Anaxagoras Ethics

When deciding on which topic I wanted to choose I was torn because of my interest in many of the authors so I decided to allow my classmates to help me narrow down the choices by choosing theirs first. After allowing some time to pass I was glad to see that Anaxagoras' Ethics remained because I found it not only interesting but slightly challenging. I have found the love of a challenge common in philosophers as well as those who read their works. 

What finally caused me to choose Anaxagoras was his quote I found in some of my older notes "All other things have a portion of everything, but Mind is infinite and self-ruled. . . . For it is the finest of all things and the purest; it has all knowledge about everything and the greatest power. And Mind controls all things, both the greater and the smaller, that have life". This line alone caused me to continue looking further into his ideas and his thoughts on ethics. His love for science and philosophy intermingle in a way that I see structuring his ideas much different from the philosophers of present day; but it is his accuracy in his predictions of the scientific nature that brought me to see how close he's come in regards to ethics. While Socrates has been remembered because of his influence on Aristotle ,commonly known as the greatest philosopher to ever live, through Socrates own student Plato who was Aristotle's teacher and mentor; Anaxagoras seems to be forgotten. In a way Anaxagoras is the Great Grandfather of philosophy and I hope to bring forth his importance through my presentation.

Heraclitus seems to be the front-runner to Kant in many ways but most noticeably in his view of the world. Both men saw the world as being connected in all ways whether or not man was able to perceive it or not. (B124) is a a perfect example of this by saying "The most beautiful kosmos is a pile of things poured out at random". This thought goes hand in hand with Kant's idea that only through an understanding of both the phenomenal and nominal realms could man understand the "language" of the Universe.

 I agree with both men and as technology continues to evolve so will humanity's understanding of the elaborate connections in the universe. Mankind has continually developed a habit of separating ideas and disciplines into such particular roles they have made intellectuals forget the connections their fields share. Philosopher's of the past were not only philosophers but commonly teachers and scientist as well. As the world developed and disciplines split people seem to be more focused on showing the differences in things than trying to better understand their connection. Today people are told, "You can do everything find something you're good at and stick with it" but by doing this at young ages children grow to be men and women who do not appreciate different fields or understand their importance. 

As scientist continue to search for the answers to the how question and philosophers the why, they will eventually cross paths again like in the times of the ancients and prove with science what was already understood in religion and philosophy. Moral conflicts that once separated religions and people, which brought forth wars will be understood; and religious people will see that the ideas and principles that once pushed them apart are instead only perceptually different and actually represent the same concepts.  I see this outcome as inevitable but how long do you think it will take for all of mankind to relate?