PHILOSOPHY

The Natural Philosophers

-

Earliest known philosophers

came from the island of Miletus
in Greece

Also called Milesian

Philosophers

chief concern was to understand

the natural processes of the
world where things came from

The Milesian Philosophers

THALES
What made him famous
was his idea that the
source of all things was
water.
The basic substance
(water) links all.

He designated air as the

primary substance
He introduced the idea
that the difference in
quality are caused by
differences in quantity
Pre-Socratic Philosophers
Pythagoras
Mathematics is the best
purifier of the soul.
All things consists of
numbers.
He discovered the
relation between
arithmetic and geometry
using pebbles
Credited for what is
known today as the
Pythagorean Theorem

The Many are related to

each other by the One.

Eleatic Philosophers

The first philosopher of

Western Civilization

A new group of philosophers in

the Greek colony of Elea in
southern part of Italy

Anaximander
Student of Thales
He affirmed that there
exists a primary
substance but its not
water
Basic element not
known, but indefinite and
boundless, and it moves

They were called Eleatics

Their center of interest was the
process of change
Heraclitus
Believed that constant
change or flow was the
basic characteristic of
nature all things are in
flux

He asserted that all life

came from the sea

There is constant change

Anaximenes

We cannot step twice

into the same river.

Young associate of
Anaximander

 Believed that change is a

product of Gods
universal Reason
(logos) which supports
his idea of being a
Pantheist
Designated fire as the
basic element

Nature is built up of an
infinite of number minute
particles invisible to the
eye Seeds
The Atomists
Leucippus
A contemporary of
Parmenides

Parmenides
Young contemporary of
Heraclitus

Founder of the atomist

school

Nothing can come out of

nothing.

Affirmed that there exist

a reality of space
something like a
receptacle (container)

Nothing can change.

Earliest known Rationalist

Nature of things consists

of an infinite number of
particles atoms

Everything in the
universe consists of the
One never changes, no
parts, and can never be
destroyed.
What we perceive using
the senses are flawed

Nature consists of 2
things space which is
vacuum and atoms
Democritus
Elaborated the details
about the atom

Empedocles
There is change and that
reality is changeless

Assumed that everything

was built of tiny blocks
which are eternal and
indestructible atoms.

Believed that nature

consists of 4 elements
earth, air, water and air.

Nature consisted of an
unlimited number and
variety of atoms that
possess hooks and barbs
(like a Lego toy) where
they could be separated
or joined together

Change occurs due to the

coming together and
separation of the 4
elements
Anaxagoras
Pointed out that there
must be someone that
organized the world
Mind, or Nous

The Sophists

New batch of philosophers that

shifted to the study of human

beings such as those that relate

to moral behavior (Ethics)
They are practical people and
are well competent in grammar,
writing, and public discourse
Many people tried to get their
service specially to learn the
art of rhetoric or persuasive
speech
Sophists means a wise and
informed person

Asserted that it is
preferable to live a life of
injustice than a life of
justice
Considered the unjust
person as superior in
character and intelligence
for some of them
becomes masters of
cities and nations
Might is right.
The Big Three

Protagoras
Oldest yet most
influential among all
Sophists in Athens
Man is the measurement
of all things.
For him, knowledge is
limited to various
perceptions and these
will differ with each
person
Gorgias
Nothing is true at all.
Nothing exists
If anything exists,
it is
incomprehensible
Even if it is
comprehensible, it
cannot be
communicated
Abandoned the study of
Philosophy and turned to
rhetoric
Thrasymachus

Socrates
Considered as a Sophist
but in truth he was one of
their keenest critics
He has never accepted
money for teaching
To know good is to do
good.
One thing only I know,
and that is I know
nothing.
He was accused of
corrupting the youth and
came out guilty and was
sentenced to death by
drinking the poison
hemlock
Believed that man
possess psyche or soul,
which is immortal, while
the body is mortal
Theory of knowledge
(Epistemology):
Intellectual Midwifery
Dialectic (Inductive
Method) surest
way to attain

reliable knowledge
through the
practice of
disciplined
conversation or the
use of dialogues
Emphasized the
importance of
definition in
arriving at the
truth
Socratic Irony
playing ignorant so
that people can
expose their
weakness in
thinking
Considered vice or evil as
the absence of
knowledge
Plato
Most famous student of
Socrates
Founded a school named
Academy which aims to
pursue scientific
knowledge through
research
Said that man is dual
creature composed of a
mortal body and an
immortal soul
The chief aim of human
life is to attain
Demiurge or perfection
through continuous study
Allegory of the Cave
The story revolves
around the
prisoners inside a

cave chained
underground, who
havent seen the
real world. These
people have been
used on not
looking back but to
look at the cave
wall and the
shadows moving in
it.
This story is a
manifestation of
Plato and Socrates
thought in
importance of
knowledge
Metaphor of the Divided
Line
Plato provided
more details
through this
about the levels of
knowledge that we
could obtain
Theory of Forms
Forms are those
changeless, eternal
and non-material
essences or
patterns of which
the actual objects
are only poor
copies.
Moral Philosophy (Ethics)
Plato described the
soul having 3
essential parts:
Reason
(Intellect)
Spirit (Will)

 Appetite
(Desire)
Political Philosophy
Plato compared the
state to a giant
person possessing
3 essential parts:
Head
Reason
Philosopher
Kings
Chest
Spirit
Guardians/M
ilitary
Abdomen
Appetite
Craftsman/W
orkers
Philosopher Kings
is considered as an
ideal leader
because he
possesses
competence
through rigid
training
Aristocracy ruled
by Philosopher
Kings ideal
government
Aristotle

King, Alexander the

Great.
Theory of Knowledge
There is nothing in
the mind without
passing through
the senses.
Reason is
completely empty
until we have
sensed something
man has no
innate ideas.
Process of Change
Aristotles 4
Causes
Formal
Cause
What is it?
Material
Cause
What is it
made of?
Efficient
Cause By
what is it
made of?
Final Cause
For what end
is it made?
Logic: The Syllogism

Most notable student of

Plato

Aristotle invented
formal Logic

Established a school
named Lyceum.

He also developed
a system of logic
based on premises
called Syllogism
used for
determining valid

Became a tutor of the

Macedonian prince, later

relationships
between premises
and conclusions.
Ethics
He rejected all
forms of
imbalance,
advocating what
he called the
Golden Mean
Politics
Undesirability of
cultivating
extremes
Described 3 forms
of government and
its bad forms
Monarchy
Tyranny
Aristocracy
Oligarchy
Democracy Mobocracy
Hellenism
Hellenistic Philosophy continued
to work with the problems
raised by Socrates, Plato and
Aristotle
Main concern was Ethics.
Among Hellenistic Philosophies
are Cynicism, Stoicism,
Epicureanism, Skepticism and
Neo-Platonism
Cynicism
Founded by Antisthenes,
a former pupil of Socrates

Emphasized that true

happiness is not found in
external advantages such
as material luxury,
political power, or good
health
It means living free from
possessions
Stoicism
Founded by Zeno, former
follower of Cynicism
Everyone is a part of the
same common sense or
logos. There exists a
universal rightness or the
Natural Law.
Nothing happens
accidentally, everything
happens through
necessity
One must have selfcontrol and accept his
face
Epicureanism
Named after its founder,
Epicurus
The highest good is
pleasure, the greatest
evil is pain.
2 Kinds of Pleasure
Temporary
pleasure that is
intense and short
Natural pleasure
that is less intense
but longer
Live for the moment.

 Skepticism
Founded by Pyrrho who
was inspired by Socrates
dialectic method
An approach that requires
all information to be well
supported by evidence
This philosophy believes
that by using
investigation, truth can
be separated from
falsehood; one could
attain mental tranquility
(ataraxia)
Knowledge coming from
experience or sense
impression is doubtful
without further
investigation. Senses
most of the time are
deceptive.
Neo-Platonism
Also called Plotinism
after its founder Plotinus
All that exist is God or the
One.
Everything is one,
everything is God.
It was the chief rival of
Christianity and some of
its teaching were later
integrated in Christianity
by medieval Christian
philosophers
Medieval Philosophers

There was a
great decline of Greek
influences in Europe
after Roman Empire

took control of Greece

and made it as one of
its province. Later on,
due to the influence of
Christianity. NeoPlatonism, together
with the other
Hellenistic philosopher
has almost
disappeared. Thanks
to notable Muslim
philosophers like
Averros and Avecenna
who revived and
translated the
classical Greek
philosophies, it was
reintroduced to the
western world which
became an integral
tool in reconciling
faith (religion) and
reason (philosophy).
The medieval
period was called the
Theo centric age,
owing to the
centerpiece of activity
during that time which
is all about God.
Among these medieval
philosophers, two
were considered to be
most preeminent
figure: St. Augustine
and St. Thomas
Aquinas
St. Agustine
-Mother was a Christian
and father was a pagan
-Though he was a saint ,
he was not a Christian all his
life. He was exposed several
different religions and
philosophies such as Hedonism

and Paganism.
-For a time, he was a
Manichean , a half religion
and half philosophy asserting
that the world was consisted of
a dualism of good and evil, light
and darkness, spirit and matter.
-He was largely influence
by Platonic ideas. Before he
pointed the limitation of reason
as answering religious question.
He added that Christianity is a
devine mystery that can only be
perceived with faith

corrupted, and a soul which can

know God.
St. Thomas Aquinas

His philosophy was

greatly influence by
Aristotle

He believe that there

need to be no conflict
between philosophy and
reason teaches and what
Christian revelation of
faith wants to show us.
He believe that they say
both the same thing that
the philosophy is actually
a tool to understand
religion.

He insisted in the idea

that there exists a
number of natural
theological truths. By
that he meant truths that
could be reached both
trough Christian faith and
through innate natural
reason.

By using Aristotle's
philosophy he argued
that God or a formal
cause exist which sets all
natural processes going
and the creator of all. But
since there is no further
description of God, we
must rely on solely the
Bible

He tried to prove the

existing of God in five
ways.

Argument from motionwhatever is in motion

was moved by something

E.g In the Old Testament ,

Isaiah said: Unless you believe,
you will understand
He added that the only when we
believe in Christianity will God
illuminate (enlighten) the soul
so that the experience a sort of
supernatural knowledge of God
He inclined his view on evil
using Neo-Platonic idea that
evil is the absence of God that
the evil come from the mans
disobedience

E.g
The disobedience of
Adam and Eve on eating the fruit of
knowledge which became the sin of
the entire humanity. (it was the
considered by St. Augustine as the
original sin)
Emphasized that man is a
spiritual being which possess a
material body which belong to
the physical world and can be

else. Nothing will move

unless something move
it. That there was the first
mover and that is God.
E.g domino effect

Argument from efficient

cause- a series causes is
demanded because no
event can be its own
cause. Nothing can be
prior to itself, events
demanded a prior cause
and that cause is God.
E.g sculptors do not
cause themselves:
neither the statues cause
themselves.
Argument from
necessary being- there
are times that a thing
exist and does not exist
and then goes into
existence again. This
existence cause other
similar possible being to
be generated as when
parents beget the
children. Hence, things
that do not exist only
through something
already are existing. And

the existence of some

being having of itself its
own necessity, and not
receiving it from another
but rather causing in
others to exist God.
4. Argument from degrees of
perfection- using experience we find
that some thing are more, some less
good, true, noble. Some are lower and
some are higher of being, as we
compare a stone to the living creature
to a rational creature. From this
Aquinas concludes there must also be
something which is to beings the
cause of their goodness, and every
perfection. That is God.
5. Argument from the order we see in
the world or argument from designthere are things such as parts the
natural world or the human body,
which do not posses intelligence but
nevertheless in an order manner.
These parts act in special and
predictable ways to achieve certain
ends or functions but even if there
parts lack intelligence, it seems that
they cannot carry out faction unless
they are elected by something that
does have intelligence, which is God.