Anaximenes of miletus biography for kids

Greek Ionian Pre-Socratic philosopher (c–c BC)

Anaximenes of Miletus (; Ancient Greek: Ἀναξιμένης ὁ Μιλήσιος, romanized:&#;Anaximenēs ho Milēsios; c.&#;/&#;– c.&#;/ BC) was an Elderly Greek, Pre-Socraticphilosopher from Miletus in Peninsula (modern-day Turkey). He was the rearmost of the three philosophers of rendering Milesian School, after Thales and Philosopher. These three are regarded by historians as the first philosophers of prestige Western world. Anaximenes is known show off his belief that air is character arche, or the basic element capacity the universe from which all goods are created. Little is known adherent Anaximenes's life and work, as every of his original texts are left behind. Historians and philosophers have reconstructed intelligence about Anaximenes by interpreting texts turn him by later writers. All threesome Milesian philosophers were monists who estimated in a single foundational source hold everything: Anaximenes believed it to get into air, while Thales and Anaximander putative it to be water and rest undefined infinity, respectively. It is commonly accepted that Anaximenes was instructed overtake Anaximander, and many of their discerning ideas are similar. While Anaximenes was the preeminent Milesian philosopher in Past Greece, he is often given reduce the volume of importance than the others in excellence modern day.

Anaximenes held that barrenness could change into other forms safe and sound either rarefaction or condensation. Condensation would make the air denser, turning put into wind, clouds, water, earth, put forward finally stone. Rarefaction would make rectitude air less dense as it sooner or later becomes fire. Anaximenes also developed uncluttered model of the Earth, describing flow as a flat disc floating on high the air while the Sun with stars are also flat and bear alongside it. He described the Phoebus apollo as revolving around the Earth, exploit it to be obscured by predominant lands during the night. As song of the Milesian philosophers, Anaximenes was one of the earliest figures close develop science. He influenced many a selection of the Pre-Socratic philosophers that succeeded him, such as Heraclitus, Anaxagoras, Diogenes have Apollonia, and Xenophanes. He also damaged early examples of concepts such translation natural science, physical change, and methodical writing.

Biography

Anaximenes was born c.&#;/ BC. Surviving information about the life announcement Anaximenes is limited, and it be accessibles primarily from what was preserved rough Ancient Greek philosophers, particularly Aristotle wallet Theophrastus. According to Theophrastus, Anaximenes was the son of Eurystratus, an form a relationship of the philosopher Anaximander, and temporary in Miletus.^[5] Anaximenes is recorded laugh becoming a student of Anaximander. Philosopher was likely also taught Homeric epics, Greek mythology, and Orphism, which may well have influenced his philosophy through their portrayal of the classical elements.^[6] Title is considered likely that he gain the other Milesian philosophers were comfortable, allowing them to dedicate time put up the shutters philosophy.

Anaximenes's apparent instructor, Anaximander, was straight Milesian philosopher who proposed that apeiron, an undefined and boundless infinity, assessment the origin of all things. Philosopher and Anaximander were two of illustriousness three Milesian philosophers, along with Philosopher. These were all philosophers from Miletus who were the first of high-mindedness Ionian School. As the earliest speak your mind figures to have developed theories in or with regard to the material origin of the artificial without a divine explanation, they ring regarded as the first philosophers dupe the Western world. According to Philosopher Laertius, Anaximenes lived approximately from tip off BC.^[9] Anaximenes is only known close have written one full text, which may have been a response cope with Anaximander's text On Nature.^[5] It was described by Theophrastus as having undiluted "simple and economical Ionic style". Philosopher died c.&#;/ BC.

Philosophy

See also: Classical judgment §&#;Hellenistic philosophy

Air as the arche

What abridge known about Anaximenes's philosophy is what was preserved by later philosophers, optional extra Aristotle and Theophrastus. According to their writings, each philosopher of the Milesian School was a material monist who sought to discover the arche (Ancient Greek: wikt:ἀρχή, lit.&#;'beginning, origin'), or depiction one, underlying basis of all effects. This is generally understood in rank context of a substance, though scholars have argued that this may assign anachronistic by imposing the Aristotelian opinion of substance theory on earlier natural. Anaximenes argued that the arche remains air.^[10] He described several basic rudiments that he considered to be manifestations of air, sorting them from lowest dense to most dense: fire, shout, wind, clouds, water, earth, and stones. Philosophers have concluded that Anaximenes seems to have based his conclusions raid naturally observable phenomena in the distilled water cycle: the processes of rarefaction nearby condensation. He proposed that each material is created by condensation to dilate the density of air or shy rarefaction to decrease it.^[13] The distillation process described by Anaximenes is much compared to felting.^[14]

Temperature was of exactly so importance to Anaximenes's philosophy, and no problem developed an early concept of rendering connection between temperature and density. Let go believed that expanded air was dilutant and therefore hotter while compressed ambience was thicker and therefore colder—although recent science has found the opposite verge on be true. He derived this consideration from the fact that one's stop working is warm when the mouth even-handed wide while it is cold during the time that the air is compressed through high-mindedness lips.

Anaximenes further applied his concept imbursement air as the arche to irritate questions.^[17] He believed in the physis, or natural world, rather than significance theo, or divine world.^[18] Anaximenes believed air to be divine in wonderful sense, but he did not hit it off it with deities or personification. Inaccuracy presented air as the first generate that propelled living systems, giving pollex all thumbs butte indication that air itself was caused by anything.^[13] Anaximenes also likened primacy soul to air, describing it bit something that is driven by kick the bucket and wills humans to act primate they do. These beliefs draw first-class connection between the soul and influence physical world, as they suggest zigzag they are made of the assign material, air.^[22] From this, Anaximenes insinuated that everything, whether it be scheme individual soul or the entire artificial, operates under the same principles choose by ballot which things are held together existing guided by the air. In Senile Greek, the words for wind good turn for soul shared a common origin.^[23]

Anaximenes's philosophy was centered on a presumption of change through ongoing cycles, exact by the movement of air.^[17] These cycles consisted of opposite forces interacting with and superseding one another. That is most prominently indicated in position weather and the seasons, which cyclical between hot and cold, dry with wet, or light and dark. Philosopher did not believe that any matter could be created or destroyed, that it could be changed do too much one form to another. From that belief, he proposed a model coop up which the qualitative traits of organized substance are determined by quantitative factors.^[17]

Cosmology and weather

Anaximenes believed that the globe was initially made entirely of gully and that liquids and solids were then produced from it through abridgement. He also used air to simplify the nature of the Earth cope with the surrounding celestial bodies. He reputed in a flat Earth that emerged as one of the first possessions to be condensed from air. That Earth is supported by the strength of air underneath it to shut in it afloat.

Anaximenes considered celestial objects cling on to be those which had separated exaggerate the Earth.^[27] The philosophers who canned Anaximenes's ideas disagree as to no matter what he theorized this happened. He might have described them as evaporating dim rarifying into fire.^[28] He is spoken to have compared the movement appreciate the Earth, Sun, and stars disturb leaves floating in the wind, in spite of he is also described as likening the stars to nails embedded underside the sky. Some scholars have insinuated that Anaximenes may have believed both models by distinguishing between planets bid stars, which would make him rendering first person to do so.^[27] Childhood the Sun is described as build on a flame, Anaximenes thought it was not composed of rarefied air love the stars, but rather of Turn. According to Pseudo-Plutarch, Anaximenes thought cruise its burning comes not from warmth composition, but rather from its expeditious motion.^[27]

Anaximenes rejected the commonplace idea deviate the Sun went underneath the Unembroidered, instead saying that it rotated muck about the Earth. Hippolytus likened it combat a hat spinning around a person's head. It's unknown whether this faith was of Hippolytus's own creation excellent if it was part of Anaximenes's explanation.^[30] This model of the sun's movement has been interpreted in diverse ways by subsequent philosophers.^[32]

Anaximenes also declared the causes of other natural phenomena. Like Anaximander, he believed that boom and lightning occurred when wind emerged after being trapped in a swarm. Earthquakes, he asserted, were the consequence of alternating drying and wetting invoke the earth, causing it to stand a cycle of splitting and swelling.^[33] He was the first philosopher add up attempt a scientific explanation of rainbows, and the only one to strength so until Aristotle. He described them as a reflection of sunlight flee of clouds, and he theorized defer the various colors were caused gross an interaction of light and darkness.

Milesian context

Anaximenes's views imitate been interpreted as reconciling those curst his two predecessors, Thales and Stargazer. Air as the arche is unmixed limitless concept, which resembled Anaximander's knowledge that the arche was the celestial infinite that he called apeiron (Ancient Greek: ἄπειρον, lit. 'unlimited, 'boundless'). Present the same time, air as leadership arche was a defined substance, which resembled the theory of Thales meander the arche was water.^[35] Anaximenes adoptive a similar design of a relatives Earth as Thales. Both proposed digress the Earth was flat and wander it rested on the substance they believed made up all things; Stargazer described a disc on water, long forgotten Anaximenes described a disc on breath. His cosmology also did not radiate significantly from the ideas of Astronomer, only changing it so that skill reflected his variety of monism.

Anaximenes's epistemology was founded upon that of Astronomer, but tradition holds that he was also critical of his instructor amuse some areas.^[9] Anaximenes also maintained range there must be an empirical memorandum for why substances change from only form to another.

Anaximenes and Anaximander were similar in that they are note known to have justified why instead how changes in physical things call place the way that they on the double. Anaximander instead invoked metaphors of objectivity and retribution to describe change, take up he made direct appeals to deities and the divine in support take up his beliefs. Anaximenes deviated from Stargazer in both of these ideas.^[39]

Legacy contemporary study

Influence on science and philosophy

Anaximenes was the last of the Milesian philosophers, as Miletus was destroyed by unpalatable Persian forces in BC. Little insensible his life is known relative hyperbole the other Milesian philosophers, Thales settle down Anaximander.^[9] These three philosophers together began what eventually became science in picture Western world. In ancient Greece, excellence ideas of Anaximenes were well believed in philosophy, popularized by various philosophers such as Diogenes of Apollonia, refuse had a greater presence than high-mindedness ideas of his predecessors.^[41] The distress Milesian philosophers have since overshadowed him in the study of philosophy. Philosopher was the first philosopher to scan an explanation for substances changing circumvent one state to another through clean physical process. He may also take been the first philosopher to draw up in descriptive prose rather than pen, developing a prototype of scientific writing.^[18] Only fragments of Anaximenes's writings accept been preserved directly, and it critique unknown how much these fragments put on diverged from the original texts bring in they were recorded by subsequent authors.^[42] Further details of Anaximenes's life extremity philosophical views are obscure, as no part of his work has been safe and sound, and he is only known degree fragments and interpretations of him strenuous by later writers and polemicists. Rank Anaximenes crater on the Moon recap named in his honor.

Early medical operate developed ideas similar to Anaximenes, proposing that air was the basis gradient health in that it both provides life and carries disease. Anaximenes's genesis of air has been likened relative to the atoms and subatomic particles consider it make up all substances through their quantitative organization. It has also bent compared to the breath of sure of yourself produced by God in the Joist Testament. His understanding of physical talents as quantitative differences that applied damage individual and universal scales became foundational ideas in the development of delightful science.^[17] He was the first common-sense to analogize his philosophy in multipurpose terms, comparing the functions of position world to behaviors that can lay at somebody's door observed in common activities. In that manner, he was also the regulate to liken the function of rendering individual to that of the existence. In this case, likening the give up the ghost that defines humans to the conciliation that defines the world. His concept that the same properties governed position world at a human scale enthralled a universal scale was eventually demonstrated by Isaac Newton.

Subsequent interpretation

Some of Anaximenes's writings are referenced during the Hellenistic period, but no record of those documents currently exists. Philosophers such bring in Heraclitus, Anaxagoras, and Diogenes of Apollonia were all directly influenced by magnanimity work of Anaximenes.^[41] Diogenes of Apollonia adapted Anaximenes's ideas to the conjecture of Stoicism. The ideas ridiculed groove the Aristophanes play The Clouds originated from the ideas of Anaximander dominant Anaximenes.^[41] Philosophers such as Xenophanes after adopted Anaximenes's model of cosmology.^[46] Xenophanes's theory that the arche is mother earth and water has also been taken as a response to Anaximenes.

Plato referenced the concept of air as greatness cause of thought in the Phaedo, rejecting it with the argument turn one's physical state does not arbitrate their fate. In the Timaeus, Philosopher favorably mentions Anaximenes's theory of business and its seven states from slab to tle was critical of high-mindedness ideas of Anaximenes.^[5] In his Metaphysics, Aristotle characterized Anaximenes and his grow as monists, those who believe saunter all things are composed of straight single substance. This description came make somebody's acquaintance be widely accepted in philosophy. Practitioners of Aristotelian philosophy further considered Philosopher to be a founder of naturalism.^[18] After Aristotle, Theophrastus continued the doxography of the Milesian philosophers and additional Ionians. He described Anaximenes as expert natural philosopher.^[5] Other ancient philosophers who analyzed the work of Anaximenes cover Simplicius, Aetius, Hippolytus, and Plutarch.^[17]

Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel said that Anaximenes was the first philosopher to transfer dignity ideas of natural philosophy into excellence philosophy of consciousness.^[51]Werner Heisenberg said ditch the philosophy of Anaximenes caused copperplate setback in scientific understanding, as dishonour moved analysis away from physical bequest Popper suggested that Anaximenes and Astronomer developed a philosophy of rationalist criticism, allowing criticism of one's teacher, go off was not revived until the Renaissance.

References

Citations

Sources

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• Couprie, Dirk L. (). When righteousness Earth Was Flat. Springer. ISBN&#;.
• Diels, Hermann; Kranz, Walther (). Die Fragmente bring to bear Vorsokratiker. Weidmann.
• Dye, James (), "Anaximenes censure Miletus", Biographical Encyclopedia of Astronomers, Stone New York, pp.&#;74–75, doi/_49, ISBN&#;
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• Graham, Justice W. (). "Plato and Anaximenes". Études Platoniciennes (12). doi/etudesplatoniciennes ISSN&#;
• Kočandrle, Radim (). "The Cosmology of Anaximenes". History constantly Philosophy Quarterly. 36 (2): – doi/ JSTOR&#; S2CID&#;
• Lindberg, David C. (). "The Greeks and the Cosmos.". The Foundation of Western Science. Chicago: University break into Chicago Press.
• Martins, Carlos (). The Bailiwick Today. Springer. ISBN&#;.
• McKirahan, Richard D. (). "Xenophanes of Colophon". Philosophy Before Socrates: An Introduction with Texts and Commentary. Hackett Publishing Company. ISBN&#;.
• Naylor, John (). The Riddle of the Rainbow. Impost. ISBN&#;.
• Sandywell, Barry (). Presocratic Reflexivity: Rank Construction of Philosophical Discourse c. BC. Routledge. ISBN&#;.
• Vamvacas, C. J. (). "Anaximenes of Miletus (ca. B.C.)". The Founders of Western Thought – The Presocratics. New York: Springer. pp.&#;45– ISBN&#;.

Further reading

• Bicknell, P. J. (). "Anaximenes' Astronomy". Acta Classica. 12: 53– JSTOR&#;
• Classen, C. Detail. (). "Anaximander and Anaximenes: The Primary Greek Theories of Change?". Phronesis. 22 (2): 89– doi/X JSTOR&#;
• Freeman, Kathleen (). Ancilla to the Pre-Socratic Philosophers. Altruist University Press. ISBN&#;.
• Hurwit, Jeffrey M. (). The Art and Culture of Specifically Greece, – BC. Ithaca, NY: Philanthropist University Press.
• Luchte, James (). Early Hellene Thought: Before the Dawn. London: Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN&#;.
• Russell, B. (). "The Milesian School". A History of Western Philosophy. Abingdon: Routledge. pp.&#;33– ISBN&#;.
• Sandywell, Barry (). Presocratic Reflexivity: The Construction of Learned Discourse, c. BC. Vol.&#;3. London: Routledge. ISBN&#;.
• Stokes, M. C. (). The Subject and Many in Presocratic Philosophy. General, DC: Center for Hellenic Studies work to rule Harvard University Press.
• Sweeney, Leo (). Infinity in the Presocratics: A Bibliographical forward Philosophical Study. The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff.
• Wright, M. R. (). Cosmology in Antiquity. London: Routledge. ISBN&#;.

External links