User:Quellus/Notes

I. What is Philosophy?
 * a. root of most other studies (maths, physics, etc.)
 * b. "love of wisdom" to the Greeks
 * c. answers life's big questions
 * c. Western philosophy began with Thales
 * i. Philosophers from Thales to Socrates called Pre-Socratics
 * d. Socrates developed philosophy by applying it to mankind
 * e. Plato, Socrates pupil, developed Epistemological and Metaphysical theories
 * f. Aristotle developed science, being more empirical
 * i. gave a physical base for Plato's metaphysical one
 * g. works of these three men used in all later Western philosophy

Summary:

Philosophy is used to answer questions about life, man, and the world around us. It is the "love of wisdom" as defined by the Greeks. Surprisingly, Western philosophy began with a man called Thales, not Socrates who is much better known. He applied philosophy to mankind, rather than just on the physical world. His pupil, Plato, developed a base for Socrates ideas, developing Epistemological and Metaphysical theories. Plato's pupil, Aristotle, sought to give a physical basis for Plato's ideas, therefore developing Science. The works of these three men are the foundation for all Western philosophy.