Prince Theme The Prince, by Niccolo Machiavelli, is a practical handbook of political advice for leaders. Its primary purpose is to explain the best ways to obtain and keep political power. The essence of Machiavelli's philosophy is that when it c Continue Reading...
On one hand this means that absolute freedom, on the other this means man is solely responsible for his existence and future. The third condition, despair, is a manifestation of will. One has the capacity and capability to decide whether or not to e Continue Reading...
Rhetoric relates to the control of knowledge, and thus, the control of social and political power. It is therefore essential to deconstruct rhetoric to discover patriarchal and other forms of bias. Not only do biases lead to distorted knowledge, but Continue Reading...
So, who was right? Well, it seems that history has taught us again and again that in certain conditions, humans do express their evil and competitive natures (e.g. fascism, genocide, etc.); but that in other situations, the species can be incredibly Continue Reading...
If they can change the fundamental beliefs of the tribe, then they can control the natives more easily: "The white man is very clever. He came quietly and peaceably with his religion. We were amused at his foolishness and allowed him to stay. Now he Continue Reading...
The first principle of existentialism is subjectivity, in the sense that existence is subject to every man's desire. There are things which man can not control in his life, but he can assume his past and change himself if what he is does not corres Continue Reading...
Take for example, Foucault's 'Omnus at singulatim', in which the thinker shows his reader how the Christian practice of 'pastoral power' paves the way for certain modern practices that in actuality govern almost all the aspects of a living populatio Continue Reading...
The creation and development of new knowledge is an important indicator that society is progressing towards social development. However, Foucault observed how society ceased to produce 'new knowledge' as it moved towards 20th century. The emergence Continue Reading...
Efforts were made to check the power of the majority as well as the minority, for to achieve justice not simply in the perfection of the individual soul but to create a functioning and just government that has effective checks and balances that stym Continue Reading...
Plato's creates a dialog between Phaedo, Cebes, and Simmias in order to depict Socrates explanation as to why death should not be feared by a true philosopher. Plato's goal is to communication his belief that if a person truly applies oneself in the Continue Reading...
Parental authority is something Hobbes believes is based on a contract. Parents take care of children in exchange for the obedience of the child. Locke believes parental authority relies on biological inheritance and the natural rights bestowed on a Continue Reading...
Operating Systems Protection Operating systems are the collection of programs that assist users operating computer hardware to control and managing the computer resources, providing the user interface and enforcing security measures. An operating s Continue Reading...
Law Enforcement The use and control of one's own mental faculties is of the utmost importance when involved in the serious and important business of government work. The word "government" itself literally translates to "controlling the mind" in Lat Continue Reading...
Natural Law In Apology Crito, Plato presents Socrates a staunch defender law, sense respect legal orders polity a basic obligation citizenship. What important reasons Socrates position defense Athenian law? If accept Lewis' critique emotional subjec Continue Reading...
Michel Foucault's Madness and Civilization (mentioned on page 5 of 11, "the reading list") Michel Foucault's Madness and Civilization is a complex work with so many different themes that it requires strenuous and concentrated reading to understand Continue Reading...
However, in the most recent theory of evolution which discusses the living world appears as the result of chance and an output of different randomly selected natural mills. This kind of development came to present as a result of the need of more sub Continue Reading...
Kant, Rousseau, Locke In his book Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics, how does Kant apply these concepts? Discuss Kant's EACH use of: - sensibility - transcendental idealism - objective reality - understanding - Copernican revolution The philoso Continue Reading...
reason What is the raison d'etat ( reason for the existence of the state)? Compare and contrast the views presented by theorists on the purpose, role, and existence of governments: Jean Bodin, Jacques Bossuet, James II, Thomas Hobbes, and John Lock Continue Reading...
Keats attempted to purify the sublimity in nature -- but it was disconnected from the old world view of sublimity in nature with regard to God. Keats' Romanticism often employed the use of the gods and heroes of antiquity -- what it moved away from Continue Reading...
Plato, Epictetus, & Nietzsche When we discuss how Plato presents the most appropriate human attitude toward bodily appetite and/or passion, it is vital to note that Plato's method of discussing philosophy in dialogue -- as though this were a dra Continue Reading...
In other words, like Plato, the body is inferior and its substance is irrelevant for true and certain knowledge. The intellect with its faculties (judgment, imagination, memory, free will, etc.) is most important. The sixth meditation is the crucia Continue Reading...
Many have underlined the importance of the various techniques that he used, mixing painting with writing, collage and adding elements which apparently had nothing in common with the rest of the composition. I believe that the technique itself is ex Continue Reading...
People were traveling to lands like Jerusalem or Egypt, the Greek Islands and to cities like Barcelona, Lisbon or Bruges. Merchandise and aliens were bringing along traditions and civilizations different from their own. Another factor that influence Continue Reading...
Mainly, the ideals of modern science and philosophy have allowed the religious humanists to meet the stresses of modern life and they would state that their philosophy is for the here and now. Religious Humanism offers a foundation in philosophy whi Continue Reading...
Belief System: Epicurean vs. Stoic People over 65 should be prohibited from having major medical treatment such as open - heart surgery. Health care efforts would be better directed toward preventative care for children. From this standpoint this wo Continue Reading...
It is only through occult understanding that the forms and the archetypal images and symbols can be interpreted. Here we see that the term unconsciousness is very similar to the Platonic ideals and forms. Another aspect that will form part of the t Continue Reading...
Yellowstone Aristotle and the Cynics Conspire to get Snowmobiles out of Yellowstone National Park In the scenario whereby individuals are rampaging across the wilds of Yellowstone National Park, willy-nilly upon snowmobiles, the great Greek philoso Continue Reading...
Jean-Jacques Rousseau Personal Background Jean-Jacques Rousseau was born on June 28th 1712, in Geneva, a French-speaking city-state within Switzerland. He received little formal education and, in 1728, left Geneva to live an unsettled existence, tr Continue Reading...
Locke and Rousseau on the Question of Inequality John Locke's Second Treatise of Government argues that "men are naturally free" (55). In other words, Locke believed that humans, in their natural state, and prior to the creation of civil society, wo Continue Reading...
Kant and David on Causality; Rousseau and Adam Smith on Social Order Compare and contrast Rousseau and Adam Smith, on the importance of economic or political mark in their account of social order. Rousseau saw the development of organized political Continue Reading...
This is important to note because it demonstrates how Foucault is seemingly predicting now more-common method of discussing ideologies and their tactics in positively biological terms. Secondly, recognizing that the discourses surrounding sex that Continue Reading...
Pure Reason underscores the theory of Immanuel Kant that cognition depends on the employment of transcendental processes, which are contingent of the concept of categories. Kant's categories describe the phenomenon of pure understanding. For Kant, p Continue Reading...
Mill and Wilson Attempting to find any common ground between the moral and political philosophies of John Stuart Mill and Edward O. Wilson seems futile, given that their ideas are based on extremely different premises and assumptions. Wilson was a D Continue Reading...
Like Plato, More retains the belief in One God in his concept of the perfect society by injecting the foundation of Neoplatonism and blending it with a rather festive or carnival-like quality (Marius 1995 as qtd in SparkNotes 2010). Utopians enjoy Continue Reading...
If dread enters as the knowledge that there is no knowledge from which to derive a decision, yet decision is all there is, then we reach a complicated idea of what comprises the individual. If there were a concrete and appreciable version of each pe 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...
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...
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...
Psychology of Happiness Analysis of "Flow: The psychology of optimal experience" by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi In the book, "Flow: the psychology of optimal experience," author Mihaly Cszikszentmihalyi offers an alternative perspective in which to vie Continue Reading...
Cicero Born in January 106 BC, Marcus Tullis Cicero remains one of the most popular orators in ancient history. Because none of his ancestors served in the magistrate, Cicero was an "unusual" (Chodorow 105) man in Roman politics. He is admired prima Continue Reading...
