In ancient Greek philosophy, there are the following stages of development:
First stage covers the period from the 7th to the 5th centuries. BC. This period is usually called natural-philosophical, pre-Socratic, and the philosophers who lived at this time were characterized as presocratics(Socrates 469-399 BC). This period includes: the Miletus school, Heraclitus of Ephesus, the Elean school, Pythagoras and the Pythagoreans, Empedocles and Anaxagoras, the ancient Greek atomists - Leucippus and Democritus.
Second phase covers the period from about half of the 5th c. and until the end of the GU century. BC. It is usually characterized as classical. This period is associated with the activities of prominent Greek philosophers - Socrates, Plato and Aristotle, whose views were the pinnacle of ancient Greek, and perhaps world philosophy.
Third stage in the development of ancient philosophy - the end of the GU-II centuries. BC. usually referred to as Hellenistic (Hellene - the self-name of the ancient Greeks; Hellenism - a period in the history of the Eastern Mediterranean, Western Asia and the Black Sea since the campaigns of Alexander the Great 334-324 BC). In contrast to the classical stage, associated with the emergence of philosophical systems that are symbolic in their content, at the same time a number of philosophical trends appear: academic philosophy (Platonic Academy), peripatetics (Aristotelian Lyceum), Stoic and Epicurean schools, skepticism. Prominent philosophers of this period were Theophrastus and Epicurus. However, all schools were characterized by a transition from commenting on the teachings of Plato and Aristotle to the problems of ethics, preaching skepticism and stoicism.
Epicurus (341-270 BC), was born on the island of Samos in the family of an Athenian settler, a teacher. From the age of 14 he began to study science. At 18 years he comes to Athens, then moves to Asia Minor (modern Türkiye). IN 306 BC returns to Athens and founds his own school - "Garden of Epicurus". Epicurus divided his teachings into three parts: canonics - the theory of knowledge, physics - the doctrine of nature and ethics. He developed the atomistic doctrine of Democritus, believing that in the Universe there are only bodies located in space. Bodies are perceived directly by the senses, and the existence of an empty space between bodies is explained by the fact that otherwise movement would be impossible. From the works of Epicurus, few originals have come down to posterity: "Letter to Herod from y" and "Letter to Pythocles", which reflect his views on nature; "Letter to Me" by "her" reflects ethical views, and "Main thoughts" of Epicurus give an idea of his main ideas in an aphoristic form. Epicurus died at the age of 71, seriously ill, he was tormented by bouts of vomiting, stones came out of his kidneys, and other ailments plagued him. Once he asked for hot water to be drawn into a copper bath, lay down in her, drank undiluted wine, wished his friends not to forget his teachings, and so died.The Epicureans continued his teachings, gathering in the garden that belonged to Epicurus and bequeathed to him by the school.Epicurus' successor was Ermarchus of Mitylene, who insisted that expediency underlies all laws The systematizer of Epicurus' ideas was Philodemus of Gadara.
Fourth stage in the development of ancient philosophy covers the period from the 1st century. BC. and until the 5th-6th centuries, when Rome began to play a decisive role in the ancient world, under the influence of which Greece also falls. However, in Roman philosophy the opposite is true - it is formed under the influence of the Greek, especially the Hellenistic period, which ended at the beginning of the second quarter of the 1st century BC. It has developed three directions: stoicism(Seneca, Epictetus, Marcus Aurelius), epicureanism(Titus Lucretius Car), skepticism(Sext Empiric).
In the 3rd-5th centuries, in Roman philosophy, there arises and develops Neoplatonism, whose most prominent representative was Plotinus. Neoplatonism had an enormous influence not only on early Christian philosophy, but on all medieval religious philosophy.
Plotinus(204-270), the founder of Neoplatonism, is the last of the major philosophers of antiquity. Soon after his birth, significant political processes take place: military formations acquired real state power and the army command introduced the practice of electing emperors for monetary rewards. Civil strife began, the murders of emperors in order to divide the empire. This facilitated targeted invasions of the Roman Empire by the Germans from the north and the Persians from the east. The war and the epidemic reduced the population of the Roman Empire by almost a third. Cities that were carriers of culture suffered especially hard. Plotinus moves away from the spectacle of ruin and poverty in the real world to contemplate the eternal world of goodness and beauty. He interprets the works of Plato, trying to build some semblance of a system. New in Plotinus was the doctrine of the origin of all things - the one, which itself is higher than things. The One, the beginning of all things, like Plato, is called good by Plotinus and is compared with the Sun. It is opposed to dark and formless matter, the principle of evil. The universe of Plotinus is static. Every lower step in it is eternally born from the higher one, and the higher one always remains unchanged and, generating, does not suffer damage. The One eternally shines in its superbeautiful goodness.
Thus, we can say that ancient Western, ancient, at first only Greek, and then Roman philosophy, having existed for more than one millennium (from the 6th century BC to the 6th century), went through, like all ancient culture, a closed cycle from birth to flourishing, and through it to decline and death.
Ancient philosophy is a set of philosophical teachings that have existed in ancient Greece and Ancient Rome since the 7th century. BC. according to the VI century. AD until the closure by Emperor Justinian in 532 of the last philosophical school in Athens - the Platonic Academy. Ancient philosophy had a huge impact on European culture. It was in antiquity that the central problems of philosophical knowledge were formulated and the main ways to solve them were laid.
The initial period of development of ancient philosophy can be called red philosophical or theogonic(VII century BC - VI century BC). It is associated with the transition from myth in its original form to a systematized and rationalized form of the heroic epic (Homer and Hesiod), who tried to answer the fundamental needs of man about the origin of the universe and his place in it, describing the process of the birth of the world as a sequential birth of the gods (divine geneology brought system and order to the world outlook). The era of anthropomorphic Olympian gods symbolizes the harmonization of the cosmos. This determined the artistic understanding of the cosmos as symmetry, harmony, measure, beauty, rhythm.
Actually ancient philosophy goes through the following four stages.
First period- pre-Socratic (natural-philosophical, or cosmological), which dates back to the 7th century BC. BC. - mid 5th c. BC. based on the transition of cosmogony to non-mythological rationalized teachings, which are already associated with an interest in the problems of nature ("physis") and the cosmos as a living and self-moving whole. The philosophers of this time were busy searching for the origin (substance) of all things (the Milesian school). The materialistic direction is connected, first of all, with the representatives of atomism - Leucippus and Democritus. The main opposition of this period is the confrontation between the teachings of Heraclitus (objective dialectics) and the philosophers of the Eleatic school Parmenides and Zeno (who claimed that movement is unthinkable and impossible). In the teachings of Pythagoras, an idealistic direction was born.
Second period- classical (Socratic), which dates from the middle of the 5th century. BC. until the end of the 4th century. BC, when the focus is transferred from space to man, making him the main subject of his research and considering him as a microcosm, trying to determine its essence, and also draws attention to ethical and social problems (sophists, Socrates and Socratic schools). Therefore, this period is sometimes defined as the "anthropological revolution" in ancient philosophy. The first philosophical systems of Plato and Aristotle appear. During this period, two main opposing philosophical systems were formed - the “Democritus line” (materialism) and the “Plato line” (idealism).
Third period – Hellenistic, dates from the end of the 4th century BC. BC. - II century. BC. Initially, this period was associated with the understanding of philosophy, first of all, as a moral doctrine that develops the norms and rules of human life (Epicureism, Stoicism, skepticism), and then the knowledge of the Divine becomes the main object of philosophy (peripatetism, which in the future became the theoretical foundation of Catholicism, and Neoplatonism is the theoretical foundation of Orthodoxy).
The fourth period - Roman (I century BC - V century AD). During this period, ancient Greek and Roman philosophy merge into one - ancient philosophy; interest in the philosophical explanation of nature is being lost, and the problems of man, society, and the state are being actively developed; Stoicism flourishes. Prominent representatives of this period are Seneca, Marcus Aurelius. Cicero, Lucretius Car, Boethius, as well as the Roman Stoics, skeptics, Epicureans.
ABOUTfeaturesancient philosophy.
1. Cosmocentrism. The theoretical basis of ancient philosophy is the idea of the cosmos as a sensual-material bodily, rational, beautiful being, which is set in motion by the cosmic soul, controlled by the cosmic mind, and itself is created by the super-rational and super-soul primordial unity and determines the laws of the world and the fate of man. Philosophical conceptions of nature are called natural philosophy. The world, as a rule, was considered as a natural integrity, in which constant changes and mutual transformations take place (spontaneous materialism). Due to the lack of specific data, connections and patterns unknown to philosophers were replaced by fictitious, invented ones (speculative).
2. Anthropocentrism. Man was considered as a microcosm (small cosmos), similar to the macrocosm (large cosmos), and therefore as a corporeal and rational being. As a result of such attitudes, aestheticism, that is, the desire for beauty in all spheres of life, became characteristic of ancient culture.
3. Rationalism. Most of the ancient authors were convinced of the cognizability of the world. During this period, there was an idea of two levels of knowledge - sensory (sensation, perception) and rational (mind, logical reasoning). It was argued that it is rational knowledge that allows one to obtain the truth, and attempts to rationalistically solve it laid the foundation for the formation of philosophy itself.
Formation of ancient philosophy. ancient atomism.
The emergence of ancient philosophy is associated with overcoming mythological thinking, whose main features are:
Explanation of all phenomena by the actions of supernatural forces and their will;
the absence of a line between the real and the imaginary world;
assessment of all phenomena as friendly or hostile to man;
lack of interest in the theoretical analysis of phenomena and processes.
The end of the mythological era with its calm stability came in the axial time as a result of the struggle of rationality and rationally verified experience against myth. Philosophy arises in ancient Greece as an attempt to unravel the mystery of the world. An important condition for the victory of the Greek logos over myth was the formation of the polis form of social life, which created the prerequisite for personal freedom of a person, the complete openness of all manifestations of social and spiritual life. It replaced the hierarchical relations of domination and subordination with a new type of social connection, which was based on the equality of citizens, on the rejection of rigid traditional norms of human behavior, and most importantly, on the formation of a rational-theoretical way of thinking.
During the formation of ancient philosophy, special attention was paid to the search for the foundations of being. Representatives of the spontaneous materialistic Milesian school(Thales, Anaximander, Anaximenes, who lived in the 7th-6th centuries BC in the city of Miletus), were looking for the foundations of being: water - from Thales, apeiron (unformed, qualityless matter) - from Anaximander, air - from Anaximenes. According to the teachings of these ancient thinkers, as a result of the combination of the elements, that is, their connection and separation in various proportions, all things of the world are formed and destroyed. On this basis, they tried to give a complete picture of the world. Initially, the representatives of the Milesian school generates all the diversity of existing things and embraces everything that exists.
Pythagoras(approx. 571-497 BC), who created his own philosophical school - the union of the Pythagoreans, and claims: "I am not a sage, but only a philosopher." He and his students Philolaus, Alcmaeon, unlike the representatives of the materialistic Milesian school, considered the origin of the world not the corporeal-material, but the ideal-incorporeal, therefore their teachings can be considered as a kind of objective idealism. The only basis of being is a number, which can express and describe quantitatively anything. Number is something that is always and invariably present in completely different things, is their single connecting thread. The whole world is a consistent unfolding of an incorporeal essence - a number, and the number itself is a folded unity of the universe, therefore the harmony of the cosmos is determined by mathematical laws. But a number is an idea, not a thing. The things and objects we see are not the true reality. The real existence can be revealed to us by the mind, and not by sensory perceptions. The Pythagoreans believed in immortality and the transmigration of souls.
Heraclitus (c. 544-480 BC) - the founder of objective dialectics, who believes that fire is the fundamental principle of everything that exists. The choice of fire as the fundamental principle is not accidental: the world, or nature, is in constant change, and of all natural substances, fire is the most capable of change, the most mobile. So Heraclitus comes to the idea about the universality of changes in the world, about the struggle of opposites as the source of everything that exists, about the hidden harmony of the world as the internal identity of opposites, therefore he argued: "everything flows, everything changes." Nothing is stable, everything moves and changes and never stops at anything. The world is a process where everything turns into its opposite: cold becomes warm, warm becomes cold, wet becomes dry, dry becomes wet. A world in which there is nothing stable and permanent is chaotic. Chaos (disorder) of the world is the main principle or law (logos). But law is something stable and orderly. It turns out a paradox: the highest order of the world lies in the general disorder, or chaos. Two opposite principles - chaos and logos - are closely connected with each other and are equal (identical). Thus, all things are made up of opposites that fight each other. The struggle of opposite principles is the source of perpetual motion and change. If there were no opposites, then there would be nothing to change for any thing. But opposites are not only in struggle, but also form a unity. This important regularity of the universe is the main principle of dialectics - the doctrine of the universal connection and the eternal change of things. The dialectic of Heraclitus is not a dialectic of ideas (that is, not a subjective dialectic), but a dialectic of the Cosmos, which is presented as one in its inconsistency. Heraclitus puts the material principle - fire - into the basis of all things. “Fire lives on earth with death, and air lives on fire with death; water lives the air with death, the earth with water (death). This process is cyclical. Heraclitus can be considered the founder of the doctrine of knowledge. He writes: "Man has two means of knowing the truth: sensory perception and logos." However, the mind comprehends the truth, for it cognizes the essence - the logos of the world. Wisdom is "the knowledge of thought, which rules everywhere and everything." And although "much knowledge does not teach the mind ...", however, "men-philosophers should know a lot." The soul is equated by Heraclitus with fiery breath - the basis of life. A person “breathes in” the mind, joining with its help to the logos - the object of truth. The highest goal of cognition is the cognition of the logos, and thus the cognition of the higher unity of the universe and the achievement of higher wisdom. People are naturally equal, but they are not equal in fact. Their inequality is a consequence of the inequality of their interests. Happiness is not in the pleasure of the body, but in reflection and the ability to act according to nature.
The opposite of the teachings of Heraclitus is eleian school. Its representatives - Xenophanes (580-490 BC), Parmenides (540-480 BC), Zeno of Elea (490-430 BC) believe that being is one , indivisible, motionless; there is no development. This thesis was substantiated with the help of specific reasoning. Instead of the term One, which denotes everything that exists, Xenophanes used the concept of "being". Eternity follows from the very concept of being and is its most essential feature. That which is eternal must necessarily be indivisible. But the absolutely whole cannot move, which means that being is immutable. Reason has drawn such a picture of being for us, while feeling paints a different picture. Thus, the sensual and rational pictures of the world do not coincide. Hence, movement and change do not exist. Because they are impossible to think. To prove this position, Zeno developed aporias (paradoxes or insoluble contradictions: "Dichotomy", "Achilles and the tortoise", etc.). With their help, he tried to prove that the movement that we observe does not really exist, because when we begin to think about it, we encounter insurmountable difficulties: the eyes say that the movement is possible, but the mind says that it is not possible. And indeed: we see that the Sun moves every day from East to West, but in fact it is motionless in relation to the Earth. Therefore, do not rush to assert that Zeno is wrong.
ancient atomism is a holistic teaching, which highlights all the central problems of ancient philosophy. Representatives of this school include thinkers who lived in different historical periods: Leucippus (V century BC), Democritus (c. 460-370 BC), Epicurus (342-270 BC .e.).
The doctrine of being. The basis of everything that exists is an infinite number of atoms moving in the void, which is nothingness. Atoms (indivisible particles) are qualityless, that is, devoid of color, smell, sound, etc. All these qualities arise as a result of the interaction of atoms with the human senses. Atoms differ in size, shape, position. As a result of their combination, all things are formed. Moving atoms are collected in "vortices", from which an innumerable number of worlds are formed, in which life can arise naturally (without the intervention of the gods). It follows from this that not one phenomenon is without cause, since it is due to the combination of various atoms. Everything in the world has a reason, is subject to necessity, which means that there are no random events. (The idea of the absence of chance is characteristic primarily of Democritus, while Epicurus retreated from this thesis). The philosophical principle that all phenomena in the world have natural causes is called the principle of determinism. Consciousness, the human soul is also a collection of atoms of a special variety.
Theory of knowledge. Cognition is a material process of interaction of atoms. The basis of knowledge is sensations, which are the transfer of their copies from things, penetrating into a person through the organs of external senses. But if sensory perceptions are the basis of knowledge, then the mind allows you to reveal the true essence of things.
Teaching about man. Man is a unity of soul and body. The soul, like the body, is made up of special atoms that are ubiquitous. They enter the body in the process of breathing. After the death of a person, both the body and the soul disintegrate.
Ideas about society. Society arose naturally - people united, because together it was easier for them to satisfy their needs (needs). Imitating swallows, they learned to build houses, imitating spiders - to weave, etc.
The doctrine of morality (ethics). Atomistic ethics of pleasure in a developed form developed by Epicurus. Man seeks pleasure and avoids pain. His goal is bliss, that is, the health of the body and the serenity of the spirit. The path to bliss is pleasure, but only natural and necessary (excessive pleasures give rise only to new suffering). Everything that gives pleasure is good, and everything that leads to suffering is evil. Philosophy, according to Epicurus, helps a person achieve bliss, because the knowledge it gives frees from fear of the gods and death. The name of Epicurus in world culture has become a household name: a person who devotes a lot of time to enjoyment is called an "Epicurean".
"Anthropological revolution" in ancient philosophy.
The anthropological or humanistic period in the development of ancient philosophy is associated with the activities of the sophists, Socrates and the Socratic schools.
Sophists. In the 5th century BC. in Greece, a democratic form of government was established and people were not appointed to public posts, but were elected by popular vote, in connection with which oratory and education in general are of great importance. Philosophers possessed extensive knowledge, first of all. Therefore, people began to turn to them with requests to teach them to argue and prove, refute and convince. Some philosophers who took money for education were called sophists, that is, paid teachers. But gradually, in the context of the controversy between Plato and Aristotle, the term "sophistry" acquires a negative meaning, denoting reasoning that deliberately misleads a person, and a thinker who knew how to prove what was beneficial to him, regardless of the truth of what is being proved, began to be called a sophist, then there is a "false sage". Sophisms are outwardly correct evidence of deliberately false statements (for example, the “Horned” sophism sounds like this: “You have something that you have not lost; you have not lost your horns, so you are horned”). The Sophists argued that any view is as true as it is false. This view is called subjectivism. From these arguments it followed that everything in the world is relative (the position on the relativity of everything is called relativism).
The famous Greek philosopher confronts the sophists Socrates Athenian (469-399 BC), who left no written statement of his views. His philosophy is his life. The main idea of the philosophy of Socrates is the assertion that philosophy should not be a doctrine of nature, because a person can only know what is in his power. Nature is inaccessible to man. She is not in his power. Therefore, the main task of philosophy is self-knowledge, following the motto: "Man, know yourself." Knowing himself, a person knows the essence of virtue.
Knowledge is the discovery of the general in objects, and the general is the concept of an object. In order to be known, a concept must be defined. He developed a special method, which he called maieutics (midwifery), identifying the process of knowing the truth with the birth of a child, arguing that the philosopher helps the birth of truth. He argued that there can be only one truth, just like the Sun in the sky. It is the same for all and exists outside of us, regardless of our desires. We did not invent it, and it is not for us to cancel it. Truth has been before us and will always be. But the only thing we can say is that there is truth. However, it is impossible to assert that it is once and for all found and established. Therefore, Socrates claimed: "I know that I know nothing" (but our ignorance of the truth does not mean at all that it does not exist). Everyone must search for the truth on their own. This search is always filled with doubts, contradictions and long discussions. A person can, if not find the truth, then at least come closer to it. This method is called heuristic (from the Greek "I find"). The philosopher must assist the seeker in his undertakings: without offering ready-made answers, help him orient himself in the search for truth. But it must be born by itself in the soul and mind of the one who seeks it. the process of knowing the truth emax, and the general is the concept of the subject. must be a doctrine of nature, because man can
However, knowledge and virtue, according to Socrates, are not identical. From this it follows that the cause of moral evil, that is, the unvirtuous behavior of a person, is ignorance. If a person knows what is good, then his actions will be true and good. Virtue is the knowledge of goodness and action in accordance with this knowledge. Therefore, the explanation of the essence of virtue becomes a source of moral self-improvement. Hence, dialectics as a method is aimed primarily at educating the soul, at human awareness of the true meaning of his existence.
After the death of Socrates, several groups of philosophers formed who referred to him as a teacher. Such groups are called Socratic schools". Of particular importance among them was school of cynics(Antisthenes, Diogenes). The Cynics believed that social institutions, including moral norms, were not natural, but artificial. A person must follow nature - it was she who determined the minimum that he really needs. Everything else (for example, wealth, power) does not matter. Therefore, the only true good is inner freedom - independence from the norms imposed by society. The condition for achieving inner freedom is virtuous behavior. It is expressed in the abstinence from pleasures and the development of insensitivity to suffering.
Founder Cyrenaic schools was Aristippus. The principle of pleasure lay at the basis of their practical philosophy, hence the name of their ethical concept - hedonism (enjoyment). At the same time, the sage, striving for pleasure, will dominate the blessings of life, and not be held captive by them. He must be completely free from the external goods and disturbances of the world. But it is impossible to achieve perfect happiness, therefore life has no meaning (thus the development of the pleasure principle leads to its self-negation, that is, to the denial of hedonism).
Ancient philosophy is nothing but the research activity of Greco-Roman thinkers. It plays a huge role in the formation of Western philosophical thought and covers a period of a thousand years: from the 6th century BC. up to the 6th century AD It is believed that the philosophy of the ancient Greeks begins with the theoretical works of the so-called pre-Socratics, such as Thales and Anaximander, and ends with the late Neoplatonists and commentators on Aristotle (Simplicius and Philopon). Ancient philosophers could be found in all the Greek-speaking regions of the Mediterranean, such as Sicily, Southern Italy, Egypt, Asia Minor and North Africa.
The ancient philosophical tradition went beyond mythological thinking and came to explain the world on the basis of cause and effect. Ancient Greek thinkers built a variety of theories and did not come to unanimity among themselves, but they were all in search of the principles underlying the universe. The questions that were touched upon by ancient philosophy concerned the philosophical aspects of cosmology, ethics, epistemology, logic, aesthetics and metaphysics: “How did the Universe originate?”, “What is the nature of the cosmos?”, “Does there exist a transcendent reality beyond the boundaries of sensory experience?”, “What can knowledge be considered true?”, “Are there ethical standards for a noble life?”.
ancient philosophers
The ancient Greek philosophers were mostly pagans, which is why the fruits of their philosophical activity were not always approved by the growing Christianity. Thus, ancient philosophy ends with the closure of the Platonic Academy in Athens by Emperor Justinian in 529. Damascus was the last head of the academy.
Treatises
Unfortunately, ancient philosophy has survived to this day only in a small number of works by ancient Greek thinkers and their commentators. It is noteworthy that the works of the pre-Socratic and Hellenic philosophers partially survived only in later doxographic sources. Nevertheless, despite the fragmentary data on Greek philosophical thought, its uniqueness and theoretical integrity are clearly visible in the surviving tests.
Ancient philosophy: stages of development
Usually, four stages are distinguished in ancient Greek philosophy: pre-Socratic (XI-X century BC); classical (IX century BC); Hellenistic (end of IX-I century BC); imperial (I century BC - XI century AD). Prominent thinkers and schools of these stages include:
- In the pre-Socratic period (early ancient philosophy) - the Ionians (Thales of Miletus, Anaximenes, Anaximander, Xenophanes, Heraclitus), Pythagoras and his followers (Archytas, Philolaus, Alcmaeon), Eleatics (Parmenides, Zeno and Melissus), pluralists and atomists (Empedocles, Anaxagoras and Democritus).
- In the classical period: Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, sophists (Protagoras, Gorgias, Antiphon, Hippias and Prodik).
- In the Hellenistic period - the Cynics (Antisthenes, Diogenes, Crates), the Stoics (Zeno of Kita, Chrysippus, Cleanthes), the Epicureans (Epicurus, Metrodorus, Appolodorus, Lucretius), the Skeptics (Pyrrho of Elis, Carneades).
- In the Christian period - middle Platonists (Plutarch, Alcinous, Apuleius, Philo of Alexandria, Galen), neo-Pythagoreans (Nicomachus, Moderatus, Numenius), early neo-platonists (Plotinus, Porphyry, Amelius), late neo-platonists (Proclus, Damascus, Iamblichus).
philosophy cosmocentrism Milesian antique
Ancient (Ancient Greek) philosophy arises in the 7th-6th centuries BC. It is formed in certain historical conditions: economic, social, cultural. By that time, in ancient Greece there was a fairly developed slave-owning society, with a complex social class structure and forms of division of labor, which were already of a specialized nature. The role of intellectual and spiritual activity is also growing, acquiring the features of professionalism. Developed spiritual culture, art created a fertile ground for the formation of philosophy and philosophical thinking. So, Homer and his work, suffice it to mention his "Iliad" and "Odyssey", had a huge impact on many aspects of the spiritual life of Greek society of that period. It can be figuratively said that all "ancient philosophers and thinkers" came out of Homer ". And later, many of them turned to Homer and his works as an argument and proof.
At first, philosophy appears in the form of philosophizing. So, the “seven wise men”: 1) Thales of Miletus, 2) Pitton of Mytilene, 3) Biant from Prysna; 4) Solon from Asia; 5) Cleobulus of Lyons; 6) Mison Henei; 7) Chilo from Lacedaemonia tried to comprehend in an aphoristic form the essential aspects of the existence of the world and man, which have a stable, universal and generally significant character and determine the actions of people. In the form of aphorisms, they developed rules and recommendations for the actions of people, which people should follow in order to avoid mistakes: “Honor your father” (Cleobulus), “Know your time” (Pytton); “Hide the bad in your house” (Thales). They were more in the nature of useful advice than philosophical statements. Their limited but rational meaning is expressed in utility. As a result, they are generally applicable. But already with Thales, the statements acquire a proper philosophical character, since they fix the universal properties of nature that eternally exist. For example, “space is the most, because it contains everything in itself”, “Necessity is the strongest, because it has power.” They only hint at philosophical problems, but do not consciously pose them.
But already within the framework of the “Miletian School of Philosophers” a proper philosophical approach to understanding the world is being formed, because they consciously pose and try to answer such fundamental questions: Is the world one and in what way is its unity expressed? Does the world (in this case, nature) have its fundamental principle and the primary cause of its existence? The answer to such questions cannot be obtained on the basis of one's life experience, but only through thinking in abstract, generalized concepts.
The "Miletian philosophers" designate the objectively existing nature with the special concept of "cosmos" (in Greek - the universe, the world). This is where one of the first theoretical ways of knowing the world appears - cosmologism (cosmos + logos, knowledge). Cosmologism considers the world, the universe as an integral system, which is characterized by unity, stability, integrity and eternity of existence. And philosophy developed in the form of natural philosophy, a philosophical understanding of nature as a rational form of its description, explanation and understanding. Since scientific knowledge proper did not yet exist, philosophy assumed the function of knowing the specific properties of nature and its physical laws (phisis - in Greek nature, physics), and at the same time tried to solve purely philosophical problems - which is the primordial essence, the beginning nature and what is the essence of its being.
Within the framework of the Milesian School of Philosophers, individual objects and phenomena were taken for the primordial essence, the beginning, the “primary substance”, the properties of which were given a universal character. The properties of the individual, the separate, were taken as the basis of everything that exists. So, Thales from Miletus (late 7th - first half of the 6th century BC) takes water as the fundamental principle of the existing, as the most important primary substance. She is the source of everything. Undoubtedly, the empirical fact was taken into account - where there is water, there is life. Anaximander (610 - c. 540 BC), a student of Thales, as the primary substance, initially takes apeiron (translated into Greek - unlimited), which is eternal and is present everywhere and has no boundaries. That is why the Cosmos is eternal and boundless. And the cosmos seems to be a living, breathing "organism", where the collision of warm and cold air acts as breathing. Anaximenes (6th century BC) believed that the first principle is air, from which all objects and things of the objective world arise. It is also the foundation of the cosmos. The "breath of air" (liquefaction and condensation) holds everything and generates everything. Thus, within the framework of the already Milesian school, a certain principle of philosophizing is expressed - to consider the existence of the world from the world itself. This principle is called materialism. It is sometimes called naturalism. This is how the materialistic tradition was born in ancient philosophy, which had a huge impact on the development of philosophical thought throughout antiquity, but also on European philosophy as a whole. It should be noted that materialism is already a rational way of knowing the world, although still in an undeveloped, naive form.
A special role in the development of ancient philosophy was played by Heraclitus of Ephesus (from the city of Ephesus) from 544-480. BC) Based on the already established tradition, he also takes a separate phenomenon - fire - as a single foundation of the world, and the cosmos is a "fire-breathing ball" that exists on its own, has not been created by anyone and has always been and will be "eternally living fire ”, which has its own rhythms of being (“flashing measures and fading measures”).
To emphasize the unity of the world with all its diversity, Heraclitus introduces the concept of the Logos, which also has a cosmic character. By Logos, he understands the cosmic mind (mind), which, through the word, gives the Cosmos a certain meaning of being. Logos, as it were, embraces everything that exists and gives it the quality of unity. Within this unity, all things, bodies, objects flow into each other. Thanks to movement it (the cosmos) is dynamic, and thanks to the Logos it retains its stability, certainty and harmony. Heraclitus was one of the first to create the doctrine of the movement and development of the material world, the source and cause of development and movement are in the world itself. In fact, this is historically the first form of ancient dialectics as a doctrine of the movement and self-movement of the world. And she was materialistic. In his opinion, motion is the universal mode of existence of matter. Without movement and outside movement, the objects of the material world do not manifest their properties. He puts forward an aphoristic formula: "Everything flows and everything changes", emphasizing the universal nature of the movement, understanding the fluidity and variability of properties, and not just mechanical movement. The objectivity and naturalness of movement as an attribute of matter (nature) are supported by a comparison - it flows like water in a river. But the most important thing in the teachings of Heraclitus is the characterization of the source, the root cause of movement. Such a source is the struggle of opposites, which sets everything in motion. In fact, he was the first to form the law of unity and struggle of opposites, which is universal and universal. And for that time, Heraclitus gives a detailed description of the content and operation of this law. So, by unity, he understands the identity of opposites, that is, the belonging of various mutually exclusive properties to the same essence, to one object. For example, "day and night, winter and summer" - there are properties of nature. He considers the struggle of opposites not just as a collision and destruction of mutually exclusive properties, but as a transition from one to another, as a mutual transition: "Cold becomes warm, warm becomes cold, wet - dry, dry - wet." The opposites seem to be in a triune relationship at the same time: 1) they mutually determine each other; 2) they complement each other (harmony of the world) and 3) they mutually exclude each other (struggle). The development of the world as a cosmos presupposes an eternal cycle of phenomena, due to which it remains an eternally living fire. Here it is worth emphasizing that all subsequent philosophers and thinkers appealed to Heraclitus' dialectics and his doctrine of development.
Heraclitus subjects the essence of human cognitive activity to philosophical analysis and puts forward the doctrine of truth. Thus, the universal basis of knowledge is the ability of people to think. (“Thinking is common to all”), the tool of which is the word (“logos”), and the purpose of knowledge is the achievement of true knowledge, i.e. one that does not distort the objective properties of things. He distinguishes two levels of knowledge:
sensory knowledge, which he calls "dark", since feelings often distort the real picture and fix only individual external properties. "Bad witnesses are the eyes and ears of people." True, he makes a reservation that only those who "have coarse souls."
theoretical knowledge, which gives thinking, through which a person achieves true knowledge and becomes a true sage.
The most prominent representative of the materialistic tradition in ancient philosophy was Democritus of Abdera (460-350 BC). He is the most consistent conductor of materialism as the principle of explaining and understanding the world. He believed that atoms, the smallest, indivisible particles, are the primary substance, the “first brick” of everything that exists. They are smaller than dust, and therefore are not visually perceived. He becomes the creator of the atomic picture of the world.
Democritus also resolves such a complex and difficult question: If everything consists of atoms, then why is the world of objects so diverse in its properties? That is, he faced a fundamental philosophical problem - the unity and diversity of the world. And within the framework of philosophy and natural philosophy of that period, he gives its rational solution. Atoms are infinite in number, but differ in 1) size; 2) severity (heavy and light); 3) geometric shapes (flat, round, hooked, etc.). The infinite inexhaustibility of the forms of atoms. Hence, the infinite variety of properties of objects is connected with what atoms they consist of. In addition, the change in properties depends on the change in the order of the bond, the relationship between different atoms. The combinations of atoms are endless in their diversity. Therefore, the Universe, the cosmos is a moving matter, consisting of atoms. By matter, he understands everything that consists of atoms. And by movement, he understands both the movement of atoms (they are worn like mad), and their connection and separation. And the movement itself has rhythm, repetition and stability. Therefore, he tends to recognize the existence in the world of necessity, i.e. the obligatoriness and objectivity of what is happening, the stable ordering of events, and the denial of theology. In this regard, the philosophy of Democritus can be characterized as atheistic. But there are no accidents in the world, and rigid necessity prevails. Therefore, the existence of the world is existence in necessity. And non-existence is emptiness, when connections and relationships are destroyed, and objects lose their properties.
Democritus consistently applies the principle of materialism to explaining the essence of knowledge, obtaining true knowledge about something. By truth in this case we understand the coincidence, the adequacy of our ideas, images, concepts to the real properties of things. We can say that Democritus was one of the first to create a fairly coherent theory of knowledge, which is based on the principle of reflection, reproduction of the world and its properties in thinking. Usually the theory of knowledge of Democritus is characterized as the "theory of expiration", the essence of which is as follows. Atoms are covered with the thinnest film, "eidola" - images. They break off, "leak" from the surface of atoms, affect our senses, imprint in them, are stored and fixed in memory. This is a sensory level of knowledge, which has a sign of reliability. True, he calls sensory knowledge "dark", due to its incompleteness, fragmentation and superficiality. Although true knowledge is a continuation of sensory knowledge, it is already the result of the activity of the mind, which, through concepts, generalizes individual facts, gives complete and undistorted knowledge of the true essence of things hidden from the senses. And this is the result of the activity of thinking, the activity of the mind through concepts. Cognition, as it were, passes from sensory, empirical knowledge, to theoretical, rational, rational knowledge, in which the true nature of things is revealed to us.
From the point of view of his atheistic concept, Democritus explains the existence of the spiritual world and the human soul. All living things have a soul, consisting of special atoms. The human soul consists of very light and spherical atoms. And since the human body also consists of atoms, we can talk about the unity of the Soul and the Body. Therefore, when the body dies, the soul leaves the body, dispersing into space. Of course, this is a naive dialectic of soul and body, but still an attempt to explain their relationship.
Democritus also touches on the complex moral problems of human existence. In his special work “On the even mood of the spirit” (about “euthymia”), he presents the goal of human life as the pursuit of happiness and goodness, achieved by calmness and balance in the soul, a state of serene wisdom. Serenity is a mental state when feelings do not revolt against the mind. And happiness is understood not as a desire for pleasure, but for justice. From this he concludes that only a moral person is truly happy. He achieves this by following the dictates of conscience and shame, which he characterizes in the form of aphorisms: “Do not speak or do evil, even if you are alone; learn to be ashamed of yourself far more than of others” (conscience). “Not out of fear, but out of a sense of duty, one must refrain from actions” (shame). Not only actions can be immoral, but also intentions. Of course, these postulates are advisory in nature, but they can be generally applicable. They still do not lose their significance, attractiveness and inspiring power.
A prominent place in the ancient philosophy of this period is occupied by Pythagoras (570 - 406/97 BC) and the "Pythagorean school" formed by him. He was not only a famous mathematician and geometer, but also an outstanding philosopher. He offers an original solution to the fundamental philosophical problem - what is the basis of the unity of the world and whether there are single, common patterns in this world, and whether we can cognize and rationally express them. Based on the already generally accepted idea of the world, the cosmos as a living, fiery and breathing spherical body and from astronomical observations, Pythagoras notes in the movement of celestial bodies the geometric correctness of the movement of celestial bodies, rhythm and harmony in the correlation of celestial bodies, which are inherent in constant numerical ratios. The so-called harmony of the heavenly spheres. He comes to the conclusion that the basis of the unity and harmony of the world, as if its universal fundamental principle, is the number. "The Pythagoreans considered numbers to be sensually contemplated spatial figures." Introducing such a principle of understanding and explaining the world, Pythagoras draws attention to the presence of interconnection, the dialectics of the finite and the infinite, the spatial coordinates of the world's being. And since numbers “rule the world and permeate everything,” then both the soul and the body have numerical expressions, and numerical proportions are also inherent in moral qualities, and beauty, and art, especially music. From here he puts forward the idea of the transmigration of the human soul after bodily death into the bodies of other beings. In this form, now seeming naive, Pythagoras asserts the existence of universal laws of the existence of the world, its unity, infinity and infinity, and hence eternity.
A special trend in the philosophy of antiquity of this period was sophistry (from the Greek. sophistry - the ability to witty debate). Based on the postulate “Man is the measure of all things”, put forward by Protagoras (481 - 413 BC), they direct their efforts not to achieve true knowledge, but to prove through eloquence the correctness of any subjective opinion that meets the principle of utility . This is a kind of "utilitarian philosophy", which puts forward the ideas of relativity and impermanence of everything that exists, deny the truth as a generally valid knowledge. That is what is useful and beneficial to an individual. Therefore, they pursued a purely pragmatic and largely selfish goal - to prove the truth of any opinion, if it is beneficial. Hence the extreme relativism - there is nothing universally significant, stable and permanent in the world. And for this, they narrowly used logic as a system of proof for narrow speculative purposes. Everything is only relative: both good, and good, and evil, and beautiful, and, therefore, there is nothing truly true. Here is an example of the reception of the sophists: "Illness is an evil for the sick, but good for doctors." “Death is evil for the dying, but for the sellers of things needed for funerals, and for the funeral directors, it is good.” On the basis of such judgments it is impossible to understand what the true good is and whether it has general validity, it is impossible to prove whether death is evil. In fact, sophistry and sophism entered the history of both philosophical thought and culture as a conscious substitution of concepts about something in order to derive benefit and benefit. Sophistry has become synonymous with non-science, dishonesty both in thinking and in people's actions. Sophism and sophistry become a sign of untruth in actions, and in thinking, and in worldview. Sophism and sophistry is a deliberate justification of evil and self-interest. It should be noted that sophism and sophists were especially popular among the politicians of that time. Modern politicians also sin with this.
3. Now we begin to characterize the most fruitful and positive period in the development of ancient philosophy, which received the designation of ancient classics, the period of a perfect model of philosophizing, pursuing the only goal - comprehending the truth and creating methods of knowledge that lead us to truly true reliable knowledge. This was the period of creation of the historically first universal philosophical systems that grasped the world as a whole and gave it a rational interpretation. We can say that this was a period of a kind of "creative competition" of thinkers-philosophers, although holding different positions, but pursuing one goal - the search for universal truth and the rise of philosophy as a rational form of describing, explaining and understanding the world.
In socio-economic and political terms, it was the heyday of the ancient slave society, democracy and political life, art and science of that period. In economic terms, it was an era of prosperity, and in spiritual terms, the rise of the principles of high ethics and morality. It seemed to have become a model for civilized and cultural development, a model of humanism for all subsequent stages of European and not only European culture and history. Although the Greek society of this period had its own internal contradictions, as well as for any other. But still, it can be said that it was more agreement, unity rather than disagreement and disunity that prevailed in it.
It can be said that Socrates (469 - 399 BC) is the ancestor, the "father" of classical ancient philosophy. This was in all respects an outstanding personality: he was not only a great philosopher and thinker, but an outstanding person and citizen. It surprisingly combined in harmonious unity his philosophical position and practical actions and deeds. His integrity as a philosopher and as a person has such a high charm and authority that he had a huge influence not only on all subsequent stages of philosophy, both European and world, but became a symbol, a model of a genuine, true person for all time. "Socratic man" is the ideal of man, not as God, but as "an earthly being close to all people." We can say that the life of Socrates is an example of demonstrative service to the truth and humanity.
Socrates, first of all, draws attention to the peculiarity of philosophy and philosophizing, to the specifics of philosophical knowledge. It lies in the fact that philosophy, through general concepts of the subject, is trying to discover a single basis, such an essence, which is generally significant for a number of phenomena or all phenomena, which is the law of the existence of things. The subject of philosophy, according to Socrates, cannot be nature, since we are not able to either change natural phenomena or create them. Therefore, the subject of philosophy is a person and his actions, and self-knowledge, knowledge of oneself is the most important task. Socrates raises the question of the goals and practical purpose of philosophical knowledge for a person. Thus, philosophy is given an anthropological character. Socratic philosophy is one of the first forms of anthropological philosophy. After Socrates in philosophy, the problem of man acquired the significance of a fundamental problem. What is the goal of philosophy according to Socrates? The purpose and task of philosophy is to teach a person the art of life and be happy in this life. He gives a very simple definition of happiness, which is essentially universal - happiness is such a state of a person when he experiences neither mental nor bodily suffering. Eudlaimon is a happy person. The basis of happiness, according to Socrates, can be the true knowledge of the good and the good, that is, which no one doubts, and which does not lead to errors and delusions, which are the cause of unhappiness. On this basis, Socrates believes that true knowledge is a true good, which is based not so much on benefit as on goodness. By good, Socrates understands bringing good to another, without pursuing any selfish gain. But how to achieve and is it achievable knowledge about the true good and the good, is true knowledge about anything achievable? Indeed, true knowledge has a special attribute. It is universally significant and obvious to everyone, and because of this, no one doubts it. Therefore, Truth reveals the universal, essential foundations of the existence of phenomena in a certain quality.
The only way to achieve true knowledge is the method of dialogue, during which the truth is revealed to the participants in the dialogue. According to Socrates, dialogue is a mutual and voluntary search for true knowledge about something, clothed in a system of general concepts, under which we bring specific phenomena. Dialogue is a creative process of searching for truth. Addressing the interlocutor, Socrates says: “And yet I want to think with you and look for what it is” (true virtue). (See Plato. Menon. Selected Dialogues and True Good). In the dialogue Laches, Socrates asks the question: "What does it mean to define what virtue is?" and answers: “It means to find out what is the same in everything, to find in the virtue under consideration that one that covers all cases of its manifestation.” This means that truth, and even more so philosophical truth, is the correct knowledge of the essence, which has a generally valid character. In this regard, Socrates emphasizes the rationalistic nature of philosophy, capable of resisting mysticism, prejudice and ignorance. Therefore, Socrates insists on the assertion that philosophy is the only impartial form of self-knowledge by a person of his true essence. Hence his motto-aphorism: "Know thyself."
In dialogue there is always a dialectic of opinion and knowledge, opinion and truth. Opinion, i.e. a statement about something turns into a true judgment only when it turns into a system of concepts that fix the universally valid. And the dialectic of thinking lies in the transition from one type of concept to another, from particular to general, more general content, from simpler knowledge to more complex.
According to Socrates, the goal of philosophy is also the acquisition of true freedom by a person, the content of which should be the clarification of what depends on a person and what does not depend on a person, and within these boundaries; relying on true knowledge, a person acts faultlessly and without delusions. Therefore, a person is free only to the extent that he knows himself. But according to Socrates, true and genuine freedom also includes a moral and ethical component. Freedom, freethinking is the path to self-improvement, to the perfect ideal of a person, to a kalokagat person (ie, a person who is perfect in spiritual and moral terms). Socrates insists: “After all, I only do what I go and convince each of you, both young and old, to take care first and foremost not about the body and not about money, but about the soul, so that it is as good as possible.”
This is the humanistic and educational nature of Socratic philosophy. Socrates is a model not only of true philosophizing, but also of a true combination of philosophy and practice of action, responsibility as a thinker and as a person. In essence, Socrates conducts a “social experiment” on himself, in which he tests the possibility and achievability of the connection and indissolubility of philosophical truths and principles with direct manifestation of life. Which always requires a thinker and a person of extraordinary courage, demonstrated by Socrates at his trial. Let's finish the characterization of Socrates' philosophy with Michel Montaigne's statement about him: “It is truly easier to speak like Aristotle and live like Caesar than to talk and live like Socrates. Here is precisely the limit of difficulty and perfection: no art will add anything here.
The history of Antiquity - an integral part of the history of the ancient world - studies the origin, flourishing and crisis of social and state structures that arose on the territory of Ancient Greece and Rome. It begins at the turn of III - II millennium BC. - Since the emergence of the first state associations on about. Crete, and ends 476 AD. E - Fall of the Western Roman Empire.
This period in human history takes its name from the Latin term " antiqua"(antiquity) and has its own specific features of development in comparison with the old societies:
1. Ancient society was characterized by a faster pace of communal relations.
2. In the classical developed ancient states (Athens, Rome) there was no internal (debt) slavery. Laws 594. It was forbidden to sell their fellow tribesmen in Athens for debts, and the law Petelia 326 Eliminated debt slavery in ancient Rome.
3. If ancient ancient states were military-bureaucratic monarchies, then the main type of state structure of ancient countries was a republic in the form of a policy.
Long time under the term "policy" historians understood the "city-state". However, not every city was a state and not every state had the appearance of a city. For example, an Attic city Piraeus- the sea gates of Athens - it was never a state, although it was not inferior in size, number of inhabitants and appearance Thebes, Megare or Corinth. And vice versa, one of the largest policies of Ancient Greece - Sparta looked like an ordinary rural settlement.
Therefore, it would be more correct to understand the term "polis" as a civil community, that is, a team of full-fledged citizens who inhabited a certain territory and had a republican form of government.
4. A specific form of ownership in ancient policies was communal private property, and its second part was mediated by the first. Namely: the rights of private ownership of land were used only by full members of the civil community and deprivation of civil rights led to the loss of ownership of the land.
5. The pace of cultural development of ancient civilization was much faster than the cultural evolution of ancient Eastern societies.
All modern culture has grown on the soil of the culture of antiquity. Without knowledge of ancient history, it is impossible to understand many of the institutions of modern periods, the history of art, architectural styles, theater, modern political and scientific terms, incl. terms "history", "philosophy", "culture", etc. Antiquity in all its diversity appears at every step both in the public and private life of modern man.
Begins the ancient era in the history of Ancient Greece. For almost two thousand years, the Greeks created a developed economic system, a classical polis organization with a republican structure, a high culture, which significantly influenced the development of world civilization.
It is customary to divide the entire ancient Greek history into 5 large stages:
1. Aegean or Cretan-Mycenaean(III millennium - XII centuries BC) - the formation of early state associations on about. Crete and Achaean Greece.
2. Beforepolisny or Homeric(XI - IX centuries BC) - the dominance of tribal relations in Greece.
3. Archaic(VIII - VI centuries BC) - the formation of state associations in the form of policies.
4. Classical(V - first half - IV centuries BC) - the heyday of the old ancient Greek society, polis structure, Greek culture.
5. Hellenistic(second half of the 4th century - 30th pp. 1st century BC) - the formation of new Hellenistic societies based on the interaction and unification of Greek and Eastern principles.
Since the first and last stages of Greek history were decisive, they are usually divided into separate periods.
The Aegean or Crete-Mycenaean stage has 3 periods, depending on the degree of social development, and these periods did not coincide for the history of Crete and for the history of mainland Greece. Cretan history (or Minoan, on behalf of the legendary king Minos) divided into:
A) Early Minoan(XXX - XXIII centuries BC) - the dominance of tribal relations;
b) Middle Minoan(XXII - XVIII centuries BC) - the period of old palaces, the formation of the first states, the appearance of the first social groups, writing, the unification of Crete;
V) piznominoysky(XVII - XII centuries BC) - the period of new palaces, the heyday of the Cretan state and its conquest by the Achaeans.
Chronology of the Mycenaean stage (mainland Greece):
A) early Helladic period(XXX - XXI centuries BC) - the dominance of primitive communal relations, the pre-Greek population;
b) Middle Helladic period(XX - XVII centuries BC) - penetration and settlement of the Achaean Greeks in the southern part of Balkan Greece and the beginning of the decomposition of tribal relations;
V) Pisnoyella or Mycenaean period (XVI - XII centuries BC) - the emergence of early state associations, the emergence of writing, the flourishing of the Mycenaean civilization and its fall.
The Hellenistic stage of ancient Greek history is also divided into the C period:
A) eastern campaigns of Alexander the Great and the creation of a system of Hellenistic states(30th pp. IV - 80th pp. III century BC);
b) the rise of Hellenistic societies and states(80s pp. III century - the middle of the II century BC);
V) the crisis of the Hellenistic system and the conquest of the Hellenistic states by Rome in the West and Parthia in the East(mid-2nd century - 30th pp. 1st century BC). Interests in Rome in 30 B.C. The last Hellenistic state of the Egyptian kingdom meant only the end of the long development of ancient Greek civilization and its culture.
