Socrates

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Philosophy in ancient Greece was merely a type of argument, until a pioneer named Socrates showed the world a new way of thinking. Socrates was born in 469 BC in Athens (where he lived all his life) as the son of Sophroniscus, a stonemason, and Phaenarete. In his life, Socrates changed common philosophy, which was a study of why the way things are, into a consideration of the virtue and health of the human soul. Rather than writing books and recording his thoughts himself, he orally passed on his thoughts to many young people of his time, one of which is Plato. Socrates felt so strongly bout his beliefs, that he lived by them, and in doing so, became the first martyr in history to die for philosophical beliefs. By teaching Plato his concepts and beliefs, Socrates greatly influenced Western thought and philosophy. Socrates' thoughts were more associated with man, instead of nature and man's surroundings. He also lead discussions about man's feelings, soul, and actions. Philosophers before Socrates speculated about the natural universe, but Socrates made them realize their absence of any agreed standard of truth. In doing so, he gave philosophers a common ground to base their thoughts on. Also, he felt that man is good in nature but can produce wrong. For example, "Socrates believed that to do wrong is to damage one's soul, and that is the worst thing one can do"(Grolier). From this he concluded that one should never return wrong, and it is worse ...

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