cared about ethics and held no metaphysical theory of the kind that Plato propounded, the attempt to read the ugly but wise Socrates via the Platonic dialogues continued up to the 20th century. About a decade after Socrates' death, Plato returned to Athens and founded his famous Platonic Academy around 387 B.C., which he oversaw for 40 years until his death. One of Plato's philosophical beliefs was that writing down teachings was less valuable than passing them down orally, and several of Plato's writings are responses to previous writings of his, so Plato's personally held beliefs are hard to discern. However, Plato educated several subsequent philosophers, chief among them Aristotle, and his writings eventually formed the backbone of Western philosophy. Aristotle's influence on Western philosophical thought is marked by an extensive list of crucial issues that both signaled the way forward but at the same time boggled philosophers' minds throughout the centuries. Aristotle's reflections on Being, as well as his rigorous Logic, were his most important philosophical legacy, but he was also an intellectual in the broadest sense of the word. His interests went beyond metaphysical questions and into practical life and practical knowledge, from ethics to politics, rhetoric and the sciences, all of which left a profound impact on Western political thought and ethics. Naturally, this has also made him one of the foundations of knowledge and philosophical thought that subsequent philosophers relied on when forming and refining their own philosophies. Marcus Tullius Cicero (106-43 B.C.) was one of the most famous Romans in his day, and posterity has been even kinder to him. Cicero was a legend in his own time for his oratory abilities, which he used to persuade fellow Senators and denounce enemies like Catiline and Mark Antony, but he was also one of Rome's most prodigious writers and political philosophers. Alongside Pericles, Cicero was one of antiquity's greatest politicians, and he has remained one of the most influential statesmen.

Author : James A. Arieti
Publisher : Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN 13 : 9780742533288
Total Pages : 420 pages
Book Rating : 4.8X/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Philosophy in the Ancient World written by James A. Arieti and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2005 with total page 420 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Philosophy in the Ancient World: An Introduction--an intellectual history of the ancient world from the eighth century B.C.E. to the fifth century C.E., from Homer to Boethius--describes and evaluates ancient thought in its cultural setting, showing how it affected and was affected by that setting. The greatest philosophers (Parmenides, Plato, Aristotle, Augustine) and cultural figures (Homer, Euripides, Thucydides, Archimedes) and a number of lesser ones (Hesiod, Posidonius, Basil) receive careful description and evaluation. Philosophy in the Ancient World is ideally suited as a supplement for undergraduate courses in Ancient Philosophy and the History of Philosophy in the West.

Author : Peter J. King
Publisher : Turtleback Books
ISBN 13 : 9781417797653
Total Pages : 192 pages
Book Rating : 4.57/5 ( download)

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Download or read book One Hundred Philosophers written by Peter J. King and published by Turtleback Books. This book was released on 2004-09-01 with total page 192 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Presents profiles of one hundred philosophers, from ancient times to the present day.

Author : James Garvey
Publisher : Arcturus Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1848585152
Total Pages : 377 pages
Book Rating : 4.57/5 ( download)

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Download or read book The Great Philosophers written by James Garvey and published by Arcturus Publishing. This book was released on 2005-09-26 with total page 377 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Great Philosophers traces the biggest and most influential thoughts in philosophy's long stride through history, beginning with the Ancient Greeks and Early Romans, the first philosophical thinkers in the West, to whom much is owed. How their concerns became the concerns of those who followed is clearly laid out, as is the way their answers shaped what we now recognize as philosophy. The medieval philosophers are also represented, combining their religious concerns with ancient thought and carrying it into the Renaissance. The modern era, the explosion of philosophy sparked by Descartes, is well represented here too. Founders and representatives of both rationalist and empiricist schools make an appearance, as do philosophy's sceptics, with their often-darker conclusions. Philosophy's long walk continues, and you will find here the thoughts which make its contemporary form what it is, and perhaps what it is on the way to becoming. Philosophy is very much still under way, and The Great Philosophers pays regard to both the discipline as it is practised now, and to the history which made contemporary philosophy possible.

Author : Brian Duignan Senior Editor, Religion and Philosophy
Publisher : The Rosen Publishing Group, Inc
ISBN 13 : 1615300090
Total Pages : 368 pages
Book Rating : 4.99/5 ( download)

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Download or read book The 100 Most Influential Philosophers of All Time written by Brian Duignan Senior Editor, Religion and Philosophy and published by The Rosen Publishing Group, Inc. This book was released on 2009-12-20 with total page 368 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Presents an introduction to the world's most influential philosophers, with a brief summary of their lives and teachings, from the early philosophers of the Greek era up to the major philosophers of the twentieth century.

Author : Peter J. King
Publisher : Chartwell Books
ISBN 13 : 9780785830221
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.27/5 ( download)

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Download or read book 100 Philosophers written by Peter J. King and published by Chartwell Books. This book was released on 2013-04-05 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What is the nature of good and evil? What is the meaning of existence and who are we really? For thousands of years philosophers have struggled with questions such as these, weighing every thought against virtually every rational alternative. Here, presented for non-academic readers, is an easy-to-understand survey of ideas put forth by 100 important philosophers, from the pre-Socratics of ancient Greece to the analytic philosophers of the present day. Each thinker is summarized in a single illustrated page, or in many instances, in an illustrated two-page spread. Each entry includes the philosopher's birth and death dates, titles of major works, major influences, a capsule biographical sketch, and a brief summary of his or her most important ideas. The glossary will help readers quickly navigate and organize their learning. In addition to philosophers in our own Western tradition, readers will find Chinese sages, including Confucius and Lao-tzu, the Indian Buddhist philosopher Ngrjuna, and thinkers representing other cultures.

Author : Peter Adamson
Publisher : History of Philosophy
ISBN 13 : 0198728026
Total Pages : 455 pages
Book Rating : 4.23/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Philosophy in the Hellenistic and Roman Worlds written by Peter Adamson and published by History of Philosophy. This book was released on 2015 with total page 455 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Peter Adamson offers an accessible, humorous tour through a period of eight hundred years when some of the most influential of all schools of thought were formed: from the third century BC to the sixth century AD. He introduces us to Cynics and Skeptics, Epicureans and Stoics, emperors and slaves, and traces the development of Christian and Jewish philosophy and of ancient science. Chapters are devoted to such major figures as Epicurus, Lucretius, Cicero, Seneca, Plotinus, and Augustine. But in keeping with the motto of the series, the story is told 'without any gaps,' providing an in-depth look at less familiar topics that remains suitable for the general reader. For instance, there are chapters on the fascinating but relatively obscure Cyrenaic philosophical school, on pagan philosophical figures like Porphyry and Iamblichus, and extensive coverage of the Greek and Latin Christian Fathers who are at best peripheral in most surveys of ancient philosophy. A major theme of the book is in fact the competition between pagan and Christian philosophy in this period, and the Jewish tradition also appears in the shape of Philo of Alexandria. Ancient science is also considered, with chapters on ancient medicine and the interaction between philosophy and astronomy. Considerable attention is paid also to the wider historical context, for instance by looking at the ascetic movement in Christianity and how it drew on ideas from Hellenic philosophy. From the counter-cultural witticisms of Diogenes the Cynic to the subtle skepticism of Sextus Empiricus, from the irreverent atheism of the Epicureans to the ambitious metaphysical speculation of Neoplatonism, from the ethical teachings of Marcus Aurelius to the political philosophy of Augustine, the book gathers together all aspects of later ancient thought in an accessible and entertaining way.

Author : Trevor Curnow
Publisher : A&C Black
ISBN 13 : 0715634976
Total Pages : 315 pages
Book Rating : 4.74/5 ( download)

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Download or read book The Philosophers of the Ancient World written by Trevor Curnow and published by A&C Black. This book was released on 2006-06-22 with total page 315 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Contains information on over 2,300 ancient Western philosophers, from Abammon to Zoticus. Covering the period from the seventh century BC to the seventh century AD, this book summarises the ideas of the major thinkers, and an historical overview of ancient philosophy allows them to be placed in their proper context.

Author : Charles River Charles River Editors
Publisher : Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
ISBN 13 : 9781986040440
Total Pages : 184 pages
Book Rating : 4.45/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Antiquity's Greatest Philosophers written by Charles River Charles River Editors and published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform. This book was released on 2018-02-27 with total page 184 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: *Analyzes the controversies and mysteries surrounding Socrates' life and death, including the debate over his portrayal in Plato's Socratic dialogues. *Discusses the philosophers' writings about knowledge, logic, metaphysics, science, reason, Forms, political science, rhetoric and more. *Includes busts and other art depicting the philosophers and other important people. *Includes a Bibliography on each for further reading. In 427 B.C., the Ancient Greek city-state of Athens was flourishing. Approximately 80 years earlier, the Athenians had formed the first self-representative democracy in history, the Peloponnesian War against Sparta had only just started, and Socrates was only beginning to lay the foundation of what would become Western philosophy. None of Socrates' works survived antiquity, so most of what is known about him came from the writings of his followers, most notably Plato. What is known about Socrates is that he seemed to make a career out of philosophy, and Plato was intent on following in his footsteps. Yet for all of the influence of Socrates' life on his followers, it was Socrates' death around 399 B.C. that truly shaped them. Plato was so embittered by Socrates' trial in Athens that he completely soured on Athenian democracy, and Aristotle would later criticize politicians who relied on rhetoric; when Aristotle's own life was threatened, he fled Greece and allegedly remarked, "I will not allow the Athenians to sin twice against philosophy." About a decade after Socrates' death, Plato returned to Athens and founded his famous Platonic Academy around 387 B.C., which he oversaw for 40 years until his death. One of Plato's philosophical beliefs was that writing down teachings was less valuable than passing them down orally, and several of Plato's writings are responses to previous writings of his, so Plato's personally held beliefs are hard to discern. However, Plato educated several subsequent philosophers, chief among them Aristotle, and his writings eventually formed the backbone of Western philosophy. Alongside Socrates and Plato, Aristotle is, without question, one of the most influential ancient Greek philosophers and arguably the greatest icon of ancient thought. His life and work expanded rapidly and extensively across the ancient world, helped in part by the fact he tutored Alexander the Great, he was a recognized and celebrated intellectual force during all of antiquity and the Middle Ages. Furthermore, after Aristotle, Greek thought and political influence began a rapid decline, and the cultivation of knowledge, so important during the classic period, slowly but surely began to fade, making Aristotle the last of ancient Greece's great philosophers. Aristotle's influence on Western philosophical thought is marked by an extensive list of crucial issues that both signaled the way forward but at the same time boggled philosophers' minds throughout the centuries. Aristotle's reflections on Being, as well as his rigorous Logic, were his most important philosophical legacy, but he was also an intellectual in the broadest sense of the word. His interests went beyond metaphysical questions and into practical life and practical knowledge, from ethics to politics, rhetoric and the sciences, all of which left a profound impact on Western political thought and ethics. Naturally, this has also made him one of the foundations of knowledge and philosophical thought that subsequent philosophers relied on when forming and refining their own philosophies. Antiquity's Greatest Philosophers chronicles the lives, works, and philosophies of all three philosophers in depth, while analyzing their enduring legacies. You will learn about Socrates, Plato and Aristotle like never before.