My name is Democritus, I was born on the northern shore of the Aegean Sea in Abdera, a city of ancient Thrace which was also home to the Sophist Protagoras. Little else is known about my life, except that I traveled on one occasion to talk with Anaxagoras, the leading scientist of Athens, but I was rebuffed. Im fairly wealthy and I travel extensively in the East—to Egypt, Babylon, India, and Persia. I developed the atomic theory with my teacher, Leucippus. Although a contemporary of Socrates, Im is considered among the last of the pre-Socratics. It is generally believed that Leucippus contributed more to atomisms founding than I did , but that I was more responsible for the theorys refinement. Although our work was based on the earlier theories of the Milesians, we made notable advancements, particularly in our explanation of density. The atomic theory is mechanistic: it holds that all matter is composed of an infinite number of indivisible and indestructible atoms of various shapes moving about in an infinite void, in an infinite universe, always and forever colliding with each other, and sometimes joining to form combinations. Nothing happens by chance, nor on purpose, and all can be explained in terms of mechanical principles, one thing causing another. My philosophy, including my belief that the soul itself is composed of atoms, angered some philosophers including Plato—who pointedly did not mention him— and Aristotle, who, in his writings, criticized me and his theory. Most of the few hundred fragments that remain of my writings deal with ethics rather than atomism. My ethics stress moderation and the practice of that which is beneficial to society. I also asserted that mans belief in divinities is due to his ignorance about nature, and my emphasis on cheerfulness as the goal for all individuals led to my nickname, the Laughing Philosopher.
Posted on: Fri, 15 Nov 2013 00:31:01 +0000
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