Ancient Greek Philosophy: Origins and Key Thinkers

The Emergence of Philosophy in Ancient Greece

The appearance of philosophy in Greece coincided with a flourishing of trade and freedom of expression, particularly in relation to Egypt. The solar eclipse of 585 BC is often cited as a marker for the birth of philosophy.

Birth of Rational Discourse

The shift from Mythos to Logos (from myth to reason) marked the beginning of rational discourse focused on understanding the natural world.

• Egypt: Contributed writing, arithmetic, and astronomy.
• Greece: Focused on reflecting upon knowledge (filo-sofia).

Early Philosophers and Their Ideas

The first philosophers sought to understand the physical world using Logos, a rational approach to understanding things. They aimed to comprehend the natural world through natural, rather than divine or supernatural, explanations.

Essence vs. Appearance: Philosophers distinguished between appearance and essence, i.e., what things truly are versus how they appear. The senses provide a variety of phenomena, appearances that change, while reason suggests a fundamental principle that remains constant.

The Search for Arche: Reason seeks the Arche, the basic principle underlying all things.

Phys: Refers to the universal principle of all things, the entire cosmos, or the natural world as a process of self-organization.

Pre-Socratic Philosophy

Philosophical discourse began in the colonies of Ionia, initiating Pre-Socratic philosophy.

• Thales: Proposed that water is the Arche, the origin of everything.
• Anaximander: A disciple of Thales, he theorized that everything comes from Apeiron, an infinite and eternal substance with no qualitative determination. He also identified four elements: water, fire, earth, and air, as opposites.
• Anaximenes: A student of Anaximander, he proposed that air is the Arche, capable of condensing and becoming other elements.

Pythagorean Philosophy

Pythagoras, born in Samos (Ionia), founded the Pythagoreans. They believed that number is the Arche. Music played a significant role in their religious views. They were vegetarian, believing that all animals have a soul. They also explored the concept of dualism (body and soul) and reincarnation (transmigration of souls).