An Incomplete and Approximate Timeline - some major people and events of the past 5000 years
(The number of stars beside a name indicates how much we discuss the philosopher in class.)
NEW STONE AGE (5000 - 3000) ***dates of epochs vary in different countries***
3000 BCE Wiccan cave paintings found in the U.K., Celtic origins,
2500 BCE Hindu origins, Egyptian pyramids being built, and Egyptian mythology written (Osiris, Isis…)
1750 BCE Hammurabi – first set of written laws found in Babylon (now Iraq)
1500 BCE Vedas written in sanskrit, Hindu text of hymns, charms, Indian origins; Ramayana written by Valmiki,
Hindu
1200 BCE Moses received the ten commandments, Judaism , may have begun writing the Pentateuch (first 5 books of the
Old Testament ) in Hebrew
I Ching written in China, (Book of Changes), Taoist , practical wisdom, enlightened fortunes
1000 BCE Iliad (Trojan war) and Odyssey (Ulysses in latin) written by Homer, origins of Greek mythology (Zeus…)
Snorri wrote Norse mythology , Netherlands (Thor, Loki, etc.); King David ruled in Isreal, Judaism
CLASSICAL PERIOD / ANTIQUITY / GREEK & ROMAN ERA (800 BCE - 476 CE)
600 BCE Lao Tzu (604 - ??), a Hindu, practiced Taoism in China, wrote the Tao Te Ching , have no desires, just be
Zarathustra (620 - ??), origins of Zoroastrian religion in Persia (now Iran (two powers: good and evil)
Thales of Miletus (624-546) the first philosopher , first theories of eclipse of May 28, 585, water is the essence of all things
500 BCE Anaximenes (585-528), Greek, air is the essence of all things
Pythagoras (570-495), all we can know are numbers (symbols), spiritual
Siddhartha Gautama (563-483), a Hindu, the original Buddha , from Nepal (form of Vishnu)
Heraclitus (550?-500), Greek, all things are in flux (a constant state of change)
Chhandogya Upanishad , a Hindu text dealing with the nature of humanity and the universe
400 BCE K'ung-fu-tzu / Confucius (551-479) - Chinese, government by virtue not force, pursue excellence at all times
Sun Tzu - Chinese general, wrote the Art of War, defeat your enemy without fighting
Mahavira (540-468) - Jainism in India, elements of Buddhism, worship sages, extreme respect for animals
Parmenides (510-450?) - Greek, all things are One
Anaxagoras (500-428) - distinguished the mind (nous) from matter (first dualist), forces of love and hate
Zeno of Elias (489-420?) - Greek (Elea), four paradoxes
Protagoras of Abdera (485-420), Greek, man is the measure of all things; moral doctrines can be improved
Leucippus of Miletus (480-420) - Greek, atomic theory
***Socrates (470-399) - the wise know they don't know anything, Athens, Greece, good life is examined,
Hippocrates (460-377) - Greek (Cos) physicians, created the Hippocratic Oath
Democritus (460-370) - advanced and perpetuated atomic theory from Leucippus
Aristippus of Cyrene (Libya) (435-350) hedonist
Peloponnesian War (431-404) - Spartans won over the Athenians
***Plato (428-348) - reason is more important than emotion or spirit, Athens, Greece, essentialist, forms
Pentateuch is completed in 400 (Old Testament) in Hebrew
Academy in Athens founded in 387 by Plato (the first university)
***Aristotle (384-322) - law of contradiction, everything has an opposite; moderation, created logic, advocated the golden mean - avoid extremes in ideals and behaviour; tutored Alexander the Great
* Chuang Tzu (369-268) - Chinese Taoist, questioned his own existence; this could all be a dream
Alexander the Great (356-323) - King of Macedonia
Lyceum in Athens founded in 335 by Aristotle (rival school to the Academy)
300 BCE * Ecclesiastes, (third century BCE), Jerusalem King, egoism, mortality, to everything there is a season,
**Epicurus (341-270), Greek epicurean, pleasure in moderation, original hippie in the garden, contemplate
Zeno of Cittium (334-262), founder of Stoicism, pantheist, ate raw figs and sunbathed
Mahabharta written, a Hindu text mainly dealing with the life of Krishna (Vishnu)
Chrysippus (280-206), Greek Stoic

200 BCE Jewish text (Old Testament) translated into Greek
Marcus Cicero (106-43), Greek Stoic, justified Roman superiority
100 BCE Lucretisu (99-55) Italian, Epicurean
Talmud written in part by Hillel (70 BCE – 10 CE), Jewish text on morality, piety, preached liberal interpretation
Aeneid written by Virgil (70-19) in latin, Roman mythology (adventures of Aeneus, son of Venus)
Metamorphoses written by Ovid (43 BCE - 18 CE) in latin, Roman mythology (Orpheus and Eurydice)
Roman Empire established by Augustus in 27 BCE
1 st Century * Lucius Seneca (4 BCE – 65 CE) Roman statesman, stoic, Nero’s tutor, endure hardship, cut wrists on command
***Jesus Christ (6 BCE - 30 CE), Nazareth, Jewish, origins of
Bhagavad-Gita written, (250 BCE to 250 CE) a Hindu text on Krishna's counsel (commandments)
St. Paul tells all of Christ in 40-60; Gospel
Christianity ( Catholic means universal) according to Mark written in 65, about Jesus' life
Nero (emperor during 54-68) persecutes Christians
**Epictetus (55-135), Roman stoic, freed slave, attach only to what’s within your power, self-control, humility
2 nd (100s) Ptolemy (90-168) - first theorized that the sun is the center of the universe (not us)
Marcus Aurelius (121-180) - Roman emperor and stoic philosopher
3 rd (200s) Christianity banned by the Romans
Plotinus (205-269) - Egyptian / Greco-Roman neo-platonist,
4 th (300s) Christianity accepted by Romans under Constantine in 313, capital of Roman Empire moved to Byzantium in
324, Christianity is the official religion by 380
5 th (400s) **St. Augustine (354-430), Hippo, Algeria (North Africa), neo-Platonic, doctrine of original sin, we are all redeemed in the afterlife, "Christianized" Plato
Bible translated to latin in 405; fall of the Roman Empire in 476 (Western)
6 th (500s) Bodhidharma (440-543), a Hindu, Indian sage developed Zen in China; form of Buddhism, abrupt enlightenment; founder of Kung Fu
Anicius Boethius (480-524), Roman theologian, use philosophy to gain perspective on all things
Plato's Academy closed by Christian church and Emperor Justinian in 529, end of Greek Era
THE DARK AGES / THE MIDDLE AGES / MEDIEVAL TIMES / BYZANTINE ERA (476 - 1450)
7 th (600s) Mohammed (570-632), origins of Islam (the religion of Muslims ), Allah is the only God....
Koran / Qur'an written in 630, a Muslim text from Arabia, records the revelations of Allah to Mohammed
Shinto religion developed out of Buddhism and Zen in Japan, worship ancestors, nature, and divinities
9 th (800s) Yaqub Ibn Ishaq al-Kindi (800-873) Arabian Muslim, considered the philosopher of the Arabs; search for truth should be above all other human occupations; wrote logic, math, science, medicine, and music
Al-Nasr Al-Farabi (870-950) Turkistan Muslim, "platonized" Aristotle
ROMANESQUE PERIOD (1000 - 1200) - lots of love poetry, sonnets, art influenced by Roman period (draperies....)
11 th (1000) Abdallah Ibn Sina / Avicenna (980-1037) Arabian Muslim, theology, the soul is immortal and every person has free will, was shunned by devout Muslims, the highest form of happiness is spiritual, not physical; his medical text was used in Europe into the 17 th century
**St. Anselm (1033 - 1109), Archbishop of Canterbury, England; faith seeks understanding; proof of God
Abu-Hamid al-Ghazali (1058-1111) Iran, used Aristotelian logic to prove the main tenets of Islam ( Sufi )
12 th (1100) Hildegard of Bingen (1098-1179), German nun saw visions
Muhammad Ibn Rushd / Averroes (1126-1198) Spanish Muslim, mixed Aristotle and Islamic writings, many of his writings were burned; planted the seeds of the European renaissance
GOTHIC PERIOD (1200 - 1450) - God is great, pointed rooftops and doorways reach to God
13 th (1200) **St. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274), Italy, Neo-Aristotelean; "Christianized" Aristotle
William of Ockham (1288-1347) England, Ockham's razor: if two theories work, use the simpler one
14 th (1300) the Black Death, major plague in 1348, origins of mass witch hunt; Bible translated to English in 1375
Mohammed Ibn Khaldun (1332-1395) Iranian Muslim, linked rise of states with unity and cohesion between leaders and supporters; believed in a non-hierarchical political system; analytical study of civilizations

fall of Byzantium to Turks in 1453, end of Byzantine Empire
THE RENAISSANCE (1400 - 1600) - Man is great, beginning of individualism, exploration, rebirth of Greco-Roman art
15 th (1400) invention of the printing press (1450) - Bibles are among the first printing
Malleus Maleficarum (Hammer of the Witches) written in 1486; witch burning craze peaks 1450-1650 some entire cities are left without any women alive
Niccolo Machiavelli (1469-1527), Italian, to be successful means acting without concern with morality
Columbus (1492, Italy to Bahamas) & Cabot (1496, Italy to Labrador) come to North America
16 th (1500) REFORMATION (1517)
Spanish Conquistadores defeat Aztecs of Mexico (1519-1524), the Spanish Inquisition
Copernicus (1473-1543) - heliocentric view (sun, not earth, is at center)
Martin Luther (1483-1546), German reformer;
John Calvin (1509-1564), French - began Protestant movement (church divides into Lutheran, United…)
**Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592), French innatist, we have ideas and notions from birth
**Francis Bacon (1561-1626), British empiricist, developed scientific laws, first light of scientific revolution; knowledge is power; furthered Aristotelian "physics"
Galileo Galilei (1564-1642), Florentine astronomer, forced by church to recant heliocentric theory
Verrazano (1524, Italy), Cartier (1534, France), and Frobisher (1576, England) came to Canada
BAROQUE PERIOD (1600 - 1700) / PURITANISM (1580-1670) - Open enclosures, sensuousness, emotional intensity
17 th (1600) end of Feudalism, beginning of Capitalism / rationalism, early-enlightenment; end of witch-burnings
Hudson (1610, England to Hudson Bay), William Shakespeare (1564-1616), England
Thirty Years' War (1618-1648) in Europe - Protestants vs Catholics; English Revolution (1642-89)
Kepler (1571-1630) - empirical observation
Galileo (1564-1642) - invented telescope, - science advances
**Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679), English, men are essentially evil, mechanistic thought, authoritarianism
**Rene Descartes (1596-1650), French, mind/body split, distinction between mind and matter
* Blaise Pascal (1623-62), French philosopher, mathematician..., first existentialist, Pascal's wager on God
**Baruch Spinoza (1632-1677), Dutch, no free will, passion keeps us from happiness, God is in all things
**John Locke (1632-1704), British empiricist, capitalist, blank slate, experience is the basis of knowledge
ENLIGHTENMENT (peak in 1700-1790) / AGE OF REASON / EMPIRICISM / Rococo period - light, decorative
18 th (1700) Issac Newton (1642-1727) - physics, laws of motion (gravity vs God)
Gottfried Leibniz (1646-1716), German rationalist, this is the best world, everything happens for a reason
George Berkeley (1685-1753), Irish bishop, we exist only in eyes of God (backlash), similarities with
Buddhism, a Monist - Idealist; to be is to be perceived
Voltaire (1694-1778), French atheist, philosophers must influence the masses (writer)
***David Hume (1711-1776), Scottish empiricist, no cause and effect, we make decisions based on sentiment, there is no enduring self
**Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778), France, libertarian, romantic, born noble but corrupted by society, educate by teaching to the child's interests
**Immanuel Kant (1724-1804), Germany, categorical imperative, act if it would be good for all to do the same, kick-started the great era of German metaphysics
**Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832), England, utilitarian, maximize pleasure and minimize pain for most people
American Revolution (1775-83); French Revolution (1789-99) - Neoclassical art period - unemotional
United States of America is established formally in 1776
**Mary Wollstonecraft (1759-1797), libertarian, egalitariansim; Mary Shelley (1797-1851), Frankenstein
T. Robert Malthus (1766-1834), British, natural selection, population controls, economics

MODERNISM (1790 - 1830), VICTORIAN AGE (1837 - 1901) , art -romanticism (anti-classical), realism, impressionism
19 th (1800) Industrial Revolution (1815-1914); U.S. Civil War (1861-65); Canadian Confederation in 1867
Georg Hegel (1770-1831), Germany, absolute idealism, thesis anti-thesis and synthesis, self- consciousness, high point of German metaphysics
* Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860), German pessimist, our will leads to misery in no time, introduces
Aboriginal philosophy into German metaphysics
Thomas Carlyle (1795-1881) - Scottish, individual morality of strong, just men
**John Stuart Mill (1806-1873), England, utilitarianism, harm principle, libertarianism, free speech
Charles Darwin (1809-1882) - evolution, god may be unnecessary to explain origins of life
**Soren Kierkegaard (1813-1855), Danish pastor, existenialist, free will, individual choice, responsibility
** Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) American writer, libertarianist, promoted civil disobedience, nature, anarchy
Baha'u'llah (1817-1892) a Muslim, (Hussein Ali) developed Baha'i in Persia / Iran, unity of all religions
***Karl Marx (1818-1883), Germany, alienation from means of production, communist; we’re oppressed
*Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910), Russian, Christian existentialist, only God can judge us, accept destiny
Thomas Green (1836-1882), British, being real means being related to other things, idealist
Charles Sanders Peirce (1839-1914), American pragmatist, truth is merely an opinion we agree on
* William James (1842-1910), American pragmatist, ideas are good if they are productive or useful
***Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900), Germany, god is dead, existentialist, will to power, superman vs man
EDWARDIAN (1901-10), POSITIVISM (20-30), EXISTENTIALISM (40-50), CIVIL RIGHTS (60-70),
POST-MODERNISM (80-90) ; in art - Post-Impressionism, Expressionism, Surrealism, Abstract Exp., Pop Art.....
20 th (1900) ***Sigmund Freud (1856-1939), Austrian psychoanalyst, control passion to be happy (neo-Platonic)
Henri Bergson (1859-1941), French humanist, the life force is not explainable by science
* John Dewey (1859-1952), American pragmatist, inquiry is self-correcting, process of questioning important
Alfred North Whitehead (1861-1947), British empiricist, natural science should study the content of perception
John McTaggart (1866-1925), British, idealist, there is no God, but there is individual immortality
Emma Goldman (1869-1940), Russia/U.S., anarchism, female emancipation
* Bertrand Russell (1872-1970), British empiricist, social and political philosopher, wrote on many subjects
George Edward Moore (1873-1958), British, idealist, goodness can only be known intuitively
Albert Schweitzer (1875-1965), French clergyman, physician, missionary, philosopher, argued reverence for all living things, animal rights advocate
**Carl Jung (1875-1961), Swiss psychiatrist, accept self to be happy (nothing is good or evil - Taoist)
* Martin Buber (1878-1965), German-Jewish, should see people as subjects not objects (as Thou, not It)
Albert Einstein (1879-1955), German/American physicist, pacifist, Zionist, no nukes, determinist (neo-
Spinoza)
Alfred Korzybski (1879-1950), Polish-American, conventional socialization and language promote conflict
Henry Mencken (1880-1956) American libertarian, all government is necessarily evil; democracy is amusing
Franz Kafka (1883-1924), Prague, existentialist
Khalil Gibran (1883-1931), Lebanese-American, power of nature and emotion
* Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889-1951), Austrian philosopher of language as social instrument, misunderstandings, claimed to have the final solution to the problems of philosophy
**Martin Hiedegger (1889-1976), Germany, atheist existentialist - Nazi (influenced Hitler)
Cyril Joad (1891-1953), British, the universe is more mysterious yet more orderly than we imagine
Susanne Langer (1895-1985), American, aesthetic theory
Jiddu Krishnamurti (1895-1986), India/England, self-delusion, human nature
* C.S. Lewis (1898-1963), English novelist, Christian apologist, theories of love and friendship
John Von Neumann (1903-1957), Hungarian-American, game theory, computing, risk analysis
**Jean-Paul Sartre (1905-1980), French existentialist and Marxist,

Hannah Arendt (1906-1975), German, explored the “banality of evil”
**Simone de Beauvoir (1908-86), French existentialist, early feminist (The Second Sex)
* Ayn Rand (1905-1982), Russian/American writer, virtues of egoism and selfishness, enlightened self- interest, developed the theory of objectivism
Ashley Montagu (1905-1999), pacifist
Kurt Godel (1906-1978), Czech-German-American, not everything can be proven or disproven
Maurice Merleau-Ponty (1908-1961), French, phenomenology, aesthetics,
Willard Quine (1908- ), American, logic, all beliefs depend on other beliefs
Simone Weil (1909-1943), French, compassion, mysticism, political activist, Marxist
Alfred Ayer (1910-1989) - British logical positivist (near death experience changed his philosophy) a
WWI (June 28, 1914 - November 11, 1918), Russian Revolution (1917-22); Canadian women vote in
1918
* Albert Camus (1913-1960), French existentialist, do the right thing without expectation of rewards
* Paul Ricoeur (1913 - ), French, hermeneutics of suspicion, evolution of thought, science of interpretation
Iris Murdoch (1919-1999), British, ethics and morality, religion; we must reinstate purpose and goodness in fragmented world
Philippa Foot (1920-2010), British, founders of “virtue ethics,” Aristotelian
* John Rawls (1921-2002), U.S., economics, political theory
Michel Foucault (1926-1984), French, Marxist and existential phenomenologist, history of sexuality
Edward O. Wilson (1927- ) American scientific philosopher; unity of knowledge
Noam Chomsky (1928- ), American, Jewish linguist, anarchy without chaos
Nel Noddings (1929- ), American, educational philosophy, philosophy of care
Riane Eisler (1938- ), American, spirituality, problem with glorification of suffering in Christianity, sexuality
Margaret Somerville (1942- ), Canadian, bioethics
Judith Butler (1956- ), American, philosophy of gender
MASH)
WWII (September 3, 1939 - August 10, 1945); Cold War (1945-1989); Korean Conflict (1950-1952
Civil Rights Act, America, 1964 (blacks vote freely); Vietnam War (1964-1975)
21st (2000) your name here