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The first philosophers paved the way for the work of Plato and Aristotle - and hence for the whole of Western thought. Aristotle said that philosophy begins with wonder, and the first Western philosophers developed theories of the world which express simultaneously their sense of wonder and their ...

The first philosophers paved the way for the work of Plato and Aristotle - and hence for the whole of Western thought. Aristotle said that philosophy begins with wonder, and the first Western philosophers developed theories of the world which express simultaneously their sense of wonder and their intuition that the world should be comprehensible. But their enterprise was by no means limited to this proto-scientific task. Through, for instance, Heraclitus' enigmatic sayings, the poetry of Parmenides and Empedocles, and Zeno's paradoxes, the Western world was introduced to metaphysics, rationalist theology, ethics, and logic, by thinkers who often seem to be mystics or shamans as much as philosophers or scientists in the modern mould. And out of the Sophists' reflections on human beings and their place in the world arose and interest in language, and in political, moral, and social philosophy. This volume contains a translation of all the most important fragments of the Presocratics and Sophists, and of the most informative testimonia from ancient sources, supplemented by lucid commentary.

The history of Western philosophy spans over two thousand years, but most of the running has been made by a surprisingly small number of thinkers. It has been said that all Western philosophy is a series of footnotes to Plato, but this book takes a more accommodating view in selecting the fifty ...

The history of Western philosophy spans over two thousand years, but most of the running has been made by a surprisingly small number of thinkers. It has been said that all Western philosophy is a series of footnotes to Plato, but this book takes a more accommodating view in selecting the fifty figures who have made the largest contributions to the development of our reflection upon the world and ourselves.

This Biographical Dictionary provides detailed accounts of the lives, works, influence and reception of thinkers from all the major philosophical schools and traditions of the twentieth-century.This unique volume covers the lives and careers of thinkers from all areas of philosophy - from analytic ...

This Biographical Dictionary provides detailed accounts of the lives, works, influence and reception of thinkers from all the major philosophical schools and traditions of the twentieth-century.This unique volume covers the lives and careers of thinkers from all areas of philosophy - from analytic philosophy to Zen and from formal logic to aesthetics. All the major figures of philosophy, such as Nietzsche, Wittgenstein and Russell are examined and analysed. The scope of the work is not merely restricted to the major figures in western philosophy but also covers in depth a significant number of thinkers from the near and far east and from the non-European Hispanic-language communities.The Biographical Dictionary also includes a number of general entries dealing with important schools of philosophy, such as the Vienna Circle, or currents of thought, such as vitalism. These allow the reader to set the individual biographies in the context of the philosophical history of the period. With entries written by over 100 leading philosophy scholars, the Biographical Dictionary is the most comprehensive survey of twentieth-century thinkers to date.StructureThe book is structured alphabetically by philosopher. Each entry is identically structured for ease of access and covers:* nationality* dates and places of birth and death* philosophical style or school* areas of interest* higher education* significant influences* main appointments* main publications* secondary literature* account of intellectual development and main ideas* critical reception and impactAt the end of the book a glossary gives accounts of the schools, movements and traditions to which these philosophers belonged, and thorough indexes enable the reader to access the information in several ways:* by nationality* by major areas of contribution to philosophy e.g. aesthetics* by major influences on the thinker concerned e.g. Plato, Kant, Wittgenstein