"Top 5" Intellectuals and Philosophers

[Bokaya]

Okay! I thought it would be fun if we all listed our top 5 great thinkers that have influenced us the most, changed us as people, shaped our outlook on life, politics, morality, etc. The ones we love the most! I'll go first...

1) Ayn Rand
-Need I say more? Even if you hate her guts, and many do, she is gaurenteed to make you think and think hard. I personally love her work, my favourite book being her magnum opus, Atlas Shrugged. I wholeheartedly agree with her ideas on individualism and ego, and to be honest the only real issue I have with her are her views on women.

2) Lucretius
-Not exactly a prolific writer, but his one surviving work, the epic De Rerum Natura, sets out in entertaining simplicity the whole scope of the ancient philosophy of Epicureanism. A major influence on my personal philosophy, and gaurenteed to make you wonder why Epicureanism has fallen out of favour in recent decades.

3) Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche
-I'm not a fan of existential nihilism by any means, but Nietzsche's earliest major work, Thus Spake Zarathustra, written when he was still an optomistic young man, has impacted my views on society and mankind beyond measure. I particularly love the concept of the Superman, and the idea that life has no meaning unless you bestow one upon it. Be warned though, he's a shit writer. As in, seriously. The man can't write. I've only read one book that was more poorly written, more needlessly bombastic and pretentious, and that was Mein Kampf. However, Zarathustra is definitely worth wading through. You take from the book as much as you put into it. Much like life...

4) Anton Szandor LaVey
-Love his views on individualism and how religion courrups society, can't stand his views on mysticism being a vital part of the human consciousness. His best work, The Satanic Bible starts out really well, but I put it down when he started going on about not taking baths. Still, an amazing thinker and fantastic, entertaining writer who only grows more admirable when one reads about his life story, how he dragged himself up from nothing to become Antichrist. One amazing dude, who has influenced my outlook considerably.

5) Halifax
-An often forgotten genius, but a genius nonetheless, George Saville, the First Marquess of Halifax, came from the same great tradition of English political philosophers that brought the world Thomas Hobbes and John Locke. His views on politics, morality and religion espouse rationality, reason and logic over heated passion and needless emotion. Sadly, however, his Complete Works are out of print, so good look finding a copy in your local charity shop.

[Republicke]

Selected those who have influenced me, I couldn't even begin to consider the best overall, although I imagine it would include figures such as Newton, etc., whom I know little about.

1.) Plato

2.) Hume

3.) Locke or Hobbes, probably the former

4.) One of the analytic philosophers, possibly Wittgenstein

5.) Noam Chomsky. If only because I'd feel like a traitor to my generation if I didn't include somebody still living.

[Neo Art]

If philosophers were smart they wouldn't waste their time on such meaningless drivel that is "philosophy"

[Conserative Morality]

1. Nietzsche. Agree with his fight against Nihilism and traditional morality or not (I certainly don't), the man was incredibly influential. Only after his death, but even so, many philosophers of our time were either influenced in favor, or against the man. And his work is very interesting, not to mention quotable. Damn kids today though, trying to use him as a justification for the very thing he hated: Nihilism.

God is dead. God remains dead. And we have killed him. How shall we comfort ourselves, the murderers of all murderers? What was holiest and mightiest of all that the world has yet owned has bled to death under our knives: who will wipe this blood off us? What water is there for us to clean ourselves? What festivals of atonement, what sacred games shall we have to invent? Is not the greatness of this deed too great for us? Must we ourselves not become gods simply to appear worthy of it?

2. René Descartes, an early proponent of rationalism.

The first precept was never to accept a thing as true until I knew it as such without a single doubt.

3. Hobbes. The Tiger Philosopher.

Calvin: "Why are we here?"

Hobbes: "Tiger food. *broad grin*"

4. Thomas Hobbes, his writings on the State and on the social contract are undoubtedly influential in the modern world.

To this war of every man against every man, this also in consequent; that nothing can be unjust. The notions of right and wrong, justice and injustice have there no place. Where there is no common power, there is no law, where no law, no injustice. Force, and fraud, are in war the cardinal virtues.

5. Marcus Aurelius. An important figure in Stoicism, and an interesting writer and Philosopher.

"When you wake up in the morning, tell yourself: The people I deal with today will be meddling, ungrateful, arrogant, dishonest, jealous, and surly. They are like this because they can't tell good from evil. But I have seen the beauty of good, and the ugliness of evil, and have recognized that the wrongdoer has a nature related to my own—not of the same blood or birth, but the same mind, and possessing a share of the divine."

[Conserative Morality]

If philosophers were smart they wouldn't waste their time on such meaningless drivel that is "philosophy"

Of course not. Discussing meaning of life and action is useless, they should go out and get real jobs, the lazy bums etc etc.

[Risottia]

Just five... hm... I'll try.

Karl Marx, Immanuel Kant, Galileo Galilei, Richard Feynman and Ludwig van Beethoven.
Not necessarily in any order.

(Hey, artists ARE intellectuals!)

[Bokaya]

*snip*

Yah, I heart Marcus Aurelius, too. To be honest, it was a toss-up between him and Lucretius. Lucretius won... just. Btw, do you agree with me when I say Nietzche was a terrible writer? He was, wasn't he!

[Central Slavia]

Karl Marx , Friedrich Engels , Vladimir Iljic Lenin, Richard P Feynman, Adam Roman

[Conserative Morality]

Yah, I heart Marcus Aurelius, too. To be honest, it was a toss-up between him and Lucretius. Lucretius won... just. Btw, do you agree with me when I say Nietzche was a terrible writer? He was, wasn't he!

Not at all. He was an amazing writer. But Thus Spoke Zaruthrustra was translated to sound like the King James bible IIRC, because the original was written like some version of the Lutheran Bible in a mockery of Christianity.

Try reading Beyond Good and Evil.

[Risottia]

Karl Marx , Friedrich Engels , Vladimir Iljic Lenin, Richard P Feynman, Adam Roman

This one? http://www.ii.uj.edu.pl/~roman/

[Bokaya]

I've read Beyond Good and Evil, but not the Gay Science. To be honest, I prefer Zarathustra for the message, but definitely BGAE is definitely written better. I suppose I just haven't found a decent translation, yet...

[Central Slavia]

Karl Marx , Friedrich Engels , Vladimir Iljic Lenin, Richard P Feynman, Adam Roman

This one? http://www.ii.uj.edu.pl/~roman/

I don't think so
The one i mean is a slovak biologist and an atheist thinker
The name is his pseudonym.
He is not that important but as i detailed elsewhere his detailed work was what first put my atheism (then newly gained) from a more or less philosophical basis to a firmly scientific and logic one.

[Conserative Morality]

I've read Beyond Good and Evil, but not the Gay Science. To be honest, I prefer Zarathustra for the message, but definitely BGAE is definitely written better. I suppose I just haven't found a decent translation, yet...

Try Kaufmann.

[Bokaya]

Gah! £11.06! I think I'll stick with my grotty little hardback version for now...

[Brogavia]

1. George W. Bush
2. Jeff Foxworthy
3. Sarah Palin
4. Glenn Beck
5. Dr. Pepper

[Sociobiology]

1. Richard Feynman
2. Norman Borloug
3. Thomas Paine
4.Richard Dawkins
5. George Carlin

[Coffin-Breathe]

1. Me !
2, 3, 4 and 5 don´t count, because thinking means thinking by your own, not reading and reciting...plus, who else might influence me more than I can ?

[Conserative Morality]

1. Me !
2, 3, 4 and 5 don´t count, because thinking means thinking by your own, not reading and reciting...plus, who else might influence me more than I can ?

The contribution of other thinkers through the generation and consideration of ideas that one may not have thought of is important to creating your own viewpoints.

Quite simply, accepting no influence but your own is not open-minded but rather closed. Other ideas should be examined and considered, in doing so, you broaden your own views and are made to think for yourself.

[Sociobiology]

1. George W. Bush
2. Jeff Foxworthy
3. Sarah Palin
4. Glenn Beck
5. Dr. Pepper

Stoning non conformists is part of science. Stoning conformists is also part of science. Only those theories that can stand up to a merciless barrage of stones deserve consideration. It is the Creationist habit of throwing marshmallows that we find annoying. --- Dr Pepper

[Brogavia]

1. George W. Bush
2. Jeff Foxworthy
3. Sarah Palin
4. Glenn Beck
5. Dr. Pepper

Stoning non conformists is part of science. Stoning conformists is also part of science. Only those theories that can stand up to a merciless barrage of stones deserve consideration. It is the Creationist habit of throwing marshmallows that we find annoying. --- Dr Pepper

I meant the one that comes in a can.

[Vonners]

Chief Wiggum.

[Ninja Sloths]

Okay! I thought it would be fun if we all listed our top 5 great thinkers that have influenced us the most, changed us as people, shaped our outlook on life, politics, morality, etc. The ones we love the most! I'll go first...

1) Ayn Rand
-Need I say more? Even if you hate her guts, and many do, she is gaurenteed to make you think and think hard. I personally love her work, my favourite book being her magnum opus, Atlas Shrugged. I wholeheartedly agree with her ideas on individualism and ego, and to be honest the only real issue I have with her are her views on women.

That's a frickin novel.

Intellectuals and philosophers should not be judged by their novels.

Here are mine:

Isaac Newton: A bit crazy at times, but his core work unified "natural philosophy" with mathematics. Refounding physics as both empirical and rational, Newton is the beautiful scientist.
Bertrand Russell: Distinguished more as an Intellectual. To make difficult concepts plain is proof of mastery; contrasts very favourably with mad, bad Nietzsche.
Louis Pasteur: To discover so much about germs, and to invent vacinnation, are scientific accomplishments. He get "great intellectual" status for his advocacy of his life-saving discoveries.
Arthur C. Clarke: yes, a novelist. His plots and characters were as clumsy as Rand's, but in retropect he was an excellent futurologist. Predicting the future is very rare talent.
Garry Kasparov: maybe being good at chess isn't really "intellectual" but his comment that "intellectual work requires physical fitness" has helped me immensely.

[Angleter]

Stoning non conformists is part of science. Stoning conformists is also part of science. Only those theories that can stand up to a merciless barrage of stones deserve consideration. It is the Creationist habit of throwing marshmallows that we find annoying. --- Dr Pepper

I meant the one that comes in a can.

"What's the worst that can happen?" has influenced me in many ways, too.

[Idealismania]

I would say the top people that have influenced my life and thinking the most are:

1. Jesus
2. All my ex-girlsfriends combined
3. Jostein Gaarder
4. Mark Hammons
5. Tim Drake
6. Brian Tomb
Not all of them are/were philosophers, artists, or even really influential people, but reading about or interacting with this people has definately been what shaped me today. If someone would have cloned me and separated me at birth, these people would be the main reason for differences in personality me and my clone would have.

[Neo Art]

If philosophers were smart they wouldn't waste their time on such meaningless drivel that is "philosophy"

Of course not. Discussing meaning of life and action is useless, they should go out and get real jobs, the lazy bums etc etc.

Pretty much, yeah.