Thales

• Founder of Western philosophy
• Beliefs
  • Universe began in water, out of which everything came
  • Earth floats on water like a log
  • His own theory, not a mythic story from/about gods
• First step in development of science

Anaximander

• Responded to Thales
  • We have fire, which is incompatible w/ H₂O?
• Beliefs
  • Everything came out of the infinite
  • 4 elements (earth, air, water, and fire) came out of spinning infinite
  • Elements are released w/ regulation by Goddess Justice (whoops!)
• Demonstrates the difficulty in leaving mythic thinking behind

Anaximenes

• Had 2 beefs with Anaximander
  • What is Goddess Justice doing there?!?
  • What is spinning and spitting elements out?!?
• Beliefs
  • Any "x" changes into different forms thru processes (water freezes and boils into solids and gases)
• FIRST REAL INSTANCE OF PURE SCIENCE
  • Mechanical, empirical, verifiable, general theory w/o religious or divine elements
  • Began a rapid advancement in science, leading to some crazy conclusions based on 'pure' logic

**Xenophanes**

**Heraclitus**

• Beliefs
  • Everything is in a state of flux
  • Nothing is permanent

**Democritus**

Sophists

• School of philosophy popular with hyper-rational Greeks
• Tenets
  • Relativism
    • Given certain circumstances and arguments, anything and everything is justifiable
  • NO TRUTH!!! (The only truth is that there is no truth)
  • Superiority of reason and coherent argument
• Wandering group of teachers
  • Detrimental to traditional social mores
  • Destroys the power of the majority (99 people can be wrong while 1 is right)

Socrates

• Argued against Sophism
  • Believed in an absolute truth, universal morals
  • Ethics, Morality, Relationships within Societies, etc,
• Lived in a world of increasingly complex morality
• "Divine Duty" to "open the eyes of Athens"
  • Oracle at Delphi told him (strangely frankly) that he was the wisest man in the world
  • "I know one thing, that I do not know anything."
• You have to dig for the truth

The Socratic Method

• Dialogue as means to the end of discovery
• 'Elénchos'
  • Assume P (a proposition)
  • We can derive a contradiction from P
  • Therefore, not P.
• This pisses people off by shaking core beliefs
• Socratic Irony
  • Doesn't just say you're stupid, but laughs about it while doing it.
• This is a main contribution to what got him killed.

The Ring of Gyges

• Glaucon's argument for why state's must exist
  • People are naturally evil, and laws exist to protect us from each other and from ourselves
• The ring allows its wearer to become invisible when spun around
• Wearer in the story rapes the queen, steals money, kills people, etc.
• The only reason evil doesn't cause chaos is because of people's fear of punishment by gov't or society

**The Allegory of the Sun**

The Noble Lie

• Plato's solution to discontent w/ no class mobility
• Create a myth about metals in the blood for the people
  • Anyone with gold blood is a ruler, anyone with bronze blood is an ordinary citizen
  • This rule applies regardless of parental status
    • No class inheritance
  • Justified for the common good
• Plato himself offers this only as a possibility, not sure of its possibility of success

Philosopher-Kings

• Education involves both arts and gymnastics
• Can be male or female
• Pursuit of wisdom throughout life
  • Can't rule until older
• Philosopher-kings will be better than democracy
• This is what calls for Plato's Theory of Forms

Alexander the Great

• Son of Philip II (conqueror of Greece)
• Aristotle was his tutor
• Preferred adventure
• Never lost a single battle
• Empire
  • Greece, North Africa, Persia, Middle East, all the way to India (Then-Known World)
  • Created a cosmopolitan empire
  • Married women and adopted customs from different corners of the empire
  • Built cities (Alexandria)

The Struggle of the Orders

• Socio-political conflict between patricians and plebeians
• 5th Century BCE - 287 BCE
• Plebeians pushed for social, political, legal, and economic equality
• Threatened to secede from Rome
  • Not pay taxes, work, or serve in army
• Eventually plebeians won full civic equality and legal protection and political roles

The Twelve Tables

• 450 BCE
• First codified Roman laws
• Born out of plebeian pressure during the Struggle of the Orders
• 1st steps towards full civic equality for plebeians

Second Punic War

• 218-201 BCE
• Rome vs. Carthage
• Hannibal came this close to ending Rome
• Hannibal crossed the Alps
• Roman defeats at Trebia and Trasimene
• Romans used Fabian strategy in which they avoided major battles in favor of smaller conflicts
  • Prevented major losses for Rome
  • Loss of morale for Carthage
• Ended with Scipio Africanus defeating Hannibal in Africa

Hannibal

• General from Carthage
• Fought Rome in the 2^nd Punic War
• Crossed the Alps with elephants
• Gathered troops from barbarian neighbors of Rome
• Was this close to ending Rome
• Won several major decisive battles (Trebia, Trasimene, Cannae)
• Left the Gates of Rome literally overnight to return to Carthage
• Eventually defeated in Africa by Scipio Africanus

The Gracchi

• Brothers Tiberius and Gaius
• Tiberius as tribune became spokesman for land reform
  • Saw Rome's dependence on small farmers and land-owners
  • Proposed to revive old law preventing anyone owning more than 312 acres of state-owned land
• Tiberius was assassinated by upper-class as a threat
• Gaius took up the cause when elected tribune
  • Also let the poor buy grain at less than ¹/₂ market price
• Also assassinated (or maybe killed himself) because of anger of senatorial class

Marius

• Roman general
• Got rid of property requirement for enlistment
  • Filled his army with legions of urban poor
  • Had to promise loot, pay, and land grants 
  • Basically created rogue mercenary armies loyal to individuals instead of to Rome
• Set a precedent that other generals would follow

Julius Caesar

• Part of triumvirate conspiracy to take over Rome (60 BCE)
  • He was the politician, working with a general and a wealthy banker
• Became a general of a mercenary army from Gaul
  • Acted decisively, moved rapidly, and his men were extremely loyal
• Triumvirate fell apart
• Senate demanded he relinquish his command
• Instead he invaded Rome in 49 BCE
• Senate appointed him dictator for 10 years
• Huge betterments to Rome
• Ruling class jealous of his power and success
  • Dictatorship opposed senatorial rule
• Assassinated in 44 BCE

Augustus

• Caesar's adopted son
• Formally named Octavian
• 1st Roman Emperor
• Military leader → political leader
• Camouflaged authoritarian power in facade of Republic
  • Title of 'princips' or first citizen
  • Appointed by the Senate (power not taken) 
• Political and Social Reform
• Civic Projects

Women during Pax Romana

• Ownership of Property
• Keep dowry in divorce
• Father couldn't force marriage
• Business arrangements and wills w/o husband's consent
• Freedom to leave the house
• Education for upper-class women
• Livia (Augustus's wife) was consulted on important political decisions
• 3^rd Century - women occasionally controlled throne

Latifundia

• Giant tracks of land used for systemized agriculture of cash-crops for export
• Dependant on slave labor
• One of the causes of Rome's decline was the draw of the latifundia on urban poor and small farmers
  • Latifundia became autonomous, crumbling and starving the cities

476 CE

• Fall of Rome
• Social and Economic Weakness
  • Slow communicatⁿ and transportatⁿ
  • Lack of stimulating investment
  • Class divisions (large rich-poor gap)
• Cultural Stagnation and Transformation
• Barbarian Invasions

Cicero on Law

• Natural Law existed ("true law")
• State laws must be in concord with them

Cult of Mani

• Mani was a divine prophet
  • Advocated peace, vegetarianism, and universality
  • Torturous execution (martyr)
• Manichaeism
  • Mixed in different things from all different religions
  • Gnostic religion
  • Not strict in doctrine

Cult of Mithras

• Persian warrior deity
• Mithras killed the evil bull
• Warrior - symbolizes rigor, strength, and power
• Mithras was born on 12/25, was killed, and later resurrected (hmm....)
• Worshipers killed bulls and drank their blood
• Became the dominant cult in Rome
  • BUT wouldn't allow women to join

Neo-Platonism

• Plotinus
• Maintained hierarchy of forms from Plato
• Changed the "Form of the Good" → "The One"
  • The One CANNOT be reached through sheer rationality
  • Need transcendental, mystical "leap of faith"
  • No step-by-step proof of God's existence

Parmenides

Zeno

Doctrine of the Mean

Sophism in The Republic

• Social Contributions
  • Challenged status quo, bringing counterarguments (Socrates et. al.) forward
  • Made philosophy more pragmatic
    • ↓ atoms and metaphysics, ↑ truth, justice, virtue, etc.
  • Moral Relativism
• W/IN The Republic
  • Main Sophist is Thrasymachos
  • At first, defines justice as advantage of the strong over the weak
  • Argues for the benefits of injustice

Justice and Division in The Republic

Education of Guardians in The Republic

Women and Family in The Republic

Platonic Forms

The Allegory of the Cave

Plato's Explanation of

Unhelpfulness of Injustice

in The Republic

Hellenistic Cosmopolitanism

Hellenistic Science

Epicureanism 

Stoicism

The 3 Great Greek Achievements

(Be Exact)

Cicero's Views in On Friendship

Pax Romana

Rome's Legal Legacy for Western

Civilization

Cultural Stagnation/Transformation

and the Decline of Rome

Sadducees

Pharisees

Essenes

Zealots

Deeds/Teachings of Jesus