Various Ethical Philosophers and their Major Ethical Philosophies Timeline
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“The perfecting of one's self is the fundamental base of all progress and all moral development.”
Confucius is a Chinese philosopher. He follows an ethical principle that believes filial piety and fraternal love are the roots of humaneness, the foundation and origin of human morality; all social goods are extensions of family ethics. He also believed that the key to harmony is cultivating oneself and being patient with everyone around you. -
"Wonder is the beginning of wisdom."
Socrates was a Greek philosopher from Athens who is credited as a founder of Western philosophy. Socrates, when he was alive had a predominant interest in ethics. He believed that self-knowledge was already a sufficient condition to live a good life. He believes that one must seek knowledge and wisdom before private interests. Socrates stated that if knowledge can be learned, so can virtue. -
"Excellence is not a gift, but a skill that takes practice. We do not act rightly, because we are excellent, in fact we achieve excellence by acting rightly."
Plato, a Greek philosopher regards the ethical virtues of justice, courage, temperance and so on as a complex rational, emotional and social skill. He believed that in order to completely be a virtuous person, one must acquire a training in science, mathematics and philosophy. -
"It is our choice of good or evil, that determines our character, not our opinion about good or evil."
Aristotle was one of the greatest philosophers ans the first genuine scientist in history. His interpretation of ethics mainly empathizes the role of habit in conduct. To him, virtue is practical and that the purpose of ethical principles is to practice a well-lived life, become good, not just merely to know. -
“I do not live for what the world thinks of me, but for what I think of myself.”
Epicurus was a greek philosopher who believed that one's own pleasure is extremely valuable. His ethics is a form of egoistic hedonism. Epicureans see pleasure as the purpose of life. He also firmly believed that being self sufficient with our lives is key to procure happiness.