Major Philosophers of the World - Essay Example

Major Philosophers of the World There have been a lot of philosophers whose thoughts have influenced the world and the thinking of men in later ages. None however, have been as influential as Socrates, the Buddha, Descartes and Elizabeth of the Bohemia. This paper shall look into the philosophies of these thinkers and the features of the age in which they lived. Socrates is one of the most important thinkers in the history of philosophy. He pioneered the dialectical dialogue as a method of philosophical inquiry.

An inhabitant of ancient Greece, Socrates’ philosophy is found in the works of his disciples Plato and Xenophon. He believed in the ability of man to do good. His philosophy entailed the inability of man to be evil. Socrates held that all the evil that occurred in the world did so because of the ignorance of man. The exact dates of the birth of the Buddha have been a subject of debate among historians; however, he lived in India during the fifth century B.C. his philosophy is similar to that of Hinduism.

He emphasized on the importance of gaining freedom from desire. This he believed, would grant man freedom from the cycle of life and death to which one was confined otherwise. Man’s salvation lay in a detachment from worldly affairs. Rene Descartes was a French philosopher who lived during the late sixteenth and early seventeenth century. He believed in the rational nature of being and attempted to arrive at something that he would be able to label as the truth. He believed that thought was the one feature that was unique to man and defined him.

The thoughts of a man were what made him what he was. Elizabeth of Bohemia was a contemporary and regular correspondent of Descartes. Her work in philosophy concerns the relationship between the mind and the body. This is related to the work that was produced by Descartes, who worked on the relationship between man and the thoughts that originate in his mind. She however, is critical of the divorce that Descartes effects between the body and the mind and places great emphasis on the effect that both have on each other.

The philosophers that have been discussed here belong to different ages and nationalities. Their contributions to the field of philosophy, however, are great. Contemporary researchers and philosophers have been able to see the connections between these different ideologies and in them, man’s eternal quest to understand his own nature and position within the cosmos. Works CitedMarias, Julian. History of Philosophy. Tr. Appelbaum, Stanley; Strowbridge, Clarence C. New York: Dover Publications, 1986. Print.