The Story of Philosophy Study Guide

Plato is born in Greece in the second millennium before the birth of Christ. Greece is located in the Mediterranean Sea where civilization and culture begin. The irregular coastal features of Greece's island geography create isolated regions. Communication with other regions on the island is difficult and dangerous. As a result many city-states develop isolated economies, cultures, religions and governments. The two city-states of Sparta and Athens unite in 470 B.C. to fight off Persian attempts to conquer Greece. The Athens port and navy grow into a busy trading center but Sparta lapses into an isolated agricultural area. Trading exposes merchants to the ideas of others. Some merchants doubt the local ideas and become the first sceptics. They trade with other merchants in coastal... (read more)