The Giants of Philosophy - Soren Kierkegaard For Kierkegaard, truth is a subjective reality which we must live, not simply something to consider and discuss. His self-consciousness and self-examination highlight the practical demands of existence, and he opposes the speculative thinking of philosophical idealists (especially Hegel).
Aristotle, known as "the Philosopher" by later thinkers, created a huge body of work that was virtually synonymous with philosophy for over 2000 years. His most well-known doctrines include the notions that morally virtuous people seek moderation in all things (the "mean" between extremes); that the soul is the essence or the characteristic activity of the living body; that happiness is found not in mere pleasure, but in fully developing the powers of the soul in pursuit of excellence throughout a lifetime; and that in the good life we engage in the right activities for their own sake.
Hegel created a vast speculative and idealistic philosophy, where truth is found not in the part but in the whole. Nature is an organic whole shot through with rationality akin to the reason in ourselves.
Hegel's famous "dialectic" is an organic process of growth and development in three stages: beginning, advance and resolution. It has two sides: the rational patterns that determine all growth in the world and the logical form of reason.
Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860) Germany Narrated by Charlton Heston Schopenhauer emphasized the dark aspects of existence. Evil, pain and suffering are not aberration: they express the inner nature of the world. He is pessimistic about the true nature of existence; suffering and pain outweigh the rewards in life and they're central to the riddle of existence.
Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900) Germany Narrated by Charlton Heston Nietzsche condemned nearly all of the religious and philosophical thought of his day to blunt terms (e.g., God is dead). He says the only reality is this world of life and death, conflict and change, creation and destruction. For centuries, religious ideas have given meaning to life in the western world; but as they now collapse, humanity faces a grave crisis of nihilism and despair.
