Ancient philosophy

Ancient philosophy starts from the core of Greco-Roman world. This Greco- Roman in the sixth century BC has rooted the foundation for all kinds of western philosophy. There are some great people like Socrates, Aristotle and Plato who can never be forgotten while talking of the Ancient Philosophy.

In the sixth and fifth centuries, the Pre-Socratic’s and Sophists has made a great impact. Of the diverse range of important thinkers the Stoics, Epicureans in the Hellenistic Age and under those philosophers who wrote under the Roman Empire holds the major importance.

Pagans have principally set the Ancient Philosophy which was later eclipsed by the Christianity. Of the enormous ancient philosophy only a few were discovered. Still an enormous amount of work can’t be recovered.

The Ancient philosophy dominated over the other product Greece and also other parts where they spoke Greece, especially in the Mediterranean which was later included with southern Italy. It was also spread through Sicily, western Asia and other important parts of North Africa. Egypt is one of the major countries that were dominated by the ancient philosophy.

Starting from the first century there were many Romans who were very much interested in the Greek philosophical systems. Though some of them were written in Latin, Greek retained its position in the arena.

Presocratic philosophy dominated the first phase covering most of the sixth and the fifth century. The main focus of the Preosocratic thinker is to elaborate the regularities and the origin of the physical world. They were also interested in reckoning the place of the human soul within it.

Presocratics period also begotten so many rebels like Eleatic philosophers who relied on priori reasoning undermining the very basis of cosmology. The traditional view of the Presocratics was shifted by Socrates. Socrates shifted the focus away from the natural world to human values. This shift however coincides with the Sophists the contemporaries of Socrates. The Sophists taught the basics of the social and political success basing themselves on the moral issues.

Socrates has become a powerful icon during this time through his teachings.  He has been a powerful icon for moral scrutiny in the Ancient Philosophy. Even after his death he was looked back by many different schools as a living embodiment of philosophy and followed the principles and the teachings of Socrates.

Athens was made as a philosophical center of the Greek world purely by the efforts of Sophists and Socrates in the fourth century. Plato the pupil of Socrates set his school named the Academy in Athens.

Questions

• Who were very much interested in the Ancient Philosophy in the first Century?
• What was the philosophical century of the fourth century?