There were many philosophers in the history of humanity, but only a few who significantly influenced societies and cultures and even gave rise to new religions. Among these important thinkers, Confucius, Buddha, Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle were the most influential, and their ideas continue to affect the way people perceive the world around them even today. When assessing the major contributions of each of these personalities to the discipline of philosophy, it is important to compare and contrast their outlooks to better understand how various schools of thought evolved in different parts of the planet. Thus, analyzing the ideas of the aforementioned philosophers must be done by taking into consideration their views concerning similar topics, namely, ethics and happiness.
Confucius was a Chinese philosopher born in 551 BC and whose ideas formed the basis of Confucianism, a system of thought which is still popular in the world. His views on ethics were clearly-defined and implied pursuing filial piety, respect for one’s parents, which, according to Confucius, laid the groundwork for social harmony. Buddha, a legendary spiritual leader from ancient India, claimed that ethical behavior towards others was only one of the factors of the eightfold path to ending suffering in a person’s life. Socrates, a philosopher from ancient Greece who is now considered one of the founding fathers of western philosophy, had his view concerning ethics. He was certain that every person had to seek knowledge and wisdom, which ultimately lead to ethical conduct. Plato, another Greek philosopher who was also a student of Socrates, held a similar view and believed that wisdom was at the center of ethics. Aristotle, also a Greek philosopher and a student of Plato, was similarly convinced that ethical life implied knowledge, but he also believed that the ultimate goal was to become good, and not just to know.
Confucius stated that happiness was an important part of the life of every person, but it had to manifest itself not in satisfying one’s desires but in recognizing one’s moral innocence. Buddha, on the other hand, believed that happiness could be achieved by controlling one’s mind and erasing all the unnecessary emotions such as hatred and lust from it. Socrates had similar views; he claimed that happiness could not be attained through constantly seeking pleasure in satisfying one’s desires or accruing wealth through expanding one’s knowledge. Plato had a different approach and contended that a path to happiness involved becoming moral and embracing four values, namely, temperance, fortitude, prudence, and justice. While Aristotle wrote that happiness was essentially the goal of every person’s life which could be reached by pursuing virtue and developing one’s good qualities.
Confucius, Buddha, Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle are the most renowned philosophers in the world, and their views on happiness and ethics remain relevant to this day. Their ideas oppose one another in certain areas, for example, Confucius believed that ethical conduct was an essential part of every individual since it formed the basis of society. While Buddha stated that ethical behavior was only one step which had to be made for a person to escape their own life’s suffering. On the other hand, some of the views voiced by the analyzed philosophers are quite similar despite the fact that they lived in different parts of the world. For instance, Buddha and Socrates shared the notion that happiness could not be achieved through merely seeking pleasure and satisfying one’s desires.