Platonism

<h3 >Platonism</h3>

<p ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Platonism" title="Platonism" >Platonism</a> is the name given to the philosophy of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plato" title="Plato" >Plato</a>, which was maintained and developed by his followers. The central concept was the<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theory_of_forms" title="Theory of forms" class="mw-redirect" >Theory of forms</a>: the transcendent, perfect archetypes, of which objects in the everyday world are imperfect copies. The highest form was the<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Form_of_the_Good" title="Form of the Good" >Form of the Good</a>, the source of being, which could be known by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reason" title="Reason" >reason</a>. In the 3rd century BCE, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arcesilaus" title="Arcesilaus" >Arcesilaus</a> adopted <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philosophical_skepticism" title="Philosophical skepticism" >skepticism</a>, which became a central tenet of the school until 90 BCE when <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antiochus_of_Ascalon" title="Antiochus of Ascalon" >Antiochus</a> added <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stoicism" title="Stoicism" >Stoic</a> elements, rejecting skepticism. With the adoption of oriental <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mysticism" title="Mysticism" >mysticism</a> in the 3rd century CE, Platonism evolved into <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neoplatonism" title="Neoplatonism" >Neoplatonism</a>.</p>

<ul >

<li ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Speusippus" title="Speusippus" >Speusippus</a> (407-339 BCE)</li>

<li ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xenocrates" title="Xenocrates" >Xenocrates</a> (396-314 BCE)</li>

<li ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arcesilaus" title="Arcesilaus" >Arcesilaus</a> (316-232 BCE)</li>

<li ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carneades" title="Carneades" >Carneades</a> (214-129 BCE)</li>

<li ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antiochus_of_Ascalon" title="Antiochus of Ascalon" >Antiochus of Ascalon</a> (130-68 BCE)</li>

<li ><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plutarch" title="Plutarch" >Plutarch</a> (46-120 CE)</li>

</ul>