Parmenides, Plato, and Plato - The First Philosopher

Parmenides was the first philosopher who we can say had a clear interest in metaphysics. This means that many of the traditional problems of philosophy are meta, physical problems. The fifth century was going to be a good time for greek philosophy and science. Not only did this century see the mature careers of both parmenides and socrates, but it was also the period when the pythagoreans built up their mathematical systems.