1. Discuss the development of Greek philosophy from Thales to Aristotle, describing the key schools, thinkers, and ideas.

Thales of Miletus is considered to be the first Greek philosopher as well as the father of science . Thales focused his philosophies on law and ethics he believed in a just god , therefore men must act justly as well . He believed that in to act justly , one must follow both the letter and the spirit of the law . Pythagoras believed that everything in life could be related to mathematics and that through mathematics everything can be predicted and measured . Pythagoras ' followers led a strict life of religious instruction , group meals , exercise , reading and

br the study of philosophy . In addition , they used music and poetry to bring balance to life and to cure illnesses . Heraclitus has been credited with the idea of logos , which in rhetoric refers to reason or logic . Heraclitus ' philosophies focused on the nature of things and the idea that conflict is necessary to bring about change . He influenced later philosophers such as Plato , Aristotle and Friedrich Nietzsche

Xenophanes was not only a philosopher , but also a social and religious critic . He had strong opinions on the appearance of God including the idea that He is not as we picture him , and that if oxen could imagine God , God would resemble oxen . In addition , Xenophanes is considered one of the first monotheists

The Eleatics were a school of philosophers founded by Parmenides They believed that mathematics was the origin of truth , and this group is credited with improving discourse and argument . The Atomists were a school that believed that all matter was made up of smaller parts (the atom . Followers of this school of thought were Democritus and Leucippus , who taught the idea of Atomism . Unfortunately , of their written work survived

The Sophists were a group known for making a business of wisdom in other words , teaching the art of rhetoric - for a price . Protagoras is considered one of the first Sophists , followed by Gorgias , Hippias and Callicles , for example . Sophists and the concept of sophistry eventually acquired a negative connotation because 1 ) their teachings were not free rather , they charged every student a price for the education and 2 ) the Sophists ' method of argument involved a sleight-of-hand technique that offered arguments through trickery

Socrates is best known for his theory of the Socratic Method (or dialectic , the idea of answering a question with a question . The purpose was to question the origin of one 's beliefs . Many of Socrates beliefs are difficult to discern , given that he is so inextricably intertwined with Plato . One matter that does distinguish Socrates however , is that he was on trial for corrupting young boys with his theories . It did not endear him to other Athenians that he believed that God had singled him out as a divine teacher

Plato was Socrates ' most well-known student . One of his most important works was the Theory of Forms , which meant that the sensory world is reality , and the world that we think is real is merely a shadow of a higher existence...