Doing Philosophy: Introduction to the Philosophy of the Human Person

This set of vocabulary flashcards covers the etymology of philosophy, key concepts, and the most notable ancient Greek philosophers detailed in the lecture.

Philosophy

Derived from the Greek words philo (love) and sophia (wisdom), it literally means the "love for wisdom."

Mother of all sciences

A title given to philosophy because the earliest philosophers began to study anything and everything.

Pythagoras ($570BCE$ to $495 BCE$)

A mathematician and scientist credited with formulating the Pythagorean theorem who established a community devoted to religion and philosophy.

Heraclitus ($535BCE$ to $475 BCE$)

A philosopher who proposed that everything exists based on a higher order plan called Logos and credited with the saying, "No man ever steps in the same river twice."

Logos

The higher order plan proposed by Heraclitus that serves as the basis for everything that exists.

Democritus ($460BCE$ to $370 BCE$)

A philosopher who studied the causes of natural phenomena and was among the first to propose that matter is composed of tiny particles called atoms.

Diogenes of Sinope ($412BCE$ to $323 BCE$)

An advocate of living a simple virtuous life through austerity and simplicity; his views influenced the development of Cynicism and Stoicism.

Epicurus ($341BCE$ to $270 BCE$)

A philosopher who believed philosophy could enable man to live a life of happiness, leading to the rise of Epicureanism.

Epicureanism

A school of philosophy which believes that wisdom and simple living will result in a life free of fear and pain.

Socrates ($470BCE$ to $399 BCE$)

The foremost philosopher of ancient times who made great contributions to ethics and described himself as a "midwife" helping minds achieve wisdom.

Socratic Method

A means of examining a topic by devising a series of questions that let the learners examine and analyze their knowledge and views.

Plato ($427BCE$ to $347 BCE$)

A student of Socrates whose teachings are considered the foundation of Western philosophy and who founded the Academy.

Theory of Forms

Plato's idea proposing that everything that exists is based on a nonphysical idea or template that is eternal, unchanging, and perceived only by the mind.

Dialectic

A method of inquiry favored by Plato where two opposing ideas are discussed in an attempt to arrive at new knowledge.

Academy

The institution of higher learning founded by Plato, recognized as the first of its kind in the Western World.

Aristotle ($384 BCE$ to $322 BCE$)

A prominent student of Plato who argued that reality is based on what we can sense and perceive, influencing the physical sciences.

Deductive Reasoning

A formal process of analyzing reasoning formulated by Aristotle where specific statements are analyzed to reach a conclusion or generalization.

Holistic perspective

A broad perspective on life obtained through doing philosophy, distinct from a partial point of view.