The Golden Age Of Greek Philosophy

Arguably the greatest and longest impacting movement brought about by the forward thinkers of the Renaissance was humanism. Humanism was a cultural and intellectual movement that emphasized the human potential to attain excellence through direct study of the literature, art, and civilization of the classical Greek and Roman societies (Merriam-Webster). The scholars and believers in humanism sought to change the course of society away from the narrow pedantry of medieval scholasticism and utilitarianism. Humanism was a basic desire for every citizen to be able to speak with eloquence and read and write with clarity, so that common citizens were capable of engaging in the civic life of their communities (Gray). The movement also emphasized the value of a human being as well as the importance of rational thought rather than blind faith in spiritualism or superstition. It also pushed people to explore human desires and pleasures while also enriching their minds. The influential nature of humanism was far reaching and most notable for its effects on Renaissance art, literature, and philosophy.

Thales was the next person in the chronological history of philosophy. He was an astronomer and a

So, what exactly does Humanism mean? According to the Stanford University’s Humanities center, they describe the humanities as, “The study of how people process and document the human experience. Since humans have been able, we have used philosophy, literature, religion, art, music, history and language to understand and record our world. These modes of expression have become some of the subjects that traditionally fall under the humanities umbrella. Knowledge of these records of human experience gives us the opportunity to feel a sense of connection to those who have come before us, as well as to our contemporaries.”

Humanism is derived from the movement that happened from the fourteenth to the sixteenth centuries. The start point of Humanism is in Italy. It is an important development during the Renaissance. Because of the terrible Black Death in 14th century. The population of Europeans decreased extremely. A lot of people died of the Black Death. At the beginning of that time, people thought the Black Death is God’s punishment for living life in sin. People went to Church and hope the forgiveness of God. However, the wide spread of the Black Death didn’t stop. The dead body forced the people started finding the other new way. Instead of believing in God, people started to think about science. The scientists did the research and treated the Black Death by more scientific way. People started thinking about the man himself and explored natural environment by more scientific method. The new ways of thinking influenced the development of Humanism in art during the Renaissance. The Renaissance artworks are about the re-discovery of ancient Greek and Roman artworks and their way of life. Humanists rejected the religion concept and not believe in the supernaturalism. They tried to discover the natural creatures and destiny of man. Artists learned the human beauty from the ancient Greek and Roman artworks and architectures. They began to find out more ideas about the human experience, personal independence and social community. They brought the Humanism ideas into their artworks.

Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary gives several definitions for humanism, a word which made its appearance in 1832. The first is "a devotion to the humanities or the revival of class, individualistic and critical spirit, and emphasis on secular concerns characteristic of the Renaissance." Renaissance is capitalized. Another definition reads as follows: "a doctrine, attitude, or

“The church (…) individualism was identical with arrogance, rebellion, and sin”(doc 1). This shows that actions like rebellion and sin relate with individualism, which is just like Humanism. “In true order that mortal man should first care for mortal things”(doc 4). This just shows how important things have meant to people, and to respect person’s property. Humanism brought the idea of civilized people with great ideas into the world. Before the Renaissance, religion was everything, when the Renaissance came, the people were exposed to the arts and

Humanism- The scholarly study of the latin and greek classics, both for its own sake and in the hope of reviving respected ancient norms and values

Humanism is a way of life that revolves around the interests of people. It stresses human worth and building up self-realization. Humanism was developed in Greece and Rome, and is generally due to philosophy and current literary works during 1400-1650. It is termed "Classical Humanism" because it was born during that time period. Classical Humanism had an impact during the Renaissance Era.

Humanism is surrounded by humans, that humans are the most high and most developed on the universe. Basically Humanism is based off political, ethical, and economical matter and values but disregards the basic questions (Sheldon 1). Humanism has been associated with the Renaissance, which was an artistic movement that started around the 1400’s and lasting for two years. “The idea of the ‘modern’ period in human history as distinct from the ‘ ancient’ and ‘middle’ or ‘ dark age’ originated with humanist during the Renaissance” (“Renaissance Humanism”1). There was an effect on renaissance ideas, “an effect of Renaissance ideas on perception of history was the replacing of a providential view of time with an ancient cyclical and Arabic astrological perspective” (Sheldon 1). Finally the Renaissance spread across the map to Alps, Germany. The Renaissance turned into a strong moral and a forceful education. The Germans cared more about what’s within than the outlooks of life or things (Biesinger 3). Renaissance came along way. “The founder of Renaissance humanism was Petrarch (1304-1374)” (“Humanism” 1). Petrarch’s birth name is Francesco Petrarca and he was

During the Renaissance, new revolutionary ideas began to develop. These ideas were known as humanism.Humanism is the idea that the interests, values, and dignity of an individual are a priority. The development of these humanistic philosophies was the first time in history that the unlimited potential of a person was appreciated.Renaissance Humanism between the 14th and 17th centuries impacted European art, literature, and society.

The Enlightenment was the beginning of new ideas which included scientific discoveries, new ideas in politics as well as in philosophy. During the Englitement, phylosophers began to revert back to the study of ancient civilizations and began to convert these concepts into politics and science. Many new philosophers and scientists evolved from the birth of "natural laws" that governed the era of the Englitenment. It was also through the in-depth studies of Greek philosophers, such as Aristotle, new ideas began to arise. In this mannor, the Englitenment was a movement that allowed logic to be inforced, rather than the superstition that ruled the Middle Ages.

This class has taught me that “humanism can be defined as examining the creative and intellectual contributions made by every culture that stresses human logic, values, and scientific method (Humanities Through the Ages).

4, pp. 69 ff.), "Humanism recognizes the value and dignity of man and makes him the measure of all things or somehow takes human nature, its limits, or its interests as its theme."

Encarta Dictionary says that Humanism is a system of thought that centers on human beings and their values, capacities and worth. Encarta also goes on the say that, in philosophy, humanism is an attitude that emphasizes the dignity and worth of an individual. A basic premise of humanism is that people are rational beings who possess within themselves the capacity for truth and goodness. I see myself as a being a humanist through everyday life. I always try to see the good in a person when he/she makes me angry or sad, and say I to myself that maybe that person has had a bad day and living life is difficult at the moment. Socrates was even an early humanist of sorts. He can be quoted as saying, "to know the good is to do the

Throughout the history of the world, philosophy has been at the forefront of the human search for knowledge, but there is no other philosophy like ancient Greek philosophy. Ancient Greek philosophy roughly began in the sixth century BCE and continued on up until ancient Greece became apart of the Roman Empire. The great Greek philosophers of the time, like Plato, Socrates, and Aristotle focused their study of philosophy in subjects like political philosophy, ethics, metaphysics, ontology, logic, biology, and rhetoric to name a few. Even today many philosophers agree that ancient Greek philosophy has influenced much of today’s Western culture. Among the broad subject of ancient Greek philosophy there were many sub-forms of Greek philosophy like the Pre-Socratic philosophy, which involves the Milesian school, and Pythagoreanism, and classical Greek philosophy, which involves Socrates’, Plato’s, and Aristotle’s teachings; and then there was sophism and the sophists. Who are the sophists and why/how are their teachings relevant with the rest of ancient Greek philosophy?