Speaking about the order of the universe we can shift the speech towards human nature and essence. In performing actions which support harmony, man is doing nothing more but manifesting his nature and realizing his essence. The tool that the indivi Continue Reading...
Because the imperative is something that stems from the rational will, adherence to it is really only adherence to the law that the will itself created. The will, that is, is acting as the will tells itself it has to. Due to the circular nature of t Continue Reading...
This is really the extent of Gorgias attempting to remove himself from Socrates' argument, but instead, pulls him deeper into the intellectual trap, for Gorgias has only one misgiving about the entire situation . . . he fears that the crowd of onloo Continue Reading...
Religious Daoism has reconciled itself with philosophical Daoism by claiming its purpose as "cultivating this special epistemic ability, obediently following teachers and traditions. The philosophical strain's emphasis on natural spontaneity, freed Continue Reading...
It is the mind that is the source of ideas, even those which we are very certain of, and not the senses or the imagination. From our mind, we learn about our bodies and every other material thing in the world. In my opinion, Descartes was right in Continue Reading...
Philosopher-kings strive to lead individuals out of the cave, and to perceive 'the real,' the pure and ideal world of the forms rather than the shadows of ideals. This idealistic concept is one reason why Plato is so determined that every human bein Continue Reading...
This phrase talks about the first bit of knowledge in Descartes' philosophy, i.e. The existence of thinking self. This is "... The clearest, and best known substance for him [thinking individual]. Upon this foundation, Descartes builds all his other Continue Reading...
Dio Chrysostomos is not always associated with the cynics, but his Euboean speech outlines the basics of cynical virtue in poverty and simplicity. In it, Dio Chrysostomos describes the dwelling and way of life of a hunter he has met, who lives in co Continue Reading...
First, there is the combining of simple ideas into one single complex idea, "and thus all complex ideas are made" (Locke, 213). Humans also have the ability to look at two ideas simultaneously without combining the; Locke calls these ideas of relati Continue Reading...
In addition, the philosopher will approach the manner in which man achieves the understanding of the world. In his opinion, the knowledge which man generally has is not a pure one. On the contrary he will generally deal with appearances. He underli Continue Reading...
not committed a crime-- an innocent person. Similarly, it might happen. that the general welfare is promoted by punishing people excessively -- a greater punishment might have a greater deterrent effect. But both of these are, on their face,.violati Continue Reading...
In essence this means that humanity lives in a state of illusion that has been technologically constructed by an intelligence that provides people with an illusionary reality. In the film it appears that humanity is being kept in a state of illusion Continue Reading...
Here, Aristotle recognizes the variances which appear to define our establishment of the means to pursuing happiness, musing that "the characteristics that are looked for in happiness seem also, all of them, to belong to what we have defined happine Continue Reading...
This humility is the element of wisdom that I did not understand prior to this course. Of the philosophers that I studied, I found Plato's views of wisdom the most untenable. Plato tried to equate wisdom with truth. I understand that when he did so Continue Reading...
'" (p. 42). This clearly indicates that Thrasymachus was not won and while Socrates ended the argument on a good note but it was more his own approval of his views than Thrasymachus'. We can thus say with confidence that Thrasymachus was also a wise Continue Reading...
The Stoic God was material, and therefore knowable to man, who is also a material being. They believed that all things which were knowable to us were of a material nature. St. Augustine took this idea of becoming close to the divine through knowled Continue Reading...
- these actions are not punished by the law because, while immoral according to many, they do not cause injury to the rights of others. Adam Smith further emphasizes the centrality of property rights. For Smith, the ownership and acquisition of pri Continue Reading...
He performs his search through the use of four tools or steps: accepting as true only what can be proven by facts, division of every question into manageable parts, beginning with simple issues and moving to the more complex and ultimately, the revi Continue Reading...
Oh, we just came back from a shoot-out. I participate in the Single Action Shooting Society where I go by the name Tex Fiddler," Joe said. How in the world did you come up with Tex Fiddler?," I asked unable to repress my curiosity. Well, I am fro Continue Reading...
Locke combined the rational, deductive theory of Rene Descartes and the inductive, scientific experimentalism of Francis Bacon and the Royal Society. He gave the Western world the first modern theory of human nature and a new synthesis of the indiv Continue Reading...
All the aspects of society are based on the models of the Forms, or the ideals of perfection. In other words, if we translate this belief into practical terms, Plato's theory really means that we should strive for the highest possible ideals in lif Continue Reading...
Leaders today must regularly make decisions that may, at times, greatly impact the lives of thousands of people. In order to be successful, they have to be able to analyze as many of the choices, plans and strategies possible and determine which of Continue Reading...
A achieved freedom from Buffet's insightful remark about "right truth." I realized that I have limited my knowledge and ability to explore and discover because I have set myself to look only for the "right truth." Without me knowing it, the truth t Continue Reading...
A similar argument is applied in human emotions (that is, emotions are also influenced by reason). Damasio explicated, a]s organisms acquired greater complexity, 'brain-caused' actions require more immediate processing...Brains can have many interve Continue Reading...
Immortality of the Soul in the Phaedo Such dialogues as the Republic, the Phaedrus, and the Symposium make clear that Socrates has certainly reflected on the demonstrability of the immortality of the soul prior to his death day. And it is entirely p Continue Reading...
So, clearly, a progression of thought has occurred to bring mankind to the brand of reality that Berman endorses; however, he seems unable to clearly delineate or characterize what this progression has been on a historical level. Doubtlessly, he is Continue Reading...
Meno There is a saying that everything in Western philosophy stems from Plato, since his writings set a foundation for all the philosophers to follow. In fact, there are those who believe that he is the greatest philosopher of all times -- even surp Continue Reading...
Nietzsche and Nihilism "Nihilism" was the term used by Friederich Nietzsche to describe what he considered the devaluation of the highest values posited by the ascetic ideal. The age in which he lived was viewed by the German philosopher as one of p Continue Reading...
Thomas Hobbes and John Locke each formulated notions regarding human liberty in nearly the same social, political, and provincial circumstances. Although their most famous works were separated approximately forty years from one another, they were bot Continue Reading...
Critical Thinking From a Philosophic Application It is often said that critical thinking is a way we humans think but not specifically what we humans are thinking about. Philosophers and Psychologists all seem to concur on the fact that we take the Continue Reading...
On orders of Pope Paul V, Galileo is ordered not to hold or defend the Copernican theory. Later, in 1624, Galileo was allowed to write about the Copernican theory provided that he treated it as a mathematical hypothesis. When Galileo published Dialo Continue Reading...
Justice: Theories Philosophers and thinkers have proposed many theories of justice and while some of them appear to be based on sound premise, there are others that completely denounced logic. In his book, The Republic, Plato has introduced us to va Continue Reading...
Although it is not entirely imperative to be able to empathize at all times, we as helpers of others must, in order to be of service, be able to understand other people's realities. Thus, more than awareness, there must also be a conscious effort to Continue Reading...
To achieve his ends man gives up, in favour of the state, a certain amount of his personal power and freedom Pre-social man as a moral being, and as an individual, contracted out "into civil society by surrendering personal power to the ruler and ma Continue Reading...
These rights are voluntarily given by the people to the government through a 'social contract' and governments exist only to protect such rights. How Far is Locke's "Theory of Property" reflected in the U.S. Declaration of Independence? The Declar Continue Reading...
posteriori, justification is a phenomenon to which a great number of philosophical directions can be applied. After defining the issue of justification, foundationalism and phenomenalism will be expounded for their strengths and weaknesses in terms Continue Reading...
Anselm argumentation is known as the a priori proof for the existence of God or the ontological argument. In his work "Proslogion," chapters 2 and 3, "That God Really Exists" and "That God Cannot be Thought Not to Exist," are the key to the entire An Continue Reading...
Parmenides is one of Plato's most important dialogues, according to both ancient and modern scholars, and focuses on the critique of the theory of forms, based on the influence of pre-Socratic thinkers such as Pythagoras, Parmenides, and Heraclitus. Continue Reading...
However, it was after his imprisonment that Machiavelli showed 'Machiavellian' traits, as he tried to pursue his political philosophy by gaining his once-deferred power by the Medici family. Machiavelli shows his Machiavellianism by devising ways to Continue Reading...
Plato and Aristotle's political theories The most capacious account of Plato's established philosophical views has been published in "The Republic" as a comprehensive handling of the most basic values for the behavior of human life. As it deals wit Continue Reading...
