Развитие западного интеллектуализма - стр. 4

The next known intellectuals after Imhotep lived in Greece about three thousand years ago. They included the first poets Homer and Hesiod. Their epic poems laid the foundation for classical literature and the mythology of polytheism. That period in the development of intellectualism sparked the transition to scholarly and logical philosophy as the school of life. Several chapters are then dedicated to the life and work of Greek philosophers Thales, Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle and their influence on intellectualism during the subsequent centuries. Stories about the flourishing of the Hellenic culture of Athens, about its dissemination throughout the empire created by Alexander of Macedonia, and about the Alexandria school of scholars and philosophers are also included.

During the same epoch, the Hebrew civilization originated and developed with the introduction of the first monotheistic religion of one God. One of the stories tells about the writing of the Bible and about its intellectual impact on future generations, and about Hebrew Patriarchs and Prophets – Moses, Ezra, David, Solomon at al, and includes legends about them and their lives.

Three long chapters are dedicated to the development of culture and intellectualism in the Roman Empire and the achievements of the classical world. They encompass the creation of Roman law, Latin literature, achievements in construction, architecture and sculpture, as well as life stories of intellectuals and emperors who created Roman civilization and art.

Intellectualism of private individuals played an important role in the development of religions. The history of the origin of Christianity and stories about Jesus Christ and the Apostle Paul are the subject of subsequent chapters. They describe how the spread of Christianity and how its intellectual influence sped up the fall of Roman Empire.

In the chapters dedicated to the Dark Ages, the story of the creation of Islam by Prophet Mohammed, the story of his life and the writing of the Koran, as well as the influence of Islam on the culture of the Western world in the Middle Ages are covered. The new development of Europe during the Middle Ages and the intellectual impact of Charlemagne, the history of the origin of the state, the strengthening of Christianity, and the beginnings of monastic education are the subject of the next chapters. In stories about intellectuals in pursuit of enlightenment, their early intellectual doubts about religious doctrines are described. That skepticism laid the foundation of new theological thinking based to a great extent on the teachings of ancient Greek philosophers.There is next adescription of the founding of the first European universities and construction of new, pretentious religious temples. Intellectuals of that time were resurrecting the arts of literature, sculpture, painting, and music. Their life stories are the subject of subsequent chapters. Creation of national literatures was an im portant achievement of that epoch. The first example of great work of literature was Dante’s poem The Divine Comedy. Dante’s work was the forerunner of the humanism that flowered during the Renaissance. The last chapter of the book is dedicated to his life and the creation of his epic poem.