philosophy of history summary

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Below is the article summary. For the full article, see philosophy of history.

philosophy of history, Branch of philosophy concerned with questions about the meaningfulness of history and the nature of historical explanation. Philosophy of history in the traditional sense is conceived to be a first-order inquiry, its subject matter being the historical process as a whole and its broad aim being to provide an overall elucidation of its course. As a second-order inquiry, philosophy of history focuses on the methods by which practicing historians treat the human past. The former, often referred to as speculative philosophy of history, has had a long and varied career; the latter, known as critical or analytical philosophy of history, rose to prominence only in the 20th century.

St. Justin Martyr Summary

St. Justin Martyr ; feast day June 1) was one of the most important of the Greek philosopher-Apologists in the early Christian church. His writings represent one of the first positive encounters of Christian revelation with Greek philosophy and laid the basis for a theology of history. A pagan

Joachim Of Fiore Summary

Joachim Of Fiore was an Italian mystic, theologian, biblical commentator, philosopher of history, and founder of the monastic order of San Giovanni in Fiore. He developed a philosophy of history according to which history develops in three ages of increasing spirituality: the ages of the Father,

Benedetto Croce Summary

Benedetto Croce was a historian, humanist, and the foremost Italian philosopher of the first half of the 20th century. Croce belonged to a family of landed proprietors with estates in the Abruzzi region of central Italy but chiefly resident in Naples. His background was religious, monarchical, and

Hippolyte Taine Summary

Hippolyte Taine was a French thinker, critic, and historian, one of the most-esteemed exponents of 19th-century French positivism. He attempted to apply the scientific method to the study of the humanities. Taine was born into a professional middle-class family; his father was a lawyer. He was