Socrates was a classical Athenian philosopher.
Classical Athens . In the classical period , Athens was a center for the arts , learning and philosophy , home of Plato 's Akademia and Aristotle 's Lyceum , Athens was also the birthplace of Socrates , Pericles , Sophocles , and many other prominent philosophers , writers and politicians of the ancient world . Philosophy ( from Greek φιλοσοφία , philosophia , literally `` love of wisdom '' ) is the study of general and fundamental problems concerning matters such as existence , knowledge , values , reason , mind , and language . Socrates . Through his portrayal in Plato 's dialogues , Socrates has become renowned for his contribution to the field of ethics , and it is this Platonic Socrates who lends his name to the concepts of Socratic irony and the Socratic method , or elenchus . Western philosophy is the philosophical thought and work of the Western world .