Compare and contrast the ethical places
Compare and contrast the ethical places of two classical Grecian schools of idea.
At the clip of classical Greek there were different schools of idea, in this essay we will try to compare and contrast two philosophic schools with viing and contrasting ethic doctrine.
There's a specialist from your university waiting to help you with that essay.
Tell us what you need to have done now!
order now
To the ancient Grecian philosophers the most important inquiry was “ what my life should be like “ what I am traveling to make with my life ” .
Many people today after so many old ages still chew overing on the same inquiry.
It is to a great grade believed that, while there are many people with customised replies, or excessively busy to reflect on this inquiry, to the bulk of people the lone gratify reply will came from ethical doctrine.
Socrates and Epicurus had contrasting instructions, hence a great difference in the thoughts of what should be the end in a individual life.
Socrates ( c.469/399 BC ) was the laminitis of the Academy in Athens and is considered, as one of the laminitiss of Western doctrine. All that we know about him and his ideas comes from the authorship of philosophers, most of whom were decidedly dedicated to Socrates, while others thought his influence was elusive.
Plato was greatly influenced by Socrates and in one of his Hagiographas “ The Phaedo ” tells us that Socrates started out with a batch of enthusiasm for the scientific disciplines but subsequently he came to see that his instructors were merely leaving “ received cognition “ and that they could non themselves prove their instructions. – he decided to seek true cognition of “ causes ” and of “ the good ” someplace besides and was prepared to utilize his ain Knowledge as a usher in his hunt.
Socrates felt that he had a “ Godly mission ” , to turn the moral instruction of the Athenians and hence spent his clip in moral doctrine and in insouciant treatments with the young persons of Athens. ( Gallop,1999, pg.80 )
The consequence on Plato was profound he has left several record of Socrates ‘ life and instructions in a figure of duologues. In one of his duologue Plato ‘s writes that Socrates says life should be lived with an orientation to the “ cultivation of the Soul ” .
If a individual lived a good and honest life, foster the growing of their Soul, – they had virtue, therefore a far more peaceable state of affairs in an afterlife reincarnation compared to a individual who led a bad life. Socrates, believed in the immortality of the psyche, he taught the hunt of the truth should be the most of import chase in one`s life, which would finally be fulfilled after one`s decease when the psyche leaves the organic structure. So a existent hope for a better status in the following life was presented to people.
Socrates was an of import figure in Athens but choose to hold no engagement in the political life as he would inescapably came to compromise at some points on rules really of import to him ( Ward A.1998 www.allacademic.com ) .
Socrates quotation marks: –
Know yourself!
The unexamined life is non deserving life.
I am non an Athenian or a Grecian, but a citizen of the universe
In 399 B.C. Socrates was accused of “ impiousness ” , of “ neglect spiritual practise and the worship of Gods ” and of the “ corruptness of the immature ” .
Some of His friends were willing to set up for his flight but Socrates refused and with honor faced his decease sentence ( Jones,2004, pg.11 ) .
His work had great influence on the Grecian society and has continued to act upon throughout history, but besides changed the future class of Western speculative idea. ( Vlastos,1995, Gregory, pg.16 )
Epicurus ( 341 BC – 270 BCE ) , “ It is impossible to populate a pleasant life without populating sagely and good and rightly ( holding ‘neither to harm nor be harmed ‘ ) .
And it is impossible to populate sagely and good and rightly without populating a pleasant life. ” Epicurus ( Wentworth De Witt, 2003, pg.272 ) .So wrote Epicurus, the Ancient Greek philosopher who inspired his followings to seek and to populate without hurting or fright.
From ancients times his doctrine has make both strong resistance and passionate blessing. A Man true felicity and repose is a consequence from the conquering of fright, Epicurus involvement was in the chase of felicity, to accomplish by taking grounds for sadness from the Black Marias and happen their ain felicity.
He condemned superstitious notion, repudiates the thought of a Godhead looking over the ways and fate of world. Therefore he condemned the construct of unseeable Gods opposing to adult male. Because of their deficiency of cognition in natural phenomena, adult male had come to believe, that the Gods were responsible for them. Epicurus so, explains the existence in rational term, with the atomic theory. All nature is made of atoms and empty infinites where atoms are located in perennial motion. Collisions, pushes atoms to unify in groups, which bring things as we see them, into being, hence all alteration happens by mean of collection and interrupting up of atoms groups. ( Downs,2004, pg.160 )
A Big statement in which Epicurus indicates, an evolutionary theory, that many old ages subsequently has been picked up and deepened by Darwin, hence even now this statement “ Epicureanism becomes Darwinism ” , seem appropriate.
Epicurus taught that the psyche is non ageless, that the most of import accomplishment in life was to happen happiness during your physical life. Probably one of the ground why many people refers, to Epicureanism as the philosophy of “ Eat, drink and be content, because tomorrow we must decease. ” ( Warren, 2004, p. 215 ) .
Epicurus established on the fringe of Athens, the so called ‘The Garden ‘ we do non cognize much about the organisation of this communities, decidedly that they did non necessitate their members to give up their private belongings to the commune and that they lived following the cardinal rule of life, friendly relationship ( affection ) .Friendship is the foundation rock of one`s felicity ‘ ( Hutchinson,1994, p.11 ) .
Where Socrates arguments for a teleological sense of the universe, Epicurus argues for mechanistic accounts dispatching the Gods from running the universe, a contention that has been traveling on for the last 100s of old ages. Epicurus was attacked and still his, for his beliefs on the evidences that they were unbelieving and promoted immorality. However, close scrutiny proves non to be the instance as Epicurean, view the highest pleasance, soundlessness and freedom from fright to be obtained by cognition, friendly relationship, and populating a virtuous and temperate life. He exalted the enjoyment of simple pleasances, by which he meant abstaining from bodily desires, such as sex and appetencies. He indicate that when eating, one should non eat with moderateness, for it could take to dissatisfaction subsequently, as likely, one could non afford such daintinesss in the hereafter. ( The Journal gustatory sensation nor’-east England Regional ) In the same manner, sex could take to increased lecherousness and dissatisfaction with the sexual spouse.
While Socrates beliefs and instructions may non hold been right, he would hold been on the right way if he was a Christian and set up heavenly beliefs. But his instructions did assist people to continue an nonsubjective criterion of morality. Epicurus in the other manus made people travel out and make about everything made them happy, which encouraged people to concentrate on pleasant life for themselves.
Both with contrasting positions and ideas which lead to hold different sentiments but with one point that connects these two classical Grecian schools of idea. This is freedom from the fright of decease. In fact Socrates says, “ Death is, that the psyche disunites from the organic structure, and exists by itself apart from the organic structure ” . He feels that if a adult male has spent his life seeking for the truth and lives a simple life free from the enticements of the universe they should non fear decease ( Mcpherran,1996, pg 254 ) .
Epicurus addressed the job of decease and explained that dead “ is nil to us ” do n’t problem yourself about it, because while you are alive you do non hold to cover with being dead and when you are dead you do non hold trade with it either, because you are non at that place in the first topographic point ( Hutchinson,1994, p.8 ) .
In the shutting analysis, this essay suggest that this Two ethical ideas are comparable even when contrasts exists, and how singular their parts to how we view life and decease are. Both Socrates and Epicurus represent two different human types, but both in the concern of bring arounding people psyches.
It is up to us to happen the true restraint which our ain nature imposes on us. When we do this life is good, peace and felicity is possible
Bibliography:
Downs M. 2004, Books that changed the universe, Penguin group publishing house, London, England
Gallop D.1999, Plato Phaedo, Oxford University imperativeness, Oxford
Jones C. 2004, Plato, Published by the Penguin Group, Strand, London
Hutchinson S. Brad Inwood and L.P. Gerson ( 1994 ) debut by S. Hutchinson, The Epicurus reader Hackett publication company, printedin the U.S.A.
Mcpherran M. 1996, The faith of Socrates, published by the Pennsylvania State University, University park, Pennsylvania
Vlastos G. ( 1995 ) Socrate, Plato and their tradition. Princeton University imperativeness, Princeton New Jersey
Warren. J. ( 2004 ) . Confronting Death: Epicurus and His Critics. Oxford University Press Clarendon
Ward A.1998 ( Ithaca: Cornell University Press ) www.allacademic.com/meta/p137099
12 December 2009
Wentworth De Witt N. 2003 Epicurus and His Doctrine, Oxford University imperativeness, London.
The Journal gustatory sensation nor’-east England Regional, Newcastle, England art.28 February 2008
