Philosophy was a discipline of knowledge that emerged on the coasts of Asia Minor around the 7th century BC. However, its development and formulation in antiquity would be primarily linked to the city of Athens. In this article for World Philosophy Day, we will delve into the philosophical production that took place in Athens, serving as a tribute to the entire history of Greek thought.
The Sophists
The sophists constitute the first philosophical current to emerge in Athens in the 5th century BC. First, the sophists were characterized as private teachers who were entrusted with educating the children of the elites of the Athenian polis. This education consisted of studying the works of Homer or Hesiod, mathematics, gymnastics, music, and rhetoric along with public exposition of ideas to be able to persuade. The importance of this last faculty is closely linked to the popularity of the sophists due to the democratic system existing in Athens that was based on mastery of oratory to defend political ideas in the public assembly of citizens so as to occupy high government positions. Regarding the intellectual proposals of the sophists, we can highlight the following ideas:
1. The relegation of the study of nature and natural phenomena to focus on city affairs.
2. Skepticism, that is, they deny the possibility of reaching Truth or a certain knowledge of things.
3. The development of dialectics as a method of exposition of their ideas and of knowledge.
4. Moral relativism, which considers any law or moral judgment as the result of human convictions of a specific society.
Despite being considered wise, most of these sophists were viewed unfavorably by more conservative Athenians for corrupting youth, introducing various ideas that questioned religious traditions and political institutions of their time.
Among these sophist thinkers we can highlight the following figures: on one hand, there would be Protagoras of Abdera (485-415 BC): this thinker who developed his activity in Athens was characterized by defending the idea that «man is the measure of all things both of those that are and of those that are not» (Blázquez, López Melero and Sayas, 1989, pp. 684-685), skepticism and his agnosticism regarding the existence of gods also entrusted him with educating the children of the famous Athenian politician Pericles (495-429 BC); Gorgias of Leontini (460-380 BC) on the other hand, stood out for his rhetorical skill being recognized later in a dialogue by Plato titled Gorgias; and finally we would have Hippias of Elis (443-400 BC) who excelled in geometry and to whom Plato dedicated another dialogue with his name.
Socrates
Within this cultural and political heyday of 5th century BC Athens, the figure that would stand out and mark a before and after in the history of philosophy was Socrates (469 - 399 BC) as he initiated what is known as the anthropological turn in Philosophy, starting to focus or giving great importance to human affairs such as ethical issues. Socrates would be from the Athenian demos of Alopece, it is known that he participated as an Athenian soldier in the campaigns of Potidaea (432-429 BC), Delium (424 BC) and Amphipolis (422 BC). It is also known that he was involved in the political life of his time holding the office of prytanis during the trial sentencing to death of victorious Athenian generals from the Battle of Arginusae (406 BC). Regarding his philosophical doctrine, it stands out first for seeking to guide interlocutors with whom he maintained a conversation to reach knowledge by themselves through the use of dialectical techniques such as aporia and maieutics. He focused on studying man, considering the importance of education for forming good citizens, the importance of cultivating virtue and self-control, and finally, moral responsibility for actions before divinity which he calls a Daimon. For his criticism of corruption and degeneration of the Athenian democratic system and being considered a danger to the city's customs, he was sentenced to death in 399 BC, making Socrates the greatest exponent of intellectual uncertainty and new ideas of Athens at that time (Gómez Espelosín, 2014, p. 344).
Plato
Plato (428-337 BC) was a disciple of Socrates, and he collected his mentor's thoughts throughout his works. He would be greatly influenced by the ideas of his teacher which helped him create his own philosophical thought that covered different fields of knowledge such as ethics, epistemology or politics. He wrote various works like Dialogues or Laws, but his most important work was the Republic, in which his main concern was the formation of an ideal state, which occupies a central place (Jaegger, 2001, p. 243)
Plato founded his own educational institution in Athens known as the Academy (387 BC), where he educated Athenian youth in his thought and acquired great prestige that would keep it open for centuries.
Aristotle
Aristotle (384-322 BC) was a student of Plato and, being Macedonian by origin, in 342 BC he was entrusted with the education of future Alexander the Great and in 336 BC founded his own school in Athens called Lyceum. Aristotle had a great literary production covering many disciplines. He is considered the founder of experimental science and the initiator of the separation of different knowledge disciplines previously unified within Philosophy, as well as being considered the last great exponent of classical thought having a significant influence later, especially in medieval scholasticism.
Hellenism and cultural decline of Athens
«Atenas continued to be the city of philosophers... only that now, deprived of so many areas of knowledge, philosophy had to find its true goal and its own methods. What it did was divide itself into schools»
During this period, various philosophical schools stood out, such as the Cynic school, which was characterized by breaking with social convictions of the time, with its greatest representative being Diogenes of Sinope. Also found is the Stoic school based on virtue cultivation, pantheism and belief in the Logos that governs nature, founded by Zeno of Citium who established in Athens an institution known as the Stoa, where he imparted his doctrine and at the same time another opposing school emerged, Epicureanism, which defended materialist, atomistic and hedonistic ideas, whose founder was Epicurus of Samos, who created in the same city a school known as the Garden (using his garden as a school).
As time went on, the cultural decline of Athens compared to other ancient cities worsened after the Roman conquest in the 3rd century BC. But the event that would bring about the end of philosophical production in Athens was the closure of Plato's Academy in 529 AD by Justinian as the Neoplatonic doctrines taught there posed a threat to his political project (Zamora, 2003, p. 186).
Conclusion
In this article, we have observed the close connection that the development of philosophical activity had with the cultural splendor of the city of Athens. We also saw that in the city of Athens flourished various currents that contributed to promoting the intellectual atmosphere of this Greek polis which became a beacon for Western culture.
This topic has been briefly addressed in this article, leaving room for further expansion in future publications.
Bibliography
Blázquez, J.; López Melero R. and Sayas, J. J. (1989). History of Ancient Greece. Cátedra.
Gómez Espelosín, F. J. (2014). An Introduction to Ancient Greece. Alianza.
Jaegger, W. (2001). Paideia: The Ideals of Greek Culture. Book Three: In Search of the Divine Center. Fondo de Cultura Económica.
López Melero, R. (1996). Filipo, Alejandro and the Hellenistic World. Arco Libros.
Zamora, J. M. (2003). Damascius and the closure of the Neoplatonic school in Athens. Spanish Journal of Medieval Philosophy, 10, 173-187.
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