What is interesting about such a phenomenon as a philosopher's statement? Man, probably, is the only creature on the planet Earth who is eager to comprehend his own life and himself. Philosophy is a kind of knowledge and worldview that can sort through and rationally define all these complex phenomena. But that's not all. Philosophy is not reduced to rationalism. It is in the same plane as faith, feelings, beliefs. Just a philosopher's statement can substantiate all this.
Besides, every thinker has always been convinced of his own rightness and the mistakes of others, and in fact it turned out that his opinion carries both truth and error. But be that as it may, this is a special kind of description and definition. Let's try to consider it.
A philosopher's statement as a worldview
Speeches, aphorisms and statementsthinkers is not always a system of views on the surrounding world, but rather a manifestation of the active self-determination of a person who is looking for his own path. Moreover, this search is often a goal as such. André Gide advises to trust people who are looking for the truth, but be very careful about those who claim to have already discovered it. Isn't it true that there is some echo of the speeches of the Buddha (who is also often perceived as a philosopher, and not just as a religious figure) that happiness itself is a path. There are no roads to this paradise.
Philosopher's statement as understanding
Quite often, quotes from ancient thinkers are advice to other people on how to relate to the surrounding reality. It happens that they look like instructions from people who have already seen everything in their lifetime to those who cannot come to terms with troubles. This is especially true for philosophers of antiquity. "None of us meets on his life's path anything that he could not bear," Marcus Aurelius is convinced. He seems to be echoed by Pythagoras in his words, this time far from mathematics, that any necessity is also the possibility of something. On the other hand, the philosophers of the modern era often reproached the ancients for resignation to hopelessness, preferring rebellion and sacrifice, such as Camus.
Sayings of philosophers about life
Many thinkers believed that a person is alwaysinterested in the meaning of his existence in this world. Drinking, eating and having fun, forgetting that tomorrow we will die - this, from the point of view of philosophers, is just a desire to stick one's head in the sand. The meaning of life is a very complex thing. This is not knowledge. No wonder the philosopher Mamardashvili said that sooner or later a person reaches a certain point where knowledge is powerless. And then he goes to look for meaning. There are many quotes from which it is clear that philosophers believed that a person himself creates the content of his life, he creates it himself. For example, Erich Fromm wrote that the personality, its creation is the main thing in our biography. Every person has a certain potential. And life is given to him in order to realize it.
Sayings of philosophers about man
People are strange creatures, and at the same time worthy of reverence. So did the philosophers of the Renaissance. "A man can fall below the demons, fly above the angels," Pico della Mirandola assured. On the other hand, why are there evil people, fools, scum? Socrates was sure that a bad person does bad things not at all out of calculation. He does so without any benefit, by some inner impulse. People who are not brilliant, according to Wilson Mizner, always like to repeat that they are not stupid. A rather interesting statement on this topic is the conclusion, though not of a professional philosopher, but of a writer, that a person is like the moon. He always has a dark side. However, for the time being, no one can see her.
