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428 BCE
PLATO (428 - 348 BC)
“Opinion is the medium between knowledge and ignorance.” Plato was a well-known Greek philosopher whose work continues to inspire and influence modern philosophical thought. Plato observed, "Opinion is the medium between knowledge and ignorance," implying that an opinion reveals progress toward knowledge as well as a distance from pure ignorance. -
384 BCE
ARISTOTLE (384 - 322 BC)
"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” Aristotle was widely recognized being one of the most influential philosopher, having made major contributions to logic, mathematics, ethics, and etc. According to Aristotle, virtues are excellent habits that we acquire in order to control our emotions. He did not see virtues as basic knowledge in his philosophy. He characterized it as something that should be done in moderation and in accordance with nature. -
1225
THOMAS AQUINAS (1225 - 1274)
“Unlimited happiness can only be achieved through God, and God alone.” Thomas Aquinas is an Italian philosopher and was the greatest of the Scholastic philosophers. He believes, like Aristotle, that an act is good or bad depending on whether it contributes to or detracts from our proper human end. He created a comprehensive synthesis of Christian theology and Aristotelian philosophy, which influenced Roman Catholic teaching for centuries. -
IMMANUEL KANT (1724 - 1804)
"An action, to have moral worth, must be done from duty." Kant was a prominent Enlightenment philosopher. He says that human understanding is the source of the general laws of nature that organize all of our experience, and that human reason provides itself the moral law, which is our basis for believe in God, freedom, and immortality. Kant's thorough and methodical works have made him being one of the most influential philosophers in modern Western philosophy. -
JEREMY BENTHAM (1748 - 1832)
“Happiness is a very pretty thing to feel, but very dry to talk about.” Jeremy Bentham was a philosopher, economist, jurist, and legal reformer and the founder of modern utilitarianism, an ethical theory holding that actions are morally right if they tend to promote happiness or pleasure (and morally wrong if they tend to promote unhappiness or pain) among all those affected by them. -
JOHN STUART MILL (1806 - 1873)
"The individual is not accountable to society for his actions in so far as these concern the interests of no person but himself." John Stuart Mill was the most famous and influential British philosopher of the nineteenth century. He was one of the last systematic philosophers, making significant contributions in logic, metaphysics, epistemology, ethics, political philosophy, and social theory.
