The question of who the 15 most influential philosophers of all time are doesn’t come up in every pub conversation. In any case, not outside the circle of Open Culture readers. However, even among non-experts, there is a possibility that more lively discussions will arise than expected. a name like socrates, aristotle, descartesand Marx After all, it is known even among ordinary people who have never read a single page of a philosophical book. They are all From videos viewed 1 million times Jadon’s history On top of thathas a unique twist when choosing the top 15 names. Its 26 minutes also include brief biographies of each philosopher, useful if peppered with odd pronunciations, plus an encapsulated sense of these philosophers’ enduring ideas.
In pursuit of the truth, socrates He created the question-based dialogue method that bears his name. PlatoA disciple of Socrates, he advocated government by the enlightened and the pursuit of knowledge through pure forms of contemplation. rejects Plato’s method, aristotle Dedicated to systematic empirical observation. On the other side of the world, Confucius He spread his teachings about cultivating moral virtues to maintain social relationships, which he considered to be a fundamental component of civilized order, and China eventually adopted it as its national philosophy. back to europe Augustine He integrated Christian theology and classical philosophy and laid the foundation for medieval thought. thomas aquinaswas also devoted to the combination of faith and reason, and made a series of frequently cited arguments for the existence of God.
In search of an absolutely certain foundation of knowledge, René Descartes He achieved self-knowledge and famously proclaimed, “I think, therefore I am,” articulating the dualistic worldview that bears his name. Apart from his research on the nature of knowledge, john lockeHis ideas about social organization and government live on today in modern democracies influenced by the Enlightenment. david hume They posed a fundamental challenge to the established ideas of empiricism, calling into question our very notion that future events reflect past experience. Jean-Jacques Rousseau introduced the concept that legitimate political authority stems from the “general will,” a social agreement between free and equal individuals, and this turned out to be central to the justification of the French Revolution. immanuel kant He worked to bridge the gap between rationalism and empiricism, reconciling the role of both experience and the physical structure of the mind on the formation of knowledge.
Among other concepts, georg wilhelm friedrich hegel defined DaseinIt encapsulates the human mode of existence (and it takes a lifetime spent with his writings to understand it, if at all). A professional journalist and historian, karl marx He portrayed human history through economic structure and class struggle, and his vision of a completely equal society remains persuasive to many today. Friedrich Nietzsche He declared that “God is dead” and placed the burden of defining morality on humans, especially on the person he called “God.” Ubermensch. Ludwig Wittgenstein He took it upon himself to provide the most rigorous explanation of the relationship between language and reality. In the comments, the creator of the video teases part two, and we’re curious to see which philosophers will be included. spinoza? heidegger? Sartre?The year and a half it has taken so far is enough time for the narrator to learn how to pronounce it.
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Based in Seoul, Colin Mbemust write and broadcastIt’s about cities, languages ​​and cultures. he is the author of the newsletter books about cities books as well Home page (I won’t summarize Korea) and korean newtro. Follow him on the social network formerly known as Twitter. @Colinbemust.
Source: Open Culture – www.openculture.com
