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TOP
TEN PHILOSOPHERS »
Top
ten philosophers rated by the LoveToKnow editors. |
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Top 10 List how we choose |
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Socrates
Socrates is one of the best known philosophers of all time. His
philosophy was from classical Greek Athenian viewpoints. He came to
be known from the writings of others and through his student
Plato. He is best known for contributing to the study of ethics.
The Socratic Method he implemented with his own students is used
widely by teachers today. In the Socratic Method, the student is led
to a conclusion through a series of questions that lead to
self-discovery and deeper understanding. |
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Plato
Plato is Socrates' students and is equally as famous for his
principles of philosophy as Socrates. He was also a classical Greek
philosopher and also a mathematician. He actually founded the first
higher learning academy in the world, which was the Academy in
Athens. Plato carried on the tradition of teaching others. His
student was
Aristotle. Plato's writings have been instrumental to learning
about many different topics, including ethics, math, rhetoric, logic
and philosophy. |
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Aristotle
Aristotle added to the tradition that Socrates and Plato had set,
although he did reject Plato's Theory of Forms.
He not only contributed to the same areas they did but also to
metaphysics, biology, botany, politics, medicine, agriculture, dance
and theater. Aristotle is thought to have written about 200
treatises. He is known as the father of logic. He founded
Lyceum, which was another institution of higher learning located
near Athens, Greece. |
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Frederick Nietzsche
Frederick Nietzsche was a German philosopher of the 1800s. He
wrote essays on topics like morality, religion and science.
Nietzsche is a controversial philosopher. He questioned God and
Christianity and has been accused of being blasphemous. Still, he is
one of the better known of the philosophers with people studying his
views on morality whether they agree with him or not. Other
philosophers listed on this site include
Confucius and
Ayn Rand. |
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Rene Descartes
Rene Descartes has been called the "father of modern philosophy".
Those studying philosophy at the university level will likely run
across his work in texts such as Meditations on First Philosophy.
He worked largely in science and math, creating some of geometry's
guiding principles. The facts about Descartes include elements such
as his view on the
never-ending circle of God and creation. |
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Thomas Aquinas
Thomas Aquinas was a Roman Catholic priest of the 13th Century. He
had a big impact in areas like ethics, natural law and political
theory. Modern philosophers often base their own philosophies on
Aquinas'. They either strongly agree or vehemently disagree with his
views. Some of his most famous writings includes
Summa Theologica and Summa Contra Gentiles. These books
are sometimes studied as preparation for entry into the priesthood. |
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Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Jean-Jacques Rousseau was an 18th Century Genevan philosopher. He
had a negative view on the field of philosophy and philosophers.
Despite that, he contributed much to the field and has influenced
the
philosophers who came after. One area he wrote on was concern
over how humans can retain individual freedom in a world where they
must rely on one another. |
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John Dewey
John Dewey was an American philosopher and was responsible for
education reform in the US. He was part of starting the American
Association of University Professors. He helped develop the
philosophy of pragmatism where a philosophy is said to only be true
if it can be implemented successfully. He was a huge advocate for
democracy and believed it was advanced by education and a civilized
society. |
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Augustine
Saint Augustine was a bishop in the Catholic Church. He was a
philosopher and theologian. He spoke Latin as well. His work had a
huge influence on the development of Western Christianity. His
philosophies influenced St. Thomas Aquinas. Martin Luther and John
Calvin studied his philosophies and came to their own conclusions.
He asserted that it is
inside one's self where truth and morality is found. |
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John Locke
John Locke was a physician and an English philosopher in the 1600s
and early 1700s. He is sometimes called the "father of liberalism".
His works focused mainly on political philosophy and he also
contributed to epistemology or the study of science. His
manuscripts on the "theory of mind" are thought to have spurred
modern concepts of the self and personal identity. |
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