The first philosophers of Greece

"The first philosophers of Greece" by Arthur Fairbanks is a scholarly edition and translation written in the late 19th century. It compiles the surviving fragments of the pre-Socratic philosophers with Greek texts, critical notes, and English translations, alongside key testimonies from Plato, Aristotle, and the doxographers. Aimed at students and general readers of ancient thought, it traces early Greek cosmology and metaphysics from the Ionian natural inquirers through the Eleatics and Pythagoreans, clarifying the background to classical philosophy. The opening of the volume explains the original dual-language layout, then sets out a preface situating the project within modern scholarship (Zeller, Diels, Burnet), stating the goal of providing reliable Greek texts and accessible translations of fragments and early reports, and outlining editorial choices and sources. A contents list previews sections on the Ionian, Eleatic, and Pythagorean traditions. The first chapters present Thales (water as the arche; earth resting on water; soul as a moving power; “all things full of gods”; early cosmological opinions on stars, zones, and eclipses) through quotations from Plato, Aristotle, and doxographers. Next comes Anaximandros (the apeiron as the first principle; separation of opposites by eternal motion; a famous fragment on “punishment” and “justice”; cosmology of fiery wheels for sun and moon; the sea as the residue of primordial moisture; animals from moisture and humans emerging from fishlike beings; talk of multiple worlds).

The first philosophers of Greece, by Arthur Fairbanks. Republished by OpenStories from Project Gutenberg eBook #78670.